More Malabrigo

This caught my eye several months ago.



It sat at the top of my stash for a few months while trying to get me to pick up on the vibe it was sending me as to what it wanted to become.

Apparently my project radar was down for a while as I was unable to figure out what this beautiful brown and blue Malabrigo wanted to be.

So, I took it with me to knit night at the shop where I adopted it.

There, my LYS owner, Leslie, and I scoured books for inspiration. We narrowed it down to a couple of scarves (because Malabrigo is totally wasted if you don't get to feel it close to you!!)

I decided on this Criss-Cross Stitch Scarf.



It's about four inches wide and four and a half feet long. Here's a close up of the stitch pattern:



It's very easy, mindless knitting. I really like what the stitch pattern is doing for the color way/varigation.

I've decided this colorscheme reminds me of Siamese or Persian cats with their blue eyes (even if the browns are a bit too dark!)

On another note: I taught my first sock knitting class last night. Six ladies attended and it was really fun! We meet again in 2 weeks with cuffs/legs completed and ready to learn how to make a heel flap and and turn a heel!

Hope your projects are coming along swimmingly!

Happy Knitting!

Hungry For More

If you Google "brioche" you're likely to find lots of yummy photos and recipes for a delicious, sweet French bread. Brioche makes the most delicious French toast and bread pudding!

However, brioche is also a stitch in knitting, one that seemed to have an aura of mystique about it. Naturally, I had to give it a go!

I chose to learn the basic brioche stitch to a scarf in the yarn DH bought me for my birthday last month. It's a lovely moss green tweed from Queensland Collection called Kathmandu Aran. It is 85% merino, 10% silk and 5% cashmere.



I think it looks lovely against my black, wool coat. And DH says it sets off the color in my eyes.

Here's a close-up look at the yarn and stitch:



Brioche is sometimes called "Prime Rib" or "Fisherman's Rib" and can be worked in a couple of different ways. The method I used involved bringing the yarn forward, slipping a stitch purlwise, then leaving the yarn forward and knitting the next stitch and it's "over wrap" together. You sort of have to forget the knitting rule about moving your yarn forward back in order to knit the next stitch(es)....but once you get it, it falls into rhythm quite nicely.

Knitters will notice that instead of the regular purl bumps between the raised knit stitch rows, there are slanting stitches, giving this rib a totally different look. It feels different too! It's a bit thicker and "loftier" than a normal rib.

I really like it and am pleased with the way this turned out!

One knitting goal for 2010 done....I learned a new stitch!

(Now I want to try some variations on brioche! Check out this beautiful brioche cable knit by ravelkate @ Ravelry!)




Happy Knitting!

Ok, Now I Get It!

Sometimes it's hard for me to accept what seems like "hype" or "PR" of products.

Growing up, I began to be responsible for my own clothing purchases in 8th grade when I babysat regularly and then got a summer job at the Dairy Queen. I learned pretty quickly that I could either buy 1 pair of "designer" jeans, or 3 pairs of "plain" jeans. To me, jeans were jeans . . . especially when you compared the fabric and construction. Levis seemed just as good, if not better in quality, than the Calvin Kleins advertised by Brooke Shields.

In knitting I learned pretty early on that I really do prefer natural fibers to acrylic. And even among acrylic yarns, some are better (softer, easier on the hands to work with, etc.) than others.

So when I heard everyone swooning over Malabrigo, I figured it was just another form of hype--a fad which would fade and everyone would look at the Malabrigo in their stash a year or two later and wonder why they had spent money on it.

Boy, was I wrong! One sitting with the luscious fibery treat and I have to say....I get it! I think it's the sort of thing you don't really understand until you do knit with it for yourself. It is the softest wool I've knit with! It's smooshy and dreamy and delightful. I'm making my daughter a scarf from it.



I figured with everything going on in our little corner of the world, and not knowing what's up with hubby's job....I just needed a little extra comfort and a dash of joy....if only for the few minutes I steal off and on throughout the day to knit on this scarf!

(Still no official word when/if job changes are coming. The governor did sign the executive order today and we are still awaiting word as to its specific impact. I do appreciate all the thoughts, prayers and well wishes though....keep them coming!)

In other knitting news....

I finished an Elizabeth Zimmerman hat for DD. It's the "Very Warm" hat from Opinionated Knitter. I used up the left-over alpaca from her thrummed mittens and another color of alpaca for the inner lining. Should be very warm crossing campus.



Progress on DH's socks is slow....and hasn't happened much the past few days what with the malabrigo on the other needles. I'm using Dreams In Color Smooshy in the Cocoa Kissed colorway for them.



All the hand-knit Christmas gifts (and the ones we bought too!) have been put into the mail yesterday afternoon. Hopefully they will reach their destinations before the end of day next Thursday.

Happy Knitting! (8 more days until Christmas!)

Pocahontas' Scarf

Several months ago my LYS (I use the term relatively.....if I were living in a huge metro area I might drive an hour across town to visit a "local" yarn shop. Ewephoria Yarns (www.ewephoriayarns.com) is the closest LYS I have and is approximately 42 miles away in another town. Considering I live in a "city" by Iowa standards [25,000 people] and Ewephoria is two or three counties away in a town of 2000 people, some people find it odd. That's all. Just saying.) owner, Leslie, organized an event on Ravelry wherein she invited knitters to creat 6x6" or 12x12" blocks which would be sewn together to form a beautifully handknit, diverse scarf to adorn the gigantic statue of Pocahontas that welcomes people to town who are coming in via Highway 3.

I was happy to knit a couple blocks. She was happy to get a great response from kind and generous knitter across 21 states in the U.S. and from 5 countries. The scarf was put onto the Princess in time for Thanksgiving and the start of holiday shopping and travel.

I missed going up for the big moment when the actual scarfing occured. However, since I edit the local monthly magazine, I decided it was high time to cover Pocahontas and drove up there yesterday to do my story. Here's what I found!



What fun! I spent some time visiting with Leslie for the magazine article (and buying more yarn, of course!) and discovered some interesting things. The scarf is 36 feet long. One lovely volunteer from Ireland actually sheared her sheep, carded and combed the wool, spun the yarn and dyed it, then knit up her square and sent it. Leslie remembered it as an orange square somewhere about 5 or so blocks up from one of the ends.

(Here's a close up in case you can spot it. Take note of the two blocks the arrows point to.)



See the Union Jack (flag of England)?? That square was contributed by a knitter from Gravesend, Kent, England. That location just happens to be the eternal resting place of the historical Pocahontas who married John Rolfe and went back to live with him in England. What a great connection for this small town in northwest Iowa named after the Native American princess!

The other block in burgundy and cream with the slip-stitch color work was in fact knitted by yours truly. (The other block I did with cables falls at the back of the neck of the statue and isn't visible in the photo.)

What a great thing Ravelry is to have brought all these people together for such a fun and whimsical project! And how great of Leslie at Ewephoria Yarns and the people of Pocahontas, Iowa to display the project....turning one piece of "art" into two!

Happy Knitting!