Summer 2014 Bucket List

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

The sweater is finally done!

Pattern: Sesame by Melissa Wehrle
Yarn: Elann Peruvian Luxury Merino Superwash in Dark Chocolate and Café au Lait
Needles: US 3 - 3.25 mm
Started: April 27, 2008
Finished: June 26, 2010


I started this sweater before my trip to Norway in 2008, because I thought it would be a good thing to wear with the spring weather. I could tell I wasn't going to finish it in time though, so I decided to work on it later. I don't know why it took me so long. I finished knitting all the pieces in early 2009 but it was still quite a while before I put everything together. I finished seaming and weaving in the ends earlier this year, and put the buttons on yesterday. Woot!

It's not perfect, but I think it's great for my first adult sweater. It fits and will be nice to wear this fall. The buttons came from Holland, sent to me by my friend's mother (Thanks Lynn).

My only complaint is that this superwash yarn wrinkles easily, but most of my clothes get wrinkled once I put them on anyway ;)

Frasier approves. 

Sunday, June 27, 2010

Adventures in Dyeing

My friend came over on Saturday and we dyed some yarn. I have dyed yarn before, mostly using Wilton Icing Colours. I had some sock yarn to dye up, and she wanted to over-dye some yarn in her stash.

I am not going to document the entire process here, but I will link to some helpful sites. I tend to just make things up as I go along, which works for me, but it's probably better to have a "recipe" or specific instructions. There is a lot of information out there on how to dye yarn at home, and a lot of different techniques. Below are some links I've found helpful, but you can find more information by doing a web search for the techniques you're interested in.

Lisa's yarn in the dye pot on the stove

My yarn, undyed wool (I did mine in the microwave)

Orange dye bath

Orange dye bath

Green dye bath

Finished wool

Dyed wool drying

Electric Mango!

I can't wait until it's dry and I can knit a pair of socks!

Saturday, June 26, 2010

Which buttons?

I have been working on this sweater since April 2008. It was supposed to be finished before my trip to Norway in May of that year. Sooo did not happen. But it's done now, and all it needs are buttons. The top one is a plastic button from Wal-mart, the other two are wooden buttons from Holland, sent to me by Lynn (I owe her a knitted sleeve for her Polaroid).

I think I like the bottom button best. What do you think?

What could this be?


I have something special planned for Saturday. This is a little sneak preview. Stay tuned to find out whats going on!

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Cotton/Lycra Mata Hari Socks

Here is what I'm working on right now. Well to be honest I have a few WIPs on the go, but this project is what I'm currently obsessed with.



The yarn is a cotton/lycra blend by Greenwood Fibreworks. I had coveted the yarn a few years back, before I had really established a stash and been sucked into online buying. The yarn is unfortunately discontinued but I bought some off another Ravelry user.

The pattern is Mata Hari by Stephanie Degen. It's not a pattern that gives you step by step instructions, but if you've knit enough pairs of socks you can figure it out.

Also, on Saturday was World Wide Knit in Public Day in Halifax. I went to knit on the lawn in front of the public library with my friend. On our way there we saw some knit graffiti! This installation was a creative way to invite people to the first public consultation meeting about the new Halifax Central Library. I did not participate but my friend did. The tree is near the area where the new library will be.

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Monthly Craft Night?

I've started volunteering with a local non-profit group, Immigrant Settlement & Integration Services (ISIS), and might organize a monthly craft night for ISIS. From their website:

"ISIS is a leading community organization that welcomes immigrants. Working in partnership, ISIS offers services and creates opportunities that enable immigrants to participate fully in Canadian life."

To learn more about ISIS and the work they do, visit their website at www.isisns.ca. ISIS puts on social events from time to time, such as movie nights or monthly cooking classes. I was chatting with an employee at ISIS about knitting, as her mother owns a knitting shop, and she and some of her family knits. We both thought it would be fun to have a monthly craft night put on by ISIS. It would be a casual get together for ISIS employees, volunteers, and immigrants new to Halifax to enjoy crafting and socializing. The craft night might be held at ISIS, located in the West End Mall, or some other place to be determined.

The only craft I really know is knitting, but certainly there are a lot of people out there into other crafts such as scrap-booking, jewelry making, or crochet. It would be a great opportunity to share what you know and maybe learn something new!

At this point I am just brainstorming, so if you are interested in this (whether you craft or now) or have some ideas for crafty things this group could do, please leave a comment. Also feel free to pass this on to your friends in Halifax.

Saturday, June 12, 2010

Rosie the Riveter Knit Kerchief

I have really thick hair and it’s hard to find hats that fit on my head. When out in the sun my scalp always burns, especially in the part. I plan to attend World Wide Knit in Public Day this year so figure I could whip up a kerchief in a few days to protect my head.

Pattern: Rosie the Riveter Knit Kerchief by Amy Boatright
Yarn: Bernat Handicrafter Cotton Ombres & Prints
Needles: US6/4.0mm (Denise Interchangeables)
Started: June 10, 2010
Finished: June 12, 2010

I cast on 89 stitches instead of 91. 91 stitches won’t work anyway, because the pattern is a multiple of 4 + 1. Also made my bobbles differently: k1fb twice in next st, turn, p4, turn, k4, slip third, second, and first sts one at a time over fourth st. Other than those mods, I knit the pattern as is. I wasn't sure about the bobbles at first, but once I put it on I thought they looked fine. You can omit the bobbles though if you like.

Kerchief FO
This is what it looks like before you seam up the head band. Looks a bit funny.

Kerchief FO
Here I was trying to demonstrate how to attach the two ends of the head band, though I realized after I uploaded the pic that this is wrong spot to seam, but you get the idea. Clicking on the photo will take you to Flickr where you can see notes on the photo.

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Yet Another Blog

I've had a few blogs over the years; some have stuck, some have not. I decided it was time to have a knitting blog again. So here we are! I really plan to only talk about knitting on here, but I might talk about other topics, like cats!

Stay tuned!