random thoughts friday

I've had trees and tree-like shapes on my brain lately as I'm working on a chart for a project. They're generally a constant source of imagery in my head and I frequently dream of forests and bosques. I've also been listening to Arcade Fire a lot; mostly while riding home through the tree-lined streets after work on the bus. I saw them in concert last fall and I'm so glad they're getting the recognition they deserve. Speaking of trees, this is a cool film by Chris Milk with Arcade Fire's "We Used to Wait".

I'm also trying to curb my obsession with Ann's fabulous new design, as I have many other things to knit right now. Though I do have stuff that would work in the stash...

I'm also doing a lot of spinning, so I'll post about that soon. Hope your Friday is fab.

keeping the dog warm, take 2

Pattern: DROPS dog coat, again

Yarn: Cascade 220 superwash colour # 1909

So I really felt I had provided the dog with too small a sweater in my last post, so I re-knit it in the largest ("Cocker Spaniel") size in another superwash yarn. This is a great heathery, deep red and works well with the cables. She seems to like it, though she's really amenable to pretty much anything. She goes home today and we will miss having this very sweet dog.

We're all suffering from bad chest colds here, but I hope you're having a good weekend.

the dog needed a green sweater, too

Pattern: DROPS dogcoat

Yarn: Knitpicks Swish worsted in 'Dublin'

Here's another green sweater that only took a week to make. Hmmmm....if I stuck exclusively to bulky yarn or very small sweaters I would have 52 by the end of the year...

Here is wee Kira who is staying with us again for a week. Although the weather is fantastically warm today she allowed me to try it on her. I was using leftovers from a previous sweater, so I worried about running out of yarn the whole time and made it a bit shorter as a result. I also started this before I had her to measure, so I was guessing between "Bichon Frise" size and "Cocker Spaniel" size. I picked Bichon Frise but used worsted instead of dk weight yarn, hoping to split the difference. I'm not sure it worked because I think it's a bit snug. After blocking I'll take another look and decide. Regardless, it's a very nice pattern.

Hope you're having a great weekend. Happy Valentine's!

and now for something completely different...

Pattern: from my head

Yarn: Quince and Co. Puffin in 'Parsley', plus a bit of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran in brown for the pockets

Something super quick (it took a week) in bulky warm yarn - I've been piling on the sweaters as I leave the house for various cold hockey arenas and this one will work well for that, I think. I love the big collar that can sit open or button up for extra warmth. I also adore these fabulous dark toggle buttons. The yarn from Quince and Co. is wonderful, too. The outdoor photos show the colour best. In my haste during the photo shoot I missed buttoning one button - my sweet 10 yr. old photographer was freezing! (not me, though. I was toasty)

I decided to make pockets on the side 'seam' (there are no seams on this) with the Bliss yarn to match the buttons. The construction is top-down, with set in sleeves made with short rows on the caps.

Fast. Fun. Warm.

Sant'Angelo

Pattern: Sant'Angelo by Kirsten Jensen

Yarn: Brown Sheep Nature Spun Sport in #740 'Snow, #135 'Hurricane Seas' and #N78 'Turquoise'

I loved every minute of this one and I think I'll wear it a lot. It took a bit longer than I'd hoped as other stuff got in the way, but I'm glad I'm still done in time to enjoy it while the weather is cold. That is about a 4' pile of snow in my front yard. We're a bit tired of shovelling every few days, though we're not nearly so bad off as those south of us.

I'll post the winner of the previous post's contents later tonight. Hope you're having a great weekend!

Update: The random number generator gave me comment #4, so Andrea from At Home Mommy Knits is the winner! Thanks so much to everyone for checking in and telling me what you're doing! I love hearing from you.

two

So my blog is turning two in a few days, and since I did a giveaway on my first blogiversary and-it-was-fun-but-I'm-not-necessarily-starting-a-tradition-or-anything-so-don't-count-on-it-every-year-but-you-never-know-cause-I'm-sort-of-fond-of-traditions....here's another giveaway. Enough Dale of Norway/Dalegarn 'Heilo' to make my Seeds hat pattern. I'll throw in a hardcopy of the pattern and send you the pdf, too.

So leave a comment about whatever you're doing /thinking/knitting and I'll pick one using a random number generator on the day - Saturday Jan. 29th - 9:00 pm CST.

Thanks for stopping by and hope your weekend is going great!

the weather outside is frightful

Sant'Angelo check-in. This is going to be lovely and warm once it's done and I'm looking forward to finishing, since it's rather cold right now. I've decided I want a whole closetful of stranded sweaters. Gobs and gobs of 'em.

Speaking of stranded, I'm sure you've caught the Harlot's great post about working with multiple yarns at once. I especially enjoyed #6, as it's so easy to be frustrated when learning a new skill. I also hear many many people say they consider themselves unable to even attempt stranded knitting / steeking, etc. in the first place. To you I say 'be fearless, friend!' Have the spirit of adventure. If it's something you really want to learn, then just go for it. Accept that you will suck at it for a bit. Like everything, it gets better the more you do it. Start small, but start somewhere.

I also want to mention this designer whose ingenious brain churns out amazing stranded creations: isn't Connie's dress fabulous??

Stay warm and have a happy weekend.