Actually, you don’t have to be Asian, a woman, or even happy. Just knit!!!!
My mom wanted a wrap for her shoulders & since I did not have any knitting needles with me, I borrowed crochet hooks from my sister. Used whatever leftover yarn she had to come up with this concoction. I found a pattern on the internet- I think it was called "wheelchair wrap" or something to that effect. I prefer to knit because the stitches are more closely woven and has greater elasticity.
I was so inspired by Abigail’s FO mosaic I wanted to have my own. So here it is , 37 objects fiinished in 2009.
Everything, except the two cardigans, were started in 2009. I started Breezy Cables (top row ) back in 2006 using some beautiful yarn that I bought from Harrisville, NH during our cross-country drive. I knitted it in a KAL with Jenny to keep me motivated so that I can finish it and wear it to Stitches West 2007. I ended-up knitting a sample Millicent sock for Cookie and ran out of time. With a little encouragement in the beginning of Summer 2009, from Margit, I finished the cardigan by the end of Summer.
That left the the Fall to finish a couple of Cardigan for Arwen sweaters that Margit and I started in our two-person but infrequent KAL in 2007. Now that Breezy Cables was done, the plan was to work on Arwen once a week at lunchtime and again at BobaKnit so that they will be done by Halloween, allowing us to greet trick or treaters in our elfin garb. Margit finished hers a few days ahead of schedule and I finished mine on Halloween.
As long as I can remember, I’ve always want to weave. I made a scarf(lower right), a table runner(lower left), and a placemat(center right) with my rigid heddle loom. Last year, I read everything I can about weaving. The vocabulary, the equipment, the yarn was all foreign to me. After a year of reading books and several issues of Handwoven I can read a draft and can read through an article without looking up a word. Maybe 2010 is the year I get into weaving with a 4 harness loom! Or, I can spend a little more time exploring the intricacies of rigid heddle weaving.
I managed to catch Katie just before she rushed out of the house. Here’s a few shots of Goddess Knits Mystery Shawl #10, in action. We had to make do with what she had on, but it all worked out.
It looks like we’re trying to copy the cover of VLT, but actually we’re trying to hide the dinosaur print on the bottom of her shirt.
Here’ the back of the shawl.
This is as close as we got to Audrey Hepburn, but we really wanted to show off the shawl.
She offered to have me follow her as she run down the front stairs with the shawl fluttering behind her but we ran out of time.
We did managed to get in one last shot with the shawl worn like a wimple, reminscent of Grace Kelley …
or Mother Teresa, perhaps.
I think I’m done with shawls for now. I’ll be finishing up a couple of cardigans that have been hibernating since last winter. Also, Emmett will be coming to visit in a few weeks. If I knit like the wind, I can get him to model some knitware for me as well!
I finished my Mystery #10 shawl last night. It’s blocking right now on my brand new blocking wires and blocking board . The blocking board along with a few other thoughtfully chosen items was Ron’s birthday present to me.
Here’s what it looked like before blocking. The yarn is really soft and springy. I have quite a bit left over, probably enough to make a scarf, or a hat.
Pattern: Mystery Shawl #10 from Goddess Knits
Yarn: Panda Bamboo SW fingering by Spinning Bunny Black Cherry colorway
Needles: US #6 knitpicks harmony circular
With thanks to Janice, I got my Ravelympics pin. It is larger than all my other knitting pins and quite impressive.
For wip wrestling, I finished my Anniversary Mystery Shawl. I used up almost exactly 2 skeins of Blue Moon Silkie Sock.
It’s a smallish shawl but i like it a lot. Katie modeled it for me on what must’ve been the hotest day of the year.
Started: July 12, 2008
Finished: August 18, 2008.
Needles: US size 6
My other Ravelympics project was a pair of Gumdrops socks which is one of the Blue Moon Rockin’ Sock Club patterns. I used FiberFiend Soft and Sturdy sock yarn in the Amethyst colorway. The yarn is very soft and a pleasure to work with.
Started: August 19, 2008
Finished August 25, 2008
Needles: US Size 1.5 (2.5mm ) Addi Turbo Lace Needles
Size: small
My grandson is walking so well now. He just started taking his first steps about a month ago and now he’s starting to pick up some speed!
Time really flies and soon my little boy will be a year old! I think I’ll knit him something fun for his birthday.
In the meantime, I finished my Anniversary Shawl. I’m not quite sure how one wears a circular shawl but I’ll figure it out before the weather gets chilly. Here’s how it looks now. I’ll get some better pictures after I give it a good blocking.
This also marks the completion of my first WIP Wrestling project for the 2008 Ravelympics!
Yesterday was a significant day for those of us of Chinese ancestry. Although I was born and raised in the USA, will be rooting for the American athletes, and can’t speak much Chinese beyond ordering food at a Chinese restaurant (and just barely), I was thrilled at seeing the masses of people at the 2008 Olympics opening ceremony in Beijing and somehow felt the connection to my roots.
Meanwhile, back in my living room in California, I started my Ravelympics 2008 WIP (Work-In-Progress)wrestling event for Team BobaKnit!
In keeping with the theme, sort of, my project is a Terra Cotta Anniversary Mystery Shawl with colors reminiscent of those of the Terra Cotta Army which was unearthed in China just a few decades ago.
The yarn is STR Silkie, wool-silk blend, in honor of my grandfather who was a silk farmer in China.
My goal is to finish this shawl by the closing ceremony. I’ll be booking 2600 stitches a day which may not sound like a lot to some, but I’ll be competing in two other WIP wrestling events at the same time( more about this later).
I’ll meet up with my teammates along the way so that we can cheer each other on. Go TeamBobaKnit! Go Team USA!
Actually, it’s been in the 90’s around here lately and we’re not really in danger of being chilly. But just in case in dips below 70 in the evening, I now have a Print O’The Wave stole to cut the chill. Here’s Katie modeling it for me.
Since this is the first lace project I ever completed, I was amazed at the transformation that the mere act of blocking took my knitting: from amorphous blob to light lacey drapey fabric.
Here’s the “wingspan” pose that I’ve always wanted to shoot.
I have more pictures in my ravelry projects.
Yarn: Fiddlesticks Knitting Zephyr Laceweight Wool-silk – (about 1.5 balls)
Needles: Addi Turbo Lace Needles – size 4
Pattern: An adaptation of the traditional Print O’The Wave pattern by Eunny Jang
Started: May 1, 2008
Finished and blocked: July 6, 2008
My adaptations:
I opted to make the body of the stole in one piece, with all the “waves” going in the same direction rather than grafting it in the middle.
I made the body narrower, 3 repeats instead of 4 repeats, and longer, 36 repeats, instead of 34. For the border, I picked up 64 stitches on the narrow ends and 256 stitches on the long edges. It helps to make those numbers multiples of 8.
Finished size: 20″ x 72″
May and June have been pretty busy around here. My daughter-in-law graduated from med school. There she is with Emmett. My son and the rest of our cheering family are trying to get my sleepy grandson to turn around for the picture.
We visited Vermont, Massachusetts, and Maine. Who can visit Maine without shopping at LL Bean?
..and then look for some lobster?
In all my spare moments I worked on my Print O’The Wave Stole. Finally, I’m down to the final 35 repeats of the the 84 repeats in the border! I think I’m picking up speed now, after having worked on the border for what seems like an eternity.
I hope to get this done soon so that I can get to at least one other lace project this summer!!!
I queued Eunny Jang’s “Print O’The Wave Stole” about a month ago on Ravelry. This is my 4th try at knitting a lace stole. Hope I can persevere this time. I must overcome my short attention span. I just have to keep telling my self, “you will soon have a beautiful stole.”
I’m going a road trip to Southern California and back this weekend. Hopefully, I can get some knitting done in between babysitting Emmett and sleeping.
Eunny mentioned that the lace yarn version of the stole is huge so I’m knitting the body with 3 repeats instead of 4 repeats and cutting the length by 25% as well. I think that come out to 13 or 14 repeats on each of the body halves.
Yarn: Jagger Spun Zephyr Wool Silk – Sage Green
Needles: Addi Turbo Lace needles – size 4
