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Festival Booty

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Here is my yarn haul from this year’s Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival! I didn’t go in wanting anything in particular, but in the end it seems color and gradient yarns won the day. My photos aren’t the best this go-round, but hopefully good enough to get the idea. I was afraid to take the yarns out of the packaging for fear that they’d never get back in!

First up is this little set of skeins from Miss Babs:

mini skeins of yarn in greens, blues and purples
Miss Babs Polydactyl set

This is a Polydactyl Set to use for the Pterodactyl Polydactyl Scarf, but they told me it’s also enough yarn to make an Albers Cowl, which I have been drooling over for quite some time.

Next up is my gradient kit from Unique Sheep:

Unique Sheep gradient yarn set in greens, blues, purples and pinks
Unique Sheep gradient yarn set in greens, blues, purples and pinks

Unfortunately I can’t remember the name of the vendor who was selling these but I have been drooling over these yarn sets for a very long time. You can probably see why in the photo; the colors are simply astounding! No, I don’t have any idea what this one will be yet. I’m waiting for the Yarn Gods to speak.

Last, but certainly not least, is my gradient yarn from Fiber Optic:

Fiber Optic gradient yarn from deep blue to purples to oranges
Fiber Optic gradient yarn from deep blue to purples to oranges

I can definitely say that I have also been eyeing the Paintbox Gradients from this company for quite some time, and to see the yarn in person is nothing short of amazing. The photo here doesn’t do it justice at all with how rich the colors are. I will have to re-shoot when I take it out of the box and start working with it. This one, I definitely have a plan for. I am going to make this shawl, which was hanging over my head as I was eyeing the yarns. I’m pretty sure it was sending me subliminal messages, daring me to make one:

Evenstar Shawl in Fiber Optic Gradient yarn
Evenstar Shawl in Fiber Optic Gradient yarn

This is the Evenstar Shawl pattern by Susan Pandorf. I’m not a Lord of the Rings fan but she says it is inspired by that. I guess that means that if I ever get this one done, I could equally wear it to knitting events and nerd conventions! Haha. (The last one I attended a couple of weeks ago was crawling with Jayne Hats. I’ve got one of those on the needles, too.) So, I don’t know what I was thinking because this shawl is HUGE and will probably mock me for the rest of my days. But the yarn is so pretty I could not resist.

The lady in the Fiber Optic booth was very helpful to both my friend Nancy and me, in choosing yarn and reaching things and running crowd interference. We both really appreciated that! She also told both of us about a technique called “The Magic Knot” for joining yarns together, and told us to look it up on YouTube, which, of course, I immediately did:

I have never used this join, but it certainly looks very easy, and I’m going to try it! What say you, knitters? Does this join really work, and does it hold up over time? I’m guessing I would otherwise do a Russian join but the Magic Knot seems so much less fussy!

Sigh… at the rate I’m going with my current project, I may never get to find out, one way or the other. It’ll be a while yet before I can move on to anything new. That’s ok, for now my new yarns can be my pets, and I will show them off at knit group and dream about what someday they will become. In the meantime, I’ve still got lots of other knitting to do, and a deadline fast approaching!

Goodnight for now; once again, I’ve managed to go past the Pumpkin Hour. Tomorrow is a long day, with a full day of work, long meetings, and then tomorrow night Boyzilla is performing in his school’s Spring Musical. He’s in High School Musical, Jr. as “Skater Dude #2,” or something like that, which means he’s in the chorus. I can’t wait to see this! Look for pics of that in this space, soon!

I’ve Seen the Light!

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I’m going to geek out a little in this post.

If you know me, you know I love my camera almost as much as I love knitting and yarn. I’m always striving to take better pictures. I am not a photographer, nor will I ever be, though very rarely my photos do get used in the context of my day job. I like it when opportunities to be creative present themselves.

There is a problem, though, in that I have always hated working with flash. When possible I prefer natural light, or nice, bright indoor light. However, in today’s energy-conscious world, fluorescent lighting is the norm, which, if you take pictures, you know, is the definition of UG-ly.

I never use my camera’s built-in flash. About three years ago my husband very generously gave me a Speedlite for my birthday, which was a huge improvement. But, I still hated the harsh shadows often produced. So right away I started looking for ways to get the benefits of using flash while at the same time, softening the effect. I can’t remember how it was that I stumbled upon the Gary Fong Lightsphere, but it made a huge difference for me.

The only problem was, the thing was bulky, a little hard to get on and off quickly, and its rigid form took up too much space in my camera bag.

Then I discovered the Lightsphere Collapsible. It folds down into a nice, flat shape and doesn’t demand too much of my gear bag. It’s a lot easier to take on and off, and it produces such a wonderful light that is not too harsh and produces wonderful color, something that my energy-saving, but ugly-as-sin light fixtures can no longer do. Want proof?

Photo of orange yarn taken without flash
Photo of orange yarn taken without flash

The above photo was taken in my dining room, which is fairly brightly lit with a nice, off-white ceiling. The colors in this image are soft, but a little muddy, and kind of all run together. Not bad, and certainly better than i would have gotten with plain flash. But then, look:

Photo of orange yarn taken with flash
Photo of orange yarn taken with flash

This photo was taken with the Collapsible Lightsphere in place. Yes I can see a slight shadow, but it’s not harsh at all. And best of all, guess what? The photo is showing you the actual colors of my yarn. Not too bad, eh? I think after all my years of using flash only begrudgingly, I am finally starting to make peace with it. I’ve even gone so far as to realize that natural light isn’t always best, and there are situations where having nice, soft light from the flash will really improve the photo.

I love it when my love for yarn and my love of photography converge. Look for lots more bright, happy project photos from me.

That’s my husband’s Jayne Hat in progress. It’ll be done in time for this spring’s round of nerd conventions.

Yes, I’ve Been Knitting, Too…

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It’s been a long time since I’ve actually posted here. I’ve been in a knitting (and thus, blogging) funk. But this year I have decided to try to fix both of those things. But, none of my knitting of late has been making me, well, happy. And what’s the point of knitting if not for the zen and happiness of it?

So I’ve been struggling along for weeks, trying to find the perfect project. And then my husband said that he thought he should buy himself a Jayne Hat. To which, I said, “I can knit that!” And so I am. In all the years I’ve been knitting, he’s only affected a mild interest (to keep me happy) and has never asked me to make him anything. So, he finally asked for something, and I said I could do it. And I can, really… except this particular hat has been subject to much opinion and debate as to how it’s made. I am following this pattern, but am finding the analysis of the hat on this site to be most helpful.

Of course there is some debate about the actual color of the hat, because it is often seen in deep shadow. But I see it as a sort of pumpkin-orange and goldenrod, with brick red earflaps. With two strands held together and a combination of colors from the stash, and adding a couple of other shades with the help of a store credit from The Loopy Ewe, I think I will be good to go. What do you Firefly knitters think of my color choices?

five shades of orange and yellow yarn
Jayne Hat yarn

As you can also see, if you’re visiting this blog, I’ve done a bit of work here, too. I’ve decided that this is the year I’m going to really focus on my photography skills, so I wanted a blog format that would allow me to easily build photo pages. And this one called out to me. I’ll be building my photo galleries over time, but you can check them out, here: Photo Galleries.

For tonight’s photo of the yarn I experimented with my flash. I generally hate flash photography because of the washed out colors and harsh shadows I usually get. But, since my whole house now is full of energy saving (but ugly as sin) fluorescent light bulbs, I figured I’d better start making friends with the flash. So for this photo I mounted the flash on the camera, but added a Gary Fong Universal Lightsphere diffuser, to cut down on the harsh shadows. Not bad, eh? And the yarn colors are accurate and vivid. Of course I am a bigger fan of natural light, but when none is available, this setup might just do.

As I was writing this post, my kids were behind me, laughing. And this is why:

Clyde the grey tabby peeking out from under a sheet
Clyde is hiding

Clyde had run under the chair where I had set up for photos, and got himself draped in the sheet I use for a backdrop. And stayed there, at least long enough for my daughter to snap a few kitty selfies. Never a dull moment around here, I’m tellin’ ya.

We’re expecting a boatload of snow tomorrow so I’m hoping that means lots of knitting. Stay tuned for Jayne Hat updates.

Starting is… hard.

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I don’t know what it is with me and my knitting. I am the queen of false starts. I am wanting to make another gift shawl. Since I am working on my own Color Affection, I knew this time I wanted to do something different. So, I opted for Taygete, a shawl by Romi Hill. It features garter stripes, with which I have become oh-so-familiar, but they will be running vertically, from side to side, across the body of the shawl. Then the bottom has this little bit of lace for elegance, which I think is pretty and doesn’t look too challenging. We shall see how it goes.

Of course the first conundrum was choosing colors. I feel like I know the recipient pretty well, or as well as she lets anyone know her, but when it came to choosing colors, I had a really hard time. I actually like the sample that the designer created, but could not find those colors online. So, I started looking on Ravelry for examples, to see what others have made. There were some stunning examples, and then there were a few that just made me scratch my head and realize, of course, that color preference is in the eye of the beholder. I bought yarn colors a total of three times before finally settling on my choice.

Originally, I thought it would be this:

Two yarn balls, one dark green and one tan
Cascade Heritage Silk and Dream in Color Smooshy

This is actually a mash-up of yarns from my first two purchases. The top yarn is Cascade Heritage Silk and the bottom yarn is Dream in Color Smooshy. Originally I purchased the smooshy with an “amber” color that was actually more “mustard” than I wanted it to be, and the Cascade was purchased with a blue that was quite electric, rather than the deep blue-green I was hoping for. So, I took one color from one pile and one from the second, and it produced this:

small striped triangle of knitted fabric.
Green, really?

The only thing this made me feel was “yuck.” The green is called “Spruce,” but it must be a spruce tree photographed at twilight, because the yarn looks black in all but the very brightest light. I just wasn’t feeling it and could not imagine knitting the entire thing. So, I tried again:

two yarn balls, one medium blue and one medium brown
Madelinetosh Tosh Sock

This time with Madelinetosh Tosh Sock in Worn Denim and Weathered Frame. I think I am finally happy with my color choice, but it is hard to imagine that this wonky, wee little triangle is ever going to be anything beautiful at all:

Taygete shawl beginnings
Taygete shawl beginnings

I was worried about the large loops along one side of the shawl, but I have re-read the pattern, and apparently they’re supposed to be there. Or, perhaps it is more correct to say that they happen, and I’m not supposed to worry. (I hear they’ll even come in handy in the lace section, when I have to pick up stitches.)

Then my next thing to ponder is this: which color should be the lace color, and which should be the contrast color? When I read the pattern initially, it said it took all of the yardage in the one color, so I made sure to get two balls of each because I am a loose knitter, and i haven’t for sure yet decided which color should be the lace section. Right now I’m leaning toward the blue, but I’ve heard a convincing argument for the other. Oh, well, it feels like the knitting is going a bit slow for this project so I probably have a while to decide. And maybe, since I have extra yarn, I’ll make it a wee bit bigger, too. Romi has given very clear instructions for that.

And with that, I’m putting needles down. It’s late, even for me. Goodnight!

Lots to Update

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Wow. So it’s been a few weeks since I’ve blogged. Not much going on really, except that it’s summer, and that means there are kid activities and family events to attend and even a quick weekend away, though I would not exactly call it a vacation. More on that part later. But suffice it to say, that even if my blog has been neglected in recent weeks, my knitting has not.

I made a pact with myself earlier this summer to be sure to knit something, even if it is just a few stitches, every day. Most knitters out there are probably laughing at me for this, because I am sure most of you do knit every day, or at least more than I do, judging from the number of FO’s I’m always seeing on Ravelry. But for me, for whatever reason, I love to knit, but often go days at a time without doing it. And then I’m mad at myself for not making progress on my projects. And the truth is, I feel better when I knit, so why not make a bigger effort to do it?

I haven’t quite managed to knit every, every day, but I’m getting closer. I’ve even got several projects going that are all seeing some progress, including an alpaca tube scarf, dishcloths, and yes, my own Color Affection shawl. The shawl is what I want to give a peek of today, because I have finally started the short-row section, and thus have added the third color to the mix:

Color Affection Progress
Color Affection Progress

Sadly, the longer I work on this, the less I am liking the color combination. Which is silly, considering that I am all about purple and green in combination, in so many of my yarn choices right now. And I’m sure it will be great when it’s done and it’ll look like “me”–whatever that is. So I’m keeping at it. In fact, I made a lot of progress on it so far this weekend, because of a weekend road trip that had me in the car for many hours. Hence, my next topic.

Yarn Tourism

Last week my daughter attended Music Camp at University of North Carolina Greensboro. On Friday, which was the last day of camp, each group gave a concert, and I did not want to miss it. So, my in-laws took her down there, and went to visit their daughter in Cary for a few days, and then met my husband, son and me back in Greensboro at the end of the week. It meant driving seven hours on Thursday, attending dinner and the concert on Friday, and seven hours in the car again today.

So, faced with a few hours to kill in the late morning/early afternoon, which was too long to do nothing, but not long enough to do anything major, I whipped out my iPad because I remember someone on a podcast I used to listen to mentioning that there was at least one nice yarn shop in Greensboro. The first one to come up in my search was Gate City Yarns, so I called to make sure they were wheelchair friendly (they are! yay!) and off I went with my patient husband. I was not disappointed. The shop is situated on a bustling main street of the likes that I did not expect to find in Greensboro. It would seem that there is quite the artist community there. with galleries and fun cafes and shops all up and down the row. The shop itself is roomy and inviting, with a big antique bathtub full of yarn inside. The place sort of gave me the modern, industrial feel, but with an air of coziness. (The comfy sofa with afghans draped all over it added to that feeling.)

I’m the kind of person who buys yarn by sight and feel. That is, if it looks pretty, I’m attracted to it, and if it feels nice, even better. Plus there was the whole “souvenir factor” of buying yarn in a new shop in a strange city. So, I got these:

Rainbow silk and lavender and green sock yarn
Rainbow silk and lavender and green sock yarn

The one in front is Schaefer Yarn “Andrea” in the colorway “Hermione.” (I have always been attracted to rainbows, and this is, indeed, the softest rainbow I have ever encountered.) It is a silk lace weight, about 1090 yards… which sounds like a lot but can be used up quickly. So, as usual I have no idea what to make with it that will bring out the colors in just the right way. I’m open to suggestions… I’d love it if I could get the colors to pool in such a way to achieve a tie-dye look, rather than a mottled, varigated look, but I don’t want to have to think too much.

The other yarn is Frolicking Feet by Done Roving Yarn, in the lavender and sage colorway. (Green and purple? Yeah, I told you I’m obsessed.) I did just sign up for a sock class on Craftsy , so maybe this will be used for that.

Oh, and I even had a knitting related birthday gift! Well, to be fair my husband and I are past the point of surprising each other with gifts so I sent him a link about a month ago and said, “Click here, honey, in case you mgiht like to know what I want for my birthday this year:

Addi Turbo Clicks
Addi Turbo Clicks

Yep, I am now the proud owner of a set of Addi Turbo Click interchangeable needles. I bought one pair in advance to make sure I can operate them, and after fumbling a bit, I did figure it out. So, I asked for the set, and my husband was sweet enough to get them. Kinda makes turning 48 not so bad. Sometimes.

Well, this blog post has been a long one! Hopefully I will start posting again so I won’t have to catch up so much all at once. If you made it this far, thanks for reading! And do let me know your ideas for that rainbow yarn. I don’t want to let it linger in the stash, but I do want to do something that will do it justice.