Trish Knits.com

Tag: shawl

  • The Knitting Goes On…

    I’ve been making slow but steady progress on my Color Affection shawl:

    r Affection Shawl Progress
    Color Affection Shawl Progress
    eup of Color Affection Shawl
    Closeup of Color Affection Shawl

    I’m concerned that the shawl seems very wide but not too deep so far. I hope that when it’s all done that it’s big and snuggly. I suppose if needed I could make the border section wider. The shawl is intended to be a gift, and I want it to be a big, warm hug to the recipient.

    I am very pleased with the yarn. It is Dream in Color Starry, which is the same as Smooshy yarn, I think, except that there is a tiny silver thread running through it. I like that this shawl is going to have a little bling.

    I would be lying if I said I wasn’t getting at least a little bit bored. I’m at that stage in the knitting where it feels like I’m doing an awful lot of knitting but not making a lot of progress. And, it doesn’t help that the rows are sooooo wide now. I’m dying to make something else, like a simple hat or a scarf, but I know that if I stop now, this would just land on my huge pile of already abandoned projects. So, I will knit on. I am determined that this project will be finished and delivered. Wish me luck to keep going…

  • Yes, I’ve Been Knitting, Too.

    Ok, so this website did start out as a knitting blog, and I’m not intending to lose that concept. It’s been a while, but I have an update.

    I’m fascinated by the Color Affection shawl, and have yarn to make four of them. *gasp*

    Color Affection closeup view
    Color Affection closeup view

    This one is made from Dream In Color Starry yarn in brown, grey and blue. This one’s a gift for someone who could use a little extra sparkle in her life, so you’re just going to get a sneak peek for now. Sorry!

    Closeup of brown, gray and blue striped shawl
    Color Affection in progress

    I’m loving knitting this project, and I’m looking forward to the next one, which will be for ME! That’s all for now… gotta get to work.

  • Back from the Knitting Black Hole

    Back from the Knitting Black Hole

    Shawl Progress, December 2011Well, now. I have no excuses for why it’s been so long since I’ve blogged. I have no excuse, other than the fact that this is a (mostly) knitting blog, and for the last several months, I’ve felt as if everything about my knitting has been anything but steady. My knit group had struggled over the last several months about our meeting place, and I’d been working on several projects that my heart hasn’t been in, so I rarely, if ever knit at all. In fact, over the last several months there would sometimes be weeks and weeks where no knitting took place at all.

    So a new year is about to start, and our knit group is settling down in a new place (I hope) and I’ve decided to go back to what makes me happy. This means I only completed one charity scarf this year, and I am returning to my shawl, which I had set aside while trying in vain to be successful at charitable knitting. I think I’ve realized that charity knitting is not for me. It’s great for the people who can crank out so much knitting that giving away some of it only seems fair. I, on the other hand, have realized that I spend so little time knitting, that it’s becoming a miracle if I can complete more than one or two projects in a year. So, in order for knitting to make me happy, I have to knit what makes me happy. Does that make sense? So, back to the shawl it is. I hope that none of you get bored with me talking about it, because, well, it’s gonna be a while before it’s done.

    There’s also been a lot going on that I haven’t blogged about. Like in November, when I went on my first-ever cruise, and Rick Springfield and Beeb Birtles happened to be there. i should really write about that, maybe, except that probably for most of the folks who know me, that whole story is old news by now. But, if you read this, and still want me to write about it, let me know, ok? And I will.

    And then last week, there was a Christmastime tour of The White House. I once went to the White House when I was about 7 years old, but I barely remember it. Though, I do remember that it was at Christmas time, because I have a distinct memory of the Christmas Tree in the Blue Room. I was in Brownies then, only I was in a troop of all girls with disabilities, because the disabled girls were not permitted to join the other girl scout troop at our school. (Yes it was really like that in those days.) So, I think since we were a troop of all “special girls” the leader called ahead and arranged a meeting with the First Lady for us. (It was Mrs. Nixon; I’m getting old.) Other than the Blue Room I have almost no memory of this day, except that Mrs. Nixon gave us all gold pens with her name on them. So it was fun for me to go there, and I have pictures of that, too… perhaps I’ll post them here, though they are on my Facebook Page, if you want to peek.

    But other than those events, my life has been fairly uninteresting and work has been fairly stressful, and so knitting has been stalled, thus, so has this blog. So, my resolution for 2012? To rediscover the joy of knitting, and to make it worth writing about. Are you with me? I hope so.

  • Long Time, Not Much Knitting

    Long Time, Not Much Knitting

    I’ve been away from this blog for so long, I was starting to wonder if I’d ever come back. But, alas, here I am. I have so much blogging to catch up on! I never did write about the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival this year, or my Knit group’s first ever spinning day. Both events were wonderful! And I will write about them. But I’ve been missing some energy lately, so for now, all I have is this:

    Shawl Progress
    Shawl Progress

    It’s my Pi Are Square shawl, designed originally by Elizabeth Zimmermann. I just started the largest lace section, which is a garter stitch version of the Flame Chevron stitch. I don’t know yet whether it will look good in garter stitch, but I’m hoping so! I made a commitment early on to make the whole shawl using garter stitch lace patterns, sort of as a tribute to the Great Elizabeth, who inspires my knitting so much.

    The only problem I see so far is that this is the largest section with tons of stitches per row, so it’ll be slow going. And you know what that means for me, usually, when it comes to knitting! I have a really poor track record with finishing stuff. But, I’m hoping that this time will be different. I really, really want this shawl! So, I will soldier on. I’ll be counting on all you knitters to cheer me on.

    Thanks in advance! In the meantime, I’ll leave you with a closeup of my shawl:

    Closeup of my shawl in progress
    Closeup of my shawl in progress
  • Just Another Update on a Thursday…

    Just Another Update on a Thursday…

    Today I decided that it’s time to put the shawl on two needles, so I spread it out while I could and snapped these:

    Just another photo of the shawl in progress
    Just another photo of the shawl in progress
    Shawl, up close
    Shawl, up close

    Yesterday, a co-worker put it on her shoulders, and it’s the size of a cute little shoulder shawlette. Another co-worker walked in while the two of us were playing with the shawl and ooh-ed and ahh-ed at it, and requested that I knit her something smallish, just like that.

    People who see my knitting ask me to knit for them all the time. I used to be a sucker, and I often bit at the chance to knit for others, until I realized how rare it was that I actually finish anything. So, I’d sooner teach someone to knit than to knit something for someone. Know what I mean? They’ve actually got a chance of having a knitted item if they make it for themselves. I think I’m a better teacher than a do-er. Does that make sense?

    But, I am determined to finish this shawl. After all these years, I deserve to finish something, so I can have something of my own to wear.

    Wish me luck…

  • Shawl Update–Again!

    Shawl Update–Again!

    Bleh.

    I was awakened this morning at about 4:30 by our weather alert radio, shortly followed by a kid whose sleep was disturbed by pounding rain against his bedroom window. There were tornado warnings just south of here. They say the worst of the weather has passed, but it’s still gray and icky outside. I don’t like it. It sorta matches my gray and icky mood.

    Last night before going to bed, though, I decided to take an updated photo of my shawl in progress. See?

    Another shot of the shawl in progress
    Another shot of the shawl in progress

    I may not make progress on my projects as quickly as some knitters in the blogosphere, but I do see definite progress each time I take a photo. Soon, I will be switching yarn colors and switching lace patterns. It’s looking like both will happen at around the same time, but we’ll see. I think I’m also going to have to switch to a longer cable, too, because it’s getting all scrunched up on my needles. So, it looks like some transitions will be happening with the shawl soon.

    The thing is, I’m not quite decided on what lace pattern to use. Again. I had thought of doing the Cat’s Paw Insertion (example of cat’s paw insertion in this shawl pattern). Or, do I want to be adventurous and try the Random Lace Pattern Generator? I want to stick with a pattern that will look ok if converted to garter stitch, and would be easy to memorize. I’m open to ideas… any thoughts?

    Well, I guess I’m gonna go slam half a row on the shawl before work. Have a great day!