Sunday, March 25, 2012

Knitting wise...

Made good progress on the Persuasion Scarf this week. Knitted every day on the subway--saw the poster I wrote about last time--to and from work. I'm almost done the first half. It's knit in 2 pieces then grafted together in the center. This allows the design to flow down both sides of the scarf when worn. Luckily I have not had to depend on the life line yet, although I keep moving it up every 6 rows--just in case.

The lace bug has really hit me this time and as of last night I have 2 more lace projects on the needles! I decided not to work on the scarf on weekends since I'm on it every day during the week. Therefore I need something else for weekend knitting, right?

I wanted to look for a lace scarf pattern suitable for a man and lo! I found one. It's called Quercus alba and it's designed by Renata Brenner who is a biologist so I feel assured that the oak leaves in this pattern are the real deal. I love oak leaves and acorns. I remember collecting some when I was a child and pressing them (the leaves) between waxed paper. The yarn I'm using is Cascade 220 (Peruvian highland wool) in color No. 9445 which is a green/orange mix but has an overall brownish look. I'm excited at the prospect of ending up with a lace scarf suitable for myself.

I'm also making a table mat based on the Brighton Lace Doily pattern which appears in Nicky Eptein's Knitting For Your Home. It is illustrated in crochet thread but I'm taking it to a funkier place. With larger needles (size 8) and a colorful lumpy-bumpy cotton, I'm hoping my resulting mat will be large enough to use as a centerpiece. I think it will. 11 rows done since last night and it doesn't look like much yet:
I wouldn't do this one, with this yarn, without a life line. Whereas I've been clear of major difficulties on the scarf, I have had to rely on this one's life line once already! Had to frog back 2 or 3 rows late last night.

This funky yarn has advantages and disadvantages. On the plus side: Because the color segments are relatively short I get many different colored loops on the needles and this is quite handy when slip-knit-knit-psso'ing: the slipped stitch is usually a different color! On the minus side the lumps and bumbs can be hard to pass through the loops, but not impossible. Also, since the yarn is quite textured it takes a more careful look to see exactly what kind of stitch I have to undo--when I have to undo a stich or two--there will be more before I'm through. I'm sure.

This is a fun one and won't take too long to finish. I may afterward knit one in crochet cotton just for the record, and if I like it, I'll make a set.

With all this knitting and music making (started Suzuki book 3 for cello last week, yippee! and started Liszt's Liebestraum on the piano this week) I felt in need of a walk this afternoon. I leave this post with these few pics from my neighborhood springtime juant... enjoy... (and if you open Liebestraum in a new window and get that going, then come back to browse through these few pics while the music is going, the effect is quite nice!)...






4 comments:

  1. That merino silk should be amazing to spin! Glad that the lace bug has bitten! Really enjoyed looking up the links esp reading about the development of the white oak pattern. Had been wondering about the springtime look in the park near you. Great pics. Thanks for them. Frost here last night and quite chilly. A refreshing breather from summer... :)

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  2. I love the oak leaves; I'm a big fan of leaves in general. Your scarf will be beautiful.

    Liebestraume...lovely.

    Fun that you're using the Suzuki books for cello. I used the Suzuki piano books through book 5 as an adult re-beginner about 10 years ago. My younger son was a Suzuki piano student at the same time I was. We had a great experience.

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  3. I'm looking forward to seeing the lace scarf! The acorn and oak leaves have a special meaning for me. I'll explain the next time we visit. I also love the placemat! ( I enjoyed reading the links).
    Your afternoon walk (with camera in hand) looked so inviting and yes, I did listen to Liebestrand as I viewed your photos.
    Keep up your good work with this blog...I enjoy reading it!

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  4. crafty1, I look forward to hearing about your acorn and oak leaf story. (Maybe in June!)

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