April 2009 Archives

For the guy who lives with all my yarn, here's something made of yarn

By Marnie on April 29, 2009 4:26 PM | 11 Comments

The Leo scarf is done. I cut it off the loom yesterday after work, and sneaked in all the finishing when Leo wasn't looking. A quick wash and cycle through the drier and it went from firm and crisp to soft and light.

1. Folded, 2. Around the neck, 3. Extra warm like this, 4. Rippled
Created with fd's Flickr Toys.

I am really happy with the results though the selvages are still a little rough in places. It's getting easier and easier to keep them even which makes the process more fun.

I love this yarn, by the way. It's very easy to weave, comes in oodles of colors and is clearly very colorfast. The red didn't smudge at all even though I soaked it in the hottest water my tap could produce, before I sent it through the dryer. It's quite firm off the spool but it really softens up after washing. Leo's pretty picky about softness and it completely passed inspection.

I lost some size in the drying process (which I expected, it's cotton, after all) but it also made the fabric much more cohesive looking, filling in all the gaps between threads and evening out a lot of little inconsistencies. All in all, I think this is a very practical piece and since it requires less than one spool of each color, it's also a very affordable piece.

Project Specs

Yarn: Maysville 8/4 Cotton Warp in (percentage of total scarf in each color listed):
- Linen: 44%
- 8dk Brown: 32%
- Ecru: 15%
- Cardinal: 11%
Weight: 6.5 oz / 184 g
Design: My own
Width: 13" / 33 cm (after washing)
Fringe: 7.5" / 19 cm (after washing)
Length: 65" / 165 cm (after fringe)
Loom: Ashford 32" rigid heddle loom
DPI: 10

Stuff that is making me happy.

By Marnie on April 21, 2009 4:35 PM | 3 Comments

I've got my nose buried in my latest project. The yarn was a little delayed so it's going to be tight, but so far, I'm really happy with how it's going.

So since that project is pretty much all I'm doing, all I can blog about are the other distractions in my life, like, say:

A delicious dinner at Albert Oysters with my guy. It was so good he ordered Oysters for dessert, and then, he ordered some proper dessert.

1. Leo makes a face in front of the day's fresh oysters, 2. Two each of six types of fresh oysters, 3. The remnants of the dozen oysters, 4. Entrees, 5. A second round of oysters, 6. Closeup of the shells
Created with fd's Flickr Toys.

And my brand new Twist Collective bag, which is made of pure awesome.

Oh and my dogs, who are also made of awesome.

Guess who wants a belly rub.

La Cumparsita

By Marnie on April 15, 2009 4:34 PM | 10 Comments

The pattern for La Cumparsita is now available for purchase. Get all the details about the pattern here.

Though I've shown it as a shawl, this pattern is the perfect size to wrap around your neck as a versatile scarf, easily unfurled to cover those chilly arms or shoulders, when you are out for a nice meal or at the theater.

The pattern is made up of two simple lace motifs that grow down and out from the top center point. A simple picot bind off adds a charming touch to the hem of the shawl. The pattern will beautifully showcase your favorite kettle dyed, and nearly solid hand-painted sock yarns, or would look striking in a silk or mohair yarn.

Out of towners

By Marnie on April 13, 2009 3:19 PM | 1 Comment

My brother and his girlfriend came up from So Cal to visit. It was great to see them.

We took them to our favorite fancy pantsy sushi restaurant, then out for cocktails and some dancing.

In case you were wondering, Leo's still shaving his head.

Ooh and Matt brought along an awesome belated birthday present; a whole POUND of undyed soy silk fiber. That's just half of it, there.

I plan to hand card it with some wool. I was playing around with it a little on my spindle and I really like the way the soft creamy color plays against the cool purple.

It's always nice to have a little spinning project when I'm also working on a knitting project, like, say, another super secret publication piece.

What-o-what will it be?
By the way, my tech editor for La Cumparsita has been the awesome and we're already ahead of schedule so I'm hoping to have the final pattern available for sale in the next week or so.

La Cumparsita -- Coming Soon

By Marnie on April 4, 2009 8:43 AM | 18 Comments

La Cumparsita is arguably the most famous tango. We may not all be masters of those intricate yet subtle steps and intimate grips, turns and dips, but we can surely feel as sultry, wrapped in an airy and soft lacy shawl.

Sometimes finishing a project is an act of pure willpower and sometimes projects are a joy from conception to completion. This project fell into the latter, for me. I had no other pending deadlines, so this wasn't even a procrastination project, it was simply fun to knit.

Pattern: My own (to be released soon!)

Size: 62”/157.5 cm wide by 31”/70 cm deep

Yarn: Dizzy Blonde Yarns Super Sock in Farrah

Yardage: 550 of the 560 yards in the skein (WOOHOO!)

Needle: US#5/3.75mm

I am nearly done writing the draft of this pattern and am looking for a tech editor to finalize it. I hope to have the pattern available for sale by next month (fingers crossed.)

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