Knitting for Christmas 2013

It's mid-September, so time for panic to set in. I try to start on the holiday knitting every year, but it never fails that I'm rushed for time as Christmas draws near.

I'm working on Cameo by Paulina Popiolek:

I had three random skeins of sock yarn (only enough yarn for one sock); this has been a good project with which to use them up. I'm finishing off with some leftover Brooks Farm mohair from another project. I'm not thrilled with the pooling of the colors in the middle, but it will do.

I'm binding off right now (top photo). It's a picot bind off (bind off 2, *slip stitch back to left needle, cast on 2, cast off 4, repeat from * to end). It's taking for-freeking-ever, and it's super boring, and there are (what seems like) a thousand stitches. But I'll keep picoting away.

I'm also working on two projects from Short Story by Cathy Carron. This is the Bohemian Wrapsody start (it's the hood):

 

Again, this stitch is horribly boring (YO, p2tog) across row, every row. But only about 80 stitches per row, so it goes pretty fast. Also, I'm changing the pattern so the lace pattern isn't over the shoulders, i.e., to make it warmer.  This yarn is a mohair blend from Green Mountain.

I'm also working on Painter's Palette from the same book. No new photo of that yet; since it's knit in the round, right now it just looks like a weird giant hat. I should be casting off the body soon, so watch this space for a photo.

I have lots of other things on the needles, and I have to discipline myself to keep from working on other things that don't have hard deadlines. But, this weekend I'm taking a class from Cynthia Rutledge at Funky Hannah's in Racine, WI. It will be good to get some beading time in!

Sheep, Wool, and Knitting in Wisconsin

Yesterday I attended the Wisconsin Sheep and Wool Festival for the first of what I'm sure will be many times. It's a very nice show, much smaller and much less frantic than the Maryland Sheep and Wood Festival. There were some of the same vendors there, and I was actually able to get into their booths and do some damage, e.g., Fiber Optic Yarns, where I purchased these:

This is 900 yards of Bamboo Lace Yarn, Blush-Celery Gradient. Even though I have a bazillion projects already on my needles, and it's my goal to finish everything on my needles, and I have Christmas presents to finish (and it's September already!), I couldn't resist casting on with this. I started Sivia Harding's Norwegian Woods Shawl. I'm only on row 21 of chart A, so there's not much to photograph, so I'll do that when it looks like something. I'm really into the pink-yellow-green-orange color palette, which is +Roxanne Rash's fault. :o)

I don't have a wheel with me (still camping out with my knitting and computer in our new Wisconsin apartment), or I probably would have started this too! It's superwash Merino/Tencel roving. Yummy.

I also purchased these from Green Mountain Spinnery:

 This is Mountain Mohair. I'm going to use it to make a poncho, Bohemian Wrapsody,in Short Story by Cathy Carron.

This is Simply Fine, and it's variegated greys, which aren't showing up in the photo very well. They had gorgeous shawl knit up with it, and I couldn't resist. Don't know what I'm going to do with it yet.

I purchase overdyed DK weight yearn from Four Crows Farm. The owner of the farm is also part owner of a yarn shop (The Cat and Crow) located in Mt. Horeb, WI, which is on my list of places to visit. I think +Helena McGevna likes it there too:

Again, the photo is not doing the colors proper justice. I have another pattern from Short Story in mind for this yarn. I'm itching to get started, but Christmas knitting has to come first.

I purchased two balls of Kauni for a baby blanket pattern:

And I purchased Srui alpaca yarn from Little Gidding Farm to make Stephen West's Rockefeller:

The darker color is teal, and it's a cabled yarn. The gold is called Sunflower, and in the sunlight, it's a color you could dive into and swim around in, i.e., luscious.

I also bought four patterns: Rockefeller (see above), Milkweed by Carol Sunday, Girasole by Jared Flood, and Spectra by Stephen West.

I had a good time at the show. It's about an hour away, and it was really nice to be able to have the time to chat with the shop owners. I can't wait to go again next year!