We went to Rhinebeck....

...and all I got were pictures of Pygmy goats!

I, like last year, didn't take very many photos of Courtney, D.C., Clyde and my trip to Rhinebeck last weekend. But, unlike last year, I was not a gluttonous fiend. Not having the "oh my god, we need to buy everything we see" monkey on our backs was quite nice, as it allowed us the time to wander in and out, repeating barns, taking breaks and stare at miniature farm animals. Melissa and I also continued our tradition of meeting up for the day, which was, as expected, super nice. She was even wearing her Selbu modern -- which looked awesome!

I did manage to leave with 2 more skeins (full this time) of Hope Spinnery yarn in, predictability enough, Snow (an undyed cream) and Sunflower (a golden mustard). I find the yarns from Hope Spinnery, Greenwood Hill Farm and even the bag of Scottish Tweed Aran I desperately wanted for a year and has now been sitting in its bin for almost twice that, have all reached an epic status in my mind, rendering them un-knittable. (And if Greenwood Hill had a sweater's worth of their white this year it would have ended up in the back of the car only to achieve the same fate).

In a continued effort to have my weekends live up to their name as being the end of my week and focus more on our life, yesterday Bird and I gave the wild canine beasts much needed baths and the subsequent long walk as payment for enduring perceived torture. (Is there nothing sadder than a puppy, soaking wet and covered in almond scented suds, in a tub?) After weeks of insane shedding, the bath caused Opus to practically molt his entire remaining puppy coat. For the rest of the day I was vacillating between nostalgia, obtaining countless brush-fulls of fluff and pursuing an intimate relationship with our broom. I was determined not to let the aforementioned sad yarn fate continue, so while waiting for the Phillies game to start (B.J. Upton was so out at first) and I cast on for a -- wait for it -- beret! Instead of Fair Isle -- say it isn't so! -- I am using a slipped stitch pattern in 3 colors.


The gold and white are my new Hope Spinnery acquisition and the dark grey is one of the remnants of the Morehouse 2-ply from their mill end sale last year at Rhinebeck. I was up to the very top of the crown decreases at about 1:30 am last night, but decided it wasn't slouchy enough. So, I ripped back and am re-working the decreases. I hope to finish today.

Then, maybe I'll cast on for a new sweater.

Kelbourne Woolens Blog!

Today did not turn out as planned.

In fact, I am (still) sitting in mismatched flannel pjs in front of the computer where I planted myself over 7 hours ago. What was supposed to be a quick re-design and format of the long-time-coming Kelbourne Woolens blog followed by a trip to the warehouse, down to the store and a walk with the dogs somewhere in the middle turned into cursing, welled tears of frustration and, finally, an end result just close enough to my vision.

I don't know if it was me (partly), the poorly worded and non-updated tutorials paired with the unhelpful -- and downright jerky -- "help" in the forum archives (partly) or my disbelief that my software designing fiance was befuddled by it all (partly), but what I had convinced myself was uber easy (and supposedly better than blogger*), was, in fact, coded, multi program (photoshop, illustrator, dreamweaver and the host management system) requiring, torturous hell.

But, I have won. (Partly). I still want to fix a few things but need to stop and look into getting dressed. The dogs are starting to go a little stir crazy.

So, without furthur adieu, check it all out HERE. Add us to your feed and enjoy!

*I have been telling myself to change this blog over forever. After this battle, it may be a bit more time.

Life's Little Novelties

I would like to believe I am somewhat "with-it" when it comes to fashion forward/fashionable dress. I spent the last two years studying trends, forecasting and design and know I have a pretty good sense of color. I like to walk a fine line between classic and funky (mainly through accessorizing) but rarely step out of my comfort zone. I have certain clothes I buy over and over -- after 28 years, I know my body enough to know what does and does not work on me and my short short torso -- and don't stray too far from these basics.

My knits reflect this general rule as well, especially if I am working on something that requires a large financial or time investment. I know what sweater shape works, so I usually build off of that and add elements through gauge, color or yarn. I see no reason why a sweater should not first and foremost be a functional piece of clothing utilized for the purpose of aiding in warmth. Call me what you will: my New England practicality wins every time.

The sweater on the cover of the new Debbie Bliss Magazine, the ever so creatively named Cabled V-Neck Vest, goes against pretty much all of my usual "rules" for knitting: it is a pullover, not cardigan, has short sleeves, is technically a drop-shouldered shape, no waist shaping, knit out of chunky yarn....everything I usually run from. It is, essentially, an impractical, novelty sweater. The speed at which I knew it could be finished, though, and languishing stash yarn purchased almost two years ago made it seem plausible. (And if it ended up a total disaster, I convinced myself it was not a huge loss).


After posting yesterday, I realized it was silly not to sit down and finish. I have had some unexpected free time this weekend so it seemed a shame not to do so. This was definitely the easiest knit to block: I threw it in the wash with the rest of the laundry, then laid it out it in the sun this a.m. to dry. As I mentioned before, the yarn is incredibly lofty and soft once it gets a final, real, washing machine wash and looks nothing like its former ropey greasy coned self.

I am confident to declare this one a success. The bulky knit and photos of the model laying down did cause me some apprehension as to the flattery, but it works quite well. I am happily surprised at how shaped it looks in the photos above, but I promise it is one big rectangular tube -- just as written.


Specs: School Products Cashmere Merino Blend Cone. (Yarn held doubled) Finished sweater weighs 460g -- so about 730 yards total.
Pattern: Cabled V-Neck Vest, Debbie Bliss Knitting Magazine Fall 08
Mods: Adjusted numbers for knitting in the round. Fixed pattern error to ensure cable crossovers all match.
Needles: Clover Bamboo 11.
Gauge: 9.5 sts and 15.5 rows = 4" in Seed St.
Start Date: August 27, 2008
Finished: October 11, 2008. (Took a few weeks off here and there).
Raveled: Here.

***
Sidenote: It is not my intention to claim I am the victim of a horrible crime, but I have noticed images of some of my work -- mainly textiles -- around the internet with no mention whatsoever of who/what/where they came from.

Others have said it before and I assumed because only jerks still do this it was understood and I didn't need to say it again (obviously I was wrong): While I appreciate people who enjoy my aesthetic and design, if you copy, post, use, download, etc a photo from the internet of my work, ask permission first or -- at the very very least -- reference where it came from.

Thanks.

In an effort to keep you entertained

I figured it was high time to do a blog post not featuring a finished object out of nowhere. A few weeks ago I went through a period of flailing around, starting a bunch of projects at once and not really making any progress on things. I know myself well enough to know I am much happier focusing on one project, reveling in the accomplishment of finishing, then moving on. But outside forces like the level of ridiculousness I want to demonstrate on the train (large projects need not apply), my capacity for thinking at certain points in the day, desire to use the pink cauliflower mush inside my skull for its intended purpose at other times and impatience require at least a few projects on the needles that get my attention.

Right now, I am have my bases pretty well covered. I am focusing on a lace triangle scarf, a sweater, a novelty-ish chunky pullover thing (so close....pretty dumb not to be finished to be honest) and an epic baby blanket that I am totally content not to finish until 2013.

I started a simple scarf thing a while ago, inspired by Sigridur Halldorsdottir (rav link) but it never quite did it for me. After seeing finished Laminaria's* on Ravelry, I ripped almost 600 yards of koigu and started that instead.

The neon koigu and traditional lace really works for me. The color is quite pretty, but I am pretty secure in the fact that it will never photograph correctly. The yarn glows pink and orange, but not in a safety vest sort of way. I didn't wash the yarn after I ripped it, it is a little scrunchy, but I know it will block out fine.

The original is written for lace, so I am not following the #s exactly (just the multiples) and working to a point where I like the size. I am not a large shawl girl, so I plan on working it to a large triangle scarf size (about the size of my swallowtail) and using it in the same manner as the other triangular scarfs I wear.

When I am in the mood for tweed, I turn to Pumpkin, a cable and lace sweater from the new Nashua Handknits magazine. (I think the only way to see all of the patterns is to download the .pdf). It is a nice combo of cables and lace, and something I have always wanted in my closet. The Apple Rowan Scottish Tweed DK is awesome and the pattern was easy to memorize. I have altered things slightly so it is a nice combo of following a pattern but adding the elements that I want.


The quick and dirty project I am working on is the V-Neck Slipover from the cover of the new Debbie Bliss Knitting Magazine using the Karabella Cashmere doubled. I have only the mini sleeve caps left over and should really finish within an hour or two. I ripped the Iceland after I realized it was an impractical piece for my wardrobe and thought this was a much better use of the yarn (and still have tons and tons left over).


It was definitely an impulse cast-on but I thought it would be a good layering piece for this time of year with cool mornings and nights and warm days. I wear cardigans 98% of the time, but the style of this sweater still lends itself to layering. I made some modifications (knitting in the round, etc) but followed the pattern almost exactly (a rare feat).

My braindead project is the Garter Blanket of Epic Proportions. Inspired by the simple modern style of the Buncha Squares blanket, my horde of Koigu Millends and a well-buried maternal instinct, in due time this will be a 4' x 4' lap blanket. I am thinking of making it a bonafide quilt with batting and a flannel back, but for now the drape of the koigu is winning out.

I only have 10x11 of the first 12 x 12 square done, and am following the inspiration of the original pretty loosely. I like how unstressed I feel to finish this, but also enjoy the process of picking the next color. I usually pick it up late at night with a glass of wine and an episode of the Tudors by my side. The colors are very modern and bold and mainly off bluey-mint-grey with pops of orange, pink and ochre. I am hoping by the time I finish they won't look too dated.


Bird is leaving for Canada for the week tomorrow for a show and Rhinebeck is my end of the week treat. Hopefully I can finish off a few of these guys so I can justify some new yarn (with a capitol "Y" of course!)

*One of those instances where the original was obviously quite pretty but didn't do it for me...seeing other colors/photos/yarns/weights really made it work.