Fab FO

Finally, I can call St. Brigid...FINISHED! I seamed the neckband a few minutes ago and took a quick photo, although it isn't the greatest at least you can see it's on my body. Feels good, too. The yarn is DK weight so it's not overly heavy. I get to test drive it today and I'll wear it to Friendship Friday at the shop tonight. I found the snow photo I wanted to post the other day. I took a photo of my shadow. Oh, the sun came out to shine on my new FO!!!

St. Brigid

St. Brigid

Dutch School
c. 1510

I finally have St. Brigid pinned down and I'm so happy. The cables are so beautiful. The texture is amazing. It's exciting to finish be close to finishing this project. A labor of love.
Now it's time to swatch Kilimanjaro and I found out today that I have to go down a needle size and the lace pattern is not a multiple of 9 + 4, but a multiple of 9 + 5. Anyway, I think it'll go fine and the color changes will be interesting. (Famous last words!) St. Brigid of the Dutch School seems to approve of my effort!
We had a lot of snow today and the roads were slippery. The wind is blowing and the temperatures are dropping. A good time to hunker down and keep cozy!

First snow

Even though we've had a few flakes this month, this is (by my definition) our first snow. It's so pretty on the trees. Last night the road looked very slick. I'm glad I stayed in!

Well, the little snow ghosts wanted to be outside for a photo. I read their minds because they don't have mouths. Looking at the photo I believe they need another felting session.
I'm still plugging away on St. Brigid. I had to do another chart repeat on the back to get the proper length. With this in mind, I'm sure I'll have to add a bit to the sleeve length, too. My stitch gauge is spot on. It would be nice to see Ms. Starmore's actual sweater. Her gauge is very difficult to achieve. I found another knitter on Ravelry that did the same thing with the chart. I have the extra yarn, why not?
Yesterday I had a go-through-the-closet-and-dresser afternoon and have two big bags for Goodwill in addition to some items in the garage. It feels good to de-clutter...(As she looks around her work room at the fiber stash, photos, art supplies, and paper work.)...of course, everything in here is creatively contained.

Let there be sleeves!

It's time to sing my favorite chorus--Knitting in the sleeves, knitting in the sleeves, I am so rejoicing, knitting innnn the sleeeeves! I'm going strong on St. Brigid's sleeves. Kathy and I had coffee on Friday and she had her sweater with her. Lovely! Using the DK weight yarn was a good choice for me. The sweater will be big, but not overly warm to wear inside. I'm so excited about this project and can't wait to wear it. I'm glad we have a warm spell right now. Good time to knit!
Halloween is over and now it's time to think about winter. I'm looking for goodies to knit my buddies and I think I've got some nice patterns to choose from. The cap I designed for Ben needs to have a final revision before I give it to Cheryl for the shop. I've drug my heels a bit on designing.
I demonstrated spinning at the church bazaar on Saturday. That was fun as usual. The Cormo/silk blend is spinning up like a dream and I love the nubby noils popping through. I have to check the WPI, but it looks so far like a light worsted weight. We rang bells in church yesterday for the first time this fall. We rock!
Today I have my morning class and help night. It's a lovely day and I've got to get my house in order. It's a bit of a disaster with all the decorations down. Ugh! Halloweentown can stay up for a couple more days.

Burning up the needles!

St. Brigid's cable work

I'm making (fairly) quick work of St. Brigid's front. I'm on row 113 of 150+ rows until the neck shaping. Love this pattern. Simple shape, cables, great yarn, and happy fingers. Kathy finished hers and by the photos, it's really pretty. I have quite a bit of yarn left, so I'll have enough for an accessory or two. It's dreary (my favorite stay at home weather) and I wanted to take photos of St. B. The stitch definition is lovely and I can't wait to wear this one!!
On the pumpkin front, I'm on the last 10 rows for the body of the pumpkin--the rest of them will be smaller! The two outdoor photos are from yesterday. What a difference a day makes. It was hard to capture the yellow leaves raining down. Now, just the green ones are left to turn and fall. The red one is outside Mom's place. I brought her to the house and we burned a few leaves in the fire pit. She loved it and I got some good photos of her with Eevee. It was fun.

Halloweentown

It's that time of year. I put the town out last week. Last night I decided to let Mr. Pumpkin preside over the little town. I think it looks good. Sock Monkey decided to try on his costume early.

I'm making progress on St. B. Herr Kurbis and Jack-O wanted to be in the photo, and as long as we have the Halloween theme going I thought it was just fine. I can finally start the front tonight after bell practice. This has been an easy sweater as far as the shape! My kind of project.
Yesterday I was just looking around and stopped in Christopher & Banks. The manager asked me if I wanted to model an outfit for the store on Saturday at 1pm. I went in today to try on the outfit she picked. I look pretty good! It should be fun and food is involved, too. That's always a plus! I get 40% off that day--not bad. It should be fun.

Sparkly-glowy!

It was a lovely day today. I had a bit of knitting time before I went to an appointment, so I took out my knitting, a cup of tea, the Rainbow Maker glasses and the camera. I got the glasses for Ben when we lived in Arizona (gotta do something with all that sun!) They make the world look like a happy place! (Cue the unicorns and princesses.) Is it me, or is the ragweed really bad this year? The breeze was cool and the sun was warm. Very nice. Eevee found a spot in the shade to rest. I can't believe I'm over halfway done with the back! Looking at the original photo in the book over and over I'm beginning to see why AS put the fringe around the bottom. It looks good on the gold sweater, but I don't care as much for the purple version. Sorry purple-lovers, but the gold is more flattering on the model.

Twists and turns

St. Brigid http://saints.sqpn.com/saintb03.htm

I'm making progress on the sweater. The cables stand out nicely even with the color of the yarn. Of course, I love the flecks of color. They enhance the base color and give the surface interest. My fingers are a little sore, so I'm not knitting as fast as I'd like. I had my classes today. By the time I left it was in the mid-50s and rainy. Good afternoon for knitting at home. It would be nice to get halfway done with the back. The only problem with a great day like this is the light. Not too good. I may have to invest in something a bit better like the one attached to my art table.
Yesterday I tackled Ben's room. It really wasn't bad, just a lot of clothing everywhere. Jim's working on the basement in his area. When we get stuff together I'll make a Goodwill run.
15.09.08 I'm on a roll! No major mistakes for quite a while. The rows seem to be going faster, now. I think this is becoming a favorite. The cables are so gorgeous and my yarn is a pleasure to work. I'm still deciding about the bottom. It'll need something. Not crazy about fringe and I don't like the ribbing I've seen on Ravelry. It's like choosing buttons--I wait until I finish the project. Kathy and I are getting together for a KAL on Friday. I hope to have much more done by then!

Cable love

I'm past a big hurdle--the first cable section. I had a little problem with the center the other day and had to frog a few rows because I couldn't fix it the way I usually do, so now I'm on track again. I have a counter clipped in my notebook with the charts to keep track of my total rows and the one on my circular keeps track of the chart rows. It sounds putzy, but it works for me. I did a little number page for quick reference so I can keep track easily of which row I'm on for specific charts. There are five charts--a four-row, an eight row, and three 24-row charts. The three large charts have all the action going--lots of switchbacks! They are so gorgeous, as you can see by the photo. The DK weight yarn is nice. I forgot how much I like fine yarns. Working with it plays to my love of details.

Happy dance for cables!

I've made it through the first section of cables for St. Brigid and it's been fun. I love this pattern so far. It's just challenging and easy enough for an enjoyable knitting experience. I love the yarn--it's light and easy to use, no breaks thus far, and the color is wonderful. The color flecks create subtle visual interest. I may have to order the Herring colorway for something. I can only imagine what that must look like knitted up.
I took the book (Aran Knitting) back to the library yesterday (boo). I wrote to Interweave Press asking why the book isn't in print any more and if Alice Starmore has plans to release a "best of" book. I received a response very quickly and it was nix to both. I think that's sad. Her designs are so classic and just beautiful. The new generation of knitters would learn much from her knowledge of knitting history and well-designed garments. When I worked at Woolenworks in Texas they carried all her books. At the time, a $40 knitting book was too much for my budget. Now the darned books goes for over $240--used! Crikey! That's ridiculous! I comforted myself by going to Half Price Books and found a stitch dictionary for $6.98. It's quite a nice little book with lots of info and 300 stitch patterns. Lots of bang for the buck. The bookmark is for Ben's next goody box.

Ready, steady, GO!

I'm off to a roaring start on St. Brigid--all the way through row 8! So far, no problems. I love the yarn, it's a joy to knit with. The charts are easy to read and I haven't had any problems keeping track of the sections. Naturally, I had to go down a couple of needle sizes, but with A. Starmore's patterns that's to be expected. I think the fabric looks good. I'm sure Kathy's far along by now. I worked on spinning and socks over the weekend. I can't focus on a cable sweater in a large group setting!