So many projects, so little time...

Yes, I still knit socks. Lately it seems I've been taken by the 'hat-and-scarf' virus, but there are still a couple of socks on the needles. This one left my Addi 2.25mm needles lately:



Yarn: Opal Rodeo
Pattern: Plain, simple, 72stitches for a reasonable man's foot.

These socks are for the man that revised a 'new' engine for my 1953 Morris Minor - the new engine is origionally from a 1956 Austin A35.

Love this hat. I made it for one of my dear friends who asked for a hat for his birthday. Casted on during a show by Slayer, it was a fast and easy knit. Used just a little over one skein so I might make another hat for me with the yarn left.

Noro Silk Garden 270; 4,5 mm needles; this pattern

Berlin and sleep well, Kiri!

It's been a while - haven't had any time to blog at all - but about the holidya... Berlin Berlin.. The verdict is out. Loved the (yarn)stores there, but the city was just not my cup of tea. I missed a warm heard. I missed the cozyness ('gezelligheid') of cities like Amsterdam and London. I even had a hard time finding nice places to eat or sit and have coffee. Anyway, I did have a really nice time knitting in the car on the way to and from Berlin (7 hours) and allmost finished two shawls. Just needed to cast them off... And between now and then, I did. Kiri is, unphotographed still, done and worn on several occasions - including a wedding. I've received lots of compliments and well, I'm quite proud of my little Kiri.

Now, about the Berlin Yarn...

The first store I went to was La Laine, located near the Kürfurstendam.



Here I got these two skeins of silk garden. Think I'll make a hat out of them.

I also found some nice sockyarn:


Then I went to Handmade Berlin. A shop that had just openend and carried a really nice variety of yarns. Go visit them, they have great stuff! Very expensive cashmere, Fleece artist, Debby Bliss .... I had to restrain and 'only' got these beauties:



Two skeins of each of the "fleur de lis" colors. I've never heard about the brand before and the label is not quite specefic. No yardage, just that it's a nylon-mohair blend. Really nice blue and green, though. Then some milk-based yarn. Feels like cotton, but made out of milk fiber. And, last but not least... Two skeins of Blue Skye Alpaca silk.... The best stuff I've ever felt.

Well, I have tons more to tell, but no more time so I'm wrapping it up for now :)

going on holiday

Tomorrow I get in the car and move to Berlin for a couple of days. Just chilling in the city, maybe finding a yarnstore, knitting a little in the car (it's 700 km, so I'll have some time to knit!)

The question arising every journey, long or short, is what shall I take with me to knit? I 'm not going for a trip around the world so one project should suffice... however...

I want/need to knit on Kiri. I have just finished ball nr. two. I've decided to just knit one more repeat of the pattern before starting on the border. It needs to be finished and blocked by October 10th...That's soon. But, it's not the kind of project to take with me and knit just everywhere. Especially when I'll start on the border and not have the pattern memorized any more. I need to focus on this project and I won't have that focus all the time. I'm taking Kiri with me and knit on it whenever I can.

Then I'll take H's shawl with me. It also needs to be finished before October 10th, but is very easy and I can knit on it everywhere.

Kiri

Knitting on this project seems to go slower and slower.



Rows are getting longer and longer... And I still have onewhole ball of yarn whilst the shawl allready looks so big. I must not let myself stop this one early. I must persist.



Nebbus appears to be getting bored with the project (too), but really, he's just tired after playing with it. I can't leave mohair on the couch unattended.

Hello again

Oh dear, it's been way too long since my last post here. Shame on me. I've been a busy girl, as usual, but I was also struck by a sudden lack of inspiration to write. Did have enough inspiration to knit, though. Let's see what I've been upto in the last month...

I finished the first 'wedding shawl'

Used Zitron's fabulous yarn Gobi (5 skeins), 4,5 mm needles (knitpicks interchangeables... Ssssmoooth), and a nice simple pattern (Campus scarf scarf style. It was a fabulous simple knit, great for evenings with a glass of wine in front of the tv. The yarn, though, might be a little itchy. We'll see what the groom thinks of it.

Well, after finishing the first wedding shawl, I had to start number two instantly. After carefull deliberations I chose Lisa Souza's Sock! yarn, colorway Pacific and a pattern and started knitting... Pattern didn't feel right. Different pattern. No. Other kind of yarn... No. Ended up with the Lisa Souza yarn and the falling water lace pattern. Think I'm happy with it so far:


Then: a pair of Regia socks

Just quick and simple stockinette for a friend.

After these relatively routine jobs, I thought about starting a lace project. But then I remembered a scarf I started a while ago:

and thought that this would be lovely to wear to a wedding... So I'm doing a couple of rows a day of this lovely pattern. The rows are getting bigger and bigger though. Don't seem to be making a lot of progress, but the skein of yarn tells me otherwise. I'm past halfway now. Not sure if I'm getting it done before the wedding, but still a nice project to work on and good to have it out of the UFO pile.

So, that's what I've been upto. Hope I'll get into the writing spirit again soon and will frequent this part of the blog rather sooner than later.