FO: Pup Tent

Growing up, I had many, many cousins. I lived pretty far from them, so I wasn't really part of the tight-knit core group. When I would visit them, it was fun, if mostly because I got to ride around in the bed of a pickup truck and I was allowed to operate heavy farm machinery at a tender age. Plus, my vocabulary of bad words and insults would grow tenfold anytime I spent more than a few minutes with them. That is if I could stop coughing enough from all the cigarette smoke being inhaled second-handedly.

Anyway.

The name of this hat is Pup Tent. I can not say the words "pup tent" without cracking up a little bit. It's mostly because my disrespectful trash-talking cousin once yelled while observing clothes hanging out on the line, "Aunt Linda, your underwear are so big, I could use them as a pup tent!" and then we all scattered like so may giggling deer to escape the wrath of a chubby, angry aunt. When you are six, it's funny. Or, as we might say, "wicked funny".

The pattern is a freebie. I made it a little larger to use up the yardage and ended up with a nice slouch. I used it to use up the last 150 yards of Canopy Worsted leftover from the Vine Yoke Cardigan. It's simple and it used up what I had left, and it will now make a very nice gift for a winter-climate dweller (although perhaps just not for my Aunt Linda).

FO: Vine Yoke Cardigan

Just in time for warm summer breezes, a heavy winter wooly cardigan to see me through. It's the Vine Yoke Cardigan by Ysolda from a Twist Collective that was published in 2009.

Springtime here was not exactly an airy brief silken clothing inspiring event, so I sat down and churned out a quick sweater despite the fact it might be a while before it actually gets some use. Some people make hay when the sun shines, I make wool winter sweaters while the populace dons winter coats in June.

Actually, this was intended as a gift, so I made it size up than what I normally would make myself. The pattern is unusual as you knit it sideways, which lets the unique lacy cable wind its way across the shoulders, and I loved the small lace details of the cuffs and waist. The pattern wasn't hard at all, but there were a lot of short-rows involved so you had to pay attention, but otherwise you could have this done and blocked in a week or two and be done with it. It's hard to adjust the fit in sweaters like this, but you could easily modify to make the sleeves longer of shorter.

What's better than getting a wintery-warm sweater in July? Nothing. It's almost like one of those anti jokes: What's worse than finding half a worm in your apple? Cancer.

The pattern called for buttons and button holes. I thought it looked sloppy, so I left them out. I am currently in the market for some lightweight pewter clasps to fasten the front. That dpn is just for show!

The yarn is The Fiber Company Canopy Worsted. I used 8 skeins- a mere 800 yards, so it's very easy on the yardage. It's a 50% alpaca 30% wool 20% bamboo blend. Quite warm, if I have to sum it up. It's lovely to work with, with very little of the prickle that I grew tired of alpaca for. Every time I declare myself "over alpaca" this yarn brings me back. The color is a lovely heather green "yerba mate".

FO: Sylvatica

Before I get into the rabbit hole of all the travel adventures, here's a sweater I made. LOOK.

Once upon a time, there was a really great online yarn store called Flocks of Yarn. Sadly, they went out of business. Happily, I am an opportunist. I bought up all the Fibre Company Road to China Light for a really steep discount.

If you get a chance to get your hands on some, please do. It's a blend of alpaca, silk, baby camel and cashmere. To die for. Obviously, not cheap.

I did bring this with me to France and decided to start an epic sweater with it. I choose the Sylvatica from Twist Collective, which I've been wanting ever since it came out. I love short-sleeved light sweaters. I generally have a couple of light sweaters like this in the wardrobe rotation. They are less casual than a t-shirt, and they look great paired with skirts...

....Or hiking boots and pants, if you happen to have been banging around in the mountains that day.

I loved the lace pattern in the front, but found it kind of silly to have one mirrored in the back, so I left that out.

I still need to find buttons for it. I'm thinking tiny pearly pink ones will do nicely.

I'm wearing a sports bra in these pictures, so normally I fill out the top portion a bit more. But, eh. That's traveling for you.

Yes, I love it. It's soft and drapey and I've worn it quite a bit already.

The only thing I might do differently is the arm scythe is a bit snug, but after a couple of wears it seems to have loosened up. It's infinitely wearable, and just a good all-round sweater to own.

I did have issues getting gauge, and knit this a few inches before realizing it was going to be enormous. I ripped back, did some math, and then cast-on for the smallest size. I also worked this in the round instead of flat.

While a sweater with fingering-weight yarn on #3 needles takes quite a while, I think the results are worth it.

The pictures were taken in the tiny mountain village of Chefchouen. All the buildings in the medieval medina are painted blue! It was a really beautiful place, and I'll have lots more about it later.

FO: Selbu Modern

While I'm at it, here's another hat I finished and it's my go-to winter hat this year.

It's the Selbu Modern by Kate Gagnon Osborn. I've been meaning to make it for years now.

While the pattern is written well, colorwork is always a little time-consuming as I can't read charts when I'm anywhere but home, so it takes me a little while to complete something.

The yarn is The Fiber Company Canopy Fingering in the colors "Orchid" and "Fern". I wanted something subtle and washed out to go with my muted winter palate this year. I love this pattern- it reminds me of an eastern architectural motif- and I could see stealing it for a colorwork yoke sweater.

While I could have gone up a needle size on the main part of the hat to make it slouchier as written, I like it as it is. It's very warm- the yarn floats in back makes it particularly wind-proof. Coming back to Paris after spending some balmy days in New York and it's exactly what I need to keep my ears covered. It's been barely breaking freezing in the mid-afternoon, and the dark has really set in. I'm getting used to it, but it's really wrecking havoc on my sleep cycle as I'm waking up in the morning to a few more hours of night, and that's just weird. So I'm embracing it- dressing warm and waiting for the return of the sun.

FO: Grace Lace Beret

Oye. I've been really slacking on any sort a crafting lately. True, there are many things going on. A sewing machine clacking away in a game of "will it fit" chicken, an antique spinning wheel testing my mechanic skills and patience, a gorgeous spindle will occasionally be put into commission before it loudly clacks to the floor. Oh, the knits though. I'm having some issues sitting down and finishing anything (obviously). I currently have a very lightweight sweater on the needles that is almost done and it's been almost done for a while now. While I'm usually wrapping up the gift knitting right about now, this year I am coming up short. Y'all can deal with the hats and mittens that I made you last year for another winter, right?

I made and gifted a simple beret a few weeks ago.

Actually, it was more than that. More than a month ago now. Gah.

It was simple- a free pattern online. It used up a skein and a half of Canopy Worsted in "Palmbud". I love this alpaca/merino/bamboo blend. I did one less lace pattern than called for since this is a gift for someone with a small head, and I thought any bigger/floppier would look ridiculous.

It did take me about a day to make from start to finish. If I'm working on something that has an end in sight, I tend to just sit down and get it done.

FO: Springtime Bandit

I have no idea how I had the capacity to *eff this shawl up as badly as I did. It's a first for me.

I had four gorgeous skeins of The Fiber Company's Canopy Worsted in a gentle light blue shade called "Palm Bud". A lovely blend of bamboo, alpaca and merino, I was waiting for a special project to hit me. I finally settled on the equally lovely Springtime Bandit Shawl. Thousands of other people have made this shawl and raved about it, and it's well-known as a simple and fast item to knit.

"This is *effing easy!" I remember saying to myself as I cast on. Months of teeny tiny gauge projects on size 0 and 2 needles made the worsted weight yarn feel like rope (soft, lovely rope), and it just flew along. I did the called-for Four pattern repeats, puzzled over why I was still on my first skein of yarn, and did two more repeats, just for fun. I thought the shawl was shaping up a little oddly, but, hey, whatever, most knitting surprises me in the end anyway.

Two days later, off the needles, I had my answer.

I had only made one side of the shawl. I totally read the charts wrong when I gave them the quick, "This is Cake" glance-over, and only did half the charts. So. The way the shawl is now constructed, what is supposed to be the top edge is now the bottom point. What is the bottom lace chart is the only part of the shawl that I can get to be a long, flat edge. It's upside-down.

I am genius. Hear me roar. This is getting ripped back and re-made into something a bit saner.

*Grandma is known to stop by the old blog on occasion, and I can't bring myself to say the eff word in front of her. effing, effing effing, effing. Guess who I learned words like this from, Grandma? Your daughter, that's who. True story.