Apparently, I win the Most Scarves Ever contest ~ hee hee! Like there's actually a contest and like anyone really cares! But, I do seem to have the most scarves and I'm still so surprised that all knitters don't have a ton of scarves. I tend to want to work up a scarf when I can't afford a lot of something really expensive or there's a yarn that I *must* have touching my bare skin ~ I mean, I could knit a sweater with them but usually there isn't enough of them for that :) And I don't really want to wear a 100% angora sweater since I don't live in the Arctic.

These aren't even the lot of them...there are about a dozen at the shop that I've designed and knit for store samples as part of my Scarf of the Month thang that I do ~ they're "technically" mine but I think I would sell them (and have sold a couple) if someone wanted them bad enough, except for my Mardi Gras scarf :)

The dark blue scarf is something I knit for myself while up North visiting my Grandma before she died...it's knit in seed stitch with a lovely mohair and a silk yarn...I alternated yarns every other row, carrying them up the side and it's gorgeous...this is the kind of scarf I need to buy a coat for! There's lovely teal greens in the silk yarn and the photo doesn't do it justice at all. The light blue one next to it is an acrylic scarf that I knit for Snow Fest when I was bartending in Frankenmuth. It's Red Heart acrylic, that Light and Lofty stuff. Kinda eh...but it's a pretty color that always looks nice on me and it's super long. Most of my scarves have the super long thing in common :) It's one of the first things I ever knit and there's a matching hat that's a bit too big but kinda cute still and I do wear it. Oh...I also knit fingerless mitts for the whole Ensemble. ha! We got to wear scarves and hats and stuff while we were working and something really nice would have gotten trashed behind the bar.

This scarf is really yummy...it's a Debbie Bliss alpaca/silk (I think) in a dark coral...I used a pennant stitch pattern, which I love to knit, and it has matching mitts too. Also one of my early knit projects which turned out fab...I think the set cost me about $40 + in yarn and I remember that my BIL was horrified at that. Silly silly boy.


The wacky orange and black scarf is my Halloween scarf...again, funky acrylic and some fun fur. I do wear it though during the Halloween festivities. Then the yellow fun fur scarf is what I was doing for the FRG when my husband was deployed...I was in the Lion Brand newsletter and they wrote up a pattern for it and donated about 300 skeins of yarn and a boatload of needles to the project. I'm very loyal to LB for that reason and am really excited that they seem to be doing some very cool things with their yarn lines these days. The write up in the newsletter was kinda goofy but it was a cool thing at the time. I'm not going to make it easy for you to find the article, but if you're really dying to read it and see the goofy-ass picture, you can search for "Knit the Distance" on the LB site (if you absolutely must)

Ripples in My Stash V1 (photo directly left) is now done and wearable as all get out! I'm going to blog it this week sometime...I have more pics and directions for doing the whole russian join, measuring out scraps, etc.... Love this scarf and it's about 100 inches too. So soft, (alpaca and angora handspun yarns) so dreamy...my scarf design abilities are definitely improving :) I'm working on V2 as my shop Scarf of the Month and doing it in a funky merino/angora/nylon tiny little half boucle type yarn. It's a longer repeat of the pattern (wider, actually...it won't be a longer scarf!) and I'm working it on size 6 needles so it's taking a bit of time but it's COOL.

And then there's the aforementioned and photographed Infamous Dr. Who Wonder Scarf...OMG! I left the camera at work but I'll try to take a pic of me wrapped up like a mummy in it tomorrow. This thing is like 13 feet long...you MUST drape it around your neck or it'll drag the ground. And it's quite wide. Just an oddity fer sure. BUT...everyone who sees me wearing it covets it...they DO! I can totally wear the alpaca/silk stunner or the gorgeous mohair silk and no one says a word. Wear the wacky Dr. Who Scarf and they are beside themselves. Go figure. They all want one and, of course, can't afford one because it took a thousand hours or so to knit. It's so wide and horribly long that I can totally drape it over my head and swath myself against sub zero blizzard conditions. It's hilarious...it started out as a gag gift, which I couldn't part with, and kind of a joke for me...I mean, plain garter stitch in ACRYLIC??? But, the Red Heart Soft Yarn is kind of good, really it is. Very soft, very drapey. And the color choice from the Season 15 Dr. Who scarf is a winner :) I want pillows for my sofa outta the leftovers. I'm thinking Log Cabin pillows will soon be mine!

These scarves were not harmed in any way during the photo shoot, although they are lying naked in fresh snow

Lookie! I finally finished both halves of Knitty's eyelet skirt that I started last year for myself and have had trouble convincing myself to work on ever since. :D The cat keeps waking me up at five a.m. to be fed (nice kitty ... ;P), so I went ahead and did the last few eyelet lace rows and the picot edge this morning. Ta-da!






Obviously not seamed yet, but I'm waffling on whether to actually block the pieces first. Usually I don't, but on the other hand ... if it'll make them behave better while I'm sewing seams, then why not? ;) Hopefully I'll decide by tonight and have the next step done, anyway.

Just in time to potentially wear out to dinner on my birthday, or some other time this Birthday Week. :D Whew!

Hey! I finally found my way over to the new and improved blogger format site. This is pretty neat. I keep waiting for blogger to switch my own personal blog over, but so far I'm still hanging out with the old-sters. Thanks for the re-invite Leah. Now I can get all caught up. I've been doing a lot of selfish knitting and not just on Sunday's. OTN: Calormetric and fingerless mitts in the new Chrystal Palace Yarn Taos. It is a great yarn.

I have a few scarves I have made in the last few years. I love making scarves from my handspun and these all are except for two on one end, one is green, the other with burgandy eyelash. I even bought a dark gray pea coat so I could make all kinds of scarves in different colors. I had actually planned on making alot more but I always seem to get side tracked with other projects. Usually the spinning or sock knitting.

You all are doing so wonderfully!! I have no scarves made for myself to snap pics of and post here. I have a few commercially made ones that I use occasionally and one that Mom made me last year on my Niddy Noddy. That one's gotten some use this year as we've had an unusually cold fall/winter so far. I have yet to make one for myself as the sweater looms so largely in my life. lol. Ok, to be honest, I've avoided it for a month and worked on other selfish items. lol Every time I would pick it up I would knit a row and want to do something else. Then I'd pick up the hubster's sock, and wish I was working on something else! Finally I accomplished something in beading, then in beaded crochet***, so the knitting started clicking again. Thusly (yes I know it's not a word....I used spell check! lol!) I present you with progress pictures of the left front side of the sweater. (I tell you, it kept me up late one knight until I figured out what the pattern meant and that the sewing up of the inside of the pocket happens dead last!!!) So this pic shows you the front pocket folded down as I haven't quite reached the point of joining those two needles yet. (The red needle stitches are on hold until the blue needle stitches have caught up...then they will join in wedded happiness on ONE needle! Yes, you experienced knitters probably understood that to begin with....but this is my first large knitted project. I was terribly confused. I was really starting to wonder if I should pick out more decorative stitch holders for the future. lol)

This shows the pieces laid out over each other as they are meant to be. Due to the magic of photography, variegated and bucille yarn and crappy lighting it looks seamless. Pretty cool huh?! I know, many work for years to obtain this seamless-ness. lol

I do find that I am mentally pushing myself to finish hubster's socks so I can cast on my own. He's waiting ever so patiently for his..lol. And I'm pulled to work on the crocheted bag for my spinning wheel. But then again, I need to work on the border for the crocheted afghan so I can cross that off the WIP list and move it to a FO list. I've not touched it since finishing the center of it. Of course, if I ever finish these items I'll have to modify the personal blog and install the Finished Objects list. Hmm...I've not figured out what I want that to look like exactly yet so I better hold off. lol


***Check out my personal blog for posts on these projects!

In response to the question about how many scarves we all have that we've made for ourselves: Here's the one and only scarf I have that I made for myself. It's crocheted out of some sort of Lion brand bulky yarn (I forget which one) and even though you can't really tell in the photo, it's super long and very warm. One of my nicer selfish projects!

Whew! I finally got back on the list after the switchover to the new Blogger. Thanks, Leah, for getting me all squared away!

So, my selfish knitting isn't going as well as I'd hoped. After knitting my fitted bog jacket all the way to the underarms I had to frog it all the way back to the waist because it was coming out WAY too big. AAARGH!

I've had much better luck with my Kool-Aid dyeing in the crockpot.




















The skeins are Knitpicks dye your own merino in fingering weight, and the locks are some mystery roving I had on hand and wanted to play with.





























Dyeing in the crockpot is so easy and so much fun I can't believe I didn't try it long ago!















Now I just have to start searching around for some different colors to play with....

Hi everyone! I finished something for me, which created minor guilt because I'm doing this whole UFO Knit Club thing (another blog and you can join if you want ~ let me know!) BUT I did finish an obligatory knit before I spent 2 whole days on this :) I'm going to do a blog post on my regular blog tonight, I think, with the pattern and the whole saga of it, but I'm pretty pleased with it. It's called "RIPPLE IN MY STASH" and is made out of small bits of angora and alpaca handspun...one of my favorite lazy things to do is come up with ways to use my most precious little yarn bits and this worked out really well and was totally addicting to knit! And I wish it were washed because I want to wear it TODAY...it's cold out there (about 17 degrees) with several inches of snow on the ground but I guess I'll be forced to wear another alpaca scarf or maybe my mohair and silk scarf...which brings me to THIS question:

HOW MANY SCARVES DO YOU HAVE THAT YOU KNIT FOR YOURSELF?

I don't have as many as you might think, really...which is odd because I do love to knit them when I'm feeling slovenly in my knitting and want some quick satisfaction :) So, let us know how many YOU have and post some photos. I'll take some of mine tomorrow, since this is a fly-by posting and I have to go and shovel out the pot bellied kids and take care of the buns and get my own butt ready for work.

I started my Selfish Sunday Knitting project this weekend. Another pair of socks which is my all time favorite thing to knit. These are done with Lorna's Laces in the Girly Stripe color which is a bright pink and purple. I am doing these on size one needles and using the pattern called Welt Fantastic from the book "Sensational Knittted Socks". This book is awesome! I have made several pairs of socks from this book.

Huzzah! Finally I'm making a post! I had a fit of knitterly selfishness and whipped up a Calorimetry for myself, inspired by my Mystery Skein Swap partner Elabeth's two versions. It's knit in a soy/wool blend I bought one skein of at Michaels and can't remember the name of. ;)

Here it is without the button and with the tails not yet woven in (this is a clickable thumbnail):






And here it is on me (this isn't a clickable thumbnail ;)):



I love the way the color blend turned out, and I've already worn it around quite bit. Yay! It's exciting to actually have made something for myself. ;) I've also been working on a cotton A-line skirt for several months now, and I finished a mini version of Knitty's Intolerable Cruelty at light-speed last month for a Christmas party, but I don't have a photo of that yet. Phooey. ;D Anyway, whew. I'm finally an "active" member of the SSK club -- selfish knitters, unite!

I finished and blocked my lace scarf. Here is a pic of the finished project. Boy do I ever love this scarf!

On the needles I have a pair of socks and my purple sweater. I think it might take a while to get the purple sweater done because I keep getting side tracked with other smaller projects.

I like this being laid off of work business, I almost hate the thought of going back. I sure have had alot more time to work on my knitting and spinning

Post Holiday Recovery...

I think it's going well! I'm back posting, anyway :) I totally burned out on holiday knitting and didn't even pick up my needles until last night. The list of stuff I did for Christmas is really pretty impressive, but the burn out is NOT! I made: 4 earflap hats (5 if you count the really huge one I made and had to do over...I didn't rip it out either, I was too disgusted!), one beret, 3.5 scarves, spun and knit one shawl, a pair of socks and a half, one sweater for the hubby, 3 sets of fingerless mitts and one embellished blue jean bag. I think I started the sweater before Thanksgiving but I didn't start anything else until after, so it was kind of a lot, eh? I am a much faster knitter since I opened the shop.

The one thing I actually knit on last night is totally weird and I'm oddly fascinated by and in love with it! First of all, it's ACRYLIC (gasp!) and it's totally huge and strange. One of my dear friends and customers' husbands comes into the shop with her all the time and is a great guy. We always chat about sci fi channel shows and one of those is Dr. Who. Well, I came across this weird Dr. Who scarf site and I thought...ahHA...I'm going to knit that for him. Well...even though mine is super modified, it's a massive thing! Mind you, I never saw the 80's show, and am not a totally rabid fan of the new show although I watch it cuz it's cheesy but not in a bad way and it's on before Battlestar Gallactica, of which I *am* a rabid fan. (not the old ones...just the new series).

So, that's it, in the pic! The original scarves were really long...like from 15-22 feet! And wider than mine. I'm working it in Red Heart 4 ply "Soft Yarn" which is much nicer than the old, regular Red Heart and it's on size 8 needles. I've no idea how long it'll be, but it already hangs to the ground. T Baker wore it to the ground while still being able to make a loop that hung down to his waist. It's very soft, and I just think it's cool for some odd reason. It's kind of a huge, impractical thing for the friend's hubby so I showed it to him and he chose homemade bread for a gift instead (wonder why ~ ha!) so I'm keeping it.

I decided on the Season 15 scarf, and then went by the list of row numbers but only worked half the rows called for. I don't think the scarf will be half the size, since the patterns call for sport weight and I'm using worsted. The ends are the worst part, weaving them in, but I do it as I go along and then glue them down ~ really! I use this clear fabric glue that's washable and use a dab to secure the woven in ends. I use it all the time...my Mom sews down her ends but NOT ME. It works really well :) My husband thinks I'm a nut case and he's probably right. I actually will probably use this left over acrylic to knit some pillows...I normally hate acrylic but this stuff is kind of OK. I like how all the colors in the scarf work together.

The only other selfish thing I've been doing is spinning up some spindle crack ;> This is some of the weird partially spun stuff that I pull out of the wool/silk laps I sell. Some of it's wonderful and some of it's too impossible to spin. I call it "spindle crack" because once I start with this stuff, I can't put it down! If I'm lucky, the pieces are loose enough so that I can draft them out and then they spin with almost no effort. Some of the pieces are too tightly spun and can't be drafted so they don't qualify as "crack". I dye some of the laps I sort out of the stuff I sell, then grade it for the website and sell it. But not the crack...oh no! I keep it! I keep it ALL! It's mine and I'm totally selfish about it. Not all the pieces are long, either...some are but there are shorter pieces. It would be a drag on the wheel cuz you'd have to join all the time, which isn't such a drag on a spindle spinning lace weight :)

I played with the idea of selling it, cuz right now I have a lot but that ain't gonna happen. This is being spun on my Bosworth featherweight and actually, I'm done with that spindle full and it has other colors on it too. There's never a lot of it so I just spin it all together and one day I'll ply it all together and have some totally wild yarn to knit with. This will probably end up being about a light fingering weight. The stuff is just soooo soft and silky...sigh...

I've started a UFO knit club too...right now it's just a yahoo group but I'm going to work up a team blog for it. And that's about it for me for the moment. We're in the middle of remodeling our master bed/bath and our home is a construction zone and it's making me pretty crazy. And the bunnies need plucking, and the house needs cleaning and the shop needs tending and the website needs updating...sigh. But I'm not working all day, every day on my days off! Nope.

BTW...I did upgrade to the google blogger thing and I'm pretty pleased with it so far.

Well, I didn't knit this on a Sunday, but it's selfish knitting all the same! I finally started my fitted bog jacket in the Manos del Uruguay I bought last October. It doesn't look like much just yet, but I'm really enjoying the knitting and I love how the Manos looks!

ATTENTION SSK'Rs........IMPORTANT INPUT NEEDED FOR THE BLOG!

I noticed this morning while signing into my blogger account that we can upgrade to their new format, which is a google thing as well. However, if I do that, then everyone who posts here will have to update their accounts or be unable to post sooooo....please let me know your thoughts on this, ok? I want to do it but don't want to make it impossible for the team members. I'm going to do a little more research but it seems pretty easy and straight forward. I need to hear from as many of you as possible, OK? Thanks bunches!

Happy New Year!! I hope everyone has a wonderful 2007!
My Donegal Tweed sweater has been on the needles for a couple of weeks now. I have been saving this project for knitting while riding in the car. It is a DK weight and all stockinette stitch so it is super simple and a no brainer while riding. This sweater looks simple but nice and hopefully I will like it enough to wear to work.

I have been doing quite alot of selfish sunday knitting all week long! I have been laid off work since the thursday before Christmas and I go back Jan. 08 so I plan on lots of selfish knitting. Here is a pic of one of my projects. The lace scarf is made of handspun wool/kid moahair and it is so soft, Thanks Leah, I love it! Here is the free pattern from Crystal Palace Yarns

Happy New Year!!!! I hope everyone had a safe and fun evening last night. I spent the afternoon/evening on the couch crocheting away. I've finally "turned the corner" on the lap afghan and am reducing the row length to create the square. The nice part is that as I complete the rows, I'm able to tie off some of the traveling yarns and remove them from the tangle that is my working yarn. lol This was taken last night about 8 pm and it shows the corner progress. I worked on it until really really late...or really really early depending on how you look at it..lol, so there's much more done.




I should be able to complete this patterned piece either today or tomorrow. Then it's the border x 2 and then it's done! The border will likely take forever and that is the next hurdle. I still like the looks of it an the messy part will be over soon so hopefully I can stay motivated. There has been no motivation for knitting right now, so no sweater progress...and alas....no sock progress. Maybe later today. There has been much spinning done in the last week though and I've run into a bit of an issue. If you're a spinner...check out my "cable plied" yarn (posted today) and see if you can help me out with a few questions.