Love This Warm Little Number!

Thank you to my model, Jennie

Yarn:  Sport Weight, 535-700 yards (I used locally dyed yarn, 100% Superwash Merino, 535 yards)
Needles:  US size 7
Gauge:  Not Specified
Other Materials:  Tapestry needle
Price:  US $5.00

Color Me Lucky



Photo Courtesy of StarstruckCat



Size:  S, M, L

Yarn:  Any sport weight 355-385 yards.  I used a local woman's hand dyed, 100% superwash merino, 355 yards

Needles:  US Size 0-3, size to get gauge

Gauge:  7 sts/inch in stockinette stitch

Other Materials:  Tapestry needle

Price: US $4,00

Lovin' the Lucky Socks

I absolutely love knitting socks.  Sometimes I forget how much I love knitting them.  Before last month, I hadn't knit a sock in over two years.  I picked up one or two that I've had on the needles for a while, but just didn't feel the love.

Part of me feels like it's the yarn.  And let me tell you--I absolutely love this yarn.  Unfortunately it is only available locally (although I'm trying to get her on etsy).  Part of it is the pattern.  I have always written my own patterns.  Sometimes they work out....sometimes they don't.  That's the thing I love about socks.  It's kind of hard to mess them up.  You could hate a pattern; but the socks are still wearable.  If the socks are not wearable for you, they may fit someone else.  And if you don't even like to wear hand knit socks, there is nothing more satisfying than finishing beautiful socks.

These aren't finished yet...but they will be soon.  I started them this evening and I don't think I'll be able to put them down until they are on my feet.

Pattern will be available soon!

Color Me Lucky

Here is a peek at the sock blanks for March's Sock Saturday at Starstruck Cat.  I'm pretty excited about it!  Maryann and I spent the day dying these blanks.  And we'll be showing them off at Mallow Run tonight.

Sneek Peek

Slippery Slopes

Size: One size fits most (fits my small head, and if made a little longer, fits my man's much larger head).

Yarn:  Any worsted weight.  I used a local woman's hand dyed worsted weight (100% superwash merino, 220 yards)

Needles:  US size 7-16" circular and US size 7 DPNs

Other Materials: Stitch markers, tapestry needle
Price: $5.00 US

Adventures of the Mini Sock: Molly Weasley Edition

Lego Molly Weasley in the Mini Sock

New Tools

A few weeks ago, Jill at Starstruck Cat Studio showed me some cute little tools she was looking at bringing into the shop.  After seeing them, I just had to have some for myself.  KaratStix makes these awesome tools out of bamboo that are hand colored and so beautiful.  

 One side of the sock needle gauge has metric needle sizes

 The other side has US sizes.

WIP tool with cutsie sheep.

The sock is about 2" in length, which makes it small and portable-much more portable than my old metal 4x6" gauge.  I LOVE them.  There are other goodies too.  Check out her etsy page or come to Starstruck Cat Design.

My Kittehs

I remember when I got Hazel.  She was so cute and so sweet and all she wanted to do was snuggle on my chest and chew on my hair.  I miss my kitteh.  

Hazi @ 7ish weeks

Hazi is now my big sweet mature cat.  She enjoys laying on the clean towels while I shower and get ready in the morning and all day while no one is home.  She has changed a lot over the last year and a half....but I wouldn't trade her for anything (sorry mom!).

Hazi - full grown

Then, late this summer, we got another kitteh. Her name is Indi. She is cute and sweet too....but really playful. She wears me out and keeps me on my toes.

Indi @ 10 weeks

As much as I miss the kitten Hazi was...I cannot wait until Indi is full grown and a bit more mature...



Sock Saturday Project

Last week, I got together with my friend Maryann. She's a local woman and fantastic dyer of yarns. She dyed the yarn for my cowl pattern (rav link). We are collaborating for the first Sock Saturday at Starstruck Cat Studio on a special yarn and I designed the sock pattern.

Maryann knit the single-stranded blanks on her flat bed knitting machine with sport weight yarn. She then dyed all 14 of them a light shade of pink, tonal.

We took six+ shades of red and maroon and painted them. Flowers, hearts, stars, swirls, zigzags, dots, and love bugs adorn the blank.

Here is all 14 of them drying. They share the same large designs, but they are all unique.

I began knitting the sock, unraveling as I went. I made the leg longer than I normally would have, but I just loved how the colors are knitting up and there is plenty of yarn to make two long and/or big socks.

I finished the first sock before I was half way through the blank, which is fine. I don't want my socks to be the same or opposites of each other. Fraternal socks are awesome socks!

One of my non-knitter guy friends called them "bacon socks." Men, always thinking about food.

I love ten row lace patterns. I think they make the time and the rows fly by. I absolutely adore the lacy hearts on this sock. I couldn't find a stitch pattern that I liked, so I had to improvise my own. It took me a few tries to get the hearts to look the way I wanted. I LOVE the way this sock turned out.

I'm so excited to release the pattern on Saturday. It will be available on Ravelry on Saturday evening as well.

Friday!

Last Saturday I taught my first spindle spinning class at Starstruck Cat. I was nervous but my students were awesome. They were all spinning by the time they left class. The second of the series of classes is tomorrow. My original plan was for them to be practicing and trouble shooting for this class but I think I'll have to come up with something different since they are all doing so well.

I released my first pattern this week (ravelry link). It is an entrelac cowl. I love it and it was fun and quick to knit. Perfect for gifting. Calls for any fingering or sport weight yarn. Fingering weight creates a fabric with nice drape. Sport weight creates a squishy, slightly firmer fabric. It is knit flat and it buttons up so us ladies don't mess up our hair.

The photo above is knit with fingering weight yarn from See Jayne Knit (rav link). The photo to the right is A Good Yarn in sport weight. I wish you could feel these cowls...they are soft and feel so wonderful on your neck!

A Good Yarn is not yet listed on Ravelry but I'm working on her to get it on there. She does beautiful dye work and her base yarn is very nice!

I picked up two gorgeous bumps of fiber this week as well. I'll let the pictures do the talking here. Four Rivers Yarn & Fiber in River Stones and Romero.