The Sweater is Complete. Let the Celebrating Commence!

It's done! It's done! It's done!

Pattern: Beau by Kim Hargreaves from "Rowan Vintage Knits"

Yarn: Peace Fleece Worsted in Father's Grey

Modifications: I knit the smallest size and the only modification I made was to knit the body longer than the pattern called for. The sweater was knit in pieces and then seamed, which worked out really well for a large sweater!  

The buttons are from Button Boy on etsy, and they are made from maple tree branches! So cool. 

I'm really pleased with the way it came out, it's a very handsome man sweater! 

Seth striking a pose.

Phew. I'm so glad it was done in plenty of time to give to Seth's Dad next weekend! I'll definitely be taking a break from big man sweaters for a while!

I haven't worked on any other knitting recently, since my priority was to finish that sweater!

I have been spinning a bit, though. 

Superwash BFL dyed by Two if by Hand in the colorway "Whiz Bangs" 

I love the way this spun up! There are so many different colors, yet it's not too loud and obnoxious. 

I'm working on a whole list of custom spinning orders, and I'll share those as they're done. I should have one to share before we head back east next week! 

Hmm, I think that's it for now!

Love,

liz :)

Handspun Milo Vest

I took a small break from working on the sweater for Seth's Dad (I just have part of a sleeve, seaming, and the collar left!) to whip up a quick baby gift for an old co-worker of mine from Maine. Her baby is due in early March and since she received tons of newborn stuff at her shower, I decided to make something for the fall/winter.

There was a skein of handspun in the shop that had been sitting there for quite a while, and I thought it would be perfect as a little girl gift.

It started as this handspun:

And was knit into this:

Pattern: Milo by Georgie Hallam 

Yarn: Handspun Rambouillet Wool dyed by Two if by Hand

Modifications: None. I followed the directions for the 9 month size. It was a really well written, easy to follow pattern with several different options for the cable. It knit up really quick (I finished in a day) and only used about 200 yards for the 9 month size. 

I will definitely be making more of these as baby gifts. So quick and so cute!

Seth and I took a drive up into the mountains today to do a little bit of XC skiing. The weather was beautiful and we had a great time...and of course Sailor had a great time romping through the snow.

Please excuse my terrible XC skiing form....it's really quite atrocious.  

 Sailor spent the first 1/2 mile running around like a madman...until we ran into a 1 year old goldendoodle. They practically knocked me over and then had a good time wrestling and playing. Unfortunately we didn't think to snap any pics of the madness. Sailor slowed down quite a bit after that!

 crazy dog.

We had to stop at the store to pick up some essentials that we were completely out of on our way home. I was fully intending to just have soup and sandwiches for dinner tonight since we ate out last night and had a HUGE meal complete with appetizers and dessert (flourless chocolate torte....soooo good).  But then I was walking through the baked goods aisle and a loaf of cinnamon swirl bread was begging to come home with us and become french toast for dinner. It was a loaf from some local place and it made for some crazy good french toast:

This is Seth's french toast with bananas and walnuts. There was maple syrup added after the photo was taken! 

Well, I should start thinking about bed...

Miss you!

Love,

liz :)

Sailor's BFF

Thought I'd take a few minutes to introduce Sailor's BFF to the blog world. Her name is Diamond, and she is a very energetic 2 year-old Border Collie.

I walk with her owner, Valerie, at least once a week and the dogs just adore each other. She has far more energy than any other dog I've met!

Sailor and Diamond running crazily through the woods

We actually ran into a couple of ladies yesterday who had 2 black standard poodles and a newfoundland with them! Unfortunately the only picture I got was completely blurry and I had to stop snapping pictures for fear that I was going to get knocked over by the 5 dogs. The dogs were hysterical...all three of the poodles were bouncing all over the place and I think Diamond was a little bit scared of the huge newfoundland, who was also running and playing! 

Really, I'm writing about the dogs because I have NO knitting to show off. I did finish a sleeve of the sweater for Seth's Dad. One more sleeve to go and then I have to sew it all together (grumble grumble) and do the collar and button bands. I'm hoping to be done with it this weekend so I can knit a couple of baby gifts and then start a sweater for me (Blair from Winter 2010 Twist Collective). 

I did just spin up some yarn for myself, though. I'm really pleased with the way it came out and I have enough to do a few projects. 

There are actually 2 skeins (plus a mini skein of about 30 yards), a total of 7 ounces. I think I'll have around 500 yards to work with. My plan is to knit up a pair of basic mittens and then maybe a hat or a pair of Toasts for my swap partner (I'm doing another swap!). 

And just 'cause they're pretty...let's have another look at the skeins of Silky Cashmerino I spun up:

I honestly think these are my favorite skeins of handspun EVER.  

The person I spun them for was really, really happy with them...which makes me happy! 

Yum. 

Okay, well our landlord should be here any minute...our heat wasn't working this morning, but miraculously it fixed itself and started working a little while ago. At least it wasn't too cold out, and the house warmed up quickly once the heat came back on!

Love,

Liz :)

A New Project Bag...and some more handspun, of course.

I had an idea for a new project bag a couple of weeks ago, and finally got around to making one! I wanted a flat bottomed zip bag with a patchwork design on the outside. I made a prototype and decided it was too small:

It just fits a yarn cake and sock in progress. 

I had enough squares cut for another one like the small one, and I cut a bunch more matching fabric to make it bigger. Then I decided I needed to use some really cute owl fabric I had picked up and found some coordinating prints to go with it. I finished the owl bag earlier today and will finish up the second one tonight or tomorrow.

This one is much roomier and comfortably fits 2 skeins of yarn. And it has a handy dandy handle. 

 Pretty, pretty yarn sitting in the bag.

I've finished 2 more skeins of yarn for the shop, but the lighting has been terrible so the pictures aren't totally accurate:

Organic Merino dyed by Two if by Hand in colorway Exhausted

I'm going to rename it "Caribbean Cruise" for the shop. 

Merino/Cashmere/Nylon dyed by Two if by Hand

This skein is much more forest green in real life...hopefully the light will be better tomorrow so I can take better pictures!

In knitting news, I'm still working on the sweater for Seth's dad. I started a sleeve today and I'm hoping to make some good progress on it tonight. I also finished the first sock that I posted a picture of in my last post. And I'm almost to the heel flap on the second. I'm confident they'll be done by the end of the month. 

Your sweater is looking great (again)....I can't wait to see the finished product! 

Love,

Liz :)

A snow day... or two!

First off, you are so out of control with your spinning, I'm so impressed!  How you manage to stay so focused on all of the projects you have going is beyond me.  I loved the grey custom spinning job you did- it's just gorgeous!  The sock project is also ambitious, but fun and I'm sure for you, quite doable!  I've never made socks- but perhaps I'll try a pair this year!  

(that's our christmas tree in the back, i think it looks so sweet covered in snow!)

So, Wednesday brought us our first big snow of the season... dare I say it, a nor'easter!  It started snowing on Tuesday night and by Wednesday morning we had roughly 6 inches on the ground and it was coming down hard!  It snowed all day- I went over early to the boys house as they had a snow day (and poor dad was trying to still get work done) and it was snowing so hard the boys didn't want to play outside for more than half an hour, which meant lots of lego time inside.  I love legos.  I completely forgot how awesome they are until this fall when we were reacquainted.  The boys have lots of sets- the Harry Potter ones, including the borough, Hogwarts express and the quidditch match... but what I really love is when they get excited to create something new with the pieces they have!  The oldest and I have created a town of sorts over the past few weeks that includes a general store, a bank, a jail, post office and we are starting a school!  He gets so excited when we start a new project.  He of course, is very concrete in his thinking, looking at his pieces as exactly what they "are supposed to be," I of course imagine them completely differently which gets us moving!

But back to the snow.... The lego party happened for the afternoon and I left at dusk to head home... and we probably had 12 inches... by the time we woke up we had an additional 2 inches!  Awesome!!

Outside of the lego adventures, I've been knitting and finishing up a few projects in between playing with the wee ones...

There was some painting...

(I finished all the trim and replaced some switch plates too!)

Some knitting.....

(I'm really happy I started over for the THIRD time.  It looks great and the button edges make so much more sense... Hopefully now that I've pretty much memorized the dang pattern it will go more quickly!)

Some cooking.....

(This is a "lazy" lasagna- which I made with farfalle instead of lasagna noodles, mushrooms and spinach... it was delicious and honestly it was very easy.  F made philly cheese steaks at home last night- I had never had one and it was honestly really good!!)

....And some watching of movies on the couch!  F and I watched the A-Team last night and The Town the night before.  If you haven't seen The Town, rent it, it was really intense, but good.  It made me love Ben Affleck again...  The A-Team was funny, very entertaining, but sill at the same time.  Oh and suddenly I'm obsessed with NCIS.  I've gotten F into it too- lucky me, there have been a few marathons over the past few weekends, which with the help of DVR and some knitting, I've beginning to get the back story! Haha...

Hope you enjoy the weekend- I'm going to try out a yoga class tonight I think (please let my ankles survive!) and take the pup for a seriously long walk today (he's been really antsy this week and I think that lack of serious exercise is a large part of it!).

Miss you!
cb

2011: The Year of Socks

My knitting goal this year is to make at least 12 pairs of socks. I've discovered that I love wearing handknit socks in the winter. They are far warmer than regular socks. So warm, in fact, that I've ditched my slippers several times this winter while wearing them. And that is saying something. I always wear slippers.

I'm working on my first official pair of 2011:

Pattern: Tidelines by Anne Hanson 

Yarn: Three Irish Girls Kells Sport Merino in Kate

The thing I love about handknit socks is that I can use crazy colors I wouldn't wear as anything else!

I'm about 3/4 of the way through the first sock and I'm sure they'll be done by the end of the month. :) 

On the spinning front, I'm working on a custom spin that is just flying along. This fiber is to.die.for. It's 50% Merino, 25% Cashmere, and 25% Silk. 

How about we take a little look:

Isn't see a beaut?! And she's softer than any yarn I've ever spun! 

And now....a few pics of the pup. I bought a new lens for my camera to take sharper and more accurate yarn pictures for my etsy shop. It arrived yesterday, and I spent some time out in the back yard snapping pics of Sailor :) 

Sleepy Pup

Sailor trying to take flight!

Catching flying treats.

In other knitting news, I have finished the front and back of the sweater for Seth's dad and just have the sleeves and seaming left. The end is finally in sight!! 

Hugs!

Love,

Liz :)

Hydrangea Neckwarmer

I received the book Brave New Knits from my parents for Christmas and needed a project to keep me from getting too bored with the sweater for Seth's Dad. Anne Hanson has a pattern for a pretty little neckwarmer in there, and thought it would be a perfect small project. Except for the fact that it was kind of addicting and I didn't want to work on anything else. Oops. :)

Pattern: Hydrangea Neckwarmer by Anne Hanson (from Brave New Knits)

Yarn: Cosmic Fibers Yarn Cassiopeia (MCN) in colorway Amethyst in Shadows (this is one of the skeins I bought at the Holiday Inn during Rhinebeck)

Modifications: Instead of sportweight yarn, I used fingering weight. I still used the recommended needle size, but followed the directions for the larger size in order to achieve the smaller size. I realized after doing almost 3 pattern repeats that something wasn't quite right. When I went back to the Ravelry pattern page, I realized there were pattern corrections online. So, I ripped out what I had done and restarted. I probably could have kept going, but the lace pattern didn't look quite right. 

The Merino/Cashmere/Nylon was a dream to knit with.  

It'll be great under a coat when I don't want to wear a bulky scarf.

There's enough yarn leftover to make something else, too. The neckwarmer barely put a dent in the skein. Probably socks. But, who knows. 

I finished another skein of handspun yesterday for the shop. It still needs to be washed, reskeined and measured, but I took a few pics today right before the rain started back up. 

Rambouillet dyed by Two if by Hand in colorway "Train Tracks like Stitches" 

It's amazingly squishy and soft.  

Yumm. 

Tomorrow I'm going to start another custom spin with some Merino/Cashmere/Silk. It. Is. Amazing. It came in the mail and I promptly went on ravelry and bought myself a braid in a different color. 

Well, I think that's it for now!

Love,

liz :)

1160 Yards of Handspun

That, my dear, is what I've been working on for the last week basically non-stop! A customer asked me to do some custom spinning for her...12 ounces of BFL and spun fairly thin for maximum yardage so she can hopefully knit a sweater with it. I finished it on Wednesday and ended up with 1160 yards of light sport weight yarn. It was dry this morning and I reskeined, labeled, and mailed it. But, I snapped a few photos first :)

Spun from Funky Carolina BFL Combed Top.  

Colorway Lily...beautiful greys, silvers and blues. 

It's going to make a really beautiful sweater! 

I don't have much to show on the knitting front. I'm still working on the sweater for Seth's Dad...but making quite a bit of progress. I did finish a Hydrangea Neckwarmer the other day, but it's still drying on the blocking board. I'll try and get pictures of that this weekend! 

I've done a wee bit of sewing, and am plotting and scheming about some bigger tote bag projects. I got a fat quarter pack of all the Heather Ross Far, Far Away 2 fabrics for Christmas:

I. LOVE. THEM. All the fabric is a cotton/linen blend so it's much sturdier than regular quilting cotton. 

I've been itching to cut into them, but also spending hours online looking through other people's projects to decide what to do with them! I also received an Amy Butler pattern book, which as TONS of cute bag patterns in it. 

For my first project, I thought I'd do something small and simple. 

Origami Bag. Isn't it adorable?!

Close up of the owl and cat. 

This particular pattern has directions for 5 or so different sizes, and I'm going to give some of the larger ones a try once I get some bigger zippers. The directions were really clear and easy to follow, which makes me hopeful for some of the more complicated looking bags in the book! 

Your sweater is looking great, by the way! And F's house looks awesome! Nice work! 

Oh...and one more exciting thing (or, at least I thought it was exciting). A pair of mittens I knit ended up on the Three Irish Girls blog!!! I did a little happy dance when I saw that :) 

Alright...off to do some spinning for the shop!

Love,

Liz :)

Happy New Year!

Hey Liz!!

Happy New Year!  It's been a busy one so far!  Let's see- first- we rang in the new year at F's friends' house (second year in a row, really nice folks) with a group of ten.  Lots of laughing, eating and drinking of wine :)  I've been conned into another half marathon with Sarah, one of the new friends.  This one is in May up in Shelburne.  There's also another race that we are talking about.....there are no words how cool yet terrifying this would be.  I'm putting serious thought into it.  You seriously need to check out this video.  Live wires.... Maybe Seth would want to join in??  Haha.

We had a great week off between Christmas and New Years- doing projects around the house, cooking, spending time with family.  I asked F if we could finish the knocked out wall project before the new year (sweet lord, this has been a visual thorn in my side!) and we did!  I'm so proud of how it turned out, considering I had no idea what the heck I was doing.

So this is with the mud and tape up... pre-sanding and pre priming....

This is post priming.  Not bad, eh?

And the big reveal!   (sorry for the phone pics!)

So as soon as we finished this- literally putting the final coat of paint on the trim, I launched into project two... The hallway....  F painted the hallway dark red when he first moved in... A classic, "Im a new homeowner and here is my way to make this place all mine!"  He finished it and hated it (for obvious reasons... a hallway with no windows that has four doors in a dark color, yikes!)  So unfortunately (or fortunately, really) there's no before... but there's an almost after!  (Trim is still not painted completely.... that's what I'm doing tomorrow while he watches football (seriously, the superbowl can't get here fast enough!)

It's a peachy color that works really well with the generic beige (that I actually like for the most part!) that is in the rest of the living area....  Oh and I got you a close up of the red that was on the wall- can you see it in the photo below!?  So dark!!!

And finally, I've been finding some time to knit too!  I had to frog the majority of my sweater that I started before Christmas from the briar rose I got at Rhinebeck... So we were back to square one... but now... taa daa!  

So this is the body so far.... and below I give you... an arm :)  I'm working on the second one and then we start the joining process, yikes! 

So I'll keep you posted on how it goes!!  Miss you!!