new projects for a new year

The Jewish New Year started last week (Rosh Hashanah) and the new year is 5771. It's a tradition to wear new clothes for the new year, and I wanted to finish that endless purple sweater so I could wear it to a friend's house for a holiday dinner, and for services on Thursday. I managed it. I haven't managed a photo of the sweater in use, as taking pictures isn't really something we do on this holiday. It's really supposed to be a time to go to synagogue, to see friends and family, to eat great big holiday meals and to rest. No errands, no chores, etc. I did rest, although I had a hard time avoiding the outside world this time...others' errands and a doctor's appointment happened "to me" even though I tried to avoid them!

Anyhow, I caught a photo of this sweater today while hanging it on a radiator. Our heat is now coming on occasionally as we're beginning to see cooler fall temperatures. This is a Debbie Bliss pattern, knit with Zara, a DK weight Merino wool. I sometimes knit other folks' patterns to see how they do things. My favorite part of this pattern was the pleated "bustle" in the back. I managed to catch a photo of that today, although I'm wearing blue jeans and not dressed up to match the sweater.

I was also able to finish the weaving of this rug made from mill ends that I purchased in May at Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival. The edges still need to be finished, but it is now off the loom.

Last week I dyed some of the Brown Sheep Wool Mill Ends that I also got in May. I did a pound of this as a dusty rose (pictured here) and a pound of bright red. Here's the start of the next rug. When I dyed these, I discovered that the wool is mixed with a bit of mohair in places, so there is a shimmer and luster to this rug that I wasn't expecting. I'm enjoying seeing the surprise of it as I weave it up!

Now I am on to thinking about designing myself a new sweater. When I am not designing for others, I delve into my stash. I like to buy "souvenir" yarn when I go on vacations. This combo is now enough for a sweater...but the mohair/wool boucle (on a cone) is from Cushendale Woollen Mills in Ireland-I think we were there in 2005. The DK and laceweight weight wool is from a trip to New Zealand and Australia, and I used some of the DK yarn for my Two Point Scarf design. (the pattern is available for download both on Ravelry and from my website.) I was worried that I would not have enough matching yarn for my sweater ideas, so I visited my closest Local Yarn Shop--Wolseley Wool. (They've just moved to a new shop down the block from Wolseley Wardrobe!) There I found some Peruvian alpaca in just the right shade at my local Canadian yarn shop...on close out because they were in the midst of moving.

I'm looking forward to making the sweater...and I'm pretty sure there won't be another one like it! Not anywhere in the world! It's the souvenir Ireland/New Zealand/U.S./Canadian/Peruvian yarn.

Finally, I am inspired by all this red to mention one last thing. I discovered that I have been written up in the Cornell Alumni Magazine this month. Scroll down, I'm just past the person who does President Lincoln re-enactments! It makes me sound a little more clever than I actually am--I'm no expert at sewing, for one thing--but I'm honored to be mentioned there. I'm a proud Cornellian.

...So, got any neat new projects for fall?

fishing

You'd be amazed how little knitting and spinning happen when one is travelling alone for 2 weeks and thousands of miles. I realized that most of my travel knitting is done in cars when someone else is driving, or on planes (when I'm not too exhausted to consider it.) Plus, although I caught a very few photos at New Hampshire Sheep and Wool festival, there aren't a lot of pictures to show off. Mostly, I was doing a lecture, a book signing and a three hour class. No time at all to linger, shop, or catch great photos.

In retrospect, this reflection is funny. One publisher thought that I could pay for all the Fiber Gathering book travelling and research by teaching at each festival. That didn't work out, of course, because I would have had to plan those classes with the festivals months/years in advance! Beyond that, though, when I wrote Fiber Gathering, I (and my trusty professor/photographer) had to be out and about at each festival nearly every day it was held, all day...in a few instances, we were there only 2 days out of 3, but gosh, teaching on this trip made me see how little else I was good for when I finished 5 hours of activities!

Plus, that terrible stomach bug kept me mostly under the weather. I did, however, feel well enough to wander out of the dooryard to see my best friend's family's pond. Her dad has stocked it with trout. They feed the trout every day, and feeding the fish is a fun daily event! They offered me the honor, and as I fed the fish, they all gathered by the dock. This, apparently, was rather unusual and thrilling. We could see these huge, fabulously beautiful fish in the clear shallow water. Both my best friend and her mom wondered if they might use the food as bait and touch or catch the fish as the Native Americans used to.

Tippy, their German Shorthair Pointer, also got in on the action. It was pretty funny to watch! I was not yet up to getting in on the action, so I just captured it with the camera instead. :)

I'll try to post some New Hampshire photos soon. In the meanwhile... my Fishtail scarf has now been published in Yarn Forward Magazine, Issue 14 ! It's a great issue, and I'm proud to be a part of it. If you're interested in a warm yet "holey" scarf but without the fish reference, another similiar option is my Two Point Scarf, available for download here. ... And now, back to my regularly scheduled date with the laundry....

A new pattern!

You may be wondering what I'm up to, lately. (me too, frankly...) I've been trying really hard to tie up loose ends and to get ready for a 2 week trip away from home! (see the details in my last post...) At the same time, I've written up three new patterns for pdf download on my website. Two of the patterns are already live. I'll announce them here one at a time, and get them up on Ravelry soon.
This is... the Two Point Scarf.

The description:

This scarf’s an easy knit with DK weight yarn in garter stitch, and its whimsy allows you to adjust it to fit your personal style. Pull either of the points through any of the buttonholes, and you have a fashion conscious- and possibly even warm- option! The shortest distance between two points is a line…unless, of course, you add in some buttonholes along the way. This fast to knit item uses #5(3.75mm) needles and needs approximately 330 yards or 300 meters of DK weight yarn—use more for a longer scarf. Lace a silk scarf through the holes for added flair.

Ideal for a beginning knitter, or for a mindless warm weather project! It's also perfect for either a solid color or a hand-dyed yarn. Hope you like it...and now, I just have to get a chance to announce another pattern or two in the next day or two on the blog. More to come...