I think I'm around half way with the shawl, maybe a little more depending on whether I decide to use the entire three skeins, or possibly break in to a fourth! I really love the pattern, and it's flying along so easily now. The pattern felt just within my comfort zone at first, and now I'm feeling magically more confident with lace knitting around the children, and taking on bigger projects - the next couple of things on my to-do list are slightly more adventurous and using finer yarn too.
The hat, for a customer, is my hand dyed rainbow aran. Rainbow yarn makes me so happy. It hasn't all been creamy undyed fibre love this time around! I think I dyed almost a kilogram of bright beautiful sparkly colour this week. :)
It's been a busy few days. My darling Mr had his birthday, my little wild ones have eaten about their own body weight in home made ice lollies, and my monkey baby seems to be increasingly taking long day time naps in order to rampage around my bedroom at 3am (how long it takes me to reach my breaking point on this one remains to be seen).
It has been, in a million different ways, a perfect sun-kissed week of joy. At the same time, I am so bone-achingly tired, knitting is about the only thing keeping me functional. I love how yarn crafts give me that, busy hands keeping my mind present and level, and the progress of each project is a measure of moments; stitch by productive stitch, breath by breath, centred and whole and here and filled with light.
Your lace work is fantastic! Love the hat it's so cute - rainbow is my favorite colour.
ReplyDeleteThanks! :) Dyeing rainbow yarn is so much fun, especially when I get to knit with it myself. :)
DeleteThank God (or some other concept) for knitting, eh? Otherwise I might have a very non-yummy mummy slump at around 8.30 every night! I think it's the only thing that keeps me conscious!
ReplyDeleteIt's remarkably soothing when under normal exhausted circumstances I'd be snapping at everyone in the vicinity haha!
DeleteAaaaaagh - I just read your message on my blog... would you be able to make some wool for me? It would be so awesome - I think I need something kind of fingering weight, hot pink and two shades of grey, about 330m of each? (Or 330m of hot pink and a recommendation of a brand that I could buy for the greys that would match the weight and texture of your pink) I would LOVE to knit with your yarn, so your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to leave me a message with your email address and let's do this!
DeleteAccepted! I'd be delighted to help!
Deletethe shawl and hat are beautiful Sarah how long does it take you to make them? x
ReplyDeleteI reckon the hat took me about two hours perhaps? The shawl, well, I've been working on it maybe an hour or two a day (sometimes more) for two weeks now!
DeleteSo I guess in total it will have taken me easily 50 hours work in total when it's done. I don't keep track very well, and I knit a row here and a row there. I'm not very fast. :)
Im really slow at crocheting but quicker at knitting, im still learning to crochet really.
DeleteSo pleased you left a comment on my blog so that I could visit you! You are just down the road (well almost). I LOVE your lace work! So pretty and so brave - especially around children :o)Popped over to your yarn store and love it! Will certainly be buying from you in the future!
ReplyDeleteAw thank you! :) :)
DeleteYour last sentence was absolutely perfect. I relate to the stitch by stitch measurement of progress, and how knitting keeps you present. You expressed it beautifully. And I am AMAZED by your hand-dyed yarn! It is breath-taking! (especially since I do not know a single thing about how to go about dyeing yarn :)
ReplyDelete<3 I kind of threw myself in at the deep end, and self-taught not long after I first learned to crochet! Thanks for the compliments, it is such a lovely feeling when people like my yarns. :)
DeleteWhat a beautiful post, love loving the hat, really will need you to dye some more of that at the precise time I have some money to buy some...banking on synchronicity lending a helping hand there. Your knitting projects and photos always inspire me, I am one who usually picks things that are well within my comfort zone, and I am gaining courage to pick something a bit more tricky through reading about your knitting adventures. Blessings x x
ReplyDeleteThank you! :) :) Go for something you *really really want* to make, and I'll cheer you on. <3
DeleteI love the hat... and the shawl is lovely. I know the tired you speak of, I think it's part of being a parent, eh? But man, some uninterrupted restful days would be awesome!
ReplyDeleteYes, the occasional sick day would be nice...
DeleteYour shawl is looking amazing and is still cream hooray! Your rainbow yarn is just gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteHaha I know, it's still cream!! Nobody is more surprised than me! :) (And thanks!)
Deletesuch lovely knits, the creamy white is so soothing.
ReplyDeleteThis organic aran is just so lush and squishy, I just love knitting with it (the rainbow and the white are the same yarn base). :)
DeleteI am in utter awe of your shawl. It's looking great. I'd be so bored of it by now, but you're doing really well with plodding along. And it's lace! Your knitting's just getting amazing now. :)
ReplyDeleteI haven't had chance to get bored of it yet because I'm rarely getting to knit more than six rows at a time... Plus it goes quite fast comparatively with the aran merino! :) :)
DeleteI can definitely see my skill level increasing slowly but surely. It's a nice feeling. :)
Your shawl is just amazing Sarah! I love knitting in patterns, if you see what I mean, so fun seeing it evolve. I would probably lose my place many times at the moment though :)
ReplyDeleteMay have to pay a visit to your shop soon, to treat myelf to some lovely rainbow yarn, beautiful! x
Oh yes, this is a really *great* pattern for being able to see where you are easily, I panic a bit when knitting around many disctractions/children/same difference. ;)
DeleteStop by and say hi any time. :) If you're on Facebook I get to chat to my customers there, and show off works in progress. :D
https://www.facebook.com/ArwenMakes
You are just too amazing!
ReplyDeleteI love the little hat so much, trying hard to think of something you could make for my little girl in the same wool xxx
Aw thanks! :) :)
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