Skip to main content

FO Friday: Weekend!

As I've mentioned before, my friend Jen Geigley recently released an awesome book of patterns called WEEKEND: Simple, Modern Knits. You can read more about it here on my official review - and guess what? I'm reopening the giveaway, because the person whose name I drew never claimed their prize! So click here to find out how you can win a copy of this awesome book, plus a Knitter's Pride Nova Platina chunky interchangeable needle set.
Last weekend, Jen was actually here in Chicago for a trunk show and book signing at Nina! I was so glad I could stop by to say hello to Jen, as well as many of my other knitting friends who also happened to be there, too. After the trunk show, I grabbed a drink at Bangers and Lace with Jen and Heidi from Hands Occupied - guess whose beer is at the dark end of that spectrum!
Since there is a KAL happening all month long for WEEKEND, I figured I should probably start another project from the book to work on while I was out and about - so I grabbed some handspun yarn and cast on for the Little Earthquakes cowl on Saturday afternoon. By Sunday morning, I had a finished cowl - talk about instant gratification!
This particular handspun yarn was something I made using all of the leftover singles I'd accrued, mixed with a deep purple-black base single. It was one of those experiments I figured wouldn't work, which then turned out to be pretty stunning (shows what I know!). The simple design was perfect for this kind of variegated/tweedy yarn, and the resulting cowl is so incredibly squishy, I kind of want to keep it (alas, I am putting it in the holiday gift bin).
In fact, at the start of the month, I knit another Sliver hat for the KAL using - you guessed it! - still more handspun yarn from my stash.
If you read this blog regularly, you know that most of the things i knit are on fingering, sport or worsted yarn. Big, chunky knits are not well-trod territory for me, but I am totally a fan of how fast and fun each project from WEEKEND has been. In fact, I am currently hatching a crazy scheme to spin enough chunky weight yarn to knit the Undone sweater out of Swalesdale top from Louet. It might have to be one of my 2016 craft resolutions!

Comments

  1. Love it! Thanks for the second chance to win! The weekend is on my wish list!

    ReplyDelete
  2. What a great Second Chance draw! Thank you for the opportunity.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Undone is the One for me! Sorry for the second post. The Keyboard froze and I have no idea why. Probably the iPad was wishing for a cozy Weekend knit of its own!

    ReplyDelete
  4. do we do a new post here, or do we need to re-post to the prior blog post?

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Easy DIY: Beaded Vintage Snowflake Ornament Kits from Solid Oak Inc.

I was really excited to step outside of my comfort zone and try something new as part of my "Christmas in July" theme this month. The kind folks at Solid Oak Inc offered me a chance to review one of their Nostalgic Christmas beaded crystal ornament kits I couldn't resist. My tree is already full of ornaments I've inherited or been gifted from other family members and friends,  so these pretty crystal beaded ornaments will fit right in I think! I was super impressed with  this compact little kit , which includes everything needed to create three gorgeous vintage-style ornaments - just add a pair of round nose pliers (I found mine on Amazon for less than ten bucks).  The instructions had some fabulous tips for newbies like me; for example, it recommended sorting the beads and laying them out in order on a towel or beading mat to prevent them from rolling away. That may seem obvious, but I was totally ready to start beading on my kitchen table without a

What If I Didn't Add Heels?

Last weekend, I finished the first sock with my Waterlilies yarn , and just for yuks, I tried it on even though it was basically just a tube sock. Much to my surprise, it fit really well, even without a heel. Who knew? So, that got me thinking: what if I just didn't add the heels?  I never thought a tube sock would actually fit nicely, but I genuinely like the fit, so...why spend time to add the heels? As the saying goes, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.... Let's say I decide not to add heels once the second sock is done - there will still be placeholder yarn for the afterthought heels, as you can see above, so should I leave it in and just weave in the ends? Or should I remove it, put the live stitches back on needles and at least graft them together using more of the Waterlilies yarn? I plan on mulling all of this over as I knit the second sock, and I'd love to hear your opinions of what you think would look best (or if you think this whole "n

Overdyeing A Finished Knit

Even after just a few years of knitting or crocheting, you're bound to have some finished projects lying around that never get worn or used. After 10+ years of crafting, I have more than just "some" or "a few"....and with my ongoing quest to declutter my house this year, I've become obsessed with going through these forlorn projects and making some Big Decisions. Sometimes, they are perfectly fine and just need a new and loving home. Other projects may have not turned out quite right: there might have been some mistakes in the knitting that I thought I could live with, or the yarn was gorgeous but not well-matched to the pattern, or my  taste has drastically changed since I finished making the project...in any case, why on earth did I keep knitting?! Who knows, but I don't feel good about gifting anything that falls into this category to someone else. These projects have been relegated to the "frog pile" (or should I say, frog pond?), to b