Summer KAL

In the Studio it has been decided that the Wishbone Shawl is the winner for the summer KAL on the Knitaway group on Ravelry.  Join us!  Starts the first week of July and the pattern is available in my Ravelry shop I wrote a  post about this pattern when it first came out earlier this year so take a look at the archived post for more information.   You can see that I've already got a start, uh, swatch going.

I called the shawl Wishbone because of it's shaping. The tails are extreme and that's what gives it  versatile style.  Wear it draped, tied, twisted: It all looks and feels good.

Wishbone Shawl diagram from the pattern.

It is a simple knit with rhythmic interest,  just right for summer knitting.  The shawl is worked from the neck down and uses just under 500 yards, making it easy to carry around even as it grows. With the diagonal lines it looks great in a solid and fabulous in a hand-dyed yarn.  The model is in my hand-dyed Dancing Colors yarn which is a DK weight. Go lighter or heavier if you choose.  This is one accommodating knit.

  I'm knitting two more, the one I'm swatching out of my summer stash, a cotton /rayon/silk blend, and another out of Just Beautiful Alpaca.  So hit your favorite LYS or your stash this weekend and come on along for the KAL.  Can't wait to see what you do.

Here's a little tip:  the pattern directs you to mark the center stitch and it means mark the stitch itself, not place a marker on each side of the stitch.  The reason for this is that there are yarn overs on every other row on each side of the center stitch. Now you know how those silly yo's like to slip over the top of a marker, like lambs jumping a fence.  If you lose your center stitch you'll have a rather twisted Wishbone. (Now there's an idea...hmmmm...later for that.). The photo below shows my two favorite ways to mark a single stitch: using a safety pin that is pinned into the stitch itself on the right side or (and this is my new thinking), putting a safety pin-like marker around the neck of the stitch.

Hope you can join us in the KAL.  This is shaping up to be a fine knitting summer.

Summer Yarns

        Happy Summer!  This is the season that I always wish I'd thought ahead and knit up some of my cotton/linen/silk stash into lovely summer-worthy creations.  But no.  What do I usually and continually do?  I find more beautiful yarns in the shops to add to my summer dream list.
        Well I'm challenging myself this time by picking four of my favorite ( yes, newly added) stash yarns and setting my creative cap for their conversion into something essentially cool to wear this summer.  Or maybe next summer?  Thinking ahead at last!  Knitted lace is on my mind.....

June Days

      These spring days flow by like a gentle breeze.  Look at the bouquet the garden devas left for us this week.  Each day they are open, the roses grow more deeply colored.  It is simply beautiful to watch.

  

        There's always good news in the Studio.  A new shawl is off the needles and here's a bit of stitch detail for your perusal.  Yes, I have a thing for green this spring.   This is another Faroese shawl, one of the shawls we'll be exploring at the Knitaway in the Studio in October.  Join us if you please.  There's still some room for you in either session.  

    

 

     Having just acquired an electric carder from a dear friend on a long term loan, below are some batts of Perendale ready for the Tour de fleece that begins June 30th.  

      I'm off now to pick strawberries in the garden and then finish plying some Romney to free up the wheel for a Perendale test spin.   Oh and then there are three new swatches on today's schedule.  June days do fly!