Life LackaDaisiCal

Whew....that wasn't so bad at all!  All the stitches are on the needle!  Here is the offending V neck.....intact......I think I'll keep this as a reminder! I had put a life line in before cutting..... so it was easy to snip along, and pick up the stitches as I went.

Pretty scary huh? After removing the neckline and armhole finishing......... the shoulder seams have been undone and the back neck stitches  have been put on a holding thread, same for the back shoulder stitches.... I've picked up the stitches for the row I want to keep - and I'm going to cut off the top bit of the front and knit again.  I am not going to rip out - after all, the yarn can't really be reused and it would be too much work!  

or Rowan Patterns! What could I be contemplating??!?!? Rewind  back to this, my Anastasiya from Rowan 48. I love this sweater!  It was a challenge to knit and the yarn (Rowan Felted Tweed) is luscious. Hubby and I were on our way North for a couple of days and I thought Anastasiya would be a great wardrobe piece - so many shades in it that just combine it with a few t-shirts and you're good to go - NOT! WHY DON'T I WEAR IT? Modelled with a pistachio green t-shirt to demonstrate what I mean - too much T showing in the V! I tried it on and I have to admit.....I made a grave error with this sweater!  I deviated from the pattern!  At the time, I decided that the V neck was too short, and that I'd prefer a deeper V......I don't think I made it much deeper, but I did start the V in the flower motif - it should definitely have started a few inches higher!  With a shallower V, I think it would look great with a t-shirt just peeking up into the V. So, I've made a momento...

I had seen  Citron on Knitty  and  Citron on Ravelry  - thought it was a great design - but when I saw  Touran's Cool Citron  (you have to be logged in to Ravelry for this link to work)  done in Kidsilk Haze Stripe - well, I had to make one! Nearing the end, I started to weigh my ball of Kidsilk Haze after each row........after repeat 5, I felt that I had enough yarn to complete the ruffle with the striped yarn.  (My alternate plan B was to use a solid Kidsilk Haze to do the ruffle.) Down and down the scale readings went....each row of the ruffle took a full gram.  I ended up doing one less row for the ruffle, and was carefully binding off, watching the yarn get eaten up stitch by stitch.  This is what I had left once I had bound off!!!  So little yarn that it doesn't even register on the scale! Ahhhh, but it was worth every tense moment..... I will do an Applose photo when I've gently blocked this.....

I find this totally intriguing....I keep peeking inside the ball to see what is coming up next!

This time of year we like to take advantage of every good day and enjoy the outside - so last week we had tea and scones on the deck.....and I took some time to update my "60th year" Journal.

When I said I was a Kidsilk Haze addict, I wanted to link to this.... Rewind  to this post if you are interested.

I'm a Kidsilk Haze addict....remember this? Well, Darlene of my Rowan Knitters Group is knitting the   "Misty Shawl"   which uses two shades of Kidsilk Haze stripe. I was contemplating ripping this out and combining it with this...... to make one of these Misty Shawls.  BUT, my scarf goes really well with my purple t-shirt and a denim jacket, so I'm keeping it.......(and frankly the idea of ripping out a whole ball of Kidsilk Haze......) DO NOT WORRY!!!! I am knitting up the new ball of Kidsilk Haze Stripe into something else. Can you guess what? Yes I am still procrastinating about the Orkney Sweater.....that's ok, I'm allowed. Happy Knitting!

It was a lovely day for photos.....so here we go walkies..... Lackie had an itch...... Finn by Kim Hargreaves, Rowan Magazine 36 Yarn used in book: Rowan Yorkshire Tweed Aran (discontinued) I substituted:   Rowan Felted Tweed Aran , Shade 725 Teal (purchased at The Needle Emporium) Modifications?  Not really - I knit the rib for the fronts and the back as one piece, picked up as per the pattern and knit the body in one piece to the underarms - back and forth on a circular with subtle side seam shaping - just 4 stitches on each side.  After that it was exactly as the pattern was written. Love the yarn, love the colour, love the buttons, love the fit.   Can you tell I'm very happy with this?  LOL! Don't have Rowan Magazine 36?  Never fear! This design has been included in the new publication,   Kim Hargreaves Vintage Designs to Knit I looked it up on Amazon, they showed it with a different cover - perhaps different covers were used for the UK and the Nor...

It started with this Swatch I loved the 3 purl 1 knit rib, the way the yarn knit up and oh the colour - I loved the colour! The Finishing Touch! The buttons for my Finn....purchased at the Kitchener-Waterloo Knitters' Fair  - at the AB Originals booth (sorry they don't have a web site) I wanted something similar to what was shown in Rowan 36 ....rectangular wooden buttons. These are hand made, every so slightly irregular, which makes them perfect!

Sleeves needed to be joined to the body of Finn I like to tie in my sleeves, or even tie my seams together before I sew them up - that way I can actually try the garment on to see how it looks, how it fits, before I commit to the sewing up.   I use a blunt sewing up needle - so that I don't split the yarn. These raglan sleeves are to be sewn from the inside, so that the edge stitches meet up and for a ridge on the right side of the garment!  I would sew a bit, then hold the seam on the right side and gently pull the sewing yarn.... You have to watch that you don't catch the yarn that you used to tie the pieces together - it's hard to get it out if you do! The end result is worth it! It makes this lovely ridged seam on the right side, a designer touch.... The little details count... As was the ridge made when you cast off the rib, and then picked up again from the wrong side. Little details like this are what make Rowan designs so special. I'm actually wearing my Finn ri...

Both sleeves are done! The sleeves are always my stalling point....so I'm happy to report that BOTH sleeves for Finn are done. So today's job is to sew these sleeves in.....a bit of a challenge as the pattern calls for you to sew them in with the edge stitch of each piece forming a seam ridge on the RIGHT SIDE of the sweater.   I have seen this done on designer sweaters and it does look nice....but am I up to the task? At my Rowan Knitters Group last night, I was showing Carolyn how to tie in her sleeves before sewing them up - it was a new concept to the ladies....so I'll share it with you here.  Once the sleeves are in, there is only the neckline and front ribs to do - there is a lot of knitting still to go, but yes, I can see the "Finn" ish line...it's getting closer!

Having a cat nap!   Well, usually Lackie is in the front window in the red basket, and Daisy is on the back of the chair, like she is here. Today, Lackie was feeling like he wanted the comfort of the blankets we keep on this chair for these two. and Stash Diving!   Here's a box of Jamieson's Shetland Spindrift going off to a knitter here in Ontario. I've updated my Spindrift Destash list - I still have WAY TOO MUCH YARN! so click on the Shetland Spindrift Destash page, and visit my Ravelry Stash page for other yarns that are looking for good homes! I'm just finishing the 2nd sleeve of Finn......so I'll let you have a look once it's done!

Knitted in the round, with increases on either side of a designated underarm seam stitch... makes a lovely finish. Edited to add:  I can't believe the difference in the colour in this photo!

I'm all "stashed up" for Orkney from Rowan 52.  The Rowan Felted Tweed is lovely yarn - and these shades are gorgeous! As I usually knit fair isle in the round, with steeks......I have to think about how I want to do this design because of the vintage feel of how the front button and buttonhole bands are done......... I'm still thinking.