Category: scarves and cowls

Friday Finish: Woven Wool Scarf

Posted on Posted in finished objects, scarves and cowls, weavingTagged 22 Comments

I finished weaving my scarf! Yarn is Gist Array in US sourced Corriedale and Columbia wool. Colors are Lotus 1, Ocean 1, Tangerine 2, Violet 3, and Daffodil 3.

I’m pleased with it. It is nice and long. That’s one of my pet peeves with scarves. I like them long enough to triple around my neck. It looks great with my blue coat!

I enjoyed weaving on the guild’s Schacht Wolf Pup 4-harness floor loom. As a thank you, I enclosed the accessories I made and purchased in a bag I sewed with black walnut leaf dyed cotton canvas. Another guild member made a raddle, so it will be nice to keep these things together for the next person who borrows the loom.

I am really enjoying being part of the guild. So many lovely people and some in person social time is doing me good.

I’m not sure I’ll make weaving one of my regular crafts. I prefer knitting, and I have so many things I want to knit. But I may consider a rigid hedge loom in another year or two. I’d love to weave dish towels for the house, and for gifts.

Advent Scarf

Posted on Posted in holidays, knitting, scarves and cowlsTagged , , 15 Comments

A few years ago I really wanted to knit this scarf:

📸 Tricia Weatherston

I still want to knit it! (That’s a tried and true test for spending my knitting time in a quality way.)

I’m late to start an Advent scarf. I have a cone of sport weight Frangipani gansey yarn (worsted spun with great stitch definition) in off white that I think would be perfect, though. Should I cast on? (I think the answer to that question is always YES.) Or I could add it to next year’s December knitting list, which is more rational and realistic, especially since I have a couple of gift knits to finish.

Are you a December Advent knitter? I like it as a way to count down the holidays. I didn’t put anything in my Advent chest this year. I was disappointed when I created my own yarn Advent with leftovers. I thought I was really clever, tricking myself. Oh well. Maybe next year I’ll purchase some new little things and fill in with chocolate.

Here is my updated Holiday Watch List of titles I’ve seen so far:

  • All is Bright
  • Krampus
  • Rare Exports
  • Hjem til Jul
  • Gilmore Girls holiday episodes
  • Great British Baking Show holiday episodes
  • Great American Baking Show holiday edition
  • A Christmas Story Christmas movie (a worthy follow up to the original)

Have you any new holiday movies or shows you are watching this year?

Holiday Doodle Cowl

Posted on Posted in finished objects, holidays, knitting, scarves and cowlsTagged , 18 Comments

I finished knitting my Holiday Doodle Cowl! I was worried I made it too snug, but I love that I can cover my nose with it and it stays up. (And ears!)

Pattern is Holiday Doodle Cowl by Pacific Knit Co. She has different versions of the pattern, so you have to make sure you get the charts you want. Yarn is Rauma Strikkegarn in 123 mid green, 100 white, 155 light blue, 144 red, and 198 light green. I ended up finding the red at Wool & Company, but I purchased the rest of my yarn from The Woolly Thistle.

I like this yarn a lot. It’s woolly, so not for someone who wants their wool super soft. But to me it’s warm and cozy. I have enough left to make some mittens, so I think I’ll do that. I’ve been wanting to make some trigger mittens from Saltwater Classics since our trip to Nova Scotia. They would be fun in these colors.

I also really enjoyed knitting the pattern. It’s fun, straightforward colorwork. I think this may be my favorite type of knitting, after stockinette. I’m also proud of my grafting, which you can see here. Or can you?

I’ve wanted to knit this since 2020, when I purchased the pattern on Ravelry. I’m glad I will have it to wear this holiday season!

Friday FO: Bandana Cowl

Posted on Posted in finished objects, knitting, scarves and cowlsTagged , , , , , 14 Comments

I finished my Bandana Cowl Number 4 in my Spring Thaw yarn from Cornbread and Honey. I love it! So soft, super cozy, and my favorite color. And the best part is it’s nonsuperwash merino!

It still needs a blocking, but I love the shaping. If you make one, be sure your cast on is super stretchy. I used the German twisted cast on.

Celtic Myths Showl

Posted on Posted in finished objects, knitting, scarves and cowls, shawls and hapsTagged , 17 Comments

I invented a new trend, called the “showl.” It’s what happens when you’re almost finished knitting a shawl but run out of the yarn you purchased more than a decade ago, so you can’t finish the border since there is no hope of getting more. What happens next is you fold over the knitting and stitch it together to form an odd shaped cowl thing. It almost has a hood, but not quite, and it’s asymmetric anyway. But when you wear it bunched up around your neck, it looks fine. Just fine.

See? It’s fine. Pattern is Celtic Myths. Yarn is Cheryl Oberle Dancing Colors. I do love this yarn. It’s a treasure from an event I attended. Unfortunately, I can’t remember if it was the Knitter’s Review Retreat of 2003 or a Knitter’s Mercantile event from around the same time. But I got to meet Cheryl Oberle, which was super cool. Her Folk Shawls book is still one of my favorites.

I’m not making this up, but on Huff Post I saw there is a new trend call the “shacket.” It’s a shirt jacket. I thought, “That’s just the thing to sew with my wool flannel fabric!” Shacket here I come!

Friday FO: Marled Alaska Cowl

Posted on Posted in finished objects, knitting, scarves and cowlsTagged , 16 Comments

I finished my Marled Alaska Cowl this week(Ravelry link). They removed it from the Bad Sheep Yarn Co’s website for some reason. Yarn is Moondrake’s Soft Shawl in colorways Driftwood and Zombie held together. I find these colors difficult to photograph, but the above image captures them well.

Every stitch was a pleasure, and I love how the design lays around the neck and shoulders. It’s my new favorite cowl!

It’s Beginning to YOP a Lot Like Christmas

Posted on Posted in knitting, life, scarves and cowls, sewing, spinning, Works in Progress (WIPs)Tagged , , , 21 Comments

I haven’t posted for Year of Projects (YOP) in a few weeks. I haven’t really been focused on crafting. But I did update my list today.

Knitting

I added this cowl, which is the Marled Alaska Cowl (Ravelry link) in Moondrake’s Soft Shawl, colorways Driftwood and Zombie held together. I should be able to finish this up this week.

I had to frog my Stash Aurealis. After I got through the short rows and increases for the yoke, my stitch count was wrong. At first I was going to fudge it, then I realized that would be silly as it is a very small bit of knitting that I can certainly reknit quickly once my head is in the right place. So that project will be disappeared back into the yarn tubs for now.

I removed some projects from my list that I can’t see myself making anytime soon.

Sewing

I added my Plateau Joggers, which are now cut out and ready to sew.

Today I will make some Canada, Eh? flannel PJ pants for Bob. He has requested pockets, so I hope the pocket pattern from one of my dresses will do as a template.

Spinning

M’lady
M’lady Bug

I added spinning to my list. My goals this year are modest. 1. Relearn to spin 2. Improve my spinning.

Listening to Music Intentionally

I removed this from my list. I’ve been enjoying indie folk playlists on YouTube that are themed by season or mood. It’s like hygge Muzak and is really the opposite of listening to music intentionally. But it’s nice background music and helps calm my nervous system.

We had snow flurries yesterday and the holidays are right around the corner! I’ve finished my shopping. It was easy as everyone is getting a Fair Trade Subscription. It feels good going into the season without many have-to-dos. I’m going to bake Rosemary Shortbread Stars today.

This has been a Year of Projects update. You can find out more about the group here (Rav link) or here: Backstage Kath’s YOP bloggers list. You can read my updated list of projects here.

Monday Mentions

Posted on Posted in finished objects, scarves and cowls17 Comments

1. The extreme blocking worked wonders on the Getting Warmer cowl (Rav link). I sent a photo to the silent auction winner and she loves it. It is heading to Indiana this week. Yarn is Kenyan merino that I kettle dyed with acid dyes in vermillion. I will probably make another one for myself eventually.

2. I attended my first Rust Belt Fiber Shed meeting tonight. It was a meeting of natural dyers. It was awesome.

3. My friend James started a new podcast for people who want to learn how to podcast. He’s a genius. Listen here. I will listen and then maybe I will understand what to do with The Just Craft.

4. I will be attending the Wisconsin Sheep and Wool Festival with Sarah and friends! I bought my plane ticket today! I don’t have any local knitting friends to go to fiber shows with. Isn’t that sad? I have local friends but none I would subject to a day weekend long fiber event. So I am saving up for Wisconsin!

5. I’m adding another KAL to my rotation. Magpie Fibers is hosting a Beav-a-long! 🤣 Learn more here.