This is mostly a knitting blog. Sometimes pictures of things I've made, sometimes not. I'm a guy who knits, I usually attend a men's stitch 'n' bitch on Monday nights, and I prefer natural fibres to artificial ones. I have a love-hate relationship with bamboo yarns: I love what they can do and how they look, I hate how they are made. I've been knitting since about 2003, though I really didn't get into it until 2005, while convelescing with a broken leg. I must have discovered something good, 'cause I'm still knitting years later.

Monday, February 9, 2015

Knitting through the Snowstorms

It is snowing in Boston.
Again.
For the third time in two weeks, we are experiencing a storm that will drop a foot or more of snow on top of us. The snow mounds are sometimes 8 feet high. Slogging through the unshoveled or partially shoveled sidewalks has been an adventure. I have decided to brave the snow and wind today to get out to a cafe where I had some internet access so I could finally update this blog-thingy of mine.

Because of all the snow, I've had a few days off. Room cleaning can only take one so far. Then I was assaulted by a nasty cold. Not to put too fine a point on it, if it weren't for NyQuil, I'd've been a running river of snot. But I've gotten a lot of knitting done, and bound off a couple of projects this weekend and today. Now I'm casting about for something to cast on. More on that later.

This is Troy's cowl. Malabrigo Mecha, in colourways Hojas and Tobacos.

The last stripe of green is a bit wonky, since I was alternating two different dye lots of the Hojas. I'd bought two of one dye lot and a third of another dye lot, but the second of dye lot A really didn't match the first skein of dye lot A, so I mixed the last of the skein with dye lot B. There's a bit more blue in the stripe than in the original, but I think it works. But I really should rip it out and do it again because I did a piss-poor job of it.

This is a New Bittersweet Cowl, made of Frog Tree Yarn's Llambrosia. This is delightfully soft yarn to work with. I need to block it, but when it's finally done I'll send it off to Margaret, the mother of my friend Carlene.

On the left, is the entire thing. I think blocking will help even it out. Not sure if I'm going to soak it or if I'm just going to spritz it and let it hang. I'll probably soak it.







To the right is a detail of the pattern. I really like the way it looks like flames.









And finally, the first New Bittersweet Cowl I made. MadTosh, Vintage, Betty Draper's Blues. I followed the pattern religiously, and it should be able to wrap twice around the wearer's neck, but this is rather too short for that.


Above is the first iteration of the New Bittersweet Cowl.
To the right is a detail of the pattern.
I may redo this and make it larger, since the person I want to give it to would probably like to double it.

No comments:

Post a Comment