Lace Weight Yarn

I've been putting off working with lace weight yarn as frankly, I was a bit afraid of it.  It is so fine and thread-like, that I could see myself breaking it or getting into knots.  I don't think there was any real substance to this fear, just something in the back of my mind telling me that this would be beyond my skill level.

So, I bit the bullet and found a shawl pattern with an easy repetitive design so I could concentrate on working the yarn rather than the stitches themselves. After I did a few repeats, I had to laugh at myself for having anxiety about working with lace weight yarn, as there really is no difference at all!

Was it FDR that said there is nothing to fear, but fear itself? He was right in this particular case.
I can't believe that I put this off for so long!

So, here is my very first shawl knit with wool/silk blend lace weight yarn.
It is light as a feather and drapes so very beautifully.



This is the first of many more to come, I am sure.  Now, the problem is choosing the pattern....

Have you worked with lace weight yarns?  Please leave a comment to talk about your experiences.

Anna ~ My First Shawl Design

With all the shawls I've been knitting lately, I decided to design a pattern of my own and I am very happy with the end result.

I had a vision of the basic design and set out to start knitting in fingering weight yarn and added some bead work on the edging. What took place was pretty much a mess, but I figured out better bead placement from the first try. So I frogged that one and cast on again. The second try was better, but not really what I had in mind, so again, it was ripped out.

I put it aside for a few days, but the pattern was still in my head. So I picked up some heavy worsted yarn and started knitting along. Once I got going, it just started taking shape and turned out perfect!

The pattern is available for purchase on Ravelry, Craftsy and Etsy.  I would consider it a medium level project is it includes both cables and lace, but once the repeated pattern is knit a couple times, it is very easy to catch on and get the rhythym of the design. 

I named this desgin Anna, after my mother who taught me to knit many, many years ago....

February Knit Along on Ravelry

The February Advanced choice for the Dozen Shawls in 20Dozen was this gorgeous Cotton Bam Boo Kudzu Shawlette.   I chose to knit this one in 50% cotton/50% wool blend in a beautiful deep teal color, which makes a perfect wrap for spring/summer.

The design is fabulous and the slight modifications to some stitches really make the pattern pop out!

I really enjoyed knitting this one and will probably knit it again soon.

Audrey ~ Handknit Red Lace Shawl

My lastest shawl is named Audrey, after Audrey Hepburn. 

There are many different shades of red and last fall, I went searching for just the right shade of red yarn for a shawl project.  I finally found this amazing hand-dyed yarn with a bit of sparkle from The Periwinkle Sheep.  I absoultely fell in love with this yarn that she had named Audrey Hepburn. I didn't know that Audrey's favorite color was red, but I am glad that it was!

 I didn't have a pattern in mind, I just new that I wanted to knit a red shawl.

Everyday since October, I had glanced at my cherished yarn, knowing that one day it would become a shawl and last week, I finally cast on and knitted a shawl that I feel keeps the classic simplicity of Audrey in mind.  

I chose a simple, yet classic design to allow the beauty of the yarn to be the main attraction.

Simple, but gorgeous, as was Audrey.

Classic Cable Unisex Wool Scarf in Forest Green

I've been knitting up a storm here lately and have had so much fun knitting holiday gifts and shawls.  But I thought I would take a moment to knit something simple that didn't require alot of thinking or counting.

So I resorted to my favorite original pattern with classic cable design and pulled out my forest green tweed wool stash.  This scarf is just a classic and perfect for all types of outings.  It is knit with 2 strands of yarn for the chunky look, but is very soft and has a very nice drape. 

This scarf is available in my etsy shop as well as the pattern for those of you who like to make their own.

Finished Shawl

I finally had time to finish up the shawl I started in October and it came out so nice!

This is Anna Dalvi's pattern Tital Waves from her book "Shaping Shawls".   I was lucky enough to meet her in person at the Rhienbeck Fiber Festival this year and I can't wait to try another of her patterns. I did modify her design a bit by using smaller yarn with more pattern repeats and adding a crocheted scalloped edging around the bottom.   But what really makes this project special is that I used hand dyed yarn from The Periwinkle Sheep's Wink collection.  This yarn is hand dyed merino/nylon which has a bit of sparkle through out the yarn. 

It is hard to tell from the photos, but it is sparkly and oh so nice!

This shawl is available on etsy for a one of a kind treasure!

Happy Knitting ~  Val

Happy New Year 2012

I have seriously neglected my blog during December 2011 as I was busy with my holiday preparations.  I basically had a knitting project going in every spare moment for gifts to all my loved ones.  I gave away 2 afghans, 6 pairs of socks, a hat and scarf set and several knit book marks. 

I love the way this chunky afghan turned out that I gave to my daughter Sara.  It is very soft, thick and warm.  I loved working the cables and although there are a couple mistakes in it, they are very hard to find and not noticable at all.

Daughter Erin received this one, which is just as soft:

For Daryl, I found a pattern for Soldier Socks from WWI, distributed by the Red Cross.  I thought these would be interesting as Daryl loves watching the old war clips on TV.  They knit up quickly and brought me back in time.  All the while I was knitting them, I was thinking about the soldiers off to war nearly 100 years ago. 

For Alehk (daughter Erin's boyfriend)  I was most proud of this pair of socks.  Even though I used a self striping yarn, I was thrilled that I actually got them to come out to match perfectly:

Erin's socks didn't match stripes as well, but still a fun pair of socks anyway:

Daughters Katie and Sara and son-in-law Kris  went with the plain jane styles:

Now that my holiday knitting is over, I am looking forward to a productive 2012.  I've joined a knit along on Raveley for a Dozen Shawls in 20Dozen..  That is a shawl a month and I hope I can keep up with it.  I plan to cast on January's shawl this weekend and knit it up in a couple weeks.

I hope you all have a great 2012 and keep on knitting!