Cast Off, Cast On

After more record breaking highs, it finally cooled off enough here to get some cardi-shawl pictures!

The unique construction of this piece had rows that were over 7 feet long! That's a lot of stitches to hang onto, and with just a little origami the long rectangle turns into both the long (above) and short cardigan that you see here.





The Drama Queen had a little fun trying to do the whole moody, slinky, fashion model thing!


Stats :

Endless Cardi Shawl from Stitch Diva
This is the knit version, there is also a crochet and broomstick lace version if you are so inclined.
ColourMart Cashmere/Wool 2/10nm
Size 4 and 5 (US) needles
Started September 15th and cast off September 26,2010
No mods on this one, but it was a pretty boring knit, right up to the fascinating cast off. Truly, the cast off is the best bit!

Of course there is only one thing to do when you have cast off a project :




Cast on another one!

How to spend a weekend

The Drama Queen wanted to welcome you to Young's Jersey Dairy! She climbed up here in the hopes of distracting her mother...who wants to go over there!
Do you see those tents behind that tree? Like King Tut's tomb they contain wonderful things!
But, we had better look at the gourds and pumpkins for sale and maybe play for a bit too!

How big can you be and still play in the bounce house or ride the "train"?

Oops, Mom is just barely too tall!
Never mind, other people can ride while Mom dreams of yarny things...

A brief stop to watch the sheep shearing (pic didn't come out well) and a dog herding ducks!
The Drama Queen wants to get Angora Bunnies, but I think that the dog and all four cats might have something to say about that...although this one is very cute.
I left TDQ in charge of the camera while I shopped and loaded up my pack mules (Dear Son Number One and Number Two) funny how with all the wonderful things to see I could only find pictures of bunnies in my camera when we finally got too hot and tired to stay any longer.


Looks like some sock yarn came home with me! Along with some earrings and cheddar cheese. We all snacked on ice-cream while we were there. If only I had packed a cooler in the car we might have been able to bring some home with us...I settled for this load instead!





The Drama Queen got a couple of little things as well!
Everyone agrees, if they have A Wool Gathering next year, we are going!

In which one of us learns to count to a very big number

(If you listen carefully, in the background you can hear me counting cast on stitches...1,2,3)

Today is the day that starts the ColourMart Fall Contest and I entered into the Sweater category knowing that before it even really got started I would face a challenge.

(15,16,17)


Side note, for those of you who do not know it, I work at a bank. Actually, truth be told I am the branch manager of a bank. A bank that falls into the category of Super Regional Bank, so not your local one branch wonder. You would think that there were many things that you would have to know to work in a bank, and years ago when I was starting out there was an assessment to pass before a job offer could be made. If I recall it was one of those silly things that asks questions about your neighbors having lots of leaves on their yard and do you complain or do something about it. There was a typing test, if I recall, but the minimum typing speed they were looking for was pretty durn low but at no time did I have to pass any kind of math or counting test. That first job was to be a bank teller, and to this day my branch lets me run a teller window and deal with money, but the sad truth is, counting is sometimes difficult for me!

(125,126,129..wait was that right?)



My project for the contest is, as I said, a sweater. But one with a slightly different construction - no casting on for a back and then a front, no working front and back together to the armholes in the round....this one starts looking like a large scarf and through origami cast off magic turns into a sweater.

(300...phew nearly there, no where was I ? Oh yes, 196,197,198...)
Endless Knitted Cardi-Shawl by Stitch Diva

Good grief this cast on goes on forever, I see what she means about the Endless part!

*For those of you who want to cast on an inordinate amount of stitches correctly the first time, might I suggest picking a number, be it 5,10 or 25 and place a marker on your needle after that many stitches every time until you reach the right number!

I made it through the first challenge :
Something like 275 straight, boring rows to go!

WIP Wednesday

If you are keeping track, several of the stealthy knitting projects are off the needles, we can scratch the brown, the purple-ish and the red tones off my queue...of course I might have added a greeny-gray and maple leaf burgundy to the mix! I call it a win, three off the needles, three more on...at least I didn't add to my knitting load!

~M

Where to start?

This beauty and several of her friends (actually many of her friends) were hanging about my garden yesterday. Dear Son Number Two decided that he had to have pictures of them, and several very blurry pictures later finally got this one. He was very impressed with the number of butterflies and how the click of the camera taking the picture made them take flight.

But what do I have to show you?

I thought about this :

And then I remembered, I can't tell you about that one yet.

How's about this?
Oops, can't talk about that one either!

Maybe this?
Or this?
Nope, those are stealthy too.

I guess we will have to settle for (hah! Like this is settling for anything!) this :




Presenting the Summer Swatch Me Sampler Stole, being modeled by the newer, moodier Drama Queen!


Stats:
Pattern : Summer Swatch Me Sampler from Bad Cat Designs, presented pattern by pattern in a Yahoo Group.
Yarn : Jade Sapphire 2 ply Cashmere in Burnt Toast
Size 4(US) needles
Notes: I knit this one along with the group, along with some of the side projects. On many it was really fascinating to see how adding or subtracting a stitch, mirroring a motif or changing the background to garter stitch could give such a different look to the same basic design element.

Next up? Swatching for the ColourMart Contest, and maybe even finishing up a stealth project or two!

~M

Side tracked by Side Projects

She did it again!

In this case, I mean that TDQ absconded with one of my test knits!

Presenting : Falling Leaf Cowl from one of my favorite designers BadCat Designs.

This was my first time using any of Art Yarns products, and I have to thank the Bad Cat herself for sharing the yarn with me for the test knit. Pictures on their website do not do this yarn justice, it is just as soft and drapey as you could wish for, that flash of sheen from the silk and gentle halo from the mohair both look and feel fabulous!
There are little beads sprinkled throughout the design, placed with a crochet hook so no struggling with pushing beads down your yarn.

And just a few larger beads towards the end, added sparkle and just enough weight to help hold those edges down where they belong.
The breeze is doing its best to lift those edges!

Parting words from The Drama Queen :

Take a good look, this is all you get to see, it is mine now!

~M