I knitted another doily blanket - Egeblad by Christine Duchrow (http://www.yarnover.net/patterns/doilies/kunststrik/egeblad.html). It is a fantastic pattern with a swirling flower in the center and concentric, yet slightly offset, radiating leaves. I knit this one with Beaverslide McTaggart Tweeds in the color "Prairie Sandreed" on US10's.

This was interesting to block, so I decided to document my way of doing it, from start to finish.

Since I fell in love with knitting doily blankets, I wanted a good way to wash them. I went out and shopped in the home storage section of a local store. I found two plastic totes - one clear one and one white one with holes like you'd use to store kid's toys or cleaning supplies. The one with holes fits nicely inside the clear one. I chose clear so I could see if dye was leaching out of yarn as I washed it.

I filled the clear one half-full with tepid water and a squirt of Ivory soap. Then I put my blanket it the white one and submerged it. With a little swishing, I saturated the blanket and left it to soak for a little while. Beaverslide is great yarn, but it has the occasional piece of Montana prairie in it and it still has some lanolin. This yarn wasn't as greasy as the Prairie Aster Fisherman Weight, but it was still sheepy enough to want a good soak.



Next, the white tote lifted right out and let the blanket drain while I refilled the clear tote with fresh tepid water. This is where the totes pay for themselves because wet wool should never be lifted without supporting its weight. I can squeeze the fabric against one side to get excess water out, but mostly gravity does its thing. You also never want to run water directly on wool because that can contribute to felting.



I repeated this until the water was clear and the soap suds were gone. Prairie Aster made the water fairly purple, but this Prairie Sandreed really held the dye well through washing. The last soak was tepid water with Eucalan. Eucalan is great stuff because it smells really good and it protects the yarn from moths. There is no need to rinse and the wool comes out deliciously soft.

I block on my bed and wet, soggy wool would be an unmitigated disaster. My washing machine does not have an easily programmed spin cycle, so I use towels to get the wool mostly dry. I grabbed three or four thirsty towels in colors that wouldn't show any last dye residue. I spread one out flat on the bathroom floor, carefully spread the wet blanket in as near to a single layer as possible and rolled it up like a jelly roll.



Next, I stomped all over the roll in my bare feet. This really gets the water out of the blanket and into the towels. Your socks will get soaked if you don't take them off. This is the therapeutic part of blocking. Stomp. Stomp.



Now comes the blood, sweat and tears part of blocking. I laid the blanket out on my bed, using a spare comforter to protect the mattress.

1. Pin the center.
2. Pin the tips of all of the flower petals. Stretch the fabric out so they lay flat. I pin through the decreases because the stitches are thicker and hold the pins better. If the fabric is puckering or looking stressed, use more pins. Any stressed areas will show in your finished blanket, but you want to stretch this enough to make it lay flat and open the stitch patterns. The whole thing needs to spread out, but don't put all of that work on one poor little stitch.

See how the two petals look different before and after pinning?



3. Move out to the next layer and pin the tips of those points too.




4. Now work systematically around the blanket, stretching it and pinning the points of the leaves. Grab big handfuls of fabric and hold it down with the flat of your hand. Again, don't stress individual stitches here. Pull out and sideways to make the pattern open up. Use LOTS of pins.



5. When you get to the border, pin the stitches at the very tips of the leaves to anchor the edges.



6. Evenly spread out the scallops and pin through the stitches. Egeblad blocks into a perfect circle, without the ruffled edges of the Hemlock Ring. If you try to do this step first, it's really difficult to get the middle to open up. Point of note, I crocheted five chains on these scallops instead of eight per the pattern. They're still quite open so I possibly could have done three.



At this point, my back and neck are aching, I've poked myself with a multitude of pins and I think it's never going to end. Remember when I said use a lot of pins? I started with 500 and ended with..



After 45 minutes or so, I was done pinning. It was so worth it though. Look at this:

A few months ago, I barely knew what blocking was. Now I am becoming very familiar because of the Hemlock Ring Blankets. They won't lay flat without it, but how do I do it?

The first one was easy. Cascade 220 is very clean, fluffy, well-groomed wool. It has nice stitch definition and feels lofty without a lot of messing about. I steam-blocked to get my stitches to relax and take on the shape of a finished blanket.

The second is not so easy. Beaverslide already smells a little sheepy, which I personally like. I will not like it so much if it is hot and damp all over my bed. Even Cascade gets a little sheepy when steamed but this would be intense. Also, it has a lot of lanolin that seems to be holding the fibers together like.. pomade. I can't describe it properly, but it feels a little crisp and a little greasy, although the yarn is lofty and looks good. Lanolin keeps the sheep warm and dry and they don't look unkempt in their natural state, but it does do something to the yarn. In a blanket that will hopefully be cuddled, I'd like to reduce the waterproofing and increase the smooshy love.

So, before throwing my hard work into a tub of water and ruining it somehow, I swatched. I made a nice rectangle and soaked it in tepid water with a little Ivory soap. I thought this might help break up the fatty lanolin and help remove vegetable matter. I rinsed and rinsed until it was clear and then soaked it again in a tepid bath of Eucalan. Then I gently squeezed it out, rolled it in a towel and pinned it overnight.

The results are amazing. Photos don't capture it as well as I'd like, but it bloomed. The left half of the photo is the washed swatch. It's soft, supple, fluffy and smooth. The right side is the unblocked blanket. It has very crisp stitch definition, but it's almost too crisp. With this tweedy wool, I think a smoother finish will actually show the texture better because the bloom plumps up the stitches and fills in the gaps.



And now for something completely different..

With all of this rain, we have some unusual first-time visitors to the yard. Two days in a row, they've been hanging out in the lawn.

So I've been knitting away and I'm up to row 72 on my second Hemlock. It doesn't look like much yet so no photos. In lieu of knitting pictures, I'm posting other bliss in my life:

I have NO idea what this thing is. It's something in the lily family and I think I planted it last year, but I haven't seen in bloom. It looks like it's from outer space, so this should be interesting.



Bloodroot! My little patch is slowly spreading and it's such a pretty, interesting flower. I love how the leaves snuggle the stem and don't expand until later. It's so ephemeral, but it's a treat while it blooms. After the flowers are gone, it has these great scalloped leaves that look wonderful in the shade garden.



My pup. She's loving this warm weather and spends a lot of time outside watching the birds. She is such a great dog and I take her with me whenever I can. I'm glad the weather is warm enough that we can drive around with the windows down. The drifts of hair in my backseat have to be seen to be believed, but she's worth it.

After the first Hemlock Ring, I wanted to try a different double decrease for the flower petals. The original pattern calls for sl 1, k2tog, psso. This leaves a definite slant for the decrease, even though it's removing two stitches from the pattern. It also creates a looser stitch across the front of the fabric. The slanted stitches look good, but I wanted something different the next time around.



I'm working on another one and this time I'm using a double decrease. It still removes two stitches but it's balanced. To do it, slip 2 together as if to knit (like the beginning of a k2tog), k1, pass the two slipped stitches over. The two slipped stitches twist and stay together, so slipping them is easy. It leaves a nice raised ridge that is centered between the decreased stitches. The tips of the petals don't stand out quite as much because the stitches are smaller and blend in. It's a different look than the first.



I have to say, I love the Beaverslide yarn. It's like the granola of the yarn world - minimally processed and contains fiber. It still has lanolin so my hands feel soft and it has a gentle whiff of sheep about it. I come across the occasional bit of grass or leaf but they pick out easily. Some people may prefer a cleaner yarn, but I feel connected to those sheep in Montana and it reminds me that this isn't some mass-produced acrylic. It's such a joy to knit. I can't wait to get this off the needles and block it. So far the stitch definition is lovely.

(http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/hemlock-ring-blanket)

My Beaverslide (http://www.beaverslide.com) Yarn came today! I am so thrilled. I bought four colors in the Fisherman weight yarns, three of which are technically McTaggart Tweeds. It's lovely, nubbled, squishy yarn with amazing depth. It looks different depending on the light and the closer you get, the more you see. It still has some natural lanolin so my room smells slightly of sheep - this makes me happy.



Prairie Aster:

This is a glorious, rich purple with deep reds, bright blues, white and lavender flecks. These photos are lighter than it really looks. The photo of all four together is a closer representation.







Prairie Sandreed:

This is a fresh, pale green with flecks of sky blue, yellow and white.





Oat Straw:

If anything, this makes me think of cornmeal. It's a soft yellow with brighter yellow, white and brown flecks.





Cutthroat Trout:

This is a dusty pink with flecks of bright pink, yellow, white and occasionally brown.

As already mentioned, the original pattern is here: http://www.angelfire.com/folk/celtwich/KnitHemlockRing.html or on Ravelry at http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/hemlock-ring-blanket.

I've rewritten it for myself below to replace the sl 1, k1, psso's (also known as skp's) with ssk's. I also changed the repeat bracketing so that each round lists one repeat. The original was harder for me to read and this makes sense. Each round repeats the pattern eight times.

Hemlock Ring Blanket Pattern

(Original from Crocheted and Knitted Doilies, Book 184, Canadian Spool Cotton Company, 1942)

If using Cascade 220 held double, use US10 needles.

Cast on 8 sts and spread around three double-pointed needles. Suggest Emily Ocker cast on (http://www.spellingtuesday.com/circular_co.html) using a loose loop around one finger and a crochet hook to form the cast on stitches.

Change to circular needles when dpn’s become unwieldy – easiest on a knit row between rows 15 and 24.

Ssk – slip two stitches individually as if to knit, then insert left needle through front loops and knit them together.
R = Round

** Alternate double decrease: Instead of sl1, k2tog, psso, a double decrease can be used. To do, slip 2 together as if to knit (like a k2tog), k1, pass the two slipped stitches over. This makes a centered decrease instead of a slanting one. See http://minou14.livejournal.com/9139.html for photos.

All pattern rows repeat 8 times unless otherwise noted.

R 1: knit
R 2: knit
R 3: (yo, k1)
R 4, 5, 6: knit
R 7: (yo, k1) – 16 times
R 8, 9, 10, 11, 12: knit
R 13: (k2tog, 2yo, ssk)
R 14: (k1, drop 1 yo, work 9 stitches in next yo [to do - (k1, p1) 4 times, k1], k1)
R 15 – 24: knit
R 25: (yo, k11)
R 26 and all even Rs: knit
R 27: (yo, k1, yo, k11)
R 29: (yo, k3, yo, k4, (sl 1, k2tog, psso), k4)
R 31: (yo, k1, yo, (sl 1, k2tog, psso) yo, k1, yo, k3, (sl 1, k2tog, psso), k3)
R 33: (yo, k3, yo, p and k in next stitch, yo, k3, yo, k2, (sl 1, k2tog, psso), k2)
R 35: (yo, k1, yo, (sl 1, k2tog, psso), yo, k4, yo, (sl 1, k2tog, psso), (yo, k1 – twice), (sl 1, k2tog, psso), k1)
R 37: (yo, k3, yo, k2, ssk, k2tog, k2, yo, k3, yo, (sl 1, k2tog, psso))
R 39: (yo, k1, yo, (sl 1, k2 tog, psso), yo, k2, ssk, k2tog, k2, yo, (sl 1, k2tog, psso), (yo, k1 - twice))
R 41: ((yo, k3 – twice), ssk, k2tog, (k3, yo- twice), k1)
R 43: (yo, k1, yo, (sl 1, k2tog, psso), yo, k3, ssk, k2tog, k3, yo, (sl 1, k2tog, psso), (yo, k1 - twice))
R 44, 45, 46: knit
R 47: (yo, k1 – twice), yo, k3, ssk twice, k2tog twice, k3, (yo, k1 – 3 times))
R 48, 49, 50, 51: knit
R 52: ((yo, k1 – 4 times), ssk 3 times, k2tog 3 times, k1, (yo, k1 – 4 times)
R 53, 54, 55, 56: knit
R 57: ((yo, k1 – 5 times), ssk 3 times, k2tog 3 times, k1, (yo, k1 – 5 times))
R 58, 59, 60, 61 – knit
R 62: ((yo, k1 – 5 times), yo, ssk 4 times, k2tog 4 times, (yo, k1 – 6 times))
R 63, 64, 65, 66: knit
R 67: ((yo, k1 – 6 times), k1, ssk 4 times, k2tog 4 times, k2, (yo, k1 – 6 times))
R 68, 69, 70, 71: knit
R 72: ((yo, k1 – 7 times), ssk 5 times, k2tog 5 times, k1, (yo, k1 – 7 times))
R 73, 74, 75, 76: knit
R 77: ((yo, k1 – 7 times), yo, ssk 6 times, k2tog 6 times, (yo, k1 – 8 times))
R 78, 79, 80, 81: knit
R 82: ((yo, k1 – 8 times), k1, ssk 6 times, k2tog 6 times, k2, (yo, k1 – 8 times)
R 83, 84, 85, 86: knit

(Updated 4/21/08) The pattern originally binds off on row 87. Additional rounds below were originally written by Mary White from the Yahoo KAL. I rewrote them in the format above and changed the skp's to ssk's.

R 87: ((yo, k1 – 9 times), ssk 7 times, k2tog 7 times, k1, (yo, k1 – 9 times)) [408 sts]
R 88, 89, 90, 91: knit
R 92: ((yo, k1 – 9 times), yo, ssk 8 times, k2tog 8 times, (yo, k1 – 10 times)) [440 sts]
R 93, 94, 95, 96: knit
R 97: ((yo, k1 – 10 times), k1, ssk 8 times, k2tog 8 times, k2, (yo, k1 – 10 times)) [472 sts]
R 98, 99, 100, 101: knit
R 102: ((yo, k1 – 11 times), ssk 9 times, k2tog 9 times, k1, (yo, k1 – 11 times)) [504 sts]
R 103, 104, 105, 106: knit
R 107: ((yo, k1 – 11 times), yo, ssk 10 times, k2tog 10 times, (yo, k1 – 12 times)) [536 sts]
R 108, 109, 110, 111: knit
R 112: ((yo, k1 – 12 times), k1, ssk 10 times, k2tog 10 times, k2, (yo, k1 – 12 times)) [568 sts]
R 113, 114, 115, 116: knit
R 117: ((yo, k1 – 13 times), ssk 11 times, k2tog 11 times, k1, (yo, k1 – 13 times)) [600 sts]
R 118, 119, 120, 121: knit
R 122: ((yo, k1 – 13 times), yo, ssk 12 times, k2tog 12 times, (yo, k1 – 14 times)) [632 sts]
R 123, 124, 125, 126: knit
R 127: ((yo, k1 – 14 times), k1, ssk 12 times, k2tog 12 times, k2, (yo, k1 – 14 times)) [664 sts]
R 128, 129, 130, 131: knit
R 132: ((yo, k1 – 15 times), ssk 13 times, k2tog 13 times, k1 (yo, k1 – 15 times)) [696 sts]
R 133, 134, 135, 136: knit
R 137: ((yo, k1 - 15 times), yo, ssk 14 times, k2tog 14 times, (yo, k1 - 16 times)) [728 sts]
R 138, 139, 140, 141: knit
R 142: ((yo, k1 - 16 times), k1, ssk 14 times, k2tog 14 times, k2, (yo, k1 - 16 times)) [760 sts]
R 143, 144, 145, 146: knit
R 147: ((yo, k1 - 17 times), ssk 15 times, k2tog 15 times, k1, (yo, k1 - 17 times) [792 sts]
R 148, 149, 150, 151: knit

Bind Off Round: (originally Round 87 but can be substituted on any pattern round (92, 97, 102, etc) if larger diameter is desired) k1, [k2tog, yo, k2tog, TURN, p1, work 5 st in yo stitch (k1, p1 – twice, k1), p1, sl 1, TURN, bind off 7 stitches (k1, k1, pass first knit stitch over)]. One stitch will remain on right needle. Repeat in [] around.

** To make it easier to work bind-off, cap right hand circular needle. Use the left circular needle with a dpn of the same size as the right hand needle.

** If knitting with Cascade 220 held double, work bind-off row with only one strand.

I had to be all hush-hush about it because it was a gift, but I finally knitted a Hemlock Ring! It took me five evenings to finish and another afternoon to block.

My friend likes pink but Cascade Eco+ didn't come in any nice pinks. I found a lovely pink (listed as "Tutu" on Webs) in Cascade 220, but it's worsted weight. My LYS suggested knitting held double. Well, there's an idea.. knitting a lace blanket with two strands of yarn at once? I've never done that before and wasn't sure how well it would work. It could have been a straight road to insanity. I also needed to order the yarn since they didn't have enough. I had to go home to figure out how much I would need so the LYS loaned me a partial ball of Cascade 220 to play with.

Get this, I actually swatched. I hauled out my needles and swatched it held single and double to figure out what I liked best. I knew the original was done in Eco+, which is rated at 4/inch on 9's or 3.5/inch on 10's. I swatched to get the same gauge with Cascade 220. My results were 3.5/in on 9's or 3/in on 10's. It ended up being a decision between held double on 9's or 10's. The 9's made a squishier fabric, but if I do it again, I'll use 10's, mostly because a tight fabric made with two strands is a little resistant to blocking.

Holding it double was no problem at all. I used a center-pull ball, but pulled from the inside and outside at the same time. The yarn twisted around itself as it came off the outside and other than having twice as many loops on the needle, I couldn't tell. It also blocked very tightly, although I was worried the yarn overs might pull apart a little.

So, for those new to the joys of a Hemlock Ring, the original inspiration was Jared Flood's blog: http://brooklyntweed.blogspot.com/2007/08/hemlock-ring-blanket.html. I want to make almost everything he has knitted because he does such gorgeous work. The blanket it based on a doily pattern by the Canadian Spool Cotton Company found here: http://www.angelfire.com/folk/celtwich/KnitHemlockRing.html and on Ravelry at http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/hemlock-ring-blanket. I changed the slip 1, knit 1, psso's to ssk's because I get loose loops over the front of my knitting when I do psso's. I really like how they turned out.

Needles: I started on size 9 dpn's. I stayed with them until about round 16. Then I switched to a US9 24" circulars. On round 38, I changed to a 40" cable and then on round 59, I changed to a 60" cable. KnitPicks Options don't let you connect cables and 60" is the longest they make. If I had done many more rounds, I would have had to get really creative with the needles. This wouldn't be a problem with a different yarn, but the 220 held double really filled my needles.

Yarn: Cascade 220 color 9477. I bought nine skeins based on yardage, but only used four and a half. I changed yarn at rounds 42, 62, 75, and 84.

Bind-off: Round 87 on the original pattern is the bind-off round. Those who do additional pattern repeats to make a wider blanket will have to work this row later on. It's a trip. For every four stitches "bound off" on the round below, you need to knit 18 stitches. It makes a lovely scalloped edge, but it requires knitting a few, turning the work, knitting back over what you just did, turning back and then binding off all the stitches you just made. Turning a blanket on 60" needles is a lot different than turning a little doily that is supposed to measure 15" in diameter when complete. Someone on the Yahoo KAL group suggested using a dpn, and that probably saved my sanity. I capped off the right end of my circular needle and kept the left needle active. Then I brought in a dpn to work the bind off. At worst, I had about eight stitches on my dpn at any time. It became my new right needle and was a lot easier to support since it didn't have half a blanket hanging off of it. Since I worked round 87 as it was, it only took a few hours. Someone knitting this with a lot of pattern repeats (I've seen them out to round 120) would take so much longer because there will be more stitches to bind off. This is another point where Cascade 220 held double scored big points with me. Most of the ones I've seen using 220 were knit single with more pattern repeats.

I worked the bind off itself with a single strand of 220. It uses a lot of yarn because of the number of stitches and I didn't want a big bulky scallop. I think it turned out perfectly and matches the texture of the blanket so much better than it would have held double. To do this, I cut the outer strand of yarn on the ball before I started the bind off and left enough to weave in. I knit the bind-off with the center strand of yarn.

Final dimensions:
Pre-blocking - 32" diameter
Blocking 1 - 39" diameter
Blocking 2 - 42" diameter

I pinned and steam blocked once to get the wad of bubble-gum that came off my needles to lay flat. I let it rest a while, took all the pins out and fired up the steamer again. While it heated, I pulled and stretched the blanket in all directions to relax the stitches a little. Then I steam blocked it again with a vengeance. I pulled and pinned it with no mercy and ended up with lovely stitch definition and a nice shape. I think it's always going to need a little rough treatment after it gets washed to get it back into shape. Cascade 220 isn't superwash though, so the washing itself has to be gentle or it will felt into a bath mat. That's why I chose steam for this first time.

This was such a fun project! I had to use my new dpn skills and learn how to use circs for the first time. I actually ordered circs just so I could make this. I learned to knit holding double and that Cascade 220 is squishy and lovely. Also, I learned some new circular lace stitches like the scallops that could come in handy on other projects. Two thumbs up!

Photos!

The wad of bubble-gum before blocking:





Pinned and steamed:







Ready to snuggle:

I am anxiously awaiting a shipment of yarn from Beaverslide Dry Goods in Montana. I keep drooling over photos of other peoples' stashes on Ravelry until I can get my hands on my own. I have several designs I want to use it for and I'm really excited. I am smitten with wool and after all of this sock yarn, it's a switch to use something so chunky.

I'm working on another lace scarf, this time with Araucania Ranco Multy. I'm using a stitch called "Flame Chevron" from Barbara Walkers "Second Treasury of Knitting Patterns". Right now it looks like a mess, as per usual with lace. I can already tell it is going to be glorious after it's blocked. This yarn feels wonderful and I love it even more than Opal. Every stitch is a different color and photos don't do it justice.

This honestly isn't even close to the colors:



Non-knitting content - my crocuses are finally blooming! Right now they are underwater due to all of the rain, but they were blooming when I took this!

Falling Leaves is blocked! Final dimensions are 6" wide by 82" long. It is light as a feather since it was made with about 80g of yarn.

Pre-blocking mess:



Post-blocking bliss:

This scarf is FINALLY off the needles. I actually bound off two days ago, but added a crocheted border to stabilize it.



Note how even with two rows of single crochet, the lace wants to roll:



It isn't blocked yet, but the border gives nice definition to the pattern. I can't wait to see the completed fabric. If all goes well, I'll block and pin the dickens out of this tomorrow. I block on my bed and I don't much feel like sleeping on damp wool and a zillion stick pins.



Pre-blocking the scarf is roughly 7"x75". I knitted 27 pattern repeats and then went around in crochet to finish. Don't ask me how, but the crocheted border "added" 2.5 inches to the width. I think because this rolled so much without the border but, even without blocking, the scarf wants to stay open with the border.

This has been a lot of fun now that St. Patrick's day is over. My mom and I managed to knit 15 dishcloths and donated six pairs to the church door prizes. We ate corned beef and cabbage and watched as they all found happy new homes. I was especially happy to see one woman pick up a pair and show them to all of her tablemates. When her friend won a door prize, she also picked a pair of dishcloths.

We knitted those like the wind and even took them on the plane with us on vacation. We had two different people in two airports come up to us and ask us how TSA let us bring those "weapons" (size 5 and 6 aluminum needles) on the plane when they couldn't even wear their shoes through the checkpoint. Our knitting started some very funny conversations and we were recognized as those two women who knit.

While I was on vacation, my grandmother taught me how to use dpn's and I knitted a baby hat. I don't wear hats, so I doubt I'll knit many of them, but it will be useful if I try socks and I can use the skills to work on sweaters on circular needles. I'm trying to get my mom and grandmother on Ravelry so they can experience the bliss.

I think next I'll finish the Caterpillar scarf. I am resisting temptation to make something with this Araucania Ranco Multy wool (color 309). It's so beautiful that I want to find the right design for it. I'm thinking something with cables, but we'll see. It has such rapid color transitions that I need a denser fabric.



I had the hank wound into a ball at the store so I didn't get a picture of it, but the photo below is another one that sort of looks like mine. It's hand-dyed in Chile, so no two hanks are alike. It changes color depending on what light it is in too. It almost glows in sunlight. The hanks are works of art in and of themselves. I seriously cannot get over how beautiful it is. I keep taking it out and holding it and looking at it and sighing wistfully. It feels like something Monet would have painted.

http://www.yarn4socks.com/servlet/Categories?category=SOCK+WEIGHT%3AAraucania+Multy.

I can't believe I last wrote about the Falling Leaves scarf a month ago. The yarn is STILL looped over the corner of my recliner and it hasn't suffered a catastrophe. It almost did the other day when my German Shepherd somehow got her head under the strand going from the chair to the scarf and walked away with an ever-lengthening loop around her neck. She's obedient and came right back when I screamed in terror. I have never been so happy to own point protectors!

There's not much to say about the scarf itself. It's barely long enough to hang around my neck. I added another pattern repeat tonight and promise to faithfully work on it. When I'm not knitting dishcloths, that is. Seriously, I have an addiction to those little squares. Maybe it's because I feel like I'm getting somewhere other than miles of lacy little leaves that look like a wrinkled mess until they're blocked. Actually, they may still look like heck when they're blocked but I won't know until I finish.

Dishcloths on the other hand are nice, well-behaved cotton and they only take a few hours. Squidge-cloths take a little longer because of the knit 4-purl 4 pattern. I made one with a garter stitch border, but the second was a basic pattern repeat. For the first row knit 4, purl 4 all the way across. On the second row, knit the knits and purl the purls. On the third row, switch the pattern for two rows. Repeat until you have a square. I think I used 40 stitches, but it's totally flexible if you want a bigger or smaller cloth. The end result is like basketweave, but only two rows high. I've found it's better with a smaller needle than you'd use for straight garter stitch and works well with solid colored yarn.



My other favorite is an anonymous pattern that seems to be everywhere online. It's so simple! Cast on 4. Knit 4 for the first row. Then, simply knit 2, yarn over and knit to the end of the row on every row until the sides are long enough. It's knit on the bias so you'll be making a triangle with a nice eyelet border all the way around the edges. Once you decide you've made half a dishcloth (45-55-ish stitches on the needle), then you start decreasing. Knit 1, knit 2 together, yarn over, knit two together and then keep knitting to the end of the row. Do this on every row until only four stitches are left on the needle. Bind off and go do some dishes. These things have amazing scrubbing abilities! The garter stitch is smooshy, yet abrasive because of the ridges. It looks beautiful with variegated yarns because the colors change on the diagonal.





Tonight I discovered that I can crochet dish-poufs in about an hour. Talk about instant gratification! I barely have to watch what I'm doing since they're made of chain stitch, single crochet and double crochet and nothing else. One ball of cotton and I have this magical little pouf. I sort of used the pattern from http://hometown.aol.com/lffunt/bath.htm but I didn't have the patience to count stitches in the first ring and I left off the third round entirely. Once I got the gist of it, I started crocheting and stopped when my yarn almost ran out. On a 4mm hook, this is a dense but perfect diameter little wad of cotton.

The Ambrosia and Bliss Etsy store is finally stocked. I've posted the stitch markers I made and will soon be adding some felted and knitted items. I had a lot of fun today photographing all of the pretty beads in the sunshine.



I'm also nearly finished with my first dishcloth for the church auction. It's a slightly modified version of the Squidge Cloth in a nice bright yellow. http://knit-nutt.blogspot.com/2008/01/squidge-cloth.html I'm discovering the huge difference between knitting wool and cotton. There is no stretch in cotton so the fabric is a little more crisp and solid. This yarn has a nice soft texture to it so it doesn't scratch, but it's a very odd sensation after so much wool.

My mom is re-learning how to knit after 30 years. We're going to make cotton dishcloths for her church auction. Since it's being held in honor of St. Patrick's Day, we chose Lily "Original Sugar 'n Cream" 100% cotton in happy spring green colors. There's yellow, lime stripes, cool breeze ombre, green twists, country twists, shaded denim, and sage green.




We're going to see my grandmother in a couple weeks and I'll hopefully be able to learn about dpn's and circular needles from her. She's been knitting for years and years and I know she has a lot of experience to share. She knits hats for preemies, so maybe we can contribute to the cause while she teaches.

It's hard to believe I've only been knitting since November. It feels like I've been doing this forever.

I'm still working on the Caterpillar scarf, but I needed something different for a while. I have begun another kitty pi, this time in a super pink. I have also begun a Falling Leaves scarf, using the stitch pattern from the Field Guide to Knitting by Jackie Pawlowski. I've had to frog it twice. The first time, the color pooling was wonderful, but four repetitions was too wide and one skein of yarn wasn't going to make enough length. The second time, three repetitions was working well, although the color was streakier. I miscounted somewhere and threw the whole pattern off. This stitch uses so many yarn overs, slip slip knits and sk2p's (slip a stitch, knit two together and then pass the slipped stitch over) that it is impossible for me to tink. So.. it was unraveled once again. Now I'm working on a two-repetition pattern.

This is my work area:



Yes, that is an unwound skein of yarn draped over my chair. Yes, I am working from it. I read in someone else's journal about a knitter who would loop a skein over her shoulder and knit happily away. I started with it over my knees but it makes it difficult to move. The corner of my recliner is perfect. I haven't had any tangles other than the mess of frogged yarn in my lap. I don't have a ball-winder and I'd rather knit than hand-wind yarn into a ball. Besides, I'd probably tangle it more if I tried.

This is a close-up of the stitch pattern, although this was back in the three-repetition ugly color streaking phase:



The narrower scarf is still 26 stitches. The yarn is so beautiful I don't want to stop knitting. It's Opal Hand-painted "Herbstmelodie" or Fall Melody. The two repetitions are making the colors pool in a most lovely way. I'll get a photo when I have a respectable length.

Photo of black swallowtail larva courtesy of www.larvalbug.com

I'm making good progress on my caterpillar scarf. It's my first foray into dropped stitches. I have to say, even this far into it, it's still nerve-wracking to INTENTIONALLY drop a stitch. I'm using the Vertical Drop Stitch pattern from Barbara Walker's "Second Treasury of Knitting Patterns". The open spaces are created by using yarn overs and then dropping a stitch several rows above. The stitches unravel down the rows until reaching the yarn over and then they stop. It's magic! It's working to create this lovely serpentine lace that makes me think of caterpillars wriggling along.



As previously mentioned, this is Opal Rainforest "Raupe" (aka "Caterpillar") yarn. I'm using size 2 needles and it's going well. I'm using metal needles, which are slippery as the dickens, but have sharp points that work well for complex stitches. This pattern actually only uses knits, purls and yarn overs, so wood would work if I had the right size.



I can't wait to see what this pattern looks like after blocking!

I've signed up to take a wet felting class next month. I'll learn how to make a bag out of unspun wool roving. I'm really excited about this because I love the colors of hand-dyed wool batts, but they are sometimes lost when spun into complex yarns. I can get creative with colors and I won't be restricted by long and short colorways as I am when I knit.

I'll still knit because I am in love with crazy colorways. Look at the Opal yarns. I have a ton of ideas for those and none of them involve socks. I put another couple repeats of the pattern on my caterpillar scarf tonight and it's starting to take shape. It's a little crumply but should open up once it's blocked. I can finally see what it is going to turn into and I think I found the right pattern for this yarn.

I wish I didn't have to work for a living. I'm getting behind on my knitting and beading!

The bowl has been felted! It turned out to be a nice dense fabric that holds its shape and still shows the colors. I'm very pleased with the finished bowl. Final dimensions are 6" diameter and 4" tall with a very slight flare.





I also took a break from knitting my Opal Caterpillar scarf (no photos yet) to crochet a little fish. I wanted to use some of my scraps and the colors of Patons SWS "Natural Crimson" were just screaming "goldfish" to me. So, here's a little felted cat toy that took maybe 20 minutes to throw together. I didn't use a pattern - just increased and decreased until I felt like it was fishy enough. The SWS felts well, but leaves a lot of long curly fibers all over the surface. I trimmed it with scissors to smooth the surface a little. I could possibly felt this once more but I like how the faint stitches look like scales. It started out 7" long and ended at 5 1/2" after felting. It's also hollow so I can stuff it with catnip.


Before:



After:

I just bought yarn from http://www.littleknits.com. I went on a quest for Opal yarn and found a sale I couldn't resist. I am in mad love with almost every colorway in the Hundertwasser and Rainforest collections. The package arrived today and I am so in love with all of the yarn, I want to roll around on it like Demi Moore on the money in Indecent Proposal.

Look how pretty! The one in the middle is a lovely handpainted called "Fall Melody".





The rest of my fabulous new Opal yarns:
Top row - Hundertwasser "A Rainy Day Out to Sea" and "The Soul Tree", Rainforest "Frog"
Middle (my favorite!) - Rainforest "Caterpillar"
Bottom - Rainforest "Butterfly", "Tiger" and "Tucan"

I have a plethora of ideas to show off this yarn to advantage. The Argosy pattern gave me the design bug.

In addition to daydreaming, I have actually finished something recently.




While on vacation, I crocheted a bowl that I will soon be felting. I love the colors. They make me think of Jaco beach in Costa Rica. It's a long stretch of black volcanic sand and deep blue water. This is a very tight colorway, so I hope it doesn't muddy the colors when I felt it. I also added a scalloped edge to symbolize waves.



Jaco Beach Bowl Details:
Yarn: Lion Brand Wool "Ocean Blues" (100% wool) - almost 1 skein (143 yds)
Pattern: My own
Hook: 5mm H8
Dimensions: Base - 7" diameter, Sides - 4" high

I crocheted the whole thing on the way to and from Costa Rica so it's actually BEEN there. If it turns out the way I hope, it'll be a special little bowl.

I made this necklace as a birthday present for a friend. I like it so much, I may make another one. The necklace is 21" long with a painted metal bead pendant and garnets. It's accented with golden metallic seed beads. I love making floating bead necklaces. This pendant has a chance to shine with minimal competition.

The name of my journal has changed in honor of my yet-unstocked Etsy store. In my family, things we like are often described as "sweet ambrosia" or "it's the bliss". So two of my favorite words now describe some of the most fun I know how to have. Between my crafts and gardening, it really says it all.

My Etsy storefront can be found at http://www.ambrosiaandbliss.etsy.com. I hope to have some items up for sale soon. If I can find new homes for some of my creations, it will help offset some of the purchases I made while poking around!

I have a box of Opal yarns coming that I plan to make into scarves - pattern(s) to be developed. I can't wait for the yarn to get here so I can try out some ideas I've had. The Argosy scarf has me wildly excited about lace, but not in the traditional sense.

I also have some felting ideas I'd like to try out. Granted, one of my ideas will of course require new yarn because I don't own the colors I want. Isn't that always the case?