Ravellenics 2018 prep

With over 10 days to go before Ravellenics begins, things are getting a teeny bit ridiculous.

Project #1:  Sock Arms Sweater.  I can probably do this completely during the Games.  Kit came from Must Stash.

Project #2:  Olympia Socks.  These should be done during the Games.  The pattern varies depending on how many medals Team USA wins.  Kit came from Jimmy Beans Wool with yarn from Lorna's Laces and red, white, and blue stitch markers.

Project #3:  Team USA 2018 Hat.  This should be done during the Games.  Someone saw the Team USA sweaters and designed a hat based on the sweater design.  It's on Ravelry and it is free.  I'll get colorwork and stash laurels for it, so why not?

Project #4:  #fubc Shawl.  This is in case I complete the first three projects and need something more.  Stop laughing, it could happen.  Actually, I don't even have it in my projects yet so I'm not confident of this happening.  fubc = f you breast cancer and is from Susan Crawford who is a survivor.

My prediction is that the hat and socks will be done.  I'll get bored with the sweater and switch over to the shawl.  The shawl might be done too, but the sweater will not be.

Pillows

Gnome pillow:

Frida pillow:

Cake or Death pillow:

I came to the conclusion that the best way to shop for pillow forms is online.  There’s no going from store to store, trying to find three different specific sizes.  I did have to pay more shipping than I expected to, but it was worth it.  Besides, JoAnn is having a half price sale.

Next up is the latest clue for the Valentine socks.  After that, embroidered pillowcases. They won’t be granny type embroidery, although I qualify age-wise.  Sublime Stitching, who did the Frida kit, sent iron ons with pillowcases I got this week.  More skulls and fewer sweet little daisies.

Mail Call

The madelinetosh Quick Shots I ordered from Jimmy Beans Wool arrived today.

The pinks are a bit different from each other in real life.  The yarn is merino/nylon with a good twist.

Franklin Habit did a column for Mason-Dixon Knitting about stitch dictionaries.  I decided to risk ordering from Amazon to get two of them.  (Skip next paragraph to avoid rant.)

Why was it risky?  The last two times I ordered from them, the order was “delivered” via their delivery “service”.  They take a picture of your package and email it to you so you can see that it arrived.  In both of my shipments, the photos were only clues to where they were dumped.  I did not recognize the first one.  Luckily whoever got it brought it to my house.  The second ended up next door.  It was scary going down and up his slippery stairs with a big box.  Beware ordering anything from Amazon other than books or smallish things that go via USPS.

Fortunately the books came through the mail and I am happy to have them.  The Japanese Knitting Stitch Bible is gorgeous.  260 patterns of lace, cable, bobbles, leaves, borders, and a whole lot more.  It makes me want to try them all.

Alter Knit is a completely different book, but great in its own way.  It contains 200 colorwork patterns. There are swirls and diamonds and squares of many kinds.  There are several Escher-inspired designs.  There is a needles and yarn design.  There are also patterns of things.  Many are animals, plus robots, cactus, zombies, and bicycles.  As a fan of Eddie Izzard, I am trying to think of something I can make with the Cake or Death pattern.

These books have motivated me to pick my needles back up.

Almost Sunday

I finished my Oh, Brilliant socks:

They were inspired by this:

I'm doing a Valentine's Day mystery sock knitalong.  One clue a week and if you do both socks each week, you have a pair to wear on VD:

Jimmy Beans Wool is offering special yarns from madelinetosh.  They are called (I think) Quick Shots.  There are only a few of each colorway.  Some of them may be regular offerings later one but most will not.  I went on a mini-binge and bought several colorways.  They also will have those Addi sock needles I've been looking for, so I have ordered a pair of them.

I'm off to do embroidery for awhile.  There will be much knitting (and knitting and knitting) during Ravellenics so I want to rest my needles until then.

Stash Enhancement Saturday

I bought a sweater at a Goodwill store in Seattle about 10 years ago.  I washed it and unraveled it and basically ignored it.  I pulled it out yesterday and caked up most of the yarn.  There are a lot of knots, but more than enough yarn for a new sweater.  I haven’t picked a pattern yet.

I designed some socks inspired by the new Doctor’s costume in Doctor Who.  This is a ridiculous amount of yarn for a single pair of socks.  Her shirt has multicolored stripes so most of them were needed.  It is the first project in awhile that seems interesting, so I’m off to cast them on.

2018 already?

Here's what has been finished recently.

• Gnome pillow.  Knitting done, needs a pillow form.
• Frankensocks.  These were done with one section per day between December 1-24.  Definitely Frankensocks, but fun to do.

• Three French hens:

• Alaska hat:

• Fairy Lights socks:

• Lucky cat.  If I tried it again, I'd do it as a plain white cat and not as the mutant calico that this one turned out to be.

Photo skills with the iPad mini have not improved, but I have hope that practice might help.  It didn't with my camera, but it could work.  

I'm not knitting or crocheting anything at the moment.  I've got a shawl and a sweater ready to go for possible Ravellenics projects next month.  I've also got a Jimmy Beans sock kit on the way that will also be done for Ravellenics.  It's a knitalong where a cable is added every time your country gets a medal in the Olympics.  I'm considering a Valentine knitalong, since it should be done before all this other stuff starts.

I may be embroidering for awhile.  I've got a kit on the way for a Frida Kahlo pillow from Sublime Stitching.  I've got some other stuff from Sublime Stitching that I want to dig out.  My craft room looks like my stash exploded, so perhaps that will happen first.  Fewer things to dig through if I do that first?