Actually Finished Hats

Das Homin

Thrift Hat

Crofthoose Hat

Roadside Beanie

There are a couple more that are in the redo or toss categories so I didn’t include them.  I thought I was done with this Shetland hat binge.  Then I spotted a pattern whose profits go for some medical equipment in the Shetlands.  That one and the reknit of the Welsh dragon hat will show up here eventually.

Actually Finished Socks

Ta da!  Pizza Party socks:

Cinco de Mulder Socks:

The colored yarn is UV reactive.  It is very bright under a black light.  The picture was taken with a small portable light.  It was the best I could do with my tablet in one hand and the light in the other.

The original pattern, Mulder, is a cowl with little green men on it. 

Real Soon Now, actually finished hats.

Still More Yarn

It wasn’t all self indulgence.  The two skeins on the left are from A Hundred Ravens.  Their trailer was stolen at a yarn festival last month.  I like their yarn and wanted to do a little something toward their recovery.

The other three skeins were from a Jimmy Beans grab bag.  It included a pattern, some wooden buttons, and an accessory bag.  You had a choice of weight and color.  The yarns were otherwise a surprise.  The one in the middle is from Madelinetosh, which I like.  The next one is more peachy pink in real life.  It is Lorna’s Laces Sportmate, which I like and wanted to use again.  The pink on the end is Cobasi by HiKoo.  This is cotton, bamboo, elastic nylon, and silk.  Cotton and bamboo are two of my least favorite fibers.  Maybe nylon and silk will temper the scratchy feeling the others give.  I am willing to give them a try.  The yarns alone would’ve cost about 40% more than the grab bag did.  I am trying to not go back for more.

Socks!

I have managed to cut back on the number of sock projects.   It is inevitable that they would eventually call to me again and today’s the day.

I spotted Pizza Party Socks in my Ravelry recommendations.  They are simple socks with a cute band of pepperoni slices around the foot.  If you happen upon this post in May 2019, you can go get the pattern for free.

Speaking of free, Spillyjane has a buy 3 get 2 free deal on through May 15.  I am a big fan of her sock and mitten patterns, so I jumped right on this.  I was worried that I might make duplicate purchases.  No worries because Ravelry tells you if a pattern is already in your library.

Speaking of Spillyjane, she’s got two new sock patterns in the Summer issue of Interweave Knits.  I have been avoiding that publication after hearing that their financial troubles have left some designers without payments.  I don’t know the details of this so I am not throwing rocks at anyone.  I just hope all the designers get the payments they deserve.  Back to the point, I got the digital edition and there were a number of things I would like to do.  There are some fun lobster socks that have joined two Spillyjane pair in my queue.  There are some pretty sweaters and the patterns could fit large old ladies despite being shown on teeny young models.

Sock yarn continues to successfully tempt me.  I love yarn that does things other than just sit there and look nice.  I got some UV reactive yarn that glows under a black light.  No, I don’t usually have black lights around.  It was probably a silly purchase, but I like it.

I also like yarns that relate to other things I like.  The yarns I have on the way from A Hundred Ravens are Captain Jack Harkness (Doctor Who) and Neuromancer (a favorite science fiction book).

If you like these sorts of things and you’re a Star Wars fan, head over to Must Stash tomorrow.  May the Fourth be with you!

Experiments and Notre Dame

I’ve been goofing around and experimenting with yarn ideas lately.  I spun some of the Bohemian Breeze fibers and of course got bored after not too long.  It occurred to me that the yarn could be used in a project currently in time out.  It is the Rose Window Beanie from Knitty.  I was sad about the Notre Dame fire and wanted to do a project related to Notre Dame.  Long story a bit shorter, hat came out okay but not exactly as I imagined.  I tossed it on the small mountain of completed but unblocked hats.

I remembered a little rose window necklace I brought back from Paris.

The new experiment is a hat based on this.  I suspect it cannot be done with yarn in my stash.  There are many problems worse than this.  

Here are my latest indulgences.  There’s an extremely long and boring story behind this.  The only interesting part was a flattened post office mailing box with a tire track across it.  When opening a box like that, do not expect any needles inside to be in the correct number of pieces.  I got these yarns with the third try for the needles.

Hedgehog Fibers Skinny Singles in Piggy Bank

Lorna’s Laces in Virginia Islands 

Of course I don’t have plans for them.   Look, Hedgehog Fibers in multicolored speckles!   It does not need to be associated with a project to make me happy.  The Lorna’s Laces are like a whole basket of Easter eggs.  They both helped protect the needles that traveled successfully from Nevada to Georgia.  Yay and thank you Jimmy Beans.

Bohemian Breeze

I haven’t purchased a Phat Fiber box in a long time.  I always forget when they go on sale and they used to sell out in minutes when I did remember.   A few days ago I got an email reporting that there were still a few left this month, so I indulged myself.

The theme was Bohemian Breeze.  All but one of the samples were fiber, which was good.  The colors varied but they all had at least one other sample of the same color.  I think I will spin a skein blending them.  The fibers range from alpaca to yak and a bunch of different blends in between.

Blankets

I’ve decided to do blankets/afghans for my National Parks project.  Yup, plural.  I went through my Favorites on Ravelry and found two fingering weight designs that I liked.  One requires 13 colors, the other 18.  This will give me lots of time to acquire yarn.  It also gives me permission to buy things on a whim.  I preordered a Cuyahoga colorway this week.  It is good to have a reason beyond just wanting it.

The second blanket will be a knitted log cabin design.  The yarn is Lion Brand Heartland in 15 solids inspired by National Parks.  I am not a fan of acrylic yarn, but it does mean I can donate it to charity once I have the fun of making it.  Between the online discounts from JoAnn and the cash I just got back on a credit card it is basically free.  Yay for a free project!

I still haven’t blocked my hats.  Here’s the one I just finished. It used leftovers from other hats.  The background color didn’t quite make it to the end, but I think it still looks okay