103rd Annual Connecticut Sheep, Wool & Fiber Festival!

Be there or be square!  The 103rd Annual Connecticut Sheep, Wool & Fiber Festival!


http://www.ctsheep.org/sheep_and_wool_festival

I’ve gone for the past few years, and it’s a lot of fun!

It’s next Saturday, April 28, in Tolland, CT. They have booths, classes, sheep, llamas, alpacas, rabbits, dog trials, food, etc.  If you bring someone who's not into wool or other fiber (odd, I know), they can have fun checking out the animals.  My Sweetums especially loves the sheep dog trials--especially the less-than-successful dogs, where the sheep run amok all over the field...not as entertaining for the dog owner, I'm sure.

It's, of course, death on any stash-busting resolutions you may have made this year.  There are tons of booths for wool, alpaca, etc.  I always manage to pick up a skein or two (or three, or four, or...okay, probably at least ten).  For those of you who spin, they have wheels and drop spindles for sale, as well as workshops.  They are also going to have workshops called "Sheep 101" and "Alpaca 101" for those of you interested in raising and nurturing your own fiber-stock.

It’s a great time!  Can't wait!

Pullover Done...Just In Time for Spring...

It’s been ages since I posted. Life, as it has a way of doing, threw me for a loop last month, and I’m still trying to process the situation, and to do the next right thing.

But, getting back to more cheerful knitting matters…In time-honored tradition, I’ve managed to get a big, bulky, ludicrously warm pullover completed—just in time for the warm weather! I’m going to have to put it away for the season, as we are having a freakishly early spring.

The details are out on my Ravelry page:

http://ravel.me/PBELKNAP/9bndpfw

I used a Pure and Simple pattern, which was just that—Pure and Simple! It was a lot of fun to knit, and so easy that I was able to bring it anywhere as a KIP project. I used Misti Alpaca Chunky yarn. Normally, if I’m making a garment for just myself, I tend to go cheap. In fact, with the amount of scraps and stray balls in my stash, it’s almost time for another “Stash Sweater.” Come to think of it, if I modified the Pure and Simple pattern I just used for worsted weight yarn, I could probably use it for the next Stash Sweater. But, I digress. As you saw in a previous post, the day our LYS was having a major sale, friends talked me into taking the rubber band off the money and splurging on Misti Alpaca instead of my usual mainstays Plymouth Encore or Cascade 220 (or if I’m feeling really cheap, Patons Classic Wool, but only if it’s on sale at Michaels that week).

Misti Alpaca was great to work with! I found I got a firmer knit with a 10½ needle, so I slightly modified the pattern, adding on a few more extra stitches to make it roomy enough. The wonderful thing about a top-down sweater pattern is that you can continuously try on the sweater as you go, adjusting for size/length.

Note to self: It DOES freak out members of the household when you try on a sweater with the double-pointed needles still attached to the sleeves…

2012 Bernat CAL Clue #3

Are you a pattern chart person or an instruction person?

I used to think I was more of a written pattern instruction person…I especially find charts confusing when I'm doing knitted cables.  For some oddball reason, I find written instructions (C4F, C4B, T3F, etc.) easier to comprehend. 

I think the opposite is true with crocheting, though.  For the 2012 Waverly for Bernat Mystery Afghan Crochet-Along, I've been printing out both the written pattern and the chart.  All I can say is, THANK GOD FOR THE CHART!!!  The past two clues have been extremely confusing, and I think I would have been sunk without the charts.  Clue #3, in particular, is beyond inexplicable, what with needing to chain 7 and then doubling back, and then going forward, chaining 7, doubling back--on and on around in a circle.  When I just read the pattern, I almost broke out into a spontaneous migraine.  When I checked the chart, it all became clear.

Go figure...

Post Script...I found it was easier to do all the motifs up to the part where you break the yarn FIRST.  That way, I got that weird "doubling-back" section out of the way!

Weird Posts

If you saw any odd, peculiar post this morning, it was due to my account getting hacked. I've since remedied the situation, so all should be well now.

2012 Bernat CAL Clue #2...A Sad, Wrinkly Affair...

Sad Picture

After several attempts, I did manage to get gauge--that is, the motif measures 11". I used the K hook to do Rounds 1 through 3, but then reverted to an L hook (8.00 mm) to do the rest of the rounds. It was the ONLY way to get it to 11". As you see, however, I seem to have a slight warping issue. I'm tempted to just see how they look once I block them. I really don't want to do all the motifs over again!!!

The only other thing I can think to do is maybe to pick the motifs apart and redo Round #4, where you do the 5 chains and sc stitches, only use more chains, or do them looser--and then just re-thread the rest of the motif through the chains...

So frustrating!!! Ahhhh!!!


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2012 Bernat CAL Clue #1 comments

Yes, I know I'm a day late and a dollar short on my CAL update, seeing as Clue #2 is now up on the Bernat Forum...

Clue one was lots of fun and very easy, once I figured out that, in order to get the little circle to morph into a "square," I'd need to crochet the outer ring much looser. Here is a picture...not one of my greatest, but you get the idea.





The colors are Tibetan Red, Antique, Cadet, and Stone Brown.

Next week, I'll try to be a bit more prompt with my update!

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Special Olympics Scarf - Knit - Free Pattern

This pattern is modeled after my "Scarf from He**" pattern.





Here are the particulars:


SPECIAL OLYMPICS SCARF - KNIT

Measurements: 6" wide x 57" long.

Gauge: 2.5 stitches = 1” in garter stitch

Row gauge is not critical.


Materials:

1 skein – Red Heart Soft Yarn – Navy (#4604) – A

2 skeins – Red Heart Soft Yarn – Really Red (#9925) - B

Needles: Size 13 (9 mm) needles

Hook: Size N15 (10 mm) crochet hook


Body:

Using A and B together, cast on 15 stitches, using a knit cast-on.

Work in garter stitch until the scarf measures 60” long.*

Bind off.


Border:

Double up Color B and, using a size N15 (10 mm) crochet hook, crochet into the garter stitch "nub" selvage at the row ends. Crochet in slip stitch up the scarf and all the way around, making a border.

Bind off and weave in all ends.

*The length shortened due to the crochet border step, which is why a length of 60" is knitted, but the finished result is 57".


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