2 QUICK FO's FO YOU: FOURTEEN, TRAVIS MITTIS

Need a quick fix?
Pattern: Fourteen by John Brinegar of yarn ball boogie Needles: 13mm gold straights Yarn: homespun tweed that had been stashed longer than I can remember Notes: Quick, easy and should have been done ages ago. Perfect for last minute holiday gifts. Thanks to Tobes for posing shirtless in the cold. Modifications: None, I think I mad have done a sewn BO instead of a crocheted one due to the fact that I can't crochet. A fact that nags at me more and more everyday. *ahem* Next up... Pattern: Travis Mittis I used the thumb gusset from Porphyria by Cissy Black Yarn: Knit Picks Essential 1 skein Needles: 3.25 crystal palace dpns Notes: I hate dpns. Must learn magic looping. Modifications: I made it up as I went along but I kept good notes so not to forget when making the second mitt. I wanted the thumb gusset from Porphyria and worked the west of the piece around that. A tight sturdy cast off completes the look.

FO: Fino Kiri Shawl

Who knew I had the discipline to knit a lace shawl? When I joined the Ravelympics for motivation even the most optimistic parts of me were skeptical. A shawl in 16 days? I'm lucky if I do my laundry once in 16 days let alone a few THOUSAND stitches. But I did it and past the finish line successfully!! So here she is, in all her silky alpaca glory kiri + me = happiness Pattern: Kiri Shawl by All Tangled Up Yarn: Alpaca with a Twist - Fino Needles: 2mm/3mm Knit Picks Options Notes: I read the pattern through a few times to decide if I liked the charted or written instructions better and I went with the written. I enjoy non-charted projects more because when I'm memorizing the pattern I can read it faster and retain the row in my head easier than a bunch of squares with squiggles. After the first few repeats, I was in love with lace and in love with Fino beyond measure. The sheen of color the baby alpaca has is incredible! At $30 a pop it's an expensive fiber but one that I will buy again and again. Oh, and I tried a blocking technique that failed to impress me. Everyone knows about using string as blocking wires right? I followed the directions to a T after Jules reminded me of the cheaper alternative. While I did get a straight nape line, the amount of pins I used would have yielded the same results anyways. I'll save the time next go around. Modifications: I used 2mm needles for the body of the shawl and 3mm to bind off. I did exactly 12 repeats. Photography: Visualbass The Kiri photoshoot took place in Toronto's beautiful Trinity Bellwoods park, which is conveniently just a few blocks away from my home. I saw some knitted polar bears in a baby boutique window. $60 for this cute little guy-yikes. I apparently have a tiny head, some might say baby sized! Get it? I'm a Valkiri

Feelin' the Love... and the Silky Wool

nessarenee and nudista have tagged us in the 6 Quirky Things meme! The rules: 1) Link to the person who tagged me 2) Mention the rules 3) Tell six quirky yet boring, unspectacular details about myself 4) Tag 6 other bloggers by linking to them 5) Go to each person’s blog and leave a comment that lets them know they’ve been tagged My quirks: 1. Breakfast is my favourite meal, and I like to eat it more than once a day. I have toast for real breakfast every day, and when I'm at work, I eat cereal every day for lunch. I make omlettes and homefries and bacon on the weekend. yum! 2. I am so directionally challenged, it borders on a handicap. I am the kind of person that needs GPS on the cell phone, just so they can get from point A to point B. On foot. In their hometown. Yeesh. 3.I like to knit while reading hardcovers, because then I can sit crosslegged on the sofa, with my knee holding the book open. 4. I'm on a huge baking bread from scratch kick. I never thought there would be such a huge difference in the quality of the bread, but it's true! And the homebaked bread seems to keep me full a lot longer than store bought bread. I think I've offically become someone who bakes their own bread: 5. I despise shoe shopping. Really. I have hobbit feet, short ones at that. finding small and wide shoes is often a challenge, and I never get home from shoe shopping feeling good about myself. 6. I really like embroidery, and am half-decent at it, but I hardly ever do it. But then again, there are a million crafty things I would do, if only I had enough hours in the day. Sigh. I'm going to cheat a bit and not tag others, although I would love to know quirky things about all of you! If you would shared a quirky thing about you in the comments section, I'd be pretty happy about that. :) And angelknits has given Teamknit the I Love Your Blog Award!!The rules are: 1- Post the award on your blog. 2- Add a link to the person who gave you the award 3- Nominate at least 4 other bloggers and add their links I nominate(in random order): Canary Sanctuary Phoeknits blue garter Pie Knits 4- Leave a comment at the recipients’ blogs so they can pass it on. What an honour! I'm feeling loved today, I tells ya. Currently, I'm working on the Opulent Raglan from the Fall 2008 Knitscene: I've already done some slight mods. I added an inch of k1, p1 ribbing to the hem, and I plan on doing the same on the sleeve cuffs rather than the ruffle. I have nothing against ruffles, but I wanted something a bit more streamlined. I'm using Elsebeth Lavold's Silky Wool, which I got from Phoeknits. I haven't knitted with this yarn before, and I have to say that I am a big fan now. I love the slightly nubbly texture, the subtle shade variations from the way silk and wool take dye differently... so pretty! Someone suggested that kitten portraits be a regular Monday feature... I can't say I'll do it every Monday, but they are so freaking cute I've got to share at least one more shot: And yes, they are napping on my Lady Eleanor.

The Newest Members of Teamknit....

Everyone, please meet Gatsby and Yarn These are the latest additions to mine and G's home. We each picked a name, and oddly enough I picked Gatsby and G picked Yarn. But I can't think of a better name for our little tabby princess. Gatsby is named after my favourite novel, The Great Gatsby. As G calls him, he's our "ginger ninja". Since G is British, in his accent it sounds like "Jinja Ninjer". Ah, those loveable Brits. ; ) We got Yarn from a friend's neighbour, who had one little kitten left from their cat's litter, and we got Gatsby from the Toronto Human Society (they do such good work, the THS). We are SO excited to have them- we spend most of our time crawling around on the floor playing with them. I am knitting, I'll be posting on it soon... there is a bit of a posting backlog since I now get to cuddle with these little guys.