To the Future...Week One WIPs and ideas

I remember when I used to be a reader and a writer above all things. The two go hand in hand, methinks, and I felt the most passionate about what I wrote when I was reading nonstop. Those days have come and gone and I find myself feeling like I should be writing moreso than I want to write.

Knitting and designing have kind of filled the void that writing and reading used to fill. I feel like I spent the first half/three quarters of my life with my nose buried in a book, and, while I miss that, I feel more fulfilled now. I've always been scared of showing off any writing I may have produced, but with knitting it's the complete opposite. When I finished knitting something, whether it be my own design or somebody else's, I can't wait to show it off. I find joy in accepting a compliment on the street and responding with, "thanks so much. I made it!" Knitting has afforded the opportunity to create, in the way writing did, but it has also given me a surge of confidence that I never knew I had before. I still don't think I have what it takes to ever earn a living from it, but I'm going to have fun trying in the meantime.

Manos del Uruguay Rittenhouse 5-Ply

The past few days I have been suffering from a crazy case of knitting ADD. I spent almost three weeks back home for the holidays and upon coming back to Rosie's, there were so many new things to be seen. And since then I've been looking at new color combinations that I'd never noticed before and seeing the possibilities that they offer. As I mentioned before, my boss is the US distributor for Manos del Uruguay, meaning we have access to most Manos yarns at any given time. Rittenhouse was fully stocked when I got back earlier this week and I fell in love with the combination of English (the sagey green) and Magenta. I threw in Nickel and sketched out an idea for a very textured, tricolor cowl.

Quince & Co. Chickadee

I think that color will be a HUGE inspiration for me this year in terms of my designing, as well as trying new yarns and fibers. I have finally fallen in love with the gray and yellow combination and when you add blue to that mix? Holy bananas. I decided to finally take the plunge and order some Quince & Co. yarns after lusting after them since they opened for business. Pretty sure. The colors are so rich and the yarn is just...so nice to the touch. I have the feeling I am going to end up ordering more. These four colors will be used for a hat I've planned out. I really can't wait to get started on this one.

Noro Silk Garden

I've been working with these two colors (252 & 349) of Silk Garden for awhile now. My initial plan for them was to design a fringed stripe/chevron shawl, but that ended up turning out to be fuuuuugly. I spent Christmas Eve frogging the whole damn thing (took me HOURS) and recast on for a multidirectional, fringed chevron cowl. I guess you can't have it all? I am really excited for this to be done, but it has been taking me a little longer than I had anticipated. Impatient Ashley is impatient.

So while I love that all this creativity is finally pouring out of me again, I can't help but hate it at the same time. The feeling of needing more hours in the day (and I only work part-time right now) is overwhelming, especially when you are trying to stick to a 2-3 mile a day plan as well.

Through the Loops Mystery Sock KAL 2012

My WIPs for today (and this weekend) include the first clue in Kirsten Kapur's TTL Mystery Sock KAL 2012. I am absolutely in love right now. Two of my best yarnie friends were going to do a KAL and, while I love Kirsten Kapur and her designs, I wasn't too interested in knitting any socks. If you will remember my Socktober socks, you will (not) be shocked to read that they have not been touched since mid-October. That was before I decided to spoil myself and take a peek at the WIPs from the first week. That cuff sold me and I bought the pattern that very afternoon. I'm even using stash (!!!) yarn (Dream in Color Smooshy in "Strange Harvest") and I love it too. I'm knitting both socks at the same time, which is very fiddly and tedious, but I know I will thank myself in the end. Because this time there will be an end. Muahahahahahahahah. And I will definitely use this yarn again.

Hineri hat

When I packed for winter in Philly, I did not anticipate just how windy the city can be. I packed my Capucine, which is my favorite hat knit out of the beautifully luxurious Elsebeth Lavold Angora, but it doesn't stay on my head all that well. One of the pleasant surprises I faced when returning to Rosie's was a wall full of Rowan Cocoon, which I used for my Bandana cowl a few months back. I dug into the far reaches of my Ravelry Queue and found the Hineri hat by Olga, the perfect one skein project for one of my new favorites. It works up super quickly and would not be surprised in the least if I finish it by the time Matt comes home from work. I just hope it's long enough to cover my ears; nothing is worse than cold ears.

As my beloved day off comes to a close, I should conclude that my other weekend goals are to run 4 miles and (finally) start reading The Woman in Black so that I can finish it before the movie is released.

Happy knitting! And sorry for the hipster instagrams :p

P.S. I lobbed off all my hair. And today I like it (most days I don't).

Dalloway (in tosh) & another Botanic hat

A few weeks ago, well, about a week and a half ago, I released my Dalloway cloche pattern. With the arrival of the Tosh at Wool & Co., I knew that I needed to make one in tosh dk. 

So I adapted the pattern. To accommodate the most glorious of yarns.

Dalloway in Tosh Merino dk

Adapting the pattern for dk weight was quite simple; I added an extra cable repeat and cast on more stitches. I thought I might have to fudge the decreases more than I actually did. And I had an ounce of Tosh Merino dk left :)

Detail of edging and cables

I'm very biased, but I do love this hat a lot. The tucked under edging and cables are very elegant and classic. The initial design didn't turn out quite as I intended it to, but I think it's better this way.

My third FO of the week is another Botanic Hat by Stephen West. I envied Matt's so much that I decided I needed to finally have my own. And the colors are perfect for spring.

Glamour shot

Reversible

So yeah, it's been a fairly busy week. I also finished my first Chan Luu inspired bracelet. It turned out a little wonky, but it's definitely cute and wearable. I'm hoping to perfect the art before I actually post photos. But we'll see. It's shaping up to be a pretty slow weekend.

Hope everyone has a good Friday afternoon :) And, if you celebrated "being Irish" too hard last night, that your hangover is gone by now.

Queue it up:

Dalloway in dk, baby!

Botanic Hat - Easter Egg Morning

Boyfriends and Botanic hats

Matt and I went up to his lake house this weekend, meaning I got a lot of knitting done in the car and we ended up fighting. Like we always do. But this is a crafty blog and I will not get into it. I just needed some context.

Whenever there is boyfriend drama in my life, well, whenever there is any drama in my life I always turn to knitting. Knitting just keeps me calm and it makes me feel better, even when my stomach is churning and I can't sleep. So, whenever I get into a fight with Matt I always become overwhelmed by the urge to knit him hats. Even when he doesn't deserve them.

Last night I cast on for Stephen West's Botanic hat, my favorite "boy" hat, and I finished it up this afternoon after work. I used leftover Madelinetosh Tosh Merino DK in Calligraphy and some Noro Silk Garden I had in my stash (color 276). Both yarns were purchased by the boy in question, so I guess it is only fair that I should knit him something.

Mods: Since I was using a dk weight as the MC, I decided to cast on an extra four stitches, which turned out being unnecessary, and I also went down to size 5 needles for the ribbing. I did, however, use size 7s for the body, which gave the fabric a nice and light feel. 

Botanic Hat

I really, really love knitting Botanic Hats. They're pretty easy and they force me to purl continentally, something I've been struggling with. I just have awkward hands and it's more comfortable for me to purl English style, though I prefer to knit Continental. Egads! Anyway, Botanic hats are truly magical and most of the men in my life now own at least one (Matt now has three). I still need to make one for myself.

I'm not a beanie girl. But this will do ;)

I'm in love

I also finished up my Dalloway in DK that I posted about last time. But I'll save that (and some new Tosh haul) for next time. In the meantime, here is a sneak peak and the project page for my (Waiting for Spring) Botanic Hat.

Tosh Merino Light in "Plaid Blanket"

(Waiting for Spring) Botanic Hat on Ravelry