Endings and Beginnings

As the year comes to an end I have decided to end this blog and start a new one. My new blog will centre on all the activities in my life I feel compelled to blog about rather than just knitting.

A lot of things have happened recently and while I continue to knit and will blog about it; these new things will have a place on the new blog.

We recently bought our own house! We moved Dec. 1 to our first home and it is keeping me very busy. I also am very comitted to my collage art. I was recently chosen to be a member of the Design Team at Stamp and Scrap Canada and have also submitted some work for publication. This will be an exciting year for me!

If you care to join me and read about my collage art and decorating our WWI era house along with the knitting please join me on my new blog.

Artful Life With Eliza Jane

Finally a FO

I have finished socks!! Here we have the Feather & Fan socks (somewhat modified) from the book Socks, Socks, Socks. I used Regia Bamboo and they are wonderfully soft.



I just can't seem to survive without a pair of socks on the needles. So here we have the next pair which are super fun to knit.

Still Here

Wow, I haven't posted in a while! Things have been pretty hectic around here lately and I haven't been knitting as much as usual. I am still knitting, though. I have been pretty much working exclusively on the Poppy Shawl (see previous entry) and am on the 11th row of 17 rows of poppies. I'm still enjoying it as much as when I started though the rows are enormously long now and I'm at a point where I need to move up to a longer needle. However, I am using the longest needle I have so will have to go buy a new (longer) circ. This will entail a trip to the city so it may be a bit before I can get out and get one.

In the meantime, a few days ago I cast on for a new sock. This will be my November entry for the SAM2. I am doing a basic Feather & Fan sock with Regia Bamboo. There is something about this F&F pattern (from the book Socks, Socks, Socks) that just practically knits itself. I am almost at the toe of the first sock. The Bamboo yarn is delicious, a joy to knit with and a joy to touch. It's one of those yarns where you just have to keep picking up your knitting to caress the yarn!

Leafy Lace Socks

My October SAM2 socks are finished! These are from a kit from the sotmc from a few months back. Cascade Fixation and pattern by Rebecca Perry. The ribbing on the first sock is a bit too loose as I was getting used to knitting with the elastic but once I figured it out it was fine. These are nice huggable socks. I love socks that hug and will definately use this yarn again.

Blanket and a Shawl

The mitred blanket is finished! This one took quite a while to make simply because I was taking my time with it. Just knit a bit here and there but have been working on it like crazy this past week. The colours are not quite so bright as they appear in the picture.

Thanks to Aimee in the comments I've decided the mohair is a bulky yarn and still don't know what I'll be knitting with it. The search for a pattern continues.

The Fixation socks continue in progress. I am just about to start the gussets. I'm working both socks at once on dpns. I'm really enjoying this yarn. At first I was unsure how to work with the elasticity worrying about my tension but finally figured out to just knit like normal and all is well.

Now for a sneak peak at my current project. When I posted my last blog entry I was just about to cast on for this but didn't want to mention it in case it didn't work out. This is something I have wanted to knit since ... well ... forever. When I sorted out my stash the other week I decided to finally take the plunge and I am hooked on this baby! Here we have the start of the Poppy Shawl by Kaffe Fassett. I'm at the part now where I have to chart the pattern out myself to get the poppies lined up properly. I'm working with an assortment of sport weight/ light dk yarns in a multitude of textures and fibres. This is one of those things that will look better after blocking but man, I'm loving it!

Socktoberfest & Stash Overhaul

First order of business is socks! I am currently knitting these socks from a sotmc kit from a few months back. These will be my Socktoberfest socks and my October Sock a month socks. Nothing like doing double duty with your kals!



I have been knitting almost exclusively on the mitred blanket this last week. I realized I was almost finished so decided to get a move on with this. I have two more sides to complete then I'll have finished pics to show!

I spent this last week doing something stupid useful. I reorganized my stash. I sorted out by weight and purpose. I thought that doing this might actually reduce the number of boxes of stash but in the end I had one more box than I started with!

I made boxes for each weight of yarn and then separated the sock worthy yarn into separate boxes for both sock weight and sport weight. I also sorted out the 100% wool worsted and cotton (regardless of weight) into separate boxes. Whether this will be helpful or not is doubtful but I feel a little less overwhelmed than before I started.

So, what have I pulled out of the stash to knit next? you ask. Another blast from the past with this:



Scheepjeswol Mohair Ombre. A lovely variegated colour of medium and light tans and grey. 67% Mohair, 28% Wool, 5% Nylon. I have 9 full balls and an extra 20 grams. Making 470 grams or 376 metres. Recommended needles are size 6 or 7. But I am wondering, since all the info on the ball band is metric do they mean 6mm/7mm or the old UK sizes 6/7 which would be 4.5mm/5mm. The yarn strand itself is very thin, about a fingering weight, then it has a huge halo making it fluffy and thick. What do you think? I've never knit with mohair before.

So, once I know what needles to use with this the big question is what the heck should I knit with it all? Would it work for a shawl? Other than the feather & fan shawls I've done I have never knit a large lace shawl and I would love to take one on. Pattern suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

When Knitting Becomes an Obsession

If you haven't seen this already. You really should!