Woolgathering Dot Net

No new Salt Peanut knitters, but a few updates.

I fixed Emmdy's link (whoops!), so now one can check out her cool website. She's currently have swatching issues (US10? US9?). Hopefully, that will get resolved soon (she thinks it might be due to yarn stretchiness) and she'll be diving into Salt Peanuts! I adjusted the links so that one can see gerbera's updates from her website; she is at the waist decreases of the back. Carrie is also working up the back and loves the drape of the fabric.

Jen updated Clarifications, Adaptations, Corrections and Advice for Knitting Salt Peanuts with my notes regarding the front lace pattern. It's only the first 20 rows, but I think it's illustrative of the lace pattern and how that works in relation to the decreases.

I am back working on the sleeves and I hope to be finished by this weekend (isn't this the third upcoming weekend where I hoped to finish it?).

One new knitter to the HP knitalong: Cindy (from Bartlesville, Oklahoma). She's a relatively new knitter (4 months), but is already a third of the way into a Ravenclaw scarf. She also plans on making a house sweater! Woo hoo!

Some updates from the knitters:
Julia discovers that the PoA scarf is good for mindless midnight knitting. I, too, am generally sorted into Ravenclaw despite my love for Gryffindor colors. I do note that, according to the Hogwarts Sorting Hat Quiz, I am a Gryffindor.
Amysue has worked on it; I wonder if Noah was able to wear it over the weekend.
Siobhan posted a great account of the IMAX showing on Saturday, along with notes about us meeting. She rocks! Check out her scarf.

I finished the duplicate stitching for the flame sweater today.

Woo hoo!

My duplicate stitching isn't too bad and it went really fast; it felt just like cross stitching. There were some bits where the yarn was loose, which causes the duplicate stitching to look loose. I tried to tighten them as best as I could to make it look as even as I could. From about five feet away, I think it looks pretty good.

Now, back to my regularly scheduled Salt Peanuts!

Now that I'm done with the Flame Sweater, I'm back to Salt Peanuts, which I worked a few rows at my local knitting group tonight. I brought my knitting magazines (IK Summer 2003, IK Spring 2004, and IK Summer 2004 which I just got in the mail last week!) and my recent acquisition of Alice Starmore's Tudor Roses (I plan on knitting a modified version of Elizabeth I, modified since the largest bust size is a bit too small for my bust).

One of our members showed off her inexpensive H&M skirt which she added a fun fur trim to the hem. We all got a kick out of the fun fur ads in IK, especially since I think that a photograph of her skirt would be more effective than the jeans-trimmed-with-fun-fur ad that is making the current rounds. Her skirt seems more "wearable" and gave her professional outfit some flirtateous fun. Seeing her skirt (trim made from two balls of red fun fur) makes me want to do it too, while the ad does not.

About IK Summer 2004: there are so many nice things in this issue that I want to knit. The photograph of the "knitted artifact" on page 7 gave me a ton of ideas for my Christmas ornament. Every year, Mike and I purchase an ornament for our tree. This year, I think it would be fun for me to knit one! I'd probably make it pretty small, no more than seven inches in diameter. It could be a good idea for fairly inexpensive, heirloom-quality gifts for our families. I would make it out of it silk or soysilk. Oo, possibilities!

I can imagine my cousin, Kim, looking pretty fabulous in the Gibson Girl Pullover. It's got just the right balance of formallity and sexiness. I think I will make the Victoria Tank (done by Veronik Avery, quickly becoming one of my favorite knitwear designers). I love the generous sizes she provides in her pattern (up to 54 inches!). The Lace Blouson is also very pretty: I find myself attracted to the insertion of ribbon in a pattern. I think this is why I love the Juliet Pullover, too, although I'm not too keen about the beads in the pattern. I think I would find the beads irritating. Madli's Shawl is simply gorgeous! I don't wear shawls, but I think I will begin to do so with my new knitting obsession. I love the Fair Isle Bag pattern, but I want to find a modified version of the pattern for circular needles.

The article about alternative yarn sources was really cool and I can't wait to see some pina yarn out there. I will definitely design something once that comes available for the handknitter.