distractions...

everyone needs distractions now and then, especially when you're having work days like i'm having lately. suffice it to say things are a bit hectic, but we'll leave it at that. at least when i come home i can see all the pretty green things that are popping up in my windowsill. soon enough, my pretties, and you'll be outside growing fat veggies. not today though - i scraped ice of my windshield this morning despite the nearly-May calendar date. gotta love it.



there has been some knitting, although i'm not much motivated lately. my friend lucas has been complaining that A always has new cool toques to wear, and although he's not the first one to do so, he somehow motivated me where others have not. there's something about knowing have to do something that completely stalls me in my tracks. in this case though, i mostly had fun. i used a variety of stash yarns, with a green and light brown theme fitting for project spectrum (and a bit of blue thrown in). the wave chart is from swell - yet another adventure in my goal to excel at colourwork.



the edge has a few rows of garter stitch rather than my standard rib which i think creates a nice clean effect. the top is an 8-pointed decrease. i have to say, while i do love all the colours mixed together, sewing in all the ends is a pain in the ass. luke won't get this till friday, but hopefully it'll shut him up - i mean, make him happy.



my other current project is child's first socks from Knitting Vintage Socks. After being inspired by pam and kelly, i knew mine also had to be purple. so far so good, but the shell pattern gets to be a bit of snore very quickly. i'm pretty dismissive in this post, aren't i? obviously not quite settled from the day's events. hopefully i have another FO post soon, but i can't say i won't also start a new project before then!

spring, we're so glad to see ya...

although winter is slow to relinquish it's gloomy grip on us (a foot of snow just two hours south of us on saturday!), there are signs here and there that spring is slowly making an appearance, albeit a late one. here are a few shots from today's walk along the campbell river.

feeling earthy...

Just got back from a relaxing weekend at Tsa-Kwa-Luten where my mom and I took part in the Fun Knits knitting retreat. Was a great mix of women madly knitting away, and also good workshops. More on that in a moment, but first, my start for Project Spectrum: Earth.

These socks are a variation on Yukon Leaves, which I previously interpreted in my niece's little hat. I knitted the socks toe up (of course), so my leaves perhaps look upside down, although I think I like them better this way. I was initially concerned that the four repeats called for in the pattern would make the socks too big, so I started with one up the instep with a twisted stitch cable on each side. For the leg, I did three repeats of the Yukon Leaves pattern, with a cable in between each.



The cable up the back is different from the other two - a bit bigger and with three strands instead of two. These socks fit awesome, and I'm pretty happy. However, you may have noticed a little something - see how the sock on the right is evenly variegated? then notice the sock on the left? yeah, that's right about where I was. This yarn is Sweatermaker, which is soft and lovely, and local. But the second ball turned out to be noticeably lighter, and unfortunately did this strange pooling thing whereby the dark part worked its way in a spiral up my leg. I've let it go, breathing has returned to normal, but this was my first real experience with bad pooling, and colour my unimpressed.

There will be several more installations for this segment of Project Spectrum - a brief glance at my wardrobe will confirm that it's not hard to get me excited about green and brown. Stay tuned.



So what did I do at the workshop? Learned how to spin of course. I do tend to get frustrated when things don't work for me instantly, so there may have been much huffing and gritting of teeth, but ultimately I'm pretty pleased with the result. I can definitely see it is a skill you need to practice again and again, but at least the basics have been explained well to me. This is Romney wool, by the by. And a great colour for PS.

One last bit of "Earth"? Check out the tiny tomatoes poking their heads up behind the handspun. Yummy veggies are on their way!

recent images from tofino...

travel snapshots...

around here spring is well on it's way. however, last week i was in ontario where the deep snow definitely makes winter still feel very close at hand. although i didn't get a chance to take as many shots as i would have liked, here are a few things that caught my eye.


st lawrence river, at prescott.


dock in the frozen harbour bordering the st lawrence, prescott.


stonework feature, parliament buildings, ottawa.

the twisted end of the spectrum...

oh, so many things to post about, and lots of pics. have just returned from a week in the ottawa area and had a really great time. will share some photos soon, but to start, i finally finished my first project spectrum project:


yay for red mitts! you may have noticed in previous mentions i was looking for the perfect pattern, something a bit cabled, possibly some lace, and wonderfully long, and i've come out pretty happy on this one. you may recognize the middle lace pattern as one half of the baudelaire chart. in fact, the mitts are mirror images of each other, so each mitt uses one half. the lace is bordered on each side by a simple cable.


the fun part was the twisting. i knit these from the hands up, so on the first mitt i put in a k2tog and a m1 on either side of the cables and lace pattern, doing these stitches every second round. on the second mitt, i did m1 and ssk, so the mitt would twist the opposite way. tops and bottoms of the mitts are 4x2 rib. the main problem i found with knitting from the fingers up was that i had a lot more trouble adding in the thumb afterward than i normally do. i'm not completely happy with them, but the rest is so great i can live with it.

the yarn, as previously mentioned, is colinette jitterbug in morello mash. wonderful colour that i love endlessly, but the yarn itself i could take or leave. i've definitely used many softer fingering weights (although it may soften with washing), and i also encountered numerous knots in the skein, several ridiculously close together to have me gritting my teeth.


despite my love of red, this is likely my only project for the fire part of project spectrum, especially as the end of march looms quickly toward me. dare i admit that i've well into a project for april/may? not sure if that's allowed, but the green yarn was calling to me and socks were a perfect travelling project. but the earth months will be easy for me, so i'm sure there will be more projects to come. plus it's not hard to be in a green and brown mood - did i mention that it's spring here? i'm going to be starting garden plans this week, and i'm terribly excited about it!

spring is calling...

you can definitely feel it in the air. it's a bit warmer, a bit more mild. i actually wore flip-flops the other day. this crocus shots were taken a week ago - our yard is full of them, mostly purple, with a few yellow ones glowing sunnily in between. not much else is going on yet, but that soon will change. we have been talking dreamily about the coming season and all the vegetables we will plant. i am eager to start some things indoors, but i am going away next week and figured i would wait to do until i return. but soon i will hopefully be filling this blog with images of fresh veggies bursting forth.

but to take an abrupt turn away from spring, next week i will be heading to ontario, where i hear winter is much less ready to release its clutches on the landscape. it will be an adventure, i'm sure, but will also make the spring weather that much more enjoyable upon my return.


my project spectrum project is well underway. these fingerless mitts combine a bit of lace along with some cables, and i'm very excited about the finished product. i am well into the second mitt, although the first still requires finishing touches (to thumb or not to thumb?), so i hope to have a more revealing image to show you soon. this colinette jitterbug is gorgeous, and perfect for ps.

warm head & cold sheep...

The boy quite liked my Koolhaas, and admittedly I enjoyed the project, so it wasn't hard to convince me to make another one. But in the interest of not having any matchy-matchy episodes, I wanted them to look as different as possible. The Malabrigo was a perfect solution. The colour variations in this yarn create and entirely different hat, but is just as soft and squishy as version one. I've never worked with Malabrigo before, but I will be returning.

There isn't as much stitch definition as the Cashmerino, which I suppose is partly from the slight fuzz of the merino, and partly from the variegated colour. But man is this stuff soft.

And in the world of yarn to be, the clear sunny day that was Sunday turned out to be the day Sally, Cookie and Jumper lost their winter coats. Yup, those are my folks' three ewes, fat with babies and usually pushy women, but once flipped on their backs remarkable docile. The women who does the shearing is surprisingly adept with the large animals, considering her own small size. Good thing the sheep have a barn to stay warm in for the cold nights still to come; however it's good to get them sheared before birthing as otherwise the little lambs have trouble finding the milk.

These first two shots show Sally (the Suffolk) putting up with her fate, while the bottom shows Cookie (brown) and Jumper (white) looking a bit lighter (and perhaps sheepish?) after their shearing. Soon enough my mom and I will be washing and carding in prep for spinning. I still haven't tried out this spinning stuff, but we are booked for a workshop in early April to figure it all out.

And yes, this new hat has distracted me from Project Spectrum, but I'll be back on track shortly with the red gloves. Promise.

fire in my belly...

sunday was one of those clear, crisp days that make winter easier, the sun sparkling through the tree, nearly warming you if you stayed sheltered from the wind. A is in charge of alpacas and sheep while my folks are in Cancun (i would be but it adds far too much to my daily work commute), so we spent the day on the island. started the day late with scrambled eggs and veggies, including these lovely cherry tomatoes. we went for a walk at the beach, checking out the ice that spreads across the harbour, driftwood suspended in its clutches. but by mid afternoon A convinced me to shun the weather in favour of several hours spent in front of the tv, watching the boys play ball.


but on to what i really wanted to talk about: project spectrum. i've decided to participate for the first time, hence the red theme to these photos. i'm working on some fingerless gloves out of this gorgeous colinette jitterbug - the colourway is morello mash. far to pretty to disappear on my feet, so it's been waiting for me to get motivated. project spectrum seemed like a perfect excuse to finally let it shine. looking forward to see what others come up with in the fire theme.

oh, i also finished my neckwarmer from the previous post - it's been working out well. somehow i missed posting about it, but please check out the FO on ravelry.

warm wool, cold snow...

well despite what i said in my last post, and the ache in my fingers, it would seem i can't stay away from knitting. turns out i go crazy if i'm not doing something with my hands, so i've been making small inroads in a new project.

bet you can't guess what the yarn is - ha! it's only too obvious what yarn can bewitch me with such lovely colours. i've had four skeins of this since october, and been trying to find a suitable project. this may or may not be it, but is keeping me interested nonetheless. i am working on a cowl/neck warmer variation of the maple seed hat, and i like that it is vaguely cable reminiscent, but not heavy, and somewhat lacy, but not too lacy. and i like the way it twists as it climbs. this pattern is virtually identical to the beaufort hat pattern that i made for my brother-in-law, except you do ssk instead of k2tog, and i had been wanting to revisit it since that toque was gifted so quickly after completion. i'm sure this pattern won't take all four skeins, probably just two, but i'm sure i'll find something else for the leftovers.

and from the first photo, you might see that snow has fallen again - hey, around here it used to be an anomaly, but not this winter - and at the moment the sun is peaking through the clouds, adding sparkle to the fresh whiteness. for a bit the snow continued to fall ever so lightly, much like dust swirling in a ray of sunlight. i might get out on a walk later today and then have some more photos to show, but for now i'll leave you with this glimpse of spring, however distant it may be - the rhodos valiantly pushing forward despite the cold.

New perspectives...

Admittedly, I was not initially wowed by this pattern. I had seen it on Ravelry, but I think my response was "meh", despite the large amount of folks trying it out. The same can also be said for this yarn, which the boy picked out for himself when I dragged him into a flurry of women known as a yarn sale. Colour me surprised, then, when I discovered how happy I ma with the final product and jealous that these socks are not for me.

The pattern is Charade, and the yarn is Cherry Tree Hill Supersock. If anyone remembers, I knit my Aquaphobia Socks with Cherry Tree Hill, so I knew I would like the yarn and it would hold up well as a sock. But I felt the browns had little appeal in the skein. However, knit up the variation is warm and rich, and it's a little hard to admit A was right. The pattern was not his picking though - just me trying to find something in that balance of what he will wear versus what will I knit. I did get a little tired by the end, but that may be due to other issues. All in all, Charade keeps you interested and looks great in a subtle kind of way. And if you're curious, the brown underneath the socks is not a scary shag carpet (although we have one), but rather a cushy, squishy sheepskin made for me by my dad from one of his sheep - I haven't convinced him to get any Merino sheep yet (they are sooooo cool looking) but thought the sheepskin fit well with the finished product.

But....this may be the last knitting for a little while. Hard to say for sure, as I am still thinking about patterns and eyeing up yarn, but at the same time my knitting enthusiasm seems to have faded a little at the moment. This may also be due to a lot of joint pain I am having in my fingers lately. Somewhere in between knitting, working on a computer all day, climbing, and other sport joint stress (oddly enough I think snowboarding is a factor, but maybe more in my wrists - falling), and my hands are turning into little claws. I've also been thinking about some other things - I've been wanting to get back into drawing a bit more lately, and I hope to be getting a new sewing machine in the near future to replace the cranky specimen I have mostly stopped using. So there may be other projects to show soon, if not of the yarn persuasion.

And there is also my photography, which has definitely been neglected lately. As the days begin to show a little more light, I'm tempted outside again to find interesting angles, and will try to share them with you. That's why I started this blog after all!

snow days are kool...

I finished this toque on Saturday and took some pics then (if you're on Ravelry you might have seen them), but I'm starting to get tired of posing for FO shots, so I thought this one would be better as an action image. So here I am keeping cozy in my new Koolhaas hat, perfect for those chilly days on the mountain. We had a beautiful day on Sunday, only my second time on a board, but I'm starting to feel more comfortable. The weather alternated between tempting to clear and closing in with snow and a biting wind, but the day ended with sparkling powder lit by late afternoon sunlight. Below is a photo showing my mad boarding skillz (yeah, that's with a "z" to show how hardcore I am), but hey, I'm just happy to be standing and sliding downhill at the same time.

Oh, you wanted to know about the hat? This is actually only my interpretation of the pattern. Not to downplay the amazing knitting talents of Jared, but I decided to work this one out on my own, although I give him much credit and kudos for the brilliant idea. This hat is wonderfully squishy and cozy, helped along by Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran. I love this yarn, so divinely soft, and with a slight silver sheen to the grey. I was at a loss for some time with what kind of hat it would become, but I'm definitely happy with the result.

I am well into some Charades for A, my second project with Cherry Tree Hill Merino Sock. I'm really happy with the pattern and the yarn, and should have an FO to show soon. And I received a great little Christmas present (albeit a little late) - The Knitter's Book of Yarn. I know many a knitting blogger has reviewed this awesome new book, so I won't say too much about it except that it's awesome (yeah, I know, I covered that), and I'm already eager to cast on for some Norwegian Snail Mittens. However, all this snowboard gear is going to cut into my yarn budget...

come on in, the water's fine..

Today was bright and sunny, and of course we are past the hump and days can only get longer from here. Might also have been because I slept in much later than normal so there were no dark morning hours today (but will be tomorrow when I have to go back to work!). Even made it out for some vitamin D in the afternoon, enjoying the day now that the holiday rush is over (and avoiding the consumer blitz that is boxing day). But it still gets dark awfully early, and the moon peering at me through the window tells me how cold it is outside, and there is the promise of some snow before morning according to those lovely folks at Environment Canada. So maybe I won't be going to work...

But let's talk socks shall we? These are great fitting socks. I based them on knitfreak's Aquaphobia socks. I fully intended to follow the pattern, but appear to have an experimental streak and deviated some. I followed the basic slip stitch but changed the cable, and added a second cable. I used a short row heel, and started the slip stitch under the sole of the heel to add a bit of reinforcement, and used 15 rows of 2x1 rib at the top to finish it off. The colour is a bit wilder than I would normally pick, but instantly attracted me at the store. It has, however, been sitting in my pile for many months now. I tried to knit this yarn up into some Leyburns, but that didn't work out. I think this pattern is a great accompaniment for yarn like this though. Hence the blog title, if you didn't get that - try out the Aquaphobias if you get a chance.

Of course, inside lighting with flash is not very conducive to photographing the texture and detail on these socks, so please forgive me. Instead, pretend you're sitting with me watching bad tv in front of a warm fire. Breathe easy, the holiday rush is over!

update...

just as I finished my last post complaining about my Brittany needles, I noticed their five year replacement guarantee. I will be emailing them and if they replace my needles, that will be great!

warm hands, warm heart?

Hope everyone is enjoying the gifts of the season - and I don't just mean that in a material sense. We had our family gathering last night (Danish traditional Christmas), and are now winding down back home again. Didn't do much knitting with all the family around, but did manage to finish these up before things got going.

As mentioned before, these fingerless mitts are based on the Inga hat pattern. I pushed forward despite my doubts halfway through and think I am pretty happy with the result. My tension in stranding definitely leaves something to be desired, but they fit, and I think will even out with wear (lazy girl's blocking). Yarns used are Drops Alpaca for the red - it really shines in the sunlight with strands of purple and yellow - and the off-white is some leftover Ella Rae Classic from my Lush & Lacy cardigan. The Ella Rae held up fine, but since I was using the Alpaca held double, I ran out a few rows shy of a second mitt, and both without thumbs. I had to make a few changes, and the thumbs are a bit shorter than planned, but I think they'll pass muster. Basically I did one repeat of the Inga chart (40 stitches), on 3mm dpns, with the seam up the centre of the palm, which doesn't create a perfect join but I think it looks okay. My big concern is actually with the needles - Brittany needles. I have now broken two of the five, and am thinking my replacements will not be the same brand. I've never broken a bamboo needle, but these hardwood dpns don't seem to hold up as well.

I should have some Aquaphobia socks to show in the next day or two. Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

flurries (of activity)...

Today does not look like this outside. The wind is howling once again, the rain is driving, and generally the best bet is to curl up inside. But, as I can't show you the FOs I have recently completed, I will instead entertain you with some shots from last weekend. Why no knitting? Apparently there's some sort of holiday coming up, whereby I may have made some gift-type items that must be kept safely under wraps. If you are wishing to see what I've been up to, please pop over to Ravelry.

These shots were taken at Mount Cain, where I made my very first snowboarding attempt. Sure it's only taken two and half years dating a snowboard instructor for me to try it, but let's not worry over details. To sum it up, pretty cool and will be trying it again, but that is saying that only after the pain of falling countless times on my butt onto rock hard snow has started to fade from my mind. I was told I made a good first effort, but he's required to be biased, so who knows for sure. The snow was not yet piled up to the levels I'm sure it's reaching today, but the sun was shining and on the whole it was a beautiful day.

I've got some new projects on my mind too - many socks I'm eager to cast on for, and one toe was started this afternoon. Also procured some Cashmerino in a fantastic shade of grey - destined to be the best hat ever. Hope everyone is gearing up for the holidays okay!

definitely december...

December appeared in a flurry here, waking up to a wintry wonderland of snow where last night a cold starry night had been. Now late in the day it is still snowing, and there is over a foot on the ground. This is not our first snow of the season - earlier this week we had a few centimetres, but this is definitely out of character. Dry and powdery, no sign of warming up just yet, it does not feel like west coast snow at all. We just went for a short walk to the store, felt the bite of cold flakes hitting our cheeks, and are happy to be once again curled up in the warm house.

I have been working on a fingerless mitt version of the Inga Hat pattern, with mixed results. Here is the first one, minus a thumb (you can see the safety pin holding stitches). What do you think? I like it, but being the maker I also see the mistakes. And it is a little snugger than I would like. But I've tried to approach it as stranding practice, and not worry too much about the end result. I love the look of colourwork, and have realized I just have to suck it up and work on my technique if I ever want to see improvement, rather than sullenly avoiding it. The yarns used are Drops Alpaca held double (red) and Patons Classic Merino (off-white) on 3mm dpns.

Hope you are staying warm and cozy as we enter December!

a long time coming...

well, this has only been languishing in my in progress pile since last july (yeah, that's a year and more ago). I'm sure I could have finished it much quicker, but initial progress was delayed when we moved and I didn't have the floor space, and then it just got forgotten again and again. I enjoy quilts, and love the finished project, but sometimes they can be quite tedious, especially when I piece them together the hard way, ie each piece separately, and tiny little squares. You may not be able to tell in the photos but many of the squares are assorted stripes - I found three or four different stripe fabrics in a series, one darker greens, one lighter, one with blues. The other pieces are assorted blue and green cottons and cotton/linens I had. I also had a long time deciding on the finishing and back, but eventually went for a simple finish.

There is no real edging, the squares just finish and join with the back. The backing is simple soft green fleece, which i like as a quilt back because it makes it thinner to quilt on the machine, but still provides lots of warmth. This quilt is a nice size for cuddling on the couch. Ummm, not much else to say. Back to knitting?