I’ve been doing secret Christmas knitting, and I haven’t been able to post about it because I know some of my family members browse this site. I didn’t want to spoil their surprise. But, Kelley suggested I show a close-up, so you can’t really tell what they are – just proof that I have, indeed, been knitting! So here you go, in all sorts of bright, cheery Swish Worsted colors. (Machine washability is a very important trait for all my gift knitting!)
Can you tell what they are? I will send a prize to the first person who guesses correctly (post a comment below with your guess). I won’t be able to announce the winner, in order to keep the secret from my family, but I will send the winner a private message to let them know. I want to make sure the prize …

Today I started a KAL for a steeked cardigan called the Classic Lines Cardigan. It has many elements of sweater design that I love. Things that will help you become confident planning your own sweaters in the future.
I spent most of my weekend finishing off the details for the KAL launch. So, I didn’t do any spinning. That turned out just fine because my order from Crown Mountain Farms arrived today. I can return the roving I “took” from Alison and work from my own stash of chocolate brown Corriedale roving.
But, I’m so excited about the KAL that I probably won’t be doing much spinning for the next few weeks. I haven’t made the sweater yet so we will all be having a good time together as we each make our own colorful cardigan. <

Ever since we had the Speed Knitting contest featuring the Hemlock Ring Blanket (Ravelry link), I’ve been a bit blanket-crazy.
The Hemlock Ring Blanket is based on a vintage doily pattern, but it’s sized up and knit in rustic wool yarn. When you catch the blanket bug, it’s difficult to break free – now I’ve knit a Girasole blanket (Ravelry link) in stash yarn, finished my own “hemmie” in WotA Persimmon Heather, and I just finished up this bad boy in WotA Sapphire Heather.

With just under 16 balls of WotA, I was able to make a blanket that’s over 6 feet across. The pattern is Meg Swansen’s “Super Spiral Shawl” (Ravelry link) from A Gathering of Lace. It looks complicated, but the spiral is broken up into eight sections, and you add the optional mesh pattern to every other …

I cast-off my swatch yesterday. Since I strung the yarn along the back of the swatch, I needed to cut the yarn. I made simple overhand knots along each side of the swatch to secure the stitches before giving the swatch a nice warm bath.

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I will be ripping out my knitting and starting again with 6 inches fewer stitches. So, my new number will be 160 stitches. I’m taking off just a few more stitches to play it safe.
I will knit a couple of inches and try it on for a second time! Yep, then I will be sure that everything is fixed. <

Angela knit a Wool of the Andes bunny nugget as a catnip toy for her cats, and I’m a little jealous. She did let me snuggle with it during my nap today though, that was nice.

She said she got the pattern on Ravelry for free. It would make a good Easter present for someone, don’t you think? (hint hint).
There is also a very clever pattern for a seder plate for Passover on Ravelry.
I don’t actually play with toys much, but I can see their appeal. And who doesn’t love presents! I hope you have a Happy Easter or Happy Passover this weekend!! <

I had a lovely chat with Cookie that will be my podcast on April 29th. To prepare for the interview I carefully read through Sock Innovation and it is such a fantastic contribution to the knitting world.
Just looking at the photos of Cookie’s intricate socks can be intimidating. I know because that was exactly my reaction. “Why in the world would I knit socks with that much textural detail?”
Well, I read Cookie’s book and did a complete 180! Then I talked with her for the podcast and I’ve not only decided to join the Sock Innovation Knit-A-Long but I am going to knit the Lindsay socks with Gloss Parsley using Harmony DPNs. I love the beauty of the Harmony needles and I don’t think I want to have two of Cookie’s socks on a Magic Loop at the same time. A bit too mind-boggling since her designs often mirror each …