Author Archives: atangledyarn84

KITH Yarn Haul

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In between Knitting In The Heartland events, I did some time in the market. After an initial lap around the vendors I decided to focus on mini skeins for my scrappy granny stripe blanket.

I have all my scraps organized and I noticed some gaps in the color wheel. So I tried to pour through booths and find colors to help fill out those missing areas. Mostly I need the warm colors of red, yellow and orange and some more jewel tones.

I think I did well! I also nabbed a tshirt going out on clearance, a knitting book for my friend and a couple of worsted skeins to replenish my hat stash. I am pretty proud of myself and saving most of my yarn funds for SSK this summer!

Happy Yarn!

Knitting In The Heartland 2024

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Ya’ll….I made it! Back to Knitting in The Heartland after the heartbreaking cancelation in April of 2020. A lot of things went wrong leading up to the event, but we got there!

And the highlight? Getting to listen and learn from The Yarn Harlot herself, Stephanie Pearl McPhee. Her keynote was delightful and all about how knitting influenced knitters during the pandemic.

The hotel was so nice and I got two nights away from the family surrounded by yarn. I even took Stephanie’s Knit Smart class! It was a recharging weekend that was badly needed. And of course I hit the market so I will share that separately. 🙂

Happy Knitting!!

FO Friday: Sport Ankle Socks

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I stalled out on the last 30 minutes of knitting on these for like…..a long tie. But my Sport Ankle Socks are done!

I started these as 60 stitch socks but ultimately worked up to 64 stiches. Which I was happy with for circumference and negative ease. However, I missed the mark on foot length and its a bit long. I am leaving it alone for now and give them a couple wears to see if they need sock surgery.

I only ended up using 66 grams of yarn or 290 yards for these shorties. I am consciously trying to knit shorties to add to my collections for winter ankle boots. This is KnitCircus opulence in a OOAK color from mystery box. It has cashmere content so they feel great on the feet….time will tell about pilling.

Now I need to get these needles with new yarn and my next socks on them! Happy Knitting!!

Cast On: Prism Socks

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Spring germs are REAL in this house and it’s knocked us all down for a minute. I had meant to get my next self striping socks on the needles after finishing my leftover advent socks, but that stalled.

I took my project to where I knew I would be a captive audience….literally. The hubs and I had tickets to see Brett Goldstein (of Ted Lasso fame) do standup. So I brought my yarn and needles and got to knitting during the pre-show and the ride home. Brett was amazingly funny, btw!

This yarn is the Inertia base from String Theory Colorworks and in the Prism color. So it will be a very vibrant rainbow with mini stripes of charcoal in-between. I am constructing my standard 68 stitch toe up tube with afterthought heel on US 1s. And I plan to work them in tandem so as to avoid second sock syndrome.

I wish I could find my metal US1s but the wooden ones will do for now. I can always switch later. I think these will be my backpack project or car console project since they fit nicely into a zipper pouch.

Progress With A Paw

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I must admit that this project has gotten a little lost in the hubbub that is my life. I started this Sparkly Handspun Hat to match mitts I previously made. The hat has grown by maybe 10 or 15 rows but is languishing at the bottom of my WIP bag. It won’t take long to finish so I am going to try to get this in the rotation more.

And Duke couldn’t miss being part of this update. I kept pushing him out of frame or putting him in sit but it never lasted. He is 1 now and firmly in the annoying teenage phase where he is stronger than me. He is a good sweet boy….just wonderfully bonded to me, lol.

Happy Knitting!!

This Could Mean Trouble

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My new job means a new commute. The silver lining? The new area I work in has a LYS! And on a break this week I fell down in the store and my card bought new yarn.

Am I going to Knitting in the Heartland conference in less than two weeks? Yes. But I was feeling good this day and the yarn fumes got me. I picked up three skeins of Malabrigo Rios in Matisse Blue, Cian, and Purpuras. Then one skein of Malabrigo Arroyo in Sea Slug. All of these skeins are destined to be hats. My brain cells are taken up by the new job some easy hat knitting feels good.

Next up was two skeins of 316 Dye Studio in their House DK and graffiti colorway. I have some of this in my stash for a sweater and my post COVID body needs more yardage. They are different dye lots so I will have to shade/alternate. But I’m okay with that. Lastly are two bunches of fiber from Malabrigo Nube in Solis and Indiecita colorways. I think I will spin each as singles and ply together. They coordinate nicely.

Someone asked me what I was making and I said ‘Happiness’ because you should never ask a knitter about their stash!

Spring Spa Knitting

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I have started my job and trying to settle in and keep my brain from exploding. So I took some time to myself. I scheduled an outdoor soak and some peace and quiet.

Spent some time listening to the wind blow and knit on my Sport Ankle Socks. The hot tub was still set to winter temperature and spring has sprung here in Kansas so it was a little toasty. Was very glad for the water!

The trick to this relaxation is to keep your hands dry and your head clear. The heel is now turned and I have 18 rows of leg to knit before finishing with ribbing. At least with sock #2 I can count what I did with sock #1 and not rely on my memory!

Happy Knitting!!!

Sock Planning

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I finished my Leftover Advent Socks last week and my Sport Ankle Socks are super close to done as well. This meant I felt compelled to dig further into my yarn stash for my next sock projects!

I kind of dig the process of having both a self striping sock on the needles and a variegated sock on the needles. In this stash dive, I pulled a rainbow strip from String Theory Colorworks in their Inertia base. I’ll cast on my standard 68 stitch toe up sock tube with afterthought heel.

For the GingerSnap skein I think I will do contrasting toes and cuffs and the main sock in a toe up sock with gusset heel. I am going to pay attention and recalibrate the foot from my Ankle sock mis-measurement. Now I just need some free time to wind these skeins!

Happy Knitting!!

A Prize Winning Day

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Awhile back I participated in the Two Ewes Podcast Summer Spin In. And I won a prize!

My prize packaged arrived this week and it was full of goodies. The main attraction was a some Shetland wool in a natural beige. I haven’t weighed it yet but its close to 3-ish ounces. It also came with some podcast swag and a super lovely note from the ladies.

I’m leaving this fiber out on my desk in hopes it spurs some spinning mojo. But it hasn’t worked yet….maybe tomorrow?

Happy Spinning!!

Gymnastics Heel

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The second heel on my Sport Ankle Sock is well on its way. Thanks to PB’s weekly gymnastics lesson.

In typical Knitter Rachelle fashion I have bags inside of bags inside of bags. It’s only a 60 minute lesson and I took two projects, two beverages and my latest podcasts.

A few more decreases and I will be on to the leg portion. Which in this pair, is very short. I am still on the fence about the foot length on this project but that’s a problem for future Rachelle. For now, I’m just petting the cashmere softness of this yarn!

Happy Knitting!!