Category Archives: Yarn Stash

Mud Season

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I have several skeins of Berroco Vintage chunky in teal burning a hole in my stash! It’s a birthday splurge purchase from last year. I really really really want to Mud Season by Elizabeth Smith!

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How cute is this!? Its very much spring and mud season here in Kansas! I’m crazy though. We are attempting to pack our house to move by May 11th. I’m in the middle of rehearsing a play. And my big kid day job is crazy right now.

Maybe I’ll just pull the yarn out and feel its squishy goodness and work on swatches? Oh and maybe mark up the pattern for the size i want? That can’t hurt me right!?

WIP Wednesday: Baby Girl Chevron Blanket

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Stashbustin’ #10 Update!

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I’m in the second stripe!! This is the last of my WIPitis projects. And represent 4 skeins used from my stash. This was supposed to be fished by this coming Saturday for a baby shower….oops! But the baby’s not due until May and the mommy to be and I have been friends since we were 5. I think I’m ok!

I just have to keep knitting along. A few trips to rehearsal and some TV knitting time and I’ll have this project licked in no time! I’m in love with chevrons and making baby blankets out of buttery soft cotton.

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My brain may or may not be buzzing with what my next bout of WIPitis should involve…

Happy Knitting!

Inspiration!

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I read A LOT of blog posts every week and I enjoy them all. But I was inspired by pdxknitterati’s post Knitters Helping Knitters this past week. Follow the link to read the full story, it’s a good one!!

Basically a knitting community in Portland is gathering hats for an auction to raise money for a sweet little 9yr old boy with cancer! Cancer is a mean and ugly thing. So what better than to fight it with hand knits full of love!

I pulled some one skein wonders from my stash this and I want to cast on at least two hats this week. I recently lost my grandmother cancer so this project had touched a special place in my heart. And it will get some single skeins out of my stash! The deadline is April 15th and I want to finish at least 3-4 hats to mail off.

If you want to join me here is the mailing info I pulled from FB event, Please send your completed hat by April 15 to:
Cathy Woodcock
c/o Lantern Moon
7911 NE 33rd Drive Suite 140
Portland, OR 97211

Lets kick cancer in the butt!!!!

WIP Wednesday: Simple Raglan Cardi

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Stashbustin’ #11 Update!!

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I completed the body, ribbing, and sleeves!! This pattern is amazing and just my speed for my first sweater construction. I was almost reading to do the ribbing on the fronts but I stopped. After trying it on I thought a zipper would look amazing. The pattern c I pulled a 18 inch separating zipper and I’m sewing it in now!

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I only had white but I did have some blue grosgrain ribbon. I will sew in the zipper and then cover it with the coordinating ribbon. Never done this before wish me luck!

Happy Knitting!!

A Visit To The Frog Pond

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Stashbustin’ #2 …..I want to love this project but I’m only in like with this project.

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The pattern is beautiful and the purple is lovely. I memorized the pattern but I can’t just get myself to pick up this project. I’m a process knitter and I can’t stand to work on a project I don’t love.

I am frogging the project, rewinding the skein, and returning the yarn to my stash. It’s just not meant to be, right now anyways. I’m definitely re-queuing this project on Ravelry.

I’d rather cut my losses and work on a project I love right now . Baby Girl Chevron Blanket perhaps? Or maybe I will pull the next item from my queue? Oh so many options!!

Happy Monday and Happy Knitting!

WIP Wednesday: Simple Raglan Cardi

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Update for Stashbustin’ #11

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(Sorry for the photo it was late and I had no natural light)

I’VE FINALLY DIVIDED FOR THE BODY! It actually looks like a sweater!!

This is my first top down/raglan sweater attempt. And I’m perty darn proud. I may have made a few mistakes but only I will know they are there. The pattern has been pretty easy to follow, rav page here.

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I love the yarn over detail at the shoulders. I am now left to complete 4 1/2 inches of stockinette body, 2 1/2 inches of body ribbing, both sleeves, and the ribbing along the front edges. I still have aways to go but I love this project and I’m addicted!

So far it it fits without needing to alter the pattern, fingers crossed!

What’s your current project addiction?

Yarn Urges

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Knit Picks knows me all to well. They keep sending me advertisements and blogging about their new yarn Billow. Billow is creamy soft cotton that is spun thin/thick that gives it a bit of slubbiness. I want so badly to get online and order enough to make a small shawl or cowl. Okay truth time, maybe I really want to order a whole bunch and make another blanket. Everyone seems to rave about this yarn and I just want to try it sooooo badly.

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(Photo courtesy of Knit Picks)

I have thus far resisted. I would like to say it’s because I’m de-stashing and being fiscally prudent. But it’s more due to the fact that my credit card was involved in the security breach back in Nov/Dec 2012 at Knit Picks. Knit Picks was hacked and customer’s information was exposed. I would never have known this but I happen to read their blog and noticed it there. It would have been nice to get an email, especially since I had ordered during the time period in question. And my card did end up getting fraud on it. Someone in Illinois (I live in Kansas) tried to use my card number to purchase gas, a hotel room, groceries, and something on Groupon. The card company flagged this quickly and shut off the card. I was not out any money. No harm no foul…..but I’m still hesitant about ordering. I’m not saying Knit Picks is bad or at fault, for the record I love Knit Picks and their yarn!!! And they say they have fixed the vulnerability….

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(Photso courtesy of Knit Picks)

I really really want to try this new yarn! I’m just nervous about my personal data. Any guesses on which urge will win, lol?

Happy Knitting

WIP Wednesday: Stockinette Baby Blanket

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Stashbustin’ #9

I have made some great progress on my Simple Stockinette Baby Blanket in Bernat Baby Blanket. Especially since I got snowed in at my parent’s house this past weekend and it’s the only project I took with me. The alterations I made in my previous post have really helped. It’s not the best blanket in the world, but I feel victorious for surviving thus far without incoherent babbling!!

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Having said that…..I am improvising this pattern and I did not swatch for gauge. (Please see previous WIP post where I was bragging about swatching my cardi…) I do realize that gauge has significant implications but my knitterly brain just refused to accept that reality in some projects. The resulting WIP blanket is proving to be coming out enormously wide. My calculations have blanket coming out at 50 in long and 30 in wide or vice versa.

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I have decided to roll with the punches and call this an “unintentional design feature”‘ I am on my second skein if yarn and I think I’m just going to knit until I get to the end of it. My mom took only look at my progress and declared I should use three. Sadly she is right and I know it. But I just can’t keep working on this hot mess of a project. Lesson learned: I shall not improvise a project without first checking gauge and dimension! I am just going to finish what I have (should even be able to cast off this project before the weekend) and move on!!

Anybody need a wonky shaped blanket? (I am the master of my own knitting, at least according to the Yarn Harlot!)

Happy Knitting!

Update: Stashbustin’ #11

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Stashbustin’ #11

I have finally cast on for my Simple Raglan Cardi. I was a patient knitter. I read the pattern, took my measurements, knit a swatch, measured said swatch for gauge, washed and blocked the swatch, marked up the pattern for my required size, re-measured just to be sure, and FINALLY cast on my sweater. This is my first really foray into a fitted garment for myself. I have made generic shrugs and other easy garments before and I’m finally brave enough to try.

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As you can see from the photo, I don’t have much progress. But it’s a start!!! And I just love love love the feel of soft cotton under my fingers and on my needles. Being as this is a top-down construction, I intend to try it on as I knit to ensure proper fit. Sure, this entails putting it on and taking off waste yarn in order to check fit. But isn’t it worth it to get a garment you will actually wear?

Keep you posted on my progress!

Happy Knitting!!

Holy Cow I Knit A Lot!

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My husband asked me the other day much yarn have I used in my “2013 Stashbusting Quest”. I honestly didn’t have an answer, so I sat down to do some calculations. (Thank god for Ravelry and my OCD need to organize and catalog everything!) I have completed the following so far in 2013:

Completed Projects Yds/Feet Used

– Chevron Lap Blanket 1,308/3,924

– Rachelle’s Cowl 206/618

– Mere’s Cowl 206/618

– Zig Zag Baby Blanket 684/2,052

– Balaclava 196/588

– Holy Cowl 206/618

– Cascading Ruffles Scarf 33/99

– Chevron Baby Blanket 548/1,644

– Wonky Cowl 81/243

– Seed Stitch Ear Warmer 27/81

– Tardis Washcloth 48/144

– Frilly Knit Scarf (2) 60/180

– Waves N Ripples Blanket 680/2,040

– Evening Sparkle Scarf (4) 40/120

That is a total of 14 projects and 4,323 yards of yarn goodness. All that translates into 12,969 feet or 2.46 miles of knitting! And then I went through my current WIPs:

WIPs Yds/Feet Used

– Cascading Ruffles Scarf 30/90

– Baby Girl Chevron Blanket 684/2,052

– Simple Stockinette Baby Blanket 516/1,548

– Waffle Blanket 315/945

– Simple Raglan Cardi 721/2,163

My five current WIPs total 2,266 yards fiber and that is 6,798 feet or roughly 1.29 more miles of knitting. This brings my total Stashbusting 2013 up to a grand total of 6,589 yards of yarn or 19,767 feet, or 3.74 miles of yarn heaven. I did have to purchase extra skeins to complete my Chevron Lap blanket to get a satisfactory length and I did splurge on a clearance batch of Natures’ Choice Organic Cotton. But otherwise I knit completely out of my stash!!

Here’s hoping I can keep it going! Now I’m off to spend time back home with the Parental Units sans my husband. He is currently buried under his CIS/IT midterms and quite frankly is too grumpy to spend three hours in the car with let alone all weekend at my parents. I feel comfortable saying that because he doesn’t read this blog….that I know of…

Happy Knitting!