TL Yarn Crafts Flatiron Shawl

In between no shortage of other projects, it took me about 2 1/2 months to complete the TL Yarn Crafts Flatiron Shawl.

It's an easy to follow pattern and the perfect on the go project for public transportation or social crocheting.

Best of all, it's a great excuse to buy 3 different shades of hand-dyed fingering yarn to create a breathtaking fade.

My shawl fits perfectly and because I used Wooly Wonka Aerten Sock yarn, it's softer than pussy willow kisses and lighter than air.  Aerten is 80% SW Merino, 10% cashmere and 10% nylon.

These photos simply do not do the shawl justice.

 I enjoyed making this shawl so much.  I already have the yarn ready to start another one!

Xena's first Halloween!

Well, it was inevitable that I would crochet a costume for Xena's first Halloween and it was a lot of fun but when you consider the hours it took to make in comparison to the minuscule amount of time she'll actually wear the costume, it was a pretty ridiculous endeavor.  That being said, I used Knitpicks Brava Bulky yarn and a size H hook to expedite completion of my festive project.  And as much as I might complain, this certainly won't be the last costume I ever crochet for her. 

I didn't follow any patterns.  I just had a rough idea in my head and I went with it and I have to admit that I'm quite pleased with the results.

In fact, I like the little booties so much, I'm planning on making an adult pair for myself.  And here's some bonus beats below:

Baby Sloane modeling the hat I made her from my previous post.

HOTH = 3 hats + 1 cardigan

It's already been over a month since my last post but I intentionally refrained from posting until these last 3 projects were complete as they're all related to one another.  Xena is almost 10 months old now.  Much to the tension of my frazzled nerves, she perpetually alternates between "bundle of joy" and "total handful".  When I'm not yanking something out of her mouth that she isn't supposed to be sucking on or pulling her off whatever she's not supposed to be climbing on, I've been busier than ever with various crochet and knitting projects.  I also recently assumed the role of chief organizer of both of the SF Knitters and Crocheters meet ups and to top it off, I took a quick trip to NYC last wknd to DJ at the Subway Soul Club and catch up with old friends. Technically I retired from DJ-ing about 4 yrs ago but this was a 15+ yr anniversary of sorts for the SSC and a reunion with my old roommate from Manhattan in the late 90s who is also (still a) rare soul/funk/RnB 45s DJ.  Ultimately, this mom just needed a break and some time to herself, even if that time was just spent crocheting on a nonstop flight, crocheting at a cozy cafe in Tribeca, crocheting on a BFF's couch in Ridgewood or crocheting on the MTA across town at 2AM.

So because I loved the cardigan I made for my friends in Seattle (you can see their beautiful daughter modeling it here) so much, I decided to make the same cardigan with a matching hat for Xena.  Both pieces still have enough room in them that I hope they'll last through the winter; although at the rate that our little porkchop is expanding, who can be sure?

The bottom 2 photos were taken of Xena at Vogue Knitting LIVE at Union Square a few wks ago.  

It was my first time attending the show and I enjoyed myself but the entire vibe seemed a bit pretentious.  Not that the two should really be compared but I definitely prefer Stitches West and speaking of which, Kristine and I are heading to Stitches SoCal 2018 in Pasadena next month.  It's our wild fiber weekend getaway.  We're spending 3 nights in an AirBnB and we have 2 classes scheduled.  It'll be my husband's first time watching Xena on his own for a weekend.  When I went away last weekend, he avoided the responsibility by literally flying to Boston to have my in-laws watch her instead.  And people wonder why I constantly need to be doing something with my hands; it's actually to prevent myself from strangling someone!  Kidding, maybe.

For the next project, I had a beautiful skein of Galway wool just begging to be worked on and I've been wanting to crochet something for one of my penpals who's a knitter so I used the same pattern for Xena's hat but with adult dimensions.

I used a size G hook and the griddle stitch which works textured wonders with wool.

Then I had an epiphany.  I wanted to create a seamless hat crocheted in a round.  The hat below is for my friend's (twin) sister's newborn, made for an infant's size.  The circumference of the opening is 60 chains with a size G hook using Knitpicks Swish DK 100% Merino in Bare.  The yarn was part of my 1 year wedding anniversary present from my husband in addition to a circular knitting needle set, some rare stamps and dinner at Fog Harbor next week!

By simply using a stitch marker to mark the last stitch of every row, I was able to jump up and shift the pattern vertically with a seamless transition.  I really have no idea why it never dawned on me to try this technique before.

I also modified the the top of the hat, with purely aesthetic purposes by reducing with dc2tog's to create a star anise shape inside of the hat.  By weaving in the ends in, in a round after the pompom was attached, the star is formed.

I'm incredibly pleased with the results, so much so that I want to make an adult-size one for myself; since I still have 2 1/2 100g hanks left!

I'm waiting to post photos of my other 2 other projects concurrently in production as both really cannot be best appreciated until they're blocked, so stay tuned.  

Finally, I started knitting again and here's a photo of Xena assisting me at Sales Force park.  I heard that Imagiknit offers free weekly knitting workshops at the park every Wednesday, but I've yet to attend, simply because lately it's been too hard to get my shit together in time to get downtown by the time they meet.  

But in an effort to keep the knitting train rolling, I'm taking a knitting class at Atelier starting at the end of the month.  I really want to improve my knitting skills because I do believe in my potential.  Perhaps I will always prefer crochet but the feeling of knitting also comes naturally to me.  Not to mention that despite what many may confess, the two fiber arts can have healthy bipartisan relationship.