Yarn Gallery Blog

Well, here I am after a hard morning of buying yarn!  This morning I ordered from Classic Elite – nothing new, just more of the yarns we love already: Alpaca Sox, Silky Alpaca Lace, Toboggan, Fresco, Kumara, and Liberty Wool – all in new colors.  Lovely!  Then new colors from Fibre Company in Road to China Light, Canopy Fingering, and Acadia. A few precious skeins from Jade Sapphire in their Cashmere/Silk Blend.  A new yarn (for me) called Maxima from Manos, and not too much else that’s new – their new colors are all neon!  What were they thinking???? And a load of MadelineTosh Merino Light.  The hard part after ordering is realizing you won’t see these beauties for several months.  But that means there’s always something to look forward to.

We got some new sock yarn in this week, which is always fun:

Here are a few new colors of Opal, some in their Fairies & Elves series and a couple from Vincent Van Gogh.  I always look forward to seeing what comes next with these folks, they’re very creative.

and these pretty colors in Fortissima’s wool/bamboo blend.  You’ll love the way this feels in your hands and on your feet!

I finished this little Westlake shawl/scarf last week and it looked like a poor little curly leaf when I finished:

Then I blocked it and it looks like this (only better when it’s off the floor and onto a person):

Blocking makes such a miraculous change in the character of your knitting.  Of course, there are some things it can’t change.  Najma Iqbal was happily sewing sleeves into an armhole and it was going so well, she kept going and sewed the side of the sleeve onto the side of the body.  When she discovered it, she didn’t have a fit.  No, she held it up and said, “Trish, is this one of the things that you always say will be okay once it’s blocked?’  Najma’s funny and a good attitude is half the battle, right?

Here’s another Stephen West design that Sheila Yarus knit into an adorable baby blanket, made from Ranco and Taiyo Sock.  I love the two yarns together and the way the stitch patterns change as you move out the circle.  It’s bright! it’s fun! It was knit on size 3 needles from the center out! Kudos, Sheila!

Marcia Martin is recovering from foot surgery, so she had some serious knitting time and made this wonderful entrelac sweater.  She said it wasn’t blocked yet, but I couldn’t resist taking a picture.  You should feel this sweater in Pacolana – lofty, soft, and really luscious.   She did her own thing on the sleeves, incorporating the contrast color with a small stripe.

Minna Bromberg wore her wedding cap in – I don’t think you can see how pretty it is, with just a little silvery sparkle knit in, and a delicate lace pattern.  She’s making CD cozies for a concert she’s doing at the Miller Center Wednesday night and selling CD’s to benefit Berks Women in Crisis.  I hope some of you get a chance to go!

And here’s the (southern) belle of the blog this week.  Jettie Hunt brought in her beautifully blocked Celes Shawl, from a class that finished up just a few weeks ago.  Done in a truly beautiful midnight blue shade of MadTosh Merino Light, it’s just stunningly lovely:

Thanks, everyone, for bringing in your projects.  We love seeing them and it makes for such an interesting blog, yes?  Now, I’m going to finish the pattern for a store-bought sweater that Virginia Griffith wore in one day.  And then I’m going to see if I can talk Virginia into test-knitting it for me!

See you soon…

Trish

Dixie lace sweater, a photo by yarngal628 on Flickr.

Hi Trish
Just finished a sweater for my sister. The pattern is called Dixie lace by
the Co called when I grow up.
Have a make a pair of socks for a gift next
Cya soon
Dave

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID

I started a very strict high-protein diet last week and, although I feel fine and not hungry, I also feel a little fuzzy-minded.  I don’t think this is the diet, I think it’s because caffeine is restricted and I haven’t been fully awake for 7 days.  Who was it who kept saying “La-di-dah, la-di-dah” all the time – if I had enough coffee I’d be able to think of it – well, that’s how I feel.  So I won’t go on and on today because my typing seems to be pretty random  – some words are so darn long!  I know focus will come back but probably not in the next few minutes.

Luckily we have Marjorie Marinaccio’s projects to look at.  She has been a knitting whiz this year so far, finishing three gorgeous projects and came in with (literally) a suitcase-full to show us:

This gorgeous cozy coat is made from Como, a retired wool/cashmere superbulky that Marjorie fell in love with as you’ll see. Great color for her, and the shawl collar, pockets, and roll-up cuffs are going to be so cozy in cold weather:

She also used Como for this pullover, which is such a great comfortable style for wearing anytime:

And this beauty, done in a gorgeous shade of Peruvia Quick, is her favorite:

And you can see why.  Perfect fit, that beautiful cabled collar, and a wonderful color.  Wasn’t it sweet of her to trundle all these sweaters in?   A peach and a great knitter!

Look at the previous posts to see a really pretty little girl in a really pretty little shrug (my favorite pattern for a little girl – fast and really cute).  Rebecca made it for her daughter, who loves it and is a great model.  Also check out David’s Big Alfred sweater – I really want to see him wear this.  He liked it so much he had Google translate it from Swedish to English so he could make it – I wonder how well Google did with knitting terms.

I got not much done this past week.  I finished a little shawl from Stephen West but right now it looks all curly like a dried-up leaf, because I haven’t blocked it yet.  I would probably get it half-blocked then get distracted or fall asleep on top of it.  Surely by next week I will have adjusted, right?

Anyway, see you soon, I hope. If I’m napping, just wake me up…

Trish

Big Alfred, a photo by yarngal628 on Flickr.

Hi trish
I finished my big Alfred sweater. Glad I got it done before I left for calif. I wanted this sweater as soon as I saw it online, I rewrote the pattern from the google translation of Swedish to English. I like the texture of the pattern . There is one other Swedish sweater I had translated , a basket weave pattern, so when I get back I’ll give that one a try.
Cya soon
Dave

Little Girl’s Shrug, a photo by yarngal628 on Flickr.

Hi Trish!

This is the shrug I made for my daughter. The pattern is Knitting Pure & Simple – Little Girl’s Shrug. It is a size 10, and still very roomy for her.
I used King George Alpaca/Wool/Cashmere blend, so it’s super soft. It was a really great yarn to work with. I love the way it drapes. I appliqued the flowers on with some scrap yarn from another project. There is a single flower on the back, which adds a nice element.
She loves it, and has requested another, so it’s a win/win for me!

Have a good one!
Rebecca