Yarn Shopping and Tomato Progress

Sunday afternoon, I visited Sakonnet Purls to see if they had any more Classic Elite Wings and to browse the fall pattern books.

Since Classic Elite Wings is discontinued, there wasn't much choice left of colors for a contrasting band in my Green Tomato top. I finally chose a shade of purple. I'm not sure I love it as I was looking for a light, off white shade, but it is growing on me as I work on Tomato. It helps meet the purple requirement for Project Spectrum too!

As I'm having such a good time working with Wings, I selected 10 skeins in brown. That's fitting for Project Spectrum too, though I probably won't get it knitted up very soon. I have no idea what pattern I'll use it for, but I'm sure something will come to me. I could always make another Tomato!

There were a few new fall knitting books, but not the one I'd been hoping to buy (RYC Classic Tweed). I did enjoy looking at the beautiful photographs in Accessories, AM to PM and Travel (all from the RYC Classic Series), but those aren't top on my list at the moment! Even without buying any pattern books, I think 12 skeins of 1/2 price yarn was a pretty nice haul.

Having a contrast shade of yarn, I was able to continue to work on Tomato! Here is where I'm up to, or should I say down to?

This is my first ever stranding project. I found it very fun! Even though I know my stitches aren't totally even, I think I can cope with how it came out. Here is a detail of the pattern, but please don't look too closely at the uneven bits! Perhaps blocking will help?

I'll even let you have a peek at the reverse side showing my stranding!

What do you think of the color? It keeps changing on me. In some light the purple is darker and looks a little red, like burgundy, and I think of Christmas. Other light makes it look more like in these pictures, very grape. Maybe instead of Green Tomato I should be calling my version something relating to wine! Although, I've just thought, there are a few purple tomatoes, so perhaps I should call it Krim, after my favorite purple heirloom variety.

I can't say enough good things about this pattern so far. I keep staying up late at night to work on it! I'm probably about the last person in blogland to try it, but if you still haven't you must download your free pattern and knit =)

Sleeves!

I stayed up late last night to finish these sleeves. I always make the mistake of thinking I am basically done when I get to the underarm and then realize all over again that the sleeve caps are bigger than they look!

My fingers are tired from handling the summer tweed, so I'll probably wait a few days before casting on for the body pieces. The sleeves will need some pressing, but I'll wait to do that to all the pieces together before seaming.

My Favorite Purple...

...has to be the color of black raspberry ice cream! It’s pretty to look at and delicious to eat!

This is Rowan Summer Tweed in lilac (discontinued), but it will always be black raspberry to me. I have formed an association between yarn and ice cream since my favorite yarn shop is right by my favorite ice cream stand. I have cast on for a v-neck top from the Rowan Summer Tweed pattern book.

I was a little worried about working with Summer Tweed because of the stiffness and lack of elasticity, but I'm doing ok with it as long as I take breaks to rest my fingers. I do find it a nuisance to have to stop to pick out the splinters of plant material spun into the yarn!

And you probably thought I’d forgotten about Project Spectrum! Not so! I am right on schedule starting a purple project. Of course, I’m still working on pink in the form of Tea Time! I’m good at starting...I’ll have to work on finishing!

FO: Christmas Stockings

I have 4 stockings ready for holiday gift giving! These are my Project Spectrum projects for red and metallic.

This was a very quick project and fun too. After the first one, I did not need to consult the pattern, so I could carry my work around. I even knit in bed at night, holding it over me while resting on my back!! That was a nice break for my neck and shoulders.

Here is a detail of the heel flap construction. For fun, I put an interesting Christmas figurine into the shot.

I found this Santa and sled dogs in the unfinished basement when we moved into our house. It was in some floor sweepings and trash in a corner. I'm glad it hadn't yet been tossed in a bin as I think it's cute! Judging by the weight, it must be lead and it says 'Germany' on the bottom of the sled.

Once again, I am taking pictures on a rainy day, so the lighting isn't the best! The pattern and yarn details are listed on the sidebar.

Blooms

It's very overcast today, but I took some flower pics while out with the dogs. This is the best I can come up with for a flower that fits in with the current Project Spectrum colors. It's a Dianthus 'tuxedo'. It's just starting to bloom and should fill out a lot when the sun shines again.

The foxgloves are just starting to bloom. I love this color!

I have some blue Salvia.

And some in pink.

Where did this come from? It's a shocking color in my generally blue/pink garden. It sprang up where I had some light pink/coral poppies last year.

Knitting Goodies and FO

I've been looking at Knitting Lingerie Style every time I go to the bookstore lately, so I finally bought a copy. It is a beautifully produced book with some lovely patterns (beyond just underwear). I especially like the racer back top, square neck top, and the slip. I'm hoping to learn some shaping techniques I can apply to any pattern.

I also bought the latest Simply Knitting UK.

For Project Spectrum, I got to work on a red and gold Christmas stocking using a pattern from a past issue of Simply Knitting UK. It knitted up very quickly and I think I will make a few more for gift giving this December. I felt the pattern needed some interpretation (corrections!), but I made some adjustments and things turned out well. Isn't it weird to see pictures of a Christmas stocking in June? It was even weirder to knit it this time of year! Here's a pic taken straight on.

And one with a mug for scale. It seems like a good size for filling with an assortment of little gifts.

After finishing the back of Tea Time, I cast on for the sleeves and am now beginning the armhole decreases.

Project Spectrum: Black, Red, Metallics

I'm still working on Tea Time and Cara in past Project Spectrum colors, but do hope to cast on for a couple of new things that fit with the current PS scheme. The colors, black, red and metallic, make me think of Christmas. As it's never too early to start on presents, I think I'll make at least one stocking with Patons yarn using a pattern from Simply Knitting magazine. The stockings will be good wrappings for gifts this December. The yarn is red with a gold thread running through it.

Also, I plan to cast on for a shawl using Rowan kidsilk night which has a silver thread running though it. The pattern is from Exquisite Little Knits. What cast on/off would you use for this? Just long-tail, or is there something better? I haven't made a lacy shawl before, so I'd appreciate your advice. I really want the ends to look neat and match each other as closely as possible.

As someone who tends to go for muted colors, I'm a little surprised at how many things I found around my home that fit the PS scheme! Red is prevalent in my dining room, but in a subtle way. It's in the upholstery of the chairs (see the background of the Rowan yarn pic above) and I have a red checkered tablecloth that you've seen a lot as the background of my pics (including the Patons yarn one above).

Metallics are everywhere and sadly all need polishing or dusting! I blame the dogs for tracking all the dirt in ;-) In my kitchen, I have this quirky old coffee grinder.

I like to hang paintings and prints on the walls and most have gold frames that add a soft metallic gleam here and there. This one is the most ornate and one of my favorites. It's petite, just about 10 inches across.

Many of my things that are black, red and metallic come from or are inspired by things from China, India or Japan. In my living room, I have this cabinet for our cd collection. It's just from the Winterthur Museum catalog, but adds a little color to the room and thankfully hides all the the cds and keeps them from getting dusty.

Other than the cd cabinet, all my black, red and metallic items are very small and part of displays in my curio cabinets. Here is one example. It's a little wooden toy horse from India. I've collected horses for a long time.

Another example is this demi cup and saucer from Japan.

Of course, I have to include a picture of Jeff's bike as it's black, red and metallic! (This is the pic from the Cannondale site, not Jeff's actual bike.)

Well, that's all I have for now! I look forward to seeing all your PS posts for the new color scheme!

Seaside Knitting

I've finished the back section of Tea Time. Here it is along with some seaside knick-knacks.

This picture is dedicated to She Knits by the Seashore! Happy Blogiversary, Debby!

Started on Tea Time

One ball of yarn used up so far!

It's funny, the US6 needles for the stocking stitch portion seemed enormous to me after using US3 for so long on my other projects. Even though the needles said '6' on them, I was so alarmed by how big they felt I actually had to get my needle gauge and double check!

Sunday Shopping

One must have 'rewards' for finishing a project, right?!

Yesterday, there was too much rain for our bike ride. What's the best thing to do on a rainy day? Shop, of course!

I bribed Jeff with the promise of ice cream, he brought a book to read and we set off around mid afternoon. We headed to the scenic town of Little Compton, Rhode Island. First, we stopped at Peckham's Greenhouse for seedlings. I haven't found a website for them, but this is my favorite garden shop in the area. It's just off the main road in Little Compton. Jeff helped me pick out vegetable seedlings for the garden.

Next, I went to Sakonnet Purls for pattern books and yarn while Jeff patiently waited outside and read his book. This is a fantastic yarn shop and is where the southern New England knitting bloggers will meet in June (thanks to Kristen for planning this)! I planned to get at least one RYC pattern book as I think they are so wonderful, especially Classic Coast, Classic Nature and Classic Summer from which I am making 'Cara' (it was published in an issue of Simply Knitting UK and I've been following the pattern from that). I ended up deciding to buy Classic Summer this time.

It has several patterns I like and I thought I would pick yarn for one. There were not enough balls in the first two colors I picked, a plum and a gorgeous light blue. So, thinking of Project Spectrum and inspired by the color of a top in the book, I chose a shade of pink. It's Cashsoft DK by RYC in shade 520.

I guess I'm indecisive today as I'm not sure which picture I like best of the yarn, so here are three I took! I'll let you decide which you like best!

A yarn still-life in the bread basket on my dining room table.

A detail of the yarn.

Here's one for Project Spectrum! The pink yarn with a green glass vase.

Are you curious to see what I'm planning to make? It's called 'Tea Time'! (I'll be able to photograph all the stages of knitting alongside some of my tea cups!)

I'm using a slightly different yarn and color than in the pattern calls for, but I think it will work out well.

So, after about 40 minutes at SP, I finally had a pattern and yarn and I'd still only checked out one room of the store! I quickly perused the other room where I picked out a copy of Rowan Summer Tweed, so I will have a pattern for the lilac tweed in my stash. I'll probably knit the v-neck, long sleeve top shown in green.

An hour later, Jeff was still in a good mood, and we went to Gray's for the much anticipated ice cream and had our favorite hot fudge sundae's with black raspberry ice cream. So delicious!!

Project Spectrum: Green, Pink, Yellow

This blog is overdue for another Project Spectrum post! Here are various pics from around the house and yard this morning.

I started in the kitchen with my favorite green colander, a pretty pink tin and garden tea tray.

The bleeding heart is in bloom next to the barn.

The apple blossoms are just opening.

This is 'peppermint' ground phlox.

Little yellow roses.

Using a yellow labrador as organic weed control isn't terribly effective, but Saffy tries to help by biting the heads off dandelions.

After all the 'hard work' of weeding, Saffy enjoys a rest in one of our green lawn chairs.

And, this is the logo for the Giro d'Italia cycling race that started on Saturday. It will run for 21 days and you can follow it here.

A New Toy!

I've had just one digital camera since April, 2003, and with all the advances in technology, it was definitely time to buy a new one. I've been researching and reading reviews off and on for awhile, but got serious about it in the past week and made a decision. I got it today! It's the Sony Cyber-shot and it's PINK! There was a little charge on the battery when I got it, so I was able to test it out right away and I'm happy with it so far. It has features I'll use and I love the styling too. It's very comfortable to hold and operate. So far, it's been intuitive to use and I haven't even needed to refer to the instructions.
I thought this stone church would be a pretty subject for a series of test pics.

It has lovely stained glass windows.

This beech tree is in the church-yard and isn't it a perfect subject for Project Spectrum?

The new camera is tiny and will fit in a jersey pocket so I can take it with me on my bike rides!

Edited to add: The church is Saint Columba's in Middletown, RI.

Project Spectrum: Shades of Gray

Sunday was a 32 degree, gray day, but Jeff and I went for a bike ride with the club. This 18th century Quaker Meeting House caught my eye and I returned to it in the warm truck after the ride to snap a pic. The meeting house overlooks the frozen stream shown in the other pic.

I'm *Trying* to Like Winter

I've been out biking in below freezing temperatures three days in a row! Yesterday, we joined a local club ride with other die-hard bikers. Setting off on the 15 mile route, feeling smothered by my parka, I started to think about Project Spectrum colors to distract myself from the cold. I wondered, would I see any shades of blue other than my beautiful bike frame and possibly my cold, blue toes at the end of the ride? You have to look a little harder to find colors in winter. Bright blues in summer flower gardens seem like a distant memory. Winter blues are muted. On the other hand, gray is one of the Project Spectrum colors and that's pretty much everywhere! So, I was mainly going to look for blues.

The sky was a weak, pale shade and was basically all the blue I could see as we started off on our ride following lanes through bare, brown and gray forests. Finally, biking along a hillside, I looked down into the hollow of the valley and saw some blues. First, the sky reflection in the ice of a small, frozen pond. Then, the bright blue coats of a few figures playing ice hockey. And a short way off, a pair of horses watching curiously, wearing their dark blue winter rugs. What a perfect little scene! It was like looking down into a delicate figural music box, or like a miniature winter scene built for a model railroad set. I actually forgot I was so bundled up that my arms wanted to snap out to my sides from the bulk of my sleeves. My distraction tactics were working and I was even somewhat warm!

A little further along the ride, I spotted a web of bright blue hoses running between the maple trees in a sugar bush. Was I excited to see blue hoses? Well, not really, I think the galvanized buckets are so much more romantic looking. But, they were something blue for Project Spectrum and, more importantly, a sign of coming spring that the sap is flowing in the trees!

Today, I completed a 20 mile solo bike ride. The views were coastal with some directions looking across a bay and others looking straight out to the Atlantic. The land across the bay was a steel blue, a lighter shade than the steel blue hulls of industrial ships slowly navigating down the bay and out into the open waters. Again, I saw lots of ice reflecting the sky. Skaters had discovered a flooded clearing in a woods and a family was gracefully gliding together. The best view today was at the point by the lighthouse where the sea was deep, dark blue and the wave crests were shining white and the closest waves were crashing over rocks frosted with frozen seapray that looked starkly white against the wet, black rocks. Even feeling the blast of icy wind, I had to slow and take in the view.

Am I crazy to be out in this weather?! Probably most people would think so. Sometimes *I* think so! However, home and warm again, I'm glad I made the effort to go out in the winter and take in the sights. There were a few other kindred spirits outside, a woman splitting some wood for her fireplace and a few solitary walkers on the causeway by the beach. The biggest bunch of people I saw were outside a cafe, bundled up and rushing from their warm cars to the warm cafe for coffee. And, coffee sounds like a *very* good idea to me and it's a treat I will enjoy a little more for having spent some time taking in the winter.

Oh, you want to know where the pictures are, don't you! Well, I had enough weight and bulk from my coat and couldn't bear to add the camera to all that. Besides, the camera lens motor slows down and groans in these low temperatures. You'll have to use your imagination!!