Phew!

I will have just enough yarn to finish up this version of the shaped lace tee from Knitting Lingerie Style! The sleeves are done in a different dye lot, but it made no difference. I just have to crochet the edging for the neckline, weave in those ends and steam it thoroughly.

I made the sleeve caps shorter this time to avoid the wrinkles that happened when I made the first one and I think it worked out well. Eventually, I'll go back and improve the sleeves on the original...

Black Hole of Yarn

(Almost an FO!)

This little shrug used *3* balls of yarn over what was suggested by the pattern. Granted, I did slightly lengthen the sleeves, but that shawl collar just kept eating up yarn. I thought I was going to run out of yarn a second time, but managed to have just enough. It seems to have been worth the worry and aggravation since the collar is lovely and warm and perfect for days like today that are 20-30 degrees cooler than normal!

I am very happy with how the stripes lined up. I used two balls at a time on the back so those stripes would be about as wide as the ones on the fronts. You can see I didn't quite start in the same place on the bottom fronts, but it's close enough overall. Some of the stripes line up due to planning, but some of the match ups are happy accidents.

Front:

Back:

Now, I have tons of ends to weave in! And, I'll have to shop for a button.

Louisa Harding Obsession!

I ran out of yarn on both my Lace Tee and my Noro Shrug! It was a little traumatic, but emergency yarn mail is now on the way. In the meantime, I've cast on something else, of course!

I've been somewhat secretly accumulating Louisa Harding books and yarns for various projects lately, usually only reporting purchases on Ravelry and not on the blog. (It would take me years to knit all the patterns of hers I like, especially since I have to try to keep up with a few other favorite designers!)

One of the recent purchases was Venezia: Felice Mai Dopo, which I've admired since it was published. I really got it in the nick of time too, considering the Thalia yarn I want for it is becoming very hard to come by, especially in my favorite colors. The bright side of discontinued yarn is that when I do find it, it has been on sale!

The first pattern I'm trying from this book is Florian with my favorite shade of Thalia, named fountain. Although I adore the picture of the sweater in the book, I am making some changes as I go to make it more suited to me. I am working from 2 different sizes, adding some shaping to diminish the A line shape a little and working the entire sweater on the smaller 'trim' needles as I am too loose knitting on the larger ones. I was going to do the boat neck, but my version is telling me to change it to a v neck...

Here is the back so far. I will wait to do the rest of the armhole and shoulder shaping until I catch up with the front piece. I'll do them together so they come out the same.

As you can see in the picture, I am already accessorizing! That is a small Noni Market Bag that I made awhile back and have been waiting to embellish in just the right way. I plan to sew on the bauble I found at Michael's that you can see in the picture and embroider on some flowers with scraps of the Thalia.

I am very excited about the two newest Louisa Harding books, Queen of Hearts and Little Cake. They are gorgeous! It is hard to narrow down my list and order yarn for what I can reasonably make. I'm having trouble finding some of the yarn, so that is helping to slow me down some. Some of the shades are new and not available yet, I think. For patterns in Queen of Hearts, I have found the yarn for Flamingo which will be my first serious intarsia challenge, Sixpence and some of the yarn for March Hare. Other projects from Queen of Hearts I would like to make the most are Five (short version), Lacie, Marmalade, Pocket Watch, Roses, and Whiskers.

From Little Cake, I have the yarn for Maythorn on the way. Later on, I would like to get to Thulston, Pikenaze and Wimberry (vest).

It's good to dream, right?!

Shaped Lace Tee Repeat

The seasons are changing here! Check out this sky picture from last night. If there weren't leaves on the trees in the foreground, I'd think it was a winter sky!

Fortunately it wasn't cold and Jeff and I took advantage of calm weather to burn the summer brush pile in the garden.

I have a number of knitting projects on the go now. I've gone from working on just 1-3 things at a time to casting on anytime I feel like it and it turns out I like knitting that way and I feel like I get more done. I actually have a bit of a stash now as well, though nearly everything is set up as kits for upcoming projects.

In order to finish one of my summer tweed projects over the summer, I had to cut into a stash of it I had for another project. I tried to find a new project for using up what remained, but it is going over. Luckily I've been able to order another skein. Although it will be a different dye lot, I'm hoping it will not be noticeable used for the sleeves. You will recognize the Shaped Lace Tee pattern from Knitting Lingerie Style that I have made once before. I've made the bottom border a little longer this time and increased the overall length about an inch.

While I wait for my yarn order, I will probably go back to working on the seaming and neckline of the Noro shrug. It is close to being finished!