tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-207042872024-03-07T09:49:45.970-08:00Reckless GlueReckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.comBlogger223125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-18373469494004270442013-02-11T08:10:00.000-08:002014-11-25T17:56:16.610-08:00On sabbatical...Well not really, but I'm sure you've more than noticed my absence from this blog for the last (many) months now! I just wanted to check in and say that said abscence will probably continue (possibly indefinitely). Life's been busy and I'm trying to spend some time enjoying it. I feel like I'm online enough still, and the guilt about not posting here (with my usual 40 paragraph dissections of everything I've been knitting --snore!) is a pretty big time suck when I have no intention of really blogging "professionally". <br />
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I'm not ruling it out in the future, and won't be taking down this blog altogether, but am contemplating a less text-heavy avenue. Speaking for myself I am definitely more of a blog "skimmer" than actual "reader" these days, opting instead to stare at the pretty, pretty pictures all day long. <br />
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I did however want to say that I LOVE YOU GUYS!! You've made my time here really worthwhile, and while I know this blog was pretty much about knitting and knitting only, I feel like I've made a lot of friends through it (cyber penpals, real-life or otherwise...) and your support, advice and encouragement has been amazing, so for that I thank-you from the bottom of my heart. BIGGEST HUGS <br />
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So that said, there are still plenty of places online for you to find me if you are so inclined! <br />
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Of course I am STILL KNITTING, and you can find more of that on Ravelry --my user name is <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/people/jadeblade">Jadeblade</a>. <br />
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There have been a few knits lately and you can find more details on all of them over there. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYoZfkc0r2KMq2dpqXPJYbOcg2qqq-CVVcZUjSMzDLBJXfXWgqwLe2vc8cXN_P7qNlAWjhnZ3yLqyUkjv6HmNgg5cY_CsMxoD8ZmQlEH0n2jLhRllnF4kfqoGkoLbgixPzVg6p/s1600/knittingmosaic.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYoZfkc0r2KMq2dpqXPJYbOcg2qqq-CVVcZUjSMzDLBJXfXWgqwLe2vc8cXN_P7qNlAWjhnZ3yLqyUkjv6HmNgg5cY_CsMxoD8ZmQlEH0n2jLhRllnF4kfqoGkoLbgixPzVg6p/s400/knittingmosaic.jpg" width="300" /></a><br />
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Other places you can find me:<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/">Flickr!</a>. I've probably been on Flickr for almost a decade now (and believe me you do not want to look back and see how crappy my pictures were ten years ago...I think I've come a long way in that department at least) But I do post new photos there on a weekly basis...some are knitting-related but mostly they are shots of my day to day adventures, vacations I go on, bike rides, pretty things etc. etc.<br />
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<a href="http://instagram.com/recklessglue">Instagram</a> --are you on Instagram? It is definitely my over-riding obsession these days. I will post pictures pretty much daily (and warning they are of the usual instagram navel-gazing variety, you WILL see pictures of my feet and food and things I think are funny.) --I try to keep the selfies to a dull roar though. <br />
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/jadeblade/">Pinterest</a> Lots of knitting inspiration over there too, but I am definitely pinning recipes and fashion and shoes and random design stuff and other crafts as well. I love pinterest! It makes me feel like I am shopping without spending the money (and also without getting the stuff, but I can dream at least...) <br />
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I'm also on facebook but meh, that's kind of boring and I'm hardly ever on there anymore. Facebook is mostly about friends and family (and spying on ex-boyfriends, natch.) <br />
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So there you have it, please still be my friend all over the internet! xo CaraReckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-51050353101070347532012-07-16T09:43:00.000-07:002012-07-16T09:49:51.019-07:00I'm alive!Sorry I hope none of you are dealing with major abandonment issues right now because of me! ...and I am definitely aware that this blog needs a bit of a makeover if I'm to keep it going to any appreciable extent. <br />
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There hasn't been a lot of knitting happening this summer (carpel tunnel, thank you very much), but at this point I'm so far behind on updates that I will at least post a couple knits for posterity's sake if nothing else. Those of you who check in on Ravelry may have already seen these: I have two good friends having babies this summer, and there's nothing more satisfying than a baby knit! <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/7076582255/" title="acorn/squirrel yoked cardi by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img alt="acorn/squirrel yoked cardi" height="294" src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5336/7076582255_e0e129bfec.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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free pattern (Ravelry): <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/tulip-yoke-baby-cardigan">Tulip yoked baby cardigan</a> that I modified with acorns instead of Tulips --I made up my own chart for this since I couldn't find one anywhere. And I also added the squirrels à la <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/TraceyNicole/tulip-yoke-baby-cardigan">TraceyNicole</a> who seriously makes the most insanely adorable baby knits. I've copied several of her ideas at this point! <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/7076582245/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img alt="Untitled" height="283" src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5071/7076582245_b2ea757320.jpg" width="450" /></a><br />
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The yarn I used here was Cascade 220 Superwash sport on 3.75mm needles. <br />
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When I saw the squirrel/acorn mods I knew I absolutely had to make it. Something about it just screamed CANADIANA to me, and the parents were leaving the sex of the baby a surprise (in the end it was a boy...) and Daddy was a Brazilian/Chinese transplant to Canada that it all just seemed kind of fitting. <br />
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It turned out adorable, though if I had to do it again, I might be inclined to go with something "woolier". I know superwash is probably good for a baby, but I am fearful that some ends will start slipping out. <br />
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Also for the fabulous <a href="http://knitteroo.blogspot.ca/">Miss Muffy</a> that some of you here probably follow as well... <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/7180503855/" title="change-up by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img alt="change-up" height="283" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7232/7180503855_af45f23b51.jpg" width="450" /></a><br />
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free pattern: <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/pebble-henrys-manly-cobblestone-inspired-baby-vest">Pebble vest</a> (I love that you can take what is essentially meant to be a "boy's vest" and turn it into a cute tunic for a girl). <br />
yarn: Patons Classic in "cognac heather" / needles: 3.75mm and some matching booties to go with: <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6930482346/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img alt="Untitled" height="283" src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5232/6930482346_56fb1b88be.jpg" width="450" /></a><br />
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(also a free Ravelry download, <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/baby-janes-3">baby janes</a>)<br />
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And yes, there was a bit of switch-up there... the little lamb became a heart. I always seem to go for hearts anyway, but after my mom said "what a cute car" I knew it had.to.go. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixkyFT0BAB_l2RK5oq5E5Qbce0UWUvzoaYcH4fy3B-YUzbi5IsrXheTou0iyB62bzAKAoEIG18UApJRBypKsFvgOu1eKdAzfwS-LaqyAwCc-_OW5NAwMUrYCc_2Lnzxv7VevFU/s1600/IMG_5741-1_medium2.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixkyFT0BAB_l2RK5oq5E5Qbce0UWUvzoaYcH4fy3B-YUzbi5IsrXheTou0iyB62bzAKAoEIG18UApJRBypKsFvgOu1eKdAzfwS-LaqyAwCc-_OW5NAwMUrYCc_2Lnzxv7VevFU/s400/IMG_5741-1_medium2.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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There are a few more things in the works but knitting has overall been at a standstill of late. I have at least determined that the carpel tunnel issues I'm having are down to RIDING MY BIKE more than they are knitting, so that's good news at least (cuz really if I had to choose...). I'm hopeful that everything will be highly correctable. <br />
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Plus ugh it's been so hot this summer that knitting is the last thing on my mind these days. So traffic on this here blog may continue to be sporadic but I haven't given up on it yet. <br />
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I'm also still addicted to Instagram if you want to follow me there <a href="http://followgram.me/recklessglue">@recklessglue</a> and on Flickr I still go by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/">Jadeblade</a>. <br />
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I don't ever stray too far from the internets in some capacity, and I'm definitely still reading a lot of your blogs, so hopefully this is the kick in the ass I need to get back to blogging. In future I may try to go a little more photo-heavy and a lot less wordy, but well you know how that goes...blah blah blah type-type-type! <br />
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xo CaraReckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-82782236573289117482012-02-13T11:41:00.000-08:002012-02-13T12:32:56.622-08:00knitting & technologySooo, I meant to post this ages ago, but never got around to it. Better late than never? (Especially since there's not much "new" knitting to speak of right now, heh)<br /><br />I knit this for my sister for Christmas...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6562520373/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7019/6562520373_20e3e5ef4d.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt=""></a><br /><br />And in case you were unsure, it's an ipad sleeve! I knit it in some lionbrand cottonease I had in the stash...and it's a <a href= https://haramisdesigns.wordpress.com/2010/11/03/cabled-ipad-sleeve-pattern/>free pattern</a> from Emily Nimz.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6562520369/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7146/6562520369_a530536162.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt=""></a><br /><br />My only gaffe was in "pattern assumption"...I had basically finished knitting it in it's entirety before I realized the pattern called for a special cast-on that would have allowed for a seamless bottom. D'oh! But I wasn't about to tear back and just seamed it up instead. That's what I get for just plunging in and casting on my usual way.<br /><br />I was trying to hold out for pictures of it with the ipad inside, but it completely slipped my mind on Xmas day and I just never got around to it again. Ah well, she assures me it fits!<br /><br />I like to tease my sister about her intense ipad addiction, but it seems that I too have now joined the iphone revolution...<br /><br />All that to say... if you'd like to follow me on <em>instagram</em> my handle is: recklessglue. You can be my like 5th friend (sad, I know haha).<br /><br />I mean let's get real, instagram was the main reason I even bought an iphone in the first place! But if you have suggestions for any fun apps send 'em my way (I have already kind of gone app-crazy...I think in the first week alone I loaded about 15 different camera apps) but are there any good knitting ones? I almost loaded a stitch/row counter but then thought better of it. (When was the last time I even counted rows?). I need like a lazy-knitter app or something. Or maybe one that will just do.the.knitting.for.me.<br /><br />And I'm sure I'm kind of late to this party but I'm also on <a href= http://pinterest.com/jadeblade/>Pinterest</a> now too. BOY HOWDY do I love being able to pin knitting patterns and various inspirations. Easy Peasy...<br /><br /><br />See you somewhere on the internets!Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-794442107178027352012-01-29T06:51:00.000-08:002013-09-13T07:34:53.557-07:00Peter Pan Collars<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiojzUF8GdwCh6sxgWLcJlcAc6-E3Aq-A2EA5FjjoDlnUK2q3Kvh0aCcfBqXYq9Ep4S1Zc8P6CVl6S6pApLWFMhgirDMzfN2IeczZzBGFdQWT5BSfpnMQFnxcnwJ58zXXJchxL1/s1600/peterpan_118182159_std.gif"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 305px; height: 386px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiojzUF8GdwCh6sxgWLcJlcAc6-E3Aq-A2EA5FjjoDlnUK2q3Kvh0aCcfBqXYq9Ep4S1Zc8P6CVl6S6pApLWFMhgirDMzfN2IeczZzBGFdQWT5BSfpnMQFnxcnwJ58zXXJchxL1/s400/peterpan_118182159_std.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5703090959045928162" /></a><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">hmmmm, that looks like a V-neck to me, but what the hell do I know.</span><br /><br />As a long time thrifter and lover of mod-fashion many was the day I would while away the hours on ebay using the search term "peter pan collar" in vain hopes of finding a sixties gem.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6778895041/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7004/6778895041_d41265a2c3.jpg" width="420" height="253" alt=""></a><br /><br />These days, the Peter Pan collar is back baby, and you can find them all over the place. Which I suppose is good news for those of that like to buy cheap dresses on <a href= http://www.modcloth.com/shop/dresses>Modcloth</a>! (though part of my New Year's resolution was no more online clothing shopping--the duty and shipping fees to Canada were killing me)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6778895029/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7032/6778895029_5d84e4e2bd.jpg" width="450" height="272" alt=""></a><br /><br />So with that in mind I decided to spruce up a few collar-less items in my own closet. I hunted around on Ravelry but couldn't really find a pattern that fit the bill so I improvised this wee design in garter stitch. Within a couple of days I had cranked out a few of them in different sizes so I thought I'd post this "recipe" for you too in case you wanted one of your own.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6778895007/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7029/6778895007_0dc7538cb2.jpg" width="420" height=253" alt=""></a><br /><br />There is nothing fancy here--you basically just wear it like a necklace (or a BIB!). The yarns I've used are heavy enough to keep it from sliding around, but you could always secure it a bit better to your top to keep it from moving at all.<br /><br />This would be so cute in a super-fuzzy angora!<br /><br />I hate it when patterns "over-explain" things, but that is exactly what I am about to do here!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Peter Pan Collar</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">needles:</span> 4.5mm (U.S #7)<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">yarn:</span> Aran or Worsted weight ---yarns pictured here: Debbie Bliss Alpaca Silk (pink), Lang Silk Dream (taupe) and the cream one is Misti Alpaca Worsted. As far as yardage goes, I have no idea, it was all scrap yarn from the stash--definitely less than half to a quarter of a ball of anything.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">gauge</span>...not so important. You can petty much make these any size you want, just use a needle size that is appropriate for your yarn. You can adjust the size up and down based on how many stitches you cast on and the length you knit your straps.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">N.B: </span> I've knit these in garter stitch, but seed stitch would be nice as well. Basically anything that is the same front/back will lay flat and keep the edges from curling. Stockinette stitch would look fab, but you would definitely need to block it to keep it laying flat. Slipping the first stitch also makes for a nicer edge, but I haven't done that in any of the collars pictured here.<br /><br />(lapels --you will make 2)<br />CO 12 sts<br />Row 1: Knit<br />Row 2: K1, M1, K to end (13 sts)<br />Rows 3-11: Repeat row 2 until you have 22 sts<br />Rows 12-20: Knit<br /><br />Cut yarn. Leave these stitches live. It is up to you if you want to take them off and place them on a stitch holder or some waste yarn. I just left mine on my needles and pushed them out of the way (I knit on circulars) before knitting the second one. Just make sure when you have to line up your two lapels again for joining that they are both facing the same way.<br /><br />CO 12 sts again and repeat rows 1-20, but don't cut your yarn this time. You will then have two of these "lapels". Line them up side by side on your needles.<br /><br />Knit all the way across joining your lapels together as you go.<br />Next Row: Knit<br />Next row: K8, BO 32 center sts, K8<br /><br />You will now work the straps separately.<br /><br />(right strap)<br />Next row: Knit<br />Next row: K1, SL1, K1, PSSO, K to end (You are decreasing 1 stitch at the neck edge on alternate rows)<br />Repeat these last two rows until 4 sts remain.<br /><br />Knit 13 rows<br />Next row: (make button hole) K1, BO 1 st, K2<br />Next row: K2, CO 1 st, K1<br />Next row: Knit<br />BO all sts<br /><br />Now, I should probably say here that you don't have to put in a button hole if you don't want to...you could leave both straps flat and attach with velcro, or slide in a ribbon so you can tie a pretty bow at the back of your neck, whatever works for you.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxjYLmqozHQ7mu6ZkbCw6ga2U9aHZtZkITMOk1j9rmpVV2XaFD_51CJ3zrWPpM5-zbD5Fslv2gFJNLzMX_TiD9KSenbQmwEpF4VRsbgP9VwWTFY_sDRj8W7nF4YvjTw2ZsT25M/s1600/IMG_5250-1.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxjYLmqozHQ7mu6ZkbCw6ga2U9aHZtZkITMOk1j9rmpVV2XaFD_51CJ3zrWPpM5-zbD5Fslv2gFJNLzMX_TiD9KSenbQmwEpF4VRsbgP9VwWTFY_sDRj8W7nF4YvjTw2ZsT25M/s400/IMG_5250-1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5703100706813926130" /></a><br /><br />ALSO, I have knit my straps quite short because I wanted my collar tight to my neck to wear with high-neck shirts. If you have a specific top or dress you want to wear this with try it on for length to see where the collar will fall, and knit your length accordingly. If you knit it short like mine you may find yourself with a big gap of skin showing before your top starts! <br /><br />(left strap)<br />Re-join yarn at the neck edge<br />Knit 2 rows<br />Begin neck decreases as per right strap until 4 sts remain<br />Knit to desired length and bind off (no button hole this side)<br /><br />Weave in ends, lightly block if desired (all of the collars pictured here are not blocked)<br />Sew on your button, wear with girlie pride.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6778895033/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7171/6778895033_b6574086ee.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt=""></a><br /><br />Some ideas for yarn modification...<br /><br />As I said you can pretty much knit this in any size---for example, using a bulky yarn you might want to CO 8 sts instead of 12. You would then do your row 2 increase until you had 18 sts instead of 22. The rest of the pattern would pretty much stay the same, but you would have to adjust the width of your straps accordingly and the number of center stitches you would be binding off. Same goes for a smaller/finer gauge yarn with <span style="font-style:italic;">more </span>stitches being cast on. You would bind off more center stitches and have more stitches in the width of your straps (which would also mean more decreases at the neck edge until you got the strap how you wanted it.<br /><br />I'll see if I can set up a pattern page for this right on Ravelry--would love to see if anyone else knits this!<br /><br />xo CaraReckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-43559525390719441952012-01-17T05:46:00.000-08:002012-01-19T08:10:24.228-08:00HAWT pinkyes...hot pink-a colour I'm surprised I even had in my stash!<br /><br />I always think I'm such a "neutrals" girl but yesterday as I was looking at my <a href= http://www.ravelry.com/projects/jadeblade>Ravelry projects page</a> I was struck by how colourful everything was. I'm not sure if that's just "how I take a picture" --I tend to like fairly saturated images--or if it's actually that everything in my life is more colourful than I give it credit for (It is slightly ironic that I am a vintage lover but do not like this current trend of post-processing all photos to have a vintage <span style="font-style:italic;">feel </span>to them). <br /><br />Maybe I've just been saying "I'm a neutrals girl" for so long that it's become part of my daily lexicon, true or not. I'm sure all of the colourful tights in my wardrobe would have something to say about this.<br /><br />Still, I'm hard-pressed to generally wear anything THIS brain-metingly PINK on a regular basis:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6701966357/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7009/6701966357_6bf64c50f1.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt=""></a><br /><br />And honestly I had to <span style="font-style:italic;">cool </span>these photos down so it wouldn't sear your retinas out of your head the second you loaded this page.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6701966377/" title="painfully pink boot toppers by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7149/6701966377_ac6a4c7f57.jpg" width="400" height="314" alt="painfully pink boot toppers"></a><br /><br />These were a little project that I started MONTHS ago in an effort to simply get-this-pink-outta-my-stash and after seeing a similar pair knit by <a href=http://www.ravelry.com/projects/crispianna/sock-tops>Crispianna</a> on Ravelry. (And how much do I love those boots she's wearing...me want!). <br /><br />Seriously I think I started these back in September expecting to wear them all fall with tights and dresses, but the tiny needles started to rub my fingers the wrong way and I just dropped the project altogether right when I was in the home stretch. They languished with about an inch to go until I finally just did.it.to.get.it.done. Now they become my "first official project of 2012". ( I am obviously <span style="font-style:italic;">easing</span> into the New Year...)<br /><br />So what would you call these? Boot toppers? Footless socks? Miniature legwarmers? (I am not embarrassed to admit that I have always been a "legwarmers" girl--even when they went horribly out of fashion, so this is not a stretch for me).<br /><br />Also note: I am not likely to wear them as I have them pictured. I have been tucking them into boots more like socks if I'm wearing them with jeans, so they are usually hidden. With tights I am wearing them more like legwarmers, so they are definitely visible then, if that helps.<br /><br />Size-wise this is a far cry from all the blankets and rugs I've been knitting lately, and I am definitely OK with that.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6701966339/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7021/6701966339_3eb88d5d96.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt=""></a><br /><br />yarn: Rowan lightweight DK in pink (about 1.5 skeins)<br />needles: 3.25 mm<br /><br />pattern: CO 48 sts, join in round, K2 P1 rib for as long as you like (mine are probably around 9 or 10 inches). BO loosely, weave in your ends. <br /><br />Wear & enjoy warm ankles.Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-1564487041075618832012-01-09T13:14:00.000-08:002012-01-09T13:45:50.461-08:002011 re-capOk, well I will spare you my drawn out 2012 "knitolutions" (I do have some regular resolutions that mostly include "NO MORE INTERNET SHOPPING" but that's another story) and 2011 re-cap apart from getting my feet wet for 2012 with this mosaic:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6638696281/" title="2011 knits by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7008/6638696281_50562c5b6f.jpg" width="286" height="500" alt="2011 knits"></a><br /><em>Click the mosaic to be taken to links of all these items</em><br />(sorry it's teeny tiny, you can also see it much larger on flickr)<br /><br />Did you think I had disappeared for the month of December?<br /><br />You'd be just about right given that most knitting came to a standstill (TG I was on the ball with earlier Xmas knits this year) and I only managed to crank out a couple of wee items in the last month or so (mostly due to taking a knitting "break" in an effort to heal some repetitive strain) --so I will attempt to post about those little items soon.<br /><br />For now I leave you with that mosaic of 2011 knits. I already can't wait to see what my 2012 mosaic will look like!<br /><br />Smell ya later 2011!<br /><br />hey girl, I know this is old news but has everyone seen these?<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9nUe4ib1Y5iGXoV0qH7aSRlZjFvY8sYVKg2vi23MkMlyYS4gtdSDphnl24VZuNUx_0BVj-A9fN5ib2Zku5wmuskWSVbT9J9Oo4qWyuwTw3evUD6ZFhyptr3114K9J2bE5reeM/s1600/rg.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 378px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9nUe4ib1Y5iGXoV0qH7aSRlZjFvY8sYVKg2vi23MkMlyYS4gtdSDphnl24VZuNUx_0BVj-A9fN5ib2Zku5wmuskWSVbT9J9Oo4qWyuwTw3evUD6ZFhyptr3114K9J2bE5reeM/s400/rg.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5695749476684997794" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEKSWuKow2TEtHKNVOZI6j7MgpKxOGKFXppLI48ECJbhMtuM58z-kTiwTg68-9XNrkBqX2BW31zYuEAK2qLoQmDTwh6-mGziL4lsUsVMLNF-cqk-t20a_WpxIzqnRX4ktfKSWK/s1600/rg2.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 393px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEKSWuKow2TEtHKNVOZI6j7MgpKxOGKFXppLI48ECJbhMtuM58z-kTiwTg68-9XNrkBqX2BW31zYuEAK2qLoQmDTwh6-mGziL4lsUsVMLNF-cqk-t20a_WpxIzqnRX4ktfKSWK/s400/rg2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5695749617839182978" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEict6AQDUTtMU__k5DjbgMDc73UtyAyj_7s90ebvM23vpulMg3SGndmJlDHvA_W5LxoOvJ0_c6MClRcl3Q9X-eR84yohwhUqK4HQrlvGbxIGkzm918J-qrkXpWG0jhrL-0JylyW/s1600/rg3.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 274px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEict6AQDUTtMU__k5DjbgMDc73UtyAyj_7s90ebvM23vpulMg3SGndmJlDHvA_W5LxoOvJ0_c6MClRcl3Q9X-eR84yohwhUqK4HQrlvGbxIGkzm918J-qrkXpWG0jhrL-0JylyW/s400/rg3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5695749724487224498" /></a><br /><br />Naturally I think all of the knitting ones are hilarious, but some other crafty favourites include:<br /><br />"Hey Girl, Don't stress about me stepping on that pin. It's my fault for walking barefoot through the dining room" and "Hey girl, I"m sorry only 12 people entered your blog giveaway".<br /><br />heh. Oh breaker high, how far you've come.<br /><br />Enjoy...I loves me an adorable meme.Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-43161816063885152512011-11-29T07:56:00.000-08:002014-11-25T19:20:35.549-08:00'Tis (almost) the seasonThis photo might lead you to believe that my Christmas decorations are up already, but you would be mistaken...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6414004775/" title="Rudy by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7006/6414004775_d266264f94.jpg" width="342" height="500" alt="Rudy"></a><br /><br />pattern: Christmas Rudolph Reindeer by Loly Fuertes<br />yarn: Patons Classic Wool in Taupe (plus miscellaneous worsteds in white & red)<br />needles: 2.75 mm<br />misc: button eyes and a ribbon around his neck<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6414004739/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6051/6414004739_5cb4cd98a5.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt=""></a><br /><br />Well, what can I say? It's RUDOLPH, and y'all know I have a <a href= http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/4231741461/in/photostream/>fawn collection</a> right? (well, I tend to bust those fawns out over the holidays more for some reason...) but still. I simply could.not.resist this knit and he turned out super adorable.<br /><br />I know I always say "I'm not a toy knitter" but a couple of them manage to find their way into the queue every year for one reason or another it seems. And when I started this little guy a couple weeks back it was one of those gray November Sundays where I refused to change out of my P.Js for <em>the entire day</em> (and subsequently managed to finish him in one day as well).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6414004763/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6040/6414004763_669d872441.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt=""></a><br /><br />It always seems to be the little knits that languish in my queue for like 2 or 3 years and then when I finally get around to it and bust it out in one day I wonder why I put it off for so long.<br /><br />You can check out my project page on Ravelry for more notes on this little dude, but suffice to say the pattern is at times a bit vague. I think something is possibly lost in the translation, it's another of those patterns that uses the word "knit" in a very general way..."knit this"-- apparently interchangeable with "make this"...not unlike an Amy Sedaris sweater pattern wherein the "pattern" simply states: "Instructions: knit a sweater" (heh).<br /><br />Still I fear the process of focusing on this one fiddly little thing for such a concentrated period of time has put me down for the count for the forseeable future as I have not knit a stitch since. In fact I think something about those small needles rubbing up against the sides of my fingers has given me some fresh new hell of repetitive strain (no doubt exacerbated by the fact that I am on a computer all day long...) so I am having to force myself to take a bit of a break and let my fingers re-coup. (Yes this seems unbelieveable with Xmas less than a month away, but for the most part all of that knitting is done at least).<br /><br />But if nothing else this unexpected knitting sabbatical has allowed me time to turn my attention toward my latest obsession: Papercraft!<br /><br />And to that I can only say "where the hell have I been???" There are SO many cute FREE downloadable/printable PDFs out there that allow you to make the most awesome stuff!<br /><br />Case in point:<br /><br />This <a href= http://curiositygroup.com/calendarofthemonth/>Calendar of the month</a> club from <a href= http://curiositygroup.com/>Curiosity Group</a>.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6GJuj-mGkOMrrnbszXCz9PmTkT-qiYKpIi2o4dzHRl7aCWcPyb5zNQ4dw94eTevV4Y4vA0eVbqnNSNrah983JFJNcvS1Wk9nAFNKGSBHtVPfTmjlX2h_Vih4yotCUt6VokMaU/s1600/yeti.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 444px; height: 311px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6GJuj-mGkOMrrnbszXCz9PmTkT-qiYKpIi2o4dzHRl7aCWcPyb5zNQ4dw94eTevV4Y4vA0eVbqnNSNrah983JFJNcvS1Wk9nAFNKGSBHtVPfTmjlX2h_Vih4yotCUt6VokMaU/s400/yeti.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5680455711768118738" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj06HS1AIYTOlkEkX8yVnzpj93na-Q0HKZuutzPl7r71dVmP-Lb3jetgvCnd0eqochuiJ0IqfiqD21c5WlLm_CmzIuqBnieweLSoR5lhJAF4GwyrCvia_0dQHqwzpYZeJeC7Gld/s1600/camper.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 396px; height: 265px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj06HS1AIYTOlkEkX8yVnzpj93na-Q0HKZuutzPl7r71dVmP-Lb3jetgvCnd0eqochuiJ0IqfiqD21c5WlLm_CmzIuqBnieweLSoR5lhJAF4GwyrCvia_0dQHqwzpYZeJeC7Gld/s400/camper.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5680453783827840834" /></a><br /><br />People, there's a record player! A RECORD PLAYER!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbTvFCMcCdg2DilCcVTnVCQ31hzZY8Y3oqJQSGUM4vFmNKB7SObUGfoVMNZWgrcu4Ux_RdzNtJ147f9Yn-skYRFmCyhWTWSzAJYAolg0NB3W6B8Uh68pqffB5QPmAtW2o6RdXH/s1600/record.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 206px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbTvFCMcCdg2DilCcVTnVCQ31hzZY8Y3oqJQSGUM4vFmNKB7SObUGfoVMNZWgrcu4Ux_RdzNtJ147f9Yn-skYRFmCyhWTWSzAJYAolg0NB3W6B8Uh68pqffB5QPmAtW2o6RdXH/s400/record.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5680454609645494594" /></a><br /><br />Now granted, these are all from a 2011 calendar, but one can assume there will be some more good ones coming for 2012 as well. right? right.<br /><br />Perhaps something more festive?<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs8McrVCViiQtq03ivnfB5XtjswcTp7SnwSpQ9dw1PVwRiIShPYFhsA_kVOZdQKYAnY4qYQW5CT8LLLTdZEI5vMY0FnFySdh72Mibl-XK1pgnKcw3pmRAg7G-UU5_F1sKHV83y/s1600/deer.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 286px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs8McrVCViiQtq03ivnfB5XtjswcTp7SnwSpQ9dw1PVwRiIShPYFhsA_kVOZdQKYAnY4qYQW5CT8LLLTdZEI5vMY0FnFySdh72Mibl-XK1pgnKcw3pmRAg7G-UU5_F1sKHV83y/s400/deer.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5680455955551963058" /></a><br />fawn from <a href= http://strumpetscrumpets.blogspot.com/2010/11/more-paper-crafts.html>Strumpets Crumpets</a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIosKBxHS9so4_vFABnT9TebZAuZX14l_TSys3sahGo_UQ7fLTRpdvUTB_BLlxGZ8F4XyLZXW0wEdbrllS8iA3XM2_d-4O9HhWEmhECAQf6EAnHv3R9t7tkBqkYR5GYURTqJg1/s1600/santa.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 324px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIosKBxHS9so4_vFABnT9TebZAuZX14l_TSys3sahGo_UQ7fLTRpdvUTB_BLlxGZ8F4XyLZXW0wEdbrllS8iA3XM2_d-4O9HhWEmhECAQf6EAnHv3R9t7tkBqkYR5GYURTqJg1/s400/santa.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5680456754961465810" /></a><br />Santa from <a href= http://ataquemutante.com/santa-claus-papertoy-navideno/>Ataque Mutante</a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsZfItho1GjBN3wQx6vB7uiZzGG9T8PQFjodmVHqO4fI_Z99Tknyin4_OcDTh3SpiYxydJmGi3cLg7hn8p9jLqdXJHvTUCIPr5x0zCqimWA9j0JHcXTLAdRy5PdnXdmXOoAwYQ/s1600/lucky+cat.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 292px; height: 297px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsZfItho1GjBN3wQx6vB7uiZzGG9T8PQFjodmVHqO4fI_Z99Tknyin4_OcDTh3SpiYxydJmGi3cLg7hn8p9jLqdXJHvTUCIPr5x0zCqimWA9j0JHcXTLAdRy5PdnXdmXOoAwYQ/s400/lucky+cat.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5680465803602874578" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqVQz0DppYHruA9Z21_VAKQEcqjo3m7C9Kjxkeqt2zA09FcxwWyDsPkuShBhmbeRbJrcjVfC_0G1O8Ro0mlap2jRJcHWfThJq-Lv3ZidmDcDlUF-OETB2MQjGDjarrP-LojsqV/s1600/nesting.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 294px; height: 281px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqVQz0DppYHruA9Z21_VAKQEcqjo3m7C9Kjxkeqt2zA09FcxwWyDsPkuShBhmbeRbJrcjVfC_0G1O8Ro0mlap2jRJcHWfThJq-Lv3ZidmDcDlUF-OETB2MQjGDjarrP-LojsqV/s400/nesting.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5680465980073860066" /></a><br />And lots more of these on the <a href= http://cp.c-ij.com/en/contents/1006/>Canon</a> website.<br /><br />Or if wasting tons of coloured ink in your printer is not really your bag, you can use some colour copy paper instead...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKn5en4B6fhV3d4oVvqZEB1sEBOQ9scJImFHOPOFDNVb-rL4Run-KuK6OXn886Nxzlc-Qw4Ey60EfFgrAcBhhY-XtFll62JprbL1gMVhzvHbpJ3ZqYpDe9KimaB5gp6OTAJ5X-/s1600/ball.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 311px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKn5en4B6fhV3d4oVvqZEB1sEBOQ9scJImFHOPOFDNVb-rL4Run-KuK6OXn886Nxzlc-Qw4Ey60EfFgrAcBhhY-XtFll62JprbL1gMVhzvHbpJ3ZqYpDe9KimaB5gp6OTAJ5X-/s400/ball.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5680457174239305938" /></a><br /><br />I made a handful of these last night...they look great hanging on your tree, you can do up the giant one and turn it into a ceiling lamp, or just pile them all in a bowl like I did, super cute and super fun.<br /><br />Who knew?! (Not me, obviously) The world of paper craft is massive it seems and you can find that ball pattern at <a href= http://howaboutorange.blogspot.com/>How About Orange</a>. In fact that's a great blog to get you started because she links to all sorts of fun paper crafts elsewhere in addition to her own.<br /><br />I could post a million pictures of all the super cute papercraft patterns I've been looking at lately, but that might be overkill. Just go sharpen your scissors and fire up the printer!<br /><br />But make sure you don't abandon you knitting altogether...Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-26586452130238869652011-11-11T12:06:00.000-08:002011-11-11T12:51:45.058-08:00giant knit alertAt last...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6334063733/" title="kiki mariko rug (after) by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6226/6334063733_a0523328b2.jpg" width="440" height="279" alt="kiki mariko rug (after)"></a><br /><br />pattern: Kiki Mariko rug from <a href =http://www.knitpicks.com/patterns/Kiki_Mariko_Rug_Pattern__D31120220.html>Mason Dixon Knitting: Outside the lines</a><br />yarn: Cascade 220 and Patons Classic Wool (many, many different colours...)<br />needles: 10mm<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6334063723/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6118/6334063723_1b245f8307.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt=""></a><br /><br />Done, and totally a fun knit!<br /><br />I made this bigger than the pattern called for, casting on 154 stitches, and knit with both those yarns double-stranded.<br /><br />This started out as a stash-busting project (yes, I know I am ALL ABOUT those lately) --I promise to stop saying the words "stash-busting" quite as much from here on in. (You should just assume that is pretty much always happening). I will alert the media if I ever use it all up. I started out with all those random colours I had leftover from the <a href =http://recklessglue.blogspot.com/2011/07/go-big-or-go-home.html>Missoni-inspired blanket</a> but that plan quickly fell through when I pretty much ran out of all of them and had to go out and buy more anyway. <br /><br />Honestly, why did I think I would have enough? I was doing a giant felted rug that I was making bigger than the pattern called for in the first place! Hmmm, I believe we call that knitting on a wing and a prayer or something.<br /><br />Soooo, had I been smart enough to actually realize this I probably would have started with some completely different colours from the get-go, but I wasn't and I didn't. I plunged ahead without a care for colour placement. If one purple ran out I'd just start a different one, or maybe a pink. Things actually start to look a little more cohesive by the second half of the rug because that is when I actually bought new yarn and managed to keep things more consistent. Even still, I wasn't about to tear back. If things turned out kind of crazy-looking, I was okay with that.<br /><br />In the end I had an enormous, crazy-coloured, knit tube:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6334063691/" title="before by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6038/6334063691_eed1f6ac86.jpg" width="334" height="500" alt="before"></a><br /><br />and when you flipped it over --- this crazy checkerboard strip that was to become my first <a href= http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steek>steeks</a>:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWP7HBEp304BDge6lBgBI3yNk1Uj_DqTce8MECmMPkhtiFtYzRT5jd5oYdlKeyxhQG82IEUcLkaUFhxbLI73Z-iU5PwLzr0VLxHpYOg3DjCJVzrJ5oTm5qvf-YULgBRT4gWzcn/s1600/IMG_3638_medium2.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWP7HBEp304BDge6lBgBI3yNk1Uj_DqTce8MECmMPkhtiFtYzRT5jd5oYdlKeyxhQG82IEUcLkaUFhxbLI73Z-iU5PwLzr0VLxHpYOg3DjCJVzrJ5oTm5qvf-YULgBRT4gWzcn/s400/IMG_3638_medium2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5673837794059020562" /></a><br /><br />and then into a hot bath it went:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6334063685/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6059/6334063685_6520ded0d5.jpg" width="450" height="284" alt=""></a><br /><br />I felted it once, then cut my steek (I realized later that I didn’t cut in a very straight line…so when all was said and done I wound up trimming off more of the steeks on either side again to make it more even) then pulled it out to see how it looked.<br /><br />I was happy with the size, but attempted to just felt the ends a bit more to try and get that “ruffly” edge shrunk up a bit more. I did this as suggested by someone else--I folded it in half and then dangled the edges into the washing machine (I had to cram my pinky into the door mechanism in order to get the machine to agitate with the lid up) but then finally I just got tired of standing there the entire time and threw the whole thing in for the final rinse cycle again. So really it got felted twice when all was said and done.<br /><br />I pinned it out and let it dry for about 48 hours, then blanket-stitched the edge (double-stranded) instead of whip-stitching cuz I thought it looked a little tidier. I combed it with a sweater comb to get the fuzz off and it’s nice and soft under-foot now.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6334770839/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6229/6334770839_f0a85bcfa6.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt=""></a><br /><br />And there you have it. Final measurements gave me a rug that was about 4X3 feet.<br /><br />And then after all my recently H-U-G-E knits the idea of doing some sweaters is starting to seem small and jiffy-quick, so a couple of those may be on the sticks very soon.<br /><br />But nothing was a jiffy quick as these:<br /><br />Dishcloths!<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6326650357/" title="hand knit dishcloths by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6055/6326650357_b622f454c4.jpg" width="450" height="266" alt="hand knit dishcloths"></a><br /><br />I am feeling very on top of gift-knitting this year (for once)...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6326650337/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6107/6326650337_530ba414f7.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt=""></a><br /><br />There are about 6 different dishcloth patterns in that pile, so have a look on <a href= http://www.ravelry.com/projects/jadeblade/three-easy-wash-clothes>Ravelry</a> if you'd like to know which patterns I used.<br /><br />xo CaraReckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-76473839981978849402011-10-27T08:21:00.000-07:002011-10-27T09:43:44.518-07:00Swallowtail shawlSo I have finally managed to get on the Swallowtail bus (seriously over 9000 people on Ravelry have now knit this thing) and I must say, I've got the bug!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF2Ddfrk2PHehe0fKwhy6oo50MNIsxF_-diZ14ZtQXgoePCiGyrk8VF49TN5yEHRIxyvWuNQWRdqGzc1_NRUcj-mNQhyphenhyphens_sG1FveedlmogaT9b3JUEslc_qLjrDP3ThFGl3BcK/s1600/swallowtail2.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF2Ddfrk2PHehe0fKwhy6oo50MNIsxF_-diZ14ZtQXgoePCiGyrk8VF49TN5yEHRIxyvWuNQWRdqGzc1_NRUcj-mNQhyphenhyphens_sG1FveedlmogaT9b3JUEslc_qLjrDP3ThFGl3BcK/s400/swallowtail2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668205294076068514" /></a><br /><br />pattern: <a href= http://www.evelynclarkdesigns.com/pdf/Swallowtail.pdf>Swallowtail shawl</a> by Evelyn Clark<br />yarn: Elizabeth Lavold's Hempathy --just over three balls (but I had so many ends from frogging a project for the yarn that I think you could do it in three if you were starting fresh)<br />needles: 4.5mm<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGIfHoU3aDb5OTLlKQF_NqPeniY2QEy6MhqAWQuF658wtwrDtin-G6cqQZrfEv88GhHlzd7OAwiF5qptEOBiviYXAxn1ZRZw5dlJ8G6RiUYluNAW216IRqhWRC2iUWM9OM69Se/s1600/swallowtail1.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGIfHoU3aDb5OTLlKQF_NqPeniY2QEy6MhqAWQuF658wtwrDtin-G6cqQZrfEv88GhHlzd7OAwiF5qptEOBiviYXAxn1ZRZw5dlJ8G6RiUYluNAW216IRqhWRC2iUWM9OM69Se/s400/swallowtail1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668206091528194562" /></a><br /><em>the mister said it looks like I'm wearing a "spiderweb", just in time for Halloween I suppose.</em><br /><br />It's been a while since I did a lace project like this....lace is fun (or at least this project was) but also frustrating. There were several bouts of "unknitting" at times when I wasn't paying attention. Though I *was* smart enough to put in some <a href= http://www.heartstringsfiberarts.com/lifeline.shtm>lifelines</a> for once, but I think too lazy to do it often enough to be of any real help.<br /><br />As usual with any lace project, the beauty comes when it is finally pinned out:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6280003809/" title="blocking by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6032/6280003809_44f847d3eb.jpg" width="283" height="450" alt="blocking"></a><br /><br />Husband woke up in the morning to find it pinned to the floor and was quite surprised I think..."this is what you've been swearing about?" realization now dawning as to why I wasn't able to knit and watch a movie without a million expletives.<br /><br />Still it went up fast and I can totally see myself making another.<br /><br />My only issue came on the last row (TG for youtube knitting tutorials) because I must have re-read that line ten times and still couldn't figure out what it was asking me to do. I re-wrote it in my own Cara-speak though (you can see my ravelry details if you are interested in that) and then it all made sense.<br /><br />I frogged the yarn from <a href= http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/3540413144/in/set-72157612121488423>this shrug</a> (plus the remainder of one ball still in my stash) for it. Naturally I RAN OUT OF YARN with two rows left to go…grrrrrrr. So off I went to buy one more ball (three years after buying the original yarn with no hope of even knowing what my dye lot was) and will now have virtually a whole ball of the same yarn left in my stash again, thus making my stash exactly the same as when I began this project.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6280003801/" title="lace detail by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6041/6280003801_c1109bf52b.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="lace detail"></a><br /><br />Still, the shawl in this yarn/colour is gorgeous and will get a lot more wear than it ever did in it’s previous incarnation as a shrug. Surely everyone knows by now how much I love MUSTARD. And fortunately for me it's actually on trend this year!<br /><br />My gigantic, enormous Kiki Mariko rug is also nearing the finish line. Can't wait to see how that turns out once all the felting is done. Could be amazing, could be crap.<br /><br />And on another note I have taken the Pinterest plunge, so <a href= http://pinterest.com/jadeblade/>follow me</a> there if you have want to do so. <br /><br />Pinterest seriously appeals to my lazy (and easily distracted) internet nerd within!Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-14431275791959892002011-10-11T08:25:00.001-07:002011-11-01T11:48:25.647-07:00Phildar love...been a while since I've done a Phildar post (and please note, in no way am I compensated for gushing about their patterns --though I would definitely not be adverse to that if I'm being completely honest and if it were to happen!) free patterns? God yes. But I do like to peridoically check in with them and see what's new. Can't beat the French for subtle styling tips...<br /><br />One of their newer pattern books has a whole Mad Men theme happening:<br />(and N.B the following images are all from the same book, <a href= http://www.phildar.fr/Catalogue-Automne-n-59_CF::31075::100018.r.html>Fall #59</a>, sorry French only so far for this one)<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin-Vmt56dCtEoKSsotw1kCpDcB1fbH7MCXmmdJn7wANui_1kXZnSy-KpnAGF3A99f6W6-RhtYYzlopKPoAA6DfIiVQyIh17EaMOxjiU2m_4_6-6wzq9zgCwvKHwSFvaayX1jrb/s1600/phildar2.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 325px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin-Vmt56dCtEoKSsotw1kCpDcB1fbH7MCXmmdJn7wANui_1kXZnSy-KpnAGF3A99f6W6-RhtYYzlopKPoAA6DfIiVQyIh17EaMOxjiU2m_4_6-6wzq9zgCwvKHwSFvaayX1jrb/s400/phildar2.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662258274050413826" /></a><br /><br />There are lots of fabulous reto-styled patterns like the one pictured above. <br /><br />And while I am definitely a vintage lover pre-Mad Men *and* a lover of Mad Men itself (seriously it must be one of the most well-written shows on TV to date). I find myself even more enamoured of some of the other knits in the same book:<br /><br />LOVE:<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjug4dxFdraH0Djs-dUeESpVcjiljyOYLUlz1o8cMiGOp1LN8uyTkAdsxIdZzCcVNlOQRhqCPFvggH2XiQKFOacKhD91kip2wd_P5_SE7LJpJms9QCGp-zeOYE06NsxLdnOmB4o/s1600/phildar1.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 370px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjug4dxFdraH0Djs-dUeESpVcjiljyOYLUlz1o8cMiGOp1LN8uyTkAdsxIdZzCcVNlOQRhqCPFvggH2XiQKFOacKhD91kip2wd_P5_SE7LJpJms9QCGp-zeOYE06NsxLdnOmB4o/s400/phildar1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662259005066028434" /></a><br /><br />LOVE,<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm5BkEe-qoyDHK8DEDFTvJl3ES-p5oWpTmWbReKwwp5KXQjQDZKcYAVNvuNBfLbnNuwPurxQrin9cmCjggmFgA7ngIbjstOWSDRpgoNluNXrGU31qHir4dALuV-PWnTUmFxZDS/s1600/phildar3.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 276px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm5BkEe-qoyDHK8DEDFTvJl3ES-p5oWpTmWbReKwwp5KXQjQDZKcYAVNvuNBfLbnNuwPurxQrin9cmCjggmFgA7ngIbjstOWSDRpgoNluNXrGU31qHir4dALuV-PWnTUmFxZDS/s400/phildar3.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662259271799785714" /></a><br /><br />LOVE!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDMpCRSSJqmCJ64f2TjflU1Wq2IN_ChVN1CRL6LE-GYJgq4eHWi4JsML5YkDqCMo4NMLidkk_IaEEFNHvhauTFvQQVUFfjjDFV4ZCKrlMPC1V93n6icb9Pdg4d0B7hzf2Xg982/s1600/phildar4.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 307px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDMpCRSSJqmCJ64f2TjflU1Wq2IN_ChVN1CRL6LE-GYJgq4eHWi4JsML5YkDqCMo4NMLidkk_IaEEFNHvhauTFvQQVUFfjjDFV4ZCKrlMPC1V93n6icb9Pdg4d0B7hzf2Xg982/s400/phildar4.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662259532515825570" /></a><br />(always a sucker for hearts...it's like a sickness I have) and bows. and ruffles. Could that admission be any girlier?<br /><br />Now before anyone emails me asking me to make.copies.of.all.these.patterns for them (seriously this happens a lot) I need to be clear that I do not own this book. (<em>yet</em>). I am debating on waiting to see if they are coming out with an English version of it. Phildar often does this though it's kind of hit and miss. I will likely order it in French (once it goes on sale heh). <br /><br />Also that said, please don't email me wanting me to translate a pattern for you. I have done this once or twice but will likely never do it again.<br /><br />Geez, was that way too crabby? While we're on the topic, what are everyone's thoughts on pattern-sharing? <br /><br />I don't usually have an issue with it if I deem it is a pattern this is not readily available. For example, if you are emailing me asking me to scan you a copy of a Vogue Knitting pattern that is still available on newstands, I will probably take issue with that. I mean, are you just too lazy to walk to the corner store? If your excuse is that you "can't afford it" then you likely can't afford the yarn for it either so why bother? (but I am clearly being overly-judgemental here to make my point, I suppose you could easily have lots of free yarn in your stash as well!). <br /><br />You would also be surprised what knitting books (and magazines) you can find at your local library, and as a result I have pretty much stopped purchasing said knitting books. Is that legit? I hope so, cuz the idea of spending 40 bucks on a book that I will only knit one pattern out of makes me feel even more overwhelmed by the amount of already useless crap on my bookshelves.<br /><br />But if it's something old or out of print that I have at my disposal I will usually be happy to do it (I hope I haven't made anyone afraid to email me now!). I find there is a fine line between knowing when that is ok or not, and the more you get entrenched in the online knitting community, the more some of these people become your <em>friends</em> that you want to look out for, so if it's a PDF that is readily available, please spend the three bucks (or whatever) and help that knittah out.<br /><br />Just sayin'.<br /><br />And while I am now completely off the rails in terms of topic, can I also just add that I have gotten several requests from people asking me to knit them the <a href =http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5919978237/in/set-72157625823558200>Missoni-inspired blanket</a>. I am somewhat speechless about that (tho flattered)--clearly these people are not knitters which I can appreciate, but huh? What would I even charge for my <em>time</em> on something that size? I am obviously not going to do this (tho have often thought about selling knits via etsy at some point) but that blanket? I am tempted to ask 2 grand for it and see if anyone goes for it (if they do I will definitely knit it for them! ;) Still waiting to see if <a href= http://ca.shine.yahoo.com/person-tries-to-sell-missoni-target-boots-for--31-000-for-college-education.html>anyone pays 31 grand for those rubber boots on ebay</a> that I bought for myself for 30 bucks (disclaimer: *I* did not post those boots for 31 grand, I just have the same ones...) people are obviously still Missoni CRAZY.<br /><br />But by far the thing that I probably get emailed about <em>the most</em> is the <a href= http://recklessglue.blogspot.com/2008/04/twinkle-biker-vest.html>Twinkle Biker vest.</a> Seriously I knit that thing almost 4 years ago when I was a relatively new knitter and had a heinous time of it. I scrawled a few notes about it and then bam! I feel like every person who has ever attempted that pattern has contacted me about it. Aye yi yi. Sisters, I feel your pain on that one, but I definitely no longer remember the finer nuances of how it even got knit!<br /><br />So anyway, after that looooong digression (as usual) time to get back to our regularly scheduled Phildar cuteness:<br /><br />OOH LA LA!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUlmDRS2b_dJfmzu83XPzy4WKcZbmC734WlMr3uZS0v8AwIUz7hGa5ntksJRq2xTjfpeeSHgU2fsg0CGZjG0MkqTHFuNPNgbpidj9agpMO-YI1DjHWLdOZBynqQetjiisn6fVi/s1600/phildar5.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 246px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUlmDRS2b_dJfmzu83XPzy4WKcZbmC734WlMr3uZS0v8AwIUz7hGa5ntksJRq2xTjfpeeSHgU2fsg0CGZjG0MkqTHFuNPNgbpidj9agpMO-YI1DjHWLdOZBynqQetjiisn6fVi/s400/phildar5.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662269058731505826" /></a><br /><br />C'est si bon!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXHyvAa9ldWX8g4qPJD5Gaxzd-9I3BHNggvlVGzYTXd10i5KNY9Y6nK2QDPECubZDBSnmbjchbs6aEvA8hU4s6YXb40_QzsFj1xSr562TvkNQaxPe7oKeXREp4Pwhua4zdd8of/s1600/phildar6.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 243px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXHyvAa9ldWX8g4qPJD5Gaxzd-9I3BHNggvlVGzYTXd10i5KNY9Y6nK2QDPECubZDBSnmbjchbs6aEvA8hU4s6YXb40_QzsFj1xSr562TvkNQaxPe7oKeXREp4Pwhua4zdd8of/s400/phildar6.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662269501912929090" /></a><br /><br />C'est super-fantastique!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU-VkFKSlwWebPelM343hsSo2CUqeT01V_mwZG2his7bkCvglt6MYy74wu_bvvXTRedDa64n2ejzKGGVeJYiRsqLbPspuCyutW8sK5pIF1gvw_RXE9hbNM1wnzS0M9jtIMY_oK/s1600/phildar7.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 250px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU-VkFKSlwWebPelM343hsSo2CUqeT01V_mwZG2his7bkCvglt6MYy74wu_bvvXTRedDa64n2ejzKGGVeJYiRsqLbPspuCyutW8sK5pIF1gvw_RXE9hbNM1wnzS0M9jtIMY_oK/s400/phildar7.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662269704432664626" /></a><br /><br /><br />and a little something for you to put on in the background while you peruse the Phildar website...<br />Brigitte Bardot singing <a href= http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ai2As4XFZDY>Harley Davidson</a>, a long time fave.<br />(I wish I was smart enough to know how to directly embed that video)Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-56001883417819267902011-10-03T11:10:00.000-07:002011-10-03T12:46:09.190-07:00Stash MonsterPeople of earth: I have not abandonned you for Tumbler, I promise. Upon further reflection I decided that Tumblr was the lazy-man's way out and have chosen to renew my commitment to this here tried-and-true blog. I mean who am I kidding, I can ramble on about nothing with the best of folk. Just photos?! But then who would hear about all my pithy knitting-related musings? Oh right, just my husband and he <em>DOES NOT</em> want that... (seriously I think I need to find some real-life friends that are knitters, my bench is not very deep as they say).<br /><br />Blogging about knitting would obviously be a lot less overwhelming for me if I didn't let the F.O's pile up to the point that they become a daunting Tsunami of things to talk about. (I know I know, better an F.O than a U.F.O at least--whoa knitter-speak whaaa?), so with that in mind I am going to do something I haven't done in a while and post about some current projects.<br /><br />If you've been here before you know I am always talking about stash-busting, but the reality is that compared to most knitters, my stash is pretty small. At this point I can fit it all into one large rubbermaid container. Just one! That's pretty good I'd venture, but I have this dream about having NONE. I want to have none.<br /><br />Does that make me weird? I know that this is likely an impossibility. There will always be scraps kicking around, and I am definitely someone who has been known to <em>throw out</em> yarn that I am just plain sick of looking at. (gasp!). But I still envision it all being gone one day and then being able to buy only <em>new</em> (or new-to-me) (and glorious) yarns for projects as they arise on a need-to-knit-asap basis.<br /><br />I think I fell into that "new knitter" trap several years ago...where you are just buying yarn wherever/whenever you can in a desperate attempt to have.a.stash. And as such, that very stash is what I still appear to be left with to this day...mostly workhorse yarns or one-off skeins that I bought that I couldn't afford in "whole-sweater" amounts. You find yourself wanting a piece of the glory, but then you are stuck with a stash full of random incompleteness.<br /><br />There has been the odd new-yarn here or there, but new yarn is only bought with an immediate project in mind, so it generally gets used up right away. <br /><br />And I may have stumbled upon my most epic stash-eater to date: the <a href= http://www.knitpicks.com/patterns/Kiki_Mariko_Rug_Pattern__D31120220.html>Kiki-Mariko</a> felted rug.<br /><br />I cast-on additional stitches (I think it calls for maybe 118 and I did 154?) and off I went. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6137144147/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6174/6137144147_da0b4536a2.jpg" width="460" height="293" alt=""></a><br /><br />In no time I had blown through all of the remaining Cascade 220 I had leftover from the <a href= http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5919978237/in/set-72157625823558200/>Missoni-Inspired blanket</a> as well as most of the Patons Classic I had in my stash and <em>I wasn't even half done</em>!<br /><br />I tried desperately not to care about my colour flow and pressed on grabbing whatever random colours I had available (it is more difficult to make "old gold" work with other colours than you would think --why did I buy 5 balls of that?! oh right--because it was discontinued that's why, and my love of seventies mustard colours is totally irrational). But then I stopped to actually take a look at what I was doing and knew I couldn't go any further. <br /><br />I like to think I am somebody who can "just let it go" if there's a boo-boo or something I don't like, but the sad reality is: I am not that person. My colour combos looked like ass together. <em>(those are conveniently not pictured here)</em><br /><br />So I tore back and then yesterday went out and bought.more.yarn. Not only that, but more <em>workhorse </em>yarns (i.e the Cascade and Patons that I was TRYING TO PURGE IN THE FIRST PLACE). And in the same colours that I also would have never chosen in the first place if I was starting this project "new". GAH.<br /><br />So, that in a nutshell is my current saga. <br /><br />But I refuse to lose sight of my ultimate de-stashing goal, even though I am clearly the problem in this whole situation.<br /><br />Another example of this: I knit a project and don't like the finished result. Instead of just donating the <a href= http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/3540413144/in/set-72157612121488423>offensive garment</a> to someone else that might actually appreciate it, back into the stash it goes. I need to learn to just get rid of these things and be done with them, regardless of whether I have additional amounts of leftover yarn to go with it.<br /><br />and that is SO <em>NOT</em> what I did here:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6205893302/" title="swallowtail shawl by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6128/6205893302_e5f3a3e7fb.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="swallowtail shawl"></a><br /><br />(yes, more mustard --but I can't be faulted for knitting with mustard in the FALL right? right?!). Still I am actually excited about this knit, it's been a while since I've tried my hand at a lace project, and 9000 other knitters can't be wrong about the <a href= http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/swallowtail-shawl>Swallowtail shawl</a> so it's time I joined that club anyway.<br /><br />Also from the DEPTHS of my stash:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6205893272/" title="HOT pink boot toppers by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6021/6205893272_06d329f445.jpg" width="324" height="500" alt="HOT pink boot toppers"></a><br /><br />Why yes that is the <strong>hottest-retina-melting-pink</strong> that you have ever seen. <br />Honestly, was this a thing I was into for a while? HOT pink? I think this was another situation where Rowan-yarn-was-being-discontinued-at-my-lys-so-I'd-better-buy-(only)two-balls-for-some-stupid-reason! <br /><br />Guess it's a good thing neon has kind of come around again.<br /><br />Also from deep stash:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6205475393/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6138/6205475393_e29f77b2ec.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt=""></a><br /><br />I bought all that grey DK merino when <a href= http://www.amazon.ca/Knit-Together-Patterns-Stories-Knitting/dp/1584795344>Knit 2 together</a> was a revolutionary new book from Tracey Ullman and I just had-to-have that shrug in there stat!<br /><br />Now here we are 6 years later and you pretty much couldn't PAY me to knit anything in that book yet I still have all the original yarn to show for it. But wait a minute, those are some too-harsh words...it's actually a great book, just you know, much like the yarn presently in my stash-- I am totally bored with it.<br /><br />So I'm thinking about using up said yarn for this <a href= http://allergictowool.blogspot.com/2009/11/november-sweater.html>November sweater</a>. Yes, even though I know I VERY RECENTLY OPINED: "no more sweaters". <br /><br />What can I say, I'm an enigma. <br />(and also apparently, a liar)Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-55385773754886942062011-09-17T17:51:00.000-07:002011-09-17T20:31:23.885-07:00go small and stay home?Soooooo, after the magnitude that was my <a href= http://recklessglue.blogspot.com/2011/07/go-big-or-go-home.html>Missoni-inspired blanket</a> and the <span style="font-style:italic;">madness</span> that was <a href = http://fashionista.com/2011/08/here-it-is-the-full-missoni-for-target-lookbook/>Missoni-for-Target</a>...----wait, whaaaaa? you hadn't heard about this? Alex does a great re-cap about the shopping meldown that happened at Target this past week: <a href = http://modernkiddo.com/?p=6055>HERE</a>, so I won't re-hash it all for you, other than to say that "why yes I did get my butt across the border to my nearest Target" and managed to pick myself up a few of <a href =http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6147936153/>said pieces</a>. <br /><br /> And while there were definitely some jerk-y lookin' dudes there filling their carts with items that they clearly planned to immediately flood ebay with, I at least didn't have to say, <a href=http://ny.racked.com/archives/2011/09/13/harlem_downtown_brooklyn_targets_cleaned_out_of_missoni.php>wrestle Bethenny Frankel</a> for a pillow or anything. Phew! small wonders...in some ways I wish I had bought more stuff, but in reality I am sure I have more.than.enough. zig-zags in my life right now. <br /><br />My love of obnoxious sixties fashions aside, it was simply fortuitous timing that I even made that blanket, and all week I have been watching the "favourites" of that knit sky-rocket on my raverly page. Cascade 220 in "lime"...who knew?<br /><br />And indeed after such a giant knit, I found myself needing to make smaller knits, STAT!<br /><br />and they don't get a lot smaller than this cute 'lil dude:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibGwy8cFObwH39W9sX0pFM4UfUhgtzW-jfpH9n0xJucgwMV-DIQV8ecDeGKMg011kiHf0cfVouI8rOJgFRzlMmVttuYx07PmPSI7npRRl3Yi84LqNZUsJuMK5CCHVo-aDnD-z7/s1600/IMG_2707.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibGwy8cFObwH39W9sX0pFM4UfUhgtzW-jfpH9n0xJucgwMV-DIQV8ecDeGKMg011kiHf0cfVouI8rOJgFRzlMmVttuYx07PmPSI7npRRl3Yi84LqNZUsJuMK5CCHVo-aDnD-z7/s400/IMG_2707.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5653510258703465730" /></a><br /><br />totes adorbs, yes?<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiutx4zVRld4UzcpKZRdJAqBUN3pG2cgNicCfWmrlMsgMe5eXY3D5eC34zlTInI6zYmCFIS0rWig03YcXKhQPz0HDdC7A3ukw0G2WskjIDpAg6Gogciy2wMZOlmWjPsnPDhV-v0/s1600/IMG_2691.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiutx4zVRld4UzcpKZRdJAqBUN3pG2cgNicCfWmrlMsgMe5eXY3D5eC34zlTInI6zYmCFIS0rWig03YcXKhQPz0HDdC7A3ukw0G2WskjIDpAg6Gogciy2wMZOlmWjPsnPDhV-v0/s400/IMG_2691.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5653503214013216818" /></a><br /><br />pattern: <a href= http://blog.a-common-thread.com/2011/04/knit-pattern-panda-pin.html>here</a><br /><br />Also small and satisfying,<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6138027191/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6201/6138027191_bc5d306f4f.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt=""></a><br /><br />definitely in love with this <a href =http://canaryknits.blogspot.com/2011/03/st-patricks-day.html>hat</a> and the YARN:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6138027195/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6173/6138027195_5cd04802e0.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt=""></a><br /><br />The colour just seemed to work up so gorgeous. The yarn is Madeline Tosh Vintage, and the colourway was called "Thunderstorm". I dunno, maybe I am just starved for some nice/new yarns. It really was the first "new" yarn I had purchased in some time (and I don't count "work-horse-type yarns" like Patons Classic or Cascade 220 that I always seem to fall back on for one project or another). This past year I have been hell-bent on stash busting so I think I am just SO tired of looking at the same old stuff (not to mention the same colours I always seem to be drawn to...)<br /><br />Speaking of "same old yarns":<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6138027187/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6152/6138027187_9d20494626.jpg" width="440" height="248" alt=""></a><br /><br />these are the <a href =http://www.purlbee.com/daisy-stitch-hand-warmers/>Daisy stitch handwarmers</a> from the Purl Bee.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6138027183/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6175/6138027183_8388a42954.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt=""></a><br /><br />Can I just say, I am in looooooooove with these. I don't think I've ever knit myself a pair of gloves/mitts etc. that fit so well. And these will be perfect now that the temperature is starting to cool off around here.<br /><br />And finally, and ok maybe this isn't actually a <span style="font-style:italic;">small</span> knit since it took about 6 balls of Sublime cashmere/merino/silk DK to make, but it was at least mindless and enjoyable.<br /><br />The iconic <a href = http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEfall04/PATTclapotis.html>Clapotis</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6137161089/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6089/6137161089_3cedbd0109.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt=""></a><br /><br />And yes, I do think the Clapotis has more than attained it's due of "icon status" in the kitting world. Has there ever been an item knit more than this in the modern knitting realm? I think this is my third one. If you haven't knit one before, I think you should, and if you've never heard of this pattern, I can only assume you just fell out of some vortex from another dimension and found this blog post by mistake.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6137144239/" title="clapotis by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6070/6137144239_26a8c69a9f.jpg" width="440" height="281" alt="clapotis"></a><br /><br />So there you have it, maybe if I updated more often I wouldn't be trying to cram so many knits into one post? I am actually toying with the idea of scrapping this blog and moving over to something like tumbler which will be a little more photo-intensive and less of me rambling on and on.<br /><br />Oh wait, here's four more small knits that I forgot about:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5920495398/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6128/5920495398_784f13ca29.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt=""></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5920495376/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6143/5920495376_9f80ff8f66.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt=""></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5920495340/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6131/5920495340_8a569bf854.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt=""></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/6108717395/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6181/6108717395_96558b9e0f.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt=""></a><br /><br />Details on Ravelry <a href=http://www.ravelry.com/projects/jadeblade/quick-and-basic-coffee-cozy>HERE</a>, <a href=http://www.ravelry.com/projects/jadeblade/beaded-i-cord>HERE</a>, <a href=http://www.ravelry.com/projects/jadeblade/la-la-love-you-cowl>HERE</a> and <a href=http://www.ravelry.com/projects/jadeblade/reverse-bloom-flower-washcloth>HERE</a>.<br /><br />Geez, I guess that was "my summer in knits"? I managed to cram a <a href=http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/sets/72157627190446861/>vacation</a> in there somewhere too.<br />xoReckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-12503795919206641462011-07-10T11:10:00.000-07:002011-07-10T12:20:31.464-07:00Go big or go homeuh oh--I am almost three months to the day since my last post...and I wish I could give you an amazing reason as to why (but alas, you know how THAT goes!). <br /><br />So to make it up to you I have come back in a big way.<br /><br />A big BLANKET-Y way (no I am not talkin' about M.J's kid)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5919978237/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6122/5919978237_d81186eb14.jpg" width="450" height="277" alt=""></a><br /><br />pattern: Missoni inspired blanket by Kelly Kingston<br />yarn: Cascade 220 (check ravelry for the list of all the colours I used)<br />needles: 4mm<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5919978183/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6026/5919978183_f9d3792a86.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt=""></a><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">this picture is a bit of an optical illusion...it was actually laying smooth and flat on the floor when I took it</span><br /><br />So, I guess the moral of this story is don't ever let them tell you bigger isn't better? Just kidding. I think. It's definitely more <span style="font-style:italic;">impressive</span> when it's bigger because the reality is this was an easy knit. Straight stockinette that dare I say actually went up FAST. Though I think that has something to do with the mental game you play with yourself when you are switching colours: "ok, just two rows of this black, I'll finish those before I take a break...." "Fours rows of orange? lemme just finish those before I start dinner". And then suddenly it's done.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5919978215/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6145/5919978215_c5f3d52b77.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt=""></a><br /><br />And also kind of timely because I am pretty amped up about the fact that Missoni is also the next designer line that's been announced for <a href=http://www.shefinds.com/2011/leaked-missoni-for-target-photos/>Target</a> this fall. (Almost as excited as I was to hear that Target is <span style="font-style:italic;">finally</span> coming to Canada--tho not until 2014) so looks like I will still be trudging my way to New York state as usual to get my target designer line fix---save me some stuff ok people?<br /><br />This is definitely the biggest thing I have knit to date (and is kind of making me feel somewhat accomplished after so many previous sweater FAILs). The only real anguish involved was agonizing over the colours. It's definitely a lot louder than something I'd normally knit, and if I had to do it again would probably still tweak some of the more neon-ish colours in it (like that lime or the lilac) for something less obnoxious. Still, I think as a whole it all works, and I will be more than proud to drape it on my bed or couch this winter.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5919978151/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6129/5919978151_cfc61c923a.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt=""></a><br /><br />What didn't feel fast to knit (but was smaller and probably even easier to knit) ---this baby blanket:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5802022205/" title="basketweave blanket by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3259/5802022205_03beda9dc8.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="basketweave blanket"></a><br /><br />pattern: Basketweave blanket by Classic Elite<br />yarn: <a href= http://www.stitchnationyarn.com/Yarns/bamboo-ewe.html>Bamboo Ewe</a> in "Mercury" (4.5 skeins)<br />needles: 4mm I think?<br />mods: 160 stitches, seed stitch border instead of garter<br /><br />Well go figure...endless solid grey-- knit 4, purl 4. Man I was SO glad to finally see the back of this one!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5801998465/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2094/5801998465_da8ff9a5f3.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt=""></a><br /><br />But I must say, I was very happy with how it turned out. The yarn is soft but substantive and easy-care and I didn't want to make it overtly scream "BABY" (even though it was in fact a baby gift). It just seemed a little more versatile in a neutral colour like this in case they wanted to use it as a throw instead. <br /><br />So for me, blanket appears to be the new black. I am heartily tempted to knit the Missoni one again. The colour combinations and permutations are endless and would probably go a long way towards wiping out some of the colours in my stash that I am less fond of and don't know what the hell to do with. Though god knows I have a long history of saying "I am definitely knitting this again!" and then never following through (there's just too many new things out there to catch my fancy!)<br /><br />Maybe some matching pillows though? I need to do something with all that leftover lime & lilac!Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-79187964461597196212011-04-11T11:45:00.000-07:002011-04-11T13:06:20.709-07:00little thingshoooooo doggie, it is hot and humid today. This time last week I was wearing a hat and mitts--whatever happened to Spring? Why do we need to go from Winter directly to Summer?<br /><br />I've finished off a few little things lately (that I guess I should just immediately pack away?) cause I don't think there will be much call for them for another 5 or 6 months...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5586930404/" title="stem & leaf cowl by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5253/5586930404_ff9367cd53.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="stem & leaf cowl"></a><br /><br />Further to my last post about the <a href= http://recklessglue.blogspot.com/2011/03/intarsia-mania.html>owlie mitts</a> comes the <a href= http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/stem-and-leaf-cowl>Stem & Leaf cowl</a> from the same designer, <a href= http://www.etsy.com/shop/elf518>Betsy Farquhar</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5586930380/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5254/5586930380_186791bcd2.jpg" width="419" height="500" alt=""></a><br /><br />I love this pattern...it's really very reminiscent of one of my favourite designers, <a href= http://www.orlakiely.com/uk/>Orla Kiely</a>, though uh slightly more in my <em>snack bracket</em> as they say.<br /><br />That said, I'm not sure how wearable this cowl actually is. Having the full impact of the pattern kind of requires it to stand up rigidly (which it sort of does on it's own) but the second it gets scrunched down, the inside floats are all visible. It's not horrible, it still definitely works, but I dunno...I likely should have chosen some bolder colours. This might get gifted off to someone else.<br /><br />Also fabulous and from one of my all time favourite knitter/designers, Michele Wang:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5490397548/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5176/5490397548_60d53990ec.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt=""></a><br /><br /><a href= http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/tortillon>Tortillon!</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5490397554/" title="tortillon by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5018/5490397554_d549bcdf10.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="tortillon"></a><br /><br />This really is not my usual style of hat, but I have to say it might be time for me to get away from the floppy beret/snood. There definitely is no danger of this one slipping right off my head, in fact I'm not sure I've ever had a hat fit so well! I knit it in it's prescribed Lana Grossa <a href= http://www.imrsheep.com/Chiara.html>Chiara</a> which again is also not something I'd normally choose given that it's about 80% synthetic (and 20% kid mohair). There seems to be this whole new breed of "fancy" synthetic yarns out there that I know nothing about, and even this stuff is about 17 bucks a ball around these parts. Fortunately it used less than one ball and was decidely worth it. Cushy cushy cushy! This might be the most comfortable hat ever.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5490397562/" title="Tortillon by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5016/5490397562_acdc006fb9.jpg" width="500" height="322" alt="Tortillon"></a><br /><br />It just pains me that it won't see the light of day for many moons again.<br /><br />And then I got stoked about wearing something like this for cross-country sking:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5587526960/" title="Endless Braid by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5018/5587526960_5fe68a7228.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="Endless Braid"></a><br /><br />but we promptly ran out of snow.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5587526840/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5069/5587526840_89ebbf327a.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt=""></a><br /><br />Ah well. This is <a href= http://www.etsy.com/listing/67252078/knitting-pattern-endless-braid-winter>Endless Braid</a>. You can see my Ravelry projects pages for more details about it because I really had to jimmy it to get it to work with one ball of Koigu KPPPM. This is the "winter" version of the pattern, though it's really somewhere in between sizes I'd say, since I knit the strands to different lengths/widths, and the pattern calls for a worsted yarn, not a sock yarn. And lets not forget my pea sized head.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5587526932/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5138/5587526932_6d5ab7dc40.jpg" width="450" height="303" alt=""></a><br /><br />I just really really wanted to knit this from stash and I really also wanted to knit it in a varigated (I apparently own like zero varigated yarns--even this lowly ball of koigu has been in my stash for years...) <br /><br />And then, the Urban Turban:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5586930370/" title="urban turban by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5305/5586930370_8027d5841f.jpg" width="470" height="260" alt="urban turban"></a><br /><br />I know turbans have been a bit of a fashion craze the last year or two, and this was yet another situation where I decided to knit from stash in a completely different weight of yarn. In this case a DK instead of a lace weight, and it worked though might not be quite as deep as I need this hat to be.<br /><br />This is a <a href= http://www.patonsyarns.com/>Patons</a> pattern, but I haven't been able to find it to link to it yet --will definitely fix that as soon as it becomes available! I knit it in some leftover baby alpaca --Fable Handknits.<br /><br />If I was smart I would have dragged these knits out into individual posts with lots of detail for you, but pfft, that's what Ravelry's for I guess. Plus these days I find by the time I'm talking about these projects I am <em>mentally</em> done.with.them. and ready to move on to bigger and better.<br /><br />And bigger and better is definitely my next course of action...I've never knit a blanket before but now find myself with not one but TWO in the works. And a "mini" sweater. Am I crazy? Will I be knitting with a <a href= http://tangledyarns.shopau.biz/emailcampaigns/PDF/MissoniInspiredChevronBlanket_240910.pdf>wool blanket</a> on my lap all summer long?! <br /><br />Yes, yes I will.Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-27774874882848092172011-03-16T17:01:00.000-07:002011-03-17T09:18:52.504-07:00intarsia mania (fair isle mania?)Figured I should finally post about my latest <em>white whale</em> (sorry the English major in me finds it difficult to stop referencing books that I never really liked...) <br /><br />But what I do like--<br /><br />THESE:<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5493265182/" title="thumbs up! by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5211/5493265182_4bd9722b45.jpg" width="440" height="268" alt="thumbs up!" /></a><br /><br />pattern: Owlie Owl mittens by Betsy Farquhar<br />yarn: Fortissima Socka<br />needles: US #0<br />mods: I omitted a couple rows in the chart (see my ravelry project page for more specifics)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5493255558/" title="owlie mitts by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5300/5493255558_41eaf7c5f6.jpg" width="440" height="273" alt="owlie mitts" /></a><br /><br />Soooo, I've never been a sock knitter, but for some reason I find the task of knitting mittens to be somehow less onerus. I did however still suffer from second-sock-syndome when it came time to knit mitt number two, and it wasn't until I was about halfway through the second one in fact when I realized I'd forgotten to change needle sizes after the cuff. Ugh, size zeros the whole way up.<br /><br />The good news? A mitten knit entirely on tiny needles meant a perfect fit for me and my child-sized hands! Could I live with one that was smaller than the other?<br /><br />Ummmm, maybe not:<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5490397542/" title="before pics by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5135/5490397542_6b867aa6b2.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="before pics" /></a><br /><br />The difference in size was pretty dramatic. If you look closely in the photo too you'll notice a giant boo boo in the bigger mitt, so that kind of closed that deal, it HAD to be torn out.<br /><br />The difference is probably more obvious here, where I appear to have given my owl wings in the first mitt:<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5490397536/" title="before pics by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5211/5490397536_033969222a.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="before pics" /></a><br /><br />Regardless, it got torn out and knit properly on my smallest needles, and now they are a perfect fit. Dare I say probably one of the more impressive things I've knit to date.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5493255548/" title="finally complete! by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5098/5493255548_9c5747a419.jpg" width="358" height="500" alt="finally complete!" /></a><br /><br />Fair Isle does seem to elevate a project to "difficult looking" doesn't it? I mean the reality is that it's not and it's simply straight knitting, so I would definitely encourage anyone afraid of trying it to give it a go. There are lots of smaller colour-work patterns out there that you can start off with.<br /><br />I liked these mitts so much that I've already cast-on for a second of Betsy's patterns, and shocker, it's a cowl:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5490397568/" title="stem and leaf cowl by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5018/5490397568_3b51f02abc.jpg" width="346" height="500" alt="stem and leaf cowl" /></a><br /><br />She has some very cute patterns that you can get on her etsy page: <a href= http://www.etsy.com/shop/elf518>Good egg</a>.Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-50955741416782848432011-02-16T12:32:00.000-08:002011-11-04T13:48:51.771-07:00Dude CowlsTime for my favourite topic: cowls!<br /><br />Only this time the cowls in question are not for me, but for my significant other...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5394503164/" title="stripey cowl by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5251/5394503164_044dc126e6.jpg" width="440" height="273" alt="stripey cowl" /></a><br /><br />No pattern to speak of...I think I cast on 100 stitches, started and ended in a 1X1 rib that sandwiched the rest of the cowl in stockinette. I increased a bit in the stockinette for a little more floppiness, but then decreased again for the last bit of ribbing. I ran out of the darker grey, otherwise I probably would have made sure to end on the same coloured striping.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5394495088/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5219/5394495088_38d776ba78.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="" /></a><br /><br />I love this simplicity of this, and have a feeling I will likely be getting more wear out of it than the hubby. The yarn's beautiful and has been in my stash for ages... Fable handknit's <a href= http://fable.hitechemall.com/shop/pure_baby_alpaca.htm>pure baby alpaca</a>.<br /><br />It's funny, Nathaniel is not really what I consider to be a "flashy guy", he really is a very conservative dresser, despite being in a number of garage/punk/stoner rock sorta bands...but I'd say his overall aesthetic is a bit more uh <em>undertones</em>:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXaHWUV1AeGp_bJwVypXWmeTYMxpCeuoKzHWN7SbuHrcvlG51JWfQlfHherawuLbOnG3qjOSQbu8Go8NcIlZ4YjbfQnFnkl4Z7LABzXYDY_YHGwnb3ikTfWHzN1bZ4hibsTWfa/s1600/undertones328.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 328px; height: 337px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXaHWUV1AeGp_bJwVypXWmeTYMxpCeuoKzHWN7SbuHrcvlG51JWfQlfHherawuLbOnG3qjOSQbu8Go8NcIlZ4YjbfQnFnkl4Z7LABzXYDY_YHGwnb3ikTfWHzN1bZ4hibsTWfa/s400/undertones328.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5574392759883013394" /></a><br />(sweaters, collared shirts, argyle... all things non threatening in the power pop persuasion I guess) as oppossed to you know, this:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUi7FLcirpojdaC6tNhA-rdq9MTSLOCfQMFvPR0zOVI8yz2JlI07gpKrxSjBWzxIs51nOBL05Ux87RqTugwHc2T4sIoBLRjutPMD8sylKakJgmDS09d3ZZdmQIuAS2ytXj1Kgd/s1600/ramones.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 294px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUi7FLcirpojdaC6tNhA-rdq9MTSLOCfQMFvPR0zOVI8yz2JlI07gpKrxSjBWzxIs51nOBL05Ux87RqTugwHc2T4sIoBLRjutPMD8sylKakJgmDS09d3ZZdmQIuAS2ytXj1Kgd/s400/ramones.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5574393377611019858" /></a><br />(which as far as punk rock goes is a pretty non threatening look as well I'd venture, sorry Dee Dee)<br /><br />But whatever, my point being that he finds the above cowl "TOO FLASHY" (yes, it is simply grey with stripes and totally boring) but nevertheless I will likely be the only one wearing it...<br /><br />Which is why (yes I am coming to a point here) I was further baffled when he <strong>chose</strong> another cowl pattern for himself out of <a href= http://www.amazon.ca/Cowl-Girls-Necks-Thing-Knit/dp/1936096048>Cowlgirls</a>. Possibly the girliest, flashiest collection of cowl patterns available, and more baffling still, chose the girliest one in the book!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5356753495/" title="just bead it cowl by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5249/5356753495_2789afd6e9.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="just bead it cowl" /></a><br /><br />Truly I have to give him credit for managing to see past all the shiny yarns and accompanying beaded necklace! But really...it's still <em>lace</em>. It doesn't exactly scream "macho".<br /><br />Still he's makin' it work:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5391195971/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5178/5391195971_3c712ca97f.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="" /></a><br />(seriously it was almost 40 BELOW when I took that picture)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5391214459/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5131/5391214459_32eae4d27a.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="" /></a><br /><br />I used a Cascade 220 superwash to make it (and obviously omitted the beaded "necklace"). I had to knit about 5 more sections of the final pattern repeat to make it long enough for him.<br /><br />I think he likes it because it's a bit of an barbell shape that is looser on the bottom...it will stay tight up around his face and keep him warm without falling down and the benefit of the lace is that he can keep it on his nose but still breathe through the "holes" as he calls them.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5391195965/" title="mort? by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5053/5391195965_c64008a801.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="mort?" /></a><br /><br />Kind of a smart choice in the end--Who'd a thunk it? (not me, clearly).Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-6192996348397562552011-02-08T11:41:00.000-08:002011-02-08T12:57:05.214-08:00old yarns, new F.O'sGeez looks like I'm averaging about a post a month these days...that can't be good.<br /><br />What is good though? This scarf:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5411761917/" title="Bertie scarf by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4151/5411761917_2ec8dd37a7.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="Bertie scarf" /></a><br /><br />free pattern: <a href= http://www.hauntedyarns.com/blog/free-patterns/>Bertie scarf</a> by Kate Blackburn<br />yarn: 3 balls of Rowan <a href= http://www.knitrowan.com/patterns/The-Tapestry-Collection.aspx>Tapestry</a> (70% wool/30% soy) in "antique" (I think it's discontinued now)<br />needles: 4.5mm<br />mods: no beads, knit to about 70 inches<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5391195953/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5259/5391195953_047cce6422.jpg" width="354" height="500" alt="" /></a><br /><br />I'm kind of obsessed with this F.O right now. I think it's one of the nicest things I've knit in a while, and it's been so long since I've made anything with a bit of colour (muted colour, granted) let alone "varigated" for myself.<br /><br />The yarn's been in my stash for a long time, in fact it was one of the first decent yarns I bought when I first started knitting so I'm sure it's been in my stash for at least 5 or 6 years now. It is actually somewhat of a relief to have <em>finally</em> used it up. (Though full disclosure: I still have another 5 balls of it in a different colour that I also need to find something to do with!)<br /><br />Years ago I made a <a href= http://recklessglue.blogspot.com/2007/07/clapotis-redux.html>half-clapotis</a> out of it, but found it too small so I never really wore it and subsequently gifted it shortly thereafter.<br /><br />The Bertie scarf has kind of a similar aesthetic to the Clapotis (but no dropped stitches) and I was hell-bent on using up every ounce of it which brought this bad boy to a whopping <em>70</em> inches.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5411761911/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5218/5411761911_0f7eb4c484.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="" /></a><br /><br />I tried to block it out as wide as possible, othewise it might have been a lot longer still. It really did block out gorgeously, and I now have a real sense of stash-busting satisfaction!<br /><br />In other knit-news, I know that I repeatedly seem to be saying "I am not a toy knitter", but for some reason one always manages to squeak it's way out.<br /><br />(Though this one was actually for a grown-ass 40-something Scottish dude, so I'm not sure what possessed me...)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5391195929/" title="Nessie! by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5254/5391195929_3076df0bb9.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="Nessie!" /></a><br /><br />pattern: <a href = http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/loch-ness-monster>Loch Ness Monster</a> by Hansi Singh<br />yarn: more stash-busted patons classic in "Dark Olive" and some other kind of green for her tummy<br />needles: 4.5mm?<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5391195921/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5178/5391195921_3c00d18bbf.jpg" width="420" height="253" alt="" /></a><br /><em>(I think I may have over-stuffed her a bit!)</em><br /><br />The Scottish dude in question is my co-worker Roddy who had a big Inventory project coming up that I decided he needed a wee mascot for. Hence, Inventory-Nessie was born! She lives comfortably at his desk now so I can still visit her whenever I want to.<br /><br />I am chomping at the bit right now to start on a few smaller projects but am holding off until this monkey is off my back (or owlie is off my back I guess..)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5391214493/" title="owlie mitts by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5220/5391214493_5ccb9d51a9.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="owlie mitts" /></a><br /><br />It is probably not immediately obvious in these pictures, but there is actually a giant booboo I've made that I didn't notice until I was about halfway done mitt #2. But no matter, it is an excuse for me to re-knit mitt #1 about two sizes down, and I know I will be much much happier with the end result when all is said and done.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5391214471/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5259/5391214471_32eae4d27a.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="" /></a><br /><br />For whatever reason I feel grudgingly devoted to it (even though I appear to be only averaging about three rows a day) and incapable of starting anything new while this one is still on the go.<br /><br />But, I do have MORE cowls to talk about later.<br /><br />Cowls are always the exception.Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-13478227225311363032011-01-11T11:18:00.001-08:002011-01-14T13:12:40.607-08:00Favourite gift knitsSoooo, I didn't do a lot of gift knitting this year. In fact substanially less than I had <em>planned</em> to do. (Though isn't that always the way?)<br /><br />But I thought I'd take a minute to comment on all my "last-minute" Xmas knitting and what I consider to be solid/go-to gift patterns.<br /><br />Quite literally I finished knitting this hat for my sister-in-law on Christmas eve. I managed to snap a couple quick pictures of it before adding it to her gift on Xmas day...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5325155695/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5209/5325155695_669c2ae522.jpg" width="440" height="273" alt="" /></a><br /><br />pattern: <a href= http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/star-crossed-slouchy-beret>Star Crossed slouchy beret</a> by Natalie Larson<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5325155719/" title="star crossed by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5121/5325155719_4456751ef9.jpg" width="450" height="281" alt="star crossed" /></a><br /><br />For starters, this pattern is gloriously FREE...and it looks like almost 7000 people on ravelry have knit it. Surely 7000 people can't be wrong!<br /><br />I've knit it <a href= http://recklessglue.blogspot.com/2008/09/baby-blue-is-for-blondes.html>once before</a> in Malabrigo with great results (though it was a little on the large size) and this latest one I knit in Patons Classic, and the size was pretty much bang on how I wanted it to be.<br /><br />It goes up fast on larger needles, has enough subtle cables that keep it interesting looking (as well as keeping the knitting itself interesting) and as far as I can tell looks totally cute on everyone! Why I haven't knit one of these for myself yet I simply do not understand. I will have to rectify that soon!<br /><br />And another go-to hat pattern that I seem to knit a lot:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5325208499/" title="Seaman's cap by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5242/5325208499_82ccd01641.jpg" width="450" height="272" alt="Seaman's cap" /></a><br /><br />The <a href= http://www.needlebeetle.com/free/seacap.htm>Seaman's cap</a> from needlebeetle. (Also knit here in Patons Classic)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5325208477/" title="Nat models Colin's hat for me by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5001/5325208477_317ec6bbb9.jpg" width="425" height="260" alt="Nat models Colin's hat for me" /></a><br /><br />This was one of the first "real" things I ever knit (and by that I mean something other than a scarf...knitting in the round and decreasing seemed so <em>complicated</em> at the time, I remember having my mom help me with the whole "DPN" issue) She was the one that actually came across this pattern (it's free as well), and no joke I think she's probably knit HUNDREDS of them at this point.<br /><br />She does a lot of charity knitting and I remember one year she had---seriously-- a <em>garbage bag </em>full of these hats that she was donating. She loves this pattern, and I have to say, I agree with her. It looks good on both men and women, and is just a great basic & classic design. <br /><br />Also on my hot list for gift-giving (and again, a freebie)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5216177749/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4084/5216177749_553ffbb1c7.jpg" width="445" height="283" alt="" /></a><br /><br />is the <a href= http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/textured-shawl-recipe>textured shawl recipe</a><br /><br />I knit this <a href= http://recklessglue.blogspot.com/2009/11/let-giftin-begin.html>last year</a> for my gran-in-law and the second I mailed it out knew I wanted one for myself, so knit this one a couple months back in Sublime's cashmere merino silk DK.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5216177775/" title="textured shawl by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5003/5216177775_a1fdc30f0c.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="textured shawl" /></a><br /><br />I wasn't quite as jazzed with how this one turned out versus the first one I knit, so I might actually try it again in another yarn.<br /><br />There is just something about this pattern that makes you feel like it's knitting up fast. Maybe that's true of all shawls (when you start at the smallest point and go up from there I guess that's a given). It's not really until the last few rows that it starts to feel like a slog, but by then you're almost done and the end is in sight so you seem to just be automatically propelling yourself forward to completion. <br /><br />Though likely maybe the same's not true if you were knitting a more complicated lace-weight shawl? Maybe I should try that some time and see.<br /><br />Last week for the first time in a long time I had to consult <a href= http://www.knittinghelp.com/videos/knitting-tips>knittinghelp.com</a>. There was an abbreviation in a pattern I'm working on that I haven't come across before (yes this still happens!) and it dawned on me how much I owe to that particular website.<br /><br />Apart from the fundamentals of knitting that I gleaned from my mother many many years ago (and promptly forgot/lost interest in I might add), I really attribute most of my beginner learnings about knitting to that website. It really is insane how there's a tutorial for virtually anything you might want online, and if you <em>are</em> a beginning knitter I would encourage you to check it out. <br /><br />Even if you're not a new knitter you might be surprised about a tidbit here or there that you might pick up on that site. It dawned on me while I was on there that as "experienced" I am now as a knitter, I kind of feel like I've stalled out a bit...I haven't <em>really</em> learned anything "new" in some time. I don't know if that's because I wimp out or I play it safe and only stick to what I know (though I never let anything complicated stop me, I just knit what I'm interested in regardless of what it is, so maybe that's not it).<br /><br />I'm not somebody who really has a lot of friends that knit (there are definitely some co-workers that do, but we don't knit together per se) nor do I attend any kind of SnB (I have yet to find one that really works for my schedule) so I'm feeling a bit like I'm not on a continuous learning track with knitting like I should be --or maybe I am and I just don't know it.<br /><br />Whatever the case, sometimes the most obvious little tidbits seem to allude me and then when I do come across them they just blow me away in the why-the-hell-didn't-I-think-of-this-myself? manner. <br /><br />I recently had one of those "knitting tip" type moments that I'd like to share.<br /><br />At this point I can't even remember whose blog or where I found this tip so apologies for that.<br /><br />I knit a lot of things in the round --cowls, hats etc. as a lot of you do. You cast on, you join your stitches and you follow the pattern from there. My "join" has always been <em>fine</em>, but I was always mindful of tightening or fixing it on the next row/round, or being sure to fix it up at the end when I was weaving in loose ends etc. I never really worried about it, but definitely when I first started knitting I hated how that looked.<br /><br />The tip I gleaned for knitting in the round was this: Cast on one extra stitch than the pattern calls for. When you finish casting on and are about to join in the round, move that last stitch over to your left needle first and then knit your first two stitches together with the right needle as usual (English style knitting I mean...). Essentially your last stitch becomes your first and you have a PERFECT join with the right amount of cast on stitches again.<br /><br />I'm sure this is an elemental "no duh" moment for a lot of you, but man this tip blew my mind and has essentially become a given for me ever since.<br /><br />Ok, I will stop talking now.Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-33837383813350961692011-01-05T17:17:00.000-08:002011-01-05T17:43:46.848-08:00requisite 2010 retrospective<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5328640224/" title="2010 knits by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5050/5328640224_4507b4a54e.jpg" width="286" height="500" alt="2010 knits" /></a><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">(click on the mosaic for links to all of these items)</span><br /><br />You know...I actually thought I hadn't really knit that much last year. But I guess the mosaic doesn't lie. Still, it's not exactly <span style="font-style:italic;">epic.</span><br /><br />And I've actually got three or four things from 2010 that I still need to post about. Ugh, Hopefully I can get to that this week!<br /><br />Knitting aside, it was a hell of a year for me...major ups and downs, so I'm hoping 2011 will be a much more <span style="font-style:italic;">relaxed </span>year (knocks wood).<br /><br />Seems I was smart enough last year not to make any knitting-related resolutions--though I still have yet to learn how to crochet. And while I've made some serious advances in de-stashing there's a long way to go (not to mention the joy of yarn shopping being sucked out of that whole process).<br /><br />I do however think as I look at that mosaic that my days of sweater knitting for myself are on the wane. I really just do not wear any of them. Still I would never rule it out...a must knit will no doubt catch my eye eventually.<br /><br />I'm also struck by the colour palate I chose. I think of myself as always knitting in a sea of neutrals--and there's definitely a lot of that there, but there's a lot of colour too. It's kind of making me feel less guilty about my usual neutralness--apparently I accessorize in colour!<br /><br />So there you have it: my 2010 in knits!Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-23507427067275793852010-12-24T07:53:00.000-08:002010-12-24T09:26:25.095-08:00Happy Holidays!Well, here's to me squeezing in one more post before Xmas and taking a stab at making it somewhat festive!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5275468319/" title="amanita muscaria? by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5050/5275468319_f88f9e0380.jpg" width="450" height="291" alt="amanita muscaria?" /></a><br /><br />I needed a last minute ornament for a tree decorating party and stumbled upon <a href= http://beewee.net/wordpress/?p=104#more-104>this</a> pattern from <a href= http://beewee.net/>beewee</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5275468265/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5121/5275468265_f2f8830a29.jpg" width="430" height="261" alt="" /></a><br /><br />SO cute/fun/fast and before I knew it I had five of them knit...a couple for my tree and a couple extras to give away!.<br /><br />I basically just used scrap yarn...The white is Patons Classic Wool, and the red is Rowan Kid Classic. I cut the little white spots out of felt and just fabric glued them on. They would be even cuter with needle-felted roving I'm sure.<br /><br />The great thing about this pattern is that it's knit all in one piece and you just sort of stuff it as you go. Pull the yarn through the top down to the bottom, tie it in a knot and cram in inside so you don't really have to worry about any seaming and it's done lickety split with super cute results.<br /><br />I also used the same yarn combo for another fun ornament:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5275427551/" title="cherries by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5121/5275427551_30ac4f8853.jpg" width="330" height="500" alt="cherries" /></a><br /><br />pattern: <a href= http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/cherry-brooch-pin-decoration-or-toy>Cherry brooch</a> by Amanda Berry from Fluff and Fuzz.<br /><br />You should check her out on <a href= http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/sources/fluff--fuzz/patterns>ravelry</a>, she really has some of THE cutest knit toy patterns available (though this one is gloriously free) and very well-written.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5275397525/" title="cherries by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5128/5275397525_b040001a35.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="cherries" /></a><br /><br />Not really sure what I'm going to do with them yet, but I will probably make some much smaller ones in future as brooches. (Perhaps something a little less <em>testicle </em>sized next time eh?).<br /><br />And just so you're not thinking it's only been miniature knits coming off the needles these days, my <a href= http://www.purlbee.com/striped-cardigan/>Treeline Striped cardigan</a> is finally done!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5275397457/" title="treeline striped cardigan by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5288/5275397457_0f262550e4.jpg" width="322" height="450" alt="treeline striped cardigan" /></a><br /><br />And I really like it (though have to say I don't think it's the most flattering thing --horizontal stripes, go figure...). <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5275397449/" title="treeline striped cardigan by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5008/5275397449_fa480f2bbe.jpg" width="299" height="450" alt="treeline striped cardigan" /></a><br /><br />I knit the sleeves for this sweater probably about ten months ago (<a href= http://recklessglue.blogspot.com/2010/02/cowl-explosion.html>you may remember</a> I had some issues with the sleeves), and then FINALLY picked it back up to finish off the rest last month. <br /><br />I know a lot of people like to knit the sleeves first for sweaters but I've never really understood that, always preferring to get the biggest piece out of the way before anything else (i.e usually the back) but I have to say, because the pattern called for it that way, I knit the sleeves first and psychologically it did really seem to make a difference. (Or maybe it was my ten month lapse that made the difference?) cause once I got into the body of this sweater it just seemed to fly off the needles.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5275397479/" title="treeline striped cardigan by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5123/5275397479_157385b918.jpg" width="320" height="500" alt="treeline striped cardigan" /></a><br /><br />Now that said...this pattern was RIDDLED with errors. Too many to even get into here, so if you're thinking about knitting it I've written quite a few notes about it on my ravelry page for this F.O. You can find that <a href= http://www.ravelry.com/projects/jadeblade/treeline-striped-cardigan>HERE</a>, hopefully it will help someone out. God knows I was ready to tear my hair out at a couple of points, but once you muddle through it all works out in the end.<br /><br />I knit this using (once again...) Patons Classic Merino wool (in black and grey). I have a lot of Patons in the stash right now that I'm trying to get through. Don't get me wrong, I like it, (the price and yardage can't be beat) but I'm definitely getting tired of knitting with it lately. I'm craving something fancy again (but am TRYING to resist...)<br /><br />Also knit with more black Patons:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5275427689/" title="Olive hat by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5242/5275427689_342c278e07.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="Olive hat" /></a><br /><br />The <a href= http://www.patonsyarns.com/patternbook.php?PBS=500864>Olive Hat</a> from the Patons "Fall in Love" booklet.<br /><br />I was planning to gift this to my sister in law, but have subsequently moved on to something else instead. When I first saw the picture of it:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSb1xF4DEpJ7zLiiDsG7roeOb3YmtloQtNn59Eg_H0qcDN7Q0QvFCTAbptQy3JxP2935U2tNb6xq7TUtOMDYhUg7pWaO2WetaR7MpQJ6Sc6JbNaVNcXmCkT9ia5xUHNPOH12AA/s1600/OliveCape_Hat_B_medium2.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 261px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSb1xF4DEpJ7zLiiDsG7roeOb3YmtloQtNn59Eg_H0qcDN7Q0QvFCTAbptQy3JxP2935U2tNb6xq7TUtOMDYhUg7pWaO2WetaR7MpQJ6Sc6JbNaVNcXmCkT9ia5xUHNPOH12AA/s400/OliveCape_Hat_B_medium2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5554295603967994002" /></a><br /><br />I was <em>convinced</em> it was cabled. Turns out it's a sea of eyelets, so not exactly the <em>warmest</em> hat to gift to someone. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5275427589/" title="olive hat by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5123/5275427589_09b71268dc.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="olive hat" /></a><br /><br />It's also knit flat which I found a bit weird. I'm not sure I've ever knit a hat flat before. The seam up the back is pretty invisible, but I still know it's there and it bugs me. I would definitely opt to knit this in the round the next time.<br /><br />Nevertheless it's kind of become my go-to hat lately, so I shouldn't complain!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5275427677/" title="Olive hat by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5089/5275427677_6b3f4c0faa.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="Olive hat" /></a><br /><br />So there you have it --can't believe I managed to cram so much into one post on Xmas eve!<br /><br />I hope everyone has an amazing Holiday season--all the best to you and yours!<br />xo CaraReckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-55986479530540707282010-12-13T07:35:00.000-08:002010-12-14T06:01:33.038-08:00RooThis is my friend Marnie's 3 year old daughter, Stevie:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7yaulyshlUs9OJ0dWlIjdx_tYCgrWAPit_-pcLKnQHGrtmI1XI8fBDo47P6gHlbXcG4d1fmWFGndQnNIDZgKW2-fOxO8Aow9NWqxBNJu8W6Ol81-SkpY8Zl2yE7c12plMpKf1/s1600/stevie3.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 259px; height: 374px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7yaulyshlUs9OJ0dWlIjdx_tYCgrWAPit_-pcLKnQHGrtmI1XI8fBDo47P6gHlbXcG4d1fmWFGndQnNIDZgKW2-fOxO8Aow9NWqxBNJu8W6Ol81-SkpY8Zl2yE7c12plMpKf1/s400/stevie3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5550194460162740130" /></a><br /><em>(thank you Marnie for taking these pictures for me!)</em><br /><br />pattern: <a href= http://twistcollective.com/collection/index.php/component/content/article/71-summer-2009/365-roo-by-kate-gilbert>Roo</a> by Kate Gilbert (I find Stevie even kind of looks like the girl in the pattern photos!)<br />yarn: Patons Classic Merino in Old Gold (this was discontinued and all went on sale a while back so I bought a boatload of it!)<br />needles: 4.5 mm<br />size: 22"<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7pfKSMtrTQ0CNfIdFv34K5YcGLILP5WmDWJNlsZwxEdpw0Z-2Z4W7UReEaaM3qQAyeVhQWB1-_Q6a9TebSOidTFZ0DQu_ZxKWh3_FB6K0NTmcfrMT9gR5pHvI-XAdnz0_ZRCH/s1600/stevie2.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 250px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7pfKSMtrTQ0CNfIdFv34K5YcGLILP5WmDWJNlsZwxEdpw0Z-2Z4W7UReEaaM3qQAyeVhQWB1-_Q6a9TebSOidTFZ0DQu_ZxKWh3_FB6K0NTmcfrMT9gR5pHvI-XAdnz0_ZRCH/s400/stevie2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5550195984575875426" /></a><br /><br />She's a cutie --of that there is no doubt! But she's three...in retrospect I likely should have made her the 24" size, cuz it looks like it <em>just</em> fits her. (I guess it's a good thing wool is so stretchy, and sometimes around that age they start to stretch and lose their little kid bellies, so who knows she may still get some wear out of it next year). But then what the hell do I know about kids?--how to knit for them, but that's pretty much it...<br /><br />I love all of Kate Gilbert's patterns, they seem to be very well written, but are easy to follow even though the finished results often look complicated (Sunrise Circle jacket anyone? Clapotis?) She seems to have a serious brain for designing interesting knits.<br /><br />This one is no exception. I love the finished results--it has a sophistication you don't often see in kids patterns.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilMuQRT-jeBufHVYnhGVv5vwTClTueGvP8yS8oVDDPSGHoe1zZ3eBSBjU9BlZJBM8VdfaoUWiJrl19GZfZG0zztyH0SA5WAggxhQ_6xS9gM0eoY9k-Rczmga4eqeMv5KwRwib3/s1600/stevie4.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 255px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilMuQRT-jeBufHVYnhGVv5vwTClTueGvP8yS8oVDDPSGHoe1zZ3eBSBjU9BlZJBM8VdfaoUWiJrl19GZfZG0zztyH0SA5WAggxhQ_6xS9gM0eoY9k-Rczmga4eqeMv5KwRwib3/s400/stevie4.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5550197450947674610" /></a><br /><br />Looking at the pattern and it's 5 or 6 different charts is a bit daunting at first, halfway through I was questionning my sanity in putting that much effort into a kid's knit. I think in future I would definitely have to opt for something with a lot less seaming. Back/front/front/sleeves(both knit flat)/hood...it was a lot of seaming for such a wee thing, but the finished result is worth it I'd say.<br /><br />Also a pain in the ass? The toggles:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5159470733/" title="Roo by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4028/5159470733_a8466bd2e4.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="Roo" /></a><br /><br />In the pattern she kind of suggests "gluing" the leather triangles to it, but I was leery of doing that. Instead I bought leather shoelaces and hammered holes through the ends so that I could sew them on, and then I also had to hole-punch the leather triangles in order to sew them on as well. The result looked good and is super sturdy, but again possibly more effort than it should have meritted. I would likely just opt for regular button holes/buttons were I to do it again.<br /><br />And because I've been going a bit "Patons crazy" lately, MORE felted sliippers:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5216194151/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4113/5216194151_1d5713e8bd.jpg" width="440" height="273" alt="" /></a><br /><em>though actually those ones were knit using cascade 220 I think</em><br /><br />But I did another pair in Old Gold, and these teal-y ones,<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5216194183/" title="4 pairs down! by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5007/5216194183_5867201ddb.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="4 pairs down!" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5216177863/" title="slipperz by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5205/5216177863_87bfe6e2b4.jpg" width="460" height="274" alt="slipperz" /></a><br /><br />I used some puffy paint in an effort to make a bit of a non-stick bottom on them, but it didn't really work. It looks cute but they are just as slippy I'd say, so I wouldn't recommend it.<br /><br />Such a great stash-busting pattern (and fast gift) that I know I will be going back to it again and again. You can find the pattern for the French press felted slippers <a href= http://frenchpressknits.blogspot.com/p/shop.html>HERE</a>.Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-56949021091324060902010-12-07T12:32:00.000-08:002010-12-08T06:06:01.088-08:00In which a bunch of hats got knit...Apologies for my long absence! There's been a few hats lately:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5137358621/" title="love that swirl! by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4144/5137358621_c5f1bd5f58.jpg" width="450" height="276" alt="love that swirl!" /></a><br /><br />Both of those hats are the same pattern --the Noro <a href= http://filambulle.blogspot.com/2007/04/my-noro-hat-free-form-recipe.html>Spiral one skein hat</a> in the same yarn, Noro <a href= http://www.theknittinggarden.com/no-kureyon.htm>Kureyon</a>, but in two different colourways (#128 & #51 respectively).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5159470751/" title="Noro spiral hat by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4066/5159470751_c72c991c16.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="Noro spiral hat" /></a><br /><br /><br />It's amazing how two different colourways can produce such different results!<br /><br />Personally I'm not much of a Noro fan...I find it all kind of scratchy, and those crazy colours are just not for me (I know, I know, I'm sure there is something in their repertoire I'd die for, but nothing that I've come across locally so far). When I first started getting into this whole knitting/blogging about knitting thang it really seemed like everywhere I looked people were all "Noro this, Noro that", so it was one of the first yarns I purchased and *had to* try, but in the end I learned pretty quickly that I'd probably never buy it again.<br /><br />Fast forward to a few weeks ago and a friend who said "I have some yarn, you want it?" and the rest is history...Noro in my possesion once again. (She also gave me one sock and the rest of it's yarn, so I completed the second sock for her --the difference in gauge between the two was nothing short of hilarious).<br /><br />So, if you're like me and you have a random ball of Noro kicking around (or insert other varigated yarn from the stash here)this just might be the perfect pattern for it--simple, fast and a great way to show off those changing colours. I gifted the first one back to her and she seems pretty pleased with it.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5137358589/" title="one sekin Noro hat by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4026/5137358589_51c41e7d5a.jpg" width="450" height="298" alt="one sekin Noro hat" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5137358563/" title="one skin hat by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1249/5137358563_8c17a8e6c6.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="one skin hat" /></a><br /><br />The other one however remains in my "gift box" anticipating someone who might like it. I like it too, but the colours are much more masculine and sometimes the problem with Noro (especially in a one-ball situation) is which end to start at. I kind of feel like I might have liked the colours here going in the opposite direction (with the grey on top...)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5159470763/" title="Noro hat by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4020/5159470763_b9e3217f3e.jpg" width="440" height="287" alt="Noro hat" /></a><br /><br />No matter, it's all good (and free!) so I can't complain---if I really cared I would be less lazy and actually start over and knit it in the opposite direction.<br /><br />Another totes adorbs hat pattern:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5216177835/" title="from Norway with love by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5004/5216177835_f9f5811313.jpg" width="440" height="284" alt="from Norway with love" /></a><br /><br />pattern: <a href= http://www.pickles.no/from-norway-with-love-winter/>From Norway with love</a> hat from Pickles<br />yarn: Rowan <a href= http://www.knitrowan.com/yarns/cashsoft-dk.aspx>Cashsoft DK</a> (again this is yarn that has been in my stash for about 5 years now so I am glad to finally get to use it --and it's beautiful)--though I'm actually not sure if it's a colour that even exists anymore. I also used some leftover Misti Alpaca Worsted for the hearts.<br />needles: 4.5mm?<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5216177821/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4086/5216177821_0ede1be1af.jpg" width="430" height="290" alt="" /></a><br /><br />You can see more details about this on my ravelry projects page, but essentially I knit one less row of hearts because I decided to add an extra row between each row of hearts, was using larger needles and yarn all in an effort to get a somewhat slouchier hat....not sure if I'm totally pleased with the results (it's still too big but will be gifted to someone with a bigger head!) and definitely plan to knit it again.<br /><br /> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5216177797/" title="Untitled by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5127/5216177797_49aac706d7.jpg" width="328" height="500" alt="" /></a> <br /><br />I think next go-round I will probably go for something a little more colourful (at least in the hearts...) and I would maybe cast on less ribbing. Try as I might I think my intarsia skills are still a little tighter than I'd like them to be (though this hat is unblocked, don't know if that would make the difference).<br /><br />I've cast on for a couple other hats as well for Xmas presents, so I feel like there's lots of little bits of knitting happening right now. It always kind of feels that way right before the holidays though. But I feel vaguely less guilty about spending my evenings off knitting when there seems to be so much more holiday socializing already under way.<br /><br />Let the December bloat begin!Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-21540257399682328522010-11-02T05:56:00.000-07:002010-11-05T08:40:26.624-07:00and speaking of fringe...Super dupes cute scarf pattern from Twinkle:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5069974915/" title="Twinkle scarf by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4106/5069974915_b32a155e84.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="Twinkle scarf" /></a><br /><br />pattern: Boysenberry scarf from Twinkle's <a href= http://www.amazon.ca/Twinkles-Weekend-Knits-Designs-Getaways/dp/0307346137>weekend knits</a><br />yarn: Patons Classic <a href= http://www.patonsyarns.com/product.php?LGC=classicwoolroving>Roving</a> in "Natural" (I think...)<br />needles: US #17<br />mods: aditional garter stich rows were knit -- another 30 rows<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5137913952/" title="boysenberry scarf by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4062/5137913952_e907b7c36c.jpg" width="315" height="500" alt="boysenberry scarf" /></a><br /><br />For a while there I was koo-koo for all things Twinkle, but I quickly grew to realize that an uber chunky knit was maybe not the best for my body type (still I will probably be first in line again when she comes out with a new book!). I kept at it though...big needles and big yarn and cranking out an uber fast sweater is pretty freakin' satisfying. Better to stick with accesories here I think though then go out of my way to look like a linebacker every day if I can avoid it.<br /><br />The yarn was a gift from super fabulous <a href= http://knitteroo.blogspot.com/>Miss Muffy</a> last Christmas and it's first incarnation: the <a href= http://recklessglue.blogspot.com/2010/09/neck-fail.html>Mobius cowl</a> was a bit of a fail, so I'm happy to have found a pattern it's really working with.<br /><br />It's a smaller yarn than the Twinkle soft chunky so I knit about another 30 or so rows to the length, and left the width as is. In retrospect I could have easily knit an additional 60 rows---I'd probably like it to be a bit longer still and may even tear back to do so. The Patons roving has no doubt made for a lighter/airier version of this scarf, which is probably a good thing given it's overall size.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5069974915/" title="Twinkle scarf by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4106/5069974915_b32a155e84.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="Twinkle scarf" /></a><br /><em>gotta love those "warts"!</em><br /><br />Anyway I'm pretty happy with this on all points --it looks good, feels good, and even better was a super fast knit (a couple hours maybe?) the most time consuming was probably tying on the fringe at the end.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/4939618253/" title="boysenberry scarf by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4140/4939618253_31b0a41681.jpg" width="450" height="283" alt="boysenberry scarf" /></a><br /><br />And it's neutral colour probably means it will see a lot of wear!Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-50650783154196236802010-10-30T08:08:00.000-07:002010-10-30T08:26:07.290-07:00Phildar loveI was just snooping around on the Phildar website and thought I'd share some cute numbers that caught my eye...<br /><br />I've always been a bit of a fringe person (as in "I like fringe" not "I am on the fringe"), and just when I thought my love of fringe was on the wane I spotted these two:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCPU7Nq8usar9wwYN1eRewEhxgwe1i9Lm2YCXpjqMhWqX5DYs1-5hiTHhbBLExsQY73nsiM1uDKAOdJLJbVv-btEM1_pJWRC3f6SKYg8JHZtbpuw67lh8-BWfVFgttFFK04EFZ/s1600/222036_Z1.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 370px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCPU7Nq8usar9wwYN1eRewEhxgwe1i9Lm2YCXpjqMhWqX5DYs1-5hiTHhbBLExsQY73nsiM1uDKAOdJLJbVv-btEM1_pJWRC3f6SKYg8JHZtbpuw67lh8-BWfVFgttFFK04EFZ/s400/222036_Z1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5533856898645087490" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3N_VXrMhvnrBtnCA36mkqs38W-KuLmKfkTMtExXSRplCbxwKEitXhAaVEsafJzJt1QoNkWG6JtCxHf5aSz3isdq8T2W7Ad4dNlMDAET0GPzFkLJMVZFzmIAhwUnOHM-h_bif3/s1600/222455_Z1.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 370px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3N_VXrMhvnrBtnCA36mkqs38W-KuLmKfkTMtExXSRplCbxwKEitXhAaVEsafJzJt1QoNkWG6JtCxHf5aSz3isdq8T2W7Ad4dNlMDAET0GPzFkLJMVZFzmIAhwUnOHM-h_bif3/s400/222455_Z1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5533857068479843394" /></a><br /><br />Though I think those would both be easy enough to adapt, so I might have to re-visit some fringe patterns already in my possesion.<br /><br />Also in love with:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSIwSSAOB2aaq-_hxI8s6-z6ossXcoURlxQoePsrYKhteJleFEKKdO8dd5ltG2cGCicOJXuuBe38WQaec1jr6rNBaVFmTNqsV40INTcFxGJ2rGZ3pbelAks-x3t0FJ8JVzo_uZ/s1600/222500_Z1.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 370px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSIwSSAOB2aaq-_hxI8s6-z6ossXcoURlxQoePsrYKhteJleFEKKdO8dd5ltG2cGCicOJXuuBe38WQaec1jr6rNBaVFmTNqsV40INTcFxGJ2rGZ3pbelAks-x3t0FJ8JVzo_uZ/s400/222500_Z1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5533857488551263970" /></a><br /><br />Which I suppose could be considered vaguely fringe-y as well. And note: This is the only pattern of these here that has an English translation avaliable on their website right now. <br /><br />And I've always had a soft spot for anything miltary or nautical-inspired...lots of patterns for that kind of stuff on Phildar right now too.<br /><br />Also presently salivating over this:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBDhu9Q-DxvTMAvVtyDuM5HVqlXEpVz3n-otAUIDKWjk93Lp6eXApAYv7H-2MBZ_QK4kSbgwVJLkOxV8dv1KqH9RZC7x-D1kg_QMN7k8aUOK-hnqiTohbuw9j888_PmEzKzTYJ/s1600/221789_Z1.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 370px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBDhu9Q-DxvTMAvVtyDuM5HVqlXEpVz3n-otAUIDKWjk93Lp6eXApAYv7H-2MBZ_QK4kSbgwVJLkOxV8dv1KqH9RZC7x-D1kg_QMN7k8aUOK-hnqiTohbuw9j888_PmEzKzTYJ/s400/221789_Z1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5533858268196057554" /></a><br /><br /><br />and this:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaK188dPS-BmtwXfC-9OsxuBio8QB9xz63-4bhV7Z-MODOTjPDiVq36biv5ZsT33KRI-VFOMYFHQNcbIiVP9evzOXCfO5KHVPJn-1AQnQOSTxG5os3LepKuPUmh7PoBCgStn1b/s1600/222063_Z1.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 370px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaK188dPS-BmtwXfC-9OsxuBio8QB9xz63-4bhV7Z-MODOTjPDiVq36biv5ZsT33KRI-VFOMYFHQNcbIiVP9evzOXCfO5KHVPJn-1AQnQOSTxG5os3LepKuPUmh7PoBCgStn1b/s400/222063_Z1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5533858495391182770" /></a><br /><br /><br />I'm contemplating the dainty-ness of this next one, because I know it would probably be easy enough to bang out. I think it's time I veered away from cowls for a little while and into shawl territory again. There's a lot of really nice non-grandma-y patterns out these days.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9w1OvWhPTnsnaxPZVcpEhoMRXfPZAvL59Fr4Q2fPQaO7aJqMuHB6Ak_sby1k5D3NPre14aa2t31RENSWIxIk_-x3odVM94nxHAsTagiSMufYZJdK98_wnlJyT97tJlNAMJftQ/s1600/222460_Z1.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 370px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9w1OvWhPTnsnaxPZVcpEhoMRXfPZAvL59Fr4Q2fPQaO7aJqMuHB6Ak_sby1k5D3NPre14aa2t31RENSWIxIk_-x3odVM94nxHAsTagiSMufYZJdK98_wnlJyT97tJlNAMJftQ/s400/222460_Z1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5533859011075144786" /></a><br /><br />That's it! I am well behind on taking pictures of things lately and have already been waylaid by Christmas knitting. In the past few weeks I've managed to crank out three cowls, three pairs of slippers AND a pair of socks for a co-worker...most of which has just felt like a slog (and I'm no where near done), so I am looking forward to getting back to more knitting of the personal/selfish variety!Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20704287.post-73427372422260648252010-10-15T06:30:00.000-07:002010-10-15T08:21:00.602-07:00Let's Neck!Welcome to fall...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5081646243/" title="burberry inspired cowl by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4085/5081646243_bd5beb337c.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="burberry inspired cowl" /></a><br /><br />pattern: <a href= http://www.thegartergirl.com/2009/12/04/free-knitting-pattern-burberry-inspired-cowl-neck-scarf/>Burberry inspired cowl</a> (I think I only did the four repeats that this pattern calls for)<br />yarn: Mirasol Sulka in "Cinnamon" (4 skeins)<br />needles: US 10.5<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5081646213/" title="IMG_8556 by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4051/5081646213_c6860208e7.jpg" width="353" height="500" alt="IMG_8556" /></a><br /><br />I love it when knitters come up with their own patterns for 800$ designer items...us common folk like style too dammit! God knows I don't anticiptate owning anything purchased full price from <a href= http://us.burberry.com/home/index.jsp>Burberry</a> in my lifetime.<br /><br />I love this Mirasol Sulka, and it has seen several incarnations of me looking for just the right pattern for it. My husband bought it for me all on his lonesome a couple Xmases ago --just walked into a yarn store and picked out one he liked. (I thought that was pretty good for a dude who knows next to nothing about knitting or yarn...) There was <a href= http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/3230288432/in/set-72157612121488423/>this cowl</a> that never really worked out, but <a href= http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/3230310104/in/set-72157612121488423/>this hat</a> that did. And I still thought I had several skeins of it left when I started knitting the burberry-inspired cowl last month. <br /><br />Turns out I was wrong on that score, and given that it was about two years ago that he got that yarn in the first place I figured there was no way I'd get the same dye lot again...but I did! (maybe no one else was buying it?) I didn't even bother looking for the same dye lot, I was just thankful they hadn't discontinued the colour-- so I grabbed two more, brought 'em home and low and behold --the yarn gods smiled on me!<br /><br />The same LYS had one of my other favourite yarns on sale as well-- Italian made <a href= http://www.ariadneknits.com/yarn/sd/index.html>Lang Silk Dream</a>. So I bought oodles of it (well, oodles for me). This is good news and bad...good news: half price! bad news: probably because it's discontinued :( . Ah well, it's probably time for me to branch out and try something new anyway.<br /><br />That said (and with favourite <em>on sale</em> yarn in hand), I also knit another Eternity scarf...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5017615062/" title="eternity scarf by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4085/5017615062_cd79af4c61.jpg" width="350" height="500" alt="eternity scarf" /></a><br /><br />pattern: <a href= http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/eternity-scarf>Eternity Scarf</a> by Michele Wang<br />needles: 5.5mm<br />yarn: Lang Silk Dream (grey) 3 balls I think?<br /><br />I was kind of bemoaning the last version I knit of this...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/4084337055/" title="Eternity scarf by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3517/4084337055_a64ac1a77f.jpg" width="303" height="500" alt="Eternity scarf" /></a><br /><br />...because I had knit it in a DK weight yarn and I felt like it really wasn't thick enough and wanted to do it over again in an Aran.<br /><br />Turns out I am slightly on the fence about it...I may still like the first one better. I think the Silk Dream is possibly just a bit too stretchy, I can't really wear it in it's "long" format without feeling like it'll be at my knees at the end of the day.<br /><br />I haven't really decided yet if I will tear it out and start over with another yarn or just continue to wear it "doubled-up".<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5017614958/" title="eternity scarf (doubled up) by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4125/5017614958_987b8afbf7.jpg" width="440" height="307" alt="eternity scarf (doubled up)" /></a><br /><br />Which is pretty much exclusively how I wear the first of the first of those that I knit anyway (and I do get a lot of wear out of it), because as you know: I am koo-koo for cowls.<br /><br />In fact my sickness for cowls is starting to get out of hand. So even though I loooove knitting them, I've decided I need to put a hold on any more of them for greedy little me and start busting out a few as Christmas presents for co-workers. (I will keep you posted on whether that gets accomplished--I probably need to do about 5 of them).<br /><br />I think I will be abandoning a lot of personal knitting the next couple months as I scramble to get Christmas presents done ahead of time for once ---I don't want to be having hand cramps as I'm trying to stuff down all that Turkey. Though I do have a couple completed things that I still need to get around to taking pictures of (and posting about) so more to come.<br /><br />I'm so happy it's fall and the need to knit is upon me again --it's a therapy I need right now!<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadeblade/5081646205/" title="super sunny, much squinting by jadeblade, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4133/5081646205_09da576969.jpg" width="500" height="354" alt="super sunny, much squinting" /></a>Reckless Gluehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287746324557333647noreply@blogger.com9