a Quick, but oh, so necessary project....

this is something that's a must-have for our sultry summer.....especially for your HOT coffee. Quick knit and cute, but of course, perfectly silly. I will post again when it's done.

Here ya go, all done:

Crochet purse?

While the "viral" shawl is drying, I've been trying to come up with a crochet purse pattern for Daria/Rayon Corde. I like the stitch and it will have a nice scallop on the front edge of the flap. Maybe only skipping 2 ch instead of 3 on the foundation chain would be better. Needs to be real airy to save on yarn. looks like it might take 3 Daria or 1 Rayon Corde, just like our Market Bag pattern.

I couldn't help it.

I've had to swallow my pride and go ahead and start a Clapotis. I avoided it simply because it was so "viral". I guess I caught the bug, too. I also had to lay it down for some blocking....only 4 drops have been made, but the curliness was bugging me. I am eat up with the Clapotis bug. Can't do anything else....well, maybe for a little while until it dries out.

Another project!

Couldn't help starting something else the moment the yoga bag was done. These are NORO Kureyon Socks, using the Winter Snowdrops Socks pattern by Sara Morris I found on http://www.ravelry.com/.

I am doing them cuff down on a long circular, my favorite method, and I might do the lace pattern in reverse, since it is charted for toe-up socks. I am still not sure.

Off to class!

Took forever to finish, but well worth the wait! Hope you like it.

Ack! Not Perfect!

In my haste to send out the Yarn Cottage May 1st newsletter this morning, I called Stephanie Pearl-McPhee's new book "Yarn Harlot Rides Again". That was dumb. It actually is called "Free-Range Knitter: The Yarn Harlot Writes Again". Ooops. I hope when she writes her next book, she uses my new title. Arggh. (On the other hand, aren't the NORO sock yarns pretty? I can't decide which sock pattern to do next...maybe daydreaming about what to knit next caused the title error).

Groovy Market Bag

This is the market bag project. We just got in 2 new yarns to make it out of. Daria Multi from Knitting Fever, and Judi & Company's aptly-named, Groovy. More colors are on the way, and there is also a neat free purse pattern for Groovy. We saved on yarn by taking some handles off an old purse (mine was from Goodwill). Be thinking about some handles for YOURS! It is knitted in the round on BIG circular 24" needles. You can learn how to knit an easy lace pattern at the same time. And lots of holes means fast work. Go for it!

Crochet Hook Case done!

My New felted Crochet hook case. Lamb's Pride Bulky for the case and Cascade 220 for the hook holders. Thanks, Paula for the idea. It's a great Berroco free pattern and oh, so quick. The beautiful handmade silver/enamelled button is from Gita Maria, YAY! Only my favorite hooks are allowed in there. The yucky ones are in a "store-boughten" one. Poor little babies.

Ready, Willing and Able!

Here's me & Patti, ready to enter the Stitches East convention hall. What a wonderful time we had. Overwhelming, and can't wait to try out everything we found there....

Cute Cute Cute

I just finished my Circular Tank, a Cabin Fever pattern, knit on SR Kertzer Super 10, which is just wonderful to work with and has a beautiful finish and I love it! The buttons are perfect, I got them at In The Marking, in Birmingham, which was awesome, a gorgeous store. I will have to lose 10+ lbs to wear it. It took less then 3 balls to make, but I wish I made it a little bigger. The pattern is knit in the round, has great armholes, finished as you knit, and real well written.

Namaste Winner Takes Off

Here, as promised, is a picture of our Tax-Day Namaste Knitting bag winner, Anna Tucker. She looks ready to take off and start knitting! She is!

Finally!

Finally! We now have lots and lots of NORO on our NORO-Go-Round. Now, if we can just keep people from the urge to SPIN it! Uh-oh. Flying NORO.

College Color Sock Hat

Doesn't he look content? You would be too if you were knitting a college color sock yarn hat. New sock yarn from Blue Ridge Yarns comes in many college colors. What is your fave?

Nona Knitting #2

Here, Nona toils away at a domino-knit pillow in NORO Silk Garden. She thought maybe the color changes were too jarring, I say, "jar away". Love it.

Collar = Smile

Ok, last post for today. Enthusiastic new knitters (and crocheters!!) are just the best! Here, Dianne (maybe I spelled that right) is checking out the collar section of her Shalom Cardigan. I hope it is still going this well, since she is a brand-new knitter and real courageous to try something so neat for her first big project. Way to go!

Monster Edge

Imagine this: I will have to knit a border on this monster....all the way around the front, the neckline and the bottom. I think it will take about 5 or 6 circular needles, and take about 20 forevers to knit the 8 rows. That's why I am taking abreak from it and just comtemplating for a while.

Skein Hangin'

Yesterday and today, we've been re-arranging yarns, getting ready for the onslaught of new stuff coming in. This is how some of the skeined yarn is getting displayed. I think it is just great to see it hanging this way. When I had my shop, there wasn't much wall space to speak of, and I always wanted to do it that way. Today we had a bunch of students learning to start up their first felted bags, and also several brand-new sock knitters....all different styles, 5 needles, 2 socks at once on a circular, or 1 sock on 2 circulars. A regular 3-ring circus.

Off to Stitches/Atlanta in the morning! I hope to meet up with several of our customers there, too! A yarn blast will be had, for sure! Have you seen the vest on the cover of Vogue knitting? It's awesome, and done in Blue Sky Alpaca Skinny Cotton, and I am itching to start it, but have too many projects on the needles; i.e.; I can't close my (2) knitting totebags...so I guess that's the limit. Maybe I will get lots of things finished off on the ride to and from Atlanta. Luckily, I don't have to drive...

Moving Right Along...

...and, in case my knitting posts are getting behind, I have actually been knitting quite a bit lately. Here is the Cabin Fever/Kertzer Super 10 Circular Tank as of today....right this minute it is all contorted up on a 40" circular, getting it's neckband done (maybe I will have to get a pic of that crazy-looking mess!). I have seriously LOVED working this pattern. Quick & Easy, plus very educational. My favorite kind. Made with well under 3 balls of yarn.

More goodies!

Oh, my! Here are Classic Silk, Soft Linen, and several others I can't remember. Looks like about 30 gorgeous summer tops to me! Classic Elite yarns are just as beautiful in person as I'd always imagined....

Hello Tuesday!

Miss me? The shop is fun, but leaves me little time for anything else. The first week went well, and today we are starting our Tuesday morning KNit & Coffee at 9:30 am. What a nice way to start off the week, since we are planning to be closed on Mondays. Also, the classes are all FREE! for the month of April, so I expect we will have a blast. Been knitting a bunch. See ya later.