Stella Luna is released into the wild!

My second shawl pattern has been published on Ravelry!

This has been such an interesting summer in the shawl-knitting arena for me. First, the MadMay design contest inspired me to refine a shawl idea I'd had for awhile and my Litchfield Shawl was born. Then my yarn-of-the-month for June inspired me to pull out another idea I had awhile back leading to my Stella Luna pattern. I'm really glad I kept my old sketches!

It Worked!

Currently working on #2 in one color.

How come everything I knit lately makes me buy more yarn? I had to buy a 2nd skein of my MC of this latest shawl, plus I started using some Sundara Fingering Meino Cashmere for another project and liked it so much that I ordered 3 more skeins. And I'm still buying tml. May and June have really increased the size of my stash....

The Designing Bug - I haz it...

Here's the 2nd knit of my new pattern which is now up on Ravelry!

And here's the start of the 3rd go -

That yarn I drew for this month? I knew I wanted to pair it with another skein of Sundara Sock I have -

so I went browsing throught the gazillion 2-color shawl patterns I have faved on Ravelry. But you know what? I want to design something myself :) So I pulled out a sketch from I-don't-know-when of a shawl idea I had, thought about how to make it 2-color, drug out a bunch of stitch pattern books and shawl-construction ideas and got to work! No idea if it's going to work out - I've ripped and reknit the beginning about 10 times. And about 6" in I can tell that I should have done some things differently. So it hasn't been the smooth process that my Litchfield pattern was but that's okay. They can't all go that well! If it's a total flop, I'll rip it out. That's the cool thing about knitting, right?

May Madness

The upside to yarn-buying sprees? They can be inspiring:

This is my new pattern! Inspired by (a very small portion of) the yarn I bought this month, MadMay on ravelry - http://www.ravelry.com/discuss/madelinetosh-lovers/1623993/1-25 and my Merrywood Afghan -

(This is one corner folded over a towel.) I am working on a reknit and have a lovely knitter helping me test the pattern before I release it. And I've already picked out colors for #3!

I finished another MadMay project -

And So Are You by Rose Beck in Northumbria tosh merino light. I'm working on the yarn I drew last month - more tml in Filigree - but this has been on hold while I worked on my new idea.

I have knit with nothing but tml this month! For June I drew this - I only have one skein of it left. It will have to wait awhile though. I really want to finish reknitting my design and get it 'published'!

Caught Up At Last!

Knit from the yarn I drew for April -

I'm going to do something a little different for MadMay - the madelinetosh group on ravelry is having Madelinetosh May. There are bunches of knit-alongs that will be going on so I am only going to knit with madelinetosh yarn next month! That means I will be 'drawing' May's yarn from my tosh stash only. And I'm going to draw a few days early so I can swatch and be ready to go on May 1. I hope to finish at least 1 sweater and 1 shawl.

Back on Track

YOTM project for February - I had the daunting task of winding this gorgeous skein up:

and turning it into this -

For March, I knit this in 3 days (in April!) -

and now I am working on April's project -

Also recently completed -

A hacky sack for Will -

and another test knit for Romi - her Sakaki shawl, most of the proceeds of which are going to help Japan/Doctors Without Borders -

I'm so glad the chiropractor was able to help me with the shoulder pain I was having - I'm basically pain free in my shoulder now! :)

(Yarn) Dieting is Hard...

FOs first: Asterope - test knit #6 for Romi, and possibly my favorite of the bunch so far. Looks complicated, but I had less trouble than I had with the garter stitch shawls. I don't know what it is, but I have issues with garter stitch. Just ask the ladies I knit with. This is the reknit of Stacked in the yarn Knit Picks sent me -modeled by Mr. Jefferson. Good color for him I think.

Now the part where I fell off the yarn-diet wagon.

2 skeins of Creme Brulee because I loved knitting with it doubled when I made http://www.ravelry.com/projects/LAylor13/tongues-of-fire This color is 'Cinnamon Dust.'

Lace-weight cashmere - 'Temptress'.

Very aptly named. I had no intention of buying anything from Yarn Chef's latest update since I'd bought the Creme Brulee above in February and had her hold it until she shipped me a special order. Meet Plum Pudding -

A whole dye-lot of Mulligatawny. One of my favorite bases. Which is being discontinued. :(

So Katy (the Yarn Chef) is dyeing up batches for me every month in different colors based on a (long) list of requests. That means I'll have to knit up 2200 yards every month just to stay in the green IF I don't buy any other yarn. But I'll be happy when she runs out and I have a nice bin full of Mulligatawny.

I lucked out in the first quarter and had a couple of unexpected yarn sales push me (barely) into the green just before it ended. I'm starting quarter 2 in a very deep hole. But it's nice in here with all this lovely yarn :)