Wednesday, April 04, 2018

Yarn Along: Knitting for the Girl

I've been wanting to join Ginny's Yarn Along for ages, and just haven't for some reason! Granted, I've only just picked up my knitting again after a bit of a hiatus, so I wouldn't have had much to show...



I've been working on an Elizabeth cardigan for Rosa -- I've had the yarn for ages, but, as usual, had procrastinated actually starting the project. 




The pattern is a dream! I've been enjoying it immensely -- it's interesting without being tear-your-hair-out difficult. I'm enough of a novice lace knitter that I put in a stitch marker for each and every pattern repeat (every six stitches!), and I'm so glad I did; noticing that I had seven stitches in a repeat instead of six has saved me from making a number of costly errors.

I'm also reading The Modern Natural Dyer, which I miraculously found in our library system -- there was even a copy at our teeny tiny local branch! I've been curious about dyeing yarn for some time (mostly due to Ginny!), and this gorgeous illustrated book seems to have everything I'd need to know to give it a shot. We'll see...

This picture is actually a week old, so I hope to be able to post a picture of the finished cardigan soon!

Linking up to Ginny's April Yarn Along


11 comments:

  1. GORGEOUS! Oh man- that is beautiful! And incredibly intimidating...kudos to you!

    (Visiting from the YA)

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  2. PS. I just read your 'about' page and was delighted to find that we both love the same books, have a handful of little ones and like to craft/sew to boot! My kindof lady! ;-)

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    1. Rebecca,

      Thank you for your kind words! The pattern may look intimidating, but it really is quite simple (my favorite kind of knit!).

      And how lovely to find a kindred spirit! Sounds like I need to pay a visit to your corner of the Interwebs. :-)

      Thanks for stopping by!

      Cheers,
      Shannon

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  3. What a cute cardigan. I just started knitting things for my baby (due in Aug.) and I'm excited to find out what we're having so I can make little boy or girl knits.

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    1. Kelly,

      Congrats on the coming baby! I've always thought it would be fun to be surprised by a baby's gender -- but four kids later, apparently I can't resist knowing ahead of time... how else would I know what to sew/knit?! ;-)

      Thanks for stopping by, and for your kind words! :-)

      Cheers,
      Shannon

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  4. That is going to be a beautiful sweater and what a lovely book.

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    1. Thank you for your kind words, Leslie! And yes, the book is gorgeous. Almost like a dessert! :-) At this point I don't care if I ever end up dyeing something or not, I'm enjoying the "research" regardless!

      Cheers,
      Shannon

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  5. Shannon,

    Your knitting looks beautiful! I like the idea of dividing pattern repeats with stitch markers. That would definitely help when my mind wanders!

    I have been interested in natural yarn dyeing too. I have watched a couple of Youtube videos, but will have to add this book to my list.

    Sarah

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    1. Thanks, Sarah! Stitch markers definitely keep me sane -- there's nothing worse than making a mistake in a lace pattern and not even knowing where you went wrong. Not that I've ever done that... ;-)

      Great minds think alike, I suppose! :-) I should check out YouTube for dyeing tutorials -- that's a great idea!

      Cheers,
      Shannon

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  6. That pink is just gorgeous and the lacy pattern looks great. I love that book it's one of my favorites for natural dyes.

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    1. Thanks, Deb! It's hard not to love that book -- I still haven't dyed anything yet, but it's so beautiful to look at. :-)

      Cheers,
      Shannon

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I'd love to hear your thoughts! Thank you so much for stopping by!