Spiral Scarf

I have just created my first knitting pattern and wrote it all out nice to be sold. This is a step into new territory for me, I've never actually sold a pattern. Well I still haven't officially sold one yet, but my fingers are crossed. These are a silly fun knit, a goofy corkscrew of a scarf, the one in sock yarn could be so much fun with all the self-striping sock yarns available, and the lacey one in mohair is more of a dressy poof with character.

Goddess Attempt

My first attempt at the goddess isn't quite right, now she isn't a total scrap but she needs revisions. I did draw and write my stitch count as I tatted this, so now I can go back and change lengths of chains as needed. See how the arms look almost scalloped, the chains need to be a pinch shorter to the outside row, especially in the armpits. I think I want the arms a bit longer too, thinking maybe one up and the other down, will give it a shot both ways. The bottom is a scarf leaf, "bit on the hippy side there, sweetie", but goddesses had volumptious figures. I'd love to do the upper body with two circles, a feminine touch, hehehe. The poor girl will have to stay this way for the next week as I am finishing a knitting pattern this weekend or ELSE.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Look what I found in my tatting drawers, wooo hoooo boooo!!! Digging through threads looking for the perfect goddess color and found these pumpkins. They were designed and tatted several years ago, left in the drawer forgotten. My chicken scratched designs are in a folder somewhere ... out there..... I like the pumpkin more than Jack, but he was a quirky attempt at a one pass, no cuts in the orange thread jack o' lantern.

Motif 7

See I have not forgotten how to tat, even though my blog looks to be more of a knitting site lately. This is from Mark's newest book and I have wanted to try this motif since I first saw it, it has been a long wait for me to get to check this book out of the guild library, and I'm the librarian. I think it looks pretty good for having about 15 threads to hide and NO Mark did not write it that way, that was my problem. I started tatting with the yellow and it was all in pieces, but I kept tatting until I ran out. So then I hunted for something that looked ok with the yellow and low and behold it also was in small pieces. Yep, I continued tatting anywho. I'm wishing I had not made the picots to the outside of the yellow rings so small as the gold half rings overlap, my boggle again. Not sure why the rings only motifs fascinate me, something in the simplicity of the rings only process that still allows for infinite complex variations.

Magic

Yea, I have finished one of my Christmas projects. It's so much fun to knit with over sized needles and see quick results, then the magic happens, toss in the washer with jeans and three cycles later, taaadaaa. The before and after really shows off the size change, the strap seems to have shrunk to just the right length, whewww, it's always a quesstimate.
Felting a knit project is like openning a gift, you never are sure how it's going to look, how will the fancy threads felt into the wool, which color will suddenly pop, or which just disappears. This one was a nice surprise, but it might need a fuzz hair cut if the new owner is too conservative for the fuzz do, hehe.

Needle Felting

Happy Friday the thirteenth!!!

Last night I went to a fun needle felting class, see my mister jack o'lantern. I'm thinking he may need one more tooth, maybe. It is so much fun to take a handful of color fluff and watch it become. It can become what ever you dream, it just takes patience
and a few sore pinkies, OUCH.

My tatting seems to have gone astray for the time being, I so want to get back to it, but other commitments are calling. The stuff we promise people for Christmas. How many projects do you have to finish for Christmas? It starts Simply as a good happy thought of I will joyfully create this for ______ (fill in the blank) because they admired my other one. And it all goes down hill from there, add a couple more projects, let the time tick away and soon enough it isn't such a happy joyful project, it has become a "I must get this done". Where did it go wrong? My list: two knit felted purses, spiral knitted scarfs and patterns, so much fun normally but I've let them slip to the dark side and become "I must get this done" objects.
This weeks goal--- start them and enjoy the process!!!
Or Else!!!!
hehehe

Colors

I have been wrestling with the black dog this last week. Everyone has their grey days occasionally, when the world seems an unfriendly scary place to live. Colors affect us more than we realize, it is hard to stay angry, sad, or in a dark mood when surrounded by a woods of vibrant fall leaves. This week I have soothed the dog with beautiful colors. Spinning the hand dyed merino into a pile of raspberry orange sherbert, made my problems seem far away. I am almost done with the second skein, then they will need the twist set. The decision must then be made, what shall it become?, at around 600 yds, sock weight, it is not enough for a sweater, but maybe a shrug, a loose knit poncho, a shawl, how about a hat, mittens and scarf set, a lace baby blanket. I'm leaning towards a shrug, but the idea must fully mature.