Rock It Tee is done. I can't say enough about how much I love this. The fabric is soft and drapey. The fit is perfect. The colors are my favorite. This turned out exactly how I had hoped it would.
I did make a few modifications. First, I did not do the yarn over increases for the raglan. I used M1L and M1R because I did not want the holes. Second, I did 1x1 twisted rib for the hem and sleeve edges instead of the I-cord edge. Third, I made the sleeves a bit longer to hide my upper arms. Fourth, I didn't get gauge. My gauge was tighter, so I adjusted and knit a size larger and prayed it would turn out. Happily it did!
This sweater is going to see a lot of action this summer. I'm hoping it will hold up.
The yarn is Knitting Notions Classic Merino Bamboo in Emerald and Lichen. I bought this yarn last year at the Mid-Ohio Fiber Festival. Actually, I bought one skein of each color then, had doubts it would be enough, and then bought a second skein of each from Knitting Notions when she was at The Wool Gathering. If I go back to either of those festivals this year, I might buy more to make a solid color tee. I figure I will only need 3 skeins if I do that. I have cumulatively more than a skein left. I'll tuck them away while I think about what else to make with them. The yarn is too lovely not to use up somehow.
This week I finished my Right Around the Corner shawl. I started this hoping it would be wearable for Christmas. Last year's busyness, with the wedding and Ed's surgery, kept me from finishing it. It is now done and tucked away for Christmas 2022.
When I was putting this away, I discovered that a moth snacked on several of my shawls. I have to find the yarns I used and do some repairs. Then I need to figure out a better way to store my knits.
This week I also cranked out a couple dishcloths using KnitPicks Dishie. I got the pattern from the YouTube channel The Crochet Crowd. I used 36 chains for my base and used the crossed Tunisian stitch he showed in one of his videos. I edged the second one in single crochet to use up the yarn. I love how these have turned out and plan to use this as my Go To dishcloth pattern. Very quick and easy.
Now that I finished up a few things, I'm starting the next batch of projects.
A Hipster Cardigan for Jameson. This is being made using HiKoo Sueno in the Evergreen colorway.
Another project for Jameson, an elephant from Sarah Zimmerman's book Crochet Cute Critters. This is being made using Plymouth Yarn's Encore. I wanted this to be something Trisha could toss in the wash if necessary.
Lastly, for me, today I am casting on A Study In Pink. A saw a shop sample the other week at The Knot House when my friend and I went to Maryland for the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival. We stopped at The Knot House on our way. I'm using their Diamond Sock in Essential Blue. After my victory with the Rocket Tee, I'm hoping this turns out as another much-loved summer tee.
I guess I forgot to mention earlier that I went to the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival. It was a very nice event, but the weather was horrible. Squeaks was happy to see me when I got home and asked politely if she could go along next time.
We drove through a monsoon on Friday as we headed their. Actually, the day started earlier with a bad omen. My friend was supposed to drive, picking me up at 6:30am. She texted at 6:00 saying she was on her way. Fifteen minutes later she called and asked if I could drive because her car had nails in 2 of the tires. I told her I could, so her husband dropped her off at my house and then we set out about 45 minutes later than planned. Heading across town, we hit traffic and took a detour. Not sure if the detour helped, but at least we were moving at a reasonable speed instead of creeping along at 5 mph. The entire trip from central Ohio to Maryland was in a downpour. My wipers stayed on the highest speed and we traveled below the speed limit and watched for standing water on the road. We hit a couple more slow-downs and got to our hotel an hour and a half later than we anticipated. We met my friend's sister at the hotel, had glass of wine and relaxed for the evening. I learned later that parts of West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Maryland had over 3 1/2 inches of rain on Friday. I'm guessing those were the parts we drove through.
Since the weather was still predicted to be rainy, we figured the crowds might be smaller in the morning. We had the foresight to pack boots to keep the rain and mud off of our feet. We walked around to most of the booths, but didn't stop to look at any of the animals. If I go back, I'd like to do some of that since they are the real stars of the festival. I felt bad for many of the vendors who had tents outside. The ground was a swamp. One tent had 2 inches of standing water. Hopefully no one dropped any of their yarn on the ground.
I usually go a bit overboard at festivals like that, but this time I feel I was a bit restrained. I bought some cochineal extract for dyeing yarn, 2 ounces of baby camel and silk blend fiber to spin, a sweater quantity of Polwarth dyed with marigold to make myself another Weekender sweater, and a Dragonfly Fibers mini-skein pack to use someday to make myself an Avena sweater. Below is my inspiration for that
This was the poor booth that had the standing water. The owner was trying to anchor her shelves to the tent braces to keep them from tipping over.
Ed is out fishing today. I should sort through some more stuff here in the house, but first I'm going to sit and knit for a bit, enjoying the quiet house I have to myself. Maybe later I'll take a walk before going to Saturday evening Mass.
