The Yarn Wench has just updated! Please stop on by and check out the new wool top - there's lots of new colorways. Plumgold is catching my eye - I think there's a dye pot for me in the very near future! There are lots of new Mmmbellishments, some mohair locks, and one bag of curly Border Leicester from Sandy Ryan's cutie, Treasure. I couldn't part with anymore of this fleece - got some lock spinning penciled in for this weekend! Also, there are lots of yarns waiting for a new home.
 
I'm happy to say this months marks the start of Yarn Wench's 5th year in business! What a wonderful journey it's been! I've met so many great, creative people along the way and look forward to many more years of fibery fun with you all!

I knit up a quick test knit pattern for rooftopscandal and I am so pleased with the end result... I've done a little colourwork in the past, nothing as big as this though...

( Starburst Hat )

I made five wash clothes. They're going into baskets with toiletries for our local food bank (they're desperate and asking for non-food necessities). There are 5 wash clothes, but they'll probably be split between a couple of baskets, so count that as you will.

( first cabled project + improvisational project. )

Sorry for the poor photo quality, I'm ohhoe on ravelry if anyone wants to add me.

Hi everyone, happy new year! It's pingvingvild but i have changed journals. About time... anyway, here's one new and two I forgot to post last time ;)

( under the cut! )

Hooray! Goodbye!

Is Purewool soft enough to use for newborn stuff? How about KnitPicks Peruvian Highland Wool?

x-posted to clothdiapering 

Hi! I started on Beer Gloves from Son of Stitch 'n Bitch a while ago, got to the palm and had to frog because I couldn't figure out my mistake. Anyway, now that I'm back up to the increase row after the cuff, I'm having a problem. I have 20 stitches on my needle, a k2p2 rib. I'm supposed to end up with 26 sts on the needle by doing the following: p2, pfb, p3. *k1, m1, k1, repeat from * 3 times, p3, pfb, p2. I'm ending up with 2 extra stitches on my needle after doing all this, and I can't figure out why! What's even more frustrating is I got past this row the first time around and don't remember it being a problem. Halp!

I have been defeated; Google and I are usually pretty good friends, but today we really aren't on speaking terms. I am looking for a pattern for a shawl or wrap that incorporates a Greek Key pattern. I'm on Ravelry and immediately searched there first; nearly all the patterns (even non-shawl ones) involve colorwork, which isn't what I want for a lacey shawl. The one pattern on there was for a scarf, which I could have adapted for a larger wrap, but it's charted instead of written instructions, and I have an awful time with charts. Does anyone have any suggestions? I am more than willing to pay for a pattern; it doesn't have to be free!

I am still plugging away on getting everything photographed and inventoried - my god, this is a huge update! I will give you a few highlights:











And there's more! But I'll save those photos for later. Back to the camera!

I'm working on Steggie, from Knitty, and I can't quite figure out if I'm making mistakes on the sleeve edging or not. The pattern calls for YO increases at the edge between the MC and CC, and I feel like I should somehow not have any holes there in spite of the YOs. Anyone who's made this- ARE there supposed to be holes between the MC and CC, or is there some way of doing a YO that I'm not aware of that doesn't make holes? Pattern is here:
http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEspring09/PATTsteggie.php

Note- I am properly twisting the yarns when I switch colors, so the holes aren't from that.

Has anyone here made the Snakebite Hat from the book "Pints & Purls"?? You can see a photo of it here on Ravelry:

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/snakebite

The pattern calls for a circular size 10 and then some size 9 DPNs. I don't know if I'm crazy or what, but I've read and reread the pattern a zillion times and can't find anywhere where she wants knitters to switch to the size 9s. You start off the rib brim with the size 10. I know that sometimes you switch to the smaller size after the ribbed brim, but then again sometimes it's with the hat decrease. She doesn't say anywhere, unless I'm blind as a bat (are they really blind?) and I've written her on Ravelry and at her yarn store and haven't gotten an answer. I want to start this thing! So what's your guess, knitters? Switch to size 9 after the initial ribbing and when the stockinette starts? Or switch once the decrease starts? Or don't bother, and knit the whole damn thing with the size 10? Inquiring minds want to know. ;)

And thanks in advance!

So I have this simple pattern for a hat that calls for bulky yarn. I have lots of worsted in my stash I'd rather use than run out and spend money. What changes do I need to make to use worsted weight instead of the called for bulky? (assuming that I can)

TIA

I'm aiming for a Friday update at this point. I photographed and inventoried all day long and still didn't get done! I'm slowly putting photos up on Flickr but in the meanwhile I'll entertain you with these photos of the week's Mmmbellishments:







There's much, much more to come but I wanted to share these as I thought they were really pretty.

Oh, and tonight's Spontaneous Journal entry for those of you who are at all interested:



This collage started as a five minute watercolor which I tore up and pasted down with matt medium along with imagery of clocks and clockworks. I then painted with acrylics on top of that for 5 minutes. I've been exploring my love/hate relationship with time. Speaking of which, I really ought to think about going to bed!

Thanks to Christmas, I bought a bunch of non-Patons wool from somewhere other than JoAnn's or Michael's. 
In consequence, I knew I would have to wind it into balls and I was able to try out this nifty little design I came across a few months ago.( pic behind cut )

Finished and blocked, photos - ( behind the cut )

Recently finished project - yarn for a friend to make a hat out of!

( pics under the cut )

I went on a knitting rampage for the holidays. I've been knitting for a couple of years but this was the first holiday where I attempted to knit gifts for everybody. As such, it was mostly hats b/c hats are quick and easy and I made the decision to knit gifts kind of late in the game. There are a few neckwarmers in there, as well. Everybody loved them which made me 1) super happy and 2) anxious about how much earlier I'll have to start knitting gifts for next year!

( Here for FOs! )

I didn't realise until I'd finished it that I'd made it in Virginia Tech colours. ;-)

YO :) i learned to knit about a week before Christmas..ive always wanted to learn and i was at my aunties at a family gathering. my other auntie was knitting a jumper. i mentioned i wanted to learn, so it turned into a little family project with Auntie A teaching me how to knit, her and Auntie J and my mum helping me do a few rows, me staying up late knitting away (it is definitely addictive) and we made a black headband :) more aunties...2 days before christmas, Auntie G taught me how to cast on. Then my mum taught me how to cast off :) i only know how to knit at the moment, but have just finished another headband all on my own :D next i wanna learn to purl and make it more exciting..but here are some pics of the headband i finished tonight. started it on new years day and did a little bit every day. sorry if im babbling :) knitting excitement! :)

( a few photos..i know its not perfect:) )

you cant see the colour really well, its very light greyish but goes kinda bluey and pinky..sort of pearly id say :)
thanks for reading! you're all very inspiring :D xx and its snowing outside so im very happy :D

The draining people came this morning, and apparently the eldrich horror in our plumbing has been defeated, or at least banished to another dimension, and we should have working drains. Huzzah!

Does anyone have any recommendations for books on stranded colorwork? I'm ready to add it to my list of knitting skills but I'm not sure how to get started.

Thanks!

So, I came home for Xmas break and somehow forgot my needles back at uni.  AHHHHH!!!!!

The only needles I had were from my last project, size 15 circulars with a 24 inch strand.  So I could only make large things with super bulky yarn. Below the cut is the rest of my story and several pics. 

(Also, this is my first post, so let me know if I did any of this wrong...)

( My FOs ) ( My FOs ) ( My FOs )( Read more... ) ( My FOs )

Does anybody have luck making "Swatch" style afghans? It would kinda be similar to granny-squaring with crochetting I suppose..just making the same swatch over and over, and then crochetting or sewing them together. If anyone has FO's and techniques, I'd love to see them. I'm also particularily interested in drop-stich swatching, just to have that "hole-y" look and feel that crochetted afghans tend to have, but other techniques are welcome! (One might ask, why not just crochet? For some reason my hands like knitting far better..crochetting is hard for me ;P)

Thanks a lot, and don't be afraid to link to your FO's! :)