gift from a garden

Posted on Posted in designing, food and garden, lace/shawls, projects

just as i was starting to write this post, the mail arrived with all sorts of goodies, in time for my trip to miami tomorrow (it’s nice to get going away surprises the day before flying . . .)

first off a beautiful box of garlic from michele in maine (maker of our very favorite project bags), from her garden. we email a lot and she’s been trying to talk me into growing garlic for a couple of years now. she finally hooked me for real when she said she’d send some homegrown heads for me to plant. and look—there’s enough there for a decent amount of cooking too. thank you michele!

(ok, i just went to her store to get a link and let me tell you, i should NOT be allowed to go there. the spotted owls bag?? omg, so ME. and i’m so weak . . )

as if the garlic wasn’t enough, i got a beautiful bundle of yarn from amanda at the natural dye studio. we are planning something, but it’s a secret and you’ll have to wait to see the results; however, i can show you the yarn now

and you can let your imaginations run wild for a few months til it’s time for the reveal. we have some precious 4-ply, a 100 percent silk singles in a gorgeous lavender, shot with some pink. it’ll look like rich brocade when it’s knit up, yum. i can’t wait. then there is a skein of angel 4-ply, a luscious blend of alpaca, cashmere, and silk.

they are dyed with all natural dyestuff; another gift from someone’s garden, if you think about it. i’ve already swatched with some samples i had of these yarns and i can tell you, they are practically edible.

one more wonderful thing arrived as well (really, a grand day for mail, wouldn’t you say?)—these tiny copper stitch markers i purchased from spindle cat studio, after seeing rave reviews about them in the knitspot ravelry group. cathy said they are the very best and cathy never leads me astray (well, not often, anyway, and never in the quality department)

copper is one of my most favorite materials, so it wasn’t hard to convince me. and i am always on the lookout for great stitch markers. they come in two color finishes, too. they’re even hammered. and snagless. AND they are really good (i should go back and get the silver ones). i’m putting them in my bag to take along for my new project. yay.

speaking of knitting, i finished my secret project and now i know enough about it to knit the several copies that i’ll need. it’s a quick thing, obviously, so it shouldn’t take too much time away from the knitting i can talk about here.

which brings me to my new swatch, finally off the needles (though the hem part is still unresolved) . . .

wasp and rose
(i’m still mining those crazy victorians and their fascination with flora and fauna).

it’s going to be a pair of lace pieces, one triangle shawl and one rectangle stole. i’m very lucky to be working once again with some incredible yarn from fibre isle—this time it’s sylvie’s kami 2-ply lace, a bamboo/merino/bison blend, in colorway petale, a delicate antique pink (she’s so great; i described the project in email and she picked the colorway and it’s perfect—exactly what i imagined).

i adore sylvie’s yarns and the sheen on this one will knock your socks off. the pink colorway is rescued from being overly sweet or babyish by a halo of natural brown, provided by the undyed bison fiber in the yarn.

i’ve already cast on and packed this project up to go with me on the plane tomorrow

the first part will make wonderful travel knitting with its easily-memorized pattern and small, portable size. i’m pretty happy that i’ve finally gotten this project on the needles; it’s been on my agenda since the spring.

that’s literally the only thing i have packed for my trip as of now—i’m going to need to get organized soon. i do have several almost-finished small projects laying about that i’ll toss in my bag with the shawl

seriously, if i don’t finish this sock this weekend, i should not be allowed to call myself a knitter (or to come home, haha). it’s been on the needles since february. and david needs socks. so miami, don’t let me come home without this one done.

my mitt kit is pretty much in exactly the same shape as it was when i arrived home from my last trip—two mitts almost done and two more need to be knit to match. so that’s a good one to bring.

and if i don’t finish my second wristlet tonight before bed, i’ll take that too. i’ve only got about an hour’s worth of work left on it, so it’s possible it’ll be done before i go.

speaking of packing and organizing, i really should go do that now. and i’d like to go for a bike ride some time today, too.

i’ll see you in sunny miami!

19 thoughts on “gift from a garden

  1. Darn it Anne, you are becoming too good of an enabler! Those stitch markers are fantastic. A few skeins of Fearless Fibers yarn made it to my place a few days ago somehow too……..

    Thank goodness the project bags all seemed a bit too feminine for me (I still try to maintain at least a hint of masculinity!) I don’t think I could get away carrying the “Kitty Princess Mini Bag” in public! HA!

  2. Lovely – as usual. I have a book of victorian lace patterns that I have been wanting to get into and the Wasp and Rose pattern is such a great inspiration to actually try something from there. Of course – this will be after the Pea Vines! LOLOL

  3. Today was the day I should have been sitting on the bench waiting on the mail……..poor planning on my part but I was busy test knitting…..I like the stitch markers!
    Have a safe fun trip!

  4. Wasp and Rose looks so alluring. It’s impossible to keep up with all these great patterns! The new stitch markers will be so elegant on the needles.

    Good to have some fall planting to look forward to!

    (and I have to say to commenter Steve – it takes a real man to carry his knitting in a Kitty Princess bag – :-))

    Bon voyage!

  5. I have been using Spindelcat’s copper markers for year. I even have three different sizes. They are the BEST!

    Why did I click the Three Bags Full link? A Sugar Skulls bag jumped right in to my cart.

  6. That silk single looks absolutely delicious! I don’t think I’ve ever knit with singles, but there’s something really appealing in their aspect. There’s also something really appealing in the swatch. I can see the Victorian influence, and I really like the delicate edging. I can’t wait to see how it turns out.

  7. Must get some of those stitch markers! Oh, and the yarn…can’t wait to see what it becomes. But what I’m REALLY drooling over is…the garlic. We are big garlic fans here – you won’t find any vampires at the Remenyi residence! 😉

  8. Yes, thanks so much for introducing us to Michele’s bags!! If you love owls, have you been checking out the Owl Box, in CA?

    And Steve, I’m sure Michele can find some nice fabric – she found me some nice turtles!!

  9. Favourite designer let loose with my favourite NDS yarns how can I wait????? Now those stitch markers look gorgeous too.

  10. I love the Natural Dye Studio yarns. Amanda creates some beautiful colourways and the yarns are just delicious to knit with! I know you are going to love them! Can’t wait to see what you come up with – it will be fabulous, I bet!

  11. I love the way the colors in the Natural Dye Studio yarns mimic and respond to the colors in the garlic photo.

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