transported

Posted on Posted in designing, lace/shawls, projects

when i was packing to go away last weekend, i added two things at the last minute to my knitting bag that were not really on my work agenda, but which i thought i might need—a big sweater is not something you can whip out just anywhere, so it’s good to have some small or mindless work to take to the coffee shop or to do when chit-chatting with guests.

one of those projects was this gray garden shawlette that i started in february, but put aside for several reasons. first, i got busy and couldn’t keep it at the top of my knitting queue. and secondly, the gorgeous raft of otter fingering yarn from alisha goes around, is sadly not available at the moment—alisha has taken a leave of absence from work to attend to the birth of her newborn.

but it nagged at me; i love the yarn, which glows with rich, sexy inner light that would be a shame not to wear. and i like knitting this shawl—it’s a really good take along project, which does not belong in limbo. so i grabbed it and made room in my bag for it.

sure enough, between visiting with erica’s aunts and riding in the car, i got lots knit on it—in fact, i got all the way through the upper body and am now ready to start the hem section. about halfway complete.

on the car ride back to detroit on sunday, i was ready to work on something a little smaller and different than what i’d been doing all weekend. i decided to play with an idea i had for some cotton mitts, using this deep green, organic color-grown pakucho cotton lace yarn from ecobutterfly organics.

since i started wearing my plain jhaynes almost constantly at my desk, even in our warmer weather, i’ve been thinking that a cotton pair might be lovely, and maybe even useful when it gets very hot, for keeping my hands dry when i work.

so i started out with the idea that i’d use the stitch pattern from the hem of the may BNK club design and then work the body of the mitt in stockinette. this was extremely pretty, but not exactly what i wanted for my personal use. plus, it was a little too loose on the needles i had chosen. so i ripped it out and will reknit it a bit later in the vanilla or natural cotton, i think; it will make a nice gift for a bride.

now i’ve restarted with a smaller, horseshoe style lace that still results in a pretty, semi-sheer hem, but is not so frou-frou. something simple with a touch of sweetness, more to my liking for every day accessories. i’m not sure yet what the top hem will be; maybe just one repeat of the pattern to give a bit of an edge.

i was also in need of a very small project i could tuck into my purse, having finished the plain jhaynes i had going. this is a crucial project to keep topped up at all times—i find that between riding along, meetings, airports, and waiting for appointments, i get lots done on any knitting i can keep in my bag.

lace accessories are feather-light and have an amazing ability to be folded away in the tiniest of bags, like this small mia accessory bag from three bags full (if you don’t see what you want on the site today, michele is always happy to re-stock if anyone wants any; tall mias work well too.)

my little mia can hold several sets of DPNs and two small balls of lace yarn, enough for two projects at once, in case you get bored easily. now that’s a weekender solution almost any knitter will jump at. in fact, it’s coming along with me today to the orthodontist and over the weekend, to the wool fair.

erica and candy are arriving later today for a weekend visit; we are going to our annual fiber festival in wooster—the great lakes fiber show. if you live in the region and are looking for something fun to do for the holiday, you should come; it’s a great little show that the whole family will enjoy. and if you see us about, please do stop and say hi—we love visiting with friends at these events!

10 thoughts on “transported

  1. Love the idea of cotton mitts and I might just have some of that yarn ‘lying around’ haha. True about the raft of otters yarn – much too delicious to leave hanging.

    Thanks for the mention of the butterfly bag! I have been tucking a tall Mia in my own larger bag to have ‘at the ready’ and it really works – I’m making progress on a little lacy shrug for Mia’s graduation in 3 weeks.

  2. My daughter and I are going to that festival also. Taking a dyeing class from Kimber Baldwin of Fiberoptic on Sunday morning. Can’t wait, maybe we will see you there

  3. Cotton mitts are a great idea! I love both styles and I’ve got some natural in the cotton coming my way…

  4. I need a Mia bag. Thanks for the reminder, Anne, that we need all sizes of bags for our projects.

    I hope you have an awesome weekend and tons of fun at the fiber festival. : )

  5. I hope to see you this weekend! Having just moved to Columbus for a job it will be my first time at this festival and I’m definitely looking forward to it.

  6. Please, Miss, what is the gray messanger bag?? Looks like it would work great!

  7. I love the small Mia bag, it’s a size that Michele doesn’t often have in her shop (or they get snaffled up by people as soon as Michele does a shop update!)

  8. I loved the first set of lace. I need to find someone who likes knitting lace and loves me to make me some mitts! I might have to make some for myself after being inspired by yours.

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