Adamas Shawl

I didn't mean to take so long between blog post but life has been hectic and demanding. You think that everything is going well in your family life and a bomb drops. I can't go in detail except to say that this has been one of the most devastating events our family has had to endure and we are still trying to recover.

I finished the Adamas shawl the first part of last month but didn't get around to blocking and taking pictures until over a month later. This was our guild kal project that started in January.





Specs:

Pattern: Adamas by mimknits
Yarn: Karabella Lace Merino
Needles: 5 US
Knitted: January 26, 2011 - April 7, 2011

I increased the size in order to use up the full 4 skeins of yarn on hand. I'm glad I did since this made it the perfect size for me. Graciously modeled by my mom.

Beads, Beads Everywhere

Our beading weekend was fantastic!!! We had such a good time that we are already planning the next one. Nancy graciously invited us to her cabin in Chesnee for the weekend. We headed up on Friday after I got off work.


Nancy has been a beader for years as well as an accomplished knitter and painter. She has also been waging a courageous battle against several types of cancer for the past few years. Millie another knitting friend who started beading last year was our driver and co-coordinator of the trip. I rounded out the group of three.

We stopped for dinner and picked up some goodies along the way and once we got to the cabin we settled our things, took over the dining room table and immediately started working on our projects. On Friday we visited Horsefeathers Bead Store in Campobello, SC which is right up the road and dropped some cash. It is off the beaten path but worth visiting. They have an excellent selection of Delica beads.

We also visited North Woods Farm Fiber and Yarn Store in Inman, SC. They have a wonderful selection of yarn, books, needles and bags. In addition to these items they also have an alpaca farm and process their own fiber. I was tempted several times to purchase yarn but managed to stick to the no yarn buying plan. I did purchase some ChiaoGoo needles to test since I have heard such good things about them and this is the first store I've been in that had them. They also sell KnitPicks and Blackthorn needles. I forgot to take my camera with me so I didn't get pictures of either place. I would have loved to get pictures of all of the alpacas especially the babies.

Once we got back and had dinner we began beading in earnest. I started my most time consuming project having found the perfect beads to complete the design at Horsefeathers. I purchased some Rivoli's from Fire Mountain Gems before we left and the colors were not what I expected when light reflected on them so I found some beads that coordinated better at Horsefeathers. This was my first time creating bezels but I was anxious to try the new technique.

We resumed work on our projects Saturday and I finally remembered to get out the camera. The first picture is Nancy, the second Millie and the last me.




I finished two projects and only need to add the button closure and loop on the last.


From bottom to top: Rivoli Square Dance bracelet, Triangle bracelet and Wave Ring


My favorite project is the rivoli bracelet but I learned from all of them. I feel the need to challenge myself with each project and I'm driven to learn all that I can about this new hobby. I'm sure that I'll eventually settle down with some favorite methods but for know I'm having fun trying new ones.

I did manage to get a little knitting done on the way up and back. My Adamas shawl has reached the point where I have to decide if I want to make it bigger or work the final chart. I have two full skeins of yarn remaining so I can easily make it larger. That's it for now. I'm off to put together some beads for some more Wave rings.

Leftovers Are Good For You

For several years I've been saving the little balls of yarn left from socks and more recently (as in last year) fingerless gloves. I've used some of it to make baby socks but was at a loss as to what to do with the rest. I knew I wouldn't knit a sock yarn blanket because blankets aren't my thing. My original plan was to save it for sock repairs which have proven to be few and far between so that the amount on hand has continued to grow.

I bought Think Outside the Sox at Stitches South last year and one of the patterns that caught my eye was the Drip Candle Socks. They were knitted using one of my favorite yarns Cherry Tree Hill Supersock Merino. This past week I pulled out all of the balls that used yarn with a content and twist similar to the Cherry Tree Hill Supersock. Below is the result of that search.


I have enough leftovers to make at least 2 or 3 pairs. I started the first pair today and so far I've used eight of the colors I pulled for this pattern.


This first sock may not be keeper since it is quite snug on the foot. I'm going to put this foot in time out and cast on another with more stitches using the same color scheme. So far I've found the pattern to be quite meditative to work. It is a very simple 2-stitch, 2-row pattern that works up very quickly.

The Palmetto Purlers, my knitting guild, is doing a KAL for Miriam Felton's aka Mimknits Adamas Shawl. I'm using Karabella Yarns Merino Lace which is slightly heavier than laceweight but not quite fingering weight. My initial plan was to knit at least a row a day but as you can see I've already been derailed from that plan. There isn't any rush to get this done so I'm doing a row here and there until it's finished. This is another stash buster project as I try to work through some of the laceweight yarns that I have.

I've been successful in that I haven't purchased any yarn. I did add two skeins of Red Heart Heart & Sole that was in our Knit-Inn baskets. I have mom's skein and mine and will use them to make either socks or fingerless gloves. I'm having success going "Cold Sheep" and it's a pleasure to walk in the room and pick out yarn for whatever project I want to make.

Last year by this time I would have hit all of the sales and added a significant amount of yarn to the already burgeoning stash along with the associated guilt of buying yarn that I don't need. This year it's about making do with what I have and being happy and guilt-free without all the excesses.