eat! craft! live!

:: photo friday :: yarn, yes yarn!

Rhinebeck, Rhinebeck, Rhinebeck!

In theory, this post is about a sheep and wool festival and some sweaters. In reality, it's about those things and toddlers.

Last weekend at this time, I was in Rhinebeck, NY for a sheep and wool festival. Now, if you knit, you might know what a big deal this is. It seems like nearly everyone I know was there. I met so! many! knitters! People I'd known for years online, but had never met in person. It was awesome. And, oh yeah, there were sheep. And tons of wool. I'm not a spinner, though sometimes I pretend to be, so I focused on the already-spun wool and browsed the booths and booths of yarn. (Booths and booths. Holy crap, I don't think I've ever seen so much yarn in one place! And I didn't even get to see it all!) I managed to keep my purchases small(ish) and only came home with two skeins of yarn. I'm going to knit me some socks this winter!

We had a great time. Though I wouldn't recommend traveling 6 hours in a car with two toddlers on a regular basis. All in all, they were fairly well-behaved, but between trying to get them to sleep in the car, nap in the stroller, or to sleep in a room with other toddlers, it was...a challenge...to put it politely. Good times were had, but not relaxing times, if you know what I mean! Travel with the little ones can be fun, certainly, but stressful too.

We had some truly wonderful moments though. I took E on the merry-go-round for the very first time. And oh, how I wish I had photos of it! Alas, I was holding on to both her and the neighboring horse to keep us all from falling off. If you had been watching, you would have seen my little girl literally shaking with a combination of glee and terror. I've never seen her so excited! We did, however, confirm her fear of sheep. *sigh* Apparently alpacas are pretty terrifying too.

I knit both of us Rhinebeck sweaters, which sounds a bit more impressive than it really is. Mine I started nearly a year ago and E's began life in March of this year. But I did finish them both! Although I fully admit to sewing the buttons on in the car and finishing the last buttonhole mere minutes before arrival at the Rhinebeck house.

E's sweater was the Eyelet Yoke Baby Cardigan which I modified somehow to make toddler-sized but I can't remember for the life of me now what I did. (Whatever it was, I did it in the springtime. And forgot to write it down. Silly me!) I used Knit Picks Swish Worsted in cornmeal, which was left over from part of a baby blanket. Unfortunately, there wasn't enough to knit a whole sweater, so I had to order more! And now I have extra. Again. The pattern is super simple, even with fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants toddler mods. As you can see, it's a bit long on her - I was worried about it being too short, with her being such a tall kiddo and all, so I erred on the side of long. This way, she can wear it for a long time!

I love the eyelet details at the yoke and hems. They add just a touch of loveliness to an otherwise not-very-girly sweater.

My own sweater was the very popular Coraline. I knit it using my own hand dyed DK weight yarn in a 70% merino/30% silk blend. The only major modification was to make 3/4 length sleeves, for a couple of reasons. One, I was very afraid (needlessly, it turned out) that I was going to run out of yarn. And if I had, there was no just hopping to the store to buy more - I only had a certain number of skeins, and I didn't trust my ability to recreate the colors exactly! And the second reason was that I just generally prefer shorter sleeves. If my sweaters and tops are long-sleeved, you will almost always see me push them up. These sleeves hit just below my elbow, which is pretty much perfect for me.

The pattern has you knitting the bottom of the sweater then turning it over on itself and knitting it together before continuing up the length of the body. It makes for a wonderful turned hem, though I cursed at the time because all of sudden, you're knitting along and it's like you've only done half of what you've actually done! Not very satisfying. But it looks wonderful.

So now I'm missing my Rhinebeck friends but thoroughly enjoying some quiet time at home. And E and I both have gorgeous sweaters to wear! I admit - I've been wearing mine nearly every day since our return. And it's been glorious.

no spam here

I'm starting up a new mailing list for Ye Olde Yarn Shoppe. If my attention to blogging at the yarn blog is any indication, there won't be a lot of activity. Which is nice for those of you who may like to get notice of sales and coupons and other goings-on, but don't want to be inundated with email. I can assure you that won't happen!

Click on over here to join up - the inaugural issue will be going out later today or tomorrow and I can promise you there will be a coupon code! *wink, wink*

save the date!

What are you doing Saturday, August 27 from 11-6? Will you be in Lincoln Park in Portland, ME? I think you will.

You know why?

Because that way you'll get to join me and tons of other crafty vendors for the 4th annual Picnic Music+Arts Festival!

Picnic sez:

The Picnic Music+Arts Festival will feature clothing, jewelry, prints, accessories, bags, plush, stationery, photography, housewares, fine art, vintage goods and more. There will be live music and tasty food to enjoy all day.

I guess I fall into the "and more" category... Anyway, it'll be an excellent chance to check out my new yarn colors and squish it with your very own hands! Last year I attended (not as a vendor) with my teeny baby and it was loads of fun. Save the date and we'll look forward to seeing you!

:: photo friday :: two batches

blankets

Some of you may know that some friends of friends lost two of their beautiful daughters in a house fire a few weeks ago. I cannot imagine going through such loss and I know that simple knitted items can't possibly make up for it. But! My friend forwarded me this message about knitting and/or crocheting blanket squares for them and it would be such a lovely gesture. She said that the goal is to gather enough squares to make a blanket for each of the 6 remaining family members. Here's the message:

Handspun with Heart · A Portland, Maine nonprofit dedicated to fundraising and community building through fiber arts · handspunwithheart@gmail.com · Facebook: Handspun with Heart · (207) 332-6217

Patchwork blanket project for family in Maine
Please deliver or mail your squares by May 7, 2011

A family in Maine lost two of their children in a house fire in March 2011. We are collecting knitted and crocheted squares to be assembled into a blanket or blankets. Squares need to be delivered or postmarked by May 7, 2011. Questions? Email us at handspunwithheart@gmail.com or call us (207) 332-6217. Like us on Facebook for updates: Handspun with Heart. Please spread the word—thank you!

Making Squares
1. Choose a color or colors of yarn that suggest healing, peace, love, respect. Wool or acrylic, commercial or handspun, are all fine.
2. Knit or crochet one or more 5.5 inch squares in any pattern of your choosing. Finished dimensions need to be 5.5 inches square. A basic knitting pattern is included below if you need it. Have fun!
3. Send your finished square(s) by May 7 to Handspun with Heart, c/o JVW, 37 Westminster Ave, Portland, Maine 04103. You can also hand-deliver — place in bag on front porch marked “Patchwork Blanket Project.”

Assembly
Assembly will occur Saturday, May 14, 2011 starting at 10 a.m. If we receive enough squares we will make more than one blanket. We need volunteers to help with assembly--experience helpful but not necessary!

If you would like to volunteer please RSVP:
handspunwithheart@gmail.com / (207) 332-6217. We could use a few people with experience assembling this sort of blanket!

Easy Knitted Square pattern
You can use any pattern you enjoy so long as the finished dimensions are 5.5 inches square. Here is a basic knitted garter stitch square pattern as a starting place if you need it. Choose colors that suggest healing, peace, love, respect.

Materials: worsted weight wool or acrylic yarn; size 7 (US) needles, or needles needed to obtain gauge
Gauge: 3.5 stitches / inch
Pattern: Cast on 20 stitches. Knit every row for 38 rows or 5.5 inches. Bind off loosely.

Alternate for heavy worsted weight: Cast on 18 stitches. Knit every row for 34 rows or 5.5 inches and bind off loosely.

About Handspun with Heart: Handspun with Heart is a nonprofit fiber arts organization based in Portland, Maine, dedicated to the betterment of the planet by fundraising for local and international charities and building community through fiber arts activities. Like us on Facebook: Handspun with Heart. Email: handspunwithheart@gmail.com / (207) 332-6217

'tis the season

'Tis the season to give and to get. And to eat lots of pie... So in honor of this wonderful and difficult time in this particularly wonderful and difficult year (at least for me...and I know many of you too...) I will be donating a portion of the proceeds from all sales in my shop this month to a local charity.

Yarny goodness that benefits you, me and a whole host of other people too! What could be better? Happy holidays everyone.

shoppity shop

Just a reminder that today you can get 15% off any order from my shop with coupon code THANKYOUTURKEY.

Also! Lulu is having a sale as well and I promised I would pass along any Lulu sale info as I got it... They are doing 25% off any order today with code CYBER305. (How generous!) So pop over and grab a calendar while the price lasts!

Cyber Monday!

I'm getting in the "spirit" of the...uh...shopping season...with a Cyber Monday sale over at the wee shop. Use coupon code THANKYOUTURKEY to get 15% off your order! The code is good from now until I wake up Tuesday morning...so get yer shop on!

Hope everyone had a fantastic Thanksgiving. Ours was a blast - good food, fun family and a baby full of pureed squash. Nothing better.

Back Cove Scarf

I am pleased to announce...my very first design! It's a super easy reversible, cabled scarf that knits up remarkably fast, considering how loooong it is. In between cable rows are rows and rows of fairly mindless 2x2 ribbing, which makes it good for zoning out and watching TV or knitting on the bus. (Until it gets long and unwieldy, that is...) The only trick is keeping track of how many rows you've knit.

It's named after the cove a few blocks from my house. One of my very favorite things about living here is that a five minute walk brings me straight to the ocean! The cove fills up and empties almost completely like clockwork. The cables in this scarf get gradually closer together, like ripples on the surface of the sea, the closer you get to the middle then reverse position, leaving a small swath of plain ribbing in the middle. I like how every time I pick it up, I will know where the middle of the scarf is. Also, the way the ribbing and cables come together, it forms a little nest to snuggle your cold winter face into. Aaah...

I used nearly 4 skeins of Quince and Co. Puffin, which is such a delightfully squishy, chunky single-ply yarn. (I have a serious thing for single-ply yarns...shhh...) It's bulk lends a serious squish factor to this scarf - I could sit here all day and squeeze it!

And now for the pattern...

Back Cove Scarf

Grab the pdf here

Abbreviations:
K - knit
P - purl
C16B - Slip 8 stitches to cable needle, hold in back of work, [K2, P2] twice, [K2, P2] stitches from cable needle
C16F - Slip 8 stitches to cable needle, hold in front of work, [K2, P2] twice, [K2, P2] stitches from cable needle

Pattern:
Cast on 32 stitches.
[K2, P2] to end, slipping first stitch of each row knitwise. (Do not slip first stitch of cable rows.)
Repeat for total of 18 rows.
C16B, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 18 rows.
C16F, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 16 rows.
C16B, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 16 rows.
C16F, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 14 rows.
C16B, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 14 rows.
C16F, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 12 rows.
C16B, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 12 rows.
C16F, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 10 rows.
C16B, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 10 rows.
C16F, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 17 rows.
C16B, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 10 rows.
C16F, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 10 rows.
C16B, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 12 rows.
C16F, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 12 rows.
C16B, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 14 rows.
C16F, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 14 rows.
C16B, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 16 rows.
C16F, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 16 rows.
C16B, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 18 rows.
C16F, [K2, P2] to end.
Knit in 2x2 rib for 18 rows.
Bind off in pattern.