yarn goodness...

it's the last day of march! huzzah!
i feel like this has been a harsh winter for so many! i know that here in victoria, bc we've had some springy weather lately (sorry!) but i feel for the rest of the country! i just hope things thaw out for you soon. xoxoxo

and so to look forward to spring, i think we should look at some pretty yarn, no?? that always makes me feel better :)

as i had mentioned before, seattle was such a fun trip for me! and of course, i indulged a bit :)

one of the things i had promised myself this year was to knit more socks. and though i'm not really on the biggest roll with them, i am trying to always have one on my needles.... so when i had the opportunity to buy some socks that rock yarn, i was stoked! i snagged these two lovely skeins.

and i'm hoping to be working with them this summer.... i'd also like to be knitting more shawls. i just like them, so i figure i need more of them. that's probably why my stash is mostly single skeins of fingering weight :) lol!
that being said... i do think a girl needs a good camping wrap! so look what i got just for that purpose!!!

when em aka. emmaknits decided to close her yarn dying doors, i was uber sad. though i did snag some lovelies to have in my stash! these colours just make me smile! and with any of her designs coming out, i've got some lovely yarn to work with!! xo

do you have some special skeins of yarn staring at you what are you hoping to have on your needles this spring? let's chat. tea's on... and i plan on getting some tulips this week ;) xo

the huntress

i have another f.o for you!!! 

this one, i know most of you recognize. it's the huntress vest. more commonly referred to as the katniss cowl. 

i've actually never seen the second movie.. where she's wearing this fabulous vest/cowl that EVERYBODY in the knitting, fibre arts, crochet community just HAD to have. i heard you could tell who the knitters were in the theatre, because they all gasped when they saw it. ha.

i know there are a lot of variations out there on this pattern. i have to say, i'm pretty pleased with this one. 

i love the detail of the chunky stitches...

it's a combination of knitting and crochet. most of the pieces are crocheted.... and you actually use a single crochet stitch to seam everything together. genius and speedy!!! 

most of you probably know that i tend to be most productive under pressure. i seem to thrive on overfilling my plate, and just keep adding things to it. i don't really know why, because i'm often wishing for "free time" to sit and knit. wait. i'm always knitting.... bahahahah i clearly just want more hours in my day, not because i feel overwhelmed, but because there's so much more i want to do!

hahaha. anyways, back to the point. 

productive under pressure.. yah. (i might have pushed this one out in 3 days... and it wasn't the only thing on my needles in that timeframe)

deets:

pattern: huntress vest by alexendra tavel

needles: 15mm/US 19 

hook: 17mm & 8mm

yarn: lion brand thick & quick in grey marble 3.5 skeins

i had to go up a hook size to get better gauge. and really, i like the look of the stitches more in the fatter hook. with the herringbone stitch, i ended up casting on 34 stitches, to get the proper size of the finished garment.

other than that, i really didn't make any other modifications. 

if you are into uber chunky projects, check out alexandra's designer's page on ravelry! very cute stuff there!

as i mentioned before, it's a quick project! i love it heaps! (too bad this one isn't for me).... it's incredibly warm, and would totally put on an edgy style in the cooler months! 

i'll definitely be making more!! now where did i put my bow? xo

LINDEN mitts! take two.

a lot of you knitters who are big followers of jane richmond were probably aware of her linden mitts KAL that was going on. 

it has been a little while since i've knit one of her patterns, so i had made promises to myself and to jane that i would totally participate... but the start date flew past me and i was no way near ready to cast on, as other deadlines had to be met... no worries... i knew i was going to seattle and would have plenty of time to knit during vogue knitting live... (ummmm yah, not so much knitting happened... more yarn shopping than knitting for sure) hahah ok no worries... so i still had a week left. i can do this. no big deal... 

and then it was friday, and i hadn't even cast on. what the heck!? 

so i'm stubborn. and i totally took on the challenge that i would still be able to eek out a pair of mitts in a couple of days... in fingering weight. 

honestly, it's the very easy to follow pattern, and the self striping yarn that makes these such a quick knit! 

wait... does this style look familiar to you? well it should! about a year ago i knit up my first pair! 

pros of being a close friend to the designer.. you get sneak peeks of patterns before they are released! hee hee.... 

and so now i have two pairs. and i'm pretty sure i won't stop there. i really do love these mitts! they are just as addictive as sock knitting. easy to tote around, and before you know it, they're done! 

the deets of this pattern:

linden mittens by: jane richmond

yarn: knit picks felici, fingering weight, aquarium (1 skein)

        knit picks felici, fingering weight,  sunny day (1 skein) - this is the original pair that i had knit

needle: 2.25mm /US 1

for details of the first pair, check out this post.

i had heaps of fun participating in this KAL. a lot of people even eeked out two pairs! well done!!! this was a blast. and such a quick (surprisingly) and gratifying knit! thanks jane! xo

routine = busy.

spring break is over, and we're diving back into a routine! ... sort of. hhaha. really i just think chaos and general busy-ness is our routine ;)

how was your spring break? did you pack heaps of fun things in? did you get a chance to knit at all? i promise this week i have a few things to share with you...

link

first up... this weekend is  pacific women's day, and i'm hosting a knitting workshop at  royal roads university!
i am really excited to be a part of this experience! the grounds are stunning! (you may or may not have noticed, x-men was filmed here) and i'm looking forward to a fabulous turnout!

be sure to check out their site, and if you're local and want to learn to knit, and just be a part of an amazing environment, register!

also i just might be winding a certain skein from this pile of goodies...

any guesses??? hee hee..

i'd love to hear what you've been up to for the spring break! come chat! my needles are busy clicking away... and i've made coffee! xo

fan girl!

i can't help it. i think i have myself all composed and such, and then i meet a new designer, and i go all loopy. haha. (it probably didn't help that i was in the prettiest yarn store ever! oh well hopefully the impression i leave was more endearing than creepy. ;)
though i haven't yet written up my recap post of vogue knitting live, i had to sneak this in here before the week is over.
one of the highlights of the trip for me was going to TOLT and then while we were perusing the yarns, picking colours for sweater quantities.... in walks susan b. anderson!!! yeah, i kind of lost all train of thought and the biggest smile just came across my face (after the gaping mouth, "omg it's susan!"  wore off. hah)

so of course, our cameras went all happy and crazy, and we were linking instagram and facebook.... today though, susan had spotted my group pic (which wasn't really hard as i had so boldly tagged her) and used it in her blog post! so now i'm having another fan girl moment, !!!!!! weeeeeeeee!!!!

so please go check out susan's post today! Find out what she bought at TOLT and read all about her recap! xoxoxo happy knitting today!

seattle goods!

how are the days, and the hours flying by so quickly i want to know?! i know i'm back into stacking many things on my plate (um when have i not done this?) so i'm of course a busy bee...

i have full intentions to have a more detailed description of my trip to seattle for you! honest!! so far, all i've managed to do is to have some pics of my haul. and i have to say, i didn't really intend to get this much... but i regret nothing!

almost every skein here has a project in mind... and really, it's just so very nice to look at!
now if only i had time for more selfish knitting! lol.

here's a pic of just the yarn...

i think it's really pretty, and actually, all of these yarns i've never worked with before! how exciting!

i can't wait to tell you more of the trip! xoxo

bliss

this past weekend flew by! and we packed so much fun and yarn into it! please bear with me as i recollect my thoughts and try to organize my life for the week :) my kiddo is officially on spring break this week, so it should be an interesting juggle.

seattle was so much fun! i tried to instagram what i could. have you been following me? after a super long day of travel, and little sleep i was happy to be home, staring at my sweet goods and enjoying a glass.

one of the huge highlights of the trip for me was to spend time at TOLT. this is the most beautiful yarn shop!! I was in awe, and had to keep pinching myself. i've been dreaming of going there ever since it opened up! and then having susan b. anderson walk in was pretty awesome too!! a total bonus is that there seems to be a campground close by! hello summer camping trip! i will most definitely be back! xo

i promise to show you pics of "the haul" soon! and give you all a proper catch up.... 
xoxo

eeks!

this is going to be a crazy week for me for sure! i have heaps to work on, and my kiddo is starting kung fu!! gah i can't wait to see him in his uniform and his belt. soooo cute. but really not the ONLY reason we've put him in. haha.

link

this weekend is also vogue knitting live!!!!! i am so excited to be able to attend again this year! i had such a blast last year! now that i know a little more what to expect, i'm really looking forward to just soaking it all in  :)

so my goal this week is to get all of my work done. that way i can bring selfish knitting to the event! and i promise to instagram as much as i can, as well as have a lovely post for you about it afterwards. !!

i'm also heaps happy (that works, right?) to see the sun out! hello spring!!! and now it has me thinking of lighter knits... i have a feeling there will be many shawls and socks on my needles! what about you? any lighter projects on your needles these days?

so in the meantime, you'll have to excuse me as i dive into my pile of work and be productive. send me some speedy knitting vibes please!!
xo

taffy toes and warmer weather

hellooooo! miss me?? I can't believe it's march already! and half way through the first week of it at that! geez where has the time gone? our little family ended up taking a very last minute trip to Alberta to celebrate my father in law's retirement. he had no idea we were coming. the look on his face when owen walked into his workplace was priceless! it was a fun weekend, and extremely cold! i am definitely a west coast girl. :)

and just as the last time we took a flight somewhere, owen has lost another tooth! strange timing, but that's how it goes. this makes baby tooth number 4! stop growing up already, kid.

of course, my needles have been steadily busy. i actually have an fo for you! i'm loving these socks.... i really didn't think that i would as i really wasn't a fan of the yarn in the first place. it's amazing how much a skein can change once you knit it up! i made sure to only bring selfish knitting on this trip so as soon as i bound off these babies i cast on another pair of socks!

i honestly thought this was variegated yarn when i bought it (at Michael's rather surprisingly... as there is cashmere in this fibre) and really.... i'm not that big of a fan of variegated yarns... but i figured i had to try this yarn as i've never seen Michael's carry anything with cashmere.....and the price was good. you can imagine my surprise to discover it's actually self striping! haha. so awesome. these socks are definitely knitting up quick. :) i am actually already at the heel gusset! but here's more pictures of the finished socks. yay!

this is definitely a busy month with classes, private lessons, a workshop, and lots of custom orders. (thus the reason for my being kinda quiet)... but i'm really loving it. the fact that this can be my source of income and still be home for owen, and go to all of his many activities.. awesome... and the bonus is how portable knitting is!

vogue knitting live is coming up soon too! in just over a week i'll be heading to seattle! wahoo! i promise to have a post soon about what i hope to finish in time for this event, and what knitting i plan on bringing!

for details on these socks, please check out my ravelry page.

tell me, what are you up to these days? i'd love to chat! xo