I Knit a Butterfly...

Butterfly Cowl

This is a pattern by Marin Melchior and it’s called “Butterfly Cowl”.  It is a rather small cowl that I would call bandana or kerchief shaped.  The cowl is primarily knit back and forth on a long circular needle, but as the project is nearing completion, you join to work in the round (see photos).  It’s fun to check out the completed Butterfly Cowl on Ravelry to see the great yarn and color combinations other folks have chosen.  My color choices definitely remind me of a Monarch butterfly.  

You can find the pattern at the link below:

https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/butterfly-cowl-11

Some folks might feel that this pattern is kind of expensive but when you see how well done and how well written the pattern is, you will understand all the hard work and creativity that went to this design.

This same designer has a larger shawl in a similar design called “Butterfly / Papillon” and it is stunning.  You can find that pattern here:

https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/butterfly--papillon

I think the designer notes that if you are not sure if you will like knitting the larger shawl, you might first wish to try out the smaller Butterfly Cowl design to see how you enjoy the technique (Short Rows and Wrapping and Turning).  Well, I definitely liked the technique and I definitely plan to make the larger Butterfly / Papillon in the future.  

The multi-colored yarn I used in this project is called Jojoland Melody Superwash.  The black yarn, leftover from another project, is from Canon Hand Dyed Yarns.

Copilot Cowl

Copilot Cowl

Copilot is a free pattern on Ravelry.  I decided it was a good choice for some yarn I dyed with Easter Egg Dye a few months ago.  I had some crazy bright orange yarn that I got at a knitting retreat.  At the retreat, I saw that the orange yarn could be a great rust color if over-dyed with blue dye.  I dyed the orange yarn with the blue Easter Egg Dye when I got home. It turned out great.  After dyeing the orange yarn, I noticed there was still a lot of dye in my pot.  I remembered I had some dye-able sock weight yarn in my craft room. I added it to the pot and that is the yarn I used in this project.  

Below you’ll see some random photos of my yarn dyeing session.  I can’t tell you exactly what I did but you can find lots of videos on YouTube which demonstrate how to dye yarn with Easter Egg Dye.

In the photo below, you can see all the yarn I dyed. The rust colored yarn was a bright poppy orange color before dyeing in a blue pot of dye.

Below you can see I had the dye-able wool in the pot (half way in and half way out).  

Above you can see that the entire hank of yarn eventually ended up in the pot (sorry the photos are out of order).  I took some of the Easter Egg Dye pellets and nestled them into the yarn in the pot of water on the stove top.  It was all very random and experimental.  Fun!

Copilot is a great knit for travel or watching TV.  

The cowl is very long and I like wearing it doubled up around my neck. I like wearing cowls since I don’t have to worry about them falling off when wearing them like I do with triangular shaped scarves/shawls.  

Here is the link for the Copilot pattern:  https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/copilot

Pembroke II

Pembroke II

I am calling this shawl "Pembroke II" because I've made this pattern twice.  This pattern is FREE on Ravelry and here is the LINK.  This pattern is great to knit while watching TV or traveling.  You just have to pay attention to what you are doing at the ends of the rows; other than that... it's just knit, knit, knit.  The yarn I used for this project is a dreamy merino wool.  Great to wear around your neck!  The yarn is Araucania Huasco sock yarn by Araucania and the color way is called Toco Toucan.  There are areas in the yarn which are an unusual shade of golden yellow.  We often go hiking and there is a particular lichen that looks to be the same color to me.  I love that.  The shawl is an easy to wear garment; it's a asymmetrical triangle and can be styled with or without a shawl pin.  As soon as I finished this project, I was tempted to cast on another.  I enjoy having some challenging projects on my needles, as well as a mindless, relaxing knit.

Up NEXT... I plan to show you the sampler quilt I am making!  

Luscious Lace Scarf

Luscious Lace Scarf







This pattern is called "Luscious Lace Scarf". It's a free pattern which can be found on Ravelry.  I knit this project using the very last of my hand dyed yarn.  I had the opportunity to attend a yarn dyeing workshop this past summer at my local yarn shop (Yarned & Dangerous, Canon City, Colorado). The class was taught by Peggy (The 100th Sheep).

When I knit this rectangular shaped scarf, I did modify the pattern slightly.  First, I cast on only 52 stitches; the pattern as written called for a greater number of stitches. I wanted a longer, narrower scarf.  My scarf is about seven feet long and about nine inches wide.  Second, the pattern calls for slipping the last stitch of each row; I slipped the first stitch of each row instead.  I did this because I found it difficult to work the slipped stitches after I turned my work each row if slipped the last stitch. Slipping the first stitch of each row worked better for me and gave the scarf a nice looking edge on both the right and left sides.








Here a few photos of the yarn I dyed. If I have the opportunity to dye more yarn in the future, I'll definitely jump at the chance. It's very fun!

Beaded Infinity Scarf

Beaded Infinity Scarf





Pattern: BWC Infinity Scarf (Buffalo Wool Company)
Yarn:  "Nimue Sock" from Wooly Wonka Fibers, Colorway "Peacock"
Fiber Content:  50 percent silk/percent Merino wool
Beads: Size 6 seed beads from "Bead Biz", Color "Dark Bronze"
Number of stitches in project including cast on and bind off: 18,480
Number of beads used: 1,056
Number of beads left over: only 9 (that's cutting in close)
Numbers of rounds I knit before realizing I had the stitches twisted and my cowl is now a "double Moebius shape" (if that is a thing): 64 rounds out of 70 rounds.

Yep, I was nearly done with the entire project when I realized I twisted the stitches after I cast on and before I joined to knit in the round.

Number of years I've been knitting (and should have caught that way sooner): 10 stinkin' years.

Despite all that, isn't this lovely!?!  It sure looks nice when I wrapped the scarf (cowl) double and styled it on my mannequin.  I am sure I'll enjoy wearing this despite the HUGE mistake I made.  Oh well.  This is a project I told myself I will make only ONE TIME.  For this design, you do string the beads on ahead of time. This means you are FOREVER pushing beads (over 1,000 beads) out of your way to make yarn available for the rounds you work without beads before you start knitting with beads.  Another tricky thing about this pattern is that you are always looking at the wrong side of your work when you are knitting so when you are adding the beads so that they appear on on the right side of the work, you are constantly counting and flipping your work around to make sure you are getting the beads in the right spot.

While working on this project I was watching a video class about knitting with beads. The website is "Bluprint" (formerly Craftsy) and the instructor was Laura Nelkin.  She was discussing beads and how sometimes beads are rough inside and sometimes they are smooth.  She said this is an important consideration especially if you are stringing your beads onto your yarn before you begin knitting as I did in this project. Just imagine if my beads were rough inside and I kept pushing them down the length of my yarn until I needed to knit with them. This could really tatter your yarn. She suggested buying Japanese beads as they tend to be smoother inside.  I have a lot to learn about knitting with beads.  And apparently, I need some remedial training regarding casting on a large number of stitches and joining to knit in the round WITHOUT twisting my stitches.

Nelkin Designs "Lolatude": Kit #1

Lolatude Kit #1

Back in August, I was looking at knitting designs by Laura Nelkin.  I stumbled across her blog where she was advertising an upcoming event where you could purchase project kits and have them mailed to your home for one, three, or six months.  I decided to treat myself to six months of project kits since my 50th birthday was in September.

I received my first kit in the middle of September. This is what came in the package.

• A Gale's Art Hand Dyed Sock blank (about 33 grams)
• some beautiful beads
• a Japanese bead needle
• some coordinating thread 
• some candy
• a post card with keycode to download the project pattern 

This was a pretty quick knit since it was only about 1/3 the size of a regular sock blank.  The instructions have you knit a boomerang shaped, asymmetrical triangle. You start at the narrow end then and, at the end, you work a number of rows in what's called "linen" stitch.  Finally, you bind off with an "I-cord bind off".  Next you create three tubes out of small (size 6) seed beads using needle and thread.  Thankfully the pattern had a great video link for how to make these Peyote Stitch Tubes.  It was a little tricky at first, but I enjoyed the bead work.  At the end, you sew the tubes to the linen stitch border of the scarf and then you insert the narrowest tip of the scarf through the three Peyote Stitch Tubes.  Each of the tubes is a different size depending upon the number of beads you use when you start the Peyote Stitch Tube.  

Eeeeek!  I made a mistake. I sewed my tubes on in the incorrect order.  I could not insert the narrow end of my scarf in the correct direction so I had to insert it in the opposite direction.  Thankfully it still works, it's just not as the designer intended.  So there you have it... a one of a kind scarf!

Here are some photos to show you what the kit looked like when it arrived.  I am also posting some photos of what the project looked like while in progress. I sure am looking forward to receiving and making my other "Lolatude" projects!

TGV with Hand Dyed Yarn

TGV: High Speed Knitting




"TGV" is a pattern available for purchase from designer Susan Ashcroft on Ravelry.  The pattern link is HERE.   I've admired the pattern for years but never tried until this past week.  The pattern reflects TGV stands for two things:

TGV = train grande vitesse (high speed train)
but also
TGV = tricot grande vitesse (high speed knitting).


I had to look up TGV.  It is France's intercity high-speed rail service.  The pattern name does not lie... this is one quick knit. I loved it!  I am sure I will make this pattern again.  Ordinarily I see this pattern knit in yarn that changes colors very slowly to give the wrap a cool striped effect, but I recently saw the pattern knit up in a variegated yarn and I liked the look.

This is yarn I dyed myself!  A few weeks back, I had the opportunity to take an all day class at my local knit shop (Yarned and Dangerous in Canon City, Colorado).  The class was offered by Peggy Doney of "The 100th Sheep".  I will tell you more about the class and the dyeing process we used in another post sometime soon. For now, I will just show you some great shots of my TGV.  I love how nicely this project drapes.  I think it will be a very wearable garment (in a variety of ways) once the temperatures get a bit cooler outside.  Below you'll see some photos of the yarn I used and the shape of the shawl.

Skyline Drive Hitchhiker

Skyline Drive Hitchhiker



Yipee!  My latest project is done!  If you are keeping track, this is Hitchhiker #5 for me.  I added beads.  I blogged about this project just a few days ago; you can read more about this project HERE.



I am really enjoying knitting with beads lately. I've cast on a new pattern in gorgeous yarn with amazing beads.  Both were purchased at the Interweave Yarn Fest in Loveland, Colorado, back in April 2018. I'll give you a sneak peek sometime soon after I get a few more rows done.