It seems to me that this month has been one big game of catch up. I am not exactly winning or losing yet, but just trying to keep up!

Vending at the frolic was a blast. Leaving for Sheep and wool 2.5 days later…maybe not the best planned schedule, but I still plan on having a lot of fun. I am running around a bit and that’s ok because it is all in the name of my own fun!

On the knitting front I decided at the last minute (as any good knitter would do) that C needed a new sweater for his birthday which is on the 13th of May. So I cast on and am knitting at top speed. Cross your fingers for me!

Speaking of birthdays…mine is coming up too! Actually, it is the day after C’s birthday, which provides 2 days of birthday fun for us and an annual sale for you!

This year I will be running the sale while I am away at sheep and wool to keep you all busy and happy! The sale will start this Wednesday and orders will ship the week of May the 5th. That way I can take my actual birthday off and spend the day knitting and being pampered!

I have aslo accumulated a lot of new stock this month which still needs to go up in the store including:

Pigeonroof knits yarns, Sknitches Kettle Dyed, Brooklyn Handspun, Ceyeberfiber yarns and lots of new Sweet Sheep Yarns!

These yarns will start updating as soon as I have the birthday sale packages out! Whew…see what I mean about catching up?

The Frolic was an absolute blast! Thank you to each and everyone of you that took the time to stop by my booth.

I had the pleasure of enjoying Anne’s beautiful shawl for the day.

It was such a thrill to wear and incredible work of art and so flattering to have been part of it!

And just one more shot because I loved wearing this shawl!!

The ladies and I are ready to go!

We hope to see you at the fair, if not maybe we will see you at Maryland Sheep and wool?

I will be flying out to Maryland on the 30th to attend the show. Is anyone going to the Ravelry party? I will be there also with some Sweet Sheep buttons and a few prizes for the raffle!

These ladies will be traveling with me to the Knitter’s frolic and a duplicate batch will be available at the Cloverhill booth in Maryland along with A LOT of other Sweet Sheep yarns including my lace and new double sized skeins!

I often wander through my stash admiring the beautiful handpainted sock yarns.

It struck me that these yarns are often hidden in patterns and not given the glory they truly deserve, so, I decided to create a very basic stockinette shawl to showcase beautiful hand dyed yarns of any weight!!

Introducing the:

Look how pretty my yarn is!! Shawl

This particular shawl used 745 yards of heavy fingering weight yarn. I used my double skeins. However, I have a lot of single skeins in the stash that would make a wonderful smaller version.

Gauge is not terribly important.

Needle size depends on how airy you would like your shawl. I used 6.5mm US 10.5

Stitches:

Knit, Purl, Yarn Over, Place Marker (PM), Slip Marker (SM)

Cast on 5 using any provisional method (if this does not appeal to you simply cast on 5 with your shawl yarn)

Start working your shawl yarn

Row 1: K2, PM, YO, PM, K1, PM, YO, PM, K2

Row 2: K2, Purl to last marker, K2

Row 3: K2, SM, YO, Knit to next marker YO, SM, K1, SM, YO, Knit to last marker YO, SM, K2

Row 4: K2, Purl to last marker, K2

Repeat rows 3 & 4 to desired size making sure to leave enough yarn for the last few rows

Working on the Right side row (knit side)

K2, SM, *YO, K2TOG* repeat ** to next marker, YO, SM, K1, repeat ** to next marker, YO, SM, K2

Next row

K2, Purl to last 2 sts, K2

Bind off all stitches with an elastic or stretchy bind off. I prefer to use the Yarn Over Bind off method

At this point you can graft your cast on stitches together, I use the kitchener stitch and darn in the odd count stitch.

Weave in your ends! Block, and Enjoy!

I have been down in the dyeroom hard at work on a new line of yarns.

You may have had a sneak peek a few weeks ago when I posted these shawl photos:

First of all from a knitting standpoint I LOVE knitting this yarn. It is wonderfully soft with a great tight twist.

I will have A LOT of this yarn at the Toronto Fiber Frolic and Maryland Sheep and Wool, but in the mean time you can get it in the shop!

The skeins are HUGE and perfect for larger projects!

I am using a new method of dyeing so all skeins are individually painted and one of a kind!

The shawl is my own design, just a basic shawl shell that shows off the beauty of hand painted yarns. I will be putting up this simple pattern over the next week on the blog for free!

Happy Tuesday!

PS. It is a good friend of mine’s birthday today! After a really rough month she could use some birthday hugs!

The fiber club sign ups will close on Monday. If you would like a spot please sign up by then.

The packages will ship before the end of april! We have several wonderful fibers to send you!

Check it out!

Handspun sweaters! I have finished both of my handspun sweaters and just absolutely love them both!

First up is my Bitchin sweater

This sweater was a labour of love!

And do I ever love it!! The roving was Funky Carolina  in Merino Tencel, which is now officially my favorite blend to spin…it is just sooooo smooth!  The pattern is a HEAVILY modified version of the little red riding hoodie. I don’t like to spread negativity so i will just say that I didn’t like the pattern and leave it at that.

Want some more pics?

Sunday was a BEAUTIFUL day for taking FO pictures. I must admit that I didn’t sew the zipper in. I took it to a professional as my sewing skills are less than desirable and I wanted the zipper to work!

I adore this sweater even if it is REALLY heavy!

Up next…

My Buttony Sweater 

I really love this sweater too…it is super comfortable!

This is my “I’m a model” pose! Ha ha ha.

The sweater is knit from the Buttony pattern with very few modifications. I did add some extra length because sweaters seem to be a bit short on me and I really think that length can just ruin a sweater’s comfort level.

The yarn is my handspun from some superwash merino I dyed specifically for a sweater. I am really happy with it and love the feel of the superwash on my skin. The neckline on this sweater is fantastic…I really love the way that it sits so I am planning to knit another one of these sweaters minus the buttons.

And if that wasn’t enough I also finished my Clapotis!

Sweet sheep colourway dyed by Union center knits.

Whew! I wish I could say that is all of my UFO’s finished…but it is not even close!

I have plenty of roving put aside for a few sweaters, but of course I have to finish spinning for my shawl first!

Next up..my LONG awaited Seraphim…did I mention it has been on the needles forever?

So what are you knitting?

I will be teaching beginner lace classes starting this week at my LYS Kniterary! If you are in the are and are interested Martina would love to hear from you! Check out the classes page…she has a lot of wonderful things going on!

I am also really excited to announce that I will be teaching in Baltimore at Mama E’s studio! I will be traveling to Maryland for the Sheep and Wool festival and am teaching a 2 part “spinning for a sweater” workshop before and after the event. You can find the information here on Erins new and exciting webpage!

There are a lot of wonderful plans in the works…as you all know I love to travel, so I am planning on trying to see as many of you as possible in my travels!

Happy Hump Day!