Living in Scarfland

I've been in a frenzy of scarf knitting lately, what with Christmas and work on my Lingonberry Loop (LL) pattern, not to mention my Thanksgiving scarf (still a WIP). I love scarves as a fashion accent, as an on-the-go project, and as a warm winter layer.  It's amazing how wearing one around our chilly house warms me up.

I pretty much always have one or two on the needles and over the years I've made plenty, some better than others, LOL.  

 

 

 

This week I finally bound off an aran-weight LL in Berroco Peruvia, and also sewed very light shell buttons on the very first version, knit in fingering weight Frog Tree Brushed Suri alpaca.

This yarn has a gorgeous halo that looks a little like mohair, but has more drape/ less spring, and a matte finish with less luster.  In the hand it is very soft, but reminds me more of wool than mohair.

 

I'd forgotten how much I loved knitting this, since I designed it in August 2010, and now I can't wait to wear it.  

When finalizing the pattern, I actually had two versions written up, one for fingering and one for chunky, both of which I liked.  

The deciding factor at the time was to go with chunky since it is much faster to knit, very warm for deep winter, and also more trend-current.  But boy do I love the light weight one!  

It's shorter and wider than the published version, allowing it to be worn many ways, but perhaps not a width that would be comfortable in a much heavier yarn.  It might feel too much like a blanket.  But then, just look at some of the ginormous (as my niece likes to say) scarves and cowls out there right now and who knows?

I like how the lacy pattern stitch is equally beautiful on both sides so you can wear it as a moebius with a half-twist before buttoning (as shown in top photo above), and how it allows buttons to go through along the sides for a shawl/ wrap style.

I'm considering publishing a second version of the LL pattern in the lighter weight.  Or will people adapt and modify the current one and it would be a waste of time?  Hmmm....

The grey one is still lacking buttons, so I'll save the FO shots for later.  Lots to think about.  

On the Needles

Despite the warm weather, I've been working on ideas for the coming fall and winter cold-weather seasons.  Swatching lace stitches, cables and even a little color work has been a lot of fun, but I realized that despite the record-setting heat this year, summer is in it's final stages and it will be time to make and wear these things soon.

Last week some of the trees in our area were already showing signs of turning from green to gold, and today I saw both my first school bus of this new school year, and the first fallen maple leaf.   The high temperatures and lack of rain have stressed many plants and trees, so it will be interesting to see how this affects our usually spectacular show of autumn foliage color.

The project you see in the photo at the top of this post is a simple, airy lace knit in  fingering-weight, Suri alpaca yarn from Frog Tree.  The yarn is extremely soft and does shed a bit, but not more so than other fluffy yarns such as mohair.  It blocks very nicely, and the combination of alpaca's lovely drape and the halo from the long Suri fibers, gives the knitted fabric a light, warm coziness without bulk. 

Although this pattern is planned for fingering weight, I am knitting it on US #6/ 4mm needles to allow for some openness in the stitches, so it remains light and should be a fairly quick knit.  Hopefully this pattern will be done test knitting and available as a PDF in the next couple of weeks.  I'll have it up for download here and on my Ravelry page.

I've finished the Misti alpaca shawl and will try to get those pics up this week.  Otherwise, still tinkering with my cardigan shrug and casting on for more hats and a little pullover.  More details when I get some more time this week.

My crocheting friend Cheryl (Chercher on Ravelry) and I like to get together to stitch every week or so, when we can.  Yesterday as I was leaving her home, I stopped to admire her water garden, including these lilies just beginning to close in the late afternoon light.  

I think this is another good image to use in my inspiration for a project I have in mind, mentioned in this post.

 

The Koi look so serene gliding just below the surface of the water.  A beautiful way to end a pleasant time.