It's Confession Time!

I told Tim last night that I'm in love. Of course I love him to pieces, but I am having a "yarn love affair" with Madelinetosh Pashmina! It's the most beautiful, softest, bounciest yarn I've ever used. I'm making the Imogen Cowl and the pattern just screams fantastic in Pashmina. What do you think? I've got a bit left to knit, but here's a peek prior to finishing and blocking. 

My Imogen Cowl in the Thicket colorway

A few of the other lovely colors of Pashmina

I've got more Madelinetosh yarns slated to come in very soon, so I'm sure a little more Pashmina will wander home with me. I just hope that Tim won't mind! :) 

As you prepare your New Year's Resolutions, be sure to add "knitting with Madelinetosh Pashmina" to your list. You won't be sorry ... except for maybe when you get hooked like I am. I hope you have a Happy New Knitting Year!

Knit a Quick Cowl!

I found a miniature leaf pattern in Barbara Walker's book A Treasury of Knitting Patterns and decided to use it to make a quick cowl/infinity scarf for my daughter Katie as well as for a shop sample. I made Katie's cowl in a couple of hours, so just in case you need a pattern for a last minute gift, here are the instructions. The finished cowl is 8 inches wide by 56 inches in circumference. If you would like to make it longer or shorter the pattern is a multiple of 6 stitches.

Leaf Lace Infinity Scarf

Materials 

• Size 13 circular needle (24- to 32-inch is just perfect) 

• 2 skeins of Cascade 128 Superwash.

Miniature Leaf Pattern 
Round 1: Knit.

Round 2: *Knit 3, yarn over, slip 1, knit 2 stitches together, pass slipped stitch over, yarn over; repeat from * around.
Round 3: Knit.
Round 4: *Yarn over, slip 1, knit 2 stitches together, pass slipped stitch over, yarn over, knit 3; repeat from * around. 

Instructions
Cast on 132 stitches.

Join carefully to avoid twisting your cast-on stitches. Purl one round. Knit one round. Purl one round.
Work Miniature Leaf Pattern for width desired.
Knit one round.  Purl one round. Knit one round. Purl one round. Bind off knit-wise. 

Enjoy!

Snowbound Knitting

When I left the shop on Tuesday night (earlier than normal because of a whole lot of snow), I had the foresight to bring along a few projects to work on for shop samples. I brought home one skein of Elsebeth Lavold's Silky Wool for a cowl and one skein of Mirasol Tupa for a scarf. Both are incredibly lovely to knit! We recently got these and other new yarns in at the shop and it's always nice to have samples in the shop for customers to see.

When I got up yesterday (Wednesday) morning I knew we weren't going to be coming in to the shop. There were nearly 16 inches of snow on the ground and the snow plows hadn't been by at all! It was going to be the perfect day to stay in, watch movies and knit! Knitting any time is definitely something you don't have to twist my arm to do, but knitting on a day when I would normally be really busy in the shop doesn't usually happen until I'm home at night. It was a wonderful way for me to feel like I was actually accomplishing something for the shop, yet I was doing my favorite things; lounging in my sweats, knitting, and watching movies with Katie.

By late afternoon we were all feeling a bit stir crazy and wanted something other than soup to eat for dinner. Tim had gotten the driveway cleared, so we headed out to Super Target (without cleared roads it was only possible thanks to his truck with 4-wheel drive and his superb driving skills). It was bizarre on the roads, some vehicles were just left abandoned in the middle of the snow drifts! Super Target was dead quiet. Maybe only 20 cars in the parking lot, which hadn't been cleared. Inside we had fun buying things to make Peanut Butter Blossoms (cookies) and other nonsensical food items and stuff. Tim was so cold, he even bought a cozy blanket for lounging!

Today we are back at the shop and attempting to get back to normal. Customers are few, but that has given me opportunity to blog! The poor UPS guy just ran in, dropped off a package and told me he's trying to get two days of business completed in one day. I'm glad I don't have to lug packages around all day!

If you have a few last minute gifts to make, you may want to whip up A Noble Cowl or the One Row Lace Scarf. Both are fun to knit. The cowl takes the longest to make, but is well worth it! FYI: I only cast-on 20 stitches for the One Row Lace Scarf in order to get the most out of my one skein.