Tempus fugit

Indeed, time does fly. It has been almost a whole year since I last blogged here, and I realize I have made many, many knitted projects since then that I haven’t talked about. So, here’s a quick overview of my accomplishment highlights.

I made a lot of cowls last year. There were a couple of KALs and a few test knits. One that I’d been working on for a long time, Endless Rose Cowl by Jeffrey Wall, finally got finished. I used KnitPicks Bare Superwash Wool DK for the main colour, and Woodland by Classic Elite Yarns (now discontinued) for the contrasting Fair Isle.

Another was Joyful Cowl by Heather Anderson, made from Mini Mochi. I gave this to my niece’s first mother-in-law, with whom I am still friends, and she was absolutely delighted.

There were other cowls, just as nice and just as blog worthy, but I tire of cowls. I also made fingerless mitts. Lots and lots of fingerless mitts. I even tried brioche for the first time. Here’s the pair I made for my daughter, The Astronomer’s Mitts by Sabine Kastner.

But of course, you want to hear about the shawls. There were those, including a few epic knits. Here’s a test knit I made for Mary-Anne Mace, The Eye of Day, from Sweet Paprika Grazioso.



Another of Mary-Anne’s, Speckle Tonic, was a disappointment, not in the pattern, but in the yarn. I used two skeins of Serenity 20 by Zen Yarn Garden, a lovely blend of merino, cashmere and nylon. When I washed it prior to blocking, the dark blue dye ran into the white and stained it. I used the leftover yarn for my daughter’s mitts, and wisely put some vinegar in the water first. It kept the colour from running. I love my Speckle Tonic. It’s warm and cozy, but it’s not how I envisaged it.

Another test knit, Summer Petals by Mary-Anne Mace, came out perfectly. I used Sea Lace by Handmaiden Fine Yarn and the result was absolutely gorgeous. I ended up giving it to a visiting pianist on whom it seemed completely at home.

The next test knit, again for Mary-Anne Mace, was Liquid Geography. This was knit from KnitPicks Curio Cotton. It’s going to a friend who is getting married next spring.

One more Mary-Anne Mace shawl, which I modified ever so slightly so I wouldn’t run out of yarn, was Feathers are Leaves on Birds. It called for a tad more yarn that I had, one skein each of two different colourways of Sweet Georgia CashSilk Lace, but I made it work, and I absolutely love it.

I took part in a Heather Anderson KAL and knit her Magic Dragon Shawl from KFI Luxury Collection Luxury Silk Sport by Knitting Fever. I had previously test knit the matching baby blanket and liked the pattern enough to make something similar.

But the pièce de résistance is going to get its very own blog post. So read on.