Winter in Alberta

Ahh - good old Alberta weather - it snowed last night and was very chilly as I snuggled under a quilt in the living room.  I finally got inspired to finish my Therapi sweater from the Winter 2008 Knitty.  I used the yarn called for - Therapi from Southwest Trading company - that is 30% Bowlder (Jadeite) Fiber,
50% Fine Wool and 20% Silk.  It is a lovely yarn - not too snaggy, not too poofy, all over nice to knit with.  I did all of the knitting last year and finished just as spring was arriving and didn't feel like having a huge sweater coat on my lap to sew on the giant collar.

Here is the finished sweater.

Lovely I think.  I was fortunate enough to try on the original last year when Stephanie Japel taught at the Make One Yarn studio retreat.  My only complaint is that the yardage given for the yarn in the pattern was way off - I ended up using almost twice as much as what the pattern called for.  Reading the reviews on Ravelry, everyone else that use the Therapi yarn had the same problem.  I wonder if the designer got the yarn in a different size ball before it was released.

Here is the mega collar unfolded.

and here is the lovely stitch detail on the back.

Watermelon fun

A new set of summer craft classes has started and I had my first one last week.  We all made these lovely watermelon pincushions from the Fruit Salad Pincushions pattern from Miss Rosie's Quilt Company.

It was a fun class and I was able to get everything finished that night except for the rick rack around the bottom but I finished hand sewing it on the next night - I didn't want it to leave it too long - sometimes I don't have a great track record with finishing.  The seeds were made with black brads and it is stuffed with fiber fill and crushed walnut shells for a really nice heft.

I've been working on so many things lately, I feel like I have crafter's ADD - but I have made small bits of progress on lots of projects.

I finished the first block of the Magnolia quilt from Sue Spargo's class back in May.  It was a great two days - I got everything picked out of the quilt with little bits of wool, ribbon and cottons pined to different blocks to remind me of my color choices as I work through.

This block has wool for the star, velvet in the centre for the circle, more wool for the flower and circles.  The leaves are made of wool with baby rick rack going out to wool circles and then the outer circles are a mix of cotton and wool with a lovely chenille thread couched around each one.   It feels great to have this one done.  I'll share more photos of some of the other projects as the rest of the week goes on.

Just in time for Summer

I have been a bit all over the place the last few weeks getting more stuff started than finished.

I went to Edmonton a few weeks ago and picked up yarn for this lovely cardigan from the new summer Classic Elite book New Harbour at River City Yarns.

This is the original, the Classic Silk Open Cardi.

and here is my finished piece(yes, I know my eyes are closed, but it is the best picture of the sweater)

and the back

The yarn is the one called for in the pattern, Classic Elite's Classic Silk - which is a cotton, silk and nylon blend.  It was lovely to work with and has a soft finish, like a silk noile - it took just over 8 balls.  This was a great fast knit - just taking 9 days to from start to finish.  I steam blocked it and the everything just relaxed and looked lovely.

Sue Spargo is coming

Sue Spargo is coming to Calgary again this year to teach at Out of Hand.  I missed Sue when she was in town last year, but don't feel bad for me - I got to to to Blue Moon Fiber Arts Sock Camp.  This year I couldn't do both so I chose to stay in town and enjoy the classes with Sue.  I had heard such good reviews from last year, I'm looking forward to meeting her.

In preparation, I finished the Blue Bird needlecase I started a few months ago - from one of Sue's patterns.  Here is the finished outside with the buttons sewn on.

And the inside of the needle case - I used bolder colors than I normally would choose and I love the green and pinks.

And I have completed my prep work for Friday's Altered Texture class.  Sue send this very cool kits before hand that we have to have the applique done and we will spend the day embellishing the piece.

And then on Saturday and Sunday, Sue is teaching her newest quilt - Magnolia.  I have selected my wools for the backgrounds of the quilt.  I am sticking with the gold and turquoise that the patterns used.  I know some of the students are changing the colors but I don't have a quilt in these colors - I usually pick purple, pinks, blues and blacks so this is a real departure for me.

I can't wait for the classes and meeting Sue.  I'm happy that I have all of my prep work done so I won't spend the week rushing.

No longer in Love....

Well, Love is finished and blocked but the fit isn't great.

It is a good fit at the neckline and the armholes but is about 6 inches too wide at the hips.  I did shorten the sweater a by 1.5 inches so it would fall in a good place which may have added to the problem but it is simply too wide.  So much so I didn't bother to take a photo of me in it.  So here is the finished project, resting comfortably on the guest room bed.

I did try washing it and hanging it to dry but it didn't make much of a difference.  I don't think I will frog it yet, I'm going to wait and see if I wear it at all this summer or I might pass it on to a friend.