Startitis

Yep, I've been hit with it - a rather serious case, too. I just can't seem to stop looking for new stuff to cast on.

The Poncho for DD1

I really must stop browsing through my copy of Cabin Fever's Top Down for Toddlers. Every time I do it, I come away with something new on the needles. This time it's "The Poncho". I decided this was the perfect opportunity to burn through some variegated sportweight acrylic I had kicking around in the stash. So far, it's working:



I throught making the neck and hem solid white would add some pizzazz. So far, I like it a lot. Unfortunately, each row keeps getting bigger and bigger, so it takes longer and longer to make progress. But it's still a pretty quick knit.

Baby girl dress

I haven't done any of the designing that The Schedule has dictated for me for this year yet, so I figured I'd better get on it. Unfortunately, I haven't started up any of the design projects that The Schedule says I should. Instead, I dug up some old pattern notes I worked out for a baby dress. Right now I'm swatching out the chart for the large cable that I want to use as the hem, using some cream sportweight acrylic. It's looking okay, but the cables aren't 'popping' as much as I want them to. So I'm thinking of going with a different yarn. Time to stash-dive!

Fleur-de-lys socks

The browsing through my books continued, and I plucked Nancy Spies's Here Be Wyverns off the shelf. This, if you've never heard of it, is a glorious resource. She's basically gone through all kinds of medieval textile and other artwork from all over the place, and charted it all. If you do any kind of art or craft that can work from a chart - beadwork, quilting, mosaic, cross-stitch, whatever - you can use this book. I love it.

What got me this time was a gorgeous repeating pattern of fleur-de-lys on zigzag stripes. I desperately, desperately want to make socks or mittens out of it, using the leftover alpaca yarn from my grandmother's shawl:



Admittedly, I'm already using the blue for an Orenburg-style shawl, but at this point I don't much care, I want the socks. I don't think stacking the pattern repeats on top of each other would look very good, because that would make a bunch of zig-zags, which I think would clash with the look of the fleur-de-lys. So instead I think I'm going to separate each repeat of the pattern with a texture pattern using the grey. I think it will look stunning. I have no idea when I'm going to be able to cast on for it, though.

Lace socks for Mom

Speaking of socks...I think I've found the pattern I want to use to make socks for my mom out of the Sea Silk I bought. The summer issue of Knitty has just come out, and I'm interested in 'Vog on. The lack of legs on these socks means I don't have to worry about whether the socks will slouch uncomfortably down my mom's legs when she wears them. And they're lace, which will look super with the yarn. And they're really pretty. And they won't take up too much yardage, which means I might be able to make a small wrap with the remaining yarn. All good stuff.

Reincarnation of white fuzzy blanket

My older daughter has this white knitted baby blanket that I got at my shower. It was made by a friend of my mom's, and it's absolutely lovely. I particularly loved it because it was not only pretty, but also, it matched the nursery decor. DD1 has also developed a great affection for it, and when she and I were going through all the baby blankets prior to DD2's birth, this was the one that she decided she wanted to keep for herself.

The blanket itself has a very simple lace pattern, and yesterday I charted it. So I can make a copy of the blanket whenever I want. (I figure this is very important for DD1's emotional well-being just in case the original gets lost or destroyed.) Unsurprisingly, Startitis is telling me that the time I want to start it is NOW.

However, I'm thinking I'd like to make the first copy for DD2, using some very pretty pink/blue/white variegated acrylic from my friend's grandmother's stash. So we'll see. Right now this is just in the planning stage.

Cotton lace shawl

Last week I was at Knitters Attic and Mercedes suggested that I do a lace shawl from the really lightweight cotton as a store sample. Well. You know I wanna. So I've been hunting through some lace patterns in my library, but what I think I really want to do is design something myself. That way I could help the shop push the yarn and have a design to sell at the same time.

Girlfriend Shrug for DD1

At last - a project that isn't new. But it is a project that I haven't worked on in a while, and I did recently buy the yarn I'll be using to finish it up, so the project feels new. Thus it is yet another symptom of my current bout of Startitis.

The shrug is coming along very nicely. The second sleeve is done and I'm just finishing up the back:


(pictured here with the first sleeve so you know I'm not just recycling photos)

Not much longer and then I can start figuring out what kind of pattern I want to do to join the two sleeves at the back!

Muppet roadkill

I've rounded the second corner of the edging, but now I'm having second thoughts. I'm looking at the edging along the top and I'm pretty sure I didn't pick up enough stitches for it, because the blanket is puckering there. As much as I despise the idea of ripping back over ten edging repeats, I think I might just have to do it to get a decent-looking blanket. The big problem is that I'm not sure I have enough yarn for the extra repeats. So I'm kind of avoiding the blanket at the moment.

And speaking of things starting up, the LYS and I have worked out when I'm going to be teaching the sock class. Wednesdays from 1-3pm, starting July 11. In the Richmond Hill area? Wanna start knitting socks? Give the shop a call to sign up!