This just in: Actual knitting content!

Yes, this is a knitting blog, darn it!

On Friday, I attended an entrelac class given by Joan Schrouder as part of the Tigard Knitting Guild's annual fall retreat. In about three hours, Joan masterfully taught us how to create knitted fabric that looks way more complex than it really is.

In the swatch, you can see that the second tier of blocks (the raspberry-colored ones) have a little line of stitches in tan showing through. The subsequent tiers don't show that because Joan showed us how to avoid having them there. Simple, but brilliant.

I was inspired. So I came home and pulled out some DK weight yarn that Stitchjones had dyed for me quite a while ago in her Gene Simmons colorway. I originally intended to make another Clapotis with this yarn, but never got around to it. I tried a couple of other things with it, but the pairing of yarn and pattern just wasn't right, so to the frog pond it had gone. But with the entrelac? It's a match made in knitting heaven!


Here is the beginning of what will eventually be a stole. I did a six-stitch entrelac repeat, which is just right for the length of color changes in this yarn. The only problem is that I don't have enough yarn to make the length of stole that I would like. However, I have a plan. I'm going to work part of it in the variegated yarn, then get a skein of each color (red, white, black, grey) in solid and do either a nine-stitch or a twelve-stitch entrelac in alternating colors for a ways, then do some more in variegated. I think I'll finish the whole thing with an attached i-cord.

It's a design-as-I-go project, and as such is definitely subject to change along the way! In the meantime, I'm having a lot of fun knitting it and it's a very portable project that doesn't require checking a pattern. Love!

There's been some other knitting going on here, too. I purchased a pattern at the shop that's really fun to knit, takes very little yarn, and works up quickly. It's from Val Love of Dovetail Designs and is called the Lotus Leaf Scarf. With about 100 yards of yarn and an evening, it works up like this:

Rowan Soft Lux in soft grey:



Malabrigo Worsted:



Handspun Merino Superwash:



The only change I made to the pattern was to do the keyhole openings using doubleknitting techniques instead of placing half the stitches on a holder and working each side separately.

The handspun yarn I used wasn't quite a worsted weight, but it still worked up nicely. It has a little less "body" to it. It's lighter, yet still warm.

And, just for fun, here are some alternate ways to wear this cute little scarf:

The "I have a toothache" look:



The "rabbit ears" look, which also reminds me of some of the scarves Lucy and Ethel used to wear over their curlers on "I Love Lucy":



Next week is S.O.A.R. and I'm really looking forward to it! It will be my first "real" spinning class. In three days with Maggie Casey, I'm sure my brain will be stuffed with all kinds of wonderful spinning techniques.