earthquakes and the sea also

some late 2015 projects because i’m bad at blog (links to ravelry):

just started on my orlane shawl, aka my dream shawl. click through for my extensive notes & pattern details. this yarn is divine.

finished my eta costae shawl last week; no new pictures yet as i’ve yet to block it. (or, you know, buy blocking supplies that i need...) it’ll need to be blocked aggressively, i think, but overall i’m happy with the way it’s turned out, and it’s got a sentimental touch.

so close to finishing my seed stitch wrap! i keep putting off the last few inches.

merino script seed stitch wrap: sooo close to being done! one and a half skeins left; the whole thing measures a little over 70″ at the moment. suuuper soft and cuddly, and despite my fatigue with seed stitch, this yarn is still so lovely to work with.

norma dovetail shawl: my first shawl! i wanted something really simple both as an easing into shawls as well as a way to highlight this super variegated yarn (skeino splendid, from my april yarnbox).

i also finally splurged on the addi click turbo set, and i love it. the clicking mechanism is ingenious, and pretty easy to get used to. other reviewers suggested attaching and reattaching when using a new set of needles, and making sure to give the join a hard tug every time before you start knitting. i’ve had one of the joins come apart once so far; luckily it wasn’t a big deal, and it was because I was knitting too tight and accidentally twisted the needle. but overall i have little anxiety about it overall. the cords are a little kinked out of the package; i might have to relax them with heat eventually, if it gets too annoying. 

just over halfway done with my seed stitch wrap, made from 8 skeins of purlbee’s merino script. this textural variegation is very interesting to knit with, to see how it works up and where the nubbly sections fall. as you can (sort of) see from the picture, they tend towards gathering on one side or the other of the wrap. the one downside is that the edges are uneven, and i’m not sure if any amount of blocking will fix it. (not that i’ve blocked anything before, so who knows; please advise if you have any thoughts to share.)

i’m loving these lighter colors. the artemisia green that i’m currently working on is just really really lovely and the softest color of the bunch, i think. 

just a few days left of this semester now that it’s all winding down. just yesterday i had a whole day where i did no school work and just spent the whole day knitting and watching every episode of steven universe. i hope to cast on for more things this semester; i want to try my hand at socks and hats and such, in order to keep learning and challenging myself since most of my knitted/crocheted items have been blankets and scarves thus far.

i’m a yarn addict oh god. this week i think i spent more on yarn than on food so clearly i need some sort of intervention.

nonetheless, here’s some recent yarn acquisition.

from knitpicks: knitpicks comfy worsted in carrot and ivory, and comfy worsted heather in sweet pea and elderberry

these will eventually become log cabin washcloths, once i get my hands on size 6 16″ circulars.

from eat.sleep.knit: numma numma TEXAStoasty in la plata (currently sold out)

will become orlane’s textured shawl.

also from eat.sleep.knit: Dream in Color Smooshy in Kettle-Dyed Juliette’s Blush

will become my first pair of socks. (any recommendations for a beginner?)

finally, from purlsoho: nabbed three more skeins of merino script in desert blue, steel blue, and timeless navy 

adding them to the five skeins i already had, and i’ve cast on for my seed stitch wrap.

i’m very pleased with how this scarf came out! you can see some notes on the project page for it on ravelry, but some additional things:

i love this yarn (lion brand heartland). it’s my favorite big-box-yarn-store yarn. it’s very soft and plush and affordable, and has a lovely tweedy-ness but with the easy-care that comes with acrylic. the range of colors are all really gorgeous, and i foresee that i’ll use it again in the future. (this is my second scarf i’ve made with it; the first being my tunisian infinity scarf.)

ohhh my this is long. to think, when i started i was anticipating using four skeins! i really underestimated both my own gauge and how much of a difference aran vs dk weight would be. the finished dimensions are about 8″ x 82″. luckily, the scarf is very squishy and plush with a lovely drape, and it’s not too heavy or suffocating even looped twice.

still trying to decide what to do with my march yarnbox! the yarn is skeino’s splendid in norma, and while it’s not what i would’ve picked for myself, the jewel tones in it are gorgeous. for now, i’ve caked them and stored them for hibernation and the occasional, indulgent squish.

also i’m really trying to restrain myself from also subscribing to the socks yarnbox but oh man it’s a struggle. i really wanna get my hands on some lighter weight yarns, since i’ve been almost exclusively working with worsted weights so far.

personal experiment: actually keep a blog and create new posts. tumblr has been an ideal platform for me (despite the many ridiculous updates and changes) because there’s little pressure to create content. i historically don’t do well with maintaining a classic blog, so my main blog has, for several years, been filled with almost entirely reblogs. but i’ve started crocheting and knitting over the past few months, and i’d like a space to document those projects, SO! here are some things i’ve been working on/finished recently. two (one-tone) crochet cowls. (1) (2)

my first yarnbox was in feburary, and while the purple/pink combo was actually my least favorite of the three, i found that i really loved both skeins individually. i hadn’t started knitting at this point, but i, like most people i suspect, am attracted to the purlbee’s lovely aesthetic, and chose one of the few crochet patterns they have as a guide for this cowl. i initially made the purple one as a gift for my friend cori (shh, her birthday’s not til may, at which point it’ll be too warm to wear a cowl but ah well), then decided that i liked both the pattern and the yarn (blush may well be my new favorite neutral) and made a second for myself. despite my notoriously sensitive skin that makes wool blends iffy for me, this one settled quickly and i’m now trying to get a bit more wear out of it before i have to pack away most of my knitwear for the spring/summer. tapestry heart blanket.

oh dear it’s been a while for this one. my all-too ambitious project started in early february, which has been cast off to the sidelines for now. i’ve tried to at least pull it out once a week and work on it, but the endless single crochet is tedious. it won’t be abandoned! i have an entirely too-humongous excel spreadsheet for it! i’m committed! but this is my most long-term project. 

colorblocked mistake rib scarf.

my first real knitting project! working off of purlbee’s pattern, with the only change being that i cast on 59 stitches to start, since i’m working with a heavier worsted weight rather than the dk the pattern uses (it’ll also turn out somewhere around 80″, oops!) while it’s intended to be for the SO (although he won’t be able to wear it til next winter), i’m treating it as partially an experiment in technique and tension.  since i was a crocheter first, i knit continental, with the yarn held in my left hand, looped around my pinkie and trailing over my forefinger. as you might be able to tell, i also have knit a few rows using norwegian purl–still not sure how i like it; while i understand the convenience of not having to move the yarn from back to front and back, it messes up my gauge pretty severely.  (the bag shown is the live the process classic gym clutch, which i got in a limited edition birchbox ages ago. while i love the texture and quality of it, i couldn’t find a good use for it and it sat unused in my closet for a few months–maybe it’ll be my newest project bag!)

finally, a little indulgence: a couple of pretty, gold foil-decorated pocket notebooks from rifle paper co, which i think i’ll use to keep notes on my knit/crochet projects for now. while i enjoy using ravelry as an index of things i’ve done, i want to start keeping more detailed and on-going notes on projects in an easy-to-reach notebook! (this is especially helpful for the tapestry heart blanket, because i have to count stitches and rows as it works up.)

(yes, i am a birchbox subscriber! maybe i’ll do unboxing posts for both birchbox and yarnbox in the future? if anyone is interested and/or i have the time to kill.)

I sing of Artemis, whose shafts are of gold, who cheers on the hounds, the pure maiden, shooter of stags, who delights in archery, own sister to Apollo with the golden sword.  Over the shadowy hills and windy peaks she draws her golden bow, rejoicing in the chase, and sends out grievous shafts.  The tops of the high mountains tremble and the tangled wood echoes awesomely with the outcry of beasts: earthquakes and the sea also where fishes shoal.  But the goddess with a bold heart turns every way destroying the race of wild beasts: and when she is satisfied and has cheered her heart, this huntress who delights in arrows slackens her supple bow and goes to the great house of her dear brother Phoebus Apollo, to the rich land of Delphi, there to order the lovely dance of the Muses and Graces.  There she hangs up her curved bow and her arrows, and heads and leads the dances, gracefully arrayed, while all they utter their heavenly voice, singing how neat-ankled Leto bare children supreme among the immortals both in thought and in deed. Hail to you, children of Zeus and rich-haired Leto!  And now I will remember you and another song also.