The flame still burns

This is the last of the catch up entries I've been working on posting to this blog this week, and I hope I've saved the best for last.

Over the last month I've been working on my 'Candle Flame Shawl' quite steadily, and while I haven't been able to post photos of my progress due to some uncooperative photo manipulation software, I did take a few work in progress shots so I'd be able to share them once the problem was solved.

And here they are at last! :)

This first one is of the shawl at around the halfway point, and is one I promised to post for the benefit of the ColourMart Yahoo Group members, as it shows the size that could be knit with just one cone of the 2/28nm lace weight smooth silk yarn...


At the stage shown in the photograph, 360 rows have been completed, and I'm fairly certain there would still be more than enough yarn left at this point to work a border along the top edge if a single cone was being used to knit the shawl. The cones were included in the photograph to give some idea of the size of the shawl, although it should be borne in mind that when the shawl is blocked I'm anticipating that it will expand in width and become a much less pointy triangular shape. I think I can confidently say that a reasonable sized finished version of this shawl could easily be knit using the quantity of yarn on just one 150g cone of this yarn. :)

But as I've always envisaged this shawl as being a more substantial size and not just one which will drape across my shoulders, I have continued on from this point and I have a few more progress shots to share.

This is my 'Candle Flame Shawl' after 440 rows...


And after 470 rows...


... which is the point I'm currently at.

And as most people still seem to be preferring what is nominally supposed to be the wrong side of the shawl...


For anyone who is interested, the rows are now 753 stitches long.

David recently mentioned my shawl on his 'Sticks & Strings' podcast (Woohoo! :) ), and provided some estimates as to how many stitches I have had to knit to reach the point I was at when he last saw it, along with an estimate of the number of stitches I'm likely to have knit by the time I finally complete the project. As I was curious to know what the actual figures might be, I've just sat down and calculated the number of stitches I've knit to reach this point, and have arrived at a figure of 176,674. I have to say that I'm very impressed that the figures David quoted -- which he calculated in just seconds, I should add -- were most definitely in the ballpark.

And the good news for me is that the finish line is finally in sight after working all 176,674 of those stitches -- well, more than that really, as I've made a fair few mistakes along the way ;) -- as the yarn remaining on the cones has decreased quite noticeably now...


Judging by the weight of yarn remaining on the cones, I've used around 80% of the yarn I originally had. There will be a bit of a delay in finishing this shawl though, as I really need to work on the scarf for my ISE 4 pal so I can get it finished in time for the deadline.

The up side of this delay is that it will give me a bit more time to think about what I want to do to finish the top edge of the shawl. I'm still not keen on the look of the original knitted on garter stitch edging, but I do realize that whatever I do decide to use will need to have enough stretch to it to allow the shawl to be blocked out to its final width. I think I'll ask again on the 'Candle Flame Shawl Knit-Along' Yahoo Group for information on what others have done to finish the top edges of theirs, as I received an interesting response last time I asked which I really need to follow up on.

As I've already let it slip that I've been making mistakes while knitting this shawl ;), I thought I should also reveal the mistake I've found myself making most often.

Surprisingly enough, it isn't knit stitches where purl stitches should be, or vice versa -- that would be much too easy to fix by simply dropping the stitches down to the error and then working the stitches back up with the correct orientation.

The mistake I've found myself making most often is this...


Just in case it isn't clear from the photograph, there's an extra loop that shouldn't be there waiting to be worked on the right needle, which is the result of one of the various forms of 'yarn over' having found its way on to the needle while I was knitting the previous row. Why this would have happened -- and a surprisingly large number of times too, I hasten to add :( -- I have absolutely no idea, as 'yarn overs' aren't even a feature of this particular pattern stitch.

And as far as mistakes go, I'm finding this one a really annoying one to deal with when I suddenly come across one, as it's the kind of thing that's just itching to form a hole in the fabric where there really shouldn't be one...


Due to the smooth nature of the fabric of this shawl, the best solution appears to be to 'tink' back to the point in the row below where the mistake was made and then re-knit the row without the 'yarn over' -- something which was bad enough early on when the rows were short, but is truly painful when there are more than 700 stitches in a row and Murphy's Law inevitably dictates that the mistake will have been made near the beginning of the row and so won't be discovered until towards the end of the following row. I've now learnt to look back over my work for these errant 'yarn overs' at regular intervals while knitting each row so I don't have too far to go back if I do find one, and not to work on this shawl when I'm tired or distracted.

Finally, I'd like to congratulate knitabulous for the Highly Commended awards she received for the two shawls she entered in the Sydney Royal Easter Show this year. Judging by the quality of work displayed on her blog, I'd say the awards were well deserved, and I cant wait to see her 'Shetland Sampler Stole' and 'Peacock Feathers Shawl' on display at the Show.

Julie also had a couple of her projects entered this year, but unfortunately they don't appear to have received awards in their categories. :( All I can say is that there must've been some pretty spectacular competition in those categories as Julie's entries were amazing.

International Scarf Exchange 4

I've added a new button to my sidebar...


... as I've signed up for International Scarf Exchange 4.

A few of the Rubi + Lana group have taken part in the earlier incarnations of the International Scarf Exchange, and as it's always looked like fun I thought I would give it a go this time around. :)

Pals have already been allocated, and I've successfully made contact with both the person I will be knitting a scarf for and the person who will be knitting a scarf for me, so everything is going really well so far.

I've also paid a visit to Rubi + Lana, and now have several balls of yarn eagerly awaiting the opportunity to become a scarf for my pal...


As you can see from the label...


... it's ONline Linie 164 'Java', which is a 67% cotton and 33% rayon yarn. The colour I've chosen is shade #05, which is a deep, dark blue, and to my eye is a colour reminiscent of dark blue sapphires.

The regulars from our little knitting group will no doubt recognize the yarn as the same one Lara is using to knit her 'Melon Shawl'. **

So... What will I be making with this yarn?

I've decided to knit a version of this...


... which is the 'Alpine Knit Scarf' from Jane Sowerby's 'Victorian Lace Today'.

And here is another view of it...


From the information I was sent, my pal seems keen to have a lacy scarf to wear during the summer months, and I think this should fit the bill.

As the yarn I bought is nothing like the original yarn used in the pattern, I've also chosen a backup pattern -- surprisingly enough, not from 'Victorian Lace Today' -- just in case the yarn and pattern decide not to play nicely together.

Whatever happens though, I have a feeling this is going to be a scarf I'm going to have trouble letting go of when the time comes. ;)

From the look of some of the postings on the International Scarf Exchange blog, I'm already way behind as several people have already finished knitting their scarf. Eek!

Just one more posting to go now, and I should finally be up to date. ;)


** My profound apologies to Kate, by the way. I was completely mistaken about the particular 'tree wool' yarn Lara was using when you asked me about it at one of our recent get-togethers. Since I last saw you, I've read some of Lara's blog entries a little more closely than I must've originally, and have discovered that it was the ONline Linie 164 'Java' after all. :(

Souvenirs from Michael's London trip

Michael returned from his trip to London and Cork on Friday night, and there were many presents hiding in his bag when he arrived home.

The main present he brought home for me was this fabulous shoulder bag from Harrods in the 'Knightsbridge Cats' print...


... which is just the perfect size and shape for carrying my latest knitting projects around with me. :) It's also going to be very practical, as the fabric is covered in PVC to help keep it clean.

And to add to my collection of plushies, I now have a Harrods Grenadier Guard Bear...


... to help keep all the others in line. It's made from the most unbelievably soft fur too.

And of course there were some of Harrods' famous food treats...


There's a selection of teas, some orange, lemon and grapefruit marmalade, some clotted cream shortbread, and some chocolate fudge. The shortbread and fudge are already disappearing fast.

While he was in London, Michael did what most visitors to London do and took in a West End show. Under normal circumstances, Michael really isn't the theatre and show type, but fortunately Monty Python came to the rescue here, in the form of Monty Python's Spamalot, which is described as "A new musical lovingly ripped off from the motion picture Monty Python and the Holy Grail".

And of course he couldn't resist buying a souvenir of the evening from the very aptly named 'Ye Olde Rippe Offe Shoppe' in the foyer...


It's a fearsome Rabbit of Caerbannog hand puppet, complete with fangs just waiting to rip the head off any unsuspecting Knights of the Round Table who dare to approach to closely. ;)

And while this last thing has nothing whatsoever to do with Michael's trip, I'm going to post these links here because they don't really fit into any of the other entries I'm planning to write either.

Anyway... I thought it might be amusing to point people in the direction of Amanda's partner Greg's Wikipedia entry, which of course continues the tradition of not entirely accurate Wikipedia entries admirably by listing his place of birth as some town in Florida which none of us -- including Greg -- have ever heard of, and by getting one of his ring names wrong. But the truly amusing part -- other than the fact that someone I know actually has a Wikipedia entry ;) -- is that if you click on the link within the entry for Mark Hilton, it takes you to the Wikipedia entry for a Republican politician from North Carolina. And judging by the accompanying photograph, I'd say Greg must've been very embarrassed to have lost an AWF Australasian Championship title match to him. ;) Don't you just love random hot links? :D

Future projects

First up, I recently bought four cones of ColourMart's 2/7nm DK weight cashmere yarn in the 'Bottle Jade' colour...


In real life, the colour is actually a bit darker than it appears in the photograph, but this was the closest my digital camera was able to get, as it always tries to lighten dark colours for reasons of its own -- maybe there's a setting somewhere I'm yet to discover that stops this from happening.

These four cones were acquired with knitting a variation of this in mind...


It's Miriam Felton's beautiful Woven Cable Wrap.

The 2/7nm DK weight cashmere yarn should be a perfect substitution for the original yarn, and is a much more affordable alternative. I now just have to decide whether to knit with it straight off the cone, or to wash it first so I have a better idea as to how the finished wrap will drape while I'm knitting it.

While I'm on the topic of washing coned yarn before knitting with it...

I recently purchased a couple of cones of ColourMart's 2/36nm 55% Cashmere 45% silk fine lace weight yarn in 'Teardrop'...


... with the intention of knitting Melanie's Hanami Shawl...


... for my sister, either for her birthday in July or for next Christmas. I sort of feel like I owe Debbie a hand-knitted cashmere and silk shawl. I gave her a woven cashmere and silk wrap which I found at one of the little boutiques at Birkenhead Point as a present last Christmas, but there was a miscommunication somewhere along the line, and my mother told her that it had been hand-knit by me. As my mother doesn't want me to tell my sister that she made a mistake, I think the best way to make things completely right is for me to just go ahead and knit a shawl for my sister so she really does have one of my hand-knitted shawls.

So where does the pre-washing come in?

Well... None of the available colours in the cashmere and silk yarn really screamed 'Debbie' to me, so I bought the colour closest to white to dye a more appropriate colour -- I'm currently leaning towards one of the 'Gaywool Bush Blends' dyes in either 'Iceberg' or 'Sugargum', as I think they'll suit the pattern well, look fabulous in the Cairn's sunshine, and, most importantly, will compliment Debbie's skin tone beautifully. I've been told that I will get a better end result if I dye the yarn before I knit it, so that's what I'm intending to do. I have to say, though, that I'm really not looking forward to loading several kilometres of this super-fine yarn on to my niddy noddy and subjecting it to the whole dyeing process. My fingers are crossed that I don't end up with a horrible tangled mess.

I've also gone ahead and renewed my Rowan International subscription for another year, although admittedly I did wait until after the reviews made it clear that Magazine Number 41 was a real winner...


... as the free gift this year really doesn't do anything for me.

Kim Hargreaves' 'Knitted Bag' from Rowan Book 30 is actually far more my style...


... than the 'Dolly Bag' is.

I wonder if the yarn from the free gift could be used to make a variation on this bag? I'm guessing that the fabric lining would help to counteract the tendency to grow that fabrics knit from cotton yarns often have and might keep the bag from stretching out of shape when it's in use, and the handles could always be reinforced by threading woven cotton tape through them. So maybe it's a possibility...

Recently, some of our little Rubi + Lana knitting group went along to a Knitters' Guild meeting in the Blue Mountains, where Kate is the convener. I took my 'Candle Flame Shawl' along to work on while I was there, and received quite a few positive comments about it from the members there. :)

Anita, from The Wool Inn in Penrith, was also there with lots of tempting wares for sale. When I found this on her table...


... I knew it would be coming home with me, as I've been searching everywhere for just this shade of red. It's Naturally 'Mist', and is a 1 ply yarn which is 80% super fine kid mohair and 20% nylon -- not quite Rowan 'Kid Silk Haze' or Madil 'Kid Seta', but this really was all about the colour. :) I've earmarked the yarn for a yet to be decided shawl from Jane Sowerby's 'Victorian Lace Today'.

Before the Knitters' Guild meeting, we stopped off in Katoomba, for lunch and to check out David's LYS, 'Katoomba Knitting & Needlecraft'. We all had a great time fondling the yarn there, and I came away with this...


Some Cleckheaton 'Studio mohair 8 ply' yarn. Yes, it's pink. But it's an icy pink, and I have a longstanding affinity for icy colours.

I also have an affinity for yarns which are almost liquid silver in appearance, and the yarn on the left...


... definitely qualifies. It's one of the new Italian 3/50nm lace weight 100% silk yarns available on the ColourMart website. The cones on the left are 'Pale Steel' and the ones on the right are 'Pale Navy 2', which despite the name is actually quite a dark shade. It wasn't until this yarn arrived though that I realized just how fabulous these two colours look together, so now I'm wondering if a truly decadent and luxurious take on the Hap Shawl might not be on the cards. ;)

And last but not least, there's a cone of 2/28nm lace weight cashmere yarn from ColourMart, the colour of which has the fetching name of 'GURLOD'...


Once again, the colours in this yarn are actually more vibrant in real life -- it's not entirely obvious in the photograph, but the yarn is actually made up of a bright purple and a loden green thread twisted together, which produces a look I think will go really well with the shawls in 'Victorian Lace Today' -- this book was definitely one of my better purchases as there's so much in it I want to knit. :)

Now I just need a few more hours in the day...

Gathering together some information for that New Zealand holiday

Planning for my New Zealand trip really hasn't advanced much further, but thanks to Jussi, I discovered this...


... which should help ensure that when we do go I won't miss out on any fabulous little local yarn stores. It took a bit of searching, but I eventually stumbled upon the New Zealand Books Abroad website, which was actually willing to ship a copy of this book to Australia. Woohoo! :)

Michael has also suggested that it might be nice to co-ordinate our trip with one of the Great New Zealand Craft Shows dates. So basically I still haven't even narrowed down whether we will be going to the north or south island yet, as if we want to visit one of the craft shows the dates we are able to travel will be a big factor in the decision if we are going to do this.

Michael actually went along to one of their Christchurch shows many years ago, and was very impressed with what he saw, which is why he made the suggestion. He brought home this pair of beautiful, handpainted mugs from that show...


There was a card with the artist's details, but that appears to have been filed away somewhere safely, and neither of us can remember the artist's name now. The only clue I have is this...


The letters 'TW', which appear on the handles of both mugs. If anyone can enlighten me as to the identity of the artist I will gladly share it with everyone.