Softscapes...

Ok, here is my first attempt at a "Scarflette". I used natural creamy colored wool. I was VERY intimidated by this pattern at first and had to talk myself into it, but once i got going, it was actually fun! I plan to make more over the Summer so that we have them to stock The Paper Sparrow next Fall and Winter....

And talk about intimidation! This is my first attempt at knitted lace. I saw this pattern for a shawl, using worsted weight cotton yarn and figured i am already crazy so what harm would it be to try??? I don't know if you can see the little strip of purple yarn running thru the stitches just an inch from the needles, but i call that my life line. If i make a mistake in my knitting, i can rip it out to that little purple piece of yarn and the rest will be saved. I learned this little trick the hard way, after ripping out the entire project twice. I find that this sort of thing cannot be done while watching your favorite television program. No Ma'am! I cannot even talk and knit at the same time with a complicated pattern like this. You MUST give this kind of pattern your full attention. (Ok, i can hear all the accomplished knitters reading this laughing now! But for me, a relative beginner, this is HARD!) Anyway i read somewhere that by running this little piece of yarn thru the stitches after finishing a set of steps in the pattern, you can protect the correct part of the work if you make a mistake later on.....

The pattern is quite pretty and i keep looking at it and feeling such a sense of accomplishment. Don't know what the finished product will look like or if i will finish this in my lifetime! But i am learning so much from this piece...

Now, for work you CAN do while watching your favorite program, i like these mindless afghans to keep me going. This is a big crocheted granny square afghan i just started for my daughter Carly. She picked the colors to go with her living room, and no matter how many shots i took of this, i could not get the color to come out true in the picture. The colors are deeper and have a nice luster to them in real life....Next? A crocheted cotton poncho for Lola!