Can we *please* get some focus here?

Those words have been my mantra lately. In order for me to be able to concentrate on my designs and design-related work, I need at least a couple of hours without interruptions at a time. If I'm "on a roll" and I'm suddenly distracted, you can forget getting back "into the zone"!

It all started at the beginning of June with company that stayed *much* longer than expected (3 weeks instead of 1) and a deadline for a Knit Picks IDP pattern and project. That project was technically only a couple days late, but the postal strike 2 days after I shipped the socks added a couple weeks or a month to that!

My summer didn't improve "thinking-wise". Kids home, frequent day trips into town, flooding, then heat... Needless to say any attempts to focus were fruitless!!!

Here we are already into October and I *still* haven't built up much momentum!! We were fully a week into September before the kids started school. I *did* have several days where I actually felt I had accomplished some work... Then yarn came in for 2 commissioned projects that had to be done within 2 weeks... Then I found out my father passed away... A weekend trip to the big city for shopping and project delivery... And an out-of-town funeral for a dear relative on my mom's side... Well you get the idea!!!

Here's to praying that October is more focussed!!


Nicole =o)


Sent from my BlackBerry® powered by Virgin Mobile.

Are you organized?

I *try* to be... I tend to have one of those memories that actually *can* remember exactly where a specific item is in a mess! Unfortunately (or is that fortunately?!) I live in home with other people that not only *touch* things, but *move* them too!! This requires me to have some sort of organization method for my crafting stuff. Plus, I am finding order to be calming and very crucial in my ability to focus.

Since this year has all been about focussing more on my designing, as well as working on OPPs (other people's patterns), I need to organize things to prevent me from becoming overwhelmed.

I want to make my work and storage areas clean, tidy, and user-friendly. I have made two gigantic leaps in that direction over the past few months. The first has been my being 99% faithful in uploading my stash as I purchase it. If it's purchased for a particular project or design idea/ theme, I usually include that in the description as well. The second has been entering my entire library into my Ravelry database. Nearly every book, booklet, and magazine I own is now listed. Some of the older ones aren't in Rav's database, and most of my older crochet magazines are still packed away.

I have most of these pages bookmarked in my phone. This has proven invaluable while out shopping. I can check if I've already purchased a particular magazine, what colours of a particular yarn I already own, or how many metres of yarn I need for a queued project.

I have taken other baby steps as well. I own several sets of dpns in smaller "sock" sizes, as I don't do magic loop or two circs. I purchased some small pencil boxes on clearance that are the perfect size. I printed up labels with the size, and it's easy to see at a glance which one I need. They also stack nicely! After receiving my Knit Picks interchangeable sets I purchased a huge tackle box to replace the smaller ones I had been using for years. The only thing it doesn't hold is my straight needles and speciality hooks. It's a one-stop place for 99% of my tools. I bought some magazine holders at the office supply and filled each one as we entered them into Ravelry, then placed a label on the spine with title and dates. I have several small "Show Offs" containers in the CD size. These are perfect for balls of sock yarn. As I purchase them, I fill them with a particular brand or type of yarn. I also have many large Rubbermaid tubs with all sorts of stash and such purchased over the last 15 years. As these are sorted, they get labels too since they are stacked up nearly to the ceiling!

This is all a work in progress, and I take steps back as I take steps forward. My goal to be able to use my craft room by the time the kids returned to school failed miserably. However, Jackie and I *did* make progress. My many varied interests make my task of sorting and organizing exponentially more difficult! I crochet doilies, so there's a large stash of thread. I knit socks, so there's a huge stash of fingering and worsted wool... 100+ pairs worth at least. I knit and crochet kitchen items, so there's a mountain of cotton yarn. I knit and crochet a variety of clothing and blankets, so my stash includes all weights and fibres of yarn in varying amounts. I also enjoy scrapbooking, sewing, painting, and quilting on a smaller scale, but those too require room.

Once you read about me starting my quilt, you will know that I have achieved my goal in my craft room. You can rejoice for me along with Derek!!

Nicole =o)

Sent from my BlackBerry® powered by Virgin Mobile.

Time to focus, dagnabit!!!

Where has the summer gone? It seems like just yesterday that I was working on the Footworks submissions, and here it is the middle of September already!!!

May was a whirlwind... "Tutu Cute" won first place, "Walk in the Garden" was accepted for consideration into Knit Picks IDP, and I got to meet my grandson finally!!

June was over in the blink of an eye. Grandbaby was here for most of the month and I quickly discovered that I *had* to give up all of my designing plans for the summer. Without my total solitude during the day I simply could *not* focus on my work.

July was... umm... err... I don't even *remember* July! Oh ya! I knit a shawl!!! I think...

August was here and gone before I even knew it! "Walk in the Garden" was readied for publication, but my summer-swiss-cheese-memory-and-attention-span meant that it was delayed even longer. Oh! And I knit another shawl!

Now it's September and I'm thrilled to be back in front of my laptop again. So far I haven't really done much in the designing front, but I *have* been productive nonetheless. 90% of my library is now listed on Rav. My stash and projects aren't completely up-to-date but they are getting more accurate, and I'm getting better about remembering photos. I have tons of notes to work into patterns but I'm trying very hard to work on them one at a time so I don't get overwhelmed.

What *am* I working on? Tons of stuff, as usual!!! In the next week or so I'll have a few FOs to report. I was commissioned to make a cardi for a friend's daughter. Unfortunately the pattern wasn't tech edited (or wasn't tech edited properly) so I've had to actually think while crocheting it. That's usually why I *like* doing OPPs (other people's patterns), so that I *don't* have to think! I've got a couple of beanie baby-sized teddy bears that are nearly done for Jackie and Rebecca. I've also got a shawl that's about 20 rows away from being done.

I'll post again soon and write about this summer's FOs, but in the mean time you can see many/most of them on my Rav projects page: http://www.ravelry.com/nicolethegeek/projects I also have 30 of my patterns listed, with more to be added soon: http://www.ravelry.com/designers/nicole-rodgers

Till next time,
Nicole =o)

Sent from my BlackBerry® powered by Virgin Mobile.

Calgon...take me away!!!

Sometimes life gets in the way of plans, and that was definitely the theme of the day yesterday!!! Be warned, this post is not for the faint of heart!

It started out like any normal day when I get to go into town, but within an hour of getting there, anything I had actually planned on getting done got thrown out the window!! Because the little ones didn't have an after-school activity, an extra trip back home at 3pm was already counted on. At about $15+ in gas for each return trip to town, you tend to plan carefully!

First, I go to the wi-fi spot and get logged in. Sometimes I have trouble with the connection, so I tend to not even shut off the truck until I've tested it. It does, so I get all nice and comfortable, and 5 minutes later, it craps out totally. Okay, pack up and head across town to another wi-fi. Within half an hour of arriving at wi-fi spot #2, my phone rings... Derek's boss... One of the kids is sick at school. So I try to get in touch with Derek to see what I should arrange since I haven't even scraped the surface of what I needed to do online as well as my in-town errands.

About 15 minutes after the boss call, one of the teachers at the school sends me a PM because of the sick kid... It was more than just a sore tummy. So I drop everything and leave town to get her from school. 45 minutes later I arrive at the school and request that her brother be put on the late bus so that I won't need to come back again before having to be in town to pick Derek up from work. No go, but I *do* make arrangements to pick him up in town at 2:20.

Sick kid (who's no longer sick really) and I trek back to town after a brief stop at home to drop off school bags -- keep in mind that a trip from home takes 30 minutes and 45 minutes from the school -- and get comfortably settled in. She's happily looking through my various mail order catalogues, and playing with a random Happy Meal toy I had tucked in my laptop bag. Then of course she's hungry, justifiably so since it's now 12:15 and she is used to lunch at 11:30!

We are in line at a *very* busy fast food restaurant, waiting our turn behind a *very* big police officer. Sick kid is hiding behind me because he's scary!! Trying to hold on to her without losing our place in line. Phone rings AGAIN!! I *should* pause here to say that I don't have call display, so I have no idea who's calling, EVER... This time it's oldest kid... He needs me to drive him to pick up his no-longer-suspended licence, the bank, and insurance agent so the driveway ornament can be moved. All downtown of course!!

Sooooooooo... sick kid and I get our meals to-go, and head off in the truck again to go all the way across town to pick up oldest kid, and then into downtown for *his* errands. And I *still* haven't done any of mine yet!!! His first stop, which is supposed to be only 5 minutes, has us waiting nearly 45 minutes sitting in the truck. At least I had a now-cold burger to eat while waiting! There was no time remaining in his lunch break to do the rest, so we took him straight back to work.

He asked me to go through the coffee shop drive-thru to get him coffee and something to eat. Looking at the time, I had a bit more than half an hour or so until I need to pick up little brother from the pool, so I agree. The usually-speedy coffee shop is in slow motion, and a 5-10 minute errand turns into 20!

So now I have 10-15 minutes before pick-up...let's try to get some email done quickly since the pool is nearby. I get logged in and my phone rings...school wondering where I am because the bus is ready to go back to school. I look at the clock and it's only 2:10, but I make the mad dash to the pool, with ANOTHER call from the school just as I'm turning the corner onto the pool street!!!

Now I have two little ones and myself, so any errand running is definitely out. What were the errands I had to do anyway? I've entirely forgotten by now. There's about 2 hours until Derek is done for the day and my poor laptop feels horribly neglected. I manage to get logged in again, but by now I can't remember a single thing that I still had to do! The connection was spotty and lagging like crazy, but there was no way I was going anywhere else to try for something better! Of course this is when the rain that had been spitting off and on begins coming down in earnest. So much for letting the sproggins run around outside in the fresh air while I tried to think!

I *did* remember at nearly the last minute that I had the testing results from one of my testers to download. My phone gets cranky with attachments, so even though I had received the emails the day before, I didn't download them then since I knew I was going to be online. I try to use Yahoo mail for all my "business" related stuff, and it wouldn't let me even open the emails until I upgraded to their "new" mail!! So I finally get the files on to my computer, look at the time, and Derek is due off work any minute! I forget my manners and don't reply to my tester, don't have time to check that the files saved correctly, and I'm not expecting to return to town until Tuesday!!

We got to Derek's work just in time to find out that he hasn't returned yet from the farm he was at. Two energetic kids, one frazzled mom, and a now-fogged-up-window'ed truck makes for one horrid combination!! Twenty minutes later he gets back to the shop, and ten minutes after that, we finally get to leave.

Being such a great hubby, Derek knows right away that I'm in no shape for our weekly shopping (which was the whole point initially of my going into town!), so we decide to make just one stop at a small discount store for our smokes and any other odds and ends we could there. I remembered then that I had wanted to get a few colouring books for the kids (and me) from the dollar store earlier that day. We found some Easter-themed ones, but can you believe it, THEY DON'T SELL CRAYONS!!!

I went home, laid down on the couch, had a nap, got up and went to bed... We didn't have any Calgon in the house for my bubble bath!!!

Nicole =o)

Sent from my BlackBerry® powered by Virgin Mobile.

Hurry up and wait!

Isn't that how it always is? You rush through everything, and are stuck sitting around doing nothing at the end!!!

Patience has never been one of my strong suits, and at my age, trying to change is nearly impossible! But that is what I need to do! I am finding myself chomping at the bit to get patterns uploaded to Ravelry, but I am forced to take to take baby steps.

I currently have around a dozen completed patterns that need testing. I discovered quite quickly that it's *very* easy to get overwhelmed when dealing with multiple testers and multiple patterns!!! In order to keep my own personal high standards of quality, I need to restrict myself to one or two designs being tested at a time.

So now I'm in the hurry up and wait stage!!! I scramble to get the patterns formatted for testing, and make arrangements to go into town to email the necessary files off to the testers. Then I play the "Final Jeopardy Theme" over and over in my mind as I wait to hear back.

I'm also waiting to hear about the results of the sock design contest I entered. When those results come in, it decides which additional patterns get added to the testing queue. I think I need some Calgon...and a soundproof bathroom door!!!

Until next time,
Nicole =o)


Sent from my BlackBerry® powered by Virgin Mobile.

Opinions? Everyone's got 'em!

Anyone?? Anyone?? Bueller??

Yes, I'm searching for opinions, and that is why I am simultaneously posting across all of the NCB yahoo groups as well as to my blog. I want opinions, and I want as many varied responses from as many different sources as I can!

What sort of opinions am I looking for? Well actually, I want to know what *YOU* are looking for!! Please reply or comment and let me know. If you wish it to be more confidential, feel free to drop me a line at nicolethegeekATyahooDOTca (replace the AT with @ and DOT with . )

What kinds (type of item) of patterns do you want most?
What difficulty level(s) do you prefer?
Do you prefer charts or written instructions?
What is most important to you in a pattern?
What drives you crazy when you find it in a pattern? (Please be specific about *what* it is, not *who* did it)

This list of questions is meant to be a guideline mostly, and I would hope that it will create more of a dialogue. As a designer, I need to know these things from a different viewpoint than just my own.

I would like to thank you all in advance for taking the time to indulge me in my questions.

Nicole =o)


Sent from my BlackBerry® powered by Virgin Mobile.

Not an April Fools' joke...

Just a fast note to bring my template changes to your attention. You may not notice anything different, but take a closer look at the sidebars... they both got a much-needed update. The information there is now current!! WOW!! Enjoy your April 1st, and hopefully you aren't taken by any jokes!!

You ought to be in pictures!!!

First of all, please excuse the poor formatting for this post... I'm a bit out of practice with my HTML tags and such!! In any case, I'm happy to showcase a couple of recent design photos. Below is the official photo for the sock pattern Walk in the Garden. It's worked in sportweight wool on 2.75mm needles. It was originally designed for Ram Wools' footworks 1.0 design contest.

Below is the baby afghan I've named Manny. I created a new stitch for this design that gives it a thermal quality.

Below is a photo of one of the knitted MAM strips for the pattern Melissa. It's knit with a soft worsted weight yarn on 5.0mm needles. I'm really liking how it's turning out.

These boots were made for walkin'...

And that's just what they did!!! I'm so happy to say that I'm now unemployed, by choice!!! It's been nearly a month now, and I've rediscovered what sleeping AT NIGHT is like!!

My sock designs for Ram Wools' footworks 1.0 contest are coming fast and furious now. As of this writing: 2 patterns have been submitted -- "Walk in the Garden" and "Eggplant Parmasana"; 2 patterns are written except for the second size -- "Eat Your Veggies" and "By the Sea"; and 1 pattern is in progress, but nearly finished -- "Tiptoe through the Tulips".

Melissa's and Elijah's blankets are progressing well, and have been coming in very handy for when either my hands or my brain (or both!) need a break from the socks.

I have posted some pictures on my flikr photostream, and linked the appropriate ones to my Rav projects. You'll find "Walk in the Garden", 3 other sock FOs, as well as samples from the 2 afghans.

Please let me know what you think!

Nicole =o)


Sent from my BlackBerry® powered by Virgin Mobile.

Two for the Show!

My second entry for Ram Wools' footworks 1.0 is now done! Well the knitting anyway! Now comes the technical stuff -- the finishing touches on the pattern, the photography, proofing it all before submission.

I'm very pleased with how both of these have turned out and am looking forward to the contest results.

The next design is currently in the planning stages and hopefully I'll be casting on in the next day or two. I have some charting, sketching and swatching to do first but I already have a few pictures in my mind's eye.

Nicole =o)


Sent from my BlackBerry® powered by Virgin Mobile.

One down!

Well the first design for Ram Wools' footworks 1.0 contest has been completed! I finished it last night and named it "Eat Your Veggies"! No real reason, just a name that popped into my head while I was knitting away with the moss green Sisu!

The pattern itself will be finished shortly. It would have been done already but I'm waiting to hear back from them on a few questions I had about the writing. I won't be sharing any photos yet since I am undecided about submitting it to Knitty if it's not accepted for the contest.

Design #2 has been started and is progressing well despite a Bob Ross moment! The weather here has been beyond craptastic lately, and if it continues like it's supposed to, I expect #2 (as yet unnamed) to be finished in short order as it's less complex than the first.

Work on Melissa's and Elijah's blankets have been sporadic as of late. My hands have been co-operating with the tiny sock needles so that's where my energies have been going.

Stay tuned for my look inside my head!! I will be posting about one of the ways the design process works for me... From the initial wisps of an idea, to a completed published pattern!!!

Nicole =o)


Sent from my BlackBerry® powered by Virgin Mobile.

The project of a thousand yards...

begins with a single stitch.

Truer words have never been spoken! The largest, most daunting project is completed the same as any other -- one stitch at a time.

Progress is best measured as a series of steps. Not every step is always forward, but it is a step nonetheless. We only cease to progress when we cease to make steps. I like to judge my level of progress as it is related to my peace of mind. The more calm and relaxed I am, the more I feel I can and do accomplish.

I cast on for my first footworks 1.0 entry this past evening, and it has been a double-edged sword for my level of calmness. I really want to clear at least one if not two projects before embarking on yet another, but the time frame involved gives me little choice if I want to enter the competition.

I now have 4 main projects on the go: "Eat Your Veggies" socks, "Melissa" MAM, "Manny" thermal babyghan, and of course a generic sock kept in my purse. I pray that my hands allow me to continue to work at all of these so that I can finish them all in a timely manner. Designing is what drives me, but in order to accomplish my goals, I must complete all of these projects myself.

Nicole =o)


Sent from my BlackBerry® powered by Virgin Mobile.

Too many minds...

Have you ever seen the movie "The Last Samurai" with Tom Cruise? At one point when Tom's character is doing battle with another and losing, he is given advice on focussing because he has "too many minds". I can certainly relate to that!!!

I have so much on the go, and so much that I want to do, that I too am suffering from "too many minds". On the plus side, I am making some progress towards my goals.

I am now officially a designer on Ravelry!!! I have one pattern uploaded with 2 more linked to me but I want to get most of the bugs worked out there before I upload too much more.

I currently have two new afghan patterns written up, and just need to finish the actual projects so that I can finalize the supplies list, finished size, etc. One is a crocheted thermal baby blanket designed for my new grandson. The other is a knitted MAM designed for my youngest daughter.

I am also in the researching stage of several sock designs for Ram Wools footwork 1.0 design contest. Cross your fingers for me!!

Now to focus... Design? Knit? Crochet? Convert files? Too many minds!!!

Nicole =o)


Sent from my BlackBerry® powered by Virgin Mobile.

Stumbling blocks or building blocks?

I am very thankful for the post-its on my laptop, and the notepad on my Crack Berry! If it wasn't for those two *very* vital tools, I would be utterly lost in my quest to get my designs back online. It seems that for every item I check off on my task list, I find two more things that need to be done! I'm keeping my chin up... the cup is half full, not half empty.

I am very happy to announce that I have been able to recover most of my old design files. I was able to perform enough CPR on my old pooter to transfer almost everything I had on there to my new laptop. Unfortunately, the HDD (for the non-geek, that's the thingy that saves all the *stuff* you save!) on Derek's comp isn't compatible with mine so I haven't been able to retrieve anything from there as of yet. All is not lost since I have more than 50 patterns that need to be checked, formatted, and converted. That will keep me busy for quite a while since each pattern takes up to an hour to switch over if I have all the components needed. There are quite a few missing images as well as other pitfalls so not everything I once had up will be available right away.

I am enjoying all of this immensely. I have a couple of technical things to deal with, such as finding some web space and getting myself recognized as a designer on Ravelry, but nothing that can't be overcome. I'm very excited to be doing this again and look forward to hearing your comments and feedback once again.

Nicole =o)


Sent from my BlackBerry® powered by Virgin Mobile.

Yes Virginia, there really are yarn voices!

I had a conversation with a friend of mine the other day about what inspires me for designing. Having known me for 25+ years she's quite used to my usual level of insanity, plus she's a mental ward nurse too! After I had explained to her how the design process works for me, she exclaimed, "you really *do* hear yarn voices, don't you?" For some strange reason it got me thinking of the age-old editorial column, "Is there a Santa Claus?"

I'd like to know what inspires you? What drives you to create?

For me I get my ideas from anything and everything. Sometimes the yarn speaks to me and tells me what it wants to be. Other times I get a design idea and then the perfect yarn presents itself. My design process tends to be haphazard, like my life can be at times, but it works!

Nicole =o)


Sent from my BlackBerry® powered by Virgin Mobile.

What's important to you?

I've spent a lot of time lately going over things and deciding what is truly important to me. I have come to realize that there are things that we choose, and things that choose us. Have you ever noticed that?

Designing is something I feel has chosen me, rather than the other way around. Especially in the last few months, my muse has been hollering at me -- not the usual whispers and hints I'm used to -- but full out, top-of-the-lungs screaming! I have no choice but to pay attention and listen. The design ideas often come fast and furious. I can't write quick enough to keep up with them. I need to make piles and piles of notes to shut the voices down for the time being, and I refer back to them frequently during the design and pattern writing process that follows.

This is part of what my life has been like of late and part of the reason I am re-emerging online after such a long hiatus. I have written at least a dozen new patterns recently and once my internet issues are completely sorted out, I am looking very forward to being able to offer them again.

I am still hoping to hear from you that have been so patiently faithful to me for so long.
Sent from my BlackBerry® powered by Virgin Mobile.

Is anyone still out there?

This is a post testing out a few things for me. Firstly, it is to see if I have set up email posting correctly. Secondly, I want to know if there is anyone still following my blog. If you are, could you please drop me a line in the comments or my email? Thank you very much.

Since moving to "The Middle of Nowhere" (TMON) life certainly has thrown us more than our fair share of curve balls. We've had to learn how to play the game all over again. The 2+ years since my last post have been extremely difficult between serious health issues requiring several hospital stays, work and the related stress, and no Internet access for nearly 2 years now. Unfortunately my health is still a problem, work is still a problem, and my only Internet is through my cell phone; but I'm working through those issues as best I can.

I am spending a great deal of time designing now and will be publishing them as soon as I get dedicated Internet again. I have been working out what I can online using my phone so that I can get things up and running fairly quickly. The ideas are coming fast and furious these days so I have no doubt in my capability to be able to keep going infinitely.

In closing, I'd like to thank you all for not giving up on me entirely and I'd love to hear from you.

Nicole =o)
Sent from my BlackBerry® powered by Virgin Mobile.

Re-evaluation and retrospection...

It's been close to 6 months since I've posted here. The summer turned into a very busy, and very life-changing season for me for many, many reasons. Partly we went without any internet access at all for around 3 months, plus I did some travelling for Wal-mart to make some extra money to help pay for some of the things that are going on around here. During my time sans-web I was able to do quite a bit of re-evaluating of what is important to me, what I want, and what I need to treat as a priority.

Family *has* to be #1, and should be treated as such. Sitting at the computer for hours and days on end means that many other things in my life are being over-looked. Being here is *not* a job for me... it's entertainment and relaxation. I would love to be able to spend more time on my designs and such, but for the time being, I need to focus my energies elsewhere for my family to survive. This doesn't mean that I'm going to give up designing, as it is a necessary outlet for my creativity, it means that creating and writing patterns for publication are no longer my ultimate goal when designing.

I promised myself this summer that when I got my net back that I was going to cut back. I discovered that there *is* life beyond the keyboard and monitor. I have spent my first few weeks with internet access again going through many of the pastimes I have online. I went through Facebook and deleted a bunch of apps that I didn't use, and were just cluttering up my page. Ravelry was the biggest potential timesink I had online, and therefore got the biggest cuts from me. I went from over 450 groups, to less than 80. I am still not participating in the forums there yet, but I am getting to where I want to be with it... using it as a resource for what I really want to do and believe in, as well as a journal for my projects, stash and the like. I still have more cuts to do, but I'm getting there a little at a time.

I am happy, and actually quite relieved, about giving all this up. It's like a huge weight is being taken off of my shoulders. I'm actually gaining so much more than what I'm losing. I'm very happy spending time in my garden or the yard, or even just sitting on the couch knitting or playing DS while Derek plays his Xbox or watching TV. I am also looking very forward to what my future holds for me, since I won't miss out on it with my nose stuck to the monitor!!! I will still spend time online, as it's the main means of contact with most of my friends... I don't think I would be able to give up the net entirely even though I can obviously take extended breaks from it! I am happily going to be AFK most of the time, and enjoying every moment of it!

The light at the end of the tunnel...

I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, and for once I'm certain that it's not a train coming towards me!!! I've been working fast and furious on my Mystic Ocean shawl over the last few weeks. If you are on Ravelry, check out my project page for this shawl! This time I linked the progress photos directly to the larger images available on my Flickr photostream.


6 days work from the previous status shot, and I've got another clue done! This chart gets the length of the shawl to 226 rows total. It feels like it will never end!!! You can finally start to see what the finished pattern will look like, and I'm very impressed with how it is turning out.



The morning that Derek left for Edmonton, I finished the 4th clue. I finally got a really nice photo in natural light for the last clue, so I made sure that I did it again for this one. The shawl is measuring over 5 feet across at this point, and I'm working on my 5th ball of yarn.


Somehow I managed to get 32 rows knitted in just over 3 days! I am really picking up speed even though each row is nearly 300 stitches!!! I just want to get this shawl done and blocked! I am beginning to worry about having enough yarn to finish up with. The pattern called for 1200 metres, and I started the 6th ball half-way through this chart. I have 4 *spare* balls of it, so I have my fingers crossed that it will be enough. I have 3 more sections to do, so it will be close! Wish me luck!

Moving right along!

Yes... Mystic Ocean is moving right along. The current is strong and swift, and with a little bit of luck, this journey will be complete no later than the end of May! Larger images of these photos are available at my Flickr Photostream, as well as more details of this project in my Ravelry notebook. The pattern I am using is Mystic Waters, and was designed by Anna Dalvi at knitandknag, as a mystery KAL in late 2007. I have named my version Mystic Ocean since the blue-green colour makes me think of the ocean, and it fits in with the theme of the element of water!

The yarn is Estelle Watercolours in a blue/green colourway {#21} that I bought at Ram Wools during the trip to Winnipeg that Derek and I recently took. It's a 50/50 mohair/acrylic blend, and is really nice to work with for a fuzzy yarn. Each 50g ball has approximately 160m, so according to the pattern, I need about 6 balls. To make things easier, I bought the entire bag of 10... I have to admit that the 50% price tag of $2.99 a ball made that decision a lot easier!!!

It took me about 2 days {including frogging my first attempt!} to get the first chart done. Derek was thoroughly impressed with how nice it was turning out even then. Just 60 rows of knitting so far, and I was quite pleased myself!

A couple of days later, I had the second chart complete, which was also signalled the end of the first clue. I was now 130 rows in, with no looking back... well except at the chart for the previous row so that I could make sure my stitches were in the right place of course! The top edge stretched out would be about 36" at this point, as I had a few stitches fall off of my needle as this picture was taken! The design is now quite evident in the project, and I need to find a way to stretch it more for my progress photos since the variegation in the yarn doesn't hide the stitch pattern.

Another week, and another clue done! Working really cuts into the knitting time, and each charted row takes about 10 minutes to knit. Completing chart C makes the shawl 184 rows long, with a stitch count of 188 stitches. I tried to stretch this out more, but need a better background so that you can see the openwork more clearly. The larger photo at Flickr shows the detail a bit better. The top edge is now at least 60" when stretched. I used two of my 32" circs to display it for the picture, and I could have pulled it out further. With around 200ish more rows to go, it will be HUGE once complete!