As I write, it is still snowing - 3rd day in a row. Honestly, I love the snow. It is so beautiful and peaceful. I love being holed up inside with the white stuff silencing the noise of the world. I love curling up with a cup of tea and my knitting. I even love trudging around outside in the stuff, especially when it is as light and fluffy as we're getting right now.
But, it is a little disconcerting when we get a 12" or more with hardly any warning from the weather people. Perhaps I just haven't been paying attention, but I don't recall hearing that we would have 3 days of almost constant snow that would accumulate to over 18". Now that would be something to talk about! Think of the knitting I could have planned!
Luckily I had started my Fireside Sweater on Saturday. Thanks to the weather, I am well into the right front. I am deeply in love with this knit. The instructions, while confusing at first glance, are actually very straightforward and easy to follow. I've been able to knit away on all those cables while watching TV or supervising the boys tear our house apart. More than anything, I love looking at the cables grow and thinking about wearing the finished sweater. I keep draping the knitting across my arm, or around my side to try and picture the sweater. For me, it is truly the perfect January knit.
And I'm not alone. We have a number of knitters working away on the Fireside Sweater, or knitting-alongside us with similar cabley knits. The best part of this KAL? The lively discussion and help-fest happening on our Ravelry forum. Check out the thread here.
The updated knitter roll call is as follows:
Knitter - and their yarn
Lesley - Dream in Color Classy in Midnight Derby
Luanne - Cascade 220 in pink
Amanda - Eco Wool in Red
Becka - Eco Wool in brown
Donna K. - Eco Wool in heathery purple
Donna M.- undecided yarn
Jen KC - undecided on yarn
Cathy - Eco Wool in purple
Penny - Eco Wool in cream
Chesley - Ultra Alpaca in cream
Amy - knitalongside with B.O.B in Lamb's Pride
Patti - also knittingalongside with the Vine Yoke Cardigan
Barbara - knittingalongside with the Helleborus Yoke sweater from the new Knitscene in Eco Wool in green
Susan - possibly knittingalongside with cabled socks
Penny, Lesley, and Luanne got started on Saturday.
They inspired me to cast on, even though the official start date isn't until this Saturday. I'm glad I did, as it has given me the time to figure out how the whole thing is put together so I can hopefully help all those fellow KALers!
But, while I'm thoroughly enjoying the Fireside Sweater, I find that when working on such an involved pattern, it is a good idea to have a mental break project running at the same time. You know what I'm talking about. The kind of thing you can knit with your eyes closed. No rows to count, stitch patterns to remember, just relaxing, meditative knitting.
For me it is a straightforward stst cowl. The knit stitch over and over, round and round. And it makes me immensely happy. Part of the reason is the yarn.
I'm using a strand of our new Lana Bambu ( a wool, bamboo blend from Cascade that is simply beautiful) along with Kid Seta (a mohair and silk blend). The effect is amazing. The Kid Seta enhances the colors of the Lana Bambu to give the whole piece a shimmer and halo.
I can't claim credit for the idea. We're actually calling it the Jocelyn method. A good friend - who is a fantastic knitter - grabbed a skein of Dream in Color Classy and paired it with Kid Seta to make one of the hottest knits of the moment - the Knotty but Nice hat from knitty.com. The result was stunning and left all of us breathless.
THEN... she started pairing up skeins of Lana Bambu with the Kid Seta. OH MY. Luscious. Simply luscious. Many of us instantly followed her lead. Some for Knotty hats, me for a cowl. And it is so pretty I can hardly stand it.
Barbara whipped up her own Knotty but Nice using the Lana Bambu/Kid Seta combo: (You only need one skein of each for this hat.)
While we're talking about Knotty but Nice, I must show you the manly version Becka made for David.
Now let's take a peek at some of the other knits appearing at the shop.
I'm particularly proud of this next one, as it is a first sweater! Yes, Nicole finished her very first sweater! She even made a hat to match.
Doesn't it look fantastic? She used Eco Wool and the pattern is the Owls Sweater.
Susan totally surprised me by having her Wicked - just recently on the needles - done and looking great!
She used Cascade 220 in a tweed.
This next sweater is not a recent finish, but is so beautiful, I have to show it off. Check out Susan's Something Red in Dream in Color Classy:
Deb was stunning in her version of the Colonnade Shawl knit in Baby Alpaca Chunky. (This one was our Fall 2009 KAL.)
Linda looked great in her felted hat and lovely Rectangle Shawl out of Spunky Eclectic silk.
It's about time to get ready to head into the shop. I get to meet with a new yarn rep today - definitely something to look forward to - shopping for yarn!
Before I go, you should know that new magazines arrived on Monday. Interweave's Knitscene and Debbie Bliss's spring mag.
Oh, and I finally managed to get our winter class schedule updated on the website!