Scottish Yarn

My parents recently took a trip to Scotland, and very sweetly made an effort to go to New Lanark (about an hour outside of Edinburgh), which is a UNESCO World Heritage site featuring an 18th century mill, which still produces wool and textiles. They very thoughtfully brough tme back a sweater's worth of yarn:

Sorry for the lousy photos, it's been overcast and raining every morning this week. 

I love the colour! It's  beautiful donegal tweed yarn, 90% wool and 10% silk, and I'm really looking forward to knitting up a gorgeous winter sweater to cuddle up in.  Now, there are three things that are looming large in my mind to potentially make with all this gorgeous, gorgeous yarn:

Now technically,  Peterborough (the first one) and Nidden (the second one) call for worsted weight, and this yarn is DK (which Nespelem calls for). The trouble with Nespelem is that I find myself leaning more towards Peterborough or Nidden, because I like the long look and the drapey style. And when I look at the other FOs, peopel have been using DK weight for both of those other sweaters as well, with lovely results; and they  all call for 4mm or 3.75 mm needles, respectively. Which means I feel pretty confident about subbing in some DK and just have a slightly lighter weight cardigan if I decide to go for Nidden or Peterborough.

So what do you think? I'm having a tough time deciding, and sure could use some advice from you guys!

Modification Monday: Toast at the Seaside Sept. 26th

Original Patterns: Toast and Ships and Seaside

Knitter Extraordinaire: Eliza (Ravelry ID, blog)

Mods: Project page can be found here.

What Makes This Awesome: Ah, the pattern mash up. It's a wonderful thing. I love how Eliza took the classic coziness of the Toast pattern and made herself some mitts to go with her gorgeous Ships & Seaside Cowl. What a great idea for a bit if stash busting and for making a lovely set. The colours were a perfect choice, they look so wearable and classic.

And... today Eliza is celebrating her 2nd wedding anniversary! Happy Anniversary, Eliza and Jake!

8:30: the First Eight Days

I've already learned SO much about my wardrobe since I started working on the 30 in 30 wardrobe remix, it's amazing. For example- I own mostly solid colour items, very few prints. Which makes for a seriously dull wardrobe, if you ask me. How come I never noticed this before?! I don't even own a patterned blouse. Seriously.

Also, I apparently do not like having my photo taken every day. If G was available, we snapped a shot on the patio, and if he wasn't I used the tripod and my point and shoot camera in the library. 


Also, I still haven't chosen all my 30 items, because it is now clear I only wear about 15-20 items in rotation. My wardrobe is in a rut! This is a lot more work and not nearly as much fun as I thought it would be. I have a lot of work ahead of me.

Modification Monday: Idlewood +

Original Pattern: Idlewood


Knitter Extraordinaire: Traci (Ravelry ID)

Mods:  Added lots of colourwork, eliminated the pocket, added ribbing to sleeve and body hems. Project page is here.

What Makes This Awesome: I was blown away by this gorgeous sweater when I first saw it- the colourwork is stunning, and I love the muted palette Traci used to create it. The charts are from Elizabeth Zimmermann's The Opinionated Knitter, Leaflet #3, and I think the  whole combination is just dynamite. I want to a sweater just like this now! Looks perfect for layering.

Modification Monday: Paper Daleks Sept. 12

Original Pattern: Paper Dolls

Knitter Extraordinaire: Rebecca (Ravelry ID, blog)

Mods: Charted out a whole new colourwork yoke to feature the main characters (and the famous daleks) of Doctor Who- Including charting out text, which is tricky! Project page is here.

What Makes This Awesome: I love it when people really personalize their knits, and what better way to personalize than with a colourwork version of a beloved TV show?! I think this is such a clever use of colourwork, and it's not often I see text in knits, either- another reason to love this one-of-a-kind pullover. Just so awesome.

FO: Autumn in Ombre

Pattern: Ombre Cardigan

Yarn: Tanis Fiber arts Pink Label in 'Chestnut' and 'Brick'

Needles: 4 mm circulars.

Mods: None.

Notes: This is one of those perfect sweaters that you know will be a wardrobe staple. I love the easy fit and clean lines, and the ombre effect is the perfect amount of interest- not too much, not too little. It's totally a wardrobe classic.

It's knit using two strands of laceweight held together, which was nice- it knit up pretty quickly and it was fun to watch the colour shifts.  really enjoyed using one of the brand new TFA colourways, too- Brick is a really gorgeous shade, just right for fall. I can tell I'll be wearing this a lot!

The kitties were really keen on getting in on the photoshoot action (or at least just wanted my attention), but then refused to sit pretty when I tried to include them:

Cats. What can you do.

30 in 30: Wardrobe Remix

I first heard of the 30 in 30 Wardrobe Remix from Eliza, a friend and blogger who decided to put her closet to work and create 30 different outfits in 30 days, using only 30 items. She is going to do it again this fall, and I'm going to participate as well- starting tomorrow!

My reasons: I get lazy. I'm not a morning person, and that's typically when I get dressed, so it's easy for me to get into an outfit rut and not think creatively at all about what to wear. Also, like many women, I have a tonne of clothes and probably only wear about 2% of my wardrobe in any given week, and I can admit it- I'm boring with my wardrobe. Pants and sweaters, accessorized with a necklace.Yawn.

The rule I'm going to dress by:

• 30 items, which will consist entirely of visible clothes (obviously undercrackers, socks, etc. won't count).
• I'm not including shoes into this, because I'm not a shoe person and I know perfectly well I'll either wear black flats or rain boots for the next 30 days, without fail. 
• No outfit can be worn exactly the same way twice. 
• Accessories are not included, and will be used as much as possible to punch up the existing clothing choices. It's about time I make the most of all the scarves and handbags I own, for goodness sake.

I've been reviewing my Pinterest Style Board to get some ideas of the sort of things I'd like to be wearing, to ensure that those are the items that make the cut for the next 30 days. Let's see how well I do. I'm giving myself extra credit if I manage to do stuff with my hair, too. Sometimes long hair is such a lazy cop-out, it's so easy to do absolutely nothing with it.

Modification Monday: Gray Swan Dress

Original Pattern: Evenstar Shawl

Knitter Extraordinaire: Johanna (Ravelry ID)

Mods:  Used the beautiful circular shawl as a starting point for the skirt, and transformed it into a dress, using this pattern as a base for the upper body. Project page can be found here.

What Makes This Awesome: This is easily one of the most beautiful knitted dresses I've ever seen. The skirt is stunning, and the bodice is gorgeous, and I love the tulle underskirt that gives the dress more shape. not only is this picture perfect, but Johanna has created a truly original, one-of-a-kind dress that really sets the bar for what a gorgeous knit dress can be. So impressive!!