Didja hear? Liz is hosting another Critter Knitters Knit-out this coming Sunday, June 13, in Prospect Park, Brooklyn, NY. Details are available on the Knit-out page.

While you’re at it, check out Liz’s Blankets Received page, which Liz updated Monday!

Ingeborg

Thought you were gonna see an update photo here, didn’t you? Huh? HUH?

Nope, haven’t knitted on poor Ingeborg since Sunday morning. But I’ll do a bit on her before the weekend so she doesn’t feel too neglected.

I was asked in the comments the other day how I liked knitting on Ingeborg slowly, as a secondary project.

I like it and I don’t like it.

On the one hand, I don’t feel my usual compulsion to knit the thing as quickly as possible. I don’t have the usual drive I feel that makes me want to get something done — NOW. And that’s a good thing. Less stress.

But on the other hand, I’m sort of sick of Ingeborg because she’s been lying around in an unfinished state too long. There’s still a lot to do before she’s done — this design has a lot of finishing work. There’s that lace edging to be knit and applied after the neckband and front bands are done. So it seems like it’ll be a lo-o-ong time before I can get her done and over with. Yawn. There are other things I want to do.

But I’ll stick with her and get her done.

So there you have it. Proof that I’m never satisfied.

Lucky

Lucky, on the other hand, has had my almost-full attention. I finished the back:

And started on the front.

Knitting the Jaeger Silk 4-ply is simply heavenly. Full stop.

The Evening Sporran

. . . is actually a Fiber Trends pattern: AC-45 “Night on the Town.” I bought mine at Knit Happens.

Did I Ever Show You . . .

My Harris Tweed teddy bear?

He was a gift from L-B. He’s an elderly gentleman from the Isle of Lewis and I think he’s gorgeous!

Lucy Sez:

You call this a mouse?

That’s all.

The provider where Wendyknits is hosted had some issues yesterday and the site was unavailable for most of the day. When the site was restored, the database wasn’t, so I couldn’t post.

But, fingers crossed, all seems okay now.

I gave up on answering emails about what was wrong after the first hundred or so. I appreciate your concern, but rest assured that the state of WendyKnits the Site has no bearing on the health of Wendy the Person. Honest.

But anyhow . . .

June Contest

Congratulations to Marlana, who won the yummy mohair when her entry was chosen at randon for the June contest. Marlana, the mohair is on its way to you!

Ingeborg

I completed the body of Ingeborg over the weekend.

She’s looking a bit crumpled up, because I steeked the front and back neck. For the front neck, on a size small, I cast off 12 stitches on each side of the front steek, as well as the front steek, and created a neck steek. Then worked in the round, casting off a stitch at each neck edge 12 times.

For the back neck, I cast off all but 6 stitches of the total for the back neck, steeked, and then cast off 1 stitch at each neck edge 3 times.

And I started a sleeve.

I’ll probably do the front bands and neckband on the body after I complete the first sleeve. I need to do a sleeve before the body finishing, so I can measure the exact depth of the armhole for the sleeve steek.

Remember the Evening Sporran?

It sounds like a battle cry, doesn’t it?

I knitted this in April — finally felted it, put a button and a handle on it, and gave it to my mom. She loves it.

Luanne

Here’s a slightly beter photo of Luanne.

I cut my head out of this photo, thank you very much, because I still had sinus-infection-face when it was taken. No need to frighten anyone.

Lucy sez:

Have a good Tuesday. Chill!

Yesterday morning I was unpacking my bag at work, looking for my breakfast protein bar, and pulled out this:

My initial reaction: “Who put a chocolate doughnut in my bag?”

Of course, dear readers, you know that’s a skein of Jaeger Silk 4-ply in a ziplock bag, but at first glance . . .

Speaking of Jaeger Silk

I was asked how it is to knit.

Very very soft. And smooth. It’s a dream. No splitting. I’m knitting it on a 3mm ebony needle and the silk slides over it.

Ingeborg

By request, a photo that shows the front steek.

Lucy feigns indifference.

But I know better.

Hana Silk Scarf

Here is my progress on the Hana Silk Scarf:

It’s a simple pattern I made up. Here it is:

Cast on 22 stitches.

Row 1: (k4, yo, k2tog) 3 times, k4
Row 2: (p4, yo, p2tog) 3 times, p4

Work until you run out of yarn.

Couldn’t be easier, right?

June Contest

Don’t forget! If you want to be entered in the drawing to win the yummy mohair, you need to send an email by 4:00pm EST today. Use the email link in Monday’s bog entry. The winner will be announced Monday.

Thanks for your get well wishes. I’m off from work today — pre-arranged. So hopefully I’ll get some good rest and feel much better. I always have one major sinus attack in the spring and one in the fall, so I guess this is my spring bout with it. Nothing serious, but the older I get, the harder it hits me.

I will leave you with this photo.

Dead cicadas outside my window at work.

All together now:

Eeeeeeeewwwwwwwww!

I love prezzies!

Look at this dear little book:

It’s a journal, sent to me by Sue of A Chick With Sticks. The pages have grids instead of lines, and Sue suggested that I could use it for sketching out fair isle motif ideas. Isn’t that perfect? Thanks Sue! And thank you for the chocolates, too! Yum!

And speaking of fair isle ideas, I also got this book in the mail:

It’s a Swedish book of historical knitwear, sent to me by my friend Johanne, who is in Stockholm. This is a topic in which I am intensely interested. I’m planning on doing a sweater design based on old Swedish sweaters, and this book is chock full of interesting pictures and photos. Yes, the text is in Swedish, but I still find it very inspirational.

I got yarn in the mail as well. Three different yarns from three different places. All greens!

For those who care, they yarns are Koigu KPPPM, Rowan Cotton Glace, and Jamieson’s Shetland Spindrift in the impossible-to-get-in-the-USA shade of Marjoram.

(No, don’t bother to ask where I got the Marjoram. It was a gift from a friend who went to a lot of trouble to acquire it for me. I ain’t telling!)

Added to the rest of my Marjoram stash (I’ve got both Campion and Jamieson’s) I have enough to knit any and all of the Starmore designs that use it.

Ah, wealth.

Knitting?

I did some commute/lunchtime knitting yesterday. Here is Lucky, reclining gracefully on my desk at work.

But I felt majorly crappy last night due to some sinus issues. So much so that . . .

I did not feel like knitting.

That should tell you just how majorly crappy I was feeling. I never do not feel like knitting.

So I draped myself on the couch in my best Garbo/dying Camille pose. Here’s the view:

Lucy will not be amused by this photo. It makes her butt look huge.

I read a book of essays on cooking and felt oddly comforted.

And truth be told, I did knit a few rows on the Hana Silk scarf.

Silk is very comforting too.

But this morning I still feel crappy. Bleah. So off to work I go.

I sadly neglected Ingeborg last weekend. I barely knit on her at all.

This is partly Lucy’s fault. She is usually very good about sleeping in my lap while I knit. But this past weekend, she kept trying to chew on Ingeborg. And I kept pulling it out of her reach and telling her “No!”

Lucy does not appreciate being told “no” about anything, and she got quite snippy with me. So to keep the peace, I put poor Ingeborg away for a while.

So I pulled her out and did a few rounds last night. I think she appreciated the attention. I guess at some point I need to find buttons for her.

And Lucy spent some time under her sun lamp in the Kitty Day Spa.

Lucky Tank

My newest WIP is my Lucky Tank.

The bottom lace is an edging that is knit sideways. I then picked up stitches on the long straight edge and am knitting up from there. The body is a 12×2 rib. Just trying to save myself from the utter boredom of a sea of stockinette stitch.

I love the Jaeger 4-ply silk I’m using. and I love the color — dark chocolate brown. I feel as though I’m knitting with chocolate mousse. Hmmmmm . . . it makes me hungry just thinking about it.

Luanne Test Knitting

Anyone feel like test knitting Luanne, the tank pictured in yesterday’s blog? I need a knitter for the 35.5″ size and for the 44.5″ size. You’ll need to supply your own yarn between 500 — 800 yards (I reckon) DK weight — gauge is 22 sts and 30 rows to 4″. Email me using the “Contact Me” link from the sidebar if you are interested.

**Update** — I’ve got all my test knitters, thanks!

Critter Knitters Update

I neglected to mention yesterday that Liz updated the Blankets Received page. Wow! There are a whole lot of fabulous blankets there! And thank you Liz, to you and your kitty spokesmodels, for doing such a lovely job of documenting their arrival!