7 into 5 stitch decrease in the Trellis Scarf

I have read in a few different places that the knit-7-together decrease in the Trellis Scarf from Interweave Knits gives some people, besides myself, fits. No standard method was giving me results so I figured out a way which is kind of easy and almost painless. In case you are interested I’ve put together an (extremely) low budget video clip of how I do it. Sorry I leave the field of view a few times near the end – I think you can still figure out what is going on. If someone actually finds this helpful let me know and I will try recording it again (but, you know, better).

Also, I think you can hear a train whistle near the end. Proves that you can’t spend over a minute in my apartment without hearing one. 18 days until moving day!!

A hole in my lace.

I’m still here, knitting lace. Work has kept me busy lately, plus I really don’t have anything new to show except a few rows of the scarf a night.

(No new photo. It looks just like it did last time, only longer.)

I was making steady, happy progress until this past weekend when I discovered a large hole about two inches back. I somehow dropped a stitch without noticing since my count and the pattern was right on. Thankfully it had stopped running so it must have been a yarn over.

I have successfully (tediously) ripped back and fixed it but have lost all momentum. I picked it up last night and had to force myself to do two rows before giving up and putting it down.

Ugh. Gotta get the good feelings back. =)

Challenging yet fun.

I am going to write about this only because I don' t think my Mom looks at my blog regularly. (At all? Of course she is going to be reading this now I'm sure.)

I am making the Trellis Lace scarf from IK Spring 06 (on Ravelry) as a Mother's Day gift. Here is the start I have so far:





That little piece of fluff is about two weeks of work. I am on the 7th pattern repeat out of 23. I figure if I can finish a pattern repeat a night, it will be done in time. (I am currently two repeats behind schedule.)

Good thing her birthday is at the end of July - I can always claim it was supposed to be a birthday gift!

The pattern is actually very easy, except for the 7-into-5 decreases that happen every 8 rows. Those buggers slow me down considerably, and I usually give up on finishing my pattern repeat for the night when I hit one of those rows. I figured out a decent way of working them involving a tiny crochet hook and sliding the stitches down to the cable of the needle. I am going to try to take a photo or a video or something of how it works in case anyone is interested.

Moving Sale!

It's one of my least favorite things to do in life, but even so I am very very excited - we are moving!

We've lived in this shoe box of an apartment for two years now, a year longer than we originally planned. The new place is at least twice the size and has great perks including a private entrance, fireplace, and vaulted ceilings, plus it is pet friendly and we can paint the walls. (I have already cruised the Home Depot paint chip aisle.) Moving day is in four weeks, and I am so anxious that I've already started packing. Ha, nothing like walking around boxes for a month!

In order to have a few less things to pack, I am posting the last of the yarn from my stash sale. Anything that doesn't sell from here before next Sunday will be put on ebay.

Feel free to make me a deal, or even offer a trade. (Hmm... even though that wouldn't really cut down on packing... it is always fun!)

Email me at sarah@yarndreams.com if you see something you like or have a question.

All yarn in new and unused unless specifically stated in the description. From a non-smoking/non-pet home.

I prefer Paypal, but we can discuss other methods of payment. Prices don't included shipping.

Now on to the goodies! The list is long, so be sure to scroll to the end!

(note: anything sold will be deleted from the post.)

Thanks, all done!

Shopping Saturday

I started a lace project last night which with a small amount of luck and some serious knitting will be my Mom's mother's day gift. I decided to use size 3US needles, but my beloved Knit Picks interchangeable set only goes down to size four. I tried an Inox circular and a Clover bamboo circ, but the points were so blunt that it was driving me crazy within the first 10 rows. The Knit Picks needles have nice tips, but I can't afford the shipping time to order the correct size and have any shot at finishing this by Mother's Day. (Plus, I am too impatient to wait.)

Since I was heading in that direction anyway I decided to stop at my not-so-local yarn store, the fabulous I'd Rather Be Knitting in Long Grove, IL and pick up a pair of Addi Lace Turbos. A splurge, since they were almost $14 and really, who can go to a yarn store and not by yarn?





Misti Alpaca sock yarn; a splurge indeed! But it is so soft and the colors so gorgeous that there is no way I could pass it up. This photo does not do the color justice. While it has an overall blue/green shade there are hints of everything from yellow to purple to brown. This yarn is 50% alpaca, 30% merino wool, 10% silk, and 10% nylon. I think I will just sit it next to my chair and pet it for a while.

I'll post a review of the Addi Lace needles once I have some more knitting time under my belt with them.

I realized something today.

I have not done much (make that any) knitting since I finished my everlasting bagstopper a week or so ago. I really have had no desire to pick up the needles and work on my current project. The same thing happened to me during the holidays, when I was trying to finish up gifts for people.

It suddenly hit me why this keeps happening. I told myself when I finished the bag that I could not start a new project before my Something Red sweater was finished.

But I do not feel like knitting the sweater, so there is no knitting at all. Same thing with the Christmas gifts. I felt forced to knit, instead of wanting to knit.

I know this all sounds very simple and straightforward in a “duh” kind of way but it was quite a revelation when it all came together in my head.

I tend to be very strict with myself sometimes, more so than I would ever be with or expect from other people. My reasoning for the one project at time rule is that I feel nothing ever is finished when I am working on a lot of things at once. While it is true that it will take longer to finish a project if I am working on other things in between, it will take forever if I never work on it – like my sweater.

I didn’t always feel this way, in fact years ago I used to have almost a dozen projects going at once. I think that overwhelming feeling of “I’m never going to finish any of this” is what turned me to the one at a time mentality. I tend to feel unsettled and a little claustrophobic when things pile up – physically and mentally.

So, I am going to try and ease up a bit and let myself start something new. I really want to start a special Mother’s Day gift but at least I have the insight to realize it probably would not be the best choice right now.

Enough analysis. I’m going to go knit something fun dammit!