Prism
Warp
24 Simple Scarves MCN in Rubies
24 The Knittery Merino in Vineyard

Weft
Knitpicks Chroma Fingering in Prism

Reed
7.5

This was my mother-in-law’s Christmas gift. I wanted to go back to the basics of weaving which is working with colour and so decided to do a play on rainbow colours (which she happens to like) by splitting the wrap in hot and cold colours. The result is a very subtle difference between the two colour temperatures which is visible up close but not too obvious when seen from far.

I actually finished this earlier but never got around to posting about it because my in-laws check out my blog so it would actually spoil the surprise! Kekekeke.

Nil tells me that my mother-in-law thought I had used silk in the mix but no, it’s all merino and some cashmere from the weft yarns – I used my handdyed MCN (merino-cashmere-nylon blend) and leftovers from another weaving project (The Knittery MCN yarn). A note about Knitpicks Chroma Fingering – it’s a single ply so okay for weft but handle gentle otherwise it might just felt!

I have about half a ball left so I might get around to weaving something along these lines or a project with colour blocks or gradients in it.

As we get ready for the coming Christmas and New Year holidays, I’m taking stock of my craft work this year and am glad to report that I finished a cool 23 projects. Out of the 23, three of them were from before I had Eva!!!!!! The oldest was my Ivy cardigan which I casted on in 2007 and will not care to mention again (not very happy with it – hmpr).

I discovered the joys of knitting two socks on two separate DPNs, thanks to Lois, who decided that this would be best to combact my SSS – Second Sock Syndrome. It was also the same project in which I knitted with my plied handspun and discovered that uneven spinning makes for uneven finished yarn which will affect the outcome of the sock. These were gifted to my mum as I decided that the measurements and stitch count that I have always been using was not exactly suitable for me. I reckon in 2012, one of my knitting goals would be to knit myself a sock that will fit me decently!

Anyway, as we get ready for the end of the year, I find myself looking at one WIP that is nearly finished – Eva’s cardigan – and one that I would probably finish next year – my entrelac stole. I am beginning to see why some people are monogamous when it comes to knitting projects and after having read other people’s account of the dreaded startitis (the habit of starting but not finishing projects), I’ve decided to have a maximum of four WIPs in queue at any one point in time. This would include other crafts like weaving, spinning and crochet work. That way I reckon I can organize my time better, especially seeing how needy Noah can be.

So yes, all in all, a good crafty year! Now back to my hunt for some funky address plates – I wonder how addressplaques.net for address plaques works out.

Venetian Harlequin
Warp
4 Louisa Harding Fauve (Red-pink)
8 Tendance Crea (Pink-Red-Beige)
10 Three Suisses Bamboo (Pink)
6 Bergère de France Bergerama (Red-pink)
4 Tendance Crea (Pink-Red-Beige)
6 Bergère de France Bergerama (Red-pink)
10 Three Suisses Bamboo (Pink)
8 Tendance Crea (Pink-Red-Beige)
4 Louisa Harding Fauve (Red-pink)

Weft
Bergère de France Bergerama (Red-pink)
Tendance Crea (Pink-Red-Beige)

Reed
7.5

I had initially planned this for an adult but somehow, miscalculated on the part when I was supposed to take the waft off and weave it into the scarf. Instead of making allowances for 2.5 times the width of the scarf, I upped it to 3.5 times resulting in a very short body and overly long “fringe”. In the end, the cowl was only long enough to fit over an adult sized head but not long enough to encircle the neck a few times. Also, the waft-into-weft weave was too tight, no thanks to a short body, and such, it crinkled a little.

Still, it fits Eva and so will end up as hers instead of the original giftee. Back to the loom again, I reckoned, and after my search for Pastry/Baker Chef Jobs – an assignment. Heh.

Venetian Harlequin
Warp
14 Four Seasons Gründl Sunshine
6 Louisa Harding Fauve (Purple)
12 Louisa Harding Fauve (Red-pink)
4 Four Seasons Gründl Sunshine
12 Louisa Harding Fauve (Red-pink)
6 Louisa Harding Fauve (Purple)
14 Four Seasons Gründl Sunshine

Weft
Four Seasons Gründl Sunshine
Bergère de France Bergerama (Red-pink)

Reed
7.5

My first weaving project in two years…

I’m still a little rusty but I love how this turned out. Am not too sure if I’ll give this away as a Christmas present so it’ll go into my stash of finished objects for now. In the meantime, I’ve started on a new project which features a new technique I picked up from scouring the forums. Hopefully it’ll turn out good! Am keeping my fingers crossed!

Venetian Harlequin
Length | slight over 61?
Width | 11?
Fringe | 13? double knotted

It took a while for me to finish this piece because of distractions (family matters, other hobbies, etc) and brainstorming for the shop. Instead of the three days, I took over two weeks (me thinks)! I really ought to find a way to concentrate on my pieces instead of losing focus and switching to something else like dyeing.

Oh! I’ll say it now – I simple love how the colours flow over! Nil thinks that it’s very Scottish kilt-like even though Scot kilts are more reds and greens than purple, red and yellow. Do you see now why Lapis Lazuli is following a similar weave pattern?

Anyway, this will be up in the shop come September when I have more weaved up for sale then. I’m hoping to come up with at least three more colours for this series, so wish me lots of luck!!!!

…On a completely different note, ever since I got pregnant, these nasty pimples have never failed to show up. I do get an occasional one or two popping up when my period comes a-calling (ah, the perks of PMS) but this is getting crazy!

What’s worse is that they aren’t small but those huge under the crater type which are painful more than anything else. I don’t know if it’s because of my cream, the weather or just the fact that I’ve changed my facial routine a few times over the past few months.

So really, what’s the best acne treatment around? I’m desperate and well, while it isn’t really much of an issue, I still don’t like seeing them pop up, especially around the forehead and sides (where my hair covers and my specs sit – great!).

ARGH! This is so not nice.

Lapis Lazuli
Waft & Weft Yarn | Four Seasons Gründl Sunshine (variegated blue), Manor Home Carina in Dark Blue, Manor Home Jasmine in Royal Blue and Manor Home New Baby Uni in Sky Blue
Reed | 7.5 dpi
Ends | 96 ends

Following the steps of Venetian Harlequin, I decided to do a series of weaves that would showcase checkerboard-like patterns in a variety of colours. I’m modelling them after gemstones and as such, this one is aptly named Lapis Lazuli.

I’m not really a big fan of blue but I love how striking and bright this looks. Am definitely looking forward to seeing it off the loom in its full glory!

On a whim, I thought I’d do a round-up on my crafty WIPs (Work-In-Progress) and what-nots…

Knitting
Pablo Dark Spring and Boyfriend Socks are still on the darn DPNs. I didn’t get to do as much knitting as I would have liked during the vacation because I sprained my pinkie during a hiking trip the weekend before – lets just say that I’m glad my behind which has a bit of fat (and muscle) is really great as a cushion.

Then there are the shawls – I ought to block Rosier de Angelique which is more like a triangular scarf and continue on with an olive green version of Swallowtail.

Weaving
So far, it’s just Venetian Harlequin at work; that’s the beauty of having just one loom and two shuttles. You can’t really “cast on” any projects until you finish the one on the loom. Still, I’ve been stocking up for a series of weaves that I have in mind. I just hope I can keep up the pace!

Spinning
When the Paua shell spindle arrived, I thought I could resist starting a new batch of fibre. It would appear that I have underestimated myself. Now I have 75 gms of Lime Spring and at least over 3/4 of Harvest II to finish up spinning.

Do you think we’d ever get more than 24 hours in a day?

Venetian Harlequin
Warp & weft yarn | Lorna Laces in Irving Park, Bergere de France Barroise (20318), Bergere de France Barroise (20260), and Bergere de France Bergerama (21186)
Reed | 7.5 dpi
Ends | 96 ends

Inspired by a similar piece on Flickr and after digging around the stash to see if I could come up with anything nice, I decided to christen the next project after elaborately painted Venetian masks.

This is my first extremely colourful weave and so far, I’m liking how it turns out. I don’t have four shuttles, just two, so I’ll have to make do with snipping and winding for every 16 (1.25″) rows. Still, I like my progress so far.

I might try this with different colour combinations – blue is awfully tempting at this point but I have just two hands and a loom so patience is warranted.

In the meantime, it’s back to the weave, some movies and the usual cooking. On a completely different note, I wish the rental agency would remodel our kitchen. It’s getting a bit tad crowded and I’d prefer bigger kitchen sinks – yes, plural is intentional.

Vert est jeune
Length | slight over 66?
Width | 11.5?
Fringe | 9? double knotted

This was another quick weave despite me putting down the loom for nearly 10 days due to the holidays. It was a first, experimenting with the thin creamy stripes and I’m glad it turned out quite well really.

Anyway, I opted again for the double knotted fringe – yes, I love double knots (but maybe it’s also because this is one of the few “pretty” ways of ending a scarf that I know of). I ought to look around for more ideas for finishing though.

The soft variegated colours of the cotton yarn gives this a very spring, lime, fresh feel and I enjoy the feel of the difference in the texture of both the cotton and acrylic-based yarn. Despite my initial thoughts about it, I was surprised by the overall weight – this proves to be heavier than the first scarf I weaved. Perhaps it’s the thickness and make of the yarn that changed everything.

While I was in France, I had the chance to browse through Grandmaman‘s old tissage books. Published in the late 50s, it’s meant more for table looms but I loved looking at the patterns and came away, utterly mad over stripes, chevrons, diamonds and checkered patterns.

I have something in mind for the next few projects, which requires a little digging around the stash – yes, I’ll be putting those leftovers to good use! Yes, there just might be more to come!

Vert est jeune
Warp yarn | Schachenmayr nomotta Bravo Baby in 120 (Baby Vanille) & Maxima in 1614 (Light Cream)
Weft yarn | Schachenmayr nomotta Catania Color in 76 (Plantage) & Bravo Baby in 120 (Baby Vanille)
Reed | 7.5 dpi
Ends | 96 ends

Fresh on the loom now is Vert est jeune (Green is young) – a play of some sorts on the words “est” and “jeune”; mispronounce both and you get “et” (and) and “jaune” (yellow)… Okay, so it’s a pretty lame attempt at being funny/smart. Never mind that.

This time, I’m working with a slight striping pattern for the warp and will be planning on incorporating it into the weft as well. The fibres in use are not wool but acrylic and cotton, which gives the scarf a softer feel and slight sheen to its surface.

I’m hoping it’ll turn out just the way I imagine it to be.

In the mean time, it’s back to more weaving and figuring out some mortgage quotes online (it’s an assignment).