It's raining, it's pouring...still

I'm not complaining mind you, I realize there are lots of places suffering with terrible drought right now and rain is certainly WAY preferable to the big "H"!

During the rainy season, it does rain here every day but it's usually just a brief sprinkle (most often during rush hour traffic, of course!) For the last month we've had torrential rain for a good portion of every day.

While rain can be an inconvenience, it's beauty and it's usefulness is unquestionable.

I love to watch the storms rolling in from my balcony....I can see the thunderheads and watch the rain falling in thick grey curtains in the distance...

Isn't it beautiful?

Onto the knitting...

Since holiday time draws near, thoughts turn to gift knitting and one of my favorite knitted gifts is fingerless mitts or wristers.

To that end I've posted a link on my sidebar that is super easy, super cute, easy to size up or down, unisex and takes less than one skein of koigu! I did post about it once before but it was way at the bottom of a very long post so I thought I'd be a sport and chat it up again :)

In addition, if you're into mitts, there's a great new KAL in town!


It's the Fall Fingerless Mitts KAL and Keri is the lovely hostess!

There's lots of pretty mitt eye candy, lots of free patterns and lots of sharing and companionship - the things knitters do best!

So if you have chilly hands or know anyone that does, come join us and knit some fall mitts!

As for me, I'm still working on my Flamingo Stripe socks but there's nothing exciting to see. It's my "grab and go - hurry up and wait" project so I'm not knitting on it all that much.

I am excited about this new WIP tho, look....

It's a new cotton tank I'm making as a gift...isn't the color yummy? At least something around here is bright and sunny!

I'm only showing this little bit because altho it is a gift and the recipient doesn't read FKD, I'm actually finished with the back and well into the front so I'll have an FO soon and I'll show y'all the whole enchilada then :)

Remember that big, fluffy, luxurious bed the P-Man has been enjoying? Well as we all know, explaining why a cat does what he does is an exercise in futility!

I had my blocking board on my bed to block the Esprit Tank and seems my P-Man likes a firm "mattress" too!

I can't get him off the thing and when I fold it up to put away, he meows and paces until I bring it out again! Silly kitty man!

To those that are off to Rhinebeck this weekend once again, bite me have a wonderful time! To my hapless fellow non-attendees, have a great weekend and knit lots!

Wanna see something REALLY beautiful???

This is my good friend Shawna...WEARING HER NEW ESPRIT TANK!!

Doesn't she look lovely and isn't it a PERFECT fit? I'm so happy :):)

Happy Birthday, My Friend!!

I have so much to show (and tell) you!

The good thing about non-stop rain for over 3 weeks is when the heavens finally decide to shine a little light on this fluffy knitter's lowly existence, I have LOTS of FOs and other good stuff to share so get ready for a picture *fluffy* post, heh!

Since my birthday was 3 weeks ago it's about time I showed you two of my favorite knitting related pressies...

This was hand made for me by the talented and generous Sallee aka Nana Sadie Rose...

needle case front
needle case inside
Isn't this adorable? I LOVE the fabric! In fact, I told Sallee I wish I had jammie bottoms made out of it too cause it's warm cozy flannel!

Now we all know FKD is of the ahem, hoarder persuasion so thinking my DPNs will fit in this beautiful case is laughable BUT my crochet hook collection will fit perfectly and it will be a very welcome improvement over their current residence of a ziploc sandwich bag!

If you want a needle holder of your own or one of Sallee's gorgeous original bags, go click on the link and pay her a visit!

Thanks Sallee, I love my new kitty needle holder!

The reason I don't own one of Sallee's amazing bags is I'm not much of a bag person! Shocking, I know...the one obsession I don't have, right? :)

When I started back to knitting 5 years ago I was desperate to find other knitters so I found a clear vinyl knitting bag, thinking if people could see my knitting while I was out and about, they might ask me about it. And they did!

But despite all the amazing knitting bags out there, I've stuck with my clear vinyl...until now....

Look what I got for my birthday!!

Isn't this a hoot?

It's made by a company called Angry Little Girls and it was a gift from my good bud Laura!
It's such a fun bag in my favorite color! I especially love all the little pockets and compartments for every notion you can think of! I don't think I'll be wearing it to church but it is certainly a conversation piece! Thanks Auntie La!

Now for some knitting...I finally finished the albatross Esprit Tank!!

This project has been on my needles longer than any other since I learned to knit!! Miles and miles of sportweight garter stitch, I thought I'd never get thru it! In fact I came *this close* to abandoning it quite a few times but I'm glad I didn't! Have a look at why...

pretty collar

border close up

the money shot!

folded border

Specs:

Elann Esprit Tank (free pattern from Elann.com)

size #6 addi turbo 32" circular needle

size D crochet hook

10 skeins Elann Esprit cotton/elastic yarn, colorway Capri Blue

2 skeins Elann Sonata for trim, colorway Indigo Gold

Mods: The largest size this pattern was written for was 36". I upsized this to a 56". I continued the drop stitch pattern over the whole tank rather than over just the midriff as the pattern suggested. The crochet border as written was WAY too big and came out like a giant ruffle - not the look I was going for! - So I kinda redneck engineered (a phrase and action coined by Kris!) the crochet motifs and decreased half the stitches in between each motif to have the border lay flat. I also used a smaller crochet hook.

In the end, altho the knitting was quite a slog, I'm very happy with the final product. It's winging it's way to it's recipient as I write this and I think she'll love it too! At least I hope so!

It's an easy, easy knit with some very basic crochet added in and in a "regular" size it would be a fun and fast knit. I'm very glad I made it but I'm sticking to smaller projects for a while...

I took the tank outside to get a decent pic (it's hanging from my porch light in the "money shot" pic, heh) and Pumpkin was bereft that he couldn't join in the fun too!

what a sad, lonely face

But wait! there's more!

I finished my Vog On footies!

Specs:

'Vog On socks by Aleta Fera for Knitty

2 skeins Crystal Palace Panda Cotton, colorway Blueberries and Grapes

Size US#1 (2.25) Knitpicks 32" circular needle, magic loop

Toe up using a Turkish Cast-On

Tubular bind-off

Mods: I made these more of a footie than the anklet the pattern suggests. I changed the eye of partridge heel to a yo short row heel and I eliminated the picot bind off as I didn't think FK Mom would appreciate it so much.

My love of Panda Cotton is well documented, especially this delicious colorway! These socks are so soft plus the pattern is super easy and so pretty. I think FK Mom will love them!

Now you'll note those socks are blue. Guess what color my new socks are? PINK, what else? Sheesh, maybe I do need to knit some brown socks to break this color rut I'm in! Here's the new socks on the block with some Knails thrown in for good measure...

Just a simple toe-up, magic loop, garter rib sock in some pretty Lorna's Laces, another birthday pressie, this time from Jessica. The juicy nails are OPI Brights Collection, Goldilocks Rocks! I went for extreme contrast vs. matching this time - isn't it pretty? :)

As your reward for reading ALL of this, you get a second P-Man pic - cause there's never enough P-Man, right?

The handsome boy makes everything he sits on look comfy, doesn't he?

Have a good week...I'll be back soon with my new WIP, weather/pic taking permitting!

OOPS!! One more thing...I added a new free pattern on my sidebar if you're interested. Just a simple wrister pattern written for koigu or any sock yarn, enjoy!

Remember me?

Oh Hi! Remember me? I used to blog here at FKD pretty regularly!

The good news is I finally finished the Esprit Tank!! Hallelujah!!

The bad news is it's been raining here for 40 days and 40 nights, or at least it feels that way! And you know how long cotton takes to dry when it's rainy and wet! Plus grey, dank and cloudy makes for crappy photo ops.

So...I'll try to get some decent pics soon, plus I have a new WIP and some favorite birthday prezzies to share.

To tide you over til then so you don't forget us, here's another pic of the P-Man enjoying his new giant bed (taken pre-deluge)...

Don't you wish you could relax like that?

Be back soon!!

After the party's over....

So another birthday's come and gone...good thing I'm perpetually 29! :)

Thank you one and all for all the wonderful birthday wishes, between here and Ravelry I've never gotten so many "happy birthdays" in my life!

But enough rambling on and on, I know what y'all *really* want...the answer to the mystery of the universe, just how many OPI lacquers does obsessive FKD have?

Well first, here are the birthday knails holding the current SIP, 'Vog On...

Virgin Island Velvet...and to the commenter(s) who asked, if you keep the caps on tightly and store the OPI in a cool, dark place (my closet, my dresser) they can last a LONG time. I have some that are well over 5 years old, maybe closer to 10! (Virgin Island Velvet being one!) and they are just like the day I opened them. Gotta love the OPI huh?

Isn't that a festive birthday color even tho I trimmed my knails a bit?

So now that you know I've been collecting OPI for more than 10 years, you know how some of your weenie guesses just cracked me right up, heh!

Now for some more birthday eye candy, here's a bouquet from the FK Mom...

Isn't she the best Mom?
Now where was I? Oh yes....birthday contest!!

OK, enough teasing...the total mumber of OPI lacquers I posess is....

~~TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY TWO ~~
That means if I was so inclined I could change my polish every week (I'm not) and have no repeats for FIVE YEARS!!

And the winners of the contest...the guess that came closest with their FIRST guesses was TRISH with 243 and the runner up was MEL with 275.

So ladies if you will email me with your addresses, and Trish you get to decide which gift you prefer, I'll get your FKD birthday gifts right off to you!

Now wasn't that fun? Thanks for playing, everyone!

There's been precious little actual knitting content here lately cause I am still slogging thru the Esprit tank but I am just about at the armscythe for the back so there is a light at the end of the tunnel. I so want to finish this thing, I won't even *allow* myself to knit on my socks until I do, which is making me a bit nuts, I admit!

I did get a little respite from the tank tho...I signed up for Dish Rag Tag a couple of months ago and despite the fact that I think my team is in last place, I finally got the box! Here's what I got from my upstream tagger...

Of course Mr. Nosey had to check every thing out! Thank you Karen, Pumpkin and I love our surprises and my dishy new dishrag! :)

I'm the last stop for my team so I get to send a dishrag to Emily, the coordinator of DRT. I wanted something different so here's my welcome respite from the Esprit tank...

Say what you will about "warshrag" knitting, but I think they are a fun way to try out different stitch patterns and they make splendid, extra soft and soapy washcloths!

So it's back to the albatross Esprit tank for me, and birthday week is almost over :::sigh:::

I hope to have a finished tank soon and then I promise to lay off the giant projects for a while cause they sure make for boring blogging! (btw, the tank is actually a gift but it's a secret, don't tell, k?)

I'll leave you with another lucky gift recipient and it wasn't even his birthday....

I decided the the P-Man needed a bed of his very own** so I got him one made for up to a 75 pound dog!! (He's about SEVEN pounds) He LOVES it...see?

Granted, it's a bit roomy but I can't get him out of it! I think he looks so cute kinda swimming in the thing :)

I'll share a couple of my most favorite birthday gifts with y'all next time and hopefully have a finished tank too! Til then, have fun and knit lots!

** he's rejected a kitty pi and his previous preferred place of slumber was in my closet on my shoes! Crazy kitty man!

Happy Birthday to Me!!

Yes, the big day is here! So if you haven't made a guess (or wished me a happy birthday) you have til midnight to do so and maybe win those yummy prizes -- Good Luck!!

PS - No one has guessed yet :)

Let the celebration begin and other random stuff

As I've said many times, I try to keep FKD about the strings and sticks but occasionally there is a subject which isn't about the knitting that reminds me why I'm glad I have my blog where I CAN have my say even if it has nothing to do with yarn...so here's something that I feel compelled to discuss...

This may be a sad performance, this may be a poor wardrobe choice, this may be a cry for help, this may even be a whole lot of crazy but.....

THIS IS NOT FAT!!!!!!
I fear for the message the media continues to send to healthy sized, impressionable young girls who look at this and think, "If she's fat, I'm a whale!!!" Is it any wonder eating disorders are so prevalent? /end rant.

~~~~

Kristi, designer extraordinaire of Fiber Fool fame recently wrote an interesting post about color and how we choose color in our knitting lives. She's even developed a color meme. Here's mine...

1. What is your current favorite color? Green and orange to look at, pink to wear

2. Had your favorite color changed over the years? Orange has very dramatically leapt into my preferred spectrum where is had not been before

3. Is your current favorite color one that is currently trendy? (Do you see it in the fashion rags or on the clothes rack or in the linen aisle right now? How about 5 years ago?) Trendy schmendy - I wear what I like and what looks well on me (never brown or beige no matter how *chic*)

4. What is your favorite color combination? Black and pink or red, pink and green

5. Is that combination a popular one? (Is it use in prints you see in the stores and catalogs and magazines now? How about 5 years ago?) I don't know about popularity in stores now or 5 years ago but the black/brights combo is very popular in professional settings. There were many days in my office where every single one of us (more than 20) were wearing black and red or pink!

6. What is your favorite way of using color in your knitting? (Are you a stranded knitter? Do you prefer simple stripes? Do you prefer just accents at the hems/collars?) I haven't done stranded knitting since I moved to Florida - too hot! I love knitting with rich, bright saturated color and not just for socks! I'm not really big on stripes but once in a while they are fine - I usually prefer a more muted variegation tho. I think color accents in small touches on a knitted item look very sharp without being garish or gaudy

7. What colors look good on you? Any pink, any blue or any gray except the darkest values of each. I had my colors analyzed back in the early 90's and those colors became my mantra - and they work really well for me!

8. What colors look bad on you? Green, brown, beige

9. Do you wear colors that don’t look good on you just because you like them? Very, very rarely and only if they are not close to my face - people ask if I'm feeling sick when I wear colors I shouldn't :)

10. What is your favorite neutral color? black/white/ivory/tan/brown/gray – if brown or gray do you prefer cool or warm versions of those or does it matter? And, how dark? Black or gray - Not too dark on the gray - flannel, not charcoal

11. Is there a sweater pattern that uses more than one color that you’d like to make, but you wish to change the colors from what is published? If yes, which one? What do you not like about the published colors? Living in Florida and having most of my knitting recipients living in warmer climates I don't even think about knitting something like Oregon by Alice Starmore or a Dale of Norway sweater but if I did, I think there are enough patterns like those around that I could find a color palette that pleased me. If not, I wouldn't hesitate to change the colors.

Feel free to yoink this meme and post it on your blog (with a link back to Kristi!) cause I for one, am very interested to hear the color perspective of my blogging buds!

Now for the really important stuff...THE BIRTHDAY CONTEST!!!!!

Next Tuesday is my birthday so of course that means it's a perfect time for ME to give YOU, my faithful and supportive readers, a gift!!

As y'all have come to know, I have a bit of a *thing* when it comes to Knails! In fact, my OPI stash rivals my yarn stash....hey, I wonder if OPI will do "The Fiber Collection" - knitting themed colors!? Ok, I digress...

Anyway, I have 2 lovely prizes to give away...

A sock yarn grab bag with Lorna's Laces, Mountain Colors, Opal, Sockotta, ect.

And a shawl kit from Blackberry Ridge, The Legend of the Shetland Seas Stole.

Here's a close up of the lovely yarn - you could even dye it if you choose!

So how do you win one of these lovely prizes? Simple! Just guess the number of OPI Knail Lacquers I currently possess!! Easy Peasy!

Wish me a happy birthday and leave your best guess in the comments between now and midnight September 18th and you'll be eligible for one of these yummy prizes! I'll pick the two winners closet to the actual number and one closest will have their choice of sock yarn or stole! YAY, I love birthdays!! :)

Here's the P-Man primping for the upcoming festivities...

He says, "Good luck everyone and happy birthday Mom!!"

I don't 'poo, do you?

Got your attention, didn't I? :)

Yes, it's true but not in the way you think...

Thanks to Wendy, via Sandy I've gone shamPOO free!!

For the last few months Wendy has mentioned going 'poo free and how nice it was making her hair...I was intrigued! You see, since my hair is just shy of waist length and I have the MOST sensitive skin on the planet the thought of adding less chemicals to the equation sounded like a good thing so I went here to check it out!

No chemicals? No unnecessary foam? Gorgeous hair? I dunno, sounded too good to be true, plus it was pretty spendy!* I didn't want yet another disappointing product gathering dust in my linen closet. What sold me? Well, if skeptical L-B can do without the 'poo, so can I! :) Plus she has longer hair like me!

It's an odd feeling, not to have a head full of foam but my hair is GORGEOUS! Smooth, no frizz (remember I live in the humidity capitol of America!) super soft and silky and SHINY! Plus it did not irritate my skin at all! (Most shampoos do!)

By popular request, ETA.....

MY HAIR!! :)
I used the Cucumber Aloe Cleansing Conditioner and used 18 pumps (I am using less each time til I find what is right for me!) The only complaint? I *hate* the smell...it smells musty and old to me, not fresh like I hoped it would. I also bought the Tea Tree and I love that smell so I plan to alternate with every washing.

I heartily recommend these products, especially if you have sensitive skin issues. I got mine here and I'm really happy I did! Thanks L-B, Wendy, Sandy and Chaz :)

** It's not spendy if it works and doesn't make my scalp bleed! Plus it's a bit cheaper on QVC than from Chaz Dean directly.

On to the knitting! After all this is FluffyKnitterDeb, not FluffyShoweringDeb! (there's your scary visual for the week, heh!)

First we have...wait for it...PINK SOCKS....

Here's the finished "Everybody into the Pool" socks...

Aren't they great? They are just so juicy! I actually took this pic in my bathroom because it was the only place I could photograph even close to the true color including inside under an Ott light and outside...it's really a deep, saturated hot pink rather than a purple. This pic isn't perfect but very close - I love 'em!

Specs:

Tausendschon Sockenwolle, colorway Schlangengift (I tried to translate this and it kept coming up as queue poison, wtf? My kind reader Batty set me straight, it means Snake Poison! How cool is that?) I really like this yarn, it's so soft and nice to knit with!

Size #0 (2.0 mm) 32" circular needle, magic loop

Just simple stockinette and a yo short row heel with the yarn doing all the talking...I love em and I'm sure my niece will too!

Next up, new socks in....wait for it.....BLUE....

I was trying to get out of my green knitting rut and now I'm firmly ensconced in a pink and blue rut :::sigh::: maybe I need some brown and yellow yarn? ( j/k!!)

Here's a new footie I started for Mom

Toe up 'Vog On socks from Knitty in Panda Cotton, colorway Blueberries and Grapes.
I LOVE this colorway, the combo of blues and purples is very striking. Panda Cotton is one of my favorite sock yarns! It's so soft and squishy (ok, and a little splitty, just pay attention!) I just love the sproing it has too!

The pattern is very cool too but I'm not gonna do the picot bind off. It's just a bit too "cutesie" for the FKMom so I'll finish with a tubular bind off.


I got a lovely present in the mail, look....

why yes, it's some new knails too. OPI brights, "Do you need Sunglasses?" :)

It's another beautiful darning egg!! My very talented wood crafter friend Phil of Custom Wood Design sent it to me, isn't it lovely?

I use my darning eggs all the time, for grafting sock toes but it's also very handy for making any knitted fabric more visible for weaving in ends. Go pay Phil a visit and get yourself something lovely too! (he has breathtaking niddy noddies, spindles, wip tools and nostipinde too!)

ETA: If you go to Phil's website, ignore the "SOLD" signs. If there is something you especially like, Phil will make it for you as long as the wood is available - just email him to discuss it.

Speaking of presents, next week is the FKD birthday once again! So what does that mean to you? Why, it's time for a groovy contest of course! Yeah, I know it's weird to give presents away on MY birthday but I march to a different drummer like that :)

So the P-Man is chillaxin' this week, see?

Don't ya just love the little crossed feet? :)

He's says to come back soon for birthday festivities! Til then he hopes you can chillax some too! Have fun!

Everybody into the pool!

If you're one of those knitters who freaks out when handpainted yarn pools, avert your eyes now cause I've got a doozy for ya!

This is my new sock yarn from Claudia at Tausendschon. The colorway is "schlangengift". (I love this yarn, btw - so vibrant, so soft!)

Personally I've yet to discover pooling, flashing, ect. I didn't like. I think it's one of the best things about handpainted yarns, the interesting designs that form and undulate across the garment.

When I saw how this was knitting up I knew it was tailor made for my niece! She *LOVES* pooling because she thinks it looks like lightening bolts (me too!)

I'm knitting this on US size #0 (2.0mm) because I wanted to maintain the cool pooling ( I usually eschew #0's for #1 and 8 sts/inch - on the #0's I'm getting 9.5!) and I'm knitting plain stockinette cause I figured the yarn was shouting loudly enough :) Isn't it great?

Here's another kind of pool...

Carolyn is starting a new online shop called SpinningYarnsOnline.com. She spins and hand dyes her own yarn plus has cute bags and accessories. She contacted me to try some of her yarn...

Meet Pool...

I haven't swatched with it yet but I can say it's super soft and the colors are vibrant and rich! It's 100% superwash merino fingering weight and I can't wait to knit some socks with it! Go pay Carolyn a visit, you wont be sorry :)

Here are my finished footies...

Specs:

Breeze footies from Knitty

1 Skein Regia Stretch in Blue Jeans

Magic Loop US #1 (2.25mm) 32" circular needle

I think these footies are beyond cute and I think my mail carrier will love them!

The pattern is written for 3 DPNs which I *hate*, it just feels so awkward and cumbersome to me ( I prefer 4).

I switched to magic loop so I could have the instep pattern on one needle and the sole stitches on the other and it worked great! It also made it easier to cable without a cable needle! One other slight mod I made is that the heel is written as C4B but I find it much easier to cable without a cable needle using C4F. So my footies are actually mirrored cables, the first having C4B and switching to C4F for the second. Yes, I know, I admit it, I cannot leave a pattern be :)

ETA: D'oh! I totally forgot my other mods! The pattern calls for Mandarin Petit cotton which apparently is much thicker than Regia Stretch (7 sts./inch) To accommodate my smaller gauge (8 sts/inch) I worked on 64 stitches throughout the body of the sock by casting on 64, not doing the first decreases as per the pattern and adding an extra knit stitch at the start and end of the instep panel. I made the medium size sock but I did the pattern repeats for the large to make the socks long enough for a size 7.5 foot.

It's a holiday weekend for those of us in the States so while you're eating a hot dog and taking an end of summer last dip in the pool think about those that aren't so fortunate. Two of our fellow knit bloggers are taking to the streets to help so I thought I'd spread the word...

Julie of Noolie Knits is raising funds for a special friend battling Multiple Myeloma and others coping with Leukemia and Lymphoma.
You can help Julie and offer support here: Julie's Donation Blog


Carole of Carole Knits fame is walking to fight breast cancer again this year!


You can help Carole stomp out breast cancer by donating here: Carole's Donation Blog

The P-Man can't walk with Carole or Julie but he's making biscuits in empathy cause these are such worthy causes!

Have a great holiday/weekend everyone!!

I'm sensing a theme here

What is it about a certain color that just draws you in and stays in your fancy?

When I loaded some of my FO's to Ravelry I noticed a predominance of green which should come as no surprise cause I'm always singing green's praises. It's funny cause I really don't wear green, I look terrible in it and prior to Bonita there wasn't a spot of it in my wardrobe! (I can get away with Bonita because it's a very dilute green with a strong cream base and the scoop neck keeps the green away from my face). I can't wear it but I love to look at it so I knit it for everyone else!

Because my knits were so "verdant" I thought I should change up my knitting a little and expand my color horizons except now everything is pink or blue! A few months ago I wrote a post called old socks, new socks, pink socks blue socks.... and what did I just finish? Pink socks! And what did I cast on? Blue socks! Plus miles and miles of blue garter stitch comprise the Esprit Tank. Sheesh, maybe I need some purple and brown? (btw, I really don't like brown and I'm meh about purple)

One color that I totally LOVE that was never on my radar screen at all is orange!
I find myself drawn almost as strongly to orange as I've always been to green.

Have you found your color tastes changing over time? I dunno, maybe it's the exposure on knit blogs to so many lovely knits in so many colors I'd never even considered before....or maybe it's hormones :)

At any rate here's the "old" sock, they're pink.....

Specs:

Twin Rib from Sensational Knitted Socks by Charlene Schurch

One skein Louet Opal (sportweight) in Pink Panther (I used every centimeter!) size #1 (2.5 mm) 32" Addi Turbo.

Toe-up using magic loop and the Turkish cast on. YO short row heels.

Bound off using a tubular bind off (I LOVE this for toe-up socks!)

I wanted a "solid" pattern because the recipient lives in New Hampshire and the Twin Rib had just enough punch to keep it interesting while being super easy. The yarn is a dream to knit with except for the fact that there were FIVE KNOTS in one skein - I hate that especially for socks when you want as few ends as possible. I wrote to Louet and they were very contrite and shocked that a skein like that made it to a consumer plus they are sending new yarn so all is well :)

I couldn't have my needles languishing so here are the new socks, they're blue...

This is the beginning of Breeze from Knitty in Regia stretch. This is a very fun pattern and who doesn't love footies? These are gonna be a Christmas gift for my mail carrier, Laura.

I'm slogging along on the Esprit Tank, I've almost finished the front and then I get to knit it all over again for the back, lucky me!

Now for a little fiberlicious eye candy...have a gander at these...

These beauties came from here: Claudia's Place - Tausendschon

I found Claudia's beautiful yarn while surfing around and then I found it on Ravelry too. I fell in love with the glorious, saturated color (oooh, ORANGE!!) so I contacted Claudia who couldn't be nicer or more helpful. Her site is all in German but she speaks perfect English plus she's having the website translated to English over the next month or so.

The yarn is super soft, a dream to knit with even prettier in person plus VERY reasonably priced! I got these four skeins including shipping for under $60!! These happen to be superwash with nylon (my preferred sock yarn) but she has lots of other handpainted fiber selections. Plus shipping was FAST! So go visit Claudia for some unique colorful fiberliciousness!

Come to think of it, I can think of a reason I've fallen in love with orange.....must be this handsome dude.....

Hasn't he made you an orange fan too? :)

It's that time again and what FKD is up to .....

It hasn't quite been a whole year yet but it's time again for all us knitter's to rally to support a very worthy cause. It's time again for the Red Scarf Project!!

We all did such a great job last year the Orphan Foundation of America got TOO MANY scarves!! YAY Knitters! So this year they are asking for knitters to limit themselves to two scarves only.

The amazing Norma of Now Norma Knits has championed this wonderful charity for three years and she's at it again but with a twist!! Because now we knitters can sponsor a scholarship fund too!!

Just click on the button to visit the Red Scarf Project Blog and learn all about how you can make a difference...

Or zip on over to Norma's Place and see all the amazing prizes you can win once you click that little PayPal button.

So get knitting those scarves and making those donations, you'll be so glad you did!


Now for some FKD knitting!

First off, thank you all for the lovely compliments on Bonita! I am very happy with her and I'm glad y'all like her too!

After I fishished Bonita I figured I'd get one more summer top in before the cold weather gets here (hee!) I saw this while surfing around (damn insomnia!!) I think it's really pretty and something that would get a lot of wear in a warm climate...


It's a pattern from Elann, the Esprit V-Neck Summer Tank. It's simple yet attractive, a very easy knit with just enough patterning to keep it interesting, as well as very comfy and forgiving cause it's made with stretch cotton yarn. Altho be advised the pattern only goes to a 36" bust so I had to do some serious upsizing!

I've already knit a good portion of the "front" (both back and front are the same) and here is what I'm using for the trim too:

I'm enjoying knitting with the Esprit (Elann's version of Cascade Fixation) cause it's soft and squishy plus the simple pattern is welcome after all Bonita's beading (and re-beading!)

Of course I'm also knitting socks. Remember the screamingly pink well marinated Elann yarn I was using for the Go With the Flow socks? Well they've gone with the flow right into the trash!! I used the yarn because I loved the bright colorway and the recipient wanted pink but what complete crap that yarn is!! I freely admit to being a total yarn snob and I bought it when I first came back to knitting in 2002 so I didn't really know better but that stuff was beyond bad! It was harsh and lifeless and altho I persevered thru 2/3 of the first sock it was so disgusting I took it off the needles and tossed in right into the garbage and will be donating all the other skeins in my stash! What a waste!

So my knitting supervisor and I went poking around the stash and came up with a much nicer pink alternative....he even helped me wind it, see?

Ah, now that's much better! This is Louet Opal in Pink Panther and I'm making a simple twin rib pattern this time.

Isn't that pretty? Note of course the matching mani, OPI Brights Collection, This Little Piggy :)

Have a great weekend!

Bonita es una nueva camisa muy bonita!

After much ado (and much frogging and re-knitting!) Bonita is finally here for her debut!

Her pretty scoop neck and bodice

Her wavy beaded edges

Her lovely lace and chartreuse beads

And the money shot!

Specs:

Bonita from Rowan #41

Second to largest size - 46 inch chest measurement

8.5 skeins Berroco Nostalgia, colorway #6672 "Gecko"

Size #3 (3.25 mm) 32" Addi Lace circular needles

Approx. 400 size 2/0 chartreuse seed beads

Mods:

Well of course being me, I changed just about everything :)

I subbed the yarn. I found the called for Rowan Damask not only ridiculously spendy but really too busy to show off the lace well.

I had just used the Berroco Nostalgia to make the Retro Redux Shrug and loved it so I was glad to find a colorway I liked that worked well with the lace. I adore the green and I think the chartreuse beads really compliment the design.

The Nostalgia is a cotton/microfiber blend with a lot of bounce so it was a dream to knit. It's a good thing because if you recall, I decided I wasn't happy with the first incarnation of the "front" because I was off a few stitches and I didn't like the shaping so I frogged the whole front, 200 beads included! (I also omitted the shaping completely in v.2 cause I figured being fluffy gives me built in shaping, heh!)

I always have a very loose gauge with cotton so I had to go down FOUR needle sizes to get gauge! The pattern called for a #7, I used a #3.

The finished product is next to the skin soft with lots of memory so unlike pure cotton I don't worry about it stretching out into a tent by the end of the day! I LOVE this yarn, can ya tell?

The original pattern calls for a SKP to form the lace but I changed mine to my preferred centered double decrease which is why you can see a more defined "line" with each lace repeat (click to embiggen for a closer look!)

The original pattern design had a rather high neck in the front and a "scoop" in the back from which you were instructed to knit an I-cord from which you were to hang a shell ornament that hung down the back into the scoop as a sort of backwards necklace. Um, no thanks :)

I knit two "backs" and made mine more of a tank than a shell with a scoop neck both back and front. A design much more Florida friendly! I figure if it's warm enough to go sleeveless with lace who wants a high neck with a shell hanging down your back, right?

In summary, te quiero mi Bonita!! I love how she turned out - the fit is great, it's nice and cool, it can be dressed up or down and it was an easy, enjoyable knit! I would totally recommend this as a first lace top for any lace newbie.

I leave you with my Director of Photography taking a little break. The photo shoot was so hard on my P-Man he needed a bit of Kitty TV to relax with.

Have a great week!