Reality check

Over the weekend I came to the conclusion that Baby Bubbles simply was not going to be done in a reasonable amount of time to be of any use to my new baby nephew.  Faced with the fact that I’m supposed to meet the little one for the first time this coming weekend, I did what any sensible knitter would do – I cast on for a hat:

It’s the Candy Cane hat from Itty-Bitty Hats by Susan B. Anderson, a book I received this holiday season from Andrew’s parents.  The book is chock-full of wonderfully adorable baby hats, which should come in handy in the coming years.  After all, I’m fairly certain that this won’t be the last time I become an uncle…  given that I have five younger sisters…

Well, as you can see from the previous photograph, I decided not to stick with the pattern’s namesake red and white stripes and instead choose to use a chestnut brown, spring green and teal color combination.  I love the way the colors look together and I’ve been thinking that I may just have to make myself a hat in the same colors.

Unfortunately, I foolishly decided that this project might be a good time to try out a jogless stripe technique.  Why?  I don’t know.  But I do know that I was so very wrong:

The stripes would probably have looked better without it.  Oh well.  Live and learn.

Anyway, the best part of the project is that it is knitting up fast; so, I may just not show up empty-handed this weekend…  even if the hat ends up too big for the intended recipient…  it will fit eventually…  hopefully during some of the colder months of the year…

Filed under: Fiber Arts, Knitting, Photography , baby, hat, hats, itty-bitty hats, photo, photograph, photographs, photos

Taking stock

Recently, I’ve been working on documenting the stash in all its glory.  I have held off on creating my own database to do this for now and have instead been recording the information over on Ravelry.

I want to document, as accurately as possible, the color and texture of the yarns in the stash so that I can shop the stash even when I’m not able to be in physical contact with it.  So as part of this endeavor, I have been taking a lot of photographs.  Many, many photographs…  In order to make the task  a little more fun, I’ve been playing around with lighting and angles.

While I think that I’m more than halfway through the photographing process, I am by no means near the end.  The project has taught me a few things so far, though:

1. I have a lot of yarn.
2. Indirect natural light is really good for photographs in general but sometimes distorts the colors of some yarns…
3. I have a lot of yarn.
4. It’s really hard to get the color of heathered yarn, especially in blue and green tones, right in photographs…
5. I have a lot of yarn.
6. Attempting to photograph black (or even dark grey) yarn against a black backdrop is not really the best course of action…
7. Oh, did I mention that I have lot of yarn?

Overall, I have been very pleased with the results of my photo shoots and I thought I would share with you all some of my favorite photographs so far.

First up some simple Knit Picks Palette in Ash:

The photograph reminds me of stacked stones.  I think that this yarn is destined to become my pair of Earl Grey socks from my 10 in 2010 list.

Next, something with a bit more color:

Two skeins of Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock Multi in the Edgewater colorway.  I love the way the colors turned out in this one; although, I would have appreciated slightly less intense highlights…

Brooks Farm Duo:

I love the way these skeins pop off the background.  I purchased this yarn on my first trip to Rhinebeck.  I love it so much that I haven’t been able to bring myself to make anything from it.  That’s a silly notion, isn’t it?

Well, its the same notion I have about this yarn:

Fingering Superwash Merino Semi-solid in a colorway called Meadow Grass.  Also from my first trip to Rhinebeck but, this time, received as a present from Andrew.  It was hard to get the color correct in this photograph but I think that I did a reasonably good job.  I absolutely love the color.

Now, some yarn I picked up during my last trip to Japan:

I had to include this here because I really love the lighting in this photograph.  This is some very thin pima cotton from Avril, an awesomely cool LYS  in Tokyo.  I think that it is really intended for weaving but, since I don’t currently weave (although I’d really like to!!), I’ll probably use it to make something lacy…

And finally, a little red:

Little Traveller from The Sanguine Gryphon in the Rojas colorway.  I think the photograph makes it seem a little ethereal…

Well, I think that’s all for now.  I hope you enjoyed the photographs.

Now I’m off to daydream about being snowed in with my knitting and an endless supply of tea and baked goods this weekend…

Filed under: Fiber Arts, Photography , fiber, yarn, photo, photographs, photos, photograph, stash

FO: Tomo

Yarn: Lion Brand :: Lion Wool Solid [Dark Teal (178)]; Lion Brand :: Lion Wool Solid [Lemongrass (132)]
Hook: Susan Bates Silvalume Aluminum Crochet Hook :: US G/4.0mm
Start: December 2009
Finish: December 2009
Made for: Andrew
Pattern: Thinker :: Crobots: 20 Amigurumi Robots to Make [Nelly Pailloux]

Tomo is the second of the pair of robots I made for Andrew as holiday presents this past year.  His name is Japanese for wisdom or knowledge and, true to his name, he has an insatiable thirst for knowledge.  Much to Andrew’s chagrin, he is currently into reading about knitting and crochet…

I made some changes to the pattern when making Tomo, mostly to fit within the confines of what materials I already had on hand.  Most notably, I changed the color scheme from white with burgundy accents to blue with green and white accents.

Another noticeable change are the buttons used on his Leia-esque buns.  In the original pattern, these are sequins with little seed beads.  I didn’t have any sequins on hand and felt, since I don’t use them on a regular basis, it would be a waste to purchase an entire bag.  I admit that I momentarily had visions of walking around the women’s department of my local Target scouring the floor for some sequins that may have detached themselves from their original garments, but then thought about how suspicious this might look, not being a toddler who might naturally take to this sort of activity…  So, I dug through my box of buttons and came across these teeny tiny buttons that I think work rather well.  I really enjoy the little bit of extra color they add.

I think that my favorite part, however, are Tomo’s fingers, which you can see a bit better in this photo:

They make him look very serene and content…  like he’s had a good meal and is now ready to settle down and dig into some intense reading…

Filed under: Crochet, Fiber Arts, Photography , amigurumi, bot, crobot, crobots, doll, fiber, photo, photograph, photographs, photos, robot, thinker, yarn