Hi, Knitters,
The phrase is usually March Madness and is in reference to basketball but around here it has been more like May Madness. I think most families experience the same things no matter the ages of the kids. The school year is ending which means final sporting events, parents' nights, banquets, field trips, forms to read and sign (usually accompanied with checks), year-end concerts, organizing summer activities, and high school final exams are upon us. Many of us have college kids moving back into the house which means stuff upon stuff coming into the house. And then there is usually a bit of lag time in between school ending and summer jobs starting so there is a lot of hanging out and eating going on.
It's just a lot of everything. Most all of it is fun and happy and exciting right along with being a lot. I hope if you are having May Madness at your house you are able to catch your breath and enjoy it a bit.
For today's business at hand, I have a tiny bit of knitting to share with you. I have turned the heel and finished the gusset on my Regia Arne & Carlos sock. This is the first of the pair and it has been slow going because I haven't been working on it much. I do love it so far.
The rib is 12 rounds, k2, p2. The cuff is 6-inches long. The pattern is my free one called, How I Make My Socks. The needles are from Signature (6-inch length dpns in US size 1/2.25mm). The wooden sock blockers (these are my absolute favorite) are from The Loopy Ewe. The Arne & Carlos Regia sock yarn is a bit difficult to get. I found a few skeins here and a few skeins here.
There is a casual Arne & Carlos sock knitalong on Instagram. Use #acregiakal to tag your photos if you are interested in joining in or seeing more photos of socks being knit out of this yarn line. It's inspiring to see all of the Arne & Carlos socks and the twists people put on them and just how others knit their socks in general.
Also this week I have been putting a serious editing dent in the first pass of my next book. Editing is tedious work and requires focus and concentration. These are two things that don't come easily when you have May Madness going on in your house.
Let's just say I have had to close a few doors here and there to keep noise and commotion at bay.
Today, May 28th, 2015, is the final day of the Yowza Weigh It Shawl 1-4 sale. I reduced the price for all four shawl patterns to $4.00 for one week, and tomorrow they will return to the regular price of $5.00.
I want to thank you all so much for the support for the release of the Yowza Weigh It 4 shawl. The response has been fantastic. I really appreciate how you all make things so much fun around here. I am very grateful.
I heard from the people at Miss Babs that Yowza yarn sales have been through the roof, especially for the Perfectly Wreckless colorway (as seen in the shawl in the photo above). You only need one skein, needles and a kitchen scale to make the shawl. It's all garter stitch and there is no counting or keeping track involved.
It's good all around. Thank you, again.
I have to share an inspired version of the Yowza Weigh It Shawl 4 with permission from pamelajd on Ravelry.
photo from pamelajd on rav
Pam made her Yowza Weigh It 4 with two DK Twist Gradient Sets from Madelinetosh. I love this use of two gradient sets in the pink and silver bell gradient colorways. You know how you get these beautiful gradient sets and then you have no idea what to do with them so they just sit on the shelf.
Well, here you go!
photo from pamelajd on rav
I want to make one of these for myself just like Pam's version. It is so beautiful. I love the way both of the striping colors are gradient in the shawl. It is just stunning. I love it!
The ribbed edging instructions are available in the Yowza 4 pattern as an alternate edging to the applied garter edging in the shawl I am wearing.
Okay, back to my pencil, post-it notes and pages. I hope you are having a good week and that you have a great weekend ahead.
I'll be back soon with more.
xo ~ susan
Well, almost time to start June madness. Crazy, right? The socks are lovely, of course.
ReplyDeleteThank you for posting the shops with Arne and Carlos yarn! I've been looking EVERYWHERE and could not find a shop with it in stock. It was only made worse by the Instagram along.
ReplyDeleteI now have two skeins coming to me in the colors I was coveting! They will definitely be my next socks!
Love the gradient version of Yowza #4. If I remember correctly, Miss Babs sold gradient packs at Stitches West. Maybe she can put some together for #4, in addition to the amazing Yowza skeins. The pattern makes up beautifully either way. I'm in the middle of the heel of my second sock in A & C #3656 that I won from you! I just love the patterning. Hang in there with May Madness. Although our kids are grown and out of the house now, as teachers, both my husband and I experience May Madness every year. It makes the summer break all the more sweet! Good luck with the editing. Can't wait to see the finished product!!
ReplyDeleteSo here in our school district, the joke among administrators is that this month is "MAY-hem". I sit on our school board, and both principals opened up their reports with, "The remaining events and activities for May-hem are: Softball on the 16th..."
ReplyDeleteIt is absolutely crazy. My iPad is reminding me of upcoming things so often I have found myself not even noticing the reminder "dings". I think part of it is that, with the nicer weather, our thinking starts so shift into summer mode--and we're thinking more about camping and if we have enough marshmallows than about if the library book was returned and if the lunch account has enough for the last 4 days. It doesn't help that summer t-ball has started up so on top of the school related May-hem events, there are summer sports already underway. I guess the perk is that I can knit during t-ball games and then there is the stop for ice cream on the way home!
First, May madness IS in full swing, and I only have one young one at home! Good luck to you this season :) Second, I *love* that sock yarn--have you done come color work or is it just naturally amazing this way? I can't believe it *either* way--well done. Thanks for the tip about the sock blockers--they look great.
ReplyDeleteMelissa ~ it is self-patterning yarn, so the yarn does all of the work for you. You should try some!
ReplyDeleteno way! whoa. that is kind of unbelievable! must order some. . . . thanks for the links!
ReplyDeleteMy skein of Miss Bab's Yowza arrived yesterday. I can't wait to get started. I rarely work on a shawl but this one just spoke to me. It will be great plane knitting in a couple of weeks when I head to visit family.
ReplyDeleteThank you for featuring my shawl, Susan. I love your clever, well-written patterns. Combined with hand-dyed yarn, these shawls are a win! Pam
ReplyDeletepamelajd on Rav
Wow! That gradient shawl came out beautifully! I would never have thought to try something like that!
ReplyDeleteI think you're right. There is just *something* about May......and my boys aren't even in school yet. We just got back from our trip to Wisconsin (okay, we've been back for a week and a half now), we had the Memorial Day BBQ, we all got the plague (I blame the planes and the recycled air).......in a couple weeks, Little Man starts soccer for the summer, and we'd like to get him into swimming lessons (he's 4 and really wants to go). Also, my knitting mojo may be coming back, which is lovely because I've got a new design going and I'd like to not have it going for two years...
ReplyDeleteI'm having May Happiness - I just cleaned out my classroom and turned in my keys for the last time. This May I have completed 39 years of teaching. School's Out Forever!!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations Sarah in Houston!!! Let the knitting begin!
ReplyDeleteWow...great art looking very beautiful.
ReplyDeletenice designs.
keep posting.
Congrats, Sarah! I live the idea of the gradients as well. Brilliant!
ReplyDelete