Russian Join ~ Video Tutorial

Hi Knitters,
I have a quick video tutorial on how to do a Russian join when you are attaching a new ball of yarn to your project. I have been using this technique recently on both my current project, Owls, and my last sweater, Agnes. It is a slick technique and then you don't have to weave in ends later.

One thing to note is that you could dampen the joined section with warm water and roll it in your hands to felt the fiber together a bit. I didn't do that but it would secure the ends a little more. I did felt the ends like this on the Agnes sweater which I made with Quince & Co.'s Puffin. It is a single ply yarn and felted very easily.

Either way it works great and I hope you enjoy!

For all of my video tutorials on youtube (I have 42 tutorials now!) click here.
best, susie

Winter Break Excursion

Hi Knitters,

Last week my sister and I took some of our kids to the new Madison Children's Museum which is located downtown and right off the square.  I forgot my camera so these photos were taken with my phone so the quality isn't great. We had been to the old location of the Children's Museum a long time ago but the new building is so much better. I am glad we got to see it.

I loved looking at all of the creative and decorative pieces around the museum. This is a curved bench with book spines as the  back rest. Clever!

There were lots of extras sprinkled throughout the museum like this set of old hairdryers. My favorite was when three boys sat in the seats and pulled the dryers down over their heads and chatted away like a bunch of ladies at the salon.

There are interesting climbing structures and a suspended gigantic hamster wheel that the kids can go in and run so it turns. My nephew tried the hamster wheel. TC and her cousin climbed to the top of this structure. 

The museum has a lot of making or craft areas. There was a weaving area with bits and pieces of string to make a cooperative woven piece of art that is then left as a display. TC and Peachy worked on this for a bit.

Here is one of the finished weavings that turned out well. There was also a shadow room where you stand on a wall and pose (we all crammed into the room at the same time) and a flash lights up the room. When you step away from the wall your image is left on the wall. That was fun.

Throughout the building there were artistic touches like these mosaic columns. TC's class at school made a bunch of these bottle caps that were then used in the mosaics. She loved seeing them. I love the way the museum used community-made art. By the way, the old fridges were sealed closed for safety. This hallway led to a big kitchen area.

I love the way they used the different color grout.

The little artistic touches and lots of details made for interesting things to look at everywhere you turned.

This art station had baskets with items found in nature like pine cones, leaves and twigs. They had glue dots to put your design together. We tried this for awhile but it was pretty picked over. Cute idea though! There was another art area with various paper materials to create, too. There was a painting room with traditional paints and paper ready to go but we didn't go in that one. 

Right next to this creative nature counter there was a huge window with buckets of paint in front of it. You could just dip right in and paint on the window. I painted some big flowers and TC painted some little flowers. 

My nephew loves to build things so he made this huge tower. First he built himself inside without a way to get out so he had to redesign with the lower section so he had an escape route. There is also a Lego room that looked like fun but there was group meeting in there so we didn't go in.

After the museum we all went out for an early dinner at The Old Fashioned which is directly on the capitol square. I recommend this restaurant. It is a good one to take the whole family and it has a great view of the gorgeous capitol square and building right out the windows. It is usually super crowded but since it was early we got right in.

It was a fun excursion and I thought you might enjoy it, too!

best, susie

Hoot

Hi Knitters,

This morning I cast on Owls by Kate Davies. I have had a bag of the Rowan Purelife British Sheep Breeds Chunky Undyed (100% British wool) in the Steel Grey Suffolk colorway for over a year waiting to become an Owls pullover.

I am pretty excited about it. In a couple of weeks it is supposed to get really cold around here (finally) and maybe I could have my new Owls ready to wear by then. Hoot!

Click here for the pattern information for Owls.

Click here for the the fantastic natural wool I am using from Rowan.

I'll give you more details on the pattern as I go.

best, susie

Fleece, Felt and Pashmina

Hi Knitters, 

When Prince William married Kate Middleton she was spotted at the grocery store wearing a large triangle shawl with a ruffle. Click here to see some of the Kate shawls. I wanted to make one just like Kate's and patterns popped up everywhere to copy the famous shawl. I even bought three gorgeous hanks of Madelinetosh Pashmina in the Forestry colorway with a Kate shawl in mind. (I bought the yarn here.) However, I have been so busy that I never got to it. 

The color is showing truer in the photo above. Yesterday I wound one of the hanks of Pashmina into a cake and started designing a semi-circle shawl. It's going to be a very simple shawl with some fun details. The yarn is absolutely delicious to work with. I love the subtle variations of the color of the Madelinetosh yarns. 

The yarn seems huge, in a good way, after the lace weight of the Citron. I am working on US size 7. Pashmina is a sport weight yarn so I am getting 5 stitches per inch. I am loving the shawl so far and it is going quite fast. I'll keep you posted on my progress.

Now for a little TC crafting update. For Christmas TC got an American Girl Felt Box craft kit. Click here to see the kit. She had so much fun with this simple kit. TC whipped these up in a very short time, maybe an hour or so. You have to sew the flowers together at the center which was the most difficult part of the kit. The felt came with a sticker backing and only required some trimming. The only other thing was gluing the felt balls to the flowers and gluing the sparkles to the trim. 

She loved this easy kit and the boxes are adorable. TC has them displayed in my studio for now. She recommends the kit for other kids.

It's so good to see TC up to her crafting antics. Over the past few years TC has made many of those fleece blankets that are tied around the edges. She has given most of her blanket creations as gifts. When you make the fringe blankets you cut a square out of each corner of the fleece. She has been saving the squares in a bucket. Since we have a little time over the vacation I asked if she wanted to sew a quilt with her squares.

We placed the squares in a quilt order on the floor making sure the color arrangement was good. I keep telling her it is going to be a lot smaller after the sewing. We got ten columns with nine squares each. 

I dusted off my sewing machine which I haven't used for a little over a year. I miss it so much. I was relieved that it still worked fine. TC went to town sewing her squares together on the machine. All of those stacks with labels are completed columns. She is now done with nine of the ten columns. Maybe we'll finish it up later today. It is fun to see her so excited about something. She was definitely surprised how much smaller the quilt is going to be compared to the spread out version on the floor. It will be a baby blanket size. I think we'll put some sort of backing on it.

She has also been knitting away on her Noro scarf. She bought the yarn in Door County last summer. I'll share a photo of that later. It is so pretty.

Into the weekend we go! Life is good and the new year feels fresh and relaxed. I hope you are all doing well. I'd love to hear about what you are crafting on this winter.

best, susie

Handspun Thorpe

Hi Knitters,

I joined The Knit Girllls Knitalong/Spinalong (KAL/SAL) a little while ago. Click here for the Ravelry group. The yarn above I spun from roving by Cloudlover called Haunted Vineyard. The roving became 130 yards of a double marl bulky weight yarn. There are many patterns to choose from for the KAL/SAL to suit all kinds of weights and yardage of yarn. When I spun I didn't have anything in mind other than I was trying to get a heavier weight yarn. I had been spinning only fingering weight and wanted to experiment a little.

I was so pleased to see that one of the selections was Kirsten Kapur's (I love all of her designs) Thorpe hat which requires 130 yards of a bulky weight yarn. It was a match made in heaven. While I was waiting for my Citron to dry I cast on and worked up my own handspun Thorpe.

Click here for the free pattern information for Thorpe!

The thing with my handspun yarn is that it isn't always perfectly even so figuring out gauge can be a little tricky. I started on US size 9 needles and was planning on making the medium size. My gauge was a little off but I kept going. When I came to the part in the pattern where I had to make choices based on size I decided I better make a large because it seemed a little small. I increased to the large size (the hat is worked from the top-down). 

When I got to the garter stitch brim I realized that the hat now seemed a little too big so I decreased back down to the medium size stitch requirements before I started the garter brim and earflap. You know that garter won't pull in at all like a rib will, so I am glad I switched back to the medium size. 

My Thorpe became a combination medium and large size hat. I had the matching green worsted weight wool sitting in my studio. It made for the perfect edging and ties. The edging is a half double crochet which I can never remember how to do so I looked it up on youtube before I started. Thank goodness for youtube, right?

In the end it fits like a charm! I didn't block it at all because I love the rustic look of the yarn. I wore it out this morning while TC and I tried to sneak in an outdoor ice skating session but to our sadness our neighborhood the rink was closed. It was open briefly yesterday so we got our hopes up. Instead we went for a hike in our neighborhood conservatory. There is still plenty of winter left and I hope we can get our outdoor skating in over the next couple of months.

There's a quick little share for you today! I hope you are well and I appreciate the emails and messages and comments I've still been receiving. Thank you all very much for the support.
best, susie

Now for the Wearing

Hi Knitters,
Now comes the good part, the wearing. I wore my freshly blocked Citron out for some shopping yesterday and I couldn't keep my hands off the beaded edge. I have to do more beaded edges on things. In fact, I think I may cast on and try my hand at a shawl design today with some optional beading and maybe a tutorial or two for that. I will use sock weight yarn for this next one. That sounds kind of fun. I think it will have to have a ruffle, too. I am loving the ruffle. It will be something simple.

I asked my husband to quickly take this back shot of the shawl before he scrambled off to work. Before I asked he stopped and said, "That's cute." That's a lot from him.

I didn't enjoy knitting with the yarn all that much but I am loving the final project enough that I will most likely knit with lace weight again, maybe a Madelinetosh lace next. I can't believe the warmth I feel on my shoulders by this lightweight little shawl.

If you make the Citron I highly recommend making it bigger than in the pattern by adding at least a couple of sections before the ruffle. I would have regretted it immensely if I had not taken the time to make it bigger. Now it is just perfect.

I will most often wear this shawl like this, wrapped up close around my neck. That's my favorite style.

The colorful beads (6/0 Czech glass crown jewels, Royal Ruby) were in a tube I picked up at  Jo Ann's. I used all of the beads in one tube. I used a 1.25mm crochet hook to apply the beads. I bought the hook at Jo Ann's, too, Clover brand. That was all guess work and much to my happiness it was a first time success.

Off to another project or two! Someone is having fun around here.....
best, susie

Blocking Day

Hi Knitters,

Last night I pulled out my blocking boards and wires and pins. I soaked my beaded Citron for about half an hour in Soak, gently squeezed out the excess water and pulled it into shape. I used the blocking wires on the top edge and then I softly pulled the rest out flat. I don't want to pull out the ruching too much because that's the best part of this shawl.

I am loving the tonal qualities of the dye. It is gorgeous. 

The yarn is Malabrigo Lace in the Sealing Wax colorway. The pattern is free from Knitty and is called, Citron.

I had a fan blowing on it last night for a couple of hours and I think it is already dry this morning. I will probably take it off shortly. 

I am so thrilled about finishing this project. It is giving me a lot of happiness to be done.

Since there are lots of people at my house for the next week I will have someone to take a photo of me wearing my Citron to share with you. It is going to be permanently attached to my shoulders for quite some time to come.

best, susie

Beads and Winter Break Go Together

Hi Knitters,

First, I quickly want to thank you for all of the emails, messages and comments. I am overwhelmed by your kindness. Things are going to be good on the other side for me and I love that I have heard from so many of you sending your warm wishes, support and encouragement. Change is good and thank you for being my knitting buddies.

I spent hours (literally) today working only on completing a beaded bind off for my Citron. I love this beading technique so much. Click here for the tutorial I used. It was great fun adding the beads as I went. It is fun to try and learn new things. You should try adding beads sometime if you haven't yet. It is entertaining and beautiful. 

I also added four rows of garter stitch to the edge of the ruffle. I had two hanks of Malabrigo lace. I didn't use all of the second ball, there is still quite a bit left. I need to block and weave in the ends. I'll show the finished shawl and get a better photo for you but I am so excited about it being done that I had to share right away. Yay for finishing projects that have been languishing for years. I think it will easily be my favorite shawl for the winter.

Right after I posted about the fall-like weather around here it started snowing. It isn't really a good snow but more icy. Today it is cold and windy and icy. It feels like a proper winter day. I went for a run being extra careful not to slip and I did fine. My husband went running after me and he fell very hard gashing his hand, and bruising his elbow and knee. His elbow and knee are both swollen. He is fine but it is rough out there today.

On a different winter break note, I took my girls and their cousin to a Pilates class last week. My niece is getting her Pilates instructor certification and is giving free classes to gain the required hours. We had so much fun in the class. I haven't done Pilates before and I have some sore muscles to show for it. I run everyday but I am not good at the stretching and repetition stuff. We are going a couple more times over the kids' holiday break. We can't wait to go again and it is especially fun to go together.

Last night we hosted the high school boys swim team for a New Year's Eve gathering at our house. We had around forty people or so including the parents who came to help. The team has a tradition of game playing at this annual event. Some of the dads took charge of various card and dice games where the boys collected chips. The chips were used to cash in for prizes the parents donated at the end of the night. The prizes were things like small gift cards from all over, candy, games, and fun snack things. We had more food than I can possibly describe. It was incredible. What a generous group of parents.

I know I've said it before but this group of swimming boys are more fun every year. They are loud, funny, and silly and always good to each other. They sang songs, they played games for hours, they cheered, they ate, they had a huge, loud count down to bring in the new year. I love having them at our house. It was plain old good fun!

Wow, did I have a surprise waiting on my doorstep the other day, a giant basket of chocolates from Craftsy.com. I love this company! They are fun and supportive and they are doing wonderful new things in the crafting world. Click here to see my online courses, Wee Ones Seamless Toys and The (not so) Itty-Bitty Giraffe, and lots of other fantastic crafting courses! My courses are doing well and I am enjoying it immensely over there.

Thank you, Craftsy.com!

I'm off to soak my new Citron in some Soak Wash in the Amy Butler scent, Sola. When you smell Sola you can't stop breathing it in. It is my favorite Soak scent. I'll keep you posted on the shawl! I can't wait to wear my new and blocked and beaded Citron.

best, susie

New Days Ahead

Hi Knitters,
Yes, it is December 30th here in Wisconsin and it still looks like fall. It is strangely warm around here, at least warm to us. I think there is another day in the 40's on tap and there is no snow on the horizon. Some of us are enjoying the snow-less winter and some of us are really missing the piles of snow, the sledding, hiking through the snow, and especially the outdoor ice skating. I bet winter is still coming our way.

Enough of the weather chatter, this post is mainly to let you all know that I have decided to leave my job as curator of the Spud & Chloë blog. It is a happy and good decision. I am excited to focus even more on my family, to work on my own things, to go in my own directions, to focus more singly on one project at a time, and mostly, to have the chance to breathe a bit. I take all of my work very seriously and I would not leave without much thought and consideration about what's best for my family and me. It is all good!

Of course that doesn't mean I am really resting. I am into the editing phase for the manuscript for my 5th book right now (it's going to be a good one) and I am already onto planning and lining up my next book which is always a fun time. I can't wait to get going on a new book project, the beginning is the best time of that whole process.

Also, I am especially excited to have the chance to focus on my own blog more. I love it on here and I have some new plans brewing. You can always and still find me here, on Ravelry under susanbanderson and in my fun and fantastic Itty-Bitty Knits group (click here for the group), please come join us, or on Facebook (click here for my Facebook page) and on Twitter (click here). I'm not going anywhere.

So I am onto new days ahead. I'm taking a deep breath and enjoying my family time during this holiday break, and sneaking in a little knitting time here and there. Call me crazy but maybe, just maybe, I'll even read a novel or two at my leisure.....

That's my story. Happy new year to you, dear Knitters. Let's make 2012 the best and most knitterly year yet!

best, susie

Now for the Ruffle

Hi Knitters,
I hope you are all doing well. It is a busy, busy week for everyone I am sure.

Today I am quickly sharing that old Citron I started well over a year ago. I pulled it out again last weekend to see if I could actually finish it up. I am knitting with Malabrigo lace weight in the Sealing Wax colorway, on US size 6 needles. I don't know what it is about this project that makes it difficult for me to stick with it. Is it the lace weight yarn (not my favorite) or is it the endless rows of stockinette stitch? Actually, it is both of these things.

I added two more sections, for seven sections total, to use up the yarn and because I want it to be bigger. As written, this is a very small shawl. The added sections have made the stitch count very high even before the ruffle. I haven't dared to count or figure out how many stitches I have at this point in case it might make me want to stop working on it. Now I am on the first ruffle row where you kfb in each stitch. It will be well over 700 stitches in each row. This is going to be a long suffering ruffle to complete but the reason I keep going is that I know without a doubt that I will absolutely love wearing my rusty red Citron when it is complete.

I can't wait to bind off and block! There is a small possibility that I might add some beads to the edge as I bind off but I am not sure yet. I'll keep you posted.

Take care, Knitters. Thank you to the lovely knitters who have sent me some very kind and heart-warming emails and notes recently (Barb, Jenni, Nancy, Mary Rose and Betty to name a few). Those really make my day.
best, susie

Merry, Merry!

Hi Knitters,
My husband has always laughed about an old family friend who would greet everyone during the holiday season with a chipper, "Merry, merry!" So in the spirit of the goofy family friend of yore, I am sharing a, "Merry, merry!" greeting with you today and for the weekend.

The socks above sort of sum up my Christmas knitting this year. I didn't quite make it. I have one of things that should have two. Some gifts have even less than that finished. I am happily giving up! Instead of finishing the knitted gifts I have made great progress on my next upcoming book manuscript and that is a worthwhile compromise. I am so excited about this new book. It has come together like nothing I have done before. I simply love it. It won't be out for awhile yet but I will be sure to keep you posted.

Now that this book is coming to a close, I have future books in my head, on my needles and in my sketchbooks. I am having that sense of excitement you get when you start something fresh and new, kind of like when you cast on a new knitting project. It is the best.

There is so much potential on the horizon for the new year.... just look at all of that yarn-y fun just waiting to be had.

I hope your gift knitting has been more successful than mine this year! 

Happy holidays from my house to your house. I am wishing you all a peaceful, warm, and family-filled holiday season. 

Knitters, I hope to see you all back here next week. For now, I've got to get some pies in the oven.....

love, susie

Thrumming and Spinning

Hi Knitters,

I am thrumming away on a mitten. I am finally making thrummed mittens which is something I have wanted to try for a long time. It is very fun and something you might like to do if you need a lot of warmth from your mittens. In Wisconsin you always need warm mittens in the winter so these are perfect. To make the thrums you create small 3-inch loops of roving to knit into the fabric as you work. It is very simple to do.

The loops are on the inside for an extra layer of woolly warmth. The yarn is Malabrigo. I'll tell you more about this project when I get a complete pair.

For some fun and quick spinning I recently spun up some Sunshine Yarns roving into a super bulky 2-ply yarn. The color name is Whipped Mocha. It is 100 yards and the interesting thing is that it is a wool and Tencel blend. The Tencel gives it quite a sheen as you can see. I have never knit with Tencel and when I ordered this fiber I didn't realize it was a Tencel blend. That's good though because I like trying new things.

I now have learned that I don't enjoy spinning with Tencel. It is fiber made from wood pulp cellulose that has a silky texture (I looked it up). It was shedding all over when I spun. I was literally covered in fiber after spinning with this roving and fiber was floating around the room and it was all over my chair. The end result is beautiful but I don't think I will use Tencel again for spinning. 

I will make a big, chunky cowl with this yarn. It is really soft and squishy.

You learn by trying new things and that's what I love about creating. 

Christmas is almost here and I am so excited to be home with my family over the holidays!! It is going to be a good year. Where are you spending this holiday season? Are you home or away?

best, susie

Agnes!

Hi Knitters,

First off, the winner of The Knitter's Life List is sauceyjill (rav id)! Jill is one amazing knitter so please go check her out on Ravelry and on her blog. I've known Jill for some time and she inspires me on a regular basis. Everything she knits I want to knit, too. 

Thanks to everyone for entering. I still have that same big stack of books waiting for reviews and giveaways so I will keep working away on that. There are so many wonderful knitting books out there and I love to share them with you. 

In the meantime, I have finished my beautiful Agnes pullover. 

The yarn is Quince & Co. Puffin in the Bark colorway, the pocket is Osprey in the Bird's Egg colorway.

The pattern for Agnes is from Quince & Co. and is written by Melissa LaBarre.

I blocked it with a heavy steam from my iron and a damp cloth and the stitches evenly sprung into place with ease. Puffin is a single ply bulky yarn that I knit on US size 11 needles. I thoroughly enjoyed working with Puffin. The sweater came together so fast, maybe a week of off and on knitting at most.

I have also just finished a fantastic pattern for my upcoming book in Quince & Co. Lark and, I have to say, the project may be my favorite in the entire collection. It is my tiny masterpiece. The yarn is gorgeous and has a sweetness to it, sort of a beautiful simplicity. You should try Quince & Co. yarns if you haven't yet. It is American sourced wool which I like, too.

Click here for the Quince & Co. website.

I only made a couple of minor modifications. I added length to the body. I think the sweater is slightly cropped as written in the pattern, which is adorable, but not for me. All I did was add a couple of inches under the pockets and before the ribbing. In the pattern the ribbing starts immediately below the pocket opening.

If you look at the lovely Gudrun Johnston's blog post about the Agnes sweater that she made along with her daughter you will see that her version is a little shorter than mine. It looks great and perfect on her but I need a little more length to my sweaters. Gudrun is one of my favorite designers, too, so be sure to check out her blog and patterns if you have a chance.

Click here to see Gudrun and her cute daughter, both wearing Agnes.

The only other thing I changed slightly is that I made the sleeves about an inch longer than in the pattern. They measure 19 1/2 inches from the underarm. I think the 2x2 ribbing number didn't work out either on the body or the arm, can't remember, so I decreased by 2 to make it work. Other than that I followed the pattern exactly. I did make the 40 inch size so it is quite roomy on me. I usually make the 36 inch size but I wanted it big and comfy so I could layer underneath. The pattern is clear and simple to follow. One more thing, I only used 6 out of the 7 hanks of the yarn so I have an extra hank that I'll whip into a hat or something at some point soon.

Isn't is just a perfect cozy winter sweater? The pockets are dreamy, the yarn is squishy and fun, and I will get tons of wear out of this one. I love a simple sweater for so many reasons. Simple sweaters are fun and fast to knit and even more fun and practical to wear. That's all I ask of my knitting and this project  has everything I look for in a sweater pattern.

It's a good day when you have a brand new handknit sweater to throw on! 

best, susie

The Knitter's Life List Video Review and Giveaway!

Hi Knitters,
I posted a 5 minute video review of the lovely Gwen Steege's new book, The Knitter's Life List. I am giving away a copy of this beautiful book that is packed full of information and inspiration.

Please leave one comment on this post if you would like to win a copy. Also, please leave your email or ravelry id so I can get in touch with the winner to gather a mailing address. I will give your address to Storey Publishing to send out a copy to you directly. I love this book and Gwen even signed my copy so I will be keeping this one for myself.

Good luck if you enter! It's a terrific book and I guarantee that you will love it!
best, susie

My New Friend Agnes

Hi Knitters,

On my kitchen table this morning is the forever going game of Yahtzee and my new sweater friend, Agnes. The constant Yahtzee playing has been going on since our trip to Door County last August. The house we stayed at had a Yahtzee game just waiting for the Anderson family to dig in. The love of this dice game followed us home where we had a small travel Yahtzee set in a cupboard. It's been found and has been a constant for months now. There could be anywhere from 1 to 5 players at anytime. I often sit and knit nearby while the others play.

Now for my friend, Agnes, which you may be more interested in anyway. A few days ago I was hankering for a new sweater project so I wound 7 hanks of Quince & Co. Puffin in the Bark #121 colorway. I have had this yarn for quite some time now and when I saw the new Quince & Co. Wool Book One by Melissa LaBarre and Cecily Glowik MacDonald, I knew I had to make Agnes with the Puffin I had sitting on my shelf.

I love everything about Agnes, the big yarn knit on US size 11 needles, the top-down and seamless construction, the surprise side pockets and the easy casual style of the sweater in general that is a signature of Melissa LaBarre's designs. It is perfection. The Quince & Co. pattern is available in the ebook called, Wool Book One or as an individual pattern purchased through Ravelry. 

Click here to read more and to see more photos of Agnes on Ravelry!

Click here to see more about Agnes on Quince & Co.!

Here is the hole for my pocket just waiting to be picked up and knit with Quince & Co. Osprey in the Bird's Egg colorway. I think the bird's egg blue will be a winning combination with the rich bark color. I am already on the second sleeve and those pockets will knit up so quickly. After a good blocking, I think this sweater is destined to become a favorite throw on for this winter and many more to come.

I will share a few knitted Christmas gifts coming up shortly or as soon as I finish them. Even with all of the busyness of my work knitting recently I am still trying to squeeze in a few homemade gifts. What are you all knitting on for the holiday season this year? I would love to hear about it.

best, susie

Banner Hat

Hi Knitters,

Last week I put up a new banner on the blog (the photo above). In October I did post a very short video on the making of the hat right here if you're interested.  The video includes some of these same photos.

TC took the photos of me on our front stoop in a very quick and haphazard way. I love the banner photo in the way the sunlight is blinding in the distance. 

I didn't write a pattern for the hat. I made it up as I went. It has a deep ribbed brim and a simple stockinette stitch top. I thought this project would show off the gradient roving from Fiber Optic, which I purchased at the Kentucky Sheep and Wool Festival last May.

I did a Navajo ply to keep the colors together. The fiber is a wool and silk blend. The yarn ended up being a worsted weight. I knit on US size 7 needles at 5 stitches per inch. I love the way it turned out.

Here is the yarn all ready to go. The colors are so vibrant and beautiful.

I'm going backward in the creation sequence here but this is the roving being spun into singles on my wheel last summer.

This is the roving before being spun. I've had a few asking questions about the hat so there you have it. The sweater is the Tea Leaves Cardigan by Melissa LaBarre in Madelinetosh dk in the Burnished colorway. It is my most worn handknit garment. What a great design.

The thing is that TC wore the hat to school one day recently. When I saw that she had it on before school I hesitated and almost asked her not to wear it but I held back. I didn't say anything because I want her to feel free to wear our handknits anytime and anywhere without hesitation. I want her to enjoy homespun clothing and to not worry about it at all. I want her to basically enjoy the fruits of our making lifestyle. I kept my concerns to myself.

Now the hat has gone missing and I am still glad I didn't say anything to her. I can always make another.

That's the story of my new banner. I am happy to have photos of my handspun hat to remember it fully.

The other new thing on the blog is that I am categorizing all of my old and new posts now. Since there are well over 700 posts it is taking me quite awhile to plug through them and distinguish what the labels should be. I have known about the need for categorizing these posts for a long time. When I finish categorizing all of the posts, blog readers will be able to find old posts and look for different topics easily. The categories will be posted on the blog sidebar for easy access. It is long overdue. Completing the labeling of all of the posts is still a work in progress. I think I have close to 300 posts categorized by now. I hope people will find this helpful in the future.

I'll keep chipping away at it in my spare moments. Have a great weekend, Knitters.

best, susie