Filigree necklace

I started (and almost finished) this necklace in a jewelry class I took my senior year of high school.  I started with two different gauges of silver wire, and formed and soldered together the various filigree panels.  I threaded the beads (garnet and amethyst, if I remember correctly) on the finer wire and linked everything together.  Then the semester ended and I didn't have enough class time to finish.

The necklace sat in a ziploc bag in storage until this past Christmas, when I was going through some of my old stuff and found it.  The necklace was originally supposed to be long enough to just slip over the head without any sort of closure.  I can't see myself ever wearing a neclace that long, so I clipped some of it off and finished it with a clasp.  I'm happy with it!

CMS/Colloquium knitting

 I knitted another 24 rows on the Lilac Lace Shawl in CMS and colloquium last Thursday.  I'm beginning to worry about running out of yarn - I don't have much left, and it's not anywhere close to shawl length. I'm wondering if it was a mistake to add an extra pattern repeat. I guess it won't be the end of the world if I have to frog and start over.

Finished Deep in the Forest Mittens!

I finished my Deep in the Forest mittens.  (Two weeks ago, I think?)

I modified the pattern by making each mitten different, with a forest-y back and a checkerboard palm, and by making the hands and thumbs shorter.  I started the finger decreases seven rows early and omitted the last seven rows of the chart, and did the same with the thumbs (but made them five rather than seven rows shorter than specified).  I'm really happy with how they turned out.  The forest parts are a bit puckery, but I think that's to be expected for my first real colorwork project, and it's not too bad. 

Pattern: Deep in the Forest mittens
Yarn: Knitpicks Palette in Oyster Heather and Bittersweet Heather, 100% Peruvian Highland Wool

CMS/Colloquium knitting

 I knitted another twenty-odd rows in CMS and colloquium today.  I've got about 10 pattern repeats (at 20 rows each) left before I graft the two ends together!

CMS/ colloquium knitting

I finished the second edge of the lilac leaf shawl in colloquium on Thursday and started back on the body.  It's a bit hard to see in the photo, but I think the gauges of the two ends are wildly different. I hope that it will block out (and that it's not as bad as it looks), because I'm not about to reknit it!

 I finished two other projects on Thursday night, so according to my finish two-start one rule I can start my Lofoten pullover kit, but then I realized that it calls for size 5 needles, and both my fixed and interchangeable size 5's are in the lilac leaf shawl. Now I need to decide whether I'm going to wait until I finish the shawl before I start the sweater or pull the interchangeable out so I can use them and start it now!

Not-wedding shrug finished!

I finally finished my not wedding shrug!  According to my master UFO list (in which this project is no longer listed) I started it in February, 2013.  It's been sitting waiting to be blocked for a few months - I even actually wore it to the symphony unblocked over Thanksgiving weekend.  It's a lot easier to get on and off now that it's blocked open.

I used my new lace blocking wires (they were a Christmas gift from Robert). 

I originally intended to wear this over my wedding dress at our wedding reception, but I didn't finish it in time and the weather was so perfect that I didn't need it anyway.  Also, my wedding dress had a high lace back with buttons all the way up to my neck, so it wouldn't have shown off either the dress or the shrug to full advantage.  I think the lace shrug looks really great over the black t-shirt.  Now I need to make a high-backed solid color dress or two to wear it over!

The pattern is the Lady Grey Lace Shrug.
The yarn is Jade Sapphire Silk Cashmere in Ivory.

A wooden trivet

Robert finished this lovely trivet week-before-last.  He had been working on it for a long time - starting in the idea and sketching stage, then preparing the wood, kolrosing the design, and then oiling in and sanding to finish.

The wood is from a fallen tree in my father-in-law's back yard, and the leaves are the leaves from that kind of tree.  Kolrosing is a Scandinavian wood-decorating technique.  It involves scoring a groove in the wood, and then rubbing in finely ground coffee and cinnamon to create the color.  The Pinewood Forge website has some information about kolrosing - I think this is also where Robert ordered his tools.

The trivet is really lovely - the picture doesn't do it justice.  It now lives permanently on our dining room table!