Curlicue

I am srsly behind on blogging content.  The Ten on Tuesday topic, 10 reasons to love bacon, is best answered here.  *dusts off hands, moves forward*

Summer Etherknitter knitting is all shawls all the time.  I took an occasional car-knitting break with socks (not done), and with the MIL scarf, take 2 (not done).

Onerva has less than one repeat to go.  (I cannot type that without first typing Onvera.  I thought these fingers and this brain worked together, but I would be wrong on that.)  Lace blob that she is, I'll wait for a blocking picture.  If there is such a thing as easy lace, Onerva is it.  I may have to make another one in drapey fabric.   This iteration is in Malabrigo sock, 100% superwash merino.

Yarn intentions:  so much sock yarn, make things other than socks from sock yarn.  Ravelry is overflowing with one skein shawl and scarflet patterns.  Skeptics live amongst us.  Caroline talks about this (August 3rd post).  KnittingTheBlues Terry talks about the misbehavior of superwash merino used for shawls here.  Onerva will be my test case. 

The second lace blob is still FeatherDuster.  I have been making tinkless progress.  I can knit a pattern row (every fourth) only when I am not tired, not past 5 pm, only when no wine has touched my lips, and not when it is 90 degrees/90% humidity.  My work defines S L O W.  I have 31 rows left before bind-off.

Volt is making backwards progress.  I count each set of stitches, do the increase, place a marker, count the next set of stitches from the marker.  Did 395 stitches of knit row.  Did 381 stitches of decrease row.  Yes, I had ONE EXTRA STITCH.  I inexplicably (isn't that how it always works?) had done an extra yarn over in one of the increases.  Since the pattern is ruled by stacked increases/decreases, I had to tink.  It was something on the order of 550 stitches back, so I did it.  I just DID it.  I need to devise a better system of counting.  Lynn advises fudging.  Maybe when I have more of the pattern sitting out in front of me, that will be possible.  Then I could consider fudging in ways that won't show.  Fudging at the beginning bothered me too much to do it.  I did not assess man on a galloping horse potential.  I just tinked.  Single ply, the Isager yarn sticks to itself, but not as badly as mohair/silk.  The shawl is currently an incredibly small line of black stitches.  You can put something that looks like that in your mind's eye.

An FO graces the blog today.  I started a baby blanket as mindless vacation knitting.  KellyR sharpened the focus when she asked, incredulously, "You are knitting a blanket for someone who doesn't EXIST yet?"  Yes, I did.  But I found a mom who will appreciate this gift.  Her little human is 10 weeks from existing in an air-breathing world. 

Given the time it takes to knit one of these suckers, I do need to start well ahead of time.  OTOH, this time-suck of a knit may take a back seat to the time-suck of The Fine Line's knitted shawls (see Volt above). 

I modified the pattern (Curlicue) by increasing the number of stitches in a fingering/sportweight yarn.  I matched the ends with a 3 stitch garter edging on each side of the blanket.  

Details:

Pattern:  Curlicue
Yarn:  Tess superwash merino, 1060 yards
Needles:  #5 Knitpicks Harmony 32" circ
Mods:  172 stitches, 3 stitch garter borders to match 3 row garter stitch beginning and end
Started: January 11, 2010
Finished:  June 16, 2010

And, of course, one more beauty shot, then the modeled picture.  We come full circle to the Ten on Tuesday topic.  Our Curlicue stand-in is a baby wild boar from the San Diego Zoo.

Comments

[Lynn]

That is a beautiful, beautiful blanket!

[naomi]

Beautiful blanket, and cute model.

I've knit a couple of shawls with superwash wool, and they're not icky. They may not hold a block as well as untreated wool, but they're still soft and pleasant to wear.

[margene]

Baby blankets may be the very best way to use superwash yarn. You picked a great color for the baby blanket and your knit fabric is lovely. You have a way of picking the best models for the job.

Fiber content (such as part silk or bamboo)and number of plies (2 or 3 ply) will make a difference in success of lace with superwash.

[kmkat]

Gorgeous baby blanket! Lucky baby/mom :)

The Oatmeal ROCKS!

[Anne]

Ooooo.. GORGEOUS. The color is fantastic. The whole thing reminds me of standing on a coral reef off the coast of Jamaica peering down into stingray-laden waters. Not that I've done this, but it reminds me of that.... :)

[Lorette]

I'm always worried about superwash holding a blocking. Of course, for a baby blanket, you couldn't ask for anything better. The blanket is lovely, as is the baby boar!

[Caroline M]

Lots and lots of people knit lace with superwash yarn and like the results, your baby blanket is a good example. It is superwash, it is lace and it is a thing of beauty. Don't give up on sock yarn lace just yet.

[Lorette]

Oh, and you tinked 550 stitches?? You are my new hero. Either that, or you're crazy. ;-)

[Kathy]

Love the baby blanket and so will the baby! :-)

[Cheryl S.]

I, too, am a skeptic of the superwash sock yarns for lace. I had a hard time figuring out what pattern to use for the Dream in Color 'Smooshy' I bought in a moment of insanity. I knew it wouldn't hold a block very well, so it had to be something where that wouldn't matter too much, so I picked feather-and-fan. It's done, it's pretty, but it's not really all that comfortable to wear.

[Diane]

OK, you officially win the bacon 10 on Tuesday, nobody can top that. As to the superwash wool thing in shawls, I too have been wondering what the attraction is. I think of using superwash when I want to be able to throw something in the machine or it's going to be washed frequently -- neither of which I would do with a shawl. But since my preferred lace knitting is done with cobweb or lace weight yarn, I keep the SW fingering weight for socks.

[Mary Lou]

I am currently making a lace stole as a shop model in Madelinetosh Laceweight superwash merino. I didn't block a swatch or anything radical like that, so we'll see how it holds up after blocking. I think the deal is that there is so much lovely sock yarn and not everyone wants to make socks with it. I'd just as soon never use superwash unless it is for an item like your baby blanket. Lovely.

[gayle]

I feel your pain on Volt. I messed up a transition on Maplewing, not once but *twice*, and had to tink back 2 rows each time. Is it sad that I can now tink almost as fast as I can knit?
I haven't tried any of the sock yarn shawls yet. I will give this much thought.
Lovely lovely blanket!

[Sylvia]

Oh heck, just drop the extra yo. I do!

[Terri]

SO pretty!

[Kim]

What a lucky baby to be surrounded with such loveliness!! I'm right there with you in being so very far behind in both reading blogs and tending to my own....

[Lucia]

Every time I see that blanket I gasp.

Could you not just drop the extra yo?

[lace front]

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