Tuesday, June 14, 2016

Needlework Tuesday - Middle-aged Brain Fog

Needlework Tuesday is an occasional post detailing my needlework and/or crafting projects.

Uggg...I wrote this post last week, but forgot to hit "publish". It was Friday before I realized what I'd done.  I'm going to blame it on my middle-aged brain.  Instead of rewriting it for this week, I'll let it stand as is, and hopefully post another update next week. 

A few days of rain have allowed me lots of knitting time. So, the shawl, Clapotis from ravelry.com is complete!!! I was a little worried about this one because it features dropped stitches. However, there was no need. All is well and I love it. It's my first time knitting with 100% silk (Miss Tricot Filati Nirvana). I struggled with tension (too loose) from time to time, but otherwise it was ok. It was certainly pricy, though, so I'd think twice about using it again. Here's a shot of the finished piece:


The pattern was a little monotonous, but really easy to follow.  At the widest part of the shawl there were 18 stitch markers on the needles, indicating which stitches were to be dropped. It was little annoying having them under my hands all the time, but I eventually got used to it. As for the dropped stitches, if I had to do it all over again, I'd probably do it a little differently. Instead of letting the dropped stitches "run on" as they were dropped, I'd somehow hold them back until I was all done. As it was, my knitting needles kept snagging the cross bars on the dropped stitches and actually got quite annoying. Here's another shot of it wrapped around me:


The piece is knit on the diagonal and is a little wonky at the moment.  I'll probably block it at some point, but I'm in no hurry.

After that piece was complete, I stumbled upon a lovely washcloth pattern. For the life of me I can't remember where I first saw it mentioned. Anyway, the free pattern is on ravelry.com and is named Spa Day Facecloth. I just love the waffle-knit texture. It might be my new favourite pattern. Personally, I think it looks best in a solid colour, however, I couldn't find any in my stash (that is, until I was all done). I settled for a buttery yellow/white variegated cotton, which turned out fine. Here's the finished piece:


The June project from the Mary Maxim's Knit Club of the Month showed up yesterday. It's a summer tank top. How fun! The variegated yarn is a little too wild for me, but if I wear it over my navy swimsuit or a solid colour tank top, I think it'll be okay. Here's the project package:


I think I'm going to work on the tank top this week. That way I might be able to wear it sometime this summer.  I hope to update my progress next week. If there's time, I'll start another project.

Needlework Tuesday is hosted by Heather over at Books and Quilts.    If you'd done any crafting this week that you'd like to share with others, please head over to Heather's blog and use the Mr. Linky to link up your post, so others can enjoy your creations.  

2 comments:

  1. Your shawl looks great. Lovely for a cool summer evening. If you decide to block it, go carefully. Silk can be fragile when wet.
    The tank top should be nice for summer. Wild is good, some days.

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  2. I do like that shawl. it is so pretty with the solid/open areas. I'd be tempted to add a simple crochet border to finish the edge.
    At first I thought the summer tank was a bit open, but then I read about wearing it over a tank top and realized it is brilliant. Tank tops are so tight that I am conscious of my tummy roll, but add that loose top over it and it would hide all I prefer to hide.

    Thanks for linking up with Needlework Tuesday

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Thanks so much for your comment. I really appreciate it. Unfortunately, I've been getting lots of spam comments, so I'm turning on word verification to help keep spammers away. I know it's a pain; I don't like it either. Hopefully, in time I'll be able to turn it off again. Thank you!