Finished: Imogen

Ten days ago I embarked on my Imogen cowl with some left over stash Madelinetosh Pashmina. It was a long road with some bumps along the way, but I am happy to say I am finally finished and the end result is to die for. The pattern is really well written, but the stitch pattern repeats are on both the right and wrong side which makes the project a little less mindless than I usually prefer. Somewhere at the beginning, I thought it looked "off" (bad words if you ask me), so I went down a needle size and restarted. This is something I almost never do. I always trust in the pattern and my knitting skill but I am really glad I did. Something about the lace being a little tighter helps all those ssk's be a little more visible than my first version. I won't lie, somewhere before my skein was over, I started dreading it, getting bored, restless, just dying for something new, but I am in love with the end result.

As for my knit-along, Vanessa and I have decided to work the Edie Shawl, another pattern by Quince & Co. I am dying to get started and spent the better part of a day fawning over and winding my Quince Chickadee yarn. Just can't wait to get my hands on it.

Happy knitting!

Progress & Planning

Since I finished Pogona, I have been working on putting together my queue for next-up projects. With a knit-along that is scheduled to begin with a Ravelry friend in the coming weeks, I have been having a hard time deciding what comes first and what can wait until we aren't all boiling with this summer weather. I am one of the few knitters I know who doesn't like having too many works in progress going at once.

I recently cast on Imogen Cowl by Carrie Bostick Hoge. The lace pattern matched with superb Quince and Co. styling made this jump up in my queue. I began working with some Madelinetosh Pashmina but after a few repeats, I am not so sure the combination really works. I never thought I would ever say I didn't want to work with Madtosh but for whatever reason the two aren't matching up with my ideas. I think I will likely seek out some Ella Rae Lace Merino and start over, but for now the remnants are sitting idly in my drawer waiting their fate along with not only my Stripe Study Shawl in Rowan Felted Tweed but my Different Lines which I started with Bergere Alpaga. For whatever reason my mind can't process the w&t concept and they look "all wrong". I know it is a hurdle I will pass soon enough but I just can't wait for the day when both are done and I can say I have jumped on the Veera Välimäki band wagon.

For our KAL, we have decided to knit Snow Drops and Snap Peas. The circular shawl has been in my favorites for some time and I am really excited to get moving with some support along the way. I am not sure of my yarn choice just yet, but I imagine it will likely be Malabrigo Sock as I loved the drape of Pogona and can find it in such a variety of stunning colors. At this point, I am betting to be browsing all the yarn websites until late in the night before making my final selection. Nothing is better than the anticipation of such a difficult and productive project!

As for my late summer/early fall prospective projects, I am currently swooning over:

Marian Cowl

Some Cloudy Day

Golden Wheat Cardigan

Steamside

Alaria

and because I have a bird loving husband who supports my yarn habit, a Birdwing just for him.

Happy Knits!