Laminiaria blocking (Mohair doesn't stretch much folks)

This was quick and different to spin and to knit. I had not really spun any Border Leicester and had limited experience with Mohair when I made this yarn 4 ounces of that mix with a little added alpaca to lighten the color up a bit in sections (the neck/star chart section in particular). I had not really knit Estonian lace unless you count the border for the Swallowtail Shawlette and the techniques for making the stitches as well as how the lace progression developed were all really different than what I had knit before. It is interesting to say that Hyrna also had some interesting stitch construction that I had not run into before but reminded me of this style of lace knitting. Would I do it again? You bet but I would choose a much more elastic yarn to knit this in so that the blocking was not so difficult. Now to go look at my fiber stash for the next project :-) I have a lot of regular lace knitting to do right now so I might be awhile before I post again. I have to knit baby stuff for my now pregnant niece! Later!

Laminaria ( Star and Blossom Charts)

So I'm up to the second chart in the Laminaria pattern at Knitty called the "Blossom" chart. In the last picture, you can see the flower like structure. This shawl is in Estonian Lace which I have not had much experience with. There are large areas of increase to make the "blossoms" you see in this close-up shot. The shawl is a triangle so you'd have to turn the pictures upside-down to see what they will look like hanging down your back. I'm making the smaller version of the shawl since I only have the 4 ounces of yarn and I'm using pretty big needles (US 6). The first picture is of the "star" chart in the pattern. You really can't see anything but I hope when I go to block it, there will be a more obvious pattern. I'm not really crazy about knitting Estonian lace so far. It's a little boring actually though the designer did a great job on this shawl with really good instructions. The only thing I'd change would be to do SSSK on the left hand side of the center to mirror image the right hand side in the star chart section. I'm on the border now and will get back to you all when I'm done.

Next Up, Laminaria

The word, "subtle" and I have only a passing acquaintance as you can see. I have been longing for the Summer to come and so I took 4 ounces of this lovely Black Bunny Border Leicester/Mohair Top in the colorway "Carnival" and spun a substantial lace weight yarn. I am spinning another fiber very thin on my Schacht and since that will take forever I have been spinning a weight of single that goes fast on the other wheels for fast and dirty projects. Sort of like what I did for my Hyrna. This fiber was spun on my sisters Majacraft Rose with the lace flyer and fat core bobbins. Since the color was so intense, I added some cream colored Suri Alpaca Top to one of the plies to add a little more softness and bring the color down to a dull roar. I have to say, it's not all that soft, but since it will be a shawlette rather than a scarf, maybe it will still be OK. But what to do with it? I had no idea until the Spring Knitty for 2008 came out with the Estonian Lace pattern, Laminaria . I'm knitting another project that I will have to add Estonian Lace to, so this is a perfect opportunity for me to try out a few examples of Estonian lace and get some practice in. I'm using US 6 but could have gone even bigger considering the weight of my yarn. If anyone else does this one, consider changing the "Knit three together" to a SSSK on the left side of the center line of the shawl so that those stitches will mirror the right side. My yarn is so busy that I don't think it really matters, however, if I had been using a solid or semi solid yarn, I think I would not have been as satisfied. Though I had thought to make the smaller version of this lace, if it looks like I have enough yarn, I might make it a little bit longer. I will post more once I have a little bit more on the needles :-)