Garden Street Designs

Seems I can’t enjoy late summer and blog at the same time. I thought I would just give a pictorial update on what I’ve been up to, jewelry design and knitting wise. I had my best summer yet at Angela’s store in town. So good, in fact, that all of my jewelry went there, with nothing left for Etsy. I plan to get stuff up soon, just in time to almost miss the holiday shopping season.

I no longer use pre-made earwires or jumprings or headpins, I make these all myself. It’s just me, some .927 half-hard round wire, a hammer and an anvil (and safety glasses and earplugs):

I didn’t have time to photograph all of what I made, mostly because I always seemed to be making them in a rush to re-stock Angela’s display case, but they were all along these same design lines, so you get the gist.

These are the three pairs I made/kept for myself. The top two are with Swarovski rondelle crystals (in new colours ‘Air Blue Opal’ and ‘Cyclamen Opal’), the bottom is with a pair of gorgeous Paraiba Blue Topaz teardrop briolettes. I had been wanting to splurge and make something for myself using my birthstone, but I’m not overly keen on yellow topaz. However, blue I can do.

And now on to the knittin’.

I finally got around to photographing most of the projects I’ve completed since my last knitting update back on March 29th:

My pride and joy, probably because it took forever. The pattern was easy though, and free on Ravelry (the “Retro Style Knitting Bag”). It was just a lot of knitting, as the yarn was fingering weight. The vintage wood handles were picked up down the road at Summerhouse Antiques, and the fabric was part of a bundle of Amy Butler half-yards I bought a while back from an Etsy seller. Part of the reason this is so special to me is that I took it along to Norway, and a good chunk of it was knit sitting side by side with my knitting buddy Thea. I’m sure there are some of her blond hairs knitted in there, along with some Luci dog fur. The other part of the reason it’s so special is that, did I mention this already?, it took forever to knit.

I had different plans for this yarn; in a previous post I showed a picture of the pattern I wanted to make with this. And I did make it…twice in fact. And each time I hated it (on me). So I frogged it (again!) and knit up this easy summer cardigan, just in time for fall.

This is supposed to be an asymmetrical shrug, but I didn’t like the asymmetry, so I button it straight. A nice layer for cool summer evenings, though B says it looks like a handmade fishing net. I find that only adds to its appeal. The wooden buttons were a Frenchy’s find.

This is the “Dandy Scarf” I also mentioned in a previous post. I think it’s just super. It’s made with Fleece Artist sock yarn that I got on sale at the Gaspereau Fibre Shop.

This is the second Circular Shrug that I have made for myself, this time with Briggs & Little Heritage yarn. It’s easy because, as my friend Sarah pointed out to me, you need one skein for the first bit of 2×2 ribbing, one skein for the 1×1 ribbing, and one more for the second 2×2. And that makes for easy row counting and for a relatively inexpensive shrug since Heritage yarn is about $5-$6 a skein. I made one for Lara’s birthday, and one for my mom’s birthday this summer too.

A month ago I got stuck making fingerless gloves. I made 7 pairs, one right after the other. It was a solid week of fingerless knitting. I think B was a bit worried about me. This pair is made of Noro Kureyon and is the pair I’m keeping. I dig Noro.

This pair has cables, and I made ones just like these for my mom right after I made my first pair for my friend Sarah’s birthday. My mom watched me make Sarah’s and promptly put in her order. These ones are either for me or for future gifting. Act surprised if I send these your way.

I want to make a Striped Noro Scarf (like this one) out of Noro Silk Garden, but 4 balls of that stuff is quite a chunk of change. So until I pony up the money for the yarn, I used some Noro scraps (some 267 Silk Garden from the first hat I ever knit, and the rest of the 195 Kureyon from the fingerless gloves) and did a basic, striped, 2×2 ribbing unisex hat. It’s meant to be shared by both B and me, but since he saw it on my head first he now fears it might be “kinda girly” on him. Please.

My favourite hat to date, knit using yarn I bought in Røros, Norway. The pattern is “Dogwood Hat” and it’s free on Ravelry too. A great pattern, with really clear instructions. It will look even better and less wonky along the edge once I block it but I just couldn’t wait to photograph it. Now I need to knit some mittens to match it.

The current work-in-progress, the Every Way Wrap from Interweave Fall 2009 magazine. When it’s completed it can be worn sort of like a shrug, or just like a shawl if I pin it, or like a plain old big ‘n’ chunky scarf. The yarn is so soft and plush (Knit Picks City Tweed DK, if you’re wondering), but it’s taking me forever to knit because of the intricate reversible cabling. I have about four or five projects for myself that I want to complete this fall, but none of them will be quick. Apparently I can’t go for just the basic pattern anymore, I have to challenge myself with cables and lacework and Norwegian two-colour stranding. Which is fun, for sure, but oh so time-consuming. I may never blog again as I’ll be too busy knitting…to say nothing of knitting/making Christmas gifts…well, it seems I have some work to do so I’d best be on my way. Ciao.