Askews Me Shawl – Yards of Happiness

What I’m Working On Right Now: 4 WIPs

I don’t know how it happened but I’ve currently got four projects on my needles. I like to switch between different projects based on what the pattern requires of me. So here’s a look at what I’m currently working on right now.
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Guthrie 2.0!
After I separated for sleeves I put this one back in my project bag. It’s temporarily on hold so I could start my next test knit.

Rumo Test Knit
I’m working on a garter stitch open cardigan test knit. I decided to go with this yummy black cherry color Berroco Vintage yarn I had in my stash. I also decided to use this test knit to try out square needles.

I heard that square needles can be easier on the joints and I occassionaly get soreness in my right wrist due to a little cyst I’ve had for years. So I’m always open to trying something new. I feel like I don’t get fatigued as quickly using these but I’ll keep going and see how I feel about them. They are on sale through early September on KnitPicks, so I may order myself the set.
Rainbow Askews Me shawl
And with all that talk about rainbows I decided to start a rainbow Askews Me Shawl for myself. Brioche knitting it like mindless knitting to me now so after doing tons of garter stitch on my test knit I like a little break from that and brioche is a great palette cleanser. I asked my Mom what she wanted me to knit her this year and she said she wouldn’t mind a shawl/wrap so I’ve got to figure out what color combo and pattern I want to make for her, I have a feeling it will be something brioche too. And my fourth project? That’s still my squares blanket. I toss that in my purse and carry it with me and work on it bit by bit.

This has been a great week, I visited friends, museums, snuggled dogs, knit and really recharged myself. Next week I start prepping for school!

FO: Askews Me Shawl

Before we get to the knitting I have to say, THANK YOU. To all of my readers, old and new, I thank you for all the love you’ve shown me over the last 2 weeks. I have been overwhelmed by all of the Ravelry messages, blog comments, Instagram comments and emails I’ve gotten about EVERYTHING. It has all been nothing short of amazing, kind and at times things that have brought me to tears with your heart warming words. A girlfriend of mine who doesn’t knit but loves to see what I make read the MDK interview and the comments and said to me, ‘Those people really get YOU, D.’ That made me smile. Yarn people are my people 🙂 Okay, enough with the sentimental stuff and on to my latest finished object!
Askews Me Shawl
I have found that two color brioche is kind of mindless knitting for me. When you need a reset or something in between projects, brioche is perfect for me. I can memorize the pattern, I’m a little engaged but not so engrossed and I’m always a little challenged. I’m sure that’s odd to some but we all have different knitting quirks. So after my latest sweaters and in between working on my Togue Pond Tank (since summer refuses to come) I decided to make the West Knits Askews Me Shawl.

First, can I say it’s hard as hell to photograph a full shawl. I tried to pin it to a wall to get a good pic and didn’t have enough pins! This baby is huge (taller than me at 5 feet 4 inches) and it has an unusual shape, almost like a stingray. I used almost a full skein (560 yards) of Miss Babs Yowza in Sunday Funday(the lighter variegated color) and 550 yards of Neighborhood Fiber Company Studio Worsted in Georgetown, a gorgeous deep cobalt blue (I found a skein of it I thought I lost in my yarn room…clearly I’ve got to clean up more). I mix Yowza and Studio Worsted up a lot in projects (examples seen here and here to name a few), they’re both a light worsted that I feel leans more on the dk side and they pair nicely together. Added bonus their skeins are 560 yards and 400 yards so I have fewer ends to weave in when I’m finished.
Askews Me Shawl
I also realize I always seems to like the lighter side of whatever brioche project I create, which is usually considered the wrong side but since it’s reversible does it really matter? I photographed both sides but clearly I only liked the lighter side but hopefully you can see both sides when I modeled it worn. I really enjoyed this knit but this I’m not keeping this one, it’s going to a friend. It’s a bit of a thank you gift, but now I want to make one for myself with all kinds of stripes of color from my leftover skeins of dk weight yarn I’ve got hanging around. That might just be my next little in between project I work on. And speaking of gifts…
Askews Me Shawl
One of my closest friends was recently in Ireland for work and bought me what he called a cheesy souvenir but I just call it adorable. A green (my favorite color) traditional aran sweater mug!! I don’t even want to drink coffee out of it so I think it will go in my craft room and hold knitting supplies. I think that’s where it really belongs.

So have I finally convinced the rest of you to jump on the brioche bandwagon with me? I actually want to do the Askews Me Dress too!

June 13, 2018 by IamDWJ Categories: blue, Color, Cowls & Scarves, FO: Finished Object, Knitting, Miss Babs, Neighborhood Fiber Co., YarnTags: #yardsofhappiness, Askews Me Shawl, brioche knitting, knitting, Westknits, Yarn 34 Comments

Stitching Status: Rainy Weekends

For the last 3 weeks the Maryland/DC/Virginia area has been soaked with rain. We’ve had a few days of sunshine but not nearly enough. And this weekend it was rainy and cold – so rude. The dogs are ready for me to put away their little raincoats.

Untitled — The many faces of Jellybean in her frog raincoat.

This weekend in between vet visits (they’ve detected a heart murmur in Cher, we’re not ready to medicate yet since she’s not showing signs of an enlarged heart but I’m definitely sad my girl is showing signs of aging) and rainy walks we spent a lot of our time indoors.
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There was lots of snuggling and knitting. Remember that tiny square I posted last week that was the beginning of my Askews Me Shawl? Well it blossomed into this by Sunday night.

I put aside my Togue Pond tank because it’s hard to knit a summer tank top when you feel like you will never see the sun again. Plus I find brioche knitting so soothing (here’s a link to a video of me knitting brioche with Bean in my lap). I did sneak away from my house for a bit on Saturday and got a pedicure…the shawl came with me of course.
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And across from me was the nicest woman who was also a fellow knitter! I love when I meet other people who love knitting as much as I do. So I’m now on the second section of the Askews Me Shawl and think I can probably finish it by the end of the week if I keep plugging along on it. And hopefully, the sun will come back today. I really miss it.

June 4, 2018June 4, 2018 by IamDWJ Categories: blue, Brioche, Cher, Color, Cowls & Scarves, Jellybean, Knitting, Miss Babs, My Dogs, Neighborhood Fiber Co., Techniques/Stitches, YarnTags: #yardsofhappiness, Askews Me Shawl, brioche knitting, knitting, Westknits, Yarn 10 Comments