FO: Razor Shell Cowl

Pattern: Razor Shell Cowl (my own pattern)
Yarn: Misti Alpaca Lace, colorway 7120 (sea foam)
Needle: US4 16"

Apologies for the dismal photographs. I'll have to work on my self-portrait setup some more, perhaps get the tripod out.

Anyway, here is a birthday gift for a dear friend, capitalizing on the current cowl craze sweeping the knitblogosphere (is that how you spell it?). This was such a quick knit, despite using laceweight yarn. Even doubling leaves you with a thin-ish yarn, perhaps closer to fingering weight, but it's so light. Having just complained about this yarn used single, I'm happy to report such a pleasant experience with it doubled. I'll have to weigh this item to see just how much yarn was used, as I had two skeins to pull from (the next project OTN uses doubled Misti Alpaca Lace as well, but I only have one skein, so the experience there is a little different).

I used one of the Razor Shell variations from one of Barbara Walker's Treasuries and just knit away for twelve inches and used the k2tog tbl bindoff method I've found so nice and stretchy for shawls. No one wants to struggle to get a cowl over their heads!

Another birthday alpaca FO to come shortly...

Flitting

I've been swatching while coming down from the Icarus high.

First up is some Euroflax in, surprise!, blue. Unfortunately, my Bryspun US3 snapped about halfway through. Worn out from Icarus, I guess. I finished the swatch on US4. Clearly, the smaller needle size is better, but it's still a somewhat sheer fabric. Washing and drying it completely in the machine helped the hand. I don't have a US2 at hand, so I can't swatch it on twos, but I'm not sure I'd want to do a lot of stockinette on a two anyway for an entire skirt. Oh, right, I bought the yarn (on sale) to make the lacey skirt from Greetings from Knit Cafe. Jody beat me to it on doing the skirt in linen, and it's very cute. Love the variegated colorway! Anyway, here are the swatches. I think this project is going into a timeout until I can figure things out (get a US2 needle to swatch). Perhaps this will end up as something other than the skirt.



And here we have the love child of Cheryl Niamanth's Wisp and Jared's Scholar Collar in BMFA's Bliss (70% angora/30% wool blend) in the Periwinkle colorway. Sorry they don't have it on the site, except in the Angora Boot Sock kit; I bought the yarn at The Fold. As you can see I blocked the heck out of it (and really need to get my hands on some blocking wires). This is a garter stitch (Scholar Collar influence) cowl, essentially, and I'm going to complete the circle with some ribbon through the yarn-overs on the short edges (Wisp touch).

This yarn is divine, though it does shed. I tried to get a picture of the fluff on my t-shirt, but it's not easy to snap a pic of your tum. Hehe. I used the whole skein (100 yds.), and it only took me a few days of distracted knitting to finish this up on US9s (Bryspun, natch).


And here is my first Koigu. Isn't the colorway (P33231 - fuchsia, ballet, mocha, and lilac) beautiful! I think I may make a Clapotis with it. Someone on the Knitlist mentioned gifting three skeins to a friend, so when I was at Three Bags Full yesterday with a gift certificate burning a hole in my pocket, I thought "why not?". I also bought some yummy yarn for a surpirse project, but the intended recipient reads the blog, so it will stay sooper secret until it's been gifted.


So, guys and dolls, that's where I am. It's pouring here, and Miss Isobel is still napping, so I'm catching up on Top Chefs.

Cowls

They're going to be huge for fall, people. Check out Andrea's post on knitted cowls for fall. Of course, the color for fall is grey, but then the cowl can probably be another color.

I have my eye on some Malabrigo Super Bulky, perhaps. Damask or Tuscan Sky for color? Paris Night or Plata for grey? I heart Malabrigo - it's so soft. But there is a downside to the softness: It pills.

But maybe I should find a non-thick-and-thin yarn for this. What about Blizzard? Yarns in the Farms carries it (always a quality indicator), and it comes in a nice heathery grey. My first hats were from this, and I still wear mine, though it gets a little stretchy. Alpaca may not have the sproinginess I'm looking for. What? I say it's a word.

YITF also carries Misti Alpaca Chunky, which also comes in a dark, heathery grey, and is a heavy-worsted, plied yarn.

Blue Sky Alpacas has their bulky yarns, which come in lovely shades, including a grey fox in the naturals that I rather like. But, again, the alpaca may not be the right fiber for this project. And a multi-ply yarn might be helpful, too. I think the cowl should be somewhat crisp.

But I should probably hold off on any decisions until the Lobster Pot Yarns come in. Oops! Was I allowed to tell?