I’ve been dyeing up yarn all day to be sure we have plenty of goodies to bring to Atlanta for Stitches South next week. I’m so excited!  I kept piling up fresh yarns until I ran out of room on the cooling racks, and dyed up plenty of skeins of new colorways.

Now on to washing, drying, and reskeining. Whew!  I think for now, it’s beer o’ clock.

Quick note, the KSD website is down temporarily (I hope!). I’m
researching the bug and will try to sort it out tonight.

Fixed it! (Obviously, because you can read this now, instead of seeing a pesky error message. Yeah! *fist pump*)

Valencia semi-solid, shown on Seacell Merino Fine

I’ve just posted our bright new colorways for spring,  and the shop has been updated with new arrivals.

This week, get FREE shipping on all orders to the US and Canada, use coupon code 0J2A1AMRO0PJ at checkout.  Code expired 4/9/10.

Ruthie semi-solid, shown on Merino Fine

I couldn’t wait to begin knitting with some of these beauties, so I just cast on for a re-vamp of one of my old scarf patterns, the Petal Edge Scarf (it will be available at the KSD booth at Stitches South later this month) in Mai, an over-the-top super-saturated red-orange that I am completely besotted with.

Mai semi-solid, shown on Merino Fine

I’ve had traditional knitting on the brain this week; project ideas that revolve around updated versions of fair isle stranded knitting, richly cabled texture patterns, and modern silhouettes in gansey patterns.  A natural fit to bring these type of patterns a modern look is to use a classic but modern yarn, like a hand dyed semisolid.  Texture patterns can still “pop” with a subtler handpaint, and fair isle patterns gain a richer palette.

Currently, I’m knitting a rich cable pattern with Eco DK, a mid-weight three-ply yarn.  This pattern has non-stop cable twists on each right side row, so I’ve been using the “cabling without a needle” technique.  Having a smoothly plied yarn makes life sooo much easier while doing this, as single ply yarns and loosely plied yarns tend to collapse and separate without the structure of the needle holding them up.  I have a tutorial in the works for this technique, because it’s a lifesaver!

I’ve just opened enrollment on the Pavo Real online class, which will run from Feb. 2-22 to correspond with the Pavo knitalong next month.  I’ll show you how to knit a beautiful one-skein lace shawl from start to finish, with step-by-step instruction and support.  It’s all the fun of a group knitting class, but you can stay at home in your jammies!

Here’s the details:

What you get:

3 week class, includes PDF copy of Pavo Real pattern, video tutorials that you can refer to at your convenience any time during the duration of class, PDF handouts for you to print out and keep for your reference after class, chat and e-mail support for the three week class period, plus an additional 2 weeks of access to videos and PDFs after class.

Standard Enrollment= $65 ($59 if student has previously bought copy of the Pavo pattern)

Special Intro Price!= $45 ($39 if student has previously bought copy of the Pavo pattern)

What you’ll learn:
-lace knitting stitches, including yarnovers, decreases, and increases
-chart reading
-“reading” your stitches to tell where you are in the pattern repeat
-tips and tricks for lace knitting
-blocking

What you’ll have:
FUN!!! Oh, yeah, and a beautiful finished shawl.

Students who have previously purchased the Pavo Real pattern will receive a $6 PayPal refund on their class fee.

Questions? Contact me at mail-at-kitchensinkdyeworks-dot-com.

$45 Early-bird Enrollment

I just packed up a little gift box for a Valentine’s day swap on Ravelry, with this little nugget of a birdie inside (I’m pretty sure my swap partner doesn’t read this, and that it should be delivered by now, but if you’re reading, doll: SPOILER ALERT!!).

It measures about 2″ high, with little striped pipe cleaner chicken legs.  I modified a little bird pattern from one of my Japanese amigurumi books (isbn# 4-309-26670-3, bought from the fab Saucylouise) with scraps of Luxe Merino Fine in Peabody on a size C hook.  I love that little tail nubbin!

Now it’s time to gear up to work on some new patterns that have been clunking around in my noggin.  Fun ideas that I just can’t stop thinking about, so they must begin!  So knitters that may have been feeling neglected in this crochet lovefest, stay tuned over the next few weeks.   At least two new knitting patterns are on the way, including the full version (headband, cowl, mitts-So excited!) of the Snakehandler pattern featured back in autumn and a SWEET new embellished cardi!

Tara over at Blonde Chicken Boutique got sucked in a couple of weeks back (check her post on granny squares for some great links), which got me thinking about it again, which got the ball rolling on my current sock yarn scrap granny project.

Now Amy over at The Hook and I has a great post up about granny squares, including some basic charting and construction options, and a book in the works by she and Julie Holetz on granny square projects. Can’t wait to see that!

And my pile of granny squares just keeps on growin’.  I have a glut of sock yarn, so they may go on forever!  There are worse things, to be sure.  It feels like a guess the beans in the jar game, how many squares are in a basket of sock yarn scraps?

Want to start your own granny square project?  Start with this great tutorial over at the Purl Bee.

A delicate blend of supple silk and soft linen, this yarn takes the dyes with subtle, beautiful shading. Try it in your next lace project, or knit it doubled for a soft spring garment.

Details: 65% silk 35% linen

725 yards per 4oz skein

Heavy lace/light fingering weight

Hand wash in cold water, dry flat.

Merino Silk Worsted

A buttery-soft, next to the skin touchable merino silk blend with great yardage! Try this puffy, lofty single ply worsted weight that is great for accessories. Knits and crochets beautifully.

Details: 60% merino wool 40% silk

240 yards per 4 oz skein

Worsted weight
4-5 stitches per inch on US 7-9 needles

Hand wash in cold water, dry flat.

and not exactly new, but uncommon, Silver Spoon

Try this gorgeous, subtle glittering yarn in your next lace or sock project! A sumptuous blend of soft superwash merino, silk, nylon for strength, and 2% real sterling silver fiber.

Details: 63% superwash merino wool 20% silk
15% nylon 2% real sterling silver fibers

410 yards per 100g skein

Fingering/sock weight
Needles: US 0-3

Hand wash or machine wash gentle in cold water, dry flat.

That, friends, is the beginning of a cute amigurumi groundhog!  Using June Gilbank’s Groundhog pattern and KSD’s Merino Fine held doubled, I’m making this as part of the Groundhogalong that started from some joking around on twitter.  Turns out there are quite a few crafters that are just as crazy about the Bill Murray movie Groundhog Day.

Want to join us?  There’s now a ravelry group, a flickr group, and a cute badge!  Just grab a hook and complete your groundhog by Feb 2nd.  In Casa de Clark, we have a screening of Groundhog Day every year, so I’ll be camped out on the sofa with my g’hog and husband.

Progress has paused while I hunt through my super-disorganized stash for a bag of polyfill stuffing and some appropriate buttons for eyes.  And I’m naming my g’hog Desmond.  You can’t name yours Ned Ryerson, Kim already called dibs!

As a breather between some freelance projects, I decided to shop my stash of KSD scraps and start a nice basic granny square afghan.  What a soothing project!  I love easy-to-memorize, no-brainer projects as comfort craft.  This one is made from my KSD sock yarn scraps (Merino Fine, Luxe, Seacell, Superwash Sock) on a size E hook.  Small, but repetitive and great for TV crochet.

This afghan fits with my little household theme this week of “pantry shopping”, using what you have on hand with little to no additions to create something pretty/tasty/useful/clever.  The same night it was started, I made a great “pantry shopping” dinner with soba noodles in sesame lime sauce, and used up the leftover lime juice to make a great cocktail.

Despite the fact that we were in the middle of freakishly cold temperatures for Alabama; I had been staying up watching The Travel Channel for a couple of nights watching shows on Puerto Rico, Peru, and other warm and sunny places, so I had a craving for a fresh, citrusy drink.  The following was born from ingredients on hand:

British Tropic

In a rocks glass:

1 shot good quality gin (I used Bombay Sapphire)

1 T Rose’s Lime (or more, for sweetness.  I like mine pretty dry.)

juice of 1/2 lime

Add ice, fill to top with club soda.  Pretend you’re on a beach, even if you’re wrapped in wool and avoiding frostbite.

Is this a “real” drink?  A variation on an existing classic I’m just clueless about?  Let me know!