I’m sure they are accessories

The Worlds Top Knitwear Model was kicking around the house on Friday, and I asked her if she’d try on the cowl that I finished a little while ago, since it didn’t have an official picture yet. It’s the Ghazal Cowl, and it started like this:

ghazalroving 2016-09-05

and I spun it into this:

ghazalsinglesbeteter 2016-09-05 ghazalyarn 2016-09-05

and then I knit it into this.

ghazalon 2016-09-02

That’s about how long it took, too. It was a fast knit, and worked end to end with a provisional cast on, and a graft, so perfect for handspun. I used just about every inch of the stuff.

ghazalhold 2016-09-02

Then (because she still looked game, you gotta strike while the iron is hot with youth, they can turn on you in a minute) and I asked her if she wanted to model some mittens. Oh, yeah, remember the other day when I thought I was coming down with a bad case of washcloths? Turns out it was mittens. You couldn’t have surprised me more. I sat down with some cotton and straight needles, and then had a bunch of walking to do, and subbed out work on dpns so that it would be smaller (I can walk knitting on straights, but I live in the city. Dpns reduce the risk that I’ll be imprisoned at the end of the day for whatever charge is related to accidentally impaling someone. Assault? Negligence? Reckless endangerment? Fourteen inch straights seem like the fastest way to find out.) By the end of the day, this pretty pair fell off my needles.

purplemittens 2016-09-02 purplemittensup 2016-09-02

Yarn: Very lovely Red Barn Yarn worsted weight in what I think is “Amethyst Two” Pattern: mostly Waiting for Winter. (I may have fudged a few details. Like Gauge. Or increases. That sort of thing.)

purplemittenspeek 2016-09-02

It is not easy to get a person to put on wool and mohair mittens in this kind of heat, I tell you, so I was pleased as punch when she was willing to give the next pair a go.

skienonmittens 2016-09-02 newmittencoming 2016-09-02

That second pair really caught me by surprise – one minute I was thinking about another washcloth and the next thing I knew, that was there. That picture was taken on Friday, so that pair is all done now, and it’s been 48 hours since I cast on a pair of mittens. (I did get a pattern out, but I just looked at it.) You might want to back up from your screen. This mitten thing might be contagious.

undertree 2016-09-05

(Pattern: Waiting for Winter again, but modified for my gauge, yarn –ย  my handspun from 2008. Never let anyone tell you that stashes aren’t smart.)

I’m hoping to get a post up this week, but Joe and I are leaving on an adventure, and I can’t predict if I’ll have any service.ย  After the car camping with Jen and the girls last week, I’m up for a little “real” camping.ย  We’re leaving today and driving North to Algonquin Park, and there we’ll put in with a canoe, a bear barrel,ย  a map and compass, and paddle our way into the backcountry. Just us, my knitting, and the wilds of Canada.

I’ll say hi to a moose for you.

89 thoughts on “I’m sure they are accessories

  1. Now you’ve pushed me over the edge, because mittens it what I’ve been thinking about, as we head into another week of heat and humidity. Enjoy Algonquin. It is magnificent country, and the stars seem so close you could touch them.

  2. Great photos and mittens but it does look way too hot to be modelling knitwear. I hope it hasn’t put her off coming home while the weather is warm.
    I am a little concerned about your upcoming trip requiring a ‘bear’ barrel !

  3. I was bitten by the mitten bug earlier last month. I’ve made a pair of child’s mittens and I have 2 adult pairs on the needles (one color work, one, ahem is fingerless mitts, so only technically mittens… ) it IS hard to resist. Knit on!

  4. I’m with you on your model; she’s perfect! ๐Ÿ™‚ Also, if you wanted to ensure modelling comfort of those knits, you could’ve flown her out here to Central Alberta. The last 3 days haven’t got warmer than about 12 C. As for mittens…Love to make ’em…except the thumbs. Sigh. You could say I have Therious Thumb Thyndrome (as opposed to Serious Second Sock Syndrome, from which I recovered some decades ago…) ๐Ÿ˜‰ Have a great trip!

  5. Hope you and Joe will have a fantastic trip. Sam is a beautiful model – career maybe. The cowl and mittens are gorgeous. Watch out for bears and hi to the moose. Be safe.

  6. Ooo, have fun on the trip. Kiss a moose on the nose for me! ๐Ÿ™‚

    As to mittens, I’m too busy making washcloths from the bug I caught on the last post. Having a ball! Just bought a bunch more cotton yarn this morning . . .

  7. Backing away from the screen….. I already have a bad case of sock! And then there’s Strokkur waiting for me to get back to it. ๐Ÿ™‚ The mittens are great! Wish I could knit them as quickly as you can. Your model is a beautiful young woman. When did she grow up!? So pretty! ๐Ÿ™‚

  8. This brings back fond memories of my dad going into the Quetico for a fishing trip every year. He always had good stories of freezing water, long portages, bugs and wildlife ๐Ÿ™‚
    Enjoy! I bet mittens are the perfect project on a canoe trip!

  9. The second pair of mitts are fraternal, not identical. Are you feeling ok?
    I’ve always wanted to see a moose in the wild. Please do say hi to a moose. I’m inordinately jealous.

    • Ummmmm… yeah. I have thumbs to do on about six pairs, stacked up neatly with the appropriate yarn. I am waiting for the day that I feel like knitting thumbs… as if that will happen.

  10. Algonquin is beautiful this time of year. I hope you have a wonderful trip.
    Don’t kiss bears or moose (dangerous!) but if you hear a loon, wish it well from me. ๐Ÿ™‚

  11. I’ve knit several pairs of the Waiting for Winter mittens and they’re lovely and quick and I, too, have fudged to fit gauge or size or…..yeah. I was surprised I could figure out how to do that sometimes. Woo!

  12. Beautiful knitting and model. Being an ex-pat Aussie in NC, my imagination sometimes runs wild when creatures such as bears get a mention. I was relieved to find that when I googled bear barrel to find it was not something you crawled into to save yourself from marauding bears!!!

  13. Of course I thought that said “beer barrel” and wondered if that was a good idea. Bear, better.
    I wish I had some mitten mojo. I have a half of an Alice Starmore fancy schmancy mitten knitted….

  14. She is a brilliant knitwear model, perhaps she can give me lessons because my photos of me modelling my knitting always looks slightly odd and I know the problem isn’t my photographer!

  15. The World’s Great Knitwear model is so beautiful and getting more beauitfuller all the time.

    I am inspired, I am thinking mittens and washcloths for Christmas. My mittens will be lightweight though, more for fashion, as I don’t live in much cold.

    Have a terrific time breathing in real air and seeing lots of growing things and water…and Joe.

    • Stop it! I’ve already started a cowl this afternoon along with three washcloths! I can’t knit a moose, too!!!

      Hm . . . wonder if there’s a pattern on Ravelry . . .

      ๐Ÿ˜€

      • My friend made the cutest knitted moose as a Christmas gift for a kid. It even had a little red cardie! Should be on Ravelry…

  16. Thank you! Brightened my day. “Mitten contagion.” I’m sure I’m not the only thinking, “That’s a bug I don’t mind getting!” ๐Ÿ˜‰

  17. Scare me to death. Good Canadian girl mentions cotton, and the next thing you know she’s showing you mittens. I had a very, very bad minute when I tried to figure how you call internationally for an intervention. Imagine my relief. I’d go into greater depth, but I just figured out the ingenious Robin Hanson increase for Spruce mittens and have to finish #1 and get past that point on #2 before I forget…

    • Ooh, now there’s a thought. I haven’t had my Hansen out in a while. And who knows, if I keep trying, I might eventually produce two pairs of Spruce mittens with decreases that match.

  18. “My sister was bitten by a moose once.”

    The blog posts are rather thin on the ground, with all this lollygagging around! We miss you! Have a wonderful time. XOX

    • That second pair of mittens is so gorgeous, though so simple! Have fun camping! (And for the Monty Python geeks, I believe it’s “A moose once bit my sister. . .”

  19. What? No washcloths to show off? Luckily, that cowl makes amends…but good luck finding it now that Sam has seen it…

    …enjoy the time alone with Joe, and tell moose to go find squirrel before Boris & Natasha find them both!

  20. The knitting is lovely as always, the knitwear model is on top of her game and you are SOOOOOO adventurous… taking on (shudder) real camping! I’m happy to venture out in a tent trailer in a well populated provincial park, just off any major roadway… but, beyond that? non, merci! ๐Ÿ™‚

  21. I love moose! Moose are my spirit animal. Or is it cabled cardigans? Anywho, three cheers for moose! (Saw 14+ on my recent backpacking trip here in Colorado. Stopped counting after that).

  22. Thank you for the mitten encouragement, have seem to have knit two right one different patterns and better get the left ones underway.Vermont winter will be coming sooner rather than later. catherine

  23. Had to comment on just how lovely your daughter looks in the profile pic of the cowl. What a great photo. Frame worthy in my opinion. Wow that is some fast work on those mittens! Hope you have a marvelous trip with Joe.

  24. Fyi, Signature Needle Arts 5″ size 1 stiletto tip DPNs can do some serious damage. Especially when your new puppy thinks your current sock project is a toy, grabs it quickly and dashes off ….and you raise your foot to stomp on the trailing yarn in hopes of stopping her in her tracks; the pupoy senses your movement and drops it just as your foot is coming down. They make a nice clean puncture, deep, but no blood. All three, in, like porcupine needles. Makes for an interesting ER story.

    • I agree! I’ve been reading old blog posts (because I started reading this blog in 2009, so there were years I’d never seen), so for me it was like a magic want was waved and Sam was all grown up. Beautiful girl.

  25. Sounds like an awesome trip this week to celebrate the close of summer. I’ve been making baby items for a new grand niece/nephew coming end of November and the one thing not on my list are those cute thumbless baby mitts. I’ll have to make them right after the little socks are finished. Happy trails.

  26. Are these mittens for the long range planning box? Go, Harlot! Keep filling that box and soon the holiday time will be free for fun holiday adventures. You go, Girl. I’m knitting a Frankenstein hat for me for Halloween, loosely based on Frankie Stein on Rav. Funny as Hell.
    Julie in San Diego

  27. I got bitten as well and am working on my third pair of beautiful felted mittens (Marius Tova Votter – Ravelry). All the girls will get a pair for Christmas! Enjoy Algonquin Stephanie, with school back on it is a great time to have a vacation! Enjoy!

  28. Absolutely LOVE the cowl. It looks to be something other than stockinette (the edges aren’t curling). Can you share?

    Enjoy your trip!

  29. I kissed the monitor, just tryin’ to catch that Mitten bug. I’ve been saying “gotta knit some mittens” for oh, maybe the last year, so far not a one in sight. But I finished another Blue Leaf headband, and the niece’s halter top is underway, and I just keep looking for the small things to knit up for the Long Term Planning box.

  30. Clearly you’re broadcasting telepathically, since I didn’t see this post until today and yet last week, I too had a pair of unexpected mittens fall off my needles…

  31. I’m just starting to get my Fall knitting mojo – we’ve had brutally hot days too often this summer, and even though school starts in a couple of days, the idea that it might get cold again just sounds appealing, rather than ominous. I have WIPs large and small calling at me (the cardigan that needs ONE SLEEVE to be finished, in particular) but mittens sound lovely. Enjoy your adventure – and I hope you do see moose and bears. From a distance, safely. (Grew up in the Rocky Mountains of the US, myself, and know you don’t actually want to kiss a moose.)

  32. I wish things fell off my needles like that!

    I love Algonquin. Years ago a male and female moose swam in front of our canoes, giving us funny looks, and clambered (Moose do not move elegantly) out of the water and turned and watched us paddle by like we were the strangest creatures they had ever seen. Then there were northern lights…. Yes, that was a magical trip. Awfully long drive from here now. Sigh.

  33. I vote for the peek-a-boo picture with one eye showing, and only part of the other eye, over the fence. You’re lucky, Steph, to have such a gorgeous model. A model that beautiful would make even my knitting look awesome.

  34. INSTANT first thoughts: “rapids–Birkenstocks–wet block!” Hope your canoeing is, what? Less misadventurous than that last one? Or would that really mean it was less memorable = less worthwhile? Ah well, go be so very alive and absorb it all, esp with cooler nights meaning fewer mosquitoes, thank you God!! =)

  35. In unrelated news, I was at a Star Trek convention in NYC on Sunday. My 13-year-old son got super excited, turned to me and said, “Look over there! I think I see the Yarn Harlot!” He was pointing to a curly haired woman who could’ve been you at a quick glance, but she was taller. We were there to meet Wm. Shatner (got a pic with him), which excited him. But he was JUST AS EXCITED because he thought he saw YOU!( He met you once at a book signing in PA 2 years ago.)

  36. Enjoy the camping! Hope it’s much cooler — but not too much so! – than it is here this week. Good time to be out of TO! Lovely yarn – yes, stashes do have more use than taking over entire rooms!

  37. I have been knitting mittens and hats for the two Arizona grandchildren who moved with their parents to NY. Harkening back to my Pennsylvania childhood when my mother used to make us each a new pair for winter. Have fun with Joe and the Moose. We saw many of them and their calves in Alaska many Springs ago and I thought I was in heaven.

  38. I hope you’re having a marvelous time, but it’s hard for me to grasp that you deliberately go out among the bear and moose. My idea of “roughing it” is, “The bathroom is down the hall, ma’am.” I look forward to your photos.

  39. All the good reasons you’ve given for moving to Canada, and it’s canoeing in the back country that pushes me one the edge. I’m envious! Have a fantastic time.

    (And I love the slipstitch pattern on that gorgeous cowl. It really makes the beautiful handspan shine!)

  40. You can sneeze some of that mitten magic my way any time – lol. The cowl and mittens are beautiful (as is the model). I recently bought a drop spindle to try my hand at spinning. Gives me a new appreciation for your beautiful handspun! We saw some moose on our vacation in Colorado this summer. Hope you have a nice get away and get to see some fun wildlife, too : )

  41. You make me laugh. I consider myself a long time knitter, but in comparison to you I’m a bumbler! I got so excited at your lovely washcloth I decided I’d knit a few. I’m still looking for the wool I know I have and here you are posting you have already moved onto mittens!! There is no way I can keep up!! Haha!

  42. I was reading about your first Rhinebeck sweater and I’m curious if you’ve chosen this year’s sweater pattern yet? You’ve got just a little over a month. I wish I could go but being in WA state, it’s just way over my budget.

Leave a Reply to Lisa A Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.