Off the Needles: Plucky Honey

I've been finishing a lot of projects recently, and haven't had time to share them with you! After my Drapey Sweater, I made this shawlette from some of my Plucky Knitter yarn.

This pattern was really easy to memorize (4 stitch repeat for the win!), so I didn't mind that the rows got longer and longer and looooonger! The texture is enough to make it interesting without being overwhelming. Sorry I don't have any pictures where I'm actually wearing it. I never think to take them until it's dark out.

Pattern: Honey Bunches, from Irish Girlie Knits Designs

Yarn: Plucky Knitter Plucky Feet, in Princess Phone (90% Merino, 10% Nylon)

Modifications: None

Ravelry Post: here

Off the Needles: Drapey Sweater

from Vogue Knitting Winter 2011/12

The photo of this pattern in Vogue Knitting looks so comfy and warm! After knitting some complex things this summer, I wanted an easy knit. With no shaping and loads of stockinette stitch, this sweater was perfect!

The knitting itself went fairly quickly. As always, I avoided the finishing details for a few weeks.

I'm pretty pleased with the results. I wasn't sure I could pull this look off... Part of me wishes I had gone with a more drapey yarn. My sleeves don't fall exactly the same way as the model (but that could be me over criticizing myself? Or sewing the seams too tightly?). I love the twist in the front too! It's not often that the reverse side of stockinette stitch is shown, but it's beautiful in its own way.

Weekending

I took advantage of the gorgeous weather this weekend to get my autumn on! Saturday was The Boy's high school homecoming game. It was a great day to watch football! The trees and National Cathedral made the perfect backdrop. They even had the president mascots from the Nationals race during halftime!

Today we drove to a corn maze in Maryland with some friends. There were a lot of pumpkins, farm animals to pet, and dead ends in the maze. Again, the weather was perfect! It was great to get out of the city for a few hours.

A Dream Come True

I'm unbelievably lucky. Recently my LYS back home asked if I would be interested in knitting samples to display in the store. Since I have an abundance of free time (and I love knitting), I said yes! I am getting paid to do something I love. It's awesome. Even more awesome is the fact that both projects I was given are made with really nice, soft, expensive yarn. The kind of yarn I can't normally afford to work with. It's making me knit more quickly, because I don't want to put it down!

I'll put up more pictures when I'm done! Hopefully there will be more sample knitting in my future...

Chicken Soup Weather

This weekend made it impossible to ignore fall any longer. It's cooled down a lot, and I turned on the heat for the first time today. I decided it would be the perfect time to try a chicken soup recipe I found on Pinterest. The recipe can be found here.

To make chicken soup, you will need:
• 5 cups chicken broth
• 1 can cream of chicken soup (10.75 oz.)
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1/2 cup chopped carrots
• 1/2 cup chopped green onions
• 1 can corn (15 oz.), drained
• 1 package egg noodles
• 2 cups chicken, cooked and shredded
• seasonings to taste

Plucky Knitter Trunk Show

I've seen Plucky Knitter yarns featured a lot on other blogs, and on Ravelry. I was always tempted to buy some, but was nervous about spending so much money on yarn without being able to feel it in person! That sounds silly, but I didn't want to throw money away on yarn that could be scratchy or rough. Recently, the Plucky Knitter had a trunk show at my new local yarn store! It was the perfect opportunity to scope out the store and the yarn.

I got there about 40 minutes after the store opened. It was packed. I knew it would be good when I was walking down the street and saw a lady with an armful of yarn leaving. She warned me that some colors were already sold out! I picked up my pace and entered a sort of paradise. Yarn. Everywhere. Soft. Colorful. Expensive. Immediately I regretted not planning to buy sweater yarn. I had no idea how much I would need for a sweater, so I stuck with my plan of buying a skein or two of fingering weight yarn. That thickness is good for a pair of socks or shawl out of one skein.

A Weekend of Celebrations

This weekend was full of celebrations! The Boy's birthday was last week, but we decided to wait and celebrate on Saturday. We went to Dogfish Head Ale House, and it was amazing. Seriously. We couldn't move afterwards, we were so full and the food was so good! Since it was The Boy's "birthday," I was driving and couldn't sample every single beer... So clearly we have to go back! There is a picture of the beer menu below, it's huge! (The checkmarks are what is available, not what we drank!)

Did I mention that the food is delicious?!

That night, we attended the wedding of a friend from high school. It took place on a paddleboat, and we cruised up and down the Potomac for a few hours. It was beautiful, the wedding was beautiful, and the bride was beautiful! I wish I had taken more pictures.

 

The boat was docked in Old Town, Alexandria. I had never spent time there before. It's adorable! There are a ton of shops and restaurants, and a free trolley! It's also very close to a yarn store...