On the Needles . . . .

Started a project for my mother today for Christmas. She loves blues and purples and I found this lucious royal blue Cascade 220 and some Noro Silk Garden in a variety of blues and purples. I am combining them to knit her a purse (The Bubble Bag) for Christmas. I also plan to make her a scarf in Royal Blue to go with it. I'm sure it will get some wear as she lives in Michigan! Picture posting will follow . . . .

Fall Bag

After Felting:

Finished product! This yarn (Crystal Place Iceland) felted REALLY fast and REALLY thick and firm. I originally made a 5 stitch I-cord and it came out too thick, so with the yarn I had left, I made a 3 stitch I-cord and it was just right. The colors definitely changed with washing and came out more red. With the right outfit, I think this will be great for the upcoming Fall. I called it my "Fall Bag" because the color progression in the yarn reminds me of Fall - green to a walnut color to a burgundy red.

Before Felting:

I used Crystal Place Iceland (100% wool) for this bag. It's a rather heavy yarn, a lot like Manos del Uruguay, probably even a little thicker. I knit it on a 15" circular needle, single stranded and it shrunk at least 50% during only about 6 - 8 minutes of washing. I think that this yarn would be really good for a bowl or something that a person would want to be really firm and thick - with the ability to stand up on it's own.

Purple Green and Gold Bag

Here's the bag post felting - I'm pleased with the way it came out. The ladder yarn (Trendsetter) actually looks better after felting and add's an interesting dimension to the yellow stripe. This is a variation of the Booga Bag with binding off in I'cord (which I finally figured out how to do). Knit with Cascade 220 on size 10 1/2 circular needle. Handle is a 3 stitch I'cord, using one strand of purple and one strand of yellow, held together, for the tweedy look.

And now for prefelting . . . . .

Bag prefelting - love the colors. I've been saving this yarn which is leftovers from other projects I've done and when I found the ladder yarn from Trendsetter in just the right colors, I knew right away what I wanted to make. A girl can't have too many bags, can she?

2 Rib Scarf

I made this scarf while I was in Michigan in May - it's knitted from one strand of a Katia ribbon yarn (a sort of khaki green) called Sevilla and one strand of a carry along yarn (Katia Gatsby) that was hand dyed gold, green and plum, variegated, which is sparkly. I knit it in a 2 x 2 rib so that it has a lot of body. I definitely will wait until colder weather to wear it - something really different - picture doesn't do it justice. By the way, this yarn had a mind of it's own, so the 2 x 2 rib helped it have a little form and substance.

SP Stitch Markers

Thank you secret pal for the stitch markers. They are perfect for when I use smaller needles - I knit a lot on size 5 to 7 needles and I really like them!

Little Black Bag

After a wonderful 15 day vacation on Kauai and then getting back into the swing of things at home, I finally finished another felted bag. I wanted a black bag for more dressy occasions, and I wanted it to be small. Well, it's small all right - measures 6" wide and 5" tall, just perfect for a little evening bag. I used one skein of Bernat Lana and did a version of the Booga Bag, only didn't knit the entire 64 rows, only about 50. I then used the rest of the yarn on the I'cord. It felted really fast and really thick and firm - no fuzz! Knit single strand with 10 1/2 circular needles. Does anyone have an idea or suggestion about something I could add to or apply to the bag to "jazz it up" for evening?