Had to start knitting with some of my new yarn! This is the Nightsongs shawl (link is to Ravelry), started off with the Manos del Uruguay yarn I bought at S&W.
The pattern isn't that difficult, but I have a problem with lace and I am determined to overcome this. I had to do one row four times, because of simple errors. I know that if I focus on the chart and don't watch TV while I knit, I can do it. I am determined to do it. Tawaaaaaanda!
About the yarn ... I had heard of Manos del Uruguay and vaguely understood it to be some sort of free-trade yarn. The tag tells me that the "Hands of Uruguay" is a "non-profit ... which assembles over 400 artisans in cooperatives scattered throughout the countryside of Uruguay ... to bring economic and social opportunities to rural women." The yarn I purchased was made in the Cauva Cooperative by Lilian. Thanks, Lilian!
According to the CIA World Factbook, Uruguay is slightly smaller than the state of Washington and only has one major city, so I guess there is a lot of countryside.
Footies
A Bowl of Orange Fiber
I am pondering something to do with all this orange. It's three different fibers, two wools and the silk I got a while back. In one of my pattern books is a knitted shawl that, once completed, was woven through with a different yarn. It was done by simply taking a different shade of yarn on a tapestry needle, and weaving that yarn through the stitches. I'm wondering how that would look if I made something with the silk, then wove the orange yarn in the foreground through it. Well ... it would certainly be bright and cheery!
Garden Stuff
I am loving my garden, now that it's all in the ground. I have two issues, though; the sun hasn't been out in days, and the *&$(% maple tree dropped about a hundred maple helicopter seeds in my yard, and I am pulling up about a dozen maple sprouts a day.
I have Cucino cucumbers ....
Tomatoes ... Supersweet 100s, one of my favorites.
Strawberries ... I've eaten three, and am longing for more. I have to keep them far off the ground, because the slugs and roly poly bugs like strawberries as much as I do.
This is the sky from my backyard. It's raining now. Again. AGAIN. I haven't had to water the garden in days, which is great, but the sun hasn't shone on my vegetables in that long, which is not great!
Oh, that's where I planted the catnip ...
Happy Fiber Arts Friday!
