Aha Moment ~ guest blogger Liz

I’m a latecomer to this group, but saw the knit-along last week and decided to ignore the mound of tote bags filled with works in progress (that I navigate like an obstacle course all over my house and in my closet) and jump in.  Any excuse to buy new yarn!

I ordered some yarn from Webs Yarn and my package was waiting for me last night when I returned home from work.  I didn’t splurge for this project, as I felt a bit guilty about a couple of big items I’m in the throes of making (where I’m using copious amounts of Rowan and Noro yarn), but I did find some Cascade fingering weight yarn that is inexpensive and should make a pretty shawl.

I used my ball winder on one skein last night and decided to attack the project.  After about a half an hour staring numbly at the neck chart with no idea what to do and experiencing a bit of low self-esteem when I read several posts on Ravelry by women who’d made this project and discussed how easy it was to knit up, I had an epiphany and suddenly the schemata made sense.  I knit 20 rows of the neck and one or two of the body.

I do like this design.  It’s complex enough to keep my interest, but isn’t one of those uber challenging patterns that I am only able to attack in the summer and fall--when my brain isn’t completely depleted of the capability to process simple information--as it typically is at the end of the school year.  (I teach high school English and by the end of second semester--after months of dealing with teenagers--I’m quite proud to simply be getting dressed in somewhat matching clothes and regularly attending class with some semblance of a lesson prepared for each day). 

Looking forward to working on this shawl this coming weekend. 

I need to get another set of size 6 needles, so I don't have to switch back and
forth between projects.

To say hello... ~ guest blogger Amy

Hi all.  I'm Amy.  I was so excited to join the KAL (great pick of patterns, guys!).  I've had the pattern in "queue" for so long, bought the yarn "back in the day"...was ready.  I even dithered (I really think this word should be used more often!) on whether to add beads...in the end, I did not.

May 1st came, I diligently CO, and bam...kid #1 got hit with the creeping-crud that goes around when the seasons change (of course this is my breathing treatment kiddo, nothing serious, just enough to throw us off our game).  Enter more knitting.  Then in the true meaning of sharing...kid #2 came down with some version of the creeping-crud.  More knitting.

Now you all know that at this point, it's only a matter of time...and yep, it was my turn :)  Lost my voice to my children's great amusement.  We are all on the mend now. (Ironically, my husband who has wicked allergies and is usually the more "fragile" of all of us, is perfectly fine.)

My apologies for my lack of participation on the blog. My voice is back..more or less...I was able to volunteer at the school today, and "speak sternly" when necessary ;)  So despite the "non-drama drama" (because my life IS pretty simple!), I do have a FO to share.

  BUT I am soooo looking forward to seeing all the remaining FOs and seeing everyone's progress.

And a sidenote, that pool in the background has already been used...not being from TX, it always amazes me how quick it can get hot here....bless this TX weather ;)

I finished something! ~ guest blogger WillyG

Yay!  I finished something for the KAL!

I know, I know, it's not even a full week.  Like I said before, I was on vacation. But it really is a simple knit once you get going, and as lace goes,  pretty easy to catch/fix mistakes.  (And I did so.)

This shawl is all about imperfection.

See the little plying error?  I had a few of these.  As I got further into the shawl, I figured out how to tack these to the back of the fabric as I knit, but earlier on there are a few oddities to keep the perfectionists busy.

I also noticed as I knit that the color transitions came out a bit stripey for what I had envisioned. Someone overlooked this factor when he was blending the colors!!  But that's okay; I have several ideas for how to remedy this next time.  And there will be a next time.  This was superfun!  I already bought more of the same type of fiber in a different colorway...

Into The Whirled dyes the best colorways, no?

Now for my favorite bits about this shawl.
I love the fabric I ended up with - light and a bit drifty, but not so airy that it annoys me.  For some reason, I like my knits to have a denser fabric than many people - even when it comes to lace.  This turned out perfectly, and I'm delighted I was able to spin it.  WOOT!  Milestone right there.

I also love the color blending in the first section, more by default than anything.  The fibers were longer than the color blocks in the sea foam sections, so the olive crept in.

I'm also in love with the undulating movement created by the simple lace patterning.  For the lace newbies, it takes a bit of blocking to smooth out the natural bumps that form in the fabric, but once you do that it really pops.

I think the simple pattern shows a variety of yarns beautifully; I can't wait to see yours! And once again, happy May!!

Oops.... post by Guest Blogger Jeff

Somehow this 200+ year old great wheel ended up in my possession. I don't know how that happened, but boy am I excited about it. :)

Overall, this Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival was the BEST. I'm sure Will will be posting all about it over on his blog, and he is the real blogger in this family, so I won't go all into it except to say I spent lots of money and don't feel bad about that one bit. We took a shepherding class on Friday(decided I wouldn't mind having a small flock for fleece, but probably won't go into it full time), spent all my cash on Saturday on goodies from Gnomespun, Into the Whirled, Persimmon Tree Farm, Loop, and a few other small farms on some breed specific fiber (Icelandic) and yarn (Montadale), took the sheep breed walk with the amazing Deb Robson on Sunday morning and learned about breeds I'd never even heard of (have you ever heard of Soay or Hog Island sheep?), and bought a great wheel that's been around as long as we've been a country. All in all, a fabulous weekend!

LEAVES OF GRASS ~ guest blogger Eileen

i love this finished project !

i am so glad i joined LOG KAL

thank you so much !

this knit is truly an heirloom

[ even my husband's jaw dropped when he saw it blocked and laying over the couch ].

yes, the start was frustrating and i did not understand chart reading but with help from friends in the KAL

i was able to master this pattern.

i want to knit another pi "shawl".

thank you again and i will continue to follow " girls in sheep clothing" for the next KAL.

I'm Back! ~ guest blogger Andee

I am so excited to be joining the May Day KAL!  I spent the weekend at the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival and look who I ran into Willy G & Jeff!

Do you like the bag I'm carrying? Lori made it. So she was kind of there with us. My sister Leanne was off at another booth so she missed the photo :(

I had such a good time meeting these guys they are so much fun. It was great to chat about yarn, patterns, and people in the KAL. I was totally shocked that I ran into them. In the small time we got to hang out I think 100 people complimented them on their hats. They were such a huge hit.

I came home from the festival with 6,110 yards of yarn and 24 oz of roving.  Oh and some books for me and toys for the kids.  Now can I figure out what to use for the shawl? I am thinking about spinning the purple roving to make the shawl.  Because apparently purple and spinning are the things to do these days.  So fingers crossed I can get this casted on soon.  I'm so glad to be back in the KAL!

I have more pictures from my trip on my blog.

Happy Knitting!

~Andee

A Chocolate Ribbon ~ A post from Kelli

What a great knit !...kinda quick (ya think?), so many great check points to keep me 'spot on', I love/need lots of check points.  I himmed and hawed about the cherry brown 'edging' with a different yarn. So happy how it turned out. Can't wait to see everybody's~