Storm's done!

Finished! Here are photos:




This pattern wasn't easy to follow, because it requires you to keep the zig zag going without actually telling you where it is after the second bend. If that makes any sense.

The Personal Touch

I'm posting about this on the Here Comes The Guide Blog, but it has to be edited. I'm posting the whole interview here:

A Very Personal Wedding Dress

The great thing about weddings is, it's all about personal style. Take wedding dresses, for example. New designs are coming out all the time, from designers like Monique Lhuillier and Vera Wang. And they are gorgeous.

But what about the creative bride who wants her dress to be more than a fashion statement? What could be more personal than knitting your own wedding dress? Kathryn Ashley, who owns the Ewetopia Fiber Shop in Southwestern Wisconsin is doing just that. She is designing her own dress. with a bodice adapted from the Lace Edged Corset by Michele Rose Orne in LaceStyle.


The leaves on the corset-style bodice of this dress and those worked into the lacy skirt represent the season of the wedding (fall). She's using a 100% silk yarn called Cascade Petite in a soft offwhite.

When I asked what made her decide to knit her own dress, Kathryn laughed and replied, "I needed a really big, daunting project! I've always wanted to design a wedding dress, and so I decided I would knit one!" Kathryn has a love of costumes, and her design choices spring from her fondness for Renaissance and Victorian era dresses. "I love corsets and bodices and big skirts! But my design is not at all like those!" she says.

I asked what the groom would be wearing, and Kathryn replied, "I don't know. It's going to be an informal outdoor wedding in late September, really just a place for me to wear the dress! No bridesmaids, but the guest list keeps growing. For the ceremony we may have as many as 100 people." "Will you be making a shawl or a veil to wear with the dress?" I asked. "I'm knitting a shrug, the Lacy Hug Me Tight shrug by Tracey Ullman and Mel Clark in Knit2Together.

For that I'm using a strand of the silk and a strand of an alpaca silk blend, so it will be warmer."

I asked Kathryn if she would postpone her wedding if she wasn't finished with the dress. She said, "No. We talked about that. But I have time. And I don't have to make it full length." True! She has enough completed for a minidress right now! You can follow the progress of Kathryn's wedding dress at the Ewetopia Fiber Shop blog.

Current Projects

Storm
I just finished the back last night. Next it needs blocking, and seaming, and the last bit will be knitting the rest of the collar. I'll work on it tomorrow.

Here's a detail of the zig-zag pattern. And below are some buttons that Earin gave me,


Widdershins
I started these a while ago. I'm using Bare Superwash Merino from Knitpicks. It's turning out to be a good project to take on the train.
These socks are fitting me very closely, which I like, but SO much so, that they are difficult to get ON. That may mean I am knitting a GIFT. For a smallish person. I'm going to make them up to my knees, with a folded down cuff.


Potato Chip Scarf
I got this gorgeous yarn in Florida, and I got the pattern there, too. It's not the same as the Knit Picks potato chip scarf pattern, this one yields a double ruffle. If you click on the photo above, you'll probably be able to read the pattern.


Longcat Scarf
The Longcat Scarf is still growing. I'm using microspun acrylic yarn. It's VERY soft. This will be for Magda when it's finished.

Another Potato Chip Scarf
I decided to try this scarf in the purple mohair I recycled from the ill-fated shrug. I guess it's true. You can't knit just one!

Monkey Socks
I cast on for the Monkey Socks. My knitting group had a knitalong for them, and I'm way late. Well, it's not like I don't have any other projects!