Briar Rose Fibers Knit-Along

Off the Needles, Now

2009-01-18T20:55:00.000-05:00

Just checking back in, with my newly finished sweater! Details and modifications on my blog.

On the Needles Now

2008-12-21T13:49:00.000-05:00

One of the many projects I'm working on now is this sweater for myself, in Charity. The design is Ingenue from the brilliant book, Custom Knits. There's been some buzz about the photo styling in the book, how it's a little over the top, but the more I look at it, the more I like it. I love that knitting is being treated as fashion. There are lots of great styles in this book, and I know I'll knit more sweaters from it. I'm just sorry that this sweater will not look as sexy on me (or at all) as it does on the model.
I just love the monochromatic varigations of this yarn--and, it feels great!

An update on Kendra

2008-11-05T07:57:00.001-05:00

Hey guys, I just wanted to give all of you an update on Kendra, the recipient of the Hope Blanket. Check out her latest blog post here. Woo hoo!!!

Rosebud Scarf

2008-11-04T13:36:00.001-05:00

I started this scarf, hmmm not sure exactly what day but I started it in October and I've been working on it here and there. The pattern is super easy to remember. It's the Rosebud scarf pattern and the yarn is Briar Rose 4th of July.

A green sweater out of Briar Rose Charity

2008-10-22T15:49:00.001-04:00

A new sweater for this season is just what I needed and the Ella Jacket from Simply Shetland 4 caught my eye. The thought to knit it in Briar Rose Charity came a little later and this was toted home from Wisconsin.

The design is knit in one piece beginning at the sleeve. Even the collar is knit one by casting on extra stitches. The sides, sleeve seams, and collar did need to be stitched on to finish.

Garments constructed out of the norm always interest me. Disappointment has struck many times after knitting an amazingly constructed design only to find that the fit is bizarre. Not so with this one, the fit is perfect for my build.

This is sure to be a favorite of mine!

2 skeins Briar Rose Fibers Charity
size 7 US Needles
6 buttons from Briar Rose Fibers

See it on Ravelry

Kendra has her blanket

2008-08-11T12:44:00.002-04:00

The Hope Blanket has made it's way to Kendra, safe and sound. Check out her most recent blog post to see pics of her with it and to read about her crazy cancer journey.

Thanks again to all of you who donated to the Hope Lodge and for the work that was put into the gorgeous blanket.

A shrug knit in Charity

2008-08-01T11:38:00.003-04:00

Charity is one of the newer yarns that Chris has offered us. 900 yards of Corridale and it is absolutely lovely.

This pattern is Ursula from Knits Three Ways by Melissa Matthay.

The ribbed edging causes the sleeves to pull in a bit. Try knitting the lace piece about 2” longer to compensate.

There is 5 1/2 ounces left from one skein which is plenty of yarn for another project.

Bugg and I both like the ribbing and it makes this shrug fit nicely. We have other shrugs that slip around the shoulders and adding a ribbing such as this will make a much better fit.

See it on Ravelry

Remember that blanket?

2008-07-04T10:33:00.001-04:00

The Hope blanket was a labor of love and so many wonderful knitters donated their time and creative energy to help me make that happen.

When it became time to give it away, I alphabetized all of the donor's names and asked for a number from Random.org

Amy won the blanket and soon after sent an e-mail that she has a good friend - Kendra - who is in treatment for colorectal cancer. Amy had made the donation in Kendra's honor and has gifted her the blanket. Kendra shares her amazing journey on her blog.

Please make your own journey over to read and know that by contributing in any way has helped. I pray that the Hope blanket will provide just that for Kendra.

Can't Say No to Chris

2008-06-17T23:29:00.003-04:00

I'm not a fan of lace knitting in general. I do have an appreciation for it, but I've just not knit a lot of it. When Chris asked me to make a sample for the booth, I just couldn't say no. I had wanted to try a Knitspot design, and I love knitting and wearing Blue Faced Leicester. This yarn is Glory Days, and the design is the Oh Canada stole. I'm thinking that a stole might be a more modern interpretation of a shawl, and perhaps more suited for my style (or lack of). I loved knitting this, much to my surprise, and want to knit one for myself now.

2008-06-17T23:27:00.001-04:00

Who's more deserving to be wrapped up in Blue Faced Leicester luxury than my little Piccolo?

Still Knitting the Briar Rose

2008-05-30T10:20:00.003-04:00

This sweater for my dog, Piccolo, is from two shades of Beth Ann, with a little hand painted purchased at a craft show for the trim. It's a new favorite sweater. I plan on making more, and writing the pattern soon.

Alka shawl

2008-05-23T10:30:00.001-04:00

The proper way to photograph shawls in a way that captures their true beauty always escapes me!

See it on Ravelry

This is a sample for Chris - maybe you can see it in person at one of her upcoming shows.

Is anyone working on projects with Briar Rose, or has everyone deserted to the Ravelry group?

Helping to ease cancer

2008-04-24T13:03:00.002-04:00

This blanket has been a labor of love. I asked for fiber, Chris sent it. I asked for knitting and designing, the incredible knitters did it. Now, I've done my part with sewing and edging the blanket - all 48" x 64" of it!

We are 26% toward our goal of $2000.00. If you haven't donated yet, please visit the American Cancer Society site we have set up and donate anything you can to help.

Thank you so much!

See it on Ravelry

Seriously, I'm sewing!

2008-04-16T12:29:00.002-04:00

...waylayed a few days by oral surgery but I'm back on track now!

Fiber can be finicky and I've decided to block again as sewing progresses which should make the final few seams a breeze.

I wish you could touch this for yourself - it is incredible!

Scotch Thistle Stole

2008-04-12T19:37:00.000-04:00

Scotch Grace Thistle finished (8)
Originally uploaded by kniterella

A little break from stitching on the charity blanket netted a couple of photos.

Details on Ravelry but for those of you who have not joined up yet:

Scotch Thistle Lace Stole
500 yards of Briar Rose Fibers Grace
Size 5 needles
Finished size: 68" long, 17 1/2" wide

This was a quick knit (seriously!) that was cast-on the first day of Spring Break and finished a little more than a week later.

Better photos may come later. My favorites are always the modeled shots.

Edited to add modeled photos - more thanks to Bugg.

Tomten!

2008-04-04T04:35:00.004-04:00

This is the second Tomten I've knit and the first for an adult. What follows is a brief run down of the project. I picked up the yarn at the Wisconsin Sheep and Wool show from Chris at Briar Rose. ( Insert gushing sigh here)
Every time this sweater was pulled out in public to knit I ended up giving out the website. The colors are gorgeous and the yarn was a delight to work with. I used approximately 10 skeins of Beth Ann. Using a US size nine needle, I alternated between skeins at the end of every row and ended up with a few small remnants. I over estimated how much yarn I would need to complete the project and have a few extra skeins in my stash. I'm sure to come up with something to do with it on Ravelry. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated!

My source, the indispensable, The Opinionated Knitter (page 42 - 43). (Insert another gushing sigh) I used the same numbers for my sweater as written in the directions for the kids version. My blind following resulted in a sweater that was a wee too narrow for the Scandinavian shoulders I possess. By the time this revelation had sufficiently sunk in I had already knit both sleeves. Poo. The thought of ripping back to what amounted to the very beginnings to adjust for the necessary width made me cringe. So I knitted on - sure I would come up with a solution - or gift the sweater to a smaller person in my life. In the end I decided to add a button band of sorts across the whole front edge of the sweater. This had the added benefit of adding much needed length to the collar.

The collar features some fancy mitre work. Another bit of EZ genius. I decided the collar would be mostly open and put the mitre on the inside so it would be visible when worn. For a reference check out pg 84 of The Opinionated Knitter.

Yummy garter stitch goodness. Heavens it's tasty and expeditious!

Spring is approaching, despite the dumping of a few inches this week. I find my Tomten the perfect weight for walking the pooch, counting the robins, in our balmy 40 degree weather.
More details of this project can be found at my blog.

Show and tell

2008-03-25T10:45:00.002-04:00

This is going to be one incredible blanket. There is no rhyme or reason as to how the squares are layed out for blocking. All of the squares are here (although all are not pictured). The remainder will be pinned out today.

Donations are still being accepted!

Perfect

2008-03-23T20:40:00.003-04:00

Way back in November I won some Briar Rose after posting on this Knit-Along. Whoooo Hooo I won I won. Ever since I've been pondering and pondering and I finally think I've decided what to use my Wistful for. As you all probably already know. Briar Rose Fiber fits as part of the "prize stash". Not because I won the fiber but just because its just fabulous. I can't think of knitting something with it that isn't absolutely perfect. This is a very high standard which often prevents me from ever using Briar Rose. Though I do have an ever growing stash of it.

So, as I was saying, pondering, pondering, when I came across a woman wearing a cute sweater that I was sure I'd knit before, but I couldn't place it. I tapped her on the shoulder and asked, "What's the pattern for that sweater?" (it was clearly a hand knit beauty). And before she could even get the second letter out of her mouth, I knew... EZ's Best Baby Sweater! I had knit that pattern, it was just for a much smaller body. Genius! She said she just did the math following EZ's advice and viola, the perfect sweater for Briar Rose. So I've got my pencil out and I'm going to dust the math cobwebs out of my brain and I'll have a Best Briar Rose Sweater for myself made from Wistful. I can't wait!

You KNOW you want this blanket!

2008-03-19T11:33:00.002-04:00

Please help by donating to The American Cancer Society! All of our lives have been touched by Cancer and the opportunity to help further research or just make someone's life a little more comfortable is worthwhile.

Many talented knitters and designers have combined efforts to create a custom blanket that will be given away to someone in appreciation for their donation.

We are 18% toward our goal and all donations are to benefit The Hope Lodge. You can read more about it here.

There are a few packages still in transit and assembly should begin next week.

Thanks to all of the fabulous knitters/designers and to Chris. Can you believe those colors?

For those of you who are interested in having an opportunity to received the finished blanket, you still have time to donate!

A Model Morning Glory

2008-02-24T21:01:00.004-05:00

Just a few photos of the Morning Glory finished last week. I love this pattern even more than before!

What's the story Morning Glory

2008-02-19T17:17:00.004-05:00

The Morning Glory Wrap was a fun knit...I even grew to like the p3togtbl rows. I would like to post modeled photos, but Bugg's schedule is mega-crazy right now (who will model this stuff when she goes to school next year?).
Up Next: Squares for charity. If you haven't had the chance to check out the blog yet, a photo of one of the squares is posted.

Exciting Opportunity

2008-02-12T21:59:00.004-05:00

We all love Briar Rose or we wouldn't be here, right?

How does the opportunity to own your very own custom designed and knit blanket made of Briar Rose Sonoma grab you?

I've organized a donation drive to benefit The Hope Lodge in Grand Rapids - very near Chris' dye studio. You may have read about it in her recent newsletter.

Chris was kind enough to donate a ton of Sonoma and many knitters have agreed to design and knit squares to make the blanket. (I am so excited...)

The link to donate went up yesterday and if you make a donation, your name could be pulled in a random drawing to own your very own FINISHED Briar Rose blanket!

Visit the blog where progress and updates are posted or you can visit the donation site directly here at the American Cancer Society.

Get your family and friends involved - everyone can participate to support those dealing with cancer treatment.

It's Snowing Outside, but It looks like Autumn to Me!!

2008-02-06T13:24:00.000-05:00

I picked this Tuscany up at the Michigan Fiber Fest in August of 2007.

Although I didn't really get to work on it until some nice cold weather showed up

Look! New Retro Cardi! Only took a couple of snowy days to complete!

Thanks everyone at Briar Rose!!! I love it!

It's Finished

2008-01-25T19:35:00.000-05:00

I actually finished this a few weeks ago. The Concentric Vest by Teva Durham in the Fall 2007 Interweave Knits. The short row cables in front are really fun to make. This is a very clever and cute design! I used two strands of Sonoma with a size 15 needle. I've packed and moved my household and studio, and still can't find the yarn to finish the one I started originally!

Dayflower Scarf

2008-01-24T12:56:00.001-05:00

I got my Ravelry invite in November, and I don't think I've signed out of it since! I can lose whole days uploading photos and adding projects and wandering through other people's FO's.

So all I have to show for the last couple of months is this pretty scarf. The pattern is from Barbara Walker's 2nd Treasury of Knitting Patterns, page 311. It's called Dayflower. The fiber is BRF Grace.