Piratical homebodying: of purple knitting and revisiting scones

So although I was a slacker and didn't blog almost at all while I was in New York, I did capture photographic evidence of my craftiness. See? Look!


That's the sleeve of a hooded shrug I'm test-knitting. (Right now I'm stuck in the sea of stockinette stitch that is the back of the shrug, but I only have a few inches left. I'll make it out soon!)

And last night I was finally driven to action by the endless march of food shows that the first mate and I tend to watch. I wanted cupcakes, but I made scones:




Date and raisin scones, to be precise. The cupcake avoidance was partly due to lack of ingredients, and partly due to having No Clue about how to make the kind of cupcakes that I really want to make. I crave the irrationally gourmet kind of cupcake — the kind I'd be happy to pay $2.50 for two bites of. I was never a cupcake fan, by the way, before I worked at an office job where someone with good taste, a lot of money, and a kindly heart got me addicted to the uber-awesome variety. But now? Now I NEED to figure out how to make my own. Any book or blog recommendations, me hearties? ;)

Anyway, the scones turned out pretty well, considering I've taken a five- or six-year hiatus between batches. We didn't have any baking soda, so I had to limit myself to baking powder, and dates and raisins were all we had enough of, so in they went. But all in all, they still kick the butt of all the scones I've ever bought from anyone else. And that's a win. :D

Call to test-knitters: fingerless gloves are ready!

It's officially time. My first wristwarmers/fingerless gloves pattern — yes, the one I've been blathering about since late last year ;), the revised version of the gray wristwarmers design you may have seen — is ready for someone other than me to test-knit it. Dum-dum-da-DUM!


As mentioned before, I'll be giving out goodies for this test knit (and you'll probably get to choose between a couple of options). I'll also need a pretty quick turnaround — I'd like feedback by February 24. I knit one fingerless glove in one night, though, and they only take a little over 100 yards of yarn, so the deadline shouldn't be too difficult to meet. (These would probably make an easy Ravelympics medal ... wahahahaha. ;))

Vital stats for the pattern

• Yardage: 110 yards
• Yarn weight and type: smooth, evenly-spun, light worsted weight/DK to heavy worsted weight/aran (pattern includes information on two gauges)
• Yarn color (recommended): light to medium solid colors or long color repeats (like Noro yarn has) — texture will be obscured by dark colors or frequent color changes
• Recommended needles: size 7 double-pointed needles (set of 4)
• Gauge: for light worsted/DK weight yarn: 5 sts/inch; for heavy worsted/aran weight yarn: 4.5 sts/inch
• Difficulty level: beginner/advanced beginner
• Skills needed: CO, BO, knit, purl, decrease, using waste yarn, pick up and knit, reading simple charts, edited to add: knitting in the round
• Other required materials: 2 stitch markers, waste yarn (about 6 inches)

If you want to be in the Star & Crossbones test-knitting group, go to my shiny new test-knitter application form (I made it myself! OoooOOOooo!) and sign up! If you see anything wonked up about the form, BTW, email me and let me know. It's fresh off the keyboard, and I will much appreciate it if you point out anything ungood about it so I can fix it. :D The request for notification of wonked-up-ness applies across the board to the sign-up process, really.

And for the record, you absolutely do not need to be an expert knitter to test-knit. You just need to match or exceed the skill level required by the pattern, which is why I listed that tidbit of information above.

See you in the testing pool. ;D

My first original pattern, fresh off the needles!

Ta-da! The wristwarmers I've been working on test-knitting for myself are finally done enough to get a photo of them! Here's a sneak peek:


Now I need to proofread the pattern/make the edits I have written down, and off my pattern will go, into the wilds ... If you're interested in test-knitting it, there will be test-knitter goodies. :D More details on that when the pattern goes live.

Wooo!

Finished Object: Branching Out scarf

Behold! The Branching Out scarf I started two years ago is done!





The Phoenix Bess secret test knit has been received and cast on. It looks like it's going to be an enjoyable and quick knit, especially since my new Knit Picks Harmony wood circular needles were magically the correct size for the pattern AND I magically got gauge with them. That seems like a good sign.

A-testing I will go...

Just joined the test knitting group for Gardiner Yarn Works -- hurrah. :D I found them through Ravelry, which is teh cool.

I need to revamp the blog look. I was lazy when I started this thing, as I just wanted a place to blether immediately, but if my luck pattern holds, I may have time to revamp sometime in the next week. Yay, I say, again.