Pine Haven Shawl and Brooklyn Tweed Arbor: Quite the Arboreal Match

This shawl.

I have wanted to knit it since the day it was released.  I don't know WHY the Pine Haven Shawl, designed by Alicia Plummer, has so few project pages, as it's so pretty and rather classic, yet woodsy-looking all at the same time.  I imagine wearing it whilst working my land in a lovely, tree-filled setting - hauling logs or somesuch... you know, like I do!  

Yep.

I knit this gigantic shawl up in Brooklyn Tweed.  For my first knit with BT, I chose the Arbor base, because I knew I'd love it so much - surely because it's worsted spun, which I am traditionally more naturally drawn to, though I do like woolen spun yarns, too, these days.  I had help from Matt and a friend when it came to choosing colors.  We went with Butte, Treehouse and Degas, though I'd really wanted to throw a purple into the mix, aha!  I purchased from one of my favorite Portland yarn stores, Twisted.  (By the by, they always have size 00 and 000 DPNs in stock, if you need them!!!)

The pattern itself was lovely and well-written, short and to the point.  The major issue for me was with gauge.  I strangely, for ONCE, may have needed to use the needle size called for OR may have needed to size up.  That never happens.  But that would have given me a fabric I didn't love.  I will clearly admit Arbor is a DK weight yarn, and the shawl calls for worsted, so, it was a bit of a conundrum.  I just stuck with my size 7 needles I'd swatched on and knew I'd have to make changes.  And boy, did I EVER!  (Did I just say that???!)  I added one extra set of crosses to the top section, an additional two or three stripes in the next section then additional stripes and a bit more made-up colorwork below the called-for colorwork.  I had to go nuts, in order to make sure my shawl was wide/long enough.  What I knew would happen, though, in the doing of this, was that the shawl would be too deep.  Thankfully, my row gauge is always pretty tight, because the shawl didn't come out TOO dreadfully deep, though I could honestly do with a few inches shallower.  I was killing myself with back pain by the end, and I wanted it off the needles, though I really did try hard to get through most of the yarn, which makes me pretty happy.

A thoughtful boy helps with blocking - wearing Camden's old Abate

Overall, it's an awesome shawl.  I questioned how much I'd like it as I got further and further in, but it came out perfectly!  Go knit one!!!  And don't be afraid to modify like a lunatic in order to get what you want/need out of a pattern!!

Naturally, some January days in the life:

Table saw injury :O  And it felt AND still feels way worse than it looks

Sometimes, you tell them to pick up outside....and.....

Getting her knit on.... for a couple minutes

A girl in curlers - and a weird brother

Week 17, I believe, of the school year for Camden, wearing her Tallulah and a skirt she made

A flaming gas leak in the neighborhood gets you booted from your home, which means library time

Across the Pond, Across the River, Tomato, Tomahto

Whoah.  Y'all, this shawl is PRETTY, but.....

A.  I had no classy backdrops against which to photograph it

B.  It's not for ME  :(

Sucks, right???  I love it and had wanted the Across the Pond Shawl by Mina Philipp (her website, Ravelry group and Knitting Expat podcast) for MYSELF, when the pattern first came out.  After my mother-in-law saw my Windswept shawl last year, though, she wanted one for HERSELF.  That presents two problems:  I don't want to repeat a shawl when I have a million other shawl patterns I want to knit AND my hands hurt so much when I was working on it, though it IS my favorite shawl thus far, aha!  After further questioning, it turns out my mother-in-law liked the whole two-colors situation and overall simplicity, I think, so, I told her I had it covered, LOL.

You'd think I did NOT check for loose ends...

The pattern was crazy easy, which was helpful, as I wanted to whip through it quickly, as I have SO MUCH TO DO.  In the lace section, per my normal state of LIFE, I tried to make things difficult by getting off-count a few times, but I survived to write about it.  It was my first Mina pattern, and she wrote it up nicely - AND concisely.  I way recommend it!  I want a crescent shawl for myself one of these days!  I'm blanking on whether or not I have one, but that matters not ;)

I used lovely yarn, naturally - purchased by Matt's mom, though recommended by yours truly.  The Hazel Knits Entice was purchased at Twisted in Portland.  I used the Vamp and Nekkid colorways, and there is enough left for me to make socks for Tiberius - yay!

I PROMISE i checked for loose ends...but there it is again

I will wrap it up for her and drop it off this weekend, along with some artwork from Tiberius and Camden!

And....life recently....

Reading their Usborne books!

Still trying to squeeze in Aspen Hall days

Awesome scone recipe!!!

When Voolenvine, Hazel Knits and Joji Locatelli Meet

Oh, y'all....how I love this cowl!  Shall I count the ways???

I'll spare you, LOL.

Pardon my crazy lips :O

Blocking creases and my healing lip aside, this 3 Color Cashmere Cowl is crazy awesome.  It happily knit up in two weeks (thank YOU, Joji Locatelli - FB page - for a mostly-mindless pattern).  The pattern is crazy easy, though I did have to back out a few times in the lace portion...missing yarn-overs and whatnot.  Silly stuff.

What WAS difficult, though, was the choosing of yarn.  I knew from the beginning that I wanted to use Voolenvine yarn (FB page).  I believe I originally planned this out, and I had ordered three colorways, enlisting Kristin's help in complimenting colors.  I had wanted to use Dirty on Purpose and Nevermore, both on the Wolke base, a lovely merino/cashmere/nylon blend, but that proved an ill match.  Nevermore didn't stand out enough against the Dirty on Purpose, especially where it mattered in those thin stripes.  Royal Amber was the one constant, LOL; it seemed to look good with anything!  I pulled out a million skeins of yarn, knowing I just couldn't use Nevermore.  And, as luck would have it, because I really WANTED to use stash yarn, I was unable to locate the right sort of purple or teal (first-world problems, but LEGIT problems, people), which I knew would be great contenders.  So, I had to put off casting on until a trip to Twisted in Portland.  I knew THEY would probably have a lovely skein of Hazel Knits (FB page that would work.  I ended up finding just the thing in the Entice MCN, in the colorway Orchid.

Thank ME, the photographer, for capturing THAT side of the cowl ;)

It all worked out in the end, and the cowl only took me about two weeks from start to finish, which was awesome (though it felt LONGER, what with fingering weight yarn, aha!).

Date night with Camden's friends!

Tea time!

Camden's Vancouver besties!!!

Future Doodler Shawl???

Project bag prizes sent off to Adelaide Cottage and The Knitting Broomstick!

Making a project!

And below is a cool Link-Up Party I'm a part of over at Paisley Roots this month!  You know....Karly of Saffron dress fame????

An InLinkz Link-up