just keep knitting

The chill has returned to the air again, and so, out came all my scarves and hats and accessories; I was very excited about this. I knotted a red scarf around my neck as I headed out for class last night, and all the way there thanked God I had called the mechanic, because in addition to a weird noise, the car had a weird smell. Then I got into the building and realized the weird smell was coming from my scarf. Ahhah. Gross.

So all of it took a spin in the wash last night as soon as I got home from class, in the cold water wash of the delicate cycle, and went immediately into the dryer on the fluff setting so it wouldn't mildew. Not that it would over night, but I wasn't taking any chances. It's fall, and the laundry is in the basement. 

Of course I forgot that the pony tail hat that I knit a few seasons ago was in that load, and that it's fibre content is 100% merino wool and shouldn't have gone into the dryer on the fluff setting, so it felted. It used to be all lovely and cover my ears, and now as you can see, not so much. How the hat made from the raspberry coloured 100% merino wool that I purchased in Britain made it through the same laundry cycle unscathed remains a mystery, but it looks like I have to make myself a new pony hat, at least, if I want my ears covered. It is snug to my head now though. That has it's perks

Fall tends to be my knitting season. It's getting colder, the thought of holding something warm like wool isn't so onerous. I learned to knit in the fall... okay, maybe it was closer to the winter, but it was the fall semester of undergraduate. 

I was looking for something fairly simple and mindless to work on while I was waiting for things; like appointments or class to start [I can knit and read at the same time - mad, mad skills] and I found a pattern for a 19th century honeycomb scarf which was so remarkably easy. I used 5.0 mm circular needles with a worsted weight yarn of unknown fibre content [I'm guessing an acrylic] in a dark navy blue. So, so easy. It came from the book "Sock Yarn One-Skein Wonders", edited by Diana Foster. Lots of other nice projects, but it was from the library so it had to go back before I could delve into any of them further.  

My only hiccough was the yarn over. The picture in the book showed this lovely open work, and when I began the honeycomb, I had this chunky looking stuff instead.  What?
I first learned to yarn over by wrapping the yarn completely around the needle; so that there was a loop that forms a little X on the right hand needle, before beginning the next stitch. Which when making lace, this method eliminates the hole that you are supposed to be creating, which was what I wanted to be able to create this open work. I had to frog my work several times before finally figuring out that I needed to bring the yarn over the top of the needle, not under and over in a loop and X.  Once I got past that, it was smooth sailing. Live and learn.

what's up next on the knitting needles? hmm... I'm not sure yet. But I have this aqua alpaca I've been dying to give a go.