Knitting & Nuptuals

I have a confession to make. Ok, apart from sneaking scoops of Nutella when no one is looking. I have been planning my wedding from the time I was about 8. 

The madness started when I received the "My Perfect Wedding" board game (I kid you not - it existed and it was fantastic). The object of the game was to successfully book your band, flowers, dress, etc with enough money left over to walk down the aisle and get married. The game pieces include plastic engagement rings in four different colors and the grand prize of a yellow plastic wedding band. I think people got sick of me playing it so much, so I played with my dad a lot (insert Father of the Century award here).

By the time I was a tween, my best friend and I would go over what dress we wanted to walk down the aisle in, color of flowers and bridesmaid dresses, and who our celebrity groom would be (I'd like you all to know that I called dibs on Jonathan Taylor Thomas, my friend chose Andrew Keegan and we were both lived happily ever after in our imaginary marriages).

As time went on, I luckily found myself helping those around me as they planned and executed the most important day of their lives. Two of my closest friends got married over the past year, a few more are about to - and now, as I see myself close to accepting a proposal from my boyfriend of a year, I am increasingly looking at the smaller details of wedding planning. Specifically, I'm looking at how my knitting skills/obsession can be intertwined in all of this.

I'm not a huge fan of the "garter" tradition myself - but a hand knit garter is a great way for someone to contribute to a wedding. The stitches are usually quite fine, as is the quality of the yarn used. Hand knit garters take a lot of time and care to create, and therefore can be a great option for a mother-in-law, grandmother, godmother, aunt, or friend to give to a bride-to-be.

Another hand knit item could be either bomboniere (thank-you gifts) for attendees or for a bridal shower. Hand knit doilies, wash cloths, tea cozies, coffee cozies, etc etc. These can be of course be part of a theme (i.e tea-party themed bridal shower, wash cloth for spa themed shower and so on) or just be something special you decided to knit up as a thank you for your guests. If you chose to have a bridal party, you can make knitting nights with them and everyone can have a hand at creating something as well.

There are many benefits to knitting thank-you favors. First, it can be very budget friendly (depending on the yarn used). Cotton washcloths are usually knit up using about $2 worth of cotton yarn each. Second, it can be an effective way to de-stash and use up your free time while still enjoying knitting.

The downsides, however is mainly that some guests may not appreciate the time, talent and effort of a hand-knit item. Depending on the size of the wedding and the number of attendees, knitting up dozens - or hundreds - of favors may be more effort than it is worth. 

All in all, I think I will try to incorporate some of my knitting passion into my future wedding. After all, apart from a wedding being a celebration of two people's love for each other, I think it's important for it to be personal and display personality and taste.

Until next time,

Little Miss Cowl Co.

Swap Shop Eat

So, I'm officially addicted to swaps.

I've participated in three so far, and have to tell you - they are so much fun!

The latest was with my local knitting group - we decided back in September to do a swap, and have been working away at it ever since. We are a group of about five ladies, and have gotten to know each other quite well over the past couple of years. We're all on Ravelry, and all share our favourite yarns, patterns, ideas etc at our bi-weekly knit nights. We decided to have our swap coincide with Chinese New Year so we would have hopefully jumped over the Christmas rush. We planned a downtown date - brunch at my favourite French bistro, Bonjour Brioche (812 Queen St E) and then off for some yarn shopping at the Purple Purl (1162 Queen St E). 

On my way to swap day!

My swap partner likes coral colours and natural fibres, and doesn't like knitting with chunky yarns herself - so I had a pretty good idea of what I was going to make her. This came with it's fair share of hiccups, though. I initially was going to knit her the Gaptastic Cowl (find the pattern on Ravelry). It is an extra chunky infinity scarf in a seed stitch pattern. I thought it would have been perfect for her - until she showed up at a knit night wearing it! Her daughter had made one in a lovely Raspberry chunky yarn, and it looked wonderful on her. I was about a month away from the swap deadline - and beginning to panic.

I decided to knit her the Clara cowl (also a free pattern on Ravelry) by designer Gretchen Ronnevic. It's a giant cable, and ends up looking like a braid. There is an option to double up and make it an infinity scarf, but I thought the beauty of the detail would have been lost, so I stuck to the original pattern dimensions. I used Diamond Brand Baby Alpaca Sport in a Chunky weight. Here's the finished project below:

Clara Cowl in Coral Alpaca

Clara Cowl in Coral Alpaca

I included the Ravelry anniversary project bag and Closely Knit by Hannah Fattig (who I found out, is my swap partners favourite designer!). I also gave her some extra yarn (about a full skein minus a few yards) so she could make a matching headband or fingerless mitts. Thank goodness she liked the gift (she wouldn't take the cowl off!) and I was in awe of what I received.

The first thing I opened was the book - The Knitter's Life List by Gwen Steege. This book is like a bucket list for knitters - yarns, patterns, ideas etc. It is a crucial step in any knitter's path to becoming a capital-K Knitter. Next was Americo Copito Medio yarn (think "Thick & Thin" but way more luxurious) in a gorgeous eggplant/plum colourway. It came with a hat pattern, which is perfect since I need a hat! I save the best for last...she knit me "Celebrating Azzu's Shawl" by Emma Fassio. The shawl was born out of two friends brought together by knitting - PERFECT! It was knit with Madeline Tosh Tosh Lace in Composition Book Grey. Everything about this shawl is perfect - the idea and thought behind it, colourway, superwash, detail, and love put into every knit, purl and YO.

Celebrating Azzu's Shawl

Swap day is here!

Perfection. I am in love with everything!

To close, I hope everyone reading this has an opportunity at one point in their knitting lives to participate in a swap. Giving something you made to someone else who appreciates all the work and love you put into it is priceless. Receiving something directly related to your knitting passion is wonderful, but most of all - sharing the experience with close friends is incomparable.

Happy swapping and of course, happy knitting!

With love,

Little Miss Cowl Co

Sandra Singh Giveaway!

Hi All!

I thought I would let you, my devoted followers, know of a giveaway going on! There's not much time left to sign up, so read fast and get cracking.

Sandra Singh, a wonderful designer of knitwear and yarns, has posted a super cool giveaway on her blog! She recently designed a cowl called "On The Hudson" - and apart from doing a KAL (Knit A Long) starting February 11th, she has a contest where one lucky winner will not only win the pattern for the cowl, but ALL THE YARN YOU WILL NEED TO COMPLETE IT! Oh my, I checked out the yarn and had a very hard time deciding what my choice of yarn would be.

You can see her yarn at sandrasingh.com (I chose berry hues: Bollywood Fountain Scene, Midnight Blue, Royalty and my favorite, La Boheme).

You can sign up for the contest by following the instructions from her blog:

http://knittingwithsandrasingh.blogspot.ca/2013/01/on-hudson-pattern-kit-giveaway.html

Have fun, and post a comment on my blog to let me know how much competition I will have (if you signed up for it, that is).

Enjoy, and happy knitting!

Love,

Little Miss Cowl Co

January Knitting Escapades

January is usually a pretty quiet knit-month for me. 

Last year, I actually took a hiatus from knitting after suffering through most of December knitting cowls for everyone and their mother (literally). This year, I had plans to start and finish a sweater, maybe a pair of mittens...and possibly a chunky scarf. Not so, said the knitting gods. Not so.

As you read in my previous posts, I did not manage to finish my boyfriend's Christmas gift. I was also working on my super-secret swap project (almost done!), but the kicker...I got more orders. I love getting orders for knitwear. I do. I do. I love knitting something for someone and thinking "she's going to be so warm in this" or "this is one slick looking headband". I love seeing people wear items I knit, I love seeing people warm and I love that my little hands made them warm and comfy and stylish. However, I am slowly inching away from mass knit orders, and crawling towards knitting for myself, my friends, family and of course, my boyfriend.

I have quite the queue going on on Ravelry. The projects that are really really getting my fingers itching are:

"Lu" Cardigan by Perl Grey - yarn will be Fleece Artist Blue Face Leicester Aran in hand-dyed brown/purple/grey tone

"November Sweater" by Meghan Fernandes - yarn will be Sandnes Garn Alpakka in plum

Thrum Mittens by Fleece Artist - yarn will be Fleece Artist Thrum Kit in hand-dyed mixed-berry tone

Cascade Kid Seta Cardigan by Marelie Hurter - yarn will be Knit Picks Shadow Tonal in blue

Check out more of my queue on Ravelry, and feel free to leave me suggestions of patterns I can hopefully love and admire enough to slave over yarn and needles for hundreds of hours on end.

Until next time,

Little Miss Cowl Co

New Year, New Knitting

Happy Friday morning to all!

I have pledged to not necessarily de-stash my incredibly large yarn stash this year. When I wrote "not necessarily", I mean I pledge to use and enjoy my stash - knitting up fabulous little and not-so-little projects with some of the fabulous yarn I have tucked away safely.

Last week, my boyfriend practically forced me to document my stash. I took a picture and popped everything into Ravelry. I now have everything catagorized not only by weight and colour, but dye lot, quantity, and queued it all for intended projects. I then catagorized all my yarn in numbered bins, according to quality and intention. For example:

Bin #1 is my high end swanky yarn - cashmere, silk, alpaca, llama, wool etc. Lace weight, DK, high hopes.

Bin #2 is all my Michaels purchases - kitchen cotton, various Lion Brand yarns, Bernat etc. This is the slightly embarrassing part of my stash, as I have begun to make a reputation for myself as a bonafide yarn snob. I blame this bin on my fear of screwing up on good yarn, so it's my practice yarn.

Bin #3 is all my large quantities of one yarn. I have five each of Abuelita Thick & Thin in grey, pink, taupe and tweed. I have 10+ of Lang Tosca brown/blue, orange/brown, purple/green. This can be to make larger projects, or potentially for more cowls.

Bin #4 is blanket yarn. I bought a TON of Lion Brand (my favourite affordable not-really-luxury yarn) Homespun and Thick and Quick, and have associated afghan and blanket patterns. I'll get to it eventually.

Bin #5 - also known as the cowl bin - is yarn I have been using for the "City Cowl". It is Filtes King Van Dyck yarn, and although I didn't think I had much left, I still have 44 skeins. I have unabashedly hoarded certain colours to potentially make myself a sweater.

Bin #6 - also known as the headband bin - is all my Lion Brand Vanna's Choice. I use this for making bow headbands. It has the perfect colours, is quite soft for an acrylic, and doesn't irritate the ears like a wool might.

So there you have it. If you decide to join Ravelry, add me as a friend and check out my ridiculous stash. I vow to use it and love it and replenish it and keep it organized.

Until next time,

Little Miss Cowl Co

Fibre Follies

Hi, and Happy New Year!

As promised, I am back to blogging promptly after the holidays. I got some awesome knitting swag, worked on some projects - and made some knitting plans for 2013.

If you read my previous post, you would know that I was in a mad knitting frenzy before Christmas. I managed to finish the most adorable cowl/hood and the baby llama blue cowl.

The Burton Bear Cowl was knit on US 13 circular needles with Filtes Van Dyck alpaca/wool/acrylic blend in Black. I knit the ears on straight needles instead of DPN's, which was fast and easy for me. I found two medium size buttons that somewhat matched the suggested button in the pattern, and voila. Cutest. Cowl. Ever. I made it in the child/toddler size, but am seriously contemplating making it in the adult size for myself.

Now, as much as I despise "bathroom shots" - I find them vain - I had no choice. I had to document the adorable cowl before I gifted it. So, you will see me wearing a child's size cowl, and will also catch a glimpse of my sweet sweet Missoni hand towels in the background.

On a more sour note though, I did not manage to complete my boyfriend's scarf. The yarn - which is classified as worsted but is more like a DK - is beautiful, but on a US 5 needle, it's taking me forever to complete. I actually had to switch needles (long story), and it's going a bit faster now.

Speaking of said boyfriend, he gifted me with a gorgeous interchangeable needle set from Knit Picks. I *may* have dropped not-so-subtle hints, but hey, it worked. The set is Harmony wood, and just a dream to work with. So, I put the scarf on those needles and it's been a lot more fun to knit up.

My 2013 knitting plans include a few headbands for January baby birthday gifts, and hopefully to finish this scarf, knit up some cute sweaters and cardigans for myself, and try to use up the awesome stash I have. I have a sneaking feeling that 2013 may be a bit of an expensive year.

Have a wonderful wonderful wonderful New Year - and check me out on Ravelry for knitting news, my queue, stash and fibre follies (user name is, you guessed it, thelittlecowlco).

Much love,

Little Miss Cowl Co.

Christmas Knitting Frenzy

Hi All!

So I said in my previous post that I would check back after Christmas...but I really need to get this off my chest. I am once again in a Christmas knitting frenzy.

Last year, I had just started up my Little Cowl Co, and was so swamped with orders I was pulling all nighters, knitting at red lights, stuck in traffic etc. It was horrible. I even brought my knitting to a bar on a Friday night because I had deadlines. This year has calmed down a bit, but I am still on a December 24th deadline for three projects.

The first is a simple cowl - I'm using Mirasol Miski in dye lot 77315 - a lovely blue with red undertones. It's worsted weight, and I'm used to bulky, so I'm hoping to get this done within an evening of Christmas specials.

The second, a gift for a friend's daughter is the most adorable cowl/hood pattern (http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/the-burton-bear-cowl). I haven't started, and will be seeing them next week. I will be knitting it in a lovely alpaca/wool/acrylic blend with two medium size wood buttons to finish. I was almost done when I had to frog the entire thing (I misread the hood pattern, and got so frusterated that I decided to start fresh and calm). I think I THINK this can get done in three evenings. One for the neck portion, one for the hood portion, one for the ears, seams, button, weaving etc.

The third is the stressful one. It's a surprise Christmas gift for my boyfriend is the New York Scarf (http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/new-york-scarf---a-guys-woolie-warmer). I chose Illimani Yarn Baby Llama in the most interesting shade of grey/brown. It looks grey beside grey and brown beside brown. It's super soft, but for a worsted weight, it feel and knits up more like a DK. I'm 6 inches in, and have 59 inches left to go. I timed my rows, and I average about 2 mins 45 secs per row. This leaves me approximately 21 hours of knitting left to do. Doesn't seem like much, you say? Over the 12 days left until Christmas Eve, that leaves me about 2 hours a day of knitting. Did I mention that I do actually have contact with my boyfriend, meaning the scarf has to go on the backburner while he's around. This equates to me being screwed.

So, those are my three knitting dilemmas. Help. Me.

Signing off and saying a little prayer that I get it all done and have some amount of sanity left over,

Little Miss Cowl Co.