WIP Wednesday: Gusset of the Ice Cream Sundae Socks

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Well, the Ice Cream Sundae Socks are coming along, I'm through the gusset and onto the foot proper. I've actually been neglecting them for the past few days, I'm working on a few other projects that I can't show quite yet (exciting, I know)!

I had a bit of a surprise while working these, though, because the one thing I didn't plan for is that the stitch pattern I'm working with fits nicely into 60 and 72 sts. . . but not into 30.  So I had to do some on-the-fly adjustments to make it work on the top of the foot!

As I mentioned in my previous post, yarn is a 2017 exclusive colourway from Eat.Sleep.Knit: Queen Frostline Sundae on *Blue Moon Fiber Arts Super Sparkle. I took these to a Craftic Meetup, and it seems many people like the sparkle socks!  I'm usually not a huge fan of sparkle yarn, but this seems to work quite well, and,  I admit, is causing me to re-evaluate my position on sparkly yarn.  Needles are 2mm (US 0) *HiyaHiya Double-Pointed Needles.   And the wonderful yarn bowl that's containing everything so nicely is my wooden yarn bowl from *NaturalKnotWood.  Yes, it's light enough that I can just have it on my lap while knitting -- I can't say the came about the ceramic yarn bowls I've tried. 

I'm hoping to get at least one sock cleared off the needles soon so I can post the test-knit call.  Stay tuned for more progress!

Thanks for reading, as always, and I'd love to see what you're making on this WIP Wed.  Please, feel free to post crafty projects pictures, or other fun stuff in the comments!

WIP Wednesday: More on the Ice Cream Sundae Socks!

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Well, I've been working diligently on the Ice Cream Sundae Socks, and as of this morning, I'm now about to pick up stitches for the gusset!  For those who are following along on my Patreon Behind-the-Scenes, yes, I did manage to finish the heel flap yesterday!  

The yarn is a 2017 exclusive colourway from Eat.Sleep.Knit: Queen Frostline Sundae on *Blue Moon Fiber Arts Super Sparkle. Needles are 2mm (US 0) *HiyaHiya Double-Pointed Needles.  I'm actually excited to be working the gusset -- these have knit up a lot faster the projects usually do.  (Then again, I've been dedicating a lot of time to them!)  The *silver rose stitch marker is another awesome Etsy find from *EfficientSense's Etsy Store. (She's in Toronto, for the local folks, so shipping was incredibly quick!)

Well I do credit my productivity with the fact that I've been listening to some new podcasts while I knit!

Sadly, I forget who introduced me to it (I heard about it somewhere on the internet, but I know that's amazingly vague), but I've been listening to The Marketing Companion podcast while I knit.  It's all about marketing, social media, SEO, and other really interesting stuff. If you're looking for knitting/fiber arts  content you'll be disappointed, but if you're a small business, or a creative business, it's definitely worth a listen and I find it fascinating!

Anyway, that's this week's WIP Wed!  Thanks for reading, and as always, I'd love to see what crafty things you folks are up to!  Please, post your WIPs in the comments so I can share in the awesomeness! 

WIP Wednesday: Ice Cream Sundae Socks

**This post contains affiliate links.  Any link marked with an * may give me a reward or commission if you visit and/or purchase something using that link.  And, if you do purchase from my affiliate links, thank you for supporting my yarn habit!**

It's a new WIP this week for WIP Wed!  These are the Ice Cream Sundae Socks, and they're slated as the 3rd Quarter pattern release for my Pattern Muses over on Patreon!  (Don't worry, they'll be available to the general public, Pattern Muses just get to have input on the pattern design process!)

Honestly, I'm not 100% sold on the name.  I originally planned these in a different yarn, and when I switched, the name didn't make sense. So, I settled on Ice Cream Sundae, partially because of the yarn, and partially because of the stitch pattern.   If you've got an opinion on the name, please, hop over to Patreon and voice it as one of my Pattern Muses!

So, the yarn I'm using is an Eat.Sleep.Knit exclusive from last year's Yarnathon -- Queen Frostline Sundae on *Blue Moon Fiber Arts Super Sparkle.  I was quite worried about how it would pool, but it's working up quite well, I think!

Needles are 2mm (US 0) *HiyaHiya Double-Pointed Needles, which is pretty much my usual for knitting socks. (it's 2mm or 2.25mm, it seems!)

The yarn bowl is my amazing find from *NaturalKnotWood.  I'm seriously thinking of getting a few more yarn bowls from their store, next chance I get!

I'm actually quite happy with how these are turning out, I have to admit. I really wasn't sure the yarn would work with the stitch pattern, but it actually does quite well.

Well, that's it for this week!  As always, I'd love to see what you crafty folks are making out there, and it doesn't have to be knitting! Please, post your own crafty awesomeness to the comments below!

WIP Wednesday: Symbol Gloves

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Ok.  So back to another major WIP -- the Symbol Gloves! "Gloves" is a bit of misnomer, since they're actually going to be fingerless mittens.  But, either way, they're still working out ok. 

The double-knitting is getting faster the more I do it, which is good, but it's still far slower then my normal knitting speed.  And, I'm into the chart now, which means that it's quite slow. Unlike normal colourwork, which I can get through relatively quickly, double-knitting colourwork takes a lot more time (and a lot more brain-power)!

Yep.  Double knitting definitely isn't television knitting.  At least not for me, not yet.  I -might- take these to knit night.  Maybe. Depends on how daring I am, I guess?

These are on my *2mm double-pointed HiyaHiya needles, and that seems to be working out well.  Yarn is *Northbound Knitting Superwash Merino/Nylon Fingering, in "Littoria" and "Espresso."  The silver feather stitch marker is another awesome find from *EfficientSense's Etsy Store. 

I do have to say, one major take-away is that new knitting techniques do get easier with practice!  Double-knitting always seemed so scary to me, and now it's not.   I won't call it easy, (maybe one day!) but it's no longer nearly as intimidating as it was when I started working on these!  It's a reminder that any knitting skill is learn-able with enough practice!

One challenge I'm having with it though; and maybe those folks who are better at double-knitting then me can answer:  My yarn keeps twisting.  It's like what happens if you don't keep dominance in colourwork.   Is this supposed to happen or am I doing something I shouldn't?  It's not unbearable, but I'm wondering if I'm missing something.   Thanks in advance for any advice on this one!

As always, thanks for reading!  And I've love to see what you're making on this WIP Wed!  (And not just knitting, anything crafty!)  Feel free to post your own WIPs in the comments here!

WIP Wednesday: Crochet Scarf and Hood

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Ok. So the Crochet Scarf and Hood is -almost-done! (And yes, it needs a better name, I know.)  

I'm in the finishing stage, and while I don't usually like sewing, this one really isn't too bad!  For some reason, I find sewing crochet actually a lot easier then sewing knitting.  I have no idea why, but it's a consistent thing for me. 

Anyway, I got a bit of seaming done on this on the train, of all places, while I was travelling to the Ontario Welsh Festival over the weekend. (If you want to read my attempts at Welsh, you can check out my Facebook post or Public Patreon Post about the Festival!)  The picture was taken once I got home, though. 

I'm honestly not sure exactly how long of a seam I'll need for the hood -- I'm trying it on as I go.  Once I get the prototype completely finished, I'll figure out the seam length when I grade the pattern for size.   It's definitely too warm to wear this right now - Spring has definitely finally arrived, but that means it'll be sure to be done for this Winter, which is exciting!

Yarn is one of the January *Exclusive Colourways from *EatSleepKnit -- "Sea Witch" on *Blue Moon Fiber Arts Silky Targhee.  It's a wonderful yarn to work with -- I was worried about how it would pool, but the pooling's actually worked in my favour!  (For those who still want some of the 'Sea Witch' colourway, at the time of this writing it's *still available on the "Featherlight" base.)

The hook I used is a 3.75 mm (US F) hook from Turn of the Century.  I've written oodles about the awesome-ness of these hooks before, so I'll close by saying that they are amazing, and these hooks are probably the big reason I got back into crochet!

I'm hoping to get this finished up and onto testing soon -- if all goes according to plans, I'm hoping for a Fall/Winter release for this!  So, as always, stay tuned here for test-knit calls and new releases!

Well, I hope you enjoyed this week's WIP Wed, and stay tuned for next week's post!  As always, I'd love to see what you're working on in the blog comments -- and it doesn't have to be crochet or knitting!  

Thanks for reading!

May Featured Pattern and Mini-KAL: Spring Leaves Market Bag

Hello everyone, and welcome to my May Featured Pattern!  

It looks like we're finally into Spring, so, the Spring Leaves Market Bag is now 50% off for the month of May at $2.75 CAD! (Regular Price, $5.50 CAD). 

This drawstring mesh market bag was designed with spring in mind -- for the days of Farmer's Markets; Outdoor picnics; or for carrying a towel to the pool or beach. It's knit in a sturdy cotton/linen blend, though any sturdy yarn would hold up well. A twisted cord drawstring allows for easy carrying and helps to keep the bag tied shut.

Photography: Stephanie Wallace

CAD $2.75

You can buy the pattern through Ravelry or Etsy, the discount is available on both platforms.  The discount should be applied automatically on Ravelry, and be visible on Etsy.   As always, let me know if something doesn't work!

Now as usual, onto the Mini-KAL!

For the month of May, a finished Spring Leaves Market Bag has a chance to win a pattern from any of my self-published patterns!  To enter on the blog, simply post a link to your completed Spring Leaves Market Bag in the comments of this post by May 31, 2018.  Please note that the bag doesn't have to have been started in May, just finished in May!

You can also win by posting to the giveaway on Facebook, my Ravelry Group, and on Instagram, giving 4 chances to win in total!*

I always look forward to seeing your Finished Objects! Please post them to various social media with #SarahDawnsDesigns, and/or to my Ravelry Group if you're on Ravelry.  That way, I can see the awesome that you folks make!

*One entry per person for each project per platform (four possible entries total for each completed project). Winners will be drawn at random using random number generation. Winners must be 18+ years of age, and have a valid e-mail address to receive the patterns. Participants may enter the same project on more then one platform, but may only enter each project once per platform.