Thank you, EZ!

How can it be that I've never knitted Elizabeth Zimmermann's Baby Surprise Jacket until now? Her original design debuted in the 1960's, and has totally stood the test of time. It's genius! So I have no excuse.

I recently purchased a Subtle Stripes Spinning Kit from cosymakes. Cosette's colors are fabulous. Check 'em out!

I handspun the wonderfully soft BFL wool into approximate 200 yards in sport/DK weight. It worked into this sweater beautifully. I was, however, a bit short on the yardage, so I pulled it together with some of my other hand-dyed handspun yarns that coordinated nicely.

Add a few vintage buttons, and ta-dah! A beautiful little jacket for a sweet baby!!

I was there...were you?!

The official word isn't in yet, but just look at how many knitters turned out to try and break the Guinness World Record for the most knitters knitting simultaneously! On Friday, August 7th, knitters from around the world gathered during the Sock Summit in Portland, Oregon to attempt to break the record. To date, the record was set in Australia at a whopping 256. I think we did it!

Here's a cropped view...see! There I am...knitting away! Being surrounded by knitters from all over the world was amazing. And of course, with the Yarn Harlot (Stephanie Pearl-McPhee) as our delightful leader, it was great fun!

Take a look at the local TV news coverage here. Pretty cool!

Down to Earth Socks

This has been a great project. Often I have design ideas that look wonderful in my mind's eye, then in reality just don't match up. This is one those rare times when it actually comes out as planned!

I started with sock blanks, hand painted them (more about that another time) and then knit theminto these great socks. They're called "Down to Earth" for the color transitions from sky, clouds, water, grass, soil and rocks. Take a look.

And here are a few close-ups of the detail.


Legs : Grass - - - -> Water - - - - > Cloudy Sky - - - ->


Ankles: Soil - - - -> Grass - - - ->


Toes: Rocks - - - -> Soil - - - -> Grass - - - ->