Showing off my grandchildren!

Here I am today, just like a proud grandmother seeing her new grandchildren for the first time. Several people have finished my Veil of Isis and Saigon designs, and I collected some pictures for you to share. It gives me a large amount of pleasure to see my designs crafted so well by these skilled knitters, and I hope you enjoy them as I am.

The first two pictures are from Kathy, who knit Isis using Skacel Merino Lace weight. You can see her piece blocking and worn by a darling model. You can visit Kathy and see more of her work here:
http://thepointofknitting.blogspot.com/

The next Isis is from Jane VanDenburg. She used Alpaca/Merino yarn. I love the contrast in her photograph.

The next three pictures are from Mary. You can see her Isis blocking and also worn. The third shot shows her corner. She added extra beads to the edging and I love the way it looks. Mary used Valley Yarns Alpaca/Silk. You can visit Mary and see more of her work here:

http://beads-n-lace.livejournal.com/


The next two pictures show Susanna's Isis. She used Malabrigo Lace, and the color variation works very well. I wish I could wrap myself up in those purples.

These are Susanna's guys, from left to right, Solomon, Zachary, and Nicholas. They are visiting with LucyFur in a virtual way today. Such a content looking trio, eh?
The next picture is from Susie, who knit Isis using KnitPicks Alpaca Cloud yarn. More beautiful work from Susie... I would like to mention that Susie made an extended chart for Isis and many people have praised it. You can find her chart in the files section of my Yahoogroup.
Last, but certainly not least, Judith Gilbert sent me this picture of her Saigon Scarf, still on the needles. I would like to wrap up in this one too!
If you are interested in knitting either The Veil of Isis or The Saigon Scarf, you can find company at my YahooGroup or on Ravelry. You can link to my YahooGroup on the left hand side of the blog. If you are on Ravelry, you can find people knitting Isis here:

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/the-veil-of-isis/people

I will be back with a look at what is on my needles, and some fine show-and-tell, later in the week. Until that time, knit on!

Wrap it up!

I thought I would take a moment to review some of what this Saigon Scarf project was about. I worked through some new patterns to see how they transitioned from one to the next with some success. I tried a new edging design, also with some success. I tried a new bead technique (the double beads) with some success. All in all, this has been an excellent swatch. I hope this will now become a few different new projects in the new year. I am leaving you with this one final chart, as promised. If you prefer symmetry, start with chart 1, knit chart 2 until the desired length, and end with this final chart. It will look very nice...

My Final Materials and Finished Size:
-I used #8 square-hole, gold lined Japanese seed beads for all beads.
-I Used 1 skein of Elann Baby Lace (Alpaca/Merino lace weight yarn) 50gms (600 yards/skein.) Another great choice would be Jade Sapphire Lacey Lamb (one ball.)
-I Used US 2 knitting needles. My gauge was 5 stitches to the inch firmly blocked in stockinette stitch. My finished dimensions were 11 inches wide and 51 inches long blocking. It relaxed after I unpinned it.
-I used a US #13 crochet hook.
-Yarn needle for finishing and T-pins for blocking.

I would like to remind everyone that this is the final post in a series, with the label"Saigon." Please review all posts in this series before casting on. This project is offered for your personal use, without a fee, but I request you take a look at the first post in this series, where I discuss my design inspiration and suggest a charitable donation from all knitters of this design who have the resources! Happy holidays, in plenty of time for you to knit this scarf as a gift!

My next post will be later this weekend on a totally new track. Meow.

The home stretch...

I finished Saigon just in time for my daughter to wear her to a party. They both looked lovely. Here is the final chart for "the original" version, but I will post one last chart at the end of this week, for those knitters who crave symmetry. I will also post my wrap-up, including final yarn-yardage use and project comments. I want to remind everyone that this is part of a series of posts, and you must review all the posts with the "Saigon" label to follow the process. Knit on!

A Thanksgiving Medley...

We have much to be thankful for, here at BadCat's home. Good food, good knitting, wonderful family and friends...what more could I ask for?

We are a frenzy of cooking, so I thought we would share more recipes. First we have sprouts, which will be roasted before serving. I modified this recipe and left out the bacon, to please my vegetarians: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/233407

Next we have the chestnut stuffing, which is almost this recipe: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/810 Some is in the turkey and some is in a pan and will be baked away from the bird, also to please my vegetarians!
Here is the red wine my brother sent over. The white is equally as good and in the fridge chilling. You can start drooling any time now...
Here is Hello Kitty, dissecting the turkey ventricle. I would like to point out that she is one of my vegetarians. She won't eat it, but in the name of science, she will make the most of it.
Here is the fourth chart for The Saigon Scarf, in case you have nothing to knit between dinner courses! There is one chart left to go after today, which I will post early next week, along with the alternate ending for those who selected symmetry. The final picture below the chart shows you the entire scarf, blocking, with an indication of where each chart begins. Please remember that this is one in a series of posts, and you need to review all the posts with the Saigon label to follow along! Meow...

Saigon Scarf Transition

This is the fifth in a series of posts. If you are new to the party, please take a few minutes to review all posts with the "Saigon" label.

The chart I am posting today is a transition chart from the current pattern to the next pattern. This chart is knit once, after you have completed as many repeats of chart two as you wanted. The pattern we are moving into is really interesting and fun to work. Everyone who has seen me knitting it likes it. That said, if you feel conservative you are welcome to continue knitting chart two until the scarf is a good length and wait for me to post a final chart for you. That will be when I am done and make a chart that reverses chart one. If you are more adventurous, follow me... This picture illustrates the section you will be knitting with today's chart. What you won't appreciate until blocking is the movement in the pattern. This is a good exploration of lace patterning, where the increases and decreases begin near each other and move away from each other, creating undulations in the fabric. The border of this scarf achieves scallops the same way. Enjoy! The next chart will be posted after Thanksgiving. More glamorous food photos to come!

Saigon Post Four

Here is the next Saigon Scarf chart, and it should keep you knitting for quite a few days. I did 12 repeats for mine. The next two charts, to be posted in the next two weeks, will be for the more adventurous. If you're feeling more conservative I will post alternate direction, but for those of you who are willing to give in to something different, join me as I morph from this chart to the next when I post again.

The long road of scarf is coming together. I had a wonderful evening with my daughter, swapping tunes on YouTube. If you haven't checked it out, I highly recommend it. My daughter showed me a little Avril Lavigne and Vanessa Carlton and I showed her some Avril Lavigne doing Bob Dylan and Counting Crows doing Joni Mitchell, and we did a little Avril Levigne's version of Bob Dylan's "Knocking on Heaven's Door" with my daughter singing and me playing guitar, having a long discussion about protest songs and war, today and in 1973 when I was the same age as my daughter..I had a good momma moment. So back to knitting... Here is where you can see Chart 2 knitted, details below. Please be sure you review all the previous posts with "Saigon" as the label before you start this project, because we are several posts in. I insist. The next post will be up early next week, and might include more food and less knitting because I am cooking for Thanksgiving and that is my most favorite holiday of all.

The kitty says "knit on!" Meow.

I am one step ahead of myself...

So I will try not to trip! I had the pleasure of watching MicroCosmos last night. It is an extremely cool and up-close look at insects (and some other small creatures.) There is an amazingly sensual snail sequence that I still can't get over, and that is all I have to say about that...watch it for yourselves. Saigon wasn't quite as impressed by the bugs...but I have made some reasonable progress on her anyway, and because I had some unexpected time to myself this evening, I decided to get the first chart up. The close-up below shows where the first chart will take you. I am working with lace-weight yarn on US #2 needles and 8 Japanese seed beads, and I think this project will look best in this fine a gauge. Choose for yourselves!
Don't forget that all the pages of this pattern are in landscape view, so print them as such. Please read every post in the series and print all the pattern pages before you begin to knit. This is pattern page 2. If you click on the Saigon label at the end of this post, you will get the entire series of posts, to date. Use this first chart as a "swatch," to see if you like your gauge. Fool around with different needle sizes until you get the look you like before moving ahead.
I decide to spend my free time posting and knitting (and not blocking,) so these are the pictures you are getting for right now! The second chart will be up within a week. Knit on!

Let the game begin

I would like to start by reminding my dear readers that this is the second in a series of posts which will include the full directions for a lace scarf I am currently working on. I respectfully request you take a moment to read the previous posts for the full experience. Each post will build on the previous posts, so at the end you will have a cohesive pattern. If you jump in in the middle, just go to the "Saigon" label at the bottom of any related post to catch up.

And so, here is the first section (and some of the second.) It is pinned out and not wet-blocked, so the picture is just a general idea of what the final piece will look like. Excuse my pinning, but the front edge will actually be rounded (without the scallops.) The side edges have scallops created by the placement of the yarn-overs in relation to the compensatory decreases. There are small "flowers" running up the center, highlighted with beads. I don't think this pictures is that worthwhile, but it was the best I could do tonight, and I wanted to get things going. I will try to wet-block my progress and photograph it for the next post.
The following is page one of the Saigon Scarf pattern. All the pages in this pattern will print best in landscape mode. As usual, if you notice any errors or have a question, feel free to leave me a comment. Anyone wishing to knit along is welcome to join my low chat Yahoo group. The link is along the left edge of the blog.
Look for the first chart and more pictures by next weekend. Meow...

An Early Holiday Gift

Over the next month, I will be posting charts for a new design. It will be either a scarf or stole, dictated by the weight yarn you choose to use. The design is asymmetrical but classic and includes 1 or 2 sizes of beads, and lace. It will be a mystery only in that I will post my knitting progress as I post the charts. You can choose to knit with me, and see the design develop as we go, or wait until I finish and decide if you like it! If you knit with me it will be a holiday gift, in time to give to someone you like enough to knit for.

In the spirit of holiday gift-giving, I ask that everyone with the resources, who knits this pattern, considers making a small donation to an organization I work with. The organization is World Wide Orphans (WWO) and a link to their website is here:
http://www.wwo.org/
This link also gives you information about the organization:
http://www.orphandoctor.com/wwo/
If you let me know how much you donated in an email to BadCatDesigns@verizon.net
I will keep a running total of our giving on the blog. If you don’t have the resources to donate money right now, join us anyway and give how and when you can.

I have been to Viet Nam several times with WWO, and the flavor of the country is amazing. This new design tries to share the mood of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon.) The city is traditional and modern at the same time. I suggest golds, oranges, reds and purples. The yardage required will vary by the size you want and the gauge you get, but about 800 yards should do it in any gauge. If you need a very specific yardage and bead tally, wait until the full pattern is posted at the end of the month.

I will be using these materials:
The finished width will be dictated by the weight of yarn you choose, so check your gauge with the yarn you like to estimate the width of your final piece. At the widest point the piece is 53 stitches across. The first chart I post (which will actually be the third post in the series) will be a gauge swatch and also the first section of the scarf/stole. The finished length is up to the knitter. The beads are optional, but add to the design.

Here’s to a joyous upcoming holiday season for all of us!
Meow…