A shawl or a hood? How about both in one?

Well, it's still a shawl, actually. But it turned out huge, so you can play with it a little. For example, you can turn it into a hood. Pull the hood down, and you get a cowl. Perfect for every hat-hater:)

The yarn I used for this shawl is 60% mohair and 40% acrylic, about one kilometer:) I like it, and I'll definitely knit from it again. It's mohair, but not very hairy. And very delicate, so it shouldn't irritate sensitive skin.

And I like the stripes it forms:)

Back to knitting triangles

Oh, how I missed it! The excitement of rapidly growing shawl in the beginning and the disbelief of how the speed of growing slows with every new row... One final row takes as much time as the first 10 inches of the whole thing:)

But I really love it. Especially the moment when you cast off and then wash and block the triangle. Only then does the lacy pattern come to life. And only then you see the full awesomeness (that's my favorite word recently:)) of what you've just knitted:)

Anyway, here's the latest addition to my Etsy shop: a winter shawl with lacy edging. Pastel colors, various shades of pink, green and beige. Blend of wool and acrylic.

I've already started knitting another one, this time from something lighter with 60% of mohair (but also very soft and delicate). Here's the teaser:

I want to finish it asap and add it to the shop, so you can buy it before the Black Friday - Cyber Monday sales end. Because I am having a special sale: 10, 20, 30% off, reduced shipping costs, and with every purchase -  a 10% discount coupon on a future order. New knits are not discounted, but you still get reduced shipping and a coupon. The shop is full of great Christmas gifts, so check it out!

www.AmadeitKnits.Etsy.com

Cowl-mania continues

It seems like all I've been knitting recently are scarf substitutes:) Whatever you call them - cowls, neckwarmers or hoods - here they are:

 

 

And since I'm a bit tired of this monotony, I've started knitting a new shawl. My favorite alpaca with virgin wool and acrylic will soon become another light and lacy something:) Here's the teaser:

Gift ideas and a small sale

I've been knitting like crazy recently - and I'm not complaining:) But as Christmas is approaching, I put my needles away for a while, and decided to search Etsy for some gorgeous items from other Polish artists. Not an easy task, as there are so many of them:)
This is the treasury I came up with. Have a look, maybe you'll find a perfect gift for your loved ones.

A small announcement from my own shop: there's a weekend sale (Nov 5-7), all cowls are 20% off.
(And there will be more pre-holiday sales, and more items added soon)

It's a beautiful world, and I'm a part of it:)

The gray scarf I showed you here finally made it to the other side of the Atlantic (although it took longer than I'd expected). Karen, who bought it, writes about it here. I loved knitting this scarf - the yarn, the pattern, everything. And I am so happy to hear that Karen is happy with her purchase:)

There is a "it's-a-small-world" story behind that sale. I am still relatively new to Etsy, discovering awesome things every day. There is a feature called "Treasury", which is basically about making collections of interesting items available in various Etsy stores. When I first learned about it I just had to make one myself:) I called it "Back to Wuthering Heights". This is what it looked like (well, almost, one item is missing):

Back to Wuthering Heights

One of the items I included in that treasury was a gorgeous bracelet cuff made by WillOaksStudio (second item in the second row in the picture above). Karen, who is the owner of this shop, emailed me, and told me, she used to live in the city I live in! How cool is that?! A stranger living thousands of miles from me, met completely by chance, once walked the same streets, looked at the same buildings, enjoyed (I hope) the post-industrial atmosphere of Łódź. You've got to love the Internet!:)

I'd love to show you the said streets, buildings and atmosphere. And one day I will. But for now, let me take you to my favorite part of Łódź. Below are some photos I took at our Botanic Garden last Friday.

there are many sundials in the garden - this is my favorite

 

apparently butterflies love asters

for some creatures it was a very busy day:)

another sundial

a perfect model...

... and another one

this magpie wanted to befriend some ducks...

...but they weren't interested

lunch time:)

and finally, the most beautiful tree in the garden

Olive-green cowl

I've been knitting cowls like a maniac recently:) This one was made to order, so it's a bit wider than usual. Knitted from a blend of mohair with acrylic, ribbed (so it stretches).

Perfect for hat-haters - you just wear it around your neck, and when your head freezes, you pull it over like a hood.

All my cowls are seamless - there is no thick stitch on the side. And I knit them around the neck, not from the bottom up:) So how come they're seamless? Well, being the lazy gal I am, I just knit a rectangle from a provisional cast-on, and then, when the whole thing is long enough, I grab a needle and join both ends using the Kitchener stitch. Just like that:

It's actually easier than it looks, but I need to be extra careful to lead the needle the right way. Otherwise, it won't look as seamless as it should:)

I have two more cowls to show, but for now, this one will have to do. And soon I'll be able to show a new lace scarf (I'm finishing it off right now). Plus, there is one more thing from this olive-green mohair: an infinity scarf. I'd love to say I'm finishing that one too, but since it's infinity, it might actually take a while:)

Presenting two new scarves

Number one: a lacy scarf knitted from a blend of alpaca, virgin wool and acrylic. Awesome yarn, very delicate, soft and fun to work with.

And not that I want to brag, but I think the scarf turned out awesome, too:)

Scarf number 2 is a winter one. Deep gray, almost black, not very wide and not very long. But definitely very warm.

Work(s) in progress

The most important project I'm working on now is this:

Doesn't look like much yet, but when it's blocked, it will be great. And it doesn't represent the real color too well - the photo was taken in bad light. It's the gray yarn from my last post - a light and natural shade of gray.

But before I started that, I just had to try other yarns I got on Monday:) This is wool with acrylic that in about one skein will become a man scarf. Great yarn, very easy to work with. And a quick knit:)

And this one is going to be a high cowl, working as a hoodie on demand. Someone will be able to pull it over their head when it's cold:)

And now, back to knitting:)

Supplies!

I love buying new yarns! Especially when I get samples of other products (but honestly, who doesn't like that?).This time I went both light and heavy.

Light is for lace shawls. It's a blend of alpaca, virgin wool and acrylic - a fantastic yarn, great to work with, and great to wear. I've already used it for a project (this shawl, to be specific), so I know, that I'm in for a lot of fun:)
The colors I got are natural, one a bit beige and one a bit gray. Love them both. The gray one is already cast on - I'm knitting a lace scarf, my first order via Etsy. Yay!

The heavies are for winter items. I have a deep gray, almost black wool&acrylic blend for a man scarf, and olive green mohair/acrylic for a cowl. The first one is a bit bulky, which is fun, as it means it will be a quick project (well, I already have half of it:)). The other is a different color of yarn I used for this and one other thing I haven't photographed yet.

Photos of what I'm making - coming up soon:)