More blocking fun...

But first, some Thanksgiving fun:

Bacchus gate
Downtown Sausalito, CA

Restaurant, with a view of San Francisco, Sausalito, CA

And onto blocking. I finally finished the blueberry scarf, which turned out to be quite skinny, despite casting on30 stitches on 6mm needles. Not a tragedy, the recipient lives in warm LA.
Another chunky white scarf, a gift for a friend. Knitted up in a day and a half. Very simple but pretty stitch pattern,




And onto some Christmas cheer, taken through the front window of a random building in San Francisco's Financial district:

Block Party

I am a major blocking procrastinator. Last night, struck by sudden inspiration, I blocked 3 scarves I finished long ago.


From top to bottom: my first knitting project ever, in an eggplant alpaca boucle yarn; my second knitting project, a cable scarf in Louisa Harding Kashmir Aran yarn; and My So Called Scarf in ONline Linie 149 Rush.


Each scarf had a different blocking need. I was trying to block the ribbed Alpaca scarf for length, as it turned out short and wide. I blocked the cable scarf for width, it turned out long and curled in, pre-blocking. The So Called Scarf needed a good blocking because the nice, chunky yarn in the stitch pattern for the scarf created a suffocatingly dense fabric; I hope the blocking will loosen it up a bit.

I use the wet blocking technique, since I do not have a fun steaming device to use. I soak the piece in warm water, with a few drops Woolite, for 5-10 minutes. Then I pull out the knitting, and roll it up in a clean towel to remove excess water. Then comes the stretching and pinning, which I do either directly on my carpet, or with a sheet between the knitting and carpet. It usually takes 2-3 days to dry, even with a fan going, since I live in a very foggy and damp neighborhood.

My mom is a major contributor to my stash, and she gave me both the ONline Linie 149 Rush and the Alpaca Boucle.


I do love me some cables!




Some holiday cheer: a pecan pie, made last night:

Silk Aran Cowl

FO:

Silk Aran Cowl
Pattern: Quickie Cowl, by Fawn Pea
Yarn: Rowan RYC Natural Silk Aran in color 470 from Knitterly in Petaluma
Needles: 4.5mm green aluminum heirloom needles, passed on from my late aunt



This baby has been languishing at the bottom of my knitting basket since I finished the knitting portion back in March. I blocked at the same time I washed the wee Brûlée. This was my first attempt at wet blocking. Lessons learned: a wash and a soak makes the texture and scent of yarn much softer, and my cast off edge is much tighter than my cast on edge.






My cast off edge was inflexible and difficult to stretch in the blocking process, while my cast on edge was stretchy and easy to pin out.



I love this yarn. The texture, the look, the color are all wonderful. I love the tweedy flecks of orange and yellow contrasting against the raw, natural silk.



Eye candy shot of the elusive Golden Gate Bridge, which kept appearing and disappearing during our seaside walk. On the walk we saw three dolphins frolicking below, just off shore of China Beach. I would think dolphins would opt for warmer waters than the chilly SF bay, but this is the second time I have seen them of the coast here. A beautiful day here in SF, made better by the completion of a long hibernating WIP.