Wednesday 25 January 2012

Fuzzy Wuzzy was a.... Goat?

I have another project off the needles. That makes me happy as I started the year with far too many things on the go. This particular project started as a Christmas present from a very dear friend in Canada of this yarn:

SAM_0402

Six 100g skeins of it in fact. Its Mountain Colours Mohair yarn in the Granite Peak colour way. With 78% mohair, 13% wool and 9% nylon, its a lovely luxury yarn and so very, very soft. Well this of course is because mohair comes from the most adorable angora goats. So silky and fuzzy and soft! This picture doesn't really show all the lovely hand painted colours either, but you will see those later. In any case, I have over 1230m of this yarn!

Before Christmas I made a beautiful Gilet court d'été using some of my own handspun, and some lovely petrol hand dyed yarn in my stash. Its a lovely pattern and the resulting cardigan was on my back most of Christmas day, and has been worn several times since. But there were some things that I knew I would change if I redid the pattern, particularly the sleeves. So when this yarn came along, I knew I wanted another.

So I cast on with more stitches for the front, crunched my gauge down,  and with the supporting maths got cracking. I tried on as I went, added markers at the middle of the underarms when I separated for the sleeves, and being a curvy girl, when I reached my waist, added some increases to help it fall over my hips better. It proved to be quite a quick knit, but that's largish needles for you. And I stopped when I felt the cardigan was long enough. Added short sleeves and voila, one more fitted version of a lovely cardigan. One so fuzzy and soft its quite tempting to stroke. 

Though if a stranger in the street tries it then it will hit the news headlines ;)

SAM_0414

As you can see from the two photos, getting a good picture is hard, even in this winter light. But add a little more blue into the finished picture and you're there.

In the end it took a little over 500m of yarn to make myself what I feel is a lovely piece and I shall happily layer up with in the cold. This of course leaves me with three and a half skeins left over. However, the friend who gave it to me confessed that she'd like to see me make a shawl to hug me when I am cold and she isn't here, so I hit the fabulous Ravelry pattern search and quickly came up with the answer. The remaining yarn will become a big and snuggly Dragon's Rest shawl. But that's a project for another day.

I think I shall spin for a day or three as well as work on my gold shawl and the shawl come cape and resist the urge to cast on something new for a few days... it won't last ;)

4 comments:

  1. I have not seen a single thing you have made that I haven't really loved. I love your new creation. I always get a terrible case of the wantsies when I look at your projects.

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    1. Awww, you are very kind. I think the one I am currently working on is going to work out as a stunner. And I don't even get to keep it. Oh well, maybe I shall have to make myself one too...

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  2. I have nominated you for a 'blog award' they are a bit of fun! No pressure to accept it :) you can read about it here: http://inthesky1.blogspot.com/2012/01/birthday-bloggie-and-blog-awards-yeah.html
    Hope you have fun with it! :)

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    1. Awww, thank you so much! I think I shall have to have some fun myself with nominating.

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