Russet Lodge Custom Knits

 Hi friends. Life has been really tough for the last few months.  The late winter/early spring slog is tough for a lot of us, and mine has come with illness, family drama, relationship ups and downs, mental health stuff, work stuff, travel, etc.  Life just keeps happening.  I have finished some projects and I have some more in progress, but I do want to refocus myself on finishing (or frogging) UFOs, organizing my stash (there's always more yarn to log and organize and catalog), and continuing to finish projects.  I also took on some commissions during the holidays and got a reminder that they're not my favorites, but I do have one more to finish before I'll be free of them. Here are the finished cabled aran kilt hose for a bagpiper who found my Etsy: Here's my current UFO list, those in bold are new since my last entry: Outlander MKAL shawl: will probably frog it but would like to knit eventually Kelley's Ski Sweater: will frog, no longer the right size Woolly Rain

Hi!  I hope y'all survived the holidays like I did.  I've been crafting up a storm, so I have lots to share.   1. I made a pint-sized Kaanteinen for my nephew out of some knit picks merino from my stash, along with a coordinating pair of mittens, improvised from the Margot Mittens pattern I've used before. 2. My daughter got a Dean Street Hat and matching mittens using the No Swatch No Gauge mittens pattern.  The yarn is some variety of mystery wool that was given to me by a friend. 3. My mom got the Swirl Socks I'd been working on, she's definitely sock-worthy. 4. I gifted my daughter's dad some sock yarn for a pair of socks that are in progress, so that's a new WIP that I need to get set up in Ravelry. 5. I finished the green spindle spun yarn which was a gift for my friend M.  The color is so hard to capture. 6. I started a new spindle spun project which also needs to go in Ravelry, it's some Paradise Fibers merino in the colorway Granada.  It's g

Somehow November showed up before I could even process October, but here we are.  I've been very faithful to a small number of projects recently.  Due to a water/mold situation in my craft room and laundry room (where all my extra craft stuff lived) everything is packed up while we wait for restoration to happen.  I do have a few fun things to share though. I still pick up the Vacillate shawl pretty steadily.  It's going well.  It's easier than I'd usually choose for a project that large, but I'm beginning to appreciate the less high-concentration projects. The Boyfriend socks are done!  The photo doesn't really do the colors of the yarn justice.  I could have made the feet slightly shorter, but not enough to redo them.  I added calf shaping and made the socks as tall as possible.  I like long socks and there's something satisfying about using up every bit of the yarn. I made a second Jacobite bonnet for my customer in Canada, the first wasn't quite to h

 Well.  The days fly by and I haven't been back to update things in quite some time.  I haven't done a ton of knitting, but I do have a few updates on my fiber arts. I picked a new pattern for the brown yarn from Miss BB, I'm going to do the Rocky Coast cardigan by  Hannah Fettig.  It's knit slightly looser and in a wider variety of sizes.  I may modify the pattern to put a couple buttons in the front, but otherwise I think it'll be a good pick, and I'm going to make sure my gauge is spot-on and I choose the right size if I get back to this project. I'm still working steadily on the Vacillate shawl, and I'm more than halfway done.  I'd love to be able to wear it this winter. The Boyfriend socks are one of my other main projects these days, I have moved up the legs and have started the calf increases.  I plan to just keep going until I'm low on yarn and then do the cuffs.  I can't wait to wear these. The Jacobite bonnet is done.  I mailed it

 I've had a lot of life lately, and for a while I lost steam on my craft projects, but it's back and I've actually got a lot going on, so let's get to it. With much sadness, I ripped out the entire Miss BB cardigan.  I have taken new measurements and picked a new pattern for that yarn, but it's going to be a bit before I start it.  I'm really trying to clear out WIPs and take care of obligations. The green spinning on the goat spindle is progressing nicely.  Having a distaff to hold my fiber and having less time to use my wheel means I'm getting quite a bit of this done.  I'm almost done with the second of three plies.   The baby alpaca (Harley) fleece project is still progressing slowly.  It's hard to get wheel time and processing by hand takes time too, but it's so silky soft. The whipcord braid is done (for now).  There's always a demand for cord for SCA awards, so I imagine I'll make more as it gets used up. The Bayou Giles wavy socks

 It's been a long time since I've sat down to write here.  I've felt swamped at work, I've felt swamped at home.  I've felt obligated to work on things that didn't bring me joy.  I made little progress and got sick of saying so.  But I'm shaking the dust off today with a few updates.  Hopefully it'll help my momentum continue.  Here's how my art has been going lately. UGH - I finished all the knitting on the Miss BB cardigan, and was heartbroken to realize that the sleeves are too small.  The project has been in time out for a while before I decide if I rip out and reknit the sleeves, which would be faster but I'm already knitting the largest size (hello body dysmorphia), rip out and reknit the whole thing (because at one time I really liked this pattern) or rip out and find another use for the yarn, either a more size-inclusive pattern or something I customize myself.  I've had little experience with sweaters and I've never made one I ac