WIP Wednesday: Chinook 2 & Magic Balance Part 3

Writing:

Magic Balance (Working Title) - Rewrites

Previous Word Count: 7,141

Current Word Count: 11,214 (Up 4,073)

Holy ... wow! Yeah, I'm very happy and pleased with that number. A quiet house, the music I want to listen to, and no interruptions means I can get a lot done. A secret world's been found and the group has talked a very closed community into accepting them, for a time.

Reading:
 
Deceive Not my Heart by Shirlee Busbee Yep, still on mindless romance and considering where I'm staying lately it's the perfect companion.  I'm getting more time to read these days as I've been taking lunch in the backyard and reading there for a bit each day. It's wonderful! 

Knitting: It's not done yet ... but it's getting much closer. I had hoped to have it done by Friday to get pictures and all but it's not looking terribly likely, it may have to be put off for a week. As Dragon says, "we'll see". On the plus side, if I do manage to get it all done ... he's agreed to help with pictures. Win! I have made a lot of progress on it though. I'm on my next to last color and have only 2 more color changes to go. 

Catching Dreams

I've still got about half of a Chinook Shawl to finish knitting up but I did manage to get a dreamcatcher finished. A customer asked for a black on black design with a crow or raven charm in the center. I found a cute little raven charm online and added in a few black seed beads I had on hand.

 

WIP Wednesday: Chinook Shawl 2 and Finding Magic Round 2

Writing:

Magic Balance (Working Title) - Rewrites

Previous Word Count: 6,261

Current Word Count: 7,141 (Up 880)

That's up more words than last week! Win! The house was empty for a large chunk of morning the other day and I got a good bit cleaned up. The main group is about to finally find the people they've been looking for. I can't wait! Of course that's just because I know what else happens.

Reading:

Deceive Not My Heart by Shirlee Busbee Yes, yes, I know, trashy romance. Trust me, my brain requires it now and again, especially when I feel really busy. It's a nice little break for a bit while I deal with a lot of other stuff going on. Plus, this one actually has a fairly decent plot and a nice strong female lead.

Knitting:
I haven't gotten quite as far on this shawl as I'd originally hoped. Part of that is the whole I leave in 2 days and I completely forgot how the days of the week work apparently. I have a secret project that I need to also get done, blocked, and photographed before I leave. I believe I can but it takes a bit of rearranging. Anyhow, here's current progress on the shawl, look for the secret project in a couple weeks when I can share it.

A Shawl Complete

When agreeing to a giant project I was a little scared. I mean, what if my personal one was a fluke and this came out horribly? What if I wasn't able to finish it in a reasonable amount of time? What if I did finish it and the customer hated it? My brain, it's so terribly helpful with the panic moments.

I did it though.



I was stunned at just beautiful it came out. I'd been in love with the colors when I got them and more so with each one as I worked it into the pattern. It's one thing to see the scrunched up lace on the needles ... a whole different thing to spread it out and see the lace open up. I even went row by row to smooth out the yarn overs and keep the stitches on either side from opening too much. The colors in sunlight are beautiful and impressive.



Pattern: Chinook Shawl
Yarn: Knit Picks Shimmer
Project Page: Ravelry
Mods: None intended

WIP Wednesday: Chinook 2 & Finding Magic

Writing:

Magic Balance (Working Title) - Rewrites

Previous Word Count: 5,519

Current Word Count: 6,261 (Up 742)

I'd have added more to the count this morning but apparently we need to stop by the store before Miss Kid gets here.

Reading:

The Road to Memphis by Mildred D. Taylor I'm nearly done with this one. So far I've loved it, enjoyed seeing how Cassie's changed, and not, as she's grown up. The US has just joined the war in the book, making it December 1941, so it'll be interesting to see how that affects her and her family.

Knitting:
I know it's been all Chinook Shawl around here for a few weeks and that's why today I bring you ....... another Chinook Shawl. I finished the last one just last night and instantly cast on for the 2nd one that's been requested. Completely different colors though, it's what keeps this a fun knit. I'm of the opinion that unblocked lace doesn't look all that great or interesting so I tried to give it a little interest. Check back on Friday for finished pictures of the other shawl.

WIP Wednesday: Chinook & Finding Magic

Writing:

Magic Balance (Working Title) - Rewrites

Previous Word Count: 5,175

Current Word Count: 5,519 (Up 344)

I managed to figure out how I wanted to write the meeting of the 4 main and got past that. Hopefully it'll flow a bit easier now.

Reading:

The Road to Memphis by Mildred D. Taylor. Here we read about an older Cassie, in her teens, who's going away to school and dealing with the affections of a long time friend. So far I love it and really enjoy reading about the family and how they've aged.

Knitting:
I am simply amazed at this point. I've flashed through the first 5 color changes and I'm currently in the middle of the 6th one with 5 more to go. Look at how much it's grown! It's folded in half to more easily fit into the frame, so it's much wider than it appears.



I've currently put in 34 hours on this shawl and I've got 42% of the pattern left to do. I am simply thrilled at how smoothly it's going and how well the yarn is behaving. It's not adding stitches or dropping stitches. It's not randomly tangling or being willful about being knit up. It's lovely when yarn agrees about how it should be used. Here's a closer shot of the last color change because I love the way the blues and greens look.

A Lonely Glove

While normally a single does not make a pair this is a rare case where it does. See, Dragon lost 1 glove. I'm sure he was taking very good care of it, it simply had desires to see more of the world than his jacket pocket. But that still left his remaining glove lonely and unmatched. We can't have that. Thus, a single glove for the Dragon.



Before I started I expressed a bit of concern because my grey was fairly lean looking after doing the previous two pairs of gloves for him. The closer I got to the end of the cuff the more nervous I got. I cut it closer than I've ever cut it before.



Just had enough. Meanwhile my head is killing me as I was up until 4am working on the store website. Why must html and tables be so difficult? At least the page that was giving me fits is done (Dreamcatchers) ... now to figure out how to format the Knitting Gallery.