Did someone say birthday?

They keep me busy, those birthdays. The thing is that I much prefer to make a gift instead of simply buying one. I like the mental effort it takes to think up an appropriate project, and then selecting the yarn, well, that's super fun. Like this here:

I found this yarn at Yll o Tyll in Uppsala, Sweden. The color is very Adrienne, and it's a rustic, slightly nubby silk, which is perfect for someone who is sensitive to itchy fabrics (Adrienne) and lives in a temperate, yet dampish climate like Seattle (also Adrienne). And I just really loved it. So purchase it I did, and then toted it around with me back to Stockholm, up to Karlstad, back to Stockholm and then home to Brooklyn. So, it's seen a bit of the world.

Adrienne's birthday is the first week of October, but I was so cranked up that I started this the week that I came home from Sweden.

Details:
Pattern: Ishbel, by Ysolda Teague
Yarn: Yll o Tyll Soft Silk
Needles: US7/4.5mm
Started: July 16
Finished: July 31

I am SO MUCH happier with this Ishbel than I was with my first Ishbel. The pattern is great, pretty yet straightforward. It just goes to show how important it is to select the right yarn for a given project. The one mistake I made in working this up was using bamboo circulars; as bamboo and silk are both a bit sticky, I had to work kind of hard for each stitch. The next time that I work with this yarn (I bought two more skeins in different colors) I'll use metal or plastic needles. The project will sing off the needles!



Now that I'm looking at this, I realize that the lace portion is a variation of the one used in the project below:

It's pretty obvious, so it's a little doofy that I'm only now making the connection. I know that I have a distinct sensibility, but I'm surprised that it's so evident in the projects I make for others.

Details:
Pattern: Haven, by Kim Hargreaves
Yarn: Valley Yarns Berkshire Bulky
Needles: US11s/8.0mm
Started: October 6
Finished: October 13

I have been wanting to make this for over a year, ever since Amy gave me Kim Hargreaves book, Heartfelt, The Dark House Collection. There are so many lovely patterns in the book, but thus far I've only managed two make two of them, and both for the same friend, affectionately known as ABD. She's rather glam and ladylike and stylish, and since chunky, bulky scarves and cowls are all the rage this season, as are all shades of purple, I thought this would be a good birthday prez for her.

I need to find a better solution to the bathroom self-portraits.

The project didn't travel overseas, but it did come to Minnesota with me. For $$ reasons, I subbed in the Berkshire Bulky for the Rowan Cocoon called for by the pattern. I ordered 5 skeins, thinking it would be plenty, then panicked when it arrived and was convinced that I wouldn't have enough. As a fix, I modified the pattern so that I worked only one lace repeat each row, rather than the two directed. This worked out just fine, but I have 1.3 skeins of yarn left. I loved the scarf, and now want one for myself. Well, perhaps after Christmas crafting is done.