Triads

Well, there are certainly a lot of traids here! it was an interesting knit, although I do not want to see another triad for a while, after plodding through 24 repeats. I did, however, have an engaging time with the dangly balls I knit into the edging. The added weight on the ends makes the scarf stay in place instead of fluttering and flooping around.

Particulars:
Pattern:Triad by Susan Pandorf
Yarn:Handmaiden Fine Yarn Lace Silk in Rainforest (used about 250 yards)

Needle Size: #4
Beads: Stuff I bought them at Michael's. No useful labels on the packaging, I'm sorry to say.

Speaking of rain forests, we are in Costa Rica for a month. The Internet is a bit shaky, so if I don't send you comments, please forgive me (and the Costa Rican ISP).

Fishing for Compliments

I don't care for felting and have a healthy horror of large needles, but I overcame both aversions recently after falling in love with this sweet little confection:



It sort of came as a kit at my LYS, but I ended up changing the yarn color from orange to black, so I did not walk out with the pretty bag that held the original package.

Because the pattern was fraught with errors and omissions, I won't mention the designer's name here. (I am beginning to think that every time I pick up a pattern, it immediately shifts to Errata Mode). Here's a sample from the purse pattern:

Knit 4 stitches; bring yarn forward between needle tips (BYF).
Knit 15 stitches, BYF.

Wait! The yarn is already in the front! Rip.

I finally worked the purse thusly:

Toss pattern in the trash and *make up the pattern so it looks like the store sample.*
Repeat from * to *.

Knitted with doubled Malabrigo worsted on size 13 needles, the purse was agony to finish. Needles that large should be illegal, or at least should have a Carpal Tunnel/Knitter's Elbow warning prominently stamped on the shaft. There was a lot of i-cord, too, but I refused to purchase a set of #13 dpns that I would never use again, so I used my Boye NeedleMasters with 16" cables. They weigh a ton. Never again.

A Side Note: A few weeks ago I watched a 13-year-old struggle with size 15 needles. She was clearly hating every stitch. It should also be illegal to give children needles larger than, say, a size 6. You are never too young to wreak havoc on your tendons, carpals, and other delicate body parts.

Where was I? Oh yes. Fish purse. The handle was made with 84 interminable inches of i-cord. I discovered that, instead of dropping the yarn, sliding the stitches to the other end of the needle, and picking up the yarn again, it was easier to just slip the three stitches back to the left-hand needle after knitting them. I started picking up speed at that point, but it seemed like I would never finish.

I bought the fish and yarn from Twisted Skeins. The shop doesn't have an Internet store yet, but you can probably call her and order fish-by-the-yard over the phone. I don't recommend purchasing the pattern--just find your own felted bag directions and go fishing!