Progress on "Aya" and "In The Pink"

//Here it is, almost half-way done! I love the progression of color in this yarn, it is a joy to behold. Have any of you knit with Noro before? Well, I have not and this is also my first time to work with silk. It definitely has a different feel but the visual and tactile effect is spectacular, don't you agree?!

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//A little peak at the "In The Pink" scarf as showcased in this previous post. I am happy with the color change I made and really like the progression!

//New and exciting stuff in the world of blogging:

• Sheep & Stitch:  A fairly new site (to me anyway) with a lot of information to offer, namely about knitting, patterns, etc. 
• Little Things Blogged: a great crochet site with great colors and pictures.
• Tolt Yarn and Wool: a neighborhood knitting and spinning shop located in Carnation, Washington. Check out their blog.
• Harmony and Rosie: written by a displaced Brit living in Vancouver, a very simple and elegant blog with some great pics.
• And last, but certainly not least, Liesl Made: another great knitting/food/sewing, etc. site with great images written by a girl named, (wait for it) Liesl who lives in New Jersey.

//Patterns I am ogling in my Ravelry library:

• Stonecutter by Michele Wang
• Couronne by Helene Rush
• Opposite Pole by Joji Locatelli
• Channel Cardigan by Jared Flood

Any favorite blogs and/or patterns you would like to share with the rest of us? Happy hump day!

xoxo Shannon

Spring Pintastic

//Is this outstanding or what? What a great way to dress up your front door and get into the spirit of Spring. It is only a little over four weeks away you know. I wouldn't think this would be too terribly difficult to make. Get a florist's ring, a bunch of tulips and not sure what they have used in the background, but surely a florist could help. Anyway, just a thought or you could just have the florist make it for you!

//A little spring green in this Lintilla shawl by Martina Behm. She is one of my favorite designers I have found on Ravelry. I have featured her before here on this blog. Martina lives in Germany; you can find out more about her on her blog, Strickmich.

//Update: I forgot to include this beautiful bedroom! Notice all of the knitted items. It looks so cozy, open and airy. I love it! A variety of textures is always a good way to add interest to a room; get out those things you have knit and inject them into your home. I hope this gives you some good ideas!

//I know, I am into flowers lately. It must have something to do with Spring being right around the corner. But I just had to show you the colors and detail of this sunflower! This is just so inspirational, and who doesn't like inspiration? 

//Gorgeous, I would wear these Sedona Statement earrings from Emma Stine Limited in a heartbeat.

I hope these all put a little "spring" in your step and some sunshine in your heart! Have a happy weekend!

xoxo Shannon

The Staff of Life - Bread and Knitting

Bread and knitting, I know they are two things I want/need in my life right now, how about you? There is nothing better than a fresh baked loaf of bread coming out of the oven on a cold winter's night! I made this a few days ago, and I was so happy with the outcome. It is Jim Lahey's No-Knead Bread, find the recipe here. We all loved this, so I will definitely be making it again.

How about a little "wheat" from Ravelry:

**Top Left: Golden Wheat shawl by Jen Arnall-Culliford 

**Top Right: Winter Wheat Cowl by Milja Uimonen.

**Bottom Left: Wheat Ear Cable Yoke Sweater by Pam Allen.

**Bottom Right: Wheat by Tincanknits (Is she adorable or what?). And as some of you might remember, I am currently knitting this pattern; it's getting close!

P.S. I am sure you all have noticed my blog changes. I hope you like them! Let me know what you think.

xoxo Shannon

On The Twelfth Day of Christmas . . .

//The Lindisfarne Shawl by Angelea McGarrah. This shawl gets its unusual name and inspiration from the Lindisfarne Priory's columns and their zigzag design (a Christian centre located in northeast England). I love the simplicity of this shawl but the pop of red color adds a wonderful zing to the overall design.

This was knit up in a sock yarn, fingering weight,  4 ply with a gauge of 28 stitches and 38 rows over 4 inches; size 5 needles and using a yardage of 375 to 425 yards.

I don't usually wear shawls but would definitely want to knit this up and wear. 

This is the last of my 12 Days of Ravelry Christmas. I hope you have enjoyed all of the offerings and are having a happy holiday season so far! 

xoxo Shannon

On The Sixth Day of Christmas . . .

//A lovely pair of Tulip Mittens! I've had my eye on these for a while. I really like their unique design and great texture and of course the color red is beautiful this time of year.

And here is what's happening outside my house. Sorry for the delay in posting today, I got busy and almost forgot!

xoxo Shannon

Pinterest Picks and Twelve Days of Christmas

//Art: Photograph by JeeYoung Lee, 2. Illustration by David Hale, 3. Malcesine on Lake Garda

//Food: 1.  Fudgy Chocolate Chunk Brownies, 2. Candy Cane Chocolate Cheesecake, 3. Coconut and Raspberry Financier

//Knitting/Craft: 1. Dawn Stripe Knit Scarf, 2. Flower Design Mittens, 3. Christmas Wooden Eggs

//2nd Day of Ravelry Christmas:  "Fabel" from Drops.

Christmas Collage and 12 Days of Ravelry Christmas

This is what's going on at my house.

Festivus Cowl

//The start of 12 Days of Ravelry Christmas: 1. Festivus Cowl by Tanis Gray.

I hope you all had a good holiday filled with good eats! Now try not to get too crazy with all of your shopping, cooking, parties, knitting/sewing, etc. What always helps me to stay grounded during this hectic time is to go outside for a walk, take deep breaths, soak in the tub and not necessarily in that order. Let me know what you do!

Have a good week!

xoxo Shannon

Some New and Not So New Projects

 My progress so far on the Wheat Scarf from Tin Can Knits. It is coming along very nicely and is quite easy to knit and satisfying at the same time. So if you are in search of a gift for someone special this holiday, this might be it! Again, the yarn is a worsted weight from Alpaca With A Twist, Highlander made up of mostly baby alpaca and merino wool. It has a very soft hand, beautiful! Check out their yarn here.

Here is my latest endeavor from Vogue Knitting's new The Ultimate Hat Book. This is Beanie by Linda Medina. So far I have cast on and knitted 11 rounds of the hat's rim in a k1, p1 rib and have just started to begin the spiral pattern which consists of a yarn over, some k2 tbl and skp's. The yarn I'm using is from Madelintosh, it is her tosh merino dk 100% superwash merino wool in the colorway Cathedral. It's a great yarn and is knitting up beautifully.

//A note about Top Ten Tuesday posts for those who drop by now and then: I feel I need to explain why there wasn't one last week. I have found out it takes a lot of work to round up all of those items, get permission to use photos, etc. While I loved the finished outcome of these posts, it takes too much of my time right now. So they are going on the back burner and may return in the future. Or maybe I will do an abbreviated type of list. Anywho, enough about that!

How about a few of Ravelry's top patterns for the week:

//A shrug/bolero called Chateau by Melissa Schaschwary published in Dandiliongirl Designs.

//Kamille Cardigan by Judy Furlong.

//And here is one I just plain love: a wrap called Sari by Kieran Foley.

Well, I guess that's it for today. Hope you are having a good Monday and have plans for a great week!

xoxo Shannon