WIP Wednesday, 10/27/2021

October 27, 2021 WIP Wednesday 9

WIP Wednesday (for “Work In Progress”) is a meme where we share our current fibery projects. It was started by Nicole @ Book-Wyrm-Knits, who also reviews books at book-wyrm-reads

Spinning

“Salish Sea” singles, spun by Lark

I spun up the BFL (Blue Faced Leicester) wool that Robin gave me for Christmas. It was hand-painted by Quillin Fiber Arts in her “Salish Sea” colorway, a blend of greens ranging from various shades of teal through clear emerald to a warmer olive. I haven’t yet decided whether to ply it as a two-ply, which would give me more yardage, or chain-ply it, which would give me less yardarge but a plumper, more durable yarn. Chain-plying would also preserve the color runs.

Knitting

Sedona Sunsets poncho in progress. Pattern is Manzanita Poncho by SY Designs.

My Sedona Sunsets poncho, which I started back in April, is nearly finished. I want to add one more repeat of the lace pattern. After that, I need to block it to open up the lace, then fold and seam it to turn it into an asymmetrical poncho. The pattern is the Manzanita Poncho by SY Designs (available on Ravelry only, unfortunately; linked below, with a warning.) The yarn is Canyon from Mary Gavan Yarns, a cotton-rayon blend with no stretch but a lovely sheen, hand-dyed in the colorway Mary calls “Sedona Sunset.” It really does have all the colors of sunsets on the red rocks of Sedona, Arizona, where my husband and I spent our 25th anniversary. (The colors are slightly blued and subdued in the first two photos, but accurate in the third—at least on my display screen.)

Sedona Sunsets poncho – lace detail (unblocked)
Sedona Sunsets poncho – stockinette detail

* * * * *

I finished one sock for my #Socktober knitting; all that’s left is to bind off the toe using Kitchener stitch. I’ll probably start sock #2 tomorrow night. The yarn is Opal Schafpate by Zwerger Garn; the pattern is the 8-stitches-per-inch (toe-down) version from Ann Budd’s Getting Started Knitting Socks. I went with a plain-vanilla 3×1 rib for the leg and the top of the foot, with a 1×1 ribbed cuff at the top. I’m calling the socks “Denim Rose” because the yarn reminds me of denim and dried roses.

Denim Rose sock, ready for binding off

Links:

NOTE: Ravelry’s current site design has been known to cause eye strain, headaches, or migraines, and even seizures in a few users. (To minimize the risk, set your Ravelry settings to “reduce motion” and “freeze animations,” and choose the “Herdwick” light setting, which is much gentler than the bright white of their default setting.) Although it did offer optional modifications eventually, following widely-publicized protests, Ravelry has still not fully addressed the harm done to some users. For the sake of those who cannot safely use the site, or choose not to use it in protest, I will always provide alternate links/sites whenever possible, and will clearly label any Ravelry links I post. However, since many designers sell their patterns only through Ravelry, I can’t always provide an alternate pattern link.

9 Responses to “WIP Wednesday, 10/27/2021”

    • Lark_Bookwyrm

      It’s a long time since I did a WIP Wednesday post. Maybe in a week or two, I’ll get out the other yarns I’ve spun over the last few months, and post those too.

  1. Katherine

    The poncho is stunning! The color is beautiful and I love the detail.

    PS – happy belated birthday! I meant to send you good wishes on Facebook but somehow didn’t.

  2. RO

    My goodness, these colors are so vibrant and lovely, and I totally need those socks 😍. Truly fabulous!

  3. Nicole @ BookWyrm Knits

    All of your projects look great! The yarn is fabulous as singles; I’m excited to see how it looks finished.

    I like your way of addressing the Ravelry issue. I’ve been thinking my lack of all Rav links might be a touch overboard since there are some designers who only use Rav for sales, and I don’t want to harm them. Your approach seems like a good balance.
    Nicole @ BookWyrm Knits recently posted…Reading Wrap-Up: October 2021My Profile

    • Lark_Bookwyrm

      Thank you!

      I have struggled with how to handle the Ravelry issue. As you say, there are designers—quite a few of them—who sell only or primarily through Ravelry. And it’s also true that for many designers, Raverly is crucial to discovery and to gaining new customers, even if they do have their own website and social media presence. From a purely selfish point of view, it’s also where I find patterns, and how I keep track of my projects and stash. So while I did consider leaving Ravelry out of solidarity, I decided in the end that I would staym but continue speaking up about the accessibility issues.

      In that respect, it’s not unlike Facebook. I am deeply disturbed by many of Facebook’s practices, yet it’s how I keep in touch with friends from childhood, high school, and college, and even with some of my more extended family, as well as some of my blogging friends. There’s no comparable site, and although there are a few sites that have tried to rival FB, so far, few of my friends have been willing to move… so I stay, but feel guilty about not voting with my feet, so to speak.

      • Nicole @ BookWyrm Knits

        Yes, yes, this is how I feel about Rav (and FB, come to that). I have been trying to avoid all Rav links entirely, but I’m afraid that is hurting designers, which is the opposite of what I’m trying to do. It’s a learning process, though, that’s for sure.
        Nicole @ BookWyrm Knits recently posted…Reading Wrap-Up: October 2021My Profile