Addi Turbo Lace Needles at Dreams Glorietta 5

I finally got some Addi Turbo Lace needles!!! *Does the booty shake of joy*

They were PhP690 for the US size 00 (1.75mm). I know, it seems like a lot, but when the prices at online stores abroad plus shipping are still higher. This is a lifetime warranty TOOL, and therefore worth it.

I couldn't afford the US size 000 (1.50mm) yet, maybe later on. I wish there was a book I could get that contained just knitted lace borders, like there is for crochet. Yes, Nicky Epstein wrote several, but not all the titles are available locally. I'd like to learn the traditional kind, the kind you put on the edges of nightgowns or bedlinens. I could use DMC Petra for that. Or anything Egyptian cotton that's reasonably priced.

I also met Marivic, a very dedicated crocheter/knitter who also completed her Addi set one by one - because she goes to Dreams all the way from the province!

Dreams is in the new Glorietta 5 building near Rustan's Makati, on the 3rd floor, near the escalator.

Summer Lace

Not bad for three hours' work last night, eh? I was knitting while watching the very gothic season 2 of the BBC's mid-90s supernatural fantasy Hex. Ok, I did make some mistakes that way ("...k1, yo, k3, sl1, psso, k3... wait wait wait. Where did this @#$%^&*!!! 2-stitch HOLE come from?"). I actually ripped out 3 rows in episode 3 while Roxanne puts on a cross necklace to draw attention to her tempting cleavage and goes out to seduce her teacher, a young priest. By the time I had corrected myself and got the hang of the pattern, the deed was done and the priest was pondering his foray into sin.

Materials:
Addi Turbo circular needles, 4.5mm
1 cone Monaco beige glace "Raylon" (it's softer than you think, and has a nice sheen)

Horseshoe Stitch Pattern
["One of many beautiful stitches that originated in the Shetland Islands in the nineteenth century, when gossamer laces were a favorite form of knitting."]
(page 305, Reader's Digest Complete Guide to Needlework, 1979 edition):

Multiple of 10 stitches plus 1

Row 1: K1, *yo, K3, sl1, K2tog, psso, K3, yo, K1*
Row 2 and alt rows: Purl
Row 3: K1, *K1, yo, K2, sl1, K2tog, psso, K2, yo, K2*
Row 5: K1, *K2, yo, K1, sl1, K2tog, psso, K1, yo, K3*
Row 7: K1, *K3, yo, sl1, K2tog, psso, K4*

To make the narrow wrap, knit 10 rows of garter stitch, then add 5 garter stitches at the beginning and end of each row as a selvedge. My wrap has a cast on of 61 sts, although to make it wider, you can make it 71 sts.

I figure the blocked and ironed finished item should measure something like 9" wide and 60" long. Perfect for when you want to go to the movies and still have to brave the heat of our summer sun after.

Christmas in July: Yarns & Accessories

We're right smack in the middle of August. I waited three months for these goodies to come to me, and they've waited another three months to be blogged about. I wrote about receiving the needles first, otherwise the baby socks and other exciting projects wouldn't come into being.


First up, my Knitpicks Sunset Picnic Lace Sampler. Six beautiful colors! Actually I also liked the selections Sea View, Winetasting and Riverside Cafe, but was on a budget (needles before yarn) so I chose the brightest, warmest, happy colors. Of course I keep in mind that whatever is made of these yarns must be suitable for the tropics. I can't stop touching these, they're made to attract the hand, otherwise you wouldn't work with them or wear them. Knitpicks really tries to live up to their motto: "Passionately committed to affordable luxury knitting." It sounds like an oxymoron, the combination of the words "affordable" and "luxury". But if it means Knitpicks offers access to better quality materials to motivate the home knitter, I'm all for that!

Next, my Lacis Yarn Ball Winder. I remember mentioning in a previous post that I wanted a Royal Yarn Ball Winder as it was mentioned in Knitters Review, but when I discovered the price difference (Lacis at USD 27.99 vs. Royal at USD 34.99) I figured that the basic mechanism didn't differ too much between brands and ordered the more affordable Lacis. Locally available crochet cotton sometimes comes wound around a cardboard tube (Cannon, Anchor) and therefore I can't find the center pull to knit from. It's a major pain to have the ball rolling around madly and then getting all tangled up. After I've wound the balls (as needed) I just keep the working ball in a ziploc bag with the project needles to keep it clean and portable (stash in handbag and go). It can be addicting winding balls, but there's one area where they can't compete: winding frogged (read: unravelled) yarn while the project is still attached. That's where I use our nostepinne (made for us from a photo by our local furniture repairman). And I love this, because this is Joy's advance birthday gift to me.


I really wasn't planning to order these notions (Susan Bates Universal Knit Counter & Boye Balene II Stitch Marker Rings, both under USD 2), but Joy needed to make up a minimum purchase to avail of free delivery for sale items from Knitting Warehouse.com. At the moment they cost more locally than online, so I decided to get them. The row counter helps, especially when knitting to pattern, to shape. I've already used the stitch marker rings on the beginnings of a shawl project, just to remind me where I am in a 200+ stitch cast on (a fine yarn, better not make more mistakes than necessary).

And last but not least:

Lion Brand Pound of Love claims that you can make a baby hooded blanket using just one giant skein. Caron One Pound claims that you can make 4 full scarves! Don't you just love value! Best of all, they are machine washable acrylic. At first glance they seem a bit thick (worsted weight) for the tropics, but I don't think I'd complain if I snuggled into a finished afghan at the height of typhoon weather. I chose nice antique-ish colors so that either gender may benefit from a finished product. I still have no idea what that would be, but it's nice to have these on hand.