Yarn Over, Yarn Over

The Yarn Over KAL in the Ravelry Blue Peninsula group is off to a great start. The focus is on lace for this "choose your own project" KAL—you can make any of my designs with yarn overs, everything from socks and sweaters, to scarves, cowls, shawls, or mitts. And there's still lots of time to cast on. This leisurely summer KAL continues through Sunday, July 30.

We already have a few finished projects, including a pair of Con Brio mitts, a beautiful Golden Valley shawl worked in two colors, and a Birchleaf cowl knit up in a gradient yarn. You can view all of them in the FO thread, and check out the prizes in the discussion thread.

I might cast on another pair of Plumtree socks for the KAL, but first I'm focusing on a new shawl design.



Knit in a small-farm wool/mohair blend that I purchased at Rhinebeck last fall (Thelma & Louise from Wing and a Prayer Farm), this shawl will have the same kind of asymmetrical triangular shape as Notch. But, it's worked in the opposite direction—you cast on at the wide end and then decrease until only a few stitches remain. After the lace section, there's a transition to mostly garter stitch, which will make the project really zip along.



More on the shawl later this summer. In the meantime, I hope you'll join us for the Yarn Over KAL. I started a fun "mini challenge" yesterday, asking folks to share photos of their WIPs with a pet. Here's Snickers, lounging next to me as I worked on the shawl the other evening:



She looks pretty relaxed, doesn't she? I hope your weekend is just as relaxed, with plenty of knitting time!

Let's Hear It for the Sheep

The New York State Sheep and Wool Festival, aka Rhinebeck, has come and gone for another year. Once again, my sister Betsey and I took the bus from WEBS (so convenient!), and once again, we had a great time.

Since the festival got its start in 1980 as a small sheep sale, I thought I'd let the sheep be the stars of my Rhinebeck post. Already I miss the sweet smell of hay and the constant "baaaas." 

A new feature at the fair this year was a series of Shepherds Talks on particular breeds. We went to the one on Leicester Longwools given by the folks at Maple Frost Farm in Langdon, New Hampshire. This beauty was a joy to see and to pet:

Did you know Leicester Longwools were at one point extinct in this country? Thanks to the efforts of Colonial Williamsburg they have been reestablished, but are considered a conservation breed as there are only 500 or so of them. If you'd like to see more Leicester Longwools, check out the Maple Frost Farm sheep bios.

It wouldn't be Rhinebeck without shopping, of course. I was excited to get quite a bit of Cormo from Barbara Parry's Foxfire Fiber ... more of the same beautiful Cormo that I purchased last May at the Massachusetts Sheep and Woolcraft Fair. Here's how my first batch of spindle spun and plied Cormo looks after dyeing with hickory nuts:

And it wouldn't be Rhinebeck without lots of sweaters—so many to see everywhere you look! I finished mine in time to wear it ... now, fingers crossed I will finish up the pattern writing and have it ready soon.