I finished the cat bed I'd been working on for the past few weeks. I put it down for a minute and a cat immediately crawled in. She's all curled up and still sleeping in it. I guess I'll felt it at some point...
What I did is barely a pattern. It is based on a lot of free cat bed patterns I found on Ravelry. I took the basic concepts and ideas and made it work for my yarn with little or no planning involved.
Improv Cat Bed:
Cast on 8 stitches. Knit 1 round. Next round: *K1, m1 (the backwards loop increase), place marker* . Next: k 1 round. Next: *k to marker, m1, slip marker*. Etc. Repeat these last two rounds (i.e., increasing 8 stitches every other round) until the bottom is big enough. Well, for me, it was until I used half my yarn, and I had 25 stitches between markers (200 rounds total), not that it matters. Then I knit without any more increasing, to make the wall. When I had about one-quarter of the yarn left, I switched to k2p2 because I was tired of the rolling stockinette. When I was almost out of yarn, I cast off in knit.
It used almost all of 4 skeins of Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Worsted (85% wool, 15% mohair, single ply). I used it 2-stranded with the largest needle size I had that came in a long length. So I guess I knit roughly 375-380 yards (760 yds total). The yarn is variegated in shades of brown. It's also some kind of seconds yarn, so there are a few knots and a few less than perfect spots. For a cat bed, it won't matter at all.
I plan to felt it once I get a chance. No rush, apparently. The cats seem content with it as is.
I like how the yarn works up two-stranded. I wonder if I have enough to make something for me? A vest, perhaps? Dunno if there would be enough for sleeves. This is from a friend's destash -- several colors of Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride, but only 2-4 skeins of each color. I've used a fair amount of the yarn already but there's still some left. Heck, maybe it'll mostly get turned into cat beds.
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I think I've decided on my next doily. It is an FdA pattern and has every indication of being a Herbert Niebling design. It uses motifs that are used in some of his other patterns and has that very characteristic thing of rounds beginning and ending with yarnovers. It's a bit more than 100 rounds.
I'm also thinking about doing one of the doilies from Lavori 7 if I have enough thread in the stash. I could always order more, of course. Or do Gloxiniaeflora and then the Lavori 7 doily. I'm pretty sure the Lavori 7 doilies I'm considering are Niebling designs -- they have things like familiar-looking flower motifs and lots of big decreases and crossed stitches and hex mesh, and charts with pattern motifs that start and end with yarnovers.
I do seem to have a thing for Niebling's designs. Not on purpose -- I'm not a snob. But there's something about the way he designs and the fun of knitting his patterns that I enjoy. Not all of his patterns, though. Some are annoying or entirely too weird. I do enjoy other designers' patterns, too! Many talented people have come up with gorgeous and fun designs.
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I also need to start a few more knitting projects. I have a couple of shawls started. One is a potential travel knitting project -- one of those sideways-knit asymmetric triangles. I'm doing it out of one of those long-variegation sock yarns. It's mostly garter stitch with faggoting/lace stripes every now and then, quite similar to shawls I've done in the past.
The other is a lace design by Sharon Miller. I have to remember what the chart quirk was since I don't seem to have written it down. I'll probably remember the next time I pick it up. But will I remember to write it down this time? Who knows? In any case, although it is pretty straightforward, it won't lend itself to travel knitting.
Both of the above have been sitting for a while. So it's possible one or both will be unraveled and I'll try something else. Plus there's the next use-up-small-bits-of-handspun project to plan out and start.
I want to make a sweater for myself, too, since it's been a while. I keep starting and then abandoning different things for various reasons. Something will stick eventually.
And then there are always the quickie hats, mittens, cowls, and socks.
I'm probably going to start another spinning project soon, too. I keep dithering about what to spin first, so nothing has gotten started at all.
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