A finished Bee Fields Shawl

At last I've finished my shawl, four months in the knitting.

The yarn's from Wooly Wonka Fibers and was a pleasure to knit with.

More photos on my blog.

Dawn
I'm on ravelry as dawn

as the year winds down

I'd like to wish everyone a peaceful end of the year and a very happy and 'knitterly' new year! :)

Beatrice is complete

I finally and happily finished my bee shawl which I named Beatrice. I am so thrilled with the finished knit.
The shawl was an amazing learning experience and I am certainly looking forward to my next Knitspot shawl!

ETA: I have had several request for what yarn I used. Thank you!
I actually used my own hand dyed Sweet Lace in the Rose Hill Colourway that is currently a custom dye request colourway.

Bee in Field

I sort of work on this project in spurts. This time it was my plane knitting to and from my parent's house for Thanksgiving. I got the first 3 bees done. The photo shows 10, so I guess I must be getting close to the end.





I'm finding this section to be easier than the others, mainly because there is very little to do on wrong side rows, and even the right side rows are more logical than the bee section, at least to me. Besides, this pattern is my favorite of the 3 sections.

for all who observe it

have a lovely Thanksgiving. :)

Through the Swarm

Hi All! I'm still diligently knitting along. I've made it through the swarm. I'm seriously considering doing the petite as I'm really short and it appears shrinking. I'm probably 5'2 and 3/4" in the morning and shrinking throughout the day. Has anyone else done the petite yet and been happy (or not) with that choice? I just want to wear the shawl and not have it wear me. :) My only reservation is that it will throw off the beautiful symmetry of the three sections.
~Madame Purl

I joined this KAL a while back when it first formed, but have only got around to casting on my Bee Fields a few weeks ago. Then I posted to my blog, but forgot to post to the KAL blog.


So my Bee Fields about now about half way through the swarm section and I am just getting around to posting here. I love the pattern, the yarn (Claudia's Hand Painted Silk Lace), the whole project. We've only had a couple bumps, pretty much due to my total inability to set up the swarm section in a moving car. Once I got over that issue, it's been full speed ahead.

shawl models in short supply

I finished knitting the shawl last Friday and blocked it on Saturday, but late work hours have kept me from getting to the park for a lovely outdoor shot, so I resorted to the brass hooks on the back of the double doors and just hung the 'bee' as nicely as I could.

And here's a bit of detail ~

Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Oregon Red Clover Honey

On to the swarm

I've been working diligently on my bee for the last week or so, and now I'm just finished with the first repeat of the bee swarm. I just love this pattern! I have to say, though, that these rows are taking forever. I'm hoping to finish it before January, when 2 new mystery shawls are starting (I signed up for both. Not sure what I was thinking...)

This picture isn't that great, but it's the best I could get with my camera yesterday. It's prettier in real life, promise:)

Newbie!

Just wanted to post a quick Hello. My name is Christine and Im just now getting into shawls, stoles and everything "big." I've been admiring everyone's beautiful Bee's and had to join. I need to commit to knitting otherwise my Christmas gift list will NEVER get done.

Im excited to get started!

Thanks for letting me join, Annmarie!

Christine

off the needles and ready for blocking

I finished knitting my bee fields shawl last night and will be blocking it today. It's raining cats and dogs here in NYC so it will probably take hours to dry. I'll post a photo as soon as I can take it outdoors for a nice 'autumnal' shot. :)

This shawl was a pleasure to knit, but I did find it more pleasurable to work on when I didn't try to knit on it at the end of a long and tiring work day, especially the last sections with the multiple yarnover bee motif. These fairly flew off the needles when I was well-rested but seemed very tedious to me when I was tired.

I had hoped to finish it in time to wear to Rhinebeck, but that didn't happen. I knew that the designer, Anne Hanson, would be at Rhinebeck and was hoping to show off my own 'bee'. I did run into Anne as I was leaving the fairgrounds on Sunday afternoon and we had a nice little visit. She admired the shawl I was wearing, Summer in Kansas from Two Old Bags, and we talked about knitted-on edgings and such for a while. She's lovely and it was very nice to meet her face to face after corresponding with her by email.

The yarn I'd originally ordered for the shawl, Wooly Wonka's Buckwheat Honey, has been saved for the Honeybee Stole which I'll start as soon as I get caught up a bit more on other projects. After living with this yarn since August, though, I'm thinking that I'll probably overdye it with a smidgen of Logwood Grey from Earthues Dyes to tone down its brightness just a bit. Although it's a lovely yarn, I don't usually wear such bright colors and think I'll get more use out of the stole in a color a bit more subdued.

Baby Steps

Although I joined this KAL some weeks ago, I didn't want to start a new project until my old ones were done. Well, the old ones are not quite done, but I plunged into Bee Fields this week anyway.

I am using the stash yarn shown, and it seems that I need to knit on size 3 (US) needles. After swatching with different sizes, I looked closely at your pictures and decided that this yarn on size 3s would be best--and it is close to the suggested gauge, but not exact.

I'll be done with the set-up rows tonight and then on to the first section. My winglettes seem a bit small, but I'm expecting they'll be more obvious when blocked.

Half Way

The first half of my stole is finished. I couldn't resist blocking it so I could really see what it looks like.



With the first half successfully completed, I anticipate no problems with the second half. Now I need to get busy and finish spinning that second package of Black Rainbow Glitter from Aurelia.

Here's a little close-up of a modification I am doing. I'm adding beads to the side and end edges. They are the "oil slick" colour, I think referred to as "dark aurora borealis", and they match the glitter in the handspun perfectly.

Also, instead of the "bind off loosely in knit" I'm using a great bind-off I learned when doing the Swallowtail Shawl. It makes for a very stretchy yet tidy edge.

K2, *transfer the 2 stitches on the right needle back to the left needle and then K2tog through the back loop. K1 and repeat from* around.

Bee and Honeycomb

I'm well into the bee and honeycomb section now.



I'm hoping I'll have the time to completely finish this half of the stole before I have to put it down again. I'm allowing myself a few days working on it and then it's back to projects with looming deadlines again.

bee in field section 1

I should be finished with the Bee in Field Section 1 this evening and hope to get started on Section 2. I'm trying to have this shawl finished so that I can wear it at Rhinebeck. I've been sidetracked in my knitting by that pesky day job and by some other knitting projects that I'm working on. Here's a rumply, and a bit unfocused, shot of my bee.

All bunched up like this, those bees are looking more like spiders!

Last Row in the Bee & Honeycomb Section

I have a question with the last Row 6 in the Honeycomb section. Perhaps it's my print off, but I'm unsure of what to repeat during the middle section.

Do I repeat: p8, (p2tog) 9 times? Or do I just repeat the (p2tog) 9 times?

I know you all will have the answer. I'm excited, because this means I'm almost done with the first half of the stole!

-lola

Making progress!

I've done work on my Honey Bee stole, I've done only one repeat so far but it's looking very nice if I do say so myself.

I've put it aside for a few days while I work on my other stole, which is the "Secret of the Stole". They are both quite different. The "Secret of the Stole" is quite a bit easier than the Honey Bee stole.



I'm a glutton for punishment I working on 2 lace stoles at once and me who has never even done lace!

Chart reading trouble

I had cast on a couple of weeks ago for the triangular version of this shawl and then tried to start going on the chart for the setup section.

I am having trouble reconciling the written instructions with the charted ones. Just on row one alone it looks like:

Written Row 1(1st 6 instructions-row1-WS)=k1, p3, k2

Chart Row 1(1st 6 instructions-row1-WS)=No Stitch 2, k1, p3

Can anyone help me and let me know what I am doing (or how I am reading this) wrong? I am not an experienced lace knitter, but I did finish the MS3 using the chart only. I guess I got a little cocky.

I can see by all the lovely shawls out there that it is definitely something going on with me and not with the pattern.

Any help at all would be very, very gratefully accepted!

Thank you so much!
Connie in Palo Alto

Through the Swarm

The second chart is done. I'm through the "swarm" section of the first half of the Honeybee Stole.

Here's a closer look at that (unblocked) section.

Wovenflame

Here I Come

I finally made it to the Bee & Honeycomb section! I've really been looking forward to this part of the stole. That was until I was taking pictures. I won't post the ugliness here. I couldn't do that to the others. Right now, I'm just going to assume that no one will ever notice. Now if I can just keep my mouth shut...

Just a little while longer & then I can move onto Part 2!