Stashbusting, and other stuff

[pensnest]

I've been doing a fair bit of stashbusting lately. As I started my knitting as a Kaffe Fassett disciple, I have untold quantities of single or part-balls of various yarns, and it's hard to find something to make with such a miscellany.




The Camp Sparkle shawl. I may not have finished it in Brighton, but I certainly knitted most of it there. It uses the Stash Buster Shawl recipe by UrbanGypZ Designs.

This one is similar, but has two 'spines' for a more rounded effect, which sits rather better on the shoulders.



Then there is:



I have a bit of a Thing for pink and yellow (I blame the Dowager Duchess of Denver for telling me I can't put them together), so I produced this cheerful scarf from the vast collection of cotton yarns in my chest of drawers. It's basically a simple garter stitch knitted diagonally, and as I took care to do the colour changes on the same side, I then added little tassels to disguise the lumpy edge. Here's another look:





As you may notice, this scarf isn't a stashbuster at all. It's the "Not A Celebrity Scarf" knitted in something chunky that I fell in love with but cannot now find the label for. Three balls, almost exactly, and I love the colours!

Finally, my current pride and joy:



It's Petala by Ines Sousa, and I'm very proud of myself, particularly since I got to the "increase 15 into 1 stitch" part the first time and realised I'd gone wrong, and had to do most of it again. :-(

A closer look:



I have been most fortunate to receive a set of blocking wires as a belated birthday present from Beast. It certainly made blocking the Petala shawl a lot easier when I could put wires through the smooth edge and use about a thousand pins on the spiderwebby bits. It could probably have been blocked even harder, had I the courage, but anyway. I'm very pleased with it. Again, not a destash, as I used a single skein of a very pretty sock yarn (the label is tucked in the middle of the much depleted ball, so I can't tell you what it is).

I should probably develop a scarf-wearing personality now. Hmm.

Comments

[watervole]

All gorgeous, especially the last two.

If my elbows ever stop playing up, I want to try knitting a shawl.

[pensnest]

I get a great deal of satisfaction from knitting, these days. Have you tried the Continental style? I can do it, with quite a bit of concentration - it strikes me as much more efficient than my regular method, and possibly it would be easier on the elbows.

[watervole]

I learned to knit continental a couple of years ago and find it easier than English - and it's fantastic if you want to do two colour work as you can do one colour with each hand.

[pensnest]

I managed exactly that when I knitted a Dalek hat not so long ago, and was *very* proud of myself!