On the needles

I had planned to post a picture shortly after I got Simurgh on the needles but one row led to another and before I knew it I had the large feather pattern and half the small feather pattern on the first half of the stole. I used a crochet chain cast on and I read somewhere that cotton thread is the best choice for the waste yarn. I heartily concur. No chance of it splitting and it's easy to see the bumps on the back side.

The yarn I'm using is Geisha from Blue Moon Fiber Arts (kid mohair, mulberry silk and a bit of nylon in a fingering weight). The color is showing up more than the black in this photo. No pictures of this yarn do it justice. The sheen, the drape and the incredible softness can't be captured. It is pure delight to work with. I'm using Addi Turbo lace needles, US 4.

Welcome to My Midwinter Madness

As I was putting projects into my Ravelry profile (EditKnitBook), I realized that most of what I currently have on needles right now comes from Knitspot. Lace knitting is my drug of choice, and Anne has designed some amazing shawls in the past year, as well as socks, mitts and other luscious patterns.

I'm finishing up a tiny Casino Shawl for a Christmas gift, but my real motivation is to clear off the needle so I can cast on Simurgh. The bees are hibernating till spring. January and February belong to the ravens.

Several years ago I worked in the science and nature section of one of our local bookstores and discovered two books by Bernd Heinrich, Mind of the Raven and the earlier Ravens in Winter. I pulled them off my shelf again when I got the patterns and the yarn for the raven shawls. Ravens in Winter explores the intriguing behavior of ordinarily solitary ravens sharing food with one another during the winter. It seemed like a good image for a knitalong.

If you'd like to join me in my midwinter exploration of all things raven, send an email to editknitbook_at_mac_dot_com. I'm not as familiar with blogspot as I am with WordPress, so I'm learning as I go.