handmade by stefanie

Shout it from the mountaintops: my Find Your Fade shawl is officially done! Look at how gargantuan this thing is: I started it on January 2 of this year after being inspired by all of the beautiful color combinations I'd seen posted on Instagram, and realizing that I could probably find 7 skeins of sock yarn within my own stash to make one for myself. Sure enough, I dove into my stash and found exactly what I needed! Here are the yarns I ended up using, in order: Koigu KPPPM - Black/White/Grey (they just have color numbers instead of names) Ancient Arts 80/20 Merino/Nylon Fingering - Russian Blue Fleur de Fiber Asbury Sock - Dirty Martini Susquehanna Knitting Company Sparkle Sock - Winter Waves Hazel Knits Artisan Sock - Aquarius Leading Men Fiber Arts Show Stopper - Drama Queen Koigu KPPPM - Black/Purple I'm hoping this becomes my go-to shawl in the fall - or maybe even the spring since it's been on the chillier side here in Chicago. I find...

Over the last few weeks, my crafting time was focused mainly on a few deadline projects that I couldn't share publicly. Now that they are done, I can get back to my regular WIPs, a few of which seem close to the finish line! The waterlilies socks are getting closer to the finish line - last night I started the toe shaping on the second sock! But the big news is that I'm on the FINAL color of Find Your Fade ; how did that happen?! I picked up the crocheted handspun blanket last weekend and discovered that it was just a few rows away from being done - so now the crocheting is complete, but I do have ALL of these glorious ends to weave in: Most of the yarn is big and fluffy, so I was excited to give these darning needles from Knitter's Pride a try - they've made the process so much easier since I don't have to struggle to thread each yarn end through a narrow needle eye! I also warped my loom for another destash scarf project, though I was i...

It's been a few weeks since I shared what I'm working on, mostly because I've been focusing on a secret sample knitting project that I can't share just yet - which means that most of my WIPs are seeing very little action. In fact, the only project to progress somewhat since this post is my Find Your Fade (although I'm still not even halfway through the second to last color). Obviously, I won't be finishing by the end of this month, which is when the KAL ends, but hopefully I can get it off the needles sometime in April! Meanwhile, my knitting basket is getting a tad crowded. That probably wasn't helped by starting another new project over the weekend - even if it is rather small. This cute fair isle mittens ornament kit was gifted to me over the holidays and I've been meaning to break into it ever since. If not now, when*? *Pro tip: this is how you can justify just about any cast-on. I also have a new project on the loom which will be a d...

This week, I have an exciting Find your Fade update: I finally got to the the fourth color, a skein of stellina yarn that was gifted to me recently: I have an instagram buddy with whom I swap beer a few times a year, and we always include something yarny for each other; this skein of hand-dyed yarn from the Susquehanna Knitting Company seemed like the perfect thing to use for the middle color of this project (and I totally dig the color name,  Winter Waves ). I've also made it to the heel on my first Waterlilies sock , over the weekend I put in the placeholder yarn so that I can work an afterthought heel. You have to really squint to see the not-so-contrasty gray yarn I used, but I assure you it is there! Since there is some sample knitting in my future, I am trying to avoid starting new projects right now in favor of finishing current (and possibly languishing) WIPs. The yarn for one such sample arrived earlier this week - check out this luscious bundle of  Clara...

I haven't had much time to weave since getting my Flip warped a couple of weekends ago, but whenever I have a few moments to kill, I sit down to weave a few lines. It's really fun, and I am liking the resulting fabric so far! I look forward to having a lot more free time in February so that I can focus on finishing this project.  Find Your Fade (FYF for short?) continues to dominate my knitting time - I can't seem to put it down, and I'm close to finishing the third color: I picked my Matchmaker back up after letting it hibernate while I was distracted by the shiny squirrel that is FYF. Then I realized that I am getting pretty close to the finish line, so I should be more diligent about working on it so that I can wear it a few times before spring hits.  I'm heading to TNNA in San Jose this weekend, so I hope to log a lot of knitting time on my flight. Maybe I'll even have an FO to show off next week! 

I absolutely don't need to be starting a new project until I get a few of my many WIPs off the needles, but I couldn't resist casting on for a Find Your Fade shawl over the New Year's holiday weekend. There were so many inspiring photos of color combinations being shared on Instagram that I found myself digging through my own sock yarn stash, and before I knew it...I'd found my fade: There's a KAL happening on Ravelry , and the timeline is fairly doable (end of March) - plus, PRIZES! Who doesn't love the chance to win something awesome?? I am just about ready to add in the third color section: I absolutely adore anything that allows me to get a whopping 7 skeins of sock yarn out of my stash and onto my needles....plus, it's kind of an addictive project! I can't wait to get to the next color in the sequence.