Chloe Begins

Well as you can see to the left I have gotten started on the "Spud and Chloe at the Farm" project.  My daughter India is very excited about it all and is very vocal about what colors I should be using.

One thing that I have observed about working on small knitting projects is that it gives you an opportunity to start learning some new techniques that you previously had not had very much opportunity to try.

For instance I have be doing K2tog (Knit two together)  a good method to decrease.  Also I have been using Kfb (Knit front and back) Pfb (Purl front and back), and M1 (make one)  All three of these are new ways to do increasing for me.

Also when you are working on this scale you complete your work fast but you also have the opportunity to repeat your work often to help you get used to the new techniques.  So far This little doll is going together well and I can't wait to get her dress done.

Spud & Chloe at the Farm

Yes, just one more project to get started with.  I saw this book advertised at the back of Living Crafts Magazine and had to get it.  The book is full of instructions to make a whole knitted farm yard scene and a story to go along with it.

This book is designed using the Spud & Chloe Yarn line from Blue Sky Alpacas.  This yarn is partly super wash wool and partly cotton in a worsted weight yarn. 

While I am sure it would be great to use this yarn that I am sure is divine, I checked on the prices.  It seems that each skein is just under $20.  That means to get all of the colors to make just Chloe you will be spending around $60 once you add tax or shipping.  Now I am sure that each skein will be able to be used in more than one of the patterns. It still comes out pretty pricey for me. 

I am presently using some "Wool Ease" that I have on hand to test out the patterns.  I may also experiment with other worsted weight yarns to complete this cute little scene.  So far the patterns seem pretty straight forward and I hope to be able to learn enough from working my way through them that I will ultimately be designing some of my own cute little things.  Some ideas are fluttering through my mind.