#…i should probably finish my other knitting projects

[bog-horse]

thinking about knitting an heirloom wedding shawl just for fun

[opens-up-4-nobody]

...

[freshstitches]

I finally published the project for my dice roll scarf that went viral last month. If you love dice games, you'll enjoy knitting this pattern.

The color work in this project is determined by an algorithm, a set of rules that determine the final outcome. There isn't an exact set of instructions for this project. Instead, the knitter uses four 10-sided dice or a random number generator to pick the length of the colorwork in each row. 

The result is a staggered stripe sequence along the edge of the shawl. There are trillions of unique outcomes, so no two projects turn out exactly alike. The pattern uses about 500 yards of yarn in total, but the amount of each color that you'll need is randomly determined. Before publishing, I wanted to find out the minimum and maximum amount of each color required to make the project and the probability of each outcome.

The knowledge needed to calculate the yardage was a bit beyond my skill level, but my friend Mary W. Martin helped me gather this info. I used an online probability calculator to find out the probability of each unique stitch count. The results are slightly different depending on whether you use four 10-sided dice (blue) or pick a random number (yellow), but 99% of all possible results fall within a very small range. 

It was an interesting little tangent, but not hugely important to the actual knitting pattern. I can, however, confidently say there is a >99.9% chance that you'll need a 2nd skein of the main color. If you want to know more about the math, you should check out my project notes on Ravelry. 

The thick and thin striped colorwork is created with a super simple "long stitch" technique. The pattern looks great in fluffy mohair or contrasting colors of basic wool and the instructions include some basic tips for substituting yarns or changing the gauge.

Finished Size: 18 x 68” (46 x 172 cm) rectangular wrap.

Yarn: Approx. 315 yards (288 m) of MC and approx. 264 yards (241 m) of CC. Yardage may vary, see notes on yardage below and yardage chart in photos.

• Main Color (2 skeins) - JMR Studio Worsted Weight Mohair, 245 yards (225 m) per 4 oz; 78% Mohair, 13% Wool, 9% Nylon.

• Contrast Color (1 skein each, both yarns held together) - JMR Studio Fingering Weight Mohair, 320 yards (293 m) per 100g; 63% Silk, 23% Kid Mohair, 11% Nylon, 3% Polyester Held with Lavender Lune Yarn Co. Suri Alpaca, 328 yards (300 m) per 50g; 74% Suri Alpaca, 26% Silk.

Yardage: The amount of each color used for this pattern fluctuates based on the random numbers used to determine the stitch pattern. MC uses approx. 233 to 315 yards (213 to 288m) and CC uses approx. 182 to 264 yards (166 to 241m). 99% of possible results fall within a much smaller range. The Yardage Chart shows the distribution of all potential yardage outcomes.

Needles: Size 8 (5 mm) straight needles, or size needed to obtain gauge. NOTE: Straight needles work best with long stitches. Circular needles with a thin cord allow the long stitches to tighten and stretch, making them harder to manipulate.

Gauge: 12 sts x 14 rows = 4 x 4” (10 x 10 cm) square in pattern.

Other Materials: 10 sided die or random number generator, stitch marker, scale, tapestry needle.

Generating numbers: In my sample, I used four ten-sided dice (D10) to choose a number between 4 and 40 sts. If you don't have dice, you can use an online app like RANDOM.org to generate your numbers. If you follow this link, you'll get a list of 63 integers between 4 and 40. NOTE: Each time you visit the link or refresh the page, the list changes. You can also just choose numbers as you knit.

Pattern is available on my website and on Ravelry.

[onegirlatelier]

April, 2024 | Shetland lace shawl

Hi there! It’s been a while. I’ve been kept busy by all my university work…and this shawl.

The shawl is knitted to celebrate the wedding of my friend (now friends, I should say). A wedding is really the perfect excuse for all the heritage crafts and heirloom projects that might seem too serious to gift in other occasions. I did ask the recipient beforehand if she would like it, though, and I was so, so honoured that I got an enthusiastic ‘yes’. I’m sure this sentiment is shared by many makers, whatever gift they are making.

Shetland fine openwork, a knitted lace, seems to have emerged with the beginning of the reign of Queen Victoria, who championed and popularised the craft. It was probably spread from the Isle of Unst to other parts of Shetland. What surprised me the most when I first read about it was that Shetland shawls and other lace pieces were largely exported as luxury items and rarely worn by islanders themselves. Women bought yarn from spinners and knitted mostly in their homes. They then took them to local merchants and exchange the finished objects for goods or (commonly after the 1880s) money to supplement the household income. The ‘supplement’ nature of this work probably means it was not compensated as much as a job outside the home would be for the same hours and skills. Besides, it was not always easy to spin an even 1-ply yarn at 1600 metres per 100 grams. For a piece of knitting with a large ‘plain’ area (i.e. only knit stitches), the unevenness was impossible to hide but could only be discovered after the area was worked. Then the maker had to either frog (unravel) the area or continue with the risk of the whole piece not being able to sell.

Whilst it is very reasonable to point out that Shetland ladies did not usually wear this type of lace (I’ve been to the Scottish Highlands once, in summer, and it was not fine lace weather), I imagine that at least for some, it wasn’t just about making money. Some sort of fulfilment must have been from the satisfaction of having a piece ‘properly done’ by continuing and adapting a traditional pattern, technique or material. I think this sort of satisfaction is also why many modern knitters are willing to spend hundreds of hours on lacework.

Intricate handknitted lace items can still be bought today (a quick search on Etsy would show many are form eastern European countries with a long and prominent craft tradition), but many are knitted for friends or family members. It always makes me so happy to see people share the gifts they have made, whether big or small, simple or complex. I joke with my online craft friends that no handmade fibre project can claim to be so unless they have a hair or two woven into it. It is the proof of existence for the maker, who tries to go against the irregular nature of handicrafts and, at the same time, accepts it. It is about wrapping up hours, weeks or months in one’s life, along with the songs they have listened to and the perfume they have worn and the memories they have made, and putting it squarely in someone else’s hands and saying: ‘All this, for you.’

A Wedding Shawl

I have not read anything about there being a standard form of ‘wedding shawl’ in the Shetland tradition. However, there is definitely a category of square shawls with similar sizes and a few construction methods. The samples I’ve seen mostly measure 1.5-2m on one side and have three parts: a central panel, four borders and a strip of edging. It is worked flat in garter lace from centre out.

Neither is there a standardised yarn weight. A widely available yarn is the Shetland Supreme Lace Weight 1-ply by Jamieson and Smith, which weighs at 400m/25g. The Queen Ring Shawl examined by Sharon Miller used a yarn at 700m/25g. From my experience, if you want the shawl to be a true ring shawl (i.e. you want to be able to pull the shawl through a ring) at the size of the Queen Ring Shawl (210cm on the side), go for 700m/25g or finer.

I chose a rectangular shawl because I had very limited time, but I did enlarge it because for me, an abundance of fabric does mean an abundance of cozy happiness.

Pattern

Shell Grid and Spider Webs Puzzle, pattern No.19 in the book Shetland Knitting Lace by Toshiyuki Shimada.

The names of the motifs are confusing. One motif (or two highly similar motifs) might just have two different names if they are produced in two different regions. Names do not mean everything, but I’ve had fun trying to match the motifs with names according to this article by Carol Christiansen at the Shetland Museum.

The double yarnovers (YO's) in the diamonds were called Cat's Eye, but perhaps the 'Spider Web' in the pattern name is referring to the three rows of double YO's in the centre panel. It has a really simple but effective edging.

Yarn

Mermaid Lace, in colourway #naturel, sold by Great British Wool in the Netherlands. This yarn is 75% merino and 25% sea algae silk. ‘Sea algae silk’ seems to be a semi-synthetic plant fibre like viscose, with algae involved as part of the raw material. (At this price point I don’t think it has anything to do with sea silk, which is fibre produced by actual shells.) The brand name for the most popular product of its type is probably Seacell.

I bought the yarn, because I had never worked with this fibre before and was curious. What I like: it was a little cheaper than a wool/silk blend and has blocked very well. The whole skein was continuous so I didn’t have to deal with a single yarn joint. What I do not like: it lacks the sheen and smoothness of real silk and doesn’t feel as strong, although it doesn’t shed. In conclusion, I’d rather use a traditional Shetland 1-ply or another natural fibre yarn.

It's also worth mentioning that whilst I prefer to support small businesses, it was disappointing to have received a 93-gram skein when I had ordered 100 grams. It was one of those days between Christmas and the New Year and I somehow did not contact the customer service, but I really should have.

Needle

2.5mm 80cm circular needles. See modification below.

Modification

This Japanese knitting book follows Japanese sizing for knitting needles. The suggested size was no. 1=2.4mm. I figured that I could use a 2.5mm since I knitted on the tighter side, and in any case it was probably okay to make the lacework a little more open by going up a needle size.

I am not going to give out the pattern, but it is probably necessary to explain the structure of this shawl. The centre is knitted first, and then an edging is knitted onto it by picking up either live stitches or the vertical edge of the centre as you go (see schematic below). The four ‘corners’ of the edging have short-row shaping to help it lay flat. I know that traditionally people can achieve this by other methods, but I haven’t tried any of those yet.

I enlarged the pattern by increasing both the width and the length. I casted on 133 stitches instead of 101 for the centre panel and knitted Part B 8.5 times instead of 5.5. The spider web pattern in Part B requires the stitch count to be (something dividable by four) plus two, so I made one central increase before the spider web to get 134 and a central decrease after it to get it back to 133. Due to the openness of the lace, the change of one stitch is not visible.

The enlargement meant I had to recalculate the edging as well, because the number of stitches available for pick-up changed. Originally, at each corner you do two repeats with four short-row shaping each. I did 1.5 repeats following the original placement of short-row shaping in order to make the total number of repeats fit the number of edge stitches on the centre panel.

The pattern says to Kitchener-stitch the last row of the edging to the provisional cast-on. It just didn’t make sense because that would be two rows too much (the Kitchener stitch row plus the provisional cast-on row). To make the number perfectly fit, I knitted only ten rows of the last repeat (there were usually twelve in each repeat). Then I Kitchener-stitched the end to the provisional cast-on, following the lace pattern. I am quite proud of this solution because it is completely invisible.

Somewhere in the pattern it said to purl (looking from the right side). It seemed strange because the rest of the lace was entirely garter. I knitted those stitches and so far I haven’t sensed a ‘mistake’.

The pattern originally calls for 45 grams of yarn. I estimated (based on the increase of stitches in the centre panel) to need about 80 grams. I ended up using 86 grams. Besides the inaccuracies in my estimation, it was probably also because I knitted much more loosely than expected as it was difficult to tension the yarn tightly at such a weight. Like I've point out in the Yarn section above, I was lucky not to have needed more than 93 grams.

The original finished size is 53*118cm. I ended up with approximately 70*170cm.

Conclusion

This shawl took about three months of my craft time i.e. one full day every week for three months and many mornings before I had to leave for university. Knitting outside my room just didn’t work because I was a) engaged in some other activities that made it difficult to steady my hands, and b) worried about putting a white shawl on any public surface.

The pattern itself is relatively straightforward. The first difficulty was, of course, to understand the instruction written in Japanese. Google translate was horrible so I had to rely on my knitting experience. Fortunately, much of the text description was also found in graphs and charts. Then I had to get my hands used to the tiny yarn. After that, it was only fiddly when I did the edging, because I had to turn about every twelve stitches, and by that time I was handling a giant cloud of stitches on my lap. It did give me a lot of time to go over my favourite documentaries and films, and the last bit of edging was surprisingly quick!

Traditionally, Shetland shawls could be sent back to the maker for maintenance. I think it only fair for me to offer that too because I don’t want a gift to become a trouble (same as how you do not use non-machine-washable yarn for baby knits).

In general, I am very pleased with this shawl. It does pass the ring test, despite not being a traditional wedding shawl size or thickness. I do have a whole lot of actual Shetland 1-ply in my stash, so I am really looking forward to taking my Queen Ring Shawl project out of hibernation in the near future.

Reference list for Introduction

Christiansen, Carol. Shetland fine lace knitting: Recreating patterns from the past. Marlborough: Crowood, 2024.

Mann, Joanna. 'Knitting the Archive: Shetland Lace and Ecologies of Skilled Practice'. Cultural Geographies 25, no. 1 (January 28, 2017): 91–106. https://doi.org/10.1177/1474474016688911.

[xhopelessheartx]

Revenge Blanket Grid Pattern

This is a grid pattern and some notes from me, but I will not be teaching you how to do any of it as such. This grid can be used in crochet or knitting, but I have only provided instructions for crochet.

To complete this project you will have to be able to do the following:

Chain stitch

Double Crochet (UK) (US Single)

Turning chain

Make a tension square

Seamless colour change in the middle of a row

Seamless colour change at the beginning/end of a row

Work from a grid pattern

I have made this pattern free but if you do use it I would love it if you would give me a tip on my ko-fi so I can make more patterns in the future! Please also give me a follow and check out my shop :)

I made my blanket using DK weight yarn and a 4mm hook, and used a double crochet stitch throughout. it ended up being roughly 121cm x 121cm.

Make a tension square:

For this grid to look correct when worked you need to have a tension that is creating a perfect square. 

This project has the same amount of stitches as it does rows (220 stitches, 220 rows) so a correct tension square for this project will have the same amount of stitches as it does rows, and will measure the same on all sides creating a perfect square. If your tension square is in fact a rectangle, your whole project will be distorted to a rectangle.

For example; with DK yarn and a 4mm hook, I made a square that was 20 stitches wide by 20 rows tall and it measured 11cm on every side. this was how i knew my blanket would end up as a square.

If you know your tension already then this should be pretty easy, but this part is really important so make sure you get it right.

Changing colours:

You will want to be doing a seamless colour change to avoid having weird looking ‘steps’ up and down from each colour. People change colours and deal with multiple stands of yarn in different ways so you will need to find which method is best for you.

Seamless colour change example, the way I do it: Begin with black. Insert hook into the next stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop. You'll have two loops on your hook. Drop the old colour and pick up the new colour, yarn over and pull through both loops to finish the double crochet. 

You can carry your yarn through your project in different way rather than cutting and adding new pieces with each colour change -I dropped my yarn behind on the back (wrong side) and picked it up again instead of carrying it through as I found the contrast of the colours made the carried yarn too visible, but you can do this in whatever way you want.

The grid:

I have not provided written instructions for this grid but there are some things to remember:

You will be working with a Right Side (RS) and Wrong Side (WS). The RS is the side where the text reads correctly, from left to right and the image looks correct.

You can work this grid from any side, it doesn't matter, although it makes more sense to start at the bottom and work up. Just remember to keep track of which direction you are going in and where you are. A big thing to remember is when you turn your work at the end of a row you will then be working in the other direction (switching from RS to WS and vice versa).

Because this grid is so large I recommend using stitch markers to break it up into sections that are more manageable, and transferring those markers to your grid so you can better keep track- this will help you to avoid mistakes.

To begin this grid, chain 220. Turn, and make a turning stitch - you are ready to begin the first row of your grid.

(you will probably need to save this image to be able to view it in full quality)

After I finished my grid I added a row of double crochet all the way around and then did a row of granny clusters to give it a nice border but you could add any border you want or none at all! I am also planning on backing mine with some fleece or flannel to make it tidier but this isn’t necessary.

I apologise for this being so haphazard but I do hope you enjoy making it! If you have any questions please shoot me a message on any platform and I’ll do my best to answer!

Again, if you are using this grid here is a link to give me a tip so I can carry on crocheting and making patterns: https://ko-fi.com/xhopelessheartx. Thank you :)

I would also love it if you tagged me on instagram or twitter with your projects! 

instagram: x.hopelessheart.x

twitter: caffeinatedeyes

please do not reproduce this grid or claim it as your own, it is for personal use only and is not to be sold

[kaizokushojo]

These are some questions for tumblr, namely specific parts, like knitblr and so on,

I might have questions occasionally so I thought it would be good to add a tag you can filter this by! It's "kaizokushojo asks community"

Anyway that out of the way,

I'm going through my late great aunt's craft stuff that I claimed. They were going to throw ALL of it away. It's mostly thread and fabric craft, esp. crochet, but there are like... Whole hats, blankets, doilies, etc., as well as tons and tons of yarn and stuff. There's a lot finished, a lot unfinished. So.

Just a pic in this case, lol.

First question: how hard would it be to finish off this? I think...it might end up being a bookmark or something because idk if there's a pattern... Idk.

This one looks like it would be very hard to finish. Again, I'm 100% "new," I do not know how to crochet. At all. (I've got all her supplies though.)

She has THREE big big bundles of yarn for this so apparently she was thinking of making someone a full afghan?? But the knit of it is larger....so will this be relatively easy?! 😰

I know what I can use the doilies for but WHAT DO I DO WITH ALL THESE TRIVET-POTHOLDERY SORT OF THINGS.

...also apparently she was making a blanket by attaching many of these other squares together (that's probably what the other pile of squares is for, just different project, I guess??) I have no idea how to do that. Is this going to be hard?? Not all of the squares are finished.

Please help me figure out what/how to do. I loved her very much. Yeah, I guess I should've asked her to teach me, but I've never been into crocheting and I never really thought she'd leave so much unfinished and...I kind of think it should be finished...idk. Where do I even begin. There are a zillion crochet needles and piles of yarn... It isn't like I'm against hard work, but I'm *new* and I don't want to RUIN cool things she had started, so that's kind of...what I'm getting at.

As a 33 y/o who has NOT ever done stuff like this, can I do any of these without botching her hard work, basically. :'(

[creativeseal]

The shawl is done! And blocked! …Or should I call it a blanket? I guess it depends on how you use it.

It took about 43ish ounces of fiber and about 5 1/2 weeks of knitting. It only took a couple time-outs, once when my needle broke, and then once near the end when I had to spin and figure out the edge. It was about 60” diagonal before blocking and about 90” while pinned. Once we took the pins out it shrunk in just a bit to 88.5” diagonal and 63.5” across any one side.

Two of the fibers were spun during tour de fleece last July, two were spun for this project during February, and the rest were all older (some were probably spun in 2010 or 2011). The fibers are all listed on my ravelry page (my name there is workbasket - let me know if you need a link).

My tall husband and daughter were both eyeing the finished shawl, one more strongly than the other, but it’s all mine for now!

I was going to give it a catchy name, but I’m still trying to decide! Any suggestions? Something to do with the split rainbows or the mix of natural and color?

[journeyman-tier-fibercraft]

Been busy enough to justify a full round up for this WIP Wednesday. The TL;DR being that I'm back to being fully lace brained.

Blanket 10 is NEARLY finished. I've started attaching the last row and just need to finish out this row and then do a border (and give him a good wash, I've owned some of this yarn for years and it smells a little dusty). The nights are starting to get really cold here so I'll be happy to have it done, I just gotta force myself to work on it.

Doily 14 (Yarn | Pattern) needs to go on a longer needle but other than that is very fun and cute. I've decided to put it down for a bit to work on the next two projects but I expect when they get boring I'll go back to this. This pattern is surprisingly simple for a Neibling as long as you're prepared for the long pattern rows. Absolutely going to have to break out the washi tape to mark off my rows for the second chart, but the first one has been very easy lace knitting.

Unnamed project aka me fucking around to see if I can freehand this sweater design. I had started with a two row lace ("Honeycomb lace" from A Second Treasury of Knitting Patterns by Barbara G Walker) but honestly didn't find it fun to knit. So I transitioned to a favourite of mine (ssk, k2tog, yo twice). It's going a lot faster now tho it looks a little weird. I'm going to knit to the underarm and if it fits, it stays. If it's too small I'll rip all the way back and redo the shaping in this lace pattern instead with longer shoulder saddles. It's unfortunate that I didn't like knitting the honeycomb lace, I really like how it looks, I'll have to try swatching it in different yarns to see if the problem is just that this yarn has zero stretch (100% cotton).

I have decided I will put short sleeves on this tho. I had planned to just add ribbing for the arms but I saw a drop shoulder vest in a similar style and did Not like it, so this just saves me from having to rip back. I also think I'm going to have to leave this cropped, I'm not a big crop top person but with this yarn being cotton, having a full length body along with the sleeves is going to have the neckline very stretched. There may be no helping it regardless but there's no harm in trying. I imagine if this is does become something I wear it'll either be in the dead of summer or layered over a button up/some sort of top anyway, so a crop wouldn't be too uncomfortable.

Last but certainly not least is Shawl 14 (Pattern | Yarn). My precious Evenstar is coming along very well, I'm actually on the second to last pattern row before the set up for the border. I know the border is going to be a slog but I'm excited for it regardless, he's huge even all compressed on the needles. My self imposed deadline for him is April, but the border is only 56 repeats. If I can do one every other day I should be right on time, which sounds do-able even tho I know I'll get bored by the halfway point.

I need to keep an eye out for patterns for this yarn, I have a whole second cone plus what'll be left after I finish this shawl. These cones staring at me will probably be the push I need to settle on an Orenburg shawl pattern. (Or possibly a large Neibling, or one of MMario's patterns.)

[moodymisty]

Hi! I really love you work! I just finished Tree in Bloom on AO3, it’s so cute, I can’t wait to see where the relationship between strife and the human takes them! I was reading though your fics about taking the horsemen’s horses for a joy ride and was wondering if you could do something similar for Strife and Mayhem where we/the human takes mayhem on a little joy ride? Thank you!! 💖

Author’s note: Are we connected? lol but no joke, I’ve had this idea for a bit since someone on Ao3 was also interested in this idea, but I never went full ham on it since I had some other projects take precedence. But hey, here it is! Time to steal Strife’s ride too.

Also I'm glad you like tree in bloom so far! Your comment will fuel me for the next week while i finish blocking out the next chapter. I have a pretty decent idea on where to take it, but I won't say I'm not flying by the seat of my pants lol

Relationships: Strife/Fem!Reader

Warnings: None, unless you consider horseback riding and brief mentions of weaponry worth warning about

“Don’t wander off too far~”

You can’t help but sarcastically mimic the Horsemen, as you kick around small rocks and pebbles that are unfortunate enough to come into the path of your worn old boots.

You wouldn't have had to wander off, if this whole day hadn't been so tediously fucking boring.

The Makers are some of the only beings alive who can even attempt to fiddle with Nephilim weaponry, and even then, they still have trouble. Lots of it, apparently; As what sounds on paper like a quick fix, had turned into an all day affair.

It’s a lost art, sadly. But Alya and Valus are willing to try, which is more than enough considering the circumstances. Even if Strife tries to maintain an attitude of eternal nonchalance about Nephilim relics, even he can't deny the importance of safe guarding them from being used; At minimum, if his sentiment on the matter is long gone.

Not for their lack of trying, fixing the weapon seems to be taking quite along while however, as you’ve long since wandered out of the Tri-Forge. You've since taken to wandering the wooded paths surrounding, while you wait for Strife to have the knife finally returned to him. He refuses to let it out of his sight, so he stays. He says Death would throttle him all the way to Hell if he lost it.

At least the Maker’s realm is so pretty.

If you look high and far off in the distance, you think you can see the Tri-Forge, but it’s hard to tell. Maybe if you started walking, you could make it there before it got too dark. Probably what you should do in all honesty, but the temptation of spending some more quiet time out here is to strong for you to actually make any effort to move.

This patch of soft grass has become your pleasant little spot, brushing it with your palms as you breath in the woodsy scents of the forest.

Suddenly, a rustle in the woods makes you perk up from where you’re sitting on the ground. You're hand instantly reaches for your hip, while your eyes scan the surrounding area for the source of the movement. It couldn't have been too far away.

You have your knife, but not much else. Most of the aggressive wildlife in the forests around the Tri-Forge only come out at night, or they’ve been pushed far back now that the Makers have a better hold on the realm. Either way, you aren't exactly interesting in having a tussle with anything that might try to start one with you.

Thankfully however, it isn’t an angry creature looking for a meal.

“Mayhem?”

The ghostly looking horse is standing about two meters away as he breaches a set of closely knit together trees, curiously looking at you. His hooves are muffled by the dirt as he walks closer, staring dead at you during the entire approach.

“Something didn’t happen, did it?” The horse looks at you, black eyes staring; Before then giving one indignant snort that is powerful enough to shake his head.

“Guess not.”

Looking away from the horse your watch your feet, tapping the ground with a toe as the grass bends beneath it. As you do you suddenly see a front hoof enter your vision, having to move said foot to avoid it being accidentally stepped on. Shortly there after you can feel the harsh snort of hair blow your hair around, as his head comes even closer to you.

He’s curious, looking around and watching the way you seem bored. For a moment his upper lip just barely brushes the top of your head, before he moves his head lower to your front.

“Hey, gentle.”

His snout presses into your stomach, making it easy for your arms to wrap around his large head. You do so loosely, before putting your cheek to the top of his head in a gentle hug. You're surprised he let you, honestly. His fur is warm in the few areas where you can feel it, while the rest is covered by armor. When he pulls back, you shake your head of at him.

“You are a strange horse.”

Strange but, nice. Over time you’ve found yourself becoming less scared of him like you had been on first sight. Mayhem is intimidating on first glance, but soft on the inside. Much like his rider.

After giving you a curious sniff Mayhem takes a few steps sideways, getting enough space between the two of you that he can safely pivot, pawing at the ground a few times while you watch.

Gently he gets down on one front hock, and then the other, before he then flops onto his side with an ungraceful ‘thud’. He’s now laying down and looking right at you, nostrils flaring as he lets out a harsh breath while his legs are curled inward. He looks remarkably comfortable like that, laying in the grass and crushing a few flowers underneath his weight. A few manage to avoid that unfortunate fate, and stay upwards brushing against his legs or belly.

Mayhem at first was incredibly finicky and distrusting of you- much like his rider in some ways, but it seems over time he’s gradually opened up. As such he doesn’t much mind when you get up to move and sit down beside him, right in front of his chest, putting your back against it. His neck brushes against your right arm while looking at you.

“He’ll be done eventually, I hope. I can feel myself aging.”

Mayhem gives an uncaring blow of his lips, much like a raspberry, in response. Your fingers absentmindedly play with the fabric of your pants, trying to find something to occupy your mind as you relax. The ghostly horse meanwhile just watches, his armor pieces clinking against each other whenever he does any significant adjustment of his body.

You reach up and feel at the soft fur behind his ear, eyes hooded, feeling it flick in your hand. He doesn't move away from it, and if anything, drops his head a bit lower so you can get a better reach until the hand pull away. You scoot your body downward ever so slightly, now leaning onto the horse a little bit more than before.

“Shouldn’t be much longer,” You hope.

Suddenly jerking upright, your muscles are tight at being moved so quick, eyes still blurry as you yawn and look around.

Shit, you’d fallen asleep.

The sky is now turning a pretty orange, but it still isn’t quite dark yet.

Meanwhile Mayhem whinnies at your sudden movement, having been startled but not enough so to move. Guess he didn’t mind being a pillow for awhile, if at no point did he decide to get up. If anything, he seemed to have gotten a bit of a nap in himself. Or whatever the ghostly, distinctly un-horse-like creature equivalent is.

That also meant at no point had Strife called for his steed, which does manage to worry you slightly. Then again, it probably just means that damn weapon is taking even more time that had been originally thought.

Maybe you should head back to the Tri-Forge, especially now that it’s getting dark. Even if the woods are wonderful, it still might not be the brightest idea to stick around them when you have no source of light.

Still a little stiff from sleep you groan as you pull away from Mayhem, slowly getting to your feet. Given his stature it takes Mayhem a moment longer to do the same, but it’s not long after you that he’s all the way upright. He gives himself one good shake, rattling all his armor and letting out a loud snort.

Mayhem is perhaps the most lithe of the Horsemen’s steeds, though it’s not to say the horse is of smaller size by any means. He still towers over you more than almost any normal horse could dream of.

He's also your best chance at getting back to Strife before it's pitch dark, and you'll only have the moon to light your way. Not nearly enough light, by your human standards.

“The forge is a decent walk away,” You’ve ridden Mayhem before, but never without Strife, so you know this might be a bit of a tough sell.

“Mind giving me a ride?”

Cold eyes stare you down- but he didn’t recoil in disgust, or anything similar. Then again, can he even really understand what you're asking of him?

Stepping closer you grab the side of the saddle and attempt to hop on, but end up coming quite a bit short. Getting quite quickly keen on what you’re trying to do Mayhem bends his front legs before laying back down, putting his back low enough for you to throw a leg over and hop on.

Good to know you don't need Strife for a boost, if he insists on being an ass about it again.

“Thanks for the assist.” The horse whinnies.

He also begins moving much to your surprise, though he already has the right direction in mind.

Your feet sort of dangle uselessly close to the stirrups, unable to actually put any weight on them. They were adjusted for someone with quite a bit of height on you, after all. Though at least the saddle itself is comfortable, with a comfortable curve meant for long hours of sitting and stability. The reins in your hand stay loose and floppy, unused, as Mayhem just seems to be going where ever you’re looking anyways.

It’s getting pretty dark now; The sky is now a deep orange fading into purple, with rays of light drastically retracting themselves from the scenery. With it getting so dim you decide to pick up the pace a little bit, sending Mayhem into a light run.

It’s wild; Having to hold on so tight without Strife here to be a brace against your back, but it’s invigorating, for sure. And Mayhem is being quite the good soul, not throwing you off to leave you in the dust. He could've quite easily done so at any point, especially since when you two first met, the horse was distinctly not fond of you.

“We’re here!”

Slowing back down to a walk you reach the front of the Tri-Forge in nowhere near record time, but you at least beat the sunset; Which was the main goal. Doing it fast was just a bonus.

As cobblestones slowly peek up more and more frequently between tufts of grass you move closer, listening out for anything familiar. The sound of hooves on the paving stones is such a nice sound, gentle and even paced as you enter. You could maybe get used to riding a horse everywhere, if it was always this peaceful.

Knocking you out of your thoughts however Valus suddenly stops you, and with quite the look, too. Not that you can blame exactly blame him. He's always been the Maker that seems to have it out for you- but in a overprotectively caring sort of way.

“And uh, what are you doin’ there lass?”

You glance from side to side for a moment before responding.

“Looking for Strife? He’s been gone awhile and it was getting dark, so I decided to head back.”

You speak about the Horseman with such familiarity, more so than any of the other three. He sighs, watching you intently.

“He's by the inner forge with Alya. Givin' her quite the stare down as she fixes that nasty ol' dagger for him.”

Nasty more so in the sense that it's apparently an old weapon of mass destruction, than dirty.

At least you assume mass; You don't know any of the details, as Strife unsurprisingly beat around them when you inquired. He still has some problems telling you about the Nephilim.

You smile at Valus, wide enough to nearly show teeth. Feeling Mayhem shift underneath you, you decide to sit up straight and keep moving.

He says one more thing, however.

“Be careful, lass.”

You don’t know what Valus sees in Strife that you don’t; But then again, he could say the same sort of thing right back at you. You know that the Makers don’t have a fond view of the remaining Nephilim, and while you might be understanding, you’ve been too close to Strife to even think ill of him. Or any of his siblings, for that matter.

Riding forwards you pass Valus and don’t look back out of just a little bit of nervousness, and seeing Alya indeed working at the forge. You see Strife once you get close enough that one of the pillars no longer obscures him, and you call out his name and hope to catch his attention.

“Strife?”

You can see his back is turned, but he noticeably perks up the moment he hears his name. Quickly taking the knife from the Maker he moves away, down the half flight of steps right towards you and his horse.

He tries to hold back the look of surprise when he sees you sitting astride Mayhem, but you still manage to notice the way his eyes widen behind his mask.

“Hey gorgeous,”

He comes closer, slotting the dagger safely back into the the sheathe he has on his hip for it. Heavy boots hit on the cobblestone paths as he crosses his arms, hip cocked slightly out to one side.

“So uh,” Strife takes a look at Mayhem, who has his head held low and relaxed. His ear twitches as he hears his rider speak, eyes moving to look towards the Horsemen. “He just let you get on, huh?”

You nod. “Yeah." Your face suddenly becomes a bit more unsure. "Why, was he not supposed to let me?”

Strife shakes his head and laughs you off.

“Nah, you’re fine. I was just surprised you managed to even get in the saddle, that’s all.”

Insulting your shorter stature than his own manages to sway your attention for just a moment, and he can look over the scene.

The amount of times you've ridden on Mayhem with him has made you significantly more comfortable around him that you had when you'd first met, as your legs dangle comfortably, arms at your sides. Mayhem rests as well, body loose as he waits for something interesting to happen.

Creators, she’s even got my horse wrapped around her finger. I’m fucked.

Stepping closer he grabs along the front of the saddle, before using his other hand to hit your hip softly.

“Let me on, will ya?”

It’s not like you have any issue with him taking his horse back, grasping the saddlehorn and sticking boot in the stirrup, the weight of him putting pressure on it leaning the saddle towards him. Once he finally seats himself behind you however he puts his hands on your legs, rather than taking the reins from you.

“Well now that you got here, how about you let me have a break for a second? Not like Death'll notice me being a few minutes late.”

Of course he’ll take the opportunity to be lazy; Not that you blame him, his lot in life doesn’t exactly leave many opportunities.

You gently move Mayhem forward, walking out the same way you entered as Strife lazily lays against you. He’s massively overdoing it and with how ungodly heavy he is, especially in his full armor, and it’s hard to not just crumble forward. The chin of his armor rests on the top of your head, and he feels content as can be.

Once you’re out of the Tri-Forge and back out into open land you still keep moving with no clear destination in mind; Strife hasn’t given you one, so you largely just steer towards whatever catches your interest.

Before you have a chance to reach any of those interesting points however, Strife gently grasps the reins with one hand for caution, while then talking close to your ear.

“Now, wanna try going for a real ride?”

You barely have a chance to answer Strife gives Mayhem a good kick to send him barreling forward, forcing you to hold onto the reins for dear life. Strife's right here however, and even going so fast nothing would even happen with him and Mayhem both looking out for you.

So he watches you in front of him as you learn on the fly, even if he’s helping to tell Mayhem when to turn with pressure from his legs.

You’re laughing like mad and the wind’s blowing in your hair, even on a horse meant to bring suffering and unrest to anyone who catches even a glimpse.

Strife had thought he was fucked before, but now he realizes he really is; Holding onto you tight so you’ll never leave his vision.

[mirith]

My tatting project has been on hold for a couple days, because I'm re-discovering my knitting machine!

There's something really cool about making something that fits. I don't know, I usually make scarves because I don't have to measure and gauge is more forgiving. This top has shaping and I had to swatch! Kinda!

I think this pattern was a "two-hour" pattern. Lies. This took me maybe five hours, or more, and no, I am not blocking this. I wove in all the ends. It was easy to hide them in the i-cord straps and doubled ribbed edge. I didn't even cry once.

Pattern: Get it Girl top by Lauren Riker on Ravelry. Very good pattern, has hand knitting instructions too! Probably will do those later after I finish my two other hand knitting projects.

Anyway. I got to use my ribber today. I suffered greatly.

I could and should do a whole post on my knitting machine...

[ilycorisradiata]

four

ಌ four: tartaglia (x4) x masc!reader

ಌ theme: tartaglia wanting clones to spar with, but now he's having to fight them for his share of you

ಌ cw: implied masc reader (if pt. 2 then yes very much masc!reader), suggestive but nothing too out there idk, no pronouns used for reader<3, this started off as a funny haha idea but now my brain has gone into the gutter, pt. 2? hehe?, cross-posted on ao3

ಌ wc: 1k

ಌ notes: hi hi hello !! please take this drabble i've had in my notes for a while as i am far too busy atm to find the time to finish off bigger projects :(( this was originally a crack fic type thing but... yeah haha... have a good day<3

How you got to this point was absolutely beyond you. Before you stood four different Tartaglia’s, not really understanding why there was suddenly four of him but knowing that there was only one person that could have made this possible. They had a slight leaning in different personalities, but you could tell right off the bat who the original was, and he was trying to shut the others up at one point. Sighs would come like shockwaves to you, never really seeing the man frustrated over his own selves like this. Pinching his nose bridge, eyebrows knitted so closely together, and shaking his head at his failed attempts of controlling the situation.

One confessed his ‘undying love’ for you, how he’s loved you from afar until now, that this feeling sprouted from the moment he’d seen you and how his eyes would only ever follow after you. How he’d die for you, protect you, do anything for your approval, etcetera. The second had some crude words to say to you, telling you what he’d do to you and what type of situation he’d love to see you in, one of them specifically being with all of the clones. Third was shy; bashful. Whenever you looked at him, his ears would go red and he’d turn away from you, and if anything, it made you want to tease that one in particular. These were all a part of Childe’s feelings, something you’re very lucky to witness, and so you numbered them mentally to keep in check of things.

The original one looked pissed, everything about him had just been exposed and the clones weren’t listening to him for one minute. So, he stood in the middle of it all, blocking the clones from you in defiance to the two confessions, not really worried about the one taking sneaky looks only to look away once he had gotten caught staring by you both.

“Would you stop this? I got Dottore to clone me so that I could fight myself, find my own weaknesses by watching for my own moves… Not so you can go talking about things that I’ve been keeping to myself! My comrade shouldn’t have to hear this−”

“Okay, and? It’s your fault, and the fact you were warned about us not being an exact replica of yourself and there was a good 65% chance of us splitting into certain personalities of yours… You still took that risk. Anyway, Y/N, let’s leave! We should run away together, I’m the better clone out of us AND the one that isn’t chicken to admit his feelings for you!” One had proclaimed, extending a hand to you almost dauntingly.

“Can you shut the fuck up? Christ, Y/N isn’t interested in that. We should go ourselves, comrade, there’s much to do and there’s so much I’ve yet to do to you. He wants to spar so bad, but I’m not interested in seeing blood, I’m interested in seeing you in my be−”

“You… You guys are pushing too hard!” Three was quick to speak up to interrupt the remainder of Two’s sentence, and in a way you were glad he had, any slight movement or reaction could have gotten you whisked away by a very strange version of Tartaglia.

Childe was getting irritated with thing 1, 2, and 3, and you could see it in his face clear as day. It was as if a cloud enshrouded you all, with him being so close to snapping, to getting rid of them in a way he probably knows won’t work but would probably satiate the bubbling anger. You weren’t sure how to diffuse the heat of the bickering between them, so you took his hand into yours. He didn’t even turn around at this, only squeezing your hand that he’s thinking of something, he’ll fix this mess somehow.

“Hey! Who said you could hold hands?!” It felt like your eardrums could pop if One had said this any louder, not really realising that the original could probably raise his voice just as loud. Two looked at him in disbelief.

“What are you, a child?”

“That’s our codename dingbat, we should at least live up to it, no?” One wasn’t taking the sarcasm from Two,

“This is so much worse than I thought this would be. I wish Dottore gave more warning in how annoying it is to meet certain parts of yourself from this type of perspective.” He squeezed your hand, moving backwards so that you could slowly put distance between yourselves and the clones, hoping you could run at some point.

“Shall we just share? I think it would be interesting…” Three had suggested, voice growing quieter when the others stopped to listen to him.

“What the fuck are you insinuating?” Folding his arms, Two was willing to listen but thought it was weird Three would bring up such a thing. All eyes were now on Three, but his eyes were darting everywhere but your face, his cheeks still burning up and around his face.

“Hmmm… He has a point.”

“The only point I’m seeing right now is that you guys want us all to jump our comrade here.”

You felt like a lamb. Trapped and surrounded by a pack of hungry wolves that are ready to just gobble you right up, Childe had a strange glint in his eye after thinking about what the third clone was suggesting to them all… That simply ‘sharing’ you would be much easier, as if you were some toy. Did it excite you? Maybe. But how would it work with 5 people? You knew what position you were being egged into, but how could 4 people ‘share’ you? They circled you, trapping you in the middle and Childe was in front of you, hands wandering around your waist. One was quick to pull your face towards him to the right, Two following closely behind by getting behind you, his arms ducking under armpits and his hands spreading as he felt up your chest. Three had finally mustered up some courage, holding your hand whilst his other danced up your left arm. All of them made you feel overwhelmingly hot, it felt like you were burning wherever they touched.

“Don’t worry, comrade, we’ll take such good care of you.”

[yuriko-mukami]

His Possession

Ecstasy: Prologue

Beta reader: @ruki-mukami-dl

Dad only wished to use me as a tool, abandoning me when I became useless. Mom was still missing. My brother was trapped in the Demon World. And my best friend had gone missing. My everything was crumbling down. But there was this sole person, one who promised not to leave me. The one who promised me forever. Mukami Ruki. Without him, I would have truly lost everything. But with him, there was a tiny flame of hope kindling.

Sitting in the library of the Mukami manor, Yuriko finished the third letter to Elizabeth. The two earlier ones were lying on the table right next to her. Was all this in vain? Was there any sense to write these letters when she didn’t know where to send them? She could have them delivered to Elizabeth’s aunt's house, but would that help at all? If this was about the war zombies were having, the aunt had probably gone hiding too. There was no way of knowing if Yuriko would see her friend ever again.

Sighing, Yuriko put her pen down and glanced at her phone. Her heart took a leap when she noticed there was a new message, but she didn’t recognize the number.

A missed call too?

Yuriko opened the text, gasping. Shin? Where had he gotten her number? Oh… from Elizabeth.

She left him a letter too? And he hasn’t been able to reach her?

Nibbling her bottom lip, Yuriko texted back and saved the contact information. Just how close Shin was with her friend? It was impossible to figure out just from a text, but maybe he had listened to Yuriko after all. Unfortunately, not even that hadn’t stopped Elizabeth from going.

Yuriko let her gaze wander around the library. Usually, the books were able to bring her solace but now… not even that worked. She loved this room that had become a culmination of the love she felt for Ruki, but it didn’t give her the answers she needed right now.

Ruki was sitting in the armchair, his brows tightly knitted together as he went through yet another book he had borrowed from Eden. It seemed he had been absorbed into reading lately, almost forgetting Yuriko was there in the same room doing her own things.

I love him but he feels so distant now. What will become of us if this keeps going? Will I lose him too?

A sudden tap on the window almost made Yuriko jump. She turned her head and saw a tiny bat behind the glass.

Weird…

Ruki got up, opened the window, and let the bat in. Yuriko blinked and stared as he talked to the small creature as if it were a human and not an animal. The bat flew around his head a couple of times before heading out again.

“My familiar found Elizabeth.” Ruki stepped closer and brushed Yuriko’s hair in an almost absent-minded way. “We can send your letters to her later through familiars, but I do not think there is much else we can do right now. This is a matter her kind needs to solve on their own and we cannot disturb them.”

“So, the war truly hit them?”

“It does seem like that. Do not worry. According to my familiar, Elizabeth is safe and sound in a hidden place.”

Yuriko nodded, and Ruki returned to his armchair as if nothing had happened. Where he actually was? Where had his mind gone? He took the book and continued reading it.

“You should study. Even though I returned our project it does not mean you slack off now, Yuriko.” Ruki sighed and glanced at her over the book. “Midterms are closing in.”

How could Ruki think about school when all this was happening around them? Yuriko wanted to scream but instead, she nodded and opened one of her schoolbooks, trying to absorb herself into it. Though if she was completely honest the words could have been written in a foreign language; nothing got through her head as she stared at the text.

“Ruki… I… I want to contact Elizabeth… and then… I wish to go look for the gate.” Yuriko swallowed as she pushed her book aside. “I know school is important but these things in my life are also that. I cannot simply focus on studying when all of this is happening around me.”

Other than that, Yuriko still needed to figure out how to turn into a fox in real life and not just in her dreams, as her brother, Yuuto, had told her. Yet, she hadn’t been able to call out her fox form so far… but perhaps everything was simply stressing her out too much.

Ruki sighed and put the book down. “I am doing just that. For this whole time, I have tried to figure out the potential location of the gate and everything else that is written about the Kitsune. Strange enough, not even Eden’s library seems to have too many books that have valuable information of your kind. I wonder if it is because of their alliance with the First Bloods. Tsukinami Shin probably knows more than he lets out.”

“Umh… about Shin…” Yuriko’s words made Ruki frown, but he nodded as if giving her a sign to continue. “Eli-chan wrote to him too. So… umh… you know… If we could bring Eli-chan back to him, then… I don’t mean to use dirty tricks or anything like that…”

“You can speak freely when you are with me.”

“Well then… It seems to me that Shin and Eli-chan have taken a liking to each other. While it’s none of my business it could work to our advantage here. If we can save Eli-chan, we can gain Shin’s trust, and then he might be more willing to help us figure out more about the Kitsune and their realm beforehand. That… umh… would be useful when we think about how to help my brother.”

“I do not like to involve him with us in any way, but I do see your point.” Ruki pondered Yuriko’s suggestion. “Come here.”

Pushing her chair back, Yuriko got up and roamed to Ruki, allowing him to pull her on his lap. As he held her there, she wondered once more would those same hands have killed her father if her fire hadn’t appeared just then and there. Yuriko took one of Ruki’s cold palms in hers, playing with his fingers.

“Ruki… umh… I don’t… I don’t like the idea of you killing someone… I know that Dad did a terrible thing… and I know you don’t enjoy Shin’s company… But please, don’t kill anyone for me. Can you… can you promise me that?” Yuriko looked Ruki directly in the eyes, wishing her gaze would pass the whirlpool of feelings that had been storming through her for quite a while now.

“That man does not deserve your mercy, and neither does that Founder.”

“But it isn’t a matter of deserving but our equal right to live. Even though we might hurt others every now and then, even though we make choices that aren’t good… Still… We have all been born into this world and we should be allowed to live until we die in our natural way.”

…though… I think some of us simply don’t die in any natural way… but still…

“I see. This is the way you look at the world, am I correct?”

“Umh… yes, it is.”

“Not everyone in this world is as kind as you are.”

“I know this. Still, I want to give everyone a chance to live and do better in the future. For Dad too. So, please, for me, let him live.” Yuriko kept her eyes on Ruki’s, giving him – once again – as a pleading glance as she was able. Was she stretching his limits? Perhaps, but this wasn’t something she could negotiate. Not when it was literally about life and death.

“Haah, I can see the seriousness in your eyes. I will promise you this: I will not hurt living beings around you unless they threaten your life. As your master, I will always put your life above others and I will always protect it even if it causes loss for someone else.”

That was a hard limit, Yuriko knew it without asking. In its all brutality, the thought warmed her heart and made it bounce a little faster. Wasn’t this the kind of love she had dreamed of? Wasn’t this almost as intense as in the best romance novels she had ever read? She didn’t like the idea of Ruki going that far to protect her and at the same time, a tiny part of her heart loved it and embraced the fact he was putting her above all others. There was this sole person who was willing to do that in this world. No one else had ever said such things to Yuriko. So, even though there was a darkness lurking in the corners of their reality, she wanted to take Ruki’s hand and let him lead her to wherever he wished them to go.

“No one will take you away from me. Yuriko, you are mine and I am yours. I am your one and only master, never forget that. I will always protect you and do my everything to keep you happy, my angel.” Cold fingers brushed Yuriko’s cheek as Ruki spoke, striking a warm shot through her heart. A thumb glided over her bottom lip, and she couldn’t help but give it a tiny smooch.

“Thank you, Ruki. I’m yours, I promise. I’ll be with you as long as I live.”

“You will be mine forever. I will never let you go.”

Somehow Yuriko knew that Ruki meant his words literally. It was a simple figure of speech but the truth for him. Yuriko didn’t know how it would be possible, but in her heart, a small voice whispered that Ruki would find a way to fight even death for her. His forever was truly eternal.

“Your letters to Elizabeth are finished. Is that correct?”

Yuriko nodded in answer. “Umh… Yes… Now I only need to send them.”

“Then I will give them to my familiars. And we will tell Tsukinami Shin her location. You are not to go to look for her. If he wants her back, we give him this help and let him do the rest. I am sure a First Blood can handle this much.”

“That… sounds good. I’m sure Shin will save her.”

“Yes. If things are as you said then it is his responsibility as it is mine to make sure nothing bad happens to you.” Ruki’s fingers slid along Yuriko’s cheek, finally entangling with her hair and pressing her head closer. “I love you, Yuriko. From the bottom of my heart.”

“I love you too, Ruki. And for this love, I’ll do anything.”

“Is that so? Then make sure to obey your master and stay safe.”

Cold lips met the warm ones, pulling Yuriko into a soft yet slightly demanding kiss. She wrapped her arms around Ruki’s neck, inching as close as possible on his lap. The cocoon of safety he offered her.

No matter what would happen. This would be Yuriko’s safe haven.

Ruki would be Yuriko’s safe haven.

Forever.

There was darkness but also hope. I had given myself willing to this Vampire to share my life with him, for he was the first one who had truly wanted me. Yet, I did not know what was ahead of us. Our struggles were far from over.

[gardenvarietycrafts]

WIP Wednesday (Belatedly)

I know it's been a minute since I've posted, but my partner got me Stardew Valley and I am obsessed with it and haven't been knitting as much. I did pick back up my needles recently, though, so here's what I'm currently working on:

I just cast on the Leafy Leaf cowl. I was going to wait until I had finished something else first (the Dustland shawl being the main one I'd wanted to finish before starting this cowl) but I recently watched a Nimble Needles video with tips and tricks for the experienced knitter and just had to try this one! The tip is that no cast on and bind off will truly match perfectly, because they're just formed differently no matter what, but to match exactly you can provisional cast on, knit the work, then bind off both top and bottom with the same bind off technique. I'll update once I'm finished with the cowl to let you know how I like it, but it also gave me an excuse to learn how to provisional cast on in the round!

The second photo shows a little bit closer view of the lace pattern. I've only made it about halfway through the first repeat, but I really like how it's turning out so far. I'm not sold on my guage, though, so I may restart on smaller needles. If I do, I'll still use the provisional cast on then bind off the bottom edge technique.

This one is a hit of a back burner project because I chose a yarn with less stitch definition than I probably should have used for this project, but it's the No Rhinebeck No Problem MKAL 3, and all clues are currently released. I just need to finish the last repeat for clue 3 and then complete clue 4 and I'll be finished with this one.

This one was also in WIP time out for a bit due to the way this yarn knits, but I've picked it back up recently. Working on finishing the heel turn for sock 2 (the more pink sock) and then I'll be back to working on these two at a time in the round. The heels on these are Japanese short row heels, and they'll be a gift for a friend. These are both from the same ball of yarn, and I should be able to get a second pair out of it, which I'll knit exactly the same as these so that all 4 socks can be mixed and matched. My goal is to finish all 4 socks before gifting, but I may just gift these 2 socks first, since my next socks will be a pair for me, I think.

I'm not using a specific pattern for the socks, but they're just stockinette stitch, Japanese short row heels, and I'll use a wedge toe.

Not pictured:

The Dustland shawl - I'm still working on it, slowly, but progress isn't really visible because the stitch pattern just repeats. I have, however, decided to stop just after this pattern repeat, so after the next diagonal rib section (actually, after the garter section after the diagonal rib) because 1, it's huge already, 2, the rows are too long to maintain motivation, and 3, I'd like to not have to use up the whole last ball of this yarn. If I get close to the end of the ball, I'll finish it off there, even if I haven't gotten to where I planned to.

Mitered square blanket - I've decided to add more squares to the width and just make all the squares in the same direction, instead of making panels and seaming them together, so next steps will be adding more squares onto the width of the blanket. But this one likely will also be a long term project, since I have other things I'm focused on working on right now.

Project list, for things I have planned (mostly so I don't forget):

Socks for me using the Duo Sox yarn by Willow Yarns, which is meant for knitting a pair of matching socks and comes with two balls, perfect for the taat method I use

Second pair of apple mittens for my partner. She follows me, so I can't explain how they'll be different because I want it to be a surprise.

Mittens for me to match the hat and cowl I have, though I may also do a stripey cowl with that green and a dark blue yarn I have in my stash. I have an idea to knit a pattern I saw slightly differently to suit my needs better.

A pair of worsted weight socks, because warm and faster to knit.

Tea cozy for my tea pot. The first one I attempted was too small.

[negative-ease]

cast off!!!! cast! off!!!

greetings from hell. Let's call it Finishing School. I have been working hard to finish old projects so I can start something new. (And also... and mainly... just... for the sake of it.) Both pictured are from 2019.

Finishing School reminds me why I started gravitating only to projects in the round. This sucks. I hate it! Sewing knitwear sucks, I never remember to do selvedge, I joined this whole twist crop front thing with a crochet slip stitch because, I don't know, it just seemed more doable (emotionally) even though it doesn't look greeeeat.

About the first pic: I got too ambitious with blocking yesterday and ran out of t-pins and almost ran out of straight pins! Having the dehumidifier going downstairs (we're in a split-level) is great because things dry very fast. The baby sweater should be totally dry tomorrow and then the armpits will be kitchenered together (good, easy, looks tidy) and then it's just button bands which, whatever, seems fine.

Anyway, this varigated thing -- when we lived in LA we used to do Thanksgiving in Big Bear, where my sister's in-laws lived. It was always a really nice time. My sister's mother-in-law and I bonded over knitting and one year went to a great local yarn store up there, where I picked up this project for something to do.

Mostly I remember working on it in bed while chatting with my parents for hours at a time when COVID hit and we were all isolating. The yarn (Queensland Sunshine Coast) is a really pleasing bamboo/merino blend that feels surprisingly plush in this Irish moss stitch. It's single-ply and so the weight varied WILDLY but the pattern - which came from one of those brand print outs you get for free when you buy the yarn - is pretty loosey-goosey so that was ok.

After joining everything up I have two problems. One, I don't like the "sleeves", which seem incredibly unnecessary to begin with. So I can either take them out and re-sew them NOT using slip stitch, or take them out and instead do a separate edge and keep it sleeveless. Or just live with it, which is of course what I will do to begin with because path of least resistance.

The other issue is it's just... it's way too big. Way too much positive ease (a first for me so I am mostly amused?). This is as a result of blocking. The pattern says "block". It provides ZERO measurements. Could I have deduced the measurements? Probably! Did I? ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So I ended up overstretching the back (the front, which twists, did not get blocked) and the shoulders didn't quite line up and... it's weird.

What I'm going to do is add buttons to the sides so I can sort of cinch the bottom at my waist and according to my mirror that will look good. I will enlist my mom to help with this. That's the plan. It's meant to go over a black long-sleeved shirt. It doesn't have to be perfect, but it does have to be better than it currently is.

As far as the baby sweater goes, that's a story for another day (it isn't finished yet!!!!) or never. I'm hard pressed to think of another object that has brought as much shame or clarity to my life. But soon I shall be rid of it. And in the meantime it is so frikkin cute :')

[bomberqueen17]

sewing updates etc

yeah the holidays were so fucking hectic and all i’ve wanted to do was sew and i just have not had time.

we’re coming down to the wire, there’s less than a month left before we leave for our trip, and i have seven garments i still want to make, plus two muslins. BUT of those, three of them are patterns I’ve already muslined, and the ones I need muslins for, I have one of them already cut out and just waiting to be sewn up.

(I also have just cleaned my entire house to the point of being able to rearrange furniture in the living room. i threw out pay stubs from 2014. i’ve been real busy ok.)

I don’t have time to find photos to put in here, but. So far, I’ve finished one thing-- the merino jersey Turner dress-- which is not for the trip but I did wear it for Christmas. Yay! Setting that aside.

1) i’ve also finished a maroon linen Honeybourne dress, which can go on this trip probably. It needs a little more hemming, I’m progressing steadily on that.

2) And I’m entirely done with the bodice of another Kineton dress (i did the muslin of that one recently, elastic waist v-neck with pockets) in linen rayon, and I just have to do the waistband and skirt and then hem the bottom and that will be done. Might machine-hem that one for time.

3) I next will cut out and make another version of the same dress, in green cotton double gauze, with the skirt lengthened but left with side slits so I don’t have to make it fuller-- that I intend for a beach coverup, and it will be opaque enough to wear for daywear as well, and will have pockets. I might make the pockets bigger.

(I actually did muslin just the sleeves for this one, as I wasn’t sure how the flutter sleeve armscyes worked-- I cut out a version of the Kineton bodice and changed the shape of the center front to make it a crop wrap top, and it went together and worked so beautifully that I’m just going to pop a lining in there and then bias-bind the lower edge and make waist ties, and now I have a flutter-sleeved linen gauze wrap top that I can wear with sleeveless tops for sun coverage, and it’s small enough that i can cram it in my purse or tie it around my purse strap like a scarf if it’s too hot to wear it.)

I muslined the Avola slip dress in cotton and it fits well enough, I can now make it in final fabrics-- I want to do several in silk, but I am going to postpone that until after the trip. For now, I will try make two in linen, to bring-- one a camisole top, one a knee-length dress. They are easy and go together quickly. So, 4) and 5).

6) I am going to make the Rockwell dress without a muslin, from cotton voile. I had woven a waistband for it, but I just found fabric in my stash I could use to make the neck binding from and I might just do more bias tape for the waistband of that as well, while I’m doing it. i’ll have to see.

and 7) I also have an idea for a reversible dress I want to do, from a pattern I’ve made hacked with a technique I saw on the Internet, and that would be super neat to make and I think it would go together easily, but I might put it off for last and see how fast I can progress on these other projects.

Oh right but 8) I have a muslin all cut out, have for months, of the knit scoop-neck top/dress pattern that I want to make two of for this trip, and I couldn’t find the fucking pattern directions so I’ve finally given up searching and today printed off another copy. I have the damn thing cut out! I just need to put it together! And if it does, this should also be very simple and easy and quick to make more of, and i badly want at least one for this trip. So like. this is just a long list.

I just haven’t had any fucking time to work on this! I’ve gotten a lot done but I swear every other day someone wants me to come over or I have to go do some errand or I have to spend six hours on this other thing or whatever. If I just had like... several days, which I could spend sewing, i’d be done with all of this in no time. Maybe now that the holidays are done, I can make this happen.

We’ll see.

Tonight I need to cut out that beach coverup dress I think. I think I have time to work on some of this stuff. What’s been crucial for me so far is to have a good mix of machine-sewing and cutting out and such, which I do in the basement when I’m good and awake, vs hand-sewing and finishing and such, which I can do on the couch while watching stupid YouTube or whatever. So the key for me is to get stuff from the basement done while I have the brainspace for it, and stockpile couch-sitting work so I can work on it when I’m fit only for zoning out.

[flownwrong]

are you awake to ponder? very well, you are awake to ponder. for the thingie, how about Hot Lips from MASH?

hi z and thanks for the ask!

so. Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan for this thing:

002 | Give me a character & I will tell you

How I feel about this character: Suprisingly attached. She starts out as a bit of a caricature and *is* funny in the ways intended, but the way she goes from a meddler with a stick up her ass and double standards and self-inflicted loneliness to someone who's learned to form genuine friendships and do her own thing over the things she wants to want is super gratifying. And as you get to see her quick wit and passionate attitude shine it's very hard not to love her. So I do, a lot!

All the people I ship romantically with this character: Oh, man! There's so much in her narrative about learning not to place all her bets on romantic relationships it's hard to actually ship her romantically.

My non-romantic OTP for this character: Both in the platonic sense and in the fwb sense, Hawkeye. They got over the fallout of That One Time with surprising speed and grace and I think they're not a bad outlet/solace for each other if they could keep that understanding up, which I believe they could because they're both not stupid and pretty good at holding each other accountable for their more obvious fuckups.

My unpopular opinion about this character: Gosh, what's unpopular again? Um, I didn't find her beautiful at all until s6 when I suddenly did?.. Is that even an opinion. Plus, a lot has been said about merits and flaws of lesbian Margaret headcanon, and it's not my thing. Feels kind of meh to explain away her deal through queerness, both for her and for queerness. But hey, not like it isn't hot.

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: Not serious, but I would've loved to see her with short hair, haha.

my OTP: Again, not shippy about Margaret, not really.

my cross over ship: Wow those are words I haven't heard in a while. Let's go full crack and say Sam Winchester. Like, later years Sam Winchester. They've both Seen Some Shit and Margaret would like a guy with whom she doesn't need to constantly manage boundaries. They should go out in some time travel episode, take their minds off things before going back to their respective horrors.

a headcanon fact: Whatever that thing Hawkeye does with the knitting needles is, it isn't knitting. With Margaret, we at least see parts of the finished project. I declare it a headcanon that he "borrowed" Margaret's knitting supplies those times we saw him knit, and that probably added to his enjoyment of the process and pissed her off majorly.

keep those blorbos coming, my inbox is open!