Status Report: Mystery Stole 3

Well, after some intense weekend knitting, I've finished clue 2! I realize it's difficult to tell what this is looking like, since it's all crumpled up, but since I'm knitting on straight needles it's hard to stretch it out properly. I know I could do it mid-row, but that makes me nervous, so I'm just waiting until the end to really see it. But, I'm loving it so far, and miraculously I'm quite enjoying the lace knitting. I'm finding it strangly addicting, and I've even signed up for the Hanami Knitalong, which will be starting just after the finale of MS3.
Oliver has been enjoying the lace as well, and has taken a shine to the Zephyr:

So much so that Dave had to ward him off with the extra knitting needle and crochet hook on Friday night:I realize he doesn't look threatening there, but I promise you, he was going for the stole before he got into watching the tv. By the way, Dave was doing that before I got out the camera, I promise! Note that Dave is also protecting the beads in his lap (in the red lobster dish, which was a gift from Amie as part of my Knitters Tea Swap package). Good man. All the right priorities...

Edited to add: Amie reminds me that it's a crab, not a lobster, holding the beads! My bad, it was late and I wasn't paying attention. Amie, I totally agree with you that crab is superior to lobster!

The third MS3 clue came out on Friday, and I'm hoping to get somewhere close to finished with that before the giant clue this week. We have two weeks for this next clue, due to the impending release of the final (sob) Harry Potter book on Saturday. But, this next clue will be over twice as long as the previous clues, due to the extra time, so I don't want to be too far behind when I get it. Melanie says this clue, while long, will be fast to knit, so there's hope!

Mystery Stole 3 - Chapter 1

Well, my most recent attempt at the endeavor we call lace knitting has been quite successful so far (knock on wood). I've made it to row 70 on my MS3, and I only had to tink back half of one row about 15 rows back because I forgot a k2tog. Here's the current state of affairs: Sorry that you can't see the pattern overly well. I'm using straight needles so I can't really stretch it out to its full width anymore. I'm SO excited about how this is going. I started it on Friday night and finished the first chart, up to row 50, that night. I was stretching it out and holding it up to the white wall after every single row. I'm not sure if Dave was actually impressed or not, but he made a good show of it. I'm really enjoying putting in the beads, and I'm hoping there are more in the latter parts of the pattern because they add so much sparkle. Yes, there is a lifeline in there, at row 70. Just in case. Better safe than sorry, eh? I was worried that my fabric was too lacy, but now that I'm looking at the photo it looks pretty good and the design is quite apparent, albeit a bit squished. I would like to have the first clue finished before I traipse off to PA on the Wednesday night red-eye, but we'll see. The rows are getting longer and the time is getting shorter, and I still have to pack and hunt down some Hemp hand lotion from the Body Shop to take home for my mother. Can I do it? I'll let you know tomorrow what the odds are...Now I must go rescue my stole from the sofa before Oliver removes it for me!

Mystery Stole 3 - The Swatch

I've signed up for Melanie's Mystery Stole 3. As might have been mentioned here in the past, I feel like I want to knit lace, but haven't yet done so successfully. Not because I've screwed it up, but because I've never really gotten going (Both times I've started I've used circular needles, and the combination of the fine yarn, large needles, and the way I knit has made that a tough combo. Straight needles are apparently much better for me with something like lace). However, I love a good puzzle, so I'm giving this a shot. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the mystery stoles, the basic idea is that the pattern is released a bit at a time over a several month period. You don't know what the final pattern will look like until the end, so the whole operation is a big surprise. The recommended colors for this year's theme are black, white, or variations thereof, but I've decided to go against the grain and use purple, as seen here: This is just a swatch, and bears no resemblance to the actual stole pattern. The idea was to determine if there is a good balance between stockinette and yarnovers, which I think there is. For the curious, this is Zephyr (a 50/50 wool/silk blend) in Plum, knit on size 4 needles. After blocking it is 5" across, which means, since the stole is about three times as many stitches, that my finished stole will probably be about 18" (Yes, I can multiply. 5x3 = 15, but more lace = more stretch). The other purpose of the swatch is to practice knitting with beads (recommended for the stole) and to find beads that match well. I bought two types of beads at Fusion Beads, some shiny ones (top) and some dull ones (middle). I'm going to go with the shiny ones because they pop out more and I don't think it'll be worth the effort to do the beading if the beads aren't obvious. The beading is really fun - I've knit with beads before but always used the prestringing method, where the beads were on the yarn and then you just used one when required. However, that method is a bit tough on the yarn, since it has to support the weight of all those beads moving around on it, and thus isn't good for fragile laceweight yarn like my Zephyr. So, I'm putting the beads on as I go with a tiny crochet hook (size 12). The way you do this is described quite well in this Knitty article, but briefly you put a bead on the hook, then pick the stitch up off the knitting needle with the hook, then slide the bead down over the stitch, and replace the stitch on the knitting needle. I then slipped the stitch to the right knitting needle without knitting it, which I think was right but if anyone knows differently please let me know! The first clue comes out on Friday, and I'm pretty excited about it. I'm really hoping that I can get into this stole project and keep up with the group so that the surprise isn't ruined for me. Jennifer is knitting it as well so I'm hoping that will keep me on task!