Here we are, at the fourth and final clue of the Lunar Phase Mystery Knitalong.  If you don't want spoilers, you might want to check this out later.  As for the rest of you, I hope you enjoy this project reaching its wholeness at long last!

The layout was one of the things I had the most worry about when it came to this.  I'm not particularly into small shawls, and by the second clue I was beginning to worry that this would be a big circle when it was finished.  I'm sure it would have been pretty that way, but I prefer practicality.  Most circle shawls fall off me quicker than I can put them on.  I am rarely ever sitting completely still (thus a big reason why I knit all the time) so having a shawl that can't handle me bounding around madly is essential.

This layout also reminds me of the triple goddess symbol that looks like this )0( if you're not familiar, and is a symbol that holds a special place in my heart for celebrating nature, femininity, and obviously the moon.

With all my celestial swooning aside, this was probably the most fun clue to knit.  The rows felt like they took forever since I was knitting clear across all of the active stitches, but it was exciting to unite the three pieces.  It was also nice that the night sky yarn was the only one used for this clue, because it mellowed out some of my bright colours a bit, making it something I'm far more likely to wear.  

Plus Larissa Brown included some nice short rows to even out the dips and likely save the knitters some sanity ;) . 

The icing on the cake though, was the 3-stitch i-cord bind off.  I considered not doing it because it would take longer than a standard bind off, but I'm so glad I continued to put my trust in Larissa Brown.  The i-cord bind off is springy, lays perfectly even and flat, and simply looks beautiful.  I fully plan to use it on other projects in the future.

After scrunching this in my hands like a cat for an hour I set up my blocking mat and got to blocking.

Then, much to my surprise, it grew to be twice its size!  I mean, I did my gauge swatch, and it grew, so I was kind of expecting it to grow but seeing it in real life was extraordinary! 

It's for the better it grew too, because now it's truly a proper shawl size and gave the shawl some much needed width.

After working on this and soaking up all of the beautiful pictures of others' shawls, my only sadness is that it isn't autumn yet.  I'm already looking forward to the cooler months when I can sport my shawls, sweaters, and other happy knits.

But I suppose these warm summer months will give me some time to prepare more beautiful knits to wear.

Stay sweet, stay crafty, and stay tuned.

After a few detours for fun events and a long-term project getting finished, I'm pleased to announce that I'm back for the Lunar Phase Mystery Knitalong and a spoiler post for clue number 3! 

The third clue is much like the first clue in design but with a different colour pattern.  

Which with the colours I chose, it made for a delightfully bright piece that made my transition colour look almost rainbow like.  I was the most ecstatic about how it looked at first, but as I got further into it (like the last clue) it grew on me and turned into something I love. 

I became particularly fond of this clue when the moon colour (pearly blue) had a larger section and balanced out the earthy rainbow colours.  It's not that I don't like colours, I just shy away from them because I'm the kind of person whose wardrobe is 95% grey, black, and white.  I am a master of looking like a professional and adult goth, and I need a little bit of balance to the brightness that I've been slowly reintroducing into my wardrobe over the last 10 years.  

Plus Larissa Brown, through her great wisdom, added a nice chunk of the night sky colour in at the end so I wouldn't go into too much panic over how bright my piece was turning out.  

And here we are, one more clue to go before this turns into a fabulous shawl that I'll use to brighten my wardrobe and celebrate the moon with.  The last clue makes up 15% of the shawl, so hopefully soon you will be seeing what these wonderful pieces turn into all together.  

Until then,

Stay sweet, stay crafty, and stay tuned.

This is a post chock full of spoiler for the Lunar Phase Mystery Knitalong, so if you're not looking to have the second clue spoiled for you- you may want to save this post for another time!

Now for all of you sticking around- here is the full moon phase of the lunar phase shawl!

This phase I was a little worried about, I prefer the contrast the star (yellow/orange) with the moon (pearly blue) to the contrast of the moon with the transition (pink/yellow/orange).  It was bothering me enough at this stage that I considered ripping it back to where the transition colour was first introduced and only doing the stars and moon colours.  It would mean I would need more of the stars colour, but at this step I just didn't feel my heart leap for joy the way it had in the previous clue.

But I decided to show a little more trust in Larissa Brown's design, and as I worked further into the rows with the transition and moon colours being paired, I realized that they really lent themselves to the contrast of the stars and moon colours that had started out the piece, making the full moon feel a little more powerful from its center and then letting that energy radiate outwards.

By the time the piece was finished I could feel the moon flowing outwards from the center, and now feel thoroughly pleased that I didn't deviate from the instructions of the pattern.  Even though there were a few rows where I fully believed that this was not going to work out particularly well- I'm very happy to say I'm wrong.

Not to get too mushy and philosophical, but this mystery knitalong has definitely shown me that I have a trust issue or two, and definitely feel like an authority on how colours should be put together.  It's moments like these where I try to appreciate that I still have a lot to learn and that if I'm jumping into a mystery knitalong I need to be willing to go against my impulse reactions.  

I mean seriously, just look at those colours!

Stay sweet, stay crafty, and stay tuned.

This post is for the first clue of the Lunar Phase Mystery Knitalong by Larissa Brown, if you don't want spoilers you might want to leave this post for later.

And for those of you who don't mind unveiling the surprise with me, keep scrolling!

First off, I am so excited to put these fabulous yarns together, and the beginning of the knitalong is the biggest culprit of my excitement.  This dark and moody black with brown hues and small deep blue flecks contrasting the vibrant yellow felt like the radiant stars in the night sky immediately.  

Not only are the colours exciting, but the fabulous Larissa Brown made me realize something while knitting this up.  This single-ply fingering weight yarn is so much more scrumptious knit up on size 5 needles rather than the size 2 needles I've previously tried to use on yarns like this.  I'm a glutton for a tight knit, so I always aim for smaller needles.  Little did I know that the drape and stretch (while still maintaining opaqueness and form) is everything that this yarn deserves and my heart yearned for.  I'm sure the countless people I had scrunch this were a little perturbed, but I think their lives are all the better for this magnificent scrunchy experience.  

By the moon colour (the pearly white blue) I decided I want this to be the biggest shawl ever.  Technically the gauge of the pattern and my gauge swatch tell me that it's not going to be colossally big, but the colours are so nice together that I just want to be able to wrap my whole body in them.  Which is perfectly normal, I'm sure of it.

Then came my favourite yarn, the Rocky Mountain inspired yarn that you can see peaking out between the moon colour stripes.  When this colour was introduced I decided that I might have to start my life over after making this shawl.  Go live in the mountains and completely structure my life around these colours and the way they make me feel.  I'm in my early 20's so I don't think that's totally off the table!  Not that you couldn't completely restructure your life around a shawl when you're older, I just feel like that's a thing that I can get away with at this age.  

As for the pattern itself, I've loved how the increases formed faint lines that ray out across the work, and the contrast of colour and texture that the purl stitches form against the knit.  

I've particularly loved the little holes the pattern has you do.  It adds a lot of fun visual texture and makes the pattern look a bit more complex without it being too difficult (seriously, this has been a fantastic pattern to follow).

The night sky colour set with the Transition colour (the Rocky Mountain one) has been my favourite by far.  They are colours that I would describe as humming together and I now want a full body suit in these colours.  Okay maybe just a sweater, but nonetheless.

By now 3/4 clues are out, and yes I know I'm a little behind.  With my spring cleaning I've been doing little else, as is apparent from my off schedule blog post, but I can assure you that this magical shawl I'm making is going to keep going and you will absolutely be seeing more.

Until then though,

Stay sweet, stay crafty, and stay tuned.

Tonight marks the first quarter moon in the Lunar Phase Mystery Knitalong.  I haven't gotten the first hint yet for this wondrous mystery pattern, but you best believe I am anxiously waiting with my yarn.  

So let's introduce you to the lovely yarn I'll be using for the project.

This is the Moon.  It's the colour Moonstone from Madelinetosh, and the beauty of this yarn positively glows which seems more than a little apropos.

This is the Transition, which is Rocky Mountain High, Colorado also from Madelinetosh.  This was the yarn that inspired the whole colour scheme.  I was originally planning for deep moody blues and purples with pearl white being the moon and electric blue being the stars, but as soon as I saw this yarn the idea had to change to work with it.  I've been a bit homesick for the last couple of months, and these bold and oh so familiar Rocky Mountain colours couldn't be denied.  They feel like home, and when I paired them with the moon I knew I was making the right choice.

To further honour those majestic mountains, I got Whiskey Bar by Madelinetosh (are you sensing a theme here?).  It reminds me of the deep and earthy darkness that comes from being out in the country.  When the night feels gentle and sincere, and lights are few and far between- so all you have to guide your way are the moon and stars..  It's dark, but you can still feel the strong presence of the earth all around you.    

And finally, the stars that shine through.  These are both Glazed Pecan by (you guessed it) Madelinetosh.  I chose these because they had all the brightness that the stars deserve, but still had that earthy aspect that makes the colours rich while still popping.  

Together they are bold, yet still play off of each other nicely.  None will become muddy, but they will also not become the sore thumb of the group.  Plus this way I will have a symbolic piece of home to wear and cherish.  

It also doesn't hurt the excitement that the magnificent woman who is writing the pattern commented that these colours are going to be, as she put it, "stunning".  So far so good.  I can't wait to show you what comes next!

And until then, stay sweet, stay crafty, and stay tuned.

Much to my surprise, a year has passed since the last Rose City Yarn Crawl, and therefore it is the season to lace up my witchy boots, agonize over which hand knits to sport, and set out on the town with my crafty coconspirator, Alexis.  

I know these aren't roses in the glass, I asked for the rose mimosa and they were out.  So here is a lavender and orchid mimosa that, while less symbolically nice for signifying the start of this adventure, was ultra delicious.  I'm not going to a look a gift mimosa in the bloom.  

If you're not familiar with Rose City Yarn Crawl, I will happily explain (and if you already know, you can send your loving thoughts to those that have yet to experience such a wonderful time).

The Rose City Yarn Crawl is a 4 day event in which the yarn stores of the Greater Portland Metro Area are represented on a passport.  Each place has a drawing of their own that you can enter when you visit and put your name in the proverbial hat, and if you get stamps from all of the shops that are participating you are entered to win the fabulous Rose City Yarn Crawl prizes themselves.  In total, there are 75 prizes, if you don't count the gift of having such an incredible event to go to.  The Crawl is the first weekend of March and goes from Thursday-Sunday, and this year had 11 participating shops.  

Gallery Yarns from Knit Purl

My first blood of Saturday was this wonderful and deliciously soft alpaca yarn from Knit Purl.  This yarn also now smells like several different colognes and perfumes as I have thrust it upon anyone that looks like they need a bit of extra scrumptious softness in their lives.  I'm not complaining though, they got to experience some lovely yarn and it's a miracle it doesn't smell like the floor.  Winding this soft and slick yarn proved to be a challenge, as it would launch itself off the ball winder if I went any faster than a snail's romantic stroll in the park.   

Despite my flinging yarn wildly, the crawl was remarkably relaxed this year.  Yes, the stores were stretching at the seams to let in all of these avid crafters, but it was like being in a house with a huge family.  There were few stores that Alexis and I went into that we didn't get complimented on our knit wear.  There was near endless positivity and excitement just to be there participating.  Granted, we spotted a person here and there that acted prickly- but we can just hope the yarn will warm their heart if the people haven't already.

In our journeys we also stopped by Knotty Lamb of Forest Grove, OR (a personal favourite of mine).  One would think that 11 shops would include every store in the area, but sadly Knotty Lamb is too far out of Portland to be included in the Yarn Crawl.  Instead, they hosted a massive sale on all of their yarn along with a raffle for their own prizes, rewarding anyone willing to come the extra distance to make the shop part of the crawling.  

Witching Hour from Knotty Lamb

Before I could even blink, Alexis and I had gone to every shop and submitted our passports to Starlight Knitting Society.  This Crawl went by quick and if it hadn't been for my crafty partner in crime and the amazing people still around me (including meeting the positively stellar individuals of Indie Knits), I would have felt a little sad.  I don't go out a whole lot anymore, health hasn't been in the best place for it, and so it was a tad bittersweet to realize the crawl was already over.  That my crafty community at large, this huge family, would be apart until the next event.  

Lucky for me, Alexis called upon her endlessly magical ways, and handed me the call to action I needed.  As can be seen below, there is a Lunar Phase Mystery Knitalong by Larissa Brown that we're just in time to prepare for.  I knew it was perfect just from the logo (few themes get me like moons and stars).  Always surround yourself with inspiring and lovely enablers.  

Alexis discovering the Mystery Knitalong also made me realize that even if it's not the Crawl, or one of the many other fiber events we go to, I always have my crafty family.  My mother and I talk projects often (especially considering she's lovely enough to read my blog- hi mum!), I'm still friends with my spinning group that I grew up with that I find endlessly inspiring, and I happened to become friends with this remarkable human being that's to the right of me in the photo below.  We became friends at first through luck and chance, and close friends through talking and crafting.  

If you're looking for more craftiness, and want to read a blog that's charming and well written, Alexis has her own place on the internet at https://alexis-findingmyknitch.blogspot.com/ .  Because we definitely all need more of a crafty family wherever we are.

Stay sweet, stay crafty, and stay tuned.