*edit: contest over. the winner will be announced soon!

i’ve given it some thought,
and i’ve decided that, though
i’m very attached, i’m going to give away
my newly-completed shetland tea shawl.

but because it is so special to me—
what with beginning it when i was twenty four
and completing it in my thirties (ugh)—
i don’t want it to go to just anyone.
i want it to live with a knitter,
artist, aesthete, etc. who has
a good soul.
as such,
i’ll be using my shawl to raise funds
for a place i believe in,
the ruth ellis center.

the rules
1. make a donation to the ruth ellis center; to be as inclusive as possible, any amount you can afford will count. i’d like to raise $500, so if you’re a person who can afford more, please donate accordingly.

2. after making a donation, leave a comment on this post.

as a bonus, if you share this post on twitter or instagram and tag me (@faiche_stiabhna on both), i’ll enter you a second time.

that’s it! just make a donation, leave a comment, and you’re entered to win! you can increase your chances by letting other people know about this giveaway and helping me raise more money for the ruth ellis center.

a winner will be announced on July 10
which i’m hoping is enough time
to reach my goal of $500.

fingers crossed!


shetland tea shawl

June 27, 2020

the satisfaction of finishing this shawl
is difficult to articulate. and as with
so very many things in my life—
degrees, jobs, opening an ira—
it also feels somewhat like
an anticlimax.

still, here she is

shetland tea shawl

blocking this thing was a nightmare;
i would not have been able to do it
without the stellarly generous aid
of one ms. stacie d.

shetland tea shawl

(by which i of course mean she did 90% of the work
and i tried to not fuck it up, after which
i was fed amazing hot dogs)

shetland tea shawl

that said, i’m not going to do another circular shawl
until i can bribe a large group of people to do it together.
pinning on the floor is the way to do it, trust.

shetland tea shawl

the only question remains is, as always,
who is going to get this shawl?
i’m thinking using it
to raise money
for the ruth ellis center.

would you make a small donation to enter to win this shawl?

shetland tea shawl

i recently received this question from pattylatty:

Steven,

I’ve written to you before about your three Malabrigo blankets and finally bought a bag of Mal and have started one of the blankets. But recently I’ve been hearing about how much Mal worsted pills. So I thought I’d write to you and see if you have had any problems with that.

And why haven’t I seen you on the Malabrigo Junkies group? It’s a fun place to talk with people who are as crazy about Mal as we are.

Happy knitting.

Pat

well pat, there’s a few things i have to say on the subject of malabrigo.
if you make it into a sweater, it will pill.
but so will any other natural fiber.
the friction of body movements it just gonna do that.
malabrigo just pills more easily because it is a single ply.

now in terms of my blankets,



i can only speak for the zig zag.
(the other two of were gifts)

veronica and i used it pretty heavily this winter,
and while it hasn’t pilled,
it has a little halo going.
a nice soft halo.

you can’t see the spaces between the fabric anymore,
and the yarn has relaxed nicely.

i say go for it.

hell, you’ve already bought the yarn.

but if you’re really worried about it,
and can return the yarn you have,
get malabrigo twist.
just as soft but plied for durability.

if you can’t,
just add a pattern repeat,
and knit on a smaller needle (us 7/4.5mm)

hope to see the finished product!