Panda Wool Sock Visions - Part 1 Aug. 22

This first sock is a Panda Wool anklet CrystalPalace Yarns-AnnNorling.

Next is this gorgeous sock by Janet B, and she's used the Circus colorway of Panda Wool found here . The design by Nancy Wild is called tumbling blocks and can be found with the many

other FREE patterns at the Crystal Palace Site http://www.straw.com/).

This yarn is a joy to knit with - and i love the colorways.

The spectacular design below is by Janice Kang and is called Crystalline Lattice. Next is another Ann Norling pattern, in the pretty Basil Curry Colorway.

The inset is a fun sock i'm working on "in my spare time" that uses 3 different colors of the panda wool.

You can see the lovely cinnamon reds and the fern green and the white. I had to set the sock aside at this point, where heel is next.

Did you know that the Panda Wool is also available in natural hanks for those who want to do their own dyeing!?

blessings, :L, laura

Panda Silk

These are progress pics through Clue 6 for the Mystery Shawl KAL. You can learn more at Knitflix, where Bogie also has fun pics of the CA State Fair.

These pictures are of Panda Silk and Debbie's adventures as she knits and moves. It is just so luscious! You can read more at EmbellishKnitshive.html

I probably showed you these before, but this is a test swatch i started with the plum color.

blessings, :L, laura

star search sunday

My choice for today was knit with panda wool.

The pattern is Vinland, and the socks were knit by Stephen and are on the blog HERE

What i particularly liked, besides seeing two finished socks, was the admission of frogging, and the detailed texture in a sock with a slightly patterned yarn. I also tend to change needles to make socks do what i want... instead of decreasing st count for the foot, i will drop 1/2 needle size [in us #].

blessings, :L, laura

my own stuff is right now slated for publication - or submitted - so it's in the confidential zone and can't be shared. maybe i can find something to share soon!


Oh yeah, it's a fun blog read too.

we interrupt your regularly scheduled blog&knit

For this special announcement.... NEW Maizy Colors !!!

oh oh oh!! these colors! i almost don't know which i love the most except the "earth" keeps talking to me...

I am thinking i will add a 2nd poll just to see how folks rank the colors.

For me it's: 1, earth; 2, meadow mist; 3, stormy purple; 4, turf; and 5, ballad blues.

That said, i'd knit any one of them in a flash!

If you've not petted Maizy yet, it's a yarn made with corn from here in the US, and so is a bio-sustainable or "green" yarn. The corn fiber [google for ingeo - let me check spelling] is naturally good at wicking moisture, and has a wonderful "hand" for knitting.

Hard to describe as it's got all the good parts of cotton w/o any of the negative ones, and same for wool - it's a slightly velvet touch to me and wonderfully kind to knit, with good stitch definition.

blessings, :L, laura

violets are ... violet by Tana

This is Panda Wool, which is one of my faves of the special new Bamboo collection from CPY.

Tana is using the colorway "violets" and the socks are just smashing!

More details on her fascinating and articulate blog HERE.

i love the colors of the sock and the sheer beauty of the socks on circs makes me wish i weren't such a die-hard stick-in-the-mud about my dpns....

but. not going to convert. no no no.

I also liked her bookcases - partial to mahogany - and there's such lovely scroll work on the tops.

Just in case you are curious, here are more colors Crystal Palace Yarns Panda wool is a joy to knit - comfortable, and lovely, good hand.

blessings, :L, laura

Vanilla Creme by Annie

This beauty is by "Annie Coleman", whose blog is here . The pattern is embossed leaves, and the yarn is Vanilla Creme in Panda Cotton.


I must confess, i adore every CP yarn that i've touched so far, but this is downright sneaky!

I've not had a chance to try this colorway, and am now sooooooooooo in love!

Too many projects in front of this to do it soon, but i love how the design shows so beautifully yet the color plays with your senses...

great work!


blessings, :L, laura
suffering through 92 degrees. i should be watering and fertilizing my tomatoes, as the crops are pitiful. it's too hot for them too! the best thing about this year's garden is all the sunflowers we DIDN't plant. the birds did it! that's right. they've popped up in all sorts of odd places, and we just left them. someone once told me that many seeds do better once they've had a trip through a bird's ailimentary system! LOL

Star Search Sunday

This is Yuki modelling the One Skein Shrug knit by Rachel = 5 star smashing!! You can see more about Rachel at her blog KnitOnCastOFF

The yarn is Bamboozle, which is one of my faves. It has the luscious bamboo of course, which makes it "green and friendly" to the environment, but it's also fun to knit and has a nice bounce. This is my suggestion for those who want a feel-good sock with no wool - waay better [imho] than fixation, and better colors too! bamboozle colors

Let me know if YOU have entries for our Star Search!

blessings, :L, laura

Panda Wool

Summer's end is around the corner and i'm already thinking about holiday gifts, are you? For me this means i'm thinking of yarns with wool and so the Panda Wool {bamboo and wool blend} is talking!

The sock partials here [all but the shamrock valentine - pattern posted at http://www.straw.com/cpy/patterns2/socks/Sock_Index.html ] are some of my working designs going in various colors of the Panda Wool. The Cinnamon was cannibalized to make the valentine sock, but now, seeing how pretty it looks, i may have to start it again!

Fun with Yarn

I've been having a ball playing with a new Yarn from CPY called Puffin. It is just amazingly soft, feels like suede and is a lot lot lot of fun to work with! (er umm, i keep having more ideas). It seems to really show detail as you work with it, and did i mention soft? It truly is soft enough to convince ANY fiber snob, and that includes my own husband who wants slippers sometime!

First, This hat and booties are by Barbara Breiter & can be found at Crystal Palace Free Patterns. Colorways for the yarn are here. Barbara also knit this great cowgirl vest (it would be masculine i think in black, and there's a great buckskin color!) This yarn does have that fun fringe feeling,

so these are some of what I've been knitting and designing myself - the wild west fringed baby and adult slippers... as well as plain baby slippers. and i have a wonderful (er um IMHO) hat almost done. The baby blanket is by Susan Druding and the adorable model is grandson Marcelo. The blue buttoned hooded cardi is by Dawn Leesman and it's Marcelo modelling.

That's also Marcelo in the lime hoodie by Barbara Breiter, who is the hat designer too!

Trust me, you want to touch this yarn, as i don't think there's anything i can say to convince you until you touch it!

Blessings, :L, laura

PS I am knitting some wonderful designs with this yarn that will be in an upcoming issue of STRANDED, the newsletter by Bonnie Franz at http://www.bonniefranz.com/

PPS I need to show you kitten pics. They are growing fast! Unfortunately, as we give treats to our elderly Siamese who is very very elderly, the kittens are being lured to want such goodies instead of baby food.

the travelling socks

The lucky socks here, in Panda Cotton, have been travelling around the US.

You can see them at the top left, enjoying a rest with Ewenice. Then they travelled to TN and wanted you to see the view at a signpost in TN.

The final snapshot is of Maida's travelling socks smelling the flowers and napping in the sun before a final trip to their new home.

Details on the socks and their soon to come butter yellow cousins can be found

at the home of Beadntat's Lovely work

blessings, :L

Pretty in Pink

Don't you think this colorway is smashing?? [no hotpink font,sorry]
The socks here on the left with the lime cuff, toe, and heels are Panda Monkey socks, lol and can be found at Quantum Tea (by Alison). I like how the texture works so well with the colors!!







This pretty sock is soon going on a trip. Janis felt that a solid might show off the pattern better, although we at CPY think it's very lovely knitting!
You can read more about Janis HERE















blessings, :L