Escape from Nupp

Success! I've completed the nupp rows... and with MLK Day coming up, I feel like shouting (respectfully of course) FREE AT LAST!
Many thanks to all the blog friends who's handy comments on my previous post were of great help. (I get by with a little help from my friends)..... silly me, I'm thinking in movie titles, speech phrases and song. Can you tell that history is floating around in my mind today? !
No photos of nupp rows (yet) - I will wait until I have blocked it.

So a few thoughts about nupps:
first: if you are going to knit this shawl, I would highly recommend that you first practice nupps with the yarn and needles that you are planning to knit the shawl with. Learning to knit nupps (say that ten times fast, will ya!) when you arrive at them in the middle of the shawl is not wise. (hmm, wonder what that says about me. ho ho ho!)

second: With the suggestion of "knit loose, loose, loose" from Ann, I did just that. It helped alot. Then after a few more rows, I tried a slightly different thing... When knitting the nupp, I pinched the stitch just below the right hand needle, after I had wrapped, and while wrapping the next section. (does this make sense?) What it did was to keep the wrap and stitch from tightening while I did the next stitch and wrap. I found that this was ultimately the jazz - and I breezed through (quiet... no loud laughter) the remaining 16 nupp rows - with no additional hooks/needles required.

third: I wish that I had practiced before beginning the shawl, as the nupp size is varied throughout the rows. The last few rows are the best of all.. (refer to first suggestion) I am hoping that the magic of blocking saves the day...Silly me!

Will I rip it out? naaaaahhhh - I'll just wait and wash/block it and see what happens. You know, alot of floppi-ness comes out in the wash (so they tell me!) AND, I plan on making another one of these shawls right away. I just need to find the yarn for it. I want to try one with a heavier weight yarn, so the shawl will be larger. It's a fabulous pattern.

So, to make up for a lack of shawl-nupp-photos, I will entice you with this.............
It's been snowing and cold here (brrrrrr.. not above 32 for a long time)










So what's a wizard to do when it's cold outside?? Come up with new colorways, for sure!

This one's a sneak preview of just one color in the nine new superwash roving colors that will soon be available on our website.. it's called "Do You Wanna Dance" and I created it for my blog buddy Jane,
who had this request one day not too long ago...

I promise to have some decent 'daylight' photos soon - but I couldn't wait to share.


Have a lovely rest of the weekend all. I'm off to spin and finish knitting on Swallowtail. more pictures soon.