It has rolled around again, and I wasn’t as ready as I wanted to be for the 2012 Kansas State Fair.  I know, big surprise, right?  Well, I lost some knitting time after DH’s old laptop went wacko, and it turned out to be the most problematic rescue-and-rebuild I have ever done.  I still don’t know why, but that’s water under the bridge now.

Anyway, I did finish my Watercolor Lace cardigan, for which I used Araucania’s Lontue.  It’s a hand-dyed 50/50 cotton/linen blend yarn, and the colorway I chose is muted lavenders, blues, purples, fuschias and greens, called Jeweled Rainbow.

Not the best picture, but it’s what I could get in the morning before heading off to the fairgrounds!

The pattern is Suzanne Lace Cardigan.  I ended up starting over several times, mostly because it took a few tries for the lace pattern to sink in, and partly because I decided to modify the neck shaping.  The glimmery shell buttons pick up the colors in the yarn in a very subtle and pleasing way.  I’ve worn this a couple of times, and have been surprised at the variety of colors in my wardrobe that complement it!

Things I did NOT get done in time:

Beverly Royce’s Stuffed Pony, an ingenious seamless project knit back and forth on two needles, using a double knitting technique.  I spun up some approximately fingering-weight yarn from the dark brown Shetland fleece I purchased in July, and will use a few locks of colored kid mohair for the mane and tail.  The body, neck and head are finished, and I’m ready to start on the legs.  I can’t wait to get my Shetland Pony done!  It’s a fascinating and challenging knit, and I have learned a lot.  And then, of course, I won’t have to push to be ready for next year’s “Hand knit item of handspun yarn” fair class.

Yarn spun from last year’s Grand Champion fleece.  My master plan was to enter the yarn this year, then a knitted item next year, to complete the circle of competition.  The plan still lives, but is sitting out a year.  After I finished combing all the wool I had washed, it weighed just under the minimum for a skein.  Then, too, I wonder how a ‘plain white wool yarn’ would compete in that class against whatever lovely colors, unusual fibers, and art yarns might be entered.  So maybe I’ll play with dyeing it for next time… indigo would be nice!

And finally, my non-textile entry, a Viking knit bracelet:

Yes, that is actually a rose in the background!

I had been thinking about this for a while, and finding out last year – to my amazement – that there were NO jewelry entries was the perfect motivation to get it done.  The rondelle beads are ‘Persian turquoise’ with pyrite inclusions, and the round ones are some kind of dyed stone that I picked up a while back.  This, too, is something I will probably wear quite a bit!

I may not find out for a while how they did, but whatever happens in the judging, I’m happy with the way these projects turned out.