Knitting projects finished up!

For some reason, little finishing details tend to bog me down.  Projects get almost done, but need things like ends woven in, stitches picked up so an edging can be knit, hems, blocking... the list goes on.  In an effort to have less UFOs hanging around (I have sooooo many projects), I've been actively trying to get some finished and making progress!

Capall Dubh finally got it's buttons sewn on:

Bartender's Choice Mitts, to keep hands warm:

Ring of Kerry cowl:

Dessigne-moi un Mouton pullover is so cozy:

Trying to finish Beach Walk (a shrug with lacy details down the center back and just above the ribbed cuffs), Am over halfway finished and if I keep at it, maybe I can finish it soon!

Summer Moon Shawl is finished!

It's all pinned out - and it's quite a large shawl!  This time, I'm going to spritz it with a mixture of water with a bit of  Eucalan wool wash (this is usually what I use to soak my finished knits in).   It will be an experiment, but I've been reading that many knitters do this and thought it was worth a try.  The reason it isn't spritzed yet, is lack of a large spray bottle to put the mix in, so I'll pick one up when I'm at the store (the little ones I have available would take forever and probably make my finger sore).  At least it's ready to go, and all spread out so I could take these pictures!

Here's another picture:

In my last post, I was trying to get the post finished and entered in the soap challenge, but I missed the deadline by seconds!!!  The reason I know it's seconds, is that I saw the entry button, with directions, but wanted to open another window so I'd have the instructions ready if needed, and in that short time, the entry window closed.  So I'm going with the motto "try, try again" and planning to try again next month!

Clyde Slide Challenge

Over the last few months, I've been trying to participate in Amy Warden's Soap Challenge Club, but this is the first time I've managed to actually get the soap made in time to enter the challenge!

In order to concentrate on the technique, I started with Bramble Berry's Quick Mix Oils and chose Crisp Anjou Pear fragrance oil for the scent.  Once the oils and lye were emulsified, I split off some of the batter into four smaller containers, leaving a larger amount in my batter bowl and colored as follows:

Yellow:  Fizzy Lemonade Pigment (Bramble Berry) + Khaki Yellow Mica (Nurture Soaps)
Green:  Apple Green Mica (Nurture Soaps) + Khai Yellow (Nurture Soaps)
Pink:  Pink Vibrance Mica (Nurture Soaps) + Titanium Dioxide (Bramble Berry)
Black: Black Oxide (Bramble Berry)
Background: Titanium Dioxide + some of my pear yellow mix  (Originally I wanted a white background, but changed my mind as I was coloring the batter.)

With the colors ready, I poured the colors into the background a little at a time, between the handle and spout, repeating them until all soap was back in the bowl, and then poured it into my 5 pound soap mold.  Pouring was done from end to end with spout parallel to the ends of the mold.  Since the batter was still quite thin, it created a fine feathered edge.  (I'll have to try this again sometime with a thicker batter!)

The feathered edge can be quite different, depending where you pour the colors into the base color and how thick the soap is when poured in the mold.  Since we can only enter the picture of one soap, I narrowed it down to the four at the top of the post, and finally made my choice based on the one I think fit the challenge the best.  This is the one I"m entering:

12 Color Swirl

I'm really happy with the way this soap turned out!!!!! I love the way the swirls worked and the Yuzu fragrance is one I'll definitely use again, because I love it!  The leftover soap also came out nice:

On another note, my shawl is finished, but needs to be blocked and photographed, but I'm really happy with it as well.