Anyone up for a Mystery?
OK, this weekend I had what could be called a brainstorm, a flash of inspiration, or just a really silly idea...you tell me. First a little explanation. Many moons ago, I was a quilter (I guess I still am but quilting is not my primary activity on my own time now). In quilting there is a creature called a "Mystery Quilt." You would get a supply list for the project, and once you had your supplies, you would get the "clues." These would be the directions for the quilt. You would only do a little each week (or month, depending on how often clues were released), not really knowing what your finished project was going to look like until the end. It was above all, a leap of faith in the designer but it was also really fun. The thrill of the unknown, in a quilty kind of way. Another thing it was, was low stress. You could only do so much until you had to wait for the next "clue." OK, here's where we get to my idea. I wondered, why couldn't we do something like this in knitting? So here's what I think... If there are enough people interested, I will do a Mystery Stole for you. It will involve lace knitting (come on, you can do yarn overs) and the finished size will be about the size of the Feather and Fan wrap I finished last week (20-24 x 72-80 inches or so, whatever). I was planning on setting it up as a Yahoo group, like any other Knitalong. I'd like to see how many people are interested and if we get 10 or 15 or even more, I'll post the supply list and the group sign up information later this week. We'd actually start the knitting in late May or early June and I'm thinking one clue a week for 5 or 6 weeks. I'm using handspun yarn but that doesn't mean you have to. The new laceweight yarns over at KnitPicks would be perfect for this, and you can't beat the price. The pattern is my own design and I'll do it for free so there is no pattern charge. So, leave a comment to let me know who's in and get the word out to all your friends and we'll see if this is a really great idea or if I should just keep my ideas to myself.
posted by Melanie at 9:36 AM
38 Comments:
That sounds interesting. I have a free summer so I'd like to participate.
Hi Melanie,
The Mystery Stole sounds like fun.
Count me in. And congratulations on your fan and feather stole. It's wonderful (Caleb's a cutie too!).
Sounds intriguing. Count me in.
I could use someone to have blind faith in. Add me to the list.
Melanie, we do this all the time on other lists and you're right .. it IS fun! I would love to do this one with you .. put my name on your list, please. And thanks for the invitation!
Count me in! I already posted as much to the list but thought this was a better place for it. I only have one request: That you provide a longer/shorter version with "extra" pattern repeats. I'm not big but I have broad shoulders and need a longer stole than a more petite woman. Thanks for doing this Melanie!
Came here after your note on the spindlers list... Crocheters do a mystery pattern, too.... I'm game, but my concern at this stage is ease of getting materials... I can't afford a fancy yarn. Would this be made from easy to obtain yarn, or would it cost me a fortune to participate?
Sounds like fun. Can you give guidelines for yarn weight and yardage/amount so we can get spinning soon if we'd like to use handspun? (And then if the project doesn't happen, I'd just have extra yarn, as if *that's* a bad thing.)
I would enjoy knitting a mystery project. I've never done lace before.
Melanie,
I might be interested. More info please. Yarn yardage and needle size? Easy enough for a beginner?
Thanks
Ann
Melanie, I've never done much more than socks, gloves and hats, so this sounds like a good way to get started on something else. It will be fun! Thanks!
Yes - more info please. I'm curious how a wrap could be a mystery once one repeat is done...
Yes - more info please. I'm curious how a wrap could be a mystery once one repeat is done...
Me Too! Me Too! I have some recently spun up mohair that is just dieing to be a stole!
This sounds like it would be a blast! Let me know what I need to get for this project :)
Sounds fun - might try handspun too - count me in please
Can't wait to get started
Den
Sign me up to please - think I'll try my own handspun too - looking forward to the start
Den
I'd like to try also. this sounds like fun. thanks for the idea.
I'd love to try it too. I'll start spinning up the yarn as soon as I know what to spin =) Will this be easy enough for someone who has never done lace before?
I'd be interested. I'll be out of computer range for a couple of weeks in June, though
This sounds like a lot of fun. How many yards of lace-weight would we need. If it's not in my stash already, I won't be able to participate.
This sounds like a great idea! Looking forward to it. Please add me to your growing list. Also, I would like to use handspun yarn so it would be great to find out early on how much I need to spin.
Thanks. Sounds like fun.
Oh Miss Melanie .... count me in please! WhEEEEE!! Thanks for hosting this!
count me in . . . I am always up for a challenge.
Saw your note on Spindlers (I'm a lurker). THis sounds like FUN!!! A good excuse to knit and spin some more! I just love shawls and lace. Count me in! Jamie
I too would be interested, not sure if I would buy the yarn or spin it if I have time. Sounds like great fun. How do we sign up?
It sounds like a great challenge. I've been looking for a shawl project for the summer but nothing's caught my eye. Having a surprise pattern would be great.
Thanks for hosting this :)
Hi Melanie - sounds like fun - please count me in. I'm in South Africa and will probably do this with commercial yarn as I'm desparately short on spinning time.
I'm Judi "mor_rich" from the spindlers yahoo group. Please, count me in. Maybe with the group encouragement, I'll finish it. Grin. I was already looking at the Alpaca Cloud "Sunlight" before I came to your blog site and saw you trying out the same yarn. So, I'll order it today. I would love to spin it, but I'm still at "sport weight" with my spinning. I would have to use singles for lace and I don't think I'm ready for that quite yet. It will be a wonderful present for my Mother-in-law for Christmas.
Thanks for putting it all together,
Judi
mor_rich@att.net
Yes! I would love to participate, and since I love lace, stoles, and zero stress, this sounds like the perfect project. Add me to the list, please!
It sounds like fun! I'm only a beginning knitter, but I have help if I need it.
i'm theresa from the spindler's list, and YESYESYES i want to participate!! should i start spinning now, or can i do it as i do my knitting(thus, i suppose, making it mystery spinning as well as mystery knitting)?
Count me as two (very scared) people. My DD and I will try it. Let us know when the Yahoo group is set up and we'll sign up seperately.
Allyn
I'm interested, please count me in! Susan, who saw the post on Spindlers
sounds like fun, count me in
count me in, please!
elisa_eiger@yahoo.com
(from the Spindlers list)
Thanks!
I'm interested; however, I don't want it that big. Is there a way of reducing the size? I have one skein of Knitpick's Shimmer that I would love to use. Let me know.
Thanks, Jane
Hi,
A friend on th4 Spindlers list sent this to me and I'd like to try it. A knit-a holic
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