Noolie Knits

Little Knitting

Example:

This is the beginning of Clover's Christmas dress.

Even though I measured her little chest at 19" and the dress is supposed to be close fitting, the more I knit the more nervous I got.  So, once I finished the bodice last night, I put it on some scrap yarn and measured it:

 

>>
That's close!

Now I know it'll grow a little with blocking, but I was still too nervous to go on so I put it aside until I could try it on her.

I was able to do that when I went home for lunch today and all I can say is -

That child is a peanut!

The dress fits her perfectly so far.  Phew!

Pattern:  Oriental Lily (with some mods)
Yarn:  Cascade 220 Superwash
Needles:  Size 6

I Must Be Crazy

How else can I explain my latest WIP?

Samm asked me on Saturday if I could make a white sweater for Clover to wear over her Christmas dress.

*Yes, Saturday was the 6th of December.

*Yes, Christmas is the 25th.

*Yes, Clover does actually need the sweater for the 24th, which is when we celebrate with my family.

*Yes, I did say I could do it.

~~Samm did say she could just buy one, but how could I let Clover wear a store bought sweater when she's already going to be wearing a store bought knit dress (which is adorable, btw).  What kind of Nonni would I be?~~

I dropped everything and looked through my patterns and my Ravelry Queue and found this pattern (Ravelry link) Yankee Knitter Pattern #23.   I've knit the Mock Cable version a couple of times and have been wanting to do the Basketweave version for a while.  Perfect.

Next, I went to the stash room looking for some white yarn.  I found some Lion Brand MicroSpun in Lily White that I had picked up a few years ago; I have no idea what I had planned for it, but it is the right weight and the right color and it's really very soft.  The price was right too :-)

I cast on and got to work right away.  Of course, I couldn't work on it long because Clover's family birthday party was that afternoon.  I did manage to get the back knit by Sunday morning and cast on for both sides of the front on Sunday night.

 

I think I must work best under pressure; even though I wasn't able to work on it at all on Monday night, I'm currently just about at the halfway point of the fronts.

Keep your fingers crossed that nothing will come up to stall my progress!

WIP's

As I mentioned on Sunday, I really have been doing some knitting and crocheting (spinning too, but I'll save that for another post).  I have a few projects that are currently occupying what little knitting/crocheting time I have managed to find. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Samm has a friend who just had a baby boy on Monday.  She asked me a while ago if I would make something for the baby, and since his Mommy loves monkeys, I thought the Li'l Monkey Blanket (Ravelry link) from The Happy Hooker book would be perfect. 

I am not using the yarn called for (Bernat Softee Chunky), instead I'm using Berroco Comfort.  It's a smaller gauge so I have to crochet more rows to get the correct size squares, but I think it's a much nicer yarn.  Here's a picture of about 1/2 the squares needed.

  And the squares with the monkey faces on them.

Go ahead and laugh; I can take it. Just ask my friend Eileen; she got an awful lot of entertainment out of these monkeys at Chicks with Sticks last night.

I have finished several more squares since taking those pictures; I have just two to go and then I'll join them and crochet the border.  I'm planning (hoping) to be finished by the end of the weekend.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next couple of projects I have to show you are using yarn that I bought while in Vermont for a knitting weekend a few weeks ago with Patti and our Manchvegas knitting friends. 

The yarn and pattern for this sweater was chosen after seeing the sample sweater at The Knitting Studio in Montpelier. 

Pattern: Child's Ruffle Sweater by Vermont Fiber Designs
Yarn: O-Wool Balance in Ruby (a lovely blend of organic wool & organic cotton)
Can you guess who I'm making this for?   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   The Reader's Wrap: (Ravelry link) The yarn was purchased at a wonderful little shop called The Vermont Yarn Shop at Plainview Farm in Plainfield, VT.  Several of our group picked up some of this yarn (we took all she had).  It's an amazingly soft cormo/silk blend from This and That Farm.  This project is currently on hold while I decide if I can really stand to knit 60 inches (20 inches wide) of almost all stockinette stitch.  I'm thinking I may pull this out and add a little patterning to it; nothing fancy, just enough to hold my interest.  We'll see; any suggestions? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~      

Unintentional Break

I really didn't mean to take a blog break; it just kind of happened.  When I realized that it had been over a month since my last post (other than the Friday with Clover posts), I was shocked.  I kept meaning to blog; as a matter of fact, I wrote many blog posts in my mind.  Those don't really count though, do they?  Unless you can read my mind, I need to make the time to actually get those posts from my head onto the blog.

Making time to get things done just hasn't been working out very well lately.  When I have had the time, I haven't had the energy.  I'm going to make a serious effort to change that. 

Even though I haven't been around blogland very much, I have still been knitting and spinning; there's even been some crocheting. Granted, not nearly as much time spent with the needles, hooks, and wheel as I'd like, but some. 

As you can imagine, there has also been a lot of new and exciting changes with Clover.  You got a glimpse of one of the changes in the last post.

 I don't want to bore you to death with one very lengthy post filling you in on everything at once, so I think I'll break it down into several smaller posts. 

Tonight's post will be all about the FO's (don't get too excited, there aren't very many).

First - A Sweater for ME:

Pattern:  Metro Pullover by Oat Couture Yarn:  Plymouth Yarn Galway Colornep (the color doesn't show very well in this shot; it's a lovely olive green with flecks of red, yellow, and blue) Needles:  Size 8 and 9 Mods:  The only modification I made was to knit this in the round to the arm holes.
I picked up the perfect buttons for this from the Malabar Glass booth at Harvestfest, which was held last month outside my office.  I wasn't sure at first, but once on the sweater, it was obvious that they were made for it! 

I Love this sweater; it fits perfectly and I've already worn it a few times since finishing.

Second- I hope you're sitting down for this one:

Samm's Sweet Socks   STARTED:  February 20, 2008 FINISHED:  November 11, 2008 (yep, you read that right - February to November for one pair of socks) Yarn:  "Sweet Clover" bamboo/merino, (dyed by the fabulous Heather of Sereknity and Serenkity Boutique) Needles:  Size 1 1/2 dpns Pattern:  Standard cuff-down sock with eye of Partridge flap heel
I honestly didn't think I'd finish a single pair of socks this year and then I suddenly felt the need to finish these. I'm glad I did. They are beautiful socks (thanks to Heather's beautiful dye job) and there's enough yarn left to make some matching socks for Clover. Just have to get around to starting them.

Third: Two FO's in one.

Part One - Clover's Hat

Pattern:  Thorpe by Kirsten Kapur Needles:  size 9 Mods:  Added a chin strap with button instead of the braided ties Yarn: My Handspun, which brings us to...   Part Two - Neapolitan

4 ounces "Neapolitan" Merino/Silk 80/20 fiber from Spunky Eclectic Spun 2-ply - approximately 66 yards bulky weight (well, actually it's a little thick and thin, but mostly thick)

This spun up so incredibly soft that all I want to do with it is snuggle it. But, I decided that a nice warm hat for Clover might be a more appropriate use for it.  I think I made the right decision; the hat is incredibly soft and fits her perfectly.

I think that's enough for one post. More catching up next time. I promise I won't wait another month; I'm going to shoot for at least one more post before the next Friday with Clover.

Goodnight!

Wednesday Night Bullet Post

~~Last night was another fun Chicks with Sticks night.  Most of the usual crowd was there and we had a visitor, Aricka who was a lot of fun.  She had stopped in the shop earlier in the day and saw the shop sample of my Tulips Scarf and Hat.  She wanted to buy it or learn to make it.

~~Turns out she did both!  Patti didn't have a copy of my pattern in the shop, but it's so simple I was able to write it out and show her how to make it.  She had crocheted in the past, so I really just had to give her a little refresher.  She used a beautiful rose  color of Ultra Alpaca and got quite a bit done while there.  She did a great job and she seemed quite pleased, which pleased me.  I just love it when someone gets so excited over a project, especially when it's my design :-)

~~Several of the regulars of CWS have recently taken up spinning.  Since there doesn't seem to be a local spinning group, we decided to start our own.  Patti offered to host it at the shop and we'll be getting together once a week to spin.  I can't wait; it's a great group of friends and it's nice to have an excuse to meet a second night each week :-)

~~I started another sweater for Clover the other night.  I knit a few inches on it thinking I was using the size 8 needles that I'd just finished using on her other sweater.  Granted, they didn't look like 8's, but that was the size I had put in my knitting bag when finishing the other sweater.  I wasn't liking how tight it was knitting up and decided I'd try a size 9.  I took out my Harmony tips and that's when it hit me - I had ripped out the Lisha Lace Scarf  the night before (we will not speak of this other than to say the pattern is great; I just can't count) and threw those needles (size 5) in my knitting bag.  The size 8's had already been put away.

~~No wonder it was tight!  Needless to say, I ripped out and restarted the sweater using the size 8's.  That was yesterday afternoon before CWS.  Here's where it's at after CWS (just a couple inches left on the back):

I've given this the very imaginative name of "Watermelon Pullover" Am I clever or what?

~~I bought this yarn from Zonda about a year or so ago when she mentioned that she had extra and wouldn't be using it.  It's Freshisle Fibers Suffolk Wool.  Along with the watermelon self-striping, she also had the solid watermelon red (which I used on the seed stitch border) and the solid watermelon pink, which I think I'll use for the sleeves.

~~I'm hoping that tonight I'll finally finish spinning the singles of the Campfire fiber I bought from Heather last month at Fiber Revival.  I really can't believe  how long it's taking me to spin.  It seemed like I was really moving along quickly there in the beginning.

~~It may have seemed that way because after spinning for a while, I weighed the fiber I had left and thought that I had already spun 2 1/2 of the original 4 ounces.  I thought it went pretty fast and the bobbin didn't look all that full but I changed bobbins and began spinning the "second half".  

~~A couple days later, Samm wanted to see what I had for fiber so I went into my fiber closet and guess what I found.  Yep, the actual "other half" of the fiber was in the closet.  I had only spun 1/2 an ounce on the first bobbin - DUH. 

~~Why yes, I am rather brain dead at times, why do you ask?

~~Go ahead, laugh at me.  I can take it.  I'd laugh if it were you instead of me.

FO, WIP's, & 300 Hats

Wow, it's been a long time since I've posted about anything I'm working on, hasn't it?  There really has been a bit of knitting going on around here, even some crocheting.  Spinning, on the other hand, has not been happening lately.  I'm going to have to fix that.  But for now, let's take a look at what's been on the needles (and hook) and what's come off.

Samm said that Clover needed some more bibs, so I made this one for her.

"Baby Bib o' Love" by Kay Gardiner and Ann Shayne
Yarn:  Lily Sugar'n Cream, colorway:  Playtime
Size 8 needles.
Mods:  I  put a snap on it instead of a button, and I'm really not very pleased with it.  I think I'll replace it with some velcro.

I have a lot more cotton yarn, so I'll be making a couple more soon.  Because working with this cotton is so hard on my hands, it takes me a few days to make one and then it takes a while before I feel like doing it again.


Have you noticed the lack of socks around here this year?  Yeah, me too.  What's up with that?  I do have two socks on the needles; not a pair, 2 single socks. 
    


Samm's Sweet Clover socks (which are actually almost ready to begin the toe) and my Sockotta socks.
 Both plain ole stockinette, top down socks. 

Nothing difficult, so why can't I seem to finish even one?  No big deal, though.  Remember, I decided to stop putting pressure on myself with the knitting.  Knitting is my enjoyment and relaxation and I'm not letting it get stressful.  No matter how much I want to finish some socks.

I've started another lace project. This is The Twinings Stole by Anne Hanson

I'm using some Fino that I won quite a long while ago from Kelli. This is the first project I've actually knit with laceweight.  I've only completed 2 repeats of the 16 row lace pattern, (actually, I almost completed 3 repeats but had to frog back a bit) but I think it's coming along nicely.  My plan is to complete this shawl before tackling the Flight of the Honey Bees. 

Samm bought a new camera and naturally it's just enough longer than the old one that it doesn't fit in the case I made recently for her.  That's okay though, because I like that one better than the one I made for myself so I'm using it. I crocheted Samm a new one today.  Here it is before felting (sitting next to the one that I'm now using).

I used Lion Brand Wool in "Flower Garden" and a size K crochet hook. I just crocheted until I thought it was big enough and then felted it. It is drying right now; I'll have a completed picture in a couple days.

Okay, I've shown you an FO, a prefelted FO, and some WIP's.  You may be wondering what the 300 Hats in the title is all about.  You know I have NOT knit 300 hats in the last couple of weeks.  As a matter of fact, I haven't finished even one hat in quite a long time.  I did, however, begin a hat today for Colleen and the 300 Hat Project.  The quick details are that Colleen's friend, Kristy, will be traveling to the Ukraine in September and working with several orphanages.  She'd like to bring 300 hats with her and Colleen has offered to be her East Coast Connection.  She'll collect hats through the end of August.  Please click the link for more details.  Oh yeah, there will be prizes too!

Here's my first hat for the project: It's not much yet, but I've only just begun. I plan to knit hats all summer, in between other projects. Won't you join me? 

(Remember to come back tomorrow for my contest!)

SPOILED!

Not me; Clover. 

I came home from work yesterday to find a package sitting on my kitchen table.  When I read the return address, I had to laugh.  It was from Sara.  You may be wondering why that would make me laugh (or not, but I'm gonna tell you anyway).  Sara commented on my last post that she couldn't seem to manage any FO's.  Then, in an e-mail she mentioned that she did have one little FO, but that it was being sent to someone and she couldn't blog about it yet.  I never imagined that it was being sent my way (actually Clover's way). Check it out:

A GORGEOUS blanket!  Sara designed this lovely blanket herself; isn't it wonderful.  Just look at the colors, and the sparkle.

    (click to really see the sparkle)

Clover loves it!

And so does her Mommy!

Thank you so much, Sara.  You really brightened my day :-)

Remember Me?

Sheesh!  I complained in my last post that the weekends are too short and the weekdays are so long and what happens?  All of a sudden an entire week has passed and I have no idea where it went. 

So, what have I done since we last "talked"?

I haven't spent much time on the computer which explains why Bloglines says I have over 200 posts to read. 

I also  haven't done any spinning (still), but that's going to change beginning this week.  Brenda and I are taking a spinning class with Amy in a few weeks and I need to have a couple of bobbins of singles spun before the class.  Sometimes, I just need a deadline to force me to make the time to do the things I mean to. 

Okay, so that's what I HAVEN'T done since we last talked; here's what I have done:

Preemie Hat #4
Yarn:  Bernat Satin Sport
Needles:  Size 2.5 dpn's


Preemie Hat #5
Yarn:  Caron Simply Soft Baby
Needles:  Size 4 dpn's


Clover's hat (to match her cousins' hats)
Yarn:  Plymouth Baby Alpaca Brush Paint
Needles:  size 7 dpn's


Samm's Hat
Pattern:  Thorpe
Yarn:  Paton's Classic Merino in Bright Red and Dark Grey Mix
(double strand throughout to get gauge)
Needles:  size 9 circulars & size H crochet hook

Are you sensing a theme here?  It's been all about the hats here in Noolieville.  Since the beginning of the year (all 14 days), I've completed 8 projects (9 if you count the slippers that are just waiting to be felted) and 7 of those projects are hats!

Just to break things up a bit (and because I wanted to make Clover's Nana, Jay's Mom, a birthday present) I crocheted a scarf this weekend.  I started it Saturday night and finished it this morning.  It would have been finished yesterday if I didn't have to fight with a skein of yarn that decided to get all tangled up - it took me a couple of hours to untangle it!  I'm kind of proud of myself for sticking with that; normally I would have thrown it in a bag and grabbed another skein; I have plenty more of the same yarn.  Anyway, here's the scarf:

   and a close up:

"Birthday Scarf"
Yarn:  Berrocco Softwist Bulky (I can't believe they call this stuff "bulky")
Color: True Teal
Hook:  Size J
Pattern:  My own, based on the afghans my Nana used to make. 

I love the way this came out - the color is gorgeous, the yarn is soft, and I really like the texture the pattern gives it.  I hope she likes it.  I will be writing up the pattern eventually in case anyone would like it.  It is crocheted on the diagonal and would look great with some self patterning yarn.

I made a yarn trade with Tempe last week, I sent her some Noro Kureyon and some TOFUtsies sock yarn and she sent me FIVE balls of Jojoland "Melody" in a lovely variegated green and purple mix. 

(I shamelessly swiped this picture from Tempe's blog). 

I think I definitely got the best part of this deal!  I have been wanting to knit the Forest Canopy Shawl for a while and think this will be the perfect yarn.  I cannot wait to start it. 

But first I have two projects to complete; can you guess what they are?  Yep, hats!   I promised Jay I'd make him the Seaman's Cap and I've joined the "Do the Amanda" knit along.  Check it out; it's a beautiful hat pattern  designed by Gina using Malabrigo yarn.  I'm planning to make this hat for myself! 

Change of subject - weather:  we are getting blasted with a shitload of snow here today.  I'm pretty tired of it, but I guess I should get used to it because I hear we're getting another big storm on Friday.  I sure hope we have an early spring and a long summer after this nasty winter!

Well, that's it I guess.  Have a great day!

Surprise! It's a Baby Jacket

I went to my mailbox the other day and found a package addressed to "Clover Grace".  I recognized the return address and knew it had to be something special because it was from a very special person, Marianne.  I wasn't wrong:

Baby Surprise Jacket & Booties

The back side:

so sweet!

It's hard to tell from the pictures just how tiny and sweet this sweater is - the card in the top picture is 4"x5".  This sweater will be the perfect size for Clover for this winter.  I only wish my photography skills were better; the colors in this sweater are gorgeous!  I think you can see the colors better in this close up:    Look how cute the buttons are, and check out the matching buttons on the itsy bitsy booties 

Marianne tells me this is her first ever BSJ!  Well Marianne, I've got to tell you, it's PERFECT!  Thank you so much!

Secret Pal Revealed

Another wonderful package from my Secret Pal arrived on my doorstep this week.  I was so excited to get this package because I knew that this was the package which would reveal the identity of the Best Secret Pal Ever, Romelda! 

Isn't this wonderful?!  Look at all the goodies!  The box in the front is some wonderful Mandarin scented soaps; oh my goodness - they smell delicious!  There's Vogue Knitting's Crocheted Scarves book; I've already picked out a few that I MUST make.  Next to the book is a beautiful journal,  "Goddess of Chocolate".   There are little chocolate sayings on each of the pages - my favorite, "Who cares if it melts in your hand?".  Way in the back is an empty box of Ghiradelli caramel filled chocolates (of course it wasn't empty when it got here).  The very best part of the package was this:

A beautiful hat, "Alpine Roses", designed and knit by Romelda, and matching booties.  There are beautiful little crocheted roses on the hat and the white angora "snow" is made with yarn that was in a hat she made for her daughter when she was a baby!  How cool and incredibly special is that?! 

Romelda, thank you so much - not only for the wonderful packages you have sent, making me feel very special indeed, but also for the friendship you have shown me throughout this whole swap.  I'm so happy to now have a chance to really get to know you, too. 

There's more to this story; Romelda did all this for me while she was preparing to undergo knee replacement surgery!  Imagine that; with all the stress and worries she must have been feeling, she still took the time to make sure I was spoiled.  I received an e-mail from her daughter yesterday telling me that the surgery went well and that Romelda has been up and doing a little bit of walking.  Please stop by her blog and wish a wonderful woman a speedy recovery.

I have been truly blessed to have met so many wonderful people through this little blog of mine.  When I started writing this a little over a year ago, it was pretty much just a way to document my knitting and get some ideas and feedback from other knitters.  It has turned into so much more than that.

Tune in tomorrow for another example of  thoughtfulness.

On the Mend

Boy, this cold has kicked my butt!  I'm not usually such a wimp about a cold.  Yeah, I'll whine all day long about it, but usually I'm still able to function.  Not with this one.  I went to bed on Wednesday night and proceeded to shiver and shake all night long, even with a down comforter, two afghans, wool socks, and flannel jammies on!  This is where I spent all day Thursday and most of Friday:

  I spent the days blog reading and sleeping (and using up that entire box of tissues in one day).  Never did touch the stocking until Friday evening when I was able to sit up in my knitting chair in the living room for a few hours.  You know I'm really sick when I can't even manage to knit!

Things started looking up a little bit on Friday night and I was able to finish the knitting portion of the stocking.  I then found a site to create some knitting graph paper according to the gauge being worked and planned how I'd put "CLOVER" in duplicate stitch on the front, which I did on Saturday morning.  I'm so pleased with how this stocking came out. Samm really loves it, too. 

Check out the pocket; isn't it cute?  I wasn't sure how that would come out, but I'm pretty pleased with it.  I used an i-cord bind off across the top the of pocket; I think it put a nice finishing touch to it.

Some close ups:

 
I'm not crazy about how the "V" came out, but I don't see any other way I could have done it.  I used the Eye of Partridge heel and did a stitch combination on the top to resemble it (I used purls instead of slips on the top).

After finishing the stocking, I decided I HAD to get out of the house; I was going nuts (plus we had no food in the house).  So, I went grocery shopping - not a good move.  I really wasn't quite up to being on my feet for two hours yet.  I was totally wiped out!  I spent the rest of Saturday quietly - taking an afternoon nap and knitting.  I needed to be able to get up on Sunday morning and make it to work at the gym.  It was not easy getting up, but I did it.  Thankfully, it was an extremely slow day at the gym so I didn't have to get up to clean as much as usual and I managed to finish the first "Bob Sock" and start the second.  After work, I took a nice afternoon nap and vegged on the couch.  I spent the evening quietly knitting on the second Bob sock and catching up on some blog reading (you guys doing the NaBloPoMo are killing me!) 

So, want to see the Bob Socks?  I rather like the colors I'm using; I think they look kind of sock monkeyish (new word) :-)

Pattern:  Garter Rib
Yarn:  Paton's Classic Merino
Needles:  Size 5 dpn's

Plans for today?  Well, since it's a holiday, I get another day to relax.  I plan to take it easy and do some spinning until I have to meet Patti at the gym.  Luckily, I'm feeling a bit better today but I think I'll take it a little bit easy at the gym.  Then back to work tomorrow.

Ooops, I almost forgot; Chappy's mom is having another calendar contest.  Post a picture of your November calendar and you could win one of her beautiful calendars.  So, here's my entry:

Each year, my Dad makes a Family Calendar.  It's so much fun to see which photos he'll choose (as long as you're not the one whose embarrassing photo is chosen!)  You have until the 15th to get your entry in; what are you waiting for?

Stealing Again

Again, I’m stealing the Sheep’s WNBP format. My excuse this time is that my brain is in a fog due to a horrendous cold and I am incapable of smoothly transitioning from paragraph to paragraph.

 

•  I woke up in the middle of the night Monday night (guess it was technically Tuesday morning) feeling like someone had snuck into my room while I was sleeping and scraped a layer or two of skin off the back of my throat. Holy Crap, it hurt! I knew as soon as I felt the pain that it was the start of a snot-filled week and a half. I get this same sore throat at the beginning of most bad colds. I’m all doped up on cold medicine and still I cannot breathe. Ugh!

•   We had a guest speaker at Chicks with Sticks last night. Doctor Chris from York Chiropractic Health Center spoke to us about ways to prevent the common pains we knitters get in our necks, backs, shoulders, hands, etc. He also showed us some very easy things we can do to help alleviate the pain because as Patti told him, “You can’t always teach old dogs new tricks.” He realizes that it’s nearly impossible to knit without holding your head in the downward position (I’m sure there are some out there who don’t have to look at their knitting, but I’m certainly not one of them). The stretches he showed us will come in very handy at the office too.

•  Mel brought his completed Koolhaas with him. What a beautiful hat, and soft, OMG is it soft!

•  I started and am about two thirds of the way through a Christmas stocking for Clover. I wanted her to have something that she could keep forever in the very special colorway that Heather created in her honor, “Sweet Clover”, and figured what better than a Christmas stocking. Heather was nice enough to dye some up in a worsted weight superwash merino and to also dye some coordinating green for me to use for the top, heel, and toe. Here it is:

 

What do you think?

I’m going to put her name on it in duplicate stitch (in pale pink or white) and there’s one other little surprise that is going on at Samm’s request – a pocket in the front. Why a pocket? Because the stocking that Samm has had all her life (until last year when I made one for her) has a pocket in the front and each year Santa brought a new little stuffed animal to put in it.

• There hasn’t been a whole lot of progress made on the socks I’m knitting for my BIL (aka Bob Socks). I’ve knit about two more inches on the first one; I’m thinking I should get busy working on that again sometime soon. After all, Christmas will be here before you know it and I also want to knit him a pair of convertible mittens.

• I’m teaching a mitten class at The Yarn Sellar, so naturally I decided that I need a new pair of mittens.  I knit on them when I could during the class and haven’t looked at them since (the class was last Wednesday). The final class is next Wednesday and I’d like to have one finished and one at the point of where I told the class to be (decreases at top of the hand). Maybe I will; maybe I won’t.  I haven’t taken any pictures of the mitten in progress yet. Maybe next post, then again, maybe not.

• That's all I've got.

• Have a great night!

 

She's Back!

Tina's back leading the parade of FO's (if you call 3 FO's a parade)

Velvet Grapes:

Yarn:  Malabrigo "Velvet Grapes", 1 skein
Pattern:  Knitting Pure & Simple Baby Tunic (minus the hood)
Needles: sizes 7 & 9 Addi's

Clover's Crocheted Log Cabin Blanket:

Yarn:  Plymouth Jeannee, 11 colors
Pattern:  My own, inspired by Mason-Dixon Knitting's knitted Log Cabin Blanket
Hook:  Size H

and
Bunny Grabbit Blankie:

Yarn:  Berroco Plush
Pattern:  Mine
Needles: 10 1/2

So, what's that leave on the needles?

Boy Socks

Yarn:  Sockina
Pattern:  Just your plain ole stockinette sock
Needles:  Crystal Palace size 1 1/2

I started this pair of socks for myself, but I didn't do a gauge swatch (never do for socks) and they are working up to be too big for me, but they'll be just right for the hubby.  I figure it's about time I make him another pair of socks anyway, so these are for him. 

There are a few other things on the needles, but I'm not actively working on them; not sure yet whether I want to finish them or not. 

I've got a very small amount of the green merino to finish spinning; I'm hoping to get that done this week.

Next up:  Christmas stocking for Clover using the yarn that Heather was nice enough to dye up for me in the colorway she named for her, "Sweet Clover", (check out all the new yarns she's put up in her etsy shop this week!), socks for my brother-in-law for Christmas, and then, finally, a sweater for me.  I would like to make a new sweater for myself soon; it's been a while.  I'm not sure which one I'll make yet.  I've got a lot of ideas bouncing around in my head.

Well, that's enough for today; have a great one!

The Power of Good Thoughts

Thanks for all the very sweet comments and e-mails you sent me yesterday.  I feel so blessed to have such good friends as all of you!  I'm kind of afraid to say anything, but it seems that the enemy is gone.  Amazing what a day of the right drugs and rest will do.  And I truly believe that all your good thoughts helped , too!  Now if it'll just stay away.

Obviously, there was no knitting going on yesterday although by last night I felt like I could do a little bit of spinning (and I do mean a LITTLE bit).  I spent about 1/2 hour spinning and that was enough. 

It seems that whenever I'm feeling my worst, the mailman puts a package in my mailbox.  Yesterday's package was from the wonderful Gina.  She's such a sweetheart.  I knew part of this package was coming, but she snuck a little something extra in there.  Want to see?

First, this beautiful sweater for Clover:

(I hope Gina doesn't mind that I stole this picture from her).  Along with the sweater she sent some lovely socks she knit for Clover:

Aren't these adorable?  Gina is so sweet and generous; but she didn't stop there. 

She also sent fiber for me; isn't it lovely?  It is 50% merino and 50% silk which she hand dyed in the colorway "Tanzanite"- Yummy!  I can't wait to start spinning this.  Thank you so much Gina!

And now, I must go and get ready for work.  I hope you all have a wonderful day!

As Promised - A Post

I know I haven't been around here much this past week; hope you didn't miss me too much ;-)  I've been fighting a migraine since last Saturday; not yesterday, last Saturday!  I pretty much lost the battle by Thursday and spent the day taking the heavy duty meds and feeling lousy all day. I had either excruciating head pain or extreme nausea from the pain meds.  Fun.  Friday, I woke up and didn't feel like I was doing a whole lot better, but had to go to work or my coworker would have been alone in the office all day.  I did go home after he got back from lunch. It's now Sunday night and I can still feel the pain in my head.  It's not nearly as bad as it was Thursday and Friday, but it's still there.  With all this, it's been a bit difficult to keep up with the blog reading and the e-mails and with keeping this little blog up to date.

But, you're not here to listen to me whine, are you?  Moving on.....

Through it all, there has still been some knitting, crocheting, and spinning going on around here.  The only day I wasn't able to do anything was Thursday; every other day I managed to get something done.   The mailman has also been busy delivering more packages for me. 

Crocheting:  The secret project is done (except for blocking) with almost a week to spare.  YAY!  I enjoyed this project, but I really was ready to be done with it.  Pictures next week.

Spinning:  I finished spinning up a bobbin full of the green merino. 

Knitting:

The Ice Cream Sweater is complete (except for buttons)
Pattern:  Baby Sleeve to Sleeve Cardigan
Yarn: Trekking XXL, color 126
Needles:  Size 2 addis
Cindy inspects and approves.




Itty Bitty Doggie Sweater. 
I made this sweater for Samm & Jay's friend's itty bitty puppy, Chezza.  Samm says she's a "Juggy", part Jack Russell and part Pug.  I really wasn't sure this was going to fit (it's really itty bitty), but Jay got a picture of Chezza wearing it and it fits her perfectly.  The picture he took was on his cell phone; he's going to try and get a better one for me to post here. Until then, you get the monkey modeling it.
Pattern: Penny
Yarn:  Lamb's Pride worsted, Green Apple
Needles:  Sizes 5 and 6

Velvet Grapes:

1 1/2 sleeves and neck band left to do.  Sooo Soft!



Bunny Blankie
I'm winging this; I'll stuff the head lightly with fiberfill and the rest will be a blankie similar to this.  I'm using Berroco Plush - sooo very soft.

I cast on for a pair of socks tonight; I'm feeling the need for a sock fix.  I'm using the Sockina Cotton yarn that Patti gave me.  I've only got a few rows done, so no pics yet.

Mail:

I received my copy of Crazy Aunt Purl's book this past week; haven't had a chance to read any of it yet (headaches and reading don't really go too well together).  I'm anxious to dive in, though.

I've saved the best for last:

The BEST Secret Pal ever strikes again!
Look at these goodies, will ya?
Grapefruit & Orange Bath stuff (soap, lotion, shower gel) smells incredible!
A black kitty box filled with yummy caramel candies.
The greatest book with a most appropriate title; Samm and I had great fun looking through this book.  My queue has suddenly just about doubled in size!  Here's one example of something from the book that will be knit very soon: it's a Christmas tree hat; isn't it great? What a funny picture; makes me laugh every time I look at it!
Some closeups of the items in the front row:

Rubber Duckie soap and Lemon hat and booties for Clover.
OMG, this hat and booties are so damn cute and so soft!
Clover certainly will not be wanting for any knit items; lucky little girl!
And check out this yarn:

When I first saw this yarn, I thought it was just beautiful; the colors are great.  Then I looked closer; check out the colorway name:

Isn't that great?

Now I ask you, do I have the best Secret Pal or what?!

Okay, that's enough for me tonight.  Gotta go rest my eyes.  Goodnight.

It's Official; I'm Spoiled Rotten!

Oh.My.Gawd!  I am seriously so spoiled.  Just take a look at what was waiting for me when I arrived home yesterday:

This incredible book and adorable handmade card from my Secret Pal!

I just can't believe how generous she is (remember the chocolates from last week?).  This book is wonderful; I've been wanting to learn Fair Isle knitting and this book is just the thing I need to get me going on that.  It not only has a great section on techniques, with what look like very helpful pictures, but it starts out with a history of Fair Isle knitting.  Very interesting!  You can definitely expect to see some attempts at Fair Isle knitting on this blog in the very near future (as soon as I finish up some WIP's).  Thank you so much, "Jane"; you are way too good to me!

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There still hasn't been a whole lot of knitting going on around here; for some reason, I've been exhausted every night this week.  I've gone to bed earlier and earlier each night.  If I keep up this way, I'm going to have to leave work early to go to bed :-)  Last night's bedtime was 7:30!  Can you believe that?!  Pretty much the only knitting that's been done this week is what I can do in the hour or so in the morning before getting ready for work.  I did go to Chicks with Sticks on Tuesday and managed to get a little of the secret crochet project done.  I'm going to have to really start busting my butt to finish that in the next couple of weeks.  Guess I'm going to have to start trying to sneak in a few rows here and there at home.  The bigger it gets, though, the harder it is to quickly stash it in the bag if I hear someone coming into the room.

Even with the limited knitting time I've put in, I have managed to accomplish a little bit.  Here's the Ice Cream Sweater as of this morning:

This isn't the best picture, but you can see that I am just about ready to bind off the front and back stitches and work on the second sleeve.  Once I start the sleeve, I think it'll fly right along.   I'm ready to be done with this.  Not that I haven't enjoyed knitting it, but I do seem to have had it on the needles for a while.

If you're on Ravelry, you may have noticed that another project was started last week.  I'm teaching a top down sweater class and decided to make one along with the class.  I'm sure you'll never guess who I'm making it for.

Tina in "Velvet Grapes"
(no, it's not for Tina; she's just the model)
Pattern:  Knitting Pure & Simple Baby Tunic (minus the hood)
Yarn: Malabrigo, color "Velvet Grapes"
Needles:  Addi's size 7 & 9  I'm using larger needle sizes on this sweater than I did on the last one because I want it to be just a bit bigger than the last one, but not a whole size bigger.

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I'll leave you with a little something I spotted on the car in front of me at the stop sign the other day:

A Moment of Silence Please...

...as we mourn the passing of another swimming pool season.

 

I always feel sad at the end of Summer.  I LOVE Summer weather; I think I'm living in the wrong part of the country. 

Maybe that's the reason for the funk I've been in this past week.  I can't seem to get out of my own way and I've barely accomplished anything since finishing the sweater last weekend.  I went to Chicks with Sticks on Tuesday and while the company was wonderful (as always), I just couldn't get into the knitting.  I know, I know; it shocked me too.  I brought some baby socks I was working on; I wasn't happy with the foot and planned to rework it.  That lasted all of about 10 minutes before I was bored with it.  I got out the sweater I had started ages ago for Clover using some of Gina's hand-dyed yarn, but I couldn't get into that either.  I actually ended up leaving a little bit early; that is absolutely unheard of!

I did mange to finish one sock on Wednesday morning, but didn't knit a stitch  Wednesday night and went to bed at 8:15!  Geeze Louise, what's wrong with me?  Oh, here's the sock:  

Last night I did stay up to do some spinning.  First, I finally finished plying the spindle spun singles that I did using the fiber that was left over after spinning and knitting this hat.  It kind of resembles a pile of worms:

Okay, so maybe it's a bit more colorful than a pile of worms.  There's just about 50 yards here.  Is that enough for some itty bitty mittens; you know, the little baby things that have no thumbs?

Once I got the worms soaking in the sink, I went upstairs and got Alice out for a little quality time together.  I think it was just what I needed.  I watched some mindless T.V. and spun for hours.  I finished the BFL I was working on and decided to go ahead and ply it last night too.  I finished around 11:30.  First thing this morning (after making coffee) I wrapped the yarn onto my new niddy noddy.  It's really kind of purty, don't you think?

and a close up: I soaked it, and hung it to dry.  I can't wait to see how it looks dry.  I'm pretty happy with this even though it is not the most evenly spun yarn around.  There's about 284 yards there and I'm guessing it's about worsted weight.  I'll check the wpi after it's dry.  I have a lot to learn still, but damn, I'm loving the spinning!

I think I'll finish the other baby sock tonight.  After that, I need to decide if I want to continue with the other little sweater or start something new.  I'm thinking I'll probably start something new :-)

Have a great weekend everyone!

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CLICK TO HELP
(and for a chance to win a great prize): Goal - $1,500Raised - $55515 DAYS TO GO(more details here)

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Too Lazy to Think of a Clever Title

Tuesday already?  I know I say this all the time, but really folks, where the F**k does the time go?  And if so much time has passed, why don't I have more to show for it? 

I did have a nice weekend; spent Saturday saying goodbye to summer.  It was in the 90's here and it was a weekend; I had to spend it in the pool!  Really, what choice did I have?  I even stayed in there after I was ready to get out because I knew it was my last day of pool floating for the year and I was determined to get in every minute I could.  I'm really glad I did too, because the weather took a turn on Sunday and Fall is definitely here.  As soon as it stops raining, I have to go pull the plug on the pool.  That always makes me sad :-(

After getting out of the pool, I brought Alice downstairs and started what I had planned to be just a bit of spinning.  Ha!  Who did I think I was fooling?  Apparently, spinning is as addictive as knitting; who knew?  I ended up spinning for several hours, stopping only long enough to grab something to eat.  Pictures when I finish; I've spun about 3 of the 4 oz. I have of  this fiber.

I finished Clover's first sweater this weekend.  Can you guys handle another picture of Tina?  I hope so, because she's doing the modeling.

I'm very happy with how this came out, and Samm's happy with it too (she even said Tina doesn't look quite so freaky with a hood on).

Pattern:  Knitting Pure and Simple Baby Tunic
Yarn:  Plymouth Jelli Beenz., color 6201
Needles:  Addi's 6 & 8 circular; and dpn same sizes

I made a little, teensy, tiny baby sock out of some of the left over yarn.  I'll show you a picture when I make the second one.  Hopefully, it's not so small that it won't fit.

That's all I've got for you for now.  Chicks with Sticks tonight - YAY!

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CLICK TO HELP: Goal - $1,500Raised - $55518 DAYS TO GO
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Progress Report

It turns out that it was a blessing in disguise that the Baby Kimono was too small.  I'm loving the new sweater; the yarn looks so much better in stockinette stitch than it does in garter.  Here is Tina* modeling my progress so far:

and a close up of the yarn:
The yarn is Plymouth's Jelli Beez; it's an acrylic/wool blend. Pattern is Knitting Pure and Simple's Baby Tunic.

*I've named her Tina because I'm evil; both my hubby and Samantha are freaked out by dolls.  I believe hubby's aversion to dolls comes from the Talking Tina episode of The Twilight Zone, hence the name Tina.  See, evil - bwahahahaha

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Now, an update on

Donations are at 33% of my overall goal!  There are just under 4 weeks to go; can we do it? 

Also, I said that I'd draw the first prize and add another one once we hit $500 and we are just $10 away from that!  So, if you've been thinking about donating, now's the time to do it.  Any help you can give will be much appreciated!

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It's Labor Day here in the United States today which means a day off work for most (unfortunately, retailers don't generally observe this holiday except as a means to make more money by having sales; hubby is a programmer for a retailer so he is at work today).  For me, it means an extension of my vacation.  The weather today is supposed to be my idea of perfect, sunny with temps around 84 degrees F.  I'll celebrate the holiday in the best way I know how; a bit of knitting, a bit of spinning, and quite a bit of floating in the pool.  I hope you all have a great day, too!