Happy New Year

Happy New Year. I got some of those knitting needles that light up for Christmas. Thanks Mom. Now when we're driving in the dark, I knit while my husband drives. I will be able to make alot of dishcloths in 2007.

Thank you, Secret Pal

Thank you, Secret Pal, for the lovely card from Estonia (& geography lesson!) and the knitting book. I'm sure it is a book I will own forever and use often as a reference.

Hey, any good spellers out there? I just heard of an adult spelling bee in the Exton area that will be held this spring. I'd like to go see it, but it would be alot more fun if I knew a participant.

I Hear Something

At breakfast this morning:
T. - "I hear something"
Me - "What do you hear?"
T. - "Something on the roof, maybe it is Santa"

Oh, the joyous sounds of Christmas!

The Wallaby Is Off The Needles

Here is The Wonderful Wallaby in all its glory. I can't think of one thing I'd change about it. I adore the way it turned out. T wore it hot off the needles on 12/8.

You know what is really great? There are already grape jelly stains on it! If I had a better camera, you'd see them. Hint, Santa.

Pattern: Cottage Creations, The Wonderful Wallaby, Size 4

Yarn: Rowan, All Seasons Cotton - Ravish #199

Needles : US 5 and US 7

Mods: Seed stitch instead of ribbing at cuffs, bottom edge, pouch and hood

Start Date: 10/13/06

Finish Date: 12/8/06

Daily Post

Did you post every day in November? If so, congratulations!

Hard Pretzels And Whole Milk

One of my favorite snacks is hard pretzels with whole milk.

Shown in photo are Martin's Pretzels, a very good pretzel indeed.

Yarn Purchases

Today I went to a local yarn shop to buy some sock yarn for my SP9 and I found this for myself. Soon it will be a hat for T.











Artyarns - Supermerio
100% Superwash Merino Wool
color #114 - burgundy, gold, brown and magenta

Wallaby Progress

Here's the Wallaby, almost finished and on T. Doesn't she look great in it? I'm psyched.

I only have to knit the hood, weave in the ends and graft a couple seams to complete it.

I remember one of the things I like so much about this pattern - there's hardly any seaming to do. Once you're done knitting, the sweater is intact, the only seams to finish are at the underarms and hood.

Knitting and Coffee

I enjoyed knitting at the coffee shop again this evening with a friend. These outings are becoming more frequent and I like it. Can I go so far as to say these outings are essential to my life? My friendships beome closer. I have the opprotunity to engage in adult conversation. My knitting improves.

So, the next time I say, "No, I can't go" or I do not pick up the phone because I think everyone else in the world is busier than me. I am going to come back and read this post.

Sweater On The Run!

Just after finishing the crocheted edge and before cutting the yarn, I tried this sweater on my little one. In the photo with the ball attached, she's probably wondering, "Why is this ball of yarn following me around?" Later in the day we were out and about in the sweater (completed) and she got many compliments.

Pattern: Minnow Knits - Sweetie Pie
Yarn: Manos Cotton Stria - melon #205
Needles: US 5
Button: Zecca - 1 1/2" black & white swirl
Adds: Single crocheted egde around the neckline and bottom edges to give more shape.
Start date: 5/11/ 2005
Finish date: 11/25/2006

Humble Stitches

My grandmother has been in poor health lately. She is 94 years old. Today during a visit with her I was reminded of what Gram always called "humble stitches". Years ago my mother told me that Gram always referred to those little mistakes in her sewing or quilting as "humble stitches". Next time before I rip out my rows, I will think of Gram.

Gram is not able to follow much of a conversation these days. But today, she did smile and answer "yes" when my oldest daughter asked "Do you like to watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse"?

Happy Thanksgiving

I am thankful for my daughters and my husband.

This year my pecan pie turned out beautiful. Not only did it look good, but it tasted great and none of the filling leaked through the bottom crust. I baked it at 365 degrees for 20 minutes uncovered, then I put foil around the edges and baked for another 20 minutes.

The Day Before Thanksgiving

Obeservation: On the day before Thanksgiving, people are not out buying children's shoes they are buying groceries.

A Thanksgiving Feast To Remember

Today I attended my daughters preschool for a Thanksgiving Feast. I did not realize there'd be a stage program too - her first performance! She was dressed in a fringed vest and feathered headband as "Princess Hopping Bunny". Her class sang several songs. The most memorable was to the tune of the I'm A Little Teapot.

I'm a little Indian on the go,
Here is my arrow.
Here is my bow.
When I go a'huntin, hear me shout,
Bears and Buffalo, you better watch out!

Teaching Atrocity

Recently, I heard about these lessons being taught by the language arts teacher at an area middle school.

Lesson 1:
Direct and Indirect Objects
1. She wrote on the blackboard - "Lable the DO and IO.
The fish was swimming to the land."

Lesson 2:
Vocabulary word "vitality"
Sample sentence - The turkey was so full of vitality we weren't sure that he was dead when we ate him.

Now what do you think of that?

Dishcloth Complete In 2 Days!

Honestly, complete in two days - that's a record for me.

Pattern: From my Mom years ago - will add details later

Yarn: Sugar and Cream - 100% Cotton - beige

Needles: US 10 Straight Aluminum

Cast On - 11/15/06

Cast Off - 11/17/06

Moebius Scarf Lesson

It was a dark, windy night. All day heavy rains poured and as night approached, there was a tornado warning threatening our area. We ventured out to our thursday night knitting group. Hey, it was the night to learn the Moebius Scarf. I wasn't going to miss that. It was wonderful to learn that cast-on. After several stitches were cast-on, I fell into the rhythmic movements. I am hooked - this will not be my last moebius scarf.

Not everyone there shared my experience. One woman flung her needles down in frustration over the Moebius cast-on. The needles slid across the table towards me and just missed my jugular vein.

Thank you P & E for a great Moebius lesson.

Dishcloth

I started a dishcloth for my sister today. Small and simple. However, I do have a deadline. I want to give it to her as a birthday present.

November Calendar Photos

I'm in just under the Nov 15 deadline to enter Chappy's Contest. I do not think that any of the photos from my 2006 calendars will be chosen as winners, but I want to post them anyway. Happy belated birthday, Chappy's Mom. Maybe next year I will make my own photo calendar and be sure to have a bright, sunny photo in November for you and all my loved ones who celebrate November birthdays.

This photo is from the calendar in our kitchen:


This photo is from the calendar in our office:


Now I realize how much I dislike both these photos. I'm replacing both of them in the morning!

Blocking Ann's Scarf

This weekend I tried to block my Ann's Scarf. It just isn't going well. It keeps curling on the edges - curling alot.

Look at it - it is curly, curly, curly.

Hopefully I can get some help from knitting group Thursday night.

Herb barrel

I hope you do not mind that I'm cheating a bit in order to post every day in November. Some days I do not post and some days I save a few drafts of subject matter so that I can later go back and edit and post. Ok?

Here is a photo taken on our deck on October 1, 2006. I want to remember 2 things for next year's planting: 1 - this barrel looked great as late as October 1 and 2 - the mint looked so much nicer planted with the vinca, purple hyacinth vine and lemon thyme than it did when planted alone in the barrel. That hyacinth vine was my prize plant. I bought it late in the season when I went to a local nursery for some morning glory. There were just a few of these viney-type plants left on the table and I must have spent at least a half hour there untangling the vines. I bought the hyacinth vine because I felt sorry for it (my husband just rolled his eyes at me). But look at it - it was so happy on our deck!

Don't Clap, Wale

I've never been much of a fan of corduroy, but today it was interesting to learn that the The Corduroy Appreciation Club celebrates today, 11/11, as the date which most resembles corduroy. I heard it on NPR.

Stomp

Tomorrow we go to NYC to see Stomp.

Red Scarf

I frogged my red scarf project. I'm going to modify the pattern I was following from One Skein by Leigh Radford to make a wider scarf. It will have several additional k2p2 ribs and a 6x6 cable instead of a 4x4 cable.

Knitting Night

I enjoyed a night of knitting with friends, coffee and pastries last night. Read all about it at my friend Marsha's post.

Election Day

Please remember to vote today. You could take your knitting with you, just in case there is a long line at the polls.

Wallaby Pouch

I started the Wallaby pouch. It was so fun to pick up the stitches and see how seamlessly it attached to the front of T's sweater. Try it sometime.

I hope you can see it in the photo - the pouch is being knit on the bamboo straight needles (with a seed stich edge) while the main body of the sweater waits on needles (approx. 4 inches above) to be merged with the pouch.

Upcoming Movie

Check this out The Friday Night Knitting Club.

Go Take A Nap

The day after Halloween, I fell asleep on the couch in the middle of the day. My youngest was asleep in her crib and my husband was working from home. My older daughter was playing right next to me and at one point said "Mommy you sleeping?" and kissed my cheek. Next thing I know she says it again and kisses my cheek - this time I smelled chocolate. I wake up to discover she had finished the Kit Kat bar we opened Halloween night. No big deal.

The next day she walked up to me with a full size Snickers bar in her hand and says "Mommy, you go take a nap!"

One Scarf

As a kid, there is one scarf I remember being in the box of winter hats, mittens etc. My Mom made it - a small off white scarf in seed stitch. It was so simple and beautiful. Noone knows what became of that scarf. I've been planning to make one like it and finally ordered the yarn. Today the yarn arrived. Wrong color. It didn't look celery green on my monitor. It's time to reorder.

A NIght Out

Tonight my Mom and I went out for a nice dinner and an evening at a local bookstore. I bought a special issue of Interweave Knits Magazine - Holiday Gifts 2006. I almost missed it because it was with the crafty holiday magazines and not the knitting magazines. Will I ever knit anything from it? Probably not. But, the Backyard Leaves scarf pattern and the Brioche Gaiter are future possibilities. Just in case I run out of things to knit.

Needle clutter solution

I'd like this Kable needle case by Berroco to be one of my next projects.
Thanks, E, for telling me about this free pattern.


Is it really "post every day" month? If so, can I post twice today to make up for yesterday? please.

"Mup"

My youngest daughter is 13 months old and her latest word is "Mup".

interpretation: Mama Up!

Project Found !

I found the Ann's scarf project and I pretty much finished it this weekend. It just needs to be blocked then I will post a photo.

The Relaxed Knitter

I knit very loosly. My worsted weight sweater project is on size US7 needles. I am a loose knitter. I've been told I am a relaxed knitter. Well...today I am not feeling very relaxed. I cannot find one of my knitting projects. Exactly how does one loose a knitting project? I don't know. Did I leave it in a waiting room somewhere? Did I leave it at a friend's house? Maybe it is up my older daughter's nose. Yesterday I took her to the MD to have a wad of tissues removed from her nostril!

SP9 Questionairre

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?

My favorite yarns to knit with are soft cottons, merino wools or cotton/wool blends. I’d like to experiment with yarns of unusual fiber content. I’m not big on eyelash and fluffy yarns.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?

My needles are currently a mess. See previous post.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?

I have been knitting for about 35 years. I first learned English knitting from my mother and later my aunt taught me the Continental style of knitting. I consider my skill level to be intermediate.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?

No, but if you need ideas, I could give you some via an e-mail message.

5. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products, etc.)

I like lemon and lavender scented products.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?

Yes, I have a sweet tooth. My favorite candies these days are malted milk balls and Belgium Chocolate.

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?

Though I haven’t made one for a long time, I like to make Ukrainian Eggs. I do not spin.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)

Joan Armatrading, Joni Mitchell, The Indigo Girls, John Prine and Cowboy Junkies are some of my favorites. I like being introduced to new artists, so go ahead and send some if you’d like - my computer can play MP3s.

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?

My favortie color is green. Hey, I like purples and oranges too. I really can’t stand teal.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?

I am happily married to a great guy and have 2 amazing daughters. We have a dog, he is a big Akita who is 13 years old.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?

I can feel the chill in the air now and I’m loving it. I do like to wear hats and mittens and an occasional warm scarf. Ponchos? No.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?

I really enjoy knitting socks - the turning of the heel seems like magic to me.

13. What are you knitting right now?

Ann’s Scarf by Two Old Bags in Frog Tree Alpaca.
The Wonderful Walllaby by Cottage Creations in Rowan, All Seasons Cotton.
Afghan in Colinette, Isis.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts? Oh, yes.

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?

I prefer to knit on bamboo needles, straight or circular are fine.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift? No

17. How old is your oldest UFO?

A child’s sweater in need of repair – I knitted it 20 years ago and 5 years ago it resurfaced in need of repair.

18. What is your favorite holiday?

I enjoy Thanksgiving and Christmas very much. But as for a favorite, I’d have to say Groundhog Day. I like that you don’t see Ground Hog Day displays in the stores. On that day, I like to bake spicy ground hog cookies and watch the movie, Ground Hog Day. Some day I’d like to have a GroundHog Day Party – would you like to come?

19. Is there anything that you collect?

I have a collection of cookie cutters – some old, some new, some metal, some plastic and all fun!

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?

I'd like to add both of Cat Bordhi’s Magical Knitting books to my collection. I subscribe to Interweave Knits.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?

I’d like to learn to make a mobieus scarf.22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?

Yes, I knit socks. My shoe size is US 8.5 with medium width.

23. When is your birthday? (mm/dd) 03/17 St Patrick’s Day!

Store Those Needles

My system for storing knitting needles needs to be revamped. Recently, I bought a nice zippered pouch with vinyl envelopes for the storage of my circular needles. My straight needles and dpns are thrown into a plastic bag. How do you like to store your straight and double pointed needles?

The Wonderful Wallaby

The Wonderful Wallaby by Cottage Creations is my latest knitting project. Fifteen years ago I knitted two of these sweaters as gifts. As I remember, the sweater is fun to knit and knits up quickly. How wonderful to have my Rowan All Seasons Cotton on needles as my oldest daughter anxiously waits her Wonderful Wallaby!

SSK from KDO

It has been a long time since I put any sort of bumper sticker on my car, but I got one of these magnets at the Y2Knit booth:

Post-KDO

At KDO (Knitter's Day Out), I learned how to knit on buttons using the same technique that Judy Pascale uses with beads. I don't foresee making any beaded projects, but maybe one of my daughters will want something beaded sometime. Or maybe I could use the technique to put buttons on a cardigan? For practice we made a child's hat:

You can't see the buttons too well in the photo, but they are there and they are not sewn on! Another cool thing about this hat is that I forgot to bring yarn to class (duh) so... I ran to the swap table, pulled out some yarn odds and ends and put them together - I love the result!

I also found some old pattern books on the swap table:

I plan to make a collage of photos from these books for a page in my knitting journal.

Knitter's Day Out

Today I'm headed to Knitter's Day Out for knitting classes, vendor's market and the all day company of knitters from all walks of life. Can't wait!

play-doh

Hold on to your knitting bag! My stitch holder as a play-doh tool:

snowman

This christmas stocking turned out really nice. Many years ago I attempted to knit with multiple colors and the piece puckered all over the place.

Pattern: snowman sock, red oak designs

Yarn: Frog Tree Alpaca Sport Wt, red, green, off white, gray #009, orange #20, black

Needles: US3 and US4 straight

Specs: I followed the pattern as written even though it called for heavy worsted

blog vs knit

I'm spending more time blogging than knitting - ugh!

giving an old project new life

Recently an old project resurfaced. It's a sweater that I knitted for my neice way back in 1988. The sweater is in need of repair - see that hole in the triangular neck inset? I'd like to fix it because the sweater is so cute and my daughter could wear it now.

pattern: the new little red riding hood, mon tricot Oct 1980

yarn: who knows?

needles: US2

Afghan Square

One of my works in progress is this afghan square:


It will be joined with other squares of various colors, same design at the October meeting of our local knitting group. The afghan will be donated to a needy family this December.

All the yarn for the afghan came from J (a good friend of our knitting goup's organizer) who passed away and left a stash of yarn. Our organizer kindly let us go through the stash and choose what we wanted. We also decided to knit some charity projects with some of the stash because that is what J would have wanted.

No, not all my knitting is charity knitting. It's just that I have a few charity projects going right now.

Caps For Kids

My latest completed project is this small hat for Caps For Kids

yarn: artful yarns candy, bubble gum

needles: US2 dpns

pattern: combination of patterns I found online, I like the handle

Favorite knitting accessories

Let's open my knitting bag. I want to show you some of my favorite accessories:

My chicken measuring tape - a gift from a great friend, I like thinking of her when I use it.

My fancy stitch markers - from my brother-in-law, any project looks great while using these.

My red row counter - my whole family likes to click it. I never know what row I'm on!

Here I am - blogging

I can't believe I'm blogging. My friends talked me into it - pure peer pressure. Their blogger discussions just got more and more interesting all the time. SP9 sounded like so much fun I did not want to miss out.

Here are two reasons I should not be blogging:


Thanks for stopping by.