By Hook or Needles

This Post was Going to be about Charity Work...

2010-01-25T07:43:00.006-05:00

...but that topic will have to wait just a little bit longer, because I am still having a love affair with shawls. I have managed to start another 3 shawls, for a total of 5 shawl WIPs. I keep seeing shawl patterns on Ravelry that I can't get out of my head. Once I find an appropriate yarn in my stash, I can't stop myself from starting the project. After the finishing marathon last year, I knew I was in for a serious bout of startitis, so I'm just going with it and enjoying myself!

First up, I started the South Bay shawlette from Lion Brand Yarn. (Sorry, the link requires free registration, if you aren't already registered with LB.)
I'm using 3 skeins of Filatura di Crosa Gioiello, which I originally bought on sale up at Webs for another Doris Chan moebius shawl. After making 2 moebius shawls, however, I am perfectly happy to use this yarn for a completely different pattern.

The I started the Tea Wrap, also from LB.
I am using 1 skein of Brooks Farm Duet, a dk weight yarn, that I bought at Rhinebeck a couple of years ago. Even though the picture doesn't do it justice, the colors of this yarn are just delightful.

And then, I started Saroyan. (Sorry, this pattern is available as a free Ravelry download only.)
I'm using 2 skeins of Misti Alpaca Hand Paint Worsted. The yarn is beautiful to touch and to look at. The pattern is one of 3 patterns that were inspired by the TV show Bones. Since that is one of my favorite TV shows, this pattern just seemed like a natural for me to make.

Believe it or not, even though January is ending soon, I still have hopes of finishing at least one of these shawls by the end of the month.

2010-The Year of the Shawl

2010-01-18T08:39:00.006-05:00

Oh, goodness. I managed to miss December, the holidays, the end of 2009 and the start of 2010! I don't know, life just feels so much more hectic than it used to. And I spend entirely too much time on Ravelry! I hope everyone had a happy and healthy holiday season and is having a terrific new year.

I finished 2009 with 5 WIPs left on my list. They are all currently on hold, because I may try to finish them during the Winter Olympics. I continued to frog some projects and finish others. If I ever get my act together and get some scarfs blocked, I might just have some FO pictures to share eventually.

In the meantime, I joined the Ravelry group 10 Shawls in 2010, and I am having a great time working on my first 2 shawls for the challenge. The first one is Doris Chan's Guadalupe Shawl.
I am using 3 colors of Caron Simply Soft to get them out of the stash. It's fun, now that I am adding color to the edge. Here's another picture that shows the colors a little bit better.

This past weekend, I also started a knitted shawl.
It's the Weaver's Wool Mini Shawl. I'm using some Sirdar Denim Tweed DK yarn that has been in stash for years. The yarn is an acrylic, cotton and wool blend that is knitting up fairly soft. The tweed makes me think of chocolate chip ice cream, so I am thinking of this as my Chocolate Chip Shawl. I am definitely going to need a longer circular needle soon, as this is growing quite quickly.

Not Sure Where November Went!

2009-11-30T07:15:00.004-05:00

I'm not at all sure what happened to November. It turned into a very busy month, at work and at home. I seemed to spend a lot of it rather tired. And I didn't accomplish nearly as much as I wanted to on my WIPs.

Having said that, however, I did manage to bring the WIP list down to single digits. I frogged 3 scarves which I decided I just didn't like. I finished another scarf, which I will photograph once I block it. Right now, it is a little small, so I am hopeful that blocking will make it wearable.

My biggest triumph this month happened last Saturday morning when I finally felted the Lucy Bag. I finished knitting the bag at the end of January, 2008, and it has sat in the craft room sinced then. Here's what it looked like before felting:

I'll admit that I was a little nervous about the felting process. But I told myself that Saturday was the day, and if I ruined the bag, then all I had wasted was some yarn and some time. After all of 15 minutes in the washing machine, I had a perfectly felted bag:
This turned out so well that I now feel like a procrastinating idiot. But I am very pleased with the bag, and I think it is going to become my every day purse.

So, 21 WIPs down, and 9 more to go!

Starting November Right

2009-11-02T07:45:00.003-05:00

So, Saturday was my birthday, and I decided to spend most of the day doing what I wanted to do. And what I wanted to do was finish my 2009 ripple afghan. I didn't quite finish weaving all the ends in until Sunday morning, but I still felt comfortable considering this an October finish.
It used 950.5 yards of Caron Simply Soft from stash. It makes my 5th finished afghan in October, and the 5th afghan made from my SS stash over the past 2 years. And I still have SS stash left, which tells me that I had accumulated way too much Simply Soft along the way! Hopefully, before the end of the year, I will have time to re-inventory the SS stash, so that I have a better handle on what's left. Oh yes, I used the "Soft Waves" pattern from Jan Eaton's 200 Ripple Stitches book again for this afghan. I do love the pattern, but I think that's the last ripple for a while. (Although I probably say that every year!) The afghan is approximately 40" wide by 48" long, so it is a nice lapghan size. And since the temperature is in the 30s this morning here in CT, I will probably be using it very soon!

So I am starting November with 14 WIPs to work on. I need to finish 7 each month to be done by the end of the year. That means that I need to average one FO every 4-5 days to reach this goal. I have no idea if this is doable, but I am willing to try. In fact, my next FO might be very close to being finished. I need to do some measuring when I get home tonight, and then I will have a better idea.

Down to 15!

2009-10-26T07:35:00.003-04:00

Well, I have no FOs to show from this weekend. We were very busy around the house instead. I was determined to get some housework done, since next Saturday is my birthday and I am not doing housework on my birthday! We also got the house ready for winter - air conditioners out, storm windows down, patio furniture put away. And on top of that, I got my hands on the new Dan Brown book, The Lost Symbol, last week, so I had reading to do as well.

I have continued to work on whittling down the WIP pile, however. Thanks to the help of one of the ladies in crochet guild, I found a Girl Scout troop willing to take 3 bags of afghan squares off my hands. I'm not entirely sure how many afghans the squares will make, but for the purposes of my WIP list, I was counting them as 3 projects. Then, yesterday, I pulled out a preemie blanket that I was knitting, and I decided that I just didn't like it. The stitch pattern, rows of garter stitch alternating with rows of stockinette, wasn't reversible, and that really bothered me. So I frogged it. I have another idea for a knitted preemie blanket, so maybe next year I will try again. And that brought me down to 15 WIPs! Even though I know I still have work ahead of me, I feel like a weight has been lifted from my shoulders. I also seem to be enjoying working on the remaining WIPs more, knowing that so many old projects have been dealt with.

Finally, it occurred to me that I never posted a picture of this year's ripple afghan, so here it is.
Working on the ripple afghan is like eating comfort food. It is just soul satisfying and perfect for those times when I am a little tired or distracted by TV (like yesterday afternoon, when I got completely caught up in "Stephen King's Rose Red" on the syfy channel, even though I had seen it when it first aired years ago).

Number Eleven!

2009-10-21T08:54:00.003-04:00

It seems like all of my projects reach a point where they are so close to being done that I just can't stop working on them until they are finished. This scarf reached that point on Monday evening, and last night I sat down and finished it up.
I used 2 skeins of Cotton Fine from the Brown Sheep Company. The yarn has been in my stash for years because I didn't know what to do with it. I used the bushy stitch (2 dc, ch 2, 1 sc), which made for a nice built-in edging all around the scarf. The scarf measures almost 5" wide by 70" long, and took 377 yards out of the stash.

Unfortunately, most of my other projects are not this close to being done. I'm going to continue to try and focus on one or two projects until they are finished, and work on some of the thornier issues on the weekends. Actually, for all the work I have done this month, I am still so concerned about what I have left to do that I sat down Sunday night and rewrote my list of WIPs again. I sorted the list into 2 columns - hard and easy. I was pleased to find that I only have 6 projects on the "hard" list, and one of those is felting my Lucy bag, which isn't going to be hard so much as a little fussy. So I keep telling myself that I am in good shape, and most of the time I actually believe it!

And Then There Were 10

2009-10-19T07:56:00.003-04:00

I had set several goals for myself this weekend. I had to finish reading The Perfect Storm and prep for the book discussion that I am leading this evening and again next Wednesday morning. I was barely 100 pages in when I hunkered down on Saturday to finish the book. It turned out to be a riveting read, so I had no problem finishing the book by dinnertime Saturday.

I also decided that I wanted to finish the afghan I have been working on this weekend. That seemed like an ambitious goal, but I decided to try anyway. And here is the result:
I finished the afghan last evening. I am pleased to say that this afghan took 3 skeins of yarn and 1,177 yards of yarn out of the stash. I used the Rectangular Granny Afghan pattern, and I am very pleased with the result. I like that the edging almost, but not quite, ruffles. So that makes #10 out of 30 WIPs dealt with this month.

This and That

2009-10-14T07:37:00.004-04:00

First, it occurred to me after I posted yesterday that 21-5=16, not 15. So I need to finish or get rid of 6 projects by the end of the month to be halfway to my goal. It's still doable, unlike math, which is apparently not my strong suit.

Second, I am happy to report that all this finishing gave me enough space in the craft room that I was able to spend Monday morning up there cleaning and straightening up. I put a lot of yarn away, and it was nice to find that there was room in the storage bins for it. I guess the stash down efforts are paying off, at least a little bit. It is also nice to have floor space and breathing room where the yarn lives.

I gathered all the WIPs in one place, and this chair is now the center of my crafting life for the next 2 and a half months.
This is where I spend most of my time at home, watching TV and working on projects.

I also gathered up all the projects where I have yarn and patterns matched up, but I haven't actually started yet, and here they are, ready and waiting for me upstairs in the craft room.
The black Lion Brand bag is chock full of small projects, mostly scarves and shawls. The other bags are sweaters waiting to be made. You can also see some of the stash yarn behind the bags. (Unfortunately, there's more yarn in other parts of the room.)

So, as you can see, I have my work cut out for me. I have also decided that I would like to work through my stash by the time I retire, which will hopefully happen in about 10 years. To accomplish this, I will need to continue to buy yarn sparingly, and I will need to use up about 10 miles of yarn a year. But I think I will be happier in retirement without the overwhelming stash, just buying yarn for particular projects.

#6-9 of 30 WIPs

2009-10-13T07:42:00.004-04:00

Yes, I am down 9 WIPs on my list of 30! Two more are finished and two more are frogged. First, the FOs.
I finished the Watermelon Afghan last Friday. It took 4 evenings of work last week, but I am very pleased with the final product. It is approximately 40" X 60". It seems like it is a little long for the width, but it is nice and warm and colorful. Actually, I am so pleased with it that I am going to keep it. I can't bear to part with it!

And then on Sunday, I sat down and crocheted more squares together to make this lapghan.
My mom had made the 20 squares years ago. (Even she isn't sure when she had made them.) I had more than enough of the white yarn to put the squares together. So I took it over to her yesterday, and she was thrilled to see it finally finished. It now has a home at the foot of her bed, and she says she will be able to use it on cold winter nights. That definitely makes the time spent finishing these projects worthwhile!

I have frogged the Rocky Road Shrug that I started in September of 2007. I had to frog back anyway to finish the shrug properly, and I decided that I just didn't want to make this shrug right now. I may try again in the future. I also frogged some and got rid of the bulk of an afghan that I had started back in the 1990s. It was not going to work out, and it had gotten dirty over the years, which is why I didn't bother to frog the whole thing. (That, and it was mohair type yarn that was horrible to try to frog anyway.)

So the good news is that it isn't even halfway through October and I am down 9 projects. The bad news is that I have added almost 19 skeins of yarn to my stash that I didn't bother to count originally, since I was sure I would finish the projects. But at least I haven't spent any money on this stash enhancement.

Now, if I can finish another 5 projects (one way or another) by the end of October, I will be halfway to my goal, with another 2 months to finish everything up. I might just have everything finished by New Year's!

Afghan of Many Colors or...

2009-10-06T07:46:00.004-04:00

...#5 of 30 WIPs. Let me give some back story here. About 2 years ago, some of you might remember I hosted Summer of Squares. I was also in a group called Fiber Freaks (no longer online except for a group on Ravelry). Some of the members of Fiber Freaks made 12" afghan squares and sent them to me, and I was supposed to sew then into an afghan. Somehow, that never happened until this past weekend.
It took some wrestling, but I finally managed to get all the squares put together. We all used Caron Simply Soft and either knitted or crocheted the squares. However, gauge varied square to square, as did the interpretation of 12". So putting the squares together was a bit of a challenge, so say the least. I ended up edging all of the squares in off white first, so that the seams wouldn't look so noticeable. However, I used up 289 yards of yarn putting it together, so that was a nice surprise.

Our original idea was to donate the blanket to Blankets for the Gulf, but I'm not sure they are still accepting blankets. The blanket ended up 36" by 48", so I think it would be a nice size for a child. So I am going to donate it to Project Linus. I have a few more to give them, so I will try to make a donation later this month.

And I am not resting on my laurels by any means. I am already working on WIP #6 - the Watermelon Afghan. (I didn't realize until I just looked up the URL that this one has been hanging around since 2007, too!)

This Won't Continue...

2009-09-30T07:43:00.003-04:00

...but I have another FO for today. I finished up the scarf I was making using 2 skeins of LB Wool Ease and size 15 needles.
I had yarn left, but I decided that 40" was long enough. The scarf is really thick, so it isn't comfortable to wrap around the neck several times. At 40", it covers the chest, so it will keep someone warm. This will be donated eventually, I'm just not sure where right now.

I actually finished it before dinner yesterday. So that left me free to mess with another old project last night. Unfortunately, it didn't go as well as the teddy bear. I pulled out some squares I had made back in the 1990s for 2 baby afghans. (I think the babies these afghans were originally intended for are almost teenagers by now!) After messing around with the squares for a while, I came to a difficult conclusion. I don't have enough yarn to finish the project properly. I was using Red Heart Sport, which I don't think is available any more. And it is some nasty, hard yarn. I just don't have the heart to try to find a way to finish this project, so I am going to trash it. It's not easy for me to say that, but I know that I have other projects from the same era that I will finish, so I don't feel too bad.

And the good news is that I am now starting October with 26 projects instead of 30. That makes me feel much better!

Coming Clean, and a Teddy Bear

2009-09-29T07:07:00.003-04:00

I might have been a tad disingenuous over the last couple of weeks when I was listing my WIPs. I've been rethinking what I need to finish thanks to a new challenge over on the Stash Knitdown group on Ravelry. During October, November, and December, our challenge is to finish our WIPs, in order to start 2010 with a clean slate. As it turns out, that is going to be quite a challenge for me. I sat down on Saturday and wrote yet another brutally honest list of WIPs/UFOs to be finished. I came up with a list of 30 items. I really don't know how this keeps happening. However, I am game to try to meet the challenge.

So, even though it is not yet October, I have started in on the list. Here's what I accomplished last night.
I have been thinking back, and I'm pretty sure I knitted this little guy in 2003. And he has sat around, waiting to be sewn and stuffed, ever since because I couldn't figure out how to embroider the face. After looking at the pattern again (the Bear Pair Teddy Bear), at the finished bears on Ravelry, and at this Morehouse Farm pattern, I decided to not embroider the face at all. That freed me to finally finish this project. He is 9.5" tall, and I used Caron Simply Soft for the body, and some leftover Simply Soft Tweed for the scarf. The scarf is just 20" of I-cord. I probably could have stuffed his bottom half a bit more, but I wasn't sure how it would go sewing the final seam. All in all, though, I am quite pleased with him, and I got to cross one item off my list already. Only 29 more to go!

I'm Still Trying...

2009-09-22T07:59:00.003-04:00

...to get my thoughts together about Elizabeth Zimmermann and the green sweater. Reading the story of the sweater and the designer's efforts to recreate it make me want to get much more serious about my knitting. That's a nice, if vague, long term goal, so I have been trying to decide how I want to go about pursuing it.

And it occurred to me that getting better acquainted with EZ and her patterns might be a good way to start. I was looking through her book Knitting Around, and I became quite taken with the Moebius Vest. So I cast on on Sunday.
This is the back of the vest, and it is going to be a large garter stitch square until I get to the point where I separate the front and back panels. It is hard to explain the exact construction, but I will try to take pictures when I get to the point of seaming the sweater to show how it goes together. I am using 4 skeins of Berroco Ultra Alpaca, an alpaca/wool blend, that I had originally bought to make a shawl. I think a vest will be a more practical garment, however.

Elizabeth Zimmermann

2009-09-18T07:51:00.002-04:00

I don't have time to write the post I wanted to this morning, but I am going to post a couple of links anyway. I will finish my thoughts next week when I have time. I have been thinking about Elizabeth Zimmermann a lot lately, in part because of a post on Brooklyn Tweed about photographing an original EZ sweater. The story of how this sweater came to light is here. It's an inspiring story that has me thinking a lot about how to become the knitter I want to be. Have a great weekend!

The Endless Hit Parade of Scarves...

2009-09-17T07:39:00.006-04:00

...isn't as endless I had originally thought! I just looked at my Ravelry project page, and I was surprised to find that I "only" have 14 WIPs on there. (Ok, it's still too many, but not as bad as I would have thought.) 3 haven't really been started yet. I just had matched yarn and pattern, so I listed them so that I wouldn't forget. And I am working on 2 scarves that I haven't listed there yet. So I only have 4 scarves to blog about today.

I started 2 of the scarves in August. The first pattern is called Gabriel's Wings. I'm calling it "Getting Ready for Autumn".
I'm using 2 skeins of Louet Gems, handpainted by Cherry Tree Hill. I bought 8 skeins of this yarn, in various colorways, on a great sale at the Knit and Crochet Show. It's fingering weight, so the scarf is growing slowly, but I love the colors and this pattern. It's hard to see in the picture, but the pattern is alternating sections of garter and stockinette stitch, with eyelet rows in between the sections.

The second scarf I started in August is crocheted. I've had this Cotton Fine yarn, a cotton/wool blend, in my stash for years, and I've never known what to do with it. I want to get it out of the stash, and the last time I looked at it I thought, why not crochet a scarf with it?
I decided to use the bushy stitch, which is 2 dc, 2 ch and 1 sc in the ch2 space of the previous row. I love how it is working up. It is creating its own border around the edge of the scarf. The original chain edge will be the middle of the scarf, so that both ends of the scarf match. It's just taking time to work up over 400 yards of fingering weight yarn.

This month, I have cast on 2 more scarves. One is an easy, garter stitch scarf that is my current mindless knitting.
I am holding 2 strands of LB Wool Ease together and I am using size 15 needles. So it is growing quickly and will hopefully get 4 skeins of yarn out of the stash.

And finally, so small that it doesn't even lay flat yet, is a Feather and Fan Scarf. (Sorry, another Ravelry link.)
I am using 2 more skeins of the Louet Gems from the Knit and Crochet Show. The colors are even more saturated in real life. I really need to spend more time with this scarf. I have been wanting a Feather and Fan scarf for some time now, so I really want to see this one grow.

I think I have enough projects going to keep me busy for a while!

Socks Squared

2009-09-16T08:32:00.003-04:00

Before I get to the endless parade of scarf WIPs I am working on, I have to talk about my new favorite project. During my yarn buying binge in August, I managed to buy 6 new skeins of sock yarn. So I told myself that if I was going to continue to stash sock yarn, then it was time to become a more dedicated sock knitter. And at the beginning of September, I found a perfect Ravelry KAL to help me out with that goal.

The group is called "Socks Squared". (I'm not sure why, but there you are.) We are going to be choosing 1 or 2 patterns a month to work on. The September patterns are Primavera socks and Pawprints socks (Ravelry link). It was a tough choice, but I settled on Primavera for my first pair. I pulled out 2 skeins of Regia Design Line Kaffe Fassett self-striping yarn that I had bought at Webs a few years ago and cast on before I left for vacation.
Unfortunately, I didn't have as much time as I had hoped while we were traveling to work on the sock, so I am still on the second pattern repeat. But the pattern is fairly easy, so if I settle down and actually work on the sock, it should be finished this month.

My Only Summer FO

2009-09-15T07:41:00.004-04:00

Before I get to my one summer FO, though, I just want to thank Dee and Taph for their comments yesterday. It feels good to be back here, but I'm sorry to tell Dee that I'm not sure when I will get back to crochet guild events. The truth is that this year, my mom and my in-laws need my dh and me more and more. I'm glad to say that there hasn't been a medical crisis, but they are all getting older and they rely on us more than they used to. At this point, I am lucky if I get 1 entire weekend a month at home. (I always make sure that I get at least 1 day of each weekend at home to get the laundry done, but with 2 days on the weekend, I could get even more done.) So I'm just not as free as I used to be to attend fun events.

So, in my last July post, I mentioned starting 4 scarves as my traveling projects for the summer. Well, out of that group, I ended up frogging 2 of the scarves. One is still OTN, and one actually got finished.

I used 2 skeins of Blue Sky Alpaca Melange, a sport weight alpaca yarn, and the Yarn Harlot's One Row Handspun Scarf pattern. The yarn was just yummy to use, and the pattern is the perfect combination of easy yet interesting. So the scarf knitted up relatively quickly.

The scarf that is still OTN currently looks like this:
I am using 2 skeins of Blue Sky Alpaca Alpaca & Silk blend, a DK weight yarn that I bought up in New Hampshire several years ago. I had considered this to be precious yarn (I guess because of the silk), but I decided it was time to knit it up. I originally intended to make a triangular scarf with the yarn, but now I think that a more textured stitch pattern works better with the solid color. This one will get more love eventually, but right now I seem to have a bad case of startitis. More about that tomorrow!

Summer is Over...

2009-09-14T07:21:00.003-04:00

...or at least waning fast, and it's time for me to get back to blogging. I've got lots going on to talk about, so hopefully I won't disappear again for an extended period of time.

But first, let me recap summer. It was busy, busy, busy! Work still hasn't calmed down completely, but it is slowly getting back to normal. I have taken 3 trips in 3 months, so I am ready to stay home for a long while. In July, we took a long weekend in central New York state to attend a family reunion with my dh's family. In August, I went to the Knit and Crochet Show with friends from my crochet guild. We had a blast, sightseeing at Niagara Falls, walking around Buffalo, and attending classes. Others have blogged extensively about the conference, so I won't go into great detail. (If you are interested, check out Nancy, Dee, Jen and Margaret's blogs for day by day accounts.) And last week, the dh and I spent 4 days in Newport, RI on our yearly vacation. That was a lot of fun, too, but it was incredibly windy, so we didn't get to spend as much time on the beach as we would have liked.

And there was some yarn acquisition. Actually, there was a lot of yarn acquisition in August. There was so much yarn acquisition that I don't have the heart to photograph it, even though it is mostly still in a large bag in the craft room. I managed to add just about 8 miles of yarn to my stash, wiping out about 3/4ths of my stash busting efforts of the last year and a half. So there is also now a serious yarn diet going on. For the first time, I have joined the "Going Cold Sheep" thread over on the Stash Knitdown group on Ravelry. Not only have I signed up for Cold Sheep, I have accepted a challenge to use up or give away 100 skeins of yarn before I buy yarn again. There is no time limit on the challenge (thank goodness), and my reward for completing this challenge is going to be enough Fleece Artist yarn to make a Tilted Duster. It was one of the few temptations I was able to say no to in August, so I am making it my long term goal.

Tomorrow, my one FO of the summer.

Quick Note

2009-07-20T07:53:00.002-04:00

I just wanted to make a quick post to thank everyone for your well wishes. My back and foot are feeling better, although they will feel even better when summer is over and I'm not on my feet constantly. Work has been crazy, as expected, and I am feeling tired this morning, which is not good on a Monday morning. But we are more than half way through the summer reading program at this point, so I think I will survive. It helps that I have 2 vacations coming up to look forward to.

My crafting has been unfocused this month, to say the least. I have finished Eva's Shawl, but I haven't woven in the ends or blocked it yet, so no pictures. I have also been spending a lot of time on Ravelry, finding and printing out scarf patterns. Scarves are always my travel project of choice, and I have managed to start 4 new ones over the past 2 weekends. That gives me six projects total, so that should keep me busy on my travels over the next few months. I will post pictures once the scarves are long enough to be photogenic. Other than that, though, I probably won't be posting much until school goes back in, which in these parts is August 25th.

July Goals

2009-07-01T08:11:00.002-04:00

The news about my July goals is that I have decided not to set any goals for July. My left foot has been bothering me the past month. It has been swollen frequently, and the top of the foot has been tingly off and on. I injured the foot 9 years ago, and I was concerned that I had reinjured it (although I didn't remember doing anything to it.) So I went to the orthopedic doctor yesterday afternoon and got the good news that there is nothing wrong with my foot. (Since I had been having visions of my foot in a cast all summer, this was indeed good news.) However, he feels that my back is a problem. I have possibly slipped a disc. There is definitely inflammation and a pinched nerve, which is making my foot tingle. So I am now taking Alleve twice a day, which is a treatment I can live with. While I am relieved to know that I'm not crazy and that there is something wrong, I am also still tired and not feeling quite like myself. The 3-day weekend coming up should help me to get rested out, however. (Nice of the 4th of July to fall on a Saturday this year!)

So, as far as my projects go, I have decided that I am just going to work on what I feel like day to day. I would like to finish Eva's shawl for the conference in August, but if it doesn't happen, that's ok. I am also contemplating making squares for another afghan. But if I do, then I am telling myself that I have to spend some time in the fall and winter sewing afghan squares together to straighten up the craft room. This does put the 52 Projects in 52 Weeks challenge in jeopardy, but at this point, I'm really not sure I could keep up the pace, so that's ok too. Stash reduction will continue, and that's what's important.

Happy Fourth of July to all of you who celebrate! Have a great and relaxing holiday weekend.

Squares and Contemplation

2009-06-29T07:41:00.007-04:00

Well, I am still mulling over what I want to accomplish this summer and how I want to proceed with my projects. I did, however, make 2 squares this weekend. I really like Saturday's:

Sunday's, not so much:

The square is fine, but it doesn't lie nice and flat, which bothers me.

The variegated yarn, that looks almost white in the pictures, is Simply Soft Baby by Caron. I only had 1 skein, and I am glad that I am playing with it in these squares before I bought enough for a big project, because it turns out that I don't like the yarn very much at all. The white yarn is soft, but the color flecks seem to be fabric, and they are hard. This would not be a good yarn for preemies, that's for sure.

Otherwise, this weekend, I did my chores and laundry, and I read. I finished the 2nd crochet mystery, Dead Men Don't Crochet, and then read most of an older Jayne Ann Krentz called Family Man. Once I start a Krentz, I just can't put it down. Even though work did settle down late last week, it was nice to have some time to sit this weekend and rest.

Summer Projects

2009-06-24T08:40:00.002-04:00

I was so happy on Sunday when I finished my mittens. Somehow, I had it in my head that I needed to complete 4 projects a month for the 52 Projects in 52 Weeks challenge, and I had finished my 4 projects for June. I thought that I could take a couple of weeks off, work on some of my bigger projects, and decide what my goals would be for July. Then it occurred to me that 4 projects a month times 12 months in a year equals 48 projects, not 52. I really do need to complete a project a week, even if some months that means 5 projects. So that set me a back a bit in my thinking.

Then, over the last 2 days, the summer reading season started with a bang at work. This is my 12th summer at the library, and I'll admit that we get busier every summer. Nothing in my experience has prepared me for this week, however. I have never seen the library so busy. Yesterday was the kick off party, and 300 children showed up. We were so busy helping patrons that we couldn't even keep up with returns, let alone any of our other tasks. Lunchtime is the only chance I have gotten to sit down. Since it is only the first week, I haven't hit the wall of exhaustion yet, but if this pace keeps up, I will hit it soon. So I have to factor that into my plans for July and August as well.

Then, while reading my blog subscriptions this morning, I found a new blog that I had to subscribe to. It's called 365-A Crochet Odyssey. The woman who writes the blog is making 1 crocheted block a day this year, just to be creative. She picks a pattern and yarn each day and makes whatever she feels like. Not every pattern works, but overall her blocks are beautiful. But they aren't made for any other purpose. She doesn't know what she is going to do with them. This idea has intrigued me. I don't want to just copy what she is doing, but I think it would be fun over the summer to do something like this, to be creative first and determine the purpose later.

So I'm still going to take the next couple of weeks off from the 52 Projects challenge and work on my larger projects. I will also be mulling over how I want to proceed over the summer. And I have to think about what project I want to take with me to the Knit and Crochet Show in Buffalo in August. So much to think about, so little time!

#4 of 52

2009-06-23T07:54:00.005-04:00

Despite having a very busy weekend last weekend, I did find the time to make a mitten and finish my 4th project for July.
These are sized for a man and will be donated to charity eventually. I used 146 yards of Plymouth Encore (unfortunately less than 1 skein). I have to admit that the gray got a little boring, so I'm glad these are finished.

And there was yarn waiting for me when I got home from work on Saturday.
3 skeins of sock yarn from Elann. It was a nice treat at the end of a very busy day at work.

Baktus Clarified

2009-06-19T08:23:00.003-04:00

Sandy left a comment on Wednesday's post, and I thought a more detailed explanation was in order (since I might have confused others as well). I mentioned that Baktus was knitted end to end rather than bottom to top. Typically, when I knit a triangular scarf, I start at the bottom point of the triangle and increase up to the shoulder. Then I knit both ties one at a time. This gives me a scarf that looks like these:

Baktus starts at the narrow end of one of the ties. You increase to the widest part of the triangle, then you decrease down to the end of the second tie. I think this will give me a shallower triangle than the scarves pictured above, which will be a nice change. I think Baktus will be more flexible in how I can wear it.

I also wanted to thank Taph for her comment. I think that I don't mind using sock yarn for other projects because I'm just not a committed sock knitter. I know how to knit socks, well enough to help others, and I have made several pairs. But I don't find it as addictive as some knitters do. However, I have to try making a pair with a more detailed pattern one of these days. Outside In from the new Knitty might be the candidate. The plain vanilla socks that I have made get a little boring to knit. So making socks a little more challenging might just make them a little more addictive as well. And I have plenty of sock yarn in the stash to play with to try this theory out!

Baktus

2009-06-17T08:30:00.004-04:00

Last week, while searching Ravelry at work, I found a pattern that got me excited. This is actually fairly unusual. I look at a lot of patterns, most of which don't interest me all that much. My Ravelry queue is only about 30 patterns long, so I am rather particular about what I want to make. But Baktus really grabbed my imagination, and I couldn't wait to get started. The pattern originated in Norway, as far as I can tell, and Baktus was originally a character in Norwegian mythology.

Baktus is basically a large triangular scarf that is worked end to end (rather than bottom to top) in garter stitch. I decided to use a self-striping yarn, and I got this far:
Then I hesitated, because the stripes look a little unusual because of the construction of the piece. So I went digging further into the stash, and found another yarn to try.
Then I went back to Ravelry and looked at all 400 projects listed on there. And I finally reassured myself that the FOs all looked fine and mine would too. So I now have 2 versions of this project started, both of which I want to finish. Luckily this is a quick and fun project to knit, even if I am using fingering weight yarn and size 3 needles.

However, I also now have self-striping sock yarn on the brain and wouldn't you know that elann.com put some self-striping sock yarn on sale yesterday. I fell in love with 3 of the colorways, so I now have 3 skeins of sock yarn coming my way. I just couldn't resist! Since I don't think I have bought yarn all year, I don't feel too bad. But I will be good now until August, when I go to the Knit and Crochet Show.

#3 of 52

2009-06-16T07:49:00.003-04:00

Just a quick post to show off my FO from last weekend. This is the One Row Lace Scarf. I used 1 skein of Lion Brand Microspun, for another 168 yards out of the stash. I hadn't intended on finishing this one so quickly, but I found another scarf I want to make last week on Ravelry. (More about the new project later.) So I decided to be a good knitter and finish this one first, before I started the new one. It was so close to being finished that I was able to get it done despite a fairly hectic weekend schedule.

I lost my internet connection last week, and I ended up spending most of the weekend getting it restored. It only took 2 calls to AT&T, a new patch cable, a new surge protector, and a new router, but by late Sunday afternoon, I was finally back in business. Now I just need to finish backing up my files and replace the battery in the laptop, and I will be completely wireless again. However, all this is still cheaper than buying a new computer, so I'm not really complaining. But please be patient with me, because I am still catching up on my Google Reader subscriptions and Ravelry groups, so it may be a few more days before I am completely back up to speed.

#2 of 52

2009-06-08T07:45:00.004-04:00

On the one hand, I'm starting to feel like I'm on a roll with the 52 projects challenge by finishing my second project this weekend. On the other hand, the summer solstice is about 2 weeks away and I'm making mittens. My seasonal knitting seems to be a bit off right now. However, I will be great shape when the cold weather rolls around next winter. And I actually decided that mittens aren't a bad choice for summer knitting because they are small projects that don't spread out all over your lap.

So, without further ado, here are my Malabrigo mittens.
Started 12/08 and finished 6/7/09. I stopped working on them because I took it into my head that the first mitten was too big. It then took 6 months to convince myself that it was exactly the right size.

The mittens used up 168.5 yards, leaving me with 47.5 yards to use before I can count the skein finished. I am thinking about some sort of crocheted motif, maybe hearts, that I could put aside for future use as a pin, fridge magnet or applique. (And if I do that, would it count for another project? I think it would!) When I come off my yarn diet, I definitely want to acquire more Malabrigo. It is just so soft and yummy to knit with.

And amazingly, there was other knitting this weekend, too. (Amazing because there was also a major shopping expedition on Saturday morning and a birthday celebration for my mom yesterday.) I managed another 20 rows on my Classic Elite Premier vest, and I am now just 1.5" away from decreasing for the armholes. Once I set up the King Charles Brocade stitch pattern, I think the back of the vest will be finished very quickly. I made the mistake of reading the end of the pattern, and now the finishing has me a little concerned, although I will try not to psych myself out about it. I just need to do some research into the best way to block cotton/tencel. And I have time, since the two fronts won't be finished for a while yet.

#1 of 52

2009-06-04T07:40:00.004-04:00

I finished my striped socks yesterday, for my first project of the 52 Projects in 52 Weeks challenge. These were knitted toe up, with a short row heel, using Janet Rehfeldt's instructions. (I don't have a link, but her book on toe up socks is finally available.) I think I need more practice binding off toe up socks, because the top edge just looks a little wonky to me. (Or maybe the socks just need blocked.) However, the socks look just fine on. (Pardon the white legs above the socks.)

I used Regia Crazy Color yarn for these socks. The socks used a total of 272 yards, which was just over 1 skein of yarn. So I now have 188 yards in the second skein that I still need to use up. I'm thinking about a pair of fingerless mittens in the near future.

Kreative Blogger Award

2009-06-03T08:22:00.005-04:00

Last weekend, Sandy very graciously bestowed an award on this blog - the Kreativ Blogger award. The rules with this award are simple:
List 7 things you love
Link back to the person who gave you the award
Pass it along to 7 other bloggers.

I've been mulling over my answers ever since. 7 things I love:

My husband.
My family.
My pussy cat.
Knitting.
Crocheting, and the people in my life who share my passion for the fiber arts.
Books and reading.
My job and my coworkers. (I can't believe I just typed that, when there are so many things I could complain about when it comes to work, but the truth is that I would be lost without it right now.)

And the 7 bloggers I think deserve this award, in no particular order. Please consider visiting them and prepare to be inspired:

Crocheting with Dee - Dee is a good friend both online and in the real world. I can't think of another blogger promoting the art of crochet more fervently than she does.
A Little Yarn on the Side - I found Toni through the Stash Knitdown Group on Ravelry, and her efforts to both stash bust and finish WIPs have been an ongoing source of inspiration for a lot of us.
Unravelled - Another Stash Knitdowner, Taphophile is currently wrestling her WIPs into the ground and is providing me with inspiration to tackle my own.
Yoelknits - Yet another Stash Knitdowner, Yoel actually used up her stash last year during the course of the challenge. She makes beautiful and occasionally whimsical projects that also continue to inspire me.
Creating Lace - Lacey was my first swap partner, and I have followed her from blog to blog ever since. She is currently blogging about her life and her adorable puppy dog, and her blog is still a joy to read.
Knitikas - Valerie was my swap angel during my second swap, when my original partner went completely AWOL. She has since become a friend, and I always enjoy her posts. As it turns out, she is also a librarian, so we have several things in common.
Prairie Gumbo - Criquette has been a blog friend for several years now, and I always enjoy her blog. She is an animal lover extraordinaire, and her posts about her animals make me want to be a better person.

So there you have it. Thank you, Sandy, for giving me this award and the opportunity to share it with the bloggers I look forward to reading each day.

One Last FO...

2009-06-01T07:54:00.004-04:00

...before the start of the June challenge today. This is a scarf that I started in March and finished May 13th. I put it down without weaving in the ends, so I finally finished it at the end of last week.
And it represents another 3 skeins out of the stash. (Yes, I am back to counting skeins as well as yardage as of today! I was very excited when I finally finished a skein of sock yarn yesterday as well.)

And in other news, I spent a lovely day yesterday with Jen, Nancy and Grace at Jen's house, teaching another sock heel workshop. Heels were turned, plans for our trip to Buffalo in August were made, and a wonderful time was had by all. It was the perfect end to my vacation week, and I actually feel up to facing work again today.

Pictures Today!

2009-05-27T08:47:00.008-04:00

One of the guidelines of the 52 Projects in 52 Weeks group is that we should only work on 4 projects at a time. My goal is to finish something every week, and then add another project to the 4. Hopefully this will give me time to continue working on bigger projects as well. So I have been giving careful thought to what my first 4 projects will be. (Once I clear out some of the UFOs that I have once again found in my yarn room, I will actually get to cast on some new projects, which will be very exciting.)

One thing I know is that I always need a small traveling project ready to go. Right now, that project is a One Row Lace Scarf.
I'm using some Lion Brand Microspun that I found in a drawer. I have 2 skeins, but I may only need to use 1 for the scarf. I'm just going to knit until I think it's long enough. I am very pleased with the pattern, so I might keep this one or put it in the gift pile. But in the meantime, I'm not in any hurry to finish it.

I am also working away on the Classic Elite Premier Vest and enjoying it immensely, so this will definitely be #2 of the 4.
Classic Elite Premier is a cotton/tencel blend that is the softest cotton I have ever used. I love working with it.

I am doing another sock workshop on Sunday for some of my friends, so I have been working away on a sock for teaching purposes.
I should turn the heel on Sunday, so I want to finish the sock next week. Then it will be the first of my 52 finished projects and will be replaced by a mitten probably.

Then I come to #4 of 4, and I am facing a hard decision. I have 2 shawls in progress right now. Eva's shawl, which is crocheted, is getting close to being finished.
It's actually big enough to wear as a shawlette, but I want to finish the skein of yarn and have a bigger shawl to wear. So I really should concentrate on this one and get it finished.

However, it's going to be really hard to stay away from the Estonian Garden Shawl until I finish Eva.
I am about halfway done with the body of the shawl, and then I need to work on the edgings, which will be a bit more challenging. (My first nupps!) This project has also been a delight to work on. I love watching the lace grow. But I will try to be good until Eva's Shawl is finished.

I Guess I Needed A Rest!

2009-05-26T08:32:00.002-04:00

I can't believe how long it has been since I last posted. I don't know where the time has gone, but I think that I really needed the break. Nothing has really changed, but this year, life has felt increasingly hectic. It's hard to put my finger on what is wrong, but I think the feeling starts at work and continues into my spare time. However, today is my 3rd blogiversary (which blows me away - where did the last 3 years go?), and if I am ever going to get back to blogging, today seems like a good day to do it.

So, I have been doing a bit of knitting on some larger projects, and I have been doing a lot of reading. I can't remember the last time I have enjoyed reading this much. I am currently working on book #35, so I think I am going to surpass 52 books for this year. I am reading The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler (as a break from all the Regency romances I have been reading), and I am enjoying it immensely. I just watched the movie again Sunday night, and although the story in the book is somewhat different, I can see why they made some changes for the movie.

Now, however, it is time to get back on track with my fiber projects and with my stash busting efforts. I have found yet another new group on Ravelry. This one is called 52 Projects in 52 Weeks. We are starting on June 1st and continuing until May 31, 2010. The enthusiasm in the group is infectious, and I am really looking forward to meeting this challenge. In order to make it a bit more challenging for myself, I am going to limit my 52 projects to any knit or larger crochet items. I can make smaller crocheted items, but they won't count towards the 52 project goal. I'm hopeful that this will get me to continue working on my larger projects. I have also rejoined the Stash Knitdown 2009 (although I am still struggling to catch up on reading all the posts). I am going to take up the 100 skein challenge again, but my year for accomplishing that will also run from June '09 until May '10.

I will post some pictures later this week of my current projects and where I am going to start for the 52 project challenge. I am off from work this week, so job one is to get myself organized and ready to go!

More New Projects

2009-03-23T08:01:00.008-04:00

Yes, I seem to have developed a slight case of startitis! None of last week's projects are close to being done, but I have started another 3 projects.

One of my patrons who knits and crochets has been making hats this winter in an effort to teach herself Fair Isle knitting. She has brought in at least 3 of her hats to show me lately, and of course this has lit a fire under me to try my own hand again at adding some color to my knitting. I decided that for my first attempt, I would make a plain vanilla solid color hat and just add a band of Fair Isle to the middle to jazz things up. Here's where I am so far:
I am using a basic hat pattern from Ann Budd's book The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns and a motif from Sue Pearce's The Knitting Stitch & Motif Directory. I really have to concentrate on the colorwork, and I haven't done everything correctly (which is why I'm not putting up a picture of the inside of the hat). But I am happy with how it is coming along.

Then, on Saturday, we had a crochet program at my library. Dee has a great post up about the program, complete with pictures. We had a lovely day teaching people about crochet. While we were there, one of my sock students, Nancy, decided to start her sock again. Apparently, I am really open to the power of suggestion, because when I got home after the program I just had to start the second sock of my pair. Here is the start of the second one:

Finally, yesterday, I decided to start another crocheted scarf, which I will hopefully get finished and donate to my crochet guild to sell on April 2nd. The yarn was staring me in the face, so I went on Ravelry and found a suitable pattern on Bernat's website. (The pattern is free, but you need to sign up for a membership to get it.)
Unfortunately, the color doesn't show up very well in the photo. The color is a lovely blend of blue, yellow, and green, which makes me think of the ocean. So far, this is growing very quickly, and it will get another 3 skeins out of the stash. I am going to modify the pattern slightly. I am going to work half the scarf and then go back to the starting edge and work the second half of the scarf down from there, so that both ends of the scarf match. I'll see how that works.

A Catch-up Post

2009-03-16T07:57:00.006-04:00

Despite the lack of blog entries lately, I have been working away on some projects. I have realized that I truly have become a lace knitter, and that knowledge pleases me no end. I have 3 major knitting projects right now, and all 3 involve lace.

First up, the Estonian Garden Shawl by Evelyn Clark. I started this shawl several years ago as my first lace project and promptly screwed up the pattern. I put it away for a long time, but I pulled it out again this year. I had to start from scratch, but this time I am not having any problems with it. (Well, except for the YO I missed yesterday afternoon, which I didn't figure out until about 5 rows later. But I ripped back and fixed it, so everything is good again.)

I am also working on the Classic Elite Premier Vest. (This pattern is out of print, so I don't have a link for it.) This one has lace and cables, although I am not quite up to the cables yet. Right now, I am working on the back, and it seems to be a little big. But I am hoping that the cables will help pull it in a bit. If not, I think I can adjust the top part of the vest to fit. I should add that I am getting gauge, which is why I am going ahead with the knitting and will adjust if I have to.

Finally, I am still working on the Japanese Waves scarf. (PDF link) However, I think it is too wide, so I am seriously considering frogging it and trying again with fewer pattern repeats across. Luckily, I really enjoy knitting this pattern!

With these 3 patterns, I have truly become a process knitter. I am taking my time with them and just enjoying the knitting. In other words, they will be done eventually but probably not any time soon.

There's been some crocheting, as well. My crochet guild is having another sale at the local hospital at the beginning of April, so I have been making a few baby items for them.
Hopefully I will get a few more items made before April 2nd.

And I am continuing to read like there's no tomorrow. I have finished 19 books so far this year, and yesterday I started #20. I am finally taking a break from Jayne Ann Krentz/Amanda Quick. Since I am leading a book discussion on The Daughter of Time next month, I picked up Nicola Upson's book An Expert in Murder, which features Josephine Tey as the main character. So far, I am really enjoying it, and I feel like I am getting to know Josephine Tey better as a person (bearing in mind that it is a novel). I will have to see how well the novel stands up to reality once I do some research on Tey myself.

Tunisian Preemie Blanket

2009-03-04T07:47:00.004-05:00

Thanks to Monday being a snow day here in CT, I had time to start a preemie blanket using the Tunisian Simple Stitch. There are other Tunisian stitches, but I decided to start with the most basic stitch and work my way up. I got out Pauline Turner's book How to Crochet, read through her chapter on Tunisian, and got started. Here's what I have so far:
All I can say is that it's a good thing Pauline says that "Tunisian crochet curls while being worked". Otherwise, I would be really freaked out right now, because all I have is a tube. When I spread the tube out, the stitches are nice and even, and the blanket is going to be dense and warm, which is great for a preemie blanket. I am already planning a shell stitch border, which should cure the curling problem. But I don't think the blanket will look good in a picture until it is completely finished.

I'm Not Sure Where February Went To...

2009-03-02T13:53:00.003-05:00

...but I have decided to start March off right. I decided yesterday that, after 2 months off, I am ready to do some stash busting this month. So I got busy yesterday and finished the scarf that I had started last May to work on during the MS Walk. I had finished the first skein of yarn before the end of December, intending for this to be one of my first FOs of 2009.

I also finished my 15th book of the year last night. It was Stardust by Neil Gaiman. Gaiman's book Neverwhere is one of my all time favorite books. While Stardust was no Neverwhere, it was a very sweet take on a fairy tale. I've been meaning to read Stardust ever since I saw the movie in 2007.

Reading in March is going to revolve around Josephine Tey, since I am leading a book discussion on The Daughter of Time in April, and I think it might be a good idea if I read some of her other mysteries as well. There is also now a mystery series featuring Josephine Tey as the main character, and I would like to read the first book in that series as well.

Crafting in March is going to revolve mostly around crocheting. March is, after all, National Crochet Month, and I can stash bust much more effectively if I crochet. My guild is going to be teaching a class at my library on Tunisian crochet at the end of the month, so I really need to brush up on my Tunisian crochet before then. I think I will try a preemie blanket and see how it goes.

I Got Busy Last Night...

2009-02-04T08:26:00.004-05:00

...and I finally finished another 7 WUA squares, bringing my total to an even 20.

These were supposed to be finished in January, so I only missed my deadline by a few days.

I haven't done much other crafting lately because I am still reading Jayne Ann Krentz like there is no tomorrow. I have decided that if January was any indication, 2009 is going to be my "year of reading frivolously". But at least now I have something to talk to my romance readers at work about!

However, I did have an epiphany of sorts last week. It occurred to me that if I am going to continue to do all this reading, I am going to have less time to knit and crochet. I'm ok with accomplishing less with my crafting this year. I actually think that I am feeling burned out after making 100+ projects for each of the past 2 years. However, I realized that I need to choose my projects more carefully if I am going to make fewer items. So this weekend, I am going to try to organize my thoughts and make some decisions about what I want to work on.

One Row Scarf

2009-01-23T07:02:00.003-05:00

I'm happy to report that Mom's surgery yesterday morning went very well. The only unfortunate thing about it was that we had to be at the hospital at the ungodly hour of 6:15 in the morning. But we were home by 11:00 A.M., and she only has a small incision. So other than still feeling tired this morning (and very grateful that it is Friday), I am well pleased.

I had taken the entire day off from work, so I had some time at the hospital and at home in the afternoon to finish up one of my scarves. It was so close to being finished that I decided to focus my attention on it yesterday.
I used the Yarn Harlot's One Row Scarf pattern, and the leftover yarn from this project. The yarn was from Blue Sky Alpaca, and it's an alpaca/silk blend. The scarf ended up being 5" X 50", which is a nice size. The yarn color is called "garnet", so it's not quite such a bright red as it looks in the picture.

I also started The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards yesterday. I was prepared to feel lukewarm about it, but I found that it is an extremely enjoyable book to read. I'm hopeful I will have time to finish by next Wednesday so I can attend book discussion. The real trick is going to be keeping my hands off the romance novels for a few days, so it's a good thing that the serious book is a good read!

Putting Some Romance Back Into My Life

2009-01-21T07:41:00.004-05:00

One group that I didn't drop out of over on Ravelry was the "52 Books in 52 Weeks" group. They are a nice group of people, and getting book suggestions by the bucketful really helps me at work. And so far, I have read 3 books in 3 weeks, so I am still on target for the challenge. Granted, I have read anything particularly intellectual, but happily that isn't part of the challenge.

The Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey was a very interesting mystery. It was not a typical mystery by any stretch of the imagination. But I really enjoyed the application of police procedure to an historical enigma. I think it will be a very successful book for discussion.

And then I started reading Jayne Ann Krentz. I have read two of her books in a row. I don't know what has gotten into me. I haven't read romance novels since I was a teenager. And I never read books by the same author back to back. But I enjoy spending time with her characters, and there is enough suspense in the books to keep this veteran mystery reader interested. One of my usual complaints about romance novels is that the men aren't written in a realistic manner. But Krentz's characters all seem realistic to me. So I am happily putting some romance back into my life with Krentz's books.

Now I need to select my next book. My mom is having some outpatient surgery tomorrow, so I should have some time while I'm waiting to both read and knit. At least, I'll bring both things with me to keep me occupied. (It's so nice to have hobbies - I'm never bored!) I should be good and read The Memory Keeper's Daughter so that I can go to book discussion next week. But I have a sneaking suspicion that another romance novel might just win out! I'll let you know what I decide.

And This is Why I Blog...

2009-01-20T07:19:00.009-05:00

...because nothing else really motivates me to finish projects up.

I got busy yesterday and got some things ready for their photo op. Here's my first FO of the year, which has been waiting since January 7th to have 4 measly ends woven in.
It's a crocheted V-Stitch scarf, made with Elsbeth Lavold Hempathy. The Hempathy was interesting to crochet with. It felt very stiff in my hand, but the scarf itself is soft and drapey, which I wouldn't have expected.

I have also been making WUA squares. I started with a box of scraps,
and so far, I have made 13 squares.
I have made a small dent in the box, but I still have plenty of scraps left. However, I am going to take a break from making squares. I am working on mittens for The Bridge Project, and then I want to make some chemo hats to donate to my crochet guild. And I'm still working on my various scarf projects. So more FOs to come!

Crying Uncle and Feeling Better

2009-01-19T08:03:00.003-05:00

After all my enthusiasm for my 2009 challenges that I felt in December, I've spent the past 2 weeks wrestling with, well, malaise seems to be the best word for it. It took some time to figure it out, but I finally had to admit that I was feeling overwhelmed. Not only was I stretched too thin, I was spending way too much time trying to keep up with everything online and failing miserably. So this weekend, I have pared way back on the groups I am trying to participate in, and I have a new resolution for 2009. I may belong to fewer groups, but I intend to be a better member of the groups I do belong to. I also decided that I miss blogging here, so I intend to get back to blogging regularly, too.

So, to begin with, I have dropped out of all but 7 groups on Ravelry. The hardest decision was to give up on my beloved Stash Knitdown group. But with over 2600 members in the group this year, I simply could not keep up with reading all the posts, much less posting myself. If I missed even a day, I was a hundred posts behind. I also decided that I had gotten about as much as I could from the group. So my stash busting will continue, but this year I am going it alone (no doubt with a little help from my friends in the real world). I wasn't sure how I would feel about it, but as soon as I left the group, I knew I had made the right decision.

I have also given up on the Winter of Lace. I tried swatching for the February Lady Sweater and couldn't get gauge, so there went my major lace project. I also got way behind reading all the posts over there, so I have given up on that KAL as well.

Hopefully I will have some FOs soon. I am busy making WUA squares for Homespun Helpers, using up all sorts of scrap yarn. I have also started some mittens for The Bridge Project. And I'm still working on scarves. Most importantly, I am enjoying my projects again and feeling more in control of my crafting life. That's a good place to be.

Slower Going

2009-01-05T07:57:00.002-05:00

So after I posted about my 2008 FO totals and my 2009 challenges last week, it occurred to me that I can actually make fewer items this year and still meet my 2009 goals. Really, I am looking at making 52 small items and 4 sweaters. If I can do that, I will be happy. In turn, this will free up time for the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge. Maybe, just maybe, I will finally achieve a balance this year between all my hobbies!

So right now, I am happily working on 5 scarves and 1 shawl, mostly in the evenings. I will hopefully start my first sweater next weekend. And I read most of The Daughter of Time this weekend. I feel much less rushed about everything, which is very nice and relaxing. And it actually feels good to give myself permission to read, and to rediscover how much I enjoy a good book.

I Did It!

2008-12-31T16:41:00.002-05:00

I couldn't wait until tomorrow, so I started tallying my yardage this afternoon. It took counting yardage used in some WIPs, but I got the total up to just over 10 miles for the year. Yeah! Anything I use up this evening will just be gravy. Now, next year, I'm going to try again for a mile a month. Just add that to my list of challenges for 2009.

And speaking of the 2009 challenges, I completely forgot this morning about Winter of Lace. I really don't have a clue how I'm going to keep that many balls in the air, but I intend to have fun trying!

I'm Kind of Stunned!

2008-12-31T11:36:00.002-05:00

I just went through all of my 2008 posts and tallied up my FOs for each month. The final numbers have me a bit stunned. So far, I have finished 122 items this year. (If I get off this computer soon, that number might yet increase.) I made 12 items for me or my dh, and I made 2 gifts. That means that I made 108 items that I either donated to charity or to sell to raise money for nonprofit groups. And I wasn't even trying to reach a particular goal. (I should add that these numbers are the best I can come up with. I really kind of lost track this year.) Wow!

2009 Challenges

2008-12-31T08:06:00.002-05:00

Ok, so there are a lot of challenges that begin tomorrow, and I need to get them organized in my mind. There's the 100 skeins challenge, which I'm ready for, and the Personal Sweater Club, which I am also ready for. Then there's the 52 small items in 52 weeks challenge, which I had forgotten I had signed up for until I was just going through some of my older posts on Ravelry. That one I'm not so ready for, although I always seem to have smaller items I am working on for charity or the guild, so I should be ok there. Then there's the ongoing challenges: the Bridge Project and Homespun Helper's WUA square drive in January and chemo hats/preemie blankets/items to sell in April for the crochet guild. Whew!

Then there's the new biggie that I haven't even blogged about yet. I noticed a new Ravelry group last week - 52 Books in 52 Weeks. My first thought was that I would join and follow how the group does, but I couldn't possibly read 52 books in a year. Then, as I started reading posts and posting there myself, I decided that even if I didn't make the goal, if the group got me to read more, then it would be a good thing. And now I seem to be plotting strategy to see if I can accomplish the whole goal. The group is extremely enthusiastic and friendly, so I am really excited about reading again, which feels really good.

The strategy I am going to use includes identifying short books in my collection, to fill in when I bog down in a longer book, and audiobooks. With my Christmas money, I bought a new iPod Touch, and I have already downloaded 2 audiobooks onto it. However, I also intend to read from my stash of books, instead of bringing stacks of books home from the library and ignoring them for 3 weeks. There are a lot of books that I really should try to read, because they are popular and the patrons want to talk about them. So those will be a priority.

The first 3 books will be: The Daughter of Time by Jacqueline Tey (I'm thinking about leading a book discussion on this book in April, so I need to read it and see if it will work); The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards (the library's January book discussion book, so why not); and Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert (I want to see if she's as whiney as everyone says she is). I have 2 audiobooks on an mp3 player (that I can no longer download to, hence the new iPod): My Life in France by Julia Child (which I started sometime this year and want to finish); and A Spot of Bother by Mark Haddon. And yesterday I downloaded The Botany of Desire by Michael Pollan and The Rosewood Casket by Sharon McCrumb. That should carry me well into February! And definitely expect more book blogging around here in 2009.

So I am very excited for tomorrow and a little bummed that I am entertaining the family and so won't be able to really get started on my challenges until Friday. (It will be wonderful to see the family tomorrow, but still!)

I hope everyone has a safe and happy New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. See you all in 2009!

End of the Year Blitz!

2008-12-29T08:33:00.006-05:00

I hope everyone had a happy holiday last week! I guess things got a little crazy in my life, since it's been 2 weeks since I posted. I was actually fairly well organized about Christmas, and we had a very nice day with the family. I was tired last week, though, and I am only now starting to feel rested out. I don't go back to work until Saturday, so I am enjoying some R & R this week. This is a good thing, because my string of good news came to an end the week before Christmas when we found out that my mom is facing 2 surgeries in the new year. So the round of tests and doctor office visits and flexing my hours at work will begin again on January 2nd. I'm happy to say that she is not facing anything life-threatening, but still, surgery is pretty serious, so I am a bit worried.

On a happier note, my quest to reach 10 miles of yarn used in 2008 is continuing. I have made 2 preemie blankets from one skein and 3 baby hats and a pair of baby booties from another skein. The two skeins combined totaled over 900 yards!

However, my quest has also given me a rather bad case of startitis. I wanted an easy project to work on in the evenings, so I started a rectangular granny afghan with another large skein I want out of the stash.
I will finish the afghan off with a couple of solid color skeins, and I will probably donate it to Project Linus. Right now, I am just enjoying the crocheting.

I also seem to want to work with soft, luxurious yarn here at the end of the year, so I pulled out my one skein of Malabrigo, and I'm making a pair of mittens for myself.
They are going to be soft and warm. I am going to try to finish these up this week.

I'm also frogging some scarf WIPs and starting new scarves to replace them, but I'll post more about that later, when I have things a bit more organized. I'm also going to try and finsh my Eva's Shawl. So I am going to be a busy girl this week, while I am at home!

Good News Keeps Coming

2008-12-15T07:34:00.004-05:00

We had such a good time yesterday at the crochet guild's December meeting/holiday party. Lots of good food and company, and lots of goodies to bring home. I came home with a new pattern booklet, a new project that our president, Grace, put together for us for a body scrubber soap pouch, a grab bag gift that included cappuchino, chocolate and small crocheted doilies, and 7 skeins of yarn that I won in a raffle. Here's a picture of the yarn, a yummy silk/acrylic blend. I'm hopeful I have enough for a shawl.

Over the weekend, I finished the skein of yarn left over from the shawl by making a couple of hats, and I was finally able to add the 2 skeins of Homespun to my yardage total. That brought me to a point where I only need to use up 127 yards a day to reach my goal of 10 miles for the year. So when I got home yesterday, I started a preemie blanket with some bulky yarn in my stash, on the theory that it would work up quickly. I worked on it all evening while I watched a showing of the original "Poseidon Adventure" (I don't have a clue why I am so taken with that movie, as well as the 2 remakes), and the blanket is more than half done.
I'm using Joann Sensations yarn in Rainbow Classic. It's 100% acrylic, and so soft. I'm going to use the entire skein (615 yards total) for preemie blankets. I didn't really want to start another project, but there is no way I will meet my goal with my existing WIPs, all of which are using fingering or laceweight yarn. And at least preemie blankets are useful and needed. (Of course, the guild really needs chemo hats in January, but I will make a few of those as well, I promise.) I'm really becoming quite fond of bulky yarns in my old age!

Oh, and the good news from this post's title? I found out on Saturday that we are going to my in-laws for both Christmas and New Year's Day. We will help out a lot with the cooking for both days, but it means that I don't have to do a lot of intensive cleaning before the holidays. And less time spent on cleaning means more time spent on stash reduction. So my goal becomes more and more attainable. Stay tuned!

2nd Ripple Afghan Done

2008-12-13T09:28:00.004-05:00

I was a good girl last night (especially considering it was Friday), and I sat down and finished weaving in all the ends on dh's ripple afghan. Here it is, in all its glory. He used it this morning and pronounced it perfect. It is smaller than the one I made for myself. It turned out approximately 41" X 48", but that is what he wanted - a lapghan. And do you know, it only used 1,437 yards of Simply Soft. So it didn't make near the dent in my SS stash that I had hoped for. Oh well, I will just have to keep coming up with projects that use SS!

So, as of this morning, I have used up 8.5 miles of yarn this year. Only 1.5 miles to go to reach my informal goal of 10 miles for the year. I have to do some serious thinking today about which projects might help me meet this goal in the next 3 weeks. It's probably not possible, especially with the holidays upon us, but I just can't resist trying. Have a great weekend, everyone!

ETA: I just ran the numbers, and I only need to use up approximately 140 yards a day to reach 1.5 miles by the end of the year. Suddenly, this seem eminently doable!

Good News Post

2008-12-12T07:11:00.003-05:00

First good news - Mom got the cast off her foot yesterday! As soon as we fix her dead car battery, she will be a free woman again, and I can stop being her chauffeur. I'm really looking forward to working normal hours and shorter days again. Maybe I can even get back to blogging on a regular basis.

Second good news - I have finished crocheting dh's ripple afghan, and I am now in the process of tying in all the ends. As soon as I get that finished, I will post a picture. I am so happy to get to the end of this project! It feels like I have been working on it forever, even though it really hasn't been that long.

Third good news - the dh is spending tomorrow with his parents, getting their Christmas tree in and doing some chores for them. So I get the day to myself at home! Besides the usual laundry and a little housework, I intend to spend the day finishing the afghan, fixing a few problems with some of the scarves I have been working on, and finding the next project to be finished.

Fourth good news - Sunday is the crochet guild's December meeting/holiday party. I have not been entirely sure I would be able to go, but now that I know what's happening this weekend, I will be there with bells on! I just have to put together a grab bag gift tomorrow, and I will be all set.

Now I just have to finish getting ready for Christmas next week, and I will be in very good shape indeed!

Shawl is Finished!

2008-12-10T08:25:00.004-05:00

I actually finished my Easy Triangle Shawl (that I started on 11/30) on Sunday, but I haven't had a chance to take pictures or post until today. The shawl took 1 and 1/2 skeins of Lion Brand Homespun, and it came out nice and big. I have hardly stopped wearing it since I finished it.
It is soft and warm. Even better, it is very lightweight, considering I used a bulky yarn to make it. And I love the way the yarn striped all by itself.

Finishing this project quickly has made me anxious to finish something else soon. So this week I am busily working on my dh's ripple afghan. I'm hoping to finish it this coming weekend. I'll post pictures when I do.

New Charity

2008-12-06T07:46:00.002-05:00

I know that I haven't done much charity work lately, other than a few hats here and there. But I did want to post about a new charity that Sandy, a friend from Homespun Helpers, is starting. It's called The Bridge Project. She is trying to collect handmade hats and scarves to give to a group of (mostly) men living under a bridge near her home in central Ohio. She would also welcome gloves, mittens, vests and sweaters. There is no deadline for the project. She would like to have something to donate every week until the cold weather has ended in April or May. I'll have to check my stash for some good "guy" colors and try to make an item or two to send along.

2009 Sweaters

2008-12-03T08:22:00.006-05:00

As promised, here is the post about my planned 2009 sweater knitting. I have picked out 4 patterns, one for each season. I planned this for seasonal knitting, not necessarily seasonal wearing. So if I finish all 4 projects, I might have to wait a while to wear each one of them.

Winter/Spring:
I'm going to start with the February Lady Sweater. It's top-down and seamless, so what's not to like! It seems like the best place to start, since I am new to sweater knitting. I've chosen Plymouth Encore in a heather colorway. If I get that finished, my Spring Sweater will be the Triple Cable Sweater from the newest issue of Cast On! magazine. (Sorry, no link for that one.) I'll use a grey Colorado Yarns Durango that I bought at Webs last Christmas. It's a nice tweed yarn that is a wool/acrylic blend.

Summer/Fall:
Assuming all goes well, my summer sweater will be the Checkmate Cardigan from Cabin Fever. I have 13 skeins of Berroco Touche, a cotton/rayon blend, that I bought specifically for this project (probably several years ago). And finally, my Fall sweater will be the Nantucket Cardigan from Interweave Knits Winter 2006. I bought Elsbeth Lavold Classic Al, a yummy alpaca yarn in a dark blue, for the project (again, several years ago).

And since we are keeping track of number of skeins for next year, this represents 50 skeins that will be used up. That's half of my 100 skein challenge right there. As a warm-up this week, I have been diligently working on my new shawl. I only have 2 1/2 pattern repeats to go. Boy, those rows are getting long, though! I still haven't finished the first skein, so I know I will have some yarn left over. I would take a WIP shot, but since it really doesn't fit on the circular needle by now, it just looks like a lump of knitting. I can't even tell how big it truly is. I won't know until I cast off. I'm still hopeful I will finish it this week, so watch for an FO shot over the weekend.

Cleaning Can Be Dangerous!

2008-11-30T15:53:00.005-05:00

So, after spending 2 days last week with the family, I told my dh yesterday that I really needed to spend some time alone up in the yarn room, getting ready for next year's projects. It didn't take long for me to decide that straightening up the yarn room is rather like rearranging deck chairs on the Titannic - completely pointless. I can shift things around, but the bottom line is that there is just too much yarn for the bins I can fit in the room, and the only thing that is going to help is using more of it up. It was just a little discouraging to find that, after a year of stash busting, I am still in this position. It wasn't all bad. I did find one drawer that was almost empty, and some of the bins do have some breathing room in them. But there is still too much yarn in bags on the floor. I seriously am looking at a 10 year plan as far as the stash busting goes.

I did put together patterns and yarn for 4 sweaters for next year, which makes me feel more organized. (I'll talk about which sweaters in another blog post.) However, while I was doing that, I found 2 skeins of Lion Brand Homespun in a plastic bag, with a shawl pattern (Easy Triangle Shawl from Lion Brand) and knitting needles, which I had completely forgotten about. And that's why cleaning is dangerous. Despite my vow to myself to not start any more projects right now and to focus on my WIPs until the new year, I just couldn't stop thinking about that shawl. So of course I started it, around 12:30 this afternoon.
It is about 1/3 of the way done already. I'm not convinced the shawl will take 2 full skeins of the yarn, but if it doesn't, I can always make a chemo cap with the leftover yarn. I think that the attraction of the shawl right now is that most of my other projects are using fingering or lace weight yarn, and so they are growing slowly. A project using bulky yarn will grow so much faster and will just be a nice break from the finer yarns, even if it's no my favorite yarn to work with.

Getting Ready for Next Year's Challenges

2008-11-26T07:52:00.003-05:00

First of all, I want to thank Knitika for being my cheerleading section as I get ready for next year's challenges! I will take all the encouragement I can get.

One of the requirements of the "100 skeins in 2009" challenge is that we can only count full skeins towards the total. Happily, I spent a lot of time this year finishing up my partial skeins, so my stash is in good shape for the challenge. However, I am now trying to stay focused and finish at least some of my WIPs, since I am in the middle of skeins with most of them. Unfortunately, this includes 2 shawls and an afghan, as well as 3 scarves that I am knitting with fingering weight yarn and 2 second socks. Yikes! For some of these projects, I might be able to finish the skein I am currently working on and then put the project down until next year. I haven't accomplished much this week, what with the holiday looming, but I have every intention of getting organized this weekend (and cleaning up the yarn room again). I'll try to post some WIP pictures over the next few days so you can see what I am talking about. And on the upside, if I do get some WIPs finished now, I can start several new projects in January. I'm really looking forward to that!

For everyone who celebrates it, have a wonderful Thanksgiving tomorrow!

100 Skeins in 2009

2008-11-24T07:26:00.003-05:00

Well, I'm sure you will all be glad to hear that my stashdown efforts will continue into 2009. They kind of have to, since I haven't really made much of a dent in the stash this year. Hey, when you have over 100 miles of yarn in the stash, using up 7.5 miles of it is barely a drop in the bucket!

But, never fear, over at the Ravelry stashdown group, we are making all kinds of plans for using up stash in the new year. And I have managed to sign up for at least 3 of the challenges. The one that has a lot of us excited is the "100 balls of yarn in 2009". We are going to see if we can use up 100 balls/skeins/hanks of yarn in the year. That translates into approximately 2 skeins a week, which somehow seems doable. So I will be keeping track of my progress here on the blog. It will be fun to count something other than yardage next year (although I will probably continue to count yardage, too).

Then there is the "Personal Sweater Club". This idea grew out of the sock yarn clubs that some yarn companies offer online. You get a surprise skein of sock yarn each month, and if you keep up, you knit a pair of socks a month. Well, this year, some members of the stashdown group made up their own sock club. They packaged up 12 skeins of yarn from stash with patterns, and then opened up a new package every month. It made the stash seem more exciting. So, for next year, we are extending that idea to small items and to sweaters. Now, I'm not crazy. I am not going to try to knit 12 sweaters next year. I am going to try for 4 - one for each season. It will be a miracle if I actually complete 1 sweater, but I am going to try. Hopefully, next weekend, I will finalize the 4 patterns and the yarn for each.

And then, yesterday, someone suggested trying for one small item a week, or 52 in the year. At the risk of overextending myself, I went ahead and signed up. I know that I can crochet a hat or a scarf in a week and still have time for larger projects. So those will be my charity items for the year.

And yes, I am going to have to be very organized and disciplined if I am going to have any hope of keeping up with all this!

Two Hats

2008-11-17T07:48:00.003-05:00

In my quest to finish up some WIPs before the end of the year, I pulled out a baby hat I had begun knitting over the summer and finished it up last weekend. I still had about half a skein left over, so I went ahead and crocheted a baby hat as well. That just about finished the skein. One more skein out of the stash, woohoo! Anyway, here are the two hats.
I used Plymouth Dreambaby, a really soft DK weight yarn. The knitted one, on the left, came out a bit small. It's long enough, but it's not really wide enough. Even given that the pattern is ribby, it still doesn't stretch quite enough. But it should fit a newborn. These will be donated eventually, but for now, they are just going into the donation box until I decide where they are going.

Not much else going on. We are in the throes of cleaning the house for Thanksgiving. While it would be sensible to keep up with the cleaning and do a little bit every weekend, we seem to subscribe to the theory that it is a much better idea to leave a room alone for years and then half kill ourselves cleaning it completely in one afternoon. Yesterday we tackled the family room and study in the basement. The study isn't really used as a study, though. It is more of a catchall room for junk, which is why we have left it alone for such a long time. It looks much better now, although I am still coughing from the dust we stirred up. But I am beginning to have hope that the house will be clean and fit for company by Thanksgiving!

Long Time No Blog Again

2008-11-15T16:28:00.005-05:00

Things have been a tad hectic in my life recently. A couple of weeks ago, my mom woke up with a sore foot. Well, it turned out that she had broken a bone in her foot. No injury, just wear and tear. So she's in a soft cast and a boot, and she can't drive until it's healed. Of course, she still needs to get to all of her medical appointments, and she still needs errands run. So I have been flexing my hours at work like crazy, and going in early to make up the time I am taking off, which has eaten into my blogging time. She sees the podiatrist again next Thursday, but I have a feeling that she will have the cast on for a few more weeks yet.

On the plus side, all this waiting in doctor's offices with her has given me some extra knitting time. I've been working on my vacation scarves, but I haven't managed to finish one yet. I did manage to weave in all the ends on Mocha Roca last week, so I can finally show you a picture of me wearing the sweater.

And here's a close up of the buttons, which I just love.
I wore the sweater to work yesterday and got all kinds of compliments on it. So I am jazzed to both knit and crochet more sweaters for myself in the coming year.

I also finished up another chemo hat, which will probably be donated next year some time to the local hospital.

Other than that, I am working away on some WIPs, trying to finish up some projects to clear the decks for those sweaters next year!

I Know, I Know...

2008-11-02T16:14:00.003-05:00

...I only posted 4 times in October, and here it is November 2nd and I'm posting twice in one day. But I am so excited! I just finished the crocheting my Mocha Roca sweater.
I still need to weave in ends and make a button. Hopefully I will get that done later this week. But in the meantime, I am going to relish having one fewer WIP!

Recent Acquisitions

2008-11-02T08:46:00.003-05:00

(Sorry about the title - sometimes I am such a librarian!) Last Friday was my birthday, and I just couldn't resist getting myself a couple of birthday gifts. Knitted Lace of Estonia by Nancy Bush was published last week, and my pre-ordered copy arrived just in time for my birthday. It is a beautiful book with gorgeous patterns that I just can't wait to start knitting. Then, yesterday morning, I decided that I just don't have good lighting in the 2 spots that I do most of my crafting and that it was time to do something about this situation (especially since I can justify the purchase as a birthday gift). So I took myself over to my local Joann's store and purchased the new Ott Light with a rechargeable battery. (I also don't have room for either a table or floor lamp that has to be plugged in near either of my crafting spots.) I tried the new lamp out yesterday and it makes such a difference! I can actually see the stitches when I am using lace weight yarn. I might actually get Eva's Shawl finished now that I can see the stitches. And it is completely portable, so I can take it with me to crochet guild or wherever.

Now, speaking of lace weight yarn, the yarn in the picture is not a new acquisition. I dug it out of my stash yesterday and balled it up just before I took the picture. I have to love lace weight yarn. Those 3 innocent looking balls contain 1,320 yards of yarn in them. I am going to use them for my Fan Stitch Half Circle Shawl. I actually started the shawl yesterday. I got 16 rows in and already I have to frog back a few rows because one of the edge stitches is wonky. However, the shawl is a lot of fun to knit, so I'm happy. I think it's going to be a good project for getting used to working with such thin yarn, which right now seems to be my biggest challenge with lacemaking. I'll post a picture when it is a little bigger and actually looks like something.

Where does the time go?

2008-10-23T07:46:00.004-04:00

This month is seriously flying by! I'm not at all sure where the time goes. We have had some fun. We have gotten out to enjoy the fall colors on the weekends. On a more serious note, our pussy cat has been having a bit of a hard time, so we have been to the vet a couple of times. The cat turned 13 this month, and all of a sudden we are dealing with some old age issues. He is on medicine now, and he seems to be doing much better, though. And on top of everything else, I have been fascinated watching history unfold day by day, between the economic crisis and the presidential election. I have become a news junkie, and I have been spending entirely too much time reading political blogs. Unfortunately, that's where my computer time in the mornings has been going to.

However, I do have a couple of fiber related items to share. First up, in addition to working on Mocha Roca, I have managed to finish 2 hats and 1 scarf for Dee's 60 Scarves in 60 Days challenge.
I used Red Heart Soft for the turquoise hat and Simply Soft Tweed for the hat and scarf set.

I also won a prize from Seasons of Lace! I won in the Newbie Lace Knitter category. I feel just a little guilty, since I didn't manage to finish one project I started this summer. However, I have a feeling I am really going to enjoy this DVD - Knitting Lace with Meg Swanson. There are 3 patterns discussed in the DVD, and I already have my eye on the neck scarf-sized version of a Faroese shawl pattern. Hopefully this weekend I can sit down and watch a little bit of the DVD. And I am definitely signing up for Winter of Lace. I am not giving up on my attempts as lace knitting!

My Apologies...

2008-10-13T16:54:00.002-04:00

...to everyone coming over here from the Everything Hewitt website. Clearly, this is not Priscilla Hewitt's blog/website. My first name is Priscilla, and I do crochet, but that is where any resemblance between myself and Priscilla Hewitt ends. I will work on having the error corrected. (And, yes, I also think that her designs are stunning!)

And to those of you stopping by to see what I am up to, I am still crocheting away. Life has been a little busy lately, and will be for the next few days. But I will try to post some pictures of what I am working on (including an almost completed Mocha Roca cardigan) by the end of the week.

More Catching Up

2008-10-06T07:39:00.005-04:00

I finally got off my duff this morning and took some pictures of some more projects that I have been working on lately.

I started knitting preemie hats this summer, and I got 4 done before my attention drifted.
I came nowhere near finishing the skein of yarn I was using, however, so now I might start a preemie blanket with the same yarn to try and use it up.

I also crocheted a "One Skein Scarf" at the end of September. This one will be donated to my crochet guild for their November sale.

And finally, over the past few days I have crocheted 2 hats and another pair of wrist warmers.
I intended the purple hat to be a chemo hat, since the yarn is soft. However, the hat and wrist warmers look so nice as a set that they might also go into the crochet guild sale. The red hat is toddler sized, on purpose this time since I wanted to finish another partial skein and there was only enough yarn for a small hat. It will probably also be donated to the guild sale.

All this, and my big bag of acrylic yarn still isn't getting any emptier. I may have to rethink this particular stashbusting strategy, because the big bag of yarn is starting to discourage me a little bit! However, it is certainly convenient to have so much yarn sitting right next to my chair, so the big bag of yarn will stay put for now.

Total Yardage for September...

2008-10-01T08:07:00.004-04:00

...is 1,463.5 yards. I didn't quite make my goal of using some yardage everyday (thanks to that nasty cold I caught), but I am pleased with the number nonetheless. I will set myself the same goal for October and hope it goes even better. Goodness knows I have enough to do, what with the various charity projects I want to work on.

I have a couple of things that are finished that I will photograph and post about soon, but I haven't gotten anything finished over the last week. I think the lingering cough from the cold is wearing me out a bit. So, in the meantime, I want to post a couple of pictures of items I made this year that, for whatever reason, I never blogged about.

First up, another hat that will be sent to Warm Up Winchester. I made this back in February from a wool/camel blend from the stash. Not surprisingly, it came out toddler size. (I really need to expand my hat repertoire!)

And here are some baby booties that I finally finished up earlier in September and donated to my mom for the craft sale her apartment complex is having this month.

I will have plenty more items like these to show you over the next month!

Posting may continue to be a bit light over the next few days. Tomorrow is my dh's 50th birthday, so I still have some preparations to finish. We will go out to dinner tomorrow night, and then I think we are going take a road trip on Saturday and just have a play day. But hopefully things will be back to normal next week.

I Love Your Blog Award

2008-09-23T07:47:00.003-04:00

So I have been thinking quite a bit about the "I Love Your Blog" award I received last week from Sandy. I am still pleased that she nominated me, but I am supposed to pass the award along and that has created a bit of a dilemma for me.

Here are the rules: 1) Add the logo of the award to your blog. 2) Add a link to the person who awarded it to you (as shown above). 3) Nominate at least seven other blogs. 4) Add links to those blogs on your blog. 5) Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs.

And here is my dilemma. I have 43 blogs that I read on a regular basis (not including the group blogs that I belong to or follow for possible charity donations). Like everyone else, my time online is limited, so if I am reading a blog regularly, then I am doing so because I love reading that blog. I receive so much inspiration and motivation from each and every blog I follow that I can't pick just 7 to receive the award. So, if you are on the list on my side bar, please consider yourself to have won this award from me.

Finally Feeling Better

2008-09-22T07:20:00.004-04:00

Well, last week did not go as planned. I was very happy on Tuesday evening when I called the court and found out that jury duty had been cancelled. I was all set to go to the Big E with the crochet guild on Wednesday. In the meantime, however, I had been fighting a scratchy throat since Monday, and I woke up Wednesday morning to a full blown head cold. So I had to cancel going to the Big E, and I ended up home sick Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. On top of the congestion, I had no energy to do anything but read. I read through 2 1/2 books in 3 days. I started to feel better on Saturday, which was a good thing since my dh came down with the same cold Friday afternoon. I had to quickly switch from being the sick person to being the caregiver. He's still home sick today, but I think he is starting to feel better.

While I was sick for those 3 days, I had no interest in going near a crochet hook or knitting needles. But once I got my energy back, I was right back at it. I managed to make a toddler sized hat, a pair of fingerless gloves, and a scarf over the weekend.
(I also finished one other scarf last night, but I don't have the ends woven in yet, so it isn't quite ready for its photo shoot.) I didn't really use a pattern for the hat and scarf. I did use a pattern for the fingerless gloves, and I have to thank Deneen for her pattern. It is a great but simple pattern, and I intend to make more of them in the future.

I haven't forgotten about the "I Love Your Blog" award, either. I'm still mulling it over, and hopefully I will be able to pass the award along tomorrow.

2 More FOs from the Weekend

2008-09-15T07:50:00.004-04:00

Well, I finished up the scarf I mentioned in my last post, and I made a hat yesterday during the crochet guild meeting.
The scarf came out 53" long and 6" wide. The hat is the same size as the previous 2.

In other news, Sandy nominated me for an "I Love Your Blog" award. I am just pleased as punch that she received the award and that she in turn nominated me. I will be nominating 7 other bloggers for the award later this week. Unfortunately, the next 2 days are going to be a bit busy for me, which is why I won't be able to pass along the award until the end of the week. I have an early morning staff meeting tomorrow, and then on Wednesday I am either going to jury duty or the Big E. I won't know which until I call in to the court Tuesday night to see if they need me on Wednesday. As you might guess, I'm really hoping I get to go to the Big E! That will be a whole lot more fun than hanging around a jury room all day. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Big Hooks & Bulky Yarn...

2008-09-13T07:07:00.003-04:00

...equal quickly worked up projects! Yes, I spent yesterday holding 2 strands of yarn together and using a P hook to make 2 child sized hats.
This got 4 partial skeins of yarn out of the stash. I used my favorite hat pattern, and I enjoyed myself immensely. Since I had yesterday off from work, it probably would have been more sensible to work on a bigger project, but I just wanted the satisfaction of using up some yarn quickly.

I also started a scarf using 2 strands of yarn and a Q hook. I should have that finished tonight, and then hopefully I can make another 1 or 2 tomorrow. Once I get through these partial skeins, I will be able to start on some hat/scarf sets.

Have a great weekend!

Post-Vacation FO!

2008-09-11T07:45:00.003-04:00

One of the moderators of the Ravelry Stashdown group has set herself a goal of knitting up 10,000 yards of yarn in September. She has been blogging about her progress and sharing it with us in the Ravelry group. I have really found her efforts inspirational this week, even though I can't hope to approach that sort of yardage usage this month. Given how much I want to accomplish this fall craft-wise, however, I have come up with a resolution for myself. I am resolved to use up some yardage from stash every day. And at least until yesterday, this worked very well. I spent last Sunday reorganizing yarn and patterns, and then I worked on a hat and scarf set Sunday, Monday & Tuesday evenings. I tied in my ends yesterday morning, and voila, two FOs!
This used up about one and a half skeins of Lion Brand Wool Ease. The scarf came out longer and skinnier than I intended, so I think this will go into a charity sale rather than becoming a donation. (Dee, I promise the next scarf I make will count for the 60 Scarves challenge!)

So, what happened yesterday? Well, I seemed to be busy all morning (still catching up online). And by the time I got home from work in the evening and ate dinner, it was almost 9:00, and I just wasn't in the mood to work on anything. Plus, Wednesday nights, BravoTV shows Project Runway and Top Design, and those shows require more of my concentration than most other TV shows (because that late at night, if I want to remember the designs, I have to pay careful attention to them). But I promise to get back to my resolution this evening. I feel another hat and scarf set calling my name!

Fall Crafting

2008-09-10T09:32:00.004-04:00

While I was on vacation and had time to think, it occurred to me that I have some deadlines coming up this fall. It's time to get back to some charity crafting. I'm trying to limit myself somewhat this year, though. I can't do everything, so I think having more of a focus will keep me from getting too crazy.

First up, the crochet guild will be once again donating hat, mitten & scarf sets to the Salvation Army in December. I have 1 set made so far. So that is a top priority this fall. And just in time, Dee has launched her "60 Scarves in 60 Days" challenge again this year to help spur us all on. This year, there's a Ravelry group as well, and so far, the challenge seems off to a good start.

Second, I would like to donate to Warm Up Winchester again this year. I already have some hats and mittens made for them. I need to inventory what is already made and then plan accordingly. I think that donation needs to be made by October 31st. The nice thing about this group is that I can send baby items as well as hats, mittens, and scarves, and some of those items are also already finished.

And then there are 1 or 2 craft sales coming up. My mother lives in senior housing, and they will be having a craft sale in October to make money for their Sunshine Fund. So I am planning to donate some baby items and maybe a few other little things to her. One of my friends at work has already given me some baby sweaters, and I have the baby hats and booties I made this summer, so that donation is also coming along. And I heard a rumor that the crochet guild might be having a sale later in the fall as well, so I am keeping that in mind as I work on projects.

The nice thing about all of these donations is that they all take similar items. So I can make whatever I feel like, see how items turn out, and then decide where to send them.

All the Road Running

2008-09-09T07:00:00.005-04:00

Towards the end of last week, while driving around central New York state, I put on the Mark Knopfler/Emmy Lou Harris album "All the Road Running". It occured to me that the title summed up our vacation to a certain extent. We seemed to be in the car a lot driving around last week. Towns are rather spread out there, although not really knowing where I was going most of the time made the distances seem longer than they actually were.

But we did go to interesting places when we were driving around. We visited some of the wineries and tasted some wines (brought some home as well). We visited several used book stores and had fun browsing. We went to the Corning Museum of Glass and learned quite a lot about the history of glass making around the world. (I have a collection of depression glass, so visiting this museum was a high priority for me.) As usual, I carried the camera around with me most of the time, but ultimately, I didn't take very many pictures.

And then there were the yarn stores. We only stopped at 4 of them - Homespun Boutique in Ithaca, The Yarn Bin in Skaneateles, Patchwork Plus in Marcellus, and The Knitting Connection in Syracuse. I managed to buy something at each shop, and I ended up bringing home quite a bit of yarn.

The Yarn Bin had a sale room, and I was able to stock up on some acrylic and acrylic/wool blends.

2 of the stores, Homespun Boutique and Patchwork Plus, were mainly fabric stores, but each one had a quality yarn section as well. At Patchwork Plus, I found Elsebeth Lavold Baby Llama (on the right) and Sirdar Escape, another acrylic/wool blend (on the left).

At Homespun Boutique, I found some hand dyed Misti Alpaca worsted weight (on the right), and at The Knitting Connection, I found Blue Sky Melange, a sport weight alpaca.

After I added all this yarn to my Ravelry stash, I decided to add up the yardage. I brought home 4,493 yards of yarn, which translates to approximately 2.5 miles of yarn. Talk about sabotaging my stashdown efforts! I think I bought more yarn last week than I had this entire year (which does make me feel good about my yarn diet prior to vacation). But it is fun to shop on vacation, when I have the time to enjoy it, and I figure this is just the start of next year's stashdown efforts.

So vacation was fun, but I am glad to be home again and back to my routines. Next up, my plans for fall crafting.

Back from Vacation!

2008-09-08T07:50:00.004-04:00

Unfortunately, I'm running out of time this morning to write a really detailed post about vacation. I will say that we had a great time, and I did come home with some yarn (of course!). I will fill in the details as the week wears on. I also want to say that I am still working through all the emails, blog subscriptions and Ravelry forum posts that piled up last week in my absence. So I will try to stop by blogs and leave comments, but it is going to take me some time to truly catch up on everything.

For this morning, let me leave you with a picture of the view from my motel room last week. We had a balcony that looked out over Seneca Lake. It was incredibly peaceful and quiet and relaxing.

Light Posting This Week

2008-08-26T07:54:00.002-04:00

Work is still insane, although school starts today in my town (yeah - I'm doing the happy dance over that fact!). Vacation starts on Saturday, and I'm not really ready to leave yet. And to top it all off, I'm working away on my various projects but not really accomplishing much. So I probably won't be posting much this week, and I won't be able to post at all on vacation. But I'll be back sometime around September 8th with stories of my travels and hopefully an FO or two. Take care, and have a great Labor Day weekend!

Why Scarves?

2008-08-21T07:40:00.002-04:00

It wouldn't surprise me if some of you have been asking yourselves why I am so in love with scarves right now. I've been wondering the same thing myself. I do wear scarves a lot in winter, really almost every day, but still, how many scarves does one girl need?

However, I do have a couple of (hopefully good) reasons for focusing on scarves. The sad truth is that my stash will never be knitted or crocheted down unless I make a lot of scarves. I bought a lot of yarn in small amounts over the years for the purpose of making scarves. It seemed like a good and inexpensive way to try out new yarns and stitch patterns. So if I am going to get a handle on the stash, I need to make scarves in quantity. (And in case you are wondering, the stashdown is going to continue into 2009.)

I have also come to realize that I will never be addicted to sock knitting. I am glad that I know how to do it and that I have been able to pass some of those skills along to friends. But I don't think I will ever be the sort of person to churn out sock after sock. So scarves are my preferred small projects, especially for travelling. And at least some of the sock yarn stash will work for scarves, furthering the stashdown attempt.

As far as what I am going to do with all of them, right now I am considering them "stock". I would really like to find a way to sell at least some of the scarves to raise money for MS research. I'm still pondering the best way to go about that. While I ponder, I am going to put the finished scarves aside so that when I am ready, I will actually have something to sell.

The Crocheted Scarves

2008-08-20T13:39:00.005-04:00

You know, I really do have a lot of scarves going. I keep losing track of them! That's why posting about them is helping me to keep them straight.

Ok, in addition to the scarf I started crocheting for the MS Walk, I started two more crocheted scarves last weekend. The first is a simple V-st pattern.
I'm using 2 skeins of Elsbeth Lavold's Hempathy. It's interesting to work with a "new to me" fiber. I like it, but I think it will need some blocking when finished.

For the second scarf, I found a stitch pattern in Super Stitches Crochet that incorporates double crochets worked over chains to create an arched effect.
In the book, the stitch pattern is called "Arch 1", which is not terribly descriptive. I'm using a skein of Cherry Tree Hill Glitter Alpaca that has been in the stash forever. It is softer than my pussy cat (and that's saying something, since I have the best groomed cat in Christendom), and I just love the autumn colors. The yarn is fingering weight, and that fact along with the colors led me to search for a stitch pattern that was dense and yet open at the same time, and I think that Arch 1 fills the bill nicely.

If I ever make significant progress on any of them, I'll let you know. Except for today, I haven't been able to work on them at all this week. Ah, well, vacation is coming soon!

The Knitted Scarves

2008-08-18T07:45:00.005-04:00

I thought I would talk about the knitted scarves I started last weekend first. Tomorrow I will post about the crocheted scarves. I didn't take new pictures of Montego Bay and the Opera Scarf because they don't look any different than the first time I started them, which you can see here and here.

The first new scarf I started was the Mini Horseshoe Lace scarf.
I was looking for some sort of chevron stitch pattern, but most of them need multiples of too many stitches to be useful for a scarf. But then I found the "mini horseshoe lace" pattern in a book called The Knitter's Bible by Claire Crompton. It's worked over a multiple of 6 stitches plus 5, so it's perfect for a scarf. The yarn is a fingering weight merino that I got at Rhinebeck last October. Unfortunately, the yarn didn't come with a label, so I don't have any other info about it.

The second scarf, (which I said I would start Sunday and actually did) is the Japanese Waves scarf.
For this scarf, I am using a skein of Dream In Color Smooshy, in the Deep Seaflower colorway. I just love the colors in this yarn! I have a feeling that this scarf is going to get a lot of love.

I'm Having So Much Fun!

2008-08-17T14:39:00.004-04:00

Man, have I developed a bad case of "startitis" this weekend! And I am enjoying every minute of it. So far, I have resurrected the crocheted scarf that I started in May (the one I took on the MS Walk - I put it down after the walk and haven't worked on it since, shame on me). I have started 2 more crocheted scarves. I found a pattern for a knitted chevron scarf (not exactly a "feather and fan" pattern, but close enough) and cast on. I have also restarted both Montego Bay and the Opera scarves, and both are going better. And I am fixing to start the Japanese Waves scarf when I finish this post. I think 7 scarves should keep me busy on vacation! But it has been so much fun to look through stitch pattern books and become reacquainted with the stash. (Yes, all of the scarves I have started come out of stash.) This was just what I needed to re-energize my knitting and crocheting.

I haven't taken any pictures yet because I've only got a couple of rows done on each scarf. I will post pictures and more thorough descriptions of each scarf over next week. Enjoy the rest of your Sunday!

Time to Myself

2008-08-15T08:36:00.002-04:00

It looks like I am going to have some time to myself the next week or so. I am off today because I am working tomorrow. The DH is working on Sunday, so that's another day to myself. I will be off next Wednesday until 4:30 in the afternoon, so that's more time to myself. And next weekend is the library's booksale, so the DH will be busy from Friday until Monday. This is very good, because we are leaving on vacation the Saturday before Labor Day, and I need to decide what projects I want to take with me. We are going out to visit with my BIL & SIL in central New York state for a few days, and then we are going to spend 3 days exploring the Finger Lakes district. My BIL has a big old goofy black labrador dog, so I need to factor Sambeau's antics into my project selection. (He just loves to steal anything that isn't nailed down. He really is a hoot!)

So today will be spent making decisions. Do I work on existing projects and try to finish a couple before we go? Or do I start something new to take on vacation? I really have a hankering to make a knitted Feather and Fan scarf out of some sort of variegated yarn. The last one I started curled so badly that I ended up frogging it. And I really would like to make at least one lace piece so that Summer of Lace isn't a total failure. I still have over a month for that KAL, so I should be able to finish something. I'll be back tomorrow to let you know what I decide.

Cakewrecks

2008-08-14T07:35:00.002-04:00

No fibery news today (although I did manage to start an adult hat yesterday). So instead, I thought I would share a link to a blog that I just discovered this morning - Cakewrecks. I have been reading through the posts and literally laughing until I had tears streaming down my face. I mean, who can't relate to decorated cakes gone terribly wrong? And the commetary is delightful. Now, if you will excuse me, I'm going back to finish reading through the archives.

I Think I'm Back!

2008-08-13T07:54:00.005-04:00

At least, I am going to try to get back to blogging on a regular basis. Wow, this summer was tough. I feel like my life has been completely shut down except for work. I have missed every crochet guild meeting all summer, and this month, I didn't even make it to our Borders get together. I was just too tired. I'm sure it has to do with the high gas prices, but in 10 years at the library, I have never seen a busier summer. We have struggled to keep up with the most basic tasks every day. The only bright spot has been the incredible team of teen volunteers working with us this summer. I have been grateful that I haven't needed to worry about the shelving and the date due card stamping, since I have had to worry about just about everything else. (But then, that's why I'm the manager and get the big money - to worry!)

So, as you can imagine, not much has been happening on the crafting front. I have spent a lot of time on the weekends staring at my projects and thinking about working on them. But then I just couldn't bring myself to actually pick them up. But since I couldn't stop crocheting entirely, I did something I almost never do. I found 2 easy patterns, and I have been making them over and over again. First up, I have been making baby hats.
I think I have made one more hat since I took this photo. (I found this pattern on the web not all that long ago, but the URL isn't working at the moment, so the pattern may not be available any more.)

And then I have been making baby booties.
Again, I think I have one or two more pairs made since this photo. I am absolutely cringing at the amount of sewing I have to do on these, but I will get it done. (This pattern is my modification of Bev's Very Easy Booties.)

The hats and booties will be donated either to a couple of charity sales booths coming up in the fall, or to an actually charity (probably Warm Up Winchester). I will do a final tally before I donate them. I will say that this is a great way to use up partial skeins of sport weight baby yarn. And things must be getting better, because last night I actually comtemplated moving on the adult sized hats.

The Bathroom is Finished!

2008-07-16T08:14:00.003-04:00

It took a little more effort than we anticipated, but the bathroom is finally finished. However, it really took over our lives this past weekend. I didn't make it to crochet guild, and I didn't manage to start or finish anything. So I'm still working a little bit on a variety of projects. (I haven't even tried to photograph the bathroom. It's such a small room that I'm not sure I can capture many of the details.)

So far, this week is going about the same as usual. I had plenty of time to blog on Monday morning, because we were just hanging around waiting for the plumber. But then my internet connection died. And then I intended to blog yesterday morning, only to get a phone call at 7:30 from my mom, telling me she didn't feel well. So I had to rush into the shower early, call and get her a doctor's appointment, and go to work early to work out the desk schedule. (I should add that Mom is ok. They think she is having a reaction to one of her medications, so she may have to talk to the doctor who prescribed it and get off it.) So I was finally able to post this morning.

Maybe, just maybe, with the bathroom finished, I might have something to show for myself over the next couple of days, fiberwise. Wish me luck!

Time to Regroup

2008-07-11T07:46:00.003-04:00

My weeks seem to have taken on a pattern lately. I get rested and refreshed over the weekend and feel enthusiastic about my projects, and then as the week wears on, I accomplish less and less in the evenings. The last couple of evenings I have been hot and tired and supremely unmotivated to work on anything, which is why I have nothing to show for myself yet again this week.

However, the weekend is right around the corner, and I have every intention of regrouping again and maybe even trying to finish something. I might possibly start a new project as well. I really have to get going on Seasons of Lace. Other participants have completed projects already. And Sunday is my crochet guild meeting, which always inspires and motivates me.

Have a great and productive weekend!

Knitting Olympics

2008-07-09T08:06:00.002-04:00

Lately, I have been contemplating joining the Knitting Olympics. (The link takes you to the rules from 2006, but it will be the same this time around.) I have been thinking about a project that would be challenging and yet doable in 17 days. Over at the Ravelry stash knitdown group, there is a team forming. (And for a chuckle, check out the group Ravelympics. I love the names of the various teams and events!) I've been torn between trying a sweater and attempting a difficult lace project.

And then last night the dh informs me that he really doesn't like watching the Olympics on tv, and all my plans pretty much went down the drain. I mean, there's no point trying the Knitting Olympics if I can't watch the real thing while I do it. And it will be too hot to knit anywhere but in the basement family room, where I have to share the tv. But perhaps it is for the best. I probably don't need that kind of stress in my life right now anyway! Maybe it would be better to wait for the next winter games, when it will be much more comfortable to knit a big project and I won't be in the throes of summer reading at work. And I will have 2 years to plan out the perfect project. Yeah, that's the ticket!

Back to Crocheting

2008-07-08T07:38:00.004-04:00

The other thing that happened this past weekend was that I decided it was time to try crocheting again. My left thumb, while not perfect, is much, much better than it was. I am still wearing the brace at work, to keep myself from doing anything dumb that could potentially reinjure the hand. It still twinges once in a while, but over all it is fine. So over the weekend, I picked up Mocha Rocha again and worked a bit more on the band around the body. (No pictures because it doesn't look that much different yet.) Once I finish the band, I am going to weave some ends in and then start on the sleeves.

I also picked up the Eva shawl again and got part of one row done. (It would have been more, except for the durned bathroom.) I really want to get that project finished, because I have decided that I want to enter it into the Big E. I think having a goal that involves a deadline will help to motivate me to get it finished.

And last but not least, I hauled 2 bags of yarn down to the family room last night. I am getting tired of just sitting in front of the tv and not doing anything. So now that I can crochet again, I am back to working on hats and other small items for charity, just to keep my hands busy at night. I'm not setting any goals. I'm just going to see what I can get done.

I'm Back, I Think!

2008-07-07T07:46:00.003-04:00

The last two weeks have been stressful for sure, and I really needed the break from blogging. But things are looking up, and I'm hopeful I can get back to a more regular blogging schedule (with or without FOs). Work has settled into a dull roar, but in another 6 weeks we will be winding down towards school starting, so I think I can make it. We are also currently redoing our downstairs bathroom. This was supposed to be a one day job, so of course it will take the rest of the month to get it finished. Murphy's law has really taken over the project! But it is going to look great when it is finished.

Thanks to the bathroom, I didn't have as much time for knitting as I would have liked. This is probably ok, because most of the knitting projects are not going very well. I will finish the sock, but I am sure it is going to be too big. I think I will have to rethink the second sock. The Montego Bay scarf is going to be frogged. One long side is just wonky, and I don't think anything is going to help that. And I tried and failed to start the Flower Basket shawl. The only thing that is going well is the Opera Scarf.
I went down to size 6 needles and I am very happy with the fabric I am creating. This is an easy, one row pattern, so it is my travelling knitting for now. It looks like I am going to have a couple of weekends to myself in July, so maybe I can try again to work on a more complicated lace pattern then.

Since it is Monday, let me leave you with a link that put a smile on my face this morning - Yoelknits' korknisse adventure. Have a great day!

Deadline Knitting Again

2008-06-23T07:37:00.004-04:00

This weekend, I occupied myself with 2 projects that need to be completed, at least "to a point", by next week. First up, I restarted the sock, and this time it fits. Yeah!
Right now, it is just about 3.5" and it needs to be 8" by next Sunday. I have a lot of knitting to do this week.

I started the second project yesterday morning. It is the Montego Bay Scarf from IK Summer 2007. I'm using a skein of Tofutsies for this scarf.
Right now, I have 2.5" done. I would like it finished by July 3rd. I have a whole lot more knitting to do this week! If I get this finished, it will be my first Seasons of Lace project.

And wouldn't you know that today is the official start of the summer reading season, and I will probably be exhausted until September. This summer is shaping up to be even more stressful than usual. We have one part timer leaving next week to take a full time job at another library. And we are facing very significant budget cuts in the next fiscal year. So I think that I am only going to blog over the summer when I have FOs to show off. Hopefully, that will happen fairly frequently, but you never know.

Feeling a Bit Scattered

2008-06-19T07:28:00.002-04:00

After I posted yesterday, it occurred to me that I seem to have a serious lack of focus going on right now. I mean, over the past week, I have gone from being all about hats to being all about socks, and now I seem to think the summer will be all about lace. However, it's not as bad as it seems. The sock has to be done by June 29th. I will frog and restart it tomorrow, and once I get past the increases it will become a mindless knit. I will continue to work on hats over the summer. These will be my travelling projects (as well as more mindless knitting) and probably the only charity work I will do. That should free up my quality knitting time for lace. Then, hopefully, by the fall, I will be back to crocheting, and I will ramp up the charity work then.

As a warm up to the summer of lace, I pulled out most of my lace patterns to get them all in one place. I still want to go through my issues of IK and a couple of books, but so far, I have 13 scarf patterns and 5 shawl patterns that I want to make. I was thinking about the 52 Pair Plunge because one of the moderators over at the Stash Knitdown group is participating, and I had this crazy idea that maybe I could make a scarf a week over the summer. I have 13 patterns and about 12 weeks in the season, so it's perfect! (Once you have stopped laughing, just remember that a girl can dream, can't she?! And at least I'm not crazy enough to try for a shawl a week!) I do still have to match yarn to each pattern, although I can already tell that I have plenty in the stash. All I can say is this is going to be a summer of alpaca as well as lace.

It's a good thing I have the sock to keep me busy tomorrow on my day off, because I have to wait until Sunday to start a lace project or it won't count for the competition. And, man, am I ready to cast on!

I Think I Might Be Crazy!

2008-06-18T08:58:00.003-04:00

The urge to knit lace simply won't go away, so this morning I decided to take the plunge and sign up for Seasons of Lace. I must be crazy to think that I will be able to knit lace this summer, but I am bound and determined to try. And it gets worse. I also signed up for the "most small knit projects" competition, too. Not that many participants have signed up for that competition (apparently preferring "most yardage knit"), so I might actually have a chance if they keep the competition open. (Apparently, if not enough people sign up, the competition won't fly, which is one reason I did sign up - to keep it going.) Small equals 350-700 yards, so I am hoping to use up some of my stash of one and two skeins. Wish me luck! (And if anyone has favorite patterns for lace scarves and small shawls, I would love to hear about them.)

In other news, the sock that I was so excited about on Monday will need to be frogged. Once I started up the foot, my gauge relaxed to 7.5 stitches per inch. While that is still a fine gauge for a sock, I have too many stitches on the needles at the moment, and the sock is too big. So I will have to start over with fewer stitches and fewer increases. I will get this right eventually, and I will have this sock done to the heel by June 29th (which is when I think our class is going to be held).

The Sky's the Limit Now!

2008-06-16T07:39:00.003-04:00

So, Saturday afternoon, I was starting yet another preemie hat when it occurred to me that I needed to start a pair of socks immediately. I am teaching a second sock class to some members of my crochet guild at the end of June. This class will focus on heels, so I need to have a sock done up to the heel for demonstration purposes. The more I thought about this, the more I realized that it was also time to confront my gauge issues head on and make this pair of socks out of fingering weight yarn. So I ran upstairs, grabbed 2 skeins of Regia Crazy Color (bought on sale at Webs at the end of last year, so perfect for experimentation), and a size 0 40" circular needle. Crossing my fingers and toes, I cast on a toe up sock.
And lo and behold, as I started to work the toe increases, I got a gauge of approximately 8.5 stitches per inch. Can I get a big, boisterous WOO HOO?! If you have read this blog for a while, you might remember that I made a sock with a sport weight yarn on size 0 dpns (and that was so demoralizing an experience that I may never make its mate). But my sense has always been that the Magic Loop method does tighten up my gauge, and apparently I am right. (I'm using Janet Rehfeldt's method, which unfortunately hasn't been published yet. I learned the technique at her class last July at the Knit and Crochet Show.)

I have made 2 pairs of socks in worsted weight yarn (in addition to the sport weight debacle), and I enjoyed the experience. I learned some new techniques, but I have to admit that it wasn't addictive for me the way it is for some people. But now, using fingering weight yarn, I can already feel an addiction growing! Yes, these socks will be plain vanilla, but I already have plans to try out some of the great sock patterns out there. I have a feeling that from now on, there will always be at least 1 pair of socks OTN at all times.

**OTN=On the Needles

Hats

2008-06-12T07:48:00.002-04:00

Inspiration is a funny thing. After I posted yesterday, I got possessed to root around in the yarn room and pull out 2 bags of partial and single skeins. I also pulled out several knitted hat patterns. Apparently I am going to knit hats for the foreseeable future. I really wasn't intending to do this, but inspiration hit and that was it. I cast on a baby hat before lunch. Hopefully I will have some FOs soon.

On another note, today is my 15th wedding anniversary. I can't believe how quickly the years went. It feels like just yesterday that I was a blushing bride. But they have been 15 terrific years, and I am just as much in love today as I was 15 years ago. Since it is only Thursday, we will keep the celebrating low key, but we are going out to dinner tonight to commemorate the occasion!

Rediscovering the Joys of Knitting

2008-06-11T07:28:00.004-04:00

I'm happy to say that my hand is feeling a lot better, now that I am wearing the thumb brace consistently. I take the brace off to eat and to knit, but I intend to continue wearing it at work for quite a while. It has actually been kind of fun to rediscover knitting. I've really been enjoying the feel of the needles and the rhythm of making stitches one after another.

Here is the scarf I finished on Sunday, with the ends finally woven in. It still looks more blue in the picture than it does in real life, but at least you can see the stitch pattern. It came out to be 48" long, which is a little shorter than I usually like. But I didn't want to use only part of the second skein. Now I have to decide what to do with that second skein. I'm contemplating a pair of fingerless gloves to match the scarf.

I've also made a couple of preemie hats. I have a third one OTN already. These just knit up so fast. I'm going to try and finish this skein of yarn and see how many hats I can get out of 372 yards.

I'm having so much fun knitting that now I am fighting creeping startitis. I really want to start a larger knitting project. I'm itching to knit some lace, although my intention was to finish the crocheted lace shawl first before I started knitting a lace shawl. Or a sweater that would use up some stash. However, reality intrudes into these thoughts, and I remember that school is out next week and summer reading (and my season of exhaustion) begins the week after that. So I think I will try to concentrate on charity work this summer. I already have some items ready for Warm Up Winchester, but I want to make more. And I really need to get going on hat/mitten/scarf sets for the crochet guild's Salvation Army donation this fall. I only have one set made so far. As my hand continues to feel better, I would also like to start a pair of socks for me, and maybe finally conquer my gauge issues with fingering weight yarn. So there you have it - my summer 2008 goals!

Back to Work Today

2008-06-09T07:56:00.001-04:00

So my week off is over, and I am going back to work today. I enjoyed my week, but I am ready to feel useful again (especially with all the bad economic news last Friday - it feels good to know I have a job to go to today). I didn't accomplish quite as much as I wanted to, mostly because by the end of the week my left hand/thumb really hurt again. I finally decided that I was reinjuring the hand every time I used it to do anything and that I needed to immobilize the thumb to let it heal. So Saturday afternoon I went to CVS and bought a thumb brace. It is helping already, but it is seriously curtailing my crafting for the time being.

At the moment, I can do the knit stitch and that's about it. Even purling is difficult. Crocheting is not even an option at the moment (and believe me, I tried to do it with the brace on). Last night, I finished the drop stitch scarf I have been working on (pictures to come), so now I need to find/start another project that uses garter stitch as a base. I'll let you know what I come up with.

Mocha Roca Progress

2008-06-05T15:00:00.004-04:00

I'm done with the body, and now I'm working on the band around the body. Next up, the sleeves!

ETA If you want to see a picture of me working on the sweater yesterday morning at Border's, go visit Dee today.

Introducing...

2008-06-04T07:53:00.003-04:00

...Mocha Roca! (Ravelry link)

Since I am off from work this week, I decided that I wanted to do something somewhat impressive that I could conceivably finish in a week. Something from Doris Chan's Everday Crochet came to mind. I started this late Monday afternoon, and by dinnertime yesterday I had finished the yoke and joined the armholes. Now it is straight crocheting until I get to the bolero shaping at the bottom of the cardigan. So I think I have a shot of finishing this in a timely manner. I am using Caron Simply Soft Brites "Berry Blue", and I will use white and yellow in the body and sleeve bands. I did have to go from a J hook to an L hook to get gauge, but so far it fits me perfectly.

If this continues to go well, I will post updates over the next few days to show my progress. Wish me luck!

Where did May go?

2008-06-03T10:55:00.004-04:00

So I am shaking my head, wondering where May went and marveling that it is already June. Between my sore hand, family events, my mom being under the weather, and then me fighting a cold the end of last week, I really didn't accomplish as much as usual in May. However, I do have a few things to show for myself.
A knitted baby blanket that will be donated over at Homespun Helpers. I used a diagonal garter stitch pattern, and about half a skein of Lion Brand Pound of Love. Now I have to figure out how to use up the rest of the skein to get it out of the stash!

I am off from work this week because I had some vacation time to use or else lose it at the end of the month (which is the end of our fiscal year). So yesterday, I took the time to embellish a child's sweater and hat that I had finished earlier this year.
So this project is finally completely finished!

Since I am on vacation this week, I couldn't resist starting something special for myself. Hopefully I will work on it some more today, and I will post pictures tomorrow when it should look a little more impressive.

Hand Health

2008-05-21T07:39:00.002-04:00

So I'm still icing and resting my hands. They are feeling much better, although if I could give up moving books around at work, they would feel even better! Interestingly, I found a thread over at the Crochet Liberation Front group on Ravelry about crochet related injuries and crocheting with pre-existing injuries. A lot of the posts discuss changing how you hold your hook, yarn, and project to protect the hands. I actually never think to do this, but once I am back in action, I would like to look at experimenting a bit. Even more interesting to me, though, was this link to a page with hand exercises and stretches. I find that stretching (when I am diligent about doing it) is the best antidote to any muscle pain. So I am adding some of the hand stretches to my regime. I hope this all works, because it's not easy to give up stitching entirely. I'm starting to get antsy to get back to work!

A Pleasant Surprise!

2008-05-18T16:18:00.006-04:00

I got a very pleasant surprise last Wednesday morning. I have been working away diligently on my mobius shawl (pattern by Doris Chan in Amazing Crochet Lace), and I took the time to measure it last week. It was long enough. I was so pleased! So I finished the crocheting and wove in the ends. Yesterday, I had time to block it and seam it, and I was able to wear it to crochet guild today. Dee was kind enough to take some pictures of me. (Dee, I hope you don't mind that I cropped one rather severely. I just thought it would show up the stitch pattern better.)

I started this shawl in January 2007. I used the yarn the pattern called for, Ritratto by S. Charles. I only used 2 skeins, though, so now I have an extra skein which will probably become a scarf one of these days. The shawl is very warm, despite being lacy, and very comfortable to wear. So all in all, I am very pleased with this FO.

Unfortunately, this is probably going to be the last crocheted FO for a little while. My left hand is sore. I think I did something to it a couple of weeks ago at work, but crocheting just keeps aggravating whatever the problem is. I may be able to work a little bit at Eva's shawl, because it is so lightweight, but that's going to be about it this week. So I am going to take some time to read Hooked on Murder, maybe knit a little bit (which doesn't seem to be so hard on my hand), and play on Ravelry. I'll drop in if I have something to post about, but otherwise I won't be posting during the coming week. This is actually good timing, because I have plans for every night for the next 6 days, so I probably wouldn't be getting much crafting done anyways. Have a great week!

Summer of Squares - RIP?

2008-05-14T09:15:00.003-04:00

I have just realized that suddenly it's mid-May already, and I need to give some thought to reviving Summer of Squares. I have to admit, though, that I really don't see myself spending this summer making afghan squares. Homespun Helpers isn't pushing squares this year. I have stacks of squares upstairs in my yarn room that need to be sewn into blankets before I make any more. And I'm also concerned that group blogs aren't as successful as they used to be, because of Ravelry. I'm not at all sure I'm ready to take on the task of moderating a Ravelry group at the moment. So I'm leaning towards letting Summer of Squares die a quiet death, unless someone would like to take the idea and run with it, with my blessing. Any thoughts?

Hooked on Murder

2008-05-12T07:07:00.004-04:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day! What with getting ready for the big day, and entertaining the moms yesterday, I didn't have a lot of time for crafting this weekend. I have put a few more rows on the new ripple afghan, and thanks to Dee, I finally seem to be past my problem row on Eva's shawl, so I was able to put a few more rows on that project as well. But no FOs from this weekend. Hopefully, next weekend I will have time to actually finish something. I just have to decide what.

There is much excitement right now about a new murder mystery with a crochet theme that has recently been published called Hooked on Murder. Dee has organized a book discussion group on Ravelry, and as soon as the book comes in to the library, I intend to start reading it so that I can participate intelligently. In the meantime, I actually did some reading last night to try to finish up the mystery I am currently reading. It's the most recent book in the Maisie Dobbs series by Jacqueline Winspear called An Incomplete Revenge. I really enjoy this series, and this book is just as enjoyable as the earlier titles.

Post Apocalyptic Thinking

2008-05-09T07:46:00.003-04:00

So not much crafting going on the last couple of days, but I have been doing a lot of thinking about the future and how to survive it. There's been an amusing thread over on Ravelry (in the Remnants forum, if you want to go find it) about forming a post apocalyptic commune and what skills could everyone bring to it. I should add that they are referring to a zombie apocalypse, although at some point an apocalypse is an apocalypse. I have been very impressed with the skill sets some people have (although I do suspect that there has been some resume padding going on in some of the posts). I don't feel like I have many skills with which to survive an apocalypse, but my dh keeps pointing out that I can keep people warm with my knitting and crocheting and that I know how to extract information out of books. I'm skeptical about how useful that last skill will be, however. What with my training as both an historian and a librarian, I will be ideally suited to maintaining the memory of a culture that no longer exists, and not much else. Happily, I married a man with a much more practical skill set, so as long as I stick with him, I should be just fine.

The only real problem with all this thinking about the apocalypse is that it is making me want to buy and hoard more yarn. I mean, what happens if the sheep don't survive? I need to have yarn ready to go if I am going to keep people warm in the commune. But then I remember the 105 miles of yarn already in the stash, and I realize that I am already well provisioned, at least as far as yarn goes.

Rippling Again!

2008-05-07T08:25:00.003-04:00

This is what's been amusing me this week:
After the walk on Sunday, I was tired. I decided that I wanted some "comfort crocheting" to work on (you know, like comfort food but without the calories). Then, over at the Stash Knitdown on Ravelry, we got a surprise challenge for May - work those acrylics. Well, you never have to ask me twice to use acrylic yarn! So I decided to get off my duff and start on my dh's ripple afghan, since he picked out the colors about a month ago and since it's still cool enough here in CT to work on an afghan. This is one repeat of the colors, and I'm just starting on the second repeat. I chose the colors randomly until I had used each one once, and now I will just continue to repeat them in this order. I did go up to a J hook for this afghan, and I am happier with the feel of the fabric.

It feels so good to be rippling again! I didn't realize how much I had missed it.