Grammieknits

Warm Heads, Warm Feet

2010-09-12T08:28:00.001-07:00

These are very easy two needle slippers - one size fits all. The pattern has been around forever - you can find it here. These will probably go to nursing home patients.

I used the Norwegian Star Earflap Hat pattern on Ravelry for these hats, changing the pattern on the brown one to a puppy dog pattern, and on the white one to a textured pattern instead of using another color.

These hats are easy and fun to make and I plan to make more for Christmas presents.

Flipping Out

2010-09-01T06:23:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Jacob and Jordyn

2010-08-31T10:04:00.000-07:00

Spectacular Seventeens!

It's not easy lighting 34 candles

And not easy blowing them all out!

Love you guys - just wish you hadn't grown up so fast!

Happy Anniversary Diana and Jayson

2010-08-20T12:53:00.000-07:00

21 years ago.

And Through the years

You can find an instruction video of this tri-shutter card here.

And another Christmas Stocking completed (except for cross-stitching the name on it)

A little bit of Scrappin'

2010-08-11T10:59:00.000-07:00

After being inspired at a scrapbook party I went to last week, I made a dozen of these birthday party invitations for my granddaughter, who will be turning 11 next week. It will be a beach party and sleep over at their lake house.

You pull the tab at the bottom

And the pictures flip up.

Party with Tori! The directions for this "Waterfall" card are on You-tube

Christmas in July Continued

2010-07-24T05:34:00.001-07:00

One more stocking finished. I'm calling these finished but I think I'm going to have to line them. There are all those stranded threads inside that stocking stuffers will get caught on. Also have to cross stitch the names on them as soon as I decide who gets which one.

These stockings have been great practice for Fair Isle knitting, and also sock knitting - especially since I only had to make one of each and not a pair!

Christmas in July

2010-07-15T07:28:00.001-07:00

I actually finished something! Two somethings actually. These were so much fun to do. (see the details in my previous post.) I have one more to make and then I'll have the grandchildren done. Then, maybe some smaller ones for the adults.

Just finished a book by an author I haven't read before - Richard Montanari, titled The Rosary Girls. Quite gory, but a real page turner that kept me guessing until the end. I ordered the second in the series, The Skin Gods.

Christmas in July

2010-07-08T07:04:00.000-07:00

I've been in a knitting slump recently, but then was inspired by these Christmas stockings on the Holiday Mystery Gift-along. You have to join the Yahoo group to get the patterns, but it's a fun group, and there is also a crochet version of the Christmas stockings. Terry, the designer of the knit stockings, and her husband quit their jobs, sold everything, and now live aboard their 50 foot Gulfstar Sailmaster and cruise wherever their vagabond spirits take them! You can read about their adventures on her blog. Terry is an avid knitter and designer and very generously shares some of her designs with her Yahoo Group.

This one is the textured stocking with a snowflake motif and a tree motif done so far. It's really not hard - just follow a chart with knits and purls. The heel might prove to be a little challenging if you have never knit socks before.
This one is the stranded version, with the tree motif and the deer motif done so far.

These stockings are addictive. While I'm knitting one I find myself thinking about which one I'll be knitting next. I'd like to make at least one for each grandchild, and then maybe for the rest of the family.
I've got plenty of yarn (thanks to Roni) and I'm having a lot of fun with this.
I'm still plugging away on my feather and fan shawl. Finished reading Annie Freeman's Fabulous Traveling Funeral by Kris Radish, which I loved and would definitely recommend, and I'm now reading P.D. James, The Private Patient, which I am also enjoying. Both of those books are selections from my Whoduknit Group.
Hope you are all staying cool and enjoying your summer!

Knit one, crochet too

2010-06-10T08:49:00.001-07:00

I received this yarn in a Whoduknit swap from my swap pal Claire. It's hand dyed merino wool and really soft and nice to work with. The pattern is Lionbrand's Very Easy Ripple Shawl, which is really a feather and fan pattern.

This is "Eva's Shawl" crocheted with Jo-Anns Sensation Ranbow Boucle yarn and a size I hook, instead of the lace yarn called for in the pattern. This yarn is hard to work with but I love the results - a lightweight, soft, shoulder hug that stays on. The yarn was a gift from my friend Layne, and I have enough to crochet another shawl, probably the pistachio Lace-Up shawl. (on Ravelry)

A little progress

2010-05-29T07:07:00.001-07:00

I'm still in a knitting slump - but did manage to knit some mindless dish cloths - mostly Grandmother's favorites, with a couple more challenging designs. And, no...I don't do this many dishes. In fact I rarely do dishes at all! But they are nice to have on hand for a little gift.

And, yes, I am counting each one separately for my 52 in 52 because I'm way behind this year!

I finally found the perfect pattern for the Prism Rayon Ribbon that my niece Linda sent me. The pattern is the Panda Cotton Drop Stitch Scarf .

I added some fringe to it to show off the beautiful ribbon more.

And last (and least) is my Voodoo Doll - my own design (can you tell?).

I crocheted this as my project for my Whoduknit Group inspired by our May book, Deadly Night by Heather Graham. As you might guess the book dabbles in the occult - voodoo dolls, reading of tea leaves and palms,

and of course ghosts. It was a fun read. I had fun making the voodoo doll, but haven't decided who to use it on yet.

Prom 2010

2010-05-23T05:33:00.001-07:00

Jacob and his date Lizzie on the left in red.

Jordyn and Trevor (on the left) and friends. Did you ever see such gorgeous gowns? Jordyn and the two girls on the left, Kelsey and Sarah were Prom Queen nominees. Jordyn was elected Prom Princess, and the boy in the white tux, Josh, was the Prom Prince.

Jordyn & Trevor

Jacob and his date Lizzie. Jacob was elected Prom King!

Jordyn (Prom Princess) & Trevor

Jacob (Prom King) & Calob

Surprises

2010-05-11T10:29:00.000-07:00

Don't you just love to find a surprise on your doorstep. I received one this morning from my friend Patty. I've never actually met Patty in person, but we have been internet friends for a couple of years now. We 'met' though our interests in knitting and reading. Patty surprised me today with this beautiful shawl! It's absolutely gorgeous and I love it!Thank you so much Patty - you certainly made my day. And I will always cherish this shawl.

Catching Up

2010-04-25T14:47:00.001-07:00

I'm way behind on my 52 in 52 for 2010 -have a lot of catching up to do! I received the yarn and pattern for this bag from Bonnie in a swap and have finally finished it.

The yarn is Louet Euroflax sport weight and the pattern is the Ilene Bag by Hannah Ingalls and is available as a free download on Ravelry. I love the bag. It can be squished up small enough to fit in a purse, but can easily hold a 10 lb. bag of potatoes plus more. It's stretchy and strong!

On the needles now - a drop stitch ribbon scarf in pretty shades of blue.

Have you ever visited the DailyLit website? It has a free membership, and
you can choose books and have chapters emailed to you each day (once again
for free). It is an interesting way to read a book without buying it or
needing to visit a library...or even to sample a book before buying it. I'm currently reading Paranoia by Joseph Finder. You can find Daily Lit at http://www.dailylit.com .

Happy Spring

2010-03-21T13:31:00.000-07:00

And what a beautiful first day of Spring it was yesterday! Temps almost up to 70! I finished my /Stupidly Simple Scarf/Shawl - needs a little blocking, but I love it! Thanks again Chris for the beautiful handspun and dyed yarn! The photo doesn't really show the beautiful colors off to their best.

I'm kind of in a knitting slump now. Time to put away the scarves, neckwarmers, etc. and knit something springy. Any ideas?

Is this Spring?

2010-03-09T06:10:00.000-08:00

Or is this just a tease? There is no snow on the ground, the sun is out, and we are supposed to hit 50 degrees today! I can even see a few shoots coming up in our raised herb garden bed. If you look really close you can see them through the window.

So, thoughts are turning to Easter, which is also early this year. The felted Easter Basket is from the Ravelry pattern A Petite Felted Bag.

I think I will make the next one a little bit shorter. The bunny is a Lionbrand crochet pattern "Best Bunny" Isn't he cute? Quick and easy to make too.

On the needles now is the "Stupidly Easy Triangular Shawl" I absolutely love this yarn. It was a gift from Chris in a Whoduknit swap and is hand dyed Silver Merino and Cormo firestar, silk and Mohair, handspun by Chris from a Romney sheep named J.S. The shading on this yarn is awesome and the texture is just perfect for this shawl.

The Rain in Maine

2010-02-26T08:23:00.000-08:00

falls mostly on the Coast! Snow all around us, but bare ground here. It poured, and the wind howled, and if it had been snow we would be buried. Instead the sun is actually trying to come out and the ground is bare. It's a little scary to think what March may have in store for us!

I won a Ravelympics Gold Medal for my baby kimono - the pattern
is from Mason/Dixon Knitting, and the hat pattern is from Last Minuted Knitted Gifts. The yarn is Sugar N' Cream Stripes.
Also received gold medals in the Stash Dance for my Sunray neck scarf and WIP Dance for my sister's shawl. (photos in previous posts).

On the needles and hooks: A felted Easter basket and a crochet bunny to go in it.

On the bookshelf: I just finished a perfectly delightful book, "Aunt Dimity's Death" by Nancy Atherton and enjoyed it so much I've already ordered the next in the series.
I'm currently reading "Perfect Match" by Jodi Picoult. Like most of her books, tugs at the heartstrings. And I'm listening to "Weekend Warriors" by Fern Michaels, where in the tradition of The First Wives Club, an angry group of women take the law into their own hands.

Knitting, Unlike Life......

2010-02-17T09:06:00.000-08:00

Knitting, unlike life, can be ripped out and started all over again the next day.

And...crocheting is even easier to rip out! I finished another "Sister's Shawl" by Lisa Gentry - this one in KnitPicks Comfy Worsted, Flamingo. It's a really soft yarn and I love the color. I really didn't do much ripping out on this one since it is the third one I have made I pretty much have the pattern down! Hope the sister this one is for loves it too! There is a surprise on the front so I won't show it for now.

Also reached the finish line in one of the Ravelympics Events I'm doing - the Stash Compulsary Dance - This is the Sunray neck warmer in a herringbone pattern that I have never done before. I debated putting buttons on it but decided it would be fun to change out the pin, since I have quite a collection of pins.

Ravelympics

2010-02-12T06:46:00.000-08:00

I'm entering the Stash Compulsory Jump on Team Whoduknit in the Ravelympics and have finally decided on my project and yarn I dug out this great vintage yarn, given to me by a friend. It's 100% wool in a Natural color. The project will be a neck warmer scarf called Sunray in a diagonal herringbone stitch. The idea is to Cast On during the opening ceremonies and to knit the project while watching the Olympics, finishing up by the Closing Ceremonies.

I've been doing more crocheting lately. This is called Earth and Sun by Lisa Gentry and is the February Contest Project on the Lisa Gentry Ravelry Group. It's meant to be a baby blanket, but I think it will become a lapghan for me instead. It's crocheted with some more of the vintage wool gifted to me (thanks again Roni!).

Six more weeks of winter?

2010-02-03T05:52:00.000-08:00

If only! I'm afraid it will be more than that for us! The weather has been freezing, and it is snowing again today. Since I'm not a skier, snowmobiler or other winter sport enthusiast - what do I do to get through the winter - knit and read of course!

I knit up this little bear sweater for one of Tori's build-a-bears and added the heart that I made for the "Lisa's Designs" contest on Ravelry. I love knitting miniatures - much faster than the real thing!

I'm almost finished with the vest I'm making for DD - I will have her model it for a photo when it's finished - I think it may actually fit her after being blocked!

I've joined the Ravelympics, Team Whoduknit, on Ravelry and I'm entering the Stash Compulsory Dance. I haven't quite decided on my project yet. I'm thinking about an afghan using up all those partial skeins of wool in my stash, but not sure I can make it to the finish line on time with such a big project. It might end up being a stash busting scarf instead.

Recent reads - Murder on a Girl's Night Out by Anne George, Black Hills by Nora Roberts, Shall We Tell the President, by Jeffery Archer (the February Whoduknit pick) and I'm currently reading Nighttime is My Time by Mary Higgins Clark.

Raining in My Kitchen

2010-01-26T08:03:00.000-08:00

We had a wild and woolly rain storm last night - the wind was howling worse than I have every heard it before. As I was getting ready to go to bed I heard something that sounded very unusual - was it raining in my kitchen? Sure enough, when I when in there water was pouring down through 4 different places in the ceiling. I got out all the pots and towels I could find, and when we looked out the front window we saw the problem - shingles littered the front lawn. This morning it didn't look so bad - seems to be isolated to just one part of the roof. Hope so, because it is raining again today. On the upside - the rain has cleared off all of the ice from the front walk and driveway and we can actually walk on it now.

I finished another shawl - not quite sure what I'm going to do with this one. It's knit with some hand dyed yarn I received in a swap - it's from Fat Bottom Girl politically incorrect fibers and yarns and is spun from silk and merino in a fingering weight. It's the "Foulard" scarf from Moorehouse Farms Merino knits. There is also a pattern for a case to put it in so you can carry it with you for those cool days when you just need a little something, or put it on your head on a windy day.

On the bookshelf - I'm finishing up my second Nelson DeMille novel - this one is Plum Island. His novels are full of fun historical facts and I can't wait to see how this one comes out. His hero is a chauvanistic pig - but does turn out to be a softy when it comes right down to it. Next, I have another Southern Sister's novel - Murder on a Girl's Night Out by Anne George which will be a quick, fun, light read. Also still listening to Jame's Patterson's Honeymoon. Sometimes it gets confusing listening to one book and reading another! But I can knit while I listen and can't usually do that while I'm reading.

So Proud!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-01-24T06:15:00.001-08:00

Getting ready (these are the scarves I talked about last week- Wild!)

Their theme this year was "All Eyes On Us" - And they were! Watch the Video! Victory Parade!
BANGOR, Maine – The Sumner cheerleading squad has been on the precipice of an Eastern Maine championship for the last two years, but could never get over the hump.

The Tigers from East Sullivan finally did Saturday, as they won the first Class C regional crown in program history at the Bangor Auditorium.

Coach Monica Chipman’s squad compiled 132.4 points to out-distance runner-up Houlton, which tallied 123.1

The top six squads will head to the state championships on Feb. 6 in Augusta, so that means Washington Academy of East Machias, Central of Corinth, defending regional champ Dexter and Orono will join the Tigers and Shiretowners.

Sumner’s difficult routine featured a little bit of everything, from dynamite tumbling from senior Jacob Backman — the lone senior on the squad — to three double-down twists, high basket tosses and clean backtucks.

The Tigers are made up of Ashley Andrews, Backman, Josie Barker, Brianna Bishko, Whitney Doughty, Sarah Frost, Emily Ingalls, Jordyn Knowles, Maria Lockhart, Kelsey Martin, Jalisa Patten, Brooke Raynor, Jordan Rivers, Haley Sandstrom, Ashtyn Thomas and Alexandria Tracy.

Tigers Rule!

2010-01-16T11:57:00.000-08:00

You won't often see my sewing machine out on the dining room table, it's usually hidden away in my closet. It came out of retirement yesterday though to make scarves for my granddaughter's cheering team. They are the Sumner Tigers so we made Tiger Scarves. My DD cut 60"x7" strips of black and orange fleece and I sewed two black and one orange together down the middle. Then she cut fringe along the 60"sides. We made 22 of them - and the girls loved them! Here is one being modeled by little sister.

Of course they don't wear them when they are cheering - just something for fun to wear when they walk into the gym. They also have tiger bows in their hair and tiger bloomers.

Aren't they cute?

And flexible?

And....FIRST PLACE WINNERS!

They were awesome!

Knitting to keep warm!

2010-01-14T07:12:00.000-08:00

There is a saying that cutting wood keeps you warm twice, once when you cut it and again when you burn it. I think we can say the same about knitting. Once while you are knitting and again when you are wearing the knit! I knit this neck warmer with some mystery yarn I found in my stash. I don't know what it is but the colors are great and it has a nice texture to it. I had just enough left over to make a headband - using every bit of the yarn, which also goes towards accomplishing my goal of using up my stash! The pattern for the neckwarm is the popular "Fidget" and the headband is just CO 15 and knit in the same pattern.

On my Whoduknit Group this month we are reading Murder Carries a Torch by Anne George. It is one of a "Southern Sister's" series and the first one I have read. This one involves snake handlers so for my project I am making a "Snake Scarf" which is actually a cable stitch scarf. This is also knit from stash yarn - a vintinge yarn given to me by a friend. It's a quick, easy pattern and I'll have enough yarn left to make a matching headband or even a hat.

Love the color of this yarn!

A new toy

2010-01-12T09:09:00.001-08:00

Would you believe I've never had one of these before? I joined the Ravelry Survivor Group, and while my team didn't win, I did win a gift certificate for being 'Chatty Cathy' on the forum. I chose Knipicks and ordered the yarn winder.

Like my makeshift swift? It works!

Just need two hands to operate, which I have.

This yarn was a gift from my Whoduknit Holiday Swap Pal, Chris. It is, hand dyed Silver Merino and Cormo firestar, silk and Mohair, handspun. And the yarn was spun from a Romney sheep named J.S. It's the prettiest blue/green color - doesn't show up in the photo. I think I'm going to make a simple shawlette with it to show off the great yarn.

Sweaters for tissues

2010-01-09T10:51:00.000-08:00

Don't feel ambitious enough to knit a whole people sized sweater? Here is a great way to use up all of those bits and pieces of self-patterning sock yarn that are just too pretty to throw away (I have a bag full). Knit up a bunch of these "Sweaters for purse sized tissue packets".

You could easily adapt them to use a heavier weight yarn and bigger needles - the faster to knit!

On the needles - the Simple Mistake Rib Vest from 101 Designer One-Skein Wonders. This is an IOU for my daughter. She picked out the pattern and the yarn (Galway Paint by Plymouth) before Christmas but I over-extended myself a little bit!

Also on the needles another "Fidget" (neck warmer)
I've knit a few of these but found I had given them all away and didn't have one for myself. The yarn is something unknown I found in my stash (no picture yet).

I'm reading Night Fall by Nelson Demille. It's a fictional story based on true events - the explosion of TWA Flight 800 off Long Island New York in July 1996. I haven't read a book by Nelson Demille before and I really like his style. Next on my bedside stack is our Whoduknit January book, Murder Carries a Torch by Anne George which looks like a much lighter read. And, while I knit, I'm listening James Patterson's Honeymoon.

Sister's Shawl

2010-01-02T05:35:00.001-08:00

Lisa's Designs Dec. Contest
Originally uploaded by grammieknits

My first finished project of 2010 is a crochet shawl for the December contest (deadline extended to Jan. 8 due to the holidays) on Lisa's Designs on Ravelry. I like to alternate my knitting with crochet and this shawl was so quick and easy, I will be making more of these. There are so many ways to wear this. It's called the "Sister's Shawl" and I'd like to make one for each of my (2) sisters. This one is crocheted with Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in midnight blue. I used two skeins, 420 yards altogether and I think it is just about the right size.

You can only get the pattern by joining Lisa's Designs on Ravelry. They have a contest each month with a free pattern for members. After the contest is over, you can purchase the pattern.

The pin is perfect for the shawl. The lady who crafted it makes the most incredible pins from found objects and charms. This lighthouse pin is one of my favorites.

Finished a second 'sister's shawl' in Lionbrand Cotton-Ease Turquoise. This one still needs to be blocked.

And so this was Christmas, 2009

2009-12-26T08:11:00.001-08:00

Looks like Santa has arrived!

Christmas morning brunch. (Hurry up and eat so we can open the presents!)

Menu:

Bacon & Egg Casserole, Sausage Casserole, Stuffed Blueberry French Toast, Hash Browns, French Toast Sticks, Cereal, Juice, Coffee, Bagels, English Muffins, Croissants, Toast

At the table:

Steve, Scott, Steven, (me)Jacob, Jayson, Diana, Tori, Jordyn, Trevor, and Casper (under the table begging for scraps.

The Annual Family Christmas Photo:

Front Row (l to R) Me, Scott, Tori, Diana, Jordyn. Back Row: Steven, Steve, Jacob, Casper, Jayson and Trevor (Jordyn's boyfriend).

Merry Christmas

2009-12-22T04:37:00.001-08:00

Knitting furiously!

2009-12-10T05:35:00.000-08:00

Trying to finish up Christmas gifts. I'm afraid there will be some IOUs under the Christmas tree (or more appropriately UFO's!). Some things I am working on are this Smock-a Rouche Scarf from One Skein Wonders for my DD, The Ilene Bag for a friend (bet you are wondering if you are that friend - if you are I'm afraid this one's going to be an IOU!), some teddy bear clothes for my granddaughter, and a felted clutch that just needs to be seamed and felted.

I finished this prayer shawl for a friend of my daughter's who has been diagnosed with a rare from of stomach cancer.

Sorry, have to get back to my knitting!

A few FOs

2009-11-17T07:06:00.000-08:00

Things have been a little (well a lot) crazy around here lately, dealing with health issues that I won't go into right now - but I have been knitting (obsessively!) and here are a few completed projects. The snowman is a project from the Ravelry Group - Lisa's Designs. He is crocheted from Caron dazzleaire yarn, which is a little fuzzy and sparkly (doesn't show up in the picture).

The hat is a very simple pattern but the yarn it is made with is so very soft! It is Bernat Bamboo (who would think that bamboo could be so soft!) It's a bulky yarn and the hat is knit on size 10 needles. CO 60 - knit in the round for 7 - 8 inches, then decrease every other row until there are 5 stitches left.

This is my Baktus Scarf (Ravelry pattern) knit with Noro Kuryon sock yarn. It would seem like a boring pattern - all garter stitch (knit) increasing every fourth row for half the scarf and then decreasing every fourth row for the second half, but the color changes in the Noro yarn made it interesting enough to keep going! I love the scarf - hoping it will block out just a little bit longer.

And I think this puts me over the 52 in 52 top!

Happy Rememberance Day

2009-11-11T06:49:00.000-08:00

A day for remembering our Veterans, praying for the safety of our Active Duty Military and above all, a world without war.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

2009-10-31T09:00:00.001-07:00

Check out the cool HIGH top sneaker Little Red Riding Hood is wearing!

Friday is my volunteer day at the school so I didn't miss the Halloween parties! The kids marched down to the end of the road and back up again, played games and of course ate goodies (although healthy snacks are encouraged!)

First Halloween parade at the new school!

And some more Teddy bear clothes - a pumpkin hat for Halloween (Tori will get that in her goodie bag tonight) and it will also come in handy when her bear goes out to play during hunting season!

And a hat to match the sweater I made last week. I think he's going to need some snow pants now!

What I Love about Wool

2009-10-28T05:41:00.000-07:00

If it comes out too small, you can stretch it, if it comes out too big, you can felt it! I actually swatched before I knit this beret and got gauge. The finished hat turned out to the right measurements, but when I soaked it so I could block it on a dinner plate to shape it - it grew at least 4 inches! So, it had to go into the washer for a little bit and it did lose some of the stitch definition but at least it doesn't look like a giant frisbee!

I don't know who is going to wear this beret - not me! But I just had the urge to make one.

My sister is visiting from Maine and we went to Bar Harbor this week - great time of year to go. A lot of the stores are getting ready to close for the winter and are having big sales.

And of course I can't go to Bar Harbor without stopping at the yarn store there. It's a tiny store, but full of really yummy yarn. I didn't need any yarn of course, but walked out with a skein of OnLine self-patterning sock yarn in purple shades. Not sure what it will become (not socks!) but I couldn't pass it up.

On the needles: Another Old Shale Smoke Ring Cowl

Reading: The Beekeepers Apprentice by Lauri R. King

Listening to: Everywhere that Mary Went by Lisa Scottoline

Why There are More Girl Teachers than Boy Teachers or Using Both Sides of your Brain

2009-10-24T12:36:00.000-07:00

I subbed in 2nd Grade on Friday and while I was working with a group on some math problems one of the boys asked my why the teachers are all girls and no boys. I said that was an interesting question - we have only one male teacher at our school right now and he is the technology teacher. So I turned it back to the group, like I love to do, and asked why they thought all the teachers at the school were 'girls'. One boy said he knew why - "It's because girls think with both sides of their brains and boys only think with one side." I don't know who told him that one - but I wasn't touching it LOL. Another little boy in the group said "It's because men really didn't like being around a lot of little kids all that much." Hmm..... could that be it? Then a little girl in the group spoke up and with complete confidence said she knew why. "It's because men like to have more money." I think she wins, hands down! No one becomes a teacher to make a lot of money. Although I am going to tuck away that both sides of the brain idea for a time when I can use it!

Today I went to a Christmas Card making workshop - a fun get-together including a pot-luck lunch.

These are some of the cards we made. Also brought home the materials and instructions for making 20 more cards. I think I used both sides of my brain today - and nope - no boys at the workshop!

Knitting Update

2009-10-20T05:51:00.000-07:00

Back in June I went to a Farmer's Market and bought some handspun, hand dyed alpaca from a vendor, and it's been sitting in a basket looking pretty and waiting for the right project to come along. When I saw Stephanie Pearl McPhee's one row handspun scarf I thought it would be perfect for this yarn. I had to laugh when I started knitting, the yarn looked like my attempts at spinning. It went from fingering weight to bulky weight and back again, had pieces of twigs or something still in it, and a definite scent of alpaca. As you can see, the striping is all different widths - with the natural alpaca being the first color on the bottom. In spite of all that - I loved knitting this scarf and love the results. When I bound it off, the scarf was only about 4 feet long, but after a soak in soapy water and a rinse I hung it up to dry and it stretched to almost 6 feet - perfect!

On the needles:

Another Old Shale Smoke Ring Cowl - love knitting these an will be giving them as Christmas gifts. I'm knitting this one with Araucania http://www.araucaniayarns.com sock yarn in fall colors.

Cabled Beret knit with Killarney Irish Fisherman's wool (thanks again Roni!).

Snowbaby Cloth (cute!)

Fingerless mitts from the Holiday Mystery Gift-Along Yahoo Group

Listening to: The Shack by William Young

Reading: Secret Admirer by Patricia MacDonald

On the Shelf: The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie R. King

Maxine

2009-10-13T05:33:00.000-07:00

If you don't believe me - check out the sale at Little Knits!

Organizing

2009-10-12T12:27:00.000-07:00

That's how I spent my morning - organizing my knitting projects. I'm always searching for a certain yarn, (which tote or bag is it in?) or a pattern, (where did I see that - on Ravelry? in a Magazine? in a book?) or the right needles, (located in different kntting bags all through the house. So I picked out a dozen projects that I want to make or finish and put them in zip lock bags along with the yarn and needles to knit them with. I put all the bags into a large tote bag along with a little plastic case with the essentials. Row counter, stitch markers, tape measure, etc. So now I am all set to plug in an audio book and knit. I'll let you know how it works out!

And a couple of finished projects - A simple pair of fingeless mitts - one of my project bags has the yarn and patterns for several more of these.

And another Teddy Bear sweater from the Knits for Bears to Wear book. Love this yarn - it's self-patterning Plymouth Encore sock yarn in worsted weight, 300 yards per skein. Think I'll make a little hat to match and some socks if I have enough left.

So, that's how I spent my morning - how did you spend yours?

Knit The Season by Kate Jacob's Giveaway

2009-10-11T05:57:00.000-07:00

Darcy is having a contest on her blog to give away a copy of Kate Jacob's Knit the Season which is due to be released in November.

Knitting for Bears

2009-10-09T07:29:00.000-07:00

Another Mystery Knit from the Holiday Gift Along Yahoo Group. This started out as a fingerless glove - below - then the last clue gave the option of making it into a regular mitten. So clever!

The fingerless version was just a little too big for me, and so was the whole mitten, so I felted it just a bit and it is perfect now. Except that ....yes, I have to make another one! It's a beautiful pattern stitch and was fun to do.

Another fun project - clothes for bears! My granddaughter is obsessed with "Build-A-Bears" and their accessories. So I'm making her bears some clothes for Christmas. The book is "Knits for Bears to Wear and has some really cute outfits in it, including a mermaid outfit, which I know Tori will love. I'm thinking I need to get my own Build-a-Bear to model the outfits! I still need to sew the buttons on the dress and put the hook and eye closures on the hoodie.

Also OTN some more fingerless mitts (perfect for texting) for the teens on my Christmas list (and their mom too!)

On the todo list: The Ilene Bag (market bag) using the Louet Euroflax yarn I received in my Whoduknit Trick or Treat Swap package from Bonnie, along with the circ. needles to knit it with, A Book "Where There's A Witch, a box of Godiva chocolates (Gone!), a cute little Beanie Bat, and the "trick" a little jeweler's box with a fake spider inside!

On my bookshelf: Laced With Magic by Barbara Bretton, Where There's a Witch (above), Ghost Stories by Peter Straub (are you seeing a theme here?) and In my CD player - MAX, the 5th book in the Maximum Ride series by James Patterson.

Rainy Sunday

2009-10-04T06:28:00.000-07:00

I've been a lazy poster lately! Spending too much time on Facebook and Ravelry. If you are a knitter or crocheter and you haven't joined Ravelry yet, your missing out on a good thing! If it has to do with knitting you can find it there - plus a group for every interest imaginable.

I got a surprise package in the mail yesterday from my niece who lives in California. She was wishing me a happy retirement and sent some great teas, along with the most awesome mug - can you see the cable stitching on it? Also in the package was Stephanie Pearl-McPhee's new book "Things I Learned from Knitting whether I wanted to or not." I love her books and I didn't have this one yet. And the biggest surprise - the beads, which I had sent her from Morocco when we were stationed there 38 years ago (she was a little girl then of course), and which she had kept all these years!
Thank you Linda - what a day brightener this was!

Seems like I haven't been finishing much lately - but here is one FO. The hat pattern is called "Megan's Braids" and it's One Skein Wonders.
It's a darker purple than is showing in the picture and the mittens below that go with it are really purple too, but for some reason they came out blue in the picture. This will be a Christmas gift for one of the little girl's on my list.

Answer to What is it?

2009-09-26T05:56:00.000-07:00

It's a 'coffe cup pincher'. Something to hold a hot styrofoam cut of coffee with. But I loved all of your guesses!

Mystery Solved

2009-09-24T08:26:00.000-07:00

Even after finishing the last clue on the Holiday Mystery Gift-Along I did not know what I had made! What do you think it is?

Licensed to Drive

2009-09-23T06:44:00.001-07:00

The twins both got their driver's licenses on Monday. Hard to believe!
And such a mixture of emotions, from happy and excited for them to nervous and scared for them!

Holiday Mystery Gift Along

2009-09-21T09:41:00.000-07:00

The Holiday Mystery Gift Along has begun, and the first mystery knit starts today. I just finished the first clue. All I know is that it is not a sock!
It's not too late to join. Just sign up on their Yahoo Group . It's like Christmas morning every time you get a message saying a new file has been uploaded! Some are mysteries, some are not. The first two patterns uploaded on Saturday were for a back scrubber & cloth set, and a crocheted lace shawl - both great patterns.

What Are You Reading?

2009-09-20T05:47:00.000-07:00

When I'm not knitting, I'm usually reading. (Well, I do a load of laundry and run the vacuum now and then too). So what am I reading?
I mentioned the James Patterson Maximum Ride Series in another post. I've read or listened to the first 4 books - there is one more in the series. These books were written for the teen crowd, but I've enjoyed them very much. Maximum Ride is a 14 year old girl who, along with Fang, Gasman, Iggy, Angel, and Nudge were created in test tubes with a mixture of human and avian DNA. They have wings and they can fly! They escape from the lab, and set about trying to save the world, although it isn't until the 4th book that they find out what they are saving it from.

I recently discovered a new author (for me) - Jeffery Deaver. His books are all page-turners! I've recently read The Bodies Left Behind, The Coffin Dancer, Speaking in Tongues, and just started reading The Vanished Man.

When I'm knitting and when I'm driving, I like to listen to audio books. Greg Isles is another favorite author of mine, (Sleep No More, 24 Hours) and I'm listening to his Third Degree now.

I like to read "Cozies" too. Cat on the Edge a Joe Grey Mystery by Shirley Rousseu Murphy, complete with talking cats and shapechangers, Maggie Sefton's yarn shop series, and other knitting and craft related mysteries.

I could go on and on - so many books, so little time! What are you reading?

Rest in Peace Mary

2009-09-17T15:43:00.000-07:00

Morning Visitor

2009-09-16T07:40:00.000-07:00

I think there may be a squirrel in my house. DH is getting ready to paint the house and is doing some work on the shingles. He had to take off the outside door in order to get to them. This morning I went out to get the mail and when I came back in left the inside door open, like I usually do on a nice day, forgetting that there was no outside door. In the mail was my Lionbrand Catalog, which I promptly sat down to browse. When I looked up - there was a little red squirrel sitting there looking at me! I scared him and I think he ran outside.....but I'm not sure....he may still be here. Maybe hiding under my bed?

I did find some projects in the Lionbrand catalog that I'd like to make. Like these felted slippers

And this round crocheted afghan. The patterns are free at http://www.lionbrand.com/ , along with tons of other free patterns.
And since I have finished almost all of my UFOs (unfinished objects) I can start some new projects.

The Scalloped beaded necklace is from 101 Designer One Skein Wonders and takes a very little bit of one skein. This is one of those 'betcha can't make just one' kinds of projects.

The felted bag is a larger version of the little pink one I made and has two pockets inside. The flower is pinned on and was made by cutting the shapes out of some felted projects that went wrong!

The Shawl is an adaption of the pattern Gabriel's Wings and is made with leftover self-patterning sock yarn with rows of solid sock yarn in-between. This is a project I made for one of the books we read on the Whoduknit Group - The Angel Experiment, by James Patterson. I got thoroughly hooked on this series and have read up to the third one so far.

Okay squirrel - where are you???

Fibery Goodness

2009-09-15T06:42:00.000-07:00

Last Friday, on a gorgeous fall day, I drove to the Fiber College on the Penobscott in Searsport Maine. It is always held the weekend after Labor Day at the Searsport Shores campground on the Penobscott Bay. This year I took a couple of classes. Another spindle spinning class, which was very interesting because the instructor approached it in a different way than in the last class I took. Maybe if I combine the two methods I can get that spindle to spin! The other class was a fun one called 'weaving bits and pieces'. And that's exactly what it was - bits and pieces of yarn and ribbon woven on a handmade loom.

This is my finished masterpiece! Now, what do you do with these bits and pieces weavings? The instructor used hers as pockets on handmade tote bags. I think with a backing, lining and zipper it would make a great change purse. And, a bunch of these sewn together would make an awesome scarf. But for now, this one is sitting next to my computer and being used as a mug mat.

After the classes I walked around to check out the vendors and their beautiful yarns, fibers for spinning, handmade items, etc.

And for a completely different kind of fibery goodness - a Fruit Torte! It's easy and especially delicious when served warm with ice cream. I brought this one to a fun night of Bunco with some old friends and some new. This recipe made more than enough to feed twelve ladies with some left over.

FRUIT TORTE (DOUBLE BATTER)

6 Cups flour

1 ½ Cups sugar

4 egg YOLKS

Pinch of cinnamon

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 lb butter or margarine – melted

2 cans Comstock fruit

1 15/10 cookie sheet

Blend all dry ingredients, then add egg yolks and melted butter.

Use half of mixture for bottom of pan. (smooth down in pan)

(Remainder of mixture for top)

Spread 2 cans of Comstock pie filling over bottom of pan.

(I uses 1 can apples and 1 can blueberries.) One can on each side of pan.

“Crumb” remaining “dry mixture” over top of fruit.

Bake at 375 degree oven for 40-45 mins or until slightly browned.

DO NOT USE WHITES OF EGGS,

THEY WILL NOT ALLOW MIXTURE TO “CRUMB”.

ENJOY.

Where have you been?

2009-09-13T06:38:00.000-07:00

I've been told I haven't updated my blog in a couple of weeks -nice to know I was missed!

Even though I retired from teaching in June, I couldn't stay away from the first day of school. It wasn't just any first day of school, it was the first day of school in our brand new beautiful, state of the art school! Well, it will be state of the art once everything is working, like the phones and the Internet - but minor details!

Peninsula CSD
My favorite place - the Teacher's Lounge. It is much appreciated after not having one for the past 6 years (every available space was being used for instruction in our old school). The PTC supplied the fruit for the first day of school.

Stephen and Tabatha King donated $20,000 for new books and supplies for our new library! I'm going to enjoy volunteering in here!

State of the art computer lab (once it's hooked up to the Internet that is)

2nd Grade Classroom - complete with 2nd Graders! The school has an innovative heating and lighting system state-of-the-art technology and a multipurpose gym stage and cafeteria (we ate in our classrooms in our old school) And..it comes complete with 200 students grades Pre-K - 8!
I have already subbed for a half day in Kindergarten (still say it's the hardest job in the world!)

and 2nd Grade (my old class) and have more days on my schedule. Hmmm - doesn't feel like retirement!

You can see more photos here.

16 + 16 = SWEET!

2009-08-31T09:58:00.001-07:00

16 years ago these two sweet babies were born!

Still sweet after all these years!

Happy Birthday Sweet 16s

Some FOs and a Prize for Me!

2009-08-24T08:00:00.001-07:00

Another clutch - this one knit with Paton's Merino and needlefelted flowers on the flap.

This cute little bag is based on "A Little Bird Told Me....." on Knitty.com. I knit it in the round instead of flat and used an i-cord for the drawstring and strap, and needlefelted the heart on the flap. Which leads to the next picture .....while I was looking through my needlefelting wool, I realized that I have somehow developed a stash of roving, even though I haven't learned how to spin yet. Looking at this will give me more incentive to learn!

And the prize.............

I won a drawing over on the Carefree KAL and got to choose two skeins of Crystal Palace Yarns. On the left is Merino Stripes - a fuzzy, soft, wool, that I think might become a cowl, and on the right is Taos that will probably get felted into a small clutch. What a cool way to get to try out two new yarns! Thank you CPY!

Hurricane Bill Says Hi to Downeast Maine

2009-08-23T12:17:00.000-07:00

Hurricane Bill waved at us on his way through today. These awesome pictures were taken by one of my friends at Schoodic Point, Acadia National Park, in Winter Harbor.

Unfortunately tragedy struck - not here at Schoodic Point, but over in Bar Harbor at Thunder Hole where three people were swept into the ocean. Two were rescued and one little 7 year old girl died.

Beautiful - but dangerous ocean when it roars!

Phat Fiber

2009-08-21T07:04:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday I sat at my computer at 5 minutes before 10 a.m. EST, hitting the refresh button until three boxes finally showed up. I clicked on the one that said "Just Stitches" then on add to shopping cart, then checkout, and confirm purchase. Paid with paypal -and whew! In just a few seconds I scored a Phat Fiber box. In another minute they were all gone! What is a Phat Fiber box? You can read all about it here. This was the first time I ever attempted to get a box, and I got lucky! Now - all that was left was the wait for it to arrive in the mail. That happened this morning when the mailman brought the mail to my door (that only happens when there is a package too big to fit in the mailbox - those are my favorite days!) Do you want to know what was in it? (warning, if you are not a knitter you probably won't get too excited about this!)
The box - see all the cute stamps on it?

On top - the popcorn bag (the theme of this month's box was "At The Fair") with cards from the contributors in it, plus a rose quartz stitch marker from Page's Beaded Designs, a felted "P" keychain from Calizna Designs and a mystery beaded thing that I have to go to wwwmemarcienee.com to find out what it is.

If any of the contributors see their cards here, I will be paying a visit to your Etsy Shop soon! Now a look under that striped tissue paper!

Fibery samples from Etsy shop contributors -

Including some other goodies like jelly beans, candy corn, and hand lotion (from The Spinning Sheep).

The next box drop will be in September.......

Off to play with my new toys.

Hot, but not too hot to knit!

2009-08-19T05:28:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago Maine Fiberarts sponsered a tour of fiberarts studios in Maine. There were only a couple on the list that were within 60 miles of my house, but I did make it to a couple of them. One was Fiberphelia, in Orono, ME. It's a great little yarn shop, with a very friendly owner and a large room for knitters to sit and knit and chat. I spent about an hour there and came out with two balls of Wooly
Silk yarn by Elsebeth Lavold that I knew had to become another Smoke Ring (I think everyone will be getting these for Christmas this year). Love the simple lace pattern and the yarn was great to work with. I even have enough left to make a skinny scarf - maybe beaded? There was also a 40% off shelf where I found Jojoland Rhythm in a pretty green/blue/pink. I haven't decided what it will become yet. The other studio I visited was Essentially Felt in Old Town, Maine, where the artist (and she definitely is an artist!), Sandy Spiller, showed me her beaufiful felted slippers, hats, ruanas, and felted silk scarves. She is going to give a class on the scarves in October which I am hoping to take.

Although it is way too hot to be thinking about cowls, I've had this hand spun & dyed wool/bunny blend yarn since last summer when I bought it at the Fiber College weekend in Searsport, Me. It really is as soft as the bunny it came from!
I found this pattern for a Chevron Lace Gaiter while browsing through my knitting magazines (Creative Knitting Nov. 2008.)

I don't remember growing older - when did they?

2009-08-16T07:08:00.000-07:00

My baby (youngest son) turned 35 yesterday and my baby granddaughter will be 10 on Tuesdayand her mom (my dd) and dad will celebrate their 20th anniversary this week!

Tori had her birthday party with her friends on Friday at the lake, which turned out to be a perfect day.

A budding rock star?

Blowing out the candles on her cake at her 'Rockin' Hannah Montana Beach Party".

What does your workspace look like?

2009-08-11T12:44:00.001-07:00

Knitty Sue is having a contest on her blog and she wants us to post a photo of our work area. I have a couple, but I think this is my favorite. Next to the rocker are bags with my knitting projects - small ones in the smaller bags and usually a large project in a big bigger bag (I like to switch off). Right now the pink bag has a dishcloth project in it, the brown one has an Old Shale Smoke Ring (cowl) going on, and in the large one is a felted bag project. On the footstool is a portable CD player with an audio book in it to listen to while I knit. Today it has "Heartsick" by Chelsea Cain in it. On the other side of the rocker is my magnetic row place keeper from knitpicks - couldn't knit a pattern without it, and a small tin box with knitting gadgets in it - stitch markers, scissors, crochet hooks, etc. The round box they are sitting on is filled with yarn. The picnic basket on the floor is also filled with yarn (who would guess?) as are the other three round boxes on the left. (and DH has no clue!) On top of the picnic basket is my pouch for my circ. needles, and oh, yes, a bag of chocolate! The basket is filled with knitting magazines and catalogs, that I can't fit in the magazine rack beside the chair. In the background is my computer desk where I can run over to Ravelry to look for patterns, check facebook, my yahoo groups and my e-mail when I want to take a break from knitting. The bookcase is filled with knitting books and notebooks full of patterns. On the computer desk in the background is my "Never Not Knitting" Yarn Harlot calendar, a phone, file box for mail, CDs and DVDs with photos on them, my digital camera, and the desk is usually littered with patterns I have printed out and have not filed yet. That's my knitting workspace. Want to see my scrapbooking workspace? Maybe tomorrow!

You asked for it Sue!

beaded scarf

2009-08-07T07:26:00.000-07:00

I finished my beaded scarf for our Whoduknit KAL. The yarn is Zen Yarn Garden handpainted merino/bamboo/nylon and the beads are from Earthfaire. I loved knitting with the beads. If I made this pattern again I would add more than the 9 rows on each end that the pattern called for. I also added fringe and strung a few beads randomly on each strand then tied a knot under each one.

I haven't blocked the scarf yet, and I'm not sure that I need to.

Using up Stash

2009-08-05T05:24:00.000-07:00

Is my goal this summer! And here are some of the results. The little change purse was knit with two strands of yarn held together (a Noro and a solid) in a k1, sl 1 pattern like the stash bag below. The gold & yellos clutch is Cascade 220 and the striped is Noro. What a difference in the felting process. The Cascade took about 10 minutes total to felt, while the Noro took about 45 minutes and you can still see a little bit of stitch definition.

Brown & Gold Felted Clutch:

About 50 yards of each color

Size after felting 8"x4 1/2"

CO 76 sts.

on 16" or 24" size 10 1/2 circs and join. K in main color for 4 1/2 "

Dec. 2 stitches in next row. Attach CC color - knit for 4 1/2". Dec. 2 sts. in next row. BO 36 sts.

Knit in st. stitch for 4 rows, then decreast on each side every other row until 10 stitches remain.

BO. Crochet around flap and opening (optional). Sew up bottom seam and felt. Sew on button and cut a slit in the flap for button hole.

Noro Felted Clutch:

Size after felting 8"x4 /2"

One skein of Noro Kuryon (I used every bit of it)

CO 76 sts on 10 1/2 circs and join. Knit around for 4". Dec. 2 sts. in next row. Knit for another 4", Dec. 2 sts in next row. BO 36 sts. K 2 rows. Dec. on stitch each side every other row until there is just enough yarn left to sew up the bottom seam. Felt. Sew on button and cut a slit in the flap for the button hole.

Change Purse:

Size after felting About 4" x 4"

Small amounts of 2 colors of

worsted weight yarn

On size 8 needles CO 20 sts.

Row 1: K1, Sl 1 across

Row 2: Knit across

Repeat rows 1 & 2 until piece is about 10" long.

Next row: K 8 sts in sl st pattern, BO 4 sts. K remaining 8 sts in sl st. pattern.

Continue in pattern until piece measures about 11".

Fold bottom up about 3 1/2" and sew side seams. Sew on button.

A Tisket A Tasket, I made a Basket!

2009-07-31T05:55:00.000-07:00

You've got to be kidding me! This is going to turn into a basket?

Amazingly they did!

Thanks to a lot of patient help from our wonderful teacher, Marielle.

Yesterday some friends and I went to another friend's house to make baskets. She is an expert weaver and her baskets are beautiful. All three of us started out with the same bottom - and all three baskets came out entirely different! What fun! After we finished the weaving, we dipped them in a solution of brewed crushed walnuts and the result was amazing!

We were even treated to grilled chicken for lunch and there was lots of chocolate available to counteract any frustration we might have encountered! It was a really fun day. I think I will be making more baskets....maybe!

I have to admit that basket weaving, at least for me, is not as relaxing as knitting. I finished my stash bag which was inspired by one I saw on Colorjoy's blog. I used small balls of leftover Noro in different color combinations combined with a strand of solid yarn, and just knit until I ran out of one or the other and then added another color. I love the way it came out! There is really no pattern but basically:

CO 40 sts on size 8 needles.

Row 1: Sl 1 K1 across,

Row 2: K

Repeat these two rows until the piece measure about 20" long and then BO.

Fold the bag in half and sew the side seams. Of course you can make it any size you want by increasing or decreasing the amount of stitches CO and the number of rows knit. This bag is

10 x 10.

For the braid, cut 18 lengths of yarn about twice as long as you need for the handle, braid them using 3 sets of 6 strands, leaving enough loose yarn for the tassels at the beginning and end of the braid - and then sew it up the sides of the bag leaving the middle part of the braid for the handle. After I took the pictures I added a crocheted loop and button to the middle of the bag so it can be closed. You can see that each side of the bag is different - that's what I love about it!

I think I've finally found a great way to use up all of those little balls of yarn that I have been saving up!

Take Me Out To The Ball Game

2009-07-28T06:50:00.001-07:00

Although it poured all the way from Maine to Boston - the sky cleared when we reached Fenway Park.

Great Seats! That's DH in the blue sirt, and my blue bag next to him - well that's me!

3-1 Boston, top of the 9th,
two outs, Pap loads the bases, full count - STRIKE OUT! I Never had a doubt in my mind!

The Win! Thank you Red Sox (and Peninsula Ed Techs) for a dream come true!

Some knitting updates

2009-07-23T06:24:00.000-07:00

This is a KAL I am working on for one of our Whoduknit books called Murder Most Crafty. It's a collection of mysteries with different craft themes and directions for a project at the end of each story. In one of the stories the project was beaded socks, but for our KAL we decided to do a scarf instead. It's a little bit hard to see the beads on this yarn - (click on it to enlarge) but they do sparkle and I am liking it very much. The yarn is handpainted Zen Yarn Garden sock yarn (fingering weight). The pattern is here . The beads are from Earthfaire.
Also in progress is a stash bag knit from all those little odds and ends of yarn I have leftover. It's loosely based on this bag on Colorjoy's blog.

No FOs to show this week! Tomorrow we are headed to Boston and Fenway Park to see the Red Sox break their losing streak and win their game against Baltimore! We'll be brining along raincoats and umbrellas and hoping for the best as far as the weather is concerned!

Family Reunion

2009-07-21T07:14:00.000-07:00

A little fog and rain couldn't put a damper on the fun this past weekend as three families from New Jersey drove up to Maine to join us at the Bluff House Inn. After everyone had arrived and were settled in their rooms, we had a big barbeque with ribs, brochettes, chicken, pulled pork, and salads to go with them. Saturday morning dawned rainy and foggy - but the bravest family members went out on the lobster boat to see how they are caught. They arrived back at the Inn, soaked, but in good spirits! Then we all headed across the road and down a very muddy, dirt road, to DD's lake house for lunch, fishing, boating, waverunning, and what we did most of all - sitting around chatting. And who cares if it's raining - you get wet in the water anyway, don't you? Then back to the Inn for a lobster feast - way more lobsters than even this large group could eat. Sunday morning - and here comes the sun! Plans for leaving early to head back to NJ were cancelled as everyone went back out to the lake for more fun - this time in the sun. There were floatplane rides for everyone, more fishing, boating, waterskiing, tubing, swimming, and eating of course.

Here are a few pictures. There are more on Facebook (where I am Jane Donnelly Vdoviak).

At the Bluff House Inn

Let These lobsters live!

""The Pet Parade

Luba & Diana on the waverunner!

Tubing - hang on Georgie!

A beautiful day for a plane ride along the coast!

(Continued in the next post)

Family Reunion (2)

2009-07-21T07:06:00.000-07:00

At the Bluff House Inn (you may recognize these people Linda)

Showing the folks from NJ how lobsters are caught.

Catching dinner!

The chief cook (my DH) and bottlewasher (DD)

Here are a few photos. There are more on facebook (where I am Jane Donnelly Vdoviak)

My new motto

2009-07-17T05:45:00.000-07:00

Purloined from Robi on my Whoduknit Group - I just love this and have to share it with all of you!

Read Slowly, Knit Calmly, and Smile Often

Don't you love it!

Guests have begun arriving for our reunion weekend - and the weather is not going to cooperate! But I will repeat my mantra (above) all weekend and stay calm!

And the Winner is..............

2009-07-15T08:15:00.000-07:00

Thanks so much to all of you who entered my contest and shared your employment stories with me. I really enjoyed reading them all. Wish you all could win! But the random number generator picked just one - and that was DANIELLE! Congratulations Danielle! E-mail me and let me know which gift certificate you would like to have.

Here Comes The Sun

2009-07-10T12:59:00.000-07:00

Wow - 17 days since retirement - were has the time gone? The days are flying by! This is the second day in a least a month that we have been awakened by the sun and it sure feels good.

I've been busy planning our family reunion that will take place next weekend. My DD and I have all sorts of fun things planned! DH is doing the cooking on Friday night, and her DH is providing the lobsters for Saturday night. We have the Bluff House Inn booked for the weekend- take a look - isn't it pretty? All we need is for the sun to stick around. My DD's lake house is just across the street (and down a long dirt road) from the Inn, where we'll go for swimming, boating, fishing, etc. We're also planning a lobster boat ride where passengers can help haul in their own lobsters for dinner. We have 17 people coming up from New Jersey, one (my oldest son) coming from Texas, and of course all of our family here in Maine.

I always have time for some knitting though. I made this mitered towel from Mason Dixon Knitting Outside the Lines, which I've been wanting to make ever since I first saw it. It's also a free pattern on Ravelry. I'm planning to make more of these. It took almost a whole ball of Peaches & Cream for the light blue and a little bit of navy blue for the top. I still have to sew the button on.

Also always time for reading. I just finished Murder Most Crafty - quick fun read. I'm now reading Hounding the Pavement, by Judi McCoy, which Cindi sent me. It's about a dog walker who can talk to and understand the dogs she walks. Of course they are going to solve a murder - I'm sure of it! It's a cute story.
I'm also listening to Altogether Dead by Charlaine Harris - another book in the Sookie Stackhouse Vampire Mystery series. I got hooked on this series when we read Dead Until Dark as one of our Whoduknit monthly books. It's different for sure!
Hope the sun is shining wherever you are too!

How do you organize your stash?

2009-07-06T09:52:00.000-07:00

I spent the morning organizing some of my stash. A lot of this is partial skeins of yarn left over from projects. I have a big plastic tote that I usually put them in, but can never find what I am looking for. I'm trying to organize them in plastic bags according to weight , type of yarn, etc. Of course I don't always know what kind of yarn it is - so I have a mystery - bag too. I thought I had a bag to actually (gasp) throw away. It's full of small little balls of yarn that are not possible big enough to make anything out of .....or are they? How about a mystery ball where I just start winding them all together, into a big ball, thick, thin, wool, cotton, acrylic, whatever, and then just start knitting a scarf or something out of it? Okay - that goes back into the tote. I'll get to that scarf as soon as I finish the 100 or so things I have in my Ravelry queue.

I do have one FO to show - this is a cute little purse I couldn't resist.

It's called Twitterpated

And I did use up one of those partial skeins of some kind of black wool, and lined it with some red & black flannel material (another stash, but I don't want to talk about it!)

I still have to decide on a handle or straps for it. I think I'll probably just do an i-cord strap.

I also think it needs a red flower or something on the front of it - what do you think?

And, as a reward for all of my hard work - look what I found in my mailbox this morning - these pretty stitch markers from Aunt Kathy. (not really my Aunt Kathy - that's her blog name). I think I might have won them in a contest but I can't remember! Thank you Kathy - I love them!

Don't forget to enter my contest (below)!

Retirement Contest- time to pay it forward

2009-07-01T09:00:00.000-07:00

I've received so many gifts and good wishes on my retirement from my blogger friends - it's time to give back!
As I look back on my career in education I have many, many, memories - enough to fill a book (which I just may do!). But before going into education I did have some other 'memorable' jobs.
My first, besides babysitting, was during my senior year in high school. I worked at BB Rider Frigidaire in Clifton, NJ. after school and Saturday mornings. BB Rider was an authorized Frigidaire repair and most of the time I spent there was filing work orders. This was where I learned to hate filing! But, on Saturday mornings I got to answer the phone and take service calls. That was the fun part. A refrigerator that was not running was a priority, but a dishwasher was not - try to explain that to the lady who did not know what to do with all the dirty dishes in her sink! After High School I worked temp jobs during college vacations. That meant I would get a call in the morning telling me where I would be working that day, or that week. The most memorable temp. job that I had was at Maxwell House Coffee in Hoboken NJ - I filled in there for a couple of weeks and rode the train in from Clifton. You could smell the coffee from blocks away and we had free coffee and donuts all day long. This was where I was working when I heard the news that JFK had been assassinated.
After I married, I moved to Washington D.C. with my sailor husband, and got a civil service job at the Pentagon - the five sided puzzle palace on the Potomac was indeed a puzzle to me and I often got lost in its hallways. It was also the cushiest job I ever had. I worked for an Admiral who traveled a lot, and while he was away I knit - I made afghans for everyone! My most important job there was to get him and his golfing buddies a good tee time at the Army/Navy Country Club. The next 13 years were spent at home raising my kids - and yes, that is the most challenging and most rewarding job in the world. I went back to work when my youngest son was in 2nd grade - in the same school that my children attended, so I wasn't far away from them. Well, if you read my blog, you know the rest - I had the wonderful opportunity of teaching my own grandchildren when they started school. And after, let's see, starting from my first job - that would be.....48 years? I am officially retired.
So....now that I've made you read my life story - here is the contest! Leave me a comment telling me something about your work career, whether it be in or out of the home - something memorable, something funny, something disastrous - whatever. The contest will run for two weeks, and on July 14 I'll choose a winner.

The prize represents my two passions - reading and knitting and my wish to share these passions with you! It is a $25 gift certificate to Knitpicks, or a $25 gift certificate to Amazon.com - your choice.

Mr. Moose Makes Himself to Home

2009-06-29T14:22:00.000-07:00

This is the front lawn of my sister's summer place up here in Maine - the picture was on the front page of the local paper. He or she (can't really tell) is making himself quite at home! He's being very brave seeing as how the moose hunting permit lottery was published in the same paper. Guess he knows that he is safe until October!

Rainy Sunday and some FOs

2009-06-28T04:56:00.000-07:00

It's another rainy day - this is getting very depressing! I do have some FOs to add to my 52 in 52 list. I came across this hat on Ravelry and knew right away my DGD would love it. I crocheted it with some wool I had in my stash, but I think I'd like to make it in cotton for the summer. At least I was able to get a photo of it on my manikin head before she made off with it (DGD, not the manikin). It's a very fast crochet - easily made during one baseball game.

The pattern is available here.

I also finished "Wavy" from Knitty.com - it's a little raggily along the edges, but a little blocking will fix that. This was made with two skeins of Galway wool.

And I will be putting that contest together soon!

No More TGIFs!

2009-06-26T06:37:00.000-07:00

Doesn't really matter anymore, does it? I finished my Storm Cloud Shawlette - knit with the beautiful handspun and dyed yarn from Vickie. It had more of a ruffle before I blocked it - but I think I like it this way.

My DH gave me this Creative Spinning book at a family retirement party that my DD had for me on Father's Day (she's a multi-tasker!)
I wonder if the spinning wheel is on its way LOL

And the Nora Ephron book is from a co-worker - it's called I Feel Bad About My Neck and other thoughts on being a woman. It's a hilarious look at women who are growing older.
Nora Ephron wrote Sleepless in Seattle, When Harry Met Sally, You've Got Mail, three of my favorite 'feel good' movies.

I think I need to have a contest in honor of my retirement. As soon as I come up with an idea I'll post it - so stay in touch!

Boxes, boxes everywhere

2009-06-24T17:18:00.000-07:00

We packed over 100 boxes the past two days - just in the 2nd grade -ready for the move to the new school.

If the school is not ready to move into in September we'll be in deep trouble! Hey - wait a minute - not me! I'll be home knitting LOL.

We took time out for a pancake breakfast this morning.

Some of the co-workers I'm really going to miss:

RETIREMENT

2009-06-23T14:39:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was working so hard
And at the end of the day
I was exhausted and TIRED.
But today the sun can rise and set
And I can remember
Or I can forget
I can get up if I've had enough sleep
Or go back to bed
And count some more sheep (and dream about their fleece)
I can stay in my jammies all day (and knit)
Clean my house, or go on the computer and play.
I can dine on peanut butter and jelly (probably will have to!)
Or go out for lunch and cook nuthin'.
Oh how wonderful just adding a "RE"
in front of "Tired"
Can make your world be!

(adapted from a poem by Thena Smith)

Countdown to Retirement

2009-06-20T15:10:00.001-07:00

By Thursday I'll know what it feels like to be retired! Monday is the last day for the kids, Tuesday and Wednesday will be spent packing for the move to move to the new school. Thursday and Friday will be spent sleeping LOL.

This past Thursday after school, I headed out to what thought was a cookout up at the Schoodic section of Acadia National Park. When I got there I noticed the cars were all at the Schooner Club, which is a beautiful log building built by the Navy when there was a base there. So...anyway I was a little confused but figured I missed the memo or something (and here I was dressed in jeans for a picnic). So I went in and was talking to some of the teachers who were already there, when I turned around and saw DH standing there. I said something really kind like - What are you doing here? - you're not supposed to be here! Well, you see we used to go to this club a lot when it was a Navy club and I was a little disoriented here! But I soon realized it was a retirement party! It was great fun - a little roasting, but mostly kind words, lots of laughs - and of course many tears on my part. I've spent more time with these people than with my own family, so I'm going to miss seeing them every day more than I can say!
Wish I'd had my camera with me - can't believe I forgot it - so no pics. But there were a lot of pictures taken, so maybe I'll have some to share.

It started raining as we were leaving, and it hasn't stopped since! I do have some knitting pictures to post - but for some reason can't upload - so this will be a photo-free post!

How Sweet the Sweep!

2009-06-12T16:10:00.000-07:00

Dear Yankees,

Thank you so much for visiting Fenway Park this week. We really enjoyed having you. Please come back again soon!

Love, (NOT)

The Red Sox

And speaking of red - I do have a WIP. This is the Wavy from Knitty and I'm doing it as a KAL on Patt's Knitting Circle. I'm knitting it with Plymouth Galway wool. An easy knit - but don't try it without a row counter!

Which Ewe are You?

2009-06-11T13:51:00.000-07:00

Fins resilient nature makes them practical and straight forward, a quality these medium wools balance with curiosity and a zest for life. Fastidious in personal appearance and reliable Fins stay true to their flock and make loyal friends.

Find out which Ewe you are here.

More Love!

2009-06-10T18:00:00.000-07:00

Another surprise package arrived in the mail! - this one was from Bonnie. Bonnie is another member on my Whoduknit Group and we've become good friends in the past couple of months. I love this KnitPicks yarn - it's cotton and merino wool in two colors that I just love together. Thank you so much Bonnie!

What wonderful friends I have!

You Are Spoiling Me!!!!

2009-06-06T10:36:00.000-07:00

I "met" Vicki when she was my upstream pal in an International Tote Exchange a couple of years ago. She not only sent me a fabulous tote in that exchange, but she also sent a lot of other goodies including some hand spun yarn from one of her own alpacas. I've been following her blog and we've been e-mailing ever since. Yesterday I received another package from her with a note saying it was a little something for me to do when I retire.

Inside was some handspun yarn in a hand crocheted 'yarn bra', a pen that spells out 'knit & pearl' on it, some creme savers, the blue letters spell out 'relax' which I plan to do a lot of! And in the package are some pretty stitch markers that she also made. I will never be bored when I retired with all of these wonderful friends right at my figertips! Thank you for being my friend Vicki!

And more spoiling. Last night I went out to dinner with a group (8) of co-workers. We had a wonderful dinner, sat talking for hours afterward (luckily the restaurant was not busy), and they surprised me with a Red Sox shirt and two tickets to a Red Sox game!!!! I am so excited!!! The tickets are for the July 24th game against Baltimore.

Thank You Patty!

2009-06-02T15:48:00.000-07:00

I'm just so overwhelmed by the generosity of my online friends I don't know what to say - except THANK YOU FOR BEING MY FRIEND! Today I was very surprised to receive a package from Patty in Florida. It was a retirement present (I guess there is no doubt how I will be spending my retirement!) In it was a skein of beautiful Silk Merino from "Politically Incorrect Yarns and Fiber Arts" and a Sushi Blue kit to make a zippered purse from Pick Up Sticks, and as if that wasn't enough a scarf kit from Artsan lace with patterns for three different scarves. I love the colors of all of the yarns. I am so lucky to have friends like Patty! Some day I am going to travel around the country and meet them all in person. Thank you so much! Patty!

I also received a swap package from Valerie for the Whoduknit Scavenger Hunt Swap. You can check out that awsome package on the Whoduknit Blog.

My Other Vice

2009-05-31T14:17:00.000-07:00

I've been spending a lot of time with my other vice, scrapbooking, recently.

Mainly, I'm making a dozen of these memory books as favors for a family reunion we are having in Maine this summer.

I purchased these accordian albums and I'm decorating them so that the guests can add their own pictures when they get home. (Most are coming from New Jersey).

The fronts are mostly all the same, but the insides are all different - using up my paper stash, which is as large as my yarn stash. At least paper is flat and doesn't take up as much room!

The last panel on the right side of the accordian is a pocket that we will be putting a DVD slide show of old family photos in. That is if I ever get them all scanned and e-mailed to my DD who is the slide show expert.

The reunion is the weekend of July 17,18 & 19 and will be held at the Bluff House Inn.
We have the whole Inn reserved - I'm really excited about it!

I haven't completely neglected my knitting though.
I made another baby hat for a baby girl expected in July. Our cook at school is about to become a great grandmother! This was knit with Plymouth Encore Sock yarn and is being modeled by .....a vase?

This Song is for You!

2009-05-22T14:16:00.000-07:00

I had an X-ray done today. They found you in my heart.

The doctor said that if they took you out I would die, because I could not live without you as an on-line friend!

Feel free to send this heart along to all of your on-line friends that you could not live without!

And look what one of my very best on-line friends sent me! She knows I am retiring next month and she also knows I've been wanting to learn how to spin so she sent me this spinning kit with a spindle and some alpaca roving to practice with. I met Mary Lynn when she was my upstream pal in a swap and we've been on-line friends ever since. She's also become my partner in crime on the Whoduknit Group. Thank you so much MaryLynn for this gift and also the gift of your friendship.

This song is for you! And for all my other special on-line friends.

And.....I even have an FO to post
I knit up this lace-edge hat with some Alpaca sport weight yarn from Knit Picks just because I felt the need to finish something!

Was I Ever That Young or That Thin???

2009-05-16T10:34:00.000-07:00

I pulled out some old prom pictures to add to a scrapbook page I'm doing of the twins prom pictures. This is my DD and her DH (the twins mom & dad) at her Junior Prom in 1987. Diana was the Prom Queen, and she is still just as pretty and just as thin as she was then. Jayson has a lot less hair now but still a good looking guy!

And, that's me and my DH on the right - at his Senior Prom in 1960.

Notice the DA haircut on Steve?

And, yes, we are still just as pretty and as thin as we were then LOL.

Actually it's hard to believe I was ever that thin - I think I weighed around 95 pounds!

And finally my labyrinth Carpet Bag finished and felted. I'm not crazy about it. Sometimes when I put something away for awhile and then take it back out it looks better - so that's what I'm going to do!

It was fun knitting it, but if I make another one I won't use the color sequences in the pattern. Some of the rows only called for one round of a color - and those rounds didn't even show up when it was felted. Like the bottom right hexagon which looks like it only has two colors but should have a blue round. I should have realized that when I was knitting, but I followed the pattern like a good girl!

Prom Pictures

2009-05-11T17:02:00.000-07:00

All dressed up -

My grandson and his girlfriend

My granddaughter and her boyfriend
Jacob, Sarah, Jordyn & Trevor

The twins.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

2009-05-10T13:48:00.000-07:00

I hope you are all having a wonderful Mother's Day! These beautiful flowers arrived yesterday from my son who lives in Austin. We went out for dinner last night with my daughter's family and my other son. Today I've been playing with the new laptop computer my DH gave me for Mother's Day - quite a surprise, as I wasn't expecting anything, much less a laptop!

I'm almost finished with the Labyrinth Carpet Bag - just need to finish up the I-cord handles, which I decided to make instead of the leather, since I'm not at all sure this bag is going to come out looking anything like it's supposed to. The felting is going to have to work miracles and cover up a bunch of mistakes -

Can't wait to see how it comes out!

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week

2009-05-06T13:44:00.000-07:00

To all of you underpaid, overworked and sometimes under appreciated colleagues of mine, including those of you who home school, which has to be the hardest job of all!

We are fortunate to have a wonderful PTA group at our school that raises money for all those little extras that have been cut from the budget. Today they catered a luncheon for us in a building across the street from the school. Now - we don't have a cafeteria, so we eat in our classrooms with the kids every day, and never get a chance to eat lunch with the grown-ups, so this was a big treat! They had a Cinco de Mayo theme, with Mexican food, sombreros and maracas on the table and Mexican Music. There was a drawing with prizes for each of us. I won this great quilted tote bag, which I love. When it was held up I thought "That's mine!" and surprise, surprise, my name was drawn! They even had a pinata filled with school supplies for us to bring back to the kids in the classroom, who were being supervised by volunteer parents. One of the little boys in my class wanted to know what 'preciation' means. I said it means 'be nice to your teachers today.' He said, 'Oh - I thought it meant, get away from your class for a little while today.' - Yes - that too! We were scheduled to do an ACES (All Children Exercise Simultaneously) walk with the kids this afternoon, but the postponed it until next week.

I hope all of my teacher friends out there are feeling appreciated this week!

Knitters are just the best!

2009-05-02T11:55:00.000-07:00

What did I do before Ravelry took over my life? It's hard to imagine. But two of the places I used to hang out were The Knitter's Review and The Knitty Coffee Shop. (I'm janev on both of those). I made friends there, and brought some of them with me to Whoduknit and met some of them again on Ravelry. I was ready to toss my Labyrinth Carpet Bag in the driveway (see previous post) and back over it a few times when I couldn't find a solution on Ravelry. Than I remembered my old friends and went over to see if anyone there had an answer for me. Sure enough - within 24 hours of my post on Knitter's Review I had an answer - IT WASN'T ME!!!! The pattern was wrong. The corrected pattern makes way more sense, and after some frogging, I am back on my way again. Aren't knitters just the greatest? In case you've never been there, the Knitters Review is owned by Clara Parkes who lives in Maine - in fact just an hour from me. I've never met her but hope to one of these days. The Knitty Coffee Shop is, of course, part of Knitty.com, where all of those great free patterns are posted 4 times a year. If you haven't been to either one - I'd recommend a visit.

Knitting Slump

2009-05-01T13:37:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm in a knitting slump - I know, you've all been there - how do you get out of them? I was sailing right along on my Labyrinth Carpet Bag, about half done, when I realized that one of the triangles that connects the hexagons was at the wrong angle, which made the bag a very weird shape indeed. I checked on Ravelry to see who else had made this bag and only one person said that she had the same problem, the rest said the pattern was easy to follow....so I'm pretty sure it's me and not the pattern. I had to put it aside for a couple of days - just couldn't look at it! I'm going to try to pick it back up this weekend do some frogging and see if I can figure it out. My other UFO - the dresser scarf from Rachel's mystery KAL is in a slump too - just can't seem to get interested in finishing it. I did feel the need to complete something this week so I crocheted some of these coasters with left-over Sugar & Cream cotton. The pattern on Ravelry was too complicated for me to wrap my tired brain around (you know those DC around the post thingys) so I made up my own very simple pattern - simple enough to do when I am brain dead and the Red Sox are losing 13-0 and Francona has put the right fielder in to pitch and the pitcher in right field - okay I digress! I think I'll make dozens of these - and then think of something to do with them.

Crocheted Coasters:

Small amounts of worsted weight cotton yarn in two contrasting colors.

Size G or H crochet hook

With Color A Ch 4

DC in 4th chain 11 times (12 DCs)

DC twice in each DC around (24 DCs) End Off

Attach Color B, Ch2, 4 DC in next DC, Sk next DC, 5 DC in next DC, repeat around. (55 DC), end off.

Attach Color A, SC in each DC. End off.

Traveling Scarf Returns Home!

2009-04-25T06:42:00.000-07:00

After traveling across the country and back for the past 6 months my traveling scarf has come home, with sections added by 12 different members of my Noro Knit & Crochet Traveling Scarf group #37 on Ravelry. It seems to have had a wonderful time! It spent some time in sunny California , and went to Surf City to train for a marathon with Lori, helped Lisa decorate for Christmas, visited with Liz's cat, Caesar, and also got to visit one of my special Internet friends, Nancy at the Jersey Shore. It's home now - ready to be blocked and finished off. Haven't decided yet whether or to to add any more to the end of it where it is still on the stitch holder.

It was hard to get a photo of the whole scarf - but hope you can see some of the sections (click for a larger view). It was all done with different Noro yarns, some knit and some crocheted.

I also finished my section on the last of the 12 scarves that I worked on and will be sending that out to California on Monday.

This was a fun way to try out new patterns and yarns on a small scale.

I've decided to enter a felted bag in a Fiber Arts Show that will take place in Winter Harbor from June 28-July 5 (with some encouragement from my friends!) This is the beginning of the bag I'm working on - it's the Labyrinth Carpet bag from Interweave Knits 2008 Holiday Issue. So far it looks like a mess! It's a series of hexagons that attach to each other by picking up stitches. It's a really intriguing pattern and I'm very anxious to see how it comes out. I'm trying to decide whether to add i-cord handles or leather handles like the pattern calls for. What do you think? This is what it is supposed to look like when it is done. Obviously I'm using different colors! Galway Wool in turquoise, brown and tan.

Paul Revere, Sox, Socks, Marathons, and Mom

2009-04-20T06:46:00.000-07:00

What do they all have in common?

Today is Patriots' Day, which commemorates the anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord, the first battles of the American Revolutionary War. It's observed as a holiday in Massachusettes and Maine. In our school district, our spring vacation always falls during the week of Patriots' Day - so thank you Paul Revere! In MA, it's the day of the Boston Marathon, and when the Red Sox are in town, they play a morning game. Although Patriots' Day is now celebrated on a Monday, the real date is April 19, which was my mother's birthday. It's impossible to believe that she has been gone for 17 years and I still miss her.

So, this morning I'll be knitting socks, watching the sox and the Boston Marathon, and remembering my mom.

Nobody's Perfect

2009-04-17T18:04:00.000-07:00

Except these three girls!

The kids at school put on a variety show to raise money for our new school. The state will only pay for the basics and we have to raise the money for all the extras. We do have a stage in the new school, but no curtains, lights, or sound system. We have some very talented kids in our school and a very talented music teacher who devotes a lot of extra time and energy to develop this talent. There were funny skits, dances, talented singers and musicians....but my favorite act was (could I have been bias?) this one. Oh, and by the way, the girl on the left happens to be my granddaughter. The quality of the video is not very good - but click on the arrow and you'll get the picture!

Catching Up

2009-04-15T16:31:00.000-07:00

I'm still ahead in my 52 in 52 goal for 2009. Some recent additions and these two baby hats that I knit for a co-worker who is having twin boys. They are knit with Opal sock yarn. Love using sock yarn for baby items, since it can be machine washed and dried.

These dishcloths are for a dishcloth swap that I am in. The square is a 'ball band' cloth - so named because it is the pattern on the back of the band on Peaches & Cream cotton yarn. It's Navy, not black, like it looks in the photo. The other two are crochet patterns from coatsandclark.com.

So, wow! That counts as five projects! (My rules, remember?)

Set Another Place at the Easter Brunch Table

2009-04-12T10:25:00.000-07:00

I thought I was really organized for a 10 o'clock Easter Brunch this year. Easter baskets all ready - a basket of Bath & Body products for Jordyn with a gift card to Aeropostle, a 6-can cooler for Jacob filled with fishing stuff and a gift card to Olympia Sports, and a High School Musical suitcase filled with goodies from Staples for Tori (she loves that kind of stuff!) and a Walmart Gift Card. The pink bag at the top was for DH filled with handmade soap, sea salt scrub, etc. and a gift card for a pedicure. The clues for the Egg hunt were printed out, put in the plastic eggs and hidden by 8 o'clock this morning. I made a breakfast casserole last night, ready to go in the oven with the ham, along with oven baked french toast. All I had to do was set the table cook the home fries, put out the fruit salad, muffins, juice, coffee, etc.

Then the phone rings.....It's DD - is it okay if Jordyn brings her boyfriend. Sure! Scramble around - add his name to her egg hunt, fix up a small Easter basket, add another plate and another chair - all set. Phone rings again.....Since Jordyn is bringing her boyfriend, Jacob wants to know if it's okay to bring his girlfriend - okay - add her name to his egg hunt - put together an Easter basket for her, add a leaf to the table, another chair, another plate. Phone rings again...

I answered - "Don't tell me Tori is bringing a boyfriend" (she's 9) - No, just asking if I needed anything. Of course I was really thrilled that they all came - and we had a great time. In the photo they are playing Wii. Below Diana and Tori go through her goodies.

And Whoo Hoo - look at my Easter Basket (well, mine and DH's). He's already taken some gardening stuff out - an upsidedown tomato planter, seeds, etc. Guess what's left for me?

And since they have all left - I can spend the rest of the day knitting!

I hope that your Easter was as wonderful as mine - spent with family and friends.

Opening Day at Fenway

2009-04-07T18:19:00.001-07:00

One day late, but worth the wait!

BECKKKKKKKKKKETT!

A Prize? I didn't even know there was a contest!

2009-04-06T14:07:00.000-07:00

In my last post I showed you my Mystery Yarn Ball from my swap pal, Robbbie, on my Whoduknit Group and the really cute mug cozy I made with the yarn and the pattern.

This was the yarn ball I sent to my pal, Bonnie. Now, technically everything was supposed to be wrapped inside the yarn (and I made the rules!) But since there were a few strands of yarn wrapped around the hat I decided it was legal (and like I said, I make the rules!). That's a pink Red Sox hat in case you can't tell - and NO, she is NOT a Yankee fan! She is actually a Red Sox Fan. After she knit the drawstring bag from the mystery pattern I sent, using the purple yarn, these goodies fell out, including a small ball of lace yarn, which she used to knit the Cat's Paw scarf. Did I tell you she loves cats? That was pretty much the theme of the yarn ball. I had so much fun putting this mystery yarn ball together for her!

So, anyway - here is the finished lace scarf (I cut off your head Bonnie, only because I didn't have permission from you to post your photo!) And today - look what I received in the mail from Bonnie! A prize for putting the best Mystery Yarn Ball together. Now like I said, I make the rules - and I didn't even know there was a prize for the best mystery ball! LOL

There are two balls of Regia Galaxy sock yarn - great colors since I wear a lot of brown. And a beautiful skein of what looks like hand-dyed yarn in absolutely gorgeous colors! And, can you see the adorable little lamb? Thank you Bonnie! And thanks again Robbie. This was a great swap!

April Showers

2009-04-03T14:28:00.000-07:00

The weather map for the next 8 days has rain coming down! I guess we should be happy it is not white. I've got a couple more FOs to add to my 52 in 52 list. This coffee cup cozy was knit with the pattern and yarn in my Whoduknit Mystery Yarn Ball swap package. It's a great cable pattern, one I've never done before.

the yarn is Paton's Decor. I had enough left over to knit another baby hat, and I think maybe even enough for a pair of booties to go with it.

These are the goodies that fell out of the yarn as I knit.

This swap is always a favorite of mine!

Prospect Harbor Light

2009-03-29T07:41:00.000-07:00

I've got nothing for you today! So, I'll borrow an idea from Aunt Kathy and show you what I'm looking at on my desktop. (click on it to see the full size photo) The sky today is not nearly that blue - in fact it's pretty gray with a promise of rain for the next couple of days. Which will bring us, not to spring, we really don't have that season here, but to "Mud Season". This photo was taken by a friend of a friend and he gave her permission to share it - so feel free to save it to your own computer!

To Bind Off or Not to Bind Off & Other Mysteries

2009-03-28T10:51:00.000-07:00

This is Day 13 of the Mystery KAL on Rachel's Knitting Room Yahoo Group.
Today we have a choice. We can finish it off by knitting 4 more rows of garter and binding off - or continue on...forever and ever, I think, since it called for a whole cone of cotton yarn.
It would make a really large dishcloth, but I'm tempted to keep on going - what do you think?

I received my Mystery Yarn Ball from the Whoduknit swap. It's from Robbie and the yarn is Paton's Decor in very pretty colors and the pattern is for a cabled cup cozy. There are little goodies sticking out of it and I'm anxious to see what mysterious objects will fall out as I knit.

I checked out the first season of Knitting Daily on CDs from the library since it's not being shown in this area, so I think I may settle down and watch it while I knit up my cup cozy, and see what falls out of the ball!

A Little bit of Knitting to relieve the stress

2009-03-23T14:34:00.000-07:00

Last week at school was stressful and this week is starting out the same way - involving DHS (Department of Human Services), and bad parenting, and kids suffering because of it. It's really heartbreaking.

And so, on to the knitting.............

Above is the first 8 days of the mystery KAL on Rachel's Knitting Group. This group usually knits dishcloths - but this mystery KAL calls for a whole cone of Peaches & Cream cotton. It's a very interesting pattern. I think it must be a runner and will take a very long time to complete!

I finally finished the booties to go with the hat for a baby shower I am going to next week. Notice the booties are fraternal twins? After three tries to get them to match using the self-striping yarn, I finally gave up and decided it would be more fun if they didn't match. Hope the new mommy feels the same way!

Where is your cell phone?

2009-03-19T16:03:00.001-07:00

My blogging mind has been pretty blank lately - so here is a one word meme for you. This weekend I'll have some blog awards to give out so come back!

Where is your cell phone? charging
spouse? sleeping
Your hair? graying
Your mother? Heaven
Your favorite thing? knitting
Your favorite drink? merlot
Your dream/goal? retirement
What room are you in? addition
Where do you want to be in 6 years? alive
Something that you aren't? young
Muffins? blueberry
Wish list item? yarn
Where you grew up? Clifton
Last thing you did? eat
What are you wearing? clothes
TV? Knitting
Your pets? none
Friends? good
life? hard
Your mood? tired
Your car? outback
Something you're not wearing? glasses
Your favorite store? acmoore
When is the last time you laughed? today
Last time you cried? yesterday
Where do you go to over and over? work
Favorite place to eat? Chippers
Favorite place you'd like to be at right now? bed

Knit Something Green Today!

2009-03-17T03:53:00.000-07:00

Here is my 'green'. I knit a skinny scarf with the leftover Plymouth Happy Feet yarn from my Old Shale Smoke Ring. It knit it in the Old Shale pattern (so simple!) CO 22 stitches, Row 1: K Row 2: K2,P18,K2

Row 3: K2, (K2tog) 3x (YO,K1)6x (K2tog)3x Row 4: K

Repeat these 4 rows until it is as long as you want or you run out of yarn.

I had enough yarn left over for Vickie Howell's shamrock (the link for the pattern is in the post below). I just glued the beads on it.

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!