The Stash Project

Endings and Beginnings

2006-12-26T10:17:00.000-07:00

As the year comes to an end I have decided to end this blog and start a new one. My new blog will centre on all the activities in my life I feel compelled to blog about rather than just knitting.

A lot of things have happened recently and while I continue to knit and will blog about it; these new things will have a place on the new blog.

We recently bought our own house! We moved Dec. 1 to our first home and it is keeping me very busy. I also am very comitted to my collage art. I was recently chosen to be a member of the Design Team at Stamp and Scrap Canada and have also submitted some work for publication. This will be an exciting year for me!

If you care to join me and read about my collage art and decorating our WWI era house along with the knitting please join me on my new blog.

Artful Life With Eliza Jane

Finally a FO

2006-11-12T09:15:00.000-07:00

I have finished socks!! Here we have the Feather & Fan socks (somewhat modified) from the book Socks, Socks, Socks. I used Regia Bamboo and they are wonderfully soft.

I just can't seem to survive without a pair of socks on the needles. So here we have the next pair which are super fun to knit.

Still Here

2006-11-03T10:45:00.000-07:00

Wow, I haven't posted in a while! Things have been pretty hectic around here lately and I haven't been knitting as much as usual. I am still knitting, though. I have been pretty much working exclusively on the Poppy Shawl (see previous entry) and am on the 11th row of 17 rows of poppies. I'm still enjoying it as much as when I started though the rows are enormously long now and I'm at a point where I need to move up to a longer needle. However, I am using the longest needle I have so will have to go buy a new (longer) circ. This will entail a trip to the city so it may be a bit before I can get out and get one.

In the meantime, a few days ago I cast on for a new sock. This will be my November entry for the SAM2. I am doing a basic Feather & Fan sock with Regia Bamboo. There is something about this F&F pattern (from the book Socks, Socks, Socks) that just practically knits itself. I am almost at the toe of the first sock. The Bamboo yarn is delicious, a joy to knit with and a joy to touch. It's one of those yarns where you just have to keep picking up your knitting to caress the yarn!

Leafy Lace Socks

2006-10-10T13:11:00.000-06:00

My October SAM2 socks are finished! These are from a kit from the sotmc from a few months back. Cascade Fixation and pattern by Rebecca Perry. The ribbing on the first sock is a bit too loose as I was getting used to knitting with the elastic but once I figured it out it was fine. These are nice huggable socks. I love socks that hug and will definately use this yarn again.

Blanket and a Shawl

2006-10-05T14:00:00.000-06:00

The mitred blanket is finished! This one took quite a while to make simply because I was taking my time with it. Just knit a bit here and there but have been working on it like crazy this past week. The colours are not quite so bright as they appear in the picture.

Thanks to Aimee in the comments I've decided the mohair is a bulky yarn and still don't know what I'll be knitting with it. The search for a pattern continues.

The Fixation socks continue in progress. I am just about to start the gussets. I'm working both socks at once on dpns. I'm really enjoying this yarn. At first I was unsure how to work with the elasticity worrying about my tension but finally figured out to just knit like normal and all is well.

Now for a sneak peak at my current project. When I posted my last blog entry I was just about to cast on for this but didn't want to mention it in case it didn't work out. This is something I have wanted to knit since ... well ... forever. When I sorted out my stash the other week I decided to finally take the plunge and I am hooked on this baby! Here we have the start of the Poppy Shawl by Kaffe Fassett. I'm at the part now where I have to chart the pattern out myself to get the poppies lined up properly. I'm working with an assortment of sport weight/ light dk yarns in a multitude of textures and fibres. This is one of those things that will look better after blocking but man, I'm loving it!

Socktoberfest & Stash Overhaul

2006-10-01T14:08:00.000-06:00

First order of business is socks! I am currently knitting these socks from a sotmc kit from a few months back. These will be my Socktoberfest socks and my October Sock a month socks. Nothing like doing double duty with your kals!

I have been knitting almost exclusively on the mitred blanket this last week. I realized I was almost finished so decided to get a move on with this. I have two more sides to complete then I'll have finished pics to show!

I spent this last week doing something ~~stupid~~ useful. I reorganized my stash. I sorted out by weight and purpose. I thought that doing this might actually reduce the number of boxes of stash but in the end I had one more box than I started with!

I made boxes for each weight of yarn and then separated the sock worthy yarn into separate boxes for both sock weight and sport weight. I also sorted out the 100% wool worsted and cotton (regardless of weight) into separate boxes. Whether this will be helpful or not is doubtful but I feel a little less overwhelmed than before I started.

So, what have I pulled out of the stash to knit next? you ask. Another blast from the past with this:

Scheepjeswol Mohair Ombre. A lovely variegated colour of medium and light tans and grey. 67% Mohair, 28% Wool, 5% Nylon. I have 9 full balls and an extra 20 grams. Making 470 grams or 376 metres. Recommended needles are size 6 or 7. But I am wondering, since all the info on the ball band is metric do they mean 6mm/7mm or the old UK sizes 6/7 which would be 4.5mm/5mm. The yarn strand itself is very thin, about a fingering weight, then it has a huge halo making it fluffy and thick. What do you think? I've never knit with mohair before.

So, once I know what needles to use with this the big question is what the heck should I knit with it all? Would it work for a shawl? Other than the feather & fan shawls I've done I have never knit a large lace shawl and I would love to take one on. Pattern suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

When Knitting Becomes an Obsession

2006-09-29T14:19:00.000-06:00

If you haven't seen this already. You really should!

FO Day

2006-09-24T10:04:00.000-06:00

Today is Finished Object Day here at The Stash Project.

First up are the Retro Rib socks by Evelyn A. Clark from Interweave Knits Winter 2004. The contrast colour is the leftover Trekking XXL from the Unsts and the main yarn is some thrifted wool Patons Azalea which seems to be quite ancient. A lovely yarn to knit with, it is pure new wool from Australia. Pretty much knit to pattern with the exception of the added contrast colour and I knit my standard star toe.

Next up we have the fingerless mitts on page 7 of the Fall 2005 Interweave Knits, using the Patons Siberia from stash. Again I really enjoyed this yarn and these are nice and soft. This was knit to pattern with the exception that it called for 6 mm needles and I only had 5.5 and 6.5 dpns so I went with the 5.5 mm. They only used 60 gr of yarn so I had plenty.

And finally we have a Lacy Summer Purse (PDF FILE) using the blue ball of Patons Cotton Sahara. This yarn gave me headache trying to figure out what to knit with it. I started knitting a dishcloth but I really like this yarn and it seemed too nice to knit a dishcloth with. I mean this stuff is old and I may never get my hands on some again so I wanted to make something "nice". Know what I mean? Finally settled on this pattern and this is such a cute little bag! It would make a perfect gift bag. It took pretty much the whole the ball of yarn with just enough left that I didn't hyperventilate about running out!

I now have one and a half balls of the peach Cotton Sahara left and I am going to knit this bag again with it only I am going to try substituting the mesh pattern from itsy-bitsy. Now I am going to go get a few more balls out of the box to see what I'll be knitting with next.

Itsy Bitsy

2006-09-20T13:08:00.000-06:00

I feel like I'm on a roll here! Knitting is just flying off the needles. Here we have the itsy bitsy bag finished.

I just love this thing! Here it is holding the current knitting yarn and "what is that peeking out?" you ask. That is one of the fingerless mitts already finished! I can imagine knitting this bag over and over. I have to tell you, though, it was not fun to knit. The herringbone stitches used are extremely fiddly. I had to employ an extra finger while knitting and it slowed me down considerably, but it was definately worth it. And practice does make perfect. I see this in the future and may be changing my mind about making dishcloths with the Patons Cotton Sahara. This bag used 70 grams of the Wendy Capri. So I do have some left.

As mentioned, I have one fingerless mitt finished and am working on the second one. The retro rib socks are coming along, I've finished the foot of one and am plodding along on the second foot.

Decisions Have Been Made

2006-09-17T09:24:00.000-06:00

Thanks for all the suggestions everyone! I've decided on patterns for these three yarns.

First up the Wendy Capri. After one false start knitting with this I realized it was more of a worsted weight than dk and decided upon the itsy-bitsy mesh bag pattery from Knitty. I'm more than half-way finished and just about ready to start the second ball so feeling good knowing I'll have enough yarn. This yarn is working perfectly and I really like it. Here's the progress pic.

Next on the list was the Patons Siberia. sparkli suggested the My So Called Scarf pattern. I haven't knit that before and took a look at the pattern, which is gorgeous! But after good consideration, this yarn is just too fluffy and nubby for the pattern stitch to show up well. So I went hunting online for a pattern, then I remembered a pattern from an Interweave Knits issue and have decided upon these fingerless mitts. They call for 100 gr and I only have 80 gr, but I've made full sized mittens with 100 gr of chunky yarn so I should be ok and I'm going to make them a bit shorter than the pattern calls for anyway so I think we'll be good. This is on page 7 of the Fall 2005 issue.

And finally the Patons Cotton Sahara, which, yes, has been mellowing for quite some time! christy j logically suggested a pillow top since it would match my living room. After looking though some pillow patterns I just couldn't see this cotton, nubby yarn as any of them! More thinking and came up with the equation: Cotton Yarn = Dishcloth. I think this cotton/nylon blend might actually make a very nice dishcloth, give it a bit more scrubbing power than a 100% cotton. Now the colours are way off for my kitchen so I'll gift these for Christmas. I should get a couple of cloths (maybe three?) from this yarn. Now I'll be haunting this list of dishcloth patterns.

PS - I am still working on the Retro Rib socks. I'm working the feet now.

Next blog post should some FO's and when I've knit this batch of yarn up I'll post the next selection of yarn from the box. So get your thinking caps ready to help me again!

And Now for Something Completely Different

2006-09-13T13:35:00.000-06:00

I am taking a new direction in this blog. I have a purpose!

I have a huge stash which I actually have not really added to in quite some time. A few odd balls here and there and some thrifted yarn but no big yarn purchases for a couple of months now.

So here is my purpose for this blog. I am going to knit up my stash! My stash is quite large and contains everything from 100% acrylics to 100% wool with everything inbetween. Nice yarn and not so nice yarn. Yarn I haven't knitted because it's too nice, yarn I haven't knitted because I don't know what to knit with it. I have an incredible amount of odd balls that just sit around and seem to multiply.

Now, I'm not saying I won't buy yarn anymore but I am going to knit from the stash on a regular basis.

What stash you ask? This stash:

Bottom of closet

Top of closet

Now, it may not look like a lot to some of you but trust me those boxes are big and absolutely stuffed full of yarn. Some of the boxes only close properly because of the boxes sitting on top of them!

Starting off this stash-busting project we have the first box, which was not included in the above pictures. This box is only half full.

First Goal of The Stash Project: Knit up this box of yarn.

But I need your help. This box is full of odd balls and I have a hard time thinking of small items to knit with odd balls. Please give me your input! Here are the first balls I've moved to my knitting basket. What should I knit with them?

1) Wendy Capri - 2 - 50 gr balls - no yardage - double knitting - 51% cotton/49% acrylic - colour is cream/off white

2) Patons Cotton Sahara - 50 gr blue, 75 gr peach - 115 yds per 50 gr - worsted weight - 89% cotton/11% nylon - as a note these colours match my living room.

3) Patons Siberia - 80 gr multi kind of burgundy and grey - no yardage - chunky weight - 77.5% acrylic/12% cotton/8.5% mohair/2% nylon

Any ideas?

Feather & Fan Comfort Shawl

2006-09-10T13:54:00.000-06:00

I finally got around to taking a photo of the shawl I finished a bit ago.

Here is the feather and fan comfort shawl

Now, other than the continuing mitre blanket, I am currently working on the retro rib socks from Interweave Knits. Finally. I've wanted to knit these since I got that issue and every time I see them posted on someone's blog. I'm almost at the heels.

We Will Miss You

2006-09-04T17:46:00.000-06:00

Wicker Basket

2006-09-02T09:44:00.000-06:00

As I was working on the red/purple socks below the August sock of the month kit arrived. As soon as I opened it I knew I would be casting on the for these socks the second I was finished. And I did, they practically flew off the needles taking 3 days to complete. I love them!

Wicker Basket Sport Socks by Wooliedi. Yarn is Wick by Knit One Crochet Too which is soy. I've never used soy yarn before and it is wonderful!

P.S. - I finished the shawl last night! So more pics coming soon!

More Socks

2006-08-30T10:14:00.000-06:00

Here is the promised FO!

These socks started out as the Lavender Lace Socks by Evelyn Clark in the book Vogue Knitting on the Go Socks Two but I made a lot of changes. Practically everything actually! But I did use the horseshoe lace pattern on the leg. The yarn used for the red is a vintage yarn: Mary Maxim 3ply 90% wool 10% nylon and was beautiful to knit with. Unsure as to what the purple yarns are but they are both the same brand and 100% wool.

I have another FO on the blockers right now and will post again soon!

Checking In

2006-08-23T10:56:00.000-06:00

I haven't blogged in a bit so I'm checking in! I don't have any pics today as all my knitting is wips at the moment. I haven't been blogging but I am knitting. On the needles as of right now are:

1) the brown mitred blanket. Was working on it pretty regularly as tv knitting while doing the Unst socks but taking a bit of break right now.

2) started and am almost finished another feather and fan comfort shawl. I made two of these last year and wore them constantly last winter so feel another one is definatley needed.

3) working on the gussets of another pair of socks. Started working from a pattern but have modified it so much they really aren't the same as the original pattern anymore.

Next blog post should show a FO of either item #2 or #3.

We Have Unst

2006-08-11T12:29:00.000-06:00

Finished my socks for the "Knitting on the Road" kal. These are Unst by Nancy Bush with some modification.

I knit the leg on #2 then switched to #1s for the heel and foot. I do not like holey feet so I did not carry the pattern down the foot, instead I continued in a rib pattern p1,k5,p1,k7. Yarn Trekking XXL. This yarn has a very long pattern repeat, it didn't start to repeat until I was 2" into the second sock ! and not an exact repeat either.

Currently on the needles: continuing to work on the miter (mitre) squares blanket and starting to look for a new sock to knit.

Currently On and Off the Needles

2006-07-31T14:28:00.000-06:00

Off the Needles

Two more hats using up the colours from the previous ones. This is based on the 76 stitch hat from an older issue of interweave knits.

On the Needles

And as promised the sneak peak of the next mitred blanket I'm working on. I really love how this is turning out! The colours are a bit washed out in the photo but you get the idea.

Today the winner was announced for the next sock we will be knitting in the "Knitting on the Road" kal. I think I'm starting to miss the sock knitting as I cast on for it right away!

I think any knitter worth their salt knows what yarn that is!

And that is all she wrote folks!

She Who Likes To Knit Hats

2006-07-24T13:06:00.000-06:00

Couple of more hats off the needles this week!

First a mosaic pattern that took me a week to knit. I don't know, mosaic is tooted as the easy alternative to stranded knitting but I am so slow with mosaic patterns and much prefer stranded. I like the look of mosaics though.

Then knit much faster (2.5 days!) is this stranded hat. At first I wasn't too sure about the pattern band (it seemed too busy) but the more I look at it the more I like it. I really like the colours here. I'm using up odd balls for these hats and it is forcing me to find colour combos that wouldn't normally come to me. Pink, brown, yellow, gold and blue!

And I have started working on the next mitred (mitered) blanket with the butterscotch yarn and am loving it! Will get a sneak peek photo for you some time soon.

Another Blanket

2006-07-13T11:10:00.000-06:00

Yeah!! I finished the blanket. This was total random using my scraps and black as the main colour. Haven't measured it but it is quite big. Hanging on my fence it looks a little crooked but it really lays perfectly flat. So, I'm already planning the next one using an old 60/40 wool/acrylic nubby yarn from my stash, a delicious butterscotch colour. This will be a little more planned as I'll only use scraps that go with the MC (both co-ordinating and contrast colours). I've already got something in mind for the next black scrap one, too. It won't be squares next time, if my plan works out. We'll see. But in the meantime I've started another hat and feel another hat binge coming on.

Thrifty Knitting Finds

2006-07-09T12:04:00.000-06:00

Well, this weekend I got some nifty finds from garage sales. But first knitting news. After the hat bonanza last week I figured I better get this black mitre blanket finished before I do anymore so I've been working away on it. I'm on the final rotation of squares and have 2 of the four sides finished. Next post should see a FO pic!

In the front some hat pattern booklets. The hardcover book is "The Big Book of Knitting" 1948 and in the back is a really cool automatic i-cord knitter! You thread the little "machine", close Granny's head and crank her feet for lots of i-cord!

I May Have a Problem ...

2006-07-05T11:34:00.000-06:00

Well ... um .... I think I have a little problem. What do you think?

I can't stop knitting these things!! I just love going round and round and round. And the great thing about hats compared to socks is ... you only have to knit one!

Friday's Finds, Knitting and More

2006-06-28T10:53:00.000-06:00

Well, this week I didn't do much thrifting at all. I did pop into an antique/junk store and managed to pick this up. 1937 woman's magazine has lots of cool images and ads plus some knitting patterns; and two old postcards

All was not lost though as I managed to get a couple of real good deals on ebay this week. A lot of vintage birthday cards and a lot of old photographs.

Some of you were quite interested in the altered puzzles I was participating in and with the move and all I never got a chance to post pictures but I have received three completed puzzles now. Each piece was altered by a different artist, I haven't completed the frames yet but have to share how wonderful these are. Click on the images to see larger.

And finally, Yes, I do knit! I'm still working on a mitred blanket. This will be my third one this year, as you may remember I decided to see how many I could make this year. I'm getting ready to finish it, I have to buy another ball of black then I'm going to do the final finishing round. I'm getting a bit tired of it and besides I have 7 balls of a butterscotch coloured yarn that I'm anxious to use as the main colour for the next one.

Also started a new project and will leave you with a little teaser of the WIP.

Friday is for Thrifty Finds

2006-06-23T11:16:00.000-06:00

I do a lot of thrifting: going to thrift stores, garage sales, estate sales, flea markets, antique stores, junk stores, you get the idea.

Sometimes I score big, others nothing, and a lot of in-between. I'm going to start sharing my finds on Fridays.

These all came fron one visit to a Goodwill, one evening this week.

Click on the pictures to read the notes.

What do you do in the middle of a hot summer?

2006-06-22T11:18:00.000-06:00

Why ... knit mittens! of course. Don't ask me why but I started knitting some munstersockens for myself using odd bits of leftover sock yarn and before I knew it they decided to fingerless mitts instead. I love them.

Pattern: just made it up as I went along
Yarn: leftover sock yarn

Lights, Camera, Action!

2006-06-14T10:34:00.000-06:00

I got my camera fixed!!!

YEAH!!!

It has been so hard to have the desire to blog when I don't have a camera. Not that I've done much knitting but having a pic to post sure makes you more likely to blog. So here I finally have the mitred blanket I finished when my dh was away just before we moved.

Click here to enlarge.

I have been knitting but not finishing. The munstersockens I was knitting have turned into fingerless mitts and are almost finished but I have been working on another black, scrap miter blanket most of the time. You will notice I spell mitre both the correct way "mitre" and the American way "miter" so Google will find me either way! I'm not really into my kal's at the moment. It is just so hot out here (though it hasn't been too bad just lately) that I can't get the desire to knit much. I do want to knit some cotton footies though and as soon as I can get those mitts done I'll start. It's too hot to wear socks most of the time but I hate not wearing them that I think cotton footies should solve the problem.

Continuing with my summer reading program. Finished "Seventh Son" by Orson Scott Card and ""Grim Tuesday" by Garth Nix. Currently reading "Drowned Wednesday" and have the Thursday book up next.

Book Meme

2006-06-12T22:26:00.000-06:00

From here
1. Copy & paste.
2. Bold the ones you’ve read.
3. Add four recent reads to the end. - I'm adding 4 books you should read.
4. Tag! - you're it!

The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown - (saw the movie though!)
The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger
The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy - Douglas Adams
The Great Gatsby - F.Scott Fitzgerald
To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
The Time Traveler’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Harry Potter 6) - J.K. Rowling
Life of Pi - Yann Martel
Animal Farm: A Fairy Story - George Orwell
Catch-22 - Joseph Heller
The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
Lord of the Flies - William Golding
Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
1984 - George Orwell
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Book 3) - J.K. Rowling
One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Book 4) - J.K. Rowling
The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter 5) - J.K. Rowling
Slaughterhouse 5 - Kurt Vonnegut
Angels and Demons - Dan Brown
Fight Club - Chuck Palahniuk
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Book 1) - J.K. Rowling
Neuromancer - William Gibson
Cryptonomicon - Neal Stephenson
The Secret History - Donna Tartt
A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Book 2) - J.K. Rowling
Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
American Gods - Neil Gaiman
Ender’s Game (The Ender Saga) - Orson Scott Card
Snow Crash - Neal Stephenson
A Prayer for Owen Meany - John Irving
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - C.S. Lewis
Middlesex - Jeffrey Eugenides
Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien
Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
Good Omens - Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman
Atonement - Ian McEwan
The Shadow Of The Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
The Old Man and the Sea - Ernest Hemingway
The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood
The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
Dune - Frank Herbert
The Unberable Lightness of Being - Milan Kundera
Hey Nostradamus! - Douglas Coupland
The Nature of Blood - Caryl Phillips
Children Playing Before a Statue of Hercules -Ed. David Sedaris
I Know This Much is True - Wally Lamb
Empire Falls - Richard Russo
American Pharaoh: Mayor Richard J. Daley - Adam Cohen & Elizabeth Taylor
Devil in the White City - Erik Larson
Seeing - Jose Saramango
White Teeth - Zadie Smith
Sophie's World - Jostein Gaardner
Ursula Under - ingrid Hill
Mountains Beyond Mountains - Tracy Kidder
In the Time of the Butterflies - Julia Alvarez
God of Small Things - Arundhati Roy
The World According to Garp - John Irving
Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
The Sword of Shannara - Terry Brooks
Metamorphosis - Franz Kafka
Gone With the Wind - Margaret Mitchell

Boy, I haven't read many of these. In fact I haven't even heard of quite a few of them!

{Pant} Too {Pant} Hot {Pant} to Knit!

2006-05-30T12:37:00.000-06:00

It. Is. Too. Hot. To. Knit!

Just popping in to say I'm still here. No knitting news to marvel you with today:-) Temperature right now with humidity factor is 44C (111F for my American readers). {How do you make those degrees symbols?} Tried working on my socks this a.m. and the wool practically melted to my fingers.

So instead of knitting this week, I've been reading. My reading the last couple of months (maybe the whole year) has been pathetic. Bouncing from one thing to another and not really getting into any page turning reading. So ... I made a pact with myself to pick a few favourite authors I haven't read much of and do some serious library borrowing this summer. I picked three authors to keep me going incase the library doesn't have the next book in a series when I'm there. (I hate waiting for holds, they always come when I've just started Ch. 1 of a new book and the pressure to read both books in 3 weeks puts me off reading either.)

So here are my choices for summer reading and my current reads.

Author #1 - Garth Nix

I've only read the Seventh Tower series and thought it was brilliant. Would love this to be made into a movie! I've also read #1 of the Keys to the Kingdom series (Mister Monday) and am really excited to continue with this still-in-progress series. I think he still has to release Saturday and Sunday.

Current Reading: I just finished "Shades Children". This was awesome! I read half of it the first evening, a page turner and very thought provoking.

Author #2 - T.A. Barron

I read the "Lost Years of Merlin" series last year and was hooked. I'm a big fan of Arthurian fantasy and a focus on Merlin is even better! Wonderful series, highly recommended. He's just started a new series that lines up the "Lost Years" and I have to go back and read his first set of books.

Author #3 - Orson Scott Card

A prolific writer of many genres from old testament to science fiction. I've only read the Ender series and the first Shadow book. These are among the best books ever, imho. Oh, I've also read "The Lost Boys" which is more of a horror/ghost story and I thought it was brilliant. I'm pretty quick at figuring out where a plot is going but I was pleasantly surprised with the twist in this one. So, I have many books to choose from here. I'm only going to read his fiction and will give one of the old testament books a try also. I enjoy Biblical fiction, especially OT.

Current Reading - Three quarters of the way through "Seventh Son" (the first in the Alvin Maker series) and loving every page of it. I used to read a lot of historical fiction and this is a compelling alternate history story combining hisfic with fantasy. PS - the best alternate history book I've read is "Ruled Britiannia" by Harry Turtledove

Maybe more than you wanted to know about my reading habits! Am trying to knit a bit in the evenings when it cools down. I'm working on the munstersocken for myself but I may have a twist of my own to show you when they are finished!

One Ladybug

2006-05-24T10:59:00.000-06:00

Finished the first ladybug chevron sock!

Haven't started the second one yet as I cast on for another sock last night. You knew I couldn't wait till the kotr-kal new sock was announced, didn't you? Well, it's just another munstersocken using scraps but this time for me. I've only made these for kids so far, but I have so many sock yarn leftovers now I have to start using them up.

Finally a FO

2006-05-22T09:55:00.000-06:00

Well, I had intended to post before this but on Sunday I came down with a horrible cold. By Tuesday I couldn't lift my arms to knit (then the family knew I was really sick), by Wednesday I was a zombie leaving my bed only to go to the bathroom. Started getting better on Thursday since I picked up the needles again and I finally have a Finished Object. It feels like months since I've finished a pair of socks but let's see ... my last socks were finished on April 14 so, yeah, it's been a while.

Here we have the Denmarks. My camera is out of commission so I had to take a scan.

Pattern: Denmark from Knitting on the Road by Nancy Bush
Yarn: Filatura De Crosa 501
Notes: This yarn is a DK weight and I followed the pattern pretty closely. Lovely yarn, btw, I'm not really into tweeds but this green just called out to me. I used US3 for the body of the sock but switched to US2 for the heel and toe and I used my normal star toe instead of as written.

Due to the camera situation I will not be posting a picture of the blue mitre blanket yet but don't worry I'll show you as soon as I can.

Currently on the needles: The ladybug chevron socks and a black scrap mitre blanket. The new kotr kal sock will be chosen soon so I may not start another sock until then but you never know ... (!!)

I'm Back!

2006-05-13T16:01:00.000-06:00

Just a quick post to say I'm back and well. Internet was hooked up this weekend but I don't have email yet. The move went well ... the drive out here was long, it took us 5 days. Unpacking is going slowly but surely. Thank you so much for all the comments on my last post! Will post again later in the week.

Away For A While

2006-04-29T19:22:00.000-06:00

Totally non-knitting post!

I've been away for a while and will be gone for a bit longer. Long story follows!

We have to move because our landlord was selling our house and just a little while after that news my dh lost his job. We've been wanting to move away from the city and really wanted to go out of the province. So my dh went to the St. Catharines area of Ontario to look for work. The first night he was out there I called the motel to talk to him and found out that the motel had virtually (but not totally) burned down in a fire and the customers had been evacuated and sent elsewhere. I then spent the worst night of my life while my dh was missing (to me) for 18 hours! He finally called and was alright. Anyway he was gone 4 days and came home not with a job but with prospects and he did find a place for us to rent at $200 cheaper than what we currently pay.

So this was last weekend and we are moving this weekend! It has been a whirlwind week full of many stressful situations. Have you ever tried to move across the country in just one week! Whew!!!!

Then when we gave notice our landlord told us she was going to rent the place now anyway for $300 more than what we pay. This moring the ad went in the paper and we had people here looking at the place then three families were here all at the same time. They all went onto the front lawn and a bidding war started and we found out that she got an extra $100 more a month than she was asking for the place. Rent here has become outrageous! I just can't believe people have to offer to pay more than the asking price just to get a place.

So folks, I am moving to Niagara Falls, Ontario in the moring! We will take about 4 days to get there and I'll be gone from blogging until I get my internet connection back up. I'm looking forward to arriving as I am originally from Ontario and it will be nice to see familiar places once again, I've been gone about 15 years.

Needless to say I haven't knit much through this. I haven't knit a stitch on the socks but I did finish the blue mitre blanket during my dh's absense.

I'll be back in about a week, two at the most.

Cleaning Out

2006-04-18T13:17:00.000-06:00

I have some more items on ebay. This time some books by Debbie Bliss, Sasha Kagan, Jean Moss and more. Check 'em out.

Sneak Peak

2006-04-17T12:20:00.000-06:00

Here is a sneak peak of the two socks I am currently knitting. I usually try to have two different sock patterns on the go at one time as I get bored very easily.

This first is the chevron pattern from Sensational Socks and I think I may be in love. This has got to be the most fun I have ever had with a pattern. I'm using Opal Ladybug for this.

Next up is the Denmark socks for the kotr kal. I'm knitting these 2 at the same time on dpns. I have the leg of the first finished and halfway done the leg on the second. Yarn is Filatura De Crosa 501.

Vogue Knitting Magazines

2006-04-14T13:47:00.000-06:00

I just put a bunch of old Vogue knitting magazines from the 80s and 90s on ebay today. All .99 cent starting bids. If interested check 'em out here.

Warmed Up Leftovers Socks

2006-04-14T12:04:00.000-06:00

Just a quick post this holiday weekend. Finished the munstersocken for the 5yo, these were made with odds and sods of leftover sock yarn, basic 56 st. pattern and a 2x2 rib. The 5yo choose the red for the heel and toe. Picture is a scan this time as he is too busy playing in the backyard to pose for a foot photo.

Enjoy your Easter!

Pink Ladder Socks

2006-04-10T13:10:00.000-06:00

Socks are rolling off the needles these day! Sure feels good to get back to fun socks! Here are the latest:

Pattern: Pink Ladder Socks by Nancy Walsh from the January sotmc kit
Yarn: Cascade Bollicine Dolly on 2.75 mm needles
Notes: Fun, easy pattern, love the yarn ... soft and nice to knit.

Also on the heel in the photo is a miniature sock. I've wanted to do one of these for ages. Measures 2 inches!

On the needles:

2 mitre blankets: one with blue MC and one with black MC. Not rushing with these, just picking them up when I feel like mindless knitting

A pair of munstersocken with sock yarn scraps for the 5 year old

Denmark socks for the knitting on the road kal.

Norwegian Socks

2006-03-29T12:30:00.000-07:00

ARE FINISHED!!!

I must say I feel relief that these are done. The second sock was knit very quickly which surprised me after the fiasco with the first.

Click here to enlarge.

I hate my camera, so no progress pics of the mitre blankets today, sorry.

Now, I'm working on the second pink ladder socks, but I'm also re-knitting toes on a couple of older socks. I was wearing these last week when my foot felt cold and I thought I had stepped in something wet, when I looked at the bottom of my foot I found a humungous hole on the bottom of the toe. I hate the toes on these anyway and am re-knitting star toes. One done, one to go. And a couple of weeks ago I took these away from the 5yo, since I could see his big toes starting to poke through. I will cut off the toes and then add a little length to the foot before reknitting the toes.

Mitres, Socks, and Stash-a-long

2006-03-23T11:13:00.000-07:00

Thank you to everyone for the comments on my mitred blanket! I do love it and it is wonderfully snuggly and warm on our bed. I am proud of it as it is the largest blanket I have ever knit and the only mitred blanket I have kept for myself. (The others were gifted). It isn't quite so psychodelic looking in real life, since it is so big.

Now, I have to ask you all to hang your head in shame with me as this week I broke the stash-a-long (with only a week and a bit to go!) and bought myself some of the wonderful Regia sock yarn from elann. I guess I must have been in a euphoric haze from finishing the blanket! Oh well, almost three months with no yarn buying has been good for me and I'm pleased with myself for having made it so far. I'm not going to officially join the new Stash-a-long blog but I am going to try and keep up knitting from stash as much as possible. I have enough stash to keep me going for a few years it seems!

With the blanket out of the way, I've picked up the Norwegian socks again and progress is going very well with the second sock, now that I can just follow what I did for the first one and I've finished the leg and just started the heel. Which has freed up the extra needle and I can now get to work on the second Pink Ladder Sock as well. So my fellow socksters can look forward to seeing sock progress here once again.

If you can believe it, I have to tell you I started another (actually two!) mitred blankets. I just love these things!! I'm working one with a blue yarn for the MC, so it is not going to be 100% scrappy like the black one. But I am working from the scrap basket (I seem to have an endless supply of scraps) and blindly pulling out yarns, if it goes with the blue I use it and if it doesn't I've started another one with black again. I think I may see how many of these blankets I can knit this year and give as Christmas presents.

No pictures today, but stay tuned for the next post when I should have finished socks to show and will post progress pics of the blankets and you can all see the lovely yarn that was my undoing in the stash-a-long.

MItred Squares Blanket

2006-03-15T14:36:00.000-07:00

Well, here she is!!!

I'll let the pictures do the talking today. I haven't measured it but it fits my queen size bed very nicely.

Click here to enlarge.

And a close-up:

Click here to enlarge.

Anticipation

2006-03-14T18:32:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited I just had to post this short entry:

My Blanket Is Finished!!!!!!

Photos to come tomorrow, when I can take it outside and hopefully get some good shots.

Stay tuned .......

Pink Ladder Sock & Update

2006-03-06T15:02:00.000-07:00

First Pink Ladder sock is finished. I really like this pattern. I haven't started the second one yet because I need to wait until I'm finished the leg of the Norwegians (I'm using 5 needles for the leg) so I can have one of the needles. I need to get another set of #2 needles!

And for those of you eagerly awaiting news of the mitred blanket, (You know you are!). I am on the final round! I've done 2 sides and 2 more to go, then it is finished. I really didn't think I'd finish this before the Stash-along ended but it is going to happen. Stay tuned for the next post for photos! I just hope I can do it justice with my lousy camera.

And the Norwegians: just finished the star pattern at the top of the leg and starting now on the main leg pattern.

Astrid: Go here to find out about postcrossings. Scroll down a bit to "How to Participate". It really is as easy as it looks!

Norwegian Nemesis

2006-03-02T14:26:00.000-07:00

Well, the Norwegians did it to me again, but I got back at them. The pattern says to start toe 3" less than desired length and looking at the picture they do have a nice 3" toe. Well, I thought "that's nice" and preceded to knit as instructed. Well, I finished and ended up with a 2" toe.

The socks are way too short for me!! But I'm not out for the count yet! My foot is 8.5", these socks are 7.5", well my 5year old has a 7" foot so on they went to his foot and being somewhat baggy they do fit. They will actually be nice for house socks and with jeans tucked into the leg fit rather well. But I was thinking that my niece, who is 7, has the same size foot as him. So I am going to save the socks for a present for her next Christmas. Now the second one has been cast on and I'm finishing the cuff. Here's the finished first sock:

On other news, I've been receiving my Wizard of Oz altered puzzle pieces back and you can see them on my other blog. I did create a second blog, but I just post pictures of my art. This is where I do all my writing.

And today I received my very first postcrossing card. I love it!! X-Files is one of my favourite shows.

Continuing Saga of the Norwegians

2006-02-25T14:23:00.000-07:00

Well, I got my Norwegians out of the corner today and pulled the needles out. Then I put that sucker on and it's not as bad as I thought. While the leg is tighter than usual it is not too tight to wear, but that heel is horrible (puffy and baggy). So today I ripped the sock back to the heel turning and redid the heel turn in the normal way (round heel, I think it's called) then I picked up 12 stitches along the heel instead of 14 and it is much nicer now. I do like the stranded pattern and it is a very easy one to knit, though I am finding the blues rather boring. So I am going to finish this sock and make the final decision on whether I'll continue to knit the second after this is finished, blocked and put on my foot for inspection. Thanks for all the comments and suggestions!

I got an email today that my first postcrossing postcard arrived. In her profile she said she liked handmade cards so I sent her one and she says she loves it! Yeah! Can't wait until I receive my first card!

Karen, the pink sock I'm currently knitting is the February kit from the sock-of-the-month club. This is my fifth kit from the club and I've been happy with it every time.

I'm working on the foot of this now and I love it. This will help me knit the Norwegian too because when I sick of the blues in it I can come back to the lovely pink!

Dawn, the 4x6 swap I belong to is called zapbooks and you can find out more and join the group here. This is only my first month, so I can't say much about it yet but sign ups for the March swap will be starting in a few days.

Sock Apathy Over

2006-02-23T15:34:00.000-07:00

Still haven't decided about the Norwegians, keep the comments coming if you have an opinion. So, while I make my decision I added a little light to my knitting by casting on for these:

How can you not enjoy knitting pink???

Conundrum

2006-02-22T14:02:00.000-07:00

Not much to report knitting wise these days. Much of my knitting time is spent on the mitred blanket which is nearing completion. Every time I want to knit I seem to pick up the blanket and this is probably because I am feeling rather ambiguous about the Norwegian socks.

The leg is somewhat tighter than I like, it fits but .... Maybe blocking will help, I don't know. The heel is a bit loose and I know blocking won't help that. The foot will probably be ok but I haven't done enough yet to decide. Not sure if I really want to continue with these or not, colours are rather ho-hum too. What to do ... what to do? If I finish this one and knit another sock I will have to fix the fit problems, do the leg looser and mess around with the heel stitches so it's not so big. Then I'd have two socks that fit differently. Guess I could rip this out and start all over again, but can't say I feel too inclined to do that. Could finish this one up and call it a learning experience. All my other stranded socks have been done in fingering (this is sport) and I know exactly what needles, number of stitches, etc to get a good fit with the fingering. So I gotta make a decision. What would you do?
1) knit the second sock fixing the fit problems and have two different sized socks.
2) rip it out and start again, even though you have no love for it.
3) just knit the one and chalk it up to experience.
4) ???

Unloved Sock Yarn

2006-02-16T14:31:00.000-07:00

Yeah! My Unloved Sock Yarn Swap arrived today from Lisa. Thank you!

And my latest altered puzzle piece is for a theme called: Simply Vintage.

Comments:

Lissa: the mitred blanket in the picture is getting quite large. I haven't measured it but it's almost big enough for the couch. But I'm trying to make this a full size blanket for my bed so it still has a bit to go before it's big enough.

Kim: the puzzle pieces are done on the front of children's puzzles. You just paint or glue a background over the picture.

Christmas in New England?

2006-02-13T12:07:00.000-07:00

The kotr kal is knitting the New England socks this session. I'm not a big fan of knitting lace and at first had thought I would not knit these socks. But then I felt kind of bad about skipping a sock and thought how could I knit the pattern without knitting the socks. And came up with the idea of a Christmas stocking. This way I only had to knit one sock but felt better about having knit the pattern. I plan to embellish it with lace/buttons/trims, etc but don't have anything on hand at the moment so will wait till the Christmas stuff comes out later in the year.

Pattern: New England from Knitting on the Road by Nancy Bush
Yarn: Red Heart supersaver Light Sage 5mm dpns
Notes: I followed the pattern exactly using worsted weight yarn. I used the same heel and toe shaping as the pattern but modified a bit to create a short foot.

A huge portion of my knitting time is being spent on the mitred blanket. I had to buy another ball of black to continue working on it. When I started I filled up a basket with scraps. I have since emptied it and have filled it a second time and it's slowly emptying again.

Progress shot of the blanket:

Now that the New England sock is done I have started the Norwegian socks for the folk sock kal. I was a bit worried that I wouldn't be able to knit this sock because I wasn't sure I had enough yarn for it. And being in the stash-a-long I'm not allowed to buy any new yarn. But after combing through the stash I came up with sufficient quantities of some vintage Pingouin yarn. Not the colours I would have chosen if I was buying yarn for it but I am happy with it.

My January sock of the month club kit finally arrived last week. I'm really pleased with it. A simple pattern but I love the pinks. Deb has already started these and they are lovely.

On to paper crafts:

I am working with the 4x6 postcard size a lot now and this is my recent card. "Study in Grids #1"

I also did another altered puzzle piece. This one is for a frog theme puzzle. I have sent out all the pieces to my Wizard of Oz puzzle and am now waiting for them to arrive to the artists who will be working on them.

4x6 Swap

2006-02-09T13:43:00.000-07:00

I joined a swap for 4x6s, they call them zap pages and they are like ATCs only done in postcard size of 4x6. I've tried the ATC size and it's just too small for me. I've had a lot of fun working with the 4x6 size. Here are the cards I'm swapping.

For the Blue theme:

For the Random (anything goes) theme:

You can view all my collage work here.

December Rose & Royalty

2006-02-08T13:39:00.000-07:00

Pattern: December Rose by Laura Anderson (sock-of-the-month Kit)
Yarn: Cascade 220 purple & Berroco Cotton Twist gold

My next altered puzzle piece is for a one to one swap with a Royalty theme.

A Bloggers (Silent) Poetry Reading

2006-02-02T21:10:00.000-07:00

Three posts in one day!

A Bloggers (Silent) Poetry Reading

The Reading Mother
I had a mother who read to me
Sagas of pirates who scoured the sea,
Cutlasses clenched in their yellow teeth,
"Blackbirds" stowed in the hold beneath.

I had a Mother who read me lays
Of ancient and gallant and golden days;
Stories of Marmion and Ivanhoe,
Which every boy has a right to know.

I had a Mother who read me tales
Of Gelert the hound of the hills of Wales,
True to his trust till his tragic death,
Faithfulness blent with his final breath.

I had a Mother who read me the things
That wholesome life to the boy heart brings —
Stories that stir with an upward touch,
Oh, that each mother of boys were such!

You may have tangible wealth untold;
Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold.
Richer than I you can never be —
I had a Mother who read to me.

- Strickland Gillilan

Booking Through Thursday

2006-02-02T13:22:00.000-07:00

Booking Through Thursday

This week's questions brought to you by Deb, reader extraordinaire. Thank you, Deb.

Do you lend your books to other people? Not really. I have two kinds of books. Books I keep and books I read and get rid of.

If so, do you get them back? Most paperbacks and novels I read and then give away for keeps.

What do you do if they're not returned? Send the police? Stop speaking to the borrower? Storm the house and take them back? The books I keep are special to me. ie. a gorgeous colour illustrated hardback edition of the Lord of the Rings and I would not give this to anyone. I don't care who they are! LOL

Recipe for a Mitred Blanket

2006-02-02T12:42:00.000-07:00

On the knitting front I have one December Rose sock (December sotmc) done and am working on the second. I also started my new sock design and am showing a sneak peak. I can't be bothered to mess around with the camera today so I'm showing scans. The December Rose sock is actually a royal purple.

Here is one of my recent collages.

Mitred Blanket Recipe

Aimee asked in the comments below how I make the mitred blankets. I do not use a pattern, it is just something I put together and I'll share what I do.

If you know how to knit mitred squares read on. If not I highly recommend "Domino Knitting" Vivian Høxbro. This is the best info I have read on mitred squares, it not only tells how to knit the squares but details the techniques for joining and weaving. Even if you know how to knit mitres I'd recommend this as a library read for sure.

{recipe removed, I may be having this published and must remove this for now}

Stranded Knitting 101

2006-01-29T12:27:00.000-07:00

I bought 1 ball of black yarn yesterday to continue working on the mitre squares blanket. According to rule #2 of the stash-along this is a legal yarn buy.

(2) If you have to get a ball of yarn to finish a project already on the needles because you ran out of said yarn and you intend to finish said project by the end of Stashalong, that's okay.

I don't know if I will finish the blanket in time but it won't be from lack of trying, I'm working on it pretty much every day.

I also just joined the Unloved Sock Yarn Swap. Deadline for signing up is this evening.

Rebecca asked me about stranded knitting in the previous comments. So I'll give you my take on colour-work.

My mother taught me to knit fairisle when I was about 14, so this is the only way I know. First, I am a thrower and carry the yarn in my right hand, when working with two colours I carry both strands in my right hand weaved through my fingers and palm in a certain way that they don't get tangled. This varies with the type of item and type of yarn I'm using but my general rule of thumb is to carry floats for 5 stitches, after 5 stitches I weave in the float.

Whenever possible I weave in the float yarn over a stitch from the previous row that is the same colour as the yarn I'm weaving, of course this is not always possible. The 5 stitch rule works well for me as I find that if you weave in at shorter increments the woven in threads have a tendency to show through.

When working in the round on dpns I always use 5 needles since knitting the Gotland Island Mittens. It was a little bit fiddly at first but now I find using 4 needles awkward. Go figure! When you use 5 dpns (using 4 as working needles) you are able to lay your needles horizontal when switching needles and carrying floats over the join which avoids your work pulling in.

Oh, also when carrying a float longer than 5 stitches over a join between two dpns I always weave in the yarn at the last stitch on the needle, again making a nicer transition over the needles.

And basically, that's how I knit stranded work.

Socks Once More

2006-01-27T16:31:00.000-07:00

Stranded socks are finished. My camera is on the blink again, so ignore the date stamp on the image.

Click here to enlarge.

Pattern: my own (based on Traveling Socks from Socks, Socks, Socks)
Yarn: turquoise (unknown), rust vintage 100% wool, Multi (Bernat Sox Hot Tamale)
Notes: I used the original chart for colour distribution. I replaced all the motifs with my own and used seed stitch instead of garter stitch (in the original). I also did the whole thing on 2mm needles and the fit is wonderful (not boxy like the original). I used a star toe. Absolutely love knitting this type of sock and will be starting another one entirely from scratch (my own design).

WIPS

Currently working on the December Rose (sotmc) socks and a mitre blanket using alternating stripes of black and anything & everything from my scrap basket.

Click here to enlarge.

I've got a puzzle together and am hosting an altered puzzle with the theme of the "Wizard of OZ" for my altered puzzle group. Can't wait to get this going.

I also ventured out into the world of GTCs and made my first cards. GTCs are basically the same as ATCs only they are entirely glued/collaged. My latest gluepage and a GTC for you. Visit my flickr galleries linked in the sidebar to see more.

Booking Through Thursday

2006-01-26T12:59:00.000-07:00

Booking Through Thursday

I'm thinking here of any story that is split into more than one volume, stories such as Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, Rowling's Harry Potter volumes, Eddings' Belgariad, to name just a few. Christie's Hercule Perot stories do not count, nor do Gardner's Sherlock Holmes stories, as the reader can consume them in any order. Savvy?

Do you enjoy reading multi-volume stories? Yes, yes, yes!

Do you prefer the shorter stories that are done in two or three volumes, or do you willingly go for longer tales? Both

What do you like/dislike about these long tales? The worst part of reading a great book is to have it end. Sometimes you feel let down when the book is over, you have nowhere to go to find out more about these people. Trilogies and epic multi-volume sets keep on giving, you become familiar with the characters and they become friends. I love reading fantasies and very rarely read a stand-alone anymore.

First Altered Puzzle Piece

2006-01-24T16:53:00.000-07:00

No knitting pictures to show today. I'm almost at the toe of the stranded socks I'm working on so should have a picture in the next couple of days. I'm also working on a mitre square blanket, alternating stripes of black and anything & everything from my scrap basket. Will show a picture when the socks are ready.

I've been glueing almost every day, it's a great way to get the creative juices flowing every morning. Here's my latest:

The daily prompt for this was "round" things.

I also did my very first ever altered puzzle piece which was so fun to do I think I might just get hooked.

The theme for this one was "think pink".

A Great Day for Canada!

2006-01-24T11:48:00.000-07:00

Finally!!! We can only hope now that change will finally come. It is going to take a while for the jubilation in Alberta to die down.

Drumroll .....

2006-01-21T00:08:00.000-07:00

Do we have a winner???

YES!!

The winner is MJ! Who correctly guessed that I was born in Holmfirth,England. The home of Rowan Yarns

MJ wins a skein of Opal Rainforest Collection Parrot

MJ, email me with your address.

Thanks to everyone for playing!

Booking Through Thursday

2006-01-19T15:23:00.000-07:00

Have you finished any books yet? yes

If you have, how many, what were they, how did you like them? Fatal Voyage - Kathy Reichs (loved it as I do all her books); Good Morning, Young Lady - Ardyth Kennelly (very good); + and an X-Files and a ST:TNG Juvenile books. (good)

If not, why not? Are you currently reading anything that you just haven't finished yet? Currently reading The Spy Who Came In From The Cold - John Le Carre

PS: - I'm really enjoying the guesses for my birthplace contest, some very interesting places and reasons!

Contest , FO and More

2006-01-18T16:06:00.000-07:00

First of all, this is my first time having a contest and I guess I made it a bit too hard. I've given more clues in the entry below, so if you've already guessed, guess again!

As to my question about one or two blogs, thank you to Katie and Cindy for taking the time to comment. I have decided to keep just the one blog and blog away on everything hobby/craft related here.

Now, finally a FO!

Pattern: Julia's Stole by Carol Fetherston from 2006 Pattern-a-day Calendar
Yarn: For the cream I used a strand of an unknown linen/cotton blend held together with a vintage sock yarn. For the brown I used a strand of vintage Coats #30 crochet thread with a strand of Schepjeswol Mohair Ombre (67% mohair/28% wool/5% nylon)
Notes: OK, lots of notes this time. The pattern called for 3 different shades of lace weight to hold together with the mohair but I didn't have any laceweight so I went with the #30 crochet thread. I also only used one shade since I used a variegated mohair.

Next the pattern has a couple of mistakes or is not very clear. #1 - the materials call for laceweight and then this is always referred to as silk in the instructions. #2 After studying the picture numerous times I decided that the garter stich ridge was done only once instead of twice as the pattern would indicate as written. So if you are knitting this when the pattern says " work pattern sequence 21 times" I repeated only Rows 3 to 10. My stole came out to the same dimensions as given.

And finally, I absolutely love this stole and pattern! My yarns went together fabulously, wonderful texture and very soft and light. The pattern stitch is simple and easy to memorize and very pretty, I think.

I finally received my December sotmc kit. I love this one. Purple and Gold ... Mmmm! It's a worsted sock and I'll probably be starting it soon.

Since I'm in the stash-a-long I feel like maybe this cheating, but I did sign up for the club way before the stash-a-long. So I think I'm still technically ok aren't I? Kim?

Non-knitting content follows.

So, as I mentioned a few entries ago I've started a new addiction to collage. I joined the gluebooks group and have been working in one for the last little while. I'm adding a gallery link over in the side bar. Here's the first one I ever did.

I've also joined the altered puzzles group and can't wait to get started on that.

This weekend Michaels had a fabulous sale. 50% off a lot of stuff and a bunch of things for $1.50. Since I'm on the stash-a-long, I had a peek at the yarn and then bought some crafting supplies since I'm not allowed to buy yarn.

And a visit to the thrift store resulted in some crafting supplies, too. Thankfully, they had no yarn so I didn't have to pass that hurdle

A journal to collage in or alter ... an iron on face ... a landscaper's stencil of flowers and bushes ... a box of paper fasteners ... and some vintage wrapping paper.

Contest

2006-01-17T13:12:00.000-07:00

Edit: I've given better clues ... if you already guessed ... guess again. See above post for explanation

I've been thinking, one way to help reduce my stash is to give something away. So I'm holding a contest. The winner will receive a skein of Opal Parrot sock yarn.

To enter the contest you have to guess where I was born.

Clues:

The city/town where I was born has a very well-known knitting connection.
Trish is right I did emigrate ... so the city/town is not in Canada.
In fact ... it isn't even in North America.

Leave your guess in the comments and make sure you include your email address so I can contact you if you win Guesses can be made until Friday. On Saturday I will announce the winner. The person who guesses correctly will win. If more than one person guesses correctly, I will put the correct guesses in a sock and draw a name for the winner.

Question?

2006-01-15T13:39:00.000-07:00

When you have more than one interest do you have a blog dedicated to each interest or do you just put it all on one blog?

I want to start blogging about a new obsession of mine, collage & altered art. But do I start a new blog or start putting it here? I like blogs that are focussed on one topic, but I don't think I could keep up with posting to more than one blog and what if I got another passion would that mean still another blog??

What would (or do) you do?

Getting in A Mood

2006-01-10T11:27:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while I get in one of these moods where I always have to be knitting something other than what I am working on and I keep starting new things. I'm in one of these moods now. I'm working on the Shell socks from "Knitting Vintage Socks" and I love the pattern, possibly one of the prettiest lace patterns I've ever knit on a sock BUT I just can't get myself to work on them. Every time I pick them up it feels like a chore and I end up working on something else or starting something else.

I think the problem is lack of colour. When I think really hard about what I like about knitting, I get the most gratification out of putting a bunch of colours together to create something. That is why I like mitred squares, crochet squares and stranded knitting so much. And I'm just in a mood right now where I want colour-work in my knitting.

Stashbusting for the Stash-along has been in full gear around here. The second scrap rug is done and I've used up all the yarn. (Yeah!)

Click here to enlarge.

Pattern: none, basic mitre squares
Yarn: double strands Phentex and other scraps of polar weight. 8mm needles
Notes: object was to use up the yarn, which I did, so it has a scrappy look to it compared to the last one.

I also finished the first sock I was working on based on the Traveling Socks from Socks,Socks,Socks.

Click here to enlarge.

I used the original chart for colour distribution. I replaced all the motifs with my own and used seed stitch instead of garter stitch (in the original). I also did the whole thing on 2mm needles and the fit is wonderful (not boxy like the original).

And one more Finsihed Object this week.

Pattern: Slanted Eyelet Scarf by Sandi Rosner from 2006 Pattern a Day Calandar
Yarn: Baycrest Elysee (acrylic/mohair/wool) (2 balls)
Notes: very easy pattern, has a bit of a "clapotis"-look to it. The ends facing the same direction might bother some, but not me. The yarn is some ancient stuff from the stash, just the right amount of mohair to give a nice halo but not enough that it's up my nose the whole time I'm knitting. I have three more balls left of this.

Current WIPS
Shell Socks
Julia's Stole
Granny Square Vest

First FOs of 2006!

2006-01-03T14:19:00.000-07:00

First up is the mitred square rug made with Phentex from the stash. I just have to get some of that non-skid stuff to put on the back. I'm making another one since I still have some Phentex left and am adding some other polar weight scraps, so it will be more scrappy.

Click here to enlarge.

Pattern: none, basic mitred squares
Yarn: double strand of Phentex, 8mm needles.
Notes: This rug is for the laundry room. I've added boots to the pic for scale.

Click here to enlarge.

Pattern: Whitby by Nancy Bush from "Knitting on the Road"
Yarn: Briggs & Little from stash, unknown because label is lost, but a light worsted/dk weight. 2.75mm needles
Notes : followed the pattern exactly. Easy pattern to memorize, the B&L yarn is somewhat rough to work with but I've used it for socks before and will soften after washing.

Current WIPS
1) scrap mitred square rug
2) my stranded socks
3) Shell Socks from "Knitting Vintage Socks"

KALs

2006-01-01T19:38:00.000-07:00

OK, as the new year comes in I am doing some housecleaning here at Sock It To Me and I need to get my knit-alongs under control. I need to have time to do the kals and still have time to do my own things. I also want to concentrate on designing this year. So here are my current knit alongs, comments and decisions on what has to go.

Nancy Bush's Knitting on the Road. One sock every two months. I am the owner of this kal and I love it so it is definately staying.

Mittens. No deadlines. No commitments. Just knit mittens when I feel like it. So this stays, also.

Nancy Bush's Folk Socks. Hmm ... well most of the socks in this book I would not realistically get around to without the kal. Both socks I've knit for the kal, I love. One sock every two months. Really don't want to give this up, so it stays.

Tough decision. I guess I haven't really been thrilled with any of the socks in this. Nice patterns, but not earth shattering. Definately enjoy the Nancy Bush socks more. I've done 5 patterns in a row, but find myself not wanting to knit the current one. I have to give up something ... so ... this one is going. Goodbye 6sox kal!

Nacy Bush's Knitting Vintage Socks. Haven't started this one yet but I did get the book for Christmas. One sock every two months. I love Nancy Bush patterns and it wouldn't seem right not to participate in this, so ... it stays!

Socknitters SAM

This kal has changed its format and is going more into techniques than actual patterns. I have other places I can learn new techniques so I'll say ... Goodbye Socknitters SAM!

Socks, Socks, Socks

Love the book. Love some of the patterns. one sock every two months. Have not knit this months socks and do not intend to. How about I make a bargain with this kal? With 70 patterns, there is no way I want to knit every sock in this book. So the bargain is I will participate if the sock pattern chosen is one I already want to knit and have a suitable yarn in stash.

This one is easy. No commitments to knit. Just use stash for all of the above!

Summary:
2 knit-alongs given the boot.
6 remain.

Commitments:
1) 3 socks every two months, possibly 4. That's 1.5 to 2 pairs of socks a month.
2) An occassional mitten when I feel like it (... and I will!).
3) Plus everything must be knit with stash.

2005 Books Read

2006-01-01T17:29:00.000-07:00

No knitting content.

A few years ago I started keeping a list of books I read. I don’t read anywhere near as much as I used to and my reading is a lot lighter than in the past. But this year I managed to read 55 books and from the following you can see I have quite an eclectic taste in genres though mostly science fiction and YA Fantasy. These are organized by author or series rather than in order read for my own reference.

Andromeda – Destruction of Illusions – The Broken Places – Way Station
Angel - Impressions
Animorphs – Invasion – Andalite Chronicles
Robert Barnard – Death By Sheer Torture – Death of a Perfect Mother – Death in a Cold Climate – Death of a Mystery Writer
T.A. Barron – Mirror of Merlin (The Lost Years #4) – The Wings of Merlin (The Lost Years #5)
Vicki Blum – Shadow Unicorn
Buffy - Immortal
Orson Scott Card – Lost Boys
Michael Crichton – The Lost World
Catherine Cookson – Hamilton – Goodbye Hamilton – Harold
Paul Corkery – Carson , the biography
Patricia Cornwell – Hornet’s Nest
Coronation Street – The War Years by Daran Little – The Complete Sage by Katherine Hardy
Bruce Coville – Into the Land of the Unicorns (#1) – Song of the Wanderer (#2)
Kara Dalkey – Transformation (The Water Trilogy #3)
John Dunning – The Bookman’s Wake
Michael Ende – The Neverending Story
Neil Gaiman – Coraline
David Gerrold – Jumping of the Planet
Monica Hughes – The Isis Peddlar (#3) – Invitation to the Game – Castle Tourmandyne – Space Trap
Ardyth Kennelly – The Peaceable Kingdom
Keith Laumer – Earthblood
Valerie Martin – Mary Reilly
Ed McBain – Hail Hail the Gang’s All Here – Jigsaw – Fuzz
Sharan Newman - Guinevere
Garth Nix – Mister Monday (Keys to the Kingdom #1)
Christopher Paolini - Eragon
Kathy Reichs – Deadly Decisions
Anne Rice – Interview with the Vampire
JK Rowling – Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
John Saul – Suffer the Children – Punish the Sinners – Cry for the Strangers
Star Trek TNG – Encounter at Farpoint
X-Files – Antibodies – X Marks the Spot – Goblins – Whirlwind – Ground Zero

I'm Back!

2005-12-30T15:56:00.000-07:00

Whew! I've been so sick the last couple of days I've barely been out of bed. But the life in me is coming back, now I can blog again.

Hope every one had a fabulous Christmas and best wishes to all for the New Year.

We had a wonderful Christmas, my sister gave the surprise of my life by turning up on our doorstep Christmas Eve! They decided at 11:00 a.m. Christmas Eve morning to come down here, packed everyone and everything into the van without telling us! My best Christmas present ever. So, that made this year's Christmas dinner the first that the whole family: my family and the extended family on my dad's side from his marriage were all together for Christmas. Dinner was great and a houseful with 21 people from 80-something to 7 mos.

My knitting related Christmas presents included a few much coveted items:

I've spent more time using the ball winder than actually knitting this last week! But as I've been winding I realized just how much stash (never-ending stash) I have and was going to make some kind of New Year's Resolution about it when I found out about this Stashalong.

So I do hereby declare that I will not buy any new stash for the next 3 months!

In the spirit of the Stashalong I started a mitred square rug out of Phentex that has been sitting at the bottom of my stash since who-knows-when. Also in progress I have the Whitby socks (worked both at the same time) at the foot and my stranded sock I'm designing has come out of retirement now that the holidays are over.

Click here to enlarge.

Boot Socks

2005-12-21T13:36:00.000-07:00

Knitting is down to a minimum as Christmas approaches. I am working on the stranded socks of my own design that I am using Lucy Neatby's Travelling Socks pattern as a guide but I have set them aside now until after Christmas as my knitting has to be portable and mindless at the moment. I have also just started the Whitby socks for the KOTR kal, easy pattern.

I also just finished these socks. My 5yo needed some warm, long socks to wear with his boots so I call these Boot Socks.

Pattern: used the Garter Rib stitch from "Sensational Socks"
Yarn: odds and ends of sport weight yarn
Notes: basic 48 st sock with 2.75mm (US2) needles

Also picked up some new knitting magazines this week:

And finally, I made myself a stitch marker. I am always envious when I see the gorgeous stitch markers that many knitters make themselves. However, this is not my scene. I hate fiddling with tiny things and would never have the patience to fiddle with beads and wires. So I simply attached a charm to a small ring and presto a stitch marker. My camera does not do close-ups so the photo is horrible but hopefully you get the gist.

Country Socks

2005-12-16T14:26:00.000-07:00

Click here to enlarge.

Pattern: Country Socks by Nancy Bush from "Folk Socks"
Yarn: old yarn from stash. Gold is 60%wool/40%nylon, Navy is Pinguoin 100% wool
Notes: very easy, simple rib pattern. Followed the pattern exactly. I now love the star toe and it has become my favourite toe. Until now I have always used a 2.75mm for sport weight. These were done on 2.25mm and I am really impressed with fabric this creates. I will most certainly switch down to the smaller needles with sport weight from now on whenever possible.

I also finally received my free ball of Disco yarn from Bernat that was offered in the summer, I think. Not sure what I'll do with it but the colour is gorgeous, "Aqua Velvet"

Traveling Socks

2005-12-12T17:24:00.000-07:00

Click here to enlarge.

Pattern: Traveling Socks by Lucy Neatby from the book "Socks, Socks, Socks"
Yarn: variegated yarn is Knit Picks Sock Memories "Hawaii" that I received from the Sock Scrap Swap. Solids are from stash.
Notes: Incredibly fun pattern to knit. Followed pattern but since some of the patterns intentially did not meet properly on the leg I increased and decreased so they would. Knit on 80sts, the heel and toe are somewhat boxy and next time I would go down to a 2mm to make them more fitted. Also note that the pattern calls for a 200 and something yard ball of the variegated, the knitpicks I used only had 192 yds and there was not enough to do the toes in the variegated so I used one of the solids.

I had so much fun knitting these that they inspired me to make my own following the same principles. I cast on the other night for another pair, using 2mms this time. I am using the same colour distribution as in the original pattern but am substituting my own stitch patterns and motifs.

Warm Hands, Warm Feet

2005-12-07T11:49:00.000-07:00

Not as much knitting as usual going on around here but I do have some FOs to show.

Warm Feet

Click here to enlarge.

Pattern: Munstersocken for my niece. no pattern
Yarn: odds and ends of sock yarn
Notes: basic 56 st stocking stitch with a star toe.

Warm Hands

Click here to enlarge.

Pattern: Salish Mittens from "Folk Mittens"
Yarn: odd balls of bulky weight from stash, the brown is a mohair/wool blend that has a gorgeous halo that can't be seen in the picture and these mitts are WARM!
Notes: followed the pattern exactly, no adjustments. The colours are a bit lighter than shown in the photo. I love this pattern and will knit again soon.

My November sock of the month club kit came on the 30th. This is an easy pattern but with a unique idea of double strands for the leg.

WIP Report
1) no progress on the yellow crochet blanket lately
2) one Travelling Sock finished, second one working on the leg
3) started the Country Socks for the "Folk Socks" knitalong

Upcoming Projects
1) Whitby Socks for Knitting on the Road Kal
2) Shadow Socks for sixsox kal
3) fingerless mitts for me and the 16yo

This and That, FOs and WIPs

2005-11-29T12:53:00.000-07:00

Ah,the joy of quick and easy knits! Two FOs to report, which were both extremely fun to knit.

Click here to enlarge.

Pattern: Munstersockens for the 5yo. No pattern, 3x1 rib
Yarn: scraps,bit and pieces of sock yarn
Notes: 56 sts on 2.25mm needles.

Click here to enlarge.

Pattern: Bulky-Weight Andean Mittens from "Folk Mittens" by Marcia Lewandowski
Yarn: Odd balls of wool from stash.
Notes: Love this pattern. Second time around was a breeze and I'll knit this again. Beth's idea (in the comments) of doing mismatching mittens (same pattern, different colours) is fabulous.

Next up is my order from yesasia. I am fascinated by Japanese Crafting and these are my first actual Japanese books. I can't stop looking at them!

WIP Report

Click here to enlarge.

1) in the background is a yellow afghan I am putting together from squares received from my crochet square exchange. I'm bordering each with Sage.

2) on the left, that tiny bit of ribbing is the start of the Salish Mittens from "Folk Mittens"

3) on the right, I am now working on the Traveling Socks by Lucy Neatby from "Socks, Socks, Socks". The variegated yarn is the Knitpicks "Hawaii" I received in the Sock scrap Swap. This has got to be the most fun I've ever had knitting a sock. I just love it!

Up Next: The sixsox, Folk Socks, and Knitting on the Road KAL's are all anouncing their next socks on the 1st of Dec.

More Mitts and Socks

2005-11-22T11:57:00.000-07:00

Click here to enlarge.

Pattern: no pattern
Yarn: Lane Cervinia Forever Jacquard Shade 40/ 2.25 mm needles
Notes: Basic sock pattern with a bit of rib down the sides, my first man size sock done with sock weight yarn. Also my first time using this yarn and I really enjoyed using it.

Click here to enlarge.

Pattern: Bulky-Weight Andean Mittens from "Folk Mittens" by Marcia Lewandowski
Yarn: various odd balls from stash, 3.75 mm needles
Notes: Followed the pattern as written except the first mitt (the one on the right) ended up having points at the top of the fingers and thumb so I fixed this on the second one by doing one less decrease round and the finish is much more round. I love these mitts and the pattern. Using 85gr of MC, they can use up odd bits and pieces for the other colours, great stashbuster. And they are super fast to knit. I have another pair planned and may even make more!

Gotland Island Mittens

2005-11-16T12:47:00.000-07:00

Click here to enlarge.

Close-up of pattern:

Click here to enlarge.

Pattern: Gotland Island Mittens from "Folk Mittens" by Marcia Lewandowski
Yarn: Lang Thema 100% wool on 2mm (US#0) needles
Notes: Followed the pattern almost exactly. I had one false start using the #1 needles the pattern called for, I had to go down to #0's to get gauge. Also the finger shaping band is done in pattern and I prefer a striped band so I changed the 3 band sts to 1 blue, 1 yellow, 1 blue. This was my first time using 5 dpn's and I will always use 5 now when doing stranded work in the round. Much, much easier than using 4.

Pine Cone Scarf

2005-11-15T12:27:00.000-07:00

I know, lousy photo. I need a new camera badly.

Pattern: Pine Cone Scarf from Interweave Knits Winter 2004
Yarn: unknown. bought a bag of it at a garage sale, definately contains wool. very nice to knit with and very soft. Can't really tell in the photo but the colours are green, brown, and a dark brown that is almost purple.
Notes: really like this scarf. followed the pattern exactly using a chunky yarn instead of a worsted doubled.

Also did some shopping:

Gotland Island Mitts Update: I have half a thumb left to knit! Next post will bring you a photo of the finished mitts!

Mosaic Socks

2005-11-11T15:06:00.000-07:00

First pair of socks for hubby! Now he wants more!

Pattern: Six Socks Knit-a-long Mosaic Socks
Yarn: vintage Pinguoin Sport Weight 100% wool
Notes: I used sport instead of fingering. Changed stitches to 56 sts. Used US#2 and US#4 needles. Worked my normal heel, instead of the strong heel in pattern as I thought it might be too boxy with the thicker yarn. Easy pattern, and fun to do. Will definately look at doing another mosaic pattern.

Latvian Socks

2005-11-09T12:23:00.000-07:00

I am finally finished the Latvian Socks. I feel a sense of relief at having these done, not a hard pattern but on 2mm needles I seemed to knit and knit and get nowhere with these. But I am really pleased with them, they were well worth the effort.

Pattern: Latvian Socks from "Folk Socks" by Nancy Bush
Yarn/Needles: Fortissima Coton Colori Shade Santa Barbara, US #0
Notes: I knit a rib instead of the picot edge, and I cast on with 72 sts instead of decreasing down to 72, rest of sock was knit per instructions.
Heel/Gusset/Toe Notes: Heel and Gusset were knit with my usual method, I did however, learn a new method for the chain selvedge. All my life I have used the slip the first stitch method and this method created the same finished edge but was done by slipping the last stitch p-wise, then ktb the first stitch. Toe is the same as the Conwy toe and I am now used to it. And after wearing the Conwys quite a bit now, I like the way it fits too.

Also did some quick knitting and made a cabled scarf.

Pattern: Karaoke Cable Scarf from Knit Pixie
Yarn/Needles: vintage Mary Maxim Chunky wool blend. 8mm needles
Notes: I really like this pattern, very simple, but the cables create a neat effect looking like a more complicated cable, rather than two simple cables side by side.

Now that the Latvians are done, I will buckle down and get some serious work done on the Gotland Island Mitts. I am currently working a few more pattern repeats then I start the finger shaping.

Sock Scrap Swap

2005-11-03T13:50:00.000-07:00

Edit: added link for the sock-of-the-month club.

A couple of FOs to show first-off. This is the Feather & Fan Shawl which I actually finished a while ago but forgot to take a photo. I started off thinking I'd go with Fall colours but it ended up being more Christmas-y colours.

The Big Granny Square Blanket is done. We've had this on the bed the last two nights and it is warm!! The colours are much more brighter than shows up in the photo.

The mailman paid me a visit this week. My Sock Scrap Swap yarn arrived from Liz. Yeah! I love it! There is Knit Picks and Sockotta, I haven't knit with either of these yarns before and I love the colours. Now, to decide what to use them in.

And my partner, Judy, received hers from me, too!

My October Sock-of-the-Month Club kit arrived. I can't say enough about how thrilled I am with this club. A beautiful lace pattern this time with gorgeous merino lambswool. The colour is a heather blue with wonderful subtle shades. I honestly can't stop stroking this yarn every time I pass it.

Click here to see larger pics of everything.

WIP Report:
1) Gotland Island Mitts - just about to place the thumb on the second mitt
2) Latvian Socks - working on the heel of the second sock.
3) Mosaic Socks - finished the first sock. It fits hubby perfectly and he loves it!
4) Fishies - knitting away. This is the TV knitting.

Child's Winter Helmet Pattern

2005-11-02T10:26:00.001-07:00

This is a vintage pattern I have been using, I have rewritten it to work in the round.

Yarn: 100 gr. worsted weight
Needles: 3.75 mm (US #5) long dpns or short circular; and a longer circular.
2 safety pins or stitch holders.

Size: this fits my 5yo, but it will easily fit about a 3-6.

Cast on 70sts. Join. Work 3" in K1,P1 ribbing.

Next row: Rib 10, Knit 50, Turn. Put remaining 10 sts on holder.
Next row: Purl 50. Turn. Put remaining 10 sts on another holder.

Working on centre 50 sts. work back and forth in rows in stocking stitch until entire piece from beginning measures 9", ending with a Purl row.

Short row Head shaping:
1st row: K34,Sl 1, K1, psso. Turn
2nd row: P19, P2tog. Turn
3rd row: K19, Sl 1, K1, psso. Turn
Repeat row 2 and 3 until all 20 sts are on one needle, ending with 2nd row. Cut yarn.

Face ribbing: With right side of work facing and using circular needle long enough to fit around face opening, rib across 10 sts on first holder, pick up and knit 26 sts along side of face edge, knit across 20 sts, pick up and knit 26 sts along other side of face opening, rib across 10 sts on 2nd holder. Join, and place marker for beginning of round.

Work 9 rnds of k1, p1 ribbing. Cast off loosely in ribbing.

Flashing for Socktoberfest

2005-10-29T15:20:00.000-06:00

I have a case of startitis and have too many wips at the moment. I've recently started these:

Helmet for the 5yo, finished.

Started working on the sixsox Mosaic Socks, my hubby is pestering me to knit him some socks so these are for him.

An irrisistable urge to knit fishies hit me one evening.

Other wips are the Latvian Socks, Gotland Island Mitts, and Big Granny Blanket.

I hereby do declare that I will not start anything else until ~~all~~ most of these are done.

The end of Socktoberfest is drawing near and I'm celebrating by flashing my sock stash. Join the celebration and flash yours too!

This just includes sock weight yarn, it does not include sock weight I've set aside for non-sock projects, nor does it include any sport/ww I intend to knit socks with.

The Solids

The Multis

Click here to see bigger pics of everything.

My Etsy Shop - Shameless Plug

2005-10-27T15:06:00.000-06:00

I'm moving my entire inventory over to my etsy shop. I sell vintage (and not so vintage) knit and crochet patterns & supplies. There is not too much listed yet, but I have thousands to add. Come visit and you can add my etsy shop to your Bloglines feeds with this url: http://www.etsy.com/rss_shop.php?user_id=2663

One Hand, One Foot

2005-10-23T16:27:00.000-06:00

Bought a couple of new mags and am doing the happy dance cause I got a 2006 calendar! I am one of the poor unfortunate souls who did not get a 2005 because I waited too long and they were all sold out.[sob] I l.o.v.e the Holiday Vogue, there are several things I am going to make and we will be seeing them in progress soon.

Three more dishcloths done and when I've finished a cloth there is always some cotton left over, but not enough for another cloth so I've been crocheting the leftovers into 4" squares and then bordering with red to make placemats. So here we have one placemat finished.

Warm Hands Post

Here is one finished Gotland Island mitten.

Click here to enlarge.

Socktoberfest Post

Here is one finished Latvian sock.

Click here to enlarge.

So Friday night, I'm working on the Feather & Fan shawl (I have 8 rows left till it's finished) and I got this huge urge to crochet, mindless crochet, round and round in granny squares. So I pulled out a K hook and odd balls of chunky/bulky yarns and here we have a Big Granny Square Blanket in progress.

Click here to enlarge.

Nicola Needs ...

2005-10-21T21:58:00.000-06:00

OK, I don't usually do these things but I'm having so much fun reading these all over blogland that I just had to play too!

10) Nicola needs to embrace the natural qualities of her hair rather than fighting it with appliances and products

9) Nicola needs to make sure she doesn’t just become somebody who is marketed and
hyped for a quick profit

8) Nicola needs to use the phone for long gossip sessions with her friends about
how wonderful you are and you're expected to pick up the tab.

7) Nicola needs to work toward making commitments to fewer projects so she completes
more of the ones...

6) Nicola needs clothes

5) Nicola needs to actually see a real p*nis.

4) Nicola needs a rocket going somewhere.

3) Nicola needs to follow her heart!

2) Nicola needs to relax and forget about mistakes

1) Poor Nicola needs all the rest she can get these days.

Socks, Mittens and Cloths. Oh My!

2005-10-19T12:52:00.000-06:00

Sandy is having a mitten-along and of course I had to sign up. This should help the Gotland Island Mitts to keep progressing. I'm currently finishing the first thumb then I'll post a pic of the first mitten.

For Socktoberfest, I present you with a wip photo of the Latvian Socks from Folk Socks by Nancy Bush.

And I'm so excited! I got my Sock Scrap Swap partner today. Looking through my scraps I've chosen to send these. Hope she likes them!

And for a FO, I've completed three more dishcloths. The green ones I'm keeping for myself.

Presenting Conwy (& others)

2005-10-16T11:53:00.000-06:00

To everyone who commented on Thrift Shop yarn buying, there is one key word here "perseverance". It really is hit and miss but you have to keep going back, if something good comes in, believe me it will not last long. I am admittedly a thrift shop junkie, but all the times I come up empty handed are happily offset by the occassional rewards. I've found lots of super yarn deals and thinking of the best I would have to say the time I got 3 balls of kid mohair and the time I got a box full !! of hanks of Briggs & Little worsted wool (still have lots of this left). And all for less than a buck a ball.

Come join the fun over at Straying Power for a Sock Scrap Swap

Now, onto the WIPs and FOs. First may I present Conwy. This has been designated as my favourite sock to date:

Click here to enlarge.

Pattern: Conwy from "Knitting on the Road" by Nancy Bush
Yarn: Harris Tweed Shetland 4ply Shade 3
Gusset, Heel and Toe Talk: following my plan to follow instructions here, the gusset and heel were done using my regular method, so nothing new here. The toe was something new for me, with decreasing done 4 times in the round, I believe this is called the star toe. Can't say I'm too crazy about the decrease lines on the top and bottom of the toe but it does fit nicely and I will give it another try and see how I feel after I've worn them a while.

Second FO for the day is the Feather & Fan Comfort Shawl:

Click here to enlarge.

Pattern: Feather & Fan Comfort Shawl
Yarn: odd balls of novelty/specialty/bulky yarns from stash.

And I leave you with a peek at the WIPs:

Click here to enlarge.

1) Another feather & fan shawl, this time with fall colours.
2)green dishcloth. (yay! the yellow is all done).
3)Latvian Lace sock (doing a rib instead of the picot hem)
4) Gotland Island Mitten, getting close to the finger decreases.

Weekend Shopping and FOs

2005-10-11T13:19:00.000-06:00

Did a little bit of shopping this weekend in Lethbridge. Popped into Walmart and they had some of the green cotton I've been looking for and having a hard time finding, plus the newest issue of Creative Knitting. Not much in it but I picked it up because there are two Christmas Stocking Mosaic patterns I like.

Did the round of the thrift stores and made a score at the Mennonite Thrift Shop. A bunch of old McCall's Needlework & Crafts (I collect these from the 50s-70s) and a little bag of odds and ends of sock yarn that immediately called out monster socks to me. There appears to be three different colorways here.

And finally, went into a wonderful little yarn shop: Knitting Time, where I found some lovlies. Been looking for the Great American afghan books for ages, they are very hard to find around here. So I picked up Great American Afghan and Great North American Afghan 2. Also got some cute Regia sock needles with little sock protectors, these are Us #0's which I needed a second set for the Latvian Socks the Folk Socks Kal is knitting. And finally mustn't leave without sock yarn, so here we have some Online sock yarn in a beautiful fall shade orange/lime/red.

And I did get some knitting done. Not as much as I had hoped, I was way too tired on the ride home to knit but did get the Chevron socks finished, and have another set of yellow dishcloths done. I have just enough yellow left for one more cloth I think.

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I'm on the gussets of the second Conway sock and should have a FO next time I post.

Week of Mail

2005-10-07T11:57:00.000-06:00

The mailman has been busy stopping by this week. First my "Folk Solks" book came so now I can start thinking about the Latvian socks for the folksolks kal.

I love elann.com. I placed my order on Monday and received my package on Wednesday! Here we have some circs I needed: Clover and Addi-Turbos. Then some Harris Tweed Shetland for a shawl (Butterfly Garden from Inknitters mag) I'm planning and some Endless Summer Cotton for dishcloths for my kitchen.

As you know I am a sock-addict and therefore must absolutely belong to a sock club. I've been neglectful up to this point but have rectified the situation by joing the sock of the month club from theknitter.com. The first kit arrived and I'm thrilled with it. Beautiful lace sock called "Hawaiin Leis" and some Trekking XXL which I have never knit with before.

Of course, when signing up, I had to add a few other items to my basket. So here we have Lornas Laces Glenwood and Mountain Colors Weavers Wool Quarters in Firestorm:

On the knitting front, I'm working on both the Chevron and Conway socks. We are going away for this weekend for Thanksgiving and I have a 2 hour drive both ways (= 4 hrs pure knitting!) and hope to have them both finished when I return.

Finally, for Jane's contest here are my socks:

Gimme a K, Gimme an A, Gimme an L

2005-10-03T16:34:00.000-06:00

It is KAL time! The sock knit-alongs have posted the new socks! The socknitters kals didn't have anything that spoke to me this time so I have just 3 new socks to knit.

The sixsocks is doing a mosaic pattern and oddly enough I've never knit a sock with a mosaic pattern before so this should be fun. Gotta sit down and pick out some yarn.

The FolkSocks group has chosen the "Latvian" sock and I'm expecting my book to arrive any day now. Nothing like a kal to give you an excuse for buying a new book!

The Knitting of the Road group has chosen "Conwy" for the new sock and I am in love. The pattern is beautiful and this yarn is to-die for. I'm using Harris Tweed Shetland 4ply and the colours are yummy.

Also on the needles: The Gotland Island mittens are progressing, slowly but surely. The yellow ball of cotton is decreasing and the number of dishcloths increasing. The chevron sock for my sister has one done and the second one underway. And like I didn't need another wip, I cast on and have not been able to put down this Feather and Fan Comfort Shawl. I'm using odd balls of fancy/novelty yarns from the stash.

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Zebra - Take Two

2005-09-28T13:20:00.000-06:00

Well, one ball of Opal Rainforest Collection Zebra made me a pair of socks and a this pair of Spiral Rib socks for the 5 year old - with about 1 yard left over! This pattern is from Socks Socks Socks.

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On the needles

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Since I was sockless, and the kals will be announcing the new sock patterns in a few days, I couldn't possibly not have socks on the needles but needed something quick I'm working on a pair of my Chevron Socks for my sister for Christmas.

Also, still working on the yellow dishcloths.

And a new mitten is underway! The Gotland Island Mittens from Folk Mittens. These are a learning experience for me. I've already frogged it once as they were coming out too big. I had to go down to a US#0 to get gauge. I'm using Lang Thema since I bought a bag of different colours from elann to make mitts this winter. I also have switched to 5 dpns. I've never used 5 dpns before and am surprised at how easy they are to use, especially for the stranded work. The floats over the needle joins are so much easier to work this way.

Comments on Comments

Thanks for all the nice words about my knitting! If you leave your email address when you comment, I can respond to you personally.

mitz: the zigzag multi-d scarf used a mystery yarn from my stash. No label, and I can't remeber what it was, sorry.

tanja asked where I get my dishcloth patterns. Knitting Pattern central. This is where I get almost all my on-line patterns.

rebecca: I belong to the "I-belong-to-too-many-knitalongs-club" and there is a new one , which you've gone and started, for Folk Socks that I.must.not.join.

Sky for Sandy (and Mitts, too!)

2005-09-22T12:15:00.000-06:00

Sandy asked for a sky picture, so here is a picture of my gloomy overcast sky.

And since I always think of mittens when I think of Sandy, these are appropriate for this post, too!

Finished the mittens with the fringe and love them! I'm using up my stash yarns as much as poss. these days and used vintage Pingouin Challenge 4 (a DK weight) which is an acrylic/wool blend but very nice and soft.

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FOs

2005-09-20T12:51:00.000-06:00

I have a big ball of yellow cotton that I've been using for washcloths. These will be for Christmas presents. I have three done with more to come.

Another Multi-D scarf finished. I love doing this technique! Here is the zigzag scarf. This pattern is from Iris's yahoo group and obtained free after you have finished the first multi-D scarf.

And last, but certainly not least, are the completed Feather and Fan socks for the socksx3 kal in Opal Rainforest Zebra. I kinda lost steam on the second sock. I really like it and the pattern is easy but I guess the neutral black and white numbed my senses a bit.

I followed the pattern almost exactly as written. The only changes I made were a 24 row heel and I did not do the garter stitch rows at the the end of the leg.

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I've made a bargain with myself to work on different techinques for heels and toes. Up to this point I have got into the habit of ignoring heel,gusset and toe instructions in a pattern and just using my normal (favorite) methods. So, for the Feather and Fan socks I had always wondered what a ribbed heel would be like. I like the look but am not too crazy with fit, but it's ok. A dutch heel with short gusset fits nice. The dutch heel does look wonky when it's not being worn, but it does fit nicely. The toe (Decrease every 4th row till a certain point, then decrease every row) I was afraid I wouldn't like and I kept thinking it was going to be way too long but surprisingly, it wasn't and I really like the fit of this method.

On the needles: The nordic mittens just need their thumbs, more dishcolths, and I'm using the leftover Zebra to make spiral rib socks for the 5-year-old.

On the Needles

2005-09-12T16:01:00.000-06:00

Three new projects currently on the needles.

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From left to right,

Iris Schreier's multi-directional zig zag scarf. This is the free pattern you can receive after you have posted a photo to the group of the first free pattern.

Nordic mittens with fringe: This is a pattern from a vintage McCall's Accessories magazine that I have wanted to make for ages. The fringe is wild! It was not fun to do (crocheted with double strands and a tiny hook) but worth the effort.

and feather and fan socks in Opal Rainforest Zebra. I love how this turned out. I think the feather and fan pattern would look good in practically any yarn: solid, variegated or self-striped. The ultimate sock pattern!

Finished x 3

2005-09-08T14:24:00.000-06:00

Woo hoo! Items just flying off the needles in the past few days. Finished off three things!

First, the bias blanket. I used scraps for this and knit to the point where I was sick of it and then decreased. Knit in garter stitch, it lays flat so I didn't bother with a border. It's a little smaller than I had originally intended but it's the perfect size for the 5-year-old, who is thrilled to have his own cuddle blanket.

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Next on the block are the basketcase socks. I've been using up some of my vintage yarns and again these use a vintage sock yarn by Embassy. The sock in the foreground is still wet and you can see the faint variences in the colour of the yarn. The neutral yarn has very faint almost rose highlights and I think the red on the heels and toe really bring it out on the sock in the background which is dry.

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Finally, we have the munstersocken, which were pure joy to knit!

Something New

2005-09-03T16:21:00.000-06:00

Finished the last scarf for the time being. A feather and fan:

The basketcase sock is a lot of fun to knit. I'm using fingering and #1 needles and it has a lot of stretch. Decided to add some colour and am using the leftover red from Amble for the heel and toe. One sock done and the next one almost has the leg finished.

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One night last week, I didn't feel like knitting anything I had in progress so I picked up the needles and cast on for a 2x2 rib sock for the 5-year-old. I start rooting around in my odds & ends and before you know it .... I had a munstersocken! My very first one and it was so fun to knit. I kept saying to myself, just one more stripe ... just one more stripe ... There are going to be a lot more of these in the future.

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Been thinking about mittens lately, the fair isle urge is starting to raise it's head. I think it's fair to say mittens will be on the needles soon.

Oh, and the Socks, Socks, Socks knit-along has chosen the Feather and Fan sock as it's first pattern. I'm going to give it a try in Opal Rainforest Zebra.

Socks and Scarves

2005-08-29T11:01:00.000-06:00

Another Diamond Scarf completed, this one with Bernat Galaxy in a lovely pink and gold colour.

Two new books added to my library this week. Barbara Walker's A Second Treasury of Knitting Patterns and the new Vogue Knitting.

I don't always buy Vogue as I don't find many of the designs to my liking but I do get a lot of ideas from it and this pattern prompted me to buy this one. Now, I have no inclination to ever knit a skirt, but this modular pattern would be fabulous for a scarf or blanket.

I was caught by the elann bug last week and received some funky shades of Fortissma and a few more balls of Harris Tweed.

And finally, I have been knitting more than just scarves! The Ladder of Life socks are finished. Very easy yet attractive pattern and quick to knit in worsted. These are my firt pair of men's socks, knit for my 16 year old!

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Next sock pattern, which I will be casting on today is the Basketcase socks. I also have another scarf almost finished, this one is a feather and fan done in a white cotton/Silk blend. Both my blankets, the purple mitres and the bias blanket, are receiving a bit of attention in the evenings as I'm watching Season 2 of 24 of DVD.

A New Sock Knit-along!

2005-08-26T12:35:00.000-06:00

Just found this group! The knit-along is based on the Socks,Socks,Socks book.

Yahoo! Groups : socks3kal

Amble Socks Finished

2005-08-23T13:36:00.000-06:00

Stats: I followed the pattern almost exactly as written, using 4ply fingering (vintage wool) and 60 sts on #1s. I did not carry the pattern down the heel and just used my normal heel and my normal grafted toe rather than the toe in the pattern.

Scarf-ing It

2005-08-22T12:12:00.000-06:00

Busy week both with life and knitting. But I've been keeping the knitting simple. The Amble socks have one pattern repeat and a toe until their finished. Photo will come with the next post.

Started the Ladder of Life socks, these are an easy pattern done with worsted which I am really enjoying.

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Most of my knitting time has been filled with scarfs, these are quick, (almost) instant gratification.

A New Fun Knit

2005-08-16T12:21:00.000-06:00

Amble Sock is coming along nicely, I have one done and the second one started. I really like this pattern and the stitches are showing up nicely on this not too dark red. I'm also amzed at how nicely the vintage KMart sock yarn is knitting up.

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Found myself another group to join! Iris Schreier of Art Yarns has a new book out and has a new Yahoo group to go along with it. I love modular knitting and am anxious to get her new book. The first kal is the original multidirectional scarf. These are so fun and fast to knit.

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This is some old worsted from my stash.

On the design front: I have the pattern worked out for these socks and am happy with the look of the stitch on #1s but I'm not happy with the size and feel of the fabric. I've now assumed this is because of the yarn Fortissima Cotton Colori, cotton doesn't have any give to it and this stitch is not working with it. So back to the drawing board! I'm looking for a wool yarn to try again.

Here you can see the stitch detail and how the pattern is working out. Since my camera won't do close-ups, these have been scanned. First picture is light and shows the true colour of the yarn, the second is darker and shows off the stitch detail a bit better.