Due to unforeseen circumstances........Knitting interrupted.....

With all the issues involved with finding the kitty a home, not much knitting happened this week. I am 2/3 of the way through the foot part, but, not ready to decrease for the toe yet. Maybe by tonight...... Home on vacation all this week with much running around to do.....Hope to get some knitting in too...........

Kitty rescue and drama.... sad story with a happy ending

A close friend of mine is very ill with cancer. Last Monday, she had to concede the fight to live at home with help coming in every day. She went to the nursing home. It's actually the best place for her at this time. She has company, is not alone, and is safe. She feared dying alone in her apartment, even though her son and his wife live in the same complex and building.

This move also meant a major upheaval for her 7 year old cat. Whiskers is a beautiful, huge, Sylvester type kitty and very loving. The son and daughter-in-law were taking him, but, she is extremely allergic to cats. Whiskers stayed in the apartment by himself with multiple daily visits from the two of them. He desperately needed a home by today or would be put in the pound or sent to kitty heaven. (I have since learned vets don't euthanize healthy cats upon request). It would have definitely been the pound.

I worked all week on trying to locate someone who could, or, knew someone who could, save his life. The only reason I could not keep him myself, is I am already way over the amount I should have -- as anyone who has read this site before would know -- and I have special needs pets at this time.

Well, the cat angels above must have been listening because he now has a home with one of the doctors from my job. She already has two other cats and instantly fell in love with Whiskers when she met him. We brought all his toys, supplies, and him to her house Thursday evening. He has already started to settle in nicely and I foresee a great future for him.

The previous owners have been invite to visit him any time they wish..........

Yarn, Yarn, Yarn from the mail box...........

My Lime N Violet package arrived last week and I truly love the colors of both of my selections. I also had discovered KindredSpirits.com site and ordered 2 skeins from them. This arrived the other day and is now sitting on my cabinet near the desk along with the LnV package. All I am saying is this..........They are evil....... They tempt me to forsake my other sock in progress to cast on one of them now.........I can almost hearing them calling me to pick them up and squish them a bit. I have a pattern in mind for the dark blue from Kindred Spirits and the light pink/white multi from LnV already. Just Must Resist Urge to Start Them..........

Zipping through sock 2 of this pattern........

I started the mate to "Go With the Flow" last Sunday during a leisurely drive to the flea market in Mansfield, CT. If you drive slow, it's about an hour and a half away. We take rte 6 through Scituate and parts of CT. It's a very picturesque route with some highway as well as rural areas blended together.

The cast on was being difficult for some unknown reason and I had started this sock about 4 times before it finally clicked. So, the cast on and first 2 rows of the cuff were already waiting for me from a previous day. As I joined the stitches, I could feel myself relax.......Knitting usually has that affect on me....... Then I resumed working the cuff pattern, then the actual leg pattern. By the time I got to the flea market, I was into my second repeat of the leg and really was remorseful about getting out of the car and leaving it languishing in it's bag on the floor. I just wanted to sit there and work on it.

I wandered around the grounds, but, could feel the tug of the sock calling me back to it. When we returned to the car, I picked up my bag, got comfortable, and started knitting before we had even pulled back onto the road from the entrance. The needles only stop moving once for a stop at Walmart to pick up a couple of items before we headed home. Purl, purl, knit, k2tog, yo, knit, purl......all the way home.......

Now it's Saturday, a whole 6 days later. I had high hopes to finish the poor sock by now after that great start. Sadly, I am just starting the gussets. My friend has been placed in a nursing home and I have been trying to find placement for her cat. Her son's girlfriend is highly allergic and can't keep him like she wanted to. I am over full with my "kids" so it's not an option for me. I have the kittens, my older cats, the diabetic cat, old dogs and puppy. It's just not possible for me to take another animal. Finding him a home has taken priority over my needles. We have some other people asking their friends and family if anyone can help us out in the circumstances.

Maybe another ride tomorrow will get me almost to the end of the foot............

Yay!!!!!...........It's Here!!!!!!!!!

I love it when I open the door to check for packages on the front step and find something. I have a couple of things ordered and have been patiently awaiting their arrival. There are a couple of books from Crafter's Choice, a CD from my music club, and .......YARN from Lime n Violet.

I was surprised to find the yarn on the step this morning. I only ordered it a few days ago. Let me just say this: It's beautiful! The colors are so pretty - much nicer than the monitor indicated. I know different monitors can give different color perception, and mine was really close to the real thing. The colors just seem a bit prettier in reality. Now, I'm off to pull out some patterns and choose which will become each of these yarns........ My needles are calling me....... :)

First Flow Sock Finished........Also a long Rant About "Special" People..........

The toe is kitchenered closed and the second sock is cast on................ Hopefully, number 2 will work up a bit faster and with less issues than the number 1 did. I have all the bugs worked out of the pattern now, so it should be o.k.

I am patiently waiting for 2 skeins of hand dyed yarn from Lime N Violet's store. I haven't picked out a pattern yet. I need to actually see the yarn so it can tell me what socks it wants to be.

I went to the grocery store tonight after work. As I shopped, I saw a former patient I knew from my facility. I have not really had much to do with him, because I never worked in his building. He is now living in an apartment on his own. He had mental health issues and spent a considerable time at the hospital. When he saw me, he asked me for a dollar, and then asked me if he had enough to buy the food he wanted.

While I was talking to him, store security came up to us. The security person was in regular clothes to blend in with the shoppers. Apparently, T had asked other people for help or a dollar before he saw me. Security identified himself and told T he could not bother other customers and to leave the store. Obviously, he had been following him around for a bit.

When I said I knew T, the security person asked if I was sure he was not bothering me. I assured him this was the case. Then I handed T a dollar, helped him with his food choice, and told him not to ask any one else for help. Just go pay and leave the store.

I looked around the aisles as I headed for check out, but, did not see him or the security person again. Hopefully, T did as I said and left. Hopefully, the officer did not detain or bother him again. I wanted to explain about T to him, but, could not do this, because of his privacy rights.

I think it's sad that as a society, we judge people before understanding them. It is obvious this person had issues. He looks o.k., but, if you speak to him, you can figure it out. I also have a family relative with mental illness who is living is supervised housing. My husband takes him to the stores and runs errands with him. I wonder how many people look at P and veer away since you can tell he has some issues. He is completely harmless and timid. Actually, he is more afraid of others then they need to be of him. The other side is people can be cruel and mean to these unfortunate people. Don't get me wrong. Sometimes they are very invasive and can be abusive. Not the usual case.

I also had a mentally challenged and physically handicapped sister who died several years ago. Her disabilities were obvious if you saw her, especially because of her speech problem. She was not a stupid person, just slow. On many occasions, I saw people look upon her with almost disgust because she was different.

I always think, but for the grace of God, there goes you or I. Please think twice before turning away from, or ridiculing someone with a disability, immediately obvious or not. No one chooses to have to live with these problems. Actually, I admire them for their perseverance to get along with their life in spite of the restrictions and challenges their problems present to them. Sometimes I think they are stronger because of them.

Slow Progression on the Flow Sock....

The sock has been reworked up to half way through the gussets. I'm not sure if it is a pattern snafu, or just my interpretation of it, but, I had a problem lining up the stitches for the instep. The pattern said to knit 14 stitches, turn, slip one as to purl, and purl 27 more stitches. This was suppose to start the heel flap. If I did this, it put me off by two stitches in the instep. Instead, I knit 12 stitches, and when I turned, I worked the slip stitch and 29 purls. This ended me right where I needed to be. The discovery of this problem happened after the heel flap and turn had both been worked and then ripped out. I plan to finish the gusset tonight, then hopefully most of the foot. If the problem hadn't been there, I think sock #1 would have been finished already. I'm not in a hurry to get these done, but, I do have many more patterns calling to me........

My friend, Donna, had to put her diabetic cat to sleep last week. My old roommate and I found him back in 1993. After fostering him, Donna gave him a home . This was an extremely spoiled cat who let you know he was the boss. He had his own personality and was a temperamental kitty, friendly or distant depending on his mood. Oscar was a Maine Coone mix and just a huge beautiful boy. He will be missed by many people.

My cats and dogs have been behaving very well lately. I hope it continues. The cat, Isabella, likes to play with the puppy, Pooh. If he gets too rough with her, she swats him.

Oooops........... I guess I can't count right or read correctly...........

I have a preference for working 5 DPNs instead of 4. When I cast on for the "Go With the Flow" socks, the directions were to cast on 60 stitches. This should not have been an issue......If I had followed directions. Instead of casting onto one needles and moving them to the other DPNs, like usual, I decided to break up the stitches as they were created. If I had bothered to read the entire instructions, I would have realized I was to put 18 stitches on needles 1 and 2. Needle 3 was to have 24 stitches. Since I didn't realize this, and only put the 18, I created a boo-boo. This made me one pattern repeat short.

I didn't realize this until I wanted to re-arrange them to be on 4 DPNs after mentioning this to my friend. He pointed out my snafu and explained how to break them down correctly for the extra DPN I wanted. This meant frogging the whole sock.

Luck was with me in the fact I had only done 5 of the 20 repeats for the leg. I cast on the correct amount and worked on it for a bit last night -- berating my foolish self the whole time. All the previous repeats are now back in place and a couple more as well.

I have learned an important lesson here: READ the instructions for the pattern BEFORE you try to knit it !!!

"Waving Laces" Finished....On to Go With the Flow"................

I finished the toe with Kitchener stitch today and did the "happy dance" for this pair.

Now it's on to my next project. I decided to go with the "Go With the Flow" simply because I had a skein of yarn with me, and thought it would look good in this pattern. It's one of my hand painted from Jessicaarts and had bright pinks, purples, and blues in it. Also, it was the only one in the "Favorite Socks" book calling for my size 1 DPNs. It just so happened I had no other needles with me and had an hour plus to sit and wait for my patient to come back from her procedure.

So far I have the cast on and cuff completed and am working on the leg part. There are 4 rows to this part and you need to repeat them 20 times. Simple enough to do. Hopefully, I haven't jinxed myself by saying that.

By the way, I lost one of my Brittany No.1 needles when I left the ER last night. Fortunately, this pattern only called for 4 needles, so this is not a problem. I really love working with these and need to buy another set now. DH feels bad, so he is replacing them for me. He really knows how to make me smile. :)

Interrupted Sock Completion...........

Sometimes no matter how you try to finish a project, it's not meant to be rushed. This is the case with my second sock of the Waving Lace pattern. This one seems to be taking a long time to come to fruition. Lately, there were days when I didn't have a chance to knit a stitch. I am down to 8 stitches on each of the four DPNs and had planned to finish it tonight. Unfortunately, this is not to be. My DH and I spent a couple of hours at the ER tonight with a family relative. I worked on the sock a bit, but it was hard to stay concentrated with all the activity happening.

We got home after 9p.m. and we hadn't had any supper yet. I threw something together fast and the dishes are now done. I'm heading for bed, so the poor sock has to wait until tomorrow at lunch time to reach completion. Needless to say, there are patterns, needles, and yarn in my bag to immediately start another pair of tootsie warmers.

Goodnight for now....... My bed is calling to me...............

Wavy Lace Socks Progression..........

The first one is done and the first repeat of the second one is on the needles. I hope to finish them this week. It took some time to make the first one due to the yard sale last weekend and other commitments. Poor needles were barely looked at or petted for three days.

I really do like the way they are turning out with this yarn. Jonne also encouraged me to work from the chart instead of the written translation I had done. It wasn't that hard to do and I'm proud of myself. My only other attempt at a chart has been the alpaca scarf which is still languishing somewhere waiting for completion. I'll get to it soon........Promise.

My plans were to attend the Wool Festival today, but the weather is rainy and cloudy. Husband has gone to his aunt's to finish her room instead. I am sad to miss the Festival, but he has promised to make it up to me. The request for Vermont's Festival was immediately placed. We can't do Massachusetts' because of other commitments that weekend.

Let me get back to that sock.......... My wheel is calling to me as well. Must spin and ply the last of that roving so I can wash it all........

"Wavy Laces" socks restarted..........

After much thought and opinion gathering, I decided I didn't care for the way the socks were looking. I love the flow of colors in the yarn, and the pattern. Just not together. There is too much going on with all the colors to appreciate the pattern. It gets kind of lost in there. I went to see Jonne and learned I was using the wrong king of yarn to begin with. I purchased some Wildfoote in the color "Columbine", which is made by the Brown Sheep Company. It's light pink, light blue, and white plied up in each strand. I have only done 4 rows of the scallop rib and can see the difference already.

The original yarn, from Jessicaarts, will be used for a shawl at a later date. That had been the plan for it before I started these socks.

O.k....... back to the socks.........

Wavy Lace Socks started........

I decided to make the wavy lace socks from "Favorite Socks". I'm using my hand painted yarn from Jessicaarts again. It's Peruvian wool again.This one is called "Dusk" and has a myriad of colors......light and dark greens, light and dark blue, mauve, purple, a bit of rose and gold. There are so many colors in this..........but it's so pretty. Originally this yarn was to be a shawl. I plan to order another skein later for that project. Each one is 440 yards and more than enough for socks with some left overs. There is also a sock club available with this seller at her other site, www.Digitechpatterns.com that I'm thinking of signing up for. I have all the colors shown in the photo except the bright green. The same colors are available in roving. Some of those are also waiting for me to spin.

These socks are a bit of a challenge for me because I have not had much experience with charts. I hand wrote the two charts out so I can refer to the worded version if I have a problem. Wish me luck.........I'll need it.

Moebius completed on Sunday......... Back to sock land.............

I finished the moebius while my husband painted the room for his aunt. I bound off the last stitch at the same moment he finished the wall. The knitting came out better than I had thought it would. There will be another one in my future, but a bit longer to cover the upper arms better. I need to figure out how to do some increasing to the pattern first. It should not be too hard to do. If I increase the pattern 16 stitches evenly around, there should be enough of a drape over the shoulders and arms. The plan is to do another one the same way as the first, but instead of binding off, work in the increases and repeat the whole 20 rows of the lace pattern. Then do the edging again and bind off. Need to play with this idea some more before actually doing it.

Now it's back to sock land. I want to make a pair from Lace Style and several from Favorite Socks. I had picked out a hand painted yarn from Jessicaarts, but don't think it will work for the lace socks. The colors are too bright. I need to check my stash for a more calmer, muted color. Maybe a solid. I'm going now to do that and then call it a night. It's been a long day.

Weigh in went well. Last week was challenging and I only lost a half pound. Pizza was the supper of choice after. I haven't had pizza for a long time. It was soooooooo good!!!!! I love the garlic dipping sauce from Papa John's. Tomorrow is yogurt and fruit for breakfast, turkey sandwich and salad for lunch, and chicken for supper. Back on plan. One meal at a time...........

Moebius is growing......

I already finished 12 rounds on the moebius since Tuesday. I had 8 rounds done by yesterday, but did manage to get 4 more done between lunch break and this evening. I think I might actually get it finished in a few days. Depending on what comes up this weekend.

I was hoping to go to CT for the festival in Vernon, but, unfortunately, that's not going to happen. My husband has a commitment to paint a room for his aunt, so we will be there for a good portion of the weekend. At least I can take my knitting with me to visit. lol

After I switch the clothes in the washer to the dryer, I will get back to another round. Round 15 is my goal for tonight. I think I can make it. :)

Socks finished.....On to the Moebius.........

My Maple Leaf Socks are finished and look wonderful!. Now, I'm working on the moebius in some of Jessicaart's hand painted yarn in a colorway named "Concord Grape". It has dark shades of purples, a bit of blue and a bit of burgundy in it. I also see a little bit of a sort of dark rusty color. It's a Peruvian yarn and very nice to work with. I am enjoying the project, but, have to admit to being surprised it is taking some time to do. The pattern is only about 30 rounds. It take some time to get around it each time though. I started it Tuesday night, late. Round 9 is finished already and I hope to get it finished this weekend. Maybe I will take a road trip with my hubby and knit on it in the car. It's only one pattern row and a plain knit row for 20 rows. Then there are 6 rows of a lace pattern before a few rows to make a nice edging before binding off.

My mind keeps going back to the yarn waiting to be made into socks. I have so much of it now. Also the alpaca scarf is screaming for completion. The Malabrigo yarn is crying to be made into a scarf as well. I don't usually do more than 2 projects at a time, but may have to start that scarf. I need to wind the skeins into balls first, but I keep putting it off for now. I can't get to the winder right now with other stuff in the way in the room.... major clean out/re-arrangement needed again for the craft room thanks to hubby putting stuff in there. lol

I just found out tonight about the CT fiber festival this weekend. I need to check for directions to see how far it is from here so I can decide if it is feasible to go. The plan is to get to a couple of festivals this year. Maybe NH and MA as well as the new one planned for here in RI.

Still in sock land........

I'm still knitting the same socks as last week. The heel and gusset are done and I just need to finish the foot section on the second one. Then I can start my moebius. Also, waiting in the wings to be finished is the alpaca scarf I started last year.

Last night was devoted to plying the rest of my singles I had done a while ago. It appears to me that they are not as nice as the first bobbin I did while at Jonne's store. I had a problem getting them to feed onto the bobbin, but eventually, it happened. There was no problem with the knitty knoddy. I had 38 yards on the first bobbin and 36 yards on this one. I still have to spin the last couple of ounces of roving and ply them to finish the original bag of fiber. Then it all gets to be washed. There should be enough for a hat hopefully. Might have to be lacy though.

We have the returned kitty here for good. His human mama can't take care of him with his medical condition, so she gave him back to us. She knows he will be safe and well cared for here. He is a "talker" and loves attention. The vet said he is doing well, but needs to be on a special food for at least a month to make sure there are no more crystals in his bladder. The others are still in the transition stage of accepting him back to the household. His brothers, sister, and Tucker are adjusting well, but the old witch, Megan, is being difficult. She doesn't like anyone, animal or human, except me. And that is more of a tolerance.

Sock knitting along nicely.....

I am still knitting socks. I finished my Cherry Bomb tank top and have gone back to the socks. Right now, I am knitting a pair of Maple Leaves socks. Cute pattern that shows up well on the hand painted yarn I'm using. I already met my goal for the Lime and Violet KAL using your sock yarn. I also have been very busy falling in love with some more hand painted sock yarn I bought from Jessicaart on eBay. She also has an online shop, http://www.digitechpatterns.com/ , which has the same yarns and roving along with screen painted items. Absolutely breathtaking to see. As I told a couple of other people, I have the greatest urge to drool on the monitor screen while looking at this stuff. I resist by simply "petting" the yarn screen images. lol

Last weekend, April 7th, was the annual sale for The Stained Glass Emporium in Rehoboth, MA. I decided to get there early and only buy what I absolutely needed. Well, I got the Rehoboth at 8:15 a.m. The store doesn't open until 9 a.m., so I went to Warren to buy soup at the Blount Soup Store. I thought they opened at 8:30 and got a surprise since they also open at 9 a.m. I grabbed a bag of French Onion soup for me and two bags of the Portuguese soup for dear hubby. They have three gluten free soups available in the store, the Portuguese soup, a cook's chili, and Chicken Tortilla. . He already has lots of chili, so I passed on that one. Blount makes about four kinds of chili. I did get a small container of Chicken Tortilla for him to try. I love their Southwest Shrimp and Corn, but still have some in the freezer. The soups are frozen and good for one year from the date stamped on the bags. Four pints are in each bag. I cut up the bags into fourths and repackage them in freezer bags. Not easy to cut frozen blocks of stuff. lol

After the soup visit, I went to the glass shop and only bought three pieces, two of which were in the clearance bin and marked lower during the sale. That's the best I have ever been as far as restraint in that store! I have done some serious shopping in there in the past.

On the way there, I remembered Sakonnet Purls is in Tiverton, so I decided to add them to my shopping day. Unfortunately, I had no idea how to get there. After calling my husband and getting directions by phone from him from Yahoo Maps, I arrived there without any problems. This is a wonderful yarn shop. I bought some Claudia yarn, but when I returned home, I realized I have two other skeins very similar to it. A couple of days later, I called and asked if I could return it for a credit or exchange. The owner was very gracious and had no problem letting me get a store credit to use whenever I wanted. Today was a stormy day and we took a ride to do the exchange. My husband sat patiently in the car while I shopped. I ended up with two books that were on my wish list, Folk Socks and Lace Wrap, along with some adorable button from Incomparable Buttons. Their website in http://www.buttonmad.com/ and I really like a lot of their products. The price of them was very reasonable as well for ceramic buttons. Of course, mine are cats.

Puppy Pooh is growing in leaps and bounds. He is fresh sometimes and wants his own way, but is learning to share and behave. In order to cut his nails, I had to put a towel over his head while holding him. Leaving a paw out for the clipping, struggling to hold him still, and him screaming like we were killing him were all part of this episode. He should have won an Oscar for his performance. The older two dogs even came near the table to see what was happening. Hubby clipped about an eighth of an in inch from each nail successfully. We get to do this again next week. Oh boy!! Pooh is actually a sweet heart except for the nail issue. He gives kisses on command now, too. He almost has the stay command down as well.

All my other animals are fine. We do have a visitor right now though. Our kittens' brother is visiting after a medical emergency. He had crystals in his bladder and had to spend the night at the emergency vet a couple of nights ago. This is a life threatening problem with male cats sometimes. He is here for recuperation, but may be staying, because his human mommy can't really take care of him right now. We have to monitor the litter box activity for a few days and contact the vet if there are any problems. So far, so good. My guys forgot who he is and we are having a growling fest right now. I will put him back in the other room before I call it a night. Don't need a cat fight later.

Yarn diet exemption shopping.....

The yarn diet is going well. The Knitter's Breakfast was today, and, as it was scheduled as an exemption from the diet, I had fun. I bought some yummy Malabrigo to make a new scarf. Also picked up a new book and a couple of circular needles. One pair is Addis. It's the first time I have used them and hope I like them. The project I plan to use them with is a mobius I saw on Knitty Gritty a couple of weeks ago. The tank top needs finishing first. I have started the neck edging, so it should be finished by the end of this week, if there are any delays. Also, the next pair of socks are waiting for me. I like taking sock projects in my work bag, since they are so portable.

Pooh is growing fast -- 4 months old now. He's totally housebroken, sleeps and plays with the other dogs constantly, and now weighs 9.6 pounds. I hope he doesn't get too much bigger. Pics will follow soon.

My Yarn Diet Continues......

I am still not shopping for new yarn. I decided to work on de-stashing a bit before adding any new stuff. The exception is fiber, because there is not that much of that in the house. Also, I have joined Lime N Violet's knit from your sock yarn knit-a-long. I started late, but have done about a mile, which was my goal. Yarn purchases are allowed during the knit-a-long, which is a good thing.

The yarn diet co-incides with the food diet. Part of the deal is, no yarn can be purchased until I lose 25 more pounds. Then, I am allowing myself to buy yarn for one project only. Every 25 pounds earns me another project. Meantime, I continue with the stash. So far, I'm down 5 pounds and have 20 more to lose for the first reward.

Pooh is growing fast. Already he has learned to fetch and return his toy when I throw it. The barking is down to only when he thinks the other dogs have his toys or he wants them to play with him. Only a couple of piddling accidents, so the housebreaking is almost perfect. He cuddles up and sleeps with the older 2 all the time. Such a sweet picture. Two cats give him "kisses" now as well.

pooh playing with his stuffed toy 003
Originally uploaded by calicokitty6.

He actually growled at it when I played tug o war with him. Then, he proceeded to shake the daylights out of it, and attack it's ears. He's so cute and funny to watch.

pooh playing with his stuffed toy 005

pooh playing with his stuffed toy 005
Originally uploaded by calicokitty6.

pooh playing with his stuffed toy 002

pooh playing with his stuffed toy 002
Originally uploaded by calicokitty6.

pooh playing with his stuffed toy 004

pooh playing with his stuffed toy 004
Originally uploaded by calicokitty6.

pooh puppy 8 weeks old first visit to house 004
Originally uploaded by calicokitty6.

We have a new addition to our household. He came to be introduced to the two older Pekes last Tues, Jan.2, when we took this pic. He came home to stay this past Sat, Jan 6. The old dog has adopted him and treats him like he is her own puppy, instead of her nephew. His grandma and my oldest dog were sisters.

Pooh is a sweetheart, but a bundle of energy, as well as still young and needs a lot of training. He is learning although he does not like his crate at this time. He wants to be with you constantly, because his original human was always holding him or his brother.

2007 Resolution from Live Journal Site.....

Go spinning three times a week.
Go to the cats every month.
Cut down on my knitting.
Buy new day trips.
Get back in contact with some old plants.


I found this on a Live Journal site and decided to see how I did. The above is what I got. No questions are asked. All I did was put in my blog name. It's a bit freaky. First, as anyone reading my blog knows, I am a relatively new spinner. I live with a few cats, a couple of small dogs, and one terrific husband. I knit EVERY DAY. A few of my friends and I are planning a couple of day trips for the springtime. My poor plants have been getting a little ignored lately. Like I said, a bit freaky.

Finishing FOs and Spinning Woes

I'm trying to finish all my FOs before the end of the year. I have the tank top from the beginning of the summer, a sock from two different patterns, and a lace scarf in alpaca all demanding my attention at the same time. I plan to finish the socks first because they are Christmas gifts. The scarf is next because it may be a birthday gift next month. The tank is mine, so that can be finished last.

After all these, I need to make the white socks for work. I also have decided to be brave and make the sleeves of my first sweater smaller. When I knit the sweater, I was afraid the sleeves would be too tight, so I made them a size bigger than the body. The pattern has a lacy loose cuff/edging on the sleeves and around the bottom of the body. I found the pattern in a plus sized pattern book. If I sew the sleeve partially up the arm, I can cut the part off that is too loose. I guess this would be a form of steeking. I have never cut my knitting intentionally and am very nervous to do it now, but I would like to wear the garment. It's been in the sweater drawer for over 2 years now, where I take it out, look at it and put it back.

I had my spinning lesson this past Saturday and found out I am doing almost everything wrong. Now I have learned the correct way to spin, I have homework before I can go back for the plying lesson. The way I think of it is: If I'm going to spin, I want to do it properly. Also need to send in my membership for the local spinning guild.

Spinning issues solved

I couldn't figure out why I was having a problem with drafting the fiber for spinning on the wheel. The first yarn looked pretty sad. It's destined to become a small felted project in the near future.

I went to see Jonne at the shop and pick up my Niddy Noddy as well as some different fiber to try. I got some natural fiber I think he said was coopworth or something like that. While talking to him, I told him the other fiber I had tried was actually Merino which had been dyed a nice blend of pinks. This explained the problem with the drafting. I should have been drafting that from the fold, not the end. Tonight, the spinning will commence again, hopefully correctly with this fiber.

Socks are still the WIPs at the moment, especially with the need of the white ones. I did manage to locate some white yarn at the local Fabric Place store. It's a cotton/nylon blend in pure white. That should please the people at work. I went back to work this past Wednesday, after being home for a whole month with my knee. The first thing I see when walking into the building???? TWO people wearing colored socks!!! How dare they wear them after what I have been through over this! Obviously, the new rule is not being enforced fully at this time. I wonder if I can sneak a pair of dark blue variegated socks under dark blue pants in this week? A girl has to try. Hee-hee.

I did copy a drawing of a spinning wheel while at the library the other day. I now need to trace it onto copy paper and figure out exactly how to make it work as a pattern. The drawing has several sections to it, so I don't think I will need to adjust it too much. I will have to scan it and send a copy to Laurie in Florida and see if she has any advise to improve my design plan. Then I need to enlarge it at the copy store. They are very strict about copyright, although I don't think there should be any problem if I change the drawing to accomodate me. Then it is my creation.

The original drawing also has a sheep in back of the wheel which I want to use in another glass project. I am thinking of putting together a panel with all fiber animals -- a sheep, a rabbit, an alpaca, and a goat -- in a pasture or field background. I have the alpaca and rabbit patterns already. Just need the goat picture to get it started.

Socktoberfest is over.

My expectations were set too high. My goal was to complete two pairs and start a third one. I finished the Dublin Bay socks as I said before. Aspirations to finishing the Entrelac sock did not come out as planned. I did manage to finish one of the socks up to the grafting of the toe. I stopped to make sure it would be big enough for my friend's foot only to find out I had made it too short. She has a size 6 not 5 foot. Thankfully, I had not cut the yarn and it was still on the two DPNs.

Also, finished was one of the Open Lace Rib socks. I got the pattern from Sensational Knitted Socks and knitted it in Knit Picks Memories "Yukon" merino yarn. The shading of the blues and grays are so nice. I will want to make another pair of socks in a different pattern with this colorway in the future. Plans are to finish these two pairs and then go back to my other UFOs and get them out of the way too.

I am definitely spoiled now as far as socks are concerned. I love the way handmade ones feel on my feet and really hate to go back to store bought.

Unfortunately, thanks to the powers that be on my job, I have no choice. Many CNAs and nurses wear colored sock to match their scrubs. I think this looks fine. Not the bosses. They have mandated only white socks to be worn at work. If your socks are clean, why should anyone care what color they are???? I finally have enough handmade colors to wear to work and this is what happens!!!! Now I need to find a white sock yarn that will appease work. I have found one brand online at Elann that may work. I plan to order enough to make a pair. One of the benefits of my job is after 28 years service, you can retire and get your pension no matter how old you are. I have one more year and will be out of there at 47. Yippee!!! If I don't want to keep all the white socks I now need to knit, I can dye them after retirement as a declaration of freedom. After a while, work should become lax about the socks and then, hopefully, I can wear whatever I feel like.

The first yarn is plied. I tried a sample and it looked like cat yack. After a quick visit to Jonne, I moved the driveband to the larger whorl like he said. This made a big improvement on the plying. Even though the singles were over and under plied, I plan to knit up a little change purse and felt it. Felting it should hide some of my more drastic imperfections. I don't want to throw away the yarn since it is my first attempt. Isabella and Tiger were thinking mommy had a new toy hanging in the kitchen for them. I had hung the yarn on the edge of the top shelf of the baker's rack so it could dry. This proved to be a huge temptation to them. They thought new toy, and, instead got a squirt from the water bottle. Now, the yarn is hanging in the bedroom until I can make it into a center pull ball.

I am looking for a good picture of a spinning wheel I can use as a pattern in stained glass. I want to make one up to hang in the other window of the craft room. I have the pattern for the alpaca already prepped for the first window. Now I can get into the room and move around, thanks to the re-org a few weeks ago. Hopefully, the alpaca can be started soon.

My Wheel Is HERE!!!!

On this damp, dreary Friday afternoon, there sits, next to my desk in the living room, a box containing my spinning wheel. I received a call this morning about 11:30 from the fiber store letting me know it was in. I planned on picking it around 3 this afternoon, but left my poor DH to his own devices and rushed out the house to get it.

It was carried to the car by Jonne and placed in the back of the wagon, where I could glance at the box on the way home. Of course, mother nature had to let the rain start during this. Upon arriving home, I rushed the box into the house and put it on the kitchen table. DH took it into the living room for safe keeping from my box-loving kitty, Katy. If she had her way, she would be in the box before it was even empty.

I have the video out and plan to watch it in a few minutes. The anticipation of actually putting it together is going to be tough. DH had to go to work, so I have to just glance covetously at the box until around midnight. Hopefully, he doesn't have to stay late like he has been. If so, it will be tomorrow morning before it's ready for me to use. I have been touching the parts I can just to introduce myself to it. As I have said before, DH is very mechanically inclined, so he gets to put it together for me. It will probably take him less than an hour. It would probably take me about 2!

I think it will be in the bedroom tonight either way - assembled or not.

My Spinning Wheel Is On It's Way - I Hope

My spinning wheel is ordered, and hopefully on it's way to me. I feel like a kid at Christmas time.

I re-arranged the craft room and left the center clear so I have plenty of room to set it up and use it. I put all my glass supplies on one side of the room and my knitting stuff on the other. I am including the roving for the spinning with the yarn storage area.

I also took down one of my indoor greenhouses and put those plants in the other one. It's a bit crowded for them now, but I never could have had enough room to get around in there otherwise. The greenhouse spot now has the table in it, pushed up against the wall.

Poor Rosebud, the cat, didn't know where to run and hide during the renovations to her home. She still has her food and litter areas in the same spots. Just her sleeping spot is moved. I checked on her a few times, and she is adapting well.

Well, time to make lunch and get back to my latest sock. It's entrelac and not coming out the way I wanted it to. It's too small !!! I have posted a help request on KnittersReview.com and have one reply that is helpful. I hope to get some more answers before attempting to make them again in the future.

Early Birthday Gift for Me!!! I'm Getting My Spinning Wheel!!

My DH is the absolute best!! He knows I have been wanting to eventually someday get myself a spinning wheel, but have no immediate plans to do this. I first need to learn to ply from the spindle. I have had so much going on, I have not had time to get back for my second lesson from Jonne.

Well, DH decided to surprise me with an early birthday gift. The other day he told me to order my wheel now!! I am so excited!! I've been checking them out on line, at demonstrations, and at Jonne's shop. I went over today and placed the order for a Kromski Minstrel in the walnut finish. It should be here just in time to actually fall on my b-day at the end of the month. Now I need to schedule classes to be ready to use it. This may be a problem right now, since I hurt my knee last week at work. I have a soft tissue injury and need to rest it a lot. I am suppose to sit 80% of the time. This is a great excuse to knit my butt off, seeing as how I am home from work right now until healed.

Socktoberfest "Dublin Bay" Socks completed

I have made it my goal to finish at least 3 pairs of socks for Socktoberfest. I am proud to say, I finished the second sock of my "Dublin Bay" pair on Wednesday and started a pair of Entrelac Socks on Thursday. I found a pattern on line for these, but did not want to keep changing colors. The pattern is not that difficult to adapt to my idea of how I want these to turn out. I chose to make them in a variegated yarn from Knit Picks Sock Memories in the "Easter" colorway. The colors go dark purple, light purple, teal,and a bright orange. I have a shirt in the purple with the teal and orange as trim cords, and a pair of purple slacks, so these will go terrific with that outfit. I would like to make the third pair in a "Butterfly" pattern. I need to figure out how to make this yet.

I had to come to terms with myself that it is necessary to cut the yarn and rejoin it in appropriate places to make the rounds. It's my first time attempting to knit entrelac in the round and had a mental block when it came to doing this. I am used to simply knitting round and round without any interruption in the yarn. Anyway, I am about to start tier 5 of the required 7 tiers. I hope to finish the last 3 and the end set of triangles tonight. Hopefully, I can also start the heel before I need to quit for sleep.

There was another Knitter's Breakfast last month on the 30th at Fabric Place. I showed great restraint and walked out of the store at the end after only spending around 30 dollars. I picked up "Bags - A Knitter's Dozen", and 3 skeins of Noro Kureyon to make "Zigzag On The Town" and felt it. This is planned for sometime in the winter when it is cold and snowy outside. Also, this will be my first attempt at felting. I have plans to make some slippers, but figured it would be a good idea to try felting a bag or scarf first before something that has to actually fit a body part. As far as the book is concerned, I had viewed it online before and had not been very impressed with it. There were three of the items on display at the Breakfast. After seeing them, I changed my mind about it. There are also plans here to make the Market Bag, an Entrelac pattern, as well. The socks are actually a good practice run for the bag now I think of it.

Among the activities at the Breakfast, were three ladies spinning. Two were using a wheel and one a spindle. I had the opportunity to ask questions and observe them for a while. One of the women also happened to be in charge of our local spinning newsletter. After giving her my email address, she promised to send me a copy of the latest issue. It was in my mailbox the next morning. Now I need to sign up for a membership. The fee is very reasonable for a year's membership.

Well, time to get back to that sock. Keep knitting and have a great day/night.

Socktoberfest Button

Socktoberfest Button
Originally uploaded by LollyKnit.

I have just joined Socktoberfest 2006. If you are into knitting socks and would like to participate, go to Knitter's Review and check out the forum post for Socktoberfest listed under Knitterly Events and Happenings. All the info and links can be found there.

Happy Dance in Progress!!! Socks are done!!!!!

I finished my pair of socks today and can't wait to wear them. I put them on for a few minutes and they felt so toasty on my toes, I know they will be terrific on a cold New England winter day. I knitted a very simple garter rib pattern from the "Sensational Knitted Socks" book, using size 2 DPNs.

Now, to decide which color and pattern for the next pair......... I have so many sock yarns in the stash to pick from, the decision will be torture. The Cherry Bomb tank must be finished first. I just have half the back, shoulder straps, and neck trim to finish. Hopefully, it will be done before Oct.

My first spinning bee experience....


My DH took me to Marshfield Fair in Massachusetts a couple of weeks ago just so I could see spinning wheels in action. I learned a great deal and had a terrific time watching everyone. Hopefully, I will have a wheel next year and will be able to participate in that spinning bee then. Also, there was a spindle competition. Unfortunately, I had left mine home and could not join in this time.

I have been debating which wheel would be best for me. After seeing the Ashford Traveler in action, I still think I prefer the Kromski Minstrel more. They are about the same in price, but, the Minstrel appears to fit my needs better.

I have been spinning with the spindle and getting very good at it. Now it is time to make my appointment to learn plying.

I also have been knitting up a pair of adorable socks in Knit Picks Sock Garden Merino Sock Yarn in the color "Pansy". This yarn has the exact colors of the flowers and is sooooooo soft. I put the first sock on my foot and fell instantly in love with the way it felt.

My poor tank top got pushed aside for a bit so I could make the socks. The reason this happened was because I went camping and wanted a smaller project to take with me. I plan to finish the toe of the second sock hopefully tomorrow or Sunday. Then, I can finish the tank top. I would like to get to wear it at least once this season. I guess I could always wear something over it, but really wanted to wear it alone.

My poor old cat Katy has been diagnosed with diabetes. DH gives her the insulin shot every morning faithfully. She seems her old self, so I guess she's feeling better. She is still hitting the dog whenever I scold her for being into something.

I found some nice glass nuggets in pretty shades of red and green for Christmas stained glass projects. I have some patterns for ornaments and these will make nice berries. I also have some in white and plan to make some candy cane ornaments, trimmed with a bow, or wreaths.

It's late, I'm tired, so good night for now. Happy knitting to all.

You Belong in Dublin

Friendly and down to earth, you want to enjoy Europe without snobbery or pretensions. You're the perfect person to go wild on a pub crawl... or enjoy a quiet bike ride through the old part of town.

What European City Do You Belong In?

have you done this?


Thanks to dragon knitter for this. It's kinda interesting!

Bold the ones you've done.

01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink
02. Swam with wild dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone.
08 Said 'I love you' and meant it
09. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby's diaper
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23.Gotten drunk on champagne
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
31.Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse
34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all 50 states
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk
42. Had amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched wild whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer then you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger's table and had a meal with them
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your cds
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
60. Posed nude in front of strangers
61. Gone scuba diving
62.Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64.Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68.Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69.Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married (only one time at 43 yo 2 years ago)
73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
80. Gotten a tattoo
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on television news programs as an "expert"
83. Got flowers for no reason
84. Performed on stage
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark
88. Had a one-night stand
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one of your parents (both plus my only sister)
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently
95. Performed in Rocky Horror. (audience participation only)
96. Raised children
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
98. Created and named your own constellation of stars
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country1
00. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn't stop when you knew someone was looking
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an illness that you shouldn't have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Petted a stingray
110. Broken someone's heart
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a T.V. game show
113. Broken a bone
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a body part of yours below the neck pierced
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper
129. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school
131. Parasailed
132. Petted a cockroach
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad - and the Odyssey
135. Selected one "important" author who you missed in school, and read
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146: Dyed your hair
147: Been a DJ
148: Shaved your head
149: Caused a car accident
150: Saved someone's life

Kind of normal I guess. Nothing too exciting here. Now it's your turn to see how many you have done.

Spindle assaulted!!!!!

I have to confess. I have committed a crime against my spindle. Here I was spinning along, making a decent amount of progress. As I start to work a join in the draft, it happened.

Let me just say, it was not pre-meditated in any way or manner. As anyone who has spun yarn on a spindle knows, part of the process is to occassionally drop the foolish thing. I have done this several times, and even managed to catch it a few times as it was dropped.

Well, I have hardwood floors that are not very forgiving if you bang things on them. The tile in the kitchen is just as difficult about this issue.

Anyway, the other night, was the final attack. I cracked the top of the spindle near the hook, but wasn't too worried at that time about it. Giving it a test spin, it seemed fine. About a half hour later, it was a totally different scenario. I was happily spinning away when the hook popped out of the top and the spindle just spun itself across my living room floor.

I was in shock! Oh, my! What do I do now? I tried to glue the hook back in, but the crack had opened up too much to hold it.

I knew my DH would rescue me when he got home. He went right to his massive stash of construction supplies and pulled out some kind of epoxy glue, re-assured me it would be fine in a little while, and proceeded to put everything back together again. My hero!!

The spindle has a few scars, but works fine. I am using it tonight to try to finish my first yarn so I can return to the shop next week for my plying lesson.

At least the cats don't seem to care about it spinning in front of them so far. Shhhh. Don't let them know I think I am safe from their paws.

My Intarsia Sweater is finally finished.....

and guess what.... It fits!!!! I am very happy with how it turned out. Now I am trying to finish my bobble and ridge shawl. I have decided I do better being semi-faithful to one project at a time (with only small lapses to other WIPs occasionally) in order to complete things.

I also have been working with my spindle. Unfortunately, I dropped it so many times last night, I put a crack in the wood near the hook. It appears to be spinning o.k. though, so I can continue. I will have to try to stop by the shop and see if it all right to use like this.

I had a bit of a panic Friday night. I thought I saw a moth in my craft room. After checking all my yarn stash for unwanted invaders, and finding none, I checked in with a fellow knitting / fiber friend. She asked a lot of questions about the creature. After I described the loathsome thing, she asked if I had plants in the room. It was definitely not a baby moth, I have been told. According to her, it sounds like a plant pest called whitefly. Now I have to bathe all my foliage babies with soapy water and hope to rid them of unwanted guests. One of my cats, Rosebud, lives in this room and never was fazed by the foolish thing flying around. She's a very timid cat and was problably afraid of it. lol

Well, the weather is sunny and 90 degrees today so we went for a nice long ride this morning. Needless to say, my shawl accompanied me. I spent half the trip winding a skein into a ball, which was very relaxing to do. I never did pick up the needles.

Housework calls to me, so I must obey. Otherwise nothing will get accompished and I will have no free time to knit or spin tonight.

Bye for now. Happy Father's Day to all.

My first spinning lesson was today!

I had my first lesson to learn how to use a spindle. It was a bit mind boggling to learn so much at one time. I have found an excellent instructor. He is very patient, explains everything in a way you can understand easily, and is very encouraging. I know my attempt was pathetic today, but he told me not to be critical of myself.

I did come home with "homework" to do. He wants me to spin a certain amount on the spindle and then call him so I can come back to learn the plying part. Yep, I"m so slow it will take me a month. Jonne said no - about a week or so. (I still think it will be longer than that, but I said o.k.) Right now it is not relaxing to do, as I was told. I guess once I get better at it, I will find it to be more soothing. I went through this with the knitting and stained glass lessons at the beginning too. I kind of lack self confidence when I start a new adventure. I will prevail!! I refuse to give in to a piece of fluff and a wooden stick!

My poor sweater is still not finished. I had wanted it finished before the spinning lesson. Unfortunately, I got a bit lazy about knitting some nights. I also have the excuse that I had to work a lot of late nights the last few weeks. Housework and DH also figured in there somewhere, too. It will be finished this week, though, at the exclusion of everything else (except the spinning). I only have about 3 or 4 inches to go on the sleeves, knit the neckband, and put in the sleeves. I can make it. (I hope)

I have gotten very interested in listening to different knitting podcasts lately. I have downloaded some including, CastOn, Knitting D and the City, PixiePurls, and KnitWits. I get my knitting out, put on the headphones and get comfortable in front of my computer for a while. Sometimes, I will laugh at a funny part and my DH thinks I am losing it. Then he realizes the headphones are on my ears. I really enjoy them and hope they are all around for a long time. I also loved the one Clara from Knitter'sReview.com did.

Well, the washer has stopped and the dryer is waiting for me. I have to go do the "necessary" stuff so that I can enjoy my "fun" stuff after.

Have a great day and thanks for reading my musings.

Time to catch up with my world here.

I have been busy with many different things the last couple of months and have ignored this poor blog.

I have finished a few knitting projects and am now working on several that are more involved. I have the shawl with the bobbles and reverse stockinette stitch to finish (about 1/4 done). My Mary Jane Cardigan is languishing on the needles. I haven't even looked at it. One pair of socks is done, while another is waiting to be cast on. I also have the Felted Booties from KnitPicks calling my name so they can be cast on. The Danica scarf is finished, although I changed the pattern a little bit. I added a single crochet around the outside and nice fringe just to trim it up a bit.

My main project on the knitting needles right now is an intarsia sweater I fell in love with. My boss brought this pattern to work to show me along with the yarn of her choice. This was before I started my Bobble Shawl in February. I had to go to the Fabric Place for a longer size 13 circular needle for the shawl and saw the original sample of the sweater on display. Well, let me just say this. The sample was done up in the yarn the pattern called for and looked totally different from what she was making. Not to say I don't like hers, but this is nicer. I fell in love with it and had to make it. I bought the yarn, Fusion, which is a mohair blend. I didn't like the earth tones too much, so I chose the purple-green variegation and a multi-green variegation for the other color. This pattern is worked in diagonals up the body and sleeves. It is done up in stockinette stitch and has a simple rounded neck and has drop sleeves and ribbed trim. I think this makes it a great sweater to learn intarsia. I have the back and about 1/4 of the front finished.

I also got an Ott Lamp to work by. I have the floor model with the neck you can bend to adjust for your needs. The colors and clarity of the yarns are great and I can see the stitches much better now. Also my DH can watch t.v. without a glaring light on in the room.

I am planning on learning how to spin yarn soon. I discovered a wonderful little shop in Warwick, near the Mall and Pontiac Mills called "Manmade by Jonne". I had a very interesting conversation with Jonne, the owner, about what was involved and need to set up my first lesson soon. I just want to finish up a few of these projects first. Probably will start the lessons in May. There is a fiber show locally on May 21st I really want to go to also. He has it listed on his site.

The kittens are doing great and getting really big now. All three plus Katy were spayed or neutered and had all their shots.

Lady Eleanor is done!!!!!

Hand me a medal please! My Lady E is done after a major snafu last weekend. She was moving right along when I decided to count the tiers. On one edge, I had 21 and on the other, I had only 19. Half way across tier 15, I had put her down to go do something and when I came back, I knit in the wrong direction. Happily knitting along, never realizing what I had done, I finished 5 more tiers. It was 2 a.m. on a Saturday night when I had this reality check.

I could not leave this blatant error glaring at me. Frogging 5 tiers, with tears not far away, I felt doomed to not finish. Sunday was make up day instead of progress day. All 5 tiers were back in place properly before bedtime Sunday.

My stained glass class was cancelled on Monday, thus I had one more day to make up the lost time from the weekend goof. Knitting every minute I could, she is done and looks beautiful. I need to get pics to post. I am still not very good at that.

Today, my house will appreciate my attention, the laundry will be finished, ironing done, and supper cooked. I have been neglecting it all for this. The dust bunnies are being chased by the kittens. Laundry has been languishing with only a load done now and then. All will be better today. lol

I now need to finish the training project, Danica, so I can wear that in this cold weather we are having.

Let the Knitting Olympics Begin!!!

The flame is lit and the games have begun. I cast on along with over 4000 fellow knitters for this wonderful event. It will be grueling to make it to the finish line, but perseverance is the key to success.

Lady Eleanor is a bit intimidating due to her size, but I am confident I can handle it. The first ball of yarn has been consumed by my project and now I know how many it will actually take to complete. I feared being short a skein at the end for the fringe. Out of one ball I completed the first four tiers and half plus the base triangle row and cast on. The project has 34 tiers plus 2 ends of triangle rows, totaling 36. I have 12 skeins so I figure I need 10 for the body and 1 for the fringe.

I need to run to the glass store and pick up some more stuff today. This will interrupt my knitting event temporarily, but I can catch up tonight. My goal is to knit between 1.5 and 2 skeins a day. This will fit nicely into the 16 days we have with a couple of days left over for "in case I haven't time" interruptions, like work. lol

My husband is the best!!!

I found some Noro yarn on eBay and he got it for me. It is #74 and has beautiful colors in it. It has green, purple, fushia, hot pink, and blue. Now I am ready to start the Knitting Olympics mentioned on Knitter's Review. Stephanie McPhee (a.k.a. the Yarn Harlot) started this on her site. I signed up and plan to make the Lady Eleanor Stole. You cast on when the flame is lit on February 10 and knit until the flame goes out on February 26. The idea is to pick something you feel will challenge you.

I have the pattern down pretty good, since working on the Danica scarf. My challenge will be to finish the Lady in 10 days. I am planning to use about 12 balls so that means about 2 balls a day and a couple of days to fringe. It might have a different fringe than what is shown in the pics in the Scarf Style book because I am not sure I like the length of the multi level fringe. I have to find a space big enough to lay it out for blocking after I finish it. Maybe my fabric board in my craft room. The only problem is I can already see my cat Rosebud laying all over it. Yuck! Her white fur everywhere!! Need to cover the stole with a white sheet. Mmmm~~ it might work.


The kittens are getting big and into everything!! They are just so precious and we love to watch them play. Each has a very distinct personality. The little girl is very independent while one boy is very in your face for attention. The other boy is just too sweet for words. He is the only one who does not seem to get in trouble. lol They all like to be petted and held for lovings.

I have picked out glass to start another project this week. I am planning to make a scene involving a cascading waterfall, a body of water, tree, and greenery along with some agate slices that look like boulders and some nuggets. It is a original idea and I really don't have a pattern for it. Sort of free style stained glass. However it comes out is what I get. I found some gorgeous glass at two of the supply stores and the idea just popped in my head. Can't wait for the end result. It should be something really spectacular.

Lady Eleanor shawl is calling to me.

I went to the Fabric Place in Warwick today to pick up the Noro yarn I needed for the Lady Eleanor shawl, which is done in entrelac. Unfortunately, it is not available because the store has not been able to keep it in stock for the last few weeks. It just flies off the shelf as fast as it is replaced. It does not matter what color it is - every skein is going. I wonder if this has something to do with some of the other ladies from Knitter's Review who may be making the shawl.

I did manage to get a very nice variegated yarn at the suggestion of Cindy, the salesperson. She is wonderful at helping you figure out what will work as replacement yarns. The last time she helped me, I ended up with a beautiful sweater I knitted from the neck down. Anyway, this time she helped me to pick out a nice purple, teal,blue variegated yarn by Plymouth to make my Lady Eleanor in. She had suggested a green combo, but I prefer the jewel tones myself. Cindy also suggested making it on size 8 needles instead of the recommended size 10. This means my shawl will be a bit smaller, but still beautiful. There is a sample of an entrelac shawl on display in the store that Cindy knitted from an on line pattern. It's just gorgeous.

I also picked up some buttons made from stone that were 20% off. No set plans for these, but could not pass them up. Now I have an excuse to knit something that requires a closure.

My poor dog has been sick for a couple of days. She was falling over and leaning to the right. Her head kept tipping to the right and when you called her , she couldn't seem to locate you. The vet said it is either a very bad ear infection, which is treatable or a brain tumor, which is fatal. She is on prednisone right now and got a shot las night from the doctor. Today, she is moving around a bit better and eating small meals. She is acting a bit more like herself so we hope and pray it's the ear problem. It also happened to be her 15th birthday yesterday.

The Town and Country scarf gave me so much grief and aggravation, I had to restart it 11 times before it behaved. My friends all said give up on it. I refused to and now have about 5 inches intact. Only 55 inches more to go. It will not beat me. The Mary Jane Cardigan never saw the light of day thanks to the scarf taking so much of my time. Maybe this week after I start the Lady Eleanor. I also need to order more sock yarn from Knit Picks. I don't know what I was thinking, but I only ordered one skein each of the three colors I wanted to use. I need another skein of each for the second socks!

Elizabeth I scarf is started for the fourth time.

I started my "Town and Country" scarf again today during my lunch break. I am ready to do the first row of lace and pray I can follow the chart correctly. I have never actually worked with charts. All my other projects were written directions. We are expecting 1 to 3 inches of snow for New Year's Eve. I will be hunkered down with this, a hot drink, and watching the white stuff from the window.

I just peaked in at KR and saw Ellieknits had left a thread about her gift from me. I am so glad she really liked everything. If she wants more of the yarn, I will offer to give her name to my friend, Robin, who has it.The fleece for this yarn came from the farm where her daughter works and Robin had it spun into yarn. I also bought some of the same yarn for myself. We exchanged gifts at work and she gave me some of a dark gray/black color to complement my natural tone. All the yarn is in it's natural shades . There also was a new tote bag and the book shaped like a sock. She knows I like to make socks and thought I would like it. It's one of the few books that was not in my library and now is proudly displayed on the shelf with it's sister sock books for future use.

I am itching to start my Mary Jane Cardigan too. I might start that this weekend as well as work on the scarf.

The three kittens went to the vet yesterday with my DH and got their rabies shots. "Daddy" is so good with them. They don't know I plan to wean them from the bedroom this weekend and hope to have them completely out of there by next week. My other cats don't go in there at all unless they sneak in when I open the door. All the "kids" have the run of the rest of the house so they are not deprived. Spoiled is more like it. Last night Katy stole my tuna I had just put in a bowl on the counter. I hated to do it, but I had to punish her for it. Everyone else, including the dog, got the tuna. She got nothing and a long lecture from me. You would think she knew what I was saying. She started meowing at me loudly in protest, but I would not give in to her. Little brat.