Fun in New York

It was beautiful in New York this weekend. Mild temperatures

except for last night when it got cold and we weren't prepared.

Had to shop to get warm:

Gap had these and we both liked them so we both

ended up with one. She put her coat over hers so we

didn't look ridiculous. We had theatre tickets so we

didn't want to go the whole way back to the Village

to get our coats and then go back to mid-town.

Kelly and Catie at Chelsea Market

Our big purchase at Purl... six skeins of Manos del Uruguay






























Here we are at Purl. I got to use my gift certificate

that Erin got me for my birthday. Finally! I could

have used it online, but I was really hoping to get there

in person.

And, finally, here's Cate trying to look all New York. (at FAO Schwartz)

She cracks me up.

Still here....

Did you know that the busiest real estate season is from the beginning of March until the end of June? It's true. Most people think it's Summer, but it's really Spring. So I'm crazy busy and not much knitting is getting accomplished. I am helping my sister with socks though. So that's something at least. The other night we sat together and I showed her how to work in the round with 4 needles. When I left she was working on the ribbing. Last night, she turned the heel and got to the short rows and I had to walk her through that... on the phone. Try explaining that on the phone! There was no way I was going to proceed to tell her how to pick up the stitches after that. I think we'll have to get together tonight. In person. One thing is for sure. Once you complete that process for the first time, there's no turning back. Sock knitting is by far the most addictive.

We are now getting into the season where you can't figure out what to wear. I stood in front of my closet for 20 minutes this morning deciding. Wool seems too wintry. Summer clothes don't cut it. And the in-between stuff is not real plentiful in my closet. I'm a wool person. My winter clothes are WARM. I think I need to shop. Maybe I'll go to New York City to shop tomorrow. Yeah. I think I will. Ok.. it's not really such a spur of the moment decision. I'm off to New York with my daughters tomorrow to just have fun for the weekend. And I'll definitely be going here:


purl : about us

Watch for stash enhancements next week!

Knitting Knews

This is the Tofutsies sock yarn. Cute socks for Colin waiting to be made. The needles were purchased for the project below. The Estonia Garden shawl is coming along. Slowly but surely. I'm anxious to try out the new needles with it. I definitely needed a pointier tip. I'd like to say I'm enjoying the lace knitting process but I'm really not. Well actually it's not the lace knitting itself that I'm not enjoying, it's the fine yarn. It's just too tedious to work with. You really have to hang on tight to the needles because the yarn isn't heavy enough to hold onto them for you like in most knitting. If that makes any sense. I think I can say with some certainty that this will be my last lace weight project. But I do love the look of it.

I met a friend of mine after my class yesterday at Juniata College. She wanted me to teach her 8 year old daughter to knit. I got her started on a ribbed scarf. K2,P2 in a chunky yarn on size 11 needles. She picked it up right away. Smart little girl. The only problem is, when she makes a mistake, she won't be able to fix it and I'm 30 miles away... and WAY too busy to be going back and forth to help her. So that sort of stinks.

So I guess now I try to get caught up with my work after being gone a few days. Lovely.

Work work work...

That's been what it's all about lately. People think that summer is the busy real estate time but it's really late winter, early spring. So, right now, I'm just trying to keep it all together. And, to top it off, I leave today for another two-day class which I really can't afford right now time-wise.

I have new yarn, but no photo cord here to show you. It's Tofutsies from South West Trading Company. Sock yarn...superwash wool, soysilk, cotton, and Chitin. It's supposed to be naturally antibacterial. I thought they would be great socks for Colin. Chitin is fiber from shrimp and crab shells! It's made in China and it feels wonderful. Check it out somewhere... Maybe here... my LYS.

I also got new Skacel needles for my lace project. Hopefully they will be pointy enough. I was having trouble with that. What I'd really like is a super pointy circular for that. The Denise needles are pointy enough but the lace weight yarn gets hung up in the connection.

Photos the end of the week. I promise! Knit on.

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!

For all you Irish out there, or those of you who are just Irish for today, here's a recipe to impress:

Cooks.com - Recipe - Corned Beef And Cabbage

This recipe was originally published in Bon Appetit Magazine in the early 80's (maybe even late 70's). I found it online the other day with no mention of where they got it. It's exactly the same... same wording, same measurements, same everything. I've been making this recipe for over 20 years. If you like corned beef and cabbage, you haven't lived until you taste it this way.

Ah Yes...

Working with the public. Don't cha love it? Well, today, not so much. But we won't go there. Just trust me. It isn't pretty.

I'm tired of all my projects and I want to start a new one. But I won't. I must finish something. I still haven't even picked up Meghan's sweater since I went for help. I just know it will frustrate me all over again. But if I don't pick it up soon, I'll really forget what I'm supposed to TRY to do and I'll be back to square one with that.

I'm loving the new sock yarn I bought (post below). It's so soft. I'll definitely buy more of that. They are coming out with one that has the Neapolitan Ice Cream colors. That should be fun. Nothing like ice cream socks.

I didn't get to see Idol last night but I read about it online this morning. I did see it the night before. I didn't like the fact that they all had to sing Diana Ross songs. They just weren't right for so many of them. But I guess when you're a professional entertainer, you should to be able to do it all. Here's what I don't understand though. The judges have a habit of telling the contestants.. "That was just so average. You didn't take the song and make it yours." Then, when they do sing a song their way, they get criticized and told that they didn't need to rearrange the song, that the original arrangement of the song should be left alone. That's a bit of a contradiction. They either can or they can't, should or they shouldn't. Which is it? Seems like a "damned if you do and damned if you don't " sort of situation to me.

Well, back to the world of real estate. And, today, it's a crazy world. I wish you could get paid to knit.

New Sock Yarn

Great new yarn dyed by Shelley can be found at my LYS .

It's super soft merino superwash. Feels great. I had to laugh when I got this home and

wound it into a ball. It's the exact same colorway as the koigu I bought at PURL in NYC last year. If nothing else I'm consistent.

My mother is 80 years old today. She got out of the hospital just in the nick of time for her surprise birthday bash. We almost celebrated without her which would have been very bad. It was a bad Weight Watchers weekend for me. I fell WAY off the wagon. But, hey, your mother only turns 80 once, right?

Finally! Socks!

It took a while but these are finally complete just in time for my mother's birthday. They sort of match. It's close anyhow. She has been admiring them as I knit them not knowing they were for her. I think the doctors are springing her from the hospital later this afternoon so I guess the surprise 80th birthday bash is back on. Phew!
















This pile of interesting looking stuff is shea butter. Wow did I ever get a great deal on this. I found a "butter buy" on one of the soap lists and took advantage of it. That is where someone puts it out there to the members of the list to order, then she takes it upon herself to collect your money, buy in major bulk, then separates the orders out, and mails it to you when it arrives at her house. If you're buying 100 lbs. of it or more, imagine how much less expensive it is. I was lucky to get in on this one. This is a wonderful additive to my soaps. And at a fraction of the normal price. I'm going to try to make soap on Sunday, if all goes as planned with my life.
But these days, you just don't know.

Knitting Chatter....

Ok.. so I love the new issue of Knitty.com. Some cute things. They read my mind with those fingerless gloves with a more masculine twist. My son saw the ones I made for myself (Fetching) and he commented that he really liked them. So I took off on a mission to find a more suitable pattern for him and never found one I really liked, until this issue came up with Dashing. So that was cool.

I also liked a lot of the patterns in the Spring Issue of Interweave Knits. But they all definitely fall into the category of too many projects, too little time. So I don't think I'll be going there with any of them any time soon.

Still waiting for Kathy at Kathy's Kreations to call me and let me know my Noro came in. I'm itching to start another Lady Eleanor. I love that pattern from Scarf Style.

Ok, so now I'm off to the hospital to visit my mother. Yes, you heard me correctly.

Not much to report...

I know. I 've been a bad blogger. But I have nothing to show. The socks are nearly finished. I'll finish them tonight. Then I really, really need to figure that lace sweater out. I did go for help, and she showed me what I need to do next, but I just don't know...

I'd love to just be working on the lace shawl. I was really cooking on that thing until I cast on for Meghan's sweater. I can never leave well enough alone!

I bought some nice sock yarn on Saturday. Hand dyed merino by a local artist.... Shelley! It's beautiful. Photos and info on that later in the week.

Right now, I'm off to school for a few days in State College. And, yes, I'm going to miss my THIRD knitting night at Barnes and Noble. I haven't been able to make one yet.

Crazy Hair

Is it really that crazy? I don't think so. My DH is asking why all the sudden do I have crazy hair? Granted, it's longer than it's been in 15 years, but crazy? I think not. Ok, so I put a little of that wax stuff in there. Change is good right?

On to knitting news. There is none.

On to TV news. There is none.

On to grandchild news. So glad you asked. Colin is doing the cutest thing now. When you ask him, where's crazy man?, he swings his arms around and turns his head all around and starts yelling like a crazy man. It's so cute. I'm pretty sure that all this "crazy man" talk is what started the "crazy hair" discussion. Whatever.

Have a good day.

PS... excuse the crazy wallpaper.

Weekend Update

just because I don't have that much time to knit doesn't mean that I can't still dream about it. I got this book with my Barnes and Noble gift cert. for Valentine's Day. There are some cute things in here... but mainly this:
















I just love the little I-cord strings on the waist and sleeves. (I'm not sure what purpose the lego thing in the corner is supposed to serve ????? )


So on to television news which seems to be the center of my existence these days. Grey's Anatomy. Hmmmn. I don't know folks. That was just a little bit too whacked out for my taste. But I still love it, don't get me wrong. I don't mind trailing off periodically into a little fantasy world but that was just ridiculous. And then, she's dead one minute and yuckking it up with Christina the next. Pa-lease. At the very least she should have been sick for a little while or something. She wakes up and they start chatting about Christina's engagement. Yeah.

The Oscars. I thought Ellen did a good job hosting. She's a hoot. Other than that, it was kind of boring. I guess no one wanted to be on that worst dressed list so everyone is totally glammed out.. that takes all the fun out of it doesn't it?? But, having said that, I hated Jennifer Lopez's dress.

I started Weight Watchers again on Saturday. Had to. Feeling extremely sloppy these days. And I think I'll start a Yoga program too. And weight training. In my spare time. Ha!

(edited: the book is "Inspired Cable Knits" by Fiona Ellis. Blogger somehow make that photo disappear.)

Very Little to Report....

This is the sock so far. I'll finish this first one tonight I'm sure. I love the colors.

On to American Idol... Yep, upon hearing Lakisha, I agree with Simon, everyone else might as well pack their bags. That girl can belt it out. I just hope America cuts her some slack about her weight. That could be the only thing that ends up killing her, and that would be a shame. She's got the talent and the sob story. I think she's a shoe in. I also thought Melinda Doolittle and Jordin Sparks were very good but not good enough to beat out Lakisha. That Jordin Sparks should keep at it if she loses. She's got the looks and the voice. As for the guys the other night, I liked Blake. But those guys don't have a chance with these three girls in the running. In other TV news, tonight is Grey's. I'm so psyched.

Weekend Stuff

Meghan's sweater is kicking my butt once again. I understand the decrease instructions but it's the "keeping to pattern" all the while decreasing that's getting me. This is where you have to be able to "read" the lace pattern and just know where to start on the next row to keep to pattern. I can't do that. So I've been trying to count backwards taking the decreases into account and that was working for a while but then that got too difficult with all the decreases on both sides. Grrrrrr.... I guess I'll go for help.

And out of the soap pot yesterday, I made this for St. Patrick's Day. I'm really disappointed in the fragrance oil I used. It smells wonderful in the bottle but I can hardly smell it at all in the soap. And I skipped the gel stage too which is supposed to be better for holding the scent. Oh well, at least it will be pretty and great for the skin.

I spent a good part of the afternoon yesterday re-potting plants that were in planters sent to us upon the death of my father. I think I have about 15 plants in separate pots now and that only put a small dent in it. I have so much more to do. I hate to see them all die all crushed together in those planters. I also pressed some of the sunflowers from the grandchildren's bouquet to give to them as a keepsake. My Dad grew sunflowers for the kids every year when they were little to see who's would be the tallest. He would have loved to start that tradition again for the great-grandchildren. Maybe we'll just have to do it for him this summer.

Colin having fun at Giorgio's 1st birthday party....

I think we might have to get him one of these things!

Rest

It's snowing and I'm tired and I'd just like to go back to Sea Island.

I'm not just tired. I'm exhausted. Mostly mentally but I'd say that's the worst kind of exhaustion.

I'd like to grab my sister and just take off. But it doesn't work that way. It should. It really should.

New Socks

To be honest, I don't even know what this yarn is. I took the band off and threw it in my knitting basket. It's nice though. I know that it is a 75% wool and 25% nylon blend. I'll give these to my mother for her birthday in March.

All of my soap is cured and ready to go except for the baby soap which needs a little more time to become hard. The baby soap is made with only olive and avocado oils and it takes longer for those. I had intended to have it all wrapped for Valentine's Day but that never happened. Hopefully I can work on that tonight.

We're getting lots of snow. I guess it's about time. But without an S.U.V., it's a pretty big pain in the butt.

Moving forward....

Thank you to all of my knitting friends for the words of kindness and encouragement on the loss of my father. Believe me, it helps to know people care.

In the days and months and hopefully years to come, we will honor my father by taking very good care of my mother.

The knitting needles may slow to a more moderate pace now as more important things take over the spare time in my days.

But that is what you do. You take care of the people you love.

You wouldn't want it any other way.

Life 101

You would have liked my Dad. He was funny. He made us laugh every time we talked to him. He was famous for the one liner. Quick wit.

But funny was just a small part of who he was. He was without a doubt the hardest worker I've ever seen in my life. His philosophy was that if you were going to pay him to do a job, he was going to give you 110% for the money. And he did. My work ethic is for sure a true testament to being raised by him and my mother who was also a very loyal, devoted, and hard working employee.

He was a devoted father and grandfather. He never missed a sporting event. He was our biggest fan. He believed in us. He thought we were the best even when we weren't.

He took care of my mother. He stepped up to the plate when the roles needed to be reversed. He cooked and cleaned and ran errands after years and years of being the pampered one.

Our children are devastated. Their children will never know him which is so sad.

Really. You would have liked my dad.

I'm going to miss him so much.

My Dad
October 14th, 1927 - February 7, 2007

New Beginnings

Our office celebrated the grand opening of our new Howard Hanna franchise (although they prefer to call them "branchises") on Wednesday night. We had a big bash. I sent myself flowers for my desk. (seriously, I did) In keeping with the green and gold theme, this is what they came up with. I like the Bells of Ireland. I guess some people think they're weird. But I liked it.

We gave each guest a piggy bank. They're cute. They arrived the day before the party. I was really sweating that one out. I was picturing myself delivering 300 of these after the fact. That was close!

So, hey, Pittsburghers... if you want to sell, let me know and I'll hook you up with a good agent!

My dad is about the same. I'm still staying with my mother although my sister is going to go tonight and I'll have one night in my own bed which is nice. Cate is coming home. There will be knitting. I'm almost finished with the koigu socks for MOI. I'm still stuck on Meghan's sweater. Today is her 4th birthday, by the way. So happy birthday Meghan! Oddly enough, today is also the birthday of my other niece's sixth child, Shane. He is one today. Ground Hog Day babies both.

Happy weekend. Knit on.

No Knitting News

Crazy is the only word for life right now. Work is crazy and home is crazy.

Father is in the hospital. Father takes care of mother. Family taking care of mother and visiting Father in the hospital while trying to work and hold it all together.

I guess this is the time we give back to them for giving so much to us.

I did order some Noro Kureyon with my gift Cert. from Kathy's Kreations in Ligonier. I'll make another Lady Eleanor shawl with that some day. It took me since August to figure out what I wanted with that certificate and I finally made up my mind. Entrelac is really fun for those of you who may not have tried it yet.

stuff

I worked a little on the lace shawl. Very little actually. I put about 5 rows on it last night. I wanted to pick it back up again so I wouldn't forget what I was doing. It all came back to me. Knitting straight lace is not quite so challenging as this:
















I have to say that decreasing in the middle of a lace pattern when the instructions are vague and wishy washy is not easy. I did get help at the LYS and got lost again almost immediately after I got home. In my next life, I want my brain to work.



Here's my new soap.
















I made this last night. It smells like watermelon. Turned out great. I get to cut it tonight.
It doesnt' take much to excite me.

Ready For The Woods....

Today, for no apparent reason, the New Blogger added this photo and I didn't have to use Photobucket. I did absolutely nothing differently this time than I've been doing for the past two weeks. I don't understand the finickiness of the whole thing. But anyhow, looking at the Koigu sock I do wonder why a chose a "camouflage" yarn. It's not like I hunt turkey or anything. These colors did not say camo to me until I knit it up. Funny.

This weekend is nothing but work. I don't think I'll have much knitting time although I would like to find some time to stop at the LYS for some help with Meghan's sweater. Hopefully I can squeeze that in. I'd also like to make another batch of soap. I don't know. That's really wishful thinking at this point. I found some Lemon Verbena frangrance oil that still seems ok from a few years ago and that was always my second favorite (next to lavender).

My son commented last night that he loved my fingerless mitts. I think that was a hint. I guess I'll be looking for a pattern for him. I think mine are a little girly. I'm open to suggestions.

Photos

Blogger still won't let me post photos and it finally dawned on me that I could use photobucket to post. The sweaters above were knit in 1986. I found them in my attic in a box. The were knit with Phildar Prognostic (I think). The pink and yellow were Catie's and the blue was Kellys. Now all I need is a grandaughter to pass them down to!

Below is the soap. Not bad for my first attempt in about 5 years. All of it turned out much to my surprise. I can't wait until it cures and I can use it. I do need to get better at cutting though. I had a nice wire cutter that I can't locate now.

Lastly, the progress (or lack thereof) on Meghan's sweater. I'm so stuck. Figuring out the decreases in the middle of the lace pattern is going to be so difficult for me. I can't "read" the pattern like most people can. I'll figure it out. Eventually.

Knitting Flashback and other stuff

Wow. I had so much stuff to show today and, once again, blogger will not allow me to post photos. I have tried all the little tricks they suggest for trouble shooting this problem and nothings works. Boy, I'm just SO glad I upgraded to the new blogger. Yeah.

I got stuck on Meghan's sweater at the arm decreases. Something about decreasing and continuing in the lace pattern didn't agree with me. Very vague instructions for my very math impaired mind. Anyhow, thank GOD for the lifeline. I'm off for help this weekend for that one.

Yes, Yvonne, I did make soap. And, yes, Carol, it was just like riding a bike. It all came back to me (sorta!) Believe me, I was reading every step of the way. It all turned out good with the exception that my new mold ended up making the bars way too big so I had had to cut them in half. Now they are too small. So the trick with that the next time is to make 2 lbs. in that mold instead of the 3 lbs. it called for. I made Lavender, Oatmeal and Honey, and Baby Scent soap.
My dining room smells divine! Photos hopefully to come!

Friday Stuff

I've been trying to post all week but the "new and improved" Blogger would not allow me to post photos so I figured what's the sense? Today must be a good day in new blogger land. It has decided to cooperate.

The new edition of Creative Knitting. Best not to go here... nuff said. (Although, for a laugh, you really should see the photo of the guy with the camera in the knitted vest. Whomever was responsible for that needs to re-evaluate her thought process)

Progress on the koigu socks. Slow going for some reason. I love the colors. And I love the feel of these. I also have the body of Meghan's sweater completed. I will begin decreasing for the sleeves this evening. I've decided instead of having Shelly dye it pink, I'm going to photograph it in it's natural color and have Miss Meghan decide what color she wants it. It only makes sense. I'm not sure but I think she is kind of a purple-y little girl.

Here is the new soap mold I just got in the mail. They sent it LINED! How cool is that? That process is always a pain in the butt and they did it for me. (for the first batch at least) So I think I'm ready to go now. I got the oils in the mail yesterday. I bought the lye and the distilled water. Now if I can just remember how to do this! I'll have to really read up again before I start. (by the way, the chibi has nothing to do with it, I just sat the box down beside my knitting stuff) I'm excited to get started again. Hopefully I can do this tomorrow some time. I'm thinking Honey Oatmeal for the first batch scented with vanilla. This will be for Kelly. It was always her favorite. Next up will be Lavender... for moi!

Knitting Update...sans boring photos

I finished Emily's (daughter's MIL) socks. I made progress on Meghan's lace sweater, and I started the new Koigu socks. So it was a productive knitting weekend. The trip to Sewickley helped. Lots of knitting time in the car.

After just completing socks, and then starting with Koigu immediately following, it's clear to see what all the hubbub is about. I've knit with it before and loved it, but being able to compare it with another yarn right away makes all the difference. It's definitely the twist. The "sproing" if you will. I gave my other pair of Koigu socks away, I can't even remember to whom, but these babies are mine.

So how big is Colin these days??

Well he is SO big. Of course!

My Bad..

So I told my husband that the baptism in Sewickley started 1/2 hour earlier than it actually did knowing we would arrive an hour early and have to kill time. Low and behold, much to my amazement, there was a yarn shop on the main street that we might as well check out since we were there and we had the time. (heh heh, I'm going to burn in hell :-) But anyway, Yarns Unlimited. GREAT store. They have everything. (a decidedly unimaginative name for such a great place, but on the other hand, it does say it all, doesn't it?) The store was busy and obviously very successful so, really, what's in a name?



I got this:
















And make no mistake, these socks WILL be mine. Perfect for wearing with khakis.

Off to Sewickley....

Baptism today in Sewickly. Definitely not a nice day to drive. But what do I care? I'll be knitting socks.

Wish I had one of these for the trip:

MAGELLAN ROADMATE 6000T W/ 512MB SD CARD 3050T 2000 2200T

I had clients in my car the other day with one of these and it was so much fun. I want one! I need one!
I have to have one!

Michael's Neck Gaitor

Hmmn.. so I guess we can post one photo at a time on the New Blogger. Interesting.

Blogger Bashing

Ah, the new Blogger. How wonderful it is. I had two photos to upload for today's post. It allowed me to upload this one with no problem. For the second photo, it said cannot display page. New and improved my butt.

Anywho... This is a felted make-up bag I made a while back. It was sitting on the desk and my son walked past it and thought it was open at both sides and he presumed it was a neck warmer. He got all excited and said it would be perfect for playing hockey. So naturally I had to put all of my other knitting aside and start a neck gaitor for him to wear when he plays hockey. I was going to show it to you. WAS being the operative word. Ugh.

Knitting Friends

I was going to show you a 2007 knitting calendar that a friend got for me, but Blogger won't let me.

Truth is, I've been ignoring the invitations to upgrade to the new Blogger. Every time I log in it tells me that the new version is available and it has more features, better performance, less quirks, etc. Due to my fear of the unknown, and my lack of computer knowledge, I thought it best to just ignore it. Stick with what I know. Stay the course. Follow the safe path. But today, for some unknown reason, in a moment of "out of character" feeling of adventure, I clicked on the "upgrade now" button. There was no turning back. I guess I could have just x'd out of it before it went too far but I just sat here and watched it do it's thing. Before long I got a message of congratulations. My upgrade was complete.

The first thing that happened was that everything froze up. I had to get out and come back in. The second thing that happened was that when I tried to upload a photo I got an error message that said it could not find the server. (And that is still happening after about 10 tries)

I need to learn to go with my gut. I wasn't cut out for adventure. Maybe this would be a good time to just say goodbye to blogger and start over with a whole new blogging host or whatever you call these things.

Good grief. Who am I kidding?

Oh Good Lord!

You know you're in trouble when a pattern starts out, "We encourage you to explore the following books to help you develop a thorough understanding of sweater structure and design, which will enable you to knit custom-fit sweaters of your own design." This is trouble with a capitol "T".

Let me just put it this way... there is math involved. Lots of math. They know not who they are dealing with here. I come from a long line of math impaired people. Well that's not really true but I pretty much did give birth to a long line of math impaired people. (sorry for your luck kids)

Imagine my dismay at paragraphs like, "To determine your number of cast-on stitches you will need to multiply your gauge by the chest circumference in inches = ___ stitches. This number of stitches will be the base number you will use for other calculations in your sweater." Um, yeah. Uh huh. Riiiiiight.

Then we have: Multiply base number by .8 (20%) for ribbing number. For example: 180 X 8 = 144.

Not to mention this:
Preparing the sleeves.
You need to place 8% of the base number of stitches on a scrap bit of yarn. This number will be the same amount of stitches that you held at the underarm of the body.
Base Number X .08 _______.

But lets get to the bottom line. Could I do this? Probably. Do I want to? Not in this lifetime.

I want someone to tell me to cast on 144 stitches for the back.
And cast on 144 stitches for the front.
Etc. Etc. Etc.

I know some people who would think they died and went to heaven with this pattern. Math people. You know you're out there. You know you want this pattern. You know it will fit you like no other when you're finished with it.

I paid for it. (very little, thank God) and I will send this pattern to the first person who emails me to tell me that they want it. C'mon. admit that you're a numbers cruncher.

Patterns

I came home yesterday to find these two catalogs.... I'm sure many of you did too.

There are some cute patterns in both of these books. I really like the afgan in the cover photo of Lion Brand. But I learned my lesson about knitting afgans. I don't have the stick-to-it-ness required for the process. Hopefully someday I'll inherit the one I knit for my parents. That's the only way I'll ever have one. (my mother recently forbid my father to use it because she caught him with his toes sticking through it. really. you can't make this stuff up)

Anyhow, I LOVED this pattern and I'm going to buy it:

This one is in the KnitPicks catalog. Looks easy. I'd like to see more of the neck though. I'd knit that. I'd wear that. All I have to do is find the time. I have SO many projects in the works.

Thanks for the words of encouragement about the soap thing. I ordered my base oils. And I checked my frangrance oils and they still seem ok. I have promised myself that I will not become obsessed with it like I did before. I will not fill my house to the brim with soap again.

That's what yarn is for.

Progress... Emily's Sock, Meghan's Sweater

Soapmaking and other stuff

I used to make soap. Really, really good soap from scratch using the lye and all. I got started doing that when I came across it in a house I was showing one time. There were bars of soap layed out on a table in the basement of this house and for the life of me, I couldn't figure out what it was. There were about 50 of them and at first, I thought it was some kind of candle wax. So I asked the seller what it was and she said she had a little soap making business. So I bought a few bars and I was hooked. If you've never used a bar of handmade soap made with really good oils, you haven't lived! The difference is incredible. So I ended up researching online and buying everything I needed to get started. And I got incredibly hooked. And let's face it, one can only use so much soap. I needed to create and experiment, and the only way I could afford to do it, and not have my house taken over by soap, was to sell it. I mostly only sold it at Christmas time. But I did well with it then. I was one happy soapmaker. Sort of a mad scientist with it if you will. Then my mother got sick. My mother had a job when she got sick. She worked at home for the state. So, initially, I did that job for a long time until my mother finally conceded that she would not be able to go back to it. I stopped making soap during that time because I didn't have time to do it. It takes the better part of a morning or afternoon to make a batch of soap. And I did it in my kitchen so I had to put a lot of time into preparation and clean up. When I finally had the time to do it again, I just didn't have the desire. That's when I started knitting. There is no one hour prep time and one hour clean up time with knitting. But to make a long (very long) story short, I found an old bar of my soap with the Christmas stuff this year. It was still good. So I put it in the shower and it all came back to me why I started making it in the first place. It's fabulous. I looked online to try to buy a bar similar. I found one for $5.50. plus $5.50 shipping and handling. $11.00 for a bar of soap? I think not. So, soapmaking, here I come again. I hope my knitting doesn't suffer. And speaking of knitting..... I'm making good progress on Meghan's sweater and I finished a sock. I'd love to show you photos, but apparently Blogger doesn't want me to.

Vogue Knitting - Winter

I SO, SO, SO wish I had taken the time to look through that magazine before I shelled out the $7.00 for it. (but I had Colin with me. He was in the shopping cart and I was hurrying)

All I can say is, what were they thinking??

Meghan's Sweater

I've decided to do this:

















From this:















I worked on this for 5 hours yesterday. Yes, five hours. I had two repeats finished and had to rip. I was a stitch short and couldn't find it. It was obviously a forgotten yarn-over. I think I can save it from here although I did not have a life line in it. Lesson learned. There WILL be life lines from now on. The whole body of the sweater is done at one time so it was a lot of knitting lost. There was no pink worsted weight at the big yarn sale and my LYS yesterday so Shelley said she will dye it for me when it's finished. I'd like to have it done by Easter for my grand niece, Meghan.

Lots of Knitting!

So much for knitting less. I couldn't get enough over the holidays. I started these on Saturday and finished them on Sunday. Very quick knit from Knitty.com.
















Yeah, yeah, I know. I did a whole post one time about how stupid I thought fingerless gloves were. Truth is, I still don't get the concept, but I'll keep these near the computer and when and if we ever do get serious winter, and our barn of a house once again becomes an icebox, I guess I'll be glad I have them.
Knitty: Summer 2006

Only modification.... no picot bind off. Not only could I not understand the instructions, I just didn't like it anyway.
What I learned: I don't like doing cables on DP's. So any thought of doing the "Child's First Sock" pattern from the "Knitting Vintage Socks" book has been pretty much killed since that's all they are. I think that learning how to do cables without a cable needle is definitely in order for socks.

Below is the scarf made with Shelley's handspun and hand dyed yarn. I forget the name of the pattern but it's from Interweave Knit's ScarfStyle book. It will come to me eventually... Something garden... something something... brain cells are obviously dying.