Instant Gratification

Hats are such a great way to be creative. They can be as simple or intricate as desired. One color or many. Knitted, crocheted, felted, or... whatever!

The Hats! Hats! Hats! group in Ravelry is sponsoring a monthly Hat-along. Choices each time include one knitted and one crocheted free pattern that everyone in the group can work on together. It's great to see all the different interpretations of the same design.

September's choices are Flowers on a Grave and Beacon Street Cloche. Both are felted and result in a similar structure.

My Flowers on a Grave is knit with Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride on size 10US needles. Although the pattern called for two skeins, I had more than 29 yards left of the first. The pattern is well-written and easy to follow. And as always, this yarn felts up beautifully. The original design is decorated with knit flowers. I will probably make some in different colors. Or...how about a great brooch?

The Beacon Street Cloche is crocheted using Patons Classic Wool with a size H hook. This pattern is also well-written. While I am a big fan of this yarn, I was not prepared for how fast it felted. I was able to stretch it back out a bit while it was still wet. However, if I make another, I'll watch it more closely.

Overall, both of these cloches are classic, great quick-to make designs that any knitter or crocheter should add to their wardrobe. This Hat-along runs the whole month of September. Please join us!!

Thank you, Felicia!!!

One of my favorite events has been The Hand-Dyed Yarn Swap. We just finished up Round Four, and here's what I received:

I am so thrilled with my package from Felicia!! Just look at this gorgeous yarn!! The photos do not at all do it justice. It's wonderfully muted shades of greens and blues, with a bit of yellow. Felicia dyed this yarn for me with Superwash Merino in sport weight. She calls it "PG Getaway" after her home in Pacific Grove, California.

Along with my beautiful yarn, Felicia also sent me some really fun gifts. There is some lavender-scented vegetable oil soap, some "beak balm" (not sure what to do with that, yet), a lovely Lantern Moon notepad, and a postcard with a photo of the beach at Pacific Grove. Each item is fabulous!

Now, on with the search for the perfect sock design to showcase this beautiful yarn. Thank you, Felicia!!

Not Your Ordinary Block Exchange

The NYOBE is a group of knitters and crocheters on Ravelry. The group was divided into several circles based on the individuals' color preferences. I joined the Buttercup circle whose focus was on neutrals. With a circle of 12 people, we were each to make twelve12-inch blocks, send out eleven to the other members, and keep one for our own blanket.

Now, if you've never joined a swap or exchange circle, I do recommend it...at least once. While not all swaps are successful due to well-intentioned folks who flake out on their commitments, most are a fun way to exchange ideas and make new friends.

The NYOBE was very well organized by Tanya. Cindy, our circle leader, did an excellent job of keeping track of folks and encouraging all the members, even taking on additional postage charges for the international portion of the exchange. The end result was a mixed-media blanket, made by many hands from all around the world.

My blanket details:
I made four additional squares in order to enlarge my finished blanket. This was also a fun way to try out a few new stitches and color combinations.

Not all the squares I received were 12 inches. (One was as small as 9"X10".) In order to make them uniform, each was blocked and then edged. I crocheted around the smaller blocks with matching yarn using either single, half-double, or double crochet to bring them all up to the same dimensions. Then each block was edged with the darker brown.

Then, using Priscilla Hewitt's Flat Braid Method, all the squares were joined together. I had never used this method before, but it quickly became my favorite!

I finished the whole thing up with a simple Picot Edging. Tah-dah!!! A cozy new blanket ready for our cool weather this fall!!

I lovvvvve thrift stores!!

Finding new life in someone else's cast-off is actually quite fun. You just never know when you are going to come across a treasure that was on it's last stop before the landfill. Some days, you may find nothing but picked-over junk. And other days can be filled with gems.

Today was a great thrifting day. Just take a look.

This Wagon Wheel blanket is in excellent condition, and was obviously made with love. It's crocheted with fingering-weight yarn and I can imagine it took the artist a very long time to complete.

Just look at all those colors. I'm so happy it came to live at my house!

And how fun is this?! Two tubes of linen. It's rather fine...probably 10/2. Since I don't weave, I'll need to find the perfect crochet pattern to show it off. Each tube was marked $2.99 and I had a 20%-off coupon. Yipppeee!!

This partial skein of yarn had obviously been looked over. It was hanging out by itself, while most of the other yarns were grouped in bags. This is the type of yarn I grew up with...this and Red Heart WOOL. Feeling a bit nostalgic, I had to bring it home, too.

Happy thrifting. May your day be filled with gems!!

Mittens for Winter

Remember this yarn? I love the colors, love the yarn, but just didn't enjoy the scarf I knit from it. I decided bright mittens for this winter would be best. So I frogged the scarf and knit up these babies. I didn't follow any specific pattern and had almost exactly the right amount of yarn for them. I love them, and will enjoy the bright colors in the gray of our NW winter!

Pure Love

That's what these socks are...
The yarn is so soft and well-spun. The colors are beautifully dyed and had no pooling. The pattern is simple and sweet. Together they make very lacy feminine socks that I will love wearing!

Pair #2 of Summer of Socks 2008
Tendril Embrace
Keegan Lane Yarns Toasty Sock in Lavender

Movies

My favorite pastime (in addition to fibery pursuits) is to watch movies. Especially on a cold, rainy day in the Pacific Northwest...the best thing is a good movie, my knitting and a warm cup of tea. Ahhhhh...

A fun game going around the blogs are Flickr Memes. Here is my Movie Meme...quite fun!

Can you guess the answers? To find out, go here.

1. Favorite movie?
2. Favorite movie genre?
3. Favorite actor?
4. Favorite actress?
5. What movie always makes you cry?
6. What movie have you watched over & over & over?
7. Worst move you ever saw?
8. What was the last movie you watched?
9. Favorite cult movie?
10. Most embarrassing favorite movie?
11. Hottest actor or actress?
12. The actor or actress most people say you remind them of?

But I digress...

I've been working away on lace socks. In fact, I have two different pair on the needles and more queued. I needed a bit of a little-or-no-concentration-necessary project to break it up.

Pair #1 of Summer of Socks 2008

Brigid is a quick, easy knit that shows off a variety of yarns. In DK-weight yarn and size 4US needles, it felt a lot more chunky than the light-fingering/size 1US that I've been using.

The yarn is some of my recycled sweater yarn...a very soft yellow lambswool. I hand-painted it with Jacquard dyes in olive, brown and a touch of orange. The result is perfect for next fall.

Just because...

it's finally summer, and I have fresh-picked raspberries to prove it!

Happy Summer!

I recently ordered a kit from Keegan Lane Yarns. Since today is the Summer Solstice AND the first day of Summer of Socks '08, it arrived at the perfect time. However, my mailman continues to think I'm just "odd" because I get so happy when my yarn mail arrives. After this many years, you'd think he'd understand me, right?!

Of course, I already have way too much sock yarn in my stash. And of course, I had to have something new. My goal, however, is to make as many socks as I can this summer and use up some of that stash...after I knit this!

Melissa (of Keegan Lane) hand-dyes some of the nicest yarns in beautiful colors. This Lavender Toasty Sock yarn is just the perfect match to Hattie's Tendril Embrace Sock pattern. What a great kick-off for my SOS'08.

Spring Tulips are Blooming!

Spring is my favorite time of year. I'm sure it has to do with the renewing of the planet and life starting afresh. It gives hope and a sense that anything is possible again. Plus, all the flowers and birds are just so darned cheerful!

Let me introduce you to my "ode to springtime."

My new sock pattern, Spring Tulips, has now been released for sale! Designed especially for the Keegan Lane Yarns Spring Fling Sock Club, it's now available to everyone. Currently, you can purchase the design through my online shop and on Ravelry.

Melissa at Keegan Lane Yarns hand-dyes each of her skeins in small batches with lots of love. I used the Spring Tulips colorway (of course) of Toasty Sock for these. She has lots of colors to choose, including tonals, available. Check it out!

Huh-uh...

I don't think so...

Storm

Last weekend we had an amazing storm in our area. Normally our weather is pretty mild, so when something spectacular like this lightening storm happens, it gets our attention.

Before:

Even without listening to the storm alerts on the TV and radio, it was obvious something big was imminent. The sky was a bright orange and purple with tinges of scarlet.

During:

My car was parked in its very own little spot, safe and snug...or so I thought. The parking lot drains plugged and because it's on a bit of a slant, it flooded. So did my car. Argh!

After:

The next morning, remnants of the storm were everywhere. The waterline is shown by the ridge of barkdust, and by the (yucky) goo on the sides of my car. Since the water reached about 6 inches above the bottom of the doors, the inside carpets were also soaked. Now everything smells like the sewer!

A note about insurance...I haven't been driving this car for a while, so I dropped the insurance to save the expense. (Remember, it was safe and snug in its own little space, right?) Can you say, "Murphy's Law?!"

I Love Kid Art!

Just take a look at some of the great dyeing and weaving "my" kids at school did!!

This lesson incorporated several senses.
- Eyes: colors, patterns, texture
- Fingers: soft wool, rough sticks, motor skills
- Nose: Kool-Aid, rosemary, lavender

The kids were so creative and the results were great! Love!!

Mixing our Kool-Aid colors to dye the wool.

His favorite color is green!!


Group weaving fun!


Finished weaving by "A"

Finished weaving by "E"

I feel so appreciated!!

This was Staff Appreciation Week in our school district. One of the teachers I work with everyday showed me with flowers that she appreciates me. (It's mutual, Mrs. P!!!!)

Hanging with Clowns

Some of my friends are real clowns...literally!! A new store in our area had their grand opening last weekend. My friends, Gadget, Cha-Cha, and Rudy were there sharing the love! (That's me in the middle!) Cha-Cha even made me a Lady-Bug balloon bracelet. Love it!!!

Rudy just had his 17th birthday. Tall for his age, isn't he?!

Back at home, I'm finally getting back to spinning some of my CuckooBatts from Art Club. This is my Happy Birthday batt from December! It reminds me of vanilla frosting with sprinkles! Yum.

Essentials

The fourth graders at our school are learning about the Oregon Trail. The classroom has been divided into "wagon train" groups who are earning "buffalo chips" as they make their way across the continent. While making up their supply list for the journey, they had to make decisions about what is essential and what is a luxury; what goes and what stays behind. When they came to the spinning wheel on the list, most didn't have any idea what it is, let alone how it could be considered an essential.

So Miss Janet brought in her wheel and lots of raw wool to play with. As you can see from the photos, many of them actually got some pretty good yarn going, just spinning with their fingers and winding it onto a pencil. One boy even "dyed" his yarn with his felt-tipped markers!

After the spinning demo and hands-on experience with the wool, more of the kids decided a spinning wheel might be more of an essential for the pioneers than they once thought. And hopefully seeds have been planted for future spinners!

Fiesta FO

Last September I fell in love with some gorgeous handpainted roving. Sarah Anderson's "Great Balls of Fiber" BFL Fiesta from her booth at the Oregon Flock & Fiber Festival is some of the nicest I've ever seen/touched/sniffed/coveted, etc. It had to come home with me.

My work has always gone in waves. Lately I have been more focussed on knitting and crocheting. My spinning wave had ebbed, and so the roving sat very safely amongst the rest of my stash and UFOs until last weekend. The bug bit me. I had to get my spinning wheel spinning again.

This lovely roving spun up like a dream. The color changes were amazing! I Navajo plied my singles to keep the colors clear, and finished with 255 yards of delicious bulky-weight yarn.

I wanted to make a scarf that would show off those great colors. The Eliza Scarf by LazyKate was a great place to start. Her design is based on fagoting, and shows off the handspun nicely. I made some slight modifications (cast on 19 instead of 14, changed the left edge to match the right, and omitted the flowers). The result was a speedy (done in a few hours) scarf that I can wear with most anything!

What the Heck??!!

Yesterday I found this!


Today we had this!! (Yes, it's snow!!)


So now I'm going to warm up with some of this!!!


Happy Spring??!?

Gone Thriftin'

I went thrift-store shopping today, and scored big! I had a couple of projects in mind for recycled yarn, but also came home with some things to wear!

These sweaters will be recycled into new items, and perhaps into some yarn for my shop. (The shop has been entirely neglected since Christmas.) Now, if my friends would stop having babies, I might get some things in there for sale!

From top to bottom, these goodies are: an LLBean camel hair/lambswool cardigan, a Nordstrom lambswool pullover, a Woolrich wool/nylon men's pullover, a hand-knit wool (worsted weight) pullover, a Gap lambswool pullover, and Brook's Brothers Shetland wool pullover. Each is just right for future projects.

These two are for me. A Sigrid Olsen Silk cardigan jumped out from the rack. The embroidery, the funky buttons and the texture are all perfect. I will enjoy wearing this one!

I love the spring colors in this crocheted sweater. It has no tags, but I don't believe it was handmade. It has a suspicious-looking seam at the shoulder that is a giveaway. It will be a fun one this season.