Gifts and Fo's

I received the most precious gift this week! The postman brought this to my front door...

Each square was done by a different person over at the Elann chat site! I have proper thank you notes in the works for each of you but in the meantime a huge thank you to Libby, Betsy, Amy QOY, Barbara, Benne, Bri, Daryl and Trish!!!

Back of dress

Front of dress

Finally! This is the little Crumpet's dress from Chiagu. Details:
Needles: Size 5 and a cable needle
Yarn: Sonata and Esprit from Elann. The pattern calls for Lion Brand Cotton Ease and then adding elastic at the top. I used the Esprit, and elastic yarn, instead. The yarns are a different gauge so I had to adjust to get the finished chest the right size.
Size: 6 months. The baby was just born and is really tiny so she probably won't wear this for a while!
Accessories: Ribbon. The pattern also calls for beads on the bodice but I left them off. Next time I will definitely include them!
Notes: I did the Picot Cast On and the Picot Cast Off. Unfortunately I forgot the knit round between the eyelet round and the increase round on the skirt so weaving the ribbon was a little more difficult.

Knitter's Coffee Swap 2

I think I need to head to Vegas! I recently joined the Knitter’s Coffee Swap and out of 99 other people to be matched with, I got Amy. I know Amy. Amy is from my San Antonio Stitch n Bitch! Amy won my drawing a few months ago. I am very excited about this!

Knitter’s Coffee Swap 2 Questions!

1. Whole bean or ground? Ground – my grinder died a few weeks ago. Plus, these days I don’t have time to grind the coffee myself.

2. Fully loaded or decaf? Bring on the heavy-duty, leaded coffee.

3. Regular or flavored? Either one is fine for me. I rarely buy the same flavor twice because I like to have a little variety.

4. How do you drink your coffee? With cream and sugar.

5. Favorite coffee ever? Probably Kona - Big Boy sent some to me when he was living in Hawaii and I was freezing my ass off in Maine.

6. Are you fussy about your coffee or will any old bean do? I am kind of fussy I guess. I like Starbucks, Ghirardelli and stuff like that.

7. Favorite treats to have with your coffee? Anything really. During Stitch & Bitch I will often have a chocolate chip cookie or toffee caramel square.

8. Anything else about your coffee preferences? Hmmm, don’t think so.

9. Yarn/fiber you love? Well, I like just about anything. There are a lot of new fibers out there that I haven’t tried yet and I am anxious to give them a try.

10. Yarn/fiber you hate? Red Heart Acrylic!

11. What's on your needles? Icarus, Angelina, a sock, a Christmas stocking Lady Eleanor. I think that’s it for now.

12. Favorite colors? Pinks, purples and blues.

13. Allergies? Nope

14. Anything you really love, really don't like, or just need to get off your chest? Can’t think of anything at the moment.

I didn’t get to finish the WIP update because spring finally arrived. On Friday Piglet and I invaded the local Lowe’s and stocked up on flowers and veggies. Now I hurt. I trimmed shrubs, cleaned out weeds and planted. Big Boy did his share too but he thinks anything that involves color should be left to the girl. The fact that he does any yard work is a miracle because his family had a gardener for most of his life. Anyway, Piglet was a big help. LOL! He spent his weekend relaxing on the front porch and talking to the ferns. It was great to be outside and enjoying sun and fresh air! And Piglet finally got to wear some of his shorts!

On Saturday night we got a sitter and took in a movie and dinner. If you love Will Ferrell and you don’t mind a little crude humor you have to see Blades of Glory. I laughed until my stomach hurt. Here’s the thing… Will Ferrell has been around a while. His type of humor is well known or so I thought. People had their children at the movie. Some were not old enough to get the jokes but they were old enough to get the bad language. Others were old enough to understand the jokes but too young to be exposed to them. Then there was the woman behind me who kept saying “Oh My” every 5 seconds. I guess she didn’t see Old School or Wedding Crashers prior to seeing this movie. I needed a stress free movie after the past week.

I managed to get in a little knitting. Unfortunately Piglet has decided he does not want his late afternoon nap anymore and that was my prime knitting time. I guess I need to try keeping him awake more during the morning – maybe he can start helping with laundry!

Luck Be a Lady Tonight...

as you can see, there hasn’t been much progress on the lady since the last posting. I have recently scheduled time with each project and hope to complete a good chunk on the shawl over the next few months. I still love this yarn. It is the Noro Lilly, a silk and cotton combo. While I enjoy the Entrelac technique I am really ready for this scarf to be done - I just want to wear it!

I'll try to get through it without my wings melting...

This is Icarus. It has been a long time since I have worked in lace and now I remember why. I keep forgetting YO’s. I’m using size 2 needles but probably should use either size 0 or 1. That is a little too small for me! The yarn is Alpaca Cloud from Knit Picks in the color Stream – perfect name. The yarn is really soft but I’ve never worked with yarn this tiny before so it is a little bit a challenge - but then, I've never been one to shy away from a challenge. I have to admit… I’m not sure if this is the best pattern for this yarn. I don’t know what it is but something is holding me back. Maybe a few days in time out will change my mind.

Tea & Crumpets Anyone?

Here is the little Crumpets dress, nearly finished. I have a few more rounds on the skirt and then will finish with a Picot Bind Off. The giftee is here but she is tiny; it will be a while before she can wear the dress. I do have a problem with the top rolling and I’m not sure how to fix it – the yarn is Esprit from Elann.

I switched to the Options needles and while they make the knitting go faster and are easier on my hands, I hate that I have to stop every few rounds to tighten the cable. Even using the little “key” hasn’t helped. It is quite frustrating! I have to say that other than doing this in cotton; I have really enjoyed this little dress. I am planning another one in a larger size with the beads. I am trying to figure out color combinations - maybe a white top with a blue skirt and blue beads.

Oh, in case you are wondering, the second photo is the ribbon I am going to put on the dress!

How I Spent My Saturday

So, how did you spend your Saturday? I cleaned out the junk guest room closet. I came up with all this stuff to donate the next time the DAV comes around. And then all of this stuff to sell on Ebay. I had to come to the realization that my days of rubber-stamping and scrap booking have come to an end. I held on to a few things in case I decide to put together something for Piglet before he graduates high school.

Recently Vamanta Knits had a clearance sale. No, she isn’t a store; she was clearing out some of her stash. Never one to pass up a good cause or a good sale, I took eight skeins of Baby Silk off her hands. I’ve had this exact color before and love it. She was so sweet to include the little stitch markers in the package.

Project Spectrum

Here is one of my favorite yellows… Fizzy Lemonade. My San Antonio SnB meets at this fantastic, eclectic coffee shop/restaurant/bar/cake heaven. One of their specialties is the Fizzy Lemonade… a wonderfully refreshing drink on a hot summer Sunday afternoon. Ok, typing that made me think of a group of southern belles hanging on the front porch with their parasols and fans… “Why I do declare it is hotta than a crotch out he’ya on the porch and the only thang that will cool us is a tall glass of fizzy lemonade served by a tall, dark, handsome, nekked may’yan”. Crap, now I have that nekked man in my head and he goes by Derek Jeter. Ok, wait, where was I? Oh, right, Fizzy Lemonade. One day the bartender showed me how she made it and I have been making them at home ever since. Now that the warm weather has returned, I have stocked up on ingredients and now when Piglet takes his afternoon nap, I sit down with my Fizzy Lemonade and knit. Unfortunately, I do not have the yummy Candlelight Café cake or my knitting peeps.

I started on Icarus last week. Actually, I started twice. I have never knit with yarn this thin before so it is slow going. I also had some stitch marker issues. All of my small rubbers (stitch markers…get your minds out of the gutter!) were being used on another project and the large ones were way too big for the needles and yarn. I switched to my fancy set but the yarn slides through the rings too easily.

Last night I started a sock in the Jitterbug. I love this yarn. It isn’t really a self-striping but the colors blend nicely from one to another. The yarn is soft and bouncy. If you get a chance, give it a feel at your LYS.

Next week I will bring you a photo update of my never ending projects. Seriously, I think every project on the needles right now is going to take me a year to complete. Of course, I might get more accomplished if I didn’t have so many WIP’s!

Things No One Told Me...

No one told me that being a parent meant losing hours of my life waiting. Yesterday we spent five hours waiting at Urgent Care. Big Boy noticed that Piglet’s eye was red and watery yesterday morning but thought he had just poked it with a finger. As the morning progressed it got worse. He was crying and refused to open his eyes. The pediatric clinic was booked and they told me that life, limb and eyesight should go immediately to the nearest ER. I assumed that meant we would not wait long. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Apparently eyesight does not rank as high as vomit. You know you have been there a long time when the nurse comes out to call someone else and mentions seeing you there for at least the last three hours. Now he has little antibiotic eye drops and we have to take him back in today for a follow up – more waiting! I’m a good knitter though; I remembered to grab my Crumpet’s dress to work on. I had to finally put it away when I got frustrated at the Options needle coming unscrewed from the cable about three times.

The other thing no one told me… it can snow in April, in Southern Virginia. Yep! We got up this morning to snow on the ground and more in the sky. My Baxter has never seen snow. On Tuesday it was in the 80’s and today it is snowing :-( Go Figure! I miss the warm weather!

What is this cold stuff?

Let's play "Where's Baxter"!

Help!

Snow Spa

At least my stick is still here!

This is my latest dyeing attempt. I think I shall call thee Easter Basket or Jelly Bean because you remind me of the fun colors of an Easter Basket, especially now that I am too old for an Easter Basket (except if it holds diamonds or a new car – hint hint Big Boy).

Pretty in Pink...

What happens when you have this in your stash….. and you hate it?

Well, you pick up some Wilton’s at Michael's and get going. I used the Rose, Pink and Blue mixed with a little Pink. I started out dyeing just one skein to see what would happen and liked the results so much I did a second. I think I will do an Entralac scarf as a Christmas gift. Honestly, this is the first dyeing experiment that has pleased me. Usually the colors turn out nothing like the picture in my head (that happens to me a lot actually). I have two more skeins that may end up being mostly blue. I also have four skeins of black – any suggestions?

BTW, this wasn’t totally without speed bumps… I think I cut and spit spliced about four times!

I will never be as talented as Jayne though… go take a look!

Also, one of my favorite bloggers, Joan, just lost her dog, Rogan. If you get a chance, stop by and give her your condolences. If you love animals you know what she is going through. If you don't love animals, well, there is a special place in hell for you. Ok, I'm kidding, it isn't all that special :-) Don't leave me hate comments... I'll sic PETA on you!

Knit Picks

… or the Postman was nearly picking my knits out of his ass! This afternoon I was sitting on my sofa and suddenly there was a ruckus from the canine division of the family. I go to the window and I see the postman heading down my driveway. Sweet Son of a Biscuit Maker my needles are here… but they aren’t. No needles by the front door… no needles on the porch… no needles on the walkway…um, why was the postman running down the driveway when he didn’t have a package? Maybe he left it in the driveway? What the hell? There is a box behind the tire of my car, in the garage. Ok, the door was open but why did he drop the box behind the tire of the car? What if I had just hopped in the car and not looked?

Anyway, I was so excited about the needles that I opened the box and switched the Crumpet’s dress over immediately. And while I was doing that I planned out the socks from my Jitterbug yarn. I think I will cast on for Icarus tonight. I am so excited!



FYI... Piglet had his 4 month check up today. He weighed in at 16 pounds, 13 ounces; 25 1/2 inches long and a head cirumference of 44 cm. His weight and length are between the 50th and 75th percentiles and his head is in the 90 to 95th percentile. His height is finally catching up with his weight. But, as I told the doctor today, his head had to stay big to hold up his cheeks!

Cool Dudes

Are You Talkin to Me?

The way I see it, we enter and exit life the same way – bald, eating soft foods, wanting to do more than our bodies can handle and sleeping on the front porch.

And, well, even the dog needs to be cool around here.

What you can’t see in the Piglet picture is how wet the front of his shirt is. He has taken up spitting as a sport. It was cute the first day but now he is taking the “practice makes perfect” theory a little too far.

To answer the question of many… yes, the stocking is the last WIP in the basket. However, there is a list of things waiting to hop onto a needle. I am waiting for my new Knit Picks needles to arrive and then I will cast on for the Icarus and maybe even a pair of socks for me. As much as I love casting on new items, I also get to a point where finishing what I have started weighs on me. It is the way I was raised and my mother’s guilt still hangs over my head. Yes, I still pick up my toys when I am done playing with them. LOL! As for those needles – they have been sitting at the postal annex about a mile from my house since 9:00 a.m. on the 31st. Can someone explain to me how they can’t make it the mile to my house? The box my parents mailed on the 30th arrived yesterday!

A special thank you to Benne for the errata on the stocking. I too am shocked that it went until March before anything was posted. I’m not sure what difference error #1 makes because I think my cable looks just fine (except the part where I cabled in the wrong direction and didn’t notice it for several rounds!). However, error #2 is a huge mistake! Transposing which chart to work screws up the entire stocking. I know mistakes happen. But, this mistake is huge and it seems like almost every pattern in this issue has errors. Perhaps they should look at a little restructuring in their proofreading department!

Runagogo has started round two. With the good weather ahead I hope to make my goal. Today I am including my time cleaning the carpets. I have burned at least a mile's worth of calories. And now I am thoroughly grossed out so probably won't be able to eat for a while.