OK ... so just because

....I have several things on the needles already, I won't let that keep me from starting yet another project. I bought a Sassy Skeins sweater kit for the youngest at the LYS the other day. And of course, I had to start it right away, even though I have few, (more like 30 or so) UFO's. I probably should have left it at the LYS until some of this other stuff is finished, but I had to have it and start it right away. I was really impressed with the product when we were at TNNA, I like the packaging and the finished product. It is a bit pricey, but each kit comes with absolutely everything you need for the project you are making. It comes in a nice little project bag with another little bag for all the notions needed. I should have taken a picture of it before I started, while it was still packaged nice and neatly.... but I didn't.

And under the little sweater is the throw I am making for my nephew for his B-day. I really should be focusing all my attention on that since the party is in a mere 11 days. I get so tired of knitting the same thing though for any length of time. That adult ADD is to blame for that. I can post a picture of it here and not worry that he will see it. I doubt he would ever even of think of reading my blog. The pattern is from the Little Box of Throws. I am about 1/3 of the way done. I think I can finish it in time.... as long as I can keep from starting more things.






.... like this little rolled neck sweater. I do need to knit this though. It is for a shop model and an upcoming class. It is the Knitting Pure and Simple pattern. It will eventually be for the youngest so it is being knit in colors she picked out. I like the colors too, but I really wanted to knit it in Lorna's instead of Cascade Superwash. This is a really quick knit, so I am sure I can get it finished in time. I did this in one evening, and am close to being done with the body.

Well I need to start dinner, so my family can eat tonight. Happy knitting all!

Just Needs a Zipper

I have finished a cardigan for my youngest, ( it is actually a shop model for awhile and then it is the youngest's). She was more than happy to model it for me. It is a Knitting Pure and Simple pattern. We chose the jacket collar option for the neckline. I still need to put a zipper in it. I knit it with Cascade 220 Superwash and Opal Petticoat held together. I love the Knitting Pure and Simple patterns, that no seaming is a great time saver. She likes it too, the sweater that is. I will have to make a trip to Jo Ann's tomorrow for a separating zipper and then it will be officially finished.


Also just off the needles is a shell. It is a free online pattern. It is the Quick & Easy Shell. I knit this for my eldest. It fits her beautifully and she likes it, but she won't model it for me because she is sunburned from a day at an amusement park and she is in too much pain to mess with modeling clothing her mom has made. I knit this in Crystal Palace Choo Choo. It is hard to see in the picture, but it is a burnt orange with little bursts of a hot pink and the ribbon is held together with a black nylon thread. It looks like I really need to sweep off the the porch at the doorway. I should have looked closer at that before I posted the picture.


And on the needles this weekend is the Roll Neck Child's Sweater from Knitting Pure and Simple. No pictures yet. It is being knit with Cascade 220 Superwash also. The youngest wanted stripes in a spring green, yellow and peach. The body of the sweater is almost done, so there will be pictures soon. I really liked the texture of the cardi knit in Opal and Cascade 220, but I couldn't sway her into another one like that. What I really wanted was to knit it in Lorna's Shepherd Worsted but the LYS, Cottage Knits, didn't have enough of any one color that the girl child liked so we settled. It takes so long for Lorna's to ship and I need a model for an upcoming class.

I hope everyone is having a great weekend. We are having a lot of rain here and the youngest is having fits because she can't go out and play. More next week, I should have progress on the next sweater and hopefully I will find the missing throw pattern so I can do the next stitch pattern on that.

Let The Name Dropping Begin

Ok, this weekend was the TNNA in Indy, and I was able to attend with my friend Cathi, owner of Cottage Knits. I am an instructor at her shop. Oh my gosh, it was a blast!... very exciting and very exhausting. I waited in so many lines for book signings, some paid off some not. A few times I waited in line for 30 minutes only to get to the booth or close to the booth to find they were out of books. This happened in the line for "Handknit Holiday"s by Melanie Falick, but she was nice, I did get the "Greetings from Knit Cafe" while in that same line, so all was not lost. My daughter loves that book and really wants it, but I am not giving it to her, she can, however look at it whenever she wants. Didn't get the Nicky Epstein, "Knitting Flowers" either, but did get a tote signed by her. I didn't get in the line for Norah Gaughan's "Nature Knitting" in time either, but I did see her. I got books signed by Margaret Radcliffe, "The Knitting Answer Book", The uncorrected proof of Melissa Leapman's " Cables Untangled", the uncorrected proof of Suss Cousin's " Home Knits", Barry Klein and Fayla Reiss', "Knitovation", and a favorite of mine Kay Gardiner's and Ann Shayne's " Mason * Dixon Knitting", Iris Schreier's, "Modular Knits" and Candi Jensen's " Crochet Bags". I also met Jo Sharp, Lucy Neatby and Annie Modesitt. You were warned, I told you I was going to be a name dropper.

And then, there was all the yarn. I have never touched so much cashmere, and silk and alpaca in my life, not to mention the merino and the cotton and the synthetics, and anything else you can imagine. The vendors were very generous with their samples today. They didn't want to have to pack them all back up and take them home, so I got a ton of yarn. Some of it is truly "sample" size, just enough to knit a swatch and some of them gave you quite a bit of yarn. Diakeito was very generous, I think I have enough from them after 3 days to knit a multi colored sweater for my youngest daughter. And they were the nicest bunch of people, not that the other vendors weren't, but they just seemed to stand out. I got a sample of the new Jo Sharp yarn too, but for some reason it didn't make it into the picture... trust me, it is lovely. Once my head stops spinning from all the excitement, I will knit something up with this lovely yarn. What a great experience this was, thanks for taking me along Cathi.

30 things about me

Kerrie of Hip Knits is celebrating her 30th B-day next week and is having a contest. I hope I can think of thirty things about me. So here it goes, beware... I am pretty boring
1. I was an Army brat
2. I was born in Regensburg, West Germany because that's right I was an Army brat.
3. Today June 10th is my 17th wedding anniversary
4. I have 3 children, 2 girls and 1 boy.
5. I am 44 years old
6. I love to knit and according to my kids I knit 24/7
7. I have a friend who owns a yarn shop and she lets me play with any yarn I want
8 All three of my kids are allergic to anything with fur so I have no pets.
9. I am one of 7 children
10. I spent all day at the TNNA today and I had a blast and will be a name dropper later this weekend or Monday after I return from another day of fun tomorrow. ( I will have pictures of all my goodies then too)
11. I hate exercise and it shows
12. I love to read
13. I sew and used to sew all my girls' dresses, but not anymore... now I knit
14. I teach knitting classes at my friend's yarn shop.
15. I love Starbucks
16. My favorite colors are peach and teal
17. I like to dye yarn
18. I am obsessed with starting new knitting projects
19. I am getting a lot of gray hair, my hairdresser suggested coloring it yesterday, but I think I will stay gray, my 8 year old thinks I should dye my hair blue and purple.
20. I love Fruit 2 O
21. I love chocolate
22. I drink way too much caffeine
23. I spend a lot of time on the internet looking at knitting patterns and yarn
24. I have never liked cartoons, not even as a kid
24. I sleep on my left side
25. I fall asleep knitting and keep on knitting in my sleep
26. I have a small Steiff toy collection
27. I will not share my drinks with my kids, but I will with my husband... don't ask, I don't know why
28. I like Sudoku
29. I am an IU ( Indiana University) graduate
30. I have a blood clotting disorder and have had several DVT's and Pulmonary Embolisms

Well, that was hard. I am glad Kerrie is only turning 30, I don't think I could think of anything else.

Finished Another One

This little sweater has been sitting in the bottom of my knitting bag for quite some time. I am determined to get some of these UFO's finished so I have empty needles. I have a small fortune wrapped up in needles and I just keep buying more instead of finishing projects. I have set a goal for myself, to finish at least one project each week. I have two tanks that I really need to finish, and hopefully they will get done this coming week ... as long as I don't get distracted by some other project I can't wait to start..

I have the body of the Lopi sweater finished to the armholes and one sleeve finished. That is such a quick and fun knit. And I have about 12 inches done on the throw I mentioned earlier in the week. But, being the start- aholic that I am, I started the brain washed felted bag, and a Knitting Pure and Simple cardigan this week. I will post pictures of those this weekend.

My sister is coming this weekend. My daughter is being confirmed and she is her godmother. We will have a nice weekend together. We are going to the Hoosier Fiber Fair Saturday, so I am sure I will have pictures to post later from that.

I need to head to bed, as it is 2:30 AM and I have a beginning knitting class at 9 AM so good night all.

Summer Treats

I have finished the toddler sundress. Way back at the end of March, I started this little dress. Then it was put aside when I finished all the colorwork... because then it got boring. But I was determined to finish it this weekend, so I did. I can say, I did not like making the fringe, it was just so monotonous. I really think I suffer a little from adult ADD, I love to start new things and quickly lose interest in them. So I put them aside until they feel new again. The pattern is called Summer Treats and it is from the Knitting in the Round book. I knit it in Reynolds Saucy Cotton. Now to finish the other summer projects...







But instead of working on summer knits, I started a Lopi Sweater this weekend. It is 90 degrees outside and this is what I just have to have on the needles right now. I also started a throw from The Little Box of Knitted Throws. When I get a little more knit on that I will share a picture of it. It is a pretty quick knit too, but I had to borrow the needles from that to cast on for the sweater. I went to Cottage Knits today, so now I have more Addis and am good to go.... for today anyway. It is an affliction I have, this need to have a new project going everyday

That's Right.... More Bags!

I just finished 2 more felted bags. They are just so fast to knit, making them great when you need to have a sense of accomplishment. This first one was knit in Cascade 220 and Knit One Crochet Too Paint Box. And is yet another Bowling Bag Purse. This is such a fast knit and I kinda like the shape of it. I was going to knit a long strap on this one instead of the little short handles, but I ran out of purple yarn. Maybe the next one. This is the bag pre felted and without handles.




The other bag is another Madeline Bag from Black Sheep Bags. I knit this one in Cascade Bollicini Colibri. I was just curious to see how this would felt, it has 27% nylon content, the rest being Lana Wool and Kid Mohair. I really like knitting with this yarn and included it in a couple scarves last year. It is soooo soft and light weight but generates a lot of heat without heaviness. I should have taken a before and after shaving picture of this bag. It was so soft and fuzzy from the mohair after I felted it, but you couldn't see any of the other colors, so it was sheared. I was really surprised what a dense felted fabric I got

Well I am off. I need to fill up the van before the gas goes back up tp $3/ gal, if it hasn't already. It is a beautiful sunny day here in south central Indiana, I hope it is where you are too.

Yet Another Bag

I finished another bag today. This one is a Two Old Bags pattern called Pamela. I knit this bag in Mango Moon Recycled Silk. And although I love the way the bag turned out, I hate knitting with this yarn. I find it rough going through your hands while knitting, and it just kills my arthritic hands and wrists. The pattern is very easy though and would have been much more enjoyable to knit with a different fiber.

Not much else to show. I am working on a baby bunting for someone else, she needed a little help with the sleeves. As soon as I am done with that I will be back to my many UFO's .

Amazing Lace Intro, (meet the team)

We have joined the "Amazing Lace" it started officially this weekend, and we are here to introduce ourselves to you. Some of you may remember me from a previous post. I was the beautiful Alpaca lace wt, yarn she couldn't wait to start knitting with. You know, the Alpaca with a Twist Fino. She took pictures of me and showed me off to the blogging world and even left me sitting out for a few days before she did anything with me. And then she finally cast on for a very pretty lace sampler scarf. But she is such a fair weather team mate and as soon as she hit a few snags in that lovely, delicate fiber of mine, she became frustrated. The frustration continued to mount with every few yards of knitting, more tangles... she is not very patient in that manner. So, I was frogged and even broken apart and some of my fiberous being was even disposed of. And then, this teammate of mine, stuffed me in a gallon sized storage bag and left me there until this weekend. ( let me tell you, there is not much air in those ziplock bags) . But now I am being worked with again and I can breath, and I am admired for my softness... all is good...so far anyway. I hope it stays that way. I don't want to be put back in that bag for a long period of time ever again.

My "teammate" makes me sound harsh, but really I am not. I just care so much about her that I could not stand to lose my patience with her anymore. So, she was put in a "safe" place until I was ready to devote my undivided attention to her again. And that time has come. We are a team! and we will persevere. I will not give up on her, nor she on me. We will be strong until the very end!

I think I'm a bag lady !

Well I have finished 3 bags this weekend. This first one is a Noni pattern it is the Medium Carpet Bag. I knit it in Cascade 220. For some reason it took me forever to knit this bag. I am so glad it is done. I think it was just that it was so boring to knit. My oldest daughter loves it though and has laid claim to it.






The second bag is this Felted Bowling Bag Purse. I knit this in Madil Pierot. This is a very thick and dense fabric felted up. My daughter hates this one but it is a hit at the yarn shop. And it is a super quick knit.









And the third is the Lil' Red Bag from Family Circle magazine. I knit this bag in Rio de Plata Merino. I love this yarn. It is so soft. I hate the bottom of this bag though, and if I knit it again I will do the bottom totally different. I think it would look nice in a chunky cotton, so I will probably knit it again some time in that.

That is all I have to share today. I am trying to get a lot of the UFO's finished. There are so many of them, I have lost count. I hope everyone has a great week.

So You Say It's Your Birthday

Yesterday was my birthday, and I have to admit, I was a little bummed. But, today, Mother's Day, I am doing the happy dance. I have been wanting a new camera for quite a while now, and it seems that whenever I was close to having extra mad money put aside, something would come up and , no camera. Today I got a new Canon PowerShot, and I am so happy. I am no longer at the mercy of my family to borrow the use of their cameras. So be warned, this post is going to have A LOT of pictures. First of all, a few birthday presents. From my dearest sister Karen, I got this : a T shirt she embroidered for me, Sensational Knitted Socks, and some knitting notions and some dark chocolate.. yum! I love them all. She is such a good sister and is always there for me. Everyone needs someone like her, and I hope you all do have someone like her. And from my dear friend Cathi, I got these goodies : 4 balls of Cascade 220 superwash and the new Sally Melville book. I have discovered the joy of dying my own yarn, and she knows how much I love it, so the natural superwash yarn will become a different color. And I love working with colors so this book will be well used. Thank you Cathi and Karen.

Now, to my newest hobby, dying my own yarn. I am having such a ball doing this. My family isn't too thrilled with the smells in the house these days, but I am loving the process. So here come all the promised pictures.. This is the first of the sock yarn I dyed and I could hardly wait for it to dry so I could see how it would knit up. I am very new at this so I was very surprised to see it stripe this way. But, I have to say I really like it. I can't wait to knit the second sock but I want to post a picture of the yarn in the skein. I haven't knit any of the rest of it so there are just pictures of the skeins. I like them all .


















And I do actually have one finished project,. a pair of socks. Baby Cables from the Sensational Knitted Socks. I knit these in Austerman Step. The yarn is bit splitty so I chose not to carry the pattern down the foot. I was tired of fighting with the yarn. I love the color and the look of the sock though. Well, once again I am tired of fighting with blogger. I can't get the pictures to move where I would like them to be, so I am calling it a night. Time to watch the last bit of Survivor.

Goodies in the Mail

Krafty1 had a contest for her European Adventure, and I had the closest guess to the questions ... so I won, whoo hoo. Yesterday the mailman brought a box of goodies she sent from her trip. A notebook with a cut out sheep on the cover, a sheep key chain, and a box of yummy chocolates. Some of the chocolates are familiar, some are not, and I am sure they will all be delicious. Thanks so much Krafty1 !!

Cables and Ribs

I have been knitting a pair of socks from the Fall 2005 Interweave Knits, and they are finished. The Cables and Ribs, knit in Mountain Colors, Mountain Goat in the Pheasant colorway. I love this yarn and I love these socks. But it will probably not be cool enough to wear them again until next fall. This yarn is just absolutely yummy.




I have been working on a few other things. I have been feeling a bit under the weather so I have been hanging out on the couch and getting a lot of knitting done.... not a lot finished, but a lot started...I do love to start new projects. I did manage to finish this dish cloth knit for a dish cloth exchange. It was a fun and quick knit. I made it out of Sugar' n' Cream cotton. I mailed it off with a few other knitting goodies today. I think it would look nice as a doily too, but it is a little heavy for that.

And also new on the needles is the Six Sox KAL sock. I am knitting it in Opal Magic. This yarn has been marinating in the sock yarn stash for quite awhile. I thought it was time to do something with it. I forgot I had it until I went through the stash this weekend and rediscovered it. The true color is a bit more blue than the picture shows



And finally, one last new start, Denmark from Nancy Bush and the KOTR KAL. I love this sock. I have made it once before for my oldest daughter, this pair is for me though. I am knitting it in King Cole Merino Blend. It is probably a little too heavy for this sock, but I like the way it is turning out. It will be very warm for next fall and winter This is such a quick knit. The next pair, and there will be another pair of these in my future will be knit in Lorna's Sport.

My DH just came home with a salad from the Bajio for me, yum, so I am going to go eat my dinner. Have a great day all!!

Baby Socks

I have been knitting baby socks for the Longest Line of Baby Socks. Not too much other knitting has been going on. I need to knit 4 more pair today, and I have to say... as cute as they are, I am really tired of these baby socks! But they will keep a lot of baby feet warm, so I will knit on. I have to mail them tomorrow so they can get to where they need to be by the 29th.






I have a little progress to show on 2 other socks, but they have been sadly neglected this week. One is a 4 stitch reticulated pattern from Sensational Knitted Socks. This sock is a lot of fun to knit and I can't wait to be able to get back to it. I am knitting it in Trekking XXL 135 and black Fortissima.


The other sock is the Feather and Fan sock I am knitting for the Sockamaniac KAL. I am knitting it in Patons Kroy. I don't know how well I like this yarn. This sock and I may visit the frog pond here shortly. I am still giving it some thought..


That is about all for today. I have 4 pair of baby socks to make before tomorrow afternoon, so.... I better get knitting

Where I Knit

Kat is having a contest. List 5 places you knit other than at home. I knit everywhere. The most recent places other than home are:
1. During a six hour staff meeting at work the other night I knit through almost the entire meeting. I made 2 pair of baby socks and had several requests for knitting lessons.

2. I knit at my daughter's band concerts, if it is a simple pattern I can knit even after they dim the lights.

3. I knit in line at the bank, I did that yesterday during a 20 minute wait. I keep knitting in the car for just such emergency situations.

4. I knit in the doctors office. All three of my children get weekly allergy shots, and we have to wait in the office to make sure they have no adverse reaction, so we are usually there for an hour for the 3 of them. I get a lot of knitting done there.

5. I knit at church ... not during the service, but before and after sometimes. Esp. the last couple weeks, my kids had to be there early for several services during Lent to rehearse music.

I knit everywhere. But, those are the 5 most recent places other than home and of course my LYS.

I am working on several pair of socks. And have baby socks finished, but I am without a camera right now, so I cannot post any pictures. Hopefully, and soon, I will be able to get a new camera.

Happy Easter!!!!!

I'm On A Roll!!

Whoo Hoo!! I finished another pair of socks. I am on a roll, that is two pair of socks in a weeks time. This is a cables and rib pattern. I used this pattern for a sock class I just did. Advance beginning socks with an intro to cables. The girls in the class did really well. I wish I had taken pictures of theirs with the digital camera. I have so many socks OTN but that didn't stop me from starting two more pair today. I will post pictures of those when I have a little more done on them.

The one pair is a Feather and Fan sock. I am knitting that in Patons Kroy for the sockamaniac KAL and the other is a Four- Stitch Reticulated Pattern from the Sensational Knitted Socks book ( thanks Karen). I am knitting that one in Trekking and Fortissima, and I love it.

I finished this simple drop stitch scarf this weekend too. I love the Mango Moon Ribbon yarn. It has such a nice feel to it. This will match my Easter outfit beautifully.

Well I don't have too much else going on. A lot of unfinished things to work on, but I am really enjoying these socks right now, so I am going to go sit and knit.

Happy knitting all!

FINALLY FINISHED!!

I hate to say how long I have been working on these socks. It has been so long I can't remember the date I started them, but it has been at least 2 months ago... anyway, they are finally finished. They are a simple 2 x 2 rib knit in Cascade Fixation on size #3 needles. Now I just need to finish the other gazillion socks I have started.











I went to BoPeeps Fiber Shop yesterday and came home with some yarn. Some lovely Elsebeth Lavold Angora in the Aubergine color. I have not knit with this before, but it is so soft and lovely, I just had to have it. I bought a few patterns also. A few SandnesGarn booklets, I don't have a baby and won't be having anymore babies, so I don't know why I keep buying baby patterns. There are always friends at work having them though, so I will have nice baby shower gifts for them. I also got a pattern for a felted Entrelac bag.



I also bought some more Cascade 220. Some from BoPeeps and some from Cottage Knits. This is going to become the Salsa Purse from KnittyChick.com I really love the bright colors in this bag, and can't wait to make it. I am off to Cottage knits for another hank of the green because I just realized I need 2 of those since I am going to be holding it doubled

I hope everyone has a great day!

A Little Progress

I have been working on the yarn I brought home the other day. I am making a little progress. The pile of cotton is soon to be a toddler dress from the Knitting in the Round book. The pattern is called Summer Treats. I am relatively happy with the way it is turning out. It will definitely need a good soak to smooth things out a bit. But I am having fun knitting it. I am not sure what the little blue things are supposed to be but my youngest informs me that it is cotton candy the others are popsicles and ice cream cones. I am almost to the armhole decreases....you gotta love those toddler size patterns for a quick knit. .

And the ball of gold Cascade and the Mango Moon Bali Sky recycled viscose became yet another Sophie Bag. I wanted to see if this material would hold up in the wash , and it did. It lost a little of its luster though, I was expecting it to "pop" a little more. Overall I am happy with the way it turned out.


Well, I think that is all to report today. The oldest has a band contest tonight, I need to decide which pair of socks to bring along with me to work on. There is always a lot of time to knit during those..

Happy knitting to all.

Yarn Heaven

I brought home a lot of yarn today... I am in yarn heaven!! Some more sock yarn of course, I am addicted to the stuff. My sister asked me if I needed an intervention, but I don't want to be cured of this affliction.
Some more Opal in the Tiger colorway and Trekking in 133. I really need to buy some more size 1 needles.














This is the Trekking I brought home last week. I am knitting Peaks and Valleys from the Knit Socks book. This yarn reminds me of Easter eggs, nice spring colors














This found its way into my bag today also. It is going to be a toddler sized jumper from the Knitting in the Round book. It is called Summer Treats and has lollipops and cupcakes and ice creams on it. I am glad I am knitting it in a small size because that is a LOT of stockinette stitch..














This yarn is probably going to turn into something felted. I haven 't decided just what yet, I will just have to see what comes off the needles after I cast on. The colors are much nicer in person. Maybe I will have something made out of it to post soon.








And this a shawl I made for my niece for her birthday. It is knit in Dive Teseo. She likes hot pink, but this will have to do. It is a mixture of pinks and reds. . I made a shawl for her mom (hi Karen) for Christmas and she put in a request for one for her birthday. This one is not as complicated as her mom's but I am sure she will still love it. And I finished it way before her birthday.... so unusual for me.


Well that is about it for tonight. Maybe I will have something finished to post tomorrow of the next day. I have several things in the works.

Some knitting going on

I have been knitting baby socks for the longest line of baby socks. These are such fun to knit and they are sooo cute. And quick ... Which is great for when you need to finish some thing quickly so you can feel like you have accomplished something. These are going to Germany but I am going to knit some for local charities too.


This week end I finished another Lily bag, a Black Sheep Bags pattern. I knit this one in Crystal Palace Merino Stripes and Cascade 220 held together. I like the way this one turned out. As I was knitting it I was thinking how nice this combination would be for a bulky sweater for the fall. It was so soft prefelted

My LYS just started carrying Opal and Meilenweit Sock yarn. I stared a basic sock in Opal Parrot for a shop model. I like the colors in this yarn but this ball was a tangled mess. I brought some home for my sister too. It was going to be a surprise but I am going to go ahead and post them so I will know whether or not to trade the one in for a different color. I get a yarn allowance at the shop so I am going to share a little with my sister . I brought home Meilenweit Inca and Opal Flamingo for her.




I also cast on for a baby sweater from Magiges's Rags called Wiggle Worm. I am knitting it in Lana Grossa Cool Wool. I do love this yarn, and the colors are so vibrant.. The picture isn't the best. It is a seed st. pattern with cables going up the front


Well, blogger has just about gotten the best of me tonight , so I am going to end this post. Karen, let me know if you like the yarn