While I'm Unwinding

While I've been so busy unwinding and getting into summer, I haven't made time to wind wool. So yesterday I got out my trusty swift and ball winder and wound the rest of the Cascade 220 for my Annikka.

The mailman brought my Peruvia for the Tilted Duster - this photo doesn't do it justice. No matter how hard I tried I couldn't get the true color on film. I decided to wind 2 skeins so I can try and get guage this week.

Anyway, as I was winding wool I was thinking about my wool winding experiences and preferences. Some manufacturers make it very easy for you to get started. Others make you get your granny glasses out and work at the yarn. Cascade 220 is my dream wind...one slip knot to pull, un-weave in 3 places and your ready to go.

Peruvia was relatively easy too - 2 spots to un-weave and wind away...it is slightly bulkier and a little more slippery which I didn't not so the first ball flew off the winder towards the end. Have you ever had that happen to you??? It always surprises me and reminds me I'm not paying attention to winding which is true in this case because I have been very busy un-winding.

Now my next summer unwinding goal - knitting on the beach. I know I won't be alone as Kimberly knits on the beach and I've observed a few other ladies doing it as well. Sometimes my kids roll their eyes when they see I've brought my knitting to an unusual place - I think I might get a "oh, mom" and a huge eye roll.

No Knitting To Show

I have been knitting - I promise. I've also been having fun getting summer started.

We have a boardwalk a town away and we went with some friends on Tuesday. The have "wristband day" where you pay one price and can go on all the rides you want. The kids had a great time.

I had fun people watching - I should have brought my knitting.

They Fit!

My friend, Jane, came by yesterday (in the pouring rain) and I presented her with her new slippers. They fit perfectly! She was so surprised and happy to get them. Since it has been rainy and a bit raw, she wore them all last night. Mission accomplished.

No pictures today - it's a pause between rain storms so I think I'll take the dog for a walk...then when it rains again I'll sit and knit.

I'm such a sucker for a sale

So my inbox has an e-mail from Webs with this little tidbit saying Berroco Peruvia is only $4.79 a skein for certain discontinued colors.

I go on Ravelry (the true enabler here) and search patterns for the yarn and find that the Tilted Duster is knit in it - a pattern I have always liked.

So, seconds later I've ordered 8 skeins of this lovely color to make my own Tilted Duster.

I have a lot of work to do!

It's That Time of the Year!

Those of you who've read my blog for a while know that I pack up the kids and the dog and I spend the summer at the Jersey shore. Part of that packing is "what knitting should I bring?" This year it is a bit easier as we have to come home for a wedding in July so I can retrieve stash if I need it (I'd never send my DH into my stash while out of town).

In the past, we've been without a computer and I've been photo-free blogging at the local library. This year I'll be far more accessible as I have use of this lovely laptop! Woo hoo!
















I've been working on my Wisp - I've read that it looks wonderful after blocking and I'm trusting in that fact. Right now I still think it is lovely.

So I won't bid you adieu for the summer this year. I'll just be blogging from somewhere else and knitting with my summer S&B group, including my new friend from last summer, Kimberly. I'm also delivering Jane's slippers to her...hopefully I can get a picture of them on her feet. They still haven't dried thoroughly with all the rain we've had.

A Quick FO

When my friend Jane lamented that her new wood floors might make it so she needs slippers more often, I told her I'd make her some felted clogs. I did warn her I'd use what I had in stash so they could be a little "wild".

I checked out my stash and actually had a nice color combination - the top is Cascade 220 Heathers and the sole is using Ella Rae Classic. I didn't have enough of the dark blue Ella Rae so I took a skein of dark and skein of light blue and held them together - it gives a rather marled effect which is perfect for the soles.














Jane's foot is size 7 - the Fiber Trends Pattern is written for size 6 and size 8. I made the size 6 and put them on my size 8 foot - it was snug on me so I'm hoping perfect on her.

Now to get them to dry is another story - it has rained so much here it is humid. I'm keep them on top of the dryer while I do laundry - at least that might help speed the process.

I hope she likes them!

Did your Mom ever say...

"Young lady, your room looks like a bomb went off in it!" Mine did. That's exactly what our guest room looks like right now...it has become a dumping ground for all sorts of stuff - knitting, curtains to be hung, pictures to be hung, books for summer reading. Yup, I know what I'm doing today - cleaning.


On the knitting front...here is the back of my Annikki - the front is almost done too. Next sleeves and then VERY long button bands that you knit separately then sew on.



















My lovely Inca Marl arrived - this doesn't even begin to do it justice. I'm dying to swatch it but am holding off right now to finish....


These slippers for my friend Jane.










Actually I've already finished one and have one more to make. They are the Fiber Trends felted clogs and I'm using what leftover yarns look good together. I know you're wondering - "Slippers for summer???" - well, Jane is usually cold and her summer house just got new wood floors instead of wall to wall and she said she's expecting she'll be wearing slippers. So I thought I'd make her a special pair for her summer house.

Okay, I'm off to clean up my guest room pigpen.

So Many Possibilities

I didn't get the sewing machine out just yet but I did start playing with my squares of fabric. These are the fabrics that Lynne sent in a cute package and the liner fabric in the upper left side works with all of them.

This is what I worked out as the possible pattern. The dark brownish one really pops so I'm trying to find a balance with that one and the heavier pink fabric.

I looked at the pattern for the Cape May Bag on Knotions and I'm thinking I might knit the strap as well if I have enough of the cotton leftover. I think that would look good too.

Oh, the possibilities for this bag...so much fun!

Lucky Me!

After a lovely morning knitting with Jennifer and her wonderful knitting friends Joan and Lynn Wilson (check out her gorgeous designs...she was knitting this stunning scarf), I figured I had had a perfect day.

Well, as I drove down the driveway, I saw a box on my front porch. When I saw Lynne's return address, I squealed in delight as Lynne had a contest a while back and I won materials to make a Cape May Bag.

Not only did I receive the prettiest squares and fabric for the liner and cotton for the handles, but I also received a bunch of wonderful goodies. This is how the box looked - it had sock yarn, Plain & Thimble hand and body cream, scented candles, and a notepad which I took a closeup of - it has a tag that says "Find Joy in the Little Things" and on the inside it says "Blessings". Little does Lynne know but one thing I try to do is take joy in little things every day - yesterday I delighted my children when I stopped the car to let a mother turkey and her 3 chicks cross the road - little things.















I can go to bed right now...my day won't get any better after all this. Thank you, Lynne, for all the lovely gifts. I think I actually won't go to bed...I'm firing up the sewing machine!

Simple Pleasures

You've got to love when your teen/pre-teen kids ask "Can we have family game night?"...last night the question was asked and the games began.

I grew up playing board games - remember "Head of the Class" - one of my favorites. In my 20's it was Trivial Pursuit and Pictionary. As a mom, we started with Candyland and Chutes and Ladders and graduated to Trouble, Uno, Uno Attack, Scrabble, Monopoly and Life (which was much simpler 20 years ago and I usually need a glass of wine to play the newer version).

My DH did not grow up playing board games so his patience with them is a little thinner than mine. If we have a new game, I've learned it's better the kids and I learn it first and then teach it to him.

The other day when I was visiting Major Knitter (aka Jennifer), her son had cleaned out their game collection which is truly amazing. She shared a duplicate copy of "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader"...a game we never played before. We pulled it out last night and I must admit the directions were not the clearest - so we made up our own version of the game so as not to lose my DH's attention.

After a quick adapted version, we went to the old standby of Trouble. Our Trouble board is so well used that the dome is hard to see through - it is scratched and tired. However, it is hard to replace the board which we've loved for so long.

What are your favorite games?

I'm in Trouble

I don't know what made me go on Webs - perhaps I was looking for yarn to make the Monday Morning Cardigan. However, I found Classic Elite Inca Marl was on sale for $4.99 a skein and I remembered this wonderful coat (Rav link) that Leslie, A Friend to Knit With, had made.

I was knitting with Jennifer today and told her about what I was thinking of and she confirmed what I thought - I need to make this. Don't worry, Jennifer, I'm not saying you told me to buy this...you thankfully confirmed my suspicions that I just had to make this.

So, this afternoon I ordered the yarn in Adriatic - 17 skeins. Not a cheap effort but a lot more affordable than had it been full price. I can't wait for it to arrive.

I know you are saying "wait a minute isn't she knitting Annikki which is also a coat?" Well, yes, but this is a different coat! I'm also thinking that as cold as we keep our house in the winter these will be well used...yeah, right Estella, justify this one as best you can.

Knitting Reading

So I've read a few of the fiction books on knitting (Kate Jacobs' Friday Knit Knitting Club and Knit Two and Debbie Macomber's The Shop on Blossom Street, A Good Yarn, Back on Blossom Street) and some are good and some are okay. I picked up Debbie Macomber's newest book, Summer on Blossom Street, and finished it in 2 days. Not that it was a page-turner/must read but I was subbing and reading while the kids were working (I was knitting while I was reading too). The story was predictable and yes, I cried at the end - howver, I cry at Folger's and Hallmark commercials too.

However, it did have a series of quotes from knitters and listed several websites which I then could explore. Now that was worth the read. I discovered the following sites:

Gardiner Yarnworks and fell in love with this pattern.

A Time to Knit

Gigi Knits

Creative Partners

Also, the book featured a Fiber Trends Cable Sampler Scarf pattern which is free on Ravelry as well. So, if you're looking for a good beach read with some knitting in it then this book is for you.

So Many Patterns, So Little Time

Why is it that every time I'm in the middle of knitting something (and enjoying it) I find another pattern I want to cast on for RIGHT AWAY???

I saw this pattern by Laura Chau - Monday Morning Cardigan...she knit it up in the same Cascade 220 Garnet Heather I'm using right now to make my Annikki. If Webs still had their sale on Cascade 220 I'd be ordering more yarn right now.

For now, this pattern is going in my Ravelry queue and I'll have to wait.

My New Button

The other day I was surfing and found this new button on someone's blog - sorry I can't remember where I saw it. I went on the site and signed up. You can find the button on my sidebar if you scroll down a bit.

I input the projects I had on Ravelry that I finished this year (you can pick week/month settings but I don't have time to input that regularly). It really takes what you've made look like a LOT! I wonder how many yards I'll knit by end of year? This is my June 1st#...I wonder if I can double it?