Where Has The Time Gone?????

It is hard to believe that January is almost over already!  Much has already happened since 2006 began.  Some good things, some not so good things.  But hopefully life is getting back to normal now (whatever that is!) 

One of my new year's resolutions this year is to spend more time knitting.  I did just that this past week with an old friend of mine, Ronni.  She emailed me a couple of weeks ago with the exciting news that she has just learned to knit!  We got together in the coffeeshop of a local bookstore on Monday after work and we caught up on each other's lives and of course, knit!  It was a great way to relax and spend an afternoon.  We hope to make it a regular event.  Backstitches, our LYS has started a knitting group on the first and third Thursdays of the month, but so far Ronni and I have not been able to catch one.  We hope to soon, though.  I think it would be great to get together with a group of knitters and see what everyone is working on. 

I have many knitting pictures to share.  I will start tonight with a couple of Christmas gifts -- Kayla's baby poncho and Katie's scarf.  Kayla's poncho was knit out of Bernat Breeze with 2 colors of fun fur for the trim.  Katie's scarf was made out of Bernat Matrix held together with Lion Brand Moonlight Mohair.  I also wanted to show the first thing I knit in 2006.  It was a scarf for my dear friend, Debbie.  She had some minor surgery, and I knit the scarf to take to her during a recent visit.  The scarf was knit with Lucci metallic ribbon.  I have also been working on a pair of wristwarmers out of Lion Brand Moonlight Mohair, a Glad It's Night scarf for Juanita out of Bernat Disco, and I have just started another Booga bag made out of Noro Kureyon. I am also still knitting on the Farmer's Market Tote #1.  Now that has been a very interesting piece of knitting!  But I will save that story for another day! 

 

 

Christmas Party Time!

Today was our lab Christmas party.  I can't believe this month is flying by so fast!  Christmas is right around the corner, and there is still sooooo much knitting still to be done!  One of the items that I have finished is the Stained Glass Shawl I did for Jackie, my Pollyanna person at work.  She was really surprised, and she really loved her shawl!  That is what it is all about, isn't it!  That is why I push myself every year and do all that knitting for Christmas presents!  The shawl was knit out of Lion Brand Trellis yarn in the color Stained Glass.  The colors are really rich and bright.  The pattern I used was the free one on the Lion Brand Yarn website called Trellis Triangular Shawl.  The pattern is also on some of the ball bands on some balls of Trellis yarn.  Now, I had better get back to knitting if I want to see any more smiles on Christmas day!  More pictures of finished presents coming soon!!!!!!!

'Twas the Month Before Christmas........"

I hope that everyone had a really great Thanksgiving!  We had a wonderful time!  I finished the Santa hat, but I did not wear it.  I gave it to Rich, and he had a great time playing Santa Claus with it!  I wanted to share a couple of pictures from Thanksgiving with you, and also a poem that I saw yesterday -- someone had posted it on the Knitting Scarves group, and I thought that it summed up perfectly this time of year for knitters!  I do not know who originally wrote it, but they were for sure a knitter!!!!!   Enjoy!

KNITTERS CHRISTMAS EVE

'Twas the night before Christmas and all around me
Was unfinished knitting not under the tree.
The stockings weren't hung by the chimney with care
'Cause the heels and toes had not a stitch there.
The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
But I had not finished the caps for their heads.
Dad was asleep; he was no help at all,
And the sweater for him was six inches too small,
When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter
I put down my needles to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tripped over my yarn and fell down with a crash.
The tangle of yarn that lay deep as the snow
Reminded me how much I still had to go.
Out on my lawn I heard such a noise,
I thought it would wake both Dad and the boys.
And though I was tired, my brain a bit thick,
I knew in a moment it must be St Nick.
But what I heard then left me perplex-ed,
For not a name I heard was what I expected,
"Move, Ashford! Move, Lopi! Move, Addi and Clover!
Move, Reynolds! Move Starmore! Move Froelich --move over
Paton, don't circle 'round; stand in the line.
Come now, you sheep will work out just fine!
I know this is hard; it's just your first year,
I'd hate to go back to eight tiny reindeer."
I peered over the sill; what I saw was amazing,
Eight wooly sheep on my lawn all a-grazing.
And then, in a twinkle, I heard at the door
Santa's feet coming across the porch floor.
I rose from my knees and got back on my feet,
And as I turned 'round St Nick I did meet.
He was dressed all in wool from his head to his toe,
And his clothes were hand knit from above to below.
A bright Fairisle sweater he wore on his back,
And his toys were all stuffed in an Aran knit sack.
His cap was a wonder of bobbles and lace
A beautiful frame for his rosy red face.
The scarf 'round his neck could have stretched for a mile,
And the socks peeking over his boots were Argyle.
The back of his mittens bore an intricate cable.
And suddenly on one I espied a small label,
"S.C." was duplicate stitched on the cuff,
And I asked, "Hey, Nick, did you knit all this stuff?"
He proudly replied, "Ho, ho, ho, yes I did.
I learned how to knit when I was a kid."
He was chubby and plump, a quite well-dressed old man,
And I laughed to myself, for I'd thought up a plan.
I flashed him a grin and jumped up in the air,
And the next thing he knew, he was tied to a chair,
He spoke not a word, but looked in his lap
Where I'd laid my needles and yarn for a cap.
He quickly began knitting, first one cap then two,
For the first time I thought I might really get through.
He put heels in the stockings and toes in some socks.
While I sat back drinking scotch on the rocks.
So quickly like magic his needles they flew
That he was all finished by quarter to two.
He sprang for his sleigh when I let him go free,
And over his shoulder he looked back at me,
And I heard him exclaim as he sailed past the moon,
"Next year start your knitting sometime around June!"

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving Eve to Everyone!  I can't believe it is here already!  Time has really flown these last few weeks, and no doubt it will fly even faster for the next month.  I am off today and tomorrow, and I am spending today knitting and cooking.  We are all going to my sister Debbie's house for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow. 

I have several active knitting projects on the needles at the moment, all Christmas presents.  I have 3 scarves, a shawl for my Pollyanna at work, a farmer's market tote for my sister, and a cabled hat that I am test knitting for Spunknit (her blog, Innane Knitting Babble) is in the sidebar at the right) that is destined to become a hat/scarf set for my Dad.  I am currently searching for exactly the right pattern for that cabled scarf.  I am not having any real success, so I think I will just "wing it."  Last year I made Dad a Seafarer's scarf, and he loved how that scarf hugged his neck without a lot of excess bulk, so I am thinking of making another one of those but changing the garter stitch ends to regular knit stitch and adding cables. I am thinking of adding a seed stitch or garter stitch border along the edge of the scarf to prevent curling.  I will have to do a couple of test swatches to see what I like best. 

There is one more little project on the needles at the moment -- a Santa Hat for me!  It is a free pattern from Lion Brand Yarns and it uses Thick and Quick Chenille in Scarlet and Fun Fur in White. Here is the link to the pattern: http://freeknittingpatterns.lionbrand.com/patterns/kctq-santaHat.html  Originally, I had planned to have it done for the lab Christmas party on December 14th, but I think that I will go ahead and finish it today and wear it to my sister's house tomorrow.  It definitely will be cold enough!  We may even get some snow tonight! 

There are a couple of other projects waiting their turn on the knitting needles!  I love knitting this time of year!  I don't even mind the pressure of getting everything done -- it gives me the perfect excuse to sit and knit away without guilt when I really should be doing something else!  The latest project to roll off the needles and join the WIP list is Megan's sequined scarf, pictured above.  It is made out of Berroco Laser FX and the sequins are teal and pink and gold.  I held that yarn together with 2 strands of Trendsetter Perla yarn.  It is white eyelash with irridescent strands in the eyelash that pick up the colors of the sequins beautifully.  The picture does not do it justice as it is really very glittery and sparkly.  It would have come out better in sunlight, but there doesn't seem to be any of that today.  It definitely looks like snow outside! 

Well, off to knit!  I have set myself a certain "daily goal" of knitting each day to be sure that I get everything done by December 25th!  So, I think I will break out the hot chocolate, the Christmas music and the knitting needles and wait for the snow and enjoy the day!  Hope everyone has a safe and GREAT Thanksgiving!!!!!

My Name is Harley!

I want to thank everyone for their comments and emails and suggestions on a name for this little cutie!  There were some really great suggestions, and it was a difficult choice.  In the end, the one name that I just kept coming back to was Harley.  This little fella is all dressed in black, he zooms around everywhere he goes, and he has a really loud motor.  If that isn't the definition of a Harley, then I don't know what is!  When I took him to the vet for his shots last week, she told me that little Harley is going to be a long haired kitty.  So we are trying to get used to being brushed at this early age, but is not going very well.  He can't sit still long enough!  

Knitting progress is a bit slow right now, thanks to the turbo charged ball of fluff that loves to "help" me knit!  Mostly what I have been doing is planning the rest of the presents that I had not already decided on and digging through my "Outta Control Yarn Stash" looking for the perfect yarns to use.  I have been able to make Jackie's scarf for her granddaughter, add the fun fur trim to Kayla's baby poncho, and start one of the Farmer's market felted tote bags.  I will take knitting pictures next, I promise! 

I am going to my LYS this afternoon to look for some more yarns for some more Christmas presents.  I know, I know -- what in the world am I doing going shopping for MORE yarn when I already have an "Outta Control Yarn Stash"??????  I have a good reason!  I want to make a scarf for my niece Megan for Christmas using the Laser FX yarn by Berrocco.  It has little sequins in it, and since sequins are so popular this year, my niece the little Fashionista Diva will be right in style!  Also, I was thinking of getting some more Noro Kureyon to do another Booga Bag for a present.  I am not sure about that, though.  And I need some more double pointed knitting needles.  I am test knitting a pattern for Spunknit (see her blog, Innane Knitting Babble in the link to the right), and believe it or not, I do not have the correct size double pointed knitting needles!  I have just about every other size, but not the one I need!  (at least they are not where I can find them -- they are most likely tucked away in a bag in my "Pile Of Undone Projects!") There are a few other odds and ends that I need to get, but those will probably come from Michael's. 

Well, I will return with knitting pictures soon!  Right now, I have a trip to the LYS to make!  Yahoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What's In A Name?

I need some help!  I have this new, adorable, 4 month old little boy kitten, and I don't know what to name him!  He is solid black, with medium length hair. I had mentioned to my sister a couple of weeks ago that I have always wanted a solid black kitty, and when her neighbor (who works for a veterinarian) brought this adorable little fellow home to "foster care" until he could find a permanent home, my sister knew just who to call!  I went to see him Friday night, and it was love at first sight.  I was a little worried about what Cotton would think about the situation, but despite a few grumbles and growls at first, he now loves his new little brother and they play and have a great time together.  The girls from Diamond Hill Veterinary hospital named him Harry Potter, but somehow, that just doesn't suit him.  But the problem is, I don't know what does!  Some of the names in the running now are Salem, Harley, and Karma.  So far, I can come up with dozens of cute names for girl kitties, but not for boy kitties!  So, if anyone has any suggestions, please, I would love to hear them!  As for knitting, it just became a bit more difficult as it causes quite a stir with the new kitten!  It seems he loves to knit!!!!  Because he enjoys knitting with mommy so much, I was trying to think of a cute knitting related name for him.  Any suggestions?????? 

Willpower!!!!!

I am proud of my willpower this week!  The box from Knit Picks arrived 2 days ago, and I have been able to keep my "Start-itis" under control (so far!)  I do not know how much longer I can hold out, though.  It is very difficult!  I have been trying to finish up a few odds and ends before I dive into that fabulous box of fibers.  So far, I have finished and fringed the scarves you see in the above pictures (2 of them the knitting was completed, they just needed fringing) and I have also finished the other Red Hat Lady scarf for Jackie to give her friend.  Now Jackie has managed to convince me to knit yet another scarf for her granddaughter for her birthday next month!  This one is another fun fur scarf in denim blues. 

There are 2 more "finishing" items that I want to complete before I start the first felted bag.  The first is the fun fur trim on Kayla's baby poncho.  I found some fun fur in my "Outta Control Yarn Stash" that I think will work fine, but I have not got around to doing it yet.  And the second thing is a project that I rescued from "The Pile of Undone Projects."  It is a scarf I started almost 2 years ago, and then abandoned to work on Christmas knitting projects that year.  I had forgotten all about it.  It is a scarf made of Wool Ease in denim twist, and denim blue fun fur.  It is really pretty, and best of all, it is almost finished!  I can't believe I had forgotten all about it!  I came across it again while working on the "Art Studio."  I sure am finding all sorts of neat stuff that I had forgotten that I had!  It is like Christmas every day I work in there!

As soon as these last 2 items are finished up, I will start on one of those felted bags.  I will take pictures of the yarns and post them in the next entry.  I dare not fool with that gorgeous yarn too much too soon or my willpower will fade completely and the "Start-itis" will win!!!!  (I think I can, I think I can!)