Salvaging Socks

A couple years ago I made a pair of socks from Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock yarn in the colorway Bittersweet. It is a lovely magenta/red/orange yarn and made a pattern called Lacy Scallops from Sockbug.

But, alas, I discovered a big hole in the back of the leg, above the heel. I didn't want to toss the sock, but didn't have enough yarn to reknit the foot from the leg down. I finally broke down and purchased another skein of the same yarn and it came super-fast. (Thanks Loopy Ewe!)

So yesterday, I held my breath and cut open the toe and unraveled back to the hole, after picking up stitches around above the hole. Luckily there was a 3 row stockinette stripe between each repeat.

Now--reknitting.

Rummage Sale

I didn't get a chance to post last week about the church rummage sale. Knit Nite was even bumped into the Vestry room because all the tables were filled and the chairs put away in the Mission Center.

I helped out on Thursday and managed not to buy anything. Not so for Flo.

I just sat with my back to the loot and made change for people. But we did have lots of good stuff.

Lamb and Wool

I mentioned I started a new project to work on while on my way to Northern Michigan Lamb and Wool Festival.

It went well, especially being straight garter stitch with a few yarn-overs thrown in for good measure. Now it will sit while I finish another project or two.

Sandy and I had a great time. Originally she was going to try to embarrass me by wearing everything hand-knit that she owned. (This because I told her to wear something hand-knit to fit in.) She peeled off a few layers before we got going. She was surprised how normal everyone looked. For that remark, I proceeded to thoroughly corrupt her. She was fondling wool with the best of us, and coveting hand-woven goods as bad as I was coveting the roving and hand-painted yarn.

This festival is smaller than the one in Allegan, must more casual, and cooler as well. I loved that I knew so many of the vendors. Of course there were several there from our spin guild. One who planned to come was unable to, but it was still fun meeting and talking with everyone. Rachel bought a great new hat. I got many compliments on the shawl I was wearing and the one Sandy wore. They made great ice-breakers.

I bought too much, some rovings, some yarns, but it was all good stuff. A great red roving with wool, bamboo and silk. I also got some white roving with cormo wool, silk, bamboo, alpaca, and angora. Yummy. I also found some great colorful roving with banana fiber. And I got a giant skein of hand dyed with 12 (I think) different types of yarns to make a multi-texture shawl. And sock yarn from Yarn Hollow.

There Are No Knitting Police

Hear ye, hear ye!

After finishing 4 projects in less than a month, and having made considerable progress on the Wrap me Up Shawl......And faced with the prospect with a long car ride to West Branch, with only socks to work on......And armed with the knowledge that there are NO knitting police.....

You guessed it. I started a new project.

I am using the mill ends I purchased on the Spin Guild field trip to Stonehedge Mill this past June, and have cast on for a Pi Are Square Shawl.

It will be travel project only for now that I have started for the trip to Northern Michigan Lamb and Wool. Since I don't have to drive this year, I will knit. I will finish at least the Wrap Me Up before this travels to Knit Nite. I will return to the February Lady Sweater as well while this is in progress.

But, as I said, there are no knitting police, so:

Nanner, Nanner, Nanner.

I started a new project.

Loopy Friend

I finally brown down and placed an order with Loopy Ewe. I had been mulling over a pair of socks I made a couple years ago. Last year I went to put them on, and there was a big hole on the back of the leg, above the heel. Too large to darn--besides it was in the lacy area. Too good to toss. They were Lorna's Laces Shepherd Socks in Bittersweet. Not enough left over yarn to duplicate the sock from the hole on.
Hmmmmm.
So I finally broke down and ordered one skein to reproduce one sock. I sure hope I can figure out what the pattern was in Sensational Socks, although I can tell it has an eye-of-partridge heel. They were a pre-Ravelry pair, so no help by checking my past projects.
Sooo--I hope to pick up the stitches in the plain stitch area above the hole, and cut/frog back to the needles. And then knit from there.
I feel better about the salvaged pair. Not so good about picking up stitches. (It is a plain stockinette area, but part of a chevron, so zig-zaggy. But--if I pick up the stitches correctly, less than one sock needed to finish the pair.
Just what I needed, a challenge.

Onesie, Twosie, Threesie

Three--count 'em, three finished projects this month. And done forget I also finished one late August as well.

Pavia's Onsie is number 3 for the month. It sure looks skinny, I am hoping because of the ribbing. Anyway, I passed it along to Pavia's Granny for buttons and gifting. We may look for suitable buttons at Northern Michigan Lamb and Wool festival this weekend.

Cut to the Chase

The NASCAR Chase has started. And oh my! My man Mark, AKA Mark "The Kid" Martin, has won again. Five victorys, and all alone in first place.
Not bad for a 50 year old, who has been semi-retired for the last several years.
GO MARK!!

Finished Object Time

I have vowed not to start any new projects this month. As a result, I have finished the Burley vest. It should be a nice warm vest for winter. I may find some sort of metal clasp to add, but will wait to see how it wears first.

Even Gertrude was happy with how it finished up. Doesn't it look warm?

I also continued to on the Wrap Me Up Shawl. FINALLY finished block 16. Spent most of Sunday stitching it into place. Am ready to start block 17. And I have also been eyeing the Pink Lady sweater again. I think its learned its lesson and is ready to come off time out.

List of Nines--Part 9—Favorite Knitting Patterns

End of the line, list wise. I think I saved a good one for the end. And I hope by now you have learned a little about me. Probably more than you wanted though, huh?

1. Referenced in previous lists, my favorite sock pattern is the Yarn Harlot’s basic plain vanilla sock pattern. Adaptable for different stitch patterns and gauges, it is still a mindless knit when working a basic pattern. A pattern staple.
2. Elizabeth Zimmermann’s February Baby Sweater. I made this for my long suffering great nephew. It was a quick knit and essential prequel to the February Lady Sweater that I also love. I promise, mine will be coming out of hibernation soon.
3. Cottage Creation is another of my favorite designers. Their Wonderful Wallaby, and hoodie sweatshirt type sweater is a great gift for children, and my own is warm and comfy. The designer recently added a top down garter wallaby type sweater you have recently read about here the Kyler’s Kardigan.
4. Another EZ pattern I love is the Pi Are Square shawl. A horseshoe design, a semi-circle with long tails in front is a combo of the round and the rectangle. The best of both worlds. I may be starting one in the near future.
5. Knit Picks Classic Line Cardigan. My recent Hot Rod Heather cardigan was made with this pattern. Using doubled lace weight yarn, it is light and comfortable. I love it and plan future sweaters in other colors.
6. Elizabeth Zimmermann comes through again with her EPS sweaters. Elizabeth’s Percentage System helps the knitter take their gauge, their measurements and knit a perfectly fitting sweater in the round. When she devised the method of decreasing the yoke it made “do it yourself” colorwork possible.
7. The Sheep Shawl by Evelyn A Clark. A charted triangle shawl with pictures of fields, trees, houses and of course sheep. I WILL make one some day.
8. The Sonoma Shawl. I made one for me and one for Sandy. This elbow length capelet is just the right size for hands-free wearing with the addition of a shawl pin.
9. One last EZ pattern. In the Knitting Almanac with the February Baby Sweater is a square shawl. I made one in wool worsted for my father. Very warm, very easy. The hardest part was managing the long needle cable.
   
   Well that’s it, the ninth list of nines.
   Glad that is done. Well, at least until Oct 10, 2010 anyway.

List of Nines--Part 8—My Most Interesting Family Members

I couldn’t resist this list, but have included both living relatives and those I have found while researching my family tree.

1. My Aunt Glenna. She is the one who had the cherry orchards when I was younger. Many times I also went to work at the farmers market with them. She is fun, crazy and in her mid 80s shows few signs of slowing down
2. Armenus Gilbert. My big genealogy breakthrough. While much of my fathers side had been done already, not much was know on my mother’s side. My discovery of Armenus, my great-great-grandfather and my Civil War vet was an exciting moment. He was the middle of three generations who lived to age 90 as well.
3. Mary Sitts. A distant cousin told me about her. She is rather famous, and there are a couple books about her as well as much on the internet. As a child she was captured by Indians in the Upper New York area and taken to Canada where she was raised by a childless couple. While there she learned the art of being a medicine mother from her adopted mother. Eventually she was ransomed, married the son of her rescuer and then eloped with my ancestor. Scandals are the breath of life to genealogists.
4. Gerald Ford. Yup, the president is in my family, we just haven’t been able to make the verified connection. At least through adoption. But as a child, he was at the same Ford family reunions as my grandma.
5. James Henry Samis. This is another great-great-grandmother on Mom’s side. He died in 1899 after losing a leg when hopping a train to find a job.
6. Gilbert Samis, not an actual ancestor, more of a double cousin, his parents being the siblings of both my great-grandpa and great-grandma. He was in the Spanish American War before dying near the end of WWI in France. He was the first fallen soldier of Osceola County in the Great War. Again I found many clippings about him online.
7. I can’t leave out my Older son. He is in a class by himself. Pure farmer. I have long been know as “B—‘s Mom”. And yes, it has been confirmed, he has sold the famous party bus.
8. Barring a grandchild of my own someday, my great-nephew Luke has to make the list. This accommodating child always wears what I knit him.
9. My Grandma Allen. She tried to teach me to crochet. She introduced me to Little Women and Little Men. She encouraged my creativity. And she survived my dad and his siblings.

Real Life Interrupte: He's IN!!

I have been slightly under the weather this past weekend.  I haven't cracked open the computer at all until today.  And I must admit that my fingers are doing funny this to the keyboard. 

 

That said, I am so excited that My Man Mark made it the the Chase for NASCAR.  And thanks to his 4 wins, he is top of the standings.  Who ever said nice guys finish last.  Since I had a case of flu or smiething, I even missed the end of the race.  When I woke up and heard Kyle semi-graciously saying maybe he'd have better luck next hear, I was sure Mark was in.

 

And oh, speaking Kyle, perhaps he will learn learn to be less brash.

 

Yeah, when COT cars fly.

 

List of Nines--Part 7—Books and Book Series I Love

1. My all time favorite is Gone With The Wind. I first checked it out in seventh grade because it was the only one I thought would be big enough to last over Christmas vacation. Loved it long before the movie.
2. Jan Karon’s Mitford books. Maybe being Episcopalian made this one especially interesting, but they touched my heart.
3. Any and all of Elizabeth Zimmermann’s books. From Knitting Workshop, Knitting Around, Knitting Almanac and Knitting Without Tears. These books have opened out new pathways in my knitting experience and have allowed me to know there are no Knitting Police. She also has some great videos based on some of these books.
4. Knitting Rules! By Stephanie Pearl-McPhee. Again, basic rules and no patterns. How liberating to knit this way.
5. Bible. Need I say anything here? Changed my life, and always comforting. My favorite is my New International Version, with the Message a close second for just plain reading.
6. Joy of Cooking. I love the recipes and the way it leads you to experiment and do things your way. After seeing Julie and Julia recently, I love it even more.
7. Any of Agatha Christies’ mysteries. Miss Marple and all are wonderful.
8. By Judith Viorst, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. A childrens book but fun and how I can relate to its theme that some days are like that, even in Australia.
9. Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. This Christian novelist takes a rather obscure story from the Bible and translates it to the time of the gold rush and makes it a wonderful story of love.

List of Nines--Part 6—Interesting Jobs I’ve Had

Notice I said Jobs I’ve HAD, not necessarily jobs I’ve loved. But loved or not, they were interesting.

1. Cherry Picker. Now that was fun. From 6th grade until after High School, I spent two to three weeks every summer picking tart cherries on my aunt and uncles farm. To this day I avoid cherry drinks and jello. But what fun. Sometimes a cousin or two would be staying with me, sometimes not, but always fun. Beyond the job was lots of family fun and I loved it.
2. Cherry sorter. One summer while I was teaching part time, I needed a summer job and landed at a nearby canning factory. Sitting between two large and noisy cherry pitting machines may not seem to be ideal working conditions, but I did enjoy it. The job was mindless and I was able to make mental plans and lists and sing to my hearts content at the top of my lungs. No one could hear at all.
3. Waitress for a summer. Not so fun. I hate hot weather and this was at a nearby state park that is an area summer mecca. Rainy days were the worst when campers descended upon us. Only upside? The next door dune buggy business gave all the waitress’s free rides in lieu of tips. Whooo Hooo!
4. Teacher. Not so great. All my training had been with upper elementary. I was given lower elementary. Basically I ended up with the sweathogs (remember Welcome Back Kotter?) of the kindergarten. That is why I no longer teach.
5. Telephone Operator. That’s right, for several months, when I started working at “a local communication company” I was able to channel my inner Ernestine and be a telephone operator. I value the experience, as it was just before the new auto switchboards and we really did use cords to plug into customers and to make calls. Very fun.
6. Toll Investigator. I loved digging into to problems and tracking down who made calls. This was in the day before calling cards and not much automation. I had to research who made calls that were taken off bills when people called the phone company. Most involved simple errors, but I did enjoy tracking down the ones who actually were committing fraud. Maybe that’s why I enjoy CSI so much, only I had no blood.
7. Coder/Data Coordinator. Everyone hates those people to who to ask questions for surveys. While I never had to make the calls, I did at one point have to help design the questionnaires. I even scored a trip to New Orleans (Pre-Katrina) to attend a class on creating the surveys. Mostly I just took the results of the calls and prepared reports for the marketing department. Fun and Fascinating.
8. Local History Clerk. My current position, even if it is only a few hours a week. I get to help people research genealogy, as well as copy and enter info into our data base regarding births, deaths, marriages, anniversaries, and military information. I love it, even when the people—patrons and staff—are a little trying.
9. Dispatcher. I worked for a time as the second shift dispatcher for a local propane company one winter. Part advisor (No, I don’t think checking for a leak with a match is a good idea.), part service rep (Yes I can take a credit card payment over the phone), part ogre (Hi Ron. Sorry to wake you but I have a gas-out you need to go to right away.) Interesting indeed.
   

List of Nines--part 5 Vacation Spots I'll Never See

SInce I won't fly, much as I would love to see these places, barring an unexpected inheritance or lottery win that would finance a world cruise, I probably will never step foot in these places.

1. England. Besides all the historic places to visit, I could again look for ancestors.
2. Ireland. Great Granny Hurley's homeland will also be safe from my digging.
3. Hawaii. I probably would be too hot there anyway. I don't like weather much if it gets over 75 degrees.
4. California. I would be nervous the whole state would be on the verge of sliding into the ocean. And not much there that I would realy want to see anyway.
5. Mexico. Again the heat. And the only Spanish I know, I've learned from Sesame Street.
6. Taj Mahal. Probably would be awfully crowded there. But at least I could see where all our old jobs went.
7. Australia. That would be a really long boat ride to get there.
8. New Zealand, all those wooly sheep, all that wonder wool. The home of my spinning wheel.
9. Antartica--all that lovely snow and penguins.

List of Nines--part 4 Nine Vcation Spots I Love

Or at least Vacation Spots I would love to visit, and since I have sworn off flying, all accessible without a passport.

1. St. Ignace and Mackinac, best spot on earth to vacation, in my humble opinion. Not as touristy as the other side of the Bridge. We've always stayed at the north end of town, just before you get to the casinos. Of course the last trip was in 1996, so things just may have changed since then, but still, great place.
2. Soo Locks and the UP in general. If anyone is reading this and not from Michigan, that translates to the locks of Sault Ste Marie between Lake Superior and Lake Huron. And day trips to the falls and lakes and the wonderful winderness.
3. Western Rockies. I almost said Banff and the Canadian Rockies. But since I have no passport, and no real reason to get one, I can stay south of the border and still enjoy the mountains. This way I can include Mount Rushmore and Yellowstone.
4. Alaska. Ok, without flying this one may be a stretch, especially with no passport. I wouldn't be able to drive or take a bus trip. Maybe a cruise?
5. Northern Lower Michigan. Petoskey, Charlevoix, Traverse City--temps usually more breathable than home and wonderful scenery.
6. Washington DC--An urban change of pace, but I love the museums and monuments and all. I have been there 3 times, but all over 25 years ago. I loved it then and would love it again, if I can avoid all the political stuff.
7. Vermont. Trees, Green Mountain Boys, and a chance to explore my Allen roots. Can anyone spell GENEALOGY TRIP?
8. Wisconsin Dells, fun and close to home
9. Mackinaw City and Mackinac Island. If I can't get to St Ignace, this makes a good second choice. Lots of forts and the old lumber mill, parks and there is always the boat ride to the island. Like I said before, the best spot on earth for a vacation.

Interruption

I now interrupt the list of nines to present a real life knitting/ job update.

I am speeding along on the Burley Vest. The second front is almost done and will be soon coasting to home on the back. Something about 2 stitches per inch that really makes the progress fly. This is going to be WARM.



I also saw another job listing in the local paper, again for 3 days a week. Spent all morning uploading a resume, application and cover letter. No update on the previous application, but they were just being filed for the time being at that place.



I wonder how many dozen will also be ahead of me this time.

List of Nines--part 3 Nine Movies I Love

Continuing the series of Lists of Nines
A few of my favorite moves, by no means a complete list

1. Gone With the Wind, one of the 1939 classics. I still sigh the first time Clark Gable comes on screen.
2. My all time favorite--The Blob, with Steve McQueen. A group from college showed it 8 times over 2 weekends for a fund raiser. I used to be able to reside the dialogue, corny as it is. Love it.
3. Pride and Prejudice, the 1939 version with Greer Garson and Lawrence Olivier. Although the televised version (with Kiera Knightly I think it is) is beginning to gain a foothold with me. Both versions have delightful D'Arcys and such self-centered Mrs Bennets.
4. Another great 1939 film, The Women. I had to see it a second time to confirm there isn't a man involved, not even in the credits. How delightful. How catty.
5. The Gay Divorcee with Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire. I love all their films but this one with them dancing to Night and Day remains my favorite. Love that flowing dress.
6. Holiday Inn, another with Fred Astaire, but with the added benefit of Bing Crosby. I've worn out 2 DVDs and before that a VHS tape. Watch it every year while wrapping presents.
7. White Christmas, see above but substitute Danny Kaye for Fred Astaire.
8. Wizard of Oz. Love this movie. Mom always said we've seen this and changed the channel. I was out of college and living on my own before I realized most of the movie was in color!
9. And another 1939 classic, Stagecoach, with a very youthful John Wayne.

List of Nines--part 2 Nine Favorite Sandwiches

Hey, I never claimed that this series of postings would be profound!
Anyway, my 9 favorite sandwiches are:

1. Subway's BMT, spicy with lots of veggies, everything but pink tomatoes ( I have to see what the selection looks like) and hot peppers. Plus I make sure they add spinach and shake some Parmesan cheese on it. Yum.
2. Home-made tuna salad with Miracle Whip and onions on toasted whole wheat.
3. Mancino's Roast Beef Club, hot and tasty.
4. A local cafe, the Koffee Kup's Chicken Caesar wrap.
5. Burger King's Whopper Junior. Too bad the local franchise has such a rude employee that I refuse to set foot on their property. I was moved to write a 2 page letter to corporate after a very unsatisfying conversation with the district manager. (I found the person who was rude to me was a MANAGER.) I finally used one of the coupons they sent, out of town, and burned the other. Dang, I do like that sandwich though.
6. Pork BBQ's, not the red kind but the spicy kind.
7. MickyDee's Sausage Egg and Cheese Muffin.
8. Samuel's BLT's. This local restaurant recently burned down and not sure if they will rebuild. Their BLT's were loaded with bacon and delicious.
9. And back to the Koffee Kup for their Pot Roast Dip. Messy but wonderful. And don't forget the pickle.

Plugging Away on UFO's

After finishing the Kardigan, I picked up a UFO that has been languishing lately. I found that had been betting too hot to work on it.

My Burley Quick Vest may not be very quick, but I did finish one front and started the other at Knit Night last night. This picture was taken at the beginning of the evening.

I also finished another triangle on the interminbly long block 16 on my Wrap Me Up Shawl.

The List of 9's

I realized earlier today, that today is one of those days that only come around once in a hundred years. Its 9-9-09. And in honor of this unique date, I have come up with nine lists of nine items. I will be posting them over the next nine days. Along with the regular blog fodder of course.
I begin now with the first list.
Nine Notable Socks I Love

1. The Yarn Harlot's basic plain vanilla sock pattern--so versatile. So easy to memorize. Wonderful with all kinds of yarns.
2. Sunday Swing Socks, a pattern that is rocking the knitting world from the Summer 09 Knitty magazine. Looks pretty, looks easy. They are on my short list.
3. My current project of Chevron socks from Sensational Socks. I like how it breaks up the stripes.
4. Iowa Cruise Socks by Cottage Creations. I have a pair knit in pink Lion Brand Wool Ease. So comfy and warm, great house socks. Being made in worsted, I can't fit them in my boots, but invaluable around the house.
5. My first sock design--Patriotic Funky Toes. I spun the yarn in stripes of red, white and blue and then plied with solid creamy white wool. These were made with the Welt Fantastic pattern, again from Sensational socks. I had to reduce the stitch count, and make with bigger needles than I planned. But pure wool and so nice on cold days in the drafty old farmhouse we call home. An upside, on the rare occasions when the house is cold when the wind blows straight from Barrow Alaska to our house, they stay on in bed! The short-row heel is snug, so probably won't be making that style heel for me in future.
6. My Mini Moochi Peony socks--made in the plain vanilla pattern and soooo fuzzy and soft.
7. My plain vanilla socks in the Cherry Festival colorway, an extinct colorway now, but well loved.
8. Spiral Stripe Socks. Alas, with no reinforcement, I wore a hole in each heel. But love the concept and will be recreating these again.
9. And last but first in my heart--First Socks. The first socks I knit are baggy, and have a dropped stitch that I picked up and hooked back till I could secure it on the back, but I am still so proud of them. My first step from being a knitter, to being a Knitter.

Job Depression

I filled out a job app today.
There was a notice in the paper this past week about the opening and so I trotted in first thing today with my resume, ready to roll. So were at least 5 other people, as well as one on the phone who had called for directions.
Sigh.
Since I thought perhaps some of the phone numbers from my last place of employment may have changed, I took the aplication with me and returned at noon with it. I did have to use different numbers than I had used before. And at least when I took my application in, no one else was there.
But as my contact at the last job (a propane company) mentioned, perhaps they have no experience with a propane company, which this is. So at least there is that to hang on to.
But I'm not gonna hold my breath waiting for an interview.

Another Finished Object

Another one bites the dust.

I finished Luke's Kylers Kardigan. So cute.

Do you think it will be "camo" enough for his daddy?

A Day in the Sun

Fun times were had at the White Cloud fiber festival yesterday.

When you consider that The Old Farm Girl has only been open a few months I think we attracted quite a few people. There were several people with vendor booths set up. On a personal note I don't know how I got tan and red mohair boucle yarns. It just jumped from the "special boxes" into my spinning basket--that's my story and I am sticking to it. But I will state that Mohair in Motion seemed to be my especially nemesis.

Cara was there with some of her alpaca fleece. Lovely colors, and gee, just how did I end up with those two 4 ounce bags of fawn fleece?Its like I'm a fleece magnet. A link to her blog, alpaca life is in the new segment on my sidebar of "blogs I follow."

She spins her fleece just flicked into a soft cloud. Look at that flyer go.

Quite a few of my fiber friends were there and we gathered under Sheila's canopy for a wonderful spin in. Louet seemed to be the wheel of choice, with 4 of them there, 3 under the canopy and Sue Ann had hers in her booth. My Joy and Dawn's new/old Kiwi that she brought from Kelly were the only other wheels under the canopy. Betty of Mohair in Motion also had an Ashford, a Country Spinner that she used to ply sparkle yarns with some of the mohair.
If you lookly at the wheel on the bottom, slightly right of center you may be able to tell that I chose a lovely pink blend of mohair, alpaca and wool to spin. I got almost half of my roving spun while there.

Spinning in Public

Our Spinning Guild, or at least some of us will be spinning outdoors at the new yarn shop--The Old Farm Girl. I am really looking forward, and have been considering what I want to take to work on. I do need to finish another bobbin of black shetland and then some of the medium gray, but am yearning for some color.

I have been mentally sorting through the stash for something fun to take. It isn't like I don't have any thing to choose from. Not to mention we will be spinning at the store that has a bunch of spinning supplies.

I finished my last bobbin of some BFL superwash in a nice gauge for socks. It is some of my roving from when I was in the Spunky Club and is a colorway called Lame Duck Mallard. It has mallardy yellow and browns with touches of greens and blues. It have it hanging and drying now and can't wait to try. Guess I know what yarn will be my next pair of socks.

Knitting Continues

I made a decision for the contrasting yarn for Pavia's Onesie. I have, with Sandy's approval, decided to use the brown/fuchsia yarn. In checking my e-mails it is the Venus colorway of BFL from Spunky Eclectic. It is darker somewhat than picture suggests.

I have gone back to finishing up Luke's Kylers Kardigan. I have started the hood yesterday after sewing in the zipper. I need to decide if it needs a button above the zipper. It ends an inch or two before the neck. I was dreading sewing in the zipper, but it went quite well. The thread doesn't show at all. I had to use white, but it is a quilting thread, so is extra strong.

I hope he likes it, and his parents too.

Pavia's Onesie

Here is the yarn I am using for Pavia's Onesie. It is some of my own homespun and I am musing as to whether to knit it all in this color, or if I want to add some brown/fuchsia, or some pink/purply yarn. Both are hand-spun in wool I got from Spunky Eclectic. Unfortunately I forgot the colorways. I will eventually show a picture of whichever I decide to use.

On the spirit of still trying to explain away the reason I had to cast on a new pattern, I had to finish it so she could wear before she out-grows it. And with winter coming, now is when she will need it. Visiting Granny in Michigan is chilly. And so is her home in Boston.

Betcha Can't Guess!

You will never guess what I did during my lunch time.
Yup, cast on another project. I am making my boss Sandy's granddaughter a hand knit Onesie out of my hand-spun merino. The same yarn I used for Sandy's toe cap, when she had broken her ankle.
No picture yet available.
But I had a good excuse. Today is Knit Nite and I had no easily portable project. (Well other than the omnipresent socks.) Luke's camo Kardigan is in the stage where I have one band to due and then needs the zipper put in. Not enough to keep me busy at Knit Nite. And the Wrap Me up is also nearing a crucial point where I need to pick up a gazillion stitches.
So you see, I HAD to cast on something new. At least it is a small project.