D.....

is for a DETAINED and DELAYED post. I am a DAY behind on my ABC Along post so please forgive me.





It seems like I have been busy but I DON'T really have much to show for it. I have been bitten by the DYEING bug as this picture will show. I used some food coloring and it was lots of fun. It is fun to come up with stuff that is all mine and no one else will have anything like it.




This is some of the wool that I got when I ordered my wheel. It is a Corridale cross I think and it is called Vineyard. I am thinking of spinning it up for a shawl knitalong but I am not sure. I DO have some yarn that I have spun but I haven't washed it yet and I think it looks better after it has had a bath.





D is also for DISTRESS. Buddy was not very happy with me so I had to share this one. Before the picture was taken he pointed his finger at me and told me "DAT'S not nice". I am sure you will survive not getting another piece of cheese.

A Great Weekend

I had a great weekend. I was able to go on a small trip to Des Moines to go to a concert with my nieces and my sister. We had a great time eating lunch and staying up way too late Saturday night. Yes this is a picture of me. I hate to have my picture taken but it was worth it to have one with my nieces.




These are my two nieces. It is hard for me to believe that I have nieces and nephews that are old enough to be in college. Jordan here on the left is a sophomore and Rebekah on the right is a freshman. Jordan says she looks fat in this picture. I think I need to slap her.



What concert did I go to??? I went to see Brad Paisley. I am a huge Brad Paisley fan. I have his albums and I know the words by heart. It is always the music I listen to when I am not sure what I want to listen to. It was a great concert. If you ever get a chance to go see him go. It was the last night of the tour and all sorts of practical jokes were going on and the crew must have went through a case of Silly String that comes out of the can. Jordan and Rebekah thought that the guy who opened for him was HOT.




This picture was taken Sunday morning. The girls were showing their Jayhawk pride.




This last picture might get me hurt but this is my sister. She was the wonderful person who called and let me know that Brad Paisley was coming and asked if I wanted to go. She let us stay with her and drove us around Des Moines. Thanks sis.

Want to know the best part??? Coming home. I realized that I don't like to be away from my family overnight much. I do go on an occasional trip but I would prefer any day to sleep in my own bed and snuggle with my husband. I also came home to a clean house and a brand new microwave. Wonder what I would get if I left for a longer period of time??? A dishwasher maybe????

The Knitter Needs to be Smarter than the Sock

I think I have finally gone off the deep end. I have just spent about 30 minutes trying to figure out why the turning of the heel flap of my Monkey sock wasn't working out. I started over the turn twice I still couldn't figure out what I was doing wrong. I finally figured it out. I DIDN'T READ THE PATTERN RIGHT. Do you want to know the sad part??? I have made this pattern before. I knew it was the operator and not the pattern, almost anyone who knits socks has made this pattern. I just felt really dumb. I kept slipping the first stitch when I was just supposed to knit the 17 stitches. Oh Well, you live and you learn I suppose. It might be that I stayed up way too late Saturday night but that is an entirely different post.




I thought I would show off my first handspun yarn. It has issues. It has spots where there is no spin and spots where there is too much spin but I am really proud of it. I have thought of using it to make a little scarf that would just fit in the top of my coat but I think I might just save it as a momento. I still have to get better at plying too.





I also have been bitten by the dyeing bug. I am really enjoying dyeing some of the roving and top I have purchased. I dyed the pink that is in the first handspun and I dyed this Friday morning. This is some Corridale, I am practicing on some more of this top and then hope to spin the top that I dyed into something I can use to make something for me.

Clue 4 and Getting Better

I have completed Clue 4 of the Secret of the Stole ii. I have also discovered that I enjoy knitting lace. It had always intimidated me in the past but now I am looking for new lace projects to knit. I am not sure what I will do with the stole when I am done with it. I am not really a stole kind of girl but I might just wear it to the grocery store or something like that. I think it would look nice with a turtleneck and some khakis. I might give it away too. I just don't know yet. I have started Clue 5 so I am not too far behind.




I really haven't spun much at all. I had spun twice (one of those two times was for maybe, maybe ten minutes) before I got my wheel. I really like my wheel and I really enjoy spinning. I have spun a little everyday since I got it on Monday. I could really tell a difference between Monday night spinning and what I spun up yesterday and this evening. I think this bobbin might even be worth trying to ply. The first bobbin I think I am just going to put it in a hank and keep as a memento from my first spinning on my wheel. I noticed a few pieces of grass and stuff that I missed when I was spinning it but oh well.

Robin's Got a New Toy!!!!!

I got a new toy and I think it has been stolen, by the Punkinbug. She had asked to treadle last night so I let her and all morning all I heard was "I want to pin on your pinning wheel".




I have went to the spin side. I have been thinking about it for a long time and did a ton of research on different wheels. I was not able to try very many out, I did try a Ashford Traditional single treadle and a Kromski Mazurka. I like the looks of the Kromski's and I wanted something that I could put away from little fingers. I got a Kromski Sonata.




The roving on the floor next to the Punkinbug is some Border Leicester that I got at my LYS. We dyed it with some Kool Aid in Black Cherry and Berry Blue.




This is how it spun up. I have some natural left and I am debating between spinning in natural or dyeing it with more Kool Aid just to have something fun to spin up. I am still waiting for the roving that I ordered when I got my wheel. I hope it gets here soon.

Meme

Linda tagged me and I have never done this one before so here goes.

Take the nearest book and turn to page 123. Skip the first five sentences and then put in the next three. I am reading Love Her to Death by Linda Palmer. It is one of the Daytime Mystery series books.

I had to use page 121 because 123 was a really short page.

"Some singers, and Al Pacino." Giving me Al Pacino's Michael Corleone stare, she lowered her voice again and whispered, "Freddo, you broke my heart".

I clapped my hands.

I think I will tag Guinifer, Janice, Hakucho and Tonni.


I have been making progress on the Monkey socks but not enough to post a picture. I am on the fourth repeat. I am still working on clue 4. I think I am officially behind but I might still catch up.

C.....

is for CHILDREN. I am very blessed to have three of them that are wonderful. Although this week the have been driving me CRAZY. It seems all I have heard is whining, CRYING, and fighting. I really love them alot and I am thankful that I have them even though sometimes they try my patience.




My two daughters are in school. Punkin is a first grader and Punkinbug is in preschool. I had a great Valentine's Day. I got some great handmade things from my girls and I really love them. I ask them on occasion if they will miss me when they are at school and they say "No, Mom, I will remember you." They are always so excited to share what they make and they are so proud that they made something for us.




Just in CASE you thought I forgot this was a knitting blog. I seem to have gotten a little of the sock mojo back. This is the first sock in a pair of Monkeys that I am making for myself. The yarn is the Posh yarn that has been seen in several attempts in the last month.

C is also for COCKY. I got a little too COCKY in my lace knitting and didn't take the time to move my lifeline and I had to frog about fifteen rows. At least it was only fifteen rows and not the whole project. I am plugging away at CLUE 4 and I hope to get CLUE 5 done this weekend since I think I will have other things to mess with next week.

Just the Stole Again

I still haven't been doing much sock knitting. I worked a little on the January pattern from Sockamania but just haven't been motivated to get very far on it. I keep telling myself that I will really like these socks if I finish them but I just can't seem to get into them. I am also trying to knit myself a pair of Monkeys but no progress there yet either. I am hoping the sock mojo will come back.


Or maybe it has been bought out by the lace knitting mojo. I am really enjoying this stole. This picture is from last week when I finished Clue 3. I am working on Clue 4 now and it seems to be going rather well. I am even learning to "read" my knitting which has helped a tremendous amount.





I am getting to the end of the first hank of the yarn I am using so I am hoping to be able to post a new technique that I have learned.

NO Socks, Just the Stole

No socks. I think I have lost some of my sock knitting Mojo. I seem to have to keep ripping them out for various reasons. Even so it isn't so much a big deal to me since I am enjoying knitting this stole from the Secret of the Stole ii. This is just a quick shot of the second clue completed. The lifeline on the bottom is where I took a picture the last time. I am working on Clue 3 and hope to have it done in time for the drawing.

I just realized this is my 100th post and I didn't even have a contest. I hope all my readers don't mind. I think I need to post more often if it has taken be 18 months to get to the 100th post huh???

B is for ........

BUDDY.

No BUDDY isn't his real name. It is the nickname that his dad has given him. I think it will remain his nickname on here as well since he seems to have out grown Marshmallow Thief and Mouse Thief. I will let you know that his first name does start with B also.







When some one told me that having a BOY was different than girls I didn't BELIEVE them. I thought "Nah they are pretty much the same", I was so wrong. BUDDY doesn't do the drama that comes with little girls. He is content just to play with his cars and he does have several now. His favorite is a Lightning McQueen and when you ask him who is that he says "Speed, I am Speed" BUT it comes out a little garbled.






Along with having a BOY, they tend to do BOY things such as try to feed the dog the rest of his macaroni and cheese. I couldn't get it exactly as he was doing it BECAUSE the dog wouldn't cooperate. She tends to have a mind of her own for some reason.




BUDDY doesn't get too upset usually. He is being kind of crabby today for some reason. He got mad at me BECAUSE I wanted to take his picture when he was doing something cute.




I guess graham crackers make everything BETTER huh????

Finished Object Friday!!!!!!

I promised Finished Objects and I actually have some to share. The first one is my new pair of slippers. I am thinking I should make the small size next time. They always seem to fit a little bigger than I like them. I have to wear socks with them if I want to go up the stairs or they fall off.




Next I have the socks that I was having serious doubts about making. I almost chucked them a couple of times. I am so glad I finished them though. They fit really well and I like how they feel. I will admit I didn't like working with this yarn much but I like the finished results so well that I am sure I will use it again. At least I better since there is more of it in my stash. The yarn is Lorna's Laces in the Flamingo colorway and the pattern is called Rib Zagger.




I signed up for Secret of the Stole ii. I am so enjoying this knitalong. The first clue came out last Friday and I finally finished it yesterday. I thought about throwing it across the room yesterday when it took me three hours to get the last eight rows done after I tried to figure them out for two hours the night before. I know that the problem was me I must have been too tired to work on it the other night and made stupid mistakes. I started the second clue today and I have done eight rows of it already. I think this is the farthest I have ever gotten on a lace project that I have not had to start over. I love lifelines, they have saved me several times already in this project.

This is a picture that I took of the stole yesterday after I finished the first clue. I am calling this a finished project everytime I get to the next clue so it is a recyclable finished object.





This last picture is just a picture of the Punkinbug. She wanted to have her picture taken yesterday and she just looked so cute reading her book. Yes she can read. She does ask "What is that word?" alot but she loves books and I think that is great.

Next time, the new sock on the block.

I'm in a MOOD and you better watch out!!!!!!!

I am in the mood to rant about the things that are making me mad today. I have been in a bad mood all day long. Maybe I woke up on the wrong side of the bed. Maybe I just didn't want to get up (see #2).

1. Arguing. I am sick of little people arguing about things that don't mean a hill of beans. The Punkinbug has been throwing a fit about her brother eating the popcorn. We have a whole box of popcorn!!!! Get over it already okay!!!!!!

2. Freezing. I am sick and tired of freezing cold weather. I need a couple of days of 30's or 40's just so I can go outside and not have to bundle up like the eskimos.

3. Jeans. I hate that they are cold when you go outside. It is like having a layer of ice next to your legs.


4. Frogging. I hate it. I am so irritated. I was past the heel on this sock and I thought I would try it on. It was too big. I made the decision to rip it out and knit it in a smaller size which could be a good thing since I thought I might run out of yarn with it. I love the pattern and I love the yarn I am just irritated with it right now.

I do have Finished Objects to show but I was in such a mood I thought I needed to get it off my chest. Gives me something to blog tomorrow right????

Are You Ready to Rumble????

Because it is time for Throwdown Thursday. I have been battling a couple of projects that I am determined to "beat". These felted slippers have been on the needles since right after Christmas and I really need them done so they can keep my feet warm up here in Arctic Minnesota. I have decided that these need to be off the needles. Since this post is going up later in the day, I will say that I am making some progress. I hope to have them done today but I am not sure that it will happen.




The second sock of this pair hasn't been as nearly as bad as the first. I think I suffer from First Sock Syndrome more than Second Sock. I tend to dawdle on the first one and then get the second done one pretty quickly. I started the second on on Saturday night and if I get time to sit and knit this evening I think I could get it done tonight. I can only hope.

Maybe Throwdown Thursday can conclude in a FO Friday?????

New Technique Tuesday!!!

Okay, a pretty lame excuse for a blog title but it works today. I might actually learn a new technique once a month and then post the one that I learned. Who knows I am always looking for something to blog about.

Now all you lace knitters, what are you waiting for???? Get over there and sign up to do the Secret of the Stole ii. I am so excited about this project and I am not really sure why. I know I really enjoyed knitting the swatch for it and I didn't want the swatch to end but it did. I think it turned out pretty good too.

Are you still wondering why she was talking about a new technique??? I learned to do the sewn bind off for the swatch. It really looked neat. I will use it again on baby blankets that have garter stitch borders too.



I had some questions about what kind of yarn I was using for the socks that were in the last post so the answer is: Lorna's Laces in the Flamingo Colorway. A portion of the sale of that yarn goes to breast cancer research I believe. I will admit I bought it because I thought it was pretty like so many of you did too. Oh, and by the way I beat the sock into submission and have picked up the gusset and I am in the process of the gusset decreases as I type.

Supper is in the crockpot (Beef Stew), the laundry is done so I should get to knit tonight hopefully.

A is for.......

APPLES


Our family eats ALOT of APPLES. ALL three of my children love them. The color ALSO makes me happy. I will ADMIT that living in Minnesota gets you some great APPLES. Can you say Honeycrisp???? Those ARE so AWESOME. I decided to do the ABC ALONG this year. I have decided that I will use it to let people learn more ABOUT me, my family AND my knitting.




A is ALSO for what these socks are being A pain in, but I won't go there. I AM having A little trouble with getting the heel flap just right. Now I know why I don't usually tweak the pattern. I had to mess with it for this yarn AND for the fact that I don't have little narrow feet. I do like the pattern but if they continue to cause me too many more problems they will be swimming the Frog Lake I think.

A New Adventure

Well, I have persuaded one person to join the Secret of the Stole ii. So if anyone else would like to join us it starts on January 18. The swatch is already up so come on over and knit some lace.

A New Year and A New Post

It has been a nice peaceful Christmas break around here. I can't believe that the girls go back to school tomorrow. I have to admit I will miss the girls in the morning. We had a great Christmas, we went to church on Sunday and just hung around the house for Christmas Eve since Brett had to work. My sister came for a few days and we really had a great visit. I managed to finish a pair of socks during this break. I wore them the other day and they are so comfy. I will have to get more of this yarn (after my yarn diet is over). The pattern is Pheasant Run Socks and the yarn was from Claudia Handpainted in the Loopy Ewe Sock Club. Thanks again Sheri for such great socks in the club.







If you finish a pair of socks you have to start another one. This is the Rib Zagger pattern. I am using Lorna's Laces in the Flamingo colorway. This yarn is really thin. I think it will be great in shoes but knitting on O's seems so small after I have been using 1.5's. I started them on Friday, December 28.

I had such a great year in knitting. I am looking forward to taking on new challenges. I am hoping to learn to spin this year and would like to make myself a sweater. I will see if I get these goals met. I hope all my knitting friends had a great Christmas season and also have a great New Year. I hope that your frogging is small and your Finished Objects outweigh your UFO's.

Been Busy

It has been busy around here lately. I am babysitting for the neighbors tonight but this week has just flown by.



Monday was the Parent Tea that served apple juice and hot cider for the Punkinbug's preschool class. The absent minded knitter forgot to take the camera to take pictures during the event but managed to get a picture of the graham cracker house that we built together before the little girls of the house snarfed it down for dessert after supper on Monday. I really had a good time and I think the Punkinbug did too.

Tuesday, I got all my Christmas shopping done. Now I just have to wrap it.

Wednesday, I had Mom's group and just hung out at home and knitted on my sock.



I have been working on the Autumn installment of the Loopy Sock Club. I am done with the first sock and about a third of the way done with the second one. I am so glad I got to participate in this club. It is great stuff. I think they are turning out pretty good.




I am already thinking ahead to the next sock project.I am thinking of using this yarn. It is Seacoast Panda in Signs of Spring. I really like this yarn and this colorway. The colors tend to swirl around the foot which I really like. I am thinking of Monkeys maybe but not sure yet. I am open to suggestions if anyone wants to add one.

Socks

I stole this from Deb at Wound Too Tight, her camera goes on all sorts of neat adventures. Check her out.

1. What’s your favorite sock yarns? Seacoast Handpainted, Fleece Artist, and Socks that Rock (I changed it from one kind to all the ones I really like)


2. What’s your favorite type and brand of sock needle? Knit Picks Options DPN's

3. Do you knit your socks toe up, cuff down, or sideways? Usually cuff down, I like heel flaps and I don't know how to do it toe up.

4. Do you knit both socks at once or just one at a time? I knit them one at a time.

5. What’s your favorite toe and why? A finished one. It means that I am done with the sock usually

6. Favorite heel? Slipped Stitch Heel Flap


7. Do you prefer plain or patterned socks? Patterned so they can be the same size.

8. Who do you knit the most socks for? Me, Me, Me, and did I say Me???

9. Do you darn your socks? If not, what do you do with them? I haven't had to yet but I need to reknit some toes on a pair since I knit them too short.

10. Do you only wear hand-knit socks? No but one day I hope to only wear handknit socks in the winter. I am not willing to mow the grass in handknits just yet.


Bonus question: What pattern, if any, is your basic “I-just-need-a-pair-of-socks” sock pattern based on? I liked the Monkeys and I will knit them again and I would like to make more Horcrux socks too.

The Monkeys are Done!!!

I am pretty impressed with myself and theses socks. These are some seriously amazing socks. I was able to knit them in a little less than two weeks. That is really quick for me. I casted them on November 29, and finished them December 11. I used KnitPicks Options needles 1.5 and Memories sock yarn in the Fly Fishing colorway. These are for my sister in law. I was very tempted to make them for myself but I thought she would like them. I will make some for myself very soon though.




Since I finished up the Monkeys, I felt the need to cast on another pair of socks. I have decided I am going to try to use the yarns that I have wound into cakes so they get used. I had the Loopy Sock Club second installment wound up so I decided to cast them on. It is Claudia Handpainted Yarn. The Pattern is the Pheasant Run from Wildhorse Farm Designs. I am halfway through the leg on the first sock. I really like the pattern and the yarn but I am not too fond of all the knit through the back loops that are in it. I am determined to knit these sock club yarns with the patterns that came with them because they match so well.


The Branching Out scarf hasn't been touched since I blogged about it last week. I think I jinxed myself. I am making myself a little goal before the end of the year. I am not going to mention it again unless I actually make it. So hopefully I will have something exciting to announce in the new year that I reached this little goal.

Hey Hey it's a Monkey

I am probably the very last person in the knitting world that has not knit this sock. I am obsessed. I couldn't put it down most of the weekend. I had to for a little while because my arm started hurting from knitting on it so much. I really like this pattern and it looks so neat in just about any yarn. I am using the Knit Picks Memories in Fly Fishing. I cast it on Thursday night.



I also dug out a UFO out of the yarn box. It is the Branching Out scarf from Knitty. I didn't realize that I was about 30 percent done with it. I am hoping to finish it this week. We shall see.



As you can tell tell from the first picture, we managed to get out Christmas tree up over the weekend. I am a little irritated because one of the strings of lights are not lighting properly. Hopefully we will figure it out next year. I didn't want to take the time to figure it out this year.

We had snow and ice over the weekend so all plans were cancelled we stayed home for the most part. I am so not ready for winter this year for some reason. I want the pretty 70 degree weather back.

My Ears are Warm (for the Moment)

Well, I finished my Foliage hat. I love this hat. I love this yarn and I absolutely adore the little model. He likes to "borrow" it and wear it around the house. "Hat" he says. I hope he lets me wear in when I go outside.



I used the Malabrigo merino worsted in the Curacao colorway. I started it on November 24, and finished it up November 27, 2007. It was a very easy knit and quick too. I am thinking of making some for gifts.





I did promise so yarn in the last post. Well this is Socks That Rock in the Sugar Plum colorway. I think Linda would like this one.




This one is Grinchy. Both are my preferred Lightweight sock yarn. I think this yarn is awesome and I love to knit with it. If I ever win the lottery (which I don't play so that isn't happening) I would order every color.




Last and probably least, is my current sock project. I think this yarn is jinxed. I can not motivate myself to work with it. I am hoping to plug through and maybe give them to my sister in law. I want to finish them to get this yarn out of my stash but at this point I am tempted to frog them. Maybe it would make a pretty scarf I don't know. It is KnitPicks Memories in the Fly Fishing colorway that is now discontinued.

Hey, I might dig out my lace scarf and work on it instead, I never know.