Photo Catch-up

Time seems to just whiz on by me. In the past month, we've been gardening, putting up the spring harvest, preparing for and having home school evaluations done, celebrating another anniversary and birthday, and surviving the spring flu. Oh yes, we can't forget Mother's Day :)

I actually had a bit a time to get a few projects completed. AND I have now gone past my half way point on my 50 project challenge!! YAY!! So today I'll be posting those pictures.

Trekking Socks #128. This makes pair #5 of 7 for DS.



To celebrate spring, I decided to treat myself and bought this Little House Needleworks pattern called "Season of Hope". It's stitched on 28 count cream pastel linen.



I stitched this card for someone special. It was a kit from the UK CrossStitcher magazine.



Keeping with the theme of spring, here's The Prairie Schooler's "Spring Ornament". I'm planning on stitching all the seasons together and making a bell pull.



DGB Confetti #100 Socks for DS. This make the sixth pair of the seven he wanted for camp.



Hot Socks #923. The last of the requested socks. DS was so thrilled that I made it in time. Now he has the coolest socks to wear for camp! :) And my first pair of socks for June.



Calico Crossroads Kats by Kelly "I Love Mew". This is from the new monthly series. I started with the first series, but really didn't like the one for Feb., so I put it aside for a while. I'm so glad I did, because I think this one is so much cuter.



And now.... My latest finish.....
A Wizzers kit from Dimensions. This one is called "Birdhouse Windchimes" and has been a WIP for quite a long time. I really didn't care at all for working on the plastic canvas. However, now that it's finished, I'm glad I kept going.

The weather has been so nice these past few days. Temps in the high 70's to low 80's have made the flowers bloom and the grass green. We planted a few things in the garden and now patiently wait for the first of the fresh veggies.

In the Socktopia group, we were given a sock pattern to make to inspire us to "Get off our Fannies". The are an athletic type sock with an arch support. The assignment was to knit them and then go out and do something - taking photos of them being worn during your chosen activity. So for your viewing pleasure....

Here's Fanny!!!!

First thing in the morning - a picture in the rising sun light....



Here's a better picture of the more true colors of Fanny. They were knitted in Knit Pick's Dancing (now discontinued). Posing with the sock is our dog - enjoying the foot rub he was receiving...



Here we go - off for a lovely hike. The weather was perfect!!





Now on the needles are a pair of socks for my DS. He wants 7 pairs of "cool" socks for camp. These will make pair number 5. Pics to come shortly.

On Friday, we went to JoAnn's Fabric. What I assumed would be a 1 hour trip at the most, ended up being more than double. We went in with lists, knowing exactly what we would be buying. Ummmmm - until we tried matching up colors for DD's placemats and napkin set that she needs to do for home ec. What fun trying to pick 6 coordinating fabrics. I didn't realize quilting could be so exhausting!

After coming home more than $125 poorer, we had all the materials we needed to do her placemat/napkin set, her oven mitt, her dress for the summer camp party, 29 patterns, my Sunbonnet Girl potholder, muslin for redwork, gingham for the kitchen curtains, large check/gingham for a new tablecloth, and some miscellaneous items. Everything was at least 30% off. Most were 50% off except for patterns. They were 99 cents each.

I found a lovely McCall's pattern for a vintage embroidery set. It contains directions for a dresser scarf, two sizes of keepsake pouches, and two sizes of pillows with scarfs. I was a little disappointed as the embroidery didn't come as a transfer - but one that you need to transfer yourself. Maybe there will be less room for mistake this way, as I won't get the pattern crooked :)

I finally bought my Clover thread cutter. I wanted it to use for a closure for my felted bag, but it's just so pretty... I am now debating if I want to use it for that, or make it into a necklace that is actually useful. :) I found it in the quilting notions at JoAnn's at 50% off. Q-Snaps were there as well, and it was difficult to pass them up, but I need another set like I need a hole in the head.

New To Me Company & Review

A trip to the mailbox rewarded me with a envelope from


Inside the envelope was a nice letter, free pattern, and an envelope containing a pattern of a potholder I remember as a child.

The envelope had the picture of the pattern printed on it.



And last but not least the contents of everything. I have never done business with Pattern Bee before, and I am very pleased with both the quality of the product I received as well as the customer service I had before making my purchase.

I have always been hesitant with purchasing copies of vintage patterns. After being "taken" on buying vintage copies before, I hesitantly decided to try vintage again. I've been reading Vicki's blog, and have drooled over admired all the items she creates. She does gorgeous work on her handmade lovelies. With looking at the quality, love and care she puts into her hand made items, I decided to take a chance on her patterns. I am more than pleased with what I received.

These patterns weren't copies, but real transfers - as good or even better than the originals. They are packaged nicely in their own envelope with a picture on the outside, and have quality workmanship. It is obvious that time and effort went into making these usable and readable. These are not just anyone's scan of an image, but are truly reprints. Yes, I will be buying from Pattern Bee again!!

It's Picture Time!!

I haven't had much time to blog, so I'm going to condense what I did during the past week with lots of pictures today.

Cross Stitch

I finally started to do a little cross stitching again. I love Little House Needleworks patterns, and just had to order this to celebrate the season. Spring is my time to look forward to gardening, fresh veggies and beautiful flowers. It's a time when all the animals give birth and everything is new. So when I saw the "Season of Hope" it just HAD to be done and stitched right away. The needle hit the fabric as soon as it arrived. :) I'm stitching this on 28 ct. cream Pastel Linen using the recommended DMC floss.


Socks

I finished my daughter's fair isle socks on the 10th. She was so pleased with them that she's begging for more. Although they came out nicely, I found them to be a slow knit for me.



I've started a pair of sports socks that are for a contest for the Socktopia KAL. They are called Fanny and are being knit from a pattern written by the group "momma". I'm knitting it in Knit Picks Dancing and am just ready to start the toe. I know they look strange, but the gathering in the "middle" of the sock is a type of arch support.



Quilting Attempts

I had posted a bit ago that I was going to try to make some yo-yos for a coverlet. I have finished 24 and need to cut out more. They are a nice take-along project as they don't take up much room and they can be done while talking or riding in a car.



My other attempt is a simple quilt from 5" squares (becoming 4" squares after allowing for seam allowance). Now realize, this is my first quilt - so go easy on me.



Let's Talk Vintage Crafting

As you know, I love older needlework items. There's just something comforting about things made from them. Maybe it's bringing back those memories of things I loved as I child... my grandmother's home, her aprons and how I was allowed to wear them when I was cooking, her potholders, our spending time together and laughing. I remember watching her make things and staring in wonder as she'd make beautiful things from thread and needles.
So when I can, I try to find things that give me that comfortable feeling. I'm slowly finding what those things are. I hope to someday give my home that same good feeling to my children (and possible grandchildren).

I finished another embroidered towel. This is a Day of the Week transfer pattern from Aunt Martha's.



I was lucky enough to be the recipient of a large tin of old perle and rayon embroidery floss. To my surprise and delight it had some stamped pillow tubing at the bottom of the tin along with a few embroidery patterns and needles. The tubing had been started in the rayon thread, and I have been slowly working on it ever since. The thread is not kind to work with, but the finished sheen is well worth the effort. I wish the photo would show it, but the sheen is lost no matter how hard I tried to get it. After the embroidery is done, I will have to sew the cases, and then crochet an edging on them. I have been searching for the "right" edging, and am torn between a filet butterfly border and a small lacy one. Then there's color. Since these are older, the tubing has yellowed a bit with age, so I want to keep away from white. I thought of a variegated color, but I know that won't look good with filet.



Old Transfers

Here's my meager Vogart collection. I'm hoping to add to it with yard sale and estate sale finds.

HAPPY Mail Day!!!!

I walked out to the mailbox to find this waiting for me:



YIPEE!! It was my package from Carolina Homespun. After an afternoon of playing, then plying using the Andean Plying method described on FiberJoy's Blog, I ended up with 23 yards of 2-ply that looked like this:



I'm thrilled that the thing even resembles yarn, let alone having it plied and possibly being able to use it!! Ah yes, I'm one happy camper!!!!

What Kind of Knitter Are You?

You appear to be a Knitting Purist. You are an accomplished knitter producing beautiful pieces with a classic feel. You sometimes lament losing half of your local yarn shop to garish novelty yarns. Perhaps you consider fun fur scarves the bane of knitting society and prefer to steer new knitters towards the wool and cotton blends. Some might call you a bit of an elitist but you know that you've been doing this craft long enough to respect the history behind it and honor it with beautiful piece that can last a lifetime. http://marniemaclean.com
Take this quiz!








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Friday... A great day to post pictures!

WIP
My stranded socks are coming along nicely. I know, I'm going a bit slow, but I'm so very happy with them! I'm on the last pattern repeat before I do the heel.


FO
I was terribly bored looking at homes and jobs, so I decided to do a little surfing looking at knitting blogs. I found a real gem that I knew I had to knit right away. I'm a nut for hummingbirds, so this Hummingbird Dishcloth was a must for my kitchen.


I did find what I think is a mistake. Row 44 didn't look correct when I did it, so I changed it to:
Row 44: k4, k6, p8, k1, p5, k1, p4, k1, p4, k10, k4
which now looks correct to me :)

Yarn PrOn!!

I didn't go to town today with DH and the kids, but instead stayed home and made dinner, since they would get to the orthodontist, do a few errands, then get home just in time to eat and run back out the door again to get to their 4-H meeting. I asked them if they had time on their outing today, would they stopping in at the yarn shop and picked me up some yarn so I can make DH the socks he wanted :) What a surprise it was to find 3 skeins instead of one in the bag!! They decided I needed to make them all more socks.

On the left is Fortissima Colori Socka Color in color #9 that my son chose for his socks. In the middle is the Hot Socks they were supposed to pick up for DH. (Not only is it the same color as the one I made for DS, but it's also the same lot number, so if I run out, I have some left from DS socks I did this month!!) On the right, DD chose Opal Petticoat #1295. Now, better yet, they remembered to give my frequent buyer's card, and brought it home with another new one. Yup - it's now full and I get $10 off my next purchase!

I have been a member of The Knitter's Sock Of the Month Club for 2 months now, and am finally just getting around to posting the great kits I've received so far. First is Feb's SOTM and is called "Hugs & Kisses". It came with Reynolds Whiskey yarn. Oh what a lovely soft yarn it is!! I can't wait to get these knitted up, but looks like they will be put aside a bit longer now :)


My March SOTM kit arrived last Friday and it's just lovely. The pattern is called "The Road to Hana" and uses a lovely colorway from Trekking XXL. I'm dying to get this one started. Purple is one of those colors that calls to me.


Well, with all these socks that need knitted, it looks like I won't be getting any XS done for a while :) No complaining here tho, because I'm just so grateful that I have a family that appreciates my hand made things!!

Sorry for the long delay in posting. Our household had been taken over by the flu, and blogging wasn't one of those things I really felt like doing. Knitting and reading got me through some sleepless nights. It's amazing how soothing the tinking sound of knitting needles are.

I have completed two more pairs of socks this month. First is one of my DS's favorites. These were knitted in 4-Seasons Hot Sock yarn in 927 Jacquard Rio and I used my own formula for his socks. It seems like every pair I make, I am tweeking and changing a little bit. I'm looking for that "perfect" fit for him.



My next finish was for the Socktopia KAL knit-off. A pattern was released on Saturday, and we have until this evening to finish the pair of socks. I finished mine last night. This is my first marathon KAL, and it was a blast. The pattern is called "Eleanor" and I used Sockotta color #15. I tried making identical socks, as I love how the first came out (sock on bottom), but found I couldn't duplicate the pooling, so I gave up and figured a fraternal pair would just have to do. I will be making these again, but will either use a plain color or a yarn with a longer color stripe. Sometimes the colors in the Sockotta lasted only 2-3 stitches before they changed.



I've started my first stranding project. It's a lovely pattern called "Simple stripes Fair Isle Socks" that I purchased from Knit Picks last year. It was purchased just before they discontinued the Simple Stripes line. I finished the first sock, but only have this WIP pic to post at the moment



I joined The Knitter's Sock of the Month Club and have received 2 mailings so far. To say I'm pleased with what I have received so far is an understatement. The first mailing contained a toe-up pattern and Reynolds Whiskey yarn. I've never done a toe-up before, so I used Wendy's Generic Toe-Up tutorial to try a sock. First I tried the sock using the pattern and yarn from the kit, but decided after ripping it out, that I wouldn't want to rip it too many times. The yarn is lovely and soft, but I'm not so sure how it will hold up to ripping. I did Wendy's sock with great success, but found it too large for DD's feet. I even did a fitting a few times on her, but it fits differently than the cuff down.

The kit for this month contained a beautiful pattern and Trekking XXL #187. It's just gorgeous and is in a purple/blue colorway. After the Fair Isle socks I think I'll do this one. The colors are just calling me. :)

When my mother died, (almost 12 years ago now) I inherited her spinning wheel. It's a lovely Ashford Traditional but sadly, there hasn't been any place to put it up and use it here. I've been so anxious to learn how to spin, so I decided to bite the bullet, and try my hand at a spindle first, then do the transition to the wheel. I bought a lovely little beginner's kit from Carolina Homespun but upgraded my spindle to a Cascade Little Si It is being shipped this week, so I should have it in my hands soonly - but certainly not soon enough.

Socks & Bag Finishes

Finally, I have something to post. I finished felting, shaping and then putting grommets in my bag and actually got to use it this week. I still need to put a closure on it, but I'm looking for the "right" bead or other weight that will be exactly what I want. I'm now writing the pattern up, but not sure if anyone would actually want it. I am pleased with how it turned out. Next time I make it, I might add an I-cord around the top for a little more stability. Hubby thought it would be be taller after he saw how large it was when it went in. I used the Bartlett Yarn that I had in my stash. It took 3 times through the washer, and I could have possibly put it in again, but decided it was to my liking.

I bought the grommet pliers at JoAnn's and even though they work, I didn't like how they crimped the grommet. No matter how much I tried, it crimped off center, and made it look sloppy (to me). However, I don't think many people are going to be snooping in my bag to see the crimps. :)

I finished the first of the Gentleman's Plain Winter Socks and put it on DS. It was a great fit, EXCEPT he didn't like the toe. He said it crowded his toes too much. I tried to figure out a way to make them so they'd work, but nothing was satisfactory for DS. So.... I ended up frogging it back to the leg and did my normal heel and toe. So now, the only thing that's the Gentleman's sock is the cast on, number of stitches and the cuff pattern. The whole rest of the sock has been modified. He's happy with them now. Me - I LOVE the colorway!! And the Trekking held up to the frogging so much better than I thought it would.

Still Dyeing

This morning shed new light on things. The yarn wasn't as dark in daylight as it seemed to be last night. DD took one look at it and said she wanted it darker. OK. We used all the Kool-Aid we had so I got out the 2 Easter egg coloring kits we had and opened them. I told her to put the red in the hot water, turned my back and in went the blue. Hmmmm - 13 years old and doesn't know the difference between the color tablets - even after we went over it. :) No problem. I wanted to do some blue anyhow - so we dissolved the other blue tablet we had, put it in a smaller crockpot and I went off to soak the yarn for that.

She had put more water in the microwave to boil, and this time, she got the color right. It didn't look dark enough, so we also added about an ounce of red liquid food coloring. Back in the pot it the yarn went with the new colorings.


DS saw that we were doing another batch and got all excited to see blue in the pot. I want that blue for socks. Man - not even yarn in the pot and he's putting dibs on it for socks. Maybe after he sees the color, he might change his mind! LOL


Honestly, I'm having a ball fooling around with the colors and am really glad DD didn't put the correct tablet in the water. I would have missed this lovely blue color!!

Trying New Things

It has been a fun weekend full of new things for me. I finally finished the I-cord for my felted bag, made a little crochet cord for a closure and then felted it yesterday. It felt soooo wrong putting that bag in the washer and using hot water and agitating it. I spend all my time being gentle with my wool items when washing, and doing this made me feel so naughty. grin

It took three runs through the washer, but it is done and I'm so pleased. Currently, it is drying and then I'll be putting the grommets in and finishing it up. I want to use it on Thursday. The kids have a class and then a 4-H meeting to attend, so I'll be out for the day. I'll be putting it to the test and see if it's really what I wanted. I have thought about lining it, but I don't have the fabric for it yet.

Sadly, one of the yarns I had purchased from a yarn store that was closing, had a few short pieces tucked around the ball. I was told it was the same yarn from another ball, so I used it on the purse. One of those short pieces wasn't the same and it didn't felt at all. I had to try to do a fix on it, but I'm not happy with the fix. I should try felting the area that I fixed, but it will have to wait. I'll try a spot felting on it. Ah well, it won't make the purse work any differently. At least it's near the bottom :)

My daughter has been after me to make her some fingerless mitts, so I had decided to try Robbyn's Valentine Mitts, but DD liked her "Someone-Stole-the-Fingers-from-my-Gloves" Gloves even better. I printed out the directions for them, and we went looking through my small stash of wool, only to discover I didn't have the color she wanted. She wanted a nice bright red, but I had nothing like that here. I did have a lot of Lion's Brand Fisherman's wool, so we decided to use Robbyn's method of Kool-Aid dying in a crock pot and make our own red wool. Six packs of cherry Kool-Aid and a few hours later, we had the most gorgeous red color yarn!!! Now it needs to dry, and then I'll be casting on. Mega Kudos to Robbyn!!

One last new thing for me - I found knitting podcasts!! Way cool. If you haven't already, you must have a listen to Lime & Violet. Those two are such a hoot. Before you listen, freeze your credit card, because I know they will tempt you to buy more yarn. The luscious colors and wools they find - oh it should be illegal!! I'm inspired to try some new things just by listening and following their program notes. The other podcast that I found interesting is called Math4Knitters Laura's program really makes you think, and makes knitting even more interesting. It will surely get your creative juices flowing. I'm sure you won't be able to resist trying some of the subjects she talks about.

Sorry no pics tonight - I need to charge the batteries. Pics will be posted with my next update.

Gentleman's Plaing Winter Sock Update

The sock is taking shape, but I'm still apprehensive with the heel. This is my first Dutch Heel (like this one). I'm not sure if those three knit stitches on the bottom middle of the heel are going to be a problem or not. DS says he doesn't notice them - but then again, he's not walking on them at this point. I was surprised at how the foot stitches were decreased, but they don't seem tight on DS.

I'll soon be to the toe, and I can't wait to try that as well. These Vintage patterns are cool, and I'm anxious to see just how they will wear.

The UGLY Socks are finished!! I grafted the toe last night and put them in DS's room so he could find them this morning. He found them at 2am when he woke up in the middle of the night. He's thrilled to have new socks even though they are ugly. :)



Yesterday, the Trekking XXL (#104) that I ordered from Judy to make my next pair of socks came yesterday. I'm finally been able to join in on the Vintage Socks KAL. The group is doing the "Gentleman's Plain Winter Sock" from the book Knitting Vintage Socks by Nancy Bush. I'm making these for DS, and am already changing the pattern. I've shortened both the ribbing and the leg, and I've removed the center stitch that goes down the back of the leg. I just LOVE the colors of this yarn!! Trekking has to be one of my favorites to knit with - the colors are gorgeous!



I'm still working on the I-cord for the purse. I really should have it done, but the socks have lured me away for a bit. As soon as the cord is done, I'll be casting on to make the Valentine Mitts for my DD. She's been begging for fingerless mitts for quite a while and these are so pretty. Thanks for a great pattern, Robbyn!