New Project - Stranded Knitting

Things were a bit busy at work the last couple of months but have returned to something resembling normal recently.  For a while there was travel, travel, travel.  Fun, but very nice to be home again. 

I'm not a huge fan of being a girl and limiting myself to girl products that fit in a one quart zip lock bag, if ya know what I mean.  That part of travel rather cramps my style.  And you can only bring along sooo many shoes in a carry-on bag.  Kinda limits one's options. 

I did get a chance to work on a new project while I was away.  I decided to tackle stranded knitting.  You know, those lovely pieces using intricate patterns and two or more colors?  

Between YouTube and a great pattern book, I was on my way.  As an aside... I love YouTube.  It's not all stupid people tricks and revolutions.  I'm waiting for a video series on brain surgery.   That could be fun. Well, perhaps not. 

I found a book with great patterns at the library:  Poetry in Stitches by Solveig Hisdal.  I liked it so much that the Sweetie tracked down a copy for me.  So small task as it had been out of print for awhile.  Thank you, Sweetie.

I was in love with several patterns in the book.  But the idea of taking on something as large as a sweater when I had no idea what I was doing seemed a bit daunting.  And what if I hated this technique?  I would have another UFO laying around, nagging at me.

I started smaller.  And cobbled together a pattern for a scarf from the Child' Cardigan and Cap pattern on page 112. 

Of course I needed more yarn.  Not really, but I went and purchased some anyway... some Classic Elite MountainTop Vail in a light gray and cream.  Hey, I don't name these.  It's a blend of 70% alpaca and 30% bamboo.  It is a fingering weight yarn, which is more fine than I had used to date, but it is so soft I just had to have it.  The purple is Plymouth Baby Alpaca Lace.  Again, super soft.

I was off to the races.  I had a pattern, yarn, a new circular needle, and time to kill in airports.  I am more patient and tolerant traveler when I have a knitting or crochet project with me.  Which is good for everyone.  Just sayin'

In my next installment (not two months from now, I promise) I'll fill you in on how my project progressed.

Yup! Another Gnome Hat

I can't just help myself.  I just love making these. 

This is hat #3.

They are quick. 

I don't have to think very hard. 

I can work on these at o'dark hundred on the bus to work, and on the ride back home.  I only have about a half hour with a lot of jostling, so my projects can't be overly complex or too big. 

These goofy little hats are just perfect!

And they make me smile

I used my favorite yarn - alpaca.  With a little felting, this hat became yummlisicous softness (just made that up).

Thank you for indulging me.

Finished! First Ever Sweater

Ahh!  Sunday morning.  Bloggy time.  Coffee, an Unusually Helpful Helper sleeping next to me.  Still dark.  Life is good.

I finished this awhile ago but just wasn't able to take a picture I liked.  I usually have no need to wear an object to show what it looks like, but in this instance flat and hanging images looked awful.

I have one that's OK, but considering I've worn it a couple of times and it fits!!! I felt I should wrap this up. 

See?   Not the best picture.  Certainly not very arty.  But it shows the color correctly and you can see the sweater details.

I really like the shell button.  It's nearly 2 inches across and has a great pearly shimmer.

I'm going to call this sweater Big Daddy 2.  Big daddy one was a commercially produced sweater that I and moths wore to rags.  I loved that sweater because it was super warm.  Unless its 75 degrees outside, I am freezing.  This new sweater is super yummy warm.  I'm loving it.  It will be in heavy rotation as the weather gets cooler.

I used Cascade Yarns 128 Superwash.  The pattern, Nimbus, was free on the Berroco yarn site.  It was easy to modify the body and sleeve length.

Finished! Gerbera Daisy Pin

HI.  I finished a couple of projects last weekend.  Here is a little pin I made between other projects.

Here's the back.  I think it looks more finished with a little piece of felt to hide the threads.

I had to go to the bead store to finish this little project.  Bad, bad idea.  Because I walked out of there with more than needed.  Shocking!

But that's a post for another day.

Fall

Fall has arrived.  Last Saturday it was in the upper 70's and Sunday it was in the 60's. I wore jeans and a sweater.  It may really be time to put away the Capri pants and flip flops.

The front garden still looks like summer.  But soon the leaves will turn and the flowers will need to be cut back.  Our summer really began in September and we had a lovely 3 week stretch.

The days in the Northwest become very short in the fall and winter.  It's dark still in the morning when I head to work.  When the time change occurs it will be dark when I head home from work.  In the winter it seems like the only time I see daylight is on the weekends.

This is not a complaint.  Well, it probably will be come February when we are tired of the cold and dark and rain.  But right now, instead of bounding out of bed to work in the garden on the weekend, I am still in my jammies, with a cup of coffee, my feet up on an ottoman with a lap quilt wrapped around me working on my blog.

Hello blog.  It seems like it's been awhile.  Perhaps now that it's dark and we will be spending more time indoors we will have a chance to catch up.  And spend time on projects. 

I can't wait.  See you soon!

Finished! Violet Crochet Pin

Earlier this summer the kidlet asked,  "How many projects are you workin' on Mom?". 

"Uhhh, I dunno.  Several."

"Do you ever finish any of them?  I only see you starting new ones." 

"I finish them?  Why?"

"I dunno.  Just askin'."

Doh!

I do finish things.  Really. She says to herself defensively.  I'm not saying that he didn't have a point.  There was a point were I began more than I finished this summer.  I mean, how many of you have projects stacked up?  You know, projects that need just need one or two things to finish them up?  Just a couple of hours.  Just one last little thing?

Or you're stuck.  You don't like how it's going, so the project goes into the "I'll work on it later" pile?  Come on, we all have them.  Don't kid a kidder.  I can see you averting your eyes.

Here's the thing.  It kind of bugged me.  I mean I have started more projects since he said it, but it's been lurking around in the back of my mind.  Interrupting my thoughts when I have the itch to put something aside. 

The kid is gooood.  Subversive guilt.  What can I say.  He learned from a pro.  (Mom, stop laughing!)

I did finish two projects this weekend.  (So there!)  I began two little crochet projects this summer when I was frustrated with a couple of knitting projects that weren't going smoothly.  Here's the first.

Itty bitty leaves.

Piecing things together.

A little peek inside one of the flowers.

And another.

I added a little felt piece to the back to tidy things up a bit.

Scale.  It really is very small.

And voila!  It reminds me of a tiny boquet of flowers.

The pattern can be found in this book, filled with lots of tiny little crochet goodies.

Elf Hats in the Garden

This post is not really about elf hats in the garden, but I thought it was a fun way to start.

I have been plugging away on a sweater made of Mohair and Silk.  The yarn is lovely, but it is a bit of a slow go.  And sometimes I have a short attention span when it comes to projects like this.  So I start another.  Which partially explains why this particular sweater is such a slow go.

Anyhoodles, I started another gnome/elf hat sometime last week with leftovers from another project.  I need to make the case that I am running out of yarn, before I can buy new.  The Sweetie is starting to give me funny looks when he sees I have snuck more yarn home from the store.  (I don't really think he understands how this stuff literally calls out your name and jumps into your bag!).

This is an elf hat.  I think the last one was a gnome hat.  I've decided that elf hats are pointier  and taller than gnome hats.  It's my game and I'm making up the rules, darn it.

This picture was taken right after I finished felting it and placing it over a jar to dry.  Isn't it the cutest thing?  I just love making these.  They are so much fun.

I asked the Sweetie if he wanted another hat.  He told me I had already made him a hat, so he was good on that front.  I just don't get that.  Aren't scarves and hats like shoes.  It's OK to have many?  Once this dried, I asked if he would try it on.  He liked it!  Goofy point and all.  So now the Sweetie has a new hat.  And it makes me smile, because it is so silly in a not so silly world.

Another topic (ahem, read short attention span).

Here is my first red Roma tomato and cucumbers from my garden.  Yes, I know it's after Labor Day.  Apparently the garden thinks it's late July.  The only reason I have one truly red tomato is because we've had a week and a half of warm weather.  I'm talkin' temperatures in the 80's, kids.  Yup, the 80's.

Aren't they pretty?

I have a lot of these.

And a few of these. 

Let's see, for dinner tonight there's traditional fried green tomatoes with corn meal, tomorrow we will have tempura fried tomatoes, the next night buttermilk battered fried tomatoes...

Here's my butternut squash.  I'm not certain I will see the butternut color before frost comes.

I should know better than to attempt to grow tropical plants in my Northwest garden.  Silly, silly me.

Ta ta for now.

Bucket List

At long, long last we are having a great stretch of summer weather.  Upper 70's, low 80's, no humidity to speak of, not a cloud in the sky.  Simply amazing.

So my friend Lisa calls and asks if we could hang out, maybe go for a drive on Sunday.  Sure.  Seemed like a great idea.  A long weekend, great weather, hanging out with a friend.  Sounds like a blast.

So the drive.  Well, Lisa has recently acquired a Porsche Boxster convertible.  Periwinkle blue.  This thing is gorgeous.  And I have a thing for Porsche.

It started with a boyfriend in college - TJ.  Long before the sweetie.  Anyway, he raced Porsche 914's.  And I can tell you almost every date was in his car.  We had a blast.

Time warp a few years into the future.  Perhaps more than a few years, to this weekend.  Lisa was going to let me drive.  How cool was that?! 

I settle into the drivers seat, push in the clutch and turn it on.  What a great throaty engine sound!  It was hot.  In a couple of blocks I had a pretty good feel.  It shifts like a dream.  I was even able to pull away from a stop in third gear without stalling.  The third gear thing was a mistake, but the point is that it didn't stall!

Where did we go?  Part of the North Cascades Highway.  We have a lot of great twisty mountain highways in Washington State and Highway 20 is definitely one of them. 

There are a couple of small towns along the highway before you get deep into the pass and you need to go 30 mph in town.  No kidding.  The small town police are just waiting to write a ticket that will fund filling another pothole.  And we saw a couple of folks pulled over.  Now you know they are dying to pull over a couple of old ladies in a convertible.  I was pleased to disappoint. 

But, I can tell you that car does not want to go 30.  More like 50 would be better, and without even breaking a sweat.  God it was fun.  Especially once we go out of traffic.  Wind whipping through your hair.  Flying through corners. It was fantastic!

I used to think owning a two-seater convertible in Seattle was foolish. Perhaps it is, given that you can really only drive them with the top down for a few months.  But oh my gosh it was just about the most fun you can have legally.  I am a convert.  Gabbing and belly laughing with Lisa was just icing on the cake.   It was definitely a bucket list day for me.

Here are some pics from a couple of stops we made.

I'm Back

I have worked through my little crafting slump, by working through it. 

Yup, I worked on my sweater, ripped out rows, and worked on it some more.  Knit a buttonhole.  I am pleased to say I finished the piecing.  I need to seam everything together but first I needed to confirm that my work looked something like pattern pieces.

I was thrilled to see that the garter stitch trim lined up from piece to piece.  The blocking board certainly helps.

The sleeves match too!

For reasons I can't quite explain, I'm stuck.  I mean it looks like the pieces will fit together.  But what if they don't?  It's not like I can just get out the scissors and trim a little here or there, ya know?   Inertia.  Uggh.  I need to get over it and put this darn thing together.  Fall is just around the corner.

So ,I did what many people do.  When you should be working on one thing, start another! 

I began and finished (!!!) a little hat.  I have a giant bag full of scrap yarn.  A little of this, a little of that.  But not enough of anything to make a full project.  When at the yarn store earlier this summer I asked what I should do with it all.  One person said she makes a lot of striped hats.  I could do that.

I found a cute pattern (the Buggy Hat) from Morehouse Yarns Merino Knits. 

It was designed for little kids but a search through the Internet and presto I had the formula for converting a pattern into one that would work for adults.

I decided I wanted to make one in the round.  No seams. (because I have just confessed to a blockage in that area!).  I started on double pointed needles... six times.  Scrap that.  Back to the Internet.  Ta Da!  Learned how to use the Magic Loop.  Genius. 

I know how to add yarn in the same color, but I needed to learn how to add a new color.  Internet.  And presto, stripes.

Finally, the hat has a little i cord on the top tied in to a little knot so it sticks up.  Yup.  Internet.

And here it is.  Pretty cute, huh?  I used left over alpaca so it's yummy soft.

It's a little big.  I need to felt it down to a smaller size, which will tighten up the stitches and make it toasty warm.   With cool weather coming in about a month, I'd better get on that. 

...Or finish the sweater.

Froggin'

Some days in craft land things don't go as planned.  Sometimes you can resurrect them into something even better.  Sometimes, not so much.

This turned into an entire week of not so good.  If I touched it, it went poorly.  I ripped out. Not rows.  Inches.  I cast on and ripped out one project three times.  I set it aside because I found a mistake and need to rip it out again. Number four.  I just walked away.  Ugh! 

This even extends to Julia Child's recipe for french bread, which if you haven't had it, is to d.i.e. for.  I've made it several times before.  Last weekend, for example.  The first loaf was gone in 15 minutes.  Hot butter.  Gone.  The second loaf, made it through dinner, then gone.

Today, there was a request for a french bread encore from the Sweetie.  How could I refuse?

I started early as the recipe takes about 7 hours.  It never rose.  It's sitting in the bowl right, lying there, on the first of 3 risings.  Flat.  Like a pale, clammy  slug.  I think it was the yeast.  That thing should have risen like a rocket 'cause it's in the 70's today.  Nothin'.  I don't think I can even salvage it for pizza dough.

The bread story mimics the rest of the last week.  I am putting the hooks and needles down for a day or two.  I am going to enjoy the late start to summer in Seattle.  I'm certain in a couple of days, the yarn curse will have drifted away... hopefully not to your house.

First Sweater

About a month ago I began my first sweater - ever.  I've crocheted for a long time, but have never made a sweater.   It's not ready to show but I can give you a sneak peek.

The pattern is called Nimbus and can be found here.  The sweater is cute with short sleeves and cropped, but I prefer my sweaters with long sleeves, so I'm tweaking the pattern a little.  I have finished the back and sleeves and have the right front well underway.  That leaves the left front and collar.  I hope to have it finished in a couple of weeks.

I can't wait to see how it turns out.  Fingers crossed.

In Search of a New Banner

Wandering around the garden in search for a new banner image I took about a gazillion pics.

The blueberries won partially because the photo turned out well, which is always a suprise to me.  But also because you can almost taste them.  And I must say, blueberries straight from the bush (no pesticides here) are to die for.  Seemed like the perfect summer photo.

These didn't make the cut, but were wonderful nonetheless. 

Hardy fushia.  These look like delicate little ballerina skirts to me.

Astillbe

Scarlet Runner Bean

For the life of me I can't recall the name of this plant.  I can tell you it gets quite tall - at over 5 feet.  Likes shade.  Has purplish-black leaves.  The name will come to me at some inconvenient time.  Like 2 a.m.

Angel's Fishing Rod.  This plant grows from corms.  Much of the year it looks like grass but mid-summer sends out long stems with a long row of flowers and bows like a fishing rod.

I don't recall the name of this one either.  I planted this one in the spring to replace a Nandina that went belly up in our sudden cold snap last November.  I like that the bees enjoy it.

Phygelius, a hummingbird favorite.

Mexican Daisy.  Aren't they sweet?  This would have made a cute banner, too.

And lastly , lavendar.  I should harvest this to make popurri and lavendar wands.  I love to run my hands on this as I walk by.  It smells so good.  In another couple of days, this will be covered with bumblebees.

Summer - at last

While the rest of the country has been wallowing in extreme heat and high humidity it has been cool and cloudy in Seattle.  Overcast most days with highs only in the upper-60's or low-70's. 

According to a local weatherperson, up until yesterday we had only had 78 minutes of summer.  Summer was described as a temperature of 80 degreees or higher.  So, an hour and 18  minutes of summer.  

Friday afternoon and Saturday were gorgeous.  Not summer by the definition above, but the sun was out.  Not a cloud in the sky and it was in the mid-70's.  I think the sun helps make it feel like summer even if it's not 80 degrees.

View from the front door.

Sunbathing.

Snoozing in an un-made bed.  I'll get right on that... not.

Lace Edge Crochet Scarf - Finished!

I know I blogged about this some time ago.  Just can't seem to remember when...

oh, June I guess.  Well that makes sense because I think I finished it at the end of June. 

Forgive me, my brain has turned to mush attempting to rollover an employer sponsored retirement program into an IRA.  But that's a sad story for another day.  I'm in the biz and had to call for help.  Super embarrassing.

Then there was another conversation about replacing the front door which at 70+ years of sun, rain, and no overhang to protect is started to show it's age.  Which hinges should we use? Interlocking weather stripping? Double dead bolts?  Replacing the threshold?  Having the hardword floor people make some touch ups?  Good lord!  We've covered these points 10 times.  Just get on with it all ready.

The Sweetie wants me to call the the Kidlet - who's home for the summer but seems to be MIA today - and ask him if he is going to the Sounders Friendly Game against Manchester United tomorrow (soccer).   My solution will be to tape a note and ticket to the bathroom mirror and call it good.  We've talked about this 10 times too.

So I am in rare snarly, snarky form.  Perfect for showing you the pics of my most recently finished project. 

I thought I would show you how it might be worn.  I have a motorcycle inspired jacket in gray wool.  With some dark jeans, high heeled booties, the scarf would soften the look a little.  Doesn't everyone hang outfits in the garden and take pictures?  The neighbors are going to have me committed.

This is the soft wool side.

And the silk side. 

Wrap this bad boy around a couple times and laugh at the cold!  And look hot doing it!  I feel the snarkiness leaving already.

Knit Cap... to go with the scarf

I had a skein of yarn remaining after I finished my first ever knit scarf for the Sweetie.  I thought I would make a quick hat.

This would require that I learn the other stitch in knitting - the purl stitch.  Back to the cyberseams website to watch another video...about a thousand times.   I grabbed some left over yarn and decided to practice.

First ribbing where you alternate knit and purl stitches.  And the stockinette stitch.  Hey, cool.  It doesn't suck.  How cool is that?!

So, on with the project.  The pattern was also found on the cyberspace site  Basic hat.  Perfect for a rookie. I had to use ribbing, the stockinette stitch and figure out decreases.

And the end result... drum roll...

It's time for a  close up.  And if you've been knitting for 10 minutes more than me, you will see a basic flaw.  Which I discovered on another piece.  But that's a blog for another day...

Flaw or not, it's still super duper soft and I am thrilled that I have two stitches in my repertoire.  Whoo Hoo for me!