Smoking Hot Needles

Handspun Friday - Spinach Souffle

2012-01-27T01:24:00.002-05:00

On today's menu we have Spinach Souffle from FatCatKnits. The fiber base is Merino. This was August 2011 featured stock colorway of the month.

yarn: 401yds, chain plied

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And some Denny photos to hold you over the weekend:

What's the best way to tackle a big bone?

That's the way to do it!

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Have a wonderful weekend!

***

Platochek

2012-01-25T01:15:00.009-05:00

Between December 31 and January 22, I've been test knitting 4 different designs, from 4 different designers. This one is called Platochek, which means kerchief, designed by Diana Rozenshteyn.

This is an extremely simple design to knit, but the stitch pattern of the main body is charming.

The edge was supposed to be garter stitch, but I wanted something else, and just improvised, and hoped for the best.

The yarn might look like a solid color, but it's really not. It's Wandering Cat Yarns Alley Cat Falkland, in the colorway Cinnamon stick. I love it!

This little shawl practically flew off the needles. I used 3.25mm needles, and after blocking it was 25inches x 60 inches.

***

So, what else is going on. The other day, it was raining all day, melting away left over snow, and making our back yard into an ice rink in the evening. After it had stopped raining, I watched the dogs slide around for a while, finally doing their business.

Later on, when they were inside, I had grabbed a flashlight, bag, and pick up tool to go and get the poop, thinking I was safe with my big snow boots on. Well, they are called snow boots for a reason. I did get two out of three, before I found myself in a pickle. I had been moving gingerly forward, slip sliding, but about one meter before my last goal I had nowhere to go. Suddenly I was on a slope, and not a single step was safe to make.

Now what?

First I chided myself for getting into this situation (very helpful). Then I weight my options. I could try to make a step and undoubtedly fall. I could get down on all fours, and try crawling up the slop to a safer ground. But, option # 3 was the easiest.
I took the flashlight and pointed it to the window I knew my son was behind. I didn't exactly flash S.O.S. but he quickly realized that I wanted something from him. University education paying off, YES!

I asked him to throw me a rope (very dramatic), but also giggling by then. Well, who has a rope handy when one needs one? He used to play hockey, so I guess he felt quite comfortable sliding up to me, and pulling me to safety, where I could slip slide on my own out of my predicament.
Jeez, I felt so foolish, and all that thanks to Happy, who chose a spot he never goes to, to do his business.
***

And last night! It was after dark, we went outside to let the gang rumble. Shortly after though, I thought I smelled skunk. What? Never had skunk around at this time of year before. Well, Denny smelled him too, and ran up to a spot at the fence, hackles up. He came when I called though, thank goodness. We hurried them inside, not wanting to experience a re-run of being skunked. A little later we saw a big fat skunk out front. What a way to make an entrance, when one can be smelled so far in advance.
I hope he moves on quickly, at least a few houses down the road. We've seen him hanging around for a while now.

***
And of course it's not a post without a picture (or two) of the pups. While I've been spinning:

They get quite bored, and sleepy. (It's not often that they use the sofa all together. It's mostly two on, one off.)

Oh and Denny was hilarious, but that's a story for another time....

***

The Maggster

2012-01-23T01:13:00.002-05:00

Since we don't have actually any snow left, I like to look at pictures from earlier this month.

We were so happy when we discovered fresh snow, when we looked outside one morning.
The pups chased each other, and soon Maggie needed some leaning: leaning is soooo nice.

Helloooooo?!

fresh snow, nom, nom, nom

I wonder

the view is much better up here

I'm the Queen of the world!

See ya!

Oh how we love snow!
***

Handspun Friday - Velvet Forest

2012-01-20T01:11:00.001-05:00

Some spinner I am! I didn't realize that this fiber was roving until I was done spinning it. This is 4oz Corriedale roving, dyed by FatCatKnits.

I made this 3-ply yarn, 280yds. I LOVE it!

Invitation to play. Denny is very good at this.

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Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

***

Mod Mittens

2012-01-17T01:48:00.003-05:00

I've test knit these mittens in the middle of December, and now the pattern has been released. The Mod mittens by Kirsten Kapur.

I liked the design as soon as I saw it.

The colors are reversed on the palm side. This was a delightful knit.

I've used Cascade Yarns 220 Sport for these, and I think this is perfect yarn for colorwork. One ball of each color was needed to knit a pair, with a little left over.
The single mitten above will stay single. It was my first try. I cast on for size L, but my gauge was way off. It turned out huge. Like an oven mitt. I love the color combination, and until I need that yarn for something else, I'll just leave it for now.

The green/white ones are size S, and they fit my hands perfectly.

***
And a quick picture of the boys. Denny really has no idea of personal space.

Happy does not look so happy here, in fact, he soon after moved off to another place, leaving the dog bed to Denny.

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Frisbee games

2012-01-15T01:14:00.001-05:00

There's many ways to enjoy a Frisbee. The first one, as soon as it comes into the house is, to bite a hole in the middle, (thanks, Denny!), so that it gets more handy to deal with.

After that, Maggie is doing some magic trick with it:

and a dance move:

she's pretty proud of it too:

You can also wear the Frisbee, very stylish, like Happy does (or look goofy doing so):

He does not mind prancing around like that, even though others might point, and laugh.

And there's always the way you use it, as it's meant to be: thrown, after it's offered to you so nicely.

Of course, it's no were written, that you can play with the Frisbee just by yourself. Share it! (or not)

***

Handspun Friday - Whisper

2012-01-13T01:26:00.001-05:00

I still have a few handspun yarns from last year to show. One is this lovely Merino/Bamboo blend, which is incredible soft. It's from Shelby's Etsy store Spinning Awesome Good.

I've spun it with long color runs. I love the fiber shot. The finished yarn is lovely to the touch, soft, and shiny too.

Spinning Awesome Good fiber: merino/bamboo, 4oz
yarn: chain plied, 280yds, colorway Whisper

***
I've been busy test knitting. It started December 31, when I was asked if I would test knit another of Stephen West's designs. I can't say NO to him, so yes, I cast on right away. Halfway through that one, I was asked to do another test knit, and I liked the shawl (yes, another one), so I said yes, since I've already gotten Stephen the information he needed, and I could finish the shawl whenever.

Then I saw a lovely shawl on Ravelry, and wouldn't you know it, test knitters were needed. I was delighted to get this one too, even though it's yet another shawl.
Never mind, that I've cast on for Sharktooth shawl, the first of Stephen's shawl club (came out in December), and a cowl (long infinity scarf), which is halfway done.

So now I have 5 WIP's in various states of being cast on, and almost finished. That's at least two WIP's too many for me, to be comfortable. I'm hoping to get one off the needles today.

I've never planned on knitting so many shawls in such a short time! And there are more new designs coming out any day now, from two shawl clubs I'm in from last year, and they are gorgeous, but I'm sure they'll have to wait. At least it's something I can look forward to.

Another thing is, I've been spinning for the Old Forge blanket by Stephen West, from his Book 3. I'm essentially done, but I've decided to use a third color for the edge. This, I still have to spin and dye, and the pattern comes out this week! Looks like I'm going to have to postpone casting on for that one for a while too.

I know this is a bad picture, but I had to zoom in to get it at all. I'm pretty sure it's a Red Tailed Hawk, and he sits on the dead tree out back. Has come by for two weeks now, upsetting the local wild life population. We hear his cry once in a while, and it makes me think of Wild West movies, desert, hot, sand, barren landscape, and a skeleton of some poor creature in the sand. Anyway, it's awesome to see him fly off for the hunt. Unfortunately he's camera shy, and when I try to get closer, he's gone.

***

Handspun Friday - Mixed Blessing September 2011

2012-01-06T01:51:00.003-05:00

It's January, and we have barely any snow. The temperatures jump from -17C one day, to -1C, the other, and +5C the next. It's simply getting on my nerves.

Since I've not spun anything since the first days of December, I've decided to make January a month, where I spin more, knit less. Well, it's not quite working out that way. December 31, I've been asked to do a test knit, which I could not refuse. I had also cast on for a shawl, and a cowl, so now I have three WIP's with a possible test knit coming up this weekend.

I did however spin 12oz of variegated BFL so far, and I'm going to ply it today. So I feel quite good about it all right now.

Doesn't this sheep look longingly outside, thinking of it's home, back in Australia? I've got this from DD Hannah for Christmas. She found it in an Antique shop in Sydney. It's on my desk now, staring at me with it's beady eyes. No, not creepy, but cute!

Today's handspun yarn has been finished for some time now. It was a club offering from FatCatKnits Mixed Blessings Fiber Club September 2011: 2.5oz each on BFL

yarn: chain plied, blue colorway is 208yds

orange colorway: 190yds

Both are still in my stash, no clue yet, what I'll knit with it.

***
The other day, when it was really cold, and I was spinning in the basement, Denny snuggled up to a warm body on the sofa to take a nap. He was a little distracted by Maggie, who was running around, playing with toys, and circling the sofa.

She was also trying to stare me down, into picking up the ball and throw it for her. Of course that didn't happen, since I was spinning, and then holding the camera. She soon moved on and played by herself. She's good at that.

All the while Happy did, what he always does, as soon as I sit down at the wheel. Sleeping. The sunshine didn't give off any warmth that day, but the illusion of it was there. I love this picture, because when you see it close up and enlarged, you can see Happy's beautiful brown eye.

Anyway, I'd get better back to my test knit, so that I can move on with my own knitting soon.

Have a wonderful weekend!

***

Reminder Lesson!

2012-01-01T22:25:00.003-05:00

Well, hello there! Did you all make it safely to the New Year? We had less fire works than usual, maybe the drizzling rain had something to do with it.

We had a rainy, slushy day today. The visitors are gone, and the house, and it's occupants slowly are getting back to normal. (Hey, Halifax! My daughter's back in town! Treat her right, O.K.!)

The pups are still a little stressed, and grumpy. So, when Happy finally settled down tonight, I wanted him to stay in his bed, but that's not up to him. Usually Denny throws him out, and snuggles in himself. So I said, "Denny, go to your place!" and pointed to the heap of blankets on the floor (artfully arranged by me, especially for him).

No back talk, Mister D!

You bore me! Go away, I'm still the boss.

O.K. - O.K - you be the boss.

Is she still watching me?

You bet, D-man!

Oh well, it's actually quite comfortable here!

***
Something note worthy, because out of the ordinary: December 30, in the afternoon. Denny finds a duck in our backyard. Denny chases duck. Duck gives him the wing, and escapes unharmed (barely). Actually, it was a male Mallard. What's HE doing here at this time of year?

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Last post of the year!

2011-12-30T01:35:00.005-05:00

Mish-mash of things. I wanted to show you my new favorite veggies, which I made for Christmas Eve dinner - Brussel sprouts, baked in the oven, with bacon bits, and Parmesan on top!

Mmmmm! I could eat those as meal, with nothing else. :o)

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I've also got my prize, from Carol Feller author of "Contemporary Irish Knits", which I won with your help, and my Dangan shawl.

It's two skeins of lovely Merino/Silk Singles from Hedgehog Fibers. And all those cute little things. The sheep made me laugh, so fitting. And although it's not true, I wont knit for coffee, I'd do it for tea.
***
This is my last pair of socks this year. It's made with Wandering Cat Yarns Alley Cat, colorway Painted Desert. I wanted to knit something mindless, and let the yarn do the talking. Didn't take time to block them, just steamed them. They went right on my feet after that.

pair # 18 are some every day socks for DD Hannah. She picked the yarn from my stash. It's Opal, and I've had it for quite a while. It was no fun knitting with this yarn. I didn't like it, how it looked in the ball, but knit up was O.K. The bad thing was, that it had coarse fiber sticking out throughout. I've never had that with commercial yarn before. It felt so rough. I couldn't get them off my needles fast enough.

My sister sent this bandana for Christmas. I've put it on Denny first, but he was rolling on the floor, to get it off. He hates things around his neck, unless it's the collar, when we go for a walk (and as soon as we are home, he's rolling on the floor ....). Happy was unhappy wearing it too, but was graciously letting me take a picture first, before I took it off.

There's nothing better than licking snow from a coat hanger. Who knew? Maggie and Denny are of one mind on this one.

Tulips in December! What a lovely sight. My son brought them home to decorate the Dining room for Christmas Eve dinner. There were white ones too.

A lot of fiber I'm looking forward to spinning in the new year. Those are FatCatKnits 2oz bundles in over 50 semi solid colors.

Oh, and of course for all the Denny lovers out there: He's most comfortable out in the cold, chewing a stick, like it's the coziest thing to do.

He also likes to fish for ice in the bucket, funny to watch, but boy that must be cold!

I also have new snow boots, since the old ones, which I had at least seven years, where totally destroyed by Denny last winter. I love them!

***

Well, that's it for this year's blogging.
Hopefully I'll be seeing you here next year!

Have a Happy New Year!

***

A kind of review of 2011

2011-12-28T09:17:00.008-05:00

Yesterday it started raining in the morning, which quickly turned into icy-rain, and later snow, but it was too warm, and wet to stay snow, once on the ground. It was slush everywhere. Then later in the afternoon, it started to turn white. We enjoyed being outside a lot. At around 10PM we went outside the last time for the day. It was sticky snow, and you could still hear water dripping down the eaves-through.

I didn't use flash light for the photos, and they are not too sharp, but you get the idea of the "funny" light out at that time of day. There were lights on, at the back of the house though.

sticky snow

Happy is the one, who loves the snow most. He was totally pooped at the end of the day.

Seeing Maggie on this sofa is a joyous event.

Since we've got house guests, she's been spending most of her time in the crate in the basement. Door open, but she rarely got out, only when I opened the door to the backyard. She's totally freaked.
Our guests left for the day, early morning, only to come back sometime this evening. So she didn't hear anything weird from upstairs, and she got courageous, and played with the boys, and even went upstairs with me.

The boys initially loved the newcomers, but on the second day, they found out that the guests are smokers, and since then they don't go near them. I can't think of an other explanation, since they still greeted a non-smoking guest enthusiastically. Oh well, soon the house will belong to us again, and they can relax.

***
Now here's my sort of review over my year in spinning, and knitting, concerning my private sock club.

I took a picture each month of what I've spun.

This turned out to be a total of 21.5 pounds or 9.75 kilograms.

Not bad. Surpassed all my expectations!

My goal for my private sock club was, to knit a pair of socks each month, from one of my many sock books, or single patterns bought. I did not quite achieve that goal. Apparently it's hard for me to follow instructions; I just have to do my own thing once in a while. Only seven pairs are from books or downloads.

I'm just finishing up my last, and 19th pair of socks for this year. Not bad either, considering, that I've knit and finished 60 projects total.
hats: 10
shawls: 17
scarf: 1
cowls: 2
full pairs of mittens: 6
fingerless pairs of mittens: 5
pairs of socks: 19

I've had more FO's in the past years, but I didn't spin then, or spin that much.

I can say, that my hands were never idle. There were maybe a few days, you can count on one hand, where I did not knit, spin, or crochet (which did not amount to anything, got ripped).

***

So, for the coming year in crafting, I'm going on a fiber/yarn/pattern buying diet. I'm stocked up quite nicely. I'll still be getting fiber from two fiber clubs I'm in. For the first three month of the new year, I'll be getting fiber from a third club, which will not be renewed. One really hard decision was to let go of Hello Yarn Fiber Club a few month ago. Once you are out, you are out. Her waiting list is a closed one, but I just had too much fiber coming in, and I had to decide which I wanted to keep, and which club I could let go.

I'm also signed up for shawl clubs, which will go into the year 2012 (looking forward to all of them. There's Romi Hill's Second Year of 7 small shawls, Westknits shawl club, and Anne Hanson's Bare Naked Knitspot club, just the patterns, not the yarn).

I wont be buying magazines, and knitting books, or single patterns for download on ravelry (very hard indeed), but I really want to knit from what I already have, and enjoy it too.

Since I'll be spinning again throughout the year, I'll be creating new yarns to knit with too.

***
Well, there you have it! That's what I'm planning to do, and I can be weak, but also strong willed! :o) Lets see how it goes.

***
So this morning the pups had fun in the snow.

BTW- Wandering Cat Yarns has a sale going on. I've already got my share. :o) Just saying.

Happy Holidays!

2011-12-24T01:00:00.008-05:00

Wishing you all Happy Holidays, and Merry Christmas!

Wishful thinking! This was Dec. 6th.

Cookies!!!!

Please Sir, can I have some more ...?

***
Is that a cookie you've got there?

Smells like one ...

Would you just give me that cookie?

***

Bribery! Kids! Tsk! Who needs it?! I'm smiling just for you!

***
And here's a lovely Christmas song:

Handspun Friday - The Rikke Hats

2011-12-23T00:08:00.012-05:00

Well, today I'm going to show you two hats I made with my handspun yarns.
It's called Rikke hat by Sarah Young, and I love this design. So simple, and comfortable to wear. The first one turned out a little on the large side, but it found another head to warm.

I used this yarn: superwash Merino, Sugared Beets, all of it, and I had to add some commercial yarn in the beginning, because I was low on yardage. I didn't adjust for using heavier weight yarn, so it's no wonder it turned out too big for me. I even needed the chain plied left over yarn to finish the hat.

The second Rikke hat is mine. I made it with this yarn: Falkland colorway Peacock. Not as soft as the first one, but still great to wear.

It's always a bonus to see the yarn knit up. I used up almost the whole skein, just a little left over.

For the cast on I used Nancy Bush's Estonian cast on, or Double-start lont tail cast on.

***

O.K. one last time, just in case you've missed it. The video of the dogs playing with their little devils can be watched here, scroll down a little.

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Christmas socks

2011-12-20T09:40:00.005-05:00

I haven't done a lot of Christmas knitting, because I've been saving knits throughout the year. But I wanted to knit a really soft pair of socks for my DD Hannah. I knew she liked red.
I found a pattern on Ravelry, which had these cute little girls with pig tails all over them. That would have been too much for me, so I've decided to use the chart just once.

I've combined three designs in this one pair of socks, links to the original will follow. I'm sure I will knit Nancy Bush's Kensington socks as written some day. I'm done with the two other designs though.

cuff: co 64sts- from Nancy Bush’s Kensington socks
stranded knitting: chart from Portti 2011 sukat
rest of the sock: from Jennifer Hagan's firefly socks

yarn: The Yarn Yard Toddy, 75% Merino 25% Nylon; the yarn feels really soft, and squishy, but it's weak; I wound it into a yarn cake, and when I pulled on the thread to cast on it broke easily; I had it in my stash from a sock club some time ago. I liked the color though.

I used left over yarns for the stranded knitting, which were different twists, and didn't play too well together, but I wanted the black with the sparkle, and of course the white, silky yarn for softness. Oh well, it's only socks.

They are wrapped and waiting to be gifted. I'm off to the airport in a few hours to pick up DD Hannah. I haven't seen her in a year. She'll be back for the holidays from Sydney, Australia.

Will be interesting to see how the pups react to having people staying here for a while. Could be we'll not be seeing much of Maggie for that time period.

I'm off now, to get some last minute things taken care off.

***

PS With the help from my DS I've finally managed to upload the video. You can watch it in this post, scroll down a little.
***

Little Devils

2011-12-18T10:15:00.008-05:00

This morning, when I took out Denny for his second weewee, we looked on in astonishment, when a herd of people, dressed in red, with Santa hats, and bells, paired in two, trotted by our house, and down the road. It was not a dream, and it was actually nice. They chatted while trotting, and a few had on those bright yellow vests for safety. This was about 9AM.
After watching them disappear around the bend, Denny did his deed, and suddenly a straggler came running by. Denny cheered her on something fierce, and she yelled "Sorry!", while whizzing by. Nothing to be sorry for, Lady! I enjoyed this unexpected weird event.

Now, it's 10:15AM, and by chance I look out the window, and see another group, coming from the opposite direction running by. I don't think it's the same people, some where dressed as elves this time. Couldn't hear anything, since the windows are closed.
Anyway, this made my day, plus the pups where entertaining this morning too.

We are always thrilled when we find a toy for the dogs, which doesn't get destroyed in the first five minutes of bringing it home. So when we do find one, which resists, we try to get some more.
I made the mistake of giving those little devils to the pups, before I thought of taking a picture. When I finally picked up the camera to take some, they were all excited about it, and could not wait to play with them.

The pink one was meant for Happy, since it does not have horns. He's been a good boy. But they don't care about color etc. They just want to grab one, and squeak away.

I must say, Happy is learning all kinds of bad things from Denny. Since the D-man does those things all the time, like jumping up on the table with his front paws, and gets results, Happy has learned to do that too, although not very often. This shows you how excited he is about these toys.

Apparently it's first come, first serve.

Maggie is interested as well, but she's holding back.

I'll put up a video of them playing later, if and when it ever gets uploaded. It's 5 minutes of watching them play. Don't know it you'll want to watch that long. I played it once, and the pups got all excited, hearing somebody else play with their squeaky toys.

The video is here!!!

Now it's back for me to do some more cleaning, maybe some baking, if I'm still in the mood after the before mentioned activity.

***

Handspun Friday - 50/50

2011-12-16T02:28:00.002-05:00

Earlier this year, I found this bag with 8oz of roving in my fiber stash. It's the left bag we are talking about today.

It looked huge, and I was surprised that it only amounted to 8oz in the end. Barely readable it said, 50 % Border Leicester, and 50% Kid Mohair (bought in 2008).
I grabbed a handful from the bag, and started spinning as I usually do, with a short forward draw. But since it's roving, and not combed top, that did not work out so well. I soon started to do some kind of long draw, there was just no other way to handle this. I was surprised how fast the bobbin filled, and how fluffy, and airy the singles on it were.

I made 2-ply yarn out of it. It's a bit bumpy, but I was surprised how well it worked for me to do long draw spinning for the first time successfully.

I've got 634yds in total. It feels kind of ropey, and it's a bit hairy from the mohair, but I love the look of it. I wonder if it softens after a bath, after knitting. It had a finishing bath already, and it was nice while wet.

This should make some kind of shawl some day, but really, I have no idea right now which one. I don't want to dye it either.

I haven't spun in ten days or so, and I don't think I'll have much time to do so for the rest of the year, but I still have some finished handspun yarn to show here.

While I'll do a lot of cleaning the upcoming days, the pups will most likely take it easy.

***
As always, I'm wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

***

Holiday Cheer!

2011-12-15T15:19:00.002-05:00

Where Oh where is the Holiday Cheer?

Gone with the snow?

Oh cheer up! Be Happy!

***

Purple Sheep Heid

2011-12-14T01:14:00.002-05:00

Kate Davies designed this lovely Sheep Heid Tam. What horrified me to knit it, were the floats, and a million ends to be woven in, in the end. I really loved the sheep chart though, and I wanted to use them somehow.
I still had to knit my December socks. So this is what I did:

My sheep are really purple, but it's hard to see.

The right sock was the first one. I was making them up as I knit. With the second sock I did some minor changes, and if I would knit them again, there would be a few other changes as well, but they are O.K.
The amazing thing is, that 84 people made these a favorite. I would not have thought that!

I thought they were O.K. , since I didn't enjoy knitting them very much. I was so relieved when I wove in the ends. The sheep chart has longish floats. I don't like that at all. The other thing which made it hard to like them was the yarn. It's the cheap, now discontinued Elann Sock It To Me 4ply, a harsh yarn. Oh well, have to use stash from time to time.

I've knit a Kate Davies design before. The Owls sweater for DD Hannah. And have you seen her latest sweater design? It's called Boreal. I really like it. Well, actually, I like ALL her designs!

Maybe one day, I'll knit the tam too, but not with that many different colors, maybe just with two gradient colors, to save me the trouble of all those ends. It's supposed to be fun, right?

Baking!

2011-12-12T09:26:00.004-05:00

This weekend I started Christmas cookies baking. On Saturday I prepared the dough. I did double the recipe for two kinds of cookies. I've only taken pictures of one though. I got tired, and wanted to get it over with asap. The pups hung around for a while, not knowing what was going on. When I started to pound the next dough, before rolling it out, Maggie fled the scene.

These simple sugar cookies are my favorite ones. I have many different cooky cutters, but I love stars, and hearts the most.

Since this took a while, the boys got bored, and very sleepy.

Denny of course was underfoot, as always, hoping that something would fall off the counter.

Well, they did get some left over cooky dough, and they loved it. Even Happy went in search for more, with his nose up sniffing around in the kitchen. Maybe he just liked the smell of fresh baked cookies.

Here they are cooling off, before they go into the cooky bin. I was good, only tasted one, or two.

I used to bake a dozen different kinds of cookies, but I don't have the patience for it anymore. Nevertheless, I'm thinking of doing another couple in the next few days. So far I have three kinds, that should be enough then.

***
Oh, and a big Thank YOU! for those who took the time and voted for my Dangan shawl. I won in the Accessories category. I don't know what I've won yet, but apparently it's on its way to the winners. :o) Carol Feller the Author of this book blogged about it here.

***

Handspun Friday - Brussel Sprouts

2011-12-09T10:05:00.004-05:00

I dyed this fiber back in Spring/early Summer. I had an 8oz pack of Merino/Bamboo/Nylon blend to play with. I wanted the fiber more uniformly green, but that's the way they blend took up the colors. As soon as I saw it, I had to think of Brussel Sprouts, and that's the name that stuck, looking at the finished yarn.

I spun it thick, and even though I had four skeins in the end, the total amount was only 304yds.
Somehow I don't feel the love for bamboo blended fibers, so in the future I'll avoid them if possible.

Well, enough talk, here are the pictures.

O.K. that's enough veggie's for one day!

***
Hope you are having a wonderful weekend! We've got snow flurries right now. It's more like snow dust.
***

The Carrot Thief

2011-12-08T10:58:00.008-05:00

I had a big bag of carrots standing in the kitchen. I heard rustling, while putting away groceries, and looking up saw Denny with a carrot hightailing it out on the deck (he had to open the bag first before he could grab one). I grabbed my camera and this is what transpired:

I've got a carrot!!! Come and get it, if you dare!

A really tasty carrot!

You want a piece of my carrot?

Hell NO!!!! What carrot? Didn't see no carrot!

What about you, Maggie? YOU want a piece of my carrot?

Uh-uh! Not me! No thanks!

Are you sure? Because I'm NOT SHARING!

What are YOU looking at? MY CARROT?

I think I better eat my carrot now!

Nom-nom-nom!

And that was the end of the carrot.

***

Dangan

2011-12-06T15:32:00.010-05:00

(out in my front yard; we had rain yesterday, but it turned into heavy, sticky snow in the evening; there was still some left this morning)

I've signed up for 11 shawls in 2011 (on raverly) at the beginning of the year. You can knit as many shawls as you like during the year, but only enter 11 shawls for the draw. I didn't enter anything in February, and still have to enter my 11th shawl for December, but I can tell you already, that I've WON twice so far!
The unbelievable thing about that is, that it was from the same sponsor! What are the odds of that?

There are always hundreds of entries, and many different, generous sponsors, so that was surprising to me.

I'm quite happy though, because Asa Tricosa (here's the rav link to her design page has lovely patterns to choose from.

First time I won, I choose Io-fliptop fingerless mitts and this time I choose the Zenaura shawl. It was a hard choice to make.
Maybe I'll win a third time for my December entry? That would be a hoot!

***

Oh, and by the way, if you want to be generous, you could vote for my project here. It's Dangan the blanket, which didn't make it on my blog yet. (No better time then the present, pictures to follow.)

And if you feel really generous, you could go and vote for Kelly's darling T in her Rossbeg sweater here. All you have to do is click the LOVE button. Vote is open until Friday.

***

Dangan by Carol Feller: such a lovely design! It started out to be a large size blanket, but I got incredible bored knitting it, so I cut the edging short. It's coffee table sized now. I hated knitting with this yarn. To my total surprise, this is the first yarn, which really softened beautifully after washing, and the smell was gone too. I wish it were a little bigger, but I didn't want to be miserable knitting it any longer. So that's it.

It's 44 inches square. I fudged at the ends of the cables in the corners, because I didn't have the right amount of stitches, since I aborted the project early.

Another surprise was, when I folded it in half, the triangle left the cable as a lovely edge.

yarn: Lion Brand Fishermen's Wool, 1.25 skeins = 582yds; (loose twisted yarn, smelly, but what a surprise after washing)
needle: 4.5mm circs
size after blocking: 44" x 44"

***

Candles in the Wind

2011-12-05T01:18:00.002-05:00

Lore asked me if I wanted to test knit this scarf/cowl, after I've left a comment on her ravalry project page. Of course I wanted to do that! Seeing her photos of the finished cowl, I liked it.

pattern: Candles in the Wind by Loredana Gianferri

yarn: Wandering Cat Yarns Fluffy Cat Lite, colorway Steel. That's just wonderful yarn to work with, and to have next to skein. It's got a lovely drape as well. I'm glad I have more of it in my stash. I needed the whole skein, well with a few yards left over.

needles: 4mm

modifications: I did the double-start long tail cast on by Nancy Bush; because I was afraid of running out of yarn, I did three rounds less, one each for the candle, and on purl round in the middle; I didn't like the slip stitch "wick" of the candle, so I made it twisted stitches on the second half of the cowl.

Well, there you have it!

I'M NOT GOING TO SAY ANYTHING ABOUT THE WEATHER! I'M NOT!

***

Look what I've just discovered the other day! My giant peace lily in our dining room:

will have a lovely flower soon! First time since I've got it!

***

Handspun Friday - Alpaca

2011-12-02T01:11:00.001-05:00

A while ago I've got this lovely 100% Alpaca fiber from Bea.

I spun it right away, but didn't get to show it until now. I decided to spin some thicker singles, and ply with some commercial yarn. I found some anthracite colored lace yarn in my stash, and I think it worked out wonderfully.

This yarn has weight, it has wonderful drape, and I've got 368yds of it. I'm thinking some kind of infinity scarf/cowl thingy would be nice.

Thanks again, Bea! I haven't spun 100% alpaca before this, and it was fun.

***
Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!
***

Just a little bit ....

2011-12-01T01:15:00.003-05:00

... of public whining, and what do you get? SNOW!

In the morning I didn't believe my eyes, when I saw the first flurries. I let the dogs out on the deck, and they started to play immediately.

There was a lot of licking going on, and sliding too.

My favorite shot of the day:

And this one too. This is the way Happy looks, when Denny is up to no good.

Snow flakes on Happy's head.

In the afternoon, there was a little bit more snow, and the sun came through too.

Maggie leaned a little. Denny yelled at her.

All that yelling made him thirsty. Nom, nom, nom, snow is soooo good!

Well, as grumpy we were yesterday, we were happy today. It wont last, of course, but there will be more of it (grumpiness, happiness, snow).

***

Give me a Break!!!

2011-11-30T01:34:00.003-05:00

Can you believe it? It's the end of November and our backyard looks like this.

It's been raining all day, heavily, so much so that when I took the dogs outside, they let their heads hang, and looked at me as if to say, "are you kidding me?", and went right back inside. I didn't blame them. Out front it's the same. Plus, another bonus for this time of year (not), it gets dark early, and I have to go find their poop with a flashlight, in the rain, on a dark ground. Give me a break!

If there would be snow, I would find everything without a flash light, the dogs would be wet, but not dirty. O.K. end of rant. It doesn't help, but I don't want to suffer in silence.

***
It didn't look good for my November spinning early in the month, but then I decided on a big spinning project, where I'm spinning undyed variegated BFL fiber, and that goes really fast. I still have a lot more to go, but it's fun spinning. The four finished skeins have not had a bath yet. I'm waiting to finish it all, and then they'll hop into a dye bath.

I had to rest my right wrist the last few days, too much spinning, and the day before yesterday I knit a hat in a few hours, that didn't help either (but was totally worth it). More about that soon (as soon as the hat is dry, and I can take pictures, which also depends on the weather, nothing but grey here).

How am I supposed to write a cheerful blog post, when all I want to do is cry like a baby in a wet diaper?
Well the D-man is always good for a laugh!

Whenever we bring home a bone this big, it's naturally his. He chews it through the middle, and after it's divided the others may have a go at one part of it as well.

***

Peacock Hat

2011-11-29T10:02:00.002-05:00

I made this hat back in August. I saw the pattern, and loved it immediately. I want to do more, just have to find the right heads to put them on.

pattern:Peacock by Karen Borrel

yarn: Patons Classic Wool Merino, colorways Natural Mix & Royal Purple

needles: 4.5mm

***

Old Broom

2011-11-28T10:19:00.005-05:00

"A broom is a cleaning tool consisting of stiff fibers attached to, and roughly parallel to, a cylindrical handle, the broomstick. (Wikipedia)

I had a broom once, but somebody stole it from my front porch this weekend. Halloween is over, so who would do such a thing? It's not in a ditch down the road either. Hmm.

***

I'm starting to despair with the weather we are having. If only the ground would freeze up, but noooo, nothing but mud, and another three days of rain in the forecast. This could all be snow, this SHOULD be snow! It's driving me crazy. Twelve paws can do a lot of mud prints throughout the day. Sigh.

***

Happy was sleeping when I crept up to him to take a picture. His face hasn't adjusted from being pressed against the pillow yet.

This dog bed was once Maggie's, but she never liked it in her room. She found a better place, under the desk, where she feels comfortable. So I dragged it downstairs and put it up in my studio. This is important information for future blog posts!

Happy used to sleep on the wooden floor by the window. He immediately loved this bed, and so did Denny.

In fact they love it so much, that they'll even share it. Of course it's not Happy's first choice, but Denny doesn't give a fig about it.

***

Handspun Friday - Sugared Beets

2011-11-25T01:19:00.004-05:00

Pinks and purples are not really "my" colors, but this fiber's blend of all those colors just spoke to me, very loud indeed. It made me happy to spin this fiber in heavier yarn as usual, which came out as worsted weight yarn. I'm hoping it will be enough for a hat, even if I have to use the chain plied left over to finish it.

fiber: FatCatKnits Merino, 4oz, colorway Sugared Beets

yarn: 3-ply, 3.7oz, 151yds, plus 19.5yds chain plied from left over singles

Have a wonderful weekend!

***

Breathe Deep!

2011-11-23T09:57:00.003-05:00

As promised here're more details about my Breathe Deep mittens.

I've been wanting to knit them for a while now. I think it's a lovely design, and I will be making at least one other pair. Knit with worsted weight yarn, they are a fast knit too.

pattern: Breathe Deep by Kirsten Kapur
yarn: Peruvian Collection Highland Wool, 2 balls
needles: 4mm
size: s/m

***
And on doggy news: Maggie has discovered the toy bin, and that she can get stuff out of there! Took her long enough. For the longest time she watched the boys doing it, and then suddenly, one night, she dug in.

She's the worst too! She does not rest until the bin is almost empty, and the floor is a mine field of toys, where you don't know were to step next. But it's such a pleasure to see her busying herself.

Just the other night, she brought me a tennis ball, and threw it in front of my feet, barking, to tell me she's ready to play now. I wasn't. So I picked up the ball, and put it on my desk, ignoring her. She looked at me with her head tilted, barked at me once, and thought some more, then turned and dug out another ball. Rinse and repeat. I had to laugh silently, and was wondering for how long she would keep it up. In the end, I had six balls on my desk, before this little game was over. She was really frustrated that I didn't throw the ball for her, but really, I'm already slave to my dogs, I want to play with them, when I want. They are sneaky that way! Before you know it, you are engaged into play with any of them, whether you want it or not. :o)

***

2011-11-21T01:51:00.008-05:00

So, the heat is on since Friday, November 18. It was a cold day, and in the late afternoon, I realized it's not just me I have to worry about, but the house plants too. I've turned it to 16C, that's enough warmth. On Saturday I was thinking about turning it off again, it was such a balmy Spring like day. As I write this, it's Sunday morning, and I can't seem to stop sneezing! I hope I don't get a cold now.

(This is instead of bread pictures. It was too cute to not bring it home. It's frosty fern, and I hope it will at least last until Christmas)

Another thing I did over this past weekend was baking bread. I used to do this more regularly in the past, but then stopped. We like rye bread, but that's hard to find here, not the way we like it anyway, and I don't like it with preservatives, and other additives in it either. I've never gotten used to the bread you can buy here. It looks nice, but it's just not right. It feels fake. After a lecture my son attended last week at University, we decided to start baking our own bread again, with a little help of a breadmaker.

I had my doubts about this machine, but at the same time curious. So it arrived on Friday, I read the manual, set it up, switched to the recipe part of the booklet, and used the first and easiest White bread recipe to see how it works. It can make 1.0lb -2.0lbs of bread. I started with the smallest amount. The whole process lasted 3hours 45minutes, which included me measuring the ingredients, and putting it all into the machine. Once I pressed START, I was tempted to stand beside it, and watch it work, but finally thought better of it, and did some other work. There were some peeping sounds, and others, which alarmed me, but since it always stopped by itself, and no smoke was coming out anywhere, I left it to finish it's work.

At some point it started to smell like a bakery throughout the house, that was nice. That made me hopeful, that there actually would be some bread at the end of this process! After it's final peep, I took out the pan, and tried to get the bread out of it, but the paddle was stuck deep in the dough, and at first it would not come loose. With the help of my son it eventually did. There it was - bread! (no pictures, because as soon as it was cooled down a little it was sliced, and eaten, well most of it).

It was perfect White bread (at least it was unbleached, organic flour), really, it tasted very good.

So, Saturday I made another bread, this time Oatmeal bread, because I didn't have anything else at home, to try different doughs etc. But I made the large amount, and I was so excited that I forgot to but the paddle in first. You have to add the ingredients in a certain order, and I had to dump it all out to add the paddle first. Of course the order was no more, I tried it anyway. It turned out a nice, tense brick of bread. I think it would have needed some more water. Anyway, no pictures of that one either. It looked funny on top, but the taste was good too. Anyway, I see more bread coming on. I'd like to get some Whole Wheat flower, and rye flour, but most of all some Spelt flour, which I like best, and I'll be off to make many different breads with many different ingredients, form nuts, to dried fruits, sweet bread, and dark bread. Can't wait! Eventually there might be some pictures to show too. :o) (I hope the bread maker lasts!)

***
O.K. enough of that! Here's some knitting! I did that hat as a test knit for Stephen West, I don't think I've shown it here. It's been a while.

pattern: Helm by Stephen West
yarn: Elann Peruvian Collection Highland Wool, 1.5 skeins
needles: 3.75mm
size: one size

what I didn't like about the pattern was, that the cables where not centered

what I did like was, the short row ear flaps

rustic yarn shot

All in all it's a nice warm hat, already in use.

More about the mittens next time.

I need to go find some tissues, because I've got a runny nose now. Darn.

***

Handspun Friday - Joshua Tree

2011-11-18T02:00:00.006-05:00

Ginny of FatCatKnits has got a competitor in Anna Marie of Corgi Hill Farms, in my favorite dyer spot in my heart.

This is Joshua Tree on Merino/Tussah Silk.

I turned it into 2-ply yarn, with 565yds from 4.7oz. I had only about 4 inches of singles left on one bobbin when I was done. That's just great! The colors didn't line up as I would have liked, but that's not so easy to accomplish when doing 2-ply yarn. But I didn't want to chain ply, and loose a lot of yardage. I quite like how it turned out.

This took me much longer to spin than it should have. The reason was, that I was avoiding the wheel, and fiber waiting, because it was hard to work with. Even after pre-drafting it the fibers stuck to each other, especially where the darker colors were, but not exclusively. I know that can happen, and I love the colors too much to give up on Anna Marie's fiber, in fact there are a few braids waiting to be spun already. Like this one:

They are very different from Ginny's dyed fiber, and so I will enjoy spinning their fiber however the mood will strike me.

I've also made another yarn purchase, since the girls of Wandering Cat Yarns were having a shop update on my birthday.

Really pretty yarn. As soon as I know what patterns I will knit with them, I'd like to cast on.

***

And I'm wishing you a wonderful weekend ahead, with a picture of my beautiful boy Happy, who's hoping to get me to go play with him. With that face, and those lovely brown eyes, he never has to wait for long.

***

First Snow This Fall!

2011-11-17T16:27:00.002-05:00

Yeah! We had some snow fall for about ten minutes, and we were out in a flash, enjoying it! :o)

***

Thank you!

2011-11-14T02:00:00.001-05:00

Thank you all for your birthday wishes! I had a lovely day. But it's always over so fast!

I've got some pretty flowers.

New things get noticed in our house.

That's' Maggie's nose in back there.

Yep, here she is.

Amongst other things, I also got this life safer bracelet ( I call it little dog collar). I love handmade stuff!

There was also this lovely card in the background, and matching my polka dot klox, this lovely cup and saucer. It came all the way from Australia from DD Hannah.

While I was taking pictures of the flowers, Happy and Maggie squeezed themselves on a bath mat (in the kitchen).

We found those bath mats at Costco's, and I thought they would be great for the dogs (and it's machine washable too). I brought one inside, when I unloaded all the groceries, and put it down in the kitchen (just for a moment). And ever since then, one or the other, or two of the pups sit on it. They love it! It holds the shape of anything stepping on it, paw print, or foot print for a while, it's so soft. Maggie likes to shake it, like her worst enemy, and goes totally crazy doing it, so much so, that Happy goes into hiding, probably happy, that he's not that bath mat. :o)

***

Hanspun Friday - Gurthrie

2011-11-11T02:10:00.004-05:00

Here's another beautiful colorway - Gurthrie - dyed by Ginny of FatCatKnits.

FatCatKnits-Polwarth-4oz

I made it into a 2-ply yarn with 405yds.

Fall is here, and it's beautiful!

The leaves of the Weigelia bushes turned beautiful colors, just before they'll fall off. Looking at those colors, makes me want to have them on fiber too.

Out front, the strong wind yesterday, helped our huge Maple tree to let go of its leaves. Around here it smells earthy, something only Fall can do. Each season has its own smell, and I can't wait for the air to bring first snow smell with it.

We have huge yew bushes in our garden, and I'm thinkingn of removing them, seeing how toxic they are. It's amazing, that only the bright red jellowy pulp around the seed is not poisonous, when everything else on this bush is deadly. From the wood, to the green leaves. Mostly the dogs ignor them, but I find Denny pulling on branches sometimes, and Happy pushes his toys into the bush, and God knows why, plays in there. They are not interested in the berries though.

There are A LOT this year! That's only from one bush, next to the stairs!

And while I was out, yesterday, taking pictures, Denny was surveying his kingdom.

It's my birthday today too! 11/11/11 - isn't that a wonderful birthday date? I wish I was just 11 years old too. :o)

***

Oh, one more thing. I finished another pair of Andrea's mitts for Hannah per her request.

Since they fit in with the color scheme today, here they are. Second pair went really fast. She choose the colors. Pattern is from Kirsten Kapur.
***

Wishing you all a lovely weekend!

***

Unbelievable!

2011-11-07T02:02:00.003-05:00

November 4th, a Friday afternoon, and Saturday, and Sunday too, where lovely sunny days, and warm enough to sit on the deck, and have some hot chocolate, and do some knitting! I can honestly say, that never happened before around here.

I'd just finished my November socks, and cast on for a new project. It's been a long time since I've knit with straight needles, and a rectangular scarf too! Feels somehow old fashioned.

I've been meaning to knit these Eesti Trail Hiking Socks by Nancy Bush for a long time now. But who needs socks made with worsted weight yarn? My son does.

I've tried them on here, to get a modeled shot, but they are too big for me, and almost knee highs. I did make a few modifications.
I didn't make the leg as long as the pattern, changed the colorwork, and didn't do the 8 stitch increase-decrease for the colorowork (because I didn't read the instructions completely at first), but I used 2# larger needles for colorwork, and it worked out fine. It felt funny having this huge sock hanging off the needles. I thought it would never fit, but they fit alright.

pattern: Eesti Trail Hiking Socks by Nancy Bush from the book "Favorite Socks"

yarn: Elann Peruvian Highland Wool, 3balls in grey, about half a ball of natural white, yellow and orange

needles: 3.25mm, 3.75mm for the colorwork (not the stripes though)

While I was sitting and knitting, Denny tried to get comfortable on a chair too.

Are you comfy, Denny?

Meanwhile Happy was basking in the sunshine, and Maggie was running in circles. Since the neighbor used a leave blower (which makes the most aweful noise, like an old hair dryer) last time we were out on the deck, she's not comfortable there anymore. It took her about half an hour to just come out from the kitchen.
***

Handspun Friday - Gin Fizz I & Buttonwillow

2011-11-03T21:24:00.010-04:00

fiber: Corgi Hill Farm: Humbug BFL/Tussah 5oz, colorway Gin Fizz I
yarn: 2-ly, 460yds

This yarn turned into my second Buttonwillow warp. From the start I wanted to knit it in handspun yarn. I was not sure I had enough yarn, because the pattern called for 480yds/sportweight yarn, and I only had 460yds. As it turns out, I had about 1 yard leftover! The blocked size is 20" x 76".

While I'm spinning:

as soon as I stop, a head goes up:

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

***

Morse Mitts

2011-11-02T02:28:00.001-04:00

Susan asked me if I would test knit these mittens for her, and of course I said YES!

I think this is a great idea, using Morse code to "write" on your mittens. I made the small size, which spells "Anastasia". Size L and M have their own word. You can make up your very own word if you like too, because the pattern gives you the alphabet in morse code. Really cool!

I made size S so they would fit Hannah, and she said she liked them very much, when I sent her a picture of them.
What's not in the pattern is the contrast yarn for cast on. I was just trying out some different things. The right mitten looks better I think.

pattern: Morse Mitts by Susan Mehringer
yarn: Jojoland Wool Yarn Fingering Solids (almost solid, the color does go from light to darker)
needles: 2.25mm & 2.5mm
size: S

But you know what? As if it was not enough to be test knitting these mittens, look what was in the mail yesterday!

That's right! Get green around your noses, because Susan sent me this Wollmeise yarn as a thank you gift! In GREEN! My favorite color! (O.K. she asked me what color I'd like). :o)

THANK YOU, SUSAN!

Oh boy, that will be such a treat to knit with this Wollmeise. I think I already know which pattern it will be, but it's not released yet.

***

In case you are wondering, Maggie is back to her usual self. No limping whatsoever! You should have seen her last night, doing the puppy run, bouncing off the sofa backs, and jumping around like a monkey. It's a wonder she does not hurt herself more often. This dog seriously needs a chill pill! When the boys are sleeping, exhausted from playing, Maggie still has energy left, to play on her own with chew toys, rolling on her back and holding them with her front paws. Sweet to look at. Thanks for all your well wishes!
***

More cake, and Denny, and other stuff ...

2011-10-31T02:00:00.006-04:00

At the end of last week I've baked a cake, and stuck (almost) strictly to the recipe. I just substituted white chocolate with dark chocolate chips, and added some more flavors.

I've cut the first slice when it was still hot, that's why the molten chocolate chips smudged the cake. I used fresh Cranberries, I just love the sour taste combined with the sweetness.

Even with one cup of butter, and fresh fruits, this was a rather dry cake. If I would make this one again though, I would leave out all chocolate, and double the amount of Cranberries.
Ooooops!

I did tell the boys to smell the cake, so I could get them into the picture. Of course Denny bullied Happy aside, and got a lick in. Ah well....

This is what Denny does, when he's spending time in my son's room, while Happy is having alone time with me. During his stay there, he whines, and yodels non stop. My son has developed an eye twitch. After he was released, Denny stayed by my side for the rest of the day. Can't get close enough. That's me sitting on the sofa, with Denny's head on my leg.

And here's what I've spun in October.

I've got my knitting mojo back, and I've cast on with some of my handspun yarn. That's all I needed to get me going again. :o)
Now I have to decide, which sock design will be my November socks. I thought I'd it all worked out, but changed my mind again. I'd like to get the yarn and needles ready, to cast on as soon as the current project is done.
***
Heat's still OFF. Lovely wooly handknits are unpacked, and pulled on, and keeping me warm. The temperatures in the house hold steady at 13C. Yesterday morning, we had first frost. The grass was white, and the ground on top frozen for a few hours. Not a single snow flake so far though. The trees, and bushes are letting go of their leaves now. It sounds like it's raining, but it's not.
***

Handspun Friday - Vampire Suicide

2011-10-28T02:01:00.002-04:00

Just in time for Halloween, I've finished some FatCatKnits Vampire Suicide on superwash BFL (special Halloween colors Ginny had in her Etsy shop).

I've got 2 skeins, chain plied, 266yds total from one braid. The other one will have to wait. I was thinking of knitting fingerless mitts with long cuffs with this yarn.

***
Wishing you all a lovely weekend!

She's still limping, but the pain killer helps her to get around, and sleep better I think.

On another note, I haven't knit a stitch in three days now. I do have three WIP's but nothing I'd like to work on right now. I do however enjoy spinning very much, so it's not so bad.

Yesterday morning was the first time I thought it was cold enough to wear knit socks again. It's 14C in my studio, quite chilly, but I don't want to turn on the heat just yet. I'm digging out all the handknit items to keep me/us warm. :o)

The boys went out on the deck in the morning, just to discover a thin layer of ice on the boards from the rain the days before. First they slipped around, but soon they licked the ice, and clawed at it. It was funny to watch them.

***

Andrea's mitts

2011-10-26T01:56:00.004-04:00

October is the birthday month of my sister. Her name is Andrea (even though we call her Susi). I thought those mitts would be perfect for her.

pattern: Andrea's mitts by Kirsten Kapur
yarn: KnitPicks Wool of the Andes, colors Coal & Fog, one skein each
size: s/m
needles: 3.25mm

They've arrived, and have been well received.

Then there are some bed socks I've knit in between all of what I've been doing. Knit with 3.75mm for extra loose fit. Request for another pair has been made. :o)

The last three days we've been worried about Maggie. She's been limping. One of her rear leg seems to bother her. From the time we've notices something wrong, and a day of rest, and easy, which did not bring improvement, we went to the Vet yesterday.
Maggie tensed up like a fruitcake. All muscles, all tense, so it was hard for the Vet to feel her leg, and find out anything. Maggie walked around like nothing was wrong there in the office, when at home she was hoping around on three legs.
For now, we are supposed to give her pain killers, and watch her for the next five days. If there's no improvement we'll have to do x-rays. It's hard to keep her quiet though, and away from the boys too. It's better if she only gets to see them one on one, less horse-playing around.

Oh, yeah, that's Maggie in front, Denny, and Happy in the Dining room. When I'm preparing dinner, they hang around, changing places all around, but basically just waiting for something to fall off the counter, or something to lick like a bowl, or anything else for that matter.

***

Buttonwillow Warp

2011-10-24T02:37:00.005-04:00

This past weekend, I finished the Buttonwillow wrap. It only took me three tries, until the third one was the charm. I like this design for the unusual spine, and the edging, especially the bell shaped big one in the middle.

This wrap is so soft, if hairy. The yarn is a blend of 80% Alpaca 20% Silk. Lovely combination. I liked this yarn much better than what was used in the original design (The Fiber Company Road to China Light, in the colorway Peridot, which I have, and it was my first try).

Even though I really like this colorway, this shawl will go into the gift bin for now. I'd like to make myself one with handspun yarn.

While I was taking these photos, Denny stole a wooden board from the kitchen counter, and munched on it, when I found him like that in my studio.

pattern: Buttonwillow wrap by Romi Hill

yarn: Wandering Cat Yarns Sophisticat, 1.56 skeins of Spring Fling - 445yds used (once again the WCY girls did a wonderful job with the colorway)

needle size: 3.5mm
size after blocking: 20 inches x 68 inches, I did not block the heck out of it though.

This is getting serious....

2011-10-23T15:28:00.002-04:00

A serious sign of your fiber/yarn addiction is, when you step out of your bubble bath, look back with a smiling face, and think, "No dye bleeding whatsoever." Help me!

***

Handspun Friday - River Rock

2011-10-21T02:11:00.012-04:00

Some time ago, I got this fiber as a gift from Preita. I was able to pick it myself from her Etsy store (doesn't seem to exist anymore).

River Roch - Polwarth - 4oz

I loved all the colors in it, and how it turned out spun up. It was a little hard to work with, pre-drafting was in order, but in the end it all worked out fine.

chain plied - ~ 330yds

Thanks, Preita!

Yesterday a little box was in my mail box, from Germany. Look what was in it! Lovely 100% Alpaca, dyed and sent by Bea . There was some chocolate and Toffee too, but it never made it to the photo shoot. The colors are lovely, and this is going to go next on my spinning wheel! Thank you so much, Bea!

100% Alpaca

Bea has many wonderful designs on ravely, one is this spinning bag, which I'm supposed to test knit. Bea has graciously given me time as long as I needed to get it done. I really want to have one of those bags, but it's a little daunting.
***
It's been really rainy and dark here the last few days. The pups do what's best in this situations - sleep.

sleeping Maggie - she's changed position on the towels - she's so sweet when she's sleeping

sleeping Happy - my sweet boy, highlighted in a low sun beam (obviously this photo was taken on a sunny day)

snoring Denny

They all like to sleep in the open crate during the day at some point. Here he's pressed his nose into a weird position, which made him snore like he's afflicted with sleep apnea.

***
There it is again, the next weekend coming up! Hope you are all having a good one!

***

October socks - Sockstravaganza

2011-10-18T12:24:00.005-04:00

I used last weekend to finish up my October socks. I was waiting on Friday for some yarn to arrive for the Buttonwillow wrap, but it didn't. Which was a good thing, because then I decided to finish off this pair. I've had half a sock lying around for some time now, because between casting on, and actually finishing them, I did a couple of other projects.

These socks were the reason I bought the book "Brave New Knits", because they are on the cover. I liked the orignial colors, but I don't like to copy, so I changed the colors a bit. I added a third color, the natural white, because I thought the red color would pop more.

I've come to enjoy knitting cables lately. I especially liked the left and right cable bands, flanking the big middle one.

On the back leg there was ribbing, which was very annoying to knit. It looks really good, but I could not memorize it, I could not get into a rythms knitting them, because the ribbing was not the same old (k2, p2) or some such. Anyway, once I reached the foot, it was plain old stockinette stitch on the bottom.

Can you see the heart shape in the color work. The original had an open heart, I just added one red stitch at the bottom tip, to close the heart, and I like it much better that way.

They turned out a little too wide around the ankle and foot part. I usually knit my socks with 64 stitches on the leg, and 60 stitches for the foot part. These were knit with 72 stitches throughout. I must say I needed the width with the colorwork, but further down they are loose, and I made them a few rows too long too. So, I might give them away, or hope they'll shrink a little in the washing machine.

pattern: Sockstravaganza by Kirsten Kapur from the book "Brave New Knits"
yarn: Elann Sock it to me 4-ply (discontinued) and I'm not sad about that. Not the nicest yarn to work with.
needle: 2.25mm

***

Ha!

2011-10-15T02:42:00.000-04:00

Everybody and their Aunt is in Rhinebeck this weekend, and I'm getting a new water heater installed on a Saturday afternoon! How lovely.

***

2011-10-14T01:54:00.002-04:00

Ginny is an artist when it comes to dyeing fiber. I love her work. It's so much fun to spin her colorways. One of which is Day's End Dawson. I love browns, and blues together. This one I've got from her Etsy store.

4oz BFL

I've got 490yds of 2-ply yarn. I spun it from brown to the blueish part, with a little shawl in mind (pattern not yet specified).
***
Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!
***

Happy 1st Birthday, Maggie! (Margret, Mrs. Thatcher for short)

2011-10-10T02:42:00.008-04:00

And YES, she listens to all her names. But she knows, when we call her Margret, she's done something bad.

As I'm writing this post, Maggie is sleeping under my desk, bringing tears to my eyes. It's not because I'm sentimental, or moved by time going by so fast. No, it's because she's blowing wind, sounds and smells coming from her belly, after she ate, God knows how many, apples from the ground outside in our backyard. She's putting members of the skunk family to shame, and she's not even trying.
Meanwhile the boys, one on each side of the room, have their noses pressed to the screen, of open windows (Coincidence? I think not!). I feel like getting up, and joining them, if it were not for the hot air coming in, and foul smells, and hot air, don't do it for me either. So lets be brave and move on.

(Last time we saw Happy between her ears, this time ...)

Maggie's one year old, and with us almost as long. She's a petite dog, but well proportioned. She's a weird dog, with lots of personality. I'm glad she's with us, and that she's got her own quirks.

(tired after running like the energizer bunny) (Denny made this bed of towels for her, but why sleep on a sofa, when you get a place like that to sleep on?)

(What? Don't you know there's nothing better than leaning on a chair?)

(She just loves leaning. I Love them both.)

That's her, telling us, "Throw the freaking ball!" Totally obsessed she is.

***
It's also Thanksgiving Day today, and there's Turkey in the oven, there will be yams, and Apple Pie (made from scratch, no yucky filling from the can).

Hope you are all having a wonderful Monday!

***

Happy Birthday!

2011-10-06T01:09:00.005-04:00

October is a month with many birthdays in our family! Today it's my DS's birthday. For that occasion I baked a cake, Sacher Torte to be exact.

(this photo cracks me up)

We all like it. I'm not good at baking beautiful cakes, but they taste good.
I cut it in half once and filled it with Apricot jam.

Everybody wants a piece of it!

(I asked Happy to smell the cake. He usually does not jump up on the counter like somebody else we know.)

Some want it more than others...

(I pushed it out of his reach.)

If you don't get it from the one side, try the other ...

That was close!

Wish I could share this with you!

This cake really NEEDS whipped cream.

Gyllis

2011-10-05T02:09:00.003-04:00

I was lucky to be a test knitter for this scarf. Gyllis a new Stephen West design.

I've used Wandering Cat Yarns Jungle Cat in the colorway Vampire's Kiss. One skein, with a little left over. But only because I decided to use a contrasting color for bind off (also some WCY but Twinkle Cat).

That's how much was left over.

And just because I have so many photos of them, here's Denny soaking up some sunshine.

2011-10-03T09:28:00.003-04:00

I've cast on my October socks and have turned the heel on the first sock. I had to put it away for a while, because I've got a pattern for mittens, I promised to test knit.
This is the cuff of my Sockstravaganza socks by Kirsten Kapur from the book Brave New Knits.

Even though it was a cold, and rainy weekend, we managed to play outside, and I didn't forget to take the camera for once. I was playing with some settings, took over 100 photos, but kept about 50 of them, and even those didn't all turn out as well as I hoped for. Anyway, there are always some photos I like, even if they are not totally in focus etc.

Here's Maggie, with Happy growing out between her ears, waiting for me to throw the ball, what else.

Here you can see how much Denny enjoys playing nowadays.

One of the most beloved toys is this tattered rubber Frisbee. It's Happy's favorite for sure, but Maggie gets it away from him whenever she wants it. Sometimes all three of them tug at it. It still flys well too, even with the big hole in the middle.

Happy is avoiding a collision. I could not stop him from jumping into the pool though. Here he's wet, and on his way into a corner of the back yard, where he plays with the Frisbee by himself.

Here you can see his bum sticking out from his special corner. I tell you, every one of them has some weird thing going on. He just rubs the Frisbee into the dirt, and digs it out again, chews it, and slaps it around.

And here he's joining us again, to play some more.

I better get back to do some more test knitting.

***

September round up

2011-09-30T01:46:00.002-04:00

This month I've spun more than in August, which always makes me feel good.

I haven't shown you all of the finished yarns yet though. There are not enough Friday's in one week!
***
I didn't mean for this pair of socks to be my September socks (for my personal sock club), but I didn't get to knit a second pair, so they'll have to do. They are mens socks for my DD's boyfriend.
I started out with stripes changing each row, and got bored, so I changed it for the foot part. I was really glad when they were done.
The reason for so many pictures is Maggie's curiosity. See her nose growing?

I've already picked out the pattern, and the yarn for my October socks. Just have to find the right size needles, and I'm good to go.

***

And in chorus with the gang, I wish you all a wonderful weekend!!!

***

WIP's

2011-09-27T09:15:00.002-04:00

I have three works in progress at the moment. I'd like to work on all of them at once.

It' s been ages since I've knit something out of Knitty. Not that there was nothing I liked, but somehow I never got to anything, until I saw Apis Dorsata I had to cast on right away, and it's so much fun, that I put it away, because I want to savor the fun of knitting it. Does that make sense?

I don't have an updated photo, that's just the beginning, but I'm further along now. I'm using Wollmeise!!! here, in the colorway Fratello, which came as a sock kit from Yarnissima.

At the same time I was waiting for the book Contemporary Irish Knits by Carol Feller to arrive, because I saw this shawl/blanket called Dangan (scroll down a bit until you see that golden shawl/blanket on stone) in it, and I really wanted to knit that one as well.

I'm using Fishermen's Wool, I've had in my stash (bought for another blanket, which I never made). It's not exactly my favorite yarn though. It's low twist, easy split, and it smells sheepy.

I was knitting mostly Dangan the last few days, when yesterday, I got the message that I've won a prize in Through The Loops Summer shawl KAL. I could choose two of Kirsten's beautiful patterns, boy was that a hard choice!
In the end I choose Andrea's mitts, and Huarez hats. So, last night I've cast on Andrea's mitts, and finished one. That's a fast knit!

***
And here are some photos of the pups. Another of Denny's nick names is Q-Tip, because he's licking the others ears clean, whenever he feels like it.

Handspun Friday - Farmer Phil BFL & Special Blue BFL

2011-09-23T02:00:00.010-04:00

This fiber/color was a little hard to photograph, but it's blue, that much is obvious. It's Blue Faced Leicester, which I like to work with.

It turned into two of those skeins. One I used for mittens. The second one is still in my stash. I wanted to start the mittens, so did only half of the fiber, and the other half later.

1. skein, chain plied, 195yds. 2. skein, chain plied 174yds.

I wanted to pair it with some Farmer Phil yarn I made earlier. Also BFL fiber, and chain plied.

I spun this one during Tour de Fleece this year. Chain plied, 304yds. Lots of left over after the mittens were finished.

I took the stitch pattern from the book "The Mitten Book" page 62. I didn't have a pattern, just put it together as I went. I should have taken notes. Because after the first mitt was done, I did some test knitting, and later, when I continued knitting the second mitt, I couldn't quite remember what I did the first time around.
So, stop laughing, because, yes, the second mitt is a bit larger. I find it very hard to rip out color work, and knits with cables. It's not that it's hard to do, just imagining doing it, after I'd slaved over it, makes me overlook some minor errors.

I still like them though. In my mind I didn't see the blue as dominant color, and was really surprised when they came out like this.

Even with being not perfect mittens, I like them, especially when looking at the details.

I was proud of myself, when I did the braid right from memory, and the first time around as well! I like the leaf pattern on the cuff, and how the yarn made it multicolored.

The thumb is a little tight. Next time I'll add more stitches, but I like the ribbing.

The rose stitch pattern is easy, but lovely. It didn't pop as much as I wanted it, but there's always room for improvement. When I squint at it, I can see the blue grid, or just the rose pattern. I have yet to knit something without an error somewhere in my projects.

***
The other day, Maggie was under my desk, sleeping, when Denny came, and pushed her over, and made himself comfortable. I don't think she approved.

It doesn't look like it, but it was too dark in the room for the camera to focus. I still love this photo, because it's not often that the boys sleep so close together. They must have been quite tired.

I'm happy to say that Denny continues to run like a little locomotive after the balls I throw. But there are rules, and he made them up. First he looks at my hands. When I have only one ball I throw it once, and he will not give that up, until I can show him a second ball in my left hand (that's somehow important to him). Only then I can throw the ball, and he will run after that one.

Meanwhile I pick up the ball he brought back. If I throw the ball he just brought back, and pick it up right in front of him, he wont run after it, bark at me until I throw the ball in my left hand.
That's just how picky he is. He loves it, when I have more than two balls in my hands, somehow that makes it more fun for him. I don't care as long as he keeps running.

Yesterday, I threw the Frisbee for Happy, one ball for Maggie, and the rest of the balls as described above for Denny. At one point near the end, Happy was bringing back a ball too, so everybody got balls thrown, I was quite busy, as they kept coming back one after the other. I have no idea where the Frisbee vanished to. Everybody was happy, including me, and once their tongues hit the ground, we called it a night.

***

Have a wonderful weekend!

***

Good News and Bad News

2011-09-21T09:30:00.002-04:00

I thought I'd finally found a use for my handspun left over yarns. I was going to crochet squares like the one below, but bigger, and crochet them together for a blanket - very long term project.

But after working on this little square for a couple of hours, over two evenings, my right hand and wrist hurt just too much. I think I can seriously forget about crochet. That's too bad, because there are a few crochet projects I would have really liked to do.

Funny thing is, I can knit for hours every day, and I don't feel a thing. So now I think I'll have to come up with something else to do with my left over yarns.

Good news is, that I've baked a delicious banana bread. I used this recipe loosely. I added chopped walnuts, Belgium chocolate shavings, and some Allspice, as well as two eggs instead of one, some brown sugar, a little bit more flour, and a splash of milk. Anyway, here it is fresh out of the oven. It smelled heavenly!

I was going to spin some today, but my wrist still hurts. Maybe later I can get some knitting done, or just take it easy today. I'll rip out the crochet square, and think about what else I could do with the yarn. It's mostly fingering weight, maybe I'll knit some log cabin squares?

***

Deliriously ...

2011-09-19T17:46:00.004-04:00

... deliriously happy that is!

When back in February the Vet told us, that Denny had to loose some weight, I knew it would not be easy, because this is the laziest dog ever. Sure, he likes to chase birds (fat chance of succeeding), he likes to be chased by the others, but they don't indulge him in this too often. While the others fetch whatever I throw them, until their tongues hit the ground, he'd rather ly in the shade, chewing on the thing I threw for him, watching the planes fly by.

Sure, he likes to swim, but only to cool off, no full length swim for him, just a little loop around the shallow part of the pool. So I don't think he's lost a single gram so far (he likes to eat, and is good in finagling extra treats).

So, what I'm so happy about then?

Three days ago, somebody, somehow, somewhere threw a switch. The thing is, when we are not all outside together, I take them outside one by one, to play with them individually. I do a little bit of training in the process. It's easy to do this with Happy and Maggie, since they die for a thrown Frisbee, or tennis ball. They do just about anything for it.
With Denny however, I could throw whatever, and he might have run after it once, but never brought it back. How to get him motivated, or moving? So I walked all over the backyard, and he followed me around, chewing on a ball , or whatever he could find.

So, three days ago, he watched me playing with the others, through the glass door (as many times before). When it was his turn, he came charging outside, sitting in front of me, barking his little head off. I had a couple of balls in my hands, since I knew he would just take of with the first one I threw. But to my amazement he came back with it, and in a straight line, no detours, just a straight forward fetch and retrieve. Wow!

But would he give the ball up? He sat in front of me, tennis ball in his mouth, chewing. I showed him the other ball, and he spit his one out so fast, that it bounced past me. I asked him in a very excited voice, "Do you want it?", and he barked shrilly, so I threw it, picked the other one up, and as soon as he was back, we did it all over again.

Now, I thought he might do it maybe five time, after ten times, it was incredulous, and when he still had not enough, I could just not believe it!

I told him finished (that's how we stop our games, with an accompanying hand signal), while he was still hot for our game, and we went inside. A fluke, I thought.

Of course I wanted to know if he would do it again, and to my surprise each time the last few days, he played fetch with me, like never before.

So, what changed? Any ideas?

Here's my little dumpling. Proud to have conquered the chair once again, since the dog bed was occupied (not that he would not get Happy to leave, if he felt like it).

But then, I'm not always so proud of him. He's still "Denny the Destroyer" around here. He likes to steal things from my desk, mostly the pattern pages I'm working with at the moment. Here's another test knit in the works.

Handspun Friday - Lithos

2011-09-16T02:26:00.008-04:00

The night of September 14th, 2011, was the night where I dug out a pair of knit socks, and wore them throughout the night, it was THAT cold! The days before were humid, and hot, and then the temperatures dropped. I'm not complaining!

This month is looking good where spinning is concerned. Here's some finished yarn, which was a joy from start to finish. I loved looking at the fiber, and it was nice to spin too. It's by no means soft as butter, but soft enough. I only regret not having had more of it.

I LOVE this yarn!

Dyed by:

Wild Hare Fiber Studio : superwash 58s wool top (it’s a blend of breeds from sheep in the Midwest, from a US mill) colorway: Lithos

This yarn is chain plied, 318yds.

I want to use it for a shawl, but it's not enough on it's own, so I'm going to spin several other yarns, and find out which one will go with it best. I'd like to spin some natural fiber as well. I have lots of it, for instance, some lovely white Cormo (which at this point I have no idea where it is), some variegated brown BFL, some grey Gotland, dark brown Alpaca, and many more. It's fun to dig into my fiber stash. :o)

I've been knitting too, but not as much. It comes in waves.
I've also done some "Spring cleaning" in my Ravelry queue. I had 30 pages full of projects, and I was going through them one by one, to find out if it's likely for me to knit them, or unlikely (delete). At the moment I feel once again a little overwhelmed with the constant input of new patterns, when I have so many projects lined up already, I really want to do. I really hate it, when I can't decide what to do next, because there's too much choice.
***
It's a pleasure to eat soup again, now that it's gotten colder. Here's on of my favorites, garlic soup with soup pearls, which we have only now and then. (the soup pearls that is).

And do you think the boys like their occasional bull winkle treat?

It's so special, that Denny only chewed it a little, before he started to hide it.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

***

Merope Cowl

2011-09-12T09:43:00.006-04:00

Merope cowl was an extra pattern of Romi Hill's ebook 7 small shawls to knit: Year One. I've made it a while ago. It's made with Cascade Yarns 220 Superwash Sport. The red is not THAT searing at all. It's more like the last photo, actually more like blood red. It's a little tight for my neck. I can't stand turtle necks, or other tight things, so I'm hoping that DD Hannah will like it, and wear it. This was a quick, and fun knit. I might make it with worsted weight yarn again, to fit a little bit more relaxed around my throat.

pattern: Merope cowl by Romi Hill

I'm the worst pancake flipper of all times! But that didn't mess with the taste at all. I've read about pumpkin pancakes here at TobyKnits, and had to give them a try. I did use a real egg though, and just butter and Maple syrup. I added a dash of cinnamon as well. I've made it three!!! times since I first tried it (probably because now I've got an open can of pp filling to use up too), and I'm still not tired of it.

Last week I've finished another test knit for Stephen West. That's the left over yarn. It's Wandering Cat Yarns Jungle Cat, a Bamboo blend yarn. There would have been nothing left over at all, but I decided to do the bind off with a contrasting color. I think the pattern will be released at the end of this month, so no other pictures until then.

I took these pictures back in February! The sofa is long gone by now. There was always something else to show you.

Nom, nom, nom!

Cough!

Happy was there first, enjoying his bone, when Denny parked himself right beside him, and started chewing a bone of his own. Sadly that never happens anymore.

***

Denny, Denny ....

2011-09-06T08:52:00.008-04:00

I'm spending more time in my studio lately, and when I do, the boys are with me of course. It's not the same for them as in the basement, where they can run and play on the carpet flooring.

The floor here is wood flooring, and they can do some awesome sliding action, which they enjoy doing also. Most of the time however, they just sleep in various places, or watch the world go by through the window.

Denny, of course, gets bored after a while.

He tries out different places to sleep, but nothing seems to be comfortable for long.

So he starts emptying the bin full of chew toys.

But that looses it's fascination quickly, maybe he has ADD? Then he decides to make his very own nest...

... and chews a little. Oh, I just have to tell you about the coffee table. You've seen Denny ON it some time ago. A few days ago, I was looking for a particular bag of fiber, which I knew was in there.

Denny was the only one with me, when I opened first the one hatch, then the other, rummaging through it. He was watching me. Later I told my son, that I've had made a mistake in doing so in front of Denny. The next day I found him trying to get it open, first he nuzzled the rusty metal thing, which I used, but since that didn't work for him, he tried to open the lid with his teeth, like he does with the food container, grabbing it by the corner. It didn't work either, but I knew he would give it a try, since he knows now that it's possible.

When he does those things, Happy gets upset and hides, or is very uncomfortable, while watching his goofy brother being a brat.

Because, after he had done all those things, he started to get himself some books out of the shelves. I think he has good taste, OR is he trying to tell me something?

***

Handspun Friday - Sprout & Andrea's Shawl

2011-09-02T01:51:00.006-04:00

This project was a special treat for me. I love the color of this fiber, which is Hello Yarn fiber club April 2011, 4oz of Targhee, colorway Sprout.

I chain plied it, and got 312yds, with long color runs.

I paired it with some FatCatKnits variegated Merino, 2-ply.

And got this shawl. My only regret is, that I never got to the yellow part of the Sprout yarn, that would have been awesome!

pattern: Andrea shawl by Kirsten Kapur (purchased the pattern ages ago, and only now got to knitting it) This is a wonderful shawl to knit. You start with the outer edge border, and pick up stitches for the main body.

I had some trouble picking up stitches for the top edge. I did not get nearly as many stitches as the pattern called for, but it worked out alright. I also left the last three stitches of the main body on my needles, and when I picked up for the edge, I just knit them. I think this looks pretty neat as well. I had a hell of a time blocking this one.

This is also my shawl # 11 for this year!

I know, so many pictures, but I really like this one a lot.

***

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend. We are having a long one, with Monday being a holiday.

***

Stinky feet!

2011-08-31T02:38:00.003-04:00

It's time to see what I've been spinning this month. Not as much as I'd have liked, but what can you do? I'm very happy about the little 2oz blue Blue Faced Leicester skein, because it's going to be for color work mittens. I still have the second half of the fiber to spin, but for now, I can start with the mittens whenever I'm ready.
Oh! Did you notice my new lamp for my desk? It's a Banker's Lamp, and I've wanted to have one for a long time. I don't care if it's a cheap version from Staples, I just like it.

Last week my son made a run to an European Grocery store, about an hours drive away from us. He brought back some delicious things, like these (Krapfen) donuts! They should be filled with Apricot marmalade, but were filled with Powidl (some dark plum sauce ) instead. Beggars can't be choosers.
To go with it I needed lots of hot tea. At the time I was working on the Peacock hat.

I was told I'm being very North American with these photos, but really, Maggie, that's not Lady like at all! Nobody wants to see THAT!

Denny was sleeping beside me, when she decided to position herself next to him. She needs support to be able to ly on her back, or she would fall over (not so Denny, who has a broad back, like a table, no problem with rolling over there). At first he didn't notice, but once she touched him, he woke up.

"Get your stinky feet off of me!", would have been what I said, maybe he thought so too? Once he was finished smelling her feet, he got up and relocated to the sofa.
***

Handspun Friday - Special Blue Merino

2011-08-26T09:09:00.004-04:00

When I was choosing my Tour de Fleece prize fiber/colorway, Ginny showed me this blue merino fiber as well, and I took it off her hands, with a few other pretties. I don't know, but my like/dislike for merino has changed for the better. There was a time I could not spin it to my satisfaction, but all of a sudden it's no problem any more. Which is a good thing too.

This is 4oz of merino, which I turned into this yarn:

376yds, chain plied

I need it for colorwork. I should spin more almost solids for just that purpose.

***
Just a quick note about the pups: During this last week, on different days, each one of them fell into the pool, because they were running, but not looking where they were going. Denny started it all, then Happy, and yesterday it was Maggies turn. Was that because everything comes in three's? I could see it happen with Maggie, and I was surprised, that it didn't happen sooner with her, since she's the poster child for running sideways, even forward, and not looking, running into things, and walking backwards as well as forward. Anyway, the look on their faces was priceless, when they surfaced from their unexpected plunge.

I'm also happy to report, that I've got my hands on this used little book! It's a wee one, but it's full of information and charts. This is the BEST mitten book EVER! I could throw away all the others, really! (but I wont) I love it! Expect some colorwork mittens soon! (the red knit there is my test knitting, which is all done, but I've cast on for another one).

Have a wonderful weekend!
***