Newbies

Just a mad rush to the first day back at school. After one day back, I know my projects are going to slow down considerably. It's musical time again with after school and weekend rehearsals.
So the last projects and the newest are being posted.

First, a simple pair of fingerless mittens made for my hairdresser who found some yarn and gave me license to make any type for her. A bulky locally made yarn of mohair and wool. Very imperfect wool, but she'll appreciate them. I personally don't own fingerless mitts, but will make a pair now that I see how handy they can be. Found the free pattern "Ursus" on the internet through Ravelry. The pattern did not have thumbs on them, so I created a bit of a thumb extension.

I also made a couple of biscuit baskets using the Aunties Two biscuit Basket pattern. Fun stuff, although not that easy. It was a tad tedious turning all the tubes, but makes a nice gift. I made 3 miniature ones for Christmas gifts (my own adaptation) but only took a picture of one of those. I like to buy my patterns at Create For Less.
Finally my pride and joy. A baby quilt I started during the summer and finally finished. I wasn't exactly sure how I wanted to quilt the project and finish it. I juxtaposed circles all over the quilts squares and I love it. I used plates and lids from all sorts of things around the house. This is a baby quilt for my dearest colleague who teaches with me. She is expecting her 2nd baby any day now and I cannot wait to give this to her. I know she will love it. It is a quilt from Judy Martin's scrap quilt pattern book called 'Newport Beach'. I used scraps from my own granddaughter's quilts that were full of primary batiks and blenders. It was so much fun to make. I had some striped fabric on hand with all of the colors and made a bias binding which really touches off the excitement of the quilt.I love how the primary squares 'float' on the quilt.

 

...for Kylie Sue and babe.

Carve out some time and the turkey.

Have you ever had someone professionally carve your Thanksgiving turkey? Well it happened this thanksgiving at our house. My sister's boyfriend offered to carve the beautifully roasted turkey and after we agreed he immediately left the house to his car and when he returned he was armed with his professional carving knives. The real deal.

Well, in the time that it took for me to make the gravy...say 15 minutes.... the turkey was completely carved and carefully laid out on the platter like none I have ever seen before. Not a speck of meat left on the bones and better yet, no post turkey clean up. It was awesome! (and the leftovers are wonderful.)

Haven't tired of using my yarn stash for dreaming up hats. Even with busy Thanksgiving preparations I was able to carve out the time to make a couple more. I'm not a Black Friday person at all. I stay home and stay mellow and ignore all the nonsense. I'm not completely innocent, however.  I did check out online quilt and yarn shops.

 Lisa's Hat by Green Mountain Spinnery. Pattern purchased on Patternfish. Made from Organik (ecru)yarn and Elann Peruvian Highland (green).

Trifurcate Hat by Hunter Hammerson. Also purchased from Patternfish. Made from the leftover yarn from The Quince and Co. Solstice cardigan.

Hats off to Autumn

 I made it little wall hanging for the season. I may eventually give this as a gift, but for now I'll let it decorate my wall for the next week or so.
It has squares and rectangles displaying many  autumnal elements. I'm not a huge Debbie Mumm fan, but these are fun & relatively quick to make. You have to be a fusible web fan. I made a winter one of these kind of patterns last year. They do make fun and unique gifts. The directions are crystal clear in the book. For a link to the book, here it is:
http://www.amazon.com/Seasonal-Samplers-Autumn-Winter-Trimmings/dp/B000JHO0AA

I'm in a hat craze. I like wearing hats. I am up to my neck in scrap yarn so I am on a quest to make as many hats as I can for the time being. This urge may wear out after my very next hat, which I've already started, but it's what feels right, right about now.
This hat pattern is from the new issue of Love Of Knitting, Holiday 2011. Picked it up at a newstand. I was pleasantly surprised at the nice patterns in it. I am an Interweave Knits magazine girl, but I can't resist the Holiday issues of some of the other knitting and quilting publications. This is call the Double Diamond Hat and Scarf. It's shown being worn by a handsome young gentleman, but I think I'm keeping this hat for myself.

This was made out of leftover yarn..a Brunswick Worsted weight that I'm sure has been out of circulation for a long time. A barn red color.
Well...off to knitting more hats.

Encore performance & UFO completed

The first one was so fun, I decided to make another Cardi-vest for Claire. Made using Paton's Shetland Chunky yarn in Tangerine. Hope there is an "orange" day at her Kindergarten! This sweater has "October" written all over it. This is such a wonderful pattern. I could make dozens of these. An easy weekend project.

 Husband's sweater is done. It was posted as a beginning project last year. A beautiful sweater and he looks great in it. This project took time, but it wasn't an unpleasant or burdensome job....just a lot of stitches!






Finally, had a distress message from the grandaughter the other day. She was traumatized to find out that she had a loose tooth. A harsh reality for one who has never gone through it before. Well, I immediately set out to make a Tooth Fairy Pillow. It will conveniently hang on her door handle or the bed headboard. Used a embroidery download and designed my own little pattern. The grandaughter called last night to tell me how much she loves it. For her, It took the sting out of the idea and her phone call made my evening.

New cardigan in time for fall....just in time!

My new cardigan. I knit this sweater in 1 month, thanks to some long plane flights and some rainy August days thanks to a couple of East Coast hurricanes. Great sweater and great yarn. The yarn is Debbie Bliss Donegal Luxury tweed and the pattern is Pure and Simple V-Neck Cardigan. Knitted from the top down.....fitting is a breeze. http://knittingpureandsimple.com/

It's a good thing I finished it....it's only in the 50's today. Perfect sweater weather!

Knitting Pure and Simple - Child's Cardi Vest

Finished the cardi vest. Very fast and cute and easy pattern. Made for my granddaughter who is modeling it with her new Kindergarten wardrobe. She loves it! The cotton yarn I used is very heavy and takes forever to dry. I will use a more practical yarn next time with some acrylic or fiber of that sort to make it more wearable and washable. This yarn has some heft to it. It would be more useful as a nice baby blanket. It is also hard to knit. Soft though.....























  I am starting a cardigan for myself made our of Debbie Bliss Luxury Tweed. Expensive yarn! Hard to find a good buy on it, but when I bought one skein of it to swatch and sample as a possible contender for this sweater, I was sold! Soooo lovely. Perfect cardigan sweater weight and color.

http://www.knittingpureandsimple.com/

I am beginning this sweater now and it is going to go with me on my trip to San Francisco and the California wine country next week. These top down sweaters are great for travel as you knit in one piece. No seams! 

Itchy fingers..but not itchy yarn

I woke up yesterday morning with a yearning. I need to get some knitting projects started for the upcoming season. Getting a knitting project started is a day long activity that requires my full attention. I used to be so impatient during this process.  Once I decide on the project and the yarn it takes me all day to swatch the yarn and get the gauge correct along with deciphering the pattern.  In this case it is a yarn I acquired a couple years ago at a "going our of business' yarn shop.  The yarn is the most beautiful shade of ethereal pink. When I saw it I immediately thought of my granddaughter, Claire. At the time I thought it would make the most cuddly blanket...and it would! However, she is almost 5 years old and I imagined a cute little sweater for the fall to wear to Kindergarten. I found a great pattern from Pure and Simple. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE these patterns and the company. There is no second guessing, no trying to interpret. Thank you for making my life easier!  The sweater I am making is a girls cap sleeve cardi-vest. 


The yarn is discontinued, but it is wonderful and a bulky and oh so soft cotton yarn called Punta Del Este Yarns-Baby Pink # 572. The sweater is knitted from the top down which is great for fitting purposes.  I also am planning on making a cardigan for myself. I'm just looking for the perfect yarn. 
 So get out your knitting needles, despite the heat and feel the fiber!
 By the way, you can buy Pure and Simple patterns at many stores and online, but for those of you who need it NOW, there is a e-store called Patternfish and it can be bought and downloaded instantly. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that too!

Vacation summons up some project progress.

Managed to find a little time during the school break to complete some projects.
I made a new purse. I was color hungry. Such a long winter and part of me wanted to escape to warmer climes, but that wasn't possible. Instead I made a purse out of the hottest colors possible. It must have been my "inner summer" in me that was crying out when I selected the fabrics from my stash. 
The pattern is from the book Sew and Go Totes by Kristine Poor (A Leisure Arts publication). Fun pattern and I think I will be making the cover purse tote soon. Don't blind yourself looking at the purse....it's bright!

Since we took a quick trip to Maine to see our kids and granddaughter, I managed to whip off another Wheatfields cotton dishcloth on the 6 1/2 hour trip home. It's a favorite pattern of mine which I have knitted several times before and worth knitting and sharing over and over again. I love my homemade washcloths. I prefer them to terrycloth ones...they're softer on the face, dry faster and I can reuse them a couple of times unlike terrycloth washclothes. This was knitted out of good old Lily Brand "Sugar and Cream"...an inexpensive and practical "no-fuss" cotton yarn. However, if made out of a neutral/natural color, it looks especially nice. I have them posted on Ravelry.

Home is where my heart likes to be

So this is where things stand. The school year is done and I am diving into my fiber arts projects. I am almost done with the front of the sweater I started a few months ago. I intend to knit all summer so this can be finished by fall for my husband. It's turning out nicely. I did frog the sweater after starting 6 or 7 inches as I was concerned it was going to be too small. Rather nice pattern, I think.

 I'm into making scrappy quilt projects. I found this clever pattern from allpeoplequilt.com. It's actually called Bold Sunburst Runner, but I adapted the pattern and size. I love candlemats and I just wanted something bold and fun for summer. It also gave me some more opportunities to machine quilt with my Bernina BSR.

It will be fun for a summer fiesta dinner.

















A new project just finished! Cottage Garden Table Runner

Finally, I made an extraordinary table runner. Lots of applique, but it was fun and not at all difficult, although it helps to have experience and practice, plus patience and time. This lovely pattern is from the October 2008 (issue 94) American Patchwork & Quilting Magazine (A Better Homes and Gardens Publication). It's called Cottage Garden. It has a background of Irish Chain Blocks and the flowers, stems and leaves are appliqued on top. I am so pleased with how it turned out.
This particular issue is one that has several projects bookmarked. I want to make them all. Funny how some magazines leave you wanting and then on the other hand, certain ones are destined for wear and tear!
Some close ups.....

Snow on Mother's Day! Well time to start a wool sweater, I guess.

Already on to my next project. I've made one sweater from Garnstudio and it came out beautifully.  AS soon as I saw this sweater it spoke to me. I'm making this one for my husband, Michael. The yarn, Karisma, is beautiful to work with. this will take some time, but perhaps by Autumn! The pattern is number 85-5. (I think I found an error in the pattern. It says to cast on with size 2 needles. I did and it didn't look right, especially when the rest of the sweater is knit on size 6 needles. I frogged the ribbing and tried again on size 4 and it looks great. Thinking of notifying the company.)  Anyhow, I'll keep you posted to it's progress.

For the love of being home. Finished projects and biscotti

Now that the endless rehearsals are over it's back to having fun on my UFO's.

A trip to Maine (6 1/2 hour trip) to see our kids is one great way to get those knitting projects done.

I managed to finish my "Basic Sweater Pattern" by Jacqueline Fee (seamless bottom up sweater) made from Noro Silk Garden yarn. It turned out very well. Interestingly enough, the Spring weather turned a balmy 80 yesterday so it may be a while till I wear it on a regular basis.

The car ride allowed me to start and finish the matching sock to one already made.
Love tying all these projects up. Makes me hungry for more, though.
This is a great sock pattern. No fuss and easy to follow. I discovered this nice yarn shop when upon a visit to Brunswick, Maine, where my children and grandchild live.
The shop is called "The Knitting Experience" and the pattern of the sock is called "Comfort Socks"

Well, for the love of being home and being able to schedule my days activities for once, I knew tea time today was going to need something to go with that tea so I tried this recipe for Biscotti sent to me from my daughter.
Don't laugh. It has Weleda Pomegranate Body Oil in it. (I know~everyone has that in their cupboard..yeah right!) The only reason I do is that my daughter gave it to me. It is fabulous after a bath. It's so pure and natural, you can eat it. Nice to know that there are products out there like that! But getting back to the recipe....
Very yummy.
Simply substitute another oil for the body oil. Click on Recipe title to get the link....

Almond Pomegranate Biscotti

A Blissful "Black Friday"

Spent Black Friday finishing up projects: Making two soups from the leftover Thanksgiving Day foods and finished a sweater that has been waiting in the wings for a few weeks. It turned out wonderfully in the end.

It's a Nora Gaughan design from Interweave Knits. I changed the neckline to accommodate the wearer (my daughter.) 

Also, I've been making quilted purses. They are fun and and a great way to use up scraps.

Mostly work and a little play

Finished an elementary musical yesterday with 2nd graders. It was called "The Share Bears" and it was a perfect theme for the time of the year.  They sounded beautiful and did a great job. It's the beginning of performance season so it seems like one show after another these days. Late nights and and long hours do not leave much time for play. Finished a pair of mittens that are perfect for driving. Lightweight and not bulky. Used a handpainted yarn called "Artyarns". 

The weather has been unseasonably warm for this time of year. How many times have we gone through November in New York State without any snow? Our hikes through our hills cease today as it is the beginning of deer hunting season. We have statelands behind our house so it's "fair game" for the hunters and dangerous for the rest of us. Mike and I took our last long hike last weekend. The temps were near 70 and we found many little discoveries, like this minute 'cute' baby snake that was no bigger than a piece of chunky weight yarn ~ hey, it's what I know. 

We also located this year's Christmas tree. 

That's always something to look forward to.