What a wonderful day to knit!!! We are fortunate that we still have power, meaning heat, TV/radio, etc., although I'm still in my "jammies." I'm being "bad" because I am working on my entrelac shawl design with the Crystal Palace Merino 5 rather than finishing up the kimono. I must, must, must make myself get it done! All I need to do is finish the band and sew it on! Why do I allow myself to get so side-tracked??? I am not going to allow myself to cut out my next "charity" quilt until I finish the kimono. I'm not, I'm not, I'm not!
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Blizzard '08 - March 08, 2008
What a wonderful day to knit!!! We are fortunate that we still have power, meaning heat, TV/radio, etc., although I'm still in my "jammies." I'm being "bad" because I am working on my entrelac shawl design with the Crystal Palace Merino 5 rather than finishing up the kimono. I must, must, must make myself get it done! All I need to do is finish the band and sew it on! Why do I allow myself to get so side-tracked??? I am not going to allow myself to cut out my next "charity" quilt until I finish the kimono. I'm not, I'm not, I'm not!
Card Trick - March 07, 2008

Talk about creating a monster! The friends who "turned me on" to quilting have done just that. I have some quilt software (EQ6) and have been playing with it. While scanning through a book on how to make quilts, I saw a picture of a block called "Card Trick." I fell in love with it! I could just picture it in primary colors, made out of flannel for a little boy. (One of the local quilt guilds makes charity quilts for children. Can't remember the name of the organization.)
But anyway, I played with the Card Trick block on the EQ6 software and made the design, cutting templates, etc. for the quilt top you see here. It was so much FUN! I still have to get the batting, back it, and do the machine quilting and then it will be done.
The picture on the right is the design drawing and the left is the actual quilt.But first, off to work on some of knitting! I'm designing an entrelac shawl using Crystal Palace Yarns' Merino 5 (a superwash wool), and it is working up beautifully! And it's so soft!
I just love retirement!!!!! Especially today, when we're in the middle of a snowstorm, with a possible accumulation in the double-digits! It's nice and cozy and safe and warm in my house with my yarn and my quilt.
Once upon a time - February 27, 2008
Once upon a time, there lived a lady who was not too old and not too young – she was just the right age. She belonged to several knitting lists – not too many, not too few, just the right number. Since she wanted to make the May sock from one of the knitting groups, she searched her stash for just the right yarn, not too thick, not too thin, but just right. She chose a shade that was not too dark and not too light, but just the right shade. She cast on the right number of stitches, not too many, not too few, just enough, for two socks on two circs.
The next day she had to go to the doctor’s office and took her knitting with her. Her wait in the office was not just right or too short – it was too long. But she did manage to knit the entire foot of her sock, not too long, not too short, but just the right length – 6.5” Then, OH NO, she hadn’t planned for a visit that was too long, and didn’t have her instructions with her! What to do?
Well, the doctor finally came and the visit was not too long and not too short, but just right to cover the situation. So she went on her merry way to have lunch with her son. Driving down the freeway, not too fast, not too slow, but just the right speed, she heard a POP! and then the van swerved. She pulled off to the side and discovered a flat tire. No one stopped to help – not too many, not the right number, but too few! No one. So she called her son for help and started changing the tire herself. As she was nearly finished, someone finally stopped and finished for her.
When her son arrived, she followed him to the local tire shop, which she discovered was the actual shop where her DH had bought the tire two weeks before. The shop said it would be about an hour before the tire could be replaced, which gave her enough time for lunch – not too long, not too short. However, when she got back, the van was not finished, it was not even inside the shop. And no instructions to work on her knitting. What to do? What to do?
She called her “bestest” friend!!! The friend signed onto the internet and pulled up the sock pattern. The friend read just enough instructions for her to do the heel – not too much, not too little, just the right amount of instructions. She happily knit one heel and then the van was finished! So she packed up her knitting and went quickly home.
She remembered she had a library book in the van that needed to be returned, so she stopped at the library. It didn’t take too long or too short a time to return the book, but just enough. When she went back to the van, she discovered she had locked her keys inside! Oh dear! What next? Then she remembered that the rear hatch didn’t lock properly. She lifted the hatch and all the alarms when off! She crawled through the van, got her keys, and unlocked the van and drove off. When she finally returned home, she wondered, “What next??”
First Quilt in Progress - February 20, 2008

Pink is for February! - February 13, 2008



Debbie is a very petite, feminine woman. So I thought that instead of plain ol' slipper socks, I'd make a pair with a cable around the cuff. And since I didn't want to fool with ribbing, I decided to do seed st on either side of the cable so that the fabric wouldn't roll. Liked the look of the seed st so much that I decided to to the rest of the sock that way. I used the EOP (eye of partridge) heel flap so that the ridges of the traditional heel flap wouldn't conflict with the seed st. The EOP, however, didn't show up the way I'd hoped!
This slipper sock was a surprisingly quick knit - especially in view of the fact that I started the day with a severe migraine (so bad that I was not capable of driving home after Bible Study!) Fortunately, I'd already "pictured" what I wanted to make and the actual knitting was of the "no brainer" variety. Just set to automatic pilot and GO! And after taking enough meds and the peace and CALM of knitting, I'm feeling much better now.
The scans are kinda washed out - picture a nice, soft, baby pink.