Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Blizzard '08 - March 08, 2008



Well, we've been in blizzard conditions for about 18 hours now, with about another 8 projected before it switches to "winter storm" conditions. Snow depth in my community right now is about 10", but other parts of the county/state have more. There are over 300 closings around the central part of the state.

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

this is a short "story" written in the summer of 2003.

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


It's a Mystery Quilt from the Fat Quarters Quilt Guild, started by my friend Karen Lane and her sister, Kristina Gutierrez and meets at Always in Stitches in Grove City OH the first Tuesday of each month. Patty Estadt designed this one and my new daughter-in-law, Mary, selected the color families. I had a lot of fun piecing the Mystery Quilt Top and am now learning a LOT the HARD WAY about machine quilting it!! I'll post another pic when it is completed.

Pink is for February! - February 13, 2008




A very dear friend from church just had her 5th child. She mentioned the other day that her hormones are so out of whack that she hasn't been warm since Andrew was born (and that's been at least 6 weeks ago now!) She specifically mentioned that her feet are always freezing! So when I saw the CP "colour" contest (see http://socksandmorewithcpy.blogspot.com/), and that February's color is pink, I remembered the pink Puffin yarn from CPY that I have and thought instantly of making Debbie some slippers.

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.

A Quilting First - February 08, 2008


I am learning to quilt. I found a box of quilt pieces/blocks that my grandmother made and these are anywhere from 60 to 100 years old. Gotta talk to someone who knows about these things!

Anyway, I want to work on her quilt pieces, but I don't know what I'm doing. So I joined a local guild - Fat Quarters Guild - here in Grove City and they are nurturing me through the process. Tracie needs a new cover for the pad on top of her grandmother's cedar chest and I thought I'd get brave and make one in the same color scheme as her Amish-made quilt. With the help of the guild and another friend, here is my first finished quilt piece. It's so far from perfect (yes, I cut off the points deliberately, a MAJOR no-no in quilting) and the actual quilting was a quick-and-dirty process, but it's done. I love it, I'm proud of it, and I think Tracie will love it, too. 'Course, she can't have it till after the March Show-n-Tell at Fat Quarters! lol

Fun afternoon - December 28, 2007


My granddaughter is on the left and Sarah is on the right, learning to purl.