Pumpkin Sunrise

  My coffee table is organized chaos, isn't it beautiful? I had a really nice weekend, did you? I visited with my sister and aunt, made cookies, talk a lot. My mom would always say that getting together and talking was 'free talking' because back then the phone calls were toll charges. Cell phones have definitely improved my quality of life. On our daily walks I've notice that the leaves and past peak, I'm feeling bittersweet about it. I tried to appreciate the fall colors every day and yet I feel like I didn't appreciate them enough. I'll miss those glorious colors. I am looking forward to winter and hunkering down in my cosy house, knitting away. On Sunday I did all those pesky household chores most of the day so that I could sit and knit on that baby blanket which might be done today! Let's hope so - I need to dig though my yarn stash to now find some washable wool for a cardigan. How was your wekend?

  Hello! Another Wednesday and another update on my knitting. First off, is the above featherweight cardigan that my sister started for herself and then just could not knit on. I'm not sure when she started this cardigan but I am guessing years ago. She finished the body and did one meager inch of ribbing. For her Christmas gift she asked me to finish it for her. Super easy to do!! I had to drop down a needle size to match her gauge and I finished the body ribbing. I'm about half way down with the first sleeve. The yarn is mystery yarn, she thinks it's Mad Tosh Lace - I will know when I block it if it grows significantly. I've knit with that wool  many many times. My other project is the baby blanket for my nephew's baby to be that is due in mid-January. How delightful to be knitting on size EIGHT needles, super speedy!! What are you working on this week?

  I had a busy weekend!  My nephew got married on Saturday and while they had to overhaul their wedding plans and scale down the list, we were excited to be invited and attend.  They had a lovely ceremony and reception.  My sister looked beautiful! I now am sitting in my house with a million things to do and haven't as of yet written my to do list.  It's going to be a LONG list.  In the car and when I had the free moment I worked on my nephew's baby-to-be blanket.   How was your weekend? P.S.  Yes I did make my shawl :)

  First and foremost, Frodo is acting more like himself now that he is on some medicines to help him get better. Thank you for all of the well wishes for his speedy recovery, I am grateful.   I started knitting a baby blanket  yesterday for my nephew's baby-to-be that is due in mid-January. This yarn has been in my stash for over twenty years...I love when I use something that has hung around forever. Using stash yarn justifies the collecting of stash yarn. I am on the second sock for my son in law for his hand made Christmas present. I had grand plans of finishing it over the weekend but I didn't.  Maybe by this weekend??  What are you working on this week?

I wanted to finish this blanket by Wednesday and so I did a mini-marathon of knitting.  I have to balance knitting with stretching and moving or else bad things happen to my body.  I'm here to report that I was successful in finishing the blanket AND my body is happy. When I started this blanket, I wanted to use what was already in my stash and have some creative wiggle room.  I started with the green, then realized that I didn't have enough yardage so added the white then again realized I didn't have enough yardage so I added the blue and purple striping in the middle section. I love how all the colors play together and how I was able to design as I knitted the blanket. Ravelry notes Now to knit a baby cardigan!

Today is the beginnings of a two week 'staycation'.  My husband is off two weeks and I'm planning all sorts of fun things that we never seem to do on a regular basis.  How did life get so busy?  I blame the internet.. If I bottled up all the hours I spend writing this blog, reading blogs, reading news (and the news is fast paced!) checking social media accounts, the hours add up. I scale back on some habits and amplify other habits.  I do love blogging, I love sitting here with my coffee by my side and sharing with you whatever I'm thinking about.  I love when I walk around with my camera and see what I ordinarily take for granted with quick glances.  And that is why the staycation is exciting for me.  I have many local activities to explore and some easy day trips as well.  Car riding is fun (better than airplane riding, airport navigating).  I've been writing a list in my notebook.  Later today I'll see what my husband wants to do or not do.  I will

  The baby blanket is coming along nicely, ideally I'd like the final measurements to be 36 inches by 36 inches.  However, I'm also gauging (guessing!) on my yarn amounts and definitely do not want to run out of any given color so I keep squeezing my blue and purple skeins that I'm alternating in the middle to decide when to start decreasing.  I do love a challenge. My banana leaf shawl is a delight to knit and pairs well with audio podcasts.  I cannot read and knit with this project.  If I wasn't working on the baby blanket at night during tv time, I'd be working on this project instead. I had high hopes of finishing this cowl over the weekend and that didn't happen due to living life.  Yesterday I added the next section and see the finish line! What are you working on this week?

This week has been a knitterly week for me. I've been spending lots of time in the afternoons knitting away while reading a book.  This cowl has me captivated by the simplicity of the pattern and the ease to multitask while knitting.  After last week of having the 'blahs' regarding creativity, I'm thrilled to be inspired and enthusiastic in my knitting.  I've decided the super secret project isn't so much of a super secret.  I'm spending a ton of time on it so I might as well share with you what I'm working on.  Otherwise you will think I'm not knitting much at all!  (Also the truth is I hate keeping knitting secrets). I'm making a baby blanket for my niece who is due in November.  I dug deep into my yarn stash and started a dishcloth pattern (start at corner and increase).  My goal is to have the blanket measure 36 inches by 36 inches, however, this is dependent on how much yarn I have.  I've been having fun striping in new col

Frodo admiring the blanket :)  Oh hey!  I finished that blanket yesterday after some intense marathon knitting.  Because it's mostly a wool -acrylic blend, I buried the thread ends and took a photo.  Phew - another mammoth project finished.  I feel free and light.  So about the blanket, I originally started a different pattern but there was too much stockinette stitch and garter stitch mixed and the fabric created wasn't flat.  As you know, blocking acrylic blends is nearly impossible so I ripped that project out and started again. Second time around, I picked my tried and true no nonsense personal pattern.  I alternated six knit stitches with six purl stitches for six rows then flipped the pattern to create a series of knitted and purled blocks.  I've used this for baby blankets many times and love the simplicity of the design.  The blanket size is three feet wide by five feet long and it's a perfect throw size for my son's apartment. Ravelry notes a

On Thursday evening I thought it would be great if I focused on knitting the blanket and have it done.  Is it done?  Nope.  The weather was too nice for blanket knitting even with the AC on.  However, today isn't over yet.  How are you?  How was your weekend?  Mine was stuffed with busy goodness.  Friday we had friends over for dinner which is always a great time.  Yesterday I did some watercolor painting in the afternoon after doing not much in the morning (I cannot remember).  Once Saturday evening Mass was over, we went to dinner at a local bar and grill.  Today I rejiggered some yarn stash around.  I unearthed some half skeins and left overs of fingering weight yarns and plotted out a way to make the 3 color cowl .  If you're guessing I'm thinking of Christmas presents you are guessing correctly.  And I wanted to thin out the left overs.  Now the fun part will see if I have enough yarn to make three cowls.  I believe that pattern is forgiving and I'll be

Holly watching the birds Thank you all for you comments and suggestions on my Stormy cardigan .  Being a perfectionist isn't that great when your expectations aren't met.  I loved how each of you had a trick I didn't think of to ease in that odd dye lot.  The sweater is tucked away for the fall and I'm predicting that the color change doesn't bother me.  I really appreciated all of you who would embrace the nuance. When I'm babysitting and doing sidewalk chalk (love!) I tell the preschooler after every artwork created what a great job she did.  She is so proud of herself when she draws a smiley face, a fish or whatever is on her mind.  I'm smart in that I ask 'what are you drawing?' because sometimes I just can't tell what it is.  However, the process is the fun part and the learning.  I learn so much from her as she learns and navigates the big world. pay attention to me I want to embrace imperfections to an extent just so I can

My knitting news is fast and furious.  So grab a cup of tea, sit back, relax and enjoy the knitting round up!  First off is my son's blanket and the steady progress I'm making on it.  I work on this project right before bed knowing that I can keep the simple stitch repeat going while watching TV without mistakes. The next project is my cowl  that does take some concentration and so I cannot read and knit at the same time.  The pattern and the variety of stitch designs I get to explore make this a fun knit.  I highly recommend the pattern. I started a pair of socks with some yarn I received as a Christmas gift.  I should have a pair of socks on the needles all the time for my grab and go project for babysitting duty.  I don't need to think much when I knit my memorized generic sock pattern that is burned into my memory. My last project is the wurm hat .  I've made this hat around nine or ten times.  And yes, I could make it again.  This hat sit