Step One

I've got the first step of the Stash Buster Rug done. Two days (about 7 - 8 hours total) at the loom and I have two and a half yards of heavy, woven fabric ready to cut into strips of chenille.



In the beginning I had definite ideas of how I was going to do this, but ended up doing something totally different. I thought I would weave it off in a rather bland blend of darks/dulls, whites/creams, with small shots of bright colour to jazz it up a bit.

I started off that way --- the light coloured portion at the beginning (right hand side of the next picture) --- but when I got going on what was meant to be a short "dash" of blue, I LOVED the colour and realized I had quite a bit of it in my stash, so I just kept right on weaving with it until the various blues were getting in short supply.



I had a nice variegated yarn that had both blues and a wine colour. That led to gradually transitioning into the vibrant pinks that I also had in an abundant supply.



When the pinks showed signs of depleting I reached for the pinky reds, then the deep plumy reds, and on into the black.



I wanted to pull the colours full circle, back to the cream again so I gradually changed out the blacks, into greys, and then creams and whites.



I'm glad I abandoned my original plan. I think this will look quite pretty in the finished rug. My only regret is that it leaves the sharp colour change between the cream colour and the bright blue. I'm not worried though. The second stage of the weaving throws the colours all about and there won't be just one abrupt change of colour. The blue/cream break will happen frequently throughout the rug.

Here is a peek back at the last Stash Buster Rug yardage before it was cut up and rewoven:



And what it looked like with the second stage being woven.



So you see, there is hope yet!

Black Allsorts

472.5 metres of halfbred wool handspun from "Black Allsorts" slivers purchased from Aurelia Wool and Weaving. Navajo plyed to approximately a fingering weight (superfine/1).

I have half baked plans to (eventually) use this for stranded colour work, possibly as an accent on a white cardigan or vest.

Mail from Designs by Romi

With all the Canadian cross border shopping going on (and the resulting parcel back up at the border) my parcel from Designs by Romi took a while to arrive, but it was well worth the wait.

This is the shawl stick I won in Rosemary's blog contest. It's smaller and more delicate and jewelry like than I expected. I love it! It's the perfect closure for my handspun wool/mohair Poinsettia Shawl.



The second item in the parcel was the sterling silver shawl pin I bought, also from Romi Designs.

It's shown here on my hand painted tencel Feather and Fan Shawl, but it looks fantastic on a number of my shawls. Having a shawl pin to hold the shawl securely gives me more options in how I can wear them.

Christmas Slippers

With a wee visitor as inspiration I got the needles a clackin' yesterday,

and by late evening had a spur of the moment gift ready for Christmas.

When my own children were small this was my favourite slipper pattern. They stayed on toddlers' feet better than most. It's a pattern by "Bouquet", #388 "Children's Slippers".

Stash Busting

As if I didn't have enough projects on the go! I'm next in line to use the guild loom for a Stash Busting Rug (aka "Twice Woven Rug"). I'm not a big stash hoarder so it's difficult for me to gather enough yarn up to do any sort of colour scheme.

This represents about half of my total stash. For the most part it's bits and pieces of leftovers from old projects, although there is a fair bit of handspun in there (wool that is too scratchy or in too short of supply to do much with). I think I'll go with a "lights, dull/darks, brights" division of the yarn. Hopefully it won't come off as too hideous in the final rug. With this type of rug it is really hard to guess what the end result will be.

Curious? Take a peek at my last one. ---> 1 2 3 4 5

The remainder of my stash is a bit of laceweight, enough handspun in large enough amounts for a few warm vests, and a basket of complete balls of sock yarn.

Last Photo Opportunity

I made this stocking many months ago, but the middle of the summer did not seem an appropriate time for a blog post about a Christmas stocking. Today is the last chance I have to photograph it though. I've donated it to the Chilliwack Spinners and Weavers guild for the annual Chilliwack Christmas Craft Fair which will be held on November 15 and 16.

So....what do you think something like this should sell for? I just know they are going to ask what I want to price it at, and I have no idea what to say. You have until Wednesday, November 14th to chime in with your thoughts.

It's hand knit from some of my earlier handspun, which was originally natural in colour. After the stocking was knit I dyed it forest green.

I made up the pattern as I went. Believe me, it is an original, never to be repeated exactly the same ever again. At one point, when I realized the toe section (the stocking was knit toe-up) was way too long and out of proportion with the rest of the stocking.....I CUT it off, picked up the stitches, and knit the toe shaping downward. Tricker than you might think considering that the lace pattern is one of those undulating ones that make wavy edges.

The stocking has also been lined in a shimmery red fabric. My children have informed me that the only way a knit stocking is acceptable is if it is lined. No fuzz on the candy please! Of course the lining also peeks out nicely from the holes in the lace --- and prevents the candy from falling out those same holes.

I found shimmery, wire edged ribbon and little berry-like beads to finish off the look.

Please comment with your pricing thoughts. Thanks!

Tiny & Teensy

How small is too small? Very, very teensy. Too small for the key chain it was intended for.

I knit the sock on the left according to the pattern, but even though I am a loose knitter it came out way too small. I went up a needle size, consciously knit looser, added rows in the leg and foot sections, and now it fits.

The fob to my car keys has an electronic door lock and car alarm so I can't replace it with a novelty item. I don't like extra stuff bulking up my key chain anyway so this little cutie will be saved for the house key that I take with me when I go for a walk --- which is often to the local yarn store.

Placemats Done

Hemmed yesterday and ready for the guild's show and tell today.

They're looking a little rumpled in the picture because I had them wrapped around a rectangular piece of Styrofoam for storage. Maybe I'll press them again and try wrapping them around a cardboard tube instead.

Happy Halloween!

Fewer and fewer children seem to come trick-or-treating these days. This is my favorite little costumed cutie, dressed up as a rag doll.



Better pictures of the whole costume can be seen on her own blog.


Too bad she's too young for a candy treat. She did get a yummy Farley's biscuit though.



The bib she is wearing is 47 years old, it was mine when I was a baby.

With Great Pleasure

I set out yesterday to get my rigid heddle loom warped for a set of placemats. With many other things to accomplish first, I got a late start and thought I'd be lucky if I had time to do any of the weaving at all.

I had the loom warped by 3 pm and thought I'd weave for a wee bit before I had to start cooking supper.


A couple of hours later the project was going so well and looking so pretty that I had to tear myself away to cook, feed the family, and clean up after dinner. Then I was back at it, weaving, weaving, weaving until by bedtime I had totally finished the yardage --- and then some even. Wanting to utilize as much of the warp as I could I actually wove past the heddle blocks by holding the heddle up or down with one hand while pushing the shuttle through with the other.


I'm loving the finished result. I popped it in the washer this morning, into the dryer for a few minutes, and have it all pressed and waiting for cutting into placemats, machine stabilization of the ends, and hand hemming.

The weft is all Sirdar Denim Tweed DK in shade # 0636. The warp is mostly the same, but with a small amount of handspun wool (the darker, solid, vertical stripes), and a small amount of Sirdar Denim Tweed DK in natural (the white stripes on either side of the dark, handspun stripes).

Woo, Hooo! Gotta love it when a project goes so well.

.

Yorkshire Cap

The Yorkshire Cap (and co-ordinating 2 Button Scarf) both made from the 3 balls of Classic Elite Desert I won in Carrie's blog contest.



Quite successful, I think.

The 2 Button Scarf is a FREE interactive pattern by Knitting Software.

The hat pattern, calling for Noro yarns, was made by a local designer and is available through:

Chilliwack Wool & Craft Shop

Chilliwack, BC, Canada

V2P 6S8

604 795 9281

Ask for the "Yorkshire Cap" pattern featuring Noro yarns and they will know what you are talking about. They are out of stock at the moment but are expecting a shipment any day now.

Sock Update

It seems I'm trying to wear out this sock yarn before I even get the first sock knit! I've had to frog back quite a ways --- again. Yesterday I knit and knit on the sock. I wanted to complete the heel so I would be left with the ankle portion, and less concentration, before I turned to other projects. I had planned a traditional turned heel, with a gusset and heel flap.

Well, when I got that all knit and tried it on I wasn't pleased. It didn't fit right. The heel was too loose, probably because the foot was a little too long. But that wasn't the entire reason for the frogging. I also didn't like the way the stripes (the ones I was trying to avoid in the main foot/leg portions) reappeared in the gusset and the heel. Bleah.

So I ripped 'er back all the way to pre-gusset and I'm making my way back up, this time with an "Ultimate" wedge heel planned. The sock, despite working on it much of yesterday afternoon and evening, now looks pretty much exactly like it did in the last picture.

Addicting Sock

As if I don't have enough projects on the go! This sock yarn has been languishing in my stash for quite some time now.




I've tried a few different patterns with little success. In "plain vanilla" socks I find the very regular stripes of this particular colourway rather harsh looking. I wanted to break them up some so I tried a traditional feather and fan pattern and although I liked the look, I found it difficult to calculate the number of stitches I would need to do the sock in the undulating pattern. The sock ended up too tight to get comfortably over my heel and I frogged it.

This new stitch pattern, adapted from "little tent stitch" in one of the Barbara Walker treasuries, seems to be doing the job nicely and the sock appears to fit okay so far. I'm having a hard time putting it down though, it's quite addicting! My INTENT was to just get the sock started so that I could leave it in a little bag I keep specifically for boring car trips. This might end up being one of my fastest pairs of socks though. It hasn't even made it out to the car yet.

Two Button FO

With the addition of buttons, the Two Button Scarf is complete.

The buttons DO match, the light is just reflecting on the top one in this picture. This scarf was created using Carol Wulster's interactive pattern available free at Knitting Software. The yarn is some of the Classic Elite Yarns - Desert, that I won in Carrie's blog

Next Up

The Two Button Scarf is blocking and I'll be searching for buttons for it tomorrow.

In the meantime I've started on the next project. This will use the remainder of the "Classic Elite Yarns - Desert" that I won in Carrie's blog contest.

Half Way

The first half of the Honeybee Stole is finished. I couldn't resist blocking it so I could really see what it looks like.



I'm very pleased with it. This is a symmetrical stole worked from the centre outward so, with the first half successfully completed, I anticipate no problems with the second half. Now I need to get busy and finish spinning that second package of Black Rainbow Glitter from Aurelia.

Here's a little close-up of a modification I am doing. I'm adding beads to the side and end edges. They are the "oil slick" colour, I think referred to as "dark aurora borealis", and they match the glitter in the handspun perfectly.

Also, instead of the "bind off loosely in knit" I'm using a great bind-off I learned when doing the Swallowtail Shawl. It makes for a very stretchy yet tidy edge.

K2, *transfer the 2 stitches on the right needle back to the left needle and then K2tog through the back loop. K1 and repeat from* around.

Two Button Scarf

Some of the Classic Elite Yarns - Desert, that I won in Carrie's blog contest is now being knit up. This is the Two Button Scarf and it will likely use up half of the three balls. I have another plan for the remaining yarn.

The Two Button Scarf is an interactive pattern available FREE through the Knitting Software website. You can use any yarn, any gauge you like. You just do a gauge swatch in the pattern stitch, type the information into the fields provided, click "calculate" and then print out your custom pattern. You can use the pattern over and over again adding new gauge data whenever.

Bee and Honeycomb

I'm well into the bee and honeycomb section of the Honeybee Stole now.



I'm hoping I'll have the time to completely finish this half of the stole before I have to put it down again. I'm allowing myself a few days working on it and then it's back to projects with looming deadlines again.

Mary Jane and Bobbi

This were a quick little knit. A gift for my granddaughter.



Starting with a pattern I made for my own kids many, many years ago, I improvised a great deal to come up with the Mary Janes and Bobbi Socks idea.

Pathetic Photo

A long time ago I promised I'd get a modeled shot of the Handspun One-Stitch Cardi, which I sometime refer to as the "Tsunami Cardigan". Well it seems that I'm not capable of getting a photograph that really does the project justice.


You'll just have to trust me that it's lovely, as this is the best photo I was able to get.

Porch With A Swing

When I said I wanted a porch with a swing, this wasn't quite what I had in mind.


I'm sure Kaylen will love it though. Grandma's baby doll is just taking it for a test drive while we wait for Kaylen to recover from a cold so she can come for a visit.

Anouk Front

I'm expecting a little guest tomorrow so I hurried and got the front of the Anouk dress/pinafore done so we can a trial fitting of sorts.

Anouk Interrupts

I don't really like to have more than one project on the go at any one time, and I really don't want to set my Honeybee shawl aside, even for a few days, but Anouk insists it must be knit first.



I'd tell Anouk to wait its' turn and to quit butting in and being so rude, but I'm afraid it is right. For a few days anyway, I'll have to give Anouk some attention. A deadline is looming.



Kris, have you started on your part?

1 + 1 = 4

Before (Canadian) Thanksgiving I bought myself a medium sized bouquet of flowers in fall colours. I don't buy myself flowers often, but I thought they would look nice for our dinner guests, our son-in-law's grandparents.

Well, the guests arrived carrying a great big bouquet of fall flowers for me. Gorgeous flowers, including a few exotics like a bird of paradise and a stem of gigantic, aromatic, white lilies. I quickly arranged them in the largest container I had on hand, a heavy, clear glass cookie jar.

Then next day, when I had more time, I was looking the flowers over in more detail and realized that with a little creative rearranging I could combine the flowers from both the fall bouquets and come up with 4 separate bouquets.

Part of the motivation for separating some of the flowers were these:



I've heard that Gerbera Daisies break down causing a murky pollution in floral arrangements which makes the other flowers wilt a little sooner than they might otherwise. I love the look of Gerbera Daisies all by themselves anyway, so I separated them out and they now liven up a corner of my main bathroom.



In amongst all the yellows, golds and rusts there were a number of pink flowers. Carnations of course (my birth month flower), and I think the others are called "freesias"? These seemed a natural go together, and look lovely in front of the hutch mirror on my bedroom dresser.



Then there were three lovely yellow roses and a yellow filler of some kind that now have a home beside my knitting chair. I love yellow roses. I chose them for my bridal bouquet 30 years ago.



And last, but not least, what remains is still a very large, mixed bouquet! It takes centre stage in our living room where the fragrance of those white lilies fills the room.

I know for sure that there have NEVER been so many beautiful flowers in my home at once. What a treat!

Through the Swarm

The second chart is done. I'm through the "swarm" section of the first half of the Honeybee Stole.

Here's a closer look at that (unblocked) section.

Winner's Confession

In light of my recent win of two different blog contests I have a confession. I'm Very Lucky. Sometimes my frequent good luck is actually embarrassing. I do seem to win a lot of door prizes, give-aways and such. I've been known to win twice at the same event, or twice in a row at monthly meetings. This phenomena has been going on for years. I often have people tell me I should be buying lottery tickets, but the funny thing is I have no faith in those. My wins always come in free-to-enter draws.

The biggest thing I have ever won (so far) was a contest sponsored by a Prince George radio station. It was an entire catered backyard barbecue for 20 people. All 20 people got a free t-shirt with the summer barbecue logo and all the booze they could guzzle and food they could eat. The food was prepared in my backyard by chefs from the Keg. They brought in big barbecues just for the occasion. I didn't get to keep those, nor the portable hot tub also brought in for the event, but I did get a lot. I got to keep a cedar picnic table, a set of barbecue tools, and numerous smaller prizes from local sponsors. It's been about 20 years but I still remember there was an Hawaiian themed gift basket with suntan lotions, sunglasses a Frisbee and a lei. The entry fee? Nothing. I just had to phone in at the right time (first win) and then at the end of the week be chosen from the daily winners (second win).

The oddest thing I have ever won was a "green pack" from the same radio station. It was a Saint Patrick's Day give away. Everything in the gift basket was green. I remember there was 7-UP, pea soup and spearmint gum among other, now forgotten items.

Other things I have won? A turkey given away at a butcher shop. Door prizes at spin-ins (more than once). A significant number of door prizes at Christmas parties, both work related and hobby related. A water bottle, CD, t-shirt, mug, tickets and such from radio stations. I'm sure there are other things that are just not coming to mind right now.

I don't feel guilty about all this winning. I'm an honest person. I don't lie and I don't cheat. I also don't believe that my good fortune causes anyone else's lack. I won't get into my beliefs in detail here, but I believe we each create our own reality --- that which we perceive to be "bad" and that which we perceive to be "good". Sometimes we can't see the blessing in our trials, but trust me, the blessings are there.

I feel the key to creating all that you desire in life is JOY. Not the kind of joy the comes purely from circumstances (like winning a lottery?), but the kind of joy that wells up inside despite outward circumstances. When I go to a place inside where trust and allowing dwell, JOY is always there waiting. It is from this peaceful place of Joy that I create my reality.

I Won, Twice!

A wonderful parcel arrived in the mail today. I should be scurrying around cleaning house but I just have to sit for a moment to share my joy with you. I entered a contest over on Carrie's blog, and I received the prize today.


Under the brown paper wrapper there was this lovely wrapped gift box. I was opening it as my son was going out the door and we had a brief conversation about what was inside. I told him I was delighted to be the winner of a blog contest and that I knew what was inside as the prize was announced on the blog.


Turns out I wasn't completely right. Oh yes, there WAS the 3 balls of Classic Elite Yarn in the Desert colorway, as promised, but there was more ---

That little packet on the top right? That WAS a package of Ferrero Rocher. Was. We'll just flip that little puppy over so that we can't see the calorie count, shall we? Good thing I actually had the camera out before I opened the box or we would have no photo of the yummies.

Then there was the yarn of course. As lovely as promised and full of potential. I have a project in mind but it will have to wait while I finish up the Honeybee Stole. Deadlines first I'm afraid.

Look what else Carrie included, all wrapped pretty with a bow ---

--- it's the fanciest dishcloth I've ever had. I love handknit dishcloths!

And if that wasn't enough to put a skip in my step and a smile on my face I also got word today that I won Rosemary's blog contest too. One of her beautiful shawl sticks is on it's way to me --- accompanied by one of her beautiful pins I just couldn't resist buying. ;-)

I'm not cheating.

Honest.

Twinkle, Twinkle Little Toe

With the application of numerous sparkly little beads and sequins, the toe to Kaylen's Christmas stocking is now complete.



Next step is several rather intricate snowflakes --- embroidered, beaded, sequined, backed, stuffed and dangling!

But not tonight. I haven't met my self imposed daily knitting deadline yet. I'm trying to stick to knitting 20 rows of the Honeybee Stole every day.

~

100 rows

The first 100 rows are done.



100 more to go --- in this section --- of this half of the Honeybee Stole.

101 Projects

Ever since getting my invite to Ravelry I've been gradually working on adding all my old projects. I'm up to 101 now and still have more to go. My daughter got her much anticipated invite yesterday and is loading up her projects too. If you are a Ravelry member why not stop by and link to her as a "friend"? She goes by "Kristo".

Do you think Ravelry will still be going strong when my granddaughter learns to knit? I do.

Unblocked Glittery Bits

With row 48 of the first half of the Honeybee Stole complete, here is a peek at the unblocked edging complete with beads and a close-up look at the glittery bits of the Black Rainbow Glitter handspun.

First 28

With the MS3 ripped I've started reusing the handspun "Black Rainbow Glitter" on the Honeybee Stole. Once, twice, third time is the charm. I'm up to row 28 now.



The red at the top (from this perspective) is just my provisional cast on. The green blips at the bottom are snippets of plastic straw I use for stitch markers. I'm adding beads to the edges of the stole, but they aren't visible in this photo.

Thanks Kaylen, for the use of your flannel "burp cloth". It makes a great lap cloth so that I can see the black stitches a little better. It works great when I'm spinning black too.

Well Heeled

The sparkly, beaded, stocking heel is complete.

Hours of Knitting and Nothing To Show

Needing a bit of a break from all the Christmas stocking applique, I started on the Honey Bee Stole. I worked on it for a couple of hours last night and got almost a full repeat of the first section done --- before deciding the gauge was not working and it would be too big. So I ripped.

Today I started in again, this time with needles two sizes smaller. It was looking much better and, several hours later, I was nearly back to where I ripped last night. Then the phone rang and I put the work down mid-row. *cue ominous music*



These very simple blanket squares woven on a nail loom are how I got over the frustration and despair of losing all the work once again, when I somehow messed up after answering the phone mid-row.