Vacation and the aftermath

I just got back from a really wonderful vacation in Wyoming.  Every other year, my family has a family reunion in Wyoming.  The first week was spent at that reunion.  The second week was spent just hanging out with my parents, siblings, nieces, and nephew.  We had a great time.  This is a picture of my boys on our hike to Lake Sherd.

I wore my shawl a lot because the weather was cold.  I also got a lot of crafting done.  I got quite a bit done on my CNE (Christmas n Easter) Scarf for my niece.  I also made three bath puffs while there. I taught my mom how to make them (she taught me to crochet, but I had to teach her all the stitches as she had forgotten).  There are not pictures of the knitting or crochet because I was too busy to get out the camera.

When we got home, DH, both kids and I all had a cold that we got from my brother and his kids.  The kids have a very mild sore throat and cough (although Vicks on their feet one night seems to have gotten rid of their cough). DH and I have serious sore throats, runny noses, terrible coughs, chills, aches, ear aches, etc.  I also got pink eye. CB had it while we were in Wyoming. He got better immediately.  My eye doctor has warned me that I will likely be fighting it for at least a month.

As a result, my return home was not happy.  Fortunately, two things greeted me to make me feel better. First, MIL cleaned our whole house for our anniversary (we celebrated our 9th while in Wyoming…where we were married).  She didn’t just clean…she CLEANED (in all caps).  She washed my windows, washed and put away every stitch of clothing in the house, mopped all the floors, washed the bathrooms, cleaned out the fridge and freezer, took out all the trash, washed the baseboards, vacuumed all carpets, washed all throw rugs, etc.  She is really, really awesome. It was better than any gift she could have bought.

The second thing that greeted me and cheered me was my second Flat Rate Box Swap box.  My swap pal is really, really awesome.  The theme this time was a project for you. The idea was to get everything needed for a single project in your pal’s queue.  My pal chose the Chinook Shawl in mine. She got me the Riverstone colorway.  She also got size 8 harmony needle tips.  Also included was the Mason-Dixon Knitting Book (which I have been really, really wanting) and some Louet Euroflax so that I could make something from it.   There are also several mini-skeins for my sock blankie, a crocheted project bag, mini-highlighter, pencils, mini-post-its, a small pen, a mini clip-on calculator, a magnetic tape measure, a mini-digital camera, an album, a stress ball, Goon n Plenty, hand lotion, and a little sheep.  This is truely a remarkable swap package!!  I was so excited.  I love absolutely everything in it.

 

Catching up and the Great Garter stitch Glut

CB has been climbing… a lot. The other day, he climbed up to my laptop (it was on a desk…I had pulled the chair away from the desk, but he found another chair to drag over there). He popped most of the keys off of the keyboard. This doesn’t sound like a big deal, excpet that some will not pop back on.  On the back of the keys are really tiny (very flimsy) plastic pieces.  Unfortunately, the broken keys are R and K.  Two keys that I use a lot. I have not been able to post. I am posting from work (on my first light day in over two weeks). The good news is that I am getting a new keyboard and my lack of internet connection has allowed me to get lots of knitting done!

I knit two things for my Reducio Swap pal.  One of those things is a mini Ravenclaw sock (it looks just like the others that I have knit).  The other is the leaf bookmark!  It came out great. This appears to have started the garter stitch glut that I have been on lately. The leaf was super easy. I just made the I-cord long (to be a bookmark) and followed the Mountain Laurel Leaf pattern on Ravelry.

Then I decided to make booties for a friend at church who is having a baby.  I took a long time to decide on these. They don’t know if they are having a boy or a girl, so whatever I make has to be gender neutral.  I thought about trying another bootie pattern, but ultimately decided to make more Saartje’s booties. They are just too cute. To make them gender neutral, I decided they needed to look like frogs.  I used some of my Sunshine Yarns mini-skeins (I think this one is Algae).  I found some cute jet buttons (I looked for googly eye buttons, but didn’t find any small enough).  I really like how they came out. DH says they are still girly, but I think a baby boy could wear them.

Next I did another pair of Saartje booties. A girl from church asked if I could make a pair for a friend. They went to UM. That is my alma mater, so I felt like it would be fun.  I told her I would make these, but if she wanted more than I would teach her to knit!  These are made with random white acrylic yarn and Knit Picks Essential in Pine. The buttons were yellow, but I used some permanent stamping ink to make them a bit more orange.  They also came out cute.

Besides garter stitch booties, I have also made a lot of progress on my garter stitch Shawl that Jazz!  I love how this is turning out. The colors are amazing. I am still in awe of the cleverness of the design as well. It is knitting up so beautifully. My only (very small) complaint is that the yarn still smells like vinegar!  As I was knitting away, I had the sudden feeling my stitch count was off. I realized that I cast on 10 stitches too few.  I decided just to let it go. I was going to try to add them in, but I was worried about how it would affect the shape. I thought about ripping back, but decided that I was too far into it (I had about 3 inches done).  I think it will be plenty big despite the mistake.

Besides all the knitting I have done, I have also gotten some great mail.  First, I got my Loopy Ewe Sock Club package!  It has a great tote, a pen, candy, a beautiful pattern, and really gorgeous yarn!  It is called Luster Sox by Dye Dreams!  I love the greens. This yarn is so soft and has a sheen that pictures can’t do justice!

I also got my Reducio package from my pal. It has a mini-sock, a bookmark for wand tree identification, a journal, chocolate, Soak, two mini skeins (one Ron colorway and one hand dyed by my pal), and some tea.  My pal is so wonderful!  I can’t wait for the mini-skeins to join my blankie!

 

Wee Block Wednesday

It has been a long time since I have done a Wee Block Wednesday. I really put the sock blankie aside for a while (that is the beauty of that project…no deadlines).  I have started working on it again.  It now 58 has squares (only 57 are pictured…I did another one last night).

Here is a summary of the new ones:

1. This is the yarn from my Raphael Monkeys.

2. This is the yarn from my Reducio Pal. She dyed it herself and won an award on the socks she knitted with it.

3. This is the yarn that I got from my Sock Yarn from Stash Swap Pal.  I traded the rest of the yarn in the Easter one skein swap.

4. This is some of the yarn I got in the Easter one skein swap.

5. This is yarn from one of the swaps from the BlankieMania group. I am not sure what it is.

6. This is also yarn from a swap from the Blankie Mania group. I am not sure what it is.

7. This another yarn from a swap from the Blankie Mania group. I am not sure what it is.

I am going to be adding a random bigger square in there. I wasn’t going to add any bigger squares at all, but I have a yarn that demands it.  Who am I to go against the will of a yarn?

 

Easter is a time for stash enhancement!

After dying Easter eggs with LB, I had leftover dye in the little cups. I decided not to let it go to waste. I took my undyed Cherry Tree Hill yarn and painted it with the leftover dye.  I used the microwave method to set it (soaked in vinegar, handpainted, wrapped in Saran, microwaved for two minute intervals with rests in between until set).  It came out very bright. I am thinking of making it a scarf for one of my nieces.  I have several leftover tablets (the kit came with 12 tablets, but we only used four…too many colors would have been too overwhelming for LB).  I am deciding what I want to do with them. It is nearly impossible to tell what colors the tablets will become.  I am thinking of throwing some yarn and all the tablets into a giant kettle and letting fate decide!

I also participated in the Easter One Skein Swap on the Blankie Mania group on Ravelry.  I got my yarn last week sometime.  The mini-skeins are so adorable! I have already made a square with one. It seems the Easter Bunny thought to bring only my favorite things: yarn and chocolate!

 

Lots of FOs

I have been participating in the Reducio Swap on Ravelry. When I went on hiatus, the group was taken over by some very enthusiastic knitters. They have kept it going wonderfully, so I get to just be a participant (how fun!)!!  This is one of my favorite swaps.  I got my package from my pal.

Do you see all the goodies?  There is a mini-sock (I was in Slytherin this time), a snail, a slug, tea, drinking chocolate, chocolate bars, M&Ms, scrapbooking stickers, Fort Dodge Magazine (which my pal does much of the photography and writing for), a scrapbooking calendar, and a cat toy.  There are also scraps for my blankie. It is yarn that she dyed herself and the socks she knit with the yarn got second place in the state fair!  What a cool memory.

Here is a close up of the “Care of Magical Creatures” themed knits (just ignore the dirty window sill):

I have also been doing some knitting for my own pal.  I made a mini-sock for my Slytherin pal.  It is using the Knit Picks Essential sock yarn (so soft). 

For my Care of Magical Creatures item, I made a dragon. He is supposed to be a finger puppet, but he came out small.  Now he is a “wand pal” (or a pencil pal or a knitting needle pal).  He is pictured on a knitting needle.

I have also gotten two January Squares done. These are part of Hanks 2009 Year of the Afghan.  I plan to do three squares a month.  For Christmas, these will be gifts for DH, CB, and LB.  I have ordered some more yarn to make the third square for January and the three February squares.  As soon as the yarn gets here, I will get caught up.  I am making these with Knit Picks Swish Worsted. I love this yarn!  It is super, super soft.  I also like the colors.  It is a pleasure to work with.

I made a mistake on the blue square. It has a repeat over 6 rows instead of 8.  As a result there are 10 repeats (instead of 7). I think I like the green one better.  They both came out about 9×9 instead of 11×11.  I am going to wait to do any blocking until I have a few more squares done.  I want to see if the squares for the other months will be the same size or larger.

 

Celebrating my blogiversary

I am celebrating my blogiversary (one year blogging) with an FO!  My Raphael Monkey socks are done, done, done!! I love how they turned out. The photos can’t really capture the colors. They are purple, peach, pink, teal, brown, and tan. So pretty. They remind me of sugar cookies and candy.  They are also super soft and comfy!

After finishing these socks, I then made a block for my blankie from the leftovers. I have just enough for one more block.  I was worried about cutting it close with this yarn, but there was plenty for the socks.

I started another new project, but it is late. I will post about it tomorrow (ahh…a cliff hanger)!

 

Christmas is a time for sharing and knitting

 Christmas is for sharing, so LB and I did some sharing.  We put our yarn scraps out for the birds.  LB loved hanging the scraps out. He was even more excited when a bird came and took one shortly after hanging them.

I got to do a little knitting today too.  I have been working on my Raphael Monkeys.  They are coming along nicely. I am almost to the heel on the second sock. I should have them done fairly soon.  I can’t wait to wear them. DH has been wearing the socks I knitted for him, and I have been jealous.

I also got to knit another square on my blankie. It is a big milestone!  My blankie now has 50 squares!!  Here is what 50 squares looks like!

Here are some close ups with the explanation of the individual blocks.

 The pastel block on the far left, top row and all of the second row blocks that are visible are scraps from swaps and my Sock Yarn from Stash Pal.  The yellow and pink block  and the purple/teal/tan block are from my SP12 pal.  The purple/teal/tan block is Happy Feet.  The yellow and pink is Regia. The block at the left edge, third row (out of this picture, see photo to the right and down) is from the same Regia scraps.  It looks so different, I was able to put it really close.   The lavendar-grey block is Sundara yarn in Lenten Rose.  The color variations don’t photograph very well, but it is really pretty yarn!

The second photo shows the close up of the other Regia square.  It also has a square with a duplicate.  The green and blue square in the third row and the pink and red square in the second row (see photo above…almost all the way to the right of that photo) are from the same small skein.  The brown square in the second row is from my monkey socks.  It is not machine washable (it has some silk content). I really debated adding it to the blanket.  Ultimately I decided that I wanted it in the blanket so much that I am willing to handwash the thing (I envision washing it in my tub).

Well, now Christmas is nearly over. I am a bit sad that I didn’t get to give more hand knitted gifts.  This year, I am going to try to knit things all year and set them aside.  The end of the year is a bad time to try to cram it all in. We will see how it goes.  Over the next week or so I am going to set up a plan with little goals for the year. It will make it easier to actually do such a thing.

I hope everyone had a really Merry Christmas!

 

Blankie update (a late Wee Block Wednesday)

Here is what the blankie looks like as of the beginning of August.  There are 44 blocks.  Most are from scraps from swaps.  The exception is the square made from the same yarn as my monkey socks.  Two of the squares are from my Secret Pal’s scraps.  The blankie is shaping up so nicely!!

I got some more scraps for the blankie from AgentScarlet on Ravelry!

 

Secret Pal package!

I got my first Secret Pal package!! There was another Gnitgnome picture, a card, a pendant yarn cutter, a strawberry thing, and sock yarn (scraps for my blankie)!! It is a great package. There are already two squares made from the sock yarn! It is great that my pal is now part of my blankie!

 

Sock Yarn from Stash Package!!

I got a wonderful package from my partner in the Sock Yarn from Stash Swap today!!  I got bad news at work today (we are losing two attorneys and I am the one picking up a large amount of the slack). It couldn’t have come at a better time!  There were two skeins of sock yarn.  Both are very lovely!  There was also a package of lavender tissues and lavender lotion (lavender is my favorite!!).  She included some scraps of sock yarn for my sock yarn blankie too (I am so excited that she will also be included in my blankie)!  I can’t wait to knit them up!  She also included a Knitting magazine (I can’t wait to flip through it)!  What a great package!!