Well, Merry Christmas

Whew! The Christmas Eve service is over and it was very nice. I didn't get to the sound engineer quickly enough to grab the CD last night, so I will try and get it Sunday. Music is always an important part of the services, but even more so at Christmas. We sang a lot. 'O Holy Night' went well. Even my choir director said it was quite lovely! I'm somewhere in the back row. This was from last year's service and I don't think it was Christmas Eve, but it was around that time.

Dinner and the family was fun. This was the HB's year to play Santa and he did a very nice job of it.
And the Christmas gifts were cool: a new necklace and a shawl, gift certificates for dinners, a jar of marmalade (reminded me of my mother-in-law), theatre tickets (from Marilyn), Irish Creme - which I told the HB we should add to coffee because that's the only way I will drink coffee
a John Legend (cute!) CD and five books from the HB:
Cables - Mittens, Hats and Scarves
How to Select Color Palettes for knitting
Knit to be Square
Picture Perfect Knits
Knitted Afghans and Pillows

The habit is enabled for at least another year! We're off to church to help serve lunch. I hope your Christmas Day is blessed and restful and will begin your renewal for the New Year!

What A Weekend!

We had our fall sale this weekend and boy, was it a success! I didn't get to leave the table to have any of the pancakes they sell at the pancake breakfast and at the end of the morning, we sold $663.00 of knit goods and an additional $180 in trinkets! Not bad for a day's work. Actually, it's pretty great considering that day only lasts four hours.

I know there were some people walking around taking pictures, but I wasn't one of them. It's also hard to say what the big sellers were. We do keep track of the sales and a cursory glance says the blankets/afghans and hats and scarves were big this year. I know a few of the things I made were purchased. What didn't sell as well were the prayer shawls - we sold a ton of them in the spring but only a handful on Saturday. For the first time, we held the sale over to Sunday and picked up more than $100 in that short hour after church.

I wish I had taken a picture of the room (I need to remember my phone is also a camera) we changed that parlor into a market place and we had sales people on the floor who helped bag and carry - we were a regular little bazaar.

We have one more sale this December at Pleasant Home. During last year's sale, we were the top sellers with a little over $500 for the entire week - for some reason, business was really slow. We will be there again and if we can do another $500, we would count ourselves as being very well pleased. If you happen to be in the Chicago area, come to the Pleasant Home Holiday sale from December 8 - 13. There are a diverse group of artisans and sellers and the house is a historical treasure. We'll be in the living room sitting at a table valued at $250,000. (We pray every day that we won't harm it in any way!)

Progress - Whether We Like it Or Not

I went back and re-read my very first post made on December 20 of last yeat. At that time, I had three projects going and I think I finished only one. The scarf was a gift for my brother-in-law, and I've never seen him where it. I made one for his wife and I've never seen her wear hers either; but I suppose that's beside the point.

The two things that didn't get made were kinda made. I made seven of the twelve Aran squares needed to complete the Aran Square afghan. Don't know why I stopped, but two of those squares have been turned into a pillow (I will upload the photo one day) and the rest are now part of an in progress project called 'Cai" for Ravelmpics. The garden gate afghan was about a foot away from being complete when I decided I didn't like it and that became the Cable Comfort Afghan. I will do the garden gate again, but I probably won't use that Thick & Quick yarn. Don't get me wrong - LOVE the yarn, but it does make for heavy afghans and....I digress.

The point on progress comes from learning how to knit in grade school (on pencils cuz we didn't have needles) and not picking it up again until a few years ago. I started keeping track of all my projects in a spreadsheet (and in this blog) and as of today since Dec 07, I have completed 38 different projects. That's about 1 project a week. So I'm making up for not knitting for all those decades. It's amazing the needles are out of my hands long enough to write a blog and to write for a living. .

Like many other things in life, I didn't think knitting would have a place of importance. (Kinda like algebra) But I find knitting is a connective fabric. I am connected to my church through the knit group I started, the community who receives those goods and who partner with us to create more and give more, to those friends seen and unseen who also knit, and to God from whom all good gifts are sent.

Whether I like it or not, knowing how to knit is a talent. Sharing what I knit is a gift. Wanting to use it in service to others is an offering. And knowing the difference is progress.

As Medea would say: "Hallelujer!"

The Knitter's Restaurant - Sit & Knit Info

The registration and information for Sit & Knit is here.

OK. So, here's the deal.

Here's the link for the pattern for the child/adult hat.
Here's the link for crochet hats.
Here's the link for the knitted preemie hat.
Here's the link for the crocheted preemie hat.

You may create your squares in any pattern you like as long as it is 10 inches before blocking. Please weave in your ends.

We will have a class for novices/beginners and a class to learn cables. Class size will be restricted to the first 15 to sign up at the registration desk on Saturday.

We will have copies of the patterns at Pleasant Home. You can register in person if you haven't turned in your form.

The weather outlook is good, so if you want to bring a blanket to sit outside, please feel free to do so.

Thank you for all who have sent in their registration forms. I look forward to meeting and seeing you all this weekend!

Knitter's Restaurant - Drawstring Bag

Information for the Sit & Knit is here.

Ok, so here's this cute drawstring bag from Vicki Square's Folk Bags

I used Bernat Chunky yarn (discontinued - I got four huge skeins for $3 each) and size ten needles. The handles are a bit long, but I still think the bag will have great use. I don't know yet if I will ask Lois to line it. I don't think it would hurt to have it lined, but it is a thick basket stitch so it might not need it. I don't think it will stretch out much.

You'll enjoy learning the stitch (knitting in the second stitch on the needle and before removing it, knitting in the first stitch and then removing the first and second at the same time. You do the same thing on the purl side - except you purl, of course.)

You will get the stockinette curl, but since it creates such a thick, stiff fabric, the curl is on the cast on edge and is very easy to deal with.

I must say I am glad the project is over and though it only took about four days. It wasn't the easiest project to work on. First, the stitch pattern itself makes a stiff fabric. I cast on and started out using my bamboo needles (I don't have size 10 rosewoods) and the yarn was so stiff on the needles, I had to move to metal and even then it took some time for the fabric to loosen.
Second, I have, as I know I have stated before, man hands, and it wasn't the most comfortable stitch for my hands.

However, there were some fun parts of the project. I am glad to make a bag - which I don't often do. Second, the I-cords were fun and very quickly made and I like weaving them through the bag. It was fun to do something like that which was new.

The bag will be placed in the completed project bag until November at the next Bazaar. (Did I tell you how well we did at the sale last week? We sold almost $500 worth of items - a very good day!)

Cropped Top from Jil Eaton

Information and registration for the Sit & Knit is here.

Seriously, how cute is this little crop top? I didn't make it with the chenille yarn they suggested because I didn't have enough. I do have some in my stash, but I am determined not to buy any more yarn until I at least make a dent in what I have.

Anyway, this top was designed by Jil Eaton in her book 'After Dark: Uncommon Knits for Night Time.' I saw the book in the clearance box at the grocery store for $2 or $3. I did look through it before I bought it and didn't think I would make anything out of it, but it was only a few bucks and there is this cute little cape for a girl that I thought I might manage one day.

But here's the thing: this top isn't what I started out making. I actually made a sweater from a magazine - I mean I made the whole thing: front, back, two sleeves. I sewed it together and it just didn't come out right. So, the next book on the shelf was After Dark and the first item was this crop top and I thought I could just do an unravel and do the top. It didn't take as much yarn as the first one - so now i have a sleeve that can be waste yarn or used in something else.

Speaking of yarn: this is Caron's By the Pound (Quelle surprise!) on size nine needles. The original pattern called for chenille and I don't think I would have used it even if I had it. Chenille has a tendency to pill and shed. So, it was worsted weight acrylic for me. I'm just glad my first adult top came out ok. (Ok, it came out a little short, but I haven't blocked it yet and it can block out that extra inch.)

This little cutie is going to be on sale at the UMW Bazaar sale May 3 at First United Methodist Church of Oak Park.

Triple Wave Afghan

Information and registration for the Sit & Knit is here.


The Triple Wave Afghan

I think it was size 13 needles. I know it was made with Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick & Quick. I was afraid to drop it on a child - it's so heavy! It will certainly keep someone warm and it's large enough to go on a bed and will certainly keep someone cozy while watching the t and v.

The "recipe" came from The Little Box of Knitted Throws.

It requires about 11 skeins of yarn, though you will need to buy 12 to make it. They don't give you a warning of how cumbersome and heavy the afghan will become so let me warn you: it's gonna get cumbersome and heavy. It is worth every minute of the nine days it took to make it - maybe I should call this one the nine day afghan.

This particular afghan will be on sale at the May 3rd Pancake Breakfast, Bake Sale and Bazaar at First United Methodist of Oak Park.

Sit & Knit Pattern 2: Crochet Hats

These patterns came from Bev's County Cottage (no relation!) Her site is full of patterns intended to be used for mission knitting and since we are doing a Sit & Knit, we qualify.

We will use the patterns for the adult/teen hat and bev's scrap hat. Visit the website for the actual patterns and pictures. I don't crochet (I know how, I just don't) and these seem easy enough for beginners on up.

Information about the Sit & Knit and the registration form can be found here.

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Sit & Knit - Pattern 1 - The Preemie Hat

Information and registration for Pleasant Home/UMW Sit & Knit are here.

Thanks to Stitches From the Heart for this pattern that I saw on Knitty Gritty. This is the pattern we will use to create the preemie hats to be donated to hospitals with neo-natal centers.

You will need size 6 needles and worsted weight yarn. Visit the website for the actual pattern. These hats work up fairly quickly. (I did one while sitting in a meeting - don't tell anyone!) You can also do them on dpn's and avoid the seaming.

UMW & Pleasant Home First Sit & Knit May 31, 2008

The StitchCraft Circle of First United Methodist Church of Oak Park and Pleasant Home announces their first Sit & Kit to take place May 31, 2008 at Pleasant Home (on the corners of Pleasant and Home in Oak Park)

The all day event is the launch of the circle's Head2Toe Project.
Registration form and information are here.

The Head2Toe Project is an intiative to give assistance to area hospitals and agencies by providing handcrafted items.

At first, the idea was for people to donate a new pair of socks for a child or adult and StitchCraft would create a hat and scarf to go with and then donate them to ChildServ. Well, ChildServ never answered our phone calls or emails, but we were enthusiastic about the idea so we revampled it and here we are at the Sit & Knit.

More information will be coming in other posts including the patterns we will be using, information on Pleasant Home (it's beautiful!) and the organizations we hope to help!

Stay Tuned!

Prayer Shawls 4 Fallen Soldier's Families

In an earlier post, I shared with you the national program Prayer Shawls 4 Fallen Soldier's Families. In short, we are sending a prayer shawl or afghan to the next of kin of every soldier lost in Iraq and Afghanistan. It is a painstaking endeavor. We have sent out over 300 items already, but there are more than 3400 on the list. We have a long way to go.

And though we try to make sure we send the shawls to the right address, we don't know that it always makes it to the right place or the right person. And we never do it for the thank yous that may never come - but every once in a while, you get a blessing back for a blessing offered. I received this letter yesterday:

Beverly;
Thank you and the United Methodist Women for my prayer shawl. I received the shawl on Jan. 15, on my birthday. What a gift to receive. I put the shawl on as soon as I opened the box. I felt the love that went into this shawl. Later that night, I was taken out to dinner for my birthday and to my surprise, I got engaged. Truly when your congregation blessed this shawl, they really blessed it! I am writing this letter with the prayer shawl wrapped around me. Thank you and your church for such a priceless gift. Also my son, Torry, would thank you for the love you, and your church has shown his family. Please share these words with your congregation.

Respectfully,
Linda C.

Wow, we really can do some good in this world.

StitchCraft - United Methodist Women

We're packing up prayer shawls to send to the next of kin of soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. It's part of a national mission called Prayer Shawls 4 Fallen Soldier's Families.

StitchCraft is a group I co-founded two years ago as part of the local United Methodist Women's organization at First United Methodist Church of Oak Park. It's interesting how a group that was started with one intention evolved into another group that serves more of a purpose than originally thought of.

StitchCraft was supposed to a knitting group that made items to be donated to community organizations. We've done that: we've donated baby hats to Children's Memorial Hospital and we have plans to do other things, but this has turned into quite a social group as well. We have knitters and crocheters, but also sewers, stampers, and even an artist! We also decided to sell our wares as a way to raise money and raised more than $1000 in 2007 with no sign of slowing down.

This knitting circle has become an important part of the organization and an important part of the church because we make afghans and prayer shawls for members who are ill, for members who get married, for children when they are baptized, and to our senior high schoolers as they go off to college.

We meet once a month and then plan some special get-togethers when we need to have extra sessions. We don't have a set structure on what we make: everybody makes what they feel like making and we always seem to have an abundance and variety of items to sell. We price our items to serve both the organization and the community. We set a price so that we can recreate the exact same item again and then put in a percentage more to go towards our mission work. We never charge for labor because that's part of the love and the mission. It has served us well as we have been a very successful group. Being a part of a knit group is a way to serve and have fun at the same time.
Contact me if you're interested in starting one. Contact me if you're in Chicago and interested in joining our group. We'd love to have you.