Some Steps Down the Road

I am slowly moving back to working in my office. For one thing, the computer connection is faster than the laptop - which is freaky considering how much older it is. Two, it's my office and I want to get away from using it as a yarn hoarder area and get back to using it as an office where I can be more isolated and concentrate on what I need to do. Third, well, I don't need a third, but Mr. Honey uses my laptop when he wants to go on line. He won't upgrade his laptop with the necessary equipment to use the wi-fi going through the house so he uses the laptop sometimes when I am using my laptop but not right in front of it. My going back to my office will bring some guard against resentment. And banishment - his, not mine.

OK, so you want to see it? It is almost a scarf that would not end and it's not as long as the pattern called for. The pattern says to make it 140 inches long - I'll wait until you divide that by 12 and get more than 11 feet long and then wonder who thought that up. This is made with Cascade Magnum, a hefty hank with a hefty price of $20. This is two of them and is a little over 70 inches. It would take two more - $80 as a base price if it were sold without any thought of making any money on it. Warren Buffett might do that but no one else will.

Coincidentally, we met someone new at the Sunday knit get together. Jean joined us for the first time and she is working on the scarf with the fiber the pattern calls for and she's doing the entire length. She is also doing the Master Knitter's course from the Guild. She's brave on both counts.

It is stunning in the picture and stunning in person. I have to put it away because it is all wool and susceptible to all that can happen to wool.

The thing that is on the needles now is a snake. A snake from a book of knit toys. It's a book with some fun patterns and I am going to be able to use up some of the stash because it's a long snake...and I can make it longer if I want to. Great fun!!!

Snow Daze

Here's the backyard. Yes, that's the Adirondack chair almost covered with snow. Mr. Honey swathed a path for Duke which Duke appreciates as a launching place to try and get on top of the snow banks so he can snow dive. Dumb dog. I know he thinks it's fun but I think he's got a $3000 pin in his leg that I don't want to see matched with another one in the other leg.


I don't know if I showed you the ruffle scarf. Looks more festive in the picture. Looks more warm and cozy in person. Looks fun in person and in the picture. This was my second introduction to short rows and wrapping stitches - we first met on the baby bibs. It is the short rows that causes the spirals or ruffles that make the scarf look like it's one long row of Pringles.







I wish I had my camera when we went out for our date night last night. The piles of snow all over the place made the city look like a maze. What I found amazing was how clear some of the roads were. What I found unbelievable was how many streets were not. Driving through the Chicago streets, the main roads were clear and the same driving through River Grove. When we hit Maywood (where i grew up) some of the streets weren't even shoveled which meant people had to walk in the street. Not too much of a problem except the street was 1st ave which is a extremely busy street that actually runs quite a distance. Seriously, how do folks get out of their houses? How do they expect to get their mail? There were houses that still haven't been shoveled! I don't know how many may be empty but there were lights on in some of them. Wonder what that is all about.

I started a new afghan. This one will be a stash buster - I pulled eight skeins out to start. It is an intarsia pattern - a little more about that later and how you are to blame - the pattern calls for the center square to be the same color so I asked Mr. Honey to name a color.

Turquoise.

And then he smirked - until I pulled out a skein of turquoise yarn and then he walked into the bedroom defeated.

i used my trusty color wheel and pulled out some corresponding colors and I am on my way. Now, I am fully aware of the simpatico we knitters all share. So I am wondering why NONE of you dropped me a note saying: You really want to do that intarsia afghan again? Think of all the ends that will need to be woven in and think about how much you don't like that. That's why you never really completed it before. Don't go near it. Do something else.

But there was nothing. No one said anything. And I am into it now. So I start each session weaving in at least seven ends so it doesn't get out of hand by the time I finish the seven strips.

I have also been doing more slouch hats so I have that to fall back on when i can't make ends meet! Get it? A little finishing humor.

Never mind.

Seriously...

Are we seriously so out of touch with ourselves that we are going to put into office:
Someone who believes there should be no law against racial discrimination?
Someone who believes that not only should the minimum wage be lowered but abolished?
Someone who believes that women shouldn't serve in the military because they are a distraction to men?
Someone who says to a group of Latino youth: "I'm not sure all of you are Latino. Some of you look Asian."

I don't care what party they belong to; we should not be so shallow in our thinking that we put them in office just because they are Republican or not a Democrat. I very rarely vote a straight ticket so I don't quite get the party loyalty at any cost but what is passing for Republican these days scares me.

We can't blame anyone but ourselves for this. For believing all the hype when a candidate says they can bring about massive change as if there aren't other branches of government which have a say and then turning on them when they don't live up to our unrealistic expectations the minute they step into office.

I was never on the Obama bandwagon. Having done some work on the board of the League of Women Voters of Chicago, the names he had surrounding him did not fill me with confidence that Washington would be changed in any great way. I don't drink Kool-Aid; I dye my yarn with it, so I was not swept up in the mania.

Still, I am impressed with how he's kept his cool. And to say he's done nothing would be way off base. He's done a great deal. Finally - healthcare. Had to continue with the bailout (because my money is in AIG.) I'm not thrilled with his position on Ashcroft. I think he's been too silent on the issue of race which is one of the reason the race baiting has gone on. And there needs to be a better explanation of why jobs are hard to come by and why some of them are not coming back. But he's had to work with a mess he walked into and then with a congress where both Democrats and Republicans have impeded progress. That they do so is not all that surprising.

But even I have been surprised at the hatred from this Congress. I am hard pressed to find a congressman (woman, person) who has not forgotten their job. Their job is to legislate regardless of who is in the White House or who is on the Supreme Court. This plan to just say no makes a mockery of government and a mockery of the citizenship. The hypocrisy is astounding: the stimulus doesn't work - but I want some of the money because it will work in my state. Healthcare should be repealed but send my state some of the money so we can give folks the benefits we'll take away later. The president should work with us but only if we're in the majority so we can overturn anything he wants to do.

This new crop of candidates have shaken both parties and now that we are getting a glimpse into just how backwards, out of touch and....well....dumb...they are - we're a little frightened, too. It just goes to show that being a business person - even a millionaire or billionaire - doesn't mean you're made to be a legislator.

This would be funny - if it were a reality show.

The good news is: knitting can always be relied on. I have finally completed the Feather and Fan scarf: I have no idea why this took almost two weeks to finish. Perhaps because I didn't work on it every day - but still.
I'm loving the Misti Alpaca. It took exactly two balls to finish it and the softness is beyond anything.




Another reason it may have taken so long to finish is because I decided I wanted to crochet another scarf because
I wanted to burn some of the Homespun I had on hand and didn't have
enough to make an afghan so, it took me about ten hours to make this one: The cool thing about this one is the color blocks on its own and Homespun isn't known to do that but it worked out almost perfectly.









And then one of the kids was adopted by another family. One of the kids, the wonderful Melissa defended in an earlier post: the nanny square afghan went and got itself sold last Friday and is on its way to New York to its new family.

So, the show is in eleven days - I have only 28 things ready to go and active projects - three of which I think will probably be done in time for the show on the 30th. I don't think that's enough (quit laughing, Melissa) but I am trying not to panic about it. There are still some items up in the office but seriously, I am trying to be cool and not obsessive. It's working. A little.

Un-Remembering

I made this scarf. I'm pretty sure. I mean, I know I purchased the yarn that made the scarf and it looks like my work. And it was in my stuff.

So I must have made it. I mean it looks like a duck. Walks like a duck and talks like a duck. Must be a duck.

Just might not be my duck.
I know it's my duck scarf. But for the life of me, I can't remember knitting it. I am in the process of creating a notebook of finished objects because the wise people say I should have one at my craft show. It isn't enough to show what's available, I also should have a notebook of the kind of work that's been done in the past. A notebook that says: 'You coulda had this but someone else did. Now put down the notebook and purchase that puce hat you were eying.' Well, OK, maybe it wouldn't say all that, but I would say all that if I completely forgot my upbringing.

The point is, as I am pulling pictures from my files and putting them in the notebook, I can remember knitting it. I can look at it and think about the show I might have been watching or if I was making it in a quiet hour. I can remember if I liked the pattern or changed it (yes, sometimes, I knit the pattern the way it was written.)

But this one is alluding me. Make no mistake, I know I did it. I just don't remember the details..kind of like that night in....never mind. Kidding!!

I don't recall the details. Gonna try and sell it anyway.

Five Years In

I have a notoriously short attention span - it's amazing I'm still married - and that I remember his name. Though, I have to admit, calling him Mr. Honey may be proof I have actually forgotten...what's his name.

But my attention span is short. Something will interest me and then I am so interested in it that I burn the interest right out of me and I leave whatever it is abandoned and alone.

Which surprises me that I am still knitting. Knitting/crocheting. Every day. It will be five years this December that I started knitting again. It has shown me the better and worse parts of myself. It has shown me how I treat people and how my thought process works. Perhaps that's why I still do - knitting/crocheting is good therapy - and doesn't cost as much. Well, actually, it does cost as much but I get to choose so much about fiber that I wouldn't get to choose about my therapist.

Perhaps a therapist could explain why I started to crochet this: I was looking through my project books when I came across a prayer shawl book that has some crochet patterns and I decided to try the pattern. A shawl turned out to be too big of a commitment considering I was supposed to be working on an afghan so I shortened it to a scarf. Quick crochet, it's almost done. The photo doesn't do justice to the lacy goodness of it but I am still pleased at how it's coming out. It also does the color (a striking varied blue) little justice.

See, the short attention span rears its ugly head. There is something in my head that wants to take a break from the 'have to make' and play a little somewhere else. The compromise it made was to work on something that could be used in the sale and that way the time isn't completely wasted.

So this little off ramp is still connected to the road but I know I will appreciate getting back to where I need to be.

Have you started your holiday crafting yet? I just made a list of family members on both sides. Christmas Eve has changed since half the kids are married and some of they're spouses are from split families and every one has to make the rounds. So instead of us getting together at Christmas, we get together in January on my mother-in-law's birthday. It is unclear if we are going to do the gift exchange we normally do. So I don't know if I have to knit up three things (sisters-in-law and brother-in-law) or not. But I plan on starting at the beginning of the list and working my way down and do gifts throughout the year. My brother in Arizona is at the top of the list. An afghan works even in the desert.

I can start the holiday knitting just in case - if my attention holds, that is.

Friends

I don't have a photo of Ed and Lori or Rocco and Kathleen but the six of us were together over the weekend. Rocco and Kathleen live next door to us (in the house Mr. Honey grew up in) and Lori and Ed live next to Rocco and Kathleen. The six of us were together because Rocco and Kathleen were married on Saturday and the four us were fortunate enough to be invited to the nuptials.

First, they had a Ukrainian wedding - (think My Big Fat Greek Wedding almost) and we had to stand the whole two hours for the wedding ceremony. There are parts to the service. First the betrothal, then the vows, then the crossing of hands, then the crowning, then the walk, then the blessing and I'm sure I'm leaving something out. But it was a beautiful service. I have to confess that somewhere in hour two I said to God, I bet they're still legally married if I sit for a second. Sure enough they are.

And then the party.

I don't know what it was - maybe because it wasn't family - but we got on the dance floor. Mr. Honey says he has no rhythm but I made him go out for one dance - The Electric Slide - and I am here to say that Mr. Honey give credence to the stereotype about white men dancing. He truly has no rhythm but he has a lot of heart and he tried his best.

I also drank more that evening that I will do in the next year to come. Mr. H. said I was buzzed and we stayed later than we usually do at these things. I think it wasn't so much that it wasn't family but the crowd itself was older and so we were a bunch of old people out on the dance floor. No young folk to show us up. There were no children at the reception. There were some younger folks but no little kids that I could see. We sat at the same table and had a great time with the other five folks at our table (yes, it sat nine) who were friends of the bride's family.
I don't know if this contributed to my drinking more than usual but while I would not say I was drunk - I had all my wits about me - the next day I felt like I was hit by something on wheels.

On the heels of having cocktails at dinner on Thursday and Friday, the whole weekend was a lost weekend - but really fun. In the end, it was a great day and we wish Rocco and Kath the very best of God's blessings and to stand on the faith of the Lord as they continue through life together. And we are grateful that we have friends for neighbors and neighbors for friends.

On the other hand, I am knitting a scarf. I tried doing the afghan and it was giving me fits because the flowers are coming out crappy and I had to rework them so I need something I can conquer before I go back there...but I will go back there. In the mean time I am working on this: I am using the Misti Alpaca for it and since I spent some $17.50 a ball for it, I should either use it or invest it so this would seem to be a nice lacy project for it and since the suggested needle size for the fiber are size 7 needles and the project (from here) says it also should be made on size 7 needles, I'm thinking this is a good thing. I'm using hand painted color - can I just say I am not a fan of 'colorway' I have no idea why we need it. Anyhow, it's in shades of green. Despite the smallish needle size and the not quite worsted weight, this should be a relatively quick knit and I am looking forward to seeing the scarf fall off from the needles.
In the interest of full disclosure, I should also say I have started another granny square afghan (I was daydreaming of crocheting granny squares in black, grey and white so that's what I'm doing. What? I'm following the dream.) It requires 80 squares and I already have 30 done. I swear, I will get back to the other afghan and yes, I am using the yarn I was supposed to use for that one but it will all work itself out.

Have faith.

I Can't Keep Up

Keep those tips coming for the giveaway contest.
The things I'm learning. Since it is my contest and I can make the rules, I will be giving away an additional prize of stash yarn to the tip that personally helps me the most. So, now, you have more to win! Keep them coming, they are very helpful and very diverse. Knitters Rock.

Dig the color of the scarf and hat. Aubergine. Doesn't it make you drunk just saying it? I love the color and you know what? I didn't even know I was making a set. I made the hat about a week before I made the scarf. They aren't supposed to be a set, though I do think they came from the same pattern book.

I bought four books from Knit Picks while they were having their 40% books sale. I will review them all in detail at a later date, but I am salivating over two of them, one has instructions that I either need to give up drinking altogether or increase my intake three fold in order to understand, and I don't remember what the last one was. (I just went over the site and looked it up...it's OK.)

But this hat and scarf - or the original patterns - came from 24 Hour Knits. There's some nice stuff in that book and I am certain that if I ever completely follow a pattern as written - it would be from that book. Of course, I say that knowing I rarely do a pattern exactly as written and the road to hell is paved with good intentions - but still.

I've started a prayer shawl. I gathered my shawl books together because I'm feeling a shawl mojo starting (say good-bye to hats for the moment.) I am missing a prayer shawl book. I have the feeling it's up in the office which means that when I find it, it will signal the second coming. But even so, I have eight books of shawl patterns. Eight. I just like books. Nothing wrong with that.

I went stash shopping for another project and discovered a bunch of Homespun (of course) so now with that added to the skeins in the upstairs stash not to mention the new skeins in the trunk - I have contracted prayer shawl fever. I have a challenge to see how many I can finish between now and the end of the month. Nineteen days.

What do you think? How many can I get done?


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You Are On My Mind

I tell you it's an exciting time. So much so I don't know if I can keep up with myself!
I had a brain drizzle - those of you who know me know I can never really come up with a brain storm so a drizzle is about all I can manage. Any way, I have two blogs one here which talks about knitting and other stuff, and designbcb, which tells the story behind some of the things I knit.

Well, I was never really satisfied with the other blog but I didn't want to give it up all together and then along came Handmade News. It's the online news mag where I get to interview artisans about their craft and their work. The powers that be really want this magazine to take off and I must say I would like for it to be successful as well and part of that means marketing and promoting the site, my department, and my artists (yes, I claim them as mine.)

I don't want this blog to turn into a big promotional blog - that wasn't its purpose -you know where I'm going, right?

It was the purpose of designbcb. That blog was created to promote my things and it still can because Handmade News and the artisans are now part of my thing. I love synergy!

So, here's the deal. I am going to use the designbcb site to talk about the handmade movement, Handmade News and my shops. I will keep this blog for its original intention - time spent with you and me and our other crafting friends and seeing how this thing called knitting enhances and shapes our lives. Because it has evolved from two sticks and a string to what we have now. And we love it.

So, hang out over at designbcb and find out about interesting people, places and things. Click the links over to Handmade News and learn a few things about how crafting really does hold the world together and how it can take us those few steps back we need to take so we can move forward more responsibly. I'll see you over there.

Here's my new baby. She's soft and cuddly and green! This is a different version of the scarf I made a few weeks back. It's only 60 inches long but still very soft and will keep someone chill free. This is also the first original piece I've made for the ArtFire shop. I used a different Artistry colorway and the I Love This Yarn both from Hobby Lobby.

Quick knit and fun! Like I said exciting times!

Imagine

It's 80 degrees today, so imagine how it felt going out and photographing a winter scarf. Ah but what a scarf. I must admit I like how it came out. It is a very generous 80 inches so it will keep someone toasty when summer and fall are through this year. It wanted to be made and so I just had to comply.

I did make the matching hat, but I have to redo the photos using one of the girls/boys so it looks like a hat. I liked how it came out as well.

Happy Friday, everyone. Tomorrow is the big day for Sit & Knit as dozens of knitters will gather to make squares that will be used to make lap blankets for Compassionate Care Hospice. We found out a few weeks ago that this hospice is not a central place. Each of the shawls, lapghans, etc. will go into a home with a client. That's good because then it can stay with the family as a keepsake. I still have to pick up the postcards and pull together the goodie bags. We are giving a reusable paper bag with a 10% off dinner coupon and menu from our corporate sponsor, PJ Clarke's restaurant, a bottle of hand lotion from Compassionate Care, a brochure from Pleasant Home and a card from StitchCraft which has a stitch pattern on the front and whom we've donated goods or cash on the back. PJ Clarke's is also providing veggie trays, goat cheese stuff tomatoes and some other eats. And we should have good weather so we can all be on the porch.

There are over 40 people expected which would be up from the number we had last year. I do hope they show. It's a great time and we get to share with each other face to face and not just byte to byte.

I hope to see you all on Monday - and if you're in Chicago, drop on by the Sit & Knit. It's in Oak Park north of the Eisenhower.

Have a great weekend!

Conviction of the Heart

Yes, the little voice inside my head won out. The little scarf voice that kept saying "Make me, make me!" and I was resistant because it isn't the right season for a scarf. It was very insistent and I finally gave in and put it one the needles.

Do you see the new fu-fu slubby yarn I got from Hobby Lobby? It's called Artistic and it's named after...artists - go figure. I have some Van Gogh and I have some Raphael. This is Mondrian. I must admit I love it! I would see it in the store and I would finger it and talk to it and tell it I would love to bring it home so it could live with the rest of my yarn. But then I would have to explain to it that my home would be different than what it was used to. My yarn stash consisted of little street urchins not upscale princes and princesses who were somehow displaced. And I would leave it on the shelf and sigh.

I would never have purchased it when it was $9.85 but all of it was in the clearance racks at $1.99. So here it is in my yarn stash - yes, I know it can feel humiliated but the other yarns have made it feel right at home. They know what is among them as do I. The Mondrian has no problem being seen with the Caron by the Pound and they (along with my beloved rosewood needles) are making a very lovely scarf.

If I say so myself.

Thanks to Susie for making a comment on my striped bag from yesterday saying it looks like it could hold a Kindle! I will have to put that suggestion in the shop description!

Tumbling Dice

We have those moments; don't we? All over Twitter knitters were tweeting about not knowing what project they want to work on. It was like a world wide brain freeze for knitters.

I was in that group. I was dissatisfied with what was on my needles, but I didn't know what else to start. Thought I'd start a shawl, got into a few rows and decided the yarn (worsted weight) was too heavy. I don't use anything less than worsted weight so I moved on. Thought I'd try another bag. That just didn't feel right. There was a bag I had on the needles and put away so I pulled that out. That felt somewhat better and the bag should be finished sometime today but that wasn't enough.

It just happens to us every once in a while. We stall out. We begin to panic because we wonder if we the knitting mojo has decided to go somewhere north, south, east or west of our knitting border into an unknown land and spend his time with folks who are not us who will appreciate him more than we.

But that is just not possible.

Remember I have all that novelty yarn from Hobby Lobby? It's all in the big stash box in the living room. I bought it with the idea of making bags with them but the bracelets haven't arrived yet and I wanted to get into it. So last night during the exciting Cubs game. I cast on and a scant hour or so later, I had this:
It's a scarflette or a muffler and it's all glitzy and soft (even though it is eyelash) and it can be worn like a long scarf or coiled like this.

It was fun to knit and because I used big old size 11 needles, it didn't take that long to knit and do you know my first thought after I was done?

"That was quick. Now what?"
As Linda Ellerby used to say: And so it goes.

The Birth of a Designer

I know, it's been almost a week. What kind of blogger goes without writing to their peeps for almost a week? The kind of blogger who has been working on a project that is taking way longer than expected. Still, I understand that is no excuse and from looking at the pictures, you would want to know why the scarf took a week to make....

and therein lies the lesson. (Get some coffee or tea; this is gonna take a while.)

I feel incredibly blessed to be able to combine writing with knitting. It is something that seems to fit with me since I am either at my computer or have my knitting needles in my hand.
So, I had this idea - several ideas- to combine them both, earn something of a living and be able to enhance the spiritual walk that is a part of my life.

I am working on a book of patterns that have a spiritual basis to them. It involved reading Bible passages and seeing what type of garment those passages inspired. I would read, make a note that said something like: "Prayer shawl: red, orange, burnt orange - colors of the sunset." I had thirteen of these to go with the Bible passages. There were prayer shawls, blankets and afghans.

But I had no designs. No patterns. And I hesitated as I thought about how I was going to go about getting these patterns for my book. Would I hire designers? Would I ask for freebies? Would I purchase patterns outright?

While this was going on, I had the bright idea of opening up the shop on Etsy and trying to sell my items there. I figured I wouldn't specialize in one particular thing because that's the quickest way to boredom for me. No, I would knit items as I do now - pull the first book off the shelf or look at the first item in my Ravelry Que or bookmarked on my computer and start knitting.

(Do you need a drink refill?)

Funny thing happened on the way to stocking my store. The next pattern for me to knit was for a baby blanket. A weird looking baby blanket. I liked the pattern but thought a baby would take one look at it, slap the doctor and go back into the womb.

So I thought: keep the stitches - alter the pattern.
Change the size of the yarn
Change the needles
Increase the size of the blanket
Use different colors - manly colors
Make it a throw.
and that became the Man Cave Throw I've blogged about.

Next, I pulled out a pattern for a baby blanket. I read the pattern and I didn't have enough of the right kind of yarn (no, seriously, I didn't.) But I did have all these skeins of a 'baby yarn' that I brought for another project and didn't like so I started knitting with that and it worked.

Except I had to change the size of the needles because the weight of the yarn was different than the pattern called for.

Which meant I had to calculate the number of stitches I would need to get the size indicated in the pattern.

Except I wanted it to be bigger than the pattern indicated.

And I wanted to use different stitches than the pattern indicated.

Those of you who are very smart have already put this together. I, on the other hand, was still clueless.

I began to work on an afghan. The pattern called for about nine strips: four cabled strips and five strips of a different pattern. I started working on it when, you guessed it, I decided I needed to change what I was knitting.
In the meantime, I was working on the book when I raised the question again of where am I going to get these patterns - and then it hit me - I had just designed two blankets.

I was still dense. I said to myself, "But they don't match any of the descriptions of the items I said I wanted." The voice spoke to me again. "Change the descriptions."

DUH.

So, I placed the two patterns into the book and was feeling pretty good and went back to working on the afghan with all the cables. I decided to completely change the pattern but not until I had knit this strip. And last night, at about midnight, I told myself to go to bed when I looked at the strip pinned to the cable strip and decided to remove it. I took it off, looked at it and thought to myself 'what am I going to do with this?' and I put it around my neck and said, 'Bet I can turn this into a scarf.' and 'Bet I can do a different kind of fringe.'

And I did. Pattern number three. A new item for the shop. A new blog post.

Ain't God alright?

The Special Olympic Scarf - Completed

So, the yarn arrived on December 4 and I started working on it that evening after we came from dinner. I stayed up until the wee hours of the morning - watching something on the t and v and crocheting the scarf. I didn't finish it before falling asleep so I got up and got to it right after reading my bible passage and taking care of some other business.

So here it is. And it is going to make it's way to the Special Olympics this very day. I decided to do some Fibannoci striping and some fringe. I think this is a very nice idea someone had to do these scarves for the athletes and others on the Special Olympic team. It speaks to being an individual and a part of a team. And there are folks on Ravelry who have made 6 or more! WOW!!

I don't know if they have the opening ceremonies televised or not, but if I had known this project existed during the Olympics - this would have been my Ravelympic project. As it is, I'm really honored to be able to contribute.

Special Olympics Scarf Project

The Special Olympic Scarf Project! I saw this when I was on the knitters-warehouse website. I often go there to look at yarn I will never buy. I wanted to make sure it was more than just a way for Coats and Clark to get us to buy more yarn so I googled it and found that it is a legit project and they have over 1000 scarves already and are looking to get about 5000 for the athletes, sponsors and dignitaries.

Now, you know I will use almost any reason to buy some yarn, but I remember a long time ago being a volunteer for the Special Olympics and really enjoying the day and this is something that is tugging at me.

The rules are quite simple:
Use delft blue and white yarn by Coats and Clark
make the scarf approx. 41/2 by 50
crochet or knit any pattern you choose
include a note to the athlete but don't include contact info on the note
send off the scarf so it is received by January 15 to:

2009 Special Olympics World Winter Games Scarf Project
3150 W. Main Street
Boise, ID 83702

Use the link above to find out all the official info.

If you buy the super saver size, those two skeins will be enough to make two, maybe three scarves and depending on where you buy it, it's less than $10. This is right up the old alley in so many ways.

So, will I do it? I think I must. I have the knitting-warehouse screen up on another window and I am looking at the yarn. I am going to order it on line because I know they have it in stock as opposed to going store to store (besides, there's snow on the ground out there! My workout today will be to shovel to the car and clean it off!)

I am going to order the yarn and put my projects aside and knit up some scarves and send it to kids who have a great deal of heart and spirit and can add a little of mine to the pile. If you decide do it, send me a photo of your FO or a link to your blog with it and we can have a parade of scarves!

It's Your What?

So, I completed the HB's new scarf -putting my other wips on hold so he could be snuggly and warm. I thought I would put the scarf on his chair where he would see it in the morning when he got dressed. I was walking into the bedroom and he met me at the door because he was going to the bathroom. I told him his scarf was done and I was putting it on the chair.
When he came back to bed he said, "Did you say my scarf was done?'
"Yes."
"Wow. Thanks, babe."
Fast forward a few hours later when he's walking into the house from work. (He works from 5am to 9am because that's what you do after you retire.)
"How's the scarf?'
"It's upstairs."
"You didn't use it?"
"Oh no. That's my dress scarf."

Is your face looking now like my face looked then? Somewhere between what the___ and huh?

"It's your what?"
"My dress scarf for Sundays."
"Does it get cold only on Sundays?'
"No."
"What are you using on those days?'
"Just my coat."

There's not a chapter for this in Men For Dummies. I don't know what else to say.

A New Scarf for the Old HB

So, the HB wanted a plain, black scarf. No special stitches, no patterns, I couldn't even add just a touch of brown. A plain, black scarf.

I didn't want to knit that.

So, I crocheted it instead. I haven't done much crochet lately and there was a time I prefered crochet to knitting. I'm crocheting one of the wips and decided I would crochet his scarf. I just finished a few moments ago while watching Pride and Prejudice on my DVR. (Along with some episodes of Knitty Gritty and Needle Arts Studio.) He hasn't seen it yet. I will leave it on his chair so he will see it in a few hours when he wakes up. And he'll need it. Winter has begun in Chi-town and it's a little nippy out there at 4:30 in the morning when he leaves.

So, this is all single crochet (except for one row of double crochet I threw in just to be obstinate.) Used all of the skein of "I Love This Yarn" from Hobby Lobby. I do love this yarn. It's cushy and soft. And knit up pretty cleanly - though I did run into a knot where they joined some yarn. No big deal, it got lost in the scarf somewhere.

He told me he would probably find his scarf after I made this one. No matter, I told him he would have an option between the black scarf and the black scarf.

What a nice wife he has. And the stash is one skein lighter.
Y'all know I'm gearing up to go shopping, right?

What Goes Around

The H-B has been bumbling around for a few days grumbling because he cannot find his winter scarf. It was there one moment and gone the next and he doesn't know where he put it. It's not in his car. It's not in my car. It's not at his mom's condo. It's lost.

After a few days of this, I spoke up (well, the fun was gone for me so I had to move on)
"Would you like me to make you a scarf?" (While thinking - you have a wife who knits, you could have had a scarf an hour after you lost the first one.)

"Did you make the last one?" (Hmmm, couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or not, but I think not, just surly.)

"No, but does it matter? Do you think it was lost because it might or might not have been homemade?" (Definately sarcastic)

"No." (Grumble, grumble. Open closet door for the umpteenth time, close closet door with no scarf)

"So, would you like me to make you a scarf?'

"Yeah, why not?'

"Would you like another black one?"

"Yes."

"I will check and see what black yarn I have in my stash."

"There's some in that box."

That box? "You mean in the box of yarn you're making me give away? I'm pretty sure I have more black yarn that won't turn me into a false advertiser. Would you like a scarf or a cowl?"

"A scarf."

Man, how I wish I didn't have those other skeins of black yarn in the upstairs stash. I could have turned that into a legitimate reason to shop.

Project Updates

So, you see the weird hat. I tried this thing on and I thought my head was going to topple over. The knot makes it so heavy; but I swear, it looks just like the photo in the patten. I may have to take the knot out and do a weave through or something. I can't sell or give it away - it could hurt someone!
The scarf is folded-4 times. I had someone 5'7 drape this over their shoulders and it still reached the ground. They could fold it over their neck several times which made it very warm. It's the Sunset Strip scarf. Someone wanted to know if it was a pastor's stole and I had to laugh because I had the idea the StitchCraft group should make one and give to the three pastors in our church. I still may look up some stoles on line for inspiration and do one in stockinette stitch then duplicate stitch the symbols in. Of course, I will let you know if that should come about.

Does she really have 5 projects going? Yes, she does. Don't know what she was thinking, but there you are. And for all the projects I have going and all the yarn it takes. My house still looks like Yarn Warehouse, LTD. It breeds in the dark when I'm not looking. And it will never end.

Oh Yeah, I Knit

Here are two of the scarves I recently completed. I just wanted to do something easy and mindless and these certainly fit. They were both completed sometime last month. The one on the left is the unixes scarf. Same pattern on both sides - it's kinda long (not nearly as long as my sunset strip scarf which could fit someone seven feet tall) but it works for both sexes.

As does the simple garter stitch scarf on the right. Here's the thing about that scarf. I was using yarn which was donated to our knit group and this yarn is so old it's marked with the Venture store logo. Venture has not been in business since sometime in the early nineties. I pulled out to skeins of green yards and gotta knittin'. It wasn't until I was almost finished when I noticed the greens were two different dye lots and were not the same. I had already started using the second ball -what to do?

I bound off the green on one end, picked up stitches on the other end and so it looks like the scarf is trimmed in one color and the body is knit in the other. - That's right, folks - that's what the price of a college education will get you!