Now I Have Some Time!

I've been working on various projects, but have been busier finishing up the year at school and then I took on the added responsibility of being registrar for the church women's convention for the western half of the state. That has been a half-time job after getting home from my full-time teaching job the past couple of weeks. I've received 330+ registrations so far and usually they have 400 at church camp for the event. This year it will take place June 19-21....that's only 3 weeks away!

The Jacobean socks will be finished for the SAM5 KAL for my May socks. I have the last pattern repeat to do and then the ribbing. I have until tomorrow at midnight, so I should make it.

I'm also well over halfway finished with the afghan for our nephew's wedding the end of June. I am just starting the 8th of eleven stripes. I can do a stripe in three evenings if I'm not interrupted. I hope to have it finished by the 15th so I can get it blocked before the convention.

That's about all that's happened in the knitting area ..... now I'm out to mow the lawn. TLGB

Progress on Jacobeans!

Wow! It's been a long time since I started the Jacobean socks for the SK Pentathlon on March 26 .... usually I have them finished within three weeks. I didn't make the deadline, May 1, but they are the next socks to be completed. I have about an inch left before I start the heel. Since I've been eliminated from the competition, the pressure is off and they will be completed this month for the SAM5 KAL. I haven't decided if I will do the short row heel on the pattern or do my usual heel flap.

The past week I have been knitting on them, the afghan for my nephew's wedding the end of June, and the Ravelry Scarf Exchange. The afghan is almost halfway finished, so I'm at least on schedule with that .... besides, it will get warmer one of these days and I won't want a heavy, wool afghan resting on my lap. Happy knitting and TLGB!

Salish Sea Completed!

These are the Dec. 2008 Rocking Sock Club sock, Salish Sea by Cat Bordhi .... completed at last! I started them in Dec, only to find out they were huge ..... so to the frog pond they went .... both were completed halfway through the heel. Now they fit. I also used these as my April socks for the SAM5 KAL.

The Ombre alpaca afghan (knit with Cascade 220 held double on #13) that I'm knitting for our nephew's wedding in June is progressing well. There are to be eleven strips about 7 inches wide ...I'm halfway through the 4th one.

Now on to working on the socks for the Sock Pentathlon 2008 ..... am about halfway through the first diamond repeat on, ....., yes,....another toe-up sock. I still can't say I really enjoy knitting toe-up, but I'm learning the techniques at least.

Another Great Swap!!

This morning when I came home for lunch, I saw the FedEx truck pulled up in front of the house. As I got out of the car, the driver (a very pleasant lady), said, "This must be for you!" It was my Ravelry Caffeine Addict Exchange 3 package from Julie, mvknitter on Ravelry.

She sent three hanks of Alchemy Yarns Monarch (75% cashmere, 25% silk) ….. have been wanting to make some fingerless gloves from IK, but hadn’t found a cashmere based yarn I liked …. now I have it. Also included was a cup with “Knit and Sip” on it, designed by mvknitter. Can’t wait to try either of the Peeks House Blend and Major Dickason’s coffee …. tomorrow morning! She also included, a journal, vanilla almond biscotti and a gift card from Starbucks, and “streetcar” time full of Ghirardelli chocolate squares. Julie, you are awesome!

Knitting Progress

I've been working this past week on the Salish Sea socks from RCS December 2008 shipment. Well,.... I now have them back to the same point as when I frogged. Am almost ready to start the heels (they are toe-up).

I hadn't posted a pic of the Socks Pentathlon 2008 sock yet .... mainly because I didn't have much done. I am knitting both socks at the same time, so I guess there is some progress. Another toe up ..... I'm trying really hard to like them ... don't know if it's working or not. Here a pic of them almost through the first diamond repeat above the toe.

Our nephew Mark and his fiance Corbi are getting married the end of June, so I decided to knit them the Alpaca Ombre Blanket from Last Minute Knitted Gifts. DD had knitted a 100% alpaca one for a housewarming gift for herself when she purchased her home. Well, .... I chose Cascade 220 in three shades of brown/taupe and three of teal. I have the first two strips done, so it is a fast knit on size 13 circ. There will be a total of 11 strips.

Jacobean Socks Started!

I started the Jacobean socks for the Sock Knitters Pentathlon with the “Queen Kahuna Aloha” cast on. It’s really an easy cast on ….. I’ve tried others and will definitely be using this one again. I did increase the sts to 70 from 62 mostly to get them over my high instep. I'm using Knit in Color's Smooshy in the Ruby River colorway. I already have both toes done. Tonight it will be beginning the pattern. A lot of knitters have already finished this pair and most have said that they were "quick knits."

Weather ..... snow, again! In fact, we have a two-hour late start today because of it. I pray that all the young people make it safely to school .... it's still snowing at almost 9:30 and the visibility didn't look the best as I turned toward the high school. Time to get busy .... TLGB

SOTS 2 - Clue #7 Completed

Better late than never! That's the theme of my SOTS2 ..... the KAL actually ended last Friday, but I was not close to completion at that time. So, now I can take my time .... I just finished Hint #7 last night. You should be able to see the lifeline (white dental floss) that's at the beginning of Hint 7. I decided to just pin out the area of the completed portion. Now it's on to Hint #8 ... I'm already about six rows into that (60 rows total), but it does knit quickly now. I feel a lot more comfortable with lace knitting after doing this stole. I have a couple other lace shawls that I have both the pattern and yarn, but haven't felt confident enough to do them ... now I will do them ..... sometime!

I hope to start the Jacobean Socks for the Sock Knitters Pentathalon KAL. It's a toe-up sock .... out of my comfort zone, but I plan to follow the pattern for the experience. If it doesn't fit when I'm done, I'm sure that I'll be able to find a happy recipient. TLGB

Serendipity Socks Completed!

I wanted to finish the January shipment from RSC before the March shipment came ..... well, I missed it by about 5 hours. The socks are completed .... now on to the Jacobean Socks for another KAL. Here's the pic of the finished socks ... I didn't like the way the short row heel looked,so did do the heel flap and short row heel turn. I did use the star toe that was part of the pattern. I'm also using these for the SAM5 KAL for my March socks.

The March shipment is a gorgeous colorway and I do like the pattern. It's top down ... will probably wait a couple of weeks before starting. Better get back to knitting. TLGB

SOTS 2 and RSC Socks

Didn't get the SOTS 2 finished on time, but I'm going to try to finish this week ..... I'm about done with Hint #7, so just have #8 and #9 to do completely. The increasing that was done has been decreased, so it's just straight knitting. I feel a lot more confident in knitting from a chart after this KAL.
DD informed this afternoon that she had received her March RSCshipment from BMFA,......so mine isn't here, yet. Probably tomorrow ..... guess I'd better finish the January socks tonight. DD had knitted the Serendipity socks, but they tended to fall down on her .... so enter Mom's tighter knitting and they will fit to a tee. I've worn the socks she knitted this past week and they are fine .... on me, that is. DD inherited the skinnier legs from DH's family .... not the abundant hips and legs from my family genes. Here's a pic of progress so far ..... about 12 rows remain on the pattern and then I start the toes. I tried the short row heel of the pattern, but didn't care for it .... frogged .... and did my usually heel flap with heel turn. These will also fulfill my participation in the SAM5 KAL for March. TLGB

SOTS Hint #6 Completed

After a break from SOTS 2 this week-end when I was knitting on the RSC Serendipity socks from their Jan. club offering, I got back to the stole last night, this morning (a two-hour late start due to snow .....again!), and after school ..... Hint #6 is completed. I just pinned the stole to our drapery .... didn't feel like taking an hour or so to do it on a board as I've done previously. Now .... on to Hints #7, #8, and #9. Others who have already completed the stole said that these go fast. Well, I had done so well keeping up through Hint #5 in late March. For some reason, I just didn't feel like working on it, so worked on some smaller projects. Now, I'm ready .... well, the stole is to be completed this week. Don't believe I'll make that ..... maybe by next Monday since we have a long week-end break from school.

I've completed the Serendipity socks through the gussets .... want dd to try them on since the ones that she knitted were a bit loose for her. We'll trade .... I already have the ones that she knitted, but won't wear them until I finish hers. I'm also just starting the gussets for the River Rapids Socks that are for someone special that I just met a while back. Well, back to knitting! TLGB

SOTS 2 Progress

I've been frantically working on SOTS 2, trying to catch up, somewhat. I've completed about half of Hint #6, so will do serious knitting this afternoon after school and tonight to get that completed and get Hint #7 started. Hopefully, I can get some of Hint #8 done before the week-end ends. The final hint is to be posted today, so that will have to be done the first part of the week. I was doing soooooo well through Hint #4, but fell behind when conference time came at school and a lot of other "busy"ness there. Now things have slowed down a little, so knitting will progress.

I need to finish the Serendipity socks and get another pair started ..... hopefully, there won't be any more "snow days" where school is dismissed ...... those are my knitting "marathon" times. We've had enough of those here in northern Iowa for one year. TLGB

A Late Hint #5!

Hint 5 for SOTS 2 was late ... just finished it earlier this evening. The final hint, #9, comes out on Friday, so I am behind ..... but this is one item that will be finished. I hadn't done any knitting on the stole since the Des Moines Metro Knitters Retreat on Feb. 23-24 ... only did a couple of rows there. I decided to lay it aside and work on some "less Intense" knitting ..... yup, "mindless knitting". I did lengthen the stole by two repeats at the center of the stole, accounting for about 2.5 additional inches.

I'm been working on the January socks for RSC, Serendipity. I have both socks on ml finished through the heels ..... I did change the short row heel to a heel flap and heel turn. Hopefully, I can get them finished this week-end. I'm also in the SKP2008 KAL, so need to start those socks in some DIC Smooshy sock yarn.

While visiting dd last week-end in Omaha, visited the new and vastly improved Personal Threads LYS. Both of us purchased two different color groupings of Galway Worsted for the Infant/Toddler Tulip Sweater from Dream In Color. We both ordered kits with the DIC yarn, but decided to try other yarn. DD has 6+ friends that are expecting before summer is over, so she is already finishing her 3 Tulip Sweater. TLGB

What a Great Time!

My dd and I met in Des Moines on Feb. 23-24 for the Metro Knitters Winter Retreat. Over 40 knitters were registered and did we ever knit. The two of us went up to the motel room around 12:30 a.m. after having started knitting at 1:00 p.m. We were down again in the morning about 8:00 to start knitting until a little before noon. There were breaks, however, especially for the snacks that everyone had brought to share. I learned a couple of helpful techniques from those present and just enjoyed talking with the other ladies to see what favorite knitting projects each had. Talking with Tamara, the area knitting "professor", she made me inspired me to try "toe-up" socks again. I have a terribly high instep, so have adjusted top-down patterns to accomodate that .... not so with toe-up for me. Well, so I started the Dec. 2008 Rocking Sock Club selection with a pattern by Cat Bordhi .... well, I CO my usual sts .... finished the toe, thought it looked a bit wide, but also thought it would draw in with the foot ..... it did somewhat ..... I finished the patterned instep, learned a new way for a toe-up heel .... really liked it .... and then tried the sock on again ..... it was huge. I contemplated just using them as slipper socks, but decided that I liked the yarn too much to not wear it more. So ..... to the frog pond they went .... back to the toe for the next smallest size. That's all I have left of both socks since I do 2 on ml .... here's the pic before the froggin' session.
The last time we visited dd, she had ordered some Tulip Sweater kits .... here's the sweater (size 2) so far .... it will be for our newest neighbor, little Savannah across the street.

I haven't been working on the SOTS2 for the past couple of weeks .... finally decided to increase the length at the very middle ..... have the first repeat done of the increase with two more to go.... am behind two hints so will work more on it at dd's this week-end. Since we had parent-teacher conferences this week, we don't have school on Friday .... I'll get an early start.

TLGB

Cascading Leaves Completed!

I told my dd that I intended to finish the Cascading Leaves socks from yarn that she spun for me this week-end. It just happened, so here they are --

The pattern is Cascading Leaves by Jeanie Townsend, knit on KP #3 using ml with hand-spun yarn from Crown Mt. Farms roving in the Magic Carpet Ride colorway. These are my February socks for the SAM5 KAL.

I have some sewing to do this week, but hope to get started on Hint #5 on SOTS2. I've really enjoyed this KAL .... probably because I've been trying to stay current with the hints. TLGB

SOTS 2 Hint #4 Completed

I can't believe it ..... it's Thursday and I have just completed last Friday's hint. I have about 3 yards of the first skein of the KP Shadow left .... have the second ready to add when the next hint is out tomorrow.
I'm knitting a scarf for a friend's husband who admired the scarf I made his wife for Christmas. I'm using a free-trade yarn from Peru - Mirasol in a medium denin colorway. It's 60% merino, 20% alpaca, 20% silk. A 50 gr ball contains 55 yards for $6.95. I purchased the yarn at String of Purls in Omaha. I have about 4" completed and had my friend look at it yesterday at coffee ..... she was sure that her husband would love it ...... if he doesn't, she certainly will.

I'm also working on completed socks for SAM5 KAL with yarn my daughter spun .... am about halfway out on the the feet .... doing both socks at once on ml. Love the feel and colorway of this yarn! TLGB

More Time to Knit!

The principal walked in the teachers' lounge during first lunch shift, about 11:20, announcing, "We're dismissing at 1:00." So, ..... as with other dismissal days for snow, I was delighted to be knitting ..... and also, it's my birthday. When I came home, there was a phone message that the Yarn Buddy I had ordered a week ago at an LYS while visiting at my dd's home , was already in and I was given a choice of the six colors before they were placed out on the shelves for customers. Well, ..... dd had the teal color, so I chose the purple. They said it would be mailed tomorrow, so it should be here before the end of the week .... another surprise for my birthday.

I sat down to knit, thinking I only had one pattern row to do on the SOTS 2 until inserting the next lifeline (I add one every ten rows) ...... then the needle slipped in my fingers, a stitch dropped, and I frogged four rows ..... I have knitted back and even have the rows completed to put in another lifeline. I'm about 30 rows from the end of Hint 4, so should be able to finish them before Friday when the next hint comes out. I'm really liking the stole pattern and am trying to make myself do each week's hint, so this wip will be finished. Back to knitting! TLGB

Secret of the Stole II

After a busy week at school and a bell-ringers workshop this morning, I was able to finish SOTS Hint 3 earlier this evening. When I can devote 2-3 hours continuous to work on it, I am able to get 10-15 rows finished. I have printed off Hint 4, so I will at least get that started this week-end.

Now I'm off to knit on the Cascading Leaves socks for the SAM5 KAL, hoping to have the feet completed within a week. Happy knitting! TLGB

SOTS Hint #2 Completed

We helped our dd celebrate her birthday this past week-end. Some quality knitting time ....... along with frogging ....... happened. I wanted to complete Hint #2 for SOTS before the deadline at midnight Saturday, but didn't make it. I ended up frogging about 10 rows when I noticed a mistake. Now, I'm using a lifeline more frequently. Initially, I was only going to place the lifeline after each hint ..... big mistake! It's hard to tell an old knitter to use a lifeline, which my dd had told me to do before, ....... now I'm doing it about every six rows.

On the way home yesterday afternoon, I almost finished the gussets on the Cascading Leaves socks with yarn that my daughter spun from CMF Magic Carpet Ride fiber. They are to be my February socks for the SAM KAL5, so should have them completed before the week-end. Maybe I can even complete another pair during February.

Today school was delayed for two hours before being cancelled due to incoming ice and snow. Well, we did get a little freezing rain, pelletized snow followed by large, floating snowflakes for about 30 minutes ..... not much since ........ but, I always use "snow days" for knitting. So, Hint #2 is completed and I plan to start Hint #3 before too long.

TLGB

Thuja Socks Completed!

These are the Thuja socks that I started for my dh early in December ..... really not intended as a Christmas gift. The pattern is one that I've put together from different patterns, but I used the seed stitch rib pattern featured on Thuja, from Knitty Winter 05. The yarn is Cherry Tree Hill in the Java colorway, knitted on magic loop with Addi Turbo 2.5 mm, and fits a size 11 (US) foot. These were my January socks for the SAM 5 KAL. Finshed them just in time ...... 8 pm (CST) on 1-31!

SOTS 2 - Clue #1 Completed

When I just ordered the yarn for the SOTS 2 last Wednesday, I never expected to get the yarn so quickly ..... this Wednesday. The clue had come out last Friday, to be completed in one week .... YIKES! This is my first, hopefully completed, large lace project. I cast on Wed. evening since DH was teaching a BLS class for some area EMS people and I could just sit and knit. I did frog about two rows when I discovered I had only knitted 5 rows instead of the stated 6 ..... I am OCD about my knitting. Was able to finish through row 12, I believe. Last night, I knitted while DH snored on the sofa and completed row 39. About 3:45 this morning, some "leftover" congestion from my sinus infection awakened me. I couldn't get much relief, so I decided to sit up and why not .......KNIT! I finished the first clue before I left for my before school coffee break with friends. I have really like this pattern ..... but it does require more concentration and being care to not catch the st in the row beneath. I have the second clue printed out, but have to sell admissions for the basketball game tonight, so won't start on that until after 8:30 or so. Here's the pic taken this morning on an overcast day. ...... maybe this week-end!

I've also been working on the Thuja socks for DH ..... am about halfway out on the foot .... why isn't dh a short person with little feet? They will be finished for the Six Sox KAL January socks. TLGB