Skein winder

Dear Mom,
I've neglected to introduce the newest member of my Fiber Equipment Family. This could be because I haven't been able to think of a good name for her/him/it.
I recently had a very full knitting class and decided to use some of the proceeds from that class to purchase a new yarn swift. The little umbrella swift that Wendy gave me 20+ Christmases ago has been    wearing out. The threads on the clamp that secure it to a table are stripped and I can only tighten it so far. I've been using some of that stuff you put under rugs to keep them from slipping as a wedge to fill in the gap between the thickness of my table and the tightest spot on the clamp. Winding yarn from skeins into center-pull balls was becoming wobbly adventure. There were occasions when the swift would wobble itself right off the table.
Knowing its days were numbered, I had started casually investigating the different swifts available.
When I saw the Strauch Skeinwinder, I knew I'd found what I wanted. I chose to purchase the combination floor and table model and ordered it from Sheep Street Fibers.

She is beautiful, sturdy, easy to use, versatile. In addition to using her as a yarn swift, I can wind hand spun yarn off the bobbin and into a skein. There are marks on the center post at 1, 1.5 and 2 yard increments to tell me how much yarn I've wound on the skein.  I am very happy with this purchase. She was worth every penny. Now, if only I could think of good name...
Love,
Kim

Getting a Grip

Dear Mom,
The Young Man is home. We moved him out of the dorm and back home last Thursday. So far, if you overlook the futon frame hanging from bike hooks in the garage, and the mini fridge and microwave underneath that, and the futon cushion on his top bunk, and the various back-to-the-dorm boxes next to that, the transition has gone pretty darn smoothly. It helps that he is employed full time thanks to Bonnie Jo's Mister.

Olive is making a transition of her own. I had her in to the vet to take a look at a lower incisor that was chipped while playing an aggressive round of tetherball. (Now there is something I never thought I'd say.... "My dog chipped a tooth playing tetherball.") After examining the tooth and telling me there was really nothing to be concerned about, the vet quickly and abruptly brought up Olive's weight. For a second there I thought maybe I had accidentally taken her with me to one of my Doctor visits. Olive is now making the slow switch to a lower calorie dog food. And producing a staggering amount of Gas.    Concerned, and worried the odor might keep me up all night, I did a quick internet search and read that a dollop of yogurt in her food might help. We slept well.  And no noxious clouds yet today.

In an effort to get a grip on my many, many projects, the dining room table was excavated, projects organized and I am taking a Deep Breath. Sometimes, many times, I get nervous about all the Things I Want To Do. Like there is a whirling cyclone of projects in my brain and that deep breath of fresh air and a step back is needed to let the dust settle and gain some focus. In the past, lists have helped. I started a short term knitting project goal list today, and I will need a long term goal list along with that. And probably a list of Other Projects I Want to Do..... I must remember There is Satisfaction in Finishing, and Serenity in a Well Ordered Life.

That is all well and good until a project is interrupted. Like when My Hero asks me "how long does it take to knit a baby sweater?" For the woman who just returned from her maternity leave. It seems the whole pregnancy and birth part just slipped his mind and it wasn't until the photos of the baby girl were in his hand that he thought of having a gift. When stuff like this happens I wonder why I don't just knit a bunch of stuff for emergency gifting. As if I have a shortage of knitting ideas and need to fill the time. Nope. It is usually the pressure of a deadline that motivates me to produce gifts.
Thankfully, I recently purchased the book 60 Quick Baby Knits. This book is FULL of the cutest baby things. And they aren't lying when they say Quick. After knitting the adorable cardigan (Project #7), I had enough yarn left over for the very cute little cloche style hat (Project #11).
The hat came off the needles last night and is wrapped and ready for gifting today.
Here they are:

I used 3 skeins of Classic Elite Seedling yarn for the Main Color and 1 skein for the Contrasting Color.

A BONUS to excavating that dining room table....

a place to admire and enjoy some freshly cut lilacs. The fragrance is heavenly! (When Olive is not in the room!)

Love,
Kim

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Dear Mom,
Because they are my favorite, I am very particular about Oatmeal Raisin cookies. They have to be plump, soft and chewy, sweet and spicy. To splurge on a bakery-made oatmeal raisin cookie and find it bland and/or crunchy is such a disappointment.
Thanks to Ina Garten, my search for the Perfect Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Recipe is over.
The recipe is here, or in her Back to the Basics cookbook. (Or, the "green one" as my knitting friends and I refer to it.) In the book's margin notes, Ina suggests letting the cookies cool on the pan for a chewier cookie. I did and they are.
One other thing- I reduced the amount of granulated sugar from 1 cup to 3/4 cup. I read somewhere that you can reduce the amount of sugar in a recipe up to 25% without really affecting the outcome (other than calories.) In the calorie and sugar intake department, every little bit helps. Supposedly. But that is a subject for another blog post another day.
Love,
Kim

Pause

Dear Mom,
Before it all gets forgotten, or seems like Old News, I need to catch up here.
It's that blasted Catch 22. Busy, productive, and stuff to share....no time to share it.

I took advantage of one of our very few dry, sunny days to take Elle out onto the porch for a photo shoot.

Off the needles:

This is Bermuda. I used about 1 1/2 balls of Noro Taiyo sock yarn. The combination of the pattern's short rows and the long color runs in the yarn make this look like I worked harder than I did.

The yarn is a combination of cotton, wool, nylon and silk. I think this will be a nice summer shawl. I may make another in shades of grey, white and cream. (I knit like I have the wardrobe and life and skinny arms and legs to support frothy, dressy things.)

And...
Judy Jetson, my vintage Singer sewing machine-( you can read about Judy here, and here)- worked on another Schoolhouse Tunic. I tweeked the pattern a little bit more- putting the centered inverted pleat on the skirt front and drafting a new pattern piece, with no pleats, for the skirt back.

I used a men's tuxedo top for my bodice fronts. I love it when an idea works!

And I also adjusted the length. This one is somewhere between the shirt and tunic lengths. For me, this is just right, and this latest version of the pattern is my favorite. Time to try something different.
I have This Pattern next in line.

Love,
Kim

The Past Week

Dear Mom,
Except for the mountain that was plowed from the cul-de-sac into the front yard, all of last weeks snow has melted.
Revealing this-

One of the hundreds of crocus bulbs I've planted in the front yard. Last summer's heat and drought took it's toll and I neglected to add more to the lawn last fall. Hopefully this summer will be different and there will be another 100 bulbs blooming next spring. I get a thrill every time I see these brave flowers in my winter-brown lawn.

Yesterday I wore my Alpine Tweed sweater and the boldly patterned dress I sewed to church.

This dress is a lengthened Schoolhouse Tunic minus the pleats in the skirt. I wore this with a grey camisole and grey tights.  I love this cardigan. The dress is okay. I am still on a search for the perfect tunic/dress pattern. I saw Lisette pattern 2245 on Pinterest, ordered it, and it arrived on Saturday. I need some time to work up a little sewing bravery- I will mentally sew it a few times and then have to wake up one day with all the stars lined up and say to myself "today is the day"- and then I can start sewing on that one. Stay tuned.

By far, the very nicest thing that happened last week was this:

My friend, YarnshopAnne, made this quilt. For ME!
 

This was a thank you for a sweater I made and gave to her. She is most definitely Knit worthy, the sweater is perfect on her and I wanted her to have it with no strings attached and no thanks needed..... But I very happily accepted the quilt!

I have taken about eleventy-two photos of this quilt, and I move it about, trying it on in different rooms.  Right now it is on the railing between the family room and kitchen- pretty much so I can admire it all day long.

Thank you Anne!

Love,
Kim

March Madness

Dear Mom,

My Hero shoveled about 8 inches of snow off the driveway this morning. Another inch or two is expected before it all ends this afternoon. This is reportedly a 100-year record breaking snowfall.
Buried under that snow, in the front yard, crocuses are blooming.....
Love,
Kim

Alpine Tweed

Dear Mom,
My Alpine Tweed sweater is finished and on display in the yarn shop. I knit this as a class sample AND for myself. I have the fabric to sew a dress to go with it, and the plan is to wear them to church on Easter.

Pattern: Alpine Tweed, designed by Jared Flood from this book.
Yarn: Berroco Vintage
Buttons: Shrinky Dinks, made by me! ( I traced portions of the flowers and leaves from my fabric onto my shrinky dinks for perfectly coordinated, unique buttons.)

I do believe the next sweater is gonna be another one for me(!) using some of my hand spun yarn. I do believe it will be a cardigan...... stay tuned.

Love,
Kim

Practically Perfect in a Whole New Way

Dear Mom,
By far, Olive has been the bestest, easiest puppy I've ever raised. And now my cup runneth over. Bless her, she goes out to the back yard and entertains herself by playing tetherball!

We may go through a bunch of balls this summer- this one is obviously already skinned and deflated- but a dog who wears herself out? Priceless. I love her.
Love,
Kim

Spun

Dear Mom,

I definitely need to make an effort to spend more time spinning. Sundays for Spinning, perhaps?
I finished spinning the fiber on Sunday evening, and finished plying it on Monday.
.....contented sigh......

Love,
Kim

Mary Poppins

Dear Mom,

Until recently, Olive could have easily been nicknamed "Mary Poppins" because she is Practically Perfect in Every Way.

With Patsy, I feel like I've taken (or was in the midst of taking) a graduate course in Dog Behavior. One of the things I learned is that a dog at about age 1, is like a teenage boy with keys to a Ferrari. No sense and little impulse control. By our best estimates, Olive will be a year around the first of April.

Hence some of the recent behavior.

For example, last night she was grounded to her crate for the night because she decided to ignore curfew and surf the counters at midnight. (I'd baked cookies for the Young Lady's lunchbox and Olive apparently decided to be sure there weren't any crumbs left behind to snack on.) Olive tried to fake us out by coming to bed, then sneaking downstairs after we were all tucked in. She has no idea how finely tuned my radar is- it has been honed by Patsy, Bumper, and two teenagers. She then openly defied my "it's bedtime" commands. Thankfully, Olive's stomach wins out every time and a cookie in the crate was all it took to end that episode and get me tucked back in and sleeping.

But her most offensive, in-my-face naughtiness/dog boredom, to date, was this:

This is what was a neatly wound ball of mohair and some roving. She really went for the weak spot on this one.
I trashed the mohair. In fact,in order to salvage the roving, I had to cut the mohair away. There were only a small handful of felted bits of roving that were beyond help and I finished spinning all of that yesterday and started plying it last night.

The ideal solution for Olive, well, for ALL OF US, would be for Spring to get here already!

Love,
Kim

A Baby Gift

Dear Mom,
My next door neighbor is expecting her first baby in about 8 weeks and we know it is a boy. His mom and dad are older than the average first time parents (40+) and they are thrilled. I was thrilled that they chose to share the gender when they found out, rather than keep it a secret, so I could start planning the baby's knitted gift.
Knitted baby blankets are probably worth the effort because they get used up and the recipients won't grow out of them, but I don't have the time or stamina to churn one out right now.....even though there is a yarn at the shop that is calling to me. (So far I've stayed strong. And I am trying very hard to avoid that corner of the shop.) Maybe I should have given in, because I then proceeded to hem and haw over exactly what I should knit. Kinda like when you are denying a craving, and no matter what you eat, you still want whatever it is you are craving. I am still thinking about that yarn as a baby blanket.

However, with some encouragement, I finally decided on this.

But even after making the decision that this would be it, and even after buying the yarn (Berocco Vintage), I still had issues. There were things about this pattern, as written, and the practicality of it that were holding me back. And this is where, sometimes, I frustrate myself. Whyohwhy can't I just sit down and knit what the instructions tell me to knit?
What you see here is a heavily modified version of the design. As written, the garment is knit in pieces and sewed together. I decided to work in round. The only seams are in the sleeves.
I was also completely hung up on the fact that the poor mother would have to undress the baby to change his diapers. It's been a Long Time since I've been in that stage, but some things are just not forgotten, and difficult diaper changes is one of theme. I decided that an Exit was needed.

About halfway through the body section, I short rowed some ribbing over most of the back stitches, placed a couple of button holes in there, and bound those stitches off. I then proceeded to cast on the same number of stitches and continue on, in the round, from there.
I've knit this in the 12 month size, in hopes that it will fit just right when cold weather returns next fall and winter. Assuming it ever actually LEAVES. Enough already! 
I think I will purchase a black and white striped onesie to wear underneath these knitted long johns.
Because his parents are bicycling enthusiasts, I sketched bikes onto shrinky dinks and made the buttons.

I hope they like it.
I hope my timing on the sizing works out.
I probably should have made a blanket.

Love,
Kim

Weaving Weekend

Dear Mom,

Saturday's weaving class spilled over into Sunday. Eight hours bent over a loom is enough to cripple a person and we all needed more time to finish. So back we went on Sunday.
In my last post I showed you the yarns I'd chosen. I didn't need to use all of them (but I did use up all of that Downton Abbey yarn).
This was definitely a 'don't think about it too much' project. After demonstrating how we would be weaving and letting us throw a few practice picks, Linda wove off the remaining bit of the sample and we got our first look at what, exactly, we were there to weave.....a triangular shaped shawl.

photo before trimming the fringe

We then set about sorting and selecting our yarns. I had already wound mine into warps so I was able to go ahead and start dressing the loom. I had never dressed a loom from front to back. Doing it this way let us randomly place our yarns and reposition them if we chose to do so. It is a rather spider web-y mess on the front end, but that sorted itself out. It helped that the warps were only 2 1/2 yards long, too. It was mostly because I didn't fully understand how this was all going to work that I was able to turn off my brain and not over think the placement of my yarns. I just went with what I hoped was an even distribution of the different yarns I'd chosen. I am very happy with the result!

This is how the weaving looked on the loom, near the end. Frankly, if I hadn't stopped after just about every other pick to admire and stroke what I'd just woven, I may have been able to finish in the 8 hours.  It was just too dang pretty not to and I was just stunned at what was happening on the loom. I did it, but don't ask me to explain it.

There were two other weavers in the class with me. We all had different colors and types of yarns- hand spun, hand dyed, commercially dyed and spun, mohair, boucle- and each shawl was beautiful.

Definitely a good project for stash busting, or using those small skeins of hand dyed yarn.
The only down side to this is that Donna Reed, my Baby Wolf, is not wide enough to do this and make a wearable scarf. BUT, I can see using this random front load trick to make a rectangular shawl or scarf.

You can just imagine ( or maybe not) the condition my house is in today after my absence for most of the weekend. The last thing I should be doing is sitting here, but I couldn't wait to show you this latest pretty thing.

Off to scrub, dust, vacuum, wash-dry-fold....it helps that this is a sunny day. It makes me want everything to sparkle, and thankful that even though it all needs cleaning, that I have it to clean.

Love,

Kim

Finished as planned and a Preview of Saturday's plan

Dear Mom,

As planned,on Tuesday evening I was able to finish the little knitted shawlette. I blocked it on Wednesday morning and here it is on the blog today!
Elle is modeling it with a felted hat I made years ago. By happy accident, the colors in this shawlette are     perfect with the hat and will dress up my navy peacoat!

The yarn is Footlights, from Blue Ridge Yarns, color Wild Cherry. The interesting thing about this sock yarn is that it comes bundled in 4 mini skeins of coordinating colors. Enough for a pair of socks, but I thought the yarn and colors were too pretty to hide in my shoes. I purchased 2 bundles- I wasn't sure about the specifics, but I knew there was a scarf or shawl in there and 2 bundles would guarantee enough yarn for something decent. I searched on ravelry and decided on this pattern. I used one of the colors from both bundles for the solid portion of the shawl and then alternate the three remaining colors for the striped portion. I knit until I ran out of yarn- or more specifically, until it didn't look like I had enough of a color left to work a stripe and bind off.

On Saturday, weather permitting, I am taking a weaving class. I have only a sketchy idea of what I will be weaving ( a shawl, I think) but I do know I will learn how to dress my loom from front to back, and that this is supposed to be a good stash busting project. I dug through my abundant stash for single skeins, leftover bits, and hand dyed/handspun skeins that were really too small for any serious knitting projects.
Olive helped.

I decided on this combo and wound the warps last night.

If you look closely at this blurry photo, you may notice that right there in the middle of the group, near the top, is the yarn I ordered for the Downton Abbey knitalong. Actually, it was the Downton Abbey MYSTERY knitalong. I knitted about 1/3 of the project before I faced the truth. I did not like and would NEVER wear the gauntlets that this knitalong was creating. No how. No way. And I do not think pretty lace knitting should ever be hidden in a variegated yarn. So there. I quit. The yarn, hopefully, will be happy and pretty in what ever it is I am weaving on Saturday.
Also, left of center is the last of the copper pipe dyed handspun. I've already used some of it to weave this scarf.
I'll share the results of my weaving class- good, bad or ugly.
Until then,
Love,
Kim

Saturday was for Sewing

Dear Mom,
On Saturday I sewed another Schoolhouse Tunic. This one is the shorter "shirt length" on the pattern. I've decided that my ideal tunic would be somewhere between this pattern's tunic and shirt lengths and I will make adjustments next time. Because there will be a next time with this pattern.
I love this orange gingham check, but wasn't considering the challenges of matching the pattern when I purchased the fabric. Mostly I did okay, but I am critical of the point where the shirt fronts are attached to the skirt.

I wore this with a navy t-shirt underneath and a blue ceramic pig pin. ( Yes, I accessorized!)

Then, while my machine was still set up and while the ironing board was still out, I acted on another creative idea. Back in January I received a catalog that is geared to outdoors-y pursuits. I don't always look through catalogs that find their way into my mailbox- what I don't see I won't want- but I did glance through this one and saw an interesting hooded sweatshirt that was embellished with embroidery and appliqués. It had a pretty price, too, though. Knowing there are plenty of fabric scraps and buttons in this house, I decided I would try customizing my own sweatshirt. A lucky day at the thrift shop had me finding a tuxedo shirt (more on that in a future post) and a zippered GAP sweatshirt.  I think I purchased both for less than $10.

I cut out some flower shapes and used my pincushion and a juice glass to trace circles onto my fabrics. I raided my button jar, choosing orange, green and black buttons. I tried to limit myself to oddly shaped or single buttons that wouldn't be of use anywhere else. But before sewing anything onto the shirt, I put it on and marked those strategic locations where I definitely did NOT want a flower, or a button. No Bull's Eyes, thankyouverymuch.

I am not an applique artist, but I wasn't going for a real polished look here, either. I am dressing up a Goodwill sweatshirt and making it a little bit more fun.

My goal today is to finish a knitting project- just a few rows left, but they are long rows. While I do that I am mentally working on picking up the stitches for a button band in a way that covers the picked up edge. I think I know how I want to do that, but won't know if my idea works for sure until I try it.

That's all. Be warm. It is winter out there today. Fire in the fireplace and sit and knit time!
Love,
Kim

Re: Downton Abbey, Season 3, Episode Finale

Dear Mom,
I tossed and turned all night.
I think I've been through all 5 Stages of Grief  in the last 11 hours.

January 5, 2014 is the Season 4 premiere in the US.  Another year of waiting and avoiding spoilers.
Downton Abbey, how do I love thee? Let me count the days.....

Love,
Kim

Bursting

Dear Mom,
First, Happy Valentine's Day!

Next, what a productive visit we had to the quilt store. It was a whirlwind. - Especially since we were cutting it close, time wise. Lucky for us the Young Lady's after school activity was cancelled and she rode home on the bus. Thank goodness we were spared the need to kick up some gravel in the parking lot when we left the quilt shop, and then fish-tail our way into the school parking lot.

So, here are a couple of dress fabric/cardigan sweater yarn combos I now have in my sewing and knitting queues. (I think an extra set of arms would be a good thing right now, but then the dresses and sweaters would not fit.)

Combo #1.
A strong possibility for Easter.

I draped the fabric around Elle and then added the sweater in progress on top of that for a better idea of How It Will Look:

Tights have been ordered. If I ordered the right colors, and once I decide which color to wear, I will show you. And I have black danskos.

Combo #2.

I've been admiring This Sweater for quite awhile. I've had the yarn for it for a month or two. I will make the body in a rusty heather and make my birds blackbirds.
Here is the yarn with the fabric I purchased:

Black tights. And I have some rusty red tapestry dansko clogs that will look c.u.t.e. (or stupid).

I also got fabric for two more tunic tops, but I will share those another time.  I have an idea for one of those tops that involves a thrifted mans' tuxedo shirt. It could be awesome or it could be an epic fail. Stay tuned.

And lastly.
Last night, with my friend (formerly known as ConnieWhoNeverHeardofBobbySherman, but who will henceforth be Sassenach) and I fueled our Outlander/James Fraser obsession and went to see the Black Watch Pipes and Drums and Scots Guard performance at the Palladium.
Bag pipes, drums, Highland Dancers, Men In Kilts.
There were Men In Kilts in the audience, too. Sassenach and I discovered that our gushing teenage selves were not buried too far beneath our MarriedWithChildren exteriors.
I took a stealth photo at the end of the performance using the Museum setting on my camera ( no flash, no noise). We were alone in our orchestra box, so I wasn't disturbing anyone and there was very little risk of being caught. The resulting photograph is blurred, but I'll just call it a misty water-colored memory.

The performance was moving and inspiring. The bagpipe music was haunting and beautiful. Included was a tribute to our Armed Forces and the performance started with God Save the Queen and the Star Spangled Banner. What a treat. An evening to fill the well being of my soul.

Time to get enough housework done and get those fabrics washed and dried so I can start sewing!

Love,
Kim

Patience is Rewarded

Dear Mom,

I bounced all over the place this weekend. 

I finally sewed a pair of lounge pants for the Young Lady. The flannel she picked out and we purchased has been in the closet for so long that.... well, let's just say it is a good thing that fabric doesn't have an expiration date and the Young Lady is done growing. Riding high on the success of my Schoolhouse Tunic, I felt brave enough to sew them. They were Easy! She loves them! We went to the fabric store and bought fabric for another pair.

The pattern is from Sewing Green.

While at the fabric store, I bought replacement buttons for one of My Hero's blazers. Somehow he lost all the buttons on one sleeve, which meant replacing the buttons on both sleeves and the front so they would all match. Another project which probably took 30 minutes to finish, but a a long time to start. Tom is happy to have his blazer back. 

Jared Flood's Alpine Tweed from Ann Budd's Top Down Sweater Book

 I continued knitting my sweater.  And suddenly started knitting a dishcloth. I have an urgent need to knit dishcloths. My supply of dishcloths is looking pathetic due to the fact that about half of them have been chewed up by the garbage disposal.

I also have a craving for sewing dresses and tops with matching hand knit cardigans, which was fueled by this newly discovered blog. Sometimes the sweaters on my  needles isn't just a sweater- it becomes a whole life. What I might wear with it, how I hope I will look in this fantasy outfit, where I will be when I wear it. Lots of times this sweater's life has nothing in common with my real life. But then I've slipped into a habit of wearing jeans and too casual tops. I want to believe I can be just as comfortable and look nice at the same time. Once Upon a Time I knew how to dress, how I wanted to look, and had the body and confidence to do it without thinking twice. Lately, the figure in the mirror doesn't match the 22 year old I am on the inside. I embrace my gray hair, the need for glasses, and some of the wrinkles. My 82 year old left knee and the very stubborn extra weight? Not so much. 

(I am considering renaming my left knee Mr. Bates, because I often have to walk down the stairs one step at a time like he does.)

So a trip to the quilt store for some pretty fabric is in my almost immediate future. Maybe if I sew the dress, knit the cardigan and pretend hard enough, I can pull off a new-for-me, quite individual, not-blue-jeans look. And not feel stupid when I do it.

Love, 

Kim

p.s.

Olive is enjoying our sunny day today. I am too. And it is just warm enough to open the front door and let the sunshine come in through the storm door. Olive is watching the quiet cul-de-sac.

And Barks an Alert! at ???

What?

Love, 
Kim