Getting Ready

Getting ready for Christmas. The tree is now up. The stockings are hung by the chimney with care. The wreath is getting lights today, then it will be hung up on the front door. Also I am getting ready for the anticipated Christmas visit of my nephew, Merlin and his new bride, Jennifer, so I am doing a major clear out of "stuff". Also, my Da should be joining us. Thus far there are four big blue Ikea shopping bags of stuff and not nearly done. Le Sigh Enorme. Too, I am getting ready for a new round of an art exchange in a Moleskine with my International Moleskine Exchange group from Ravelry.com. I am really excited for this new round. We took a hiatus for 2012 and I missed my Moley mail. I ordered something special for the ladies in the group, which I won't share here as yet, since more than a few of the participants read this blog. This Moley has been on travels before. It is a themed one. It was started the year of the 200th anniversary of Edgar Allan Poe's birthday and the 250th anniversary of Robert Burns' birthday, so the theme is Ravens and Roses. This will be it's third go ~ round and hopefully it will be filled up completely this g-round. As well, as getting ready to re-read an Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon for the Ravelry book themed swap to begin in 2013.

Day 29 ~ Purchased

The pattern to make this shawl was my purchase on Wednesday. I found it on Pinterest.com first and then went to Ravelry.com to look at it in further detail. I think I will make it in some of my handspun yarns as I have 4 different shades of yarn I can work with.

Day 21 ~ Pretty Pattern

The title would more than likely make one think of something like this: patterns on fabric

However, I think of something like this: knitting patterns

My neck tends to get chilled as the cooler weather sets in. You should knit a cowl, also called a neck gaiter by some to wear this winter and all those to come. I thought to myself, you've made oodles of them for charity but not one for yourself. As my daughter, Erin brought me one (1) skein of Rowan Pure Wool Aran weight yarn in a lovely celery green from England, I decide to look for a pattern that I could use it for. I went to Ravelry and looked in my favourites to see what I had pinned there and lo and behold, there was Nic's Ashford Cowl requiring less than 180 yards of yarn. Woot! So, now I have cast on and have one repeat completed.

Day 13 ~ From a Distance

Here's yesterday's shawl from a distance.

Day 12 ~ Close Up

Here is my mohair hand spun on my Thurmaston Suitcase Spinning Wheel and then I hand knit this shawl. I made it this summer as part of the Ravelry Ravellenic Games which is a fun competition associated with watching the Summer Olympics. It is now ready for it's close up...

Tour de Fleece 2010

Every year fellow Ravelers do various projects for the Tour de Fleece. The goal is to spin every day during the Tour de France bicycle race. We get to rest on the rider's rest days and spin more or challenge ourselves on the hard mountain days.

I have been spinning everyday and my challenge has been to learn to be a better spinner and also to get better at plying my resultant singles. I am practicing chain plying, which is also called Navajo plying and also double plying with more balance to the twist.

This is the result of spinning a henna hand dyed Corridale and a natural coloured Corri and then plying them together. This yarn is called Fort Yellowstone in honour of the natural single being spun at Fort Lupton, CO during Heritage Days and the dyed single being spun at the Yellowstone Highland Games in Billings, MT.

This is a Corridale sheep in Natural. This other one is a Blue Face.

More shall be revealed. I am waiting on a chain plied dyed Blue Face Leicester to dry as well as some custom dyed pink merino.

#57 of 365 - Art Today

Today was primarily devoted to doing the art that I bought some of the supplies whilst doing yesterday's errands. Deborah came over and kept me company while I played in the 3 Moleskines I have in hand from the Ravelry International Moleskine Exchange. I gnerally do a theme of art in the books that come my way. Today's turned out to be a Spring themed poem with steampunked fleurs. Don't ask me why, just the mood I was in I suppose, as I am SO ready for Spring to arrive.

The ingredients for these pages are patterned paper, green flower shapes, gears, and rhinestones, with tags, ribbons and yarn. Sorta of Shabby Chic meets the Industrial Revolution. The bit of poetry is from "A Celtic Miscellany" by Kenneth Hurlstone Jackson. It is from the chapter on Nature. What I used is as follows: May-time, fair season, perfect in its aspect then; blackbirds sing in full song, if there be a scanty beam of day. Waxing philosophical to boot...

#55 of 365 - Bellatrix Yarn and Bellatrix Stockings to Come

Again With the Socks!



However, there is a really good reason to talk about these. They are actually going to be knee-high stockings, instead of socks. The yarn was custom dyed for me by my dear daughter, Erin. She has a wee indie dying project called Asylum for Wayward Yarn.

Her colourways are primarily based on characters from books, movies and television shows. There are Outlander, Harry Potter and Moonlight ones so far. It's base is Knitpicks Bare in a Superwash Merino Wool and Nylon (75/25) dyed with Jacquard and Cushing's dyes. The colourway is called Bellatrix, Mark 1. It is a black, grey and purple yarn. It is very mysterious and smoky and was dyed at my personal request for this particular pattern. Bellatrix is one of the three sock/stocking patterns named after characters from the Harry Potter books that you can find over on Ravelry.



Anyway, this is my fourth or fifth attempt to get these silly stockings started as I am that determined to knit them. I kept frogging them as I was missing an important step (DROP ALL THEM Dad Gum YARN OVERS, YOs) whilst trying to knit them and they kept growing and growing and growing as I was knitting into the YOs like I would do with lace knitting but without a matching K2tog, which is so necessary to keep the shape you are striving for, sigh... I gave up trying to figure it out on my own. I mean, isn't that the definition of insanity, doing something over and over and expecting different results? I finally asked for help with the dang stitch today, as I was at Knitter's Kove for the Wednesday morning knit-in.


I also met up at the store with my friend Sharon today. I am attempting to help get her started on her own sock project using two circular needles instead of 4-5 DPNs. She was definitely getting the hang of it by the time knit was winding up.



and here is our Sharon, about 2 rows into the process...

#44 of 365 - Olympic Knitting

Here I am, home at last, sitting with Big Blue on my lap and knitting on my Ravelympic and/or Yarn Harlot's 2010 Knitting Olympics project. It is a Feather and Fan Comfort Shawl being knitted in a single ply of unknown hand dyed handspun, that our friend, Rachel de-stashed last weekend. I probably don't have enough to make the full sized shawl so I will knit til it runs out. More shall be revealed as they say. The Olympic Challenge for me was to learn a new stitch, which is the Feather and Fan. I think that it will become like New York Beauty quilt blocks, something I return to just for the pleasure of it.

The gist of the Olympic knitting efforts on Ravelry is to put together at team and project or challenge and start it during opening ceremonies and have it completed when the torch is doused in 16 days. Knitters, crocheters and spinners all have many different projects going on. Stephanie McPhee, the Yarn Harlot 2010 Olympic Knitting is an individual project or challenge.

#40 of 365 - Big Purple or Otherwise Known as the Moonlit Birch

It's done and it's big. It's light-weight, warm and fuzzy and I love it a lot. I like the Birch pattern from Rowan well enough that I think I will do it to gauge in another yarn as a Super Secret Surprise for Someone... The pattern is available for free over on Ravelry, just search for Birch by Sharon Miller. This one was knit from the top down which I hadn't done on a BIG shawl before, so it was about the process more than anything. When I have someone to take a proper picture, I will show you just how big it really is...

Monday, Monday - #11 of 365

I am brain dead from processing to much information over the week. Read too many patterns and tried to learn to tat, sigh.

This photo is of the socks I actually have on today. Fern Clog Socks they are called. The pattern is, of course, available on Ravelry.

Dipping the 1st Shawl of 10 in 2010 - #8 of 365

As many of you are aware, I belong to a social network for fiber fanatics called Ravelry. It is a major enabler in my fiber habit and passion. There is a group for ever one, everything and every interest, sometime more that one. I joined the 10 Shawls in 2010 group and cast on my first shawl on New Year's Day. Here is the finished shawl.

I wanted a working shawl, as it were. As you can see, I can cross the front tails and tie them to the back so that the tails are out of my way when spinning or doing some such other activity.

















For instance, I could have been wearing my new shawl whilst I was dipping the candied orange peel and pretzels in chocolate this morning...

New Years Day - Welcome to MMX

I am borrowing a page from Rebecca who posts a photo everyday and posting a picture for this day... Casting on for the first of my Ravelry Group 10 shawls in 2010 on this day as well.








and from Rabbie Burns, the great Scottish Poet:

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind ?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and auld lang syne ?

CHORUS:
For auld lang syne, my jo, for auld lang syne, we’ll tak a cup o’ kindness yet, for auld lang syne.
And surely ye’ll be your pint-stowp !
and surely I’ll be mine !
And we’ll tak a cup o’ kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.
CHORUS
We twa hae run about the braes,
and pu’d the gowans fine ;
But we’ve wander’d mony a weary foot,
sin auld lang syne.
CHORUS
We twa hae paidl’d i' the burn,
frae morning sun till dine ;
But seas between us braid hae roar’d
sin auld lang syne.
CHORUS
And there’s a hand, my trusty fiere !
and gie's a hand o’ thine !
And we’ll tak a right gude-willy waught,
for auld lang syne.
CHORUS

oh, and by the way: Thanks Donnely for reminding me of this.

I will open the back door to let the old year out, and the front door to let the New Year in, give your first visitor of the new year a twist of salt to season life, a piece of bread to stay hunger, a glass of water to stave thirst, and a coin to fend off poverty. A hug to show human warmth, a handshake to show you hold no grudge, and a genuine smile and candle to light up their darkness.

Moley Madness - Round Three

As you all are likely aware by now, I love my Moleskines. I also love the Ravelry Round Robins I have been doing with them since last Fall. Here are the opening pages of book three which left on it's travels yesterday.




My first book had no theme, per se. My second book has a theme of Ravens and Roses. This book's theme will hopefully be a travelogue of it's journey. I have asked the participants to tell me something about where they live. Can't wait to see it when it comes home. I started with a view of Pike's Peak from the Garden of the Gods as a guide for them to know what I want for this round. I really am lucky to have such a treasure in my own backyard as it were. All but one (yeah for Kimi, taking that leap of faith again) of the participants in this round are totally new to me, so I am really excited to see what they will do..




Of course, the photos are craptastic and in no way do justice to the process, but I am doing the best I can. Thanks for your patience...

More Moleskine Madness from Ravelry

Now that I have had time to process my joy at the return of my Moleskine (pronounced Molskina), I will go into more detail about the Ravelry International Moleskine Exchange Round Robin and where this all started. My friend, Karen asked for more information. Moleskines have been a part of my life for over 10 years and I keep all necessary information in them along with anything else I need or might need in the way of sketches of knitwear, sizes and measurements for the Highland shirts I make, ideas for quilts, a hand-fast ceremony and so much more. Here is a picture of my current Moley, it has a knitting charm attached to the place mark ribbon.




Back in the fall, I signed up for a Journal Exchange on Ravelry. The rules for that were simple. Send in a questionnaire, get matched with a swap partner then put together a wee giftie of a Journal, writing prompt and some other goodies and send off to your swap partner. I got a lovely package back along with a Celtic journal in my exchange which I blogged about last year as well.

Whilst talking amongst ourselves in the journal exchange group, we realized that some of us would like to go further, than just sending a blank book. We also discovered that quite a few of us were fans of the Moleskine brand of notebook. Thus, the International Moleskine Exchange round robin group was born. Many of us immediately signed up to be involved in the long term art project. Some logistics needed to be ironed out, then we got our Moleys, wrote our introductions and off we were to the P.O.

I have just finished one exchange with a small book (3.5 x 5.5) that had no theme other than for each participant to tell me a little about themselves and add art in their particular media. There are 10-12 people in each group. We had some fall out due to life's circumstances and a VERY few Naughty Swappers, but for the most part this has been a very successful round robin. I have always enjoyed working with others on art, be it a quilt, a knitting project, a Headless Corpse or the books. Everyone is creative in some way. One of our members is more of a wordsmith, than an artist (so she claims, but I love her little sketch of a turnip in my book). Words done well is a talent I wish I was better at.

I also have another larger one, loose in the world right now. That one is a 5.5 x 13 inch one with quadrille (graph paper) pages. It does have a theme. It's theme is Ravens and Roses in honour of Poe's and Burns' 200th and 250th natal anniversaries. They are two of my favorite poets, so that theme seemed most appropriate for the round robin that started in 2009. I also blogged about it with pictures of the cover earlier this year.



The sketch is one of the many views of Pike's Peak that I get to enjoy except on those days when the clouds are lower than the mountain. This is the first bit of art in my Creative Collaborating Chicklets Group of IME Moley. We started out as Group C but ran away with it, thus the 3rd group became the 3Cs.





This is the last bit of art in my returned book. I had thought to send it back out in round 3, but my lovely and creative partners left only six blank pages in this wee book. So, I have an idea to finish it up with my thoughts about the IME experience and one or two more sketches and then enjoy it til the end of days.




Heartfelt thank yous again to Frewen, Baby, Loops, DMXOX, SleepyEyes, Kwesty, Grenouille, Celty and Stucky for enlivening my world and sharing part of yours. It has been a joy, privilege and incredible learning experience for me getting to know the marvelously talented, funny, irreverent, curmudgeonly, humorous, GIFTED women from Canada, the UK and the good ole US of A during this art experience. I would do it ALL OVER again in a heartbeat. In fact, I have signed on to do it again in a 3rd round starting next month, LOL.

Cotton Fern Clog Socks

I am nearly finished with my cotton Fern Clog Socks. Here's a preview. They are knit from Sockina, a self-patterning cotton and nylon blend yarn. These were also the second effort at knitting with two circular needles. I must say, I love my DPNs, but I can't lose nor break 2 circs as easily whilst traveling and knitting.



I wear a lot of clogs and slides, so these socks are a perfect fit in more ways than one.



The lace pattern only goes up the heel and calf, for show and the rest of the sock is in stocking stitch.




Of course, the pattern is available from Ravelry.

Gardening and Ravelry in El Paso County

Or how I spent my Saturday.

Today being the first Saturday of the month was also the regularly scheduled meeting of the El Paso County Crafters from Ravelry.com. We try to all get together on this first Saturday to learn from each other, share what is going on in our lives, show off what we are working on and listen to each other's problems. i.e. Stitch and Bitch!

Here's a picture of Sheila and me (in the hat).


Sheila has just got me started on the Knit One Below stitch which has been driving me buggy along with the Shawl from Hell. Sheila was working on a lovely ripple stitch afghan.



Here is a picture of the Knit One Below. It creates columns as you stitch. It's a kinda kewl technique. I am knitting this swatch from Noro Blossom and Encore Worsted in a mauve colour. I believe that it will be a sketchbook cover when it is finished. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Sheila. It all now makes sense.









Here's a picture of Jean and her sister in law, Suzanne.

Suzanne was working on a latch hook rug and Jean was knitting a washcloth.








Here's Sheila and Wendie. Wendie was working on a few things. A hat, I know for certain.

We did miss our Rebecca, who's away in the Flatlands (Illinois) awaiting the arrival of her grandbaby, and Anita, who is finishing up her children's game season and Wendie's Mum. eta: I totally forgot our Mel, another waiting on a baby to come.












Photo of lupins in the garden.



In the morning, I worked in the Grace and Saint Stephen's Episcopal Parish church garden and communed with the plants, sunshine, observed the many faces of Pike's Peak as the hours rolled by and said hello to the church's neighborhood dogs who were watered in the St. Francis fountain. What a joy to see so much activity occurring on our corner here in downtown Colorado Springs. There was also a student piano recital in the Nave and a quarterly Altar Guild meeting in the Taft Hall as well.





Stacey in the garden looking over her patch.

Some of the neighborhood dogs enjoying the St. Francis Fountain. The fountain had been inoperable since before we got the building returned to us, but was repaired and put back in service this week. Thanks Be!

Voyager Lace Stole or Why Do I do This to Myself?

also known as What Stole My Sanity...




I am trying to knit this lace stole, it is called Voyager. The pattern is a free one from Elann Yarns. The plan is for me to do this as a KAL (knit along) for the re-read of Voyager by Diana Gabaldon with the Outlander Fans over at Ravelry.

I am trying to knit it with the yarn pictured above. It's lace weight yarn from Spirit Trail called Clotho in the Autumn Harvest Colourway. I love the colourway as it's has got two of my favorite colours in it.

So to the point of this post... I have cast on 99 stitches to start five times already. Today, I got the farthest along, six whole rows of garter stitch and 6 whole rows of pattern (out of 10, sigh). I found a mistake in the number of stitches on the sixth row of pattern (two to many, sigh), realized that I didn't have a lifeline in, yet another sigh. So, now I have to rip it, rip it, rip it (frogging). You just can't tink (knit backwards) a lace pattern without having a lifeline in. If you try to un-knit, you tend to lose the yarn overs that are inherent in lace knitting. Bleh, poopers, caca occurs, meh, and an even bigger sigh! Yes, I am starting YET again. Yes, I will get this. Yes, I can do this. Yes, I have knit lace before. Yes, I am that determined. Yes, more shall be revealed.

However, my Knitpicks Harmony Wood Interchangeables have been a real boon to my lace knitting. At least I stitch better with them. I just can't count better. They have really lovely points for finding the stitches. The wood has enough tooth to hold onto the yarn, yet the needles are pretty slick and let's the stitches slide off when you need them to. I am so glad that Erin gifted me them to my birthday.

YAY, a New Market - Sunflower Farmer's Market Opens

Today was this first morning that it wasn't cloudy or threatening to rain in 5 days. Which was all to the good, as I went to stand in line with 300 plus of my neighbors for the opening of the new Sunflower Farmer's Market.

Huzzah, we now have a Sunflower Farmer's Market here. The first 200 people in line this morning got a free bag of groceries. So, I got up with the DD and drove her to work so I could get in line. When we drove by the store at 5:35 am, we saw that there were people in line already waiting for the 7:00 am official open! Though the grand opening is today, the store was actually open yesterday and Erin stopped in on her way home. She did a little comparison of prices with Whole Foods Market, while she walked about. She determined that some are better, some are comparable and some are higher on the things we regularly buy. That is the to be expected in any retail situation, however. It was nice to shop a brand new store, though I didn't spend much time there as it was PACKED, of course. Since I don't do crowds all that well, I wanted to get in and get my free bag of groceries and get out. I will go back after the frenzy dies down and really scope it out.


Erin and I talked about it and we wondered if I would get to be one of the 200 people to get a free bag of groceries. I proceeded to drop Erin off at work and went back to the store. Somehow, I got a parking spot RIGHT in front and my queue number was 107, WOOT.

I had a book and knitting and a quilt to finish binding and a chair. However, but for the knitting, they all stayed in the car. I did stand in line with all the other early risers and briefly worked on the knitted block for Megan's baby afghan. The woman in line behind me also had her knitting, so we compared notes on knitting, Ravelry, LYSs and the libraries.



What I got in the bag of free groceries and also purchased.



Michele from Ravelry (with her knitting, which is a small bag done with Magic Loop).

Again, more to be revealed. It looked good though and I can actually walk to this one if I want to put a good foot under..

7:45 pm - ETA: I forgot to mention that the store staff couldn't have been friendlier or more knowledgeable about where things were (a serious pet peeve of mine, staff not knowing where things are) and they were really good at getting the moil thru the store, the checkout and out the door and one even followed me to the car to help stow the groceries and retrieve my cart (I am sure that is not a regular part of the service, they had already run out of carts). I was in and out of the store and back at the house within 14 minutes of the opening of the doors. None so bad, eh?



Oh and this was the view from the parking lot..

Today is Earth Day - Creative Every Day

Or
Why I Put a Cozy on a Tree



I have been reading about the guerrilla knitters who have been decorating stationary items with knitted pieces. Basically, the knitters attach a piece of knitting to anything and everything that isn't nailed down. The knitting community in Houston, TX is quite notorious for doing this.

I've been thinking, how fun is this idea and how neat it is to come upon a piece of knitting somewhere unexpectedly. I suppose though, that you have to be a knitter or crocheter to really appreciate it.

My friend Kimi from Ravelry and I got to talking about this the other day and we challenged each other to "JUST DO IT."



So, I just did it. Here are the craptastic pictures to prove it.

As a point of interest, I went to the Philadelphia, PA first Earth Day celebration in Fairmount Park, WAY back in the day. I cannot believe that it's been SO many years and we are still having to educate and reiterate the same ideas and suggestions and continue to hope that even a small bit filters in.

REUSE, RECYCLE, everyone. Now, if I could just get the HOA to amend their rules to let me have a clothes line to dry my clothes, that would be a small victory.

Here are some links to information about guerilla knitting in the USofA:
http://events.ccc.de/congress/2007/Fahrplan/events/2358.en.html
http://www.instructables.com/community/Guerilla-Knitting/

and in the UK:
http://www.glittyknittykitty.co.uk/

Edited at 9:00 pm to include Kimi's Images.

Kimi went all out and even did her car! I love the idea and am going to appropriate it for my truck. I bow to her greatness. This has been a fun experience. Long distance guerrilla art.