The Last of Show and Tell

I have the last of my show and tell finished and ready to go to camp on Thursday.  This concludes the knitting for Mona Lisa for now.  It's not that I don't have more that I want to knit or that I don't have a couple or three on needles for her, but I think it's time to concentrate on something for Grammie for now.

The Baby Surplice from Knit One Knit All is all of the leftovers from the Tweed Baby Blanket from Jared Flood that I showed last week.  I still have a  couple of really small balls of the lilac, one small ball of brown and about a 1/2 skein of the silver left.

I'll put the rest of the leftovers in the basket for using to hold stitches on for armholes etc.  We can call this yarn done!!

Notes To Self

Evidently you need to write this down somewhere that you can look back at it and remember it when you are knitting/dressing/shopping for yourself.  They are simple things, Penny and bears repeating or is that bares?

Just for your body type:

Bright Wide Yokes are good, for example Garter Yoke Cardigan by Melissa LeBarre, Circles Yoke Pullover by Cheryl Burke, Phyllo Yoked Pullover by Nora Gaughan, there are others.

Jeans with a flare out at hems are good. 

V-necks are good.

The bottom hem on your sweaters should end before the widest part of your hip.

Wear heels with pants not flats.

NO BOXY sweaters or DROP sleeves.  Say it with me Penny!!!

Always use waist shaping.  Duh, remember how nice the Chic Knits tank looked and felt??

NO bulky yarns.  Like that is a no brainer!

No to 1 button cardigans.  Do button ups and leave the top open.  Some you like are Cardigan for Arwen and Audrey in Unst - how many times have you looked at those two?

Elbow length sleeves are good.  Not only do they keep you warm in the a/c and cover up the fat upper arms, but they direct the eye to the waist which is your smallest body part next to your wrists and fingers.

Boat necks are okay if you can keep them up off of your rounded shoulders, but still they are not your faves, so nix them.

Have you ever tried short rows on the lower front for the belly?  Might have to think some more on that.  Somewhere, I think I remember reading about maybe doing short rows on the front at about 2" above the widest part of the hip.

And lastly, even though you love them and they are comfy, avoid the tunic.  It just does not hit at a great place and really makes those hips noticeable.

That concludes your lesson for today, Penny.  In the future, you will be tested so study up!

It's Been Quite A Weekend

When I got the call on Friday around 10:15 am at work, I could hardly believe it.  And now, that we are back at home, I can still hardly believe it! 

Mona Lisa (not her real name, but a great name given to her by Kristen) was born at 5:39 on Friday night with a full head of dark hair, with a couple of spots of blond hilited in?!  She is a beauty and we love her.  I just hated to leave her even though she is three hours away!  The trip over was much more fun than the one home.  It seemed like it was forever.  And I know she will be changing so much and I can hardly wait to get myself back over there in about three weeks! 

But, it will have to wait, cause on Thursday, Linda and I head for Meg Swansen's Knit Camp.  Mona Lisa was kind enough to not wait until I was at camp to make her debut which I am most grateful.  It would have really been tough to miss this event.

Mona Lisa has lots of knitted items in her wardrobe now, and under pain of death, I have a promise from Baby Boy A (the father) that he will get me some pictures in them.  Baby Boy B (the new Uncle) and I tried our best this afternoon to get a picture of her in her Peapod, but she was a little cranky and did not want much of the picture taking thing!

There are a lot of pictures of her in the Heart Baby Blanket that I knitted for the first shower.  It's great for snuggling her in and Baby Boy B said he even wrapped up in it the first night because he was a little chilly in the hospital.  Hey, whatever.

We are all a little pooped here after our weekend, and there is lots of things to do before camp, but I've got the best ever show and tell, don't cha think!

And Linda, you guys were right, there is no way I would have missed this!  You would have begged me to leave you!

Happy Birthday Linda!

I would post a pic of the knitted cake, but I am having to operate on my IPad. Have a happy day.

Our First Grand Baby

Just newly born today.  What shall we call her on the blog?

One Tweed Baby Blanket Done and Done

As in 500+ stitches of ICord Bindoff and blocking.   I like it.  Now, I'm working on a Baby Surplice Sweater to go with it.  It's kind of fun too.

Happy 4th of July

It Started With An Outfit

And I knew I wanted to knit a little cotton sweater to go with it.  Enter a Knitting Pure and Simple pattern.  But, it was in a larger size than I needed.  So, I thought I would knit one on a smaller needle which I did.  But, the size came out to be around 16".  A very small newborn (which we don't have yet).

So I decided to go a bit bigger on the needle size and since I had yarn left, I figured what the heck.  And now I have two little shrugs.

 I love love this sweater with the outfit.  This baby is going to have so many sweaters she just won't know which one to wear first!

The Baby's Room And A New Blanket

I'm tickeled about seeing pictures of the baby's room.  I can hardly wait to see it in person.  When DIL told me the colors, I was really wondering what it would look like, but this is going to be so cool.

 I was going to hold onto this present until a little later this summer, when I have the chance to knit a sweater and finish the booties to go with it.  But, after seeing the room, this is something that has to go over when the baby is born.

The pattern is Jared Flood's Tweed Baby Blanket.  The colors are actually right from a Debbie Bliss blanket and I used her yarn for it as well.  It was just a fluke that it is almost the same colors as the baby-to-be's bedroom. 

Other than the yarn change, I did it exactly as called for in the pattern right down to the I-Cord bindoff.  It was the first time I ever did it and I love the looks of it.  Even if I did grumble once or twice about the 500+ stitches. 

I just need to block this and then it will be ready to wrap.  I'm pleased this one is done and almost ready to go!

I'm Bag Poor

But then you all know that.  The new craze around here, Thirty One.  These are the ones I bought from a lady I work with.

I liked the size of this and still am not quite sure what I am going to be using for, but for now it is holding yarn, go figure.

 If I spent $30, I got this little bag for $5.  Who could pass this up?  It's holding my two needle cases for my Knit Picks interchangeables and double points, along with my notebook of patterns that I might want to buy yarn for.  It will be a great grab and go bag.

If I can figure out how to do it, I am going to try and put this as the header of the blog.  IF.

There are more Thirty One bags to come as I went to a party a couple of weeks ago.  Oy, someone has created a monster here.

I Don't Care What They Say

Stick this in your pipe and smoke it!

Ravelympics Ravelympics Ravelympics Ravelympics Ravelympics

IOC, you stink and have tainted how I look at the games.  It's my party and I'll call it what I want to.

Ok, back to regulary scheduled knitting and blogging.

Let's Try It One More Time

Drop spindle spinning again.  Like the weight loss thingy and the running thingy, I'm giving this drop spindle thing another try.  I took a class on Saturday at Fiber Universe in Peoria and now I really am going to try and spin everyday.  ONE more time.

I am still having the same problem that I had a year ago and that is I can get really really thin and then all of sudden I'm back at thick again.  I know it is going to take some practice and my thought is a little bit every day.

I might even give that Tour de Fleece thingy the college try.

Do You Think I Have A Problem?

I see a trend here.  

Like my knitting, after seeing these all together, I think I had better start using one of these until it looks so ratty that I am forced to move to the next one.

For the archives -

Far left: A JCPenney purchase of two years ago.  I liked it so much that I bought it in a metallic one as well.  My cohorts in crime (Kristy and Barb) also bought it in purple and pink.  Friend Betty bought it in a metallic as well.

Center Front: My first Namaste bag purchased maybe three years ago.  I bought it because I wanted to be able to carry my knitting in one side of it.  In the beginning, I wasn't too crazy about it.  It kep slipping off my shoulder and felt just way too big.  It went to the closet for a period of time out, where it came back last winter.  I found I liked the big ness of it.  I could put a small project in it and files to bring home from work.  It cut down on the amount of bags I had to carry in and out of work.  When Spring came, I put it into the closet in favor of one of my many Vera Bradley Bowler bags.  Namaste #1 will come out again in the Fall.

Center Back:  Namaste #2 purchased two years ago at Stitches Midwest.  I bought it on a whim on they way out of the Thursday night market.  I hadn't bought anything all night long and felt that I "needed" it.  This one never quite lived up to my expectations yet.  It's heavy.  I tried carrying for work, but it just seemed big and awkward.  I may try it again, but not anytime soon....I even tried to sell it on Ravelry.

Far right:  The newest purchase bought sight unseen after seeing it advertised and blogged about all over the place.  My Jordana Paige.  I kind of sort of like this one.  But it is not an every day bag for me.  It would be great when I go somewhere that I don't want to haul purse and knitting, like long days at hospitals visit or one day trip.  When I pack it with everything I like to take, it's a little heavy.  The strap that comes over was a little awkward for me when shopping.  But, I have not totally given up on this one, because like Namaste #1, it may take me just a bit to get used to it.

If you can' derive from the pics and the rambling, I am always searching for the perfect purse/bag/tote.  The quest goes on as long as it is the right color!

The Search

We had a great discussion tonight at Knit Nite about knitting.  Go figure!

The jist of it is once again, to knit what you want to.  Too many times, I am lead astray by what others are knitting or the lure of a designer.  Which leads me to going around in circles on my knitting and wandering around Ravelry way too much.  Then casting on and putting things aside.

You have heard this all before here.  My friend Norma reminded of this same revelation I have had before.  Sometimes, you just need a little reminder from a good friend. 

My search for now is to find a pattern that is similar to a Laura Ashley ready to wear sweater that I have worn to death and I am much afraid that it has seen the last of when it can be worn to work.  I really want to knit at least one on the order of it.

A couple of contenders are Jess from Kim Hargreaves and the Summer Solstice Sweater.  I like both of those patterns and I WANT to knit them.

Can You Stand All This Cuteness?

Cause if you can't, you had better step away for a bit.  You know there is going to be a lot of it coming.

So, on Saturday morning before knitting, I ran inti Kohls to return some pants.  But of course you have to walk by the baby stuff to get there.  At first, I picked up a cute set of onesies and then put them back.  But, as I walking back out, I eyeballed this cutie and had to buy it. 

This baby has to have some Caribe Blue like in her wardrobe.

But of course I had to take it into the yarn shop to show.  Nothing really floated our boat, so I headed over across the river.

This is going to be so much fun to knit AND it is one of my fave type of patterns as you all well know.

Both the new purchase and this shrug will be for later this summer as they are going to be a slightly larger size than newborn.

Oh what fun!!

Happy Father's Day

 My Dad - Deceased

 The Tall Guy's Dad - Deceased

Baby Boy A - Dad- to- be

The Tall Guy and Grandpa-to-be



Booties + Kimono =

Too Cute!

 From the Knit One All Book, the Tie Booties

From Mason Dixon Knitting, the Kimono

The ensemble, all ready for the birth in about three weeks.  My plan is to take something new everytime I go.  Wait til you see what I bought today.

I Love My Postman/UPS Person

They have been bring me the bestest stuff this week!  Well, yes I picked it up.  But it is so exciting to open the boxes after a long days work.

 I've been salivating over this bag from Jordana Paige for sometime and finally bit and bought it. 
I can't tell you really what I think yet, cause I have not taken the time to put any stuff in it.  But, I will, soon, very soon.

These BOCs are pretty comfortable and just the right color, right?!  Only problem, it has been a while since I've had a shoe that I have had to buckle up.  Most of mine slip right on.  This is going to take some getting used to.  No just tossing them off. 

Did I mention they are my fave color?!!

Button Button Button

Whose got the button?  Well, apparently, the answer to this old childhood game would be me.

Yesterday, on my mental health day, I finished the afternoon up with a button show out at Knit 4 Together.  Ann Pastucha who makes some of the coolest polymer buttons had her collection there for sale.

I've used her buttons before on my Seedling Jacket, so I knew she had some pretty cool buttons, so I was quite pleased with my finds.

 This one looks better than the picture would show.  My Briar Rose Wistful yarn is going to be a sweater during the Ravelympics late in July.  Generally, I have to go looking for buttons after the sweater is done, now I won't have to.

These two really are just for the stash button collection, yes I have one.  So many sweaters right now have just one big button at the top, so I'm getting ahead of the curve of possible future sweaters.

 And the best find of the day, were these for my Long Collared Coat.  They are going to be perfect with yet another Briar Rose yarn, this one called Abundance.  The button hole is a tab I-cord button hole, my first ever.  I might have to scale down the hole itself, but this button is going to be so cool for this coat!

If you need info on Ann, she can be reached at apastucha@yahoo.com

Regrouping

It's a gorgeous day in Central Illinois.  I took the day off because I have an appointment around noonish and two other fun things that I wanted to do this afternoon.  And quite frankly, I needed/wanted a day or at least a morning to myself.

I slept in late (of course cause I stayed up late and because I could).  In awhile I am going to go for a 20 minute walk/run.  Today, is also the start of my Weight Watchers Week, and so as always I am regrouping with that, the exercise plan and the knitting plan.  I had a moment this morning when I told myself if you are knitting, you are not eating!!! 

Last night in the wee hours, while on Ravelry, I stumbled across two fave knitters (read that as I am stalking their projects), and without boring you to death, I was off on a tangent with one of them, thinking how I could duplicate what they were knitting.  Out came the Pure and Simple patterns and the wheels were a turning, the yarns were tossed around, my brain was going no where real fast. 

After spinning for about an hour, reality sat in...and of course my ever list making...digression here as EZ would say -- I still worry what my family will say if when I am gone about all of the lists, think of them as a journal, kids or perhaps I should get rid of them before that happens  YEARS from now!

Back to the list making.  First I figured out how many days were left until the baby is due (23),  Then, I figured out how many days were left until I absolutely had to have sweaters for Knit Camp with Meg Swansen blocked and dried (28).  Next, I made a list in order of what I need/wanted to have done by each of those dates.  To the nitty gritty - I gave myself deadlines for each of them.

Luckily, the baby stuff that I need/want to have done is minor.  Since it is a July baby, what I am really knitting on - the Brooklyn Tweed Baby Blanket, Saartje's booties and Baby Surplice Jacket really don't need to be done until later this Summer and they can go to camp with me.  I just need to add ties to the Kimono sweater which could be done in the time it takes me to post on the blog if I'd just do it.

The others for camp are my major knitting projects - the kelly green Sublime KPS pattern, the Long Collared Coat (I'll tell you all about that tomorrow), the Bias Sweater sewn together and ICord added, the Liberty Wool shawl, possible camp contest project and getting my Cusco jacket on smaller needles made the list all the way up to lift off for camp practically.

Sheesh, with all this thinking, one might have been better to just work today!!  It could be said, than when I am working, I am not knitting, but for today, I am going to enjoy this great weather and the day off from work!