The Glamourous Flouncy Flouncy

Well, it's not "me", but just finished this cute little shawlette for Rhonda. Beads and Sequins and lots of interesting little things. Pretty cute. Now on to the next project...

Stocking Factory

The annual rush to finish reproduction Christmas Stockings is on. Let's hope Kate Gosselin or the Octomom don't get my phone number.

Finished Warmer set

In case you want to see a picture of the finished Tudora & Fetching set. I think they look great together, don't you?

A Few F.O.s to report

I am working on so many projects (and driving so much!), nothing gets finished very often. I did however, just finish off a special pair of booties for a dear friend getting a new grandbaby soon. I also am pretty far (all 3 are started, so I guess maybe 40% done) into the making of 3 reproduction Christmas stockings. Also finished the glove & neck warmer set for my stepmom. Off to see her again in a few days. Back to the knitting, then.

My new Roommates!

Meet my new roommates! Rolling down the road, in a clown-car full of yarn. Looks like a crazy lady with lots and lots of glorious hand painted yarns. Someday I will tell the zany spacebag story, and those who know me well think I am totally normal, in spite of it all. Check out Jane Thornley's patterns if you want to see one of many reasons why I am so excited about these yarns, and I have lots of free patterns, too. They come in DK or Worsted Weights, 40 different colorways, Donegal Sock yarn, and Merino Tweed.


We are having a great Trunk Show at the yarn Cottage in Fairhope during Thanksgiving week. Don't miss out!

Back Home & Knitting Again

I am home, and can finally work on some of my projects. I have lots of things in progress, and still starting new stuff. In my travels, I got the book, Sock Innovation by Cookie A. WOW! What a gorgeous book. I intend to make every pair of socks in it. I started with "Vilai" which is covered in beautiful trellis work and ribbed cables, using HPKY's Donegal sock, in the Don Giovanni colorway. These would make wonderful gloves as well. I can't stop, and there are so many other things I should be doing. Oh well. Can you see why I love them? Brain food.

Just Gimme the Yarn & Nobody Gets Hurt

Carol, one of my customers today, just had to dig into her new yarn immediately! She was so distracted by winding it up, I felt ignored. "Oh well, have fun, bye!", I said as I headed out to my next stop. The Giant Skeins sure are wonderful stuff, and selling like hotcakes!

Knitting Bug Bites

Thank you, mother nature! Cool weather is here, and I got the kniting bug. Making a set with this neck warmer, plus a pair of fingerless gloves. A gift for my stepmom, Barbara.

Message To My Fans

After being accused of neglecting my followers (har har), I am updating my blog. I have been doing lots and lots of knitting (and tatting), and even produced a pumpkin the other day! I just am a little stalled on some projects ( some of you may remember a couple of things that have never showed up finished..I am so ashamed).

Here you will see a felted slipper in Galway that I think is almost ready for frogging, since I don't like the wide stripes. Anyway, I was planning to do a solid slipper with a needle-felted monogram...so how I ended up making stripes is a mystery.

Below is a raspberry colored (YAY!) SWTC Bamboo top, called the Lotus Blossom Tank from Interweave Knits. I made it before, and I'm makin it again, I love it so much! I am also doing a SWTC Lacey Shell ( my own pattern) in Turquoise Terra, which I absolutely love for the sheen, cottony-ness (but not heavy-ness) and the comfort for wearing in the tropics is great. There are some tatted baby-bootie-bottoms-below!

OK, It's Fall..Fabulous Fibers from Fedex

Just got a huge Hand Painted Knitting Yarns shipment via FedEx. All Hand Painted (go figure!) Might I interest you in some 10 oz Giant Skeins? They are enough to make a great shawl or plenty to make one of the top down shrugs I recently made up (see below in purple for a pic). All of the sock and giant skeins have colorways named after operas: Norma, Rigoletto, Madame Butterfly, Loehengrin, Figaro, Figaro, Figaro! (I don't think there is one named Figaro!)




Who wants to knit some socks?









Right this minute, I wanna Tat! Gonna start a pair of booties if I have the right size thread. Wish me luck.

Stood Up & Stranded

I guess if you are gonna get stood up, you need to be in good place. I am. Got provisions & knitting, too.

The Cake

Might as well prove we made the cake! It looks a little different by now.

F.O.s today!

More F.O.s today. A totebag, 2 hats, and that's about it for today! Posted my shrug pattern on ravelry, too! Also went running in the morning and baked a wonderful apple cake with Lamar helping...yes, you heard me right!

Shrug pattern posted

The pattern is now posted on my ravelry patterns page. All sizes from X-Sm- to X-Lg. I think it came out great!

Finished the Shrug +++

Just finished the one-ball Giant Skein shrug. It measures 40" around and actually took LESS than one ball. I'm working on writing up the pattern right now (also working on a Michelob Ultra). Also finished a Trio knit tote. I have made these before, but this time, I am going to put a lining in it. Maybe later tonight. Also have a neat little mitered-square hat (my own design, since I couldn't find one that was just right) started in Hand Painted Knitting Yarn's Tweed Thick & Thin, as well as a RED felt hat in Cascade 220. I am not discussing all my other unfinished projects. I am sure they will all get done one day soon. I have about 3 or 4 more in my brain, just about to pop out and get onto the needles. Finish 2, start 4, right?

hello from Daytona beach!

Even though it's nighttime, I can hear the roar of the Atlantic outside. Had a wonderful weekend in Parrish, near Sarasota. Spent the labor Day weekend with great friends, really, I want them for relatives. The husband is a retired chef (his first day of work was 4/4/44!), and this just thrilled me to no end. The wife gave me so much great advice, my brain is bulging, yes, more than usual. It didn't hurt a bit to hop in the pool for a few minutes here and there. It was my personal Sanitorium (or Sanitarium?). In any case, I am cured! I took this picture of a rainbow I spotted above the Disney exit. A metaphor for how I am feeling right now. Home soon, maybe!

Busy busy busy

First I woke up at 2 AM this morning, and couldn't go back to sleep. Worked on my new website for a few hours, and later on went by the shop and finished off/started a bunch of things. Built a couple more shelving units for Rhonda, helped Nancy (a little!) with all the oodles of Cascade 220 we have to put up, did the I-Cord bind off on a nifty Trio totebag we are working on. (I had one before but it got lost somehow, and this is a new one, and will be lined this time!). Hung up the "Falling Leaves" scarf...about 1/3 done? That's it below in Blue Sky Alpaca's Melange. Also started a RED felted hat in Cascade 220, I intend to make several here shortly, before I start my felted clogs with the needle felted "H" Monogram. (or "S"!!) Best of all , I finally sewed the buttons on my Little Leafy Lace Vest (from www.sweaterbabe.com). Leaving for Tallahassee, Jacksonville and Savannah in the morning. I will come home when I am good & ready! I have several projects in my bag: some Tatted baby booties, a Hearts of Faith Scarf in South West Trading Co. "Tranquility", a Yin/Yang Shawl that requires all my powers of concentration, and thusly gets worked on rarely, a more than half-finished Amazing Hug shrug (Corn! yarn, stretchy! neat-o), and if that is not enough, a Lavender Lace & Cable top I started several months ago, and ditched to the bottom of the Namaste for my more pressing projects. Love to you all...I will be in touch. How much ya wanna bet I sleep good tonight?

What do you think of my vest? I love it. Now, let's get some more cooler weather, ok?

YES, I am home, but not for long!

Yes, I'm home....clearing the wreckage of days and days on the road, plus working at the yarn Cottage everyday. I am totally alarmed at how much weight I gained on the road. Hard to imagine why!

Something I've meant to do for a long time, and finally have done in the past couple of days, I started my own website. I think it's a cool way to make sure all my "info" is easily available to friends and customers. Yeah, I know, who cares? But maybe somebody does. I also have gobs of patterns I have written over the years, so that is a good place to post them.

I finished the Leafy Lace Vest and gonna post a pic as soon as I get some buttons for it. Everything else is still in progress as I seem to keep on starting things, not finishing much. Maybe a whole bunch will get finished at the same time someday soon. I was so proud of my sister to call & ask me to help her get started on some fingerless gloves. I started them up on a wonderful yarn, Venezia worsted, a a silk & merino blend (black, of course) (on a long circular...magic loop, which I knew she had tried once before), and mailed them off to her in Hollywood. She got them yesterday, and after a skype session with her friend Holly in England, she got going again. Talk about some international affairs!

Leaving again in a few days...this time to Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Savannah, and maybe more...here's my website....not finished yet...but a pretty good start.

not just driving!

In case anyone thinks I am just DRIVING HUNDREDS OF MILES every day, I am also knitting. What do you think of my progress so far on this new vest? It is the Little Lace Vest from http://www.sweaterbabe.com

On the road again today to http://taming-the-ewe.blogspot.com, then back to GA to my cousin Tommy's place in Smyrna. Maybe I will remember to take some pictures.

30 years in 30 minutes

Blake Gerard and I reconnected over coffee. It was great to see him and hear his 15 minute story of the last 30 years, and I told mine, too! Now we need to find Ruth Nebbia, and the circle will be complete. It is wonderful to reconnect, and the internet is a boon to all the almost-50 set (and over!). Reminiscing is hard to do when you don't have many brain cells left, and they are all dedicated to string! It helps to find some smart people who can remember more than you do!

New Pictures!

Just trying out my new camera cable & thought I'd share: the finished "Hey Teach!" sweater, a great little baby hat Paula knitted in Amaizing, a 100% Corn yarn from South West Trading, my NEW straight hair!, Nancy's gorgeous lacey bamboo scarf, my logo "Inspiration Ring", and the progress on my latest obsession, the "Little Lacey Vest" from Sweaterbabe.com, made in Plymouth Tweed. I promise to post sooner next time!

xxoo to my Twin.

My New Orleans Hideaway

I'm back! And it actually was a good trip after all. However, if you can imagine Lucille Ball lost in New Orleans, that would be me! I got lost a million times in 3 days. I gotta hand it to those folks. I thought I was kinda smart, but even the dumb ones in N.O., who can drive are smarter than me! I also spent many of my lost hours hunting for Zydeco music on the radio, and whenever I found it, I was transported to another dimension, so I really enjoyed every minute. The Marigny district ("Mare-in-ee"), where I stayed (in a wonderful apt on the right side of this duplex), is a great little place, just like Key West, I think. A funky, eclectic neighborhood, with groovy little shops, BIKE LANES and cool eateries. Bette Bornside's yarnshop is around the corner. Eat at Juan's Flying Burrito if you get to the Garden District.....strangely, it was across the street from a yarn shop I had visited the previous day, Garden District Needleworks. Another coincidence: a yarnshop employee told me, you need to go to Gallery 713 on Royal street, you have a twin. I went there, and met Heidi Young. It is true. We had lots of hugs & plenty of life-parallels, including looking very much alike. OK, I'm convinced about New Orleans' special powers. I'll be back soon.

On the Road & Missing the Shop

Hi from (just started raining BIG TIME) New Orleans. Staying with my newfound nephew Corey and his partner Tim. They have been wonderful to me, and since I am just starting this new venture, and not sure it can stay in the black yet, this is the perfect option. I need more and more newfound relatives to develop, LOL. South Florida relatives, please write soon! Maybe if I can find some Cuban relatives, I will be treated to some good grub & coffee.

In the meantime, I sure do miss the cottage, and these pics of last Tuesday's Knit & Coffee make me homesick. Save a spot for me in the "living room", ok gals? Our Kid's Camps are now part of knitting history (I think about 20 kids learned to knit & crochet this summer), so Tuesday mornings should turn back to just the grownups starting next week.

Oh, as for projects, Eebie's "antique" sweater looks nearly done, and Charlene has gotten pretty far on her 3-Button wrap. Shannon has a baby sweater in Knit Col, and a grown-up sweater in Tonalita that I really should have gotten pictures of, and Sue is re-working the crochet edge on her baby sweater. You must see the vintage pink baby dress we have hanging up...maybe Christina made it? I finished the "hey teach" short-sleeved lace cardigan sweater in eggplant Cotton Fleece (I love that stuff), but the pic is in Rhonda's camera, and the cable is temporarily missing. My own camera cable is also missing (I think I threw it away with a burger king bag on my last trip!), so a new one is on the way, in case y'all are wondering why I haven't been posting. DUH! I have just realized I can take photos with my camera. I will catch on someday. In the meantime, I have 3 other things on the needles, an Amaizing Hug in Corn yarn, a Hearts of Faith Scarf in Tranquility, which is a wool & bamboo blend, plus the Mariposa shawl in Yin & Yang, and it will be a showstopper. If only I could drive & knit.

Oh, did you know, the shop is getting Rowan yarns and more from South West Trading soon? I even think there is a fashion show in the works. Rhonda and I have been planning some knit-a-longs too. Get your 2 cents in now if you have any ideas. By for now, and I guess I will be wearing my clear clogs to visit shops today. The groovy suede shoes I brought have to stay in the car. Pouring rain. Darn you rain prayers.

1st trip tomorrow.

For those who know me, they will imagine I am all in a tizzy. Oh well, I am sure it will be fine. Today I started a bunch of new projects. A sparkly/non sparkly shawl called "Mariposa" in South West Trading Co. Yin & Yang......aaaaghh only 308 stitches across....it is a beautiful stitch, "Frost Flowers", which I've wanted to work for a looonnnngg time, now I have a good reason. Also started the "Hearts of Faith" scarf in Tranquility, PLUS, the somewhat kooky, yet really cool "Amaizing Hug" wrap in CORN "Amaizing" yarn. Yes, corn. No jokes, okay? I promise not to eat the shawl...but might have to scarf (knitting humor) a whole box of Wheat Thins next chance I get. Guess which is which, and you will get a prize. really.


I also finished the pieces for the "Hey Teach" in Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece. I sure did love that yarn. Now "just" have to sew it up & add the collar and button bands. Maybe next week. I will be on the road most of the rest of this week. It should be fun. Petal, MS, Meridian, Canton, MS, Lacombe, LA, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, LA. Lotsa good stuff. Then back at the Cottage for the Sock-A-Thon Saturday.

My HS English teacher, Frank McCourt just passed away. I wonder if when he said I should become a writer, he meant, "a string-blog writer"? I will miss him very much.

OK< this is awesome. & Red Hot.

Look at this cool thing I am knitting for Rhonda. I just can't get over it (ok, I guess I am easily amused). (and, doncha' think those two gals look JUST LIKE Shannon and Julie? I do.)

THE BOMB. WORD.

Let's see what we did today. Mitzi tore out and re-worked the "peplum" of her Willow Vest, Kid's Camp started with 6 young (and beautiful & smart!) ladies learning their knitting basics, Shannon and Julie modeled new shawls, just perfect for the weather we're having. Jan came by and we looked at her gauge. She's a brand-new lace knitter, and totally addicted after one private lesson. I say the top one looks best, and is closest to the gauge needed for the vest she is making. Jan, that's the GREEN light. Cast on! Oh, yeah, what do you think of the Knit Col colorway in the upper left? I think those are the front and back of a baby sweater. IMHO, it is THE BOMB. WORD.

BIG NEWS!

I just got a Fedex box from South West Trading yesterday. All the samples and books and yarns are here! I am so excited to get started with my new venture. The yarns are just wonderful, and every single one seems to have a special and unique natural twist to it. I will be the SouthEAST rep (LA-MS-AL-GA-FL) for South West Trading, www.soysilk.com ....just wait, more yarn companies and pattern companies later!

Flying Fur and Cozy Necks

Lots of Fiber fun again today at the Cottage. The Chain Gang met again , and under the strict supervision of Julie, churned out a couple of lovely scarves. I think 3 or 4 were finished, but not everyone wanted to model. This crowd always makes me think of my fondest memories with my mother, learning to knit & crochet (we didn't do it well, but we had a lots of laughing fits, as I recall!). We received another blanket for the Baldwin County Care House, and I finished the yellow February Baby Sweater (no picture?), and also the dog sweater vest, which I put on, just to see if it was ok...it was ok! Woof! What fun (and flying fur!). It was a big day, and lots of old (ok, middle aged) friends stopped by. Hugs all around.

February Baby in July

Today, I finished off the February Baby Sweater, and while I was working on the final rows, in walks this Mom & her little "February Baby". River was wearing a green one, but her Mom was smart...short sleeves, rather than the 4" called for in the pattern...oh, how I wish I had done that! She and her sweater were just beautiful.

We also loved the Adriafil Knit Col shrug that Nancy is working on!

Trying to Hear Which Yarn is Calling Out "Me SKIF"

I think that front one on the left could be our store sample SKIF. Not sure yet.

Well, That's Just SKIFY!

You won't believe these kooky patterns. All avante-garde and strange. I am planning on making one right away, probably in one of the yarns we just got from South West Trading...I think the drape of a soy or bamboo is going to look extra cool & groovy on my new SKIF. I believe in always making the THING YOU CAN'T BUY. I am pretty sure you can't buy a sweater like these, anywhere around here...but I could be wrong. Maybe you can, for about $500 or so. Oh, and the patterns come with your funky metal tags & buttons, too. It will feel pretty strange to knit all those funny hanging off pieces. Oh my...that is going to mess with my Libra soul for sure. Then I will have to try hard to keep a straight face while wearing it. Maybe I will wear my sunglasses all day, and a ponytail on one side of my head. At least just for the blog picture.

One Skein Wonders

Look what Megrez Rudolf has been doing with her spare time! They are from a "One Skein" project book. Adorable!

Finishing Jobs Galore!

This sweater is made from dog hair spun in to yarn. Really! Amazing...I am sewing it together and adding the neck & sleeve edgings. What a special way to remember Fido (or Fluffy?) My dog Purl could make enough for one of these in a week. Contact the shop if you want to know where to get your dog's hair spun into yarn.

Ok, this is the "after" of one of the sweaters below. The green one has gone back to the drawing board. The sleeves don't match the armholes....by a long shot. Shall we make a vest instead? Or maybe the sleeves can be knitted (& increased) some more, or the front & back can be unravelled and made shorter. This is the problem. The armholes should be 9" tall, but they are 12". That amounts to a 6" shortfall in the size of the sleeves. Measure twice, knit once.

More and More....

I am not mentioning, "Rhonda has lost her marbles", but you might wanna come see what the UPS man has brought. Lots and Lots of Blue Sky Alpaca, the softest yarns you have ever seen, and very special for the most special knits ever. This is before the yarn got put out. I am sure it won't last.

Also got the new Clover circular for sock knitting. You can knit the whole sock on a teensy high quality circular (not 2 needles, not 4 needles, not 5 needles), small enough to knit adult socks. You only have to change to DPNs at the very end of the toe. Check em out.

Frances Grace Must Have Been Listening

Frances Grace came to her Mom's knitting lesson. She wasn't the least bit interested, and studied a game on her I-Phone during the whole lesson. That's cool, I thought, sometimes a person just is NOT into it. Later on, her Mom ran into a little trouble. "here, Mom, let me show you what to do...". That was Frances Grace.....I guess she was picking up knitting even though it did not seem like it! She is now hopelessly "into it", and here is her project, CHECK IT OUT!! AWESOME, RIGHT?

Hard Working Knit & Crochet Chain Gang

Angela is almost done with her blanket for Baldwin County Carehouse, and we think it is pretty close to perfect, if not actually 100% perfect. Ileana, and I hope I spelled that right, is doing a great job on her first crochet work (oops...I think it is her 2nd class, so don't get mad I said "first"). I am totally amazed at how good these kids are. Rhonda is warning me, I may have to look for a new job once they get trained up on their knitting & crochet. I noticed they were studying how to use the ball winder awfully closeley. It is a shame, because the pay is so good. I got the February Baby sweater very close to done, (ok, I might be exaggerating a little, but there is no proof, because I neglected to take a picture. Maybe next time. I could get the "Hey Teach" sweater (eggplant Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece) into the lace part over the holiday weekend, and then it will be an occasion for an in-progress photo shoot. I also have 3 big finishing jobs to do for the shop. Maybe I will post photos of those, too! For some reason, I think some people are actually reading this mess! Thanks, everyone, you made my day.

Something Fun to Try

Here is something fun I just came across:
Finger Knitting Video from YouTube

Now, what projects can you make from it?

FO's and WIPS

Here is Eebie's Silky Merino shell. I love the way she added extra to the bottom border. She did it after the fact, for more length, but we think it is a great improvement to the basic top pattern. Way to go! Also she is working a "St. John's Wort" sweater in lavender, from Interweave, on "antique" yarn. I am thinking it will be awesome. I just love the big collar. Great work.









Later, we had a visit from my dear friend, Elisabet. She is making a fishies baby blanket, and it is ready for the sewing up. We tried out some different ways to attach the fishies. It won't be long til it's done. Berroco Comfort yarn, and it is very very soft & beautiful. Wish that new grandbaby would hurry up! The baby is about the size of a peanut right now.

Just Knitting Along...

Not so much new lately, except for a very busy first Monday open at the Yarn Cottage. I worked on my two current projects, and of course started another. Here is the current status of the Lace & Cable top, which I have just picked up again after a (one month) haitus, and the half done February Baby Sweater in Swedish yarns Bomull Sport. I am doing the February Baby (from EZ's Knitter's Almanac) because of the popularity of the "February Lady" sweater, which we have hanging up at the shop in Cascade Greenland. It sure is a fun pattern to make, and pretty easy (see buttonholes problem below! LOL). I should be able to get the other sleeve done today & get into the body section, which is a breeze. Oh, I forgot the buttonholes (oops!) gonna put in a grosgrain band with snaps, I think. Good save, Rhonda! You gotta see the Great Adirondack rayon ribbon scarf she is making up. As for the lace & cable top (a download from Vogue Knitting) in purple, it is kinda strange....you work across the top from sleeve to sleeve (the cables run horizontally, and that opening is the neck, about halfway to the other side & getting back into one piece), then sew the underarms, then work down from there. I am doing it in a nice cotton/acrylic blend dk I have had in my stash for a long time. The other one I started isn't so interesting yet, but it's an eggplant colored "Hey Teach" sweater, which is lacey & has short sleeves. I think it should take 4 balls of Cotton Fleece, which is really nice to work with.