One Jay

Since it's the day after her birthday, I'm still humoring the little woman, as I sometimes call MJ. Her first question this morning, upon arriving at work was, "Is my sock on the internet yet?" (meaning here, in the blog).

"Um... no..." I replied with some shame.

"Why not?!" with much indignation.

So, without further ado, here's her first knitted sock, in all its glory. Have I mentioned how much I love this yarn with this pattern?

Has anyone else noticed that Ravelry likes to crop photos, even if you use the little drag and drop thingee? That's why the sock isn't any bigger in that photo. I'm trying to figure out what the right size for Ravelry might be.

For the unJayed out there, here's a close-up. It's a very simple pattern. Row one is knit all the way around, and row two repeats on each of the four needles (assuming dpns). The colors are a little deeper and darker in person, but you know the drill with me and my lack of photography skills.

The mate is coming right along. They won't match, because I have no idea where in the skein that thinnish pink band (at top of sock #1) happens. In the second sock, it's an EVEN THINNER band, of the likes not seen in sock #1, more like the very narrow pink band in the foot of sock #1. So, I decided not to even try to match 'em up. The colors are the same dye lot, and she'll wear them with jeans and clogs most of the time, so...

Also, don't forget Anne's contest ends on the 15th! I'm glad I didn't have time to enter before we left for the beach, because this pattern is going to be one of mine, even though I know Anne isn't likely to suddenly take up socks any time soon.

Second Wind

For those of you dear souls who actually read all of my posts, this is really a continuation of the Marathon post below. Otherwise, jump in! There's actual knitting content here.

First though, we have to take care of some coffee swap business. Holly wants to know:

As the cold of winter approaches, do you change the projects you work on? Do you work on gifts for others or do you continue working on projects for yourself?

You mean other than socks?! I'm supposed to be doing some lace and other holiday knitting, but there are November/early December birthdays that require some knitting too. I'm not working on anything for me right now, and the goal is to not knit for myself until after the holiday knits AND my Pay it Forward knits are complete. As this was my first calendar year of knitting, I did find myself picking non-wool, smaller items in the heat of summer, save socks of course.

No, I haven't finished the Jaywalker yet, but thanks for asking. It seemed like a good plan at the time to knit my child-footed mother inlaw's socks on #0s, but - DUH? - little needles mean little stitches, which all adds up to taking forever to knit one friggin' sock. I do love the pattern, so that helps, but after whipping out the Knight's pair in no time, this is a humbling reminder that even short woman socks can take a long time.

So how 'bout those finished Fred socks? They're lovely, the really are. (And yes, the Knight wanted them that short.)

Details:

Pattern - Beaded Rib from Sensational Socks.

Changes - I'm in love with the magic cast-on from Cat Bordhi, so that's what I used. Yes, toe-up, with a short-row heel.

Needles - Size #2 circs, my Harmonys.

Yarn - Alabama Fiber's custom, Fred's Yarn

And now, those pesky, tiny Jaywalkers. They're being done in KnitPicks' Felici, in Hummingbird. I am in love with this pattern. It might replace the Monkey as my favorite sock pattern, but you know I'm fickle. I'm almost done with the foot decreases now, and with a not quite size five ladies shoe as my goal and a 2" toe, I really think I can finish them tonight. That is of course, if I quit blogging and return to knitting, but a girl's gotta' eat, right? I can blog and eat, but I can't knit and eat, so cut me some slack, will ya'?

The other thing that slows me down on these socks is about every ten rows or so, I have to stop and admire 'em. If I didn't know that I'd get to see them nearly every time they're worn, I don't know if I could give them up. Soft yarn, pretty stripes... Yeah, that's why they call it yarn porn. I do have more Felici for the Knight - in the Firefighter colorway! - but I'm thinking I need another colorway for me too. I might not get around to knitting them in the next decade, but when I do, I'll love the way this yarn and this pattern groove together!

I'm doing beach laundry and missing the sound of the waves breaking. So to console myself, I offer this:

It's the view off the front porch on a clear day. I miss you, OBX. The good news is, we'll be back. My aunt and I spent 40 minutes on the phone today, talking about the beach. They're headed down tomorrow for a couple of days.

Last, but hardly least, I offer some evidence of non-knitting crafting. I've mentioned before that a group of us gathers monthly to scrap and stamp. Last night, they got all organized and we had both a scrapping "take away" and a stamping workshop. I know some of you enjoy those crafts too, so here's what we did:

Creative Memories door journal box:

Stampin' Ups gift tags and card:

Please note all of the purple. Gah! It's growing on me. Especially when paired with a green, I'm starting to like it. Not that I had a choice; these colors were pre-selected for the mini workshop.

Well, dinner's done, so that means I should wrap it up here and return to the sock. Thanks for reading!

Everything's Better at the Beach

Before I wax poetic, I must mention Anne's latest contest. Scoot over and talk patterns and get in on another of Anne's great prizes.

First, some sock love. It's kinda' ironic to be grinding out socks at the beach, where socks aren't much of a priority for me, but I was delighted to finish my second Tofutsie, after so very much ado. Isn't it pretty?! (There's no sun at the beach today. Sorry.) Mugsy's beach towel is a rather blah background, but the socks are colorful enough for everything.

That takes us straight to Fred's Yarn in the Knight's socks. It's a low-maintenance pattern for a no-frills guy, the beaded rib from Sensational Socks. The second sock is well underway, and I hope to finish it tonight during House.

The Knight earned another jewel for his shield again today. First stop: Knitting Addiction. Sigh. We're just going to have to come down here often enough to call it my LYS. Maybe beaches just have great yarn shops (Knitting Up a Storm, Myrtle Beach), or maybe there's just no LYS like a shop owned and operated by a female volunteer fire fighter. I wanted one of everything, but paced myself, a bit. The first shot is of the wrap pattern I couldn't resist and the yarn Jeanne helped me me select for it. She wound everything almost without asking; a simple, "Here, I'll wind that while you continue shopping" began what I hope will be a real friendship.

There were a couple of if they see it they'll know it is for them purchases, but here's the rest of my haul. I'm sure several of you recognize the Blue Sky Cotton. This color just called my name, and will most likely become Cass's eye pillow. My Bryspuns are my favorite straights, so I've always wanted to try the circs. If they are so wonderful, I'll be calling Jeanne; she does ship.

I'll be doing a "real" write-up for the LYS review blog in due time, but folks, if you're ever anywhere near the Outer Banks, North Carolina, stop in. I can't believe this shop is only a mile from my aunt's beach house, so I'm calling it my LYS, and it will be another reason to swing down this way as often as possible. While chatting with me about a mutual friend and winding my yarn, Jeanne greeted the regulars by name, and helped two other customers. I don't think any of us felt jilted; she easily and graciously multitasked as only a great woman can do.

Our Little Devil!

The Knight and I both thought it was the perfect costume. The Prince had other ideas. (Maybe next year, I'll make a felted crown instead?) Yep, that is Pop's hand you see on the right, helping Mugsy pose for the ding dang photo.


Okay, it's too small. We were pretty sure our boy needed a large, but there were none to be found in the costumes we liked. The extra large looked huge. (Note to self: Mugsy ain't skin 'n bones.) So, it wasn't comfortable, and the head piece fit not at all, really. That didn't stop my mother inlaw (let's call her MJ since everyone else has some sort of name) and Pop from TRYING to cram Mugsy's thick neck and swelled head into the bit o' fabric.

It COULD have been a cute costume. See the potential?!


We did have one "treater." It's hard to even threaten a trick or treat when you're about a pound and move from one human's hands to another. Abby's sweater fits perfectly! I'm tickled pink, as I had to really fudge the pattern to attempt to make it small enough for the bitty gal. The fact that she moves comfortably in this sweater makes me happier than you can imagine. There's room for a bit of growth, but a slightly larger wool version in self-striping sock yarn is in my queue.

Facts:

Pattern - Dandy Dog Sweaters, Mocked Cable by Fiber Trends
Needles - size 6 straights, size 5 dpns
Yarn - TLC Baby in White Sparkle
Modifications - Too many to list. Everything was shorter.

An exceptionally quick knit, and truly, probably the most gratifying yet. Abby is content, her owners are stupid-happy, enough so that they brought her up to our house (gee, a whopping 1/2 mile away!) for me to see.

Now, back to packing. The laptops are going, as is the never-ending Tofutsie sock (I love this yarn and pattern, and I hate that it keeps getting shuffled aside!), Fred's Yarn for the Knight's sock, and a certain blue alpaca lace. MJ's birthday socks might go too, because I plan on lots of down time, which means lots of knitting. Transit to and from alone will afford me 8 hours of knitting!

PS - If I settle on a yarn for the cabled headband, that's going too.

FO, WIP and More

Before the FO-news: Rush over to Robin's blog and catch her contest. Let's really shock her with the number of comments!

Well, D-snuggle is finished, and it worked well this morning on the way to work and again on the cold, poured concrete floor in the office. (It works well enough at home that the Prince would rather not be disturbed for posing.)

The vitals:

Yarn: Ella Rae Amity. I liked it well enough for this project, but it doesn't drape well enough for anything other than blankies and snuggles. It felt good enough sliding through my fingers, but it's got that acrylic "fuzz" thing going on. There were knotted joins in both skeins, which again, for a snuggle Mugsy is going to dig and scratch in is fine, but I definitely wouldn't be pleased if I was using it for a sweater for me, which was the reason I wanted to try this yarn.

Needles: The trust KP Options with the metal tips this time, because Anne warned that I'd need to scratch and dig a bit on those P3 combos. I don't think I split more than a couple of stitches, and they were easily fixed.

Pattern: Mostly Anne's, but I did cast on 121 stitches and knitted until Mugsy's rump was covered. I can't say enough about this cushy daisy stitch, which is wonderfully dense enough to keep a sweet doggy bottom warm on a cold floor or car seat.

Then, I cast on several times, with three different yarns, for little neighbor Abby's first coat. It's a Fiber Trends pattern, done with a sport weight yarn instead of worsted, so it should be small enough to fit the wee lass. Of course, the great thing about knitting for little ones is be they human or canine, I'm about halfway on the back portion now. (Not in this photo, but we had a brief DSL not working episode.) It's very girly, and I wouldn't want to wear this stuff next to my skin - the flecks of color are rather coarse - but I think Abby will enjoy it.

Then, there are the flowers. The Knight made me move them off the kitchen island, so the photo isn't as great, because I couldn't just shove my nose and the camera into the blooms, but what's a girl to do!? The man wanted room to cook, and who am I to argue!?

Last, but oh so hardly least, my little splurge on more NH Knitting Mama yarn arrived today. You can get your own here. I am looking forward to knitting with the alpaca lace next week, and if that jade is still there, watch out!!

Anne's Sleeping Bag

After weeks of photoless whining and teasing, I can finally share Anne's Felted Bag with you. She knew I was her spoiler as she was the lone hostess for this swap , and it feels as though a lot of October has been devoted to this project. I had hoped to have it done so it would arrive in her hands on her birthday, but such is life, and lucky, the Bag Lady knows how these things go.

Firstly, I must apologize to my friend. The bag did look better when it left here, but the photo on Anne's blog just turns my stomach. Pout. I hope she knows I honestly wouldn't have sent her such a train wreck of a bag, and I hope her Bag Lady skills will allow her to restore it to something more akin to what left here. Obviously, my concerns about it still being damp within somewhere were well-founded.



We'll start at the end and work our way back. There's the finished product, which pleases me more than I thought it would. This is the Plymouth blah blah pattern, and let me be clear; I CANNOT recommend this pattern to anyone. Awful ain't the word. There are errors in the chart and no errata to be found, although I think I was able to figure out how to make the assorted cables mirror each other, within the rows and top to bottom.



The little pop of green at the top? Yeah, well, pictured on the pattern photo, but NOT written into the pattern, so I kinda' guessed, and made the green wider than I really wanted it, but it's all good. The straps? Um, yeah. I made them THREE times as long as the pattern called for. Who on earth does a 35 row strap on a felted bag?! Also, a bag this size really should be done in a bulky yarn or two strands of worsted, and I'll know better in the future, not that I'll do this pattern again. No way. I hope Anne finds it acceptable and can use it to store yarn in or something, but it's not even worth trying to modify for future use.



The details:



Yarn: Patons Wool. Six balls of dark grey, and two balls of bottle green, with the last ball of each barely getting used. I did have to buy an extra ball of the grey, as the pattern called for five, and I have this annoying habit of knitting VERY loosely for felted projects. Loved the way this felted up, with more heft than I would have predicted, but DANG this stuff sheds. In desperation, I did run it through the dryer on no heat for a few minutes, which helped tremendously. I also ran one of those shaver muh-bobs over it.



Needles: Knitpicks Options, in both metal and the sweet Harmonys. My knitting did tighten up some with the Harmonys, and I'm liking those very much. Size #10.5, 32 inch circs.


Pattern: Plymouth Celtic Felted Tote, #P635



New skills: You can't see it in the final product, but I will likely take the time (and it is laborious) to do an i-cord bind-off on all my felted bags in the future. Great little trick, that.



This is also my first cabled project, and I enjoyed cables, but not the way this pattern was written. The bottoms and tops of the diamonds were sloppy, and I don't know that I did anything wrong. (Really don't like this pattern, just in case you missed that.) I'm looking forward to doing a cabled headband and other cables very soon.



I also had to do an infinite amount of seaming. Each corner and each cable, inside and out, had to be drawn together to give it that little bit of texture. I like it, and had the bag not felted from 34"x 24" to 17" x 13" , I think it would have shown up a bit better.



The handles were a neat trick. Each one is two straps, with different yarn-over patterns, so that they easily weave together. The end result is beautiful, I think, and it makes a solid, double-thick handle for this still very large tote.



This monster was truly a labor of love, and I'm sorry to tell any future felted bag pals that I don't think you should count on a tote. I enjoy smaller bags a lot more. Mugsy was kinda' hoping it would be his new bed, and had it not felted better than expected, that was a serious possibility. Some orthopedic foam shoved in there with the top stitched shut, and he would have had labor-intensive dog bed.



Also, can anyone tell me why most of my bags have such a floppy, stretched-out top? We didn't tug on this one much at all, except to widen it at the center, where the cable drew in so much, but all of my felted bags have this ruffly top, to some degree.

The promised how big is it really shot. Folks, I'm 5'3" if that helps you wrap your mind around how big this was prior to felting.



Anners, I wish it had turned out more like the photo on the pattern, and I hope again you can restore it to what it looked like when it left here. Pout.

Shrug This and Cuff It

Only because Amanda is awesome, and she wanted to see the shrug made in her yarn... Y'all know I'm not apt to win any photography awards. The Knight rushed off to the firehouse, because he has crew AND bingo duty tonight, and his good friend was there "opening" alone, so I was stuck trying to get a photo by myself, of myself. I tried outside, but it just wasn't happening. I think between the three, you get the idea. I lurvers it, and will be wearing it as soon as Mary reclaims her oppressive, unseasonable heatwave. I'm quite certain even my mother inlaw could snap a shot that would do the shrug, the yarn and me more justice, so keep checking back for a "real" photo. Gals of all sizes, this is the shrug pattern for you. Adjust the gauge a bit either way, and you can make this shrug fit your frame. I am exceptionally pleased with the way the perfect yarn and pattern met in this little semi-garment!

In other knitting news, in the precious few minutes the Knight did spend sitting in his recliner checking email, I *FINALLY* finished the first Tofutsie's August sock of the month, in the featured pattern Summer Daze. It's my first toe-upper, and I'm in love. See the ruffly little cuff?! How cute is that?! And the colorway is as close to true as I've seen anywhere online. There's some of everything in there, even orange.

It fits like a dream. (I swear my calves are not small tree trunks. Hagrid is not a part of my family tree! I actually rotated the photo 180 degrees, so maybe?!? Yeah. Let's blame it on that.) Some have fussed about the pooling in this colorway, with this pattern, but I don't mind at all. It's a cheery, busy, comfy sock, and I might just ignore Anne's bag this week and see if I can't churn out the mate in time to wear it before we get another tropical heat wave. I can't wait to try more of Deby's patterns, especially her yet to be released shawl pattern, done in Tofutsies yarn.

The good news is my October Tofutsies Sock Club yarn shipped out on Friday, so it should be here tomorrow. It's a green and black colorway, so I'm excited! Of course, I still have several balls of Tofutsies in the stash...

PS - Any spots on the mirror or other visible grime must be forgiven. I had to use the Knight's bathroom, as mine would have had echoes back and forth from the two mirrors, and I think y'all know why he didn't care to clean his bathroom this past weekend.

Back to Knitting Content

Quite a bit of knitting happened over the weekend. I finished my beautiful shrug Saturday, and I need to remind you that Amanda has opened an Etsy shop, so now you too can create beautiful things with her semi-solid colorways! I hope to talk the Knight into taking a shot or two of me wearing the shrug this afternoon, but it's supposed to be about 90 degrees then, so we'll see.

Here, it is displayed on the wrought iron chair on the deck. It stretches, oh my does it stretch! That's a good thing, because I'm not a waif. Still, I think it looks great on too. It's warm though. Very warm. When the temperature drops later this week, I will appreciate that.

I can't tell you how much I enjoyed knitting with the NH Knitting Mama's yarn. Follow the above link to her Etsy shop and get some of your own; you won't be sorry. The pattern was by Dream in Color, and I used #9 KnitPick Options, with a 32" cord. I think a 24" cord would do, but evidently, I don't have one. I used the metal tips here, as I don't have any tips in the Harmony Options yet, save the flawed #10.5s, which are being replaced as we speak/type/read. I am now eager to tackle more lace and "real" fitted knits.

I also snagged some great stitch markers for a pal, and some custom-made earrings for a Christmas gift (see?! I've started shopping!), and sweet Anita also included a notepad, which I adore. (We happen to share a last name; how cool is that?!) You can secure your own Yarndemon creations here.

Aren't these guys darling?! (Squint through one eye. Maybe then the photo quality won't be such a hindrance.) In case your imagination is weak, they're little Scotties, which will be happy earrings for someone in a couple of months.

Of course, there are other friends on Etsy too. Mary is working on some row counters for me, and anyone else with similar desires, and Jessi is working on something very special too. It's even better than having a personal shopper; I'll never settle for a yarn or stitch markers that aren't exactly what I want again. (And they'd do the same for you. Really.)

Constant Vigilance

SWS felts in a HURRY. I timed it, and in a bit over three minutes, the bag was felted, tightly so. Not a stitch defined, anywhere. My hot water is pretty hot, but I can still fish the pillow case out bare-handed, so I think it's the yarn, I really do. I'm almost tempted to felt it on the delicate cycle next time, just because this way requires constant vigilance!

This is the Sophie pattern, basically. I'm calling it the Not-So Sophie, because I like a shallow, barely bigger than my wallet bag that fits snugly under my arm, on my shoulder. I dropped about 12 rounds, so I decreased at 10, 20, 30, 35 and 40 rounds, and bound off after round 42. It took right at two balls of SWS, or 2oo+ yards. The colorway is Natural Navy, done on #10.5 circs, with the same sized dpns for the i-cord.

I felt in a polyester, king-size pillow case, tied shut, with four of Mugsy's tennis balls thrown in to beat it up a bit. I add about two tablespoons of soap powder and wash on hot/cold. Then, with the Knight's help, I stretch and pull it into the shape of choice. Anything in the house can serve as the "form" during the drying phase. If it fits into the bag and looks approximately like what I want in the end, it's called into action.

I also took this shot for you. SWS is a great yarn for felting, but because of this very trait, I can't imagine using it for non-felted items. A pal made me a sock bag in SWS - unfelted - and I think I might line it for future use. The early fall edition of Creative Knitting has a cardigan/jacket done in SWS on the cover. No way. It would pill and shed too badly for practical wear, I'm certain! I didn't do anything but hold that bag in my lap while knitting away on it, and you can see how fuzzy the bottom is, and how that one "blonde" strand pulled itself loose. Of course, thanks to the nature of felting, the finished product reveals none of these little secrets, and is rock solid, tough and ready for my daily use.

I don't get the names Patons uses for SWS colorways. There's no navy in this wad of color. Purple (gasp! it's true!), lots of tan and taupe that thankfully turned a solid, warm brown, a touch of grey, and the black in the unfelted version just felted into a dark grey. Still, even with the purple, I'm very pleased with the results. It's a bit deeper than my summer Sidekick, and it won't show dirt. Perfect.

No More Monkeyn' Around

With a nod to my Knitter's Knight for the photo, here are the Monkeys. Done. They are a titch big on me, so I hope that means they'll fit with the negative ease my Sock it to Me pal says she likes. I don't mind pooling, so I hope she doesn't either. Sorry for the blindingly white legs, but that's what I have. They brighten up the photo anyway.

The stats: Knitpicks Memories, in the Red Hat colorway. Size 2.5mm/#1.5 dpns, the bamboo Addis. Only a few yards left over. Each size 9 sock took nearly a whole ball. I enjoyed the Monkey pattern, but have decided that for me, toe-up, short-row heels fit better. (But hey! These aren't for me...)

So, the socks and their pals will hit the road tomorrow, along with my tea pal's package, and my portion Jessi's prizes for winning the bingo game. Congrats again girl!

Now, if you'll excuse me, it's past my bedtime.

Sweet Cherry Bag

Can you see the cute little cherries on the ribbon? Squee! I hope my pal will enjoy that little touch. The package is ready to ship out tomorrow, save a note and some tissue paper. But let me tell you, CotLin is the only linen of any blended sort for me. Sigh. It slides on through, comparable to any of the " - & dairy product" cottons, and I bet one wash would find it snuggly soft. I see a fitted item for me in this very color, maybe, next spring. Try it for the extra-special cloths you might be giving as gifts, or treat yourself; you deserve it! I am amazed at how it costs less and feels worlds better, but don't take my word for it. Order some and try it for yourself.

In case you missed it the first time, this is Amanda's "Mandy's Candy Bag" pattern. You can also find it on Ravelry.

So, a little accountability check here. Tea swap - ready to ship out tomorrow. Sock it to Me - half way there on the socks, some shopping left to do, and really should ship by next Saturday to arrive before October 5th. Vegan swap - Do thoughts count? I've thought a lot about what to get my friendly pal, and I do have some yarn for her, and it needs to ship before October 15th. SP11 - Package #1 shipped out earlier this week. I already have one item for the final package, and have "commissioned" something for her with one of my truly artistic/crafty friends, to be a Halloween themed package. Should ship before the 15th too. My Felted Bag package has a personal deadline which the pal should be able to guess, but I think I've already told you I'm not talking about that swap here, right? ;)

Whew. Wow. I'm shocked. After Monkey #2, which should be done within the next week, I will have time to cast on for the Knight's birthday (or Christmas if I miss the first deadline) surprise, my felted bag pal's bag, finish my Summer Daze Tofutsies, and begin holiday knitting. The light at the end of the tunnel isn't a train!

Now, to cast on for that #2.

Let's Go to Vegas!

Luck is a man. He's hot, and he's dancing with me. I wonder if the Knight would like to skip work and scoot to Charlestown? He's a natural card shark, and Luck is with me.

PHEW. That's me, breathing a sigh of relief. Amanda got her socks, and they fit! It was a great little pattern, and I'll be doing it again when ankle socks seem in season. It does my heart good to know that the second pair of socks made for someone else fits. That means that statistically (did I mention before that I love statistics, the math concept?), I should stop fretting over the Monkey socks for my Sock it pal. They fit me, and I wear very "average" socks, and pal says she does too. The wicked Knight suggested I should keep them, but I won't. With a little luck, by week's end, both my Sock it pal's package and my Tea pal's package will head in their directions.

And speaking of Sock it to Me, guess what?! I hereby renounce my right to pout out loud that I never win anything. Contest #2 simply required me to gush about my favorite yarn. In return, I've won gift certificates to here and here! Thank you, thank you!!


There's really not a lot to report here, but what else to do in the middle of the night when sleep is elusive? Monkey #1 will be done Tuesday evening, and my search continues for just the right things to send with them. I bought the ribbon for my Mandy's Candy Bag Monday night. Those of you who scrap or sew already know you can buy ribbon with ANYTHING on it, but I was still filled with toddleresque glee when I spotted it. No, you can't see, but you'll get a finished object photo soon enough, maybe even in the next day or two!

My Little Hero

Meet my little hero. He's from Vermont Teddy Bear Company. There's a great, long story about how our fire company ended up in this program, but that's for another day. You can check out the Friends for Life website for more information. However, today he's not waiting to comfort a scared child; he's showing off my latest finished object. It's a child-sized hat for Amy's project, Warm Up Winchester. Please pop over and check it out. They've already reached Amy's initial goal, but I hope there are lots of late-term folks like me, because I'd really like to shock Amy and Winchester with about double her goal!

The hat is the quick and easy pattern in Knitting for Peace (thanks again, Mary!) I used #7 dpns and Lion Brand Wool-ease in a blue heather of unknown origins. I think (hope?) I have enough left to knit myself one of these rolled brimmed cuties. Mugsy and I have had a slacker's summer, so with 40 degree temperatures in the upcoming week, we'll need warmer walking gear very soon!


So, I'm in the same boat I was in at the end of the last post; what to knit next? I may try the heel again, since Anne had good luck with hers and shared good pictures so I have an idea of what it should look like when it is right. In the meantime, we'll keep watching House season 2.

Dishcloth Square Blocks

Meet Dishcloth Square Blocks. Or at least, that's what I'm calling him. He's #2 in what seems to be a weekly series of dishcloth patterns, being designed by Anne. He's done in Lion Cotton Red, with #7 straight needles, in my very Continental method. You can find the pattern here, but be sure to note the contest rules for both cloths.



And don't worry. He's not going to live on the tree. The Knight has already claimed him as his own, and I suspect that before the sun sets, DSB will have been called into action.



I was impressed with the Lion Cotton. It was soft! I'll have to see if I can't find some more, since I don't recall where I picked up this ball, but I do remember that it was the only color they offered...



Now, what next?? You're not going to get to see Amanda's socks while she's on vacation. That just doesn't feel right. If she was here to taunt - er, make that see them herself - that might be different, but since she's out in the middle of the ocean enjoying some alone time with her beloved, I think the socks will just quietly head north on Monday, and you can pop over to her blog for a shot of the finished pair. I *NEED* to start on my Sock it to Me pal's socks, but her yarn won't be here until next week. I am going to send my pal a little package next week too, but the socks obviously won't be included. I guess that forces me to figure out what I'm going to knit for my tea swap pal, huh?