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Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Completion Issues

I finally completed my ongoing and what seemed like forever socks using Three Irish Girls Adorn Sock Yarn which I loved knitting with....very soft yet sturdy and best of all, no knots halfway through a sock.  There is nothing worse than sailing along at a brisk (or at least as brisk as my sock knitting gets) pace only to realize that there's a cursed knot which necessitates re-joining the new piece of yarn.  I always worry that at that point the sock will someday just separate and then it's ladders galore.  The colorway is Bread & Butterflies and it's just my type of colors.  I always tend toward the bright colors with lots of purples, lavenders, light greens, light blues, etc. so this one fit the bill.


I used my pal Kathy's Vanilla Socks pattern which turned out great, one more time. She is so talented and can knit so beautifully.....check out her blog and see some of the beautiful creations she's knit.

As for a few other completions, the pickins' are lean, so to speak.  I don't crank them out like other knitters, apparently, but I did complete a pair of mittens for one of my grandsons and they turned out quite nicely.  I'm not totally satisfied with the thumbs I've knit but hopefully they will get better as time goes on and I try different patterns which have different approaches for the thumb portion.
I'm currently knitting a hat for another grandson but the progress on it isn't a lot just yet.  For the mittens and hat I'm using up leftover yarns and it feels good to get some of these used up.....I have quite a big bag full of different amounts of leftovers so I could go on knitting hats, mittens, etc. for quite some time before even making a dent but I guess many of my fellow knitters out there have the same situation when it comes to leftover yarns.  UPDATED:  I completed the hat, yea!

Right now I'm considering knitting a Christmas stocking for one of my kid's spouses because they've been asking me for one for quite awhile but with 7 grandchildren, I've had plenty of Christmas stockings to knit so perhaps this is the time to surprise a certain someone who will remain nameless for the purposes of this blog.  In the meantime, knit away and have a very happy day!

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Summer Time

Time certainly flies when spring and summer roll around and I've been pretty lax keeping up with my blog.  I have been knitting and crocheting but not as much as I seem to accomplish in the fall and winter months.  I completed sock # 1 using Three Irish Girls fingering hand dyed yarn in the Bread & Butterflies colorway.....it's a joy to knit with.  However, I don't complete my socks quickly.....it's a now and then project so they can take anywhere from 1 to 3 months or more.  I know this must shock those who seem to turn out a pair of socks in 2 to 3 weeks, but that's the unvarnished truth when it comes to my knit socks.


I'm about 1/2 way down the leg portion of sock #2 , so I'm guessing we're looking at completion some time in October, yes, October.  I haven't decided whether these are going to be a Christmas gift or if I'm keeping them for moi yet.

Also, since I'm trying to work on only 2 projects at the same time so as to complete them before moving on to another UFO, it's a bit slow going, as I'm sure my fellow crafters can appreciate.  I have so many unfinished objects and I'm beginning to realize that before I can begin new projects, these items are calling out to me.  Thus, here is my measly progress on my baby shells blanket....I'm finally at the halfway mark so there is a dim light at the end of the tunnel, but I do enjoy crocheting this so that's what I am focused on.  There's about double completed than what is showing in the picture below but I need to take a new picture and put it here.



Otherwise, I've been trying out different crocheted coasters, a weakness of mine.  I love trying out new patterns and hook sizes and yarns and one can never have enough coasters, yes?




Monday, April 15, 2013

Working on Unfinished Knits & Crochets

I recently completed (at long last, that is) my second Opal sock and here is a picture showing you the great colors in this yarn.  I'm giving these to my darling daughter for her birthday in September and I know she'll love slipping them on when the weather turns cooler! ♥
So that frees me to begin finishing some many neglected UFO's.  I began this continuous granny blanket at least 2 years ago and didn't get very far before stashing it away.  I am now working on it once again and plan to complete it this time around.  The yarn is Jaeger's Extra Fine Merino, DK weight and I'm using a size G hook so the progress is a bit slower than usual but very lovely, nonetheless.


I'm also crocheting a baby Shells blanket using Caron's Simply Soft yarn which makes for a very light yet very soft yarn to eventually be next to a baby's delicate skin.  I fell in love with this pattern so I started it about 4 months ago.  This isn't one of my older unfinished projects but I want to complete it so I'll be working on these 2 and post pics of my progress from time to time.



So, until we meet again, be well and be happy and knit (and/or) crochet to your heart's content.


Thursday, February 14, 2013

Mid February Already!

I had thought I'd try and post more often here on my blog but all good intentions seem to disappear and before I know it, a month or two has flown by!  Ahh well, here is my post for anyone left out there who might still read my blog.  I've been knitting and crocheting on a fairly regular basis and the gauntlets you see below are one of the fruits of my labors.
I joined a KAL (Knit-a-Long) on Ravelry and proceeded to knit the Downton Abbey gantlets with the help of the KAL leader, Kristin, and all of the great people on Ravelry......knitters are such great people, so very helpful and friendly.  The KAL was run by Jimmy Beans Wool and they are one of the best and most helpful knitting sites on the web, in my humble opinion.  The gals there really go out of their way to help you or to fix a problem, right a wrong, and all manner of customer service.  Can you tell that I really like JB?  No affiliation, mind you, just one satisfied customer.

I'm also knitting the second sock (it's going mighty slow, may I say) to match this one which is knit using Opal sock yarn and size 3 dpns.  I may or may not keep these since my DD is throwing hints about how she wears all the socks I've knitted for her and they're starting to show a bit of age.  It seems that I rarely wind up keeping any of the socks I knit between my daughter and my mother whose feet are always cold, poor things.

I also cast on another pair of socks (no picture yet) using for the very first time, Three Irish Girls Adorn sock yarn in Bread and Butterflies colorway.....it's a lovely pastel mix of pinks, aquas, purples, etc. and will be lovely looking when completed. I like seeing the progression of the colors as I knit the little bit I have done so far.  I'm knitting these on 2 circulars for a change of pace but I normally use my trusty dpns, always thinking, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it".  I'll post a picture as soon as I get enough progress so that you can really appreciate the colors.  I've never used TIG's yarn before but the gals on Ravelry absolutely rave about it so I'll let you know.

Finally, I'm back to crocheting the baby blanket I began in the fall of last year!!   I'm using a washable and dryer friendly acrylic, Caron's Simply Soft and I have to say that I really like the squishyness (my word) of this yarn and the kind of lifted definition it's giving to each stitch.  I've made more progress than shown here but you get the idea.