Happy New Year 2011

Merry Christmas

Wow it looks like I only blog for the holidays lately. I do have a lot of update to add and pictures to post. I hope to update right after the holidays.

Happy Thanksgiving

Study Group

I worked on the log cabin pattern in red and natural wool from Lion Brand yarn.I need to work on my salvages and carrying colors up the side. It's been fun to work through the book with input and help from other weavers. These have been made on my Cricket because they are samplers. I can't wait to try bigger pieces on my Knitter loom.

Study Group

I joined an online weaving study group. We are working our way through the Weavers Idea book by Jane Patrick. Here are some sample that I have made from the first chapter.


This is a Hounds tooth pattern using the wool that came with my loom. It's a two blue two green warp with a two green two blue weft.Here I changed the weft pattern to 4 green 4 blue, then 6 green 6 blue, then one green one blue just too see how it would look.

New Cricket Loom

When I went to stitches I talked myself into buying a small loom. I talked to a weaving instructor and she showed me a vest she had made on the Cricket loom. That and some pushing from my friend Vicki was all I needed.

Update

Baby blanket from Knit Picks crayon 100% cotton squares.
Cat paw cowl made out of 100% alpaca

Market bag made with lion brand kitchen cotton

Cable hat made with SOS from patons

wash cloths
.

20 weeks 20 projects

Week 1- Baby Blanket done
week 2- 5 baby washcloths done
Week 3-hat with cable done
Week 4- market shopping bag done
Week 6- cat paws cowl done
week 7- scarf on new loom done.
So far so well on the projects. I will post pictures when I quite being lazy and upload them onto my computer.

Fall is here time to work on mittens and hats. I have a cool skull hat pattern with glow in the dark yarn that I got when I went to Stitches Midwest.

20 weeks 20 projects

Last Tuesday I was cleaning my knitting/weaving room and decided that since there were 20 weeks until Christmas I would try to make a super human stash buster goal of 20 items in 20 weeks.

Well, tomorrow is the end of my first week and I'm half way through an ambitious baby blanket project. In other words I bit off more than I could chew. I will keep working on the blanket but tomorrow I'm going to warp up my loom to start another project. We'll see how things progress.

Small Shawls

I've been into knitting small shawls lately. There usually quick and have enough detail so there not boring.
I made this Multnomah for my friend Joan who is an incredible woman. I hope I'm like her when I grow up.
It's make with Araucania Itata Multy, superwash wool, silk and bamboo. Color way 1010.
This is Traveling Woman it's also make with Itata Multy color way 1025.

Weaving with a cat

Here is Harry laying in wait for his chance to sit on my warping.
He makes his move. It's hard to warp with a cat from the hellmouth (Buffy reference).
Luck he's so cute. He also likes to grab the yarn on the floor that I'm trying to warp with and run in the other direction. While we were gone this weekend he wrapped my son in yarn while he was sleeping.

My garden

This is the new pink Annabell Hydrangea.





Here are some pictures of my garden. We have had a lot of rain so my Annabell Hydrangea is kind of beaten down. My daisies on the other hand have never looked better.

Today is windy and cold.

Today it's too cold and windy to work in the garden. What a perfect day to have hot chocolate and knit. I blocked two of 5 project that I need to get blocked but they are not drying very good in this cool weather.


I have one surviving tulip from the great squirrel massacre 0f 2007.
Have a Great Day whatever you are doing.

Weaving

Here is my Ashford Knitter Loom and my first two projects.

Wind Powered Knitting Machine from Frankie Thom on Vimeo.

Shepards Harvest

Shepards Harvest is one of the big Wool and Sheep Shows in MN. I couldn't go last year because of foot surgery so I'm looking forward to going this year. I like to see all the different animals that we get our wool from. My husband has forbid me to come home with any. Not even a cute little bunny.
They also have dog sheep herding demo and a sheep shearing contest. I love the Kettle Corn fresh and hot from the kettle. Of couse there are vendors who will have weaving, spinning and knitting displays as well as other delights. There are also classes, music and this year a fiber sandwich. I'm not sure what a fiber sandwich is but it will be fun to find out. As always they have to sheep to shawl contest to see which group can finish a shawl by the end of the event.

I have a couple of days off work this week so I'm going to get some pictures posted of my weaving and try and block the half dozen or so knitting projects that I have finished.

Surfing sheep

http://www.finisterreuk.com/surfingsheep/

Here a site link to a surfing sheep. Poor sheepie.

Weaving

I have always wanted to try weaving. I remember as a little girl sitting on the basement steps at my paternal grandmothers house watching her weave on a big floor loom. She used to say it was the only time I would sit still for any length of time. I did get a small plastic table loom one year for Christmas when I was younger but I don't remember what happen to it.

I was thinking about looms again and my enabler Pam at Knitters Palette suggested Ashfords Knitters Loom. I went on line and started my research. Well that are dozens of small looms and all types of reviews both good and bad on all. What's a girl to do?

So I went on the Raverly site ( the best there is for spinning, knitting, crochet, and weaving) and found some groups with topics about "Help what loom does a beginner get?"
I have decided on the Ashfords Knitter Loom after all. They have a 20" that will use both bulky and lace weight yarn. I hope that I will be able to get my yarn stash down so that next year I can start a new addiction. Spinning.

I will post pictures when I get the loom and write about how it goes.
As far as knitting I have several projects that I have to block then I can post some more pictures.
For now I can't knit because I hurt my wrist doing spring garden clean up. Darn weeds.

Hoppy Easter

Second event

Since I finished my first event so quickly (it has to be a gold medal) I entered a second category.
UFO's (UFO's are unfinished projects.) I had started a class just before the Olympics for Fiddlehead mittens. Fiddlehead mittens are a color work design on the outside with a second softer material for the inner mitten. In other words two mittens in one.
I used Pain Box and Cascade 220 for the outer mitten and Louise Harding's Kimone angora Pure for the inside.
I finished these last night and now I'm starting a black and red Skull hat for the event Gift for a Friend. The Olympic deadline (closing ceremonies) has been a good catalyst for me to get some projects done and use up some stash yarn. What can I use after the Olympics to keep going and reach my goal for the year of doing some serious stash busting?

2010 Winter Olympics

On Raverly we have our own winter games. There called Ravolympics. I'm on team Knitters Palette. I signed up to do a Hemlock Ring Throw for the smallshawlthrow compition.
Here is the first day of the Winter games Friday night February 12th 8:00pm (we couldn't start until the opening ceremony our time)


Here is the Hemlock Ring on Sunday February 14th.


Here is the finished project Thursday February 18th.

Still winter

Yes it is still winter in Minnesota. I love winter but some of my co-workers who have to drive long distances aren't very happy that it's snowing again.
You have two types of winter in MN. Cold, dry, and sunny ( below zero or close to it) or warm, slushy and gray. I like the warm, slushy and gray. It makes a better excuse to stay in the house and knit. Cold, dry and sunny shows all dust, cat and dog hair, spiderwebs and general mess that is around the house. Then I feel that I have to clean instead of knit and watch old movies. It's also a Minnesota pride thing that make us go out even though it freezing just to say "Ha the cold doesn't bother me, I'm from Minnesota".

When spring comes it's time for the garden. I take care of mine and my moms so it doesn't give me much time to knit. In case you haven't caught on I'm addicted to knitting. Some say obsessed.

I like winter so I can concentrate on my knitting and watching old movies. It's ground hog day today so it looks like 6 more weeks of knitting I mean winter.

Photo shoot

Wow I said I was going to post more and here it is 14 days later.
I took a Photography class at Knitters Pallet from my friend Angela. It was one of the best class. I found out how to set my white balance, what the little flower on the setting is for, how to change my shutter speed, ISO, and how to get better texture in my pictures.
Basically I became more confident playing with the setting on my camera. It doesn't hurt that Angela is only an email away to help if I really screw it up.

Be brave and play with your camera. Practice side lighting to show off texture and add interest to your pictures.

Thanks Angela

Happy New Year

Happy New Year! I wish the best for everyone in 2010. I want to say thank you to the people who are following and reading my blog. It's good to know that it's not just sitting out there in cyber space alone.

New years Resolutions for 2010.
Blogging
I'm going to try and post more often.
Work on writing better book reviews
Blog about things other than knitting
Find ways to make my blog interesting and worth reading.

Health
Every year I do the diet and exercise. This year I'm going to try and be more realistic. I don't like vegetables so I'm going to work on ways to get more into my diet.

Knitting
This year I'm going to try and get my stash down to a reasonable size. If I can do this, I'm going to get a spinning wheel for Christmas next year. How's that for a goal?

Other
I'm going to try and spend more time with my mom. She will be 85 this year.
I'm also going to try and be more positive. It's such a hard time for friends and family out of work and I don't think that complaining about everything is going to help.
Read more and not just knitting books.
I almost forgot my garden. I love my garden and because of foot surgery I didn't get started with weed control as soon as I would have liked to last year. Beware weeds I coming for you this year.

That sound like enough to work on for one year.
We'll see how I do.