Scarves Fundraiser!

knitting ~ an "art" of crafting yarn, string, fabric, (suppose anything flexible enough to wrap around a needle) into blankets, scarves, bags, totes, mittens, etc. with two or more needles.

That would be my definition of knitting anyway, as I don't like using the word being defined in the definition!  ::smiley face::

Have been knitting for almost seven years now.  Although I've challenged myself to make new and different things years ago, that has fallen by the wayside for whatever reason.

My new challenge, now, is to work on speed of the easy stitches. Real basic knitting, just knitting each row, back and forth.  With this, I am also desiring to sell some scarves to help raise money for a family member battling cancer.  If you'd be interested in purchasing a scarf, let me know.  The first one for sale is this one:

 This scarf is made from Lion Brand, Home Spun, Prairie

Colors are sage green with shades of blue, purple and red in a variegated pattern

Washer and dryer friendly, just not HOT water

Knit on larger needles to give a slight lacy look

5" wide by approximately 62" long (scarf is a little stretchy)

$20.00 (if picked up)

Not sure how much for shipping but can look into that

I plan to make a few more scarves, with this color of yarn, in the coming days.  If you have a request, let me know.  Cost of scarves will change depending on cost of yarn.

Thanks for looking at my scarves fundraiser!

Lazy post!! Everyone needs one!

From time to time you need a lazy post. This is it! I have a knitting blog as well and just posted over there so I am linking up to save time and effort!  And I really need to get off the computer!  So here is a link to the most recent baby blanket I have made!

Another Baby Blanket

Some friend's of ours have a new little girl in their life!  So cute, so tiny, so princess girliness (author license to create a new word)!  It was a joy to knit a blanket for this little one, whose life is a miracle ~ wish you could sit and listen to Crystal talking about it.  Awesome story!  Here's the finished product:

 Here's the blanket!  Mostly brown and pink, a bit of green, and a touch of yellow.

Here's a close up of the brown, showing the border.  I knit

six rows, then switch to knitting first and last 5 stitches with

the middle being a stocking stitch.  Love the way it turned out.

I look forward to being able to give them the finished product.  Only a few weeks after the baby shower.  Hopefully I'll be able to catch up with them at church on Sunday.

Happy Knitting,

Homemade ~ anything

Making anything homemade has it's advantages and disadvantages.  For awhile, making things at home, saved you money.  If you had the talent to do something ~ anything ~ you'd save $$$'s by doing it yourself.  Prices seem to be getting a lot more expensive, lately, and it's almost not worth it.  Now, to make something at home, it's for the shear joy of creating something, from something else.

Personally, I love going through thrift stores, yard sales, craft stores, (and even trash day) and wondering what I can make out of the items I see.

Here are a few things I've made and posted on the blog:

• rug deoderizer
• wood cut drawings
• knit shawl
• cable knit scarf
• baked donuts
• quilt blocks and knit baby blanket
• homemade pizza

Most of the above has been out of things we've bought; I have picked up a couple things on trash days!  I have a beautiful (now) wash stand that was thrown out.  A new door made by my dad, a new towel bar, and  I refinished it.  I also found a mini terrarium on trash day that just needed a bit of sanding and paint touch up.  I've passed up on a few things that, now, I wish I'd picked up.  Oh well!

What do you like to make new?  What do you like to make, at home, even if it would be more economical to buy new?  Do you keep a blog and want to share a link?  Would love to see some of your recreations!  Please share and maybe we'll all get a bit more inspired!

Thankful!

If you are a crafter, have you ever made something for someone and wondered if they really like the gift?  I've had that happen, often actually!  With our boys, there is obvious thankfulness, in that I see them enjoying the gift.

Just over two years ago, I completed this blanket for Kevin's co-worker's daughter.  I wondered if they liked it or if there daughter ever used the blanket.  Anyhoot, Kevin forwarded this photo to me this morning:

So, I suppose she does like the blanket and that "feels" good!

Merry Christmas Eve!

Twas the day before Christmas and nothing was stirring at our house.  It's quiet, mostly, and a slow start to the day.  Breakfast is in the oven, coffee is being consumed, dog's been out, animals fed.  Not such a bad start to the day!

It's been a pretty good year for us.  We've survived the Home Study process and have an adoption application in at Adoption Answer.  We're officially waiting to be matched.

The boys finished up 4th and 1st this past May.  We took a few weeks off and started 5th and 2nd lightly through the summer.  Both boys have enjoyed being involved in Cub Scouts and Tae Kwon Do this year.  They're progressing and earning their ranks in both activities.  Thing One is a Webelo 2 and will move onto Boy Scouts near the beginning of 2011.  Ian is a Wolf  this year and enjoying it.  Both guys are a Senior White belt in Tae Kwon Do and looking forward to testing for their yellow belt.

Kevin continues to work at The Emmes Corporation as a Senior Software Programmer.   Hard to believe he will have been with the company for 15 years next month.  Only down fall with his job is the 30 plus mile commute, one way.  In this economy, that's not such a bad thing.  Outside of work, he's been active in various ministries at Burke Community Church  (BCC).  Probably his most favorite is playing bass, with a close tie for second in the various aspects of Men's Ministry.

This year, I've enjoyed attending Breakaway, the Women's Bible Study at  BCC.  During this past fall semester, I joined in with some of the ladies to preform skits at some Breakaway.  It's been fun getting to know a few ladies a bit better through this.  Learned a few things knitting this year.  Started off by learning how to make a hat.  Also learned a few new stitches. 

I hope you have a Merry Christmas while celebrating the birth of Jesus.

Slow on the uptake

I am slow on the blogging thing! It's like an online diary of what ever you feel like writing about and are willing to share (depending on who has access, that is, to your blog. Yes, I have one that is by invite only.)

I have a new knitting project, a triangular shawl out of home spun yarn (see picture to the right). This particular yarn, is definitely high up on my favorite list. It is very soft and warm. For me, it took a bit of getting use to when I first starting knitting with it because it isn't spun tightly together. Home Spun is spun more loosely with a thread wrapped around it to keep the yarn together. Each skein has such variance in color, it is just beautiful.

Anyway, back to the title of this particular blog post "Slow on the uptake"! I am slow, in that it's hard to come up with titles for the whole blog, when there are hundreds, perhaps thousands, of folks already blogging about the very thing you want to start blogging about. I went through this with trying to find a title for this blog with the words "Home School" in it. Then again with wanting to start yet another blog about knitting. I should probably just take some time to figure out what the main point is behind this blog and see if I can find a better title for it. Simply put, it's about "My Life", bet that's taken already!

Sunday Afternoons

This has been a Sunday afternoon that I truly like. I've spent the better part of the afternoon working on a couple quilt squares. Over at "Five in a Row", when there is a lose of a friend from the boards (or a member of their family), the ladies pull together several quilt squares to make a larger quilt. Our friend, Fran, lost her battle with breast cancer almost two weeks ago, so I've been working on a square for her husband's quilt and one for one of her daughters.

My picture taking is a bit off today, but this is
the panel for one of Fran's daughters.

This panel will be going into the
quilt for Ed, her husband.

Also enjoyable today, has been cooking and baking. Granted there isn't much special about grilled cheese for lunch, but no one seemed to complain about having lunch fixed for them. It was also the easiest thing to fix given that I wanted to roast a chicken for dinner. HHHmmm the house has smelled wonderful this afternoon. Who cares that it feels horribly hot outside.


Other odd things that have made today day enjoyable (pictures below the statements now):

~ being able to maintain a newly sodded front lawn
~ a quick trip to the library to pick up a new book for the boys (sssshhhhhhhhhhh, don't tell the homeschool police that I only picked up one book!!) and their summer reading packages
~ a quick trip to Starbucks for their iced tea (only $0.53 when bringing in one of their cups to reuse)
~ finishing up a baby blanket; I like how the edges turned out looking a bit like lace!
Off now, to enjoy the family!

Almost Six Years in the Making

Yes, this simple Winnie the Pooh cross-stitch has taken me almost 6 years to complete. It was purchased around Memorial Day 2003 for Thing Two. I worked at it, regularly, for a short while, finishing off the honey pot and red shirt, but life intervened. Around April of 2007, I picked it up, once again, with the thought of finishing it, and started on Pooh's belly. I got about half way, in one direction, and stopped again. This time, picking up knitting as a hobby instead.

Well, about two weeks ago, or so, and in between knitting projects, I picked it up again. This time, I was determined to finish it, before Thing Two out grows all things Winnie the Pooh. This morning, thankfully, I finished the inner, light blue border and will have it framed in the near future. What a relief to have this finished.

I can now get back to my knitting with out this one project hanging over my head. Woo Hoo!!!!

P.S. Will blog about Williamsburg on another day. Should be interesting considering the wide range of weather we've experienced this week.

Miscellaneous Musings/Monday

Over the last, almost two years, I have been knitting. It has become a passion of mine that I delight in and find pleasure in creating something for someone else. It helps me to relax and to focus. Well, around Thanksgiving 2008, I decided I needed to "step up" the kind of knitting I've been working on. Cable stitch often seemed difficult to me, with having to slip stitches off the needle onto something else, knit or purl a few stitches, then put the slipped stitches back on. Quite honestly, it SOUNDS so much harder than it really is. I was amazed at how quickly I picked up this "form" of knitting. The photo, below, shows the cable stitch well.

This scarf had a tendency to fold over on itself because of the stitches and "hide" the cable. To reduce this, I got the scarf damp, hung it over a hanger with the cable facing outward, and pinned it to itself. It still may need to be ironed. Will save that task for tomorrow though.

My attempt at having a triple stuffed Oreo after lunch. Knowing I hadn't blogged about much of anything lately, this seemed like a good start to a miscellaneous Monday.

PHOTO'S FROM A 6 YEAR OLD
(next two photos)

Don't quite know how Mr. 6 year old got a photo of just red, but this falls under the random shot worth posting, I suppose. What got the whole miscellaneous photos going, was the other day, the same child, asked to use the camera, because there was a cute squirrel outside. Um, okay, normally I wouldn't think an actual squirrel is cute, but it kept him occupied for a few moments when I had a friend over.

Not a Wordless Wednesday

I have been working on this baby blanket since, I think the beginning of August; granted not every day.  A couple weeks ago, with just three and 1/2 panels finished, I decided I wanted to get it finished before Thanksgiving (and have my hubby bring it to work for one of his co-workers).  Was almost there,  if I hadn't been so sick yesterday, I would have taken the photo's and the blanket could have been delivered.

Not that anyone particularly cares, but each panel is 32 knit stitches wide and 62 rows (or 31 ribs) long.  When I had 4 panels of each color, I had to figure out which color would be the X and choose the multi colored yarn.  I whip stitched them together in cream, as it was in both colors, to varying degrees, and then a stocking stitch around the edges.  A stocking stitch is one row knit stitch, one row purl stitch, until a desired length is reached - 5 rows here.

I think it turned out well and hope hubby's co-worker likes it.