Stuck stuck stuck

Well, I am stuck. My 3 strand sweater now has 2 sleeves, a back, and one side. The other side is where I am stuck. Lynn will no doubt be sequestered by me after work Saturday until I get back on track....

I must start planning the treats and sustinance.....

I must say I do not like all these pieces. No wonder I love socks. One piece. No seams. I do not like puzzles. Too many pieces. I am overwhelmed with the thought of all the seaming and finishing....

What is nudging me along? The colors are so pretty. I have such high expectations for this sweater. I am making a long long list of seamless patterns and they are just waiting in the wings, like little butterflies in a paper bag.

Spring break has been good thus far. I haven't cooked a dinner since Easter! Tomorrow Al and I are going to meet Paula Deen at a bookstore in Park Ridge. Y'all jealous?

What is this??? 

Just one month from when the Birthday girl received her Rowan Summer Tweed Cotton, the Interweave free pattern Chevron Rib is completed. Al says it was very very easy to follow the pattern. "You could do it mom!" so I guess I will! After the 3 strand sweater and socks from Lynn yarn are worked up. And yes, Al is coatless, jacketless, and scarfless today as we enjoyed a taste of spring...65 degrees out.  

An Easter gift from the Other side

Anne Modesitt notified me that my Grandmother Olga's Hungarian Heirloom apron will appear in her Page A Day Calendar for Crochet 2006. The email came today on Easter. She wrote the pattern for it as well! It should be available in Borders/Barnes etc this fall. (along with 364 others, but ........I can still be thrilled right?)

I am delighted and very excited to show my mom, who gave me the Apron, my dad whose Mom made it, and My Uncle Bill, my Grandma's youngest son the email when they arrive for Easter Ham here in a few minutes.

The apron is, of course, hanging in the kitchen today. ( I don't think it would fit me!) I am so grateful that Anne wrote the pattern. Now all of the Ritt family can have it as well. My Aunt Elanore in FLA. will be so thrilled. She is the current crochetess and has just taught my sister Deb, how to crochet. She is Grandma Olga's only living daughter.

I feel like my Hungarian Grandma, who I met only once, has given me a wonderful Easter gift. I believe in angels. Happy Easter. Happy Spring.

Oh oh, I think the bunny has improvised. These yarn bra looks suspiciously similar to .....cheesecloth. Yup, I am certain of it. Well, the bunny can improvise, of course, if he wishes to ......on the yarn bras that is, not on the chocolates. As I have just returned to the land of chocolate after over 2 years, I am planning to be selective. My body can now tolerate very small amounts of only the best chocolate. Fine Belgium doesn't seem to give me any problems!  

Baby sweater 

Springy-pink socks! 

Lynn's WIPs

I haven't gotten around to seaming Lara yet (I think the fear of it not fitting is holding me back), so I've been working on sweaters for a friend's new triplets. This is the first one for Kailee. Olivia's will be purple for the main color with the pink edging. Ryan's will be a royal blue; I haven't decided on an edging or contrast color for his. The pattern can be found here: Berroco® Free Pattern Cutie Patootie. I also started a pair of pink socks---for me! The color makes me think of spring!

I love the look of the OnLine Spirit now that it is blended with 2 strands of Cornflower Cotton Classic Tahki. The cottons really tone it down but the Spirit flecks of color come right through.  

Memories: Dog Days of Summer

My apologies to anyone in my community who unwillingly and unknowingly served as backdrop for this Dog swim photo. Look past them, see the dogs in our Roosevelt pool? Look at the BLUE skies....the leaves on the trees....the happy dogs paddling in the pool? In reality, there a snowflakes outside my window....

Hoping the Easter Bunny is bringing yarn bras to my house. I think I need them. The training bras I've been using, ziploc bags that is, are well, just ugly. The Bunny should also bring very small amounts of very high quality chocolate (no Russell Stovers please) and at least one Fannie May Creme egg......oh
how did I digress?

I will post a photo of my coming along sweater....I need button ideas please.

I can testify that Lynn's baby sweater for triplett #1, has the prettiest seam you cannot even see! (ahem, that was for Maureen:))

Our community pool on dog day last summer......remembering warmth...... 

Fair isle premie hat . 

Wrist Relief

Yesterday's welcome discovery came from www.berroco.com. They have a series of 5 brief hand movements to warm up your wrists for knitting. Having just come off a long 12 hour shift at work, I tried them and I have to say they felt wonderful.

Berroco offers a wrist/hand glove designed to wear while knitting, but I found the wrist warm up soothing in and of itself. The only part I had trouble doing was the thumb stretch....I think my Hungarian thumbs weren't meant to move that way...

Other knitting updates..... I'm nearly finished with the back of my sweater. I love the colors. WIll post a photo soon.

My sockapalooza socks looked so nice in my nurses clogs. I made a little fair isle hat for a tiny patient, see above.

Happy NCAA to knit to weekend! Allison and I are the Knitpickers team, and sad to say, our yarn budget does not look to be increasing at this time....go Duke.

Al and her buddy Christine's irish eyes 

Irisheyes Lynn in Ireland 

Irish-Hungarian eyes  

irish eyes wishes you a Happy St. Pats Day! 

Kathleen's Irish Eyes are Smilin' ........and May you all be GREEN with envy! A hundred thousand thanks, to Gracie at Gracieknits.blogspot.com and the blue blog! I love my sockapalooza broadripple lace! socks. And they fit these Hungarian legs like like a glove..... 

Lynn gives Al some birthday bling, Just look at the pretty blue stitch marker ring. .............She's marking her Chevron Rib Tank, Rowan Summer Tweeds beautiful hank, because its a Cooler Near the Lake kind of Spring, just looking at summer tweed makes us want to sing.  

I know you thought I was dead!

Hello everybody, I bet that by now you thought I was dead seeing as I have not posted in almost a month, but no worries, I'm back! As you can see, I've been too busy knitting to do anything else. I finished my Rowan Calmer sweater from pattern book 35 this week (and just in the knick of time as Zach's confirmation was yesterday). I've heard many complaints about Rowan patterns but I actually found this one pretty easy to follow, the hardest part was the finishing. I had never done a sweater before, so the sleeves were an adventure to say the least, but they turned out pretty well if I do say so myself. Still, I don't think that I'll be making another sweater with sleeves for a while. For now, I am concentrating on a free tank top pattern from Interweave.com, I have finished the back and am now starting on the front, I'll try to get a picture up of the back soon. I am also still working on my green Lucky sweater but I have decided not to do long sleeves because it will take too long and by the time I'm done it will be too warm to wear it. So instead I'm either going to do short sleeves or no sleeves. I'll decide later whether or not I'm willing to suffer through sleeve seams again. That's all for now, I'll try not to wait a month before posting again.

The wearing o the green, 

A soda bread fit for a queen, Made by your irisheyed blogger....Kathleen 

Lara blocking----I hope to do the seaming on Friday. Wonder if it will fit? 

There once was a yarn named spirit, it wanted a sweater to be, but its knitter was short, bout a sleeve and a half, and it became frogg-ed you see. Now it wants to be sweatered once more, so the knitter she went to the store, she changed the whole thing, and now its near spring, and she's blending the yarn up galore. The store girl suggested a black, tomorrow she's bringing it back, she's sticking with blue, the same color times two, the black can go back on the rack. 

Being done is so much fun. Rowan Calmer is the one.  

here is my sock....its inside out, .....i've finished my pal, and now I shout....look here look here, what do we see? so few ends to weave yippee!...I sort of did a fairisle thing, when switching colors in the ring, it kept it fun, it kept me sane, to know the ends to weave would wane. the end 

Lynn sent her the purdy stitch markers...I mean her secret pal did and Maureen dont you just love the purple/green sheen bag? 

Aren't birthdays wonderful? Here is Al's new Summer Tweed in Purple for something...sleeveless, 

This grassy leftover yarn is mine..... 

I'm desperate for green,  

It knits up in a line,