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Showing posts from June, 2008

Interview

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Ann Norlings twisted rib hat in celery. Easy peasy and fun. I am an Ann fan are you? I love the way she gives lots of instructions for all differnt sizes. Real bang for your buck. I'm going to have to find more patterns like this. Does anyone else write patterns this way that you know of? Interview with Fireman: Kathy b: What is your favorite thing about my knitting? Fireman: (laughs) It relaxes you. Kathy b.: What is your least favorite thing about my knitting? Fireman: The space it takes up in our already too small family room. Kathy b: What is something i have knitted, that you recall as good? Fireman: I dont know. (long pause) Probably your cranberrish sweater. (Knitting Pure and Simple Raglan) Interview interrupted as Fireman reads aloud blood doping article he is reading re: cyclist. Kathy B: Do you think knitters have an expensive hobby? Fireman: No more than any other. Kathy B: How much was your last bike? Fireman: (Laugh) Two thousand dollars. Kathy B.: Do y

Yarn Scoop

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I'll talk to you in the comments. :) Go ahead. Have a cone. They are from generous Grace at lovincomfortknits.blogspot.com. These scoops arrived for me in the mail and they hadn't even melted. They are magical. They are angora/wool. Grace is supportive of my cowl addiction. Grace is a bit of a fairy godmother. Do you have a fairy godmother or are you one? Speaking of icecream, I had a half of a scoop, don't be impressed, the scoop was enough to feed at least two, fully. It was brought home to me and I had to eat some. It was cookie dough. What was the last scoop you had?

Banana foot-a-quin

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Evolution of Today's Post: Missed the heel turn last night on second sock. Don't kow how it happened. Was concentrating. Even asked Fireman to let Huck out so as not to interrupt heel. Had to frog back to heel flap. You know the pain. Picking up stitches made on needles size 1's. With needle size 1's. This mornig, inspired by overripe banana to show said sock in progress. I think the banana makes a lovely mannequin. Admittedly would have photographed better if underripe.. Overripe banana leads to thoughts of banana bread. MMMMMMM. Missing oldest recipes that I love. They are here somewhere.....Recall bridesmaid friend Julie's recipe that I loved. Remember it had sour cream in it. Google sour cream banana bread: Up comes Julie's recipe! The sour cream apparently takes the supersweet batter to a tangy sophisticated level. I found it on Allrecipes.com . It makes two big loaves. Do you know this banana bread? Must return to sock today and try no

Kim Hargraves Rowan Beau

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I've had a rough go at trying to photograph this sweater back. Al is making it for a gift. I give you the textured version. You can make out the ridges going up the back to the chest part where it changes to checkerboard. Her goal is to finish this by the winter holidays. Some thoughts today: *I think I am moving on after 4 cowls. (readers breathe sigh of relief) *Cable bug biting again. (also mosquitos) *knitting interrupted this week, mostly due to my own inability to concentrate. *knitting interrupted does not mean no knitting this week, just lots of interruptions. *Two current on the needles projects: other confetti sock and Nonni throw. *taking on the moods of others around me, this week. Must stop this. *wee tiny bite fad over.... *weaniing off coffee creamer......not off yet! *posting about posts. I cannot seem to find post earrings that a pretty anywhere. *Bring back the post. Enough of the drop earrings already. *let the maid go after 8 years. We both cried!

bunnies

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Angora Cowl. Made from Birthday gift yarn from the family at least 3 years ago. i thnk it was from Great Adarandack in paintbox colorway. I've only a half cup coffee so far......but i am pretty sure. I love angora. If you look to the last post, you'll see I began the cowl with another yarn, Lush. For some reason,( known to better knitters), as I knit that soon to be frogged cowl, the bunny's fur magically lined up in beautiful clumps of color. When I decided to knit the cowl in only the angora, the colors didnt do this. I do wish they had. Was it the perfect number of stitches on the first cowl that led to the colors staying in line? My neighbor has a wild bunny in her yard that she is calling Scoots. Scoots comes hopping up to her to take a tossed apple piece as a snack. She and Scoots have a bond going.... If she gets to the point of combing him......I'll have some more bunny fur and another cowl. Not likely, but with the price of life these days, I don'

Go ahead say "can't"

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One of the things my father said over and over as we grew up was "there is no such word as Can't." Whatever you thought you couldn't , was simply your own shortcoming. My father wanted us to be positive thinkers. It was a gift, his gift, his way of parenting. Yesterday my sister and I walked through the Botanic Gardens with him for Fathers Day morning. We all love gardening and have a bit of a healthy competition amongst ourselves. So, I give you some roses from the Chicago Botanic Gardens. I give myself permission to say I can't, now adays. I think it is healthier actually. I can't grow roses....they get black spots and aphids and worse, they die over hard winters. So I go to the Botanic gardens and enjoy their roses. I can't reverse a stitch pattern in my head that reads, "at the same time". I can't . It is fine that I can't. There are many things to knit that don't involve a v-neck. Someday, someone will right the p

Christmas in June....

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Please don't hate me for this. I have knitted two Christmas/Holiday gifts. I'm just showing them off with my watermelon model to highlight the yarns. Okay, and because I know you can't possibly come here for Knitting expertise, I do want to show you that I can cable. And, if I can cable, YOU can cable. And the yarns are Dream in Color which I did mention, and cannot recall the colorway name. See, you can't really come here for knitting expertise. The other is knit in Malabrigo Tortuga. That means Turtle in Spanish. One of the nice things about these particular cowls, is that they both require the same cast on number, just using different needle sizes. In my brain, this is magic. I have fun writing in my life. I don't have so much fun mathing in my life. I'll take the essay questions over the math multiple choice any old day. I get to use different yarns in short order when I knit a cowl. I complete things.....the don't complete me. A cowl is

Dream in Color Cowl , thanks Cara

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Beautiful Cara, rising senior, models my just finished Three Seas Cowl designed by a woman whose last name is ...Storm! I found the pattern on Ravelry. It was intended as lace. I used Dream in Color at 4.5 sts/inch. I love the feel of this yarn. It is somewhat stretchy and so so soft. I would definitely buy this yarn again. Someone like Cara, who laughs at the camera is such a natural that the images just pop with joy. As you can see the screen porch is really open for the season now. What with all the rain we've had the mosquitos will be clammoring to get in at Fireman. They usually leave me alone. He is one of those people you want to sit next to b/c you'll never get bit. I believe there are two kinds of people on earth: the mosquito bait folks, and the rest of us. I saw some little bats last year, every night around late dusk. I am so brave when I am on the screened porch and they are outside. I find them aerodynamic and amazing. I am grateful that they eat m

Seats, sweets, and repeats

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Have a seat if you will, but don't smoosh the peonies please. :) Have a sweet. Feast your eyes on my Sweet Swap pal Suzanne's goodies for me. Suzanne is from For The Love of Knits at typepad. Love the entire goodie box. What's your favorite card game? Finally, today, on the subject of repeats: I'm a repeater. Now that I've joined the cowl craze, get ready. I'll be showing you my new cowls over and over I am sure. Here are some things I repeat: Patterns I love and have succeeded at knitting New recipes I find. My family eats them for weeks until they don't want to see them anymore. Music. I can listen to the same CD for a stretch of days. Clothing. I found a skirt I love at REI and I want to go buy 2 more just like it. THings I forgot I already said. "You just said that, " Im often told at home. Dreams. I have repeat dreams ALL the time. What do you repeat? Or am I the only one? I'll talk to you in the comments. :)

THe knit birds answer your questions

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This are two new guest bloggers to irisheyes. They flew into my sideyard yesterday and think they know everything. Apparently they've arrived to bring me knitting fortune. I'll share them with you. MY first question to them: How do I add pizzazz to my current fascinating knitting? "Well," the pink one said, " you have to stop knitting the tissue covers, honey. They are boring everyone to death. " "Try cables woman!", the yellow one said. "They look so impressive. " "Oh yes, cables honey. You'll feel like you can fly, once you master cables" So, I'm cabling. And I am soaring. What has a little bird told you lately? I'll talk to you in the comments. :)

Dental friend Mary Beth guest blogs

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because she is a sport. Mary Beth the receptionist, and wife of my dentist!, diagnosed my jaw pain correctly this morning! She isn't a dentist, she says, but she likes to pretend to be. Official dental diagnosis: ? tooth torsion. Official Mary Beth diagnosis: stress. "Have you had any headaches recently Kath?" "Well yes Mary Beth. It is unusual for me but I had a headache yesterday that lasted all afternoon and evening. " "Ahhhhhh. And do you grind your teeth?" "Well, yes again Mary Beth! I even caught myself doing it several times yesterday!" "there's your jaw ache, honey. THe headache adds pressure to your whole head. My jaw aches then too. " Mary Beth says this with matter of fact certainty. NO root canal for me! Yippee. IT is just the job.......occasionally......and infrequently, but sometimes, a bit of too much. Mary Beth is holding my newest cowl project. Oh don't go looking too close. I'm trhilled

Shakey

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Confetti sock number 1 and a Saturday Sky. I'm a guest to SS. Lack of posts due to : Son using Macbook for finals. ( I tell him to lighten up and go play, but he knows I just want to post) I found myself a bit shakey yesterday. Trying to finish up a little tissue holder for my Minnesota sis on size one's was difficult. I've also been working the sock on 1's. I drink too much caffeine etc etc but I dont think that will change. I think I just need a heftier needle in my hands. (Maybe a glass of wine?) I'm a bit shakey on a few other things lately too: my Cubbies. I've been down this road before. Big Brown's upcoming Triple Crown attempt.....scared for that horse. is anything making you shakey? I'll talk to you in the comments. :)