Needles & Knots

Boot Scootin Boogie

2009-08-16T19:03:00.000-07:00

The Navaho Huivi (aka: Onerva) is fini…

One of these days when it is not 90 freaking degrees outside I will wear this scarf with a pair of jean, my Lucchese boots, and a piece of turquoise… someday. Until then, this still life will have to do. I wasn’t sure how this yarn was going to look and yes just a tad bit nervous, but I am happy with the result and I think this one will be getting a lot of use, especially on the baseball field during Little League. To me this yarn has a look that says blue jeans, so I probably won’t be wearing it to the office. Although with something black it might be o.k.

For those who care, here are the details of this project here are the specifics.

In all her wrinkled glory:

Taking a long soak in the tub:

All dressed up and nowhere to go... for now.

I used Pagewood Farm 100% Merino Super Wash Sock yarn (450 yds) in the color Navaho with US#4 (3.5mm) needles both Addi Lace and Options. The Addi Lace needle wasn’t as slick as the Options so I used it for the most part, but when it came time to insert a lifeline, nothing beats the Options needles with the little hole. When it got to big for the Addi Lace I switched to the Options needle for the last pattern repeat. Blocked measurement was 50” wingspan and approximately 28” down the center.

Now on to my next adventure.... I'm not sure where I'm going next but something tells me it might involve Sundara Silk Lace in beautiful autumn colors, we'll see.

This is Mahogany Over Marmelade.

Happy Birthday To Grant

2009-08-10T22:27:00.000-07:00

He is 9 years old today...

We spent yesterday at the waterslides which was probably a good thing, it was hotter than you know what. Getting this birthday cake was a whole other adventure that I won't go into right now, but let's just say that Safeway can't do military and Grant wanted a cake with an Army tank on it. So I settled for plain white cake with whipped cream and strawberries... yummy. Yes I had two pieces but who's counting... right. The lady at the store wanted to choke the cake decorator and made sure that I understood he didn't speak and/or understand English. I found some military stuff and decorated the cake myself. He was pleased with the cake so that's all that counts.

I came home and finished my detour to Finland and blocked my Onerva. I love the way it turned out and I am in the process of making a full size one out of Pagewood Farm sock yarn in a beautiful turquoise color.

ETA: Instruction for the Onerva

ETA:
These are the notes provided by the girl who made the chart (see below) and are the instructions that I followed. I used a size US4 needle:

CO 3(RS): K1, YO, K1, YO, K1(WS): K2, P1, K2(RS): K1, YO, K3, YO, K1(WS): K2, P3, K2Begin chart row 1I moved the repeat up one row (i.e. new diamond starts in the center on row 31, instead of row 29 etc.), so that the pattern lines up better - means you’re knitting the same pattern all across and is easier to remember.One complete pattern rep is therefore 30 rows on mine. Made a nice little color-coded chart (http://www.mediaworkzone.com/onervachartrepeat.pdf), to help me remember.

The only thing that is not noted on the chart is to keep the outer two stitches in garter:

Right Side: Knit 2 Yo, ...follow chart to end..., Yo Knit 2
Wrong Side: Knit 2, .... purl to the last two stitches... Knit 2

Moving Right Along...

2009-08-07T22:08:00.000-07:00

On a world tour, well not exactly but in some ways better, it’s a world knitting tour, and the best part is that I don’t even have to leave my house, get on a plane, or renew my passport.

I just finished my Opium Poppy sweater designed by this girl in Poland (pattern here: (http://fiubzdziuu.blogspot.com/2009/04/maczek-wzor-opium-poppy-pattern.html n.html). The pattern is in very broken English but I was able to decipher the most important parts. As a matter of fact, her English is way better than my Polish so I think she did an excellent job of documenting her instructions.

The pattern did not include instruction for the sleeves so I just winged it and did raglan sleeves which worked out fine. I also changed the stitch pattern to one out of my Japanese Stitch Dictionary (Yo S1 K2 PSSO). I will try to get some pictures of the front tomorrow. Essentially this sweater is knit from the bottom up which mean no seaming…. Yeah!

I used Cotton Fleece yarn that I had purchased way back in the beginning of time when I first discovered that you didn’t have to buy yarn at Michael’s or Joann Fabrics. This was my very first real yarn that actually had wool in it. I liked the way this stuff knit up and it is actually a pretty good yarn for a California sweater (mostly cotton -80% / wool 20%). I used several sizes of Options needles ranging from US #5 through #7.

Next stop on my staycation tour is Finland. I found this little gem (Pattern: (http://www.sci.fi/~petrijap/Neuleet/onervahuivi.pdf) one night while browsing Bloglines. Here is an example of the finished product: http://www.flickr.com/photos/randomcyn/3595816781/in/photostream/ickr.com/photos/randomcyn/3595816781/in/photostream/).
I have some yummy red Malabrigo (Tiziano) sock yarn left over from a hat I made and I’m going to knit this pattern until this little ball of yarn runs out. I’m hoping it will be enough for a scarf big enough to wrap around my throat when it’s cold outside. I’m on the second repeat and so far it is a fun pattern, just complex enough to keep it interesting as I knit my way around the world.

And the beat goes on...

2009-06-28T17:24:00.000-07:00

How many more members are those whack jobs going to ban before they fall down drunk with power. I expect this kind of behavior from both Casey and the Bunkerboard's female counter part (aka: Casey II). They honestly think it is within their POWER to control who you associate with. But I really did think a few in the group were a little more intelligent. Guess I was wrong again.

A word of advice from a very wise person: "too much daily fiber will make you stupid and/or paranoid".

June 29 ETA: I think they are serving Cherry flavor today!

Slinky Ribs continued...

2009-04-01T20:09:00.000-07:00

I’m moving right along with my Slinky Ribs sweater, two more rows before I start the stockinette bottom. At this point I will stop and do one of the sleeves so I can see how these “after thought” sleeves work. I have never knit a sleeve from the top down so it should be an interesting adventure. Wendy gives very detailed instructions for this technique so I don’t anticipate any problems, but you know how Murphy is, he is probably lurking behind the chair just waiting for an opportunity to pounce. My back up position, just in case he rears his ugly head, is to not do sleeves and make it a vest instead.

Speaking of Murphy, he almost got me last night. As I was knitting around and around and around, something didn’t feel right and I looked over to my right and sure enough I had pulled the cable out of my Options needle and a few of the stitches were just hanging there in mid air. I stopped and very carefully recovered those stitches and glued the cable back in. I love these needles but I can’t tell you how many cables have broken. Good thing the replacement cables are relatively cheap or I would be pissed as hell. I wonder if it is just me or if other knitters are having the same problem?

The Zephyr DK (wool/silk) is very nice to knit with and the silk give it a nice sheen. I can’t wait to see what it looks like blocked. I bought two cones of this stuff several years ago and never found a pattern I liked so they have been patiently waiting in my stash for the right opportunity. If this sweater turns out nice, I will be looking for another pattern for the other cone which is an apricot color. With Wendy’s book Custom Knits I don’t think I will have any problems finding my next pattern.

Slinky Ribs

2009-03-26T18:06:00.000-07:00

Slinky Ribs by Wendy Bernard (Knit and Tonic). I am using Zephyr (50% wool/50% silk) DK in Lady Slipper. I have finished the back and I am now knitting down the right front side. Picking up live stitches and continuing the K2P2 ribbing is a pain in the you know what.

March must be a pink month for me. Maybe it's because I'm tickled pink now that I have more time to knit. I have been refocused so to speak and so far it has been a good thing.

One of these days when the dust settles I will tell the story of Nonnie's Great Adventure In Cyber Space and how she became a Rebel Without A Clue along with 100+ other knitters

Shhhh its a secret....

2009-03-25T10:29:00.000-07:00

This is a baby sweater I made for one of the members of the online knitting group I belong to. I had so much fun knitting this sweater and I love the way it turned out even if the baby will not be able to wear it until she is 2 years old. Yes it came out bigger than planned, but hopefully it won’t matter and she will be able to wear it anyways.

The pattern I used is “Lucille” from Kelbourne Wollen Mills (http://www.kelbournewoolens.com/lucille.html) and it is free. The pattern called for fingering weight yarn and I had originally planned to use Stork which is fingering weight cotton, but for whatever reason I do not like knitting with cotton so I changed to Baby Cashmerino by Debbie Bliss. This is the first time I have ever used this yarn and it was wonderful to knit with, I wouldn’t mind making myself something out of this yarn. As a matter of fact, I wouldn’t mind a sweater just like this for myself in a worsted weight or DK weight California friendly yarn. Based on the stitch counts for this pattern it wouldn’t take much adjustment to do just that.

Hope the little peanut likes it. Now all I have to do is get this in a box and in the mail.

That Evil Woman

2009-03-22T17:58:00.000-07:00

Yes Sundara I'm talking about you..... look at these yummie colors.... who could resist? Not me, I had to have them all. These are examples of her Silk Lace (from left to right clockwise): Hazy Shade of Winter, Mahogany Over Strawberry, and last but not least Mahogany Over Marmalade.

Juliet Fini

2007-10-08T12:22:00.000-07:00

This was such a quick knit, Juliet from Zephyr Style (http://www.zephyrstyle.com/). The original pattern has 2 or 3 button going across the top, but I thought it looked to busy so I went with the single button closure. It makes a nice vest type sweater and I

wouldn't mind making another one with long sleeves for winter. The yarn I used has been in my stash for years and was slightly variegated in nice soft pastels, which would have been nice except that towards the end it started pooling. So out came the red food coloring and a bottle of vinegar and this is the result. I think it turned out pretty good for an amateur dye job.

Summer of lace and roses...

2007-09-20T07:15:00.000-07:00

Another opera came and went in July and still no pictures, shame on me. This has been the summer of lace. I knit the Mystery Stole 3 project and I love the design, but wish I had knit more repeats to make it longer. I haven't taken any good photos of it yet. I will post pictures when I do. It is hard to get my photographer enthused, he can be so temperamental. I also knit Triinu Adreassen's shawl pattern and for this one I have pictures:
This was knit using Hand Maiden Silk Lace using a 3.5 mm (US 4) Addi Lace needle in a color called Pale Pink. The color inspiration for this shawl came from the photographer, who one day said "I think you should knit this shawl in that color" and pointed to the Angel Face rose (which smells like heaven, I might add) the one pictured in the first two photographs. I found this yarn at Knitty-Noddy.com and the colors are glorious. Although it appears to be solid, it is not. It has subtle color variations that are magnificent, Hand Maiden does a wonderful job with their colors. This was a very fast knit, I didn't write down the dates, however it seems to me that it only took a few weeks to finish. I love the way this one turned out and I love the way the silk drapes. This was my first experience knitting with silk yarn and I love it. The pattern was a bit of a problem and quite expensive, but that's a whole other story that I won't get into right now. For anyone wanting to order this pattern, you can email Triinu at triinu.andreassen@telia.com with Shawl Pattern in the subject line. She will email you a PayPal invoice (I think the price is $33.00 US for this pattern). After payment is made, she will mail the pattern (it took about one week).

Other exciting news on the knitting front is that my sister Brenda came for a two week visit and she did her first cast-on! Woo Hootin Hoo! Another knitter in the family will be fun.

This one's for you Brenda, Betty Boop in all her glory..

It's been awhile

2006-10-29T07:13:00.000-08:00

I am probably the worlds worst blogger, as those that know me will atest, I'm just not the Chatty Cathy type of girl. Anyhoo, I do have a couple of pictures to share. But Blogger wouldn't let me and now I can't remember which photos they were.

Bizzy Bizzy Bizzy

2006-07-12T22:33:00.000-07:00

Between catching up at work and joining the Mystery Stole 2 knitalong, I have had my hands full just trying to keep up. I am knitting the Mystery Stole in Ruby Zephyr. I'm not sure that I am crazy about this color, but I have finished both sides of Clue #1 and if I'm still not crazy about the color when I am finished with the Stole, I can always dye it black. I decided to try knitting a Stole because as you can see in the Opera pictures below, I am wearing a shawl (triangle) that was Mystery Shawl #1 and it is beautiful and I love it, however I just think I would be more comfortable in wearing a stole. So we will see, the verdict is still out.

While I was in Santa Fe, Grant learned how to ride a bike without training wheels... finally! And on Saturday, he rode in his first BMX race. To say the least I was a little nervous about how this was going to go, but he did fine. As a matter of fact, he won a 2nd Place trophy, not bad for his first race and only riding a bike for about a week! Yes I'm a proud Nonnie...

Carmen Who?

2006-07-09T20:02:00.000-07:00

Eric and I had a wonderful time with Gretchen and Norm at the opening night of the Santa Fe Opera (an annual event for the four of us). Every year we attend this event Eric sports a hat created for the occasion. These hats are usually the brainchild of Gretchen who has an inspired muse. This year was no exception; Gretchen’s creative genius led us down a road that turned out to be loads of fun. Her inspiration for this year’s opening night hat was this, you guessed it… Carmen Miranda the samba queen!

Which is only fitting since the opera was Carmen. She began collecting fruit for the creation a year in advance. With everything that she had collected and several trips back and forth to the local Hobby Lobby (craft store) and Dollar Store, a couple gazillion sticks of hot glue, and an upside down wicker basket, we were able to put together a creation that even the real Carmen Miranda would have been proud to wear. This was the result of our creative efforts

Eric took it for a test ride as we put on a few finishing touches….

And then Ta Da…. His opening night debut!

To say the least it was a hit, the minute it hit his head, the photographers were all over him and yes we made the front page of the Albquerque Journal… again!

And last but not least, we can't forget the opera mask craftyness...

Woo Hoo! Schools Out

2006-06-15T22:42:00.000-07:00

Today was the last day of school for Zachary and Grant. There was a graduation ceremony for Grant's kindergarten class. Each of the classes sang a song and they all sang Louis Armstrongs "What A Wonderful World"... it was so cute and sad. After the performance, we went back to Grant's class and they served us cookies and lemonade (mmm mmm good!).

Zachary's class was pretty quite in comparison. The had their big day the day before.

Pretty as a picture

2006-06-14T16:52:00.000-07:00

Garden Sun Hybrid Tea Climber from Mielland International. This rose was free, given to us from the nursery where we buy most of our roses… beautiful apricot color, nice smell.

Miami Moon, Floribunda by Tom Carruth. Planted in September 2004 it is an orange-pink blend with beautiful flowers.

I was playing with the macro setting on the digital camera and got this picture with the sun shining through from behind. This is a Robusta a Hybrid Rugosa by Kordes from Germany. Planted in September 2004
Our Lady of Gudelupe

These are just a few of the roses that we have, there are so many that I can’t post all the pictures and of course there are the other flowers that go with them…

And the sweetest of them all…. my Dr. Suess Grant rose

and Zach the BMX King! Well, soon to be king. This was his first official BMX race. He won a third place trophy, not bad for his first try.

Stone Dust Saga...

2006-06-01T07:59:00.000-07:00

People in our neighborhood have been very busy with their home improvement projects… typical springtime behavior. My sweetie who walks the dog everyday gets the scoop on everyone’s projects and monitors their status. One project that he is particularly interested in is the neighbor down the street who put in a flagstone walkway and terrace. And the next thing I know, we go from this… which is fondly referred to as Weed Heaven! An absolute mess with bad dirt and no redeeming qualities!

To this in just a few short days… This is now the view out my front door. Steve from Tonga (pictured above with the hat on) does beautiful work. He hand cut each piece and fit them together like a puzzle. Here is another view from a slightly different angle

All I can say is amazing… But wait, it’s not over… the dust still hasn’t settled …. And then Steve says to Eric such a deal I have for you…. And the next thing you know, we go from this…

Bumpy uneven falling apart brick work....

To this in just a few more short days The new view from our back deck….
Simply amazing! The dust still isn’t done, but we are coming down the home stretch with just a few finishing touches left. I can’t wait; I really am ready for these projects to be done so I can enjoy these beautiful new places to sit without the dust!

Backyard Tour...

2006-05-31T06:59:00.000-07:00

Woo Hoo! My first blog... My first post, will wonders never cease!

This is the rose that grows on my fence... a gift from Mr. Wonderful, the love of my life. We have at least 40 roses and this spring we were gifted with at least 148 simultaneous blooms.

Dainty Bess is another favorite... I love this rose, it is so delicate and graceful...

And for a little knitting news, I am currently knitting Rosita from Jaeger Handknits 35. No pictures yet. It is slow going, the Ogee lace pattern has a 28 row repeat. I modified the pattern to knit in the round and this makes the knitting go a little faster. I will post pics when I'm a little further along.

I also have 15 balls of Katia Idea yarn that I bought ages ago and would love to make something out of it but can't find a pattern that I like for this type of yarn...