Tomorrow should be the day!

There are now 201 people ahead of me on the Ravelry list. So by tomorrow I expect I'll receive my invite. I'm still on vacation in Cape Cod so I probably won't be able to explore too much until I get home.

Here is what you do on a Sunday afternoon in late September when on Cape Cod. This is Scott and I sitting on Nauset Beach in Orleans, Massachusetts.



This is the view we are looking at from our beach seats.



And this is Scott not being amused that we are asking him to stop reading again so we can take yet another picture. I decided to give him a little pinch to liven him up. I don't think it worked.



I have visited a couple of yarn shops and purchased 3 patterns, US 1 bamboo double points (Plymouth), US 2 double points (Chia Goo), a skein of Austermann Step, 2 skeins of Plymouth Encore and two skeins of Utopia worsted weight.

One of the patterns was for a cute baby earflap hat that I started in the Plymouth Encore. It's for the new grandson of a friend. The other patterns were both sweater patterns for children.

Tomorrow is our last full day here. We'll do a little more sightseeing, a little more shopping, and start to gather up all our belongings. It's been fun but I'll be glad to get home. Four couples in one house gets to be a little confining after a week.

I have more pictures but I don't know if I'll get them posted before we leave for home. Catch you later.

Hot Socks on the Beach!

Here are a couple of pictures of my September Socks for SAMKAL4 taking a little stroll on the beach at Barnstable Harbor on Cape Cod.



We're renting a house in Barnstable for this week and it's 50 yards from the beach. I'll be posting more pictures throughout the week.

I finished the socks during the 5 hour trip out here. I was not happy when one of my Brittany double points snapped on the last row of the second sock. I just bought the needles a couple of weeks ago and this was the first pair of socks I made with them. I think I'll be contacting Brittany. I love using their needles and was so disappointed.

The pattern is my favorite "Classic Socks for the family" by Yankee Knitters Designs. The yarn is Regia 6 "Crazy Colors". The above mentioned needles were US size 2 1/2 (3.00 mm).

Now on to my next pair of socks. I'm not completely sure what I'm doing next. Maybe a pair for my youngest sister's birthday in November.

3957!

That's where I am on the Ravelry waiting list!!! The list is moving quite fast now and I'm getting anxious to see what everyone is talking about. Hopefully I'll find out soon. The blog said that they are inviting 500-600 people a day now.

Today I packed my knitting for our trip to Cape Cod. I have several socks-in-progress, the Big-Foot Bunny from Knitting Toys by Zoe Mellor, baby booties, mittens for the Cheyenne Reservation, and worsted weight socks for afghans for Afghans and Children-In-Common. I don't know if I'll go to any of the yarn shops that I like there since I really don't need any more yarn!! But, I probably will hit at least one.

No pictures today since I haven't finished anything. My Crazy Color socks are still progressing but I still have an inch before I start the toe decreases. I'd love to get them done before we leave but I don't see that happening. I should be able to finish them on the 5-6 hour trip to the Cape, though. Then I can wear them while we're there!

I just finished the book "Died in Wool" by Mary Kruger. It's a knitting mystery (obviously) and it was good. I bought the second book in the series last night while at Barnes and Noble. I also like Maggie Sefton's knitting mysteries.

That's it for tonight and that's 3 posts in 3 days! I'm on a roll!!

Knitted Toys Group

I know, two posts in two days! Don't worry, it probably won't become a habit.

When I posted yesterday, I meant to point out the "Join" button for knitted toys on my side bar. I'd like to make more knitted toys and couldn't find a yahoo group that had exactly what I wanted. So, I started my own group. If you have any interest in making knitted or crocheted toys, come on in!

The site is still quite new but I hope to be adding more to it soon.

That's it for now and I hope to see you all soon!!

Someone stop me!

I keep buying sock yarn! Here is a picture of sock yarn that I've purchased in the past month.



There's two different colors of Crystal Palace "Panda Wool", Cascade "Sassy Stripes", Lana Grossa "Meilenweit", Regia 4, and Opal "Herbstmelodie" handpainted. I started out looking for a self-striping yarn that was mostly red to make a pair of socks for a friend. She liked the Moda Dea "Sassy Stripes" sock that I hated working on. I suppose I could just suck it up and make the second sock but I really don't care for the yarn.

The first Panda Wool I bought is Lacquer Red. But I foolishly only bought one skein. When I went back to the Little Knits site, I saw they have a $25.00 minumum. Oh, what a shame! So I bought one more skein of the Lacquer Red, two skeins of Red Cinnamon, and a Dale of Norway book. The previous order (when I bought the first Panda Wool) was also when I bought the Opal and the Meilenweit. The Cascade "Sassy Stripes" I purchased at a LYS. That's why it isn't in a shade of red. The Regia was purchased when we were in Lake Placid two weekends ago.

Heaven knows I don't need any more sock yarn. I have enough in my stash to make probably 20 pairs of socks. It's just all so pretty! Now all I have to do is knit it into socks. I'm thinking of making each of my sisters a pair for their birthdays. That would mean one pair in November, two pairs in December (the 8th and 31st) and one pair in June. I might be able to do that.

I'm on the foot of the second Crazy Color sock. The foot always seems to take sooo long to finish. I should have these done in plenty of time to count as my September socks in the Sock A Month KAL 4.

Update on Mom - the catherization went well and the doctor said you could drive a truck through her arteries because they were so clear. Unfortunately, after the procedure, she went into atrial fibrillation. She had to stay overnight in the hospital so they could get her heart rate regulated. She's doing okay now but she has two new medicines to take every day. Thanks for all good thoughts.

We leave Saturday for our annual trip to Cape Cod. The house we rented this year is only 50 yards from Barnstable Harbor. I can't wait to go! There is wi-fi at the house so I'll be able to post pictures while we are there. Both of Scott's brothers and his oldest sister and all their spouses are going. That means 4 couples in the house. Usually we have 3 couples. This may prove interesting.

It's looking a little more like love...

I think I could really like knitting socks if I keep trying it. Using Brittany size US 2 1/2 (3.0 mm) birch needles and some Regia 6 "Crazy Colors" (color 5404)that was marinating in my stash, I cast on the Easy Sock Pattern from the apparently defunct Oz Yarns. I wanted to try it because it uses a "no wrap" short row heel.

Well, the short row heel was not looking quite right so I ripped it out and did a normal heel flap and gusset. Except that I didn't make the heel flap long enough and ended up ripping it back again. Third time's a charm and I have one finished sock! Even the toe grafting went well. And I did that in the truck on the way back from our weekend in Lake Placid.



I love the colors in this yarn! I was a little concerned because I managed to pick the one spot in the striping that only shows up every 9" or so. But I found it with very little trouble in the skein I picked to start the second sock. The cuff is done on the second sock and I'm moving into the leg.

The first sock took a little over one skein of the Regia which makes me happy that I have bought 3 skeins of it.

Back when we were in New Hampshire, I promised to take a full view picture of the marketplace where Patternworks is located. And now I'm finally posting it.



There is quite a bit more to the building but the end part is Patternworks with Keepsake Quilts next to it under the porch roof.

Now I'd like to respond to a couple of comments that were posted recently.

Sue Rowal asked if we ate at Hart's Turkey Farm while in New Hampshire. Yes, we had lunch there one day and it was very tasty! They even had a veggie sandwich for my vegetarian husband.

Sheryl (Bibliocat) wanted to know if the Hugs N Kisses ponchettes are for the twins or for dolls. Well, they are for the twins (who are just one year old) but eventually they can use them for their dolls. The pattern is from Creative Knitting Magazine July 2005.

That's it for now. I have to get ready to head to the hospital soon. My mother is having a heart catherization today to see if there is a blockage or narrowing of one of the arteries. Hopefully, she won't need angioplasty. Please keep her in your prayers and thoughts.