Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Winter again?!


Last week was a wonderful summer week. Sunshine, warm temperatures, blue skies. But if you live in central New York, wait a minute and the weather will change. Today there is sunshine and blue skies but there's also a chance of snow flurries in the higher elevations. It's a bit nippy out there.

ETA: Forget higher elevations! I looked out the window five minutes ago and saw this frozen rain/sleet stuff falling from the sky. It has already stopped and melted. Crazy weather!

Monday it rained all day. I didn't mind too much since we really needed the rain and because I went outlet shopping in Waterloo with three of my four sisters. (My other sister lives in North Carolina.) We had a lot of fun. And bought quite a bit of stuff. I bought 2 blouses and a pair of capris at Van Heusen, a long sleeved blouse and a sweater at Eddie Bauer, a pair of black clogs at Clarks Bostonian, two saucepans and a beer bottle carrier (for Alek) at Le Gourmet Chef, two citronella candles and a car freshener at Yankee Candle, and a 6" Calphalon chef's knife at The Cook's Store. We had stopped at a truck stop when we got off the Thruway for gas and potty break and found pamphlets that offered free VIP coupon books for the outlets. At almost every store we shopped at, we got at least 10% off our total purchase including sale prices. That made it really nice.

On the drive out, my youngest sister told us all about my niece's labor and delivery. Yep, the baby was born on Sunday. She is beautiful! After debating for a day and a half, they named her Cecelia Angelina. Now I want to knit more baby things!

And on the knitting front, I offer you these pictures. The first is a progress picture of the Hooded Baby Tunic in Bernat Denimstyle. The body is done and I'm working on the hood. I took the picture yesterday morning and then worked on it at my knitting group last night so I have 4 3/4" of the 7" done.



I know it isn't the clearest picture but this yarn is really busy. I have to fix the little jog in the front where the rounds started. I wove the end in quick and did a terrible job. Luckily, I didn't cut the yarn off so I have plenty to use.

Here are my April SAM KAL 5 socks.



A pair of toddler socks in Patons Classic Wool "Harvest" on size US 5 dpns. These will go to Children-in-Common for the Russian orphanages. I have another pair started in Patons Classic Wool #247 which is left over from the hat I made Alek in the beginning of the winter. The ball band doesn't tell me the name of the colorway on this skein. I also bought another skein of this yarn in Wedgewood. The current sock challenge goes until the end of May and it will interest me to see how many pairs I actually get done.

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Monday, April 21, 2008

Spring has sprung!



At least the daffodils think so. Not a very artsy picture but they are still very pretty.

And another promise of spring in our yard is violets! They are all over the lawn.



The weather has been in the high 70's and low 80's for the past several days. Trying to trick us into believing it's summer. But this is upstate New York and we could very well get another snow storm in the next month. I hope not!

I finished up the chemo hat on Saturday morning. The pattern is nice but the yarn was a little splitty. And, even though I was using Addis, it seemed to stick on the needles. But the end result is nice.



This is a progress picture of the hooded baby sweater.



As you can see, it is knit from the top down. Well, maybe you can see it. It's hard to take a picture of a project that is being knit in the round on circular needles.

I'm not sure I like the color of the yarn for this sweater. It seems a little busy or something. Maybe I'll like it better after it's finished. If I don't, I can always make another one in a different yarn. It's moving right along now that I'm working on it again. It would be nice to get it finished quickly.

Tomorrow I have to take my mother for her annual colonoscopy. Not much fun for her but I get to sit and knit for a couple hours. I will take the sweater and the toddler socks that I'm working on. The first sock is done to the heel gusset. I might even be able to finish the pair while I'm waiting. If not, tomorrow night is my knitting group so it's very possible they will be done by Wednesday. And that means I'll have my April SAM KAL socks done!

Thursday, April 17, 2008

More April knitting

Here is another picture of the Christmas stocking. I like the angle of this one better. The stocking measured 20" long.



My current project is a chemo hat. I was talking to a former neighbor at the shower and she mentioned that her aunt is undergoing chemo and lost her hair. She said she didn't know anyone who could make her a hat. So I decided I would make one.



The pattern is Cable Knit Cap 11 and I making it in Gedifra Fashion Trend Color in color #4512. The pattern is easy but it's not going as fast as I would like. I probably have two more cable repeats and then the decreases.

I started the baby sweater for Nancy's grandson. The pattern I'm using is Knitting Pure and Simples Baby Tunic #211 and I'm making it in Bernat's Denimstyle in the navy/white marl. It's not too far along because I decided to get the chemo hat done first. But as soon as the hat is done, I'll start working on it again.

The third project I have going (I seem to work in threes) is a pair of toddler socks in Patons Classic Merino in the Harvest colorway for the Children-in-Common yahoo group. I don't remember the exact URL so I'll have to post it later. These little socks will be sent to Russia for the children in the orphanages there. I hope to get some other pairs made as well.

And now it's time to get ready for work. It's going to be a gorgeous day here with the temperature getting up to 75 degrees F. Maybe spring has finally arrived!

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Hmm...

I can't think of a title for this post. That's okay, it's going to be a short one.

I'm sure you're wondering why I'm posting a picture of a Christmas stocking in April. I mean, the snow is gone and the weather is getting warm and sunny. This stranded Christmas stocking was a shower gift for my niece, Tara.



I made started it during Lent so I had to use yarn from my stash. (I gave up buying any knitting supplies during Lent.) This is made from Lion Brand Wool Ease in cranberry and off white. I used the "Mix-and-Match Socks" pattern from the book "Knit Christmas Stockings!" (It's the book that's shaped like a stocking.)

For the most part, I enjoyed knitting this stocking although I wasn't too crazy about the toe decreases. I did them according to the pattern but if I make another one, I'll just do regular sock toe decreases. And, instead of the afterthought heel, I would probably do a heel flap and gusset.

Tara really seemed to like it. I knew that my sister, Michelle, was making her a baby blanket and that her great grandmother, Mary, (who is in my knitting group)was making her a baby sweater so I wanted to do something a little different. The stocking seemed like fun. I'll make the baby a sweater that she can wear in the fall.

I'll post more pictures later. I'm at work and this is the only one I have on this computer. Now I probably should get back to work. Ugh!