Got Nothing

It's finally happened...nothing on the needles to knit. I finished my February Lady (Ravelry link) sweater tonight & it's now ready to be blocked. It's the first time I have really nothing left on the needles ready to go. Not totally true because I'm waiting on a yarn order for Webs...it's been almost 3 weeks. Sale yarn is the best yarn, but the wait has been longer than I anticipated.

I do have a couple of projects in mind for one particular yarn, Rowan Calmer in mandarin...Etrusca or possibly the Shay Cap Sleeve top from Webs. I'm also going to cast on another February Lady for my Mom since her Mr. Greenjeans didn't work out too well...'nough said about that one for now. Last week I was able to get 7 skeins of Malabrigo's Autumn to start the sweater while visiting Mosaic so I will have a few things starting soon & there's always socks. I have another new book that I'm dying to get into for some really cool socks...Sock Innovation by Cookie A.

Looks like I may be busier than I first thought...

Whoops

We drove up to the Burg this past weekend...beautiful spring weather & Hokie Spring Football! I was even able to visit one of my favorite yarns shops (Mosaic) & hang out with my knitting group. Our group was created a few months back with the idea that we'd have some opportunities to teach each other something new as well as simply getting together to knit & chat...or more chatting than knitting when it comes to me. It's been a great way to learn a new trick or two.

So on this occasion I briefly did a little demo of how I make my stitch markers...so simple and fun. You need only a few tools (round nosed pliers, wire cutters, & my favorite split ring pliers) a few 'jewelry' making supplies (split rings, beads, & headpins)...that's it. Great gift idea for knitters too...inexpensive & quick. Of course while there I finished using up my last Christmas gift certificate...found some awesome glass buttons for my February Lady (Ravelry access required) cardigan and added a couple more Addi Turbo needles to the stash.

While in the area I had my Mom try on her Mr. Greenjeans sweater....Whoops. While knitting on this sweater it looked so small even though I was right on gauge & measurements I worried that I had failed to get my knitting to come close to fitting an actual body. I hoped that some miracle in the blocking would occur and it would grow...a ton. It didn't. It seems as if my worry was spot on...doesn't fit Mom. No. Way. Now I have a sweater that doesn't fit anyone...too poofy around my middle & the button was set much too low for me. I decided to re-knit the button band, moving the button up to fit me. It's still way too poofy around the middle...per my dear husband. He says it looks "really weird" so no way I'll be wearing it as it is now. What to do?

I could try sewing a seam on both sides taking in the sweater, but I'm afraid it may look even weirder. Now it's sitting folded up waiting on me to make a decision. I'm really leaning towards ripping back the cable/rib section up to the arms and re-knitting it to fit me. It's a shame to let such nice yarn go to waste in a sweater that fits no one. In the meantime I've started another February Lady for my Mom in Malabrigo's Autumn...maybe this one will fit her. I don't want another Whoops...

The Need for more WIPS

I find myself in a bit of a pickle...only one wip (work in progress for you non-knitters). You read that right I currently only have ONE work in progress as I write today. I'm about done with February Lady so it's possible that I will not have anything on the needles very soon. I have not had that situation in a very long time...like way back when I first started knitting in 2005.

Way back then I had this attitude that I would only buy yarn as I went...yeah crazy right? I would finish a project before I'd get more yarn. I would never have a 'stash', never have to worry about where to store yarn, never forget what I had, yada yada yada. As a side note I also have said that I'd never knit sweaters, socks or lace...all untrue statements now.

I have a stash and add to it quite frequently as noted in prior posts...here, more, & yet more over the last few months. Not to mention the sweaters I have knitted...starting with my Mermaid and more recently Mr. Greenjeans & February Lady. Socks? Yep broke that one too...along with lace, hats, bags you name it and I've tried to knit it. The great thing about knitting is the fact that there is so much out there to knit.

Which brings me back to my original problem. With so much out there & so many things I want to start...how to pick what's next? So the plan...such as it is...a pair of socks -angee (ravelry link) by cookie a in Sock Innovation, a tank or summer top-Shay Cap Sleeve Pullover and maybe another sweater. I still like to use wool even as the weather warms. Ask me about the Blankie knitted during July and August. I think I can handle knitting a wool sweater...maybe Chicknits Eyelet Cardi?

Now I only need to choose the yarns & needles to go with these projects...then cast on.

An April February Lady

I dragged the yarn & pattern all over the country for over 2 months without doing much other than a gauge swatch. What was I thinking? After casting on I've been rolling right along on this cardigan. February Lady by Pamela Wynn has been a joy to knit...mostly. By the time the lace sections get monotonous you realize that you're done. Perfect! The best part of the whole project has been the yarn. I decided to use Malabrigo's Azul Profundo for the cardigan. Talk about a soft touch...this stuff has been wonderful to knit. I only hope that the pilling that sometimes plagues this yarn won't happen. Most all of my other items knit with Malabrigo have not had any issues with pilling. Time will tell. The color is a beautiful shade of cobalt blues...a wee bit of varigation, but not an overabundance. Love the color!

As for the cardigan itself I think I'll be done in less than a week. The first sleeve is about done...deciding where to stop & start the garter stitch cuff. Do I want to stop at the elbow as the designer has done or work down as far as my forearm? Thinking I'll like it better with the longer sleeves. Decisions, decisions...off to finish the sleeve cuff. Ooooh and I need to look through my buttons...more decisions.

Giddy Up

Jeeze, could it take any longer? What you ask...putting together a baby blanket. I mean it's only 16 eight inch wide squares for goodness sake. My plan's have changed more times than I care to count. I originally finished the 16 squares way back in February while on our jaunt across the country. The project was perfect for car travel. At least while on interstates...not so much when it came time to hit the back roads. Knitting actually took a rare back seat as we drove through some of the most beautiful scenery in the country.

My plan was so simple...pick a stitch pattern, cast on enough stitches to create a 8" square and ta-da a square is done in a couple of hours of knitting. I figured that in a few days time I would have enough to make a nice square baby blanket for my husband's new nephew, Benjamin. Of course I originally had planned to have the darn thing done by the time we arrived in San Antonio for our visit...did not happen. Yet another example of underestimating how much time a project would take.

Working on the squares while driving the Interstates worked to perfection...the last square was completed while we were in Taos, NM. The problems starting creeping in after that last square was done. While traveling it became obvious that I would need to hold off putting the blanket together until we were back home. I really needed more space to spread out everything and the brain power to do it. I must admit that the combination of traveling and physical activity drained the energy right out of the brain by the end of our day of adventure.

We arrived back home and after a couple of weeks it was pointed out that babies grow...really? and I should "get busy" before he was driving & needed a bigger blanket. So this past weekend I got back to it and spread out the squares, picked up the needles to add borders to the squares & realized that Plan A was NOT going to work. Of course I realized this after I had picked up stitches on each block, put the squares into rows of 4 squares each, & added another border on the long edge of 2 sets & then trouble...could not line up the edges of these borders no matter how many attempts were made.

What next? First we went out to dinner...my husband knows exactly what's called for in a knitting emergency. Next I frogged all the borders and by the end of it had 16 blocks all alone once again...along with one heck of a pile of tiny groups of yarn. Once done I put Plan B into operation...mattress stitching. Well after a little side trip by way of the whip stitch...didn't work...I moved right to mattress stitch. I worked on each block attaching one to another until I had 4 rows of 4 blocks each. Was it tedious? Yes. Do I like the look? Yes. Is there a border? Yes, one single 2 inch border around the entire group of blocks. The whole thing was completed with the attached i-cord coordinating color'.
The last finishing touch was attaching the most cool flannel fabric that is a perfect match for my theme...think Texas. After attaching the backing using the "overcast stitch" I also added some yarn ties spread around the corners of the squares to keep things a bit more even. Thankfully all is done and ready to mail to it's young owner & he's still under 6 months. Whoohoo!




Details:
Patterns: Texas, Lonestar, Eyelet Mock Cable, The remaining blocks: Diamond Brocade, Garter Ridge Rib, Simple Basketweave, Moss Stitch, Feather Lace & Herringbone Rib came from the Vogue Knitting Stitchionary

Yarn: Red Heart Soft Yarn (Worsted Weight, 100% Acrylic, 256 yards/ 5 oz), colors: off white, chocolate, seafoam. I used one skein each of the seafoam & chocolate for the squares and the off white for the borders. The attached i-cord was done using seafoam.

Needle: Addi Turbo, 40" circular, size 8

Gauge: didn't matter on this one

Size: 35" by 38"

Yet Another

I have yet another finished object to post about...Mr. Greenjeans is drying on the blocking mats. I'm thankful to have bound this one off. I have to say that this sweater has driven me nuts in the last week or so. Not so much the pattern, but in the size I was seeing as I knit...seems way to small for the desired XL size.

I'm worried it won't fit the intended recipient...Mom. She asked me to knit this up back in January and I took it on our trip (travel blog). I swatched and determined that I would need to use a size 7 needle in order to achieve the valuted gauge of 18 stitches/ 4". After casting on in Mom's desired size XL I knit until I had to put it on hold so she could give it a test fit. Added another 2 inches to the body after seeing where it hit her body...and on and on.

My problem with this is the sweater just looks way too small...it seems to fit me across the body okay although the shaping is all off for my torso. I don't think this will be fitting Mom as well as I would like. I'll be lucky if it fits across her shoulders much less have it button correctly. The thing is that all my measurements are spot on the schematic...now I can only hope that the magic of blocking will work out and this will fit well.

Details
Pattern: Mr. Greenjeans by Amy Swenson

Yarn: Schaefer Miss Priss [100% Merino; 280 yd/256 m per 113g/4 oz skein], colorway: Elena Piscopia. I used most of 4 skeins with a bit over 1.5 oz left.

Needles: Addi size 7, 32" circular and Knitpicks Options size 6, 60" circular, and size 8 DPN's for the sleeves

Gauge: 18 sts/26 rows = 4 inches of stockinette stitch

Size: XL

Once this is dry I'll finish up the little details...weave in the ends, attach the button, etc. and I'll post a few pictures with a body wearing the sweater. Now off to find the body...

Only Three

Now for the details of those items I actually finished over the course of our 2 month trip. First thing I completed was a hat for my husband. Actually it's the second one I've done for him. The original Bill Hat (Ravelry access required) was done as a reversible hat out of Berroco's Ultra Alpaca and Pure Merino. He loved the warmth, but he had a problem with it...yeah you guessed it...too warm. It was really way too warm when the weather in these parts doesn't get all that cold so he asked for another one. His 2 requests...single layer and the appropriate (to him anyway) orange to go with the maroon. I found it in the Tangerine from Blue Sky Alpaca...approved by him prior to casting on as being the "right Hokie orange".

Another Bill Hat:
Pattern: used a hat calculator for simple ribbed hat

Yarn: Berroco Ultra Alpaca (50% super fine alpaca, 50% Peruvian Highland Wool) in maroon and Blue Sky Sport Weight Alpaca (100% baby alpaca) in tangerine. I used about 60 grams of the 100 gram skein of Ultra Alpaca and about 15 grams of a 50 gram skein of the Blue Sky.

Needles: Knitpicks Options, 24" circular needle, size 6

Size: to fit 23" head

While away I really took more yarn than I probably should have...don't all knitters take more than they could ever possibly use? Anyway I only knit one pair of socks out of the 3 balls of sock yarn I took on our cross-country trip. I never even pulled out my pattern book that I had packed in anticipation of starting the other socks. What sock did I finish? Jaywalkers...my second pair, very easy pattern and actually knits up fairly quickly.

Jaywalker's
Pattern: Jaywalker (Ravelry access required) by Grumperina, no modifications to the pattern.

Yarn: It's Tubular x 2 *(80% wool, 20% nylon, 480 yards in a 100 gram skein) in the "jeans" colorway by Scarlet Fleece. Very generous amount I had about 28 grams of yarn left after finishing the sock.

Needles: Harmony DPN's, size 1 from Knitpicks

Size: woman's size 9


Now for my hat knit out of Plain & Fancy Sheep & Wool sport weight in Blue-Green Variegated. I've knitted this pattern once before here and loved how it fit and looked on my head. I have to say that I'm not loving or even liking this version very much. Before blocking the beret seemed too small, after blocking it seems way to big. The patterning isn't showing up as much as it had on the plain white version so this one may just get frogged. The yarn is too lovely to waste on something I will not be wearing...still searching for another hat pattern that looks good on my head. I've posted the details anyway since I'm counting it as a completed project. It would seem that I'll be reknitting the yarn though into something else.

My Beret
Beret Pattern: Fair Isle Beret by Anna Bright, no modifications to the pattern.

Yarn: Plain & Fancy Sheep & Wool Co., (100% wool, 400 yards in a 4.5 oz skein) in the blue-green variegated colorway, used about 3 oz. of the skein to complete the beret.

Needles: Clover bamboo 24" circular, size 2 and size 3, Knitpicks Harmony DPN's size 2's

Size: head circumference 22"

Back to Knitting

After our 2 month trip I'm back to my regular habits, in my regular comfy chair with my regular overhead lighting. About the only material thing I missed while on the road was my chair & lamp. Most rooms had pretty decent lighting for a change, but lacked in the comfy chair department. Have I mentioned that I have a general dislike of knitting in bed? I do it, but under protest and I can't knit for as long. Now I have the opposite problem...bedtime has been 2 AM for a the last few nights.

While away I was able to complete a few small items...another Bill Hat, a beret for myself, a pair of Jaywalker socks, (Ravelry access required) and blocks for a baby blanket. I started Mr. Greenjeans for my mother...now waiting to get her to try it on before I start the cable section. I have yet to put the baby blocks together. It was pointed out to me this AM that if I don't get on this the baby won't be a baby...mmm. Ya think? I also went ahead with plans to cast on the sweater,February Lady, (Ravelry access required) whose yarn traveled along on the trip. I have gotten in the groove and have a few things on the needles once again.

Now to get a few pictures and update everything.

Wrapped Up...of Sorts

I thought I'd share a wrap up of sorts of the yarns and shop photos from my trip...how y'all enjoy the pictures. Of course I forgot to take the camera into a few shops. So sorry no pictures of The Yarn and Fiber Place in Bozeman or Unraveled Sheep in Salt Lake City. Next trip I swear I'll do a better job of documenting my visits. At least I have the yarn pictures. Right?

*run mouse over the pictures for some fun

Yet Another Post About Yarn

One last post about the new yarn on the stash...I promise. After leaving Kalispell, MT we headed off further west, but I never stepped foot in a yarn store in Washington, California or Nevada. No real desire to search them out in Spokane, Fresno or Reno...weird, right? Oh don't worry I more than made up for it when I got to Salt Lake City, UT.

Maybe I just needed some snow in sight to get yarn fumes heading straight to my brain. Salt Lake had several to choose from close to our hotel so one afternoon while we were out & about my DH stopped at Unraveled Sheep. Quite a few people were in the shop and everyone was very friendly and welcoming. I was even able to share Raverly ravatars so we can keep in touch with a couple of ladies...hey there sockhappy & bleighw. Amazingly I met someone originally from Virginia whose sister actually owns/runs Unraveled in Radford. It is a small world isn't it?

The shop owner, Verla, pointed me in the direction of some locally dyed sock yarn by Sleeping Dragon Yarns and I was a happy Hokie...yep, it was Hokie inspired colors. Although they called it 'maple' it reminds me of the colors at sunset or even the desert. One could argue that it's the colors of maple trees in the fall, but 'maple' was not my first thought at all. Along with the skein of maple I also got another one called...mallard. I have no idea what they'll look like knit up or
what patterns I'll use, but couldn't resist these soft skeins of yarn. The skeins are 100% superwash merino wool and a very generous 450 yards each so I'll have more than enough...with left overs.



My last yarn purchase of the trip was once again Mountain Colors. This time I fell for Mountain Goat (55% mohair, 45% wool) in sweetpea. For some reason I've been drawn to rich blues & greens while on the trip & that's exactly what these 2 skeins possess. Emerald greens and blues as well as a touch of brown...a lot like the fir, spruce, pines & bright blue skies we've hiked through. You see it always comes around to all the natural beauty that has been around us on the trip.

So that's it for my yarn shopping adventure of the Wild West...now all I have to do is let all of this marinate for a time in the stash. I really don't want to 'mess' up when picking a pattern for these special yarns. Especially my bisondown...that would be criminal.

More Gushing About Yarn

Now where did I leave y'all last time? Bozeman...when we left Bozeman we stayed in Montana and headed north towards Kalispell, MT. I actually didn't think I'd visit another yarn shop while in Montana. I figured I went to one so let's wait until we move on to the next state...hold off, save money, yada yada. Then I read a write up for Kalispell's very own yarn shop, Camas Creek. All I can say is WOW, maybe a double WOW!

This place is so beautiful and I 'm not just talking about the yarn. Not only do they have one of the best selections of needles & yarn I have ever seen the owners, Melanie and Andy spent a lot of time, effort and cash to totally rehab the building that holds the shop. I'm not kidding either...my mouth fell open when I walked through the doors. Once again my pictures don't do the shop justice, but you can check out their very own commercial to get a small taste.




I only wish that I had visited early on during our week long visit in Kalispell...knitting on comfy sofas, drinking coffee from a real cup, and such nice folks would have been very special. OK, 'nough of the gushing on to what I actually bought.

I ended up with Montana's very own Mountain Colors in two different types of yarn...one called Winter Lace (50% wool, 50% silk) in a huge skein of 1200 yards called deep blue. I also bought a fun yarn from Mountain Colors called Twizzle (85% merino wool, 15% silk) in the colorway wild horse. Maybe I should have bought one more skein to have enough for a vest...mmm. Phone call may need to be placed.

It's Been Awhile

Yes, it's been a while since I actually wrote anything about knitting. It's been all about the trip, but things are back to "normal". While away I had the opportunity to visit several yarn shops along the way. One thing is certain you most always find people with a love for all things yarn & willing to talk about it...at length.

As most people do when they travel I love to bring back some kind of remembrance from the trip. Since this trip was going to be of some length and space was an issue I decided that buying special yarns would suit my purposes perfectly. Our first stop was Taos, New Mexico where I visited La Lana Wools shop. It was sensory overload as I wandered around looking at the collection of beautiful yarns. The colors were amazing...all dyed naturally from various plants. Quite a bit of the yarn was hand-spun. What to select was rather overwhelming...but of course I did choose something. By the time we left Taos I had 3 beauties in various shades of red sprinkled with some gold, along with a gold worsted weight yarn to mix with it and 2 skeins of an indigo dyed "sock weight" yarn. Stay tuned for what I'll use these for in the future...


Next we headed North up to Laramie, Wyoming and a little shop right in the downtown area called Jeny's Originals. I found the illusive bisondown which is more expensive than cashmere and to add to it the equally expensive lambswool. These yarns are super soft and warm...thinking I only have enough for a hat or cowl, but I really didn't want to blow the budget all for bison. A sweater's worth would have ran well over $300! Geez!


What do you think of when you here Montana? Is it Mountain Colors? You betcha...lots of it can be found at The Yarn Shop & Fiber Place in Bozeman, Montana. Along with the 13 Mile and the most scrumptious alpaca yarn from Black Wolf Ranch I sorta went crazy. I ended up with 3 skeins of 13 Mile in oatmeal, 2 skeins of lace weight alpaca from Black Wolf Ranch in a yummy dark charcoal and a skein of Mountain Colors in Bearfoot's 'crazy woman'...a truly appropriate name in my case. I so enjoyed my conversation in the shop with Jane...thanks so much for being so helpful in pointing out exactly the right items. All Made in Montana!


Mountain Colors Bearfoot's "Crazy Woman"

13 Mile in oatmeal

Black Wolf Ranch's fiber donated by Flannery & Grey Flannel...thanks so much! More coming in another post. Afterall I do have 'work' to do...yeah I hear all of y'all laughing.

Another Visit...More Yarn

After our drive out to West Yellowstone we were back in plenty of time to drop in on The Yarn Shop & Fiber Place. I'm still on the look out for the unusual or special yarn and today was no different. The shop was empty except for the clerk so I was able to browse & chat as I looked around. The shop was rather large...surprising when judged from the outside appearance. There was a good bit of yarn, rovings, and even a large selection of yarns for weaving.

I ended up choosing some gorgeous alpaca in a natural gray, 2 ply sport weight in a very generous amount of 350 yards. Made in Montana to boot from fiber donated by Flannery & Grey Flannel...the alpacas living on the Black Wolf Ranch. No idea what I'll knit with the lovely 2 skeins, but it will be something special.

I also decided to get some Thirteen Mile yarn in worsted weight. Actually made very close to where we currently are staying. I decided on 3 skeins of oatmeal...225 yards each so I'll be able to knit a nice cabled scarf. Just saying that I really need a nice natural colored scarf since I don't currently own one.

I've had a ball visiting the local yarn shops. The strange thing about all of these shops so far is that there have been no other knitters in the shops. Isn't that werid? All the shop owners have been fun to talk to, but no other knitters are around. I just find that a bit odd...maybe I'm missing something. I'll keep checking...off soon to Washington. I'm sure there will be knitters in Seattle & Spokane...maybe? If not I'll keep looking.

New Stash...Bison & Lamb

Souvenir shopping when one is fighting a head cold is not as much fun as when one is well. I managed to suff erthrough it long enough to find some illusive bison yarn. While here in Laramie I dropped into Jeny's Original Yarns and Handwovens to see if they had any local yarns. Yes they had several in fact...bison, yak, alpaca, llama. All local grown and spun in natural colors of cream, grays, blacks & browns. Not much else was in the shop except for 2-ply sheltland yarn (Jamison I think) and some yarn that had been "specially dyed" to match the owner's husband's photographs of local landscapes...interesting, but not what I was after.

I ended up with some bison...actually bison "down" mixed with Cormo sheep which made up into a nice mix of brown & cream. I bought only 2 ounces (100 yards) of the stuff...cashmere may be cheaper! To add to the bison/cormo I also got a skein of some of the softest cream color lambswool. I think a hat with these 2 skeins will be very soft & warm. Next up will be Montana and I'm sure to find some Mountain Colors in something I have not seen before.

Casting on Something

I couldn't take it any longer. I had to switch to some other project without finishing the blankie...maybe in a week or so I'll get back to it. I really wanted a hat for myself 'cause I'm hating the choices I bought along on the trip. All acrylic? What happened to my wool cabled head band...is it lost? Who knows, but I cast on for a simple beret similar to this one (Ravelry). I am using some beautiful variegated yarns from Plain & Fancy Sheep & Wool. Now if the cold will let go I can possibly knit on it before we head to Montana. Mountain Colors anyone?

More Yarn Please

I dropped in again on La Lana Wools today. My DH has decided he'd rather get sick than ski so I was left to my own devices. After a scenic drive along with some photo taking I decided to swing back by the yarn shop. Too little yarn is not a good thing...figured I would add one of the solids to the handpainted from yesterday. I selected a gold skein of worsted weight yarn dyed with marigolds...the color was also called "marigold". Not exactly sure what I'm planning to do, but I'm going to be work the marigold in with the handpainted tsarina from yesterday. Mmmm....maybe a lacy sort of wrap? I'm off to look through Ravelry and see what I can come up with.

A Visit to a Yarn Shop

My first visit to a yarn shop while on our extended trip. After skiing a few days we took a break from the slopes & went exploring around Taos. I had been told about a yarn shop in town so we headed there this afternoon. La Lana Wools is a beautiful shop full of more handspun yarns than I have ever seen. All have been dyed using only natural dyes from plants found in the Southwest...marigolds, Navaho Tea, & lupine for instance along with some exotics like indigo. Only one person was manning the shop while we visited. She said that the shop"manufactures" all of the yarn from the moment they acquire the roving, to the spinning, and hand dying process. I cannot imagine how many hands have been involved in the whole process from sheep to shop.

It was a bit overwhelming to visit such a shop with the huge selection of colors & types of yarn. I ended up with 2 skeins of their Forever Random Fines in sport weight (100% Romney wool) in 'deep sea indigo" which has been dyed in indigo, purple, green. I'm thinking I'll use this for a beret of some kind since I have a tad over 230 yards.

The other yarn was from their Forever Random Worsted collection what was described as "obverse double dyed 60% Romney wool/40% Yearling". I chose 2 skeins in a color called"tzarina'. The tzarina colors are amazing...dyed bayeta red with madder, gold, indigo, green and lavender. I only bought the 2 skeins and must decided what to do with only 140 yards of this beauty. I can only imagine what a sweater would look like in this yarn...but price does come into play and I'm just starting this adventure.

What is It?

Well it’s been more than enough time since my last post so time to post something.Anything is better than nothing at this point. Right? I’ve been “on the road” since mid-January so I’ve taken my knitting on the road so to speak. As we drove on interstates…lost track of how many…I knitted away on baby sample blocks. I ended up with 8 squares of seafoam and 8 squares of chocolate brown. I had hoped to have it all done by the time we got to Austin for our visit with the great nephews, ages 3 and 2 ½ months. The squares were done by the time we left San Antonio, but not the “putting it all together” part which was a bit disappointing. I had wanted to have it done so I could leave it with them. At least I have a lot more interstate travel ahead so it will be done soon…mailed rather than personal delivery will just have to do in this case.

While in San Antonio my BIL’s wife, “K” gave me several yarns she had bought when they had lived in Italy over 20 years ago. She was taught how to knit while they lived there & had went shopping right before heading back stateside. ”K” said that you could go to the local mills and buy yarn by the POUND!Can you imagine that…bags & bags all sold by the pound. Anyway as she was showing me her stash she offered me several different yarns. Now I have to figure out what I have actually added to the stash…100% wool? Mohair? Cashmere? Now I need a good way to determine how much & what weight of yarn I now have…being on the road make that a bit more difficult.

Knitting From the Road

Our trip is underway and so is a bit of knitting. I've started a baby blanket for my DH's niece...2 squares down & 10 or so more to go. I have not decided just how large this blanket will end up. My two choices are a 4 x 4 square blanket or a bit smaller rectangular one that is 3 x 4. Either way I'm planning on using 2 colors of Red Heart's Soft Yarn for the main body...seafoam & chocolate as well as some off white for the edging and borders. I must say that the yarn has a soft feel & so far hasn't been too bad knitting up. I usually hate acrylic yarns, but figured his mom would rather not hand wash a baby blanket.

My first square is the state of Texas...home state of the new arrival. Now if I could only find the link to post...

Let There be Light

An even better title could be "How to See to Knit in Dark Hotel Rooms". Why does management fail to put light bulbs in the lamps? An even bigger pet peeve are those lamps that have bulbs that are 40 watts or less. I hate those. I was planning on taking my own bulbs or even a lamp with us. Thanks to my dear husband he's manged to come through with 2 other options. Both came to me as Christmas presents...one made me laugh so hard I cried. Back when I first mentioned taking a knitting light on our trip he told me about a cap with built in LED lights under the brim. The idea was interesting, but I'm not fond of caps...not to mention flat hair & looking funny factor.

As we were shopping we came across a set of LED clip on lights. I mentioned that I liked them. They were compact enough to travel easily & could be clipped on the headboard or even set on a table. I wasn't sure how bright they'd be or how long the batteries would last, but so much better than his original hat idea. Maybe not as entertaining to those around me, but no one would be cracking up watching me knit.

The second options was totally unexpected although it was "hat inspired". My husband always finds something that I'm not expecting...always a surprise & most of the time I end up loving it. This time was no exception. He wanted me to have enough light & found a LED headlight with 3 different settings. I even have night vision in the form of red LED lights. When I opened this gift I must have laughed for 5 minutes non stop. I mean how funny would this thing look while I knit away? The picture in my head was hysterical. Then today as I was wandering around the internet looking for new patterns I went to check out Norah Gaughan's new pattern book. As I was reading through her blog I found this. I cannot wait to show him & let him know that his idea isn't quite as crazy as I first believed.

I took the light for a test knit Christmas night and it really is nice to knit with even in total darkness. I'm just not going to do so in public. Once again he comes through on a great idea.