My Latest FO and Contest Winners!

In my latest Finished Object... I took some of this:



Turned into this:



What is that you ask? A Swiffer Re-Usable Cloth of course.



Knitters, seriously... I've got 371g of this cone left. That means I can knit another 10 covers out of this cone. Whoo-hoo!!


Enough of that...
You came for the winner of these two lovely skeins of Simpliworsed.



So, lets get to it...
There were 15 comments on the post and because I like to do this the old fashioned way...



I then had Miss Mac pick a number out of hat. She got a kick out of this.



And the Winner is number 12.



The 12th comment was from SameOldKnit! Congratulations! Thanks everyone for all your comments, it was great to read them all and to see that some people still read this little blog of mine:P

Don't forget you can still get the Gannon pattern for just one dollar until the end of May.

FO: Secret Santa Wine Cozy

Pattern: Wine Cozy by Jennifer Carter

Yarn: each cozy used 1 skein Plymouth Yarn Encore Worsted

Needles: US 6 circular needle

Started: December 3, 2011

Finished: December 10, 2011

My dad is starting to get a nice collection of wines and I thought this would be a cute idea for a Christmas gift. Made huge modifications to the pattern. The gauge in the pattern is no where near what I would get in this yarn... and then add the effect of cables. Loved how it turned out. Must keep this in mind for futures house warming gifts...super quick.

FO: French Press Felted Slippers

Pattern: French Press Felted Slippers by Melynda Bernardi

Yarn: 2 skein Cascade 220 Wool in Lime Green

Needles: US 15 circular needle

Started: August 13, 2010

Finished: August 15, 2010

This project was on and off the needles so fast I didn't have time to do any work-in-progress posts. I started the project out of hopes to have something to wear to the Friday Night Pajama Party at Stitches Midwest. The PJ's you see in the photo are my newly acquired awesome Peace Frog pajamas that I got special just for the occasion. I didn't win a prize for wacky pj's but that's okay;)

While in the market on Friday I also lucked out and found the perfect buttons to go with the slippers, phew!



Overall I loved the quickness of the pattern and it was easy to follow. I did however run into a few hiccups that would make me do adjustments for future pairs.

I would go up a size on my next pair. On average I wear a 7.5 - 8 shoe, so I figured going with the 7-8 pattern size would work. Yet, when I started the felting process the wool wasn't reacting like I hoped. The overall fabric was still showing the lines from the rows and the seam was not coming together. I think if I doubled yarn for seaming that would take care of that issue. Ultimately I ended up reinforcing the seam edge for stability.

During the felting I kept putting it in for longer and longer hoping it would fix its self and the lines would go away… but I had to stop because they were becoming way to small.

Also the top flap should have different sizes instead of being one size for all slippers. The finished piece was a bit small or perhaps I have wide feet?

Ups and Downs

The Man Child has graduated 8th Grade and is now officially a High School Student. Now comes the challenges and scary times in front of me. Say a little prayer. Especially when he is so handsome...



Sure is hard to believe that he's only 14... I. Know.

Over the holiday weekend, we opened the pool by taking the tarp cover off and filled the pool up so we could get the filter going. Then after buying all the chemicals, scrubbers, skimmers and arm floaties.... We woke up to this:



The water pressure coming out of the tear forced the 5 inches of stones out and away and dug a major hole into the ground. To say that we are devastated would be an understatement.

FO: Ornament Covers

Pattern: Knitted Christmas Ornament Covers by Knoxsocks Designs

Yarn: Cascade 220 (scraps really - perhaps 25 yards, if that)

Needles: US 5 dpns

Started: November 15, 2009

Finished: November 19, 2009

Modification: The bulbs I had on hand were a little bit larger then what was in the pattern, so I just knit a few more rows to make up for it. The pattern is so stretchy that it just hugs the shape.



I did get busted by the Millennium Park Security when I took these photos. He asked me while he was approaching me... "Taking pictures of the tree, are you?" and I turn towards him and say "Not exactly." His head tilts to the side with the look we've all seen. "You made those?" why yes, yes I did.

He was very sweet, but he couldn't understand why I would do such a thing. It's okay, lots of people don't get. I'm still wondering if he's curious why I knit Christmas ornaments or why I was taking pictures of my knitted Christmas ornaments. Most likely both.

What Else Would I Be Doing...

In the mists of carving pumpkins and Marking. Each. Day. Off. The. Calendar. Because we're so close to Halloween the kids can practically smell the candy. I'm a glutton for punishment. I finished the Ishbel scarf and had to immediately cast-on for the Ishbel Beret.




See the lifeline? Oh yeah, I've already ripped back twice and I'm still loving it. I'm kinda sick that way;)



I've been making some good progress on my Willoughby as well. I had reached the end of the required amount of repeats for the pattern when I noticed that I was only at the end of a one skein. I have three set aside for this project.

What do I do? Do I go as the pattern suggests and be left with a practically full skein? What would I do with it? Fingerless mitts? Nope... I really wanted to just use up all this loveliness in one scarf. I decided to add a few more repeats and that way I'm not left with a dilemma of too much left overs and the scarf will be all the more lovely with the added length.

Bath Update

Over the past week we've made some pretty significant strides on the Master Bath. We had repainted the bathroom after a horrible glowing green monster color was not pleasing to the eye. Back to the Depot we go with toilet topper and sample tile in hand. We must have looked at 18 different shades of green, gray, beige and yellow... we then had our handy paint guy (who has always been there for all our paint selections - except for the botched monster green) who picked the one color we liked the most.

It's actually several shades lighter then the existing tub and toilet. The name is Winter Garden and it's quite striking. At different times of the day, you'll see yellow or green and it's as if we planned on using dated '70's colors!



The bath has changed quite a lot since this last picture. We've installed the plumbing for the faucet along with the cabinet and counter. So do you know what this means?? It means we, for the first time in 8 years have running water.



I sometimes feel like I'm living in a dream and have to run and test the faucet. It's fabulous. We still have so much more to go... tub faucet, towel bars, rob hooks, toothbrush holder, mirror, storage cabinet... sigh, but we've got water. real. water.

And I couldn't have done it without my husband. He's awesome. So, Happy Father's day to you all, whether you've made your wife happy with a new master bath, or just made a cup of coffee for her in the morning.. Cheers!

Home Improvement Hell

The tile was grouted and I'm loving being able to walk on a new floor. I then started to prep for painting the walls, so lovely plastic covers my new floors. We patch a few holes, clean off the walls and BAM! hit a problem. The walls were originally lined with wallpaper which I had stripped off years ago.

Seriously... it was a cave. I now have glue residue still on the walls. My dearest husband claims that I only need to sand the walls and prime. I on the other hand don't feel it will be that easy. I DID test the walls to see if there was any glue, hell I did my darnedest but when I slapped some paint on it only gummed up and refused to stay on. I'm not going to argue with my husband, but I sure will say "I Told You So" when it doesn't work.

Not sure how much knitting I'll get done this weekend, but at least I get to look forward to a trip to The Fold. Our Stitch 'n Bitch's 4th Anniversary is being celebrated by a little fiber filled day. I promise to take pictures of our gallivanting... it's always a blast!

Time Keeps On Slippin'

Slippin', Slippin'... Into the futurrrrre....

Okay, now that I've got that lodged into your brain. I can give a quick update on my crazy life. Knitting? Well there is not much to show. Honestly the damn house has me loosing out on my precious knitting time. Train/work knitting is about all I get done and that is a damn shame, because I use to relax with 2 or 3 movies over the weekends and just knit. Goodbye good ol' days... say hello to Homeowner Hell.

What little has been worked on in my knitting bag is the Tapestry Cowl, which I'm really loving right now. It's my mind escape because the pattern is a little tricky, but not to the point where I'm lost.



One of the major things I've been practicing in this project is purling continental style. How do you knitters do that? It is the most pain in the ass thing to purl holding your yarn in the left hand. I've even tried the combined purling method but I'm not sure that helps, as when I come back to that stitch it's been twisted and I have to untwist it.



One other pain the ass thing this weekend was I swatched for the Faery Ring in the lovely Ginger color and I'm not making gauge. sigh. The pattern calls for 18 stitches over 4 inches and I'm getting 20.5 on 7's and 20 on 8's. I rather work with a smaller needle to get a denser fabric. I love this color, but I'm wondering if it's really worth adjusting the pattern or perhaps I should just look for a different yarn.

Thinking Only Good Thoughts

Don't have time for much blogging...but sending good stuff your way as these are my good thoughts that I've been seeing and playing with.



Tile is in... Grout this weekend. Good times.



The bridge to the modern section of the art museum is open.



Love the new view point of the city... it's a must see.



New yarn arrived and I get to swatch for the Faery Ring this weekend. Love the Ginger color in this Cascade 220. Little bit of brown and red...Love.It.

Friday Update

My life has been such a whirl wind that I wanted to give a quick little update on both knitting and bathroom fronts:

What used to be here...



Is now here...



Yes... I have a toilet in my bedroom. Not exactly where I'd like it right now, especially when little 4 year olds don't know how to "hold it" for very long. sigh.

The last little bit of old wallpaper was captured once toilet was removed. How did these people function with black paisley wallpaper? That can't be a flattering color to put makeup on.



We've been dry-fitting the floor tile all week and we're planning on setting that this weekend. Hopefully along with the counter-top for the cabinet.

In the knitting department I've started two new projects.



The Absinthe socks from Knitty Spring 2009. The pattern just pulled at my cable heart strings and couldn't help but cast on.

Next is the Tapestry Cowl by Pepperknit.



I was just awestruck by the reversible cowl so much that I had to cast on immediately especially when I saw other examples made with the Malabrigo Sock yarn.

The other big news is the Nubby Cardigan has been seamed together and needs button bands and collar to be considered finished. I hope everyone enjoys the long weekend even while I slave away doing manual labor.

Bath: Day 2

Words can not explain how I feel right now. My fingers ache along with every inch of my body, but my spirit is soaring!



Just so proud of what we both can do when we put our minds to it.

Bath: Day 1

I'm so proud of our wall. We didn't get really started and fully going until late in the afternoon, but it looks AWESOME!

Tomorrow we're hoping to finish the remaining sides. sigh. I can't explain how thrilled I am right now and as of right now I would do it again. Can't say I'll feel that way towards the end, but man I'm pumped!

Also in the knitting department, I've cast-on for a new project. I'll post more about that later, but so far I'm loving that too!

Top of the Morning To Ya

You can't have St. Paddy's Day without a little corned beef and cabbage!



I cook mine in a pressure cooker and the aroma just fills the house. I then whipped up a little cake and to every one's surprise it was a little different then your average butter cake.



It's green of course! How fitting. The kids got a real kick out of it.

In the knitting department, I finished my fronts for the St. Brigid cardigan and thanks to A at Knit and Run for helping me figure out the neck line decreases. My mind could not picture it properly. I have now cast on for the sleeves and will take sometime to absorb the patterns instructions for increases before delving too far. Thank goodness it's Wednesday and I get to knit with my Snb Gals tonight!

FO: Felted Clogs

Pattern: Felted Clogs by Fiber Trends

Yarn: 2 skeins of Cascade Lana D'Oro, 2 skeins of Cascade Heathers, 1 skein of Red Cascade 220

Needles: US 13 circ's

Started: February 14, 2009

Finished: February 25, 2009

Comments: Okay, so this really was a blind hope kinda project. Meaning I pulled together a bunch of left over yarns I had around and I originally thought they were all Cascade 220, but not so. It all turned out okay in the end and my son loves his pair of clogs. There a little fuzzier then my first pair as the alpaca adds that bit of poof.

I might have to start another pair for me, as I would love some warm clogs;) then of course Miss Mac would like to get in the mix.

FO: Felted Clogs

Pattern: Felted Clogs by Fiber Trends

Yarn: 4 skeins of Cascade 220

Needles: US 13 circ's

Started: January 11, 2009

Finished: February 14, 2009

Comments: This pattern works up super quick, but you need to pay attention to the pattern when you knit. No walking away in the middle of a row and coming back later knowing exactly where you left off. It's double stranded which produces a dense fabric and on top of that the bottom sole is made twice to allow extra padding for the foot.

I would recommend you allow plenty of time for drying. It took a full week before this pair was ready for wear... lucky for me it was also the Valentines Day! Hubby loves them and I'm glad he does too!

The Good. The Bad. The Ugly

....... The goody has arrived ........

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Rockin' Sock Club
July package: Socks That Rock light weight in colorway Goody Goody

The extra sweetness of this new yarn is having TWO patterns to come with it. Oh where do I begin??? Yummy. I really wouldn't be to interested in this colorway as it's a little pastel for my pale feet;) But that is the great thing about clubs... trying something new.

Some Bad Ass flowers popped up in my garden the other day.... click to make it larger. Love to put these as my wallpaper.



The ugly part has to do with the current state of Cleopatra's Stockings.



They are turning out just fine. The ugly part is having to put the gusset increases onto stitch holders in order to access them while knitting the slip stitch heel and thus decreasing the gusset stitches. Knitting two socks on two circ's has it's ugly side... and that is it.

Welcome Tiger

This is what happens when you let your 13 year-old go out to the country for a visit. They fall in love with every animal and beg and plead to bring one home. Okay, so there wasn't much arm twisting involved. We've thought about getting a kitty, but ever since the last one, I've been a little worried about it. Cats have very different personalities and I wanted a good fit, ya-no?



Tiger is sweet, playful and loving. In fact he purred the moment I held him for the first time and he enjoys napping with Mac in the afternoon. I think we've found out fit.

In the Yard

They've finally bloomed and just so stunning! I swear this one plant is about to show off about 15 full buds and I'm hoping to get some great wallpaper backgrounds.

In other yard news, I've taken on a large task of landscaping The Dead Zone. This is the before picture:



The Dead Zone is a rough 12 foot by 12 foot space that you see from the back deck when you come out the kitchen. This space is full of rocks and grass, which is also surrounded by more rocks and a fence. All of which makes it really difficult to mow...and plus it just looks ugly. So, I came up with this insane brilliant idea of a stepping path with a raised flower bed. Here is the progress so far:



People. Seriously! Do you have any idea how hard it is to take off the top layer of dense grass while dealing with a rock bed below? Not. Good. Needless to say this has been an on going project and I'm hoping to get started on the raised bed very soon. Talk about a serious workout....and yes I count this as part of my Skinny-4-Stash...although I only get a dollar for every hour I've worked. Heck, those pavers weigh 42 pounds each. You know I'm working a sweat;)

In knitting news, the Fulmar is Killing Me! Don't get me wrong, I love it, but I swear I've fallen into the Knitting Black Hole. So close yet so far. I start my shoulder stuff once I get to 17 and 3/4th... I know! Soooooo Close.