A little bit of crochetin'

Here's a peek at what I have been working on lately. I found this adorable hot pad pattern on Ravelry and just had to make it. It is called Crochet Flower Hot Pad. It was so easy! I was amazed at how quickly it crocheted up.



Here are a couple photo's of it the first on the left after all the crocheting is done and before folding...and on the right after folding.



They are quite addictive! Here is my second and I have plans for more too as I think that they will make great gifts. More info on mine here at Ravelry. There is also a similar pattern for a pot holder called Pinwheel Star and mid way down on that page is a great folding tutorial. Then if you get really adventurous, you can try the 10 Point Hot Pad!

Mittens Galore and New Books too...SCORE!

Books, Mittens and Love

Why is it that I just can't let a good coupon go to waste? Are you like that too? Michaels, Hobby Lobby, AC Moore all usually have 40% coupon's on a regular basis in the Sunday paper or that you can print from the web. Well, this past Sunday, Michaels and AC Moore had a 50% coupon that could only be used Sunday and Monday.

My husband and I had to run to Sam's Club for some groceries but first we stopped by AC Moore for me to get a book with my 50% coupon. I picked up this nice hardback, "A Treasury of Rowan Knits", it would normally be $39.99 and I would be hard pressed to purchase it, but with a coupon....SCORE!

I then went next door to the Target and purchased mittens. Lot's and lots' of mittens! Sharon in our Knit Nut's knitting group said that she add's a knitted fun fur cuff to these for special gifts at Christmas. So, I purchased these for myself and duplicates for Aura too, after my friend Pam told me she found them for 18 cents a pair! Again...SCORE!

Hopefully Sharon will teach us how!

Then on to Michaels to use my 50% coupon. I found "The Knitter's Bible of Knitted Accessories" there...(photo above) SCORE!


Last but not least I wanted to share a photo of my daughter's Valentine gift to us.
She sent us some yummy goodies and they were packaged so pretty in a red box with a satin pink ribbon tied in a bow!




She had also included a very sweet note.


Thank you Jennifer...we love you too!

Thanks Aura!

"Friendship doubles your joys, and divides your sorrows."
- Unknown

"Friends are those rare people who ask how you are
and then wait to hear the answer."
- Unknown


"The most beautiful discovery that true friends can make is that
they can grow separately without growing apart."
- Unknown

"A friend is someone who reaches out for your hand...and touches your heart."
- Unknown

"Some people come into our lives,
leave footprints on our hearts,
and we are never the same."
- Unknown

~A Nice Valentine's Day~

February ~ Knit Nuts Fun

Knit Nuts Fun

We had a great time of knitting and chatting this past Saturday at our Knit Nuts meetup!
First I want to shout out a big "Welcome" to our newest Nut's!

Sharon, Pam and Larissa!

I want to apologize to Sharon for not having snapped any photo's of her. I didn't even think to get out my camera until the meeting was half over and Sharon had already left. I met Sharon this past Christmas when she purchased one of my Santa Scarves from me. She had brought her scarf knitting board and Santa pattern and we got her well on her way to knitting her Santa Scarf. She learned the Lucet cast on and the zig zag wrapping pattern and picked this up very fast. She also needle knits and crochets.

I had invited my friend Pam (whom I have known since the 8th grade) to come and knit with us and she finally had some time that she could come. She works full time and also part time, so it's hard for her to find time for extra activities. She knows how to knit, but it has been a few years since she has, so she just needed a refresher course for knitting and purling. By the end of the meeting she had a pretty nice swatch started and remembered most of what she already knew.

Larissa found us via Ravelry and I believe she already knew Sandy. She lives in the Ballantyne area, so hopefully she will become a regular at our meetup's. She had brought a poncho that she was knitting, that had a very interesting slip stitch pattern, and I am looking forward to seeing the finished results!

Our group is new and we've only met a few times, but I'll call all of us other's that came, the regular "Nuts". Aura, Sheila, Sandy, Rose and me (Connie).

Looking forward to our next knitting get together!

PS... links only work for Raveler's

if you ain't one...then you should be...sign up at
www.ravelry.com

"you don't know what you're missin'"

Edited to add.. We have all decided to knit a baby blanket for charity. I will start it with a 1" border and then 4" in any pattern I choose.
I will then hand it off to the next "Nut" to knit her 4".
The last one to get the blanket will also finish with a 1" border before binding off.
This should give us a nice size baby blanket. Thanks Sandy for coming up with this idea for us. Sandy is also starting one for us, so there will be 2 to hand off at our March meeting!

Provo Craft Interchangeable Crochet Hook Set and Serenity Loom

Provo Craft Knifty Knitter Interchangeable Crochet Hook Set

Is this not the coolest crochet hook set? The ergonomic handles will help with hand fatigue that comes with extended periods of crocheting. I have found that my hands actually hurt worse when I crochet than if I am knitting, go figure. This little kit will really come in handy. It comes with crochet hook sizes F-K and it even includes a KK pick tool! Best yet, is it's affordable price of only $19.99! In our area they sell them at AC Moore and Walmart. I had a 50% off coupon for mine which brought the price down to a steal!







Provo Craft Serenity S Loom and Long Loom Set

I have every loom and knitting board that there is, however I hadn't ever purchased the long loom set by Provo Craft. I just didn't see the need for them as I had other's that I could use. However, when I purchased Isela's newest book "Learn to Knit Cables on Looms" and saw this beautiful cabled wrap pattern (the one on the front cover) and I had to go out and get them. I was able to get my set at Hobby Lobby and use a 40% off coupon!

The Serenity Loom I had heard of and I really wanted to try it out, so I picked it up at Hobby Lobby also while they were having a sale where all looming items were 50% off! I have also seen them on ebay, however they are cheaper at Hobby Lobby. I am not sure if you can use it as a knitting board for a double knitted item or if you just use it as a loom for flat knitting. I will have to play around with it and see.

Another book that I am going to order is "Learn New Stitches on Circle Looms". One of the ladies in our CP knitting group (Sara) had received this in her Purly Swap package. I looked through it and it has some nice ideas. The author Ann Bipes has a wealth of looming information on her blog, Loom Knitting.



New things! Have you seen these Loom Clips and this Bow Maker? Just more stuff from Provo Craft to check out!

Charlotte Purls "Purly Valentine Swap"

Yesterday was our Charlotte Purl "Purly Valentine Swap" reveal meetup.
I was able to finally tell Aura that I had her name.
I was hoping that she had not guessed it was me. I had so much fun getting her goodies together and searching and picking out things that she would love!
Here's her purly package wrapped up and waiting for the surprise!

Here is a little video vignette of how much fun we have at our meetings!
Enjoy!

• Cozy Cardigan can be found at http://artoftangle.com/
• Mini Jean Jacket can be found in the August 07 issue of Crochet Today
• Heather's Bramble Bag knitting bag pattern link
• Pretzel Logic Zippered Cable Vest can be found in Knit Simple Magazine Holiday 2007
  
• Janet's Basketweave Headband pattern link
• Rachel's Central Park Hoodie can be found here
• Janet's Jada's Circle Vest is an adaptation of the Circle Vest pattern found in the book Silk Knits
• Fiber Trend Felted Clogs pattern
• Connie's Dallas Cowboy Rasta Hat pattern

*some links above only work for Raveler's*

www.ravelry.com

Below is the swap I received from Judy.

My New PC Corner

If you know me, then you know I am a tech geek... I love anything css, html, flash, etc... and I learn something new just about everyday and I use my PC everyday.

Reading email, writing email...
IM messaging with Yahoo...
Writing and editing looming patterns...
uploading and editing photos...
surfing Ravelry...
banking and paying bills online...
sending greeting cards...
buying yarn...
setting up my hair appointments...
searching the online Library catalog...
listening to knitting podcast...
or music...and of course
blogging...

I could live without my PC, but I wouldn't want too!

So, I had my son build me a new faster PC, and my sweet husband bought me my new PC corner desk and my 2 new monitor's so that I can have dual screens!
Believe me I know you are saying "what the heck do you need 2 monitor's for?"
Well, I am great at multi tasking and boy does this help me multi task!

Anyway, here's a glimpse of my new corner, which is in the corner of my home salon. Yes, I am a hairstylist too, did you know that? So, come on in and look around...

Finger Knitting?

Finger Knitting



I saw a braided scarf in someone's notebook on Ravelry and she messaged me this morning and told me she had finger knitted it. I had never heard of this technique before. This would be an awesome way of teaching children the basics of knitting using a loom as the concept is very much the same. You use your fingers as the pegs!

I-Cord?
This would be an ever so easy way of making i-cord too! I am so trying this!

Too Cool!

Yarn pRon

Had to share some of my recent yarn purchases.

I had went to knit night a couple of weeks ago with Stacey at

Cottage Yarn Tuesday knit night and this lady was knitting this beautiful sampler with this yarn called ONLine Linnie Clip. It was so soft, vibrant and drape able. Anyway, I found some in Julie's stash for sale on Ravelry and purchased these 5 skeins from her for $45.00 including shipping!

~~~~~

Next I purchased this Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Astrakan at Cottage Yarn for 40% off on the back porch! I was there last night for the Mobius Cast On Demo and I learned how! Whoo hoo!
Debbie that works there helped me to find this yarn for my mobius wrap which I am making for my Moma.


I have about 2 inches done, and I have idea's swimming in my head for some special design element for it.

There was also a lady there helping Debbie to teach us named Tam and she was a great teacher! I so got it! I had tried for weeks to find a video online showing this cast on to no avail. So, for this reason I am going to make a video showing how to do it this week, so stay tuned!

~~~~~
Last but not least my most extravagant yarn purchase to date! $15 per skein! Yikes!
This gorgeous Mango Moon Chakra!



It has all these little rocks and beads hand tied in...
I plan to incorporate it into my mobius wrap design for my Moma as an accent!

Tam B of Three Complete

Tam B of Three Tams Pattern

I just completed this tam this past Sunday. It turned out great, even though I did have to frog back about 10 rows before I started the decreases.

I made a mistake on the first 2 rows of the Corrugated Rib pattern. My knit stitches were sitting behind my purl stitches, but my friend Aura helped to get me back on track on the 3rd row.

Mine will just look a little different, but I will call it a design element...Ha! That mistake is right at the edge, the little yellow lines are the purl bumps laying on top of the knit stitches.

I considered myself very courageous to start this pattern. First time using a chart and knitting continental with my left and English with my right at the same time using both yarn colors.


This wasn't hard but I would have never figured out the decreases if it wouldn't have been for
my Charlotte Purl friend Janet

I knew something was wrong when my count didn't end up right on that first decrease row. So, I had to frog back 10 rows or so. I just used my smaller size 4 circ and picked up a whole plain row and started over from there.

She explained that you have to take the last stitch of the previous round to make the S2KP! The pattern doesn't say anything about this!
She also gave me the tip to be sure to give a bit of slack on the carried yarn or floats, especially at the top, so as not to have it pucker. This worked out great on mine.

I see mistakes and I somehow didn't end up quite right at the bind off, but I still like it anyway.

I give myself a B+ for effort!

Ravelry Details Here

We had some snow...

OK, I know, I know, here in the south we get a little excited over snow. We don't see much of it, so therefore we get excited over the least little bit of it and we don't know how to drive in it either.
Or at least this GRITS (girls raised in the south) girl don't!



So, then why am I driving in it? Well, this past Saturday was our monthly Knit Nuts Meet Up



and it wasn't snowing when I arrived at the coffee house, but started soon after. It wasn't sticking so we just stayed and knitted anyway.

Sheila who works at the library with Aura arrived first. This was her first visit with us.


Welcome Sheila! (blog-less)

Aura arrived next and I gave her a little birthday cake tape measure, as her birthday was Sunday. It was also Sheila's birthday Saturday, so Aura gave her a pretty knitting needle roll. Sheila had made a pink beaded row counter for Aura's birthday. They both had the prettiest hand made stamped birthday cards to go along with their gifts to each other.

Sandy stopped in just long enough to say hello and let us know that she couldn't stay. She had been to Cottage Yarn, but was having car problems and thought it best to get home as the weather was turning yucky! We will catch you next time Sandy!
Thanks for stopping in to say hello.

Rose came and had just purchased some cotton yarn at The Peace of Yarn, but they said it would be over 30 minutes before they could wind it for her???
So, Aura and I set out to wind the yarn so she could get started on her project. It was so tangly that it took all 3 of us to get it untangled and wound into a ball. If Rose would have had to do that at home alone, I think it may have been slung out the window!

Sheila was knitting on a shrug, Aura was knitting on a dishcloth, I was knitting on my tam and Rose was starting a cute baby sweater. It was nice to chat, knit and admire the snow falling while being cozy and warm in the coffee house.

We had a great time, and hope that you'll come join us next time.

Saturday, February 16 th.

New Year Knitting in Full Swing!

My first FO of the new year is this Wooley Pulley I knitted for the troops.

I knitted it using size 7 and size 5, but will go up a needle size next time, as I think it could be a bit larger.


My son just built me a brand new pc! You may not think this has anything to do with knitting, but it does. I have 2G's of RAM and a duel processor which makes it so much easier and faster to post to my blog, post to Ravelry, work on my website, shop for yarn and much more fibery stuff~! I also have a 500 G hard drive which I can use for taping all of those Knitty Gritty episodes!

He also set up pcanywhere on my old pc, so that I can log in from the new pc and transfer everything. So my old pc is sitting in my sewing room with no monitor, no keyboard or mouse and I can still log onto it from my new pc, to take my time in getting all of my files to my new pc.

The next thing I want is another monitor, so that I can have 2 and use them as duel screens, which will be so helpful with multi-tasking on the pc.

Now, for more knitting news...



I have started on Jennifer's Felted Clogs (for the CP KAL) and have finished the first and am working on the second. These really knit up so fast! You can see more info in my Ravelry notebook on my progress.




I actually by mistake when starting, marked the wrong side as the right side which gave me these purple purl bumps that showed on the right side of my clogs!

However, this ended up being such a help later when it was time to pick up those 79 stitches around the bottom of the clog to add the second bottom. I was easily able to see which stitches to pick up!

So, this mistake ended up being a blessing and I am purposely making the same mistake on the second foot.

A Fiberlicious Year in Review

Delicious Fiber + Awesome Patterns = All of my Projects of 2007

1 Scarf
1 Skirt
1 Pair of Clogs
1 Coaster Set
1 Crocheted Case
1 Baby Blanket
1 Baby Sweater
1 Tank Top
2 Pair of Socklets
2 Shawls
3 Shrugs
3 Hats
7 Purses
9 Fingerless Gloves
29 Dishcloths and 1 Dishtowel