Drury Place

What a delightful performance we had at Drury Place on Sat. Jan 12th. The Starfeet dancers premiered their new dances for this season and the youngest dancers did their holiday songs to everyones great delight. The only mar was when the Live and Let Die cd Ian had burned for us proved to be not playable. I don't understand why but it simply will not play on any player I've put it on. The girls looked so nice in their new costumes too. Oh well, I'll just edit the music myself this time and burn a cd in my computer. Photo's soon as I can! Check back.

Branching out Scarf

Here is a photo's of the Branching Out Scarf from http://www.knitty.com/ that I am making for my mom in Bare from http://www.knitpicks.com/

Also hats 22,23 and 24 from the Festival yarn project.

Baby Sweaters

The primary striped set is for Lynne's baby to be. (son John).

The White/ green set was for Pam's Grandbaby Reagan. (Son Jimmy)

The Baseball set was for Rose's grandbaby (mom Lori)

Not pictured...blue set with teddy bear buttons for Sharon's grandy baby Xenubu. (son Chris)

I thought I had taken pictures of all, but apparently not!

Long overdue update!

When you work two full time jobs (substitute teacher and dance studio owner/instructor) and have competition students and have Nutcracker rehearsals every Sunday there isn't much time to blog! But, I have found some time to knit.

Festival yarn update: 23 hats, 3 scarves, 3 teddy bears, 3 pair mittens, 1 pair wrist warmer , 1 headband.

I guess the newspaper is going to do an article about this project so I'd better get a few more hats done, or it won't be too interesting an article! Hat # 24 on needles this am while talking to my mom.

Sadness

Due to a mixup in dates, I was unable to enter any of my items in the Tri-Rivers fair. I was very dissapointed as I'm very competitive about this and really wanted to win! grrr...I know there is next year, but it's a year a way!

Sunday 7/8/07

Yesterday was supposed to be a lucky day, didn't seem to be much difference to me! Lisette and I did go to Hobby Lobby to look at flowers, no decisions made yet, but she did find the materials she wanted for her girls necklaces and today there is a 40% off coupon, so I'll give her some money tomorrow and have her go get the stuff. 1 more thing to check off the list. Actually, I need to make a list so I can check it off!

These are festival hats 1,2 and 3 of a fuzzy red acrylic with some yellow in it. The 3rd had has stripes of a yellow "fancy" yarn. Various number of stitches on size 8's.

I finished Lauren's tube socks last night...these were more trouble than they were worth with having to rip out the 2nd one nearly to the beginning because somehow my stitch count was off by two stitches, enough to make a difference! Cut off the toe and began to reknit a pair of mine that I will hand off to Lisette now as my drawer is a little crowded, and I have yarn for at least 3 pair in line to be made. Reknitting toes is a little time consuming but not nearly as much as knitting a whole new sock!





Pulled a little more yarn out of the spiderweb yesterday (I was supposed to be choreographing Daylight Dancer but was having a hard time getting motivated!). I need to start a new hat, have enough red, white and blue pulled for at least one and maybe two. There's a lot of the blue so might get a RWB and a Blue and white one done. There is some beautiful turg blue wool in the web that I've pulled quite a bit of, but don't think I'll do a charity hat with that as someone might wash it and shrink it and then it would be of no use to them.
This is festival hat #5, a Red-Heart like acrylic, in 8 row stripes of RWB on size 8's- 66 stitches. .

Little Lamb Sweater

I was so excited yesterday to find the only 6 lamb buttons in all of Salina to finish my sweater. It is just so cute! (even with the flaws in my colorwork process, it's darling!)

1st photo is of the words in the back.

Friday June 1

Well, I discovered I had 2 stitches too many on the baby sweater sleeve, ripped that out and reknit it...2nd sleeve to go, then hat and 1 bootie (have 1 already done) and that gift will be finished except for buttons. I think blue sweater set has 1 sleeve shorter, It sure looks like it to eyeball it...can't believe I could make such a dumb mistake, I'm usually so careful...put it down to stress I guess. Beginning to think about fair items and realizing that I don't have what many done....if I want to enter 1 for each category again..which was kind of fun...don't think I'll make it but who knows... just printed a dishcloth pattern for that category. A baby fern stitch from dishcloth boutique. Looks fun.

Summer begins!

Summer begins for me with a feeling of freedom and time. This morning I woke up at 6:30, and after breakfast felt I could afford the time to knit a little bit while watching GMA. How pleasant! I am knitting on a blue and white baby sweater for my friend Rose's grandson-to-be. I think it's turning out nicely with 8 rows blue and 4 rows white. I'll have plenty of yarn for matching hat and booties too. I'm liking this pattern a lot. www.jimmybeanswool.com was where I found the free pattern. It calls for Lorna's Laces Worsted, which I'm sure would be beautiful but I'm using Plymouth Encore from my LYS YARNS in Salina, at half the price. I may try to use up some Red Heart stash for charity giving too. I think guage would be about right. Picture when I can get computer to recognize my camera....long story....

Mom sent back the Halloween vest so I'd have it for the fair. I need to start a nice dishcloth pattern too so I have one to enter. I think I have a Kansas Wheat pattern that would go with the yellow sugar and cream I have.

I'm Back

Haven't posted in like 5 months as I have been 1) incredibly busy with substitute teaching and the studio and 2) I got a new camera that drives me nuts and I have been so frustrated with it that I haven't posted any photo's.

The Halloween vest is done! Yay hooray!

In a baking mood

Yesterday I baked a batch of chocolate chip cookies using a bag of Hersheys mini bars I found on the mark down aisle. Said it made 36 cookies, but I only got 24 and they weren't monster cookies either...oh well, 24 is enough.

Also baked 2 dozen blueberry muffins for hubby's breakfasts at work and today I'm baking raspberry muffins. Out of splenda so they are "full sugar" not so good, but not terrible for him either. Double recipe calls for 2.5 cups of sugar and I usually do .5 to 1 cup with the Splenda since he's diabetic. Only had 3 eggs and needed 4 so sent him off to the store in the rain to get more eggs. Figured it was his muffins he could do the drive ha!

Finished one wrist warmer last night in lt blue with navy stripes. Will cast on for the 2nd today. Want to start my felted back too! and dye my yarn for the bulky scarf! So many projects, so little time!

burning the candle at both ends!

I'm working full time as a long term para sub at a highschool and of course at the studio and I'm finding myself with NO TIME! all the hours I spent doing "work" on studio paperwork, etc, blogging, housework, email, are now spent at school. I'm very much enjoying what I am doing, and am hating the thought of it being over, but the no time issue is huge. Must get to the studio NOW! and off I go!....

Gove # 3

I finished the 1st of the # 3 set. The photo color is really off due to my scanner, it's really a lime green! looks kinda sick olive in photo.
Yarn : Caron Simply Soft
needles: size 6
Pattern: adapted Nina's Sox by Jeanne Townsend
6 rows ribbing, pattern on 15 stitches, knit rest plain.
6 rows ribbing after thumb bind off.

After I finish this post I'm going to try to vacumn. Living room floor hasn't been vacumned since Nov 1 when I had my surgery...5 cats, yarn bits,, ooo it's gross.

Using 1 crutch today just to keep me upright so I don't re-injure the thigh muscle that I hurt playing quasimodo trying to be superwoman and walk unaided on Wednesday.
I'm missing coffee with the girls this am, darn this not being able to drive thing grrr...

Thur Nov 9

Each day the knee is better and better. Yesterday I pushed and walked without the crutches. Kind of quasimodo like since knee won't fully straighten...I think I pulled an upper thigh muscle doing that so today I am being less stupid and using 1 crutch for support and taking it slower. The bending thing is not happening yet and frustrates me as dr wants it to be able to bend so that I can sit on chair with both feet flat and legs at right angles like "normal" by Monday am! ack! I just need to be paitient and not push myself so that I end up taking a step backwards to pay for two forward!

Swap partner Becky got my box so I can post photo now. She liked it and I'm glad. I don't think she reads my blog but wanted to be careful just in case.

Finished #1 of 2nd pair of gift gloves. I know my nieces don't read this so I'm gonna post. The photo looks like it's orangy but it's bright hot pink and lime.
yarn: Carnon Simply Soft. Needles: size 6.
Cast on 32 stitches. Knit any pattern until long as you like.
Begin a thumb gusset by placing marker, increasing 1 in each of 2 stitches, place marker.
Next round knit plain.
Next round increase 1 after 1st marker and before 2nd.
Knit next round plain.
Continue until have 14 stitches between markers.
Next round bind off 14 thumb stitches and finsh knitting round.
When you come to the bind of stitchs cast on two (I use the thumb method) and finish round.
Knit 5 rounds and bind off in pattern.
Easy as pie.

1st pair I did a mock cable twist (knit in back of 2nd stitch,knit in front of 1st stitch, drop both off needle). 2nd pair 2x2 rib with lime green stripes.

3rd pair I think I'm going to use Jean Townsends snowflake pattern with the lime yarn.

Fortissma 1776 socks

Here is the Fortissma 1176 socks. I'm so dissapointed with the blue band. Not only not stars, but not even a nice random pattern. Other photo is the close up of the afterthought heel that looks like a toe. Don't like it.

knee surgery, and knitting

Well, the surgery is over, I'm recovering, it's been harder than I thought it would be, more painful too, and I'm not usually a weenie about pain. Tomorrow am the dressing comes off and I suppose some physical therapy starts. I've knit a little the first two days, I'd knit a round and nap but yesterday I did quite a bit. I ordered a ball of fortissma 1776 from wildflower knits when I ordered my needles. I'm dissapointed with how the blue band turned out. I'm using 2's, and I even made a swatch "gasp!" with the yarn I had pulled off to start the sock using 1's and it still made a mess. Using 60 stitches and not sure what you need to make it "nice" oh well, I wanted mindlesss knitting, and they will be usefull. I'm doing an afterthought heel so as not to mess up the striping. Not my favorite heel, but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do. I'd post a photo but DD took my camera again. Guess I need to give her one for Christmas.

Nov 1

Just 1 hour until I go to hospital to have my knee worked on. A little nervous!
Finished 3rd baby hat for C. last night, she goes to get her babies on Nov. 15th! They might be too big for babies now, but I'm sure they'll grow into them!
Also finished the STR socks for ME! Soft and cushy, and not a color I probably would have chosen. I pre-registered for the club, but having 2nd thoughts about the amount of money, given my budget this year. Have a little time to think about it. I have liked all the patterns but the sideways cuff one. Need to sew buttons on 2nd one and try to wear them, might like them afterall. The Hippy Crunchy drove me nuts so I used Toni's Tootsies instead, so I guess I didn't like all the patterns afterall!

Well, Blogger is being stubborn and won't upload the photo of the hat so you'll just have to wait! :)

I have a reader! Hi Martha!

Didn't have very many Trick or Treaters yesterday, bought too much candy ...oh well...I'll enjoy it even though I'm supposed to be losing weight. Daughter L and friends came over to show off costumes and raid the candy bowl.

My bamboo circ came from Wildflower (www.wildflowerknits.com) and a skein of the 1776 Fortissma Stars and Stripes. It was $18.00, about what my LYS is selling it for, can't understand how Astrid (www.astriddutchobessions.com)(I think that's right) can sell for $9.50! crazy. Anyhow, now I can finish the Halloween vest...I got so frustrated with the slippery addi's that I just let it sit in the basket until I found needles I could work with.

No photos

My daughter has my camera so I can't post any photo's! Lovely child, but she doesn't return stuff.

I finished a baby hat using the same pretty lace pattern that I'm using for my STR socks. Finished a pillow for my friends art gallery.

Finished the gussett of sock two, can't wait to wear them, so pretty!

Need to shop for my JLT swap partener today or tomorrow. Want to get it done before I'm no longer mobile! So many choices for her! Sssh...she might read this, but probably not, I don't think anyone does. No matter.

Working as a para sub again today for E. She's really sweet but I can see that her life will be difficult, hopefully some special classes in her future to help prepare her for life. Gotta run!

Baby Hats

Wed as I'm tying on the cards and getting the warmupamerica package ready to mail, I realize that I only have 10 hats! There are 12 from my mom and only 10 from me...ack! So this am I finished knitting the 2nd hat. DD took my camera, but 1 was a burgundy tweed yarn and 1 was white red heart with a purple stripe, just cause I got bored knitting the plain white.

Mailing it tomorrow as well as as the lace baby hat. Glad someone will get use out of it.

Sat is the day the Townies get their swap parteners! I have to work 9-3 with Nut rehearsals then run to the flu shot clinic before I can get to computer to see who I have, then out to YARNS to buy my parteners yarn. I always feel guilty that I don't support them (as you know I have been knitting up stash yarn since Jan!) (although I was mighty tempted by the Uncle Sam Opal at astrids site! Since I found out that JKL needles was out of business (even though the site is still up and acts like it takes your order!)I'm still searching for new needles for the halloween vest because the addi's are driving me nuts.

AND TODAY MY COMPUTER GETS WEIRD! Music teacher gave me a cd to copy off the song I'm doing choral-ography for the boys for. It ripped okay, but NOW I can't hear any of my music files! I've tried all the troubleshooting stuff and still nothing, only sound coming out of speakers when I try to play a music file is a "purring" sound. Computer makes all it's other sounds (dings, chimes, etc) just won't play my music.
sigh...this is serious...I can't edit my studio music if I can't hear it.

Friday the 13th!

I've never minded Friday the 13th...and after Monday the 9th...this can only be a breeze! Monday was one crisis after another, including my "almost-daughter" D getting seriously injured in an incident at school when a weightlifting bar slipped and fell on her neck, striking her in the head. 1st cat scan showed neck not broken, 1st MRI showed concussion, waiting results of 2nd MRI to show if there is a tear at C3 or not. A scary time for her family and those who love her.

The blue pillow is a stash buster...just used up some odds and ends of blue stuff. Kind of cute I think.
The sock is STR Club sock color Tatania, pattern Central Air. Colors are much prettier than they show!