Off the Wheel

I finished spinning my Harley colored roving and knit it up into a cowl!  This cowl is perfect for the crisp mornings we have been having here.  By midday I can take it off and I dont have to worry about changing clothes.  I love how the stripes worked out when it knit up.  I just love finishing projects!

An Impromptu Fidde Concert

I love our local library.  Any chance I get I try and stop by.  One Sunday I stopped in to return a book and was delighted to discover a concert in progress.  Two talented young sisters were giving a guitar/fiddle concert.  They had a unique style and such good singing voices!  I happened to have my knitting in my purse and no other plans for the afternoon so I was able to sit, knit and enjoy the fiddles.  It made me love the library even more!

Fiber Friday- A New Sweater

I am so excited about today's post!  I have been in a knitting craze lately and all I want to do is knit.  This holiday season offered a lot of quality knitting time and I was able to start and finish a big project.  Typically I knit small things- shawls, socks, baby items, etc.  I kept putting off knitting a sweater for me because I said I would wait until I lost weight.  I didn't want to spend hours knitting a sweater and then have it not fit.  I have a whole list of sweaters that I want to knit "once I'm skinny".  Who knows how long that will be since I am not actively dieting.  Why shouldn't I knit a sweater for me, right now, as I am.  I found a flattering sweater pattern and dug through my stash of yarn to find something that would work.  I didn't want to have to buy yarn (and I didn't!).  I wanted to knit a sweater to tell myself that I am good enough just as I am.  Sure, if I lost weight there would be a larger variety of sweaters that would look good.  But until then, my life is not on hold.  I am good enough and damn it, I want to knit a sweater.  So without further ado, I am happy to introduce you to my sweater to celebrate me and all of me.  The pattern is Hey Teach! and is a free pattern that can be found on Ravelry.  Hubby lovingly made me buttons out of antlers.  This sweater is a true compilation of our two strenghts.  Other than the yarn, everything is handmade and that makes me so happy!

Lofty Knitting Goals

I mistakenly thought that in Texas I would have less of a reason to knit.  Once again I was proven wrong.  I went to the local knit group (by local I mean 20 miles away) and to my surprise everyone was wearing short sleeve sweaters.  Short sleeve sweaters!  I am an all or nothing girl, and I thought that since Texas is hot, there is no need for sweaters.  Oh, silly me.  I didn't even consider short sleeves.  Or non-wool sweaters.  One lady was wearing a gorgeous pink silk sweater.  Instead of thinking that I will be knitting less in Texas, I just have to shift my thinking.  I will be knitting differently.  Not so many wool mittens, but instead shawls and cowls.  The first week I got here Austin got an ice storm.  The highs didn't make it above freezing. Too bad all my knitted items were packed with the movers.  I am looking forward to knitting this year.  I still have a huge amount of yarn in my "stash" as knitters call their hoards of yarn.  I picked out some yarn for upcoming projects.  From now until the end of January I will be working on these projects. 

The green yarn and white yarn will be for two different sweaters.  The orange multi colored yarn will be for a hat for Hubby.  The red will be for some lace project.  The yellowish grey will be for socks.  That ought to keep me busy for a while, don't ya think?

Sock Time

I love knitting socks!  There is just something so simple about making them.  Once you know the basic construction, the possibilities are endless.  Socks are definitely a labor of love.  They take a good amount of time to make.  Especially if you have big feet.  I recently decided that hubby needed a pair of hand knit socks (he doesn't have any...not a one!).  I cast on and began knitting.  I tried making him socks once.  I made the first one and ran out of yarn.  He has size 13 feet.  Which explains why he has never been on the receiving end of my socks-for-everyone quest.  Even making socks for my size 10 feet takes a long time.  Hopefully this sock I am working on now will have a mate.  Otherwise it might turn into a dusting glove like so many single socks before it.  I needed a project that is thoughtless (this is a simple stockinette pattern) and can be thrown in my purse for on the go knitting.  This is also a great project for night time stump burning!

Friday Fiber Fun

 This week I received a surprise in the mail.  I had forgotten that I had signed up for a sock yarn club. How it works is that you pay upfront (or monthly) for yarn to be delivered to you.  I will get 6 skeins of sock yarn in 2013. This week I got the first of my six.  My initial reaction was that I didn't like the hot pink portion.  However once I wound the skein into balls, I think the pink is more subtle.  The yarn came just in time for Valentines Day (although I was no where near finished on the actual day).  I divided the skein into two equal balls and will be knitting this toe up.  I will hopefully have the pair finished in a week or two!

A girl. A Sewing Machine. An addiction.

This week I have been house sitting.  There is no cable and I am loving it!  It forces me to be productive.  I brought my sewing machine and laptop with me.  While its always strange to be in someone else's house without them there, it also makes things simpler.  My spare time (in between work and caring for the animals) is spent watching a dvd and sewing/knitting.  So far I have made two and a half socks- one complete pair, and I just turned the heel on the first of another pair.  I brought along some veggie fabric, with the thought that I would make reusable paper towels.  The frugality of my project will be saved for another post.  Not only did I make 10 "un-paper" towels, but a whole slew of other items.  I made a matching wet bag to hang on the oven.  This way, I can throw in a wet towel and not have dirty laundry laying in the kitchen.  Then I made 2 sandwich bags- complete with a PUL liner.  PUL fabric (which I used in both the wet bag and the sandwich bags) is a waterproof fabric that can be wiped clean.  So if I pack a PB&J sandwich and jelly gets on the bag, no biggie.  Just wipe it down with a sponge.  Genius!  I happened to find 3 fat quarters in the same fabric, but black and made 3 napkins.  And a ruffle tea towel.  And I am just getting started.  I still have 3 days left of house sitting, and over 2 yards of fabric... Once everything is finished Ill take pictures so you can see just how productive I have been.  Did I mention I made homemade granola?  (You can see in the granola picture, the black veggie fabric napkins).  Yum!  I poured a little organic whipping cream from a local creamery on and oh!  It was heaven in a dish.  I will definitely be making the granola recipe again sometime soon.  However now I am pouring Almond Milk on instead of Cream since I don't need the extra calories.  But it sure was a nice treat!  I think I am addicted to both the granola and sewing...and knitting... If only I got paid to sit home and craft!

Spinning and Knitting

It seems lately that I have had a lot of time for spinning and knitting.  Understandably, there is an abundance of free time while not running my own household.  I don't have to get up at 5 to go milk a goat (although I miss it terribly).  I don't have after work farm chores, grocery shopping or cleaning to do.  My evenings are free to knit and spin to my hearts content.  At this point in my life I am trying to enjoy the extra free time, in hopes that soon enough I will be busy again.  I also constantly have some knitting project stuffed in my purse.  Yesterday I had to pick up a prescription at Safeway and it wasn't ready.  Right there is 10 minutes of knitting!   Yesterday was a treatment day for my mom, which meant 5 hours of knitting next to her.  At this rate I don't have time to get bored with a project because they are finished so quick.
    Right now on my wheel I am spinning up some purple fiber. I am unsure what it will want to be knitted into, but I am sure that I love the colors!  The roving is mostly a shade of dark purple, but also has hints of fuchsia, blue and pinks.  So pretty!

  On my knitting needles I am working on a scarf by Stephen West, Spectra.  I recently flew out to Maryland to visit Tim.  While there we went up to Lancaster (one of our favorite spots) and of course stopped by Lancaster Yarn Shop.  The owner Wendy had this shawl on display.  Its been on my queue (my list of projects to make on ravelry) for a long time now.  I decided to get the yarn and make it up in blues and purples... I am seeing a purple theme today.  The wedges in the scarf change colors while the edges remain in blue.  I have to do over 80 wedges and don't think I am even to 20 yet... Hopefully with all this knitting time it will fly by!

You can see my mom's feet in the background while getting treatment.

The scarf is curvy and hopefully will hang that way once all is said and done.
I hope you all enjoyed my knitting update.  I can't wait to show off the finished items.  

Christmas Knitting

What a day!

Today started out with me digging a grave, and ended with a severe storm, with plenty of activities in between. This morning on my usual rounds, I discovered Marshmallow had passed during the night. As you know, this was expected, but still sad. So my day started off with me burying a bunny. At least now he can be in peace.

The rest of the day only got better from there. I spent the mid morning hanging out with my friend Michelle. It was good to catch up with her and her kiddos. I returned home to start knitting a hat for hubby (who always has a cold head). I was in the mood to watch Twilight, so I settled in with my knitting, the dogs and the vampires. This afternoon found me enjoying the 80 degree weather. I donned shorts and worked outside. We had a bunch of peony bulbs from Costco that I finally put in the ground. I cant wait until they are big and plentiful. They will look great with my hydrangeas! After gardening, I took my spinning wheel out to the deck to practice. My parents gifted me my wheel for my birthday, and I am ashamed to admit that I am not very good. Granted, when I look at the yarn I spun first off I definitely have improved. I still have a long way to go. The yarn I plied today is actually useable. My first attempts produced a product that would be embarassed to be called yarn. This afternoon? real yarn. There is not very much, but its a start. I think the setting and the view made the yarn come together.

Hubby and I did our evening rounds together checking in on the animals as we went. After dinner, we sat on the couch to watch New Moon, with Whiskey and Jack. As I type, Hubby is in bed and I am enjoying the "severe thunderstorm" they have been calling for all day. With today in the 80s and tomorrow not making it to 50, no wonder the weather is at odds. The wind is howling like crazy, slamming doors and whistling through the house. I am sure the power will go out. Its been so windy lately we havent bothered to reset the clocks. Every clock in the house is blinking a different time. We rely on our cell phones for the correct time. I personally like not knowing or caring what time it is (only on my days off). I wake up with the sun (and the roosters) and I go to bed when I am tired. I eat when I am hungry, and the rest of the day just is. I am going to go sit on the couch now, enjoy the howling wind and wait for the darkness that I am convinced will follow.

Seeds, Sunburn and Snow

Within the past 24 hours, I have planted seeds. got a sunburn and watched it snow...welcome to spring! Yesterday was on the nicer side of cold. Temperatures hovered in the low 50s, which was enough to get me out and going. Luckily I had the day off and was able to get a lot done around the house. I planted more seeds, but instead of veggies, these were of the flower variety. They will be started indoors since spring is so moody here. When we bought the house last summer, all of our efforts went into working on the inside. We didnt have time or the means to clean up the leaves on the lawn that fell in the fall. When we finally had time to devote to the outside, it was winter and either snowy or wet. So the leaves just sat there all winter, thankfully not damaging the lawn. Now that the weather is warming up and the snow has melted it is time to deal with the lawn. I raked up the leaves on the front lawn. When Hubby got home from work he brought huge lawn bags from Home Depot. We bagged up all the leaves and burned them. We stayed out working on the yard until it got chilly. Only then did I realize I had a slight sunburn...oops. I am so not used to this nice weather.

Apparently I shouldnt get too used to it. As I type, big flakes of snow are floating down. So far, they are melting when they hit the ground, and I can only hope they dont decide to stick around. I like snow- in the winter. Not at the end of march, when it should be 60. No, I dont like snow today, not at all. Rain I can deal with. Rain is good for the garden I am trying to convince to grow. Snow is just cold...

On a happier note, my pullets have a new trick. If you remember we have 4 pullets- chickens who are not old enough to lay, but older than the chicks. When they see me coming they fly through the air and land on my shoulder/head/any body part higher than my waist. THey will then sit on my shoulders until I force them to get down (this usually involves feeding them). I think they think I am their personal perch. I love it! Who wouldnt love walking around with 4 chickens on her shoulders? Ok, maybe dont answer that. Sorry about the bad photo quality. The pictures are from my phone.

Tonight calls for cuddling with the hubby watching the 4th and final season of The Good Life, which my Mamaw sent me in the mail today. Thanks Mamaw and Papaw for thinking of me! Leftover chili with cornbread muffins for dinner when Hubby gets home.... I am going to go put on some handknit socks and a sweatshirt!