Summer Knits
I know it seems a bit early to be thinking about summer knits, but I can see from all of the knitting E mails I am getting that everyone seems to be headed in that direction. Not wanting to be singled out from the herd, I have started thinking about summer knits. Last week I started this thinking it would be a simple item to finish. Being that short sighted knitter that I am, I started this project knowing that I would not have enough yarn to finish it. The fun part comes when I show up here and tell them I don't have enough yarn (like don't screw up your face and laugh-we all have done this). So they are looking for more of this yarn. If they don't find it, I will have to frog this project and start all over. The down side is, I have to start all over. The upside is...I have lots of practice on this piece and I think I will know how to get started.

This is a pattern from Lilly Chin. I haven't used one of her patterns before. I picked this one nearly a year ago when I was feeling cocky about knitting lace. I have since eaten some crow over that by failing at this project. I am not really that great at reading charts and I have the attention span of a gnat. I get frustrated when I think I have done well and then a mistake is spotted. I think some times I look at my knitting through rose colored glasses.

Since my shawl is stalled, I have moved on to more socks, of course.
I only have one of these on the needles and only the cuff done so far. I wanted a very plain of socks so that I can see how the pattern of the yarn plays out. So I am trying this out to see how it goes. Hopefully I will have another nice pair of socks to wear this coming fall.

I am still working on this pair. I have to work the toes and then they should be finished. I won't get much use out of them because I think that the weather is trying to warm up and then I can go barefooted, which is my favorite way to go.
I have been cruising the finished projects on Ravelry to see what other have made hoping for some inspiration for my summer knits line up. If nothing comes to me, then I will start back knitting on the Preemie hats. I have neglected them long enough and lord knows, I have enough yarn to knock out my 75 remaining hats.

Done, Done, Done
I haven't been posting because I wanted to show some finished projects. I have been using my time wisely, I think. I bought myself some sock forms so that the pictures of my finished socks look much nicer than just laying around. I have four dogs, so laying a pair of socks anywhere in the house in an invitation for disaster.

Here are my two latest finished projects. This person beat me to getting this one done! I didn't tell her that I was making one and sure enough she has already started hers and it's done. Looks pretty good!


This is my Clapotis. I finished it the other day and I am so glad that I did and it's done. This is pretty much mindless knitting. I like that kind of knitting while I am knitting socks. I don't have to think very much. It did give me some fits, but as usual when I frogged it I had forgotten to kfbl so that was totally my fault. It doesn't cover as much on my back and I thought it would but I didn't make it any larger than the pattern called for. So for some of you larger gals like me, you might want to add some extra rows in there so that it hits your waist. I did wash and dry it and decided not to block it. I just use it while sitting in my chair at night so no need to fuss with blocking. I did knit most of the hat this weekend and decided that it was a bit too large for me. I am not a huge hat person, so I am thinking that I will just frog it and use the left over skein for a hat of another kind to give away. It was a learning experience.
I have had these finished for a while but wanted to take a picture of them with the new sock forms. I never did get all the strips to match but it's close enough.

So this is it for now. I am working on two other pairs of socks and will be starting another pair in a week or so. This may be my summer for socks. We'll see.

Moving on...
I think that moving on is good in so many ways. It's a journey that involves choices both in one's personal life, professional life and hobbies.

On the road to educating myself in knitting, I have set mini goals. Last year one of those goals was to learn how to knit socks. I tried the Magic Loop. I failed because I missed a class and I really didn't get that spark that would carry my interest on further. I wanted to learn how to make socks so I tried a second time. I learned how to knit on dpns. Low and behold, it stuck! I have enjoyed learning how to make socks. They are a pretty quick project that I can work in both warm and cold weather. My wool socks are so comforting when I get out of heels at the end of a day. They are soft and cushy.

So now that I have mastered a few things about socks, it's time to move on to plan B where socks are concerned. I love my beginners pattern, but ti's time to take a chance. My taking chances are baby steps, but I did do it and it's been going well so far.

This is my first venture into knitting outside my sock "comfort" zone. I was thumbing through this book and found a pattern that would fit into my 72 stitch requirement for my foot. I also looked in this book and found that one of their patterns matches the pattern for these socks.

I have been trying to get these socks done as quickly as I started them, but hit a snag when I ran out of reinforcement thread. I was in here last night and have gotten my thread and hopefully soon will finish my socks.

I am pretty close to getting my newest pair done. I was going full guns on these and then I noticed that my socks were getting skinny. Well, after further inspection I noticed that when I did the gusset, I forgot one repeat row and that my the foot of my sock at K2P2 pattern. The pattern should have been Row 1-k2p2, Row 2-k every stitch. So the leg of the sock is the correct pattern, but the foot is different. I was a bit put out with myself, but when I tried the sock on, I thought it fit nicely. I will know better after they are done.

Feeling really inspired to strike out a try something new I cast on another pair of socks knowing that the first pair is very close to being done. Here is the next pair wanna be. It's Opal. I wanted some fun socks so I picked a red reinforcement thread/yarn to give it a little more color. I can't find the label to tell you the colorway, but when I find it, I will let you know. I purchased this yarn from The Haus of Yarn in Nashville at Christmas.

I am in the process of taking another class and will talk about that in a later post. Hopefully I will stay healthy long enough to get all of these things done.

Slump
Last week I caught some nasty bug from one of my co-workers whose gift has been giving for a week now. Thursday I started feeling a little under the weather and Friday it was a full blown disease with a high fever, an elephant taking up residence on my chest, a faucet in each of my nostrils (running on opposite blowing schedules) and a cough that could have sent a lung into orbit. Cripes what a feeling! I haven't been this sick in years and I have say, I didn't miss a thing about it.

While trying to fend off death by coughing, I hit a knitting slump. I had no desire to work on my socks or much of anything else. They sat idle for a few days and the guilt set in. I have been tyring to knit everyday since learning a few years ago, but when I got sick the desire just wasn't there. When my fever finally broke on Sunday, I picked up my socks and have them done to the toes. I just need to sew those up and they are done. Finishing a sock to me, is like finishing a good book. I don't want to because it's a let down. What's next?

First I have to feel inspired. I looked through some books, pamphlets, and flyers, but nothing. Why? I need some inspiration from some place. Maybe it's the fact that I am still sick and not up to full speed? My nose and cough are still in overdrive and I am tired. Being sick, takes a lot of energy. I will be glad when I can rest and knit.



So stay tuned there will be knitting soon again I hope.

Devastation...
The weather here at the beach has been up and down and up and down and down and up. My skin, nose and feet have been through the gammit. I knit socks to keep my feet from being cold because a slipper is too heavy for me. I have made about 8 pair of socks. I love them. The only ones that I am not as thrilled about are the cotton ones, but I am sure I will come around. So you understand that I walk around the house in my lovely handmade socks.

Three days ago I was sitting in my usual chair along with three dogs knitting on yet another pair of socks just minding my own business. Little did I know how much I would need this new pair of socks. I had to get up and answer the phone. When I returned to the chair I took off my socks. When I lift up my left foot to pull off the sock, screaming and nashing of teeth began. Horrors of horrors, a FREAKING HOLE.
This most favorite and first pair of socks are only a year old. How on earth could they have already gotten a hole???? I don't wear them on anything except Pergo flooring and carpet. Why, why, I ask you? It's just a sock tragedy. I thought these things are supposed to last a long time.

Here is a visual clue as to how large the hole is. This is my post earring. Thankfully, it was caught early.

So now my favorite pair of socks is in the sock hospital waiting for a doctor visit. Who that doctor will be is still in question. The sock HMO says that they need a referral to someone on my approved list. I am hoping the surgery will be swift and painless for everyone involved. The second sock will be posting to report how the surgery goes and if it will leave a scar. The other sock couples have gathered to offer their best advise and it has been suggested that we only use the cosmetic surgeons at this hospital. A doctor visit will happen shortly and updates will be given as soon as I get an appointment. Stay tuned....

Football Sunday
I am a football fan, but only for my own team. I grew up watching football in Texas. It's in my DNA, but since my team wasn't playing in the big game on this past Sunday, I was not foaming at the mouth to watch. So I did the next best thing that any fiber consumer would have done...I went shopping. I see heads nodding out there in blogland because I have a feeling that we were kindred spirits in the hours leading up to the big game.

My favorite LYS had a sale. Of course you know I had to help support the local fiber community. What faithful fiber follower wouldn't want to help keep their local shop in business? I swear, I did my part. I purchased some of Lorna's had dyed sock yarn to make a pair of Christmas socks. They might be for me or someone else. Who knows! But at 30% off, I couldn't pass on them. I have never knit with Lorna's sock yarn before so this should be fun.

I have a sock concept in mind so I purchased these to make it happen...

I have accumulated tiny balls of yarn from past finished socks. I have an idea of what I want to do with them that I will post about later, but these will be part of the foundation. Not only have I been out buying fiber, but I have been using it. This pair of socks is made from the second skein of yarn called Jawoll that I bought while in Texas at Christmas. I am working on the gusset now and hopefully, not too much longer they will be done. Speaking of done...drum roll please...another finished project!!
English Garden Shawl. Yes, you do see some ends that need to be woven in, but the last skein of yarn came last week from Haus of Yarn in Nashville, TN. I bought four and as it turned out, I needed five. So a paniced phone call later, I got the yarn from the orginial bag the other four were ripped open for. What luck! I highly recomment this pattern for a very quick and extremely simple project. I would however not choose anything with Mohair (Trendsetter-Dune) next time. I don't like ripping it out. I wouldn't wear this on my bare skin and it sheds. No black outfit will be adored with this shawl. The last thing that I will need is a shawl pin of some sort. I have no idea where to start, so if any of you have an ideas (I don't do silver things-it irratates my skin), please leave me a comment and a link to someplace where I can take a look at what's out there.

Shiny Things
I am a pretty dull person in the jewelry that I wear compared to some of my more fashion conscious friends. They adorned themselves with name brand clothes, shoes, purses and finally shiny things. By shiny things I mean jewelry. Now don't get me wrong, I love jewelry. I have jewelry of all expense levels (mostly inexpensive levels) and I love the stuff, but I don't wear it. I used to though. I used to have a ring on each hand, a watch, a bracelet on my wrist, a necklace and of course I have double pierced ears, so two pair of earrings on at all times. That all came to a screeching halt back in 1997, when I enrolled in culinary school. The rules for no jewelry were hard and fast. I found it a bit tedious to take things on and off on a daily basis so eventually I was worn down and stopped wearing everything except a watch. I even took off my wedding rings for that period of two years where food sanitation and safety were an issue. I totally got out of the habit until three years ago.

The timing of all of this is rather ironic. I learned to knit three years ago and when I started knitting I put on my wedding rings, put back the double pair of earrings and I started wearing a pearl necklace that was a gift from my oldest son while he was stationed in South Korea. The funny thing is, not only did I start wearing jewelry, but knitting did too. I learned that in knitting there are pattern repeats and to avoid having to count constantly, you use a stitch marker. I was smitten. I started collecting all sizes and shapes of stitch markers.



Stitch markers can be just like jewelry. Some are plain and large...
Others are plain and small... And others come in various colors.Just like my person, I decided that my knitting needing something cuter. By cuter, I mean more colorful and fun. There are so many stitch markers out there that I got a headache looking at all of them. I felt a bit silly ordering little tiny shiny knitting jewelry and with shipping and handling, was not worth the money to me. I don't do a lot of Internet ordering and probably could have coupled the stitch markers with something else to make it worth the s&h, but I didn't need to.

Enter my good friend Sue Eckman Von Ohlsen from Minutiae. Sue is a Master Knitter whose talents are not restricted to just knitting, but some fabulous bead work. Her craftsmanship is on display on a monthly basis at TKC. There is a Stitch Marker of the month rack near the register that will attract anyone who loves shiny, pretty knitting jewelry. The markers are not expensive, and are made from Swarovski crystals. The first year Sue's theme was the birthstone of the month. This is how the stitch markers look in their packaging.

Here is what they look like since I have been collecting them over the last 13 months.

I was lucky enough to be gifted these little beauties... So if you are like me and love shiny knitting jewelry, dash by The Knitting Corner and give the markers a look.

One Skein Shy, Now Where Have I Heard That??

I was so proud of myself for finishing these more than a week ago.

These are for my MIL. She picked out the yarn and tried on a pair I made for myself and those fit her so we knew these would too. I hope you like them Joan. I just have to get them in an envelope and off in the mail to you.

When we passed through Nashville we stopped by The Haus of Yarn and I bought some more yarn and a book. I loved the model that they had in the shop and made this...well almost. I was one skein shy of a full shawl.

As you can see there is one corner that still have the circulars in them. As soon as my LYS orders that one last skein, I will get right on it and finish it. It's super easy and it's basically a beginner pattern. The pattern has a small, medium and a large shawl plus a lovely scarf. I wanted the shawl so the scarf was a bonus. I made it with this.
It's got tan, beige, brown, and gold. I thought it could be worn to an office setting or as an accent on a evening dress when the weather isn't quite warm enough. It needs a nice scarf pin.
The shawl is made with Dune from Trendsetter Yarns (this is the small sized shawl) . I have never knit with Mohair before. It fought back when I found two errors about 5 or 6 rows down, but it can be frogged with a little patience. I have very little patience for most things but after I frogged it back to the errors I re-knit it and then gave it a bit of a tug in each direction and it fell right into place. Just for good measure, I am going to wash and block it so see how it will hang. It says to dry clean, but I think a few swishes in the hand sink will be good enough. If it shrinks, it's then going to be called a scarf.

I have another pair of socks on the needles but haven't worked on them since Saturday. I will though. My feet are cold. We got a smattering of snow Saturday and Sunday, but here it is Monday morning and there is little or nothing left. I still have hope that we will get a few inches before our season is over by about March. I am keeping my fingers crossed.

Happy Feet

I make no bones about it. I love the snow and got to do a happy dance this afternoon. I walked past the upstairs hall window and looked outside. What did I see... but little small flurries going a mile a minute. The weatherman messed up his forecast; said no snow is coming.

So what do happy little piggies do when it snows at the beach?? They go outside to check it out.
Then they squeal with delight and put on their winter's finery.
Can you see the little bit of snow on the sedium to the right of my foot? I was doing a happy dance for sure. Hopefully this won't be the last we see of the flurries for this year. I really need at least 2 inches.

Christmas Vacation-Part 2
The drive to Texas from Virginia was totally enjoyable as was the drive home. We took two days to get there and three to come home because of yarn. Thankfully, my SIL and my husband were wonderful to indulge my need for fiber. I know that they don't really understand, but hopefully when they get a gift it will make up for the time I made them come with me to look at skein after skein of yarn.

While driving to Texas, I was thumbing through this book and that's what started this whole thing. I did purchase the book for the purpose it was intended for-traveling in the car with a trapped crazed knitter. The purchase price of the book itself, was the cheapest part. I had no idea just how much this book would end up costing me. There should be a disclaimer on a web site and inside the book itself, that this book is going to cost you a fortune before it's over! Exhibit A...

Since my husband's family lives in Richardson, I looked up shops there. Bingo! There was one there and you know what that meant-ROAD TRIP. Lucky for me my SIL was a good sport and she knew where the shop was. We had a hard time at first, but when you got there, we hit the mother lode. Too bad I didn't take any pictures of the shop.

I did take pictures of the two skeins of yarn that I bought and I sure have a lot to say about The Woolie Ewe. That is some kinda shop. It's huge. It's huge and crammed packed full of yarn from floor to ceiling. My SIL was amazed at all the yarn. I was like a kid in a candy shop and oh what candy they had.

I found some sock yarn that my own LYS does not carry. I don't want to be disloyal to my favorite shop, but I truly had to have this stuff. The neatest stuff about this brand of sock yarn, is the surprise it contains...It contains the reinforcement yarn that matches the skein. How wonderful for us. I am not sure it's enough for the heel and toe on two socks but wow, what a selling technique. I am impressed. So impressed I have already knit one of the two skeins that I bought. This is one sock that lacks a closed toe but the reinforcement yarn that came with this skein was used on the heel. I will use a beige that I had left over from another pair of socks for the toe. I was not sure when I started just how far that little spool would go. I will have a better idea when I hit the heel on the second sock. Right now I am just about 20 rows down from the cuff. So I have a bit to go. I will let you know how it turns out.

I can't wait to go to Dallas to visit family and camp out at The Woolie Ewe so that I can get a better look. You folks who live there have a real gem! Thanks to the person who told me about the shop at Ravelry. I do appreciate the tip.

So you know what I am going to say next right? Well, if I can hit one shop, why not two? Because they were CLOSED. We tried another shop but they weren't going to open until after we were hitting the road to come back to VA. Their lose, I still have credit on my card. Ha!

The drive home was just as productive as the stay in Dallas. I again referred to the knitting traveler's bible (my name for the book) and it yielded yet another place I thought we might be able to get to easily. Who ever drafted the ad for this place did a great job with directions from I40. We had no problems getting there and back onto the interstate when I was done. I think I was in the shop about an hour or so. Hubby scooted off the Target and I got to look alone. Man, what a place!

Since we were going home, I just happened to have my camera handy and got some shots of this place. Hub took the outside shots

Haus of Yarn, Nashville, TN

and I did the most important one...but of course THE YARN! My eyes were on overload at the shop. There was so much to look at and it was displayed so beautifully. The shop owner (whose name totally escapes me) told me that I had come the day after they had their once a month sock night. I didn't think anything about it until she said the sock knitters who come that night get to have first picks over the new sock yarn that had come in. The table with the baskets is the display that was there when they opened the morning I showed up.

I will show what I bought here in a later post. I can't wait to tear into this new stuff. I just had the best time with both our families and the icing on the cake was the find of two shops that are easy to find, the next trip home! If you are ever in Richardson and Nashville, I highly recommend both these shops.

What I did on my Christmas Vacation...

Hubby and I had no intention of going to Texas to see our families during our Christmas break from work. We talked about it and talked about it and decided we really didn't need to spend the money and we didn't want to leave our youngest son at home alone even though he had to work the whole time. I know that the fact we have not been home in more than 18 months weighed heavily on our minds. So at the 11th hour we talked to the kid, cooked an early Christmas dinner, opened gifts and then packed up and got out of dodge.

Getting out of dodge was pretty easy, and it was just the thing we needed to be renewed and refreshed. Our timing could not have been any more perfect. See, no one in the family knew we were coming home. I never called them to tell them anything at all. I was dying! I almost broke down in Nashville where we spent the first night of the trip. I was starting to panic thinking about what would happen if we showed up and NO one was home. What kind of nightmare would that be driving 27 hours from VA to TX and they moved the party. Hub held steadfast about not calling anyone. Here is my view from the passenger seat in the van of the pyramid in Memphis, TN. I know this seems a bit odd, but who on earth came up with this idea? Who builds a pyramid in the middle of the SOUTH???? I happened to have lived there back in the late 80s when this was built and it was a big deal, but still just seemed so silly to me. I love Memphis, but wouldn't this have been better built say some place in AZ or the desert of CA? Just saying...

This is one of the south's most famous bridges. It's the bridge that is most commonly called the Mississippi bridge, but it has another name. I doubt anyone that crosses this bridge calls it this.
I am old school, and just call it the Mississippi bridge. More folks call it that than by it's other name; I am sure!

While I was on the trip, I pulled a Yarn Harlot move... (see June 18 entry)

My picture is of a hat I was working on, but it works. A while back I showed pictures of this hat that I was knitting for my one and only nephew, Zachary. Well, here he is modeling his new hat. I a matching hat for his dad, my brother. They will look goofy together!
Here is another shot of Zach and his hat. See when you knit for family, they really do wear your stuff. I will write more about my vacation and how it relates to yarn later...hope that everyone had a wonderful holiday and that 2008 will be a wonderful year for us all.

Hangin' in there
I haven't had time to post lately because I have gone nuts over these preemie hats that I have publicly pledged to knit over the next year. At the rate I am going, I will have them done well before my self imposed deadline. When I started I really didn't realize how quickly they would go. I also didn't realize how much satisfaction I would get from doing them. I think it's the fact they go so quickly so I know they will not languish on the UFO list. That fact alone brings me joy!

So here is what I have been up so since my last post. I have over 12 hats done and there is always a new one of the dpns.
First...



This is the Preemie Twinkle Hat. It's made with Pylmouth Yarn, Dreambaby D.K. This pattern can be found here. It's very easy and any beginner who can knit in the round can make this hat. It's pretty small. I think this one is done with #5 dpns.
Second is...

This hat was made with Bella Stripes from Universal Handknitting Yarns. The pattern is called Shadow Stripes Hat. I did this one on #5 dpns. It take a little longer than the basic hat pattern but well worth it. I will make it in different yarns and colors to see how they all compare.

Third is..Large Preemie Diamond Lace Hat. I did this one on #5 dpns and was really surprised at how large it was. I am still wondering it this will fit a preemie. I need to find someone with a baby so I can try it on them. I used the 80 stitches the pattern called for but after researching where I got the idea from, this person used 48 stitches and #3 dpns. I don't currently have #3s so I used #5s. Hopefully Santa will bring me the #3s for Christmas.

I wanted to show how many hats I got from one skein of the Bella Stripes. Most were done with #4 and #5 dpns. The yarn was priced at $5.99. It was more expensive than the other yarns I have been using, but I just loved the stripes and I had to have it.

So when there's a time lapse when I post, it's only because I am knitting my little fingers to the bone. Ha!

Wee Thoughts
I am just in love with the current knitting project that is #1 on my list for '08. I am feeling so good about this project! I really have not done charity knitting and I sure don't down load too many free patterns to do on my own. I am a pretty conservative knitter. My colors are usually earth tones because I feel most comfortable surround by them. I am a fall and winter season person. I have always been like that and it's hard to break out of the color comfort zone.

I have two sons so soft girly colors were no where to be found in my home. Now I am having to look at things that I think will fit little girls as well as little boys. I hate to pigeon hole things into pink and blue, but when babies are so small and hooked up to all kinds of tubes and monitors, it's pretty hard to tell what sex they are. So maybe the pink and blue thing are okay.

This is the first pattern I down loaded from the internet after seeing it here. I found this site to be a huge resource for Preemie patterns, not to mention the color choices she uses. She is very creative and such a giving person. I have been this blog for a few years now and love it. She posts very often two or three times a week. My inspiration to do 100 Preemie hats came from her and she gets all the credit! Boy will she be a bit surprised that I have written my blog entry for today about her, since we don't really know each other and I didn't ask permission to do so.

Here is the Preemie Eyelet Cap done Vickie style (that means, not reading how many row repeats I should have done)
Just looking at these, you have no earthly idea how small they really are so check out this next shot. I did use #4dpns and #5dpns, mostly because I don't own any #3 dpns. So until Santa comes, I work with what I have! I used the tape dispenser because hubby was working on Christmas packages and it was handy. These guys are pretty small aren't they. Can you imagine how small the head it that these little hats would warm up?

Ready for Eight
I am a planner. I try to be organized with things so that I can get them done. I am not obsessed but I am committed. I am a list maker. If you could see my desk, you would see tons of little pieces of papers that have lists on them. If I know that I am under the gun of a deadline, I make a list. I don't really put things in the order I want to achieve them but I need to see them so that I can get them done. I am not getting any younger and things do get forgotten.

I have observed a lot of knitters who have lots of WIP and UFOs. I decided that I didn't want to be that kind of a knitter. So I have "the list" for knitting. Frankly, it started out as a joke and now has evolved into something more important. As a newer knitter, I knew there were lots of things that I wanted to learn. I would get side tracked and miss a chance to take a class that contained something that I wanted to learn. So to avoid that happening, I made a list. Of course there will be things that aren't on the list that will get done but for the most part, I stick to the list. I know that this method is too rigid and not flexible for others but this works for me.

When I cross something off the list, I usually end up adding something else to it because of fellow bloggers. You folks have inspired me to challenge myself to do more complicated things. So I have made the list for 2008 with that in mind.

Here is the list for 2008 as of today. I know it will get longer as the year goes by because of classes at my favorite LYS and because of things I will see on the net.

2008 List
1. Knit 100 baby hats (this is inspired by Wool Windings who has knit some pretty wonderful things for the Preemie Project) I admire those who knit for charity. Since I don't knit a lot for charity I thought this would be a pretty simple goal for the year. I figure that I will have to knit about 8-10 a month. They are so small that you can get 4-5 little hats depending on what size needle you use. I have already started on my goal.


I had no idea just how small these guys would be until I knit my very first one this weekend. I got so into it, that I knit 5 already and have #6 on the needles. It was so quick and they are just so cute. Looking at this picture, it's hard to explain the size, so...
I used this tape dispenser to illustrate just how small some of the hats are. The one behind the tape was knit of #5 dpns. I was shocked. The rest of the lot was knit was #4 dpns. I don't own any 3s but put them on my list for Santa.

I will talk about the hats in more detail in a later post. I just had to show just how small the hats are, so doing 100 in a year shouldn't be too much of a drain. I want to challenge all of you to think about doing at least one or two charity knitting items.

Christmas Came Early
I was tickled pink when hubby handed me the mail last night on his way in the door from work. He handed me a nice white envelope. What was inside? Christmas from MOM. I wasted no time today in making her perceived wish for me to have a very Merry Christmas by spending her money; and spend I did.

I have exhausted my sock stash except for three skeins of a cotton blend that I am not sure I really like that much now that I have knit one pair with that brand. I love the wool and wool blends so that means technically, I am out of sock yarn. Now what's a girl to do??? Shop of course. With checkbook in hand, I helped to support my most favorite LYS. I have been lusting after some sock yarn there for some time now but sometimes my appetite for yarn far exceeds my cash flow. So I knit from the stash until I get the cash. My mom's envelope pushed me over the edge! Yeehaw!

I have never knit with either of these two yarns, so I am very excited to have them in the fold.I took this under the light of a living room lamp so it's a bit darker than most photos, but you get the jest. It's Austermann Step. Other knitters at my Thursday group have used this before and say it's a dream to knit with because it's soft. So, I am excited about knitting with this. My friend Susan J said that it really does make stripes like the picture shows on the label, and I am counting on that! Then Susan S brought out some new yarns that I missed out on the first time she had them, and this time I was ready! This is the second helping of sock yarn purchased today with such JOY! It's Araucania. It's a hand dyed yarn from Chile by Araucania Yarns. I am not a huge fan of pinks but this was muted enough I could handle it. It's 100 grams and boy I can't wait to get into this stuff. Has anyone else made socks with it yet?

Then I was lucky enough to have been in the shop on Monday when Susan S got a nice big shipment of cool things and I have bought two already. I was in the shop looking to buy my niece some crocheting supplies for Christmas and bought one of these for her crochet supplies so they can sit neatly near to where she is crocheting. I loved it so much, that I also bought one for me. This is a little organizer that is made from clear plastic. It stands up with a metal stand and is just small enough to hold a pair of in progress socks. Both sides of the stand have three little pockets where you can put little (non-sharp) items in. I am lovin' this! I posed my new yarn next to it so you would have an idea just how small it is. The proper name is Handy Caddy. This would make a great gift for a knitter if you want to spend less than $20 for a gift. I am sure my niece will love it!