1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like? My favorite yarn to knit with, so far, is Patons Classic Merino Wool. It’s just so soft and cozy, plus it felts really well. I also enjoy knitting with Bernat Satin, for an acrylic yarn. It’s easy on the hands and has a nice sheen. I don’t really like knitting with the really cheap Red Heart SuperSaver-type yarns (though I’m using it now for a hat for my son) and generally I don’t like most eyelash yarns (though I have some Patons Cha-Cha because it makes good icing for those cupcakes in “One Skein”). I think some novelty yarns are fun in small doses. Until very recently I didn’t want to spend a lot of yarn because I wasn’t sure knitting was a hobby I’d stick with, but I’ve found myself becoming a little choosier. Overall I prefer wool and wool-blends, but nothing that sheds a lot.
Category Archives: Knitting & Crochet
I Like Surprises!
Especially in the form the surprise took today. Quite simply, what I thought was going to be a long, rough day is turning out to be really great. I love that! N. woke up several times last night. It’s either due to his continued teething (he only has 8 teeth; 4 on the top and 4 on the bottom) or a growth spurt. I had an impossible time putting on his shoes this morning and they fit fine yesterday! Anyway, I was up at the crack of dawn, which is never a good way to begin the day. Also, N. hasn’t been napping much so I anticipated another day of that.
Well, miraculously he took a 1.5 hour morning nap! Meanwhile, I was finishing laundry, cleaning the kitchen, was dressed and had makeup on, attempted to eat breakfast. (N. actually stole a good half of the breakfast burrito I made for myself, so…), and made a list of things I needed to buy today.
J. was happily occupied first drawing a picture for his great-grandma’s birthday, and then playing with Play-dough. After N. woke up I got the boys dressed and in the car and off we went on a very successful shopping trip which included four different stores. That might not seem like much, but those of you with at least two small children understand (and I just have to say that I have no idea how women with three or more kids do it — seriously!). They both were well-behaved for the most part. They started to get pesty in W’mart, but luckily I had some crackers to occupy them (it was close to lunch and I knew they were hungry). I got everything on my list except for a new Brita pitcher, so I am very pleased!
I finished shopping for my Knitter’s Teaswap pal, bought some boring household stuff, avacados and limes to make Black Bean & Orzo Salad, some orange and green yarn to make pumpkin hats for the boys, a copy of All You magazine, and the November issue of Creative Knitting. I didn’t even bother to look inside because I fell in love with the sweater on the cover. Gorgeous!
So yeah, I’m glad the day has shaped up well because it’s been a rough week. I’ve also been sick for the last four days with a nasty headcold and awful sinus pressure. I’m finally feeling like myself today, albeit stuffy and with an occasional cough. But at least I can breathe!
While Noah continues to nap (Yes, again! Miracle!), I think I’ll make a cup of tea and leaf through one of my new magazines.
Lazy Saturday
Happy Autumn! And what a rainy first day of fall it is. We had a fire going this morning to warm up the house a bit, and I kind of want to start one now, even though it’s not all that chilly — it would just make for a nice, cozy atmosphere! Maybe later tonight.
It really has been a pretty lazy day. When N. went down for his afternoon nap, J. and I made cookie pizzas. We took some store-bought sugar cookies, spread on some frosting — we chose chocolate and decorate with shredded coconut “cheese” and toppings: plain M&Ms, peanut M&Ms, rainbow non-pareils, and red candy sprinkles. It was really fun and delicious! Now we’re watching superhero cartoons. N.’s stirring, so I’m sure he’ll be up soon.
Yeah, so not much going on today. I think I might make paninis for supper tonight. Grilled chicken breast, mozzarella, roasted red peppers, basil… sounds good to me. And I think I’m going to cast on for a new project, either Fuzzy Feet or a wine cozy. Personally, I’d rather start on Fuzzy Feet, but I know D. really wants a wine cozy and I feel like I’ve been knitting for everyone else lately, so maybe I’ll work on that. I’ve kind of lost interest in the scarf, and I really need to finish that Homespun Shawl. It’s sitting on a closet shelf and fall is perfect shawl weather. Too many projects! (And yet I am getting way more knitting projects completed than when I was scrapbooking; knitting is definately the way to go right now for me – portable, easy to pick up/put down, and people seem to “get it.” Plus, it’s been a great conversation starter when I’m knitting in public. Fun, fun!)
I also got assigned my partner for Knitter’s Tea Swap 2! Yay! I’ve already started making a mental list of all the goodies with which I’m going to spoil her. I love putting together goodie baskets 🙂
Tomorrow we might head over to Danbury, CT. I am have a major Christmas Tree Shop jones. It’s been months since I’ve been there. Months! That is a crime! Hopefully I can convince the hubs. That’s pretty much it. Hope everyone is enjoying the weekend.
Multidirectional Scarf Progress
I’m nearly finished with Tracy’s bag for the Knitted Purse Swap. I just have to finish the handles and add some final touches. Then I get to fill it up with goodies! I have some fun ideas of what I’ll stick inside. I plan on going shopping tomorrow (or at least attempting to; we all know that it’s up to the wee ones how long you can stay at the mall), and hopefully picking up a few things.
Meanwhile, I’m chugging along on the Multidirectional Scarf. I’m using size 7 needles (I hemmed and hawed for a long time over whether or not to buy a set of Denise Interchangeables, but I’m so glad I did; they have proved to be an incredibly worthwhile purchase — I <3 my Denises!) and Patons Merino Wool in "Harvest," which is one of the new variagateds. I'm finding this to be a rather tedious knit, and there is that one glaring mistake, but I figure it won't be too noticable when the scarf is wrapped around my neck. I'm not about to rip it apart and start over, that's for sure.
This evening I got a call that my new glasses are in -- hooray! I'll pick those up tomorrow. I departed from the oval/angular plastic frames I've been wearing for the past seven years or so (I've had both black and tortoise shell-ish frames) and went with a more rectangular titanium. I was surprised that I liked them, actually! I'm looking forward to less eye strain, that's for sure. I still wonder where my black frames are, though. Where could they have gone? I only go to a limited number of places. Part of me thinks they're somewhere in the car, hidden way under the seat or something. Oh well, I guess it doesn't matter now.
Anyway! Yup... knitting away , new glasses, didn't really cook anything interesting this week. Though I did try one of the new Bailey’s flavors: chocolate mint. It was quite good! I’m not a big fan of Irish Cream, but I like the touch of mint. In fact, I think I might even have a little as a nightcap! Woohoo!
From My M-D Swapcloth Pal
I got my Mason-Dixon Swapcloth package on Friday from Barb! She knit three lovely dishcloths (1 ballband, 1 lighthouse and 1 dragonfly) and sent along a bar of delicious-smelling mango-scented soap. Thank you so much!!!
Mason-Dixon Swapcloth Stuff
Pumpkin Overload
This morning I treated myself to a Pumpkin Spice Latte and a pumpin scone from Starbucks. I think I am pumpkined out right now! The scone was fantastic; the latte a little too sweet for me.
I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. Sunday night I made the Country Coq au Vin recipe. It was delicious! I made a couple substitutions, though: chicken breasts instead of a whole cut up chicken (no one in our family really cares for dark meat) and I thinly sliced a medium yellow onion instead of using the pearl onions (personally, I don’t think they have much flavor). I used a dry Italian white that I had hanging out in the fridge and served the chicken with garlic mashed potatoes. Delish! I think it would also be fantastic if you used a fine Marsala wine. I’ll try that next time. After the boys were in bed, D. and I watched The Weatherman. We both really liked it. I’m a big Nicholas Cage fan anyway, so I almost always like everything he does.
Yesterday was a rainy day and J. and I did a bunch of crafts and I packed up 7 boxes of kitchen stuff. We have another open house this coming Sunday so I wanted to clear out as much as I could. I packed up all of our extra plates, cups, silverware, and left only as much as we will need. We rarely use our dishwasher anyway, so handwashing a couple plates won’t be a problem. Last night I tried to duplicate one of my favorite restaurant recipes — Baked Sonora Chicken Pasta. Ruby Tuesday’s no longer serves it (they’ve totally destroyed their menu; it’s so boring now!) and I’ve been craving it. The recipe needs a little tweaking — a little more spice, but I came pretty close. Once I have it down I’ll post it.
I’ve been working on my swap partner’s bag, but I’ve been really tired at night lately, so I haven’t made a ton of progress. Hopefully I’ll at least finish the bottom today. I’m contemplating joining Secret Pal 9. It seems like it would be a lot of fun, but it’s a really big commitment. I have to think about it a little more. (Anyone want to try to convince me? 😉 )
What Month Is It?
The calendar says September, but it really feels more like November today. The wind and rain coming down from Tropical Storm Ernesto have really made it a dreary day outside. I feel bad for anyone who had planned a Labor Day BBQ! Luckily we didn’t really have any plans. It would be the perfect night to start a fire in the fireplace and curl up on the couch watching a movie, that’s for sure! I don’t mind this weather. I think the awful heat of summer is still fresh in my mind and I welcome cooler temperatures. (Plus, I am so excited to once again be able to wear cardigans. Hooray for the cardigan sweater!)
Today I did a bit of knitting on Felted Bowl #3 (from One Skein). The instructions say to use a 24″ circular needle for the bowls and I would love to see someone do that! I’m knitting the small bowl and I had to start with DPNs. For the large bowls, I’ve always used a 16″ needle. That has to be a misprint. I’m eager to finish this little guy up so I can start on the purse for the purse swap, whee! I love the pattern and I will probably end up making one for myself, too.
And yes, obviously, I switched back to WordPress. I just can’t commit to a blogging program, I guess! No, actually I never intended to use Blogger for the long-term; I just needed the time to set up WP again. It is much more elegant than old Blogger (though I have to hold Blogger in my heart since I did use it for so very long at the beginning — way back in 2000, holy crow!)
Tomorrow I hope to finish up the bowl and just do stuff around the house (like put away the mounds of laundry sitting in baskets) and figure out a storage solution for J.’s Playmobil stuff. Monday I’m dragging D. to Sears to help me pick out new glasses. I lost my current pair. (Yes, I know I lost the pair before that, too.). I have looked high and low and they are not to be found. The other day I went to Sears and picked out a few frames I like and now I need a second opinion. It’s a good thing my eyesight isn’t too bad. I hope everyone has a great Labor Day weekend (at least here in the U.S.). Enjoy!