One more project to labor on

I picked this project up again after a long delay - I think I started it in 2005. I was hoping to finish it as a WIP wrestling event for the Ravelry Olympics but it just didn't happen. It's the Cranberry Bag from 25 Bags to Knit by Emma King. Anyway, I finished the beaded front and the plain stockinette back and tomorrow I will do the handles and the blocking. I've picked up a little fabric for a lining and I'll be working on that this Labor Day weekend. Maybe I'll get a bike ride in as well! Quite a slow down from last week's "Fun-o-rama!"



One of my favorite displays at the Minnesota State Fair's Creative Activities building was this section from the Minnesota Weavers' Guild. I think I will plan better and spin something for next year's fair. As for the weaving, I don't have a loom but I am plotting to find space for one - a small one, just one small 20 inch Ashford Rigid Heddle loom. What's the harm in that?



For this week's Saturday Seven, check out Just one part of my morning's work cleaning out Middle Daughter's room. As long as I don't touch The Doll, she doesn't mind the clean out. Three pairs of old jeans, one pair of shorts and tee shirts galore - already out the door to a church rummage sale.

Friday Films debut today!

I think I am going to make a trip to the Snag Films vault a regular Friday feature. Today's topic: Manga!



And, in that spirit, I wish Dear Husband Mr. Daisy,


誕生日おめでとうアンドリュー!

(Happy Birthday Andrew!)

Back from the void . . .

Well, between rolling up to the finish of the Rav Olympics, trips to the fair and taking Oldest Daughter to college, I am officially exhausted.



I finally finished the Elizabeth Zimmerman's Baby Surprise jacket - and I don't know what I would have done without Meg Swanson's video. It was not hard - just really easy to make mistakes if you are knitting before bedtime. I was fighting one lost stitch the whole time - and found it in the middle of the left front right when I was sewing up. No way was I going back! Luckily, a little duplicate stitch straightened everything out! Just a reminder, this was made out of Happy Sock yarn and I used two skeins (really one and 7/8 of another) with a size four bamboo needle. I think the perfect yarn for this is really hand spun - I was originally inspired by a jacket in the October 2007 Spin Off. The next one will be hand spun for me!




The Supermen in my life! Saturday was a perfect day for the Minnesota State Fair. Rides, great food and the Creative Activities building, the Holy Grail of knitting. I didn't enter anything this year but I saw some old favorites . . .



Shelly Kang's "The Blankie" popped up once again. That is one big piece of knitting - she put many hours of sweat and skill into that!



I also stopped by the Minnesota Sheep and Wool producers booth for my annual shop fest. We had so much fun at the Fair as a family that Mr. Daisy and I went back sans children on Monday. That's when I really got to browse!



And, since my other daughters are also in school, I decided to clean some rooms. One bedroom per day is about all the cleaning I think I can handle - a pair of boots, a ball cap, a hair clip, two pairs of jeans, a pair of shorts and one, far-overdue-to-be-removed night light.

Now, back into a relapse of simple knitting. I started a red bag aeons ago and now it's time to get it done. This could have been a WIP Wrestling event from the Rav Olympics but the to-ing and fro-ing on the Baby Surprise Jacket killed this event. Ah well, it could be a Christmas present!

Remember winter?

near the top of Carnedd Daffyd
Originally uploaded by yawdogs

Not quite as hilly in Minnesota but the rest rings a bell. Remind me to get started on my mitten knitting . . .

In the meantime, I am still here and still frantically knitting away on my Rav Olympics baby sweater. Darn babies, always needing more clothes, and silly families, always wanting to take me away from my knitting with silly things like trips to the State Fair and taking children to college and making them dinner.

I found this on a flickr page linked from author Christopher Fowler's blog. If you really want to see what some people do to their families, read a little of his stuff.

From a dark and stormy night . . .

- although a lovely moon to light it by! -



to a bright and sunny day at Lake Independence. That's me in the blue and white swim suit right up at the front of my wave in the YWCA of Minneapolis' Women's Tri today in Maple Plain. It was a lovely race with a great swim but a very hilly bike course and run route. It was all up hill, if that's humanly possible! I recommend it - try it next year!



Yesterday's Saturday Seven had four small parts - books - and three large parts that I forgot to take a photo of: a television, a crib and a crib mattress. Thank goodness for Freecycle!



Finally, I've started my Elizabeth Zimmerman's Baby Surprise Sweater. I started it once with the Pagewood Farms bamboo yarn but I went back and used Plymouth Yarn's Happy Feet instead. Hopefully, I can use my rest time this week working on finishing it up. Back to the Rav Olympics!

One event down!

A Sockput for Team Minnesota!

I was shooting to finish these by midnight but the toe decreases went slowly. So, just as I watched the USA women's gymnastic team get their team Silver medal, I was kitchener stitching the toe. A complete Sockput for the Ravolympics and Team Minnesota!

It's a lousy photo, I know, but don't forget that I shorted the leg portion by 1 and 1/2 inches. That's why the leg and the foot look almost equal. The yellow marker shows where I started knitting from this afternoon. Perhaps I'll take some photos of the sock in action for another post.

Now, off to bed and tomorrow, the scarf!

Inching along

I was trying to get a good photo of the lovely instep - gosh, that Evelyn A. Clark writes a lovely pattern! - but this will have to do. I'm working on getting through most of the foot tonight. I'm hoping the mens' and women's swimming tonight will spur me on. I'm getting ready for my last tri of the season on Sunday and it's making me a little antsy. Supposedly, you're supposed to taper but that just makes me worry . . . maybe the knitting will help!

A good Olympic start!

You would think that during the Rav Olympics, I would be doing nothing but knitting. However, I only managed to get a few inches in between yesterday and today. But I am at the heel, so, I'll be moving on before you know it. I think it's harder to knit and watch the Olympics because they are so darn exciting. Even beach volleyball has been fun to watch! And as for my favorite, swimming - go Phelps, go!



Cleaning-wise, I decided to re-alphabetize my cd drawer - something that I do about once every three years - and these tapes and cds just didn't make the cut. Off to the rummage sale!

Now, time for a little sleep . . .

Now, something for the other foot!

While on my trip, I finally finished sock #1 of my Go With the Flow socks. I've started sock #2 but it's really my knit-about-town-project. A little here and a little there and I'll be done in no time!



After getting all the trip laundry and home-again-cleaning out of the way, I spent this afternoon preparing for the summer deluge of tomatoes, pickles and dilly beans. My favorite is making applesauce but that isn't until autumn . . .



This Saturday Seven included another drive by - a drive by bundt pan! When we got back from our trip, there was a copper bundt pan on my porch. Not mine and not one of my neighbors' either! That, plus two tank tops, an bad swim suit choice, two old lenses and a filter for my husband's discarded camera make for an eclectic haul. I'll offer the lenses on Freecycle but the rest can go to charity.

On a knitting note: I hope you have had a chance to check out the Twist Collective. They have some really cool patterns and I like the idea of them maintaining copyright to their work. I recently heard an interview with a designer whose early patterns are all unavailable because the magazine that published them went out of business. What a bummer. So, check out what the Twist Collective has to say on that subject!

Home from the hunt!

Well, the family trip to Pennsylvania is finally over - lots of miles covered, relatives visited, weddings completed and a trip to the Mercer County Race Park. Oh, and two lovely yarn shops!



My husband used the search feature on his phone and found Cornerstone Yarns in Richfield, Ohio. Their brand new website helped me find it and the owner kindly sold me some beautifully dyed spinning fiber and some Opal sock yarn. I'll write this one down on the road atlas. A friend of mine lists all the Dairy Queens along her route so at least my stops are calorie free.



We had a quick stop in Western Pennsylvania to tour Grove City College, where Youngest Child made a friend.

Other stops included races at the Mercer Raceway Park to see our favorite car - 711.

While in Grove City, I stopped by Wolf Creek Yarns (website-less right now!) where I scored a copy of the Elizabeth Zimmerman's Baby Surprise Jacket with Meg Swanson DVD as well as some lovely Pagewood Farms Yukon sock yarn. I've already started a baby surprise jacket and watched the video!



I also used all that travel time to finish my "Simple yet effective shawl" for the Wrapped in Care project. But I'll still have plenty of work to do on the Baby Surprise jacket and my old friend, the blue Go With the Flow socks as well as finishing up Youngest Child's patchwork quilt and training for my last Tri of the summer. August already, who would have thunk it?

Promised photos

See - the Saturday Seven. Two pairs of jeans, two women's tee shirts and three of Youngest Child's shirts.



And a little river of blue bits on the sewing table.

Some say you can't knit at the movies . . .

but you definitely can at "Mama Mia!" It's very well lit and makes even me (a known hater of heat and humidity) yearn for Greece. Middle Daughter would say it was that Mr. Darcy (aka. Colin Firth) but he really shouldn't take his shirt off any more!



The simple nature of my Simple Yet Effective Shawl might also be part of the reason it's so easy to take everywhere. It's just alternating rows of stockinette and garter stitch.



You do have to watch the yarn overs at the beginning, middle and end of the right side rows but, other than that, you can't go wrong!

As for the Saturday Seven - I really shouldn't wait until my Youngest Daughter goes to bed to want to take my photos. Photos always make things better - if only I would remember. Tomorrow, photographic proof. Basically, it's two pairs of Mr. Daisy's jeans, two of my own tee shirts and three of Youngest Child's shirts. I think we'll be covering the size spectrum this week!

Beautiful music for the knitting set

Give it a try!

A peaceful afternoon - alone with my iron in the sewing room

After seeing this lovely book, Last-Minute Patchwork and Quilted Gifts, over at Earthchicknits' blog, I've delved into making a patchwork blanket for Youngest Child's bed. Nothing big, just the "Little Bits" quilt.

But before I could start sewing, that meant shopping for fabric and then washing, drying and ironing it. And, while I was doing that, I figured it was time to get all of my stash sewing ready. I found some lovely fabric that I'd forgotten all about. And since it's going to be a long hot weekend, I am hoping to get some work done in the cool of my sewing room.

Knitting-wise, I've started a shawl for the Wrapped in Care charitable project - a Simple yet Effective Shawl from Cosmicpluto Knits. It's green - surprise! - and in a washable Vanna's Choice from Lion's Brand. I'm not crazy about acrylic yarn but I thought I would give it try because they wanted washable yarns for this charity project. I'm thinking I'll work another one in washable sock yarn or maybe one in hand spun for me. The pattern is fairly random and very easy to knit!

Finished at the last minute!

Tomorrow is the Minnesota Knitters' Guild's summer picnic. It's also the turn in date for the Little Lambs baby blankets collection. Never one to get something done early - I stayed up late last night and finished my Lydia's Lacy Blocks baby blanket. It's amazing what you can accomplish while watching The Fellowship of the Ring one more time!



Just a quick review - this was the Lydia's Lacy Blocks blanket pattern by Deborah Robson from Knit Along with Debbie Macomber: The Shop on Blossom Street. I used the yarn called for, Lion Brand Jiffy Solid, in Apple Green. I ended up with one skein left over - mostly because I changed the lace pattern from a six row to a five row repeat. (This was entirely unplanned!)

It felt so weird putting this in the wash and then the dryer. It was a little scruffy from being taken to the pool and it needed a wash. But, now I can go back to working on the Go with the Flow Socks.

Beautiful weekends are no place for Saturday Sevens

So, we'll start with last week's photo. Seven books - some old book club choices, some gifts and some inappropriate and/or double copies that were donated to my church's library. Sometimes I have to weed out "bad" choices and I just can't do that in front of the donor. But I don't need the extra books littering up my house, either. These will go to the AAUW book sale.



This week's Saturday Seven - seven little boy shirts. He's moving from size 5 to 6 and the old shirts are just too short. Off to Baby Karl.



We had a trip to the library today and Youngest Child just couldn't keep his eyes off one of his books. I requested two books after hearing about them on Earthchicknits' blog. I'll be relaxing on the front porch this weekend while reading The Creative Family: How to Encourage Imagination and Nurture Family Connections by Amanda Blake Soule. This is full of crafts and activities and I am so looking forward to making a few.

The second book I picked up was Last-Minute Patchwork + Quilted Gifts by Joelle Hoverson. Youngest Child needs a new bedspread and I'm looking at some of her designs. Lots of pondering ahead!

I am almost finished with the Lydia's Lacy Blocks baby blanket - I took it out onto the porch today to work on but the books were more attractive . . . maybe photos for that project by Tuesday.

Idle hands, idle hands

A rainy day stopped our trip to the pool so I had a little time on my hands. I could have worked on the baby blanket. I could have worked on my Go With the Flow socks. Instead, I stuffed and "eyed" the Little Teddy Bear from Kyuuto Japanese Crafts Amigurumi.

I'm pretty sure that I made the head too small - the ears look too big! - but it was fun and now I can move on. A hedgehog? An owl? What to make next . . .

After the ball is over . . .

After my race on Saturday, Mr. Daisy took me out for dinner at the Happy Gnome in Saint Paul. Taking a page from Annie Modesitt's blog, I took a photo of our delicious drinks - a little something for posterity.



Knitting wise, I am still working on that endless baby blanket. I tend to get caught up in the knitting and then - time to visit the frog pond. Luckily, it is due at the MKG meeting next week so I've been eyeing some new sock patterns to make with that trekking sock yarn.

Just a word about color in my photos. My last digital camera was pretty old so when Oldest Daughter dropped it, I didn't feel so bad. In fact, I got a lovely new camera as a Mother's Day present - complete with battery charger. Well, that charger has disappeared and I've been forced to use my cell phone for photos. Although I'd like to take nice pictures, sometimes a poor photo is better than no photo at all. The actual baby blanket is very green - brilliant.

Yesterday, I witnessed a drive by . . .

playing of the National Anthem. Three guys pulled up in a little sedan, parked in the lot of my local grocery store, pulled out their brass instruments and then played the Star Spangled Banner. After we clapped, they played it again, this time for one lady to record it on her phone.

Then, they got off scott free - off to play the National Anthem anywhere they chose!

Luckily, I spent a little time on line this week and realized by Wednesday that my race, the Minniman Triathlon, was TODAY and not on Sunday like I thought. So, I spent this morning swimming, biking and running and had a lovely time! Two minutes off my time from last year and ahead of my friend. That's a lovely morning for me.



I did have time to stop by All About Yarn in Coon Rapids last week - it was on my way to the packet pickup - and bought a little more sock yarn. I think this will be a birthday pair of socks for Mr. Daisy.

Today's Saturday Seven will be a Sunday Seven. Sometimes the photos just take a while! Off to work on my baby blanket! Enjoy your holiday weekend . . .

Ready for a break - Really!

More college visiting - more getting ready for guest and now, more bike rides. The last week before a triathlon is usually a good time to de-stress but this one wasn't so easy to get out of. I might not be blogging very much until after the sixth . . .



Cleaning out Youngest Daughter's drawers netted six tee shirts and Youngest Child gave up some jeans. I love cleaning!