jeannie's hands at work

Knitting, crocheting, other handwork, and personal.

Friday, February 24, 2006

Finished Object Friday!!!






Hooray! I finished this shawl. I started it after the Fiber Arts Fiesta in May 2005. It was a pattern from someone in the New Mexico Crochet Guild. She told me how she did her poncho on the Guild's display (gorgeous in worsted purple silk and wool, BTW), and I wrote what I could remember down on a scrap of paper. I started it at least 4 times till I found the right combo of hook and stitch. I used a double strand of the 10,000 yards of 50/50 alpaca & wool I got last April on Ebay. Here's the old pic of the cone and a swatch. Double crochet with an edge of single crochet. I thought about a picot edge but I just wanted to FINISH this. :-) I think it's turned out ok. I wanted it long enough to cover my back and drape in the front. I'll get a picture of the front this weekend if I have batteries in the camera at home.I'm going to wear it to tape Psychiatry Grand Rounds this morning. I'm always cold there.

[UPDATE] I wasn't cold!!!!

Oh, the back view pic is weird because the camera remote that can take pictures from a distance has a dead battery. I went in the bathroom and took it over my shoulder, but I couldn't see the viewfinder so I didn't know my face was in it too! Are there prizes for weird (read BAD) pics on blogs? The drawbacks of video cameras and still shots. O.M.G. - is my hair really that white?

I finally found where to get "things" to use as shawl pins. Model Pharmacy across from Walgreen's at Carlisle, Monte Vista, and Lomas. They have (I hear) nifty hair ornaments that will work for shawls. My only other option is to make my own. Good thing I'm a silversmith and plumber - I have skills.

More Later!

Tuesday, February 21, 2006

UH, OH, Uh, Oh!!!!!

Alert! There is a Winter Wool event in Albuquerque this Weekend!!!!!!!!!!! I'm dead meat. I might MIGHT have to buy yarn {maybe there won't be any}. Uh oh, uh oh, uh oh!!!!!! At the Zoo and Biopark from 10 - 2, there will be spinners, weavers, dyers. In front of the Cottonwood Cafe, the link says.
Here's the link:
http://www.cabq.gov/biopark/common/februaryevents.html#wool

Who else will be there? I hope to see some of my co-knitters and some of my knitting and crochet students.

Also there is a change for my Albuquerque Knit Knight group. We will be meeting today at Winnings Coffee shop from right after work till 7:00ish.

RB Winnings Coffee House - 111 Harvard SE (near UNM) Actually just across from UNM.

Pictures of my FLAK swatches to follow soon.

Also, I believe on Sunday Feb. 26th, Michael's at Eubank & I-40 is having their charity assembly of swatches into afghans . Check with the store for details.

Friday, February 17, 2006

New Project (s)

Well, here's one -honest, there's a finished crocheted dishcloth under Bear :)











These are dishcloths and two Granny Squares for a charity project.






Right now there are some really pretty colors in Sugar 'n Cream "dish" cotton. I picked some up pre- no yarn pledge. I'm trying to make a dishcloth or two and some G-squares every week for gifts and charity. It's a nice change from long term projects.

Speaking of which, I'm on the Sixth repeat of Paisley Shawl! Yay. Almost half way.

A new project is Crocheted Socks. Here's my gauge swatch in Trekking. With a G hook I'm right on. :) I'm ready to start my first crocheted sock. I gotta post to the group now.




I've started the cable swatch for my FLAK and am about 15 rows in. I have to take pictures of it this weekend. I really like the yarn even if it is Red Heart - it's dusty teal and I. like. it.

Wednesday, February 15, 2006

New Stash Pictures













Here are some new pics of my stash. As I think about it, this only the stuff that's organized carefully. It doesn't include the stuff that I'm working on or in the other closet.

I'm still keeping to the no buying new yarn pledge but it's hard. I just figured it outand there's no event to save up for till approximately July ( the Egdewood Fiber Studio and Farm tour) and then Taos in October! I don't think I can go that long!!!!! :)

Wednesday, February 08, 2006

Crochet meeting in Albuquerque

This is information on the Crochet Guild for those of us who'd like to check it out.

New Mexico Crochet Guild
Hobby Lobby store classroom located just south of Juan Tabo and Lomas NE
Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Meets every 3rd Saturday of the Month at 1:30pm

All crocheters are welcome. No charge to attend.

Thanks, and Happy Crocheting!
Dot Drake, President

Hat pictures, Brioche stitch (well - knit)


Here's one of my cats looking on while I take pictures.




Here I am trying on the hat.



This is the top of an-in-the-round brioche hat. Cool, huh?




Monday, February 06, 2006

No pictures, huh?

Apparently I uploaded all these pics (see below) through Picasa. They aren't accessible from the computer I have access to at home. I'll reload them through my picture files. Sorry everybody.

Wednesday, February 01, 2006

Update to Jan 11th's post.

This is the Paisley Shawl from IK. Shaila found a blog where someone knit this is 3 weeks!!!!!!!! We've been at it since August!







Moonlight Mohair Shawl #2.





Oh, man, I dropped a stitch. I frogged this back but may do it all over -it's too long and not getting deep enough. I want it to hang down and keep the small of my back warm.














I got much more done on this in ER on Monday night.








The Kitty Bag is on it's second pattern repeat this week.

Pictures, Prize, and Cats.


Apologies for the blurry pictures- my daughter's camera doesn't tell you whether or not you have a good pic or not! Better blurry pics than none : ). More pictures below in different posts.

Bear's just looking on. Posted by Picasa

Michael's Store Yarn Event, Sunday, January 29, 2006

Captions for new download pictures:

Fastest Knitter basket of goodies


Speedy wants to See!

So does Furball.




Michael's had a yarn event on Sunday. It was a city wide event with each store having their own demonstrations, mini-lessons in crocheting and knitting, and the fastest knitter and crocheter Contest.

I had talked it up at a couple of my classes and groups. What better to do on a Sunday afternoon? I went to the store at Eubank and I-40 in the Target shopping center.

I got a refresher lesson on granny squares from Karen (Thank you, Karen!), and Charlene was demonstrating the "Knifty Knitter." Juan was doing mini-knitting lessons and keeping the sign-up sheets going.

I signed up for the fastest knitter contest. There were four of us who competed and four crocheters who signed up as well. We had to cast on 30 stitches on size 10 needles with Red Heart worsted yarn. We were instructed to knit a 7 X 9 inch swatch.

I didn't hear how many stitches the crocheters had to chain, but they had to do a single crochet swatch 7 X 9 inches as well. There were two young girls who entered too, and they really held their own with those of us who were "more seasoned" (read- older).

I was really nervous when we started knitting and then after about 10 minutes, I thought, "This is silly - I came to have a good time; I don't care if I win." I started talking and asking questions of Juan, and talked about blogging, "yarning" on the net, and generally relaxing and being silly. We all started to talk and laugh and really relax. The woman next to me and I were talking about writing when she said something like, "That's it, I'm done. It's obvious who's going to win." I looked up at the others and said, "Who won? Did you?" I looked at them and they pointed at me!

"No, not Me!?" Yep, sure enough- I had been in A ZONE -just knitting away and talking and laughing and having a great time. WOW!!!!!!!!

So here's the basket I won-
Knitting & Crocheting For Dummies Kit with 2 sets of needles, book, crochet hook, & gauge.
Two sets of Clover needles:
straight Bamboo 10's
circular bamboo 10
Clover crochet hook size G (my absolute favorite hooks)
and 2 skeins of yarn, solid blue and ombre'd blue
COOL, huh?

The fastest crocheter won a beautiful basket, too.



I won the Fastest Knitter Contest! Posted by Picasa


Speedy wants to see! Posted by Picasa


So does Furball, just as soon as she finishes looking at the camera. Posted by Picasa

I confess, I bought yarn!!!!! Bad Dieter- No Chocolate!



A yarn "snack" - I fell off the no-yarn-diet-wagon! Posted by Picasa


I've been SSSOOOOOO good. I have resisted Herrschners truckload blowout sales on the net and in the catalog: 2lb. cones of acrylic yarn , 1600 yards per cone, $9.97 on sale. (picture me, JONES-ING BIG TIME) I've resisted all thoughts of buying on sale nice wool yarn for the Follow the Leader Aran Knit-Along - I'll just use up my stash. BUT NOOOOOOOOO, do I have enough of anything to use for it? Not. even. Close.
So off to Hobby Lobby after Wal-mart doesn't have Red Heart Giant Pounder's in any color. I was determined I would buy the least expensive I could get to make this first Aran sweater -you know how it is- what if I hate It? what If I don't want to make the sweater after the swatch? What if I never finish iT? BLah, bla-blah, bla-blah......No - buying - alpaca till I KNOW I'm going to like it.
So Hobby Lobby, run in to one of my students who says RH Super Saver skeins are ON SALE!!!!!!!!!!!(gasp) for $1.88 each. And Sugar'n Cream for .99 per ball in new cool colors and Allure(which I'm collecting a skein at a time to make the 7 ball Shawl in the freebie pattern) for $1.99.
Can't ................

help.......................

it...

As Jenny and Meg said, "It's only a snack - it's not a whole week of ice cream (or something to that effect....) and it's not Nice wool, it's acrylic so it doesn't count!" :-O
The cotton manufacturers have really gotten on the color bandwagon. Every time I look, there are more pretty colors than before. Yahoo, keep them coming.

MY CONFESSION: I bought 6 skeins of Red Heart, 1 ball of Allure, and this Sugar'n Cream in Country Brown Ombre. For under $15.00.

Brioche stitch gone wonky.



badly shot, badly knit Brioche stitch Posted by Picasa
This was cast on about 2 AM in the ER at Women's Hospital on Monday night. My son went to a concert and got 'moshed' but good in the mosh pit. His eyebrow was laid open and we "Thought" it needed stitches. We waited till 4:30 and left after the medical staff took my son's blood pressure 5 times in four hours, but didn't stitch him up.
By 5:30 I had cleaned him up and butterfly-ed his eyebrow AT HOME. The family doctor said I did a great job and don't touch it -it was as good as anything they'd have done. NO stitches.
The rest was badly knit at group last night- after talking about doing brioche in the round, I didn't do a very good job ;). I think I was tired.