I'm loving this yarn!

I love trying out weird, new and different yarns to see what I can make from them. Different textures, weird colors, any sort of novelty yarn.....just fun to try all of them out. Some are duds, but some I really like!

A friend sent me 2 skeins of a yarn I hadn't heard of before....Aunt Lydia's Madison Avenue Crochet. It's an interesting mix of fuzzy colored yarn, thread and little nubs. I knew right away that this yarn needed to be knit into an airy summer scarf. I saw online that others had taken darker colorways of this yarn to make vests and other wearables....but to me, the mix of textures just screamed SCARF.... Who am I to argue with the all-knowing yarn muse?

And, since the name of the yarn said Crochet....I knew it must be knitted. Rebel, eh? :)

The color I was given is called White Rainbow. The thread and nubs are white, and the fuzzy color changes between red, blue, yellow, and turquoise.



I'm using #13 needles and cast on 10. Basic knit stitch. I think it's making a really cute, summery scarf! :)

I will definitely be buying more of this yarn to add to my stash! Fun to knit, and the mixed texture works well. :)

Kudos to my friend at c'ville who sent me this yarn!! Love it!!

And the knitting needles you can see a bit of in the photo are size #13s from Turn of the Century (also a gift from another c'ville friend several months ago). They make crochet hooks, knitting needles, pens/pencils....all sorts of wood items. I just LOVE this set of needles!! They work smooth and have a perfect point for picking up stitches. I also have one of their wooden crochet hooks that I really enjoy using. If you want to try out wood hooks or needles, I really recommend TOTC....(no affiliation, I just really like their work).....reasonable pricing and top notch quality!

Ok...commercial over.... :)

I seriously need to clear out a few WIPs that have been sitting around getting dusty. I finally got around to listing some of my projects on Ravelry, and noticed how many I had hanging around that aren't done.

I need to seam one pair of fingerless gloves (they've been awaiting seaming for about a year....YIKES!). I have one pair of mock smock socks (pattern from Knit Socks, whatever the yarn) that have been on dpns for months now. Another pair of cuff socks I'm making for a friend's child that have been sitting idle since about April or so. In a knitting tote zipped up and lonely, I have a Samaras hat that has been feeling unloved since about March or so. I'm also working on two gift projects, the scarf pictured at the top of this post, and a filet bookmark.

I will be starting NO new projects until I get all of those listed above finished. And then I will allow myself to start TWO and only TWO new projects. I get started on something and get bored with the repetition and start something else (knitting ADHD??)....then the WIP pile gets out of hand, and some poor projects never get finished. I have too much time (and money) invested in these incomplete knitted goodies to let them sit around.

So.....my goal is get busy and finish them all. And then, I can have two new things to work on....and will also begin finishing up the Grand-Daddy of all WIPs......my Scraps of Beauty afghan that has been in a large plastic storage bin since we moved here in 2004. It is GORGEOUS....but involves lots of color changes, and working with a huge container of scrap balls of yarn. I actually started crocheting on it in 2002, but I stopped working on it when I moved to NC. When we moved from the city to where we live now, it got stored in a big plastic bin and hasn't seen the light of day since then.

By the end of the year, I want that afghan FINISHED!

First things first.....finishing WIP gift items...then on to the rest of the list!!

I shall triumph over the dusty WIPs!!

All I need is Pins and Bruce....

Finished a filet doily and some bookmarks this week and decided to block them tonight.

As soon as I had all the pins in and turned the ceiling fan on above the table.....here comes Bruce.

Bruce is our stripey cat. He's massive. A John Wayne of Cats. And, for whatever reason, whenever I try to block lace or thread crochet, he has to sit or lay on it. And I mean right on it. Not just a portion of his body, or just his rump.....he has to do a full body repose on it.



I don't see how that can be comfortable....but he's obsessed with sitting on anything that I pin down to my blocking foam. I guess the extra weight will just make the picots lay down flat. :)

Too bad I can't get Bruce to weave in the ends for me..... :o) Maybe if I offered him a cat treat....it's worth a try!

All done!

I finally blocked the Wild Roses Doily!

I think it came out better since it was blocked on a Spiderman Beachtowel :)






The pattern is on the Celtwitch vintage thread website right here:
http://www.angelfire.com/folk/celtwich/WildRoseDoily.html

I already printed a new pattern to start on, now that this project is finished.

http://www.angelfire.com/folk/celtwich/Ripe.html

I have some size 30 thread that will just be perfect!

I'm making handmade presents for Christmas this year. If it keep this up, I will actually be ahead this year instead of rushing around at the last minute!! :o)

Hugs! Juli

Bad, bad blogger!!!

I have been such a BAD blogger!! This year I haven't updated things as much as I should. I'm going through all my links and removing dead ones and updating. And I'm going to start posting regularly again.

Give me a couple of days and things will be all cleaned up and spiffy again! :)

I've been busily working on all sorts of things....

I finished the Wild Rose doily...



But it isn't blocked yet. It's waiting in a ziploc bag for me to get in a blocking mood. The pattern is from the 1950's and is on the Celtwitch site here: http://www.angelfire.com/folk/celtwich/WildRoseDoily.html

I took a basic filet class at Crochetville this month. Here are my first two samplers:



I've always avoided filet because I tend to lose my place in charts, but I saw the Laura Ingalls Wilder doily (pattern in June's Piecework magazine) and knew I just had to learn to do filet! And there is a butterfly shawl in filet that I want to make as well!!

I'm finishing up a filet doily now, and I found lots of Doctor Who inspired filet charts on Ravelry. If you are a Dr. Who fan, check it out! I found a chart for The Ood, an adiopose, K-9, the Tardis, etc. Now on Fridays when Dr. Who comes on, I can put on my scarf and crochet on a Dr. Who project! :) Gotta get my geek on somehow!

Well, gotta get back to updating links! My blog is a mess!!!

Hugs!
Juli

Thread addiction

After not working with thread for nearly 4 years, I brought out my steel crochet hooks this spring for a Secret Pal swap (my partner was a major threadie, and my "baby'' is almost 4 years old now, so mama has a bit more time now to work on more intricate projects). My thread addiction is now back full-force. :o)

I just finished a large doily, which is now happily at home on my dining room side table.



The pattern was a lot of fun to make. It's called Fanfare, and comes from an old LA book "Delicate Doilies to Crochet.'' It starts out as a pentagon, but the fans give it a really unusual shape. I used DMC Traditions in a nice summery yellow. At first I didn't like the "softer feel'' of the Traditions thread, but it was just a matter of getting used to it.

I've started another doily -- one with roses all the way around -- from the Celtwitch site. So far, I've just been making the flowers. I'll post a photo once I have the actual doily started. The flower motifs are attached on an outer row. This is my first flower motif doily, so I hope it comes out looking good. :)

On the knitting needles right now, I'm working on two pairs of socks. One is just a plain cuff sock in Bernat Sox. But the other is really cool pattern that is just FUN to knit!



The pattern is from "Knit Socks: Whatever the Yarn'' by Edie Eckman. The criss-cross pattern is formed by knitting under elongated stitches on a prior row. It's one of those stitches that looks difficult, but is actually really simple.

I am still working on old projects as well -- I still have a pair of fingerless gloves to seam, and a knitted hat to finish. And I've done the first few rows on a knitted lace shawl. I got to the part of the pattern where I had to really start paying attention to the chart, and stopped working on it. lol. So, I have vowed to finish the socks I am currently working on, the hat and seam those gloves -- and then, I'm going to tackle the shawl. :)

I have also decided to finally make a thread tablecloth. I found the perfect pattern, and I have the thread to do it. So why not? :o) I'll post some photos soon!

TTFN!
Juli

Stash Enhancement!!

Today was a great day for yarn! :)

Hubby was off today and we went shopping. I wasn't planning any stash enhancement, but then some funky summery yarns caught my eye. I just had to try them!

At Hobby Lobby, I bought:

3 skeins of Whirligig in the Sunnyside colorway



3 skeins of Modea Dea Ticker Tape in the Tropical colorway, and 3 skeins of Jewelsong in the Spiced Jewels colorway.



I don't usually do much with novelty yarns, but they do make for interesting summer weight skinny scarves. And it was all on sale. Whirligig is usually 4.88 a skein...I got it half price. Jewelsong's normal price is 9.81 (who is going to pay nearly $10 a skein for acrylic novelty yarn???? I think that's nuts!), but it was on sale for 1.99. The Modea Dea Ticker Tap was priced at $7.67 a ball, but it was on sale for $1.99.

Then we went to Big Lots. And, I found some cute yarn there too!

I bought:



Seven balls of Paton's Lacette in Maroon Mist for $1 a ball.



I also got 2 balls of Bernat Bling Bling in Moulin Rouge, and 3 balls of Paton's CiCi in Calypso, both were also $1 a ball. Plus, one ball of Lion Brand Suede Prints in pretty autumn colors for $1.50.

When we came home, there were two packages waiting for me.....that also contained yarn!

My Favorite ColorSwap package came from Frances. She sent me great goodies!



She sent me two hanks of Claudia Hand Painted Yarns fingering weight in the Purple Earth colorway (definitely will be a pair of socks for me SOON!), and a ball of Trekking XXL in a pretty blue. She also sent a big bag of Boca Java Tropical Kiss (chocolate and coconut), and some homemade soap in Patchouli and Lavender scents. Thank you Frances!! :o) What a nice package!!

I also had a package from a fellow member of C'ville. I purchased 7 balls of Trendsetter Charm yarn from her.



It's a really cute ladder yarn. :) I just love the confetti like colors. It's the Golden Rainbow colorway.

Then we ventured out to the thriftshops. My hubby was looking for some old pans that he could use for candle and soap making. And I was on the lookout for crafty stuff and gardening books.



I found some thread in Christmas colors for 25 cents per small ball and 50 cents for the two larger balls. The smaller balls of red thread are a brand I have never tried before....Lily Skytone.

And I also found two old cross stitch Christmas kits. I just love making these old vintage decorations!!






They were 50 cents apiece. I assume the paint is dried up, but I have tons of Apple Barrel and other craft paints around here. The rest of the kits are there.

My goal is to make enough handmade ornaments for our Christmas tree to be entirely filled with only handmade decorations. At least the tree we put up in the livingroom anyway. :) I don't know if I will meet that goal this year.....but I will sure try. :)

And, I also found two books on gardening -- one on planting and growing herbs and the other on container gardening. I want to plant tomatoes, herbs and my flowers in containers this year. Then I don't have to till up a garden space. I can move the plants to follow the sun, and I can grow flowers anywhere in my yard without digging through tree or bush roots, and without digging holes in our landscaping plastic. :) Finally found a book that will help me learn what I'm doing before I buy the supplies. :)

I had a blast today!! I needed a day out of the house. And nothing makes a knitter's day like some new yarn!

TTFN!

Whole lotta stitchin' going on!

I finally finished the cuff socks I was working on ....



I just love Wildfoote sock yarn! :) I wish my camera did a better job of showing the Rhapsody colorway....it's just so cute!

I'm making another pair of cuff socks for a friend's daughter (the same pattern) using Bernat Sox in Hot Tamale. It's a variegated with pink, green, blue, orange and brown. I figured the acrylic sock yarn would wear much better for an 8 year old than wool blend that can't be put in the washer.

I've already cast on another pair of socks for myself with some pastel variegated sock yarn I found in my stash. I decided to try something different, so I pulled out all my sock books and decided on a pattern from "Knit Socks Whatever the Yarn'' The mock smock pattern is turning out to be really fun to knit, and cute!



I just LOVE this yarn, and was disappointed to find out the online seller I bought it from is no longer selling yarn. :( I would buy more if I could! It's just so happy looking!

And, I'm also working on a large doily:



The pattern is called Fanfare and it's from an old LA doily book called "Delicate Doilies to Crochet'' I wanted a nice spring colored centerpiece for our table. It's about halfway finished, and won't look like much until it's blocked. 13 more rows to go!

And I'm working on a couple skinny scarves for this summer. :) I got some more Modea Dea jai Alai since I really liked the first scarf I made from it. The new color is Nutmeg....a mix of green brown and purply-pink. It's shimmery and gorgeous!

Hugs! Juli