The TARDIS Shawl Adventure

Fall is in the air in my little corner of the world....there's a nip in the morning, warm sunny afternoons, and cool crisp evenings. I love Fall, and always have loved it. I love the look in the autumn sky after the August haze lifts. I love watching the trees for that first hint of color. I love being able to sit comfortably on my deck in the evenings after work, knitting until it gets too dark to see. *Happy Fall Dance* A lot of my knitting time in the past couple of weeks has been in waiting rooms (Daddy's having some back issues), so it's mostly been relegated to what I refer to as my "Waiting Room Socks". I always keep a pair of "plain vanilla" socks on needles in a little bag that's easily carried into waiting rooms. The pattern is so simple that I don't need to carry it with me (except for a little 3 x 5 cheat sheet that I still use when I turn the heel to be sure I don't make a mess), and it's a great conversation starter. At home, though, I'm working on my "Bigger On The Inside" shawl, because I want to have it finished by the Doctor Who 50th anniversary celebration on November 23. I've now completed the Time Vortex Lace section and have completed 8 of 41 rows in the TARDIS section. The yarn is as close to TARDIS blue as I could get, and so far I'm very happy with my progress. As with most shawls, I won't really know how it looks until it's completed and blocked. I'm anxious to see how it finishes up!

For the Wombat

 

My adorable grandson (AKA "Wombat") is coming to visit me at the end of the month, and I'm so excited!  I've knit a blanket for him, and these two toys have now been added to his stash.

 

The ball is the "Little Ball" pattern from the OddKnit website.  There are so many interesting things there!  I want to knit the eyeballs sometime before Halloween.  *LOL*  The pattern is written for DK yarn, but I used bulky, making it a larger ball.  It's about the size of a softball, which should be fine.

 

The caterpillar is the Cuddly Caterpillar pattern on the Lion Brand Yarn site.  Both were fun knits, and time well spent.

 

I'm battling a vile sinus infection and finally had to go to the doctor today to get antibiotics.  I don't like taking antibiotics; but I like sinus infections even less.  *sigh*

 

The weather here is rainy and gray.....this is expected to change to snow overnight, so we'll see what happens.  The doctor said I shouldn't go back to work until Thursday, so I might get in some knitting time tomorrow even if it doesn't snow.  :-)

 

Be well, fellow knitsters, and may Spring come soon!!

A New Set of Mittens

We've had some truly weird weather in my little corner of the world in the past few weeks.  There have been temperature swings from one day to the next of 35 degrees F.  It's nuts.  One morning this week I left the apartment to go to work carrying a light jacket over my arm.  It was in the 60's and the air had a tropical sticky feel.  By that afternoon I was wishing I'd carried a much heavier jacket to the office....and a hat.....and a scarf.....and MITTENS!!

The next day involved bundling up to the max before going outside.  I poked around in my "scarf and mitten" drawer and was mortified to find that all my hand-knit mittens were in dreadful condition.  It's unbelievable; I'm a KNITTER and I don't own a decent pair of MITTENS??

So when I awoke this morning and looked in my UFO basket beside the recliner (I always knit for a little while on Saturday mornings.  It helps me get ready to face my household drudgery and keeps my downstairs neighbor from hating me for vacuuming and doing laundry too early on a weekend.  *LOL*), I thought "So maybe I need to knit mittens for myself instead of working on this stuff this morning."

I'd purchased the Yarn Harlot's "Cloisonee" pattern a year ago along with some Knit Picks "Swish" worsted specifically intended for knitting myself mittens, but for some reason had never knitted them.  So today is the day.

I admit to a bit of trepidation; I've never knit a pattern by a knitter as accomplished as Stephanie Pearl-McPhee.  I hope I have enough skills.  I'm getting ready to cast on, so wish me luck!

Nearly Finished!!

After almost a year of on-again, off-again knitting, my adult version of Elizabeth Zimmermann's Baby Surprise Sweater is ALMOST FINISHED!!  The knitting is completed, and I'm now hiding the ends.  *happy dance*

I was on leave last week, so I was able to dedicate a few more hours of knitting time than usual to the sweater/jacket.  I was determined to get it finished in time to actually wear it this winter!  I also knew that I had to finish it pretty quickly because I need to get started on my Christmas knitting.

It's hard to believe how this summer has zipped past, but I must confess that I always look forward to fall.  Love those crisp mornings!

Okay, I must get off the keyboard now so I can get back to hiding ends.  Photos soon!

Hard to Believe

It's hard to believe, looking out my living room windows at the bright sunny Saturday morning, that snow is predicted for tonight. Not a lot of snow, just a dusting, but snow all the same. February. 'Nuff said.

I've been knitting this morning because my favorite Saturday morning activity is knitting and sipping good coffee. This morning I've been working on my adult version of Zimmerman's Baby Surprise Jacket. It's a lot of garter stitch, but it's good relaxing knitting. I've made enough progress on it that I can't carry it around very easily. (I usually carry socks to knit in public.) I'm going to visit my parents this afternoon since the weather's predicted to turn semi-ugly tonight, and I plan to take my Surprise Jacket along to work on it while visiting. I'm hoping to finish it in time to wear it a few times before I have to switch to my spring wardrobe. *LOL*

And so, fellow knitsters, I wish you all a terrific weekend with lots of sticks and string!

Sick of Snow and Cold Weather in General!

Yes, I know, I'm the one who's normally really excited about getting a snow day and having more time to spend in the recliner knitting. But DANG, I'm getting tired of winter!! The hot water bottle cover I knitted last year has come in handy LOTS recently.

Okay, enough grousing, let's do a little catching up since it's been nearly a month since I've visited with you! First and most importantly, Mom's aneurysm repair on December 20 went beautifully! They kept her in ICU overnight as a precaution, but released her the next morning without even moving her to a regular room. We had her back home by 10:00 am, and according to her follow-up visit with her surgeon this past Wednesday she's doing just fine, thank goodness.

Our Christmas was quiet, but lovely. To keep Mom from trying to do too much, I stayed with her and Dad Christmas Eve so I'd be there early to try to keep her from doing much for Christmas dinner. She was still in the kitchen, but hopefully I took some of the work off her. It's tough to keep her still, THAT's for sure. :-)

All who received knitted gifts from me for Christmas seemed to really enjoy them. I love knitting for folks who appreciate it!

I knitted a lot while I was off work for the holidays, but a lot of it was dishcloths. I'd given a lot of them away as small gifts, so I wanted to start building up a little stockpile again. Also, they're good mindless knitting to do at the hospital and while talking to visitors.

I'd also purchased two skeins of lovely yarn on sale at my LYS some time ago, thinking they'd make a lovely Baby Surprise Jacket. I started that a week or so ago and it's going to be really nice. I'm going to take it along on a visit to Mom and Dad this afternoon (between winter weather systems...*SIGH*), so I plan to make some pretty good progress.

And so, my knitterly friends, I hope your holidays were filled with peace and love and that your new year is filled with health and prosperity!

I wish you the best from the frozen mid-Atlantic states!!