I'm not square...

Last week I was so excited to finally start knitting with my square needles. When I first heard about square knitting needles I thought it was kind of crazy. I thought it would be awkward and wondered if the stitches would be different. Well I tried them and I liked them, except for the cable. I started knitting a pair of socks for Hailey using the magic loop method. With magic loop I'm used to pushing the cable through the yarn when you are switching sides and the cable on these needles was so limp that it was impossible to push it through. It just wasn't working well for me and I was getting frustrated so I ended up switching back to my Addi's. I think these needles would be perfect for doing other projects like a scarf or a sweater. But, maybe with a little more patience and practice they will once again be used for socks. We'll see... I'm not tossing them out yet!

Spring break is almost over...

Ahhh... there's nothing like camping in the freezing wind and rain and sleeping in a rock hard bed with a very strange odor in the air. Guess that's what you get when you camp out in a little cabin in the woods at a KOA on the Oregon Coast. Where's a Hilton when you really need it? This old body can't more than a few days of roughing it :) Really though, it actually was a lot of fun, even the dog had a good time. Even though the weather couldn't make up its mind, we got to spend most of one day on the beach with no rain, just sunshine and a lot of wind and the kids got to swim in an indoor pool. All the other days it would rain, clear up, rain, clear up, hail, clear up... you get the picture. We were even able to get in a little history for the kids by visiting Fort Stevens State Park and the maritime museum. And, I even got to stop at a couple of yarn shops. The first one was in Seaside, a cute little shop with yarn, scrapbook and jewelry making supplies as well as fun stamp stuff. I had my daughter pick out some sock yarn for her next pair of socks and she picked "Yummy", 100% superwash wool from Fibranatura. I've never knit with this yarn before but the colors are fun and I'm happy that it is washable. The second yarn I got was, surprise, Merisoft hand painted from Punta. I just can't get enough of this yarn. The color of this yarn is just beautiful (at least in my eyes). It has a combination of colors that include black, purple, red and pink, it's pretty cool looking. Lastly, I picked up another pair of square needles since I can't seem to find where I put my first pair. I'm excited to knit with these and see if they really do help my hands.

The second shop I stopped at wasn't as fun. They had a good selection of (please don't be offended) "old lady yarn" as I like to call it... yikes... acrylic. There wasn't a whole lot to choose from but I did manage to find some Cascade sock yarn in a pretty blue that will match one of my new spring jackets perfectly. I really was looking for something different, some yarn that I had never seen before, but that just didn't happen. All in all we had a wonderful trip and I'm excited to start knitting some new socks for the kiddos. I think I will relax the rest of the weekend and knit. Cleaning can wait until next week :)

Where have I been?

It's the end of March and I've only blogged once... what's up with that? Guess I haven't really had too much to say, it's been a crazy month. I actually did finish up some projects this month. I've had fun testing knitting samples for Lisa, I always enjoy that. It's fun being the first person to knit one of her wonderful designs. This month I made a pair of fingerless gloves (http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/fingering-gauntlets) and a cute hat that looks great if you have shorter hair as well as long hair (http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/the-shorty-tam). I also finished up my wavy cable vest I was making for a gift and started a second one for myself. Also on my "finished" list for March is a sock monkey hat and a pair of socks with breast cancer ribbons for someone fighting that nasty disease. All of these finished projects can be found on http://www.ravelry.com/ under my user name of merrysherri. I guess I've been knitting so much that I haven't really had time to blog. That along with all the school stuff going on in March and trying to finish up the yearbook had me going a little crazy. Hopefully April will slow down and let me chill out. I'm certainly looking forward to spring and summer and praying that the sun will eventually decide to show itself for more than a day or two. Bring it on...

KAL...

KAL... what does it really mean? Knit along or kick ass lady? Because I AM the kick ass lady! LOL... I'm going to rub it in right now so if you can't take it than log off!

My knitting group started two different knit alongs at the end of January. The February lady sweater was knit by three of us while a sweater vest was knit by the other two. I was told that I should challenge myself and make both... so what did I do? I got about half way through the sweater and cast on to make the vest. Let's go ahead and admit it now, I just don't play fair because my needles don't know when to stop. OK... I don't sleep much and I just don't when to stop. Like right now, my eyes are barely open and I should be in bed instead of typing this.

So, I finished up the sweater and wore it to my group last week hoping I would make it out of there alive. I was teased a bit and there were a few eye rolls but it's all good, I've been forgiven (I think). Anyway, it was mentioned, amongst giggles, that I would probably be finished with the vest the following week. Maybe I took that as a challenge or maybe I just wanted to prove something to myself but I was determined to finish the damn thing. Tonight I can officially say I'm DONE! Am I proud of myself? I am... Do I feel guilty? I do... I really need to learn to slow down and smell the yarn. I just love knitting so much, finishing a project is such a high for me. I LOVE the look on a persons face when you give them a hand knit gift. I LOVE putting on a sweater that I have made with my own hands and feeling the pride of ownership. I LOVE it that my kids beg me to make them socks. I just plain LOVE knitting darn it!

For my knitting group... you know I love you guys! I hope that you're not offended that I jumped ahead, I hope you won't be kicking me out anytime soon and I hope that we have many more KAL's... I promise next time I'll be good... no more kick ass lady for me, I really, really promise :) See you next week!

Dreaming...

I had the strangest, and funniest, dream the other night...

I dreamt that I was at a silent auction where I had knit several sweaters (3 to be exact) being auctioned off. I had worked hard on these sweaters and my husband was horrified that I was just "giving them away", he thought I should keep them for myself. During the auction people were admiring the sweaters and a good friend of mine went around and picked each one up to inspect them. She made a point of pointing out every little flaw and a few things I had "forgot" to finish on them (which is funny because I would never display anything that wasn't finished). And, if you knew this person you would know that she is NOT one to ever say anything bad to anyone or about their knitting (she is the most encouraging person I know so I thought this was amusing too). Anyway, at the end of the auction one person had won all 3 sweaters for a price of $575. Upon check out I wanted to see who had won them and paid so much money, it was my husband! He had actually paid $575 for me to keep them, what a guy huh? What makes this really funny, and you have to know me and my husband, is that would never happen.

So, what was the point of this dream? I'm not sure. Did I just have knitting on my brain that night before I went to sleep or was that dream trying to tell me something? Hmmm........ you tell me!

Madrona....

This year I had the pleasure of experiencing Madrona classes for the first time. On Saturday I took a mitre sock class with my good friend Lisa Ellis. I have knitted mitre squares before and I was very curious how to incorporate that into socks. Well, let's just say I was a bit surprised. First, I do have to say that the instructor was really very nice. Second, on a sadder note, I wasn't impressed with the class. I did love seeing all her beautiful designs and how mitres were incorporated into different garments, but the class was just basically following the pattern and asking for help when needed. I think it was something I could have done on my own and saved a little bit of money. I am, however, looking forward to making a small purse that was also included with the sock/booties pattern. I did have a great time shopping in the marketplace and seeing and feeling all the beautiful yarn. I am very happy to say that I kept my wallet closed and walked out with only a Lantern Moon turtle tape measure. For those of you who know how big my stash is you would have been very impressed with me :) I know I am...

I think I will considering taking some more classes next year. Maybe something that will challenge me a little bit more or teach me something new. If you have never gone before check it out. It is worth it if you would really like to further your knitting skills. I look forward to next year!

Valentine's Day...

I've never been much into Valentine's Day, after all, my husband should express his love for me all year long right? I think Valentine's Day is one BIG commercial for retailers. I do get something for my kids though, they are kids and they love it. Today I was reading an email from Kathleen Cubley from Knitting Daily and I loved what she had to say :

Celebrate Your Love Affair with Knitting

When most people talk about their Valentine, they're usually talking about a person. Well, one of my Valentines this year is going to be to my knitting! I love it so much, let me count the ways:

1. It fills my life with color.
2. It encourages my creativity.
3. It keeps my hands busy.
4. It introduces me to new people who share my love for the craft.
5. It loves to travel.
6. It likes the same TV shows that I like.
7. It keeps the same schedule as I do; if I want to knit in the middle of the night, it's there for me.
8. It likes to change bags as much as I do!
9. It challenges me.
10. It keeps me company, even when I'm cranky.

Can you put it any better than that? I think every year I will now be following in her footsteps with my new Valentine's Day motto!