Too many ideas...

So, going from not enough projects (that I want to work on right now), to too many projects ...

The Tour de Fleece begins today, and I have 3 main goals:

1) Replicating the 3-ply yarn I spun from Grafton batts last year; I loved those colors so much that I got more!






2) Spinning 4 oz. of merino/tencel in Abalone from Chasing Rainbows - intention is for a 2ply lace-weight






3) Finish the remaining 7 oz. of blue fiber that I've lost the label to. I've got 1/2 a bobbin, and no idea what I was doing.







Then there is finishing at least one more pair of socks this month - 2 would be ideal. Way back in this 2007 post, I talked about discovering a sock that I think was made in 2004. Then discovering that, in the knitting of the 2nd one, I used 2 different sized needles. Well, I'm glad to say, it has become purse-knitting, and it will be done on only one magic-looped needle! Stockinette most of the way should make this one go fast. Then there are the Primavera socks and the Summer Sox, etc. And I'd also like to cast on on for Cotty, and there is a lot more sock yarn in the stash bin and how much of it can I get done before Sock Summit.....

Okay, Kathy, get off the computer, which is about to run out of battery, get into the kitchen and get those veggies prepped for a dinner at Sandi & Kaye's house tonight!

Happy 4th of July!

July?!

(Warning - picture-heavy post)

Okay, where did June disappear to?! It's been a busy, busy month, with very little down time, even though school ended during the first week.

Let's see, there have been 2 professional presentations, one each at school and the public library. 3 more are coming up - in about the next 10 days. (But 2 of them are reprises of the one on databases I've already done; one is storytelling.)

We also traveled to SoCal for my father-in-law's funeral. He was 82 and had a good life. Raised 2 great kids, enjoyed his grandkids... This picture was taken 4 years ago, and it's one of my favorites of him and the kids.


DH, his mom and sister, the grandkids and 2 of their cousins. I don't think I've ever had them all in the same place for more than a few minutes!


And yes, there has been knitting!

Finished and delivered the shawl to my friend who needed and loves it!

Pattern: Shawl that Jazz
Yarn: Woobu in Nyame
Needle: size 8 US
Started: May 10, 2009
Finished: June 7, 2009

Finished some socks for me!
Pattern: Fleegle toe-up socks on 56 stitches
Yarn: Socks that rock Lightweight in Peaseblossom
Needles: size 1 US
Started: ?? sometime in the last year
Finished: June 12, 2009

Originally I had knit toe-up Monkeys from this yarn last year, but ripped them out. I like the color striping much better this way.

The Sea & Shells stole is coming along. I think I'm about halfway done with it so far.






Other projects on the needles include 2 new pairs of socks, one is Primavera. The other is CookieA's Summer Sox pattern (no pic of that yet).



Was itching to get back to a crochet project, and oh, gee, darn, shucks, if Purlescence didn't just get some DMC Cebelia thread in! I'm almost done with it - should finish it today.


In other news, the garden is going like gangbusters!

This adorable little pumpkin from 2 weeks ago, is quickly becoming a huge pumpkin. As of this morning, it's about 14 inches across!

Tomatoes










Look, a strawberry!










Several quarts of blackberries were picked.










And an abundance of squash.

Clearly, summer is now upon us in the Bay Area.

The dove nest I posted about last time has unfortunately been abandoned. There are no eggs in it, so I don't know what happened. Maybe next year...


Oh yeah -- I also now officially have a College Student Dork boy. He's taking a summer class at one of the local community colleges before his senior year in high school. I think it will be a good experience for him, and give him some good prep before the real thing in the fall of 2010.

Okay, I guess I now know where June went...

Sorry!

So, I started working on a blog post 2 weeks ago for Mother's Day. I forget why I had to stop, but it's been busy enough that I haven't had time to get back to it!

So, what have I been working on...

I finished this:
Pattern: Shawl that jazz
Yarn: Rowan Silk Wool DK, 9 balls of Velvet
Size 9 needles
Begun April 26, 2009
Finished May 10, 2009

This is the shawl for my best friend, who's been undergoing some trials, both emotional and physical. Originally this yarn was meant for a sweater for me, but I think she needs it more right now. I loved knitting it so much that I started another one (in Woobu) for a former coworker who really needs some hugs.

Also started a Sea&Shells stole (about 2/3 the way down the page) in my beloved Malabrigo MerinoCash, hoping to wear it at the end-of-the-year dinner for work (only 4 more days of school!), but the above-mentioned shawl took precedence. I'll get it done by the Opening Dinner in August.

I'm loving the warmer weather here in Northern California, because this is what's happening outside in our backyard:
Blackberries (not quite ripe yet, but getting there!)







Squash (crookneck and pattypan)










Melons and basil










Evidence of persimmon carnage. We had to thin the persimmons on the tree, otherwise we'd be overwhelmed in the fall. This is maybe 1/3 of the teeny fruit on the tree. If you recall 2 years ago, we got over 40 persimmons off the newly planted tree. Last year, we only got 2, but they were huge. This year, we're hoping for a reasonable crop. And there will be plenty, even with the thin-out!

And more fruits and veggies and outdoor meals to come.











Speaking of mothers...this mourning dove has made her nest on our patio roof, under the kiwi vines. From below, we can see the bottom of the nest.

(I'm sitting out on the patio typing this, and she just moved off the nest. Eggs!)

We also have sparrow nestlings behind the basketball backboard on the garage. Boy are they noisy!
But even better, the 17-year-old boy Dork gave me a Mother's Day hug! Who could ask for anything more? I guess I'll keep him!

Okay, I've worked long enough on this post. I'd better get ready for work!

Another one bites the dust!

Another month has flown by...

And another FO is now off the needles!
Stroller blanket, auction donation
Size 28"x28"
Pattern: Ondas (Ravelry link)
Yarn: Dream in Color Classy in Blue Lagoon, a little over 2 skeins
Needles: size 9 US

This pattern is also known as Fibercrack - and OMG does it ever live up to that name. I did not want to stop knitting on it, even though bed/work/food called!

And here's one project that I didn't post yet - a finished sweater!
Size L
Pattern: Marta
Yarn: Malabrigo worsted in Purple Majesty
Needles: size 9 US

Yes, I know I still need to find the perfect button to finish this sweater out perfectly, but for now, it will be held closed by a Flexi-8. Purlescence has several different sizes if you want to buy local!


In the cooking department, the following food was also disappeared very quickly: a monster pan of tamale pie (from Marian Cunningham's The Supper book) and lots of sourdough bread made by The Hubby.

Since I last blogged, lots of good stuff has happened. Spring Break at school has come and gone (spent most of it at the shop, of course). Baseball season has started! The Hubby is working again. So is my brother who was laid off 9 months ago. I've found out that one teacher at school is pregnant (oh, darn, I have to make another baby blanket...).

We also were one of the gardens on the Going Native Garden tour last Sunday, with our California native plants really going like gangbusters! If you'd like to see what the garden looks like, take a look at the pictures my husband took and put on his gallery page.

Unfortunately, there's some bad stuff too: Cancer sucks! A former coworker's cancer is making her low. Another good friend's sister has only a few weeks left to live. My best friend's dog had to be put to sleep due to an invasive tumor too, and she herself is dealing with fibroids and possible surgery. So I'm also going to be busy making prayer shawls and other comforting items.

I suppose that I'd better head to bed now so I'll be awake enough in the morning to knit lace.

Quilt!

My 2nd baby quilt was made in 7 days. I was told "red, white and blue", and couldn't quite come up with the right crochet/knit blanket pattern and yarn.





But then I saw some fabric that I couldn't resist. Do you recognize the book this came from?*







And then I realized that I had a few coordinating fat quarters and it came together very quickly.

Actually, a little too quickly...
(Do you see the "oops" at the bottom of the green section?)








Problem fixed, machine quilting done, Mommy happy! I work with H's mother-in-law at the public library, so it was the perfect project for me.


*Brown Bear, Brown Bear, what do you see? by Bill Martin Jr., illustrated by Eric Carle. By the way, Happy 40th birthday, Very Hungry Caterpillar!

We now return to our regularly scheduled knitting - onward, to Marta!

See, More Knitting!

Rarely am I compelled to knit up brand-new yarn right away. Usually it has to tell me exactly the right pattern and then I hem and haw over whether I can afford to cast on a new project. I think about all the other UFOs and other projects that need some concentrated time.

Not this time...
Enter Marta.

I've had her in my Ravelry queue for quite a while, with the intention of using some Malabrigo Worsted (in Mineral Red) that's already in the stash. Blast you, Stitches West! I found some Malabrigo Worsted in Purple Mystery.

[Hello! (Waving wildly) Queen of Purple Yarn, here! Duh!]

That picture is, of course, not really accurate, as purples are notoriously difficult to photograph. Think more of a darker blue-purple: my color, for sure. This is 10" worth since last Friday's cast-on. I'm not even trying to work at it, and it's flying along. Loving it immensely and wanting to work on it every waking hour (nevermind that time suck called "work" ...)

Come on, Kathy, quit blogging so you can get back to work on it. Or go to sleep, which may be the better option.

I'll leave you with a picture of the silly dog who took a plant pot and thought it should be treated like a ball...

Who, me? What'd I do?

Whew!

(warning: picture-heavy post)

Wow! Stitches West is over for another year and I'm exhausted after working for the Purlescence Girls for the last 3 days. But let me tell you, I wouldn't miss it for the world!

There was lots of laughter and finding friends I haven't seen in a while, and making new friends along the way. There was lots of fiberlicious goodness everywhere and an incredible creative energy that is difficult to find anywhere else. I definitely love being a librarian, but those library conferences don't quite have the same vibe! (No, we don't spend the whole time shushing people...)

I can't even remember a lot of the people I saw - but I remember meeting KnottyLa, Cockeyed and EttaMae from Blue Moon, WonderMike from the YKnit podcast... and so many more wonderful local creative people in the Bay Area.

Oh - you wanted to see what I bought, right? Ummm, I vaguely remember telling someone not to let me buy any laceweight yarn because I already had a lace stash that will take a while to deal with. So how did this Malabrigo lace end up in my bag? 2 skeins of Purple Mystery and 2 skeins of Cypress. Got those at Carolina Homespun. And where did the MerinoCash (in the Pearl Ten colorway) come from (the one on the left)? Hmmm, can you say "Malabrigo Junkies"? Say the magic words at the Malabrigo yarns booth at Stitches and something wonderful may just fall into your bag!

A skein of merino/tencel from Ellen's Half-pint farms is on the left, and 3 skeins of a merino/silk blend from Redfish Dyeworks on the right.






2 skeins of BFL Sport from Blue Moon in Motley Hue.







For the Hubby (his request for his next project or two), 2 skeins of Fiber Fiend's Bulky Wool in the Mars colorway, and a skein of Brooks Farm Mas Acero.





Some knitting actually happened during the last few weeks!

Katrina Rib (a Cookie A. pattern, unfortunately no longer available)
Yarn: Rowan Calmer, 3 1/4 balls
Needles: US 8
Started Feb. 7, 2009
Finished Feb. 28, 2009
I'll be making the sleeves a little longer though.


A few other projects have happened recently. I made this beanie for our housemate out of a couple skeins of Noro Kureyon (from a swap)








A garter-stitch scarf from Lion Brand Watercolors (discontinued).







A scarf that The Hubby knit out of a skein of Malabrigo worsted.








And here was one project that took about 7 hours to completely untangle. This hank of laceweight was so badly tangled that it took that long to unwind it. You can see part of the problem: too many ends!




I will leave you with a picture of Nathania on Saturday night during the show and tell at the shop. Do you think she likes that plummy color?