Wednesday Knitting Knight

Went to Knitting Knight at Yarn Deli tonight with my daughter. It's so nice to just hang out and talk and knit. I tend not to be much of a talker most of the time. Just never have much important to say and prefer to save it til I do...Anyway there are some great, interesting women who gather Wednesday nights. I really enjoy going. So does my daughter.
Here's my newly started project...Cabled Fingerless Gloves. I found the pattern online by Kimberly, www.thegivingflower.de. I just love the braided look of this cable. It may end up being my first cable project finished. I started a headband last summer and decided I really wouldn't wear the color, so I never finished it. Cables like this one aren't really that hard. I figured out how to reverse purl stitches from the row above tonight after purling in the wrong place. I'm thrilled I didn't have to frog another row. I may really be getting this knitting thing.

New yarn and Lucky Puffs

I am very happy with my new design for a fuzzy bubbly scarf. I have to try another in another color. Here are two choices, cornflower blue or orange Toaga II. I thought I'd try a more conservative color this time. Then I saw the Noro. What a great combination with the orange...I LOVE these Mega Boots sock yarns too.
I found these "lucky" Hostess cake things at the little market on the way home. I thought these were hilarious. Have you ever seen these before? The lady behind the counter mentioned having them last year. Maybe I just didn't stop there when they had them. They have a last sale date of March 25th. Maybe I'll let the family have them for St. Patrick's day.

Quiet Sunday

Here's the shibori-ish scarf I have been designing and constructing. It's different from my original idea of weaving colored yarn in a spiral through the weave of empty bubbles. That was too hard to keep from turning into a messy looking lump. I can't decide whether to felt this now. I am afraid the scarf itself will felt too much and I like the open stitches of the stockinette stitch. It seems airy.
My other project today was oatmeal fruit cookies. I've had too much dried fruit in the cupboard with nobody eating it. Hopefully it'll move a little faster now.
Enjoy the rest of your weekend and have a great week!

New York Friends

We were lucky that our friends from New York had time to visit us during their whirlwind tour of Southern California. They are checking out colleges with their daughter and her friend, but did take a day to stop, have Mexican food at Oscar's in Redlands and shop a bit. The sky was clear and the sun was shining. It was a great day for a visit. Oh yeah, the boys went up to the Cajon Pass to see the trains...I think they had a good time too.

Back to Work

Had a little time to dream up new projects over the weekend. Here's an adaptation of a shibori scarf pattern. The yarn is Toaga II: mohair, wool, and nylon. It's nice and soft. Hope it felts okay. I have a couple of ideas for adding color. We'll see how it works soon.

Salvaging our vacation

We tried to cheer ourselves up by going to "the happiest place on Earth." At least the kids had a good day. It didn't quite do it for me. I want to see my son! I am so angry with JetBlue.
It was a beautiful day at Disneyland. I didn't get many people pictures as everybody was running in different directions. Here's a couple of night shots of the Disney Castle and Space Mountain. I like the Imagination Institute sign.It started to rain a little after 9 causing the cancellation of the fireworks show. Everybody pretty much vacated the park then. We didn't get too wet on the way back to the car. Except for Paul, who sat in a puddle on the tram.

Trip cancelled-We've Been Jet-Blued!!!

No New York trip for us this time. It's been three days since we were supposed to fly out. No luck so far. We arrived at the airport to find our flight cancelled again. We've officially given up on this trip. Maybe we can try again for spring break. What a let-down.

Stalled

Here's our entryway since Wednesday. Our flight was cancelled to New York, so here we wait.

At least I finally finished MY fingerless mitts.

Vista Idol Round 2

Look who made it past round 2 in auditions for Vista Idol. He'll be playing "The Star-Spangled Banner" Jimi Hendrix style next Wednesday to open the Vista Idol/rap concert at school. Can't wait to see him tear it up!

Have a Wonderful Valentine's Day!

Here are my finished knitted heart shaped bowls. Just in time for Valentine's Day.

I also finished these little pink fingerless gloves. The first one I knitted flat and then sewed up the seam leaving a hole for the thumb. The second one I knitted in the round with one of those cute, mini, 8.25", Clover circulars. These were size 6...sure wish I could find the size 4s. Clover discontinued them.

I finally photographed a couple of my mobius wraps I've neglected to block yet. I wear the ivory, gray, and beige one made of Fiesta yarn quite often. I made one just like this for my sister-in-law and loved it so much I made another for me.

Valentine preparations

They have this fun Fiber Trends pattern at Yarn Deli. It's a felted heart-shaped bowl and coasters. I picked up the pattern at the Wednesday knitting circle. I have my third one almost knitted. Still have to felt them. I hope the tops tighten up a bit. I don't like the way they roll so far. I want to make at least one more.

Coffee Gallery Concert tonight

DH, the kids and I went to a concert at a coffee house in Altadena tonight. Laurence Juber is an excellent guitarist and a gracious person. It was great to see such a talented man in such a small venue. Very intimate and personal. Loved it! Our son got to see Juber perform "While My Guitar Gently Weeps," before he performs the same song at our school 'Vista Idol' contest on Wednesday.

Time to pack

This is Innisfree. This time next week we'll be here. That is if it stops snowing in Upstate New York long enough for us to get there. Of course it won't look quite like this with the new roof and stairs. The siding may be off and insulation on. There will be no green to speak of in the middle of winter. I am hoping to get our other cabin on the property, the Crow's Nest, ready to rent this summer. There are some little things...like water and septic, a bathroom, and a food prep area to be done still. No little task.
The main reason we're going is to see my son Justin. Can't wait to hug him. I am so glad he is out of Afghanistan. It's been more than a year since we've seen him.

Mobius and hat

I finished the Spiral Rib hat designed by Sharon at the Yarn Deli and the mobius I designed using the same stitch pattern. It is made of Malabrigo Aquarella wool. It is hand dyed, thick/thin yarn. I really love it. It is really a bit darker than the photo shows. The flash washes it out. If you look closely you can see the tip of the Lantern Moon knitting needle I broke carrying around in my big market bag. They were so beautiful...I am using the tip as a closure on the mobius scarf now.

Vista Idol Round One

We're having a talent show at school. My son made it through the first round of auditions. He has the second round next week. He is a talented guitarist. He played "Johnny B. Good." He plans on playing "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" for the second round. He was taling about playing with the guitar behind his head, but we think it might be a little overkill. What do you think? Does it fit the character of the song?

Beautiful morning

The sunrise was beautiful this morning. I missed the most dramatic colors stopping to put on my shoes. Which reminds me how fleeting everything is. I am so very grateful for the gifts of family and friends in my life...in case I don't mention in often enough.

Changes in the works...

No new pictures today. This one is from yesterday. I worked on making some abacus counting bracelets with my daughter on Saturday. This is my favorite so far. I have seen people use these for keeping track of knitting patterns.

In January at a spiritual conference I asked to start dreaming again. I have had dreams every night since. I am trying to honor my dream process. I believe that the change will ultimately change my life. I am curious as what and how much will change. More soon...

Weekends go so fast!

Sunday night already. I have so much more to do.
WHAT DID I EVEN DO THIS WEEKEND?

Bought stuff for a school project. Had lunch with my daughter. Made up some project samples.
Badgered the family into helping around the house. Thanks guys. The laundry room looks MUCH better! Decided that it is totally unfair for me to have to lose my cool to get anything done around here. Didn't figure how to fix that. Didn't finish any project. Didn't wash my car. Though I did wash my hair. Started reading a book...The Golden Ratio...yep, geeky a math book. I believe there will be more art and science as I get into it. Went grocery shopping with both daughters after we found the department store closed. I don't like the way I look in clothes these days anyway. Just as well I didn't shop for any.
Did finally go late to the Yarn Deli's un-Superbowl knit party. I started a mobius scarf to go with a hat I want to make. The hat is a model Sharon designed at the Yarn Deli. Here's the scarf so far. I don't know if the stitch pattern really works with the mobius twist. It doesn't look bad so I don't think I'll change it. It might have looked better with only one right side though. Knit and learn... I LOVE Malabrigo's Aquarella yarn though.
Have a great week!

Closing Night

Here's my honey taking her bow. She was a GREAT Dina the Diner owner. I am so happy she has had the opportunity to work with a wonderful drama teacher. He will only be at our school for one more play and will then leave us for the corporate world to make his fortune. Our fortune was to have him for the time we have. Thank you Dean Andres! The spark you bring to all of us will be sorely missed.
I think I should help more with the last play...Midsummer Night's Dream.

Play Day

Today was the first day of shows for my daughter's drama class play. The performed "Rock Around the Clock" set in the 50's. She played Dinah, the owner of the diner. The play was pretty good. She was very good. By the 4th time she even seemed like she was enjoying herself. Bothe casts performed the dance numbers together. There are 3 more shows tomorrow. There are two different casts taking turns performing so it wasn't as grueling as it may sound. Wish I could show you more...Maybe there will be some good shots tomorrow. I am very proud!