The Day After

Twinings Earl Grey or Irish Breakfast

Tazo Organic Chai or Green Ginger

Care to join  me in a cup of tea?

Temp is a mild 29 degrees F with a bit of wind.

Not such a bad day, I'd say.

Still a lovely day to be inside tending to 

our pots of soups on the stove top.

And utmost, our handwork.

Embroidery, wool felt appliqué, 

crocheting, spinning,

KNITTING,

or reading a good book,

your choice. 

But, do, join me in a cup of tea 

I L♥VE your company and conversation.

I'll pot the kettle on.

I braved the cold

to measure the driveway snow.

It's okay, it's a dry snow!

Keep your feet warm.

hugs

♥

Snow? Is this what I think it is????

Today is the day of our first really, truly winter weather ! ! !

Including a bit of lightening this morning. 

 

Us?

We have a great view of whatever activity there is out there.

Most exciting?

One car couldn't make it up the hill

and promptly got stuck turning around.

Two good samaritans in a pickup truck, stopped, got out and proceeded to pushing the car to the center of the street.

Between the driver and the advice of those two samaritans

they got it headed in the right direction and on down the hill.

Not much traffic today aside from the snowplow and the mailman.

Us?

Besides having front row seats of the street activities,

we've had a steaming bowl of soup.

Turkey stock, veggies and pasta!

Now I'm ready for a cuppa Earl Grey and some knitting.

Happy Winter ! ! ! 

hugs

♥  ♥  ♥  ♥  ♥

Gemini Re-visited

Progress has been made on Gemini

I've tried it on as it was to the point of dividing for the sleeves

Seems my measurement was correct

So, began knitting in the round for the body portion

Tried it on again this morning and the fit couldn't be better at this point.

Just need to knit to the correct length to add border.

Then it's on to the sleeves.

Not certain what length right now,

but certainly longer than the original Gemini.

#  #  #  #  #  #  #  #  #

Made a quick project bag

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Daughter (the older) asked for a remote control/miscellaneous organizer.

We decided to make it the same size as her end table with enough length to corral her remotes, etc.

For a quick change she can just use the other side!

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / /

Gemini Re-Visited may be hogging all the knitting time lately

but, Staghorn Reversible Cable Scarf is getting a bit of attention.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Our weather has been all of the place

Temps in the Seventies of a couple of days,

then two inches of (much needed) rain in one day

Now we are expecting single digit overnight temp.

Thanks for stopping by for a visit.

What have you been up to?????

hugs

♥ ♥ ♥

Divine!

This Devine skein of baby Alpaca/silk

arrived today from knitspot's Fall in Fall Color 

January club shipment !

It's the softest yarn I've every held in my hands.

MissBabs  

hand-dyed yarns and fibers

Alpacacita

2-ply lace yarn

70% baby aplaca

30% cultivated silk

This is destine to become a lovely light-as-a-cloud stole designed by

Anne Hanson/knitspot.

I'll be posting photos once it gets on my needle.

hugs

♥

Cables

Reversible Cables

It's a goal of mine for this year.

Remember this?

Miles and miles of cables.

Hours of time spent knitting and counting

to creating cable stitches.

Viewable from the front side ONLY ! ! ! 

I'm blocking and thinking, 

"What's the sense in knitting this many cable stitches

only to have a 'right side' and a 'wrong side' ???  

This is freakin' crazy.  

Why spend ALL THIS TIME to have only half a scarf ???"

Of course, this conversation with Myself didn't happen 'til I was finished knitting this Christmas gift and already blocking it .  .  .

 on the day before Christmas.

That's the precise moment I vowed to 

never knit a one-side-only cable scarf,

or cardi fronts, for that matter.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

It came to mind that 

Lily Chin is known for her technique of REVERSIBLE CABLES.

In two shakes of a lamb's tail I grabbed my %-off coupon, Hubby's Gift Card and before ya knew it

we were at Barnes & Noble having a Starbuck's Tall Decaf,  this book on the table before me.

From the moment it came through our frontdoor it's been open to one page and then another.

What a time I'm having exploring all the possibilities.

Right now it's at my knitting chair opened to 

Lily's reversible staghorn cable tutorial.

Here's a snap of her example:

and the beginning of her tutorial for my own sample:

I cast on the recommended number of stitches and knit up my own sample.

It looks pretty darn good.

This Staghorn Reversible Cable Scarf is my first attempt using this newly-learned technique. 

front side

back side

I'll be posting a few pics along the way to show my progress.

The yarn is a merino/cashmere blend that's soooo soft.

Perfect for a scarf to wrap 'round and 'round your neck to

keep the cold weather away.

This is being knit as a gift, there's no rush to get it finished.

I'll be taking my leisure to enjoy the knit along the way.

*   *   *   *

Thanks for coming by to spend a few moments with me. Love havin' ya ! ! !

hugs

♥

One-Sleeve-On, One-Sleeve-Off

Am knitting a baby sweater for our Friends' first grandson.  

He's due this month ! ! ! 

So, here I am knitting a

Little Baby Sweater by Purl Soho

One skein of

Lorna's Laces Yarn

in the colorway:  Bow Tie

It's a FAST KNIT

Sweater Sox Sweater Sox Sweater Sos Sweater Sox Sweater Sox Sweater Sox Sweater Sox Sweater Sox Sweater 

At the same time, I'm working on a pair of socks.

It's the Hazel Knits Mystery Sock Knit-Along

The sock is designed by Adrienne Fong

I'm joining the knitters 

in

  Hazel Knits Artisans Rav Group

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr,

oh, baby, it's cold out side

hugs

♥

'nother pair of sox !

My most recent pair.  

Eyelets on the leg portion both front and back.

This yarn has an interesting component. 

It's called Outlast.  

I've pulled a couple of explanations off the web for ya.

Outlast^® technology, 

originally developed for NASA, 

utilizes phase change materials (PCM) that absorb, 

store and release heat for optimal thermal comfort.  

Outlast^® technology is comparable to ice in a drink; 

as it changes from solid to liquid, 

it absorbs heat and cools the drink, 

keeping that drink at the desired temperature for longer.

 Outlast^® phase change materials work in the same way, but are microencapsulated to be permanently enclosed and protected in a polymer shell. 

We call microencapsulated phase change materials Thermocules™.

This encapsulation process makes the Thermocules™ exceptionally durable for many applications. 

These Thermocules™ can be incorporated into fabrics and fibers and have the capacity to absorb, store and release excess heat.  

This gives any product 

containing Outlast^® technology the ability to continually regulate skin’s microclimate. 

As the skin gets hot, the heat is absorbed, 

and as it cools, that heat is released.

Outlast^® technology is not wicking technology, 

which manages moisture by reacting to your sweat and pulling it away from the skin. 

Outlast^® technology will proactively manage heat while controlling the production of moisture before it begins. 

The Loopy Ewe has this to say:

"This sock weight yarn is made from 

superwash Merino, nylon and Outlast

Outlast, a fiber technology that interacts with

the body's microclimate to moderate temporature

to help from being too hot or too cold.

It's yarn with a built-in climate control !"

Anyhoo, they feel great on my feet and I love the colors.

What more could a gal ask for?

hugs

♥

25 Degrees F

And I'm ready for it with my new Kiltie Cowl.

It's knit from my knitspot 

Fall In Full Color Yarn Club December shipment.

It's a blend of

 80% Wool, 

10% Angora, 

10% Cashmere

in the Yuletime colorway

A glorious Mix of blues

Knitspot always includes such wonderful goodies.

Tucked away in this shipment were

five hand-blown glass buttons designed especially for this yarn and this exclusive Anne Hanson designed cowl.

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#

It's almost lunchtime so off we go looking for something great for lunch.

After which we'll shop for birdseed so our neighborhood birds will stay fat and sassy.

If you're going out today be certain to

Bundle up, 

it could be cold out there.

hugs

red hot ♥'s to you

2012 Finishes

End of 2012

I'm another year older and still in the Pink ! ! ! 

# # # # # # # # # # # #

Let's talk about Me.

teehee, teehee

Really,

let's talk about my knitting this year.

This year I've added a Tracking Gauge 

in my right side-bar.

Each time I finished a Project the total yarn used was posted.

The cumulative yardage was posted,

as well as the equivalent in miles.

It's revealed an interesting perspective.

I think I can describe my love of knitting as a

PASSION

Looking backing

this has been a busy year

for 

My Passion For Knitting

How's this for passion!

I've knit a total of 18,055 yards of yarn.

That's more than ten miles of yarn.

When I began tracking my works

I had no idea  

that numbers like this would result!

I'm flabbergasted, over-whelmed !!

Here's a breakdown:

4 Adult-sized Sweaters

1 Baby-sized Sweater

12 Shawls

9 pair of Adult-sized Sox

2 pair Fingerless Mitts

8 Adult-sized Hats

6 Cowls/Neckwarmers

6 Monsters/Stuffie Toys

I'm astounded with these numbers ! ! ! ! 

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Last finished project of this year.

Abalone Sweater.

Wishing you

the Very Best of New Year

 2013

many hugs and much love

to each of you,

Gerry

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

Hello Everyone

Hello, how is everyone?

Are you ready for winter weather?

or are you in a climate where winter comes only on the calendar?

Mid-Missouri has been wonderful this Autumn.

Mild temps [with a time or two of COLD]

lots of sunshine with a little rain

[we could use more, but only in the form of rain, not the other]

Our Christmas tree is up

[bought one with the lights already on it]

DD#2 and I have discussed our plans for eats over the Holidays.

Nothing special.

However,

 we are going to attempt 

a slowcooker 'Beer Bath Turkey'

Wish us luck with this, huh ! ! ! 

+  +  +  +  +  +  +  +  +

It's soon to be Winter

and I've been busy knitting hats

This Raspberry colored hat 

with hand-knit flower is the 

For Good Hat

designed by Megan/Stockinette Zombies Podcast

The knitted flower was a gift 

and it will be removed from this hat, shortly.

It's to be given to someone dear.

[yes, sans the pretty flower]

Under the Mistletoe Hat

a quick knit that doesn't cover my ears!

Just the one to toss in my bag for 

not-so-cold winter days.

Okay, that was two knit projects for the head

Now something for my feet.

This pair is knit with a Merino Wool/Cashmere/Nylon blend yarn

that makes me feel most decadent. 

[Decadent: a Noun for -  a person who is luxuriously self-indulgent]

Who?  Me?

The wonderful pattern is Rosa Rubiginosa

designed by Hunter Hammersen

so much fun to knit.

Even with this dark-ish yarn the pattern is noticeable  from a distance.

And I will be knitting Rosa again in a lighter shade yarn.

The feel of this yarn on my very own feeties is out of this world.

There WILL BE MORE OF THIS YARN in my future ! 

#  #  #  #  #  #  #  #  #  #  #  #  #  #

May a tell you a story?

Hope you don't mind, I'm telling it.  :^)

It was the summer after I passed fifth grade 

and eager to begin 6th Grade

that our family moved from the desert to the beach.

Much to my delight two girls my age lived across the street.

The older was a grade ahead of me and the younger a grade behind me.

That didn't matter, we became friends, with me filling the age gap. 

Their folks and mine encouraged our friendship.

The three of us spent many happy times together.

I think we 'discovered boys' when we reached jr high.

[No details on that will be revealed here.]

As our family moved between the desert and the beach we remained friends.

After high school graduation we kept in close contact and even attended each other's baby showers.

Then, as young mothers 

we each had our own lives to manage 

and our friendship was put on hold, so to speak.

Flash forward some fifty years.

After some searching, the Internet provided me with enough info to write a couple of letters.

One sister replied and we established a somewhat relationship.

However, this past year seems to have been our time to followup our initial connection.

The younger of the gals and I have been exchanging snail mail and re-introducing ourselves.

Fifty-plus years of catching up sure takes lots of hand-written pages, on both our parts.

But what anticipation - - - waiting for that next

snail mail.

Yesterday, out of the blue I received a pkg.

What?

She has sent me

her hand-made soap.

Three fragrances:

Rose

Oatmeal/Honey

Chamomile/Lavender

No doubt, this last one is meant to be used at my night time bath to relax me from a hectic day's activities.

OMG, I feel so pampered ! ! ! ! 

How sweet is this .  .  .  .

Have a peek

I've displayed them on my hand-knit shawl.

 It's been my plan all along was  to send this shawl to her right after the New Year.

You guys may remember

les Abeilles shawl

aka the Bees

I've decided now is the time to sent to lovely.

So, les Abeilles is wrapped and ready for tomorrow's trip to the post office to begin it's journey to my

childhood friend.

After all, one hand-crafted gift 

deserves hand-crafted gift in return.

Hope she likes it.

Thanks for stopping by for a visit.

You know how much I enjoy our chats.

[when you comment do you remember

to click the

subscribe by email button 

to take part in the rest of our chat?]

Happy Holidays

from Our House to Yours !

hugs

♥