Yarn Along - flower explosion

Joining in with Ginny and the Yarn Along!

 In preparation for next weeks camping trip I dug out an old project. I plan on working on my milk sweater while camping, but as this is a pattern I need to pay attention to and there is definitely going to be drinking and too much sun. Not a great combo. I wanted a easy evening project for around camp. I started this several years ago, using up my bits and bobs of yarn. I paid little attention to yarn weight figuring I could even it out at assembly. I plan on making 100 flowers then crocheting them together with green yarn to have a flower garden afghan. I have misplaced the pattern! But the internet was good and I found it again - here! I have 58 done so far. When I was working on them before, I did not tuck my tails. I spent a few hours this week and got them taken care of. Behold the yarn shrapnel   

As for reading I am re-reading Up Close and Dangerous by Linda Howard. I really like her characters.

~Julia

Yarn along - Happy Butterfly!

Joining Ginny and the other Ladies of the Yarn Along!

I finished it!!! The close up shot is the correct one for color - my  kitchen bleaches color out of photos sorry! I am very happy, and so is she how this turned out. Super soft and cozy, against the skin but not tight anywhere. She has agreed that since I finished her sweater and the one for her sister, maybe, just maybe I can work on my sweater for awhile.

Like most crafters I know projects for myself get set aside anytime a deadline or a project for a loved one comes up. Here is my, again, now current project, the milk protein sweater. Ravelry link here.

 I am behind on the weather blanket due to this crazy cold I got at the hospital, every three days it is like getting a whole new cold. Glad we are only visiting via the internet. I am about 17 days behind.

Looking forward to seeing what everyone is working on! ~Julia

Yarn along a little late

Joining in with Ginny and the other ladies of the Yarn along! even though I am late.

I was sick since Friday. I am behind in everything.

 This is Mom's Sweater. She worked on it while waiting to hear about Dad's surgery. (He has a little infection in the knee but the doctor in not worried and he is otherwise doing well) This is Mom's first ever sweater and first ever color work. Her whales are less whale-like than they were supposed to be but she is going to try to fix that with her cross stitching skills after she finishes the sleeves.

 The Sweater for Butterfly may get done today - if I get off the computer - I ran out of the yarn I had made! So I blended some white wool with some chocolate alpaca and spun up more yarn. It is so soft. The other yarn was very soft but this is even more so. She love the row of hearts as she is calling the pink.

 Longer view this time without my toes. The sweater needs my to finish the color work, decrease, do the neck and sew the armpits. Oh and attach the pocket. I am re-reading Face the Fire by Nora Roberts. I love the characters she builds. In this story I particularly like how you work through with them how their actions long ago affected each other and why they made the choices they did. 

 While Mom was working on the sweater, I worked on the weather blanket. I had left it to get behind both because I wanted something to do the day of the surgery that I didn't have to think about so much and because I was working on the sweater for Butterfly. I did not catch up but I did get a lot done. I hope to get all caught up before the weekend is over.

~Julia

Update on my Dad

He cruised through the surgery! The Dr was very pleased with how well it went.

The story:
Mom and I sat out in the waiting room worried and fussing at each other. My Mom is disabled and has strong nesting instincts, she can't go anywhere with a hundred things. The morning of the surgery she had a tote bag, a purse, and a basket to take with her. and her walker. and her thermos bottle of soda. I brought my purse and the weather blanket -wanting a pattern I didn't have to think about. Mom's purse along weighted 30 pounds! The tote was overfilled and when Dad grumbled at her she grabbed her knitting bag out of the basket jammed in into the tote and we left for the hospital. Dad had his overnight bag for the stay which was to be left with us. Once dad got checked in and taken back, they told us it would be an hour until we could see him while they got him ready, then we could wait with him until it was time for the surgery. I decided, that as I was the one expected to carry all this stuff it was getting downsized. Mom -who was going to be with me the whole day and expected to go home that night - had 9 magazines for herself and 2 as a present for Dad, three coloring books, three packs of colored pencils and a book of crayons, a newspaper, 3 knit picks catalogs, 2 lion brand catalogs, a Mary Maxim's, and a Shopko ad., four knitting projects (included a beaded knitting project and several thousand seed beads,) nine tubes of lipstick, three compacts, 4 smushed candy bars, and all her meds and wallets. Plus about 30 expired coupons and some broken candy canes. I edited her take about 40 pounds of stuff, dad's bag, and everyone's coats back to the car.

We saw Dad, they took him back and the waiting began again. She knit, I crocheted. Three rows later she informed me she left the size 6 needles, she needed next, at home. Frustrated as I was at her having brought so much unnecessary stuff with her and left the thing she needed, I also found the whole thing funny. We decided the sweater would be just fine finished on the 7's. She has been working on her first ever sweater for a cousin's baby since the baby was born, mistakes have been made luckily one of them on the size of the sweater and nearly a year later she is almost done.

They told us he had done fine and asked us to wait another hour while he woke up and was moved to a room. She finished the sweater although the seed stitch end is about half seed and half k1/p1 rib. Stress knitting.

Dad did great got up and walked the first day, decided that he needed mom to stay with and we discovered his love of the cookies at the hospital. Like Scooby snacks Dad worked for those cookies. He is home now and working to gain back his mobility.

Mom and I both caught a terrible cold at the hospital. Hoping to feel all the way better soon.

Julia

Yarn along - it's still Wednesday, right?

Swamped and hurting here - I slipped and fell and everything is hurting. The snow was prettier before I left the house.

Joining with Ginny and the other ladies of the Yarn Along.

 Two books I am reading right now, the novel is a fast read and the guide may end up living in my bag all the time.

 Butterfly's sweater is coming along.The body is done, now on to the sleeves. I am hoping to find a two color fair isle pattern flowers. I am really starting to like the yarn again.

The weather blanket. The safety pin marks the end of January.

Yarn along - a sprinkles the sweater

Joining with Ginny and the Ladies of the Yarn Along today, combining our love of reading and knitting. Check it out and get some creative ideas and book suggestions.

 I started this sweater for Butterfly. This picture is very dull, I am blaming the lack of sunlight. I made the yarn, it is a three ply of hot pink mixed breed wool, teal merino, and chocolate alpaca. It is very soft with a WPI of 10. It is bright and busy. Maybe too busy for me but she loves it. The sweater is based on Elizabeth Zimmerman's percentage system but as I found her sleeve ratios problematic with Badger's sweater I am expecting to have to radically increase the % in the arms. Her key number is 112 and the gauge is 4 stitches to the inch on sevens. My mother in law made the yarn bowl for me.

 My weather blanket continues nicely, do you see that grey stripe, today I have to add another. Grey is 0-4 degrees. I really like the blanket, the weather not so much, but it warmed up enough to snow briefly today. A very lovely, picture book kind of snow.

 The bottom one is a magazine, Where Women Create Business, but it is so sturdy it feels like a book. It is focusing on different women and the businesses they founded. There are some tips and advice but a lot of how they got there, and what their business is about. I am really enjoying it. The other is a Dyeing book, I have only glanced at it so far, but it is very pretty. One of my favorite fiber-y things to do is natural dyeing, and the gathering of the dyestuff, with family.

Inside of the magazine and my nightstand reading. I really like the way she builds her characters, they feel like actual people and she includes lots of local history for whatever area she sets her story in. Dead on the Dance Floor by Heather Graham.

Hope your projects are going well and your book is hard to put down.
~Julia

Yarn along - the weather.

See that white, that white is 5-9 degrees. I haven't spent a lot of time on knitting or crochet this week. I did finish Butterfly's second glove just in time and she no longer needs to wear the brace! I have been working on unfinished projects, my craft business, and finding my studio under the mess of Crazy Christmas Crafting.

Reading The History of English Speaking Peoples by Winston Churchill and Beneath a Blood Red Moon by Heather Graham. I like her work by this one is a bit slow.

Joining Ginny for the Yarn Along.

Yarn along - what I can't show you

Joining Ginny and the ladies of the yarn along...

 

 

I am working on a present or two for a dear friend's first baby, so until next week I can't show the knitting that has taken up most of my time lately, and boy do I want to show it. When I have not been knitting on that I have been crocheting this throw, as a Christmas present. I am looking to clean out my stash and spend as little as I can for presents this year, so this simple but soft blanket will be switching it's pattern soon. I have been doing 5 rows black then 2 rows silver, I am nearly out of black so I am going to do 5 rows silver then a row of black and 5 more rows of silver, then flip the blanket do 5 rows of silver a row of black and 5 more of silver. Hopefully, both colors will hold out and I can get a nice throw out of it. I found a tiny bit more of the black this morning so fingers crossed.

What I can show you...

This is a closeup of the black, I don't really like crocheting with it but the material is soft and warm in the blanket. As for reading I have not gotten much done, I am reading through the Backpacking reference I showed last time, it is very dry but interesting if sometimes way overly detailed. I am sure that the section on boot construction would be great if I were looking to buy boots but as a read through it is deadly dull. Which may explain the sleep I am getting as I only get a few pages done each night before turning off the light. It is good though. I have this knitting book too, which I love, I want to make lots of the things shown but more I want to have the author over for a cup of tea and knit. 

Badger has been working with her daddy on cooking her favorite breakfast food. She made me this waffle all by herself, I was in the kitchen if she needed help but the only things she asked was for me to fill up the smaller bottle with oil - she can't lift the big one - so she could measure that and if I wanted maple syrup or corn syrup. Maple, of course, although I will pour that next time.

looking forward to seeing what everyone is working on,
~Julia

hi world it's me Julia

I took a bit of a break from blogging. At least from actually sitting down and writing out a post, I written hundreds in my head. What the quiet has taught me is I take more pictures and had something to look back at a remember exactly what I was thinking at the moment rather than what I think I was feeling from the point of view of where I am at now. So I will be fitting in more time to record my thoughts.

Finally finished the hairpin lace throw I made for my Grandpa from yarn I inherited from my Grandmother's Stash. He loves it and has shown it off to all the ladies at the senior center. They are impressed with me and with my Grandma for teaching me.

I washed a lot of wool.

Did a lot of craft fairs selling my work and my Dad's these are his work - bowls, pens, crochet hooks, wine stoppers... He is amazing.

Canned a bunch of stuff - only balanced like that for the photo, I am not completely crazy - these are tomato sauce and grape jelly.

We bought property to vacation on, Grow with and eventually move too. It is on a river flowage. I love the idea of my kids running all over this land, finding nature's hidden joys and secret places. Just being in the woods, calms and brings out the kid in my husband. It has been worth the budgeting and the frustration of the search just to see the stress and care fall from his shoulders as we explored the woods. Even if I didn't love it in it's own right - which I do - I would love it for that alone.

I took up weaving and gave some of the family handwoven placemats for Christmas. I really enjoy doing this.

I started writing a novel. I hide in a local coffee shop read while I eat their yummy breakfasts and write for a while. I have about 70 pages, hand written, so I have only just begun, but it is a bit like a date with myself as I intended to be in high school.

Lots of baking, brewing - beer, wine, and cider, I tried making sausage and cheese and plan to explore that a bit more. I've also worked more on the garden this year. We'll see, I like gardening but more in the planning and harvesting and processes aspects that in the tending it aspect.

Selling, new blog, surprise.

After a long time of talking about, dreaming about, and thinking about selling my crafts, I have decided to go for it.  I set up an Etsy site and am doing all the necessary forms and such to be all ready to sell.  I am planning on participating in a local farmer's market's craft weekends. It is once a month along with the market so I thought it was a gentle way to dive into craft fair selling and hope it will be a good fit for my family. To show what I am doing I created a new blog for the Business (that sounds so big!) it is MoonBound ArtisanShip

***

Sometimes ideas run away with me.  I decided that while my husband was off on a business trip I would empty, clean, carpet shampoo, and paint our bedroom - as a surprise! So I had a week to get everything done, this was the only room we did not paint when we bought the house, typically taking care of ourselves last thinking there.  I got my Mother and friend and co-conspirator R over to help. Mom watched the kids, folded mountains of laundry and also did some canning while R and I attacked the bedroom.  I did not clean it before my husband left - no surprise there - so we just grabbed stuff and threw it about the house. Like many people I know our bedroom had become a place where I would hide stuff I did not want to deal with while cleaning other rooms! Hopefully, I am done with that.
R got her Husband to come over after work and help move the furniture either out or to the center of the room.  We all had a nice dinner together and I discovered exactly how bad of a job my vacuum had been doing! The pictures about are us (R is working the camera and we are both laughing manically) at about 1am mixing the greenish paint I bought for this when we bought the house 5 years ago and all the leftover whites and creams we could find.  I did not want to spend more than $30 on the whole project to be an extra super part of the surprise, unfortunately I misremembered the name of the paint color when I went to get a second gallon and the color they gave me was bright deep teal. Not a good surprise. So sticking to the budget (which was wasted on buying that awful color) we mixed something up.
We got the room done and put back together and I managed to clean the house within an inch of it's or maybe my life before my hubby got home. Surprise accomplished. Surprise out of hand - Oh Yeah!

Hairpin Lace afghan I am making for my Grandpa out of yarn I received from my Grandma's stash. I have five done and think I will need thirteen or so.

I am still knitting, crocheting, spinning, and sewing up a storm here, but have found out that on days I do a lot of listings or book work type stuff the crafts come a bit harder. So I am trying to get all the necessary paper stuff out of the way before lunch and then playing after.

The kids need more time outside and I am longing for spring.

Chasing my dreams and hoping you chase yours ~ Julia

Yarn along - sweater and flowers

Joining Ginny at Small Things for the Yarn Along!

 I tired to get it all in one picture! Nope. So the work space in front of me from left(above) to right(below). The current Spinoff magazine! Lots of info on selling your craft work. My garden plans are moving along. The inside of Mouse's sweater, look and armhole. I finished the back panel and and on the last side, that said, I tried it on him and want to add about 1.5 inches, luckily I left the stitches live.

Some more flowers, actually I am up to about 25 of these. I decided to make 91 and the stitch them together, 7rows of 13, for a back of the living room couch blanket. Badger and I went to Half Priced Books today. I got Glory by Heather Graham, Early American Weaving and Dyeing-The Domestic Manufacturer's Assistant and Family Directory in the Arts of Weaving and Dyeing by J. and R. Bronson (first published in 1817, ) Creative Spinning by Alison Daykin and Jane Deane, and Crochet Master Class by Jean Leinhauser and Rita Weiss.  Badger got the Princess' cookbook and a book titled I Love You. I haven't started them yet but they sure look good.

looking forward to seeing what you are all making! ~ Julia

Monday Morning Musings

Linking up with Nadja at Patch o' Dirt Farm.


Right Now...
 I am sitting in my quiet kitchen, cooking up some leftover baked potatoes to go with some eggs.  I have a cup of hot decaf chai at my elbow. The older three children are off at school and Badger is still in bed. As she has been sniffly I am letting her get her rest. Jim is working and the snow is falling fast, last Monday of winter. It is 8:50am.

This Weekend...
Friday, I was all excited to go to a spinning guild meeting.  I had never been before but found their website and the Badger and I gather up our stuff and drove over. But there was no one there. very disappointing. That evening I went to a gathering of people from school, some of whom I haven't seen since my graduation. One of the Professors hosted and made chicken curry, we watched a Thai horror film, not bad, and a Lithuanian movie about a warrior and a princess. Wolfhound was very good, a bit Conan like but more likeable. I got home late but had a very nice time.
Saturday, I slept in while Jim played with the kids. That evening we went to close friends' house to play Star Wars so part of the day was spent building a character.  I am playing an Archaeology professor and had a nice time translating what I really would do on a dig to both my friends and to the Star Wars universe. It was not my idea to play myself, as I normally try to play something completely different, but since he was starting us on a dig, everyone said it made the most sense for me to be the professor and them to be students or guards. As a side note if I could get a real life crew to move that much dirt in a two month season I would be a very happy archaeologist. We all had fun, and so did the kids who had a movie night with their friends.
Sunday, we got up for church, early as I remembered as I was falling asleep that we were supposed to bring the snack for Sunday School. I wanted to bring something shelf stable, so they could use the extras another day, so we stopped for granola bars on the way into church. Adult class was a continuation of the program we have been doing on Sabbath as resistance. Looking at ways to focus on God and Family on Sundays as a method of resisting the ways of the world and as a way to recharge in faith and love to face the work ahead. I find that this course is resonating with my sustainability and simple living reading, focusing on the thing you are doing and doing it well then doing the next thing. I have been wanting to do family dinners on Sundays, and think I will start. Maybe one weekend each month invite my parents, then the next month invite Jim's and his sister's family.

Some plans for the week...
I want to work on cleaning the house well this week, I feel like I have been just getting enough done for awhile now and really want to get more than enough done. I also want to work on Mouse's sweater, make more crocheted flowers, finish Bec's skirt, and make some Easter dresses and an Easter Kilt or two (depending on whether Beaver would wear it, I know Mouse will.) I also want to place my garden orders this week.

I am grateful for...
Mom was released from the hospital Friday and is resting at home!! Bec is settling into a new home and job, that if I had sat down and created for a job that would be perfect for her I could not have done a better job. My brother in law got a new job that is much closer to home and is making him, and my sister happier.

Some prayerful intentions this week...
I want to set a little time aside to pray for all of the people on the prayer request list from church.

Stash bash - apple sauce

Linking up a day late with Crunchy Momma's Stash Bash!

What is a momma to do when she finds out that she has canned (& canned, & canned) a whole bunch of applesauce from the apples from her trees, only to discover that only one of the kids likes applesauce! This was 2011's summer crop as our apples produced nothing with this past summer's weather. I still have lots of applesauce!

Then I discovered that I could get them to eat it if I took my 'stash' of applesauce and make it into something they all like - fruit leather. This is a great snack for school as my younger kids are required to take either a fruit or a veggie that is also not messy as snack time is during course time. So my dehydrator is getting a workout this week making school snacks.

Side note: I firmly believe we as a society would be better eaters (with less health problems) if we spent a little less time harping on what we ate and a little more time eating. My elementary kids are given 20 minutes to get to the lunch room, go to the bathroom, get their lunch and eat. I really think that making eating important and focusing on doing it would be a better lesson in the long run than teaching kids to eat as fast as they can without thinking about the food or tasting it. I know my Butterfly would be nicer when she got home if she had enough time to eat her lunch, she is so hungry but never gets through her lunch.

On a more crafty note my stash busting crochet flowers are coming along well. I am using up all the bits and pieces of yarn I have, I think I will stitch these all together when I am done and make an afghan for my living room.

Hope your creativity is turning your leftover supplies into things that improve your life!~ Julia

Yarn Along - Flowers for Spring

Joining Ginny for the Yarn Along!

Knitting wise I am still in my green tweed sweater for Mouse.  I am making progress, but it doesn't seem like it and I wanted to do something else. As I was reading blogs I saw this at My Rose Valley and decided to do a few. I am thinking I may make the garland or try to figure out a way to connect them into a flower blanket. I whipped up these guys in a few house during dinner and game night.

Reading I am mostly trying to just read blogs and magazine this week as they are easier to walk away from to get stuff done. I really need to work on my time management or self-control. Reading the entire book, excluding the things that need to be done because the story is good is not a good idea.

I am starting to plan my garden. This sketch is a first draft. The curly things are the blueberry and blackberry bushes I planted last year. I am not sure if they survived the dry summer, much less the winter. The horseradish and chives are beautiful. I want zinnas, hollihocks, Madder, indigo, apple mint, lemon verbenna, lemon balm, thai basil, basil, thyme, lavender, rosemary, rue, and lots more. I am thinking about ordering some container sized citrus this year too. & Cherries. & Figs.

Yarn along - Down at Fraggle Rock

Joining Ginny at the Yarn Along today.

 Having finished with the box to mail to family out west - it arrived safely - I went back to the sweater for Mouse.  It is about 8 inches so far, knit from the bottom edge and I am shooting for 18 minimum so I must seriously buckle down.  I am also working on a crocheted hat for my dad.  It is called Lidsville and I love it. I have to lengthen the inner band and stitch it to the hat (so glad I called mom for his hat size - yes I started making him a hat without it) and add the button on top before I am done.  I will be making another for myself and figuring out how to scale it down a bit for the boys.  It does however put the Fraggle Rock theme song in my head.  I spun the yarn shown (red) and used it and a brown wool for the hat, the homespun changes from red to russet to green to brown to blue through the yarn and I really enjoyed the changes and how it worked up.  Normally, I end up giving away my spinning, so this was extra fun.

On the reading front I am going the the Anne of Green Gables series again, like visiting old friends at Christmas and it always makes me feel in the mood to clean and bake.

Oh the overexposed blue things are the gloves I sent for which are helping my hands greatly.  I also noticed I was sleeping with my hands bent up under my chin and have been working hard at keeping my wrist straight while I sleep.

Some finished work to round out my post.  I finished the two pairs of socks for Butterfly and the stone soup necklace for .... um not telling.

Hope you crafts & baking are going well.  ~ Julia

Yarn along - just keep knitting

~ Two of my favorite things are knitting and reading, and the evidence of this often shows up in my photographs.  I love seeing what other people are knitting and reading as well. So, what are you knitting or crocheting right now? What are you reading? ~ Ginny at Small Things

 This is a thrift store find, I got this soft fuzzy yarn for 99 cents.  It is acrylic and nylon. I was only able to get one skein, but they had another that was in a pale green that co-ordinates okay. Truthfully, I am hoping just the one skein is enough as I think it is better by itself. This is on it's way to being a cowl for my Aunt, she has a lot of pain in her neck so I wanted something pretty and very lightweight. I need to get it done fast as I need to ship it.

 This is a thick scarf for my uncle, and needs to get shipped too. The problem, I am out of yarn. This is a Spanish wool, natural coloring and soft and warm.  I am knitting four strands at a time & love the result. My Uncle is a surveyor and while he mostly works in the office now, I wanted something warm for him.  

 Another crocheted bead soup necklace, this time on memory wire. I think it will be a bit nicer to wear and lighter but it moves differently and is not as dramatic as the other one. It was easier to control the tension and move the beads where I wanted them, but I could not put it down, each strand had to be finished before I could let go.

Some progress on the socks, but I mostly set them aside to finish up the items for boxes that need to be mailed before Christmas.  I would like to be done with everything to mail and ship it out on Monday (I was hoping for today, but that is not to be.)  Mouse's sweater has also seen little progress.

On the reading front, I am mostly reading blogs and reports on screen as I can read and knit that way.  I have also decided to try listening to podcasts and have been searching for interesting free ones.

Tomorrow is low pressure as it is just my parents joining us.  A nice fun relaxing holiday is what I am going for. My parents are bring salad stuff, dry sausage, and a feta cheese dip my Mom found a recipe for. We are putting out some other cheese, fruit cheese (I made,) summer sausage and cracker and playing games together.  For the big meal we are having turkey (with sausage stuffed under the skin,) stuffing, mashed potatoes, acorn squash, mixed veg, rolls, pickled cranberries, and cranberry sauce.  For desert, apple pie, pumpkin muffins, and an apple-cranberry crisp.  I am making the muffins and pie today to save space and time tomorrow.

Today is Mouse's birthday. We had the party over the weekend and he had a great time. I got extra hugs this morning and help in the kitchen - loading the dishwasher with me and setting the pumpkins to bake.  We stopped and got him cupcakes to take in. His school requires all treats to be store bought, annoying on so many fronts, but he was excited. When I was going to school, it was better not to bring a birthday treat than to bring in something store bought.

Have a wonderful holiday or if you live elsewhere have a wonderful day with your friends and family! ~ Julia

Yum and a busy weekend

Coddle - this is a yummy soup my husband makes.

 One year my husband was looking for something to serve on St. Patrick's day that was not corned beef and cabbage as we would be eating that on Tuesday with company. He read a lot of recipes for Dubin Coddle and his is his adaptation of all of those. Bacon, sausage fried in bacon grease, potatoes, onions, cream. Basically it is cream of the yummiest bits of pork soup.

Bead Soup necklace

 Crocheted then braided bead on wire necklace, it was a lot of fun to make. Christmas present.

Brown and pink bracelet and earring set.

 Friday I beaded, a lot. My husband is from a large family on both sides, he has cousins as young as our oldest.  These sets are for them.

Purple and turquoise bracelet and earring set.

Green, hematite, and pale blue bracelet and earring set.

Earrings to go with the first bead soup necklace.

First beaded chain of second bead soup chain. 

Pasta Carbonara - Friday's lunch

All that hard work deserved a nice treat and a great way to use up leftover pasta.  Off to knit, I think I need three more sets of arms to get everything done in time.... 35 more days.

I hope all your projects are going smoothly and all your presents are done and wrapped! ~ Julia