Finished Bags and Squares for Grandmother Purl

I finished my bag. It came out great! I love it and it was so easy. It only took me a few days of knitting between other projects to complete. It has been blocked and dry for almost a week and I finally finished up the strap seaming today. The lovely yarn in it is from Piece of Beauty. I will be devoting an entire post to her yarn later this week. It is absolutely yummy!

I also finished a square for Grandmother Purl. That gives me time to make another one. I made 1 8x8 square with a vertical Columns of Garter Stitch pattern in blue Plymouth Encore Wool. It is pretty soft and very durable. It is machine wash/dry so it will be easy to take care of. I am planning on another square of plymouth Encore in Green. I started a block with a diamond stitch design and was half way through it when I realized that I had some how made it too wide. It was over 10 inches wide. Oh well, I put it on the side and I will try again.

A Blanket for Grandmother Purl

I signed up to knit a square for grandmother purl. (The link is on my side bar) They are making knitted square blankets for Crazy Aunt Purl's grandmother and as many other people in her convalescent home as possible. So far it looks like they will have enough for at least a couple of blankets. I am going to send in at least 1 square but I will try for more if I have time. The due date is Nov 10th.

I finally sent out the rest of my stitch markers for my stitch marker swap. I also sent out my package to Rikako, my Hot Socks Swap pal. She will be receiving her package next wed. I hope she likes it!

On the knitting front...I am working on a scarf/wrap for me in a pink/gray variegated Encore superwash yarn. It is just a simple stockinette stitch with a garter stitch border and it is really soft plus it is in my favorite colors!

Warning - Photo heavy posting! :0)

I am so lucky! I have been so lucky with my swap pals. My first picture is of a shawl that the FABULOUS Ronnie made for me. It is a cashmere lace shawl dyed my favorite color pink by Ronnie herself. She also sent it with a cup and some tea from Harrods as well as toffees, chocolates, and licorices for my family. She is really great!

This picture is from my awesome Hot Socks Swap pal Lynn! Thank you Lynn. You are right, if you love pink and purple (like I do) you will love the Lorna's Laces that you sent me! The funny thing is that I also picked up some Lorna's Laces for my Hot Sock Swap pal. They are a pretty cream, light lavender and pale yellow. I love the tea, candles, (i love fall scents and they are candied maple sugar and hazelnut vanilla bean - Yum!) knitting magazine, little notebooks and the coolest card with a knitting diva on it. She also included a little brown and blue bag that is the same color scheme as the felted bag that I am almost finished with. It has to finish blocking and then I can sew the handles on.

Quick pic of the stitch markers I made for my US stitch marker pals. The ones for the International pals went out 2 weeks ago.

Here is a pic of a special set of markers that I made for my dear pal Ronnie! You can't tell because the pic is a bit blurry, but the stitch markers spell K-N-I-T. :0)

Whew! This was a long post, but I had some catching up to do! I'll post soon with pics of my finished felted bag and scarf that I am working on.

I LOVE HARRY POTTER!

Anyone who knows me knows how much I love Harry Potter. I am horribly obsessed with everything Harry Potter. We have at least 3 copies of every book because I refuse to share these books with my family.... In fact, I originally learned how to knit because I wanted a Griffindor scarf and I couldn't buy one that was nice enough. LOL!!!

I am so excited because I was able to get sorted into Griffindor House. See the button on my sidebar. I was a bit worried that I would be put into Ravenclaw (which would have still been ok) but I really wanted to be in Griffindor.

So I am a big dork (my husband thinks so anyway) but I am thrilled!

Secret Pal 9

Here are the answers to my Secret Pal 9 questionaire.

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?

I love cotton (especially mixed with tencel or another stretchy fiber), alpaca, and soft wools. I am open to everything except Angora (terribly allergic) and rough mohair. I am cursed with allergies and very sensitive skin. :0(

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?

Right now, they are all over my house and driving my husband nuts. Of course, this does have it's perks because when I can't find my needles that is a great excuse to go to the LYS.... LOL!

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?

I have been knitting for almost 2 years. I took a private lesson and have been teaching myself and learning from more experienced knitters in my LYS ever since. I would consider myself to be an intermediate knitter. Although I haven't had the guts to tackle lace or cables yet.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? No

5. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products, etc.)

I love Fall/Autumn scents (Pumpkin spice, Apple Cider, Apple Cinnamon) and I also love lavender, bergamot, eucalyptus, ylang ylang and other clean herby smells. As I said above I have terrible allergies and anything floral will set them off. As long as it is fruity, herby, or oceanie(if that is a word...)I should be ok.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?

My favorite candy is black licorice (the sweet type not the salty type). I love caramels and toffees, too.

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?

I bead, quilt, and scrapbook. I don't spin YET, but I am really excited to learn. I am just waiting for some free time so that I can take a class. I also would love to learn to dye yarn.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)

I am ecclectic and like most types of music. My favorite playlists right now are Jack Johnson, Brad Paisely, Bob Marley, Black Eyed Peas. Yes, I can play MP3s.

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?

My favorite color is Pink, Pink, Pink! :0) I also love brown (especially with pink LOL), blues, reds, and lavenders. I love all colors and there aren't any that I don't like.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?

I have a hubby and 2 boys, ages 10 & 12. No pets! Again with the allergies... :0)

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?

Yes, Yes, Yes, and Yes. I will wear anything hand made with pride because I know how much effort and care goes into creating each piece.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?

I like scarves because they are quick and make good presents. I am also recently branching out into felted bags and I need to try out the MDK (Mason Dixon Knitting) washcloths. I have had the book for months and I spend hours looking at everything, and still have only made the baby bibs and burp cloths.

13. What are you knitting right now?

2 scarves, and a felted bag (we won't count the bunch of UFOs on other needles around my house....)

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?

Love them!!

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles?

Bamboo, aluminum, plastic? I prefer bamboo circulars, but I also like bamboo or wood straights.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?

Yes.

17. How old is your oldest UFO?

Way too old....it was a shower gift for a friend's baby who just turned one. LOL! But I switched to another yarn and was able to finish and give them another blanket months ago.

18. What is your favorite holiday?

Halloween closely followed by the entire Fall/Winter season.

19. Is there anything that you collect?

Fairies and butterflies

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?

I am always looking for new yarns to try, especially hand dyed yarns with variegated colors. They are so beautiful. I don't have any knitting magazine subscriptions but I do have a lot of knitting books. I am a HUGE fan of books. All types, I love to read as much as I love to knit.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?

I really want to learn how to make socks.

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?

I haven't been able to make one yet. I have a size 6-7 US women's foot.

23. When is your birthday? (mm/dd)

October 24th

It just started and I'm already Dead! Sock Wars.....

I haven't posted this past week but there has been a lot going on. I received 2 sets from my Stitch Markers swap, I received an amazing package from my pal Ronnie, and I was killed off already in Sock Wars. I was so totally out of my league in the Sock Wars. Shawn aka Yarn Fairy had already knitted the socks and killed me before I could even get started. Oh well....it was fun while it lasted and I got a cool pair of socks out of it. Shawn calls it the Blood and Guts socks. I will take some pics of the murderous socks and the other packages I received this week and post them soon. I also finished 3 more sets of stitch markers but packaged them off to send out without taking pics. :0(
They were really pretty though and I am proud of them. Hopefully, my swapees will post a pic on the swap blog and I will be able to link to that.

I am almost finished with my mistake rib scarf in the yummy alpaca for my dentist's office manager. It is looking good and it is soooo soft. I also have started a felted bag that I saw on knitty gritty this past week. It is pretty cool and so easy it's ridiculous. I will post pics of these as well. I substituted some Araucania Nature Wool for the Cascade 220 in the pattern and it is so beautiful. The variegated colors in the Nature wool are stunning. Can't wait to post a pic of it.