September 2005 Archives

September 26, 2005

Thanks for all of the emails and ecards. I had a nice quiet birthday with the family, just the way I like it. Michael took the day off from work, so we hit the children's museum in the morning and had cake and presents that evening. (Charlotte had a birthday party on Saturday too, so she had plenty of cake this weekend.)
Over the last week, Joshua has started eating biter biscuits,

and Charlotte has discovered that she likes curly hair.

(She also learned the phrase "Diamonds are a girl's best friend." much to Mike's dismay.)

Tonight was a knitting meetup, and although I only stayed for about an hour, I managed to knit nearly a whole skein of the Alpaca Silk, so I'm happy with my progress. Right now, I have the two fronts complete

and am motoring up the back. I'm afraid that I might run out of yarn with this one, so I want to have as much done as possible before we go up to Virginia in October. I want to buy any extra I need while we're up there.
And on the baby blanket note, I think I'll make the alphabet blanket. (It has much less seaming than I'd originally thought.) I'm leaning toward making it with Knit Picks Shine. Does anyone have experience with using this yarn? Does it feel like a Wool Cotton or Cotton Glace?

Posted by crsattic at 9:57 PM | 5 Comments

September 22, 2005

Opinions Needed

Monday was another good meetup. We had everyone from last week plus Margaret, who just moved here from Maine. Margaret is the knit-along queen; she's knitted or plans to knit Rogue, the Hour Glass Sweater, Klaralund, and the Knit Picks Kimono Sweater. Her project list is all the stuff I've been tempted by but haven't bought yet, so I can't wait to see how her sweaters progress each week. When I wasn't drooling over other people's projects, I managed to finish the first Lornas Lace sock.

A good friend of mine is expecting her first child (a girl) in February, and I'm trying to decide between two blanket patterns for her. The first one is the Dots and Stripes Blanket from Adorable Knits for Tots.

I like this blanket better, but I'm worried about weaving in all of the ends so that they don't show.

The second choice is the Debbie Bliss Alphabet Blanket.

This one will have more seaming, but less yarn end weaving.

So what do you guys think? What's the best method for weaving in ends so that they don't show or come loose later? Kim lives in Florida, so either blanket will be made with a cotton blend yarn. Thanks in advance for any input.

Posted by crsattic at 1:37 PM | 6 Comments

September 20, 2005

More Sewing

We spent last weekend visiting family in GA, and I got a sewing lesson from my MIL. I found it much easier to control the speed on her machine, and, by the time we left, I'd made a pair of pants for Charlotte. (It didn't hurt that my MIL was kind enough to take out any of my mistakes.)

These are a size too big for Charlotte, so they won't be hemmed until next fall.

Now I just need a little spare time this weekend to try sewing up her red capris to go with the strawberry tank top.
Charlotte received a princess crown and wand from my mom on Saturday, and has brought them everywhere since then. She especially likes to sing "I Love Being a Princess" (from the Backyardigans) while wearing her crown. Here she is riding her bike around the neighborhood.

Thank goodness it was Michael that took her royal highness to the grocery store this weekend and not me.

And last but not least, Joshua managed to cut his third tooth Sunday.

Posted by crsattic at 11:24 PM | 5 Comments

September 14, 2005

Breathing Life into the Stash

I've been busy organizing my yarn stash and uncovering a few buried projects that I'd like to go ahead and finish. The first of these is Charlotte's Red Cable & Moss Stitch Jacket from the Debbie Bliss Baby Knits book. I bought the yarn for this project two years ago and worked on it a little last summer. Now, after sitting in the basket for over two years, the back is finally finished.

Lucky for me, the largest size (18-24 months) will fit Charlotte still without any trouble. Thank goodness Debbie Bliss sizes her toddler jacket patterns big. (Remember Charlotte's other jacket from this book? It finally fits well enough that we don't have to roll up the sleeves.)

Yes, that's the 12-18 month size.

Posted by crsattic at 11:51 PM | 8 Comments

September 13, 2005

Knit Night Monday

We had a great knit night last night at Barnes & Noble. Between the holiday weekend and bad weather, this is the first time we've met in about 4 weeks. In that time, Sarah finished her Soleil and had started working on some toe ups using the magic loop method so that she could make both socks at once. We also had Elizabeth show up for the first time. She just finished a beginning knitting class and is designing her first sweater. Not only is she gutsy, she's got great taste- she's using an angora blend and knitting with Addi Turbos. I managed to finish sleeve 2 of the Alpaca Silk cardigan.

I can't stress enough how wonderful this yarn is to knit with. After I finished the sleeve, I switched to my socks, and it felt like I was knitting with twine! (You know it's got to be good yarn if it makes Lorna's Laces Shepard Sock feel like it should be used for tying up newspapers rather than knitting.)

Posted by crsattic at 10:53 PM | 1 Comment

September 12, 2005

Sockapalooza FO

Here are the sockapalooza socks, ready for mailing out this Thursday.

Posted by crsattic at 10:33 PM

September 11, 2005

Charlotte the Movie Star

Here she is now, sporting a lovely pink novelty yarn scarf.

Project Stats: Garter Stitch scarf, size US 13s, 1 sk each Crystal Palace Squiggle and Shimmer

And what's a star without her adoring fans?

Posted by crsattic at 9:46 PM | 6 Comments

September 7, 2005

Thank You

I've had the most wonderful mail week- both snail mail and email. First of all, thank you to Denise and Christina for the lovely ecards. I don't know who enjoyed them more, me or Charlotte. (Everytime I get an ecard, Charlotte will also watch it. Then, everytime she's near my computer she'll ask to watch it again and again.)
I also want to thank Julie for the lovely origami crane.

I had just read about the handmade magazine envelopes on the RAOK board, so when I opened my mailbox to find yours, I knew it had to be something good.
I'm already feeling spoiled, and I've only just passed the halfway point. Allena sent me some beautiful handmade stitch markers.

Thank you so much! I love the twisted wire design.
And I've saved the biggest package for last. Here is what arrived from Jess for the SP5 exchange!

-There's incense with a beautiful ceramic flower incense holder. I love the blue crackled glaze on the holder. (When I was in college I taught a ceramics class. Picking out glazes is almost as fun as choosing yarn!)
-There are some lovely fairy pictures- perfect for scrapbooking.
-Cute Ribbon, which may also be used for scrapbooking or, if I'm feeling daring, a sewing project.
-Lovely flower beads, which will be used for stitch markers or a bracelet.
-A nice little notebook, which will probably be the first thimg I use. (I'm a compulsive list-maker.)
-Some sheep notecards. I think my favorite one in the pack is this one.

Doesn't it remind you of three busybody ladies?
-A skein of collinette graffiti in the prettiest colorway. I love the blues and browns in it.
-A book of knitting motifs. I know right away that I need to use the butterfly one on a sweater for Charlotte- then probably the train for Joshua.
-And speaking of the kids, there was also a Teletubbies magazine with crayons and stickers.
Thank you so much, Jess, for being such a great secret pal!
All of these surprises couldn't have come at a better time. Both kids were sick with their first stomach bugs, so we were washing sheets, cleaning the carpet, and just plain worrying about them for most of the weekend. (The first one got sick Friday, and neither one was completely well until Monday.) All of the mail and ecards really boosted my spirits; thank you so much!

Posted by crsattic at 11:57 PM | 4 Comments

September 6, 2005

Katrina Aid

If you're considering making a monetary donation to help the victims of Katrina, check out Margene and Susan's fundraising blog.
Hooked on Crochet, one of my yahoo groups, is also collecting 12" afghan squares (knit or crochet). If you'd like to contribute a square, email Sonni at sonnis_hooked_on_crochet(at)yahoo(dot)com for mailing information.
I've received several surprises in the mail over the last few days- more about them, and lots of thank yous, tomorrow.

Posted by crsattic at 8:58 PM

September 1, 2005

Summer Wrap Up

It's September 1, nearly the end of summer, so the time has come to wrap up some loose ends.
First of all, a big thank you goes out to my Secret Pal- Jess of Scarf-o-matic. You have really spoiled me rotten these last few months.
I in turn was spoiling Sandra. Stop by and say "Hi" to her and her cute daughters at Stay At Home Knitter.
In Summer of Lace news, here are my latest progress reports.

The Lacy sweater is slowly moving toward completion. The seams on this sweater are awful, but, at the speed Charlotte moves, I'm not sure many people will notice.

The Spring Fling Cardigan has all its pieces; it just needs to be seamed.

The Opera Scarf is partially fringed. I'm knitting this one until the yarn runs out, so I'm not exactly sure how much farther I have left to go.

Posted by crsattic at 11:59 PM | 5 Comments

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