I have been drawn in

I have a few friends here as well as some on line who spin.

It has become a fascination to me - I really want to spin!

I was telling my husband and he said why wait 3 months until Christmas -

just get a wheel.

Holy Cow!

What was he thinking???

Doesn't he know after 20 years how addictive and neurotic my personality is???

So yesterday I ordered an Ashford Traveller.

Here is a little photo of the wheel to whet your appetite until mine arrives:

My Dear Husband is the best! Thank you, Honey.

After

Ready to wear - well, when they dry!

The roving was fun to knit with, the softness was luscious! The colors were yummy!

And after felting, the fabric is very firm.

They did escape from the zippered pillowcase I used in the washer.

Teyani - you are an enabler~

After knitting with this pencil roving, I must really learn to spin with it.

Before

Big and fuzzy

Symphony Sunday

Dear Friends -

Thank you as always for your thoughtful, candid and insightful comments. You have helped me give some serious consideration to spinning and time. I really don't have time to spin right now but still find it a very intriguing idea. I love the process - maybe I will talk to my DH about it and possible find a wheel Santa could deliver :-) After great deliberation, I realized I am too fascinated with this aspect of our craft to leave it and feel like I must pursue it. There are some times in my life I am not be so insanely busy and could make time to learn spinning. And after all, I'll need something to grow old with in retirement, no?

Here is the roving I used for the one clog ~








I love the pre-felted hugeness of these ~

The second will be on the needles today.

This was a symphony weekend; I was out of town shuttling between the hotel and hall rehearsing and performing some very difficult but fun pieces. I had no knitting time, but am ready for some quality time today. Unfortunately on the way home last night, there was a dreadful accident ~ thankfully not involving any of the traveling musicians ~ that had everything on this little country road stopped. The Care Flight helicopter was in the middle of the road and numerous rescue vehicles were lined up. We said a prayer for the people involved....

By the time I dropped off my passenger and got home it was already 1:00am. Not going to sleep until 2:00am (I was majorly hungry and had to eat something!) is just too hard on this old lady. I taught 2 lessons today and am about to retire to the sofa for some R & R.

I hear my knitting needles beckoning.

~~~~~

His 'n' Hers

Here we are - we felted my DH's last night. I am just too fascinated with the process of felting!! DH's are size 11 and mine are 6. We are too cute now - or maybe we are just nerdy.

After 2 pairs in Paton's Merino, I felt I was ready to delve into this beautiful hand-dyed roving I bought from Crown Mountain Farms. I began these last night and should be done with the first tonight (these are such an instant gratification project - I LOVE that!)

My Mom wants a pair too, but I am a bit hesitant. She is 86 and lives alone in a 2 story house ~ I'm not sure these clogs are really firm enough for the stairs and Mom. But I will take mine up when I go next month and we will see...

On another topic - who out there spins? I am becoming increasingly interested in spinning, but don't know how I can fit that into my life. Any thoughts?

More on the Clogs

Since many people have asked - the pattern is from Fiber Trends: http://www.fibertrends.com

They are a wholesale seller, but you can find a local store if you search the site.

Many people ordered it on-line.

The clog pattern is #AC-33x.

Here are my huband's size 11 non-felted next to my size 6 felted.

I thought you might like the giggle:

Here are my little feet and his humungous clogs:

Felting tomorrow - too tired tonight.

Soles and Spaghetti Pie

In my search for something to make the soles of the clogs non-skid, I tried some spray-on Plasti Dip. I found it in clear at my local hardware store (not the big orange one). I covered the sides so there would be no overspray, sprayed 3 light coats and let it dry for 4 hours.

There is no color to it, no bumps from puffypaint, not sticky like fabric glue - it is just enough so I don't slip on the tile floor. I suppose you can spray more layers if you want, but this seems fine. No muss, no fuss!

If you want a quick and yummy dinner the kids (young and old) will like, here is:

Spaghetti Pie

4 oz. uncooked spaghetti

1/2 lb. lean ground beef

1 small green bell pepper, chopped (about 1/2 cup)

1 small onion, chopped (about 1/4 cup)

1 14 oz. jar spaghetti sauce

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

2 large eggs

1 cup small-curd cottage cheese

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (4 oz)

Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease pie plate (10 x 1 1/2 inches). Cook spaghetti.

While spaghetti is cooking, brown beef, pepper and onion in a skillet. Drain. Stir in spaghetti sauce, chili powder, salt and pepper. Simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until the sauce has thickened.

Drain spaghetti. Place spaghetti in pie plate, gently press on the bottom and up the sides.

Mix eggs and cottage cheese, spread evenly over the spaghetti. Spoon beef mixture over cottage cheese mixture. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.

Bake 35-45 minutes or until the center is set. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Makes 6 servings. Tasty!

Copy machine update - it is GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Big, but works fast and the digital laser copies are fantastic. It is well worth all the angst of the ka-ching. So c'mon by and bring your copying needs.

Happy Feet and Copies Too

Oh, my what happy feet live here!

I just couldn't resist taking another photo since I can't believe how well they fit and how good they feel. I think this is the most fun project I have done so far. Yes, maybe even more fun than the first pair of socks - it was certainly easier!!

Sharon - the sole is the double knit (inner and outer) joined with the bumper. I am looking around for something to paint on the bottom for more non-skid. Although I have read many suggestions, as soon as I find something I like, I will let you know.

To everyone who is thinking about knitting these - GO FOR IT!!! They were easy, quick and "oh so fun."

Last Thursday was one of those "cable guy" days. Our copier machine tech was supposed to arrive between 10 and 12. At 1:45 he actaully got here. Then we got the bad news: he could no longer get parts for our 15 year old Canon. So here we are, (please excuse our messy computer desk!) many $$$$ later with a digital laser copier. Yes, it is that big honkin' apparition all the way over on the right.

Hmmmm - maybe we need a smaller computer desk to make room for Big Bertha (AKA Canon Imagerunner 2200). IKEA - here I come.

My husband is a music publisher, so we have always needed commercial office machines. This one has more bells and whistles than we know what to do with. Best of all, it is really great for enlarging those hard to read knitting patterns!

Off to my studio to make a few reeds, warm up a bit and teach some lessons.

Happy Hump Day~

Our NY ~ the way it was

The way it is in our hearts.

Taken 6 years ago by one of the fly boys in my cousin's helicopter.

My cousin is an NYPD pilot.

First Foray into Felting

After seeing so many cool renditions of the Fiber Trends Clog, I knew I had to knit them. I had some great communications with Teyani at www.intrepidfiberwizard.blogspot.com and she sent me the pattern and some incredible pencil roving! Ohmigosh! It is beautiful. And her advice was great - Thank you Teyani.

I thought I would give the pattern a trial run with Paton's Classic Merino (in Denim Blue and Chestnut Brown) before diving in with the pencil roving. Here are before and after shots:

My husband liked these so much he wants a matching pair - (yes, we are nerdy like that sometimes.) So one more pair in merino is first.

Thank you all for your comments. I do love comments!!

Big Bad Blue Yarn is going in the bag with numerous others for my knitting teacher's charity knitting projects. And yes, Sharon - I do wind everything up neatly. I guess that just is part of my nature. However, that organization and neatness does not carry into my studio! Go figure!

Have a marvelous Monday y'all ~

Blue yarn blues

Dear friends, woe is me!

Shrodinger, I took your advice and measured out 10 yds, weighed it and came up with the yardage of 110 yards for the blue ball. It is too little for Branching Out - even tho it would have looked lovely. So, Mer, I guess I'll have to find something more suitable for Branching Out.

I started on that little Airy Scarf from LMKG and could see how desperately it would need blocking to look like anything. I decided to knit a swatch and see how it blocked. While blocking, I thought I would see if the blue ball was a natural fiber or acrylic. I got out a match and held it under the end of a piece of yarn. It just really stunk and shrunk up into a little hard brown/black ball of gunk = acrylic. So as pretty as this little blue ball of yarn looks, I will be giving it away. Hmmm, I think I may be beginning to turn into a yarn snob - okay, maybe I just don't like scratchy sticky yarn no matter what the fiber.

I still love those Cat Bordhi "Flow Motion" socks and now that Fig gave us the link for the corrections (thanks ever so much, Fig) they are on my list. I blew up the pattern on the copy machine so I can follow the darn thing! The way VK printed it is awful to read. I can see why some people don't buy the magazine. Now to find the perfect yarn and we can all get started on it :-) Teyani, LarjMarj, Alliews and Sara Jayne.

I bought this pretty pattern in Yarn and Stitches today:

I really like the diagonal lines to the leaf pattern and might even have something in my stash calling out to this little scarf. I like simple lace; easy but holds my interest and looks pretty and feminine when completed.

Have a delightful Thursday ~ the weekend is almost here. This will be my last weekend off for a while since the major performance season is beginning. Church job next week and then symphony - Don Juan by Strauss!!! Woohoo ~ playing that will some ride!

Any ideas?

I received this ball of blue something from a dear friend of my Mom's. It feels like mohair, but could very likely be acrylic. There was no label on the ball, is I have no idea of the yardage. Does anyone have any ideas for yardage?

Lorna's Lace - 50 g/215 yds on left, mystery yarn, 50g on right.

Svale, 50g/114 yds and again the 50g mystery yarn.

I would like to use this for Branching Out but am hesitant since I don't know how much yardage is there. All opinions are welcome.

Town and Country with the Alchemy Yarns Bamboo got a new start on #3 since the fabric seemed too loose on #4s. It feels right this time. So here she is:

And then I saw these fabulous socks by Cat Bordhi in the Fall 06 Vogue Knitting and knew I had to knit them:

How yummy are these???

There were a number of number of other appealing sock patterns as well.

Felting and Tagged!

Good Friday Evening!

I am so excited - just ordered (what seems to be) the definitive felted slippers pattern (Fiber Trend) from Teyani at Crown Mountain Farms. I think my Lunch Club girls will enjoy these for Xmas gifts!!!

Woohoo - a new skill to learn!


And - I've been tagged by Cindy's Craft A.D.D. (first time for me)! So here goes:

1. One book that changed your life: Music, The Brain and Ecstacy by Robert Jourdain. A fascinating read about musician's creative process

2. One book that you've read more than once: Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

3. One book you'd want on a deserted island: Clan of the Cave Bear Series by Jane Aoul

4. One book that made you laugh: Skinny Dip by Carl Hiaasen

5. One book that made you cry: Those Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

6. One book that you wish had been written: Hmmmmm - can't think of one, maybe because it hasn't been written yet!

7. One book you wish had never been written: Mozart in the Jungle - stupid and trashy (not even well written)

8. One book you're currently reading: The Art of Practicing - A Guide to Making Music From the Heart by Madeline Bruser

9. One book you've been meaning to read: Tuesday Afternoons With Maury by Mitch Albom

10. Tag 6 people: LarjMarj, Lesley, Sharon, SaraJayne, Teyani

Oops, only came up with 5 people. Thanks, Cindy.......

Frogging, Flying and an FO

Oh yes, frogging is no fun. But as you all commiserated in agreement with me, I know it was what had to be. That yarn is so fabulous (my favorite colors) that it deserves something fun. There will be some dainty little lace project that beckons that silk/alpaca blend.

Being in any airplane for 6 hours instead of 3 stinks. Thankfully there were no mishaps - unlike that horrible fatal commuter plane accident in Kentucky. That was due to a combination of air traffic controller and pilot error. (Quiet prayer said here.)

I finished the Fern Lace Stole from the Little Box of Scarves:

Believe it or not - this is from a Red Heart acrylic called Luster Sheen. I need to wash it and shape it. I guess we cannot call this blocking, since it will do pretty much what it wants anyway.

The Bamboo from Alchemy Yarns has been lovely to knit - here is "Town and Country" from Knitpicks Elizabeth 1 scarf collection:

The picture does not do this yarn justice - it has a lovely variegation in the dye and is soft and lustrous. Is bamboo yarn something I can block?! Hmmm - maybe I should have thought about that before I began this project!

The pattern calls for needle size ranging from #4-6. The yarn label suggests #5. I am using #4, but I think the fabric is a bit floppy. The width is already 8" which is the finished size. Maybe I'll go down to a #3.

Aprilynne - yes we got a bit of rain. Unfortunately, our roses and Indian Hawthorne still look worse for the wear. We need about a week of rain to come close to helping the drought. Did you get any in Ft. Worth?

Sharon (Unraveled Again) - Wedding music: for the prelude I played the 1st movement of Marcello, Handel Concerto Grosso in Bb, Krebs Fantasia in F minor and for the mothers seating, Dominus Deu from the Vivaldi Gloria. The organist played the soprano line on one of the manuals.

Hey y'all - go see Unraveled Again's blog - her knitting is scrumptious as is her oboe playing!!

To finish the week

After the wedding, we drove back to Monticello for a few more days with Mom. All went well until the airport. We drove down to Newark in a timely manner, turned in the car and went to our gate. We boarded the plane and took off on time.

About 1 hour before landing, the pilot announced that DFW Airport was closed due to storms and we would circle for a while. After a half hour or so, he announces we do not have enough fuel to circle any more and are making a landing in Shreveport, La to refuel. We refuel and take off again. The landing in DFW was uneventful. However, due to the holding pattern, refueling, etc, instead of getting home at 9:00pm, we rolled in our door after 12:00am. Gee, recovery sure takes longer than when we were 25!

Do you remember Dainty Bess? She was more difficult than I was willing to deal with - especially after I made the major mistake of leaving out 1 purl row which turned the RS into the WS about 10" into her.

So after much consternation, here she is:

I really did not want to frog this scarf after knitting it to a length of almost 30", but the fix was more than I could handle. This luscious ball of Alpaca/Silk Laceweight will become some other beautiful FO. Sometime.

This delicious Alchemy Yarns Bamboo is almost ready to go:

I think I will try another Elizabeth 1 scarf, but the white one (Town and Country) - it looks more to my level of ability and desire today.

Wow - What a Week

After an uneventful flight to Newark, a safe drive to Monticello for a lovely few days with Mom, we drove up to Williamstown, Ma for Brigid and Ben's wedding.

Do you remember (Nov. 05 archives) the Branching Out and Irish Hiking Scarves? Those were for our newly married Ben and Brigid.

Ben's piano teacher Ed and I (Brigid's oboe teacher) performed in the ceremony and here we are after all was done:

And here are the new bride and groom enjoying in their first dance.

(Sorry, I couldn't get rid of the reflection from a picture glass.)

Brigid gave me this beeeee-youtiful bamboo yarn:

And this too:

Another dilemma - what to make!!!

Thank you to everyone, Mienna, Trek, Frudart (if I missed someone, please forgive) for your suggestions for my lone skein of Lorna's. I did however, allow myself to be enabled by Teyani's suggestion to get one more skein and make some socks. So here we are:

Thank you again, Sharon, LarjMarj, Sara Jayne, Shelley and Amber for your visiting and as always sweet comments. Yes, Sara Jayne, Mr. Mack was an exceptional man - ask your colleague to regale you with some stories - I am sure he has lots!!

Scarves 'n' socks 'n' sausage

My yellow Embossed Leaves have taken a back burner for a while. I just haven't been in the mood....

But I have been working on the Fern Lace - I am up to 40" and the pattern calls for 60", so I am nearing the end:

I am going to the LYS in Monticello when we get there next week and (hopefully) purchase another skein of that luscious Lornas Lace - Then, maybe use it for a Xmas gift for a dear friend.

I am always looking for a different recipe to feed my DH and me, and saw this little number:

Sausage and Cheese Squares

1 can (8 oz) refrigerated crescent rolls
16 refrigerated smoked cocktail sausage links
1 large bell pepper, coarsely chopped (1 1/2 cups)
1 1/2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese (6 oz)
1 can (10 1/4 oz) condensed cream of onion soup
4 eggs

Unroll crescent roll dough. Place dough in bottom of ungreased rectangular baking dish, 11"x 7". Press seams closed and push dough 1 inch up sides of baking dish.

Arrange sausage evenly on dough. Sprinkle with bell pepper and 1 cup of the cheese.

Beat soup and eggs until blended; pour over ingredients in baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Bake uncovered in a 350 degree (F) oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

Makes 8 servings

Eat, enjoy!

The Dilemna

One little skein of Lorna's Laces sits here looking for a project.

It is saying - "Please turn me into some pretty little item. I was originally going to be baby booties, but I never got there."

My dilemna is what can I knit??

Ideas, suggestions?

Home Sweet Home Part 2

Okay, now we have food in the house again.

After spending two days in Indiana, we drove another 1000 miles west to Keystone, SD where Mt. Rushmore is located. The drive had some beautiful moments, but a lot of it was the same terrain for miles. It is amazing how vast the plains are! We did drive throught the Badlands:

There are more dramatic shots to post, but they are from the print camera and not yet developed. I just thought I would whet your whistle with these :-)

We continued to drive and drive until we reached Keystone. Unbeknownst to us, there is a huge yearly motorcycle rally held in Sturgis (50 miles away) that draws the big Harley bikers (the lawyers and doctors with the $$$$$ Harleys). Some of the bikers had that Hulk Hogan look as well. A goodly number were visiting Keystone and Mt. Rushmore ~ it was a loud few days with a lot of folks wearing black leather!

We went to Mt. Rushmore the next morning and here is the first view:

You can see how overcast it was; the weather was chilly 68 degrees F - 2 days before, it was 104 degrees F. We were woefully underdressed, assuming it would be in the 80s. Even as chilly and cloudy as it was, the impact of the monument brought tears to my eyes (not a usual occurance for me).

After spending many hours at Mt. Rushmore, we did a few other things such as an 1880 train ride and a trip to see Crazy Horse. We were tourists to the max!!

We left the next morning, but first went back to Mt. Rushmore to eat breakfast. The day was glorious, so I had to take more photos. We had a nice breakfast looking up at the Presidents then started the loooong drive back to Dallas. All in all, we put 3250 miles on my car in 7 days!

I will leave you today with this shot:

Home Sweet Home 1

After 1 week and 3200 miles, do you think we are happy to be home? It sure is a good thing that my DH and I are best friends - this would have been too long in the car with anyone else.

We took 2 days to drive the 1000 miles to Mishawaka, Indiana to see the family. My DH has 4 sisters, all married with children (except 1). We had a picnic in Potawatami Park (I just like typing these names!!!) then took a quick family photo:





And then took a walk in the zoo and saw these alpacas:

This was the closest I came to yarn for the first few days.

Then we encountered two of our young families at the zoo and just had to take a photo:









It is time to pop over to the grocery store, so I'll add the second installment later (Mt. Rushmore - oh my gosh !!!!!!!)