No Knitting Here, Well, Maybe a Little

Yup - you read it right. There is minimal knitting content on this knitting blog! (At the end if you want to pass all the other words.)

But I do have some Harp content - Yes indeed! I am taking lessons from Laura so I can attend Harp Camp and not embarrass myself too much. Here is this morning in her studio after my (2nd) lesson.

Daily news - we had to replace our mattress last week. It was a drag not only because of the price of a king, but our old one was only 3 years old. We decided it was defective since one side had no support any more. So we got a Simmons Beautyrest in firm. It felt very supportive bit a bit hard. After doing some research, we decided to get a mattress topper and are much more comfy now. This one is from Walmart and quite inexpensive - but according to Consumer Reports, people liked it more than the $$ ones.

Now it feels very nice indeed :-)

Ocean Cardigan is ready for assembly. I was thinking about the effectiveness of blocking since this ribbon yarn is 62% nylon and 38% cotton. One suggestion made was not to block until I seamed it all together. I am trying to decide what to do since the edges roll alot.

What do you think? Will this fiber block? Or just jump back to it's unruly sproingy shape?

My next project:

Wallis Cardigan from IK Summer 08. The suggested yarn was way too $$ for my budget, so I bought some Lion Brand Micro Fiber in a lovely Vanilla color. the weight is very similar and I figured it would be good for the conference at BYU this summer.

Spinning and Tomatoes

Thank you to everyone who has commented. I loved refinishing the wheel - maybe that should be my next avocation. Yeah, right, in my spare time! And the Baby Surprise Jacket and Mary Jane Booties were so much fun. Annie came by yesterday to pick them up - and she loved them. She thought they would fit their soon to be new born baby just fine!

Here is what is on the first bobbin on the Scholar. I am not sure what the fiber is; it is from my classes last summer. My goal to get comfortable with the new girl is to fill the bobbin, spin some white fiber I have and then ply them.

A crazy note - since my blood pressure is pharmaceutically controlled, I do monitor it from time to time. Two days ago, after 1/2 hour of spinning I checked and it was lower than it has been ever since I can remember. Hmmm - does spinning lower blood pressure?!

We are going to plant this little tomato plant tonight and see what happens. I would love to have fresh veggies and herbs..... this will be the first sojourn into plants to bear food.

Have a beautiful weekend and Happy Memorial Day!

Awwwwwwwwww...

Mary Jane Booties

to go with the BSJ.

Same yarn, #3 needles.

2 FOs

Here is EZ Baby Surprise Jacket before seaming:

And here it is all seamed up:

The yarn is Red Heart Luster Sheen, the color is Baby Combo. I used #4 options. I think this is a good newborn size - at least I hope so. Annie's baby is due in a few weeks :-)

And the next FO is my Scholar:

You can see the damage



And here is my repair

And she spins!!!

I washed all the wood, gave it 2 coats of stain and one coat of wipe on Poly. Deciding I didn't like the look of the poly, I went over her with steel wool and rubbed in a few coats of Watco Wax Finish. I am much happier with the look.

Phase 2

My little Scholar arrived safely on Wednesday. She is actually in great shape with only one large chip (now repaired) and the wood in need of moisture. I took her apart, wiped down all the wood and let it dry overnight. This morning she got a light sanding and the first coat of stain. I am using a mahogany color gel and will most probably apply another coat tomorrow. After the color is satisfactory, I plan to use a wipe on Poly in a low gloss so she will be sealed and ready for traveling. I know the purists think it should be hand rubbed oil, waxed, etc. ~ which is how I finished my Traveler ~ and the other camp is into painting and decorating but I want a nice deep color wood finish that is very durable and low maintanance. Do we hear Minwax Gel Stain and Wipe On Poly? Easy to apply and will be done by Sunday. Yeah, baby!

Have a great knitty weekend!

A little further along

EZs Baby Surprise Jacket is moving along:

I am about halfway at this point. The Sirdar is also moving along, but taking a picture of the black yarn doesn't come out so well.

I was surfing Ebay last night and found an old Ashford Scholar in need of some TLC and a new home. I have been thinking about wanting a little portable wheel thinking it will encourage me to get back into spinning and get going to the local spin-ins. So I set up ESnipe to bid for me and won her! She (for some reason I have applied gender it although that is not my norm) came in at nice a low price and in need of cleaning. I hope to have it by the end of the week and will know if this was a good thing or not.

You see how neglected she is? I hope to easily disassemble her and refurbish her to get that finish or a new one, looking fabulous. I love working with wood and finishes - so this will be a fun project. Cross your fingers on this one :-} that she will spin well!

WIPs

Hi!!! We are nearing the end of the school year, symphony season and just plain crazy work days and nights. Now maybe I can get in some good quality knitting and perhaps even sit at my wheel and figure out this spinning thing.

Lest you think I have not been active with my needles (because I haven't updated in a while) let me assure you there are projects in the making.

Here is the Sirdar Sweater I am hoping to finish soon - It is knit with "Ocean," a cotton/nylon ribbon yarn. I love the texture of the fabric, but it is a bit of a pain to knit with. I have to keep untwisting it so it looks right. I went against convention and used the sleeve as a swatch. After all, why knit a swatch and then start the project? Is it not efficient to just start a sleeve and then measure for gauge? If it is right, I am already in production! So the sleeves and back are finished and I am working on one of the front pieces. Please forgive the crummy shot - the pieces are not being blocked - but the nylon makes the fabric so squishy, I needed to pin them so you could at least tell what they are.

This is the pattern picture:

Next is the EZ Baby Surprise Jacket:

I have started this project 4 times now and think I finally have it right. The groups on Ravelry have been an invaluable resource in figuring out this very unique pattern. The yarn is a little acrylic: Luster Sheen by Red Heart in the color Baby Combo. It is a fingering weight and I think it will be light and sweet for the little girl coming in a few weeks.

I hope your week is filled with lots of knitting time! See you soon.

FO Big Manly Socks

I finally finished my husband's socks. This was the first pair I have knit for him - men's socks are a LOT larger than my little ones! I began these last November and knit sporadically, but I really wanted to finish I so concentrated on them exclusively last and this week.

The pattern is from Sensational Knitted Socks - Slipped Stitch Rib. I used KP Essential in Grey and #0 DPNS. I did make the heel flap longer to accommodate his high instep. They came out a perfect fit.

I like the slipped stitch rib alot. It kept me from being insanely bored and looks a little bit dressy.

So now there is nothing on my needles and I am searching around for the next project. It is spring here in Texas and the searing heat will be upon us soon, so another sweater (maybe one that fits me this time) may not be the perfect choice. Not to mention that I am hot, hot, hot these days. OMG! Can you say hot flashes?

This weekend will be fairly lazy for me for a change. The only commitments are a few student this morning and one tomorrow afternoon. I plan to do some gardening, maybe get some geraniums for the pots in front.....

Enjoy your weekend~

FO Basic Cranberry Cardigan

I know, it has been quite a while since I posted. Life has been extra-ordinarily busy. Just when I think it can't get any more, something else pops up and I am sucked up into the vortex. I am not complaining - just explaining why I have been delinquent in visiting you and posting here.

• I did finish something: Basic Black Cardigan. (Well, cranberry, not black) Since Magknits is no longer available :-( I cannot link the pattern.

Here is one pic:

And another:

• I realized my gauge was too big and so is the cardi. I have someone in mind I think would like it and can wear it, so all is not lost. I used Sirdar Country DK in Cranberry and Options #5 (should have used #4 and knit the smaller size). Oh well, I gained a bunch of experience and really am happy overall with how it turned out. I might even knit it again in a nice cotton blend.

• My husband's socks will be done in no time now - just the toes to finish. It should only be a day or two for those. The dilemma is what to knit next? Do you go through the indecisiveness and angst when trying to make the decision too?

• We just received the news from our accountant about our taxes and I am now on a yarn diet. But the reality is that I am in the market for a new oboe (KaChing) at the same time as our tax fate was being deduced, so new yarn will be on hold for a while. Good thing that vortex is whirling around us since we will be sending Uncle Sam a chunka chunka change. I hope your taxes come out more advantageous for you than ours did for us.

Have a good rest of the week, dear fellow knitties and I will try to stop by for a visit.

Trikke, anyone?

Thanks for your kind thoughts toward Sandra. Every little bit of positive energy helps. She liked the Chinchilla hat, but I wound up frogging the purple one - just too darn big. She has a small head, so I am sizing down on the next ones. I did finish this (Fiber Trends AC-4), but delivered it before I could take a photo.

It was my birthday Thursday, and I had both my mammogram and annual that morning. My gyn is a hoot - her question to me was "Where are you going next, to the dentist?" At any rate, all is well and I don't have to think about any of it for another year :-)

But---

Stepping on the scale was not fun - in fact, I am so disgusted with my bmi, I decided to take action and get moving. I went today and bought a Trikke.

I went for a short ride today and came home exhausted. I think (once I really get the hang of it) it will be a great all over workout. I am also not eating any more second helpings. We'll see if that helps make me smaller.

I just stepped off the ferry at sleeve island for Basic Black so I hope to have some real life knitting content next time.

~~ See you soon ~~

(2 more) Chemo Caps

Here are two more caps for Sandra.

The first is from Head Huggers and knit with 2 colors of

Berroco Chinchilla.

And this one is Fiber Trends AC4 knit with a cotton/acrylic blend

(can't find the ball band)

I hope they fit.

Thank you for your healing thoughts for her.

Please keep them coming in.

One little FO, a WIP, Ziti and Snow?

Good Monday Afternoon! Thanks so much for all your great responses to the last posts :-) It is back to the oboe - no more oddness and crazy reeds and music! This week's schedule is lighter than it has been for weeks. (YAY) Ballet starts Saturday, but no other services until then. I think my students will be happy to have their teacher being somewhat sane.

One of my acquaintances is beginning chemo for Inflammatory Breast Cancer, (NOT good) so I knit this little cap to give her some comfort. It was *really* quick and I will probably knit a few others. This form of breast cancer is rare and very aggressive. Please click on the link and read about it - we all should know what it is.

The pattern came from Head Huggers. And it the yarn looks familiar, it is. It is the Sirdar in her favorite color with which I just happened to be knitting a cardigan.

Said cardi is coming along slowly but surely. The back is finished as is the ribbing on both fronts. But I got a little sidetracked and will start again tonight.

And then I thought it might be nice if I actually cooked dinner tonight, so I took some sauce and Italian sausage out of the freezer, cooked up some ziti and put it in a casserole topped with a little mozzarella. I will put it in the oven just before my last student and Voila! Fast, easy and tasty.

I hope you all have a wonderful week. Maybe spring will poke it's head out for us to see :-)

Or not - here is the Dallas snow at 10:15pm, March 3, 2008!

Oboe Pics

Thank you for your interest. And since you were interested, I thought I would have Jim take a few pictures in my studio. I did sit to play the bass oboe in the orchestra, although I had a taller chair and used a cushion to add another inch.

So for comparison, here I am with my regular oboe

(Please excuse the goofy expression.)

And here with the Bass Oboe

And one more standing (for size reference, I am 5'2")

The bass oboe sounds on octave lower than the regular oboe and sounds like a cross between oboe and bassoon: a little bit buzzy but definitely an oboe.

(Did you notice the Fiber Trend Felted Clogs on my feet?)

So there you have it. Crazy, huh?!

Bass Oboe?! and some Knitting too.....

Thank you so much for your comments! I really enjoyed knitting Bamboozle and am pretty darn happy :-) with it. I wore it last weekend and felt wonderful knowing I knit it. I didn't care if anyone else knew because I knew. I feel like I am beginning to get a grasp on how to do this knitting thing.....

This is the 4th week of a 5 week working frenzy. The 1st week was RSO with Zeidwig, the 2nd was Ft. Worth Symphony with the 60's show: "The Beat Goes On", the 3rd was Wichita Falls Symphony, the 4th - this weekend is East Texas Symphony and next week is RSO again.

We are having a blast here in Tyler, TX. Seriously! We are performing Holst's Planets and I get to play the BASS OBOE!!! Have you ever heard of such a beast? I never played one until last week. Here it is next to my oboe so you can see the comparison:

My oboe is 23" long, the Bass oboe is 42"! It sounds one octave lower than normal.

Since I am in Tyler, I get to see yet another hotel room - and so do you!

Please pardon the backgrounds (in this hotel), but here is my current knitting.

First we have Jim's socks with the heels turned:

And here are the first 6" of the Basic Cranberry Cardigan

I am knitting it with Sirdar Country Style DK (acrylic/nylon/wool blend) on #5 KP Options. I will have some time tomorrow after the youth concerts in the morning and hope to get in a good knitting day.

I hope your weekend is full of joy and great knitting~

FO: Bamboozle

FINI!!

Bamboozle Lace Panel Tunic knit in Gedifra California, color #3111, tobacco - 8 skeins, on #6 KP Options.

Began November 07, finished February 08

And it even fits!

Bamboozle and Zeidwig

Here is Bamboozle so far - the shoulders are seamed, sleeves are sewn on and one side pinned. I think it will fit :-)

We had Richardson Symphony this weekend and it was like an out of body experience. Our guest artist was Mitchell Zeidwig and his act can be seen in part if you click this link. Go to the one titled "The Original" - it is the last one.

Not only is the act unique, but I read an article where he states he is from a small town NY. So on break, I introduced myself to Mitchell and here is our conversation:

Me: "I saw you are from a small town in uptsate NY, so am I - from Monticello."

Him: "I graduated from Monticello High School."

Me, eyes growing larger by the second: "SO DID I! What year?"

Him: "In the 19##'s." (The dates have been changed to protect the innocent)

Me, incredulously: "I graduated in 19##."

Him, with huge eyes by now: "19##!"

We were one year apart in our graduating class.

After we got over the incredible coincidence, we had a lovely conversation. We probably passed in the halls and never knew each other. The Executive Director take a picture of us with the Maestro:

Crazy, eh?!

Bamboozled again!

I say, we are just too darn busy! My plan was to get the sleeves done and blocked by this weekend. But nooooooooooooooo! So here is a little shot of one of the sleeves so you know I have not been shirking :-) my knitterly duties.

Both sleeves are about 14" right now with a goal of 18" before shoulder shaping. Stay tuned for more...... now that we can get back on line easily. BTW, the DSL provider gave us a great big $4.00 credit after I called and complained.

DSL Duh!

Thank you for all your great comments. The Barbie thing really was odd, but hey, a job is a job.

This weekend I am in Tyler performing with the East Texas Symphony. My dear friend Sharon is playing the Mozart Sinfonia Concertante and they needed another oboe. Lucky me - I play only that one tune and then I am done ;-) Should be home by 10:00 Saturday.

Fig - I am using Gedifra California yarn in #3111 (tobacco.) My LYS didn't have any Bamboozle yarn - I would love to try some, though. Bamboozle is moving along again since I ripped out both sleeves and started again, this time casting on only 40 sts instead of 48. The diameter of those sleeves were HUGE. They are better now, thank you.

Our Fiber Optic (DSL) has been down for the past 5 days due to some equipment failure by the provider. Last night it finally came back on. I cannot believe how crazy I felt with no internet access!

I hope to get a lot of Bamboozle done this weekend while sitting in this hotel room. I forgot to bring my camera, so sorry, but no pictures until Sunday.

It's off for a quick bite, then to the hall for rehearsal (I am taking my DH socks to knit while I wait). So later gators!

Barbie and Bamboozle

Barbie

So you think this is a strange title? Well! You weren't at today's concert, were you? I had the pleasure of performing with the Ft. Worth Symphony today in a Pops concert featuring Barbie.

Yes folks, Barbie.

The arranger and producer of this concert was Arnie Roth (remember Mannheim Steamroller? That Arnie Roth - very talented and innovative.) It was a great way to introduce young children to classical music, but also very commercial. It seemed like a 90 minute advertisement for the Barbie movies. I didn't even know they made Barbie movies!

Here is your view if you had been in the audience:



But here is the view from my side - looking out into the audience:

So while I was not playing, I took a shot of the screen Barbie was being projected upon. This is a bit odd - from the back side and looking almost straight up:

We were performing in the beautiful Bass Hall in Ft. Worth:

Bamboozle

Enough about work - want to see the front of Bamboozle?

I have about 6" knit on both sleeves so far.... I am on a quest to get this puppy finished soon!

Thanks SO much for all your comments on the last entry. My Mom loved her sweater and we had a wonderful visit. I am so lucky that at 87 years old she is of sound mind and physically well enough to travel all the from NY to TX and visit us.

Sorry about the spacing on this entry - Blogger is just very odd for me when it comes to formatting..

I hope you have a Healthy and Happy New Year! Happy knitting, friends.

Mom's Mr. Greenjeans

It is finished! Here is Mr. Greenjeans in Caron Simply Soft Shadows, and color is Autumn. I used #6 for the body and bottom design and #5 for the sleeve pattern. I also used three buttons instead of one for a more flattering look.

Here is Mom modeling:

And the back:

We are pretty happy with it.

:-)

What do you think?