Home again... ah the bed, the air conditioner it's all to good

I will take the time to tell the story of a four hour amtrak ride that took about 15 hours and a wonderful customer service agent who made our trip easier. I finished the shrug for my sister in law on the trip!!!!

Technology Foiled Again

I forgot to post about this, my precious knit lites, broke. As in they snapped at the point where the battery pack meets the shaft of the needle. I shouldn't use the plural they, it was really only one, but who wants to knit with a metal and a plastic needle? So I was really bummed, knitting on the train at night without my knit lites. I emailed Clover on Sunday, they replied early today less than 24 hours, and they will replace them as soon as I send in my defective needle. I mailed it today, it should be there by Wednesday or Thursday. In an ideal world I will be back to well lit dark colors by the end of the week. For the moment I have set aside the lace sampler and will look forward to resuming work when I get back. So J and I will be reading Lemony Snickets together on the train instead of knitting, my itty bitty booklight is still very trusty.

First SP Package on it's way

I am so excited, I have put together my first SP10 package, I am mailing from the train enroute to the doctors. I have put in clues to my home area, but only within a 500 mile range. I have already made plans for more surprises and can't wait to get started on them when I get back. I am way past smiling about the items I have sent and have on sticky notes on my computer to work on for the next shipment.

My latest and most inspired project.

Honestly, I will get the pictures done soon. DH DDog and I are headed to the city of Angels for a few doctors appointments. There is the neurosurgeon who just operates on brains, the neurosurgeon who just does peripheral nerves, the neurosurgeon who does spine, the neurologist who only see epilepsy patients and is an epileptologist, the orthopedic hip surgeon, the orthopedic shoulder surgeon and his expert internist. Sometimes we see all of them, sometimes we see one, this trip is four experts in two days, including xrays. Just a check up to make sure he is healing well.

So my most inspired and favorite project was started this weekend. My DH eyes are carbon fiber (not glass anymore) drop dead B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L bedroom blue. Really that's the color! The artist and medical professional who makes them colluded with J to create his latest pair of eyes (they get changed every few years, and J has had fake eyes since he was three, with many changes) to be the color that would win him girls at gigs. It worked, I married him didn't I? Well... it is time for a new pair of eyes, sometime they have him wear a bandage while they are making the new set. He hates looking like a pirate. So I am using very soft left over sock yarn to make an adjustable eyepatch with some flat braid and a bra adjuster. If this works out, I will take some more to Tony (the dude that makes the eyes) and contribute them to his trips to third world nations to give freely to those affected by eye disease or injury. It only seems fair to help the guy who helped my hubby get the girl. We are also trying to decide if he is going to stay with blue eyes or try another color for awhile. It's a surprise for Jason and Tony so the label is a warning to them not to read it.

Repost Secret Pal 10 Questions to make it easier to find.

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?Currently, I am *in love* with sock yarn, it is so much fun to knit a small sock or glove and have it just pattern itself. My blind DH likes it too, no annoying stranding in the back. I am not fond of rayon, slippery devil yarn at the moment. I hate repairing the stuff.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?I use cosmetic bags with little zip pouches, and I am currently knitting a berroco pattern to felt a needle case, my first felt project.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?I am a intermediate knitter, I can do everything but lace, reading charts makes me woozy. My grandma taught be the basic skills and my mom brushed them up.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?I am making a froogle list for my husband I will list it in my profile when it is done.

5. What's your favorite scent?Freshly made yeast bread, lemon trees in bloom, Pleasures by estee lauder, my husband freshly shaved, clean linens off the clothesline, and vanilla.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?Dark chocolate, I am a Trader Joes addict, I go there for a coffee taster, food sample and dark chocolate whenever I need a break. I loved Chantico when starbucks had it, I was addicted, miss that very much. It was chocolate ectasy.

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin? Ok laugh, I still like coloring books and colored pencils. I love logic puzzles. Solitaire Card Games. Cooking & Gardening we are planning a large garden this spring. Embroidery - Love it. I am currently tailoring and embellishing J's stage clothes so that when he returns to gigging he will have a "look". I am easily amused. I haven't attempted spinning, yet. I am a little stymied by crochet, but I haven't really applied myself to it yet either.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)I love bluegrass, 80s, Cat Stevens, Opera, Musicals, Jazz, Classical, I like it all, if there is anything I don't like...it's when music becomes noise or painful.

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?Favorite color on it's own Green. Favorite colors together, purple, blue. brown, a nice camo combination and neutrals. Things I can't stand? Lots of orange can bug me; but I am game to try anything.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?I am married, my DH is disabled, we have the cutest service dog in the world. My family lives nearby and we have the most awesome nurse who gives a hand. We are praying that as J recovers from his surgeries we will qualify to be foster parents and have little ones in our lives.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?Being beach girl, hats yes, scarves-if they are lightweight more decorative then warm, mittens, not often. I would love a poncho.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?I am totally into socks and fingerless gloves made with sock yarn right now. It totally rocks.

13. What are you knitting right now?A case to eventually felt and then hold my needles, a right hand glove to match the left one I finished this weekend, a red sweater for redsweaters.org, a dog sweater for Miss Penny, A lap blanket for my husband and pair of socks on circulars. I try to keep 4-5 things going all the time, so there is something always in the "easy" stage and something that requires concentration.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?Yes, they are the best, they inspire me!!!

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?My current favorite is knit lites, I just love that LED on the end. I like Bamboo DPNS although the way my ribbing turned out on the glove I am thinking about getting Addi DPNs I always try to move things to circulars to take out weight. I just got a pair of flexible straights, I think they may be my favorite.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?He's called my husband, he is quite reliable and works for cheez-its.

17. How old is your oldest UFO?18 months, I am considering ripping it down and making something that I want to finish.18. What is your favorite holiday?April Fools - it our service dogs birthday!!!

19. Is there anything that you collect?Musical instruments are strewn throughout the house, the cheap tourist attraction stuff you find in foreign countries. We have asked everyone we know who goes on a trip to buy us some musical trinket and then put it on display in our house. This year I am asking travelers to pick on 1-4 skeins of yarn while on vacation and send it to me to build a more varied stash. My husband and I are waiting with baited breath for the last Harry Potter book!!!! July is so far away.

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?No knitting magazines, I love interweave and knit.1 I am dying to look over books about using just a skein, ethnic socks, and the one about fixing your mistakes would be a huge help.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?Entrelac and illusion knitting are high on my list.

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?Yes, love it!!! I wear a size 8 so nice and medium, I like a turned loose cuff.

23. When is your birthday?Sigh.... Ground hog day.
Posted by Suzi Doe at 1:34 PM
Labels: Secret Pal Questions

Projects Still on the Vine

Felted slippers from some garage sale wool my neighbor bought for me, she keeps her eyes open for stash builders, great neighbors are hard to find. I'm using the Cat Bordhi pattern with two circulars. Made a couple pairs of socks out of the book as well, each one came out so well, I was amazed.

Finishing the fingerless gigging gloves for J, he wants little caps over his fingers and thumbs for cold evening shows.

Still have cables and stitching to do on the needle case.

Barbara needs a costume made for the ren faire so I have to duct tape her to a T shirt to make a dress form for the corset. I have been making costumes for others since my teens so this is a snap once I make a dress form.

Miss Penny has a couple of sweaters that are so sweet, two of them are my own design so I haven't quite figured out what the final touches are going to be.

I would also like to make a lightweight shrug from some stash yarn for my sister-in-laws birthday, but with a trip to LA in sight it may not happen. I have ordered her something special that I hope will arrive in time just in case.

Our garden at the community plot needs to be dug up and readied for planting by the first of April. We are going to our favorite nursery this week to get some seedlings, seeds and supplies.

Oh yeah and who could forget this is the week that secret pal starts. I have so many ideas, I am so excited, I can hardly wait for the email to get started. A note to whom-ever gets me, I am easily amused and pleased!

Back to my own knitting.

I finally finished the never ending felt project, I did it by hand in the sink. Which for those of you who have never felted the directions never include the following advice: DO NOT HAND FELT ON HOT HUMID DAYS, ESPECIALLY IN YOUR BATHROOM. I created such a balmy environment I triggered a seizure in J, oops! Heat is one of his triggers, so I guess I need to wait for cold days to felt or go to Mom's. So I was agitating and agitating it didn't seem to be working and then all of a sudden whoosh it shrunk, like magic before my eyes from 30x18 to 22x15 just like the pattern said it would. The self patterning yarn created this beautiful fabric and now all I have to do is finish the cables and attach them to create my very own needle case. I also felted a stretched out headband I made awhile back and it is not only nicer than ever but I dried it on my head it fits just right. Oh, and one other thing the books didn't warn me about, might as well wash the dog the same day you felt since the whole house is going to smell like wet dog anyway.

DH has crafting success!

J is a fine musician, but until now a hopeless crafter. We have tried knitting with success on a round loom that got boring, crochet which turned into hopeless knotting, macrame - same results as crochet and I finally got so frustrated I actually said, get a life and your own hobby. Meaning I don't have enough time to enjoy my own hobbies trying to teach you stuff. Well guilt got the better of me and I spent a few days exploring local craft stores in search of "do-able" crafts. I picked up a children's knitting machine in Barbie pink&purple, simple enough, just doesn't work well in bed, so not a healing time craft. I also picked up a children's loom, you remember the kind, the fabric loopies, plastic peg loom. A few modifications, using a size 11 knitting needle as a heedle, and voila he is making potholders. It's good therapy for his hands and excellent craft. I am now researching smaller more versatile looms for him to use as he learns more. We also ordered a basketweaving kit and a spindle for him to try his hand at yarn. Guess what my Mom is getting for her birthday tomorrow? Yep, potholders and a handbag I knit out of fabric strips from an old dress. Borrowing a few myer lemons from next door to make a lemon pie, yum!