Ravelympics: Day WOOOOO-HOOOOOO!!!!

At 12:30am Sunday, while watching a fabulous documentary on Mahalia Jackson, I finished the Long Forgotten Yarn Scarf. My medals are duly posted, and no, I don't expect anyone to kiss them (VBEG!!) It was a lot of fun making this scarf, and I feel downright diva-ish wearing it. It is one substantial scarf, even though it looks more like a pair of bizarre bell-bottom pants in this pic... Ruffles, folks, think ruffles...



I still have about four balls of the mystery cotton left and am trying to figure out what to do with them...some kind of little shawlette, I think.

You'll notice I changed the background pattern. I decided it would be a cool, fun thing to have the background of my blog reflect the stitch pattern of whatever project I'm working on. However...this is NOT the project I'm currently working on, it's a scarf I designed and made for P back in 2007. More info on the Don't You Dare Lose This Scarf can be found on my Ravelry page by clicking the link. Since I wasn't able to get a good closeup of the stitch pattern for my new project, I decided to use this one as a placeholder. Love the scarf. Love the fact that Mr. Loses Every Scarf He's Ever Owned still has this one three years later! Is he a great guy or what?

Last night, I joined the small but welcoming group of Knorthside Knitters. We had a lovely time knitting and chatting. My newest project is the Edgar scarf from the Fall 2005 Knitty. I'm using the Cento I had left over from the Sideways Hat and calling it "Edgar Cento". Has a nice ring to it, don't you think? Here's a picture, but it really doesn't do the colors justice. It's a dark, gloomy, rainy day here, so natural light is pretty dim.



I am also making another attempt at the Pretty Thing Cowl using the Serenity yarn I picked up a JoAnn last week. Only two rows in, it is already going better. I may end up loving this pattern after all. I think me and Mini Mochi just aren't meant for each other, sad to say.



We are experiencing our "spring thaw" here in Ohio...PRE-spring thaw is probably more accurate since we can get ice and snow all the way into April. P and I took Wilbur to a park near our house to try out his snazzy new harness and get some fresh air for all of us. Here are some pics (The hat and cowl I'm wearing are knit from some Jaspe Wool I had left over from a shawl. You can click on the links for more info on my Ravelry page). Oh, and thanks to P for taking the pics of Wilbur and me. You rock, Dude!







And a couple pics of the creek running along the path:





There is also good news on Wilbur's tummy! I am cautiously optimistic that we have finally solved the problem of the acid reflux - and without giving him a lot of medicine! I spent all day Friday researching home cooked diets and the problems he has been having and got the great idea to give him a small meal right before he goes to bed and immediately when he wakes up in the morning. We are on the third day of this regime, and my pupster is happy, energetic, and non-urpy again! WOO-HOOOO!!!!

This will be a busy week for me. I am planning to get together with two knitting groups this week, plus my Tuesday night choir rehearsal.

And...if I didn't need any other reason to want spring to arrive, I want to show off my Aerosmith toenails!



"Aerosmith toenails?", you say...well...what would YOU call them? The name of the color is..."Jaded"!

Ravelympics Day Whoknowswhat: Raindrops On Roses...

HA!!! There were a few raindrops when Wilbur and I were out today, but the roses are deeply buried in snow. After my massive post-a-thon yesterday, I'm a little short on material today, so I thought I'd give you a list of my Top 20 Favorite Things (in no particular order...)

1. Knitting and all things knitting related (yarn, rosewood needles, patterns...)
2. Gordon Lightfoot
3. Pizza
4. John Hartford
5. Lilacs
6. Mavis Staples
7. Genealogy (tying ancestral holes together...)
8. Gothic architecture
9. Old time fiddle tunes
10. Yoga (tying myself in knots...)
11. Border collies
12. Connie Smith
13. Snow (but not 30" of it all at one time!!!)
14. Sam Adams Cherry Wheat Ale
15. Singing
16. Anne Tyler novels
17. Gene Kelly movies
18. Blues harmonica
19. my Scion XB
20. Coffee (this should probably be #1 on my list...)

Yesterday, I ventured out for the first time since the latest snowstorm hit. It was a challenge getting out of my neighborhood (snow removal is notoriously spotty around here), but once I did get out, the main roads were clear.

My first stop was JoAnn where I went on a small yarn-buying binge.




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I went with the purpose of buying 3 skeins of Wool-Ease Thick & Quick to make the Knitted Scarf and Hat that was on the labels of the yarn I used to make the 3-Season Sweater Jacket. I love how the jacket turned out, and decided I wanted a scarf and hat to match.

I found my Thick & Quick...then I saw the Lion Brand Jiffy and fell in love with the color. I bought the last four balls they had. Luckily it should be enough for what I plan to make, the Snowy Triangle Scarf and Hat from Handknit Holidays . I might even have enough for a pair of wristwarmers to match!

The Serenity Garden Yarn was a true impulse purchase. It was on sale, there was one skein of green left, and I loved it. Believe it or not, I may make another attempt at the Pretty Thing. The one I made with the Mini Mochi is just a wee bit scratchy on my neck. I'd like to give this gorgeous pattern one more chance, sizing it down a bit to fit me better. We'll see how that goes!

Today, Wilbur and I headed out to Pet People, the world's coolest pet supply store. Since he still is having issues with the reflux, I decided to buy him a harness. I figure anything that takes stress off of his trachea and esophagus is a good, good thing. He enjoyed being made over (we're regulars there, so they know him well), and adapted to the new harness very well. We took a little walk in his favorite park before heading back home. All in all, a nice couple of days.

The Ravelympics scarf is almost 75% done.



I'm pleased with the way it's turning out, though I do have to keep a close eye on the pattern. I've frogged sections of it several times for stupid careless mistakes. Must count every stitch, even though the patten is very easy. I'm hoping to be done by tomorrow night...and might launch into that Pretty Thing as a second event. Who knows?

What are a few of your favorite things???

Ravelympics Day 1: Where's My Porridge?

I feel like frickin' Goldilocks!!!



My bag was packed, I was ready to knit...and knit I did! I only looked up from my work during dramatic moments in the opening ceremony...kd Lang's glorious version of "Hallelujah" and the mechanical malfunction. Couldn't they have crushed up a few of those little blue pills and poured them in the mechanism to get that thing to...rise...??? I knit about 11" of my scarf with the old, old yarn. Then I put it down and went to bed for the night.

I got up this morning all excited to photograph my amazing progress...until I picked up my knitting. Ugh...it all came back to me...why this yarn had been frogged from a sweater I made with it and hated, tossed into a grocery bag with nothing more than a label with the needles recommended for gauge (#8) and crammed into the bottom of one of my stash bins.

The yarn looks lovely and blue in the ball...kind of like faded denim once knit. The colorful, shiny slubs help somewhat, but it just doesn't look as good once knit. Worse...if you knit with the recommended needles, size 8, the knitting is heavy and hard as a rock, with no drape. This is a scarf...I NEED drape!!! It was also so tight that the yarnovers were pretty much invisible.

I photographed my work, made coffee and headed off to read the paper and stew about this a while.



After much stewing, breakfast, and a shower, I got out bigger needles, size 13, grabbed another ball from the knitting bag and started knitting. This was much better, nice drape, but the yarnovers were too big, so I frogged again. I got a pair of 11s and tried again...SUCCESS!!! As Goldilocks would say, "It was just right!" Nice drape, visible but not honkin' big yarnovers...even the color looks nicer. I reknit about 6" of the scarf before having to head off to other things, and I'll be a much happier knitter for my troubles. Granted, it will probably be the world's widest scarf, but a scarf with nice drape it will be. It won't weigh my shoulders down to wear it. YAY!!!!

If any folks from Columbus, Ohio, are reading and looking for something fun to do tonight between 8pm and midnight...come on out to the India Oak and catch my husband's band, The Subterraneans. Great obscure and not-so-obscure rock covers, and a lot of fun at a neighborhood bar with fabulous subs and chili. No...I won't be doing any knitting tonight...but if I remember my camera, I will post pictures.

No, I haven't been buried in the snow...not quite, at least

Color me embarrassed for letting my brand new blog sit idle for an entire week. It's not that I've been swamped with other activities. Ok...Tuesday...I went to the grocery at 6:30am to buy stuff to make vegetable beef soup (my husband's Hungarian grandmother's recipe), came home, cleaned the house, including vacuuming and mopping, did 7 loads of laundry, made the soup (one hour just chopping vegetables!), and shoveled the front porch, driveway and sidewalk and cleaned off the car after the five MORE inches of snow we got on top of the ten inches that fell a week ago. Yeah...not much time for blogging that day, though I did finish the Knit Picks Sideways Hat and wore it outside for the snow shoveling - it kept me toasty warm!!!

Saturday morning, my husband and I went out to dig out from that first ten inches. Here are a few fun pics of me, sweet Wilbur, and my bodacious snow angel.







Also on Saturday, I finished the Pretty Thing. It ended up being both too long and too wide to be a true neckwarmer thingie, but it folded over nicely into a cute little collar. Good thing, too, because I hated knitting this thing. Don't know why...it wasn't difficult, I liked the yarn I was working with...it just didn't click for me. The very cool thing is it perfectly matches three cotton sweaters that I never wear. It's like they've been hanging out in the closet just crying out for that little knitted lace collar to go with them. Gotta love it!!!

Since I'm new to this blogging thing and haven't figured out all the ins and outs and etiquettes, I want to thank Jo Ann from JoKnitWits Funky Life for stopping by to comment. Hope you and that gorgeous Sawyer boy are doing great!!!

And...since I know he pops in here to read about what I'm doing now that I don't talk yarn with him as much anymore, here's a shoutout to my beloved hubby, Pete. His birthday was Monday, and we celebrated very low-key this year, but that doesn't mean that he isn't the light of my life, the parmesan on my spaghetti and the catalyst for every good and wonderful thing that has happened to me since the day we met. Happy birthday, sweetie, I loves ya!!!!

Tonight I will be casting on for my first ever Ravelympics. I'll be competing with Team Knitgang in the Scarf Super G and the Stash Compulsory Dance, making a lovely lace scarf using yarn that has been in my stash since about 1985 (really!!!!).

So...what's on YOUR needles?????