Ruana & Cable Sweater Progress

I know it doesn't look like much, but I really truely have been working on it. I couldn't resist my new chunky yarn and started yet another sweater soI think I've put in two (2) hours into weaving, yes I know it's shameful but true, must make note to self NO MORE NEW YARN!! hehe as if that really makes a difference. I have some free time this weekend so I'm going to try to finish it up and have a posting and pic on Monday. On the cable sweater project I have completed the arms **happy dance** which I will also be attaching this weekend . I've started re-designing the collar portion I'll be working on that at lunch time, so I can be done with (hopefully) the next two weeks.

In other news I got a new CAR!!! I'm so excited it's sooooooooo cute I've been wanting a sports car for well forever!! I had one when I didn't have (ahem) kids, *wink wink*, but since they are all graduating and drive YES!!! I don't need a SUV anymore!! What I'd get check it out here http://www.pontiac.com/solstice/ yeah that's what I got. Really cool, or as my adult children would say "off the hook, it's kicking" "old lady with a twin turbo charge" I really didn't appreciate the last one, but you know to a 19, 18, & 17 yr old - 41 is ancient.

Update on the new Ruana

I decided to stop calling this one a shawl, and call it by it's final outcome a ruana. For those of you who have not seen a ruana or want to see a really great ones, here is an awesome website for these http://a-wee-bit-of-ireland.stores.yahoo.net/ruanas.html I love the red one here. If you knit check out the fisherman's sweaters, beautiful cable work on those. Of course my ruana will be different in which I will have to points in the front and one in the back. After having to frog the first attempt this is the second try . I likey this one! Although I'm not getting the same effect as my sample one below, I hope it will show up after I remove it wash it etc.. If not then it will still be a great ruana for me. I'm going to have to figure out what to do with the fringe thingy I really don't like fringe that much, I may cut it short or do some kind of macrame knot to it, I don't know yet, and quite frankly I'm really well away from that, but since I can already picture it in my mind it's hard for me not to plan ahead. I received my booklets from Linda Smith's Tri-Loom http://www.geocities.com/elelsmith/and I have to say they are packed with information very well written with content page, and a resource page, her personality really comes through in her writing style. Lots of different weaving techniques on the tri loom and very interesting, my only complaint is that for me, I would have liked more photos. I'm a visual learner so pictures to me are very helpful with instructions, but I'm going to experiment on my small loom with the weaving patterns and then take digitals and put them in each section this way down the road when my mind has forgotten what it looked like I have it in the fiber library, which I'm slowly building up.

The second pic is of my new yarn called "beach" with this one I'm planning a sweater which will be chunky warm and oh so soft, can you tell I'm going to really like this one? I going to knit up a swatch today and see how the gauge is on my purple KK loom.

Fun Stuff

Your Personality is Somewhat Rare (ESTJ)

Your personality type is serious, fair, independent, and competent. Only about 9% of all people have your personality, including 7% of all women and 11% of all men You are Extroverted, Sensing, Thinking, and Judging.

How Rare Is Your Personality?

MY DUH MOMENT!!

After finishing my 4th set of 12 plus 4 repeats on my shawl I noticed that I wasn't getting the effect I so love with the cut thread technique. Well, that's because I did WRONG ARRRRRRGHHHHHH!!!!!!! So take it apart I must, (in Yoda's infinite wisdom) which I did this morning OUCH!! Back to square one or should I say peg one, hehehe. THIS WAS THE DUH MOMENT OF THE WEEK!!

NEW SHAWL, CABLE SWEATER AND MORE

It didn't take me too long to get started on a new shawl. This one will be a ruana, I'm going to make two shawls and crochet them together to make the ruana (this one is actually for me). I started last night and decided to do 12 blocks of heather grey and 4 blocks of cream white. You can almost see it in the picture, I figure once I get some more done I'll be able to notice the color change. (keep watching for progress pics).

On the cable sweater front I had to frog the hoodie, yes it was painful, but I couldn't get it to attach to the sweater the way I wanted it to so, I shifted gears and changed the pattern, (it's easier to do this if your the designer and not a pattern hehehe, trust me I use the word designer very loosely) I'm now knitting a collar instead. If I counted right ( you all know that's my challenge counting stitches and rows) the collar should work out just right. I'm planning to make a loop for a button but I'm not really sure yet I'll have to see once I finish what kind of details I will add.

On a happier note I received my Jo-Ann package today with you guessed it more yarn!!! It's called "Beach" it's blues, greens, lime and turquoise terrific deep ocean colors, I LOVE IT. The yarn is Red Heart Grande, super bulky. I'm planning another sweater, on the larger gauge looms the KK long looms I'll have to do a swatch and see what would work out.

I just found out that my kids will be graduating different days one on May 29 and the other on June 1, which is the week of Memorial Day on Monday, guess who's going to miss a lot of work?? WOOHOOO!!!! I'm so proud of them, to think not so long ago they were babies. Scary how time flies by.

I was emailed a website that I thought was so inspiring check it out you wouldn't regret viewing this presentation. http://www.pathways-to-peace.com/ Touch the ‘view presentation’ button

Peppermint Stick Shawl

Modeled by Sexy Susan (my usual model my daughter is on strike and soon to be off to college so I have to get use to Susy LOL).

Finally it's finished!!!!!!!!

Peppermint Stick?! Well, of course there's a story behind that name, one of the more talented ladies on my TriLoom Group gave my shawl this name, she's followed my annoying progress for awhile and I liked it so it stuck. I crocheted the edge which to my surprise did not take as long and wasn't as despicable as I thought it would be. I'm a professed non-crocheter, not because I don't know how, but because as a kid my grand always gave me a summer project to complete and she only knew how to crochet so guess what I spent summers learning and ripping out and doing over. Well now that I've gotten older I can really appreciate what she taught me, cause I really haven't forgotten, even though I haven't crocheted in years, just little edges here and there. Funny how your perspective changes with age.

Well some of the things I learned make this one; patience is not only a virtue but an absolute resolve when working on the large loom. Yes the process is beautiful but it is not painless, of course I have boo boos in it but now I know better. My loom is 7' with the nails 3/8" apart with 756 nails / 252 on all sides. The shawl turned out to be 6'2" across the hypotenuse, which I thought would be really large but in wrapping myself around in it really wasn't enough material , I'm a size 12 or x-large.When I first got it off the loom the fabric was as stiff as a board I use Red Heart WW yarn since I planned to give it to my grand and I knew she would wash it and dry it in the machine, I needed something durable. After I washed it and air dried it soften up quite a bit but really doesn't drape much. I think it's because the nails are so close and the fabric is so dense, but since this is the first I'm not sure, but I will figure this out. Since I'm allergic to natural yarns, I knew I needed to work with acrylics, mostly 4ply WW usually my preferred choice of yarn is Caron's Simply Soft in whatever color, it's really soft and fluffy and everything I make with it I love. The next shawl will be a cut length shawl I've made a few samples on my small tri and I really like the concept and the look. I'm going to use sport weight yarn and make a ruana and see how that works out since the yarn is thinner maybe I'll get the drape I'm after, if that's not the answer then I guess I might pull out every other nail and try again. I'll keep you posted and hopefully this project won't take 5 months to complete since I have to do two shawls to get the one ruana (hehehe). Cut Thread Sample (next big shawl project)

WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN UP TO?

Cable sweater back, sides and part of sleeve

Tri Loom Shawl Completed!!

Well I finally finished the triloom shawl I've been working on since November, why so long?? No excuses I've been lazy about it, plus since it was for my grandmother, I just couldn't work on it without crying, which hinders sight and enthusiasm. Now my only concern is how to finish it off, fringe, crochet edges or spoolie knit edging? I didn't give it much thought past finishing it last night maybe tonight I'll come up with the answer. It looks squiggly in the center, this is because I could push the yarn over as I wove, my pick was not really that great for this loom, but I got an afro pick with long teeth and the next one will be better. I can't believe I'm already planning the next one ;o) (as is with all fiber addicts LOL)

On another note, I've been working on my cable sweater, at work on my lunch time and I'm getting close to finishing. YES! I'm really excited about this one since it's my first sweater. I've notice that I have some mistakes on the sleeves that need to be fixed, I increased more on one than the other, and the hoodie has one leg that attaches to the front longer also, must be somethin' up with the counting of rows hehehe.. hard to watch Maury and knit and be part of a lively conversation in the lunch room but all in all I think it's going to turn out great. I have about 20 more rows to go and then I should start assembling the back and sides. Can't wait!!

MINI VACATION

PINEWOOD ESTATE CHALET SUZANNE HISTORIC REG.

PINEWOOD GARDEN FOUNTAIN

ENTRANCE AND BOK TOWER

CHELET SUZANNE'S DINING ROOM AND ENTRANCE TO THE INN

The hubby and I went on a mini vacation this weekend to celebrate our 12th year anniversary!! We've been taking mini vacations together without the kids since we first got married, we alway take a family vacation then we take our "real" vacation. I have to say it has been the best thing we have ever done for our marriage and relationship "we time" is always the best. We went to Chalet Suzanne, which is a country inn in Lake Wales, Florida you can check out the website here http://www.chaletsuzanne.com/. We had gone there for part of our honeymoon and decided it was time to re-visit. I love this place, as you drive into Lake Wales which is in the central part of Florida by Lake Okeechobee, you hit the orange grove farms, since it has been unseasonably warm all winter, the groves have blossomed early, what a wonderful sweet smell, of orange blossoms everywhere, it just takes you by surprise. Every time we walked out of our suite we would smell that wonderful aroma, someone should bottle that stuff they'd make a ton of money. We visited Historic Bok Sanctuary http://www.boksanctuary.org/ where there is a 205 ft Gothic and art deco Carillon Tower which has bells in it that is played by a carillonneur. On the property there's a Mediterranean Revival home called Pinewood Estate, it was the winter home for Mr. C. Austin Buck, an early 20th century industrialist. This house was beautiful, (I love old architecture, houses and public buildings) all of the doors and windows were hand made carved by woodworkers, tile brought in from Spain, Italy and Cuba (which is my birth country) Lots of interesting furnishings and history. We weren't allow to take photos of the the interior but boy did I get photos of the exterior and surrounding gardens. The next day we did the real Florida Tourist Trap and went to Universal Studios, I hadn't been there in six (6) years, can't say I would go again anytime soon, way too many people and I didn't feel it was worth the $77.00 /plus tax per person to get in. Well needless to say we enjoyed our anniversary and had a great time, I can't wait to do again!!