Pink Baby Sweater + Purple Hat

Sarah sent me this picture of her daughter, Leland, wearing the pink baby sweater I showed in my previous post. A much better picture of the sweater (and an adorable baby). The pattern is in Weekend Knitting.


She made this hat for Leland, using Lamb's Pride Bulky. I think the pattern is also in Weekend Knitting.

Orange X 2 + FOs +

The orange socks are finished & are true crowd pleasers. They were a pleasure to wear on this rainy, dreary day.
The baby cable rib is easy to make:
Rnds 1, 2, 3:*K2, P2, rep from *
Rnd 4: *K2tog & leave sts on needle, knit first st & slide both off needle, P2, rep from *


Carolina made this baby baseball shirt during the most recent session of Knitting for Mom & Baby. The pattern is in Knit 2 Together


She found baseball buttons for the sweater. Brilliant!


For the same class, Sarah made this sweater for her daughter. The silver buttons look perfect on the pink side to side garter.


Joan has been crocheting hats for afghans for Afghans and brought in five more today.


My next socks will be red - Ruby Red merino yarn from Fleece Artist.

And which movie will win Best Picture tonight? I have seen Babel, The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine. Of those, I favor Little Miss Sunshine. It was funny and charming and the cast worked well as an ensemble. I thought Babel was interesting but pretentious. The Departed was excellent, it was directed by Scorcese, after all, but just wasn't as good an example of its gangster/thriller genre as Little Miss Sunshine was of a dysfunctional family on a road trip.

iPod Friday

1. Day After Tomorrow - Tom Waits
2. If You Want Me To Stay - Sly & the Family Stone
3. You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You go - Bob Dylan
4. Help Me Make It Through The Night - Kris Kristofferson
5. Bacon Fat - Taj Mahal
6. Ne Me Quitte Pas - Jacques Brel
7. I Had A Real Good Mother & Father - Gillian Welch
8. Jockey Full of Bourbon - Tom Waits
9. Gone But Not Forgotten - The Del McCoury Band
10. Blowin' in the Wind - Bob Dylan

And when the nano is not on Shuffle, I've been listening to West, Lucinda Williams' newest.

Finished listening to 1776 by David McCullough. I usually pass by books consisting mainly of battles but this one was so well written that it kept my interest. I also enjoyed listening to John Adams, McCullough's book from a few years ago.

Orange!

Another sock, knit in some delicious orange Trekking XXL. I am enjoying the subtle striping.


A detail to show the Baby Cables a bit closer. No cable needle needed.

Liz K. asked about using leftovers for baby socks and how I figure out if I have enough - grams or yardage. I'm not that organized, I just guess a size to make and, so far, I have been lucky. The rustic baby socks were a bit of a cliff hanger, I ended up with less than a yard of yarn left.


The hounds went to Pets at Play today and Maria Lyn sent this picture of Dogwood with some pals. You can see part of Peach in the picture. Stewart posted the pictures of Dogwood on The Yarn Lounge blog. He looks sweet, as usual, and she included a shot of his very long legs.

Small Socks & Dogs

As part of my contribution to afghans for Afghans, I have been making some little socks using leftover sock yarn. If you have the time and inclination, afghans for Afghans has a special need for socks. Check out their site for all the details.


These little guys are knit using the Farmhouse BoPeep yarn that I used for my rustic socks. I have worn those socks twice now. They are warm and comfy so they are definitely keepers.


These are knit using some Knit Picks Memories yarn in the Fly Fishing colorway.

Bets asked if my dad was angry when I got arrested. I remember that he was furious that my mother found out I had been jailed when a reporter called the house. He certainly wasn't surprised since I had been going to antiwar demonstrations for several years, even bringing friends home to stay at the house when there were demos in Washington.


Moose is on the left, Peach on the right. No daycare pictures of Dogwood this week. I did take him to The Yarn Lounge yesterday as a special outing just for him. Stewart took his picture so look for it on The Yarn Lounge blog some time in the next couple of days.

Friday iPod Again

1. For No One - The Beatles
2. Peoples' Parties - Joni Mitchell
3. Yesterdays - Ella Fitzgerald
4. Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat - Bob Dylan
5. Michelle - The Beatles
6. La To The Left - Lyle Lovett
7. All The Way With You - John Prine
8. You're The Next Thing To Heaven - Johnny Cash
9. CCKMP - Steve Earle
10. It'll Take A Long Time - Sandy Denny

And when I don't have the nano on shuffle, I am listening to Hem, Greg Brown and Lucinda Williams Car Wheels on a Gravel Road - the iTunes version with a live concert at the World Cafe included (worth the extra $$). My copy of her new cd, West, should arrive today.
I enjoy your lists and suggestions - keep them coming.

Projects & a lovely film

Finished the Farmhouse Bopeep yarn socks in Boysenberry. The socks seem a bit too rustic to me. I will wash and wear them and decide whether or not to keep them.


Making progress on the back of the Snap Cardigan. The Blue Sky Alpacas 100% cotton has been very pleasant to knit.

Watched Truly, Madly, Deeply tonight. What a lovely, small film, full of pleasant surprises. The main actors were Juliet Stevenson & Alan Rickman (looking very handsome). It was written and directed by Anthony Minghella who went on to direct The English Patient, The Talented Mr. Ripley and Cold Mountain.

Argh! Tagged Again.

Grace tagged me. I am supposed to list five secrets or things you wouldn't know about me. Some folks know the following but not most of you.

1. In 1960, when I was 14, I went with my parents to a Democratic Party fundraiser. All the candidates for the party's presidential nomination were there. I met John F. Kennedy and got his autograph. I still have it.

2. In 1963 I attended the March on Washington where Martin Luther King gave his I Have a Dream speech. I still have the program.

3. In 1968 I was arrested when leaving an anti Viet Nam war demonstration. Because my father was then Deputy Secretary of Defense for Manpower, my arrest made the front page of the New York Times and I was interviewed on the Walter Cronkite evening news.

4. In 1968 I heard Janis Joplin perform at the Fillmore East in New York.

5. In 1969, unlike many of my friends, I did not attend Woodstock. I went to a family wedding instead.

Snap Cardigan

This is my next sweater. It is a Blue Sky Alpacas pattern called Snap Cardigan. I like the deep ribbing and the wide collar.


I am using the Blue Sky Alpacas 100% cotton in Orchid. The color in the photo is a bit too blue. It shows my gauge swatch after being machine washed and dried. For a change I made gauge using the needles and yarn called for in the pattern. Usually I have to go down two sizes. I picked the color because Deborah challenged me to make something a bit less somber than my top down cardigan. I've actually knit 6+" of the back and am enjoying the switch to a cheery color that should also complement my eyes (green). You can't really see in the picture but there are six knots in one of the tails. That is to remind me of the size needle I used to knit the swatch. Can't remember where I read this tip but I find it to be very handy.


Another funny picture of the hounds taken from a dog's point of view. Moose's nose with Dogwood in the background.

The usual Friday iPod thing

1. Rainy Night House - Joni Mitchell
2. Me, Myself & I - John Prine
3. I Am A Man of Constant Sorrow - The Soggy Bottom Boys
4. Silver Linings - Jason Wilber
5. For No One - The Beatles
6. We'll Meet Along the Way - Hem
7. Meet Me In the Morning - Bob Dylan
8. Hello Stranger - Queen Latifah
9. Amazing Grace - The Blind Boys of Alabama
10. I'm Blue Again - Patsy Cline

Wow, no Serge! He wasn't even #11 (North to Alaska - Johnny Horton). I guess by now you have figured out that I listen to quite a bit of alt-country, folk and blues. Some new-to-me favorites are Beth Orton, Greg Brown & Hem. iTunes is kind of sneaky, I search for someone and end up downloading songs or whole albums. I am waiting eagerly for Feb. 13 when Lucinda Williams' new cd West is released. I've been listening to the single - Are You Alright - and expect the rest of the album to be as wonderful.

Socks, a baby & some dogs

Lorna's Laces, Shepherd Sock yarn in the Shadow colorway.


Farmhouse BoPeep sock yarn, #3s for the leg, #2s for the foot. The ball band called for #1s or #2s - no way would #1s work. The rib is the pattern from the International Socks of Doom.


This anonymous baby is sporting Carolina's EZ baby sweater (and matching hat) that she made in class last year. It has taken all this time for the baby to grow into it.


Peach is Moose's niece. She is staying with us until she finds her perfect home. She had one until she decided cats were the enemy. No, no bad Whippet! These pictures were taken today at Pets at Play.


Moose is on the left, Peach on the right.


And how could I resist posting this picture of Moose and mouth?

afghans for Afghans

A shot of everything collected so far! Contributions from Jane, Melanie & me. What a thrill to lay it all out and see.


Leslie is knitting this sweater for the collection. What a clever used of some of her bits and bobs of leftover yarn.

Thanks to all who are knitting for this worthy cause. If you have any questions, check out the afghans for Afghans website. I am collecting for their big project but if you want to knit some colorful hats or warm socks, the website has more information about those special collections and their due dates.

Remember that my local deadline is March 7 and you earn chances to win a gift certificate from The Yarn Lounge or the Baluch Afghan woven bag.

Silent Poetry Web in honor of St. Bride

Learned from Wendy's blog of the silent poetry in honor of St. Bride, thus my third post of the day.

Deerhounds

Admit the lives more valuable
than our life, than the bodies we bear
more beautiful: tall grey dogs,

what huntsman, what dogboy loosed you
on our slow hearts
and let you slaughter them?

Long dogs, you move with air
belling the vault of your ribcage.
You subdue the miles below your hocks.

Levelled out in speed across wayless country,
over the open grassmoor that is paradise,
the onset of your going undulates the ground.

The bracken hurdles below your height,
the rushes make way for you;
your hard eyes hold in sight the rapid hills.

Brace of deerhounds, a matched two!
Intent, all flame, is what quickens
those long throats thonged with leather.

Valerie Gillies

Doing Good & some FOs

The first part of this post is for those of you who live in the Richmond area. Please consider making items for the next afghans for Afghans shipment. 100% wool items are needed to fit all ages - socks, mittens, gloves, hats, sweaters, vests & afghans (no unsewn squares & no scarves). Since they say the more colorful the better, this is a great opportunity to use up scraps and stash. There is a collection box at The Yarn Lounge at 3003 West Cary Street, in Carytown, next to The World of Mirth. Deadline is March 7.


For every item you donate, your name will be entered in a drawing for either a gift certificate donated by The Yarn Lounge or this handwoven Baluch Afghan Carpet Bag. (They make excellent pillow covers.)

Now onto the FOs..........


Rebecca attends Sunday Yarn Church. You would never guess that just recently she was a beginning knitter. This is her first ever sock, knit from Austermann Step.

And the Malabrigo blob is no more. It is now a real sweater!

There is a picture of me wearing it on The Yarn Lounge blog which is more accurate as far as color (almost black) but this one shows the detail better. The Malabrigo was a dream to knit, very soft merino, although smelling somewhat of vinegar. I highly recommend this yarn. The pattern was Lisa Knits seed stitch collar cardigan - excellent directions and a quick knit.

Friday iPod Challenge with yet another Serge Gainsbourg

1. Blue Yodel #9 - Butch Hancock & Jimmie Dale Gilmore
2. Mississippi - Bob Dylan
3. Candy Man - Taj Mahal
4. Great Houses of New York - Hem
5. Makin' Whoopee - Dr. John Feat & Rickie Lee Jones
6. Standin' on the Corner (Blue Yodel #9) - Jimmie Rodgers
7. 32-20 Blues - Robert Johnson
8. Black & White - Serge Gainsbourg
9. O Death - Ralph Stanley
10. Long Time - Lightnin' Hopkins

What IS it with my nano and Serge Gainsbourg? I deleted a bunch of his songs but he still showed up on the challenge. And how about #1 & #6 - a tribute and then the original.

Next post - the malabrigo blob transformed.