Bloglines still down, but that's OK

My bloglines subscription is still screwed up. They responded to my email saying that I need to check the settings on Internet Explorer blah blah..... but I get the same thing on EVERY pc I log into (DH brings 1 or 2 home from work) Also, DH can log in to bloglines on my pc with NO PROBLEMS. (or at least he used to) But they have not responded to my latest plea for help.

SO, figuring it was a problem with my subscriptions, I exported them to my pc, and imported them to DH's bloglines and ta-da! He now has the very same problems..... (shakes head) I just know enough to really screw things up.

Now I'm frustrated and look at Google Reader... hhhmmmm she thinks, this looks interesting. I wonder if....... and I import my bloglines subscriptions to Google and TA-DA! IT WORKS! So, tell me what it up with that? (I also set up DH with Google reader since I screwed up his bloglines)

At least I can see everybody again feel back in the loop (so to speak)

When I was not messing around with my bloglines subscriptions... I crocheted these Ruby Slippers (for the shower I don't have to go to). Its Lion Brand Glitter Spun and some unknown white yarn. The pattern is the same Annie's Attic pattern for the Mary Jane's in Baby Bootie Boutique. These will go with the mini Bunny Blanket from the other day. Now that's done, back to some socks!

Oh and check back tomorrow! I'll be posting a pic of the March prize for spare squares.

Lots of FO's

First up I have my Monthly Dishcloth KAL plus a spare square. The orange is cotton, the purple is Wool Ease. A close up of the lace pattern. This was a lot of fun! Those dishcloth KAL's are a great way to learn new stitch patterns. The moderators make it so easy. P.S. Remember the Spare a Square? (post from 2/7)? I'll be posting a picture of the first prize March 1 with the drawing to be the end of the month.

Next up is my Baby Suprise Jacket KAL with the finished edge. I got a load of good suggestions on how to finish the edge and went with Frauhugs suggestion of a row of crochet matching the color, then there were a few ladies from the knitbabysuprise yahoo group that suggested a crab sittch, which I did in blue all around.
Here is a closer look at the neck with the crab sitch (or backward single crochet)
I'm pleased with how it turned out. Next time I'm going to do Lisa's suggestion (from the knitbabysuprise group) to use my crochet edging as the buttonhole loops.
(Kristy, yes crochet. It really makes a finished edge quickly LOL)

Now I think I would like some nice wooden buttons.....

Last up is a Bunny Blanket Buddy - a free pattern from the Lion Brand Site if you register with them. (for free). I like this! Perfect for those slobbering teething babies! I used Bernat CottonTots , size 7's and size 5's. You can see it just about fits on an 8.5 x 11 inch paper (the bunny is a bit larger) Also, the face looks pretty good too! No angry bunny here! This is for the baby shower for my mom's- cousin's- daughter. (Plus maybe this week I'll do Mary Jane booties)

Now to shovel the ice/snow/slush off the driveway.....

Bloglines lost my feeds!

Help! All of my feeds in bloglines are missing! Waaaahhhhhh! I feel lost and out of touch. sigh.

I have contacted bloglines and checked their FAQ & forum and have the same problem on 2 computers!

What am I going to do? arruugghh. I'm really hoping this gets resolved somehow. It will take a long time to find all my blogs again.

What feed reader do YOU use? Maybe its time to switch......

Saturday Sky

Still sick. Back later with knitting content.

Merry Christmas!

Hi Mom, its done.

Yes, its a Christmas stocking. Yes, I know its February. This is for my mom to give as a Shower gift (they know they are having a girl and have already named her...).. I'm not thrilled with my duplicate stitching and it was a big old butt pain getting the name to fit the front, but I think it works OK. Not great, but OK.I do love Santa's face... so Furry & Merry!

Now, back to my regularly scheduled knitting.... but wait! C**P. I think I need to make a gift for the same shower (even though I was not invited). Something small, quick and possibly something I have not done before.... (because I LIKE making myself crazy)

Need your opinion....

Ok, so I finished my Baby Suprise Jacket (KAL from the knitbabysuprise group). This one is stripy, obviously. I ran out of the rose/mauve color (gah, I know there is another skein around here somewhere) and just switched to the blue. I like how it looks, not too girly and its a good size, it easily fit a 2-4 year old.

Anyway the point or actually the question I have is, I want to crochet a bit around the neck and sleeves and am not sure which color to use. I do have a tiny bit of the rose/mauve left, but really should I use the cream? Or use the blue? I was going to do a round of single crochet and then maybe a little picot edge. Would that be too much? I just can't seem to make up my mind on this one... I think I coming down with the ick (DH still has it and the Mayor is getting over it)

I still need to get buttons too.... but I'm not in too much of a hurry since this is going in the bag for AI DuPont Children's Hospital.......

Somebody help me make up my mind!

Mad Skills

Mom's friend Mrs D (and Mr D) came over today to learn Quilling. I had made a wedding invitation border for one of her children (like 10-12 years ago) and she has always wanted to learn. Apparently its gaining popularity again with the scrapbookers.....

So we took these 1/4 inch wide strips of paper-

Twirled them around our pins and used a tiny bit of glue to make these- Then put them all together to make this-Pretty neat, huh?

OTN- Aran brain socks, Baby suprise sweater, 2 squares, and one Christmas stocking (at least that's all I can remember right now)

I'm off to work on the recipe book for pre-k...(I gotta learn to keep my mouth shut)

Happy Birthday, Gunnar

Yes, my baby is 1 yr old today!

They grow up so fast..

Happy Birthday!

I'm in a mood....

A stranger was seated next to a little girl on an airplane when the stranger turned to her and said,"Let's talk. I've heard that flights go quicker if you strike up a conversation with your fellow passenger."The little girl, who had just opened her book, closed it slowly and said to the stranger, "What would you like to talk about?""Oh, I don't know," said the stranger, how about nuclear power?""OK.", she said, "That could be an interesting topic. But let me ask you a question first:
A horse, a cow, and a deer all eat grass-the same stuff. Yet a deer excretes little pellets,while a cow turns out a flat patty, and a horse produces clumps of dried grass. Why do you suppose that is?"The stranger thinks about it and says, "Hmmm, I have no idea.""Do you actually feel qualified to discuss nuclear power, when you don't know shit?", says the girl as she goes back to reading her book.

Gifted

Lookie what I got in the mail on Friday.....

Lisa Souza sock yarn in the color St Valentine! A cool note card and a set of teeny, tiny Addi sock needles size 1's (really they are only 4" long!) SWEET!

This came as a big suprise giftie from Kristy over at Ok, What Next? and all because I bullied her into finally knitting socks! How cool is that? Really, she shouldn't have.... but I LOVELOVELOVE the yarn so I'm gonna shut up.

Anyway now I'm looking for just the right sock pattern for this yarn... maybe something a little lacy, or picot edge? Anyone have any ideas?

Saturday Sky +

Here is the icicle out the back door.... brrr still very chilly. Also, I'm trying something new.... here is a little video of Gunnar playing with me at the park yesterday. Yes, he is trying to body slam me! Ouch!


Maybe when we get the new pc I'll get some movie editing software and add music (can't seem to find any in a quick search for Windows ME, yes its an OLD pc). The camera only takes the pictures, no sound. If this works, maybe more silent films in the future!

*** except I just realized it makes my sidebar go tot the bottom of the page... how do I fix that??

Bainbrigde Scarf

Bainbridge Scarf click on link, look to the left and click Bainbridge for a pdf of the pattern. This is BRILLIANT!
I used only 1 skien of Frog Tree Merino, you can see how much is left over in the top photo. On 16" size 7's, this is pretty quick and totally usable. Here is another shot of the scarf on my favorite model. (yes he has other clothes besides his pajamas. breakfast is just a good time for pics)
Love It!

Now back to the many KAL's and WIP counting....

Stay Warm

St. Valentine's Day Slizzard

Slizzard= rain, sleet, snow and ice.

School cancelled, doctor check up cancelled.... what to do but open gifts! Lookie what the Mister got for me: Kara Irish Pottery, Aranware The Teapot, Sugar and Creamer to go with the pitcher and serving bowl I got for Christmas! He is such a good man and I'm the luckiest woman in the world.

Next up, slizzard. A Photo Essay

Hopefully this will be the worst snow we get this year. Not too bad, but enough to mess up roads and even today is still tricky.

Tomorrow, another FO.

The Trouble with Tribbles

I'm totally ripping off Abigail's post from yesterday. She made them look so cute, I could NOT help myself! I did these all yesterday with leftovers from other dishcloth projects. Quick and easy, just how I like'em! (plus great knitting for the doctors office... the Mayor has "The Cough" so off to the pediatrician's office we go)

Here are some Spa Slippers I crocheted for the Spa Knit on Saturday. Everyone who came into the shop got to put a ticket in the bowl and a random winner was chosen at the end of the day! Fun!
I really need to get my WIPs organized and prioritized. I have way too many projects going on right now and feel like I'm spinning my wheels. Plus I need to knit a Christmas stocking for my mom to give as a gift it needs to be done in the next 2 weeks.... I guess I should start working on that first...
Just one more tribble........

Saturday Sky

Out the back door.... its still FREEZING!

Mock Moc

by any other name is still a Dickey!

The "OMG its freaking COLD" panic knitting continues. Finally little something for myself because, I still have to walk the dog and HE doesn't care, he has a fur coat. So I noodled up this-
I was going to call it a Tricky Dickey (let's see how many hits that gets me!) but when I showed DH, he said "Cool! A Mock Moc" So there ya go.

Its perfect. Exactly what I wanted... just a bit to cover my neck and tuck in my shirt. See? Ignore the fact that I am wearig a t-shirt, I was too lazy to change for the photo shoot.
Even better, it took only ONE SKEIN! Just a hair under 85 yards to be exact. Here are my leftovers and notes.
I decided to share, after all its cold lots of places and knitters & their famlies need to be warm. Also, these would make great gifts if I do say so myself!

Mock Moc
Yarn: Maggi's Merino Aran, 50g 85 yards (or any yarn giving you approx 5 spi, your mileage may vary)
Needles: 16 inch size 7's
Gauge: approx 5 stitches per inch
Notions: stitch marker, yarn needle

Cast on 80
Place marker & join to knit in the round
K2, P2 around for approx 2.5 inches (I got 14 rows)
bind off 10 stitches (shoulder)
K2, P2 over the next 30 stitches (leave them on your needle)
bind off 10 stitches (shoulder)
K2, P2 over the next 30 stitches
TURN and K2, P2 back
Keep knitting K2, P2 back and forth in rows until you have about 4.5 inches and Bind Off

Re-attach yarn on the leftover 30 stitches and K2,P2 for 6 inches or until you are almost out of yarn and Bind Off.

There are so many ways you can vary this... change the yarn, do a K1, P1 rib, or even maybe some ragaln increases and short rows for the section under your shirt!

If by some chance anyone knits this, send me a picture, OK?

Don't forget, Can you spare a square?

Can you spare a square?

Train of thought........

There are a bunch of people on the MonthlyDishcloth yahoo group who have posted that they knit 2 cloths at the same time. I thought, "Brilliant!". But do I really need a second cloth?

Remember I knit a bunch of fun fur hats for Kate? Well, before I committed to sending them out I wanted to check with MY local children's hospital (where The Mayor has unfortunately spent some time) , AI dupont Hospital for Children (Wilmington, DE) if they needed fun fur hats. Nope, not hats but they DO need blankets. Oh.

Anyone see where this is going? Yup. 2 cloths at once and I get squares to make blankets for the children's hospital! "Brilliant!"

Here are my first 2 squares:

ASL I Love You My idea is to add one of these squares into each blanket. The blue is cotton, the pink is Wool Ease

Next up is the Monthly Dishcloth KAL:

Don't you love the hearts? Both are knit in Wool Ease.

There are so many cute dishcloth patterns, flowers, butterflies, cars and trucks. These blankets would be perfect!

Next on the train of thought......

I could use some help. Why not post this on the Internet? Anyone have an extra square they can spare for a kids blanket?

Better yet, lets DO THIS ALL YEAR AND HAVE MONTHLY DRAWINGS!

So here is the deal:

I will collect squares 8x8 or 9x9 (face it, dishcloth knitting is not perfect and if I get enough I can match them up). If you are interested, email me at cbast25 at yahoo dot com and I'll send you my snail mail address. Put squares or dishcloths in the subject link.

The squares should be washable (kids, ya know?) cotton, wool blend, even acrylic, you get it.

For each square you send you will get a ticket in the bowl for the monthly drawing. Prizes will include (but are not limited to) yarn, jewelry, handmade stitchmarkers, handspun yarn, etc.

Prizes will be drawn the last day of the month and posted for all to see. (first drawing to be, um, the end of March?)

What do you think? Anyone? Anyone? Can you spare a square? Please?

*** note added 2pm... the moderator for the dishcloth group posted this request to the Yahoo group and HOLY COW! I have had tons of people responding! Knitters ROCK!

If you would like to send a square you can send it to my work address: (or email me )

Spare Squares c/o

Technicolorsheep

16 E Eagle Rd.

Havertown, PA 19083

Baby its COLD outside

In a panic because of the extreme cold coming & here this week, I knit mittens and a hat for the Mayor. (because this is how my brain works) His previous mittens were a bit small and I wanted them longer in the cuff so new were in order.
I knit mittens with a longer cuff and sized to fit me, then felted them to a smaller size. These will fit this year and next! They will be super warm even when wet. I'm thinking I should do a cord to attach to his coat.... but 5 is an iffy age for mitten cords... what do you think?

The hat came out a bit larger too, sigh. It will fit for a while. I know better and yet keep making the same mistake and not trusting my knitter instincts. Really, how hard is it to take 10% off the spi x head circumfrence?
I wanted a hat with ear flaps and got a helmet hat. Oh well, it works.

Projects:
Felted Mittens for the Mayor
yarn- Cascade 128
Needles- Denise 10.5
Pattern - mostly from the Knitters Handy Book of Patterns, some of my own preferences.

Helmet Hat
yarn- Cascade 129
Needles- 9's & 10's
Pattern- again some from the Knitters Handy Book of Patterns, some my own preference and I estimated the the ear flaps by putting the hat on his head and marking where I wanted them to go!

**note I really need to make a note in hat section of the book to decrease ALL cast on's by 10%. My hats may fit better.More tomorrow.............

Forced to Conform

I wanted to update a post yesterday can could not log into the old blogger.... no way, no how. I kept getting prompts to upgrade and there was no way around. Drat. So now I have officially upgraded to the *New Blogger*. Crap.

More potty mouth to follow, I'm sure.......

Saturday Sky

I love how the ice on the branches is reflecting the sun.....

Trade Complete

Here are the socks I knit for my potter friend. Remember Tradsies?
Look at those matching stripes!

Finished, delivered and pronounced Good. She put them on right away and KEPT WEARING THEM. No better compliment than that.Even one of the kittys inspected and said they were OK. Yarn- Austermann Step color 11 Dune

Needles- Knit Picks size 1's (2 circs)

Pattern- vanilla sock recipe

I love tradsies!

**** added later- his name is Tango