It's tax time!

Uncle Sam apparently does not think that I have enough yarn, so he is sending me money to be put away for the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival in 3 months and 5 days. How nice of him!!!!! Maybe I'll even use some of that money on some lamb burgers and sheep milk cheese. Yummy.

Too bad I can't think of anything to knit for that Uncle Sam to thank him. Maybe I'll just buy some of the flag sock yarn for myself instead. Perhaps I'll even have to have those Ravelry girls look into some patriotic knitting projects for me.

In the mean time, I'm going to have to make a dent in that stash of mine or there will not be room for yarn from Uncle Sam's money. Isn't there always a catch!

Perhaps I'm really supposed to buy another cedar chest with that money. Yeah, that's the ticket! Then the cramped living conditions my yarn has been subjected to by their 'slum lord knitter' could be alleviated. Oh, the options.

I must knit some to clear my head. Happy Knitting!

First up, a finished item photo. This would be my daughter's foot as she poses in the freezing cold one morning. Mommy told her that she could role her eyes all she wanted to, her eyes were not going to be in the picture!

I was lucky enough to run into the Miss Storm Moon herself this weekend and let her know how loved these socks are. I believe she was pretty grossed out when I told her the duration of time the child wore the socks for, but was flattered that many 'tweens' are now coveting her yarn.

Moving on to works in progress, Friday was the start of our Christmas Knitalong! I did not finish my project on Friday, but I did get a lot done. The evening was spent at Javajem's house with the guys kicked back playing video games, and my daughter and Javajem sewing. I didn't get a picture of the finished project, but my daughter whipped up one cool bag thanks to Javajem and her sewing lesson.

Saturday was the annual Bull and Oyster Roast. Many knitters were in attendance, but no needles were going (although many finished projects were being worn). It was good to see people that I do not regularly have time to hang out with very often.

Yesterday was 'Mansfield Park' on Masterpiece Theater's complete Jane Austen series. I don't think much knitting is getting done during these programs, but I am enjoying them!

Remember, today is 'Knitting for Me Monday', so take some time out for you today and knit yourself something wonderful!

Happy Knitting!

Tomorrow starts our Christmas Knit-A-Long! Every month on the 25th we are knitting up Christmas presents. This gives us a head start on those last minute woes.

Remember, knitting something you might covet for the next 11 months is probably not wise. We all know that we as knitters have no will power (if you are doubting this, take a look at your stash right now). We are not knitting our Christmas presents on these days, we are making our lives easier come next December!

Leave me some comments about what project you are planning to knit. This might inspire others who are looking for ideas.

My first project is a simple Flower Washcloth from Melanie Falick's book 'Weekend Knitting' that I will wrap homemade soap in. (Homemade in someone else's home, of course!) This is perfect for favorite teachers, youth group leaders, etc.

Happy Knitting!

She has been wearing the Pretty in Pink socks for 53 hours and counting. Including the 2 hours in rental bowling shoes.............

On to the next pair of socks. 'Miss Cathy who talks to Alpacas' gave me the most wonderful gift for my birthday. Sock Yarn. The same sock yarn we both were after when we were cruising the Delaware yarn stores together and stopped into 'Sea Needles' in Bethany Beach. Thank you, Thank you Miss Cathy! I'm hoping to turn the heel tomorrow.

It has been calculated that if I knit a pair of socks a month it will take me well over 5 years to use up my stash of sock yarn (you do the math). For this reason, it's time to up the sock production to two pairs a month. After all, Maryland Sheep and Wool is only 3 months and 11 days away. We all know I'll be buying sock yarn there!

Off to hang with the kids, Happy Knitting!

The Washington Nationals have just e-mailed me to assure me that they were indeed having another Stitch 'N Pitch this year at their new stadium! Yeah!

If you did not attend last year, you missed a REALLY great time! Free stuff, lots and lots and lots of knitters, beer and stadium food, Krispy Creme donuts as we left, and a hot/ funny cop escort us to our vehicle. Is there anything more in life? I ask you, is there?????????

The date has not been finalized but I will pass it along as soon as I get it.

For those of you who did not TEVO the Jane Austin movie on Sunday night 'Northanger Abbey' and were watching the big football game instead, you missed a sheep filled classic movie. Congrats to all you knitting Giants fans out there. I know there are a ton of you.

See you all at the Lakeside Cafe on Thursday night.

Happy Knitting!

Happy 12th Birthday to my wonderful children!

And for those of you following along, yes the girl child has the Storm Moon Knit Socks in the Pretty in Pink colorway on her feet. As a matter of fact they have already been in rental bowling shoes!

Enough said.

This week in knitting:

*Sunday Jan. 20th 9pm- The Complete Jane Austin on PBS knitting group This week's movie is 'Northanger Abbey'
*Monday Jan.21st- Knitting for Me Monday
*Thursday Jan. 24th 6-8pm Snow Day for the K1P2 Sit 'n Knit second birthday party at the Lakeside Cafe.
*Friday Jan. 25th Christmas Gift Knitalong

Is everyone ready to start those gifts on Friday? Only five days until we start. Spread the word!

Happy Knitting!

I got to use my new felted mittens to clear the snow off of my car after work today. Yeah! I'm so glad that I knit those.



My second sock is ready to have it's heel turned just in time for my daughter to swear that these must be being knit for her birthday coming up very soon. She, who is a great knitter but does not like to do so, even picked the darn things up to knit a round. I'm starting to think the kid has a point. But can I really give the 'Pretty in Pink' colorway to someone who doesn't even know that this was a movie- and is still too young to see said movie?????????

Only eight days left until we start to knit for Christmas 2008. The 25th of every month will be dedicated to knitting gifts for the upcoming holidays. We all know what a bind we get into at the last minute, so lets get a jump on those gifts together! Pick your pattern and yarn this weekend so that there will be no excuses for not being prepared next Friday.

Enjoy the snow, and Happy Knitting!

Sunday was the start of the Complete Jane Austin on PBS Masterpiece Theater. This of course means one thing to a true Jane Austin knitting fan- Sit 'n Knit time!

'Persuasion' was the movie being shown this past Sunday and it was wonderful! It was so good that I must admit that I didn't knit at all at the end because I was on the edge of my seat. I had to find out if Anne Elliot would get her man, the hottie Captain Wentworth!

I love the line Anne Elliot delivers, "The one claim I shall make for my own sex is that we love longest, when all hope is gone."

Next up is 'Northanger Abbey' this Sunday at 9pm. How exciting!!!!!!!! Grab your lace and your socks and turn it on to PBS.

Happy Knitting!

Friday night at the National Aquarium in Baltimore is the best time to go. They have a program called 'Friday After Five" and they reduce the admission to only $8 after five o'clock. Considering it is usually $18 per person to get in, most families in the area attend on Friday nights.

I had a non-knitting house guest breaking my measuring tapes and causing general disruption, so off we went to the Aquarium on Friday night.

We were greeted by this awesome fish sculpture outside the Aquarium. I know the fish is supposed to be wrapped in a net, but it looked too much like a ball of yarn for me to pass it by without a photo.

Once inside we got to see great animals (some of them were celebrating the weekend by getting a little busy and bring on the bow-chicka-bow-wah). One of the best non fornicating animals of the evening was one I knew the knitters would appreciate.

This fish is called a California Sheephead fish. It not only has a great name, but a great story. Turns out this fish starts out a female, and after about 7 years it turns into a male. Yep, you read that correctly. Now every female that was in attendance was very shocked by this info, and many considered becoming shark bait prior to letting this occur. I think that point of view might be a bit harsh. Why not change first, and then decide whether to become shark bait?

I must recommend the area below where the sharks are for knitting. They play very relaxing music where the sharks are (I couldn't tell if it it was to calm the sharks or the visitors) and you can hear the music where the benches are. You also get to watch the stingrays in this area. The only downfall is the lighting is not great, so I wouldn't work on a dark project.

Remember that today is 'Knitting For Me Monday'. Hope you are knitting yourself something great!

Happy Knitting!

It's picture time!

First up is the first finished project of 2008. The Old Shale Scarf.


Next up are the Felted Mittens. I doubt with the winter we are having that I'll get to use these anytime in the near future, but a gal can hope.


These are the amazing Storm Moon 'Cyndi Lauper' socks I've been drooling on. How fun are these?!?


Last are the work in progress Storm Moon 'Pretty in Pink'. Horrible last minute photo, but I'm loving every stitch.

Yeah, I finally posted pictures! See, I actually do finish projects. Hopefully, if I keep up with photographing all my knitting I'll actually know what I knit at the end of this year. I couldn't tell you at the end of 2007 what all got done because almost all of it was stolen from me by those non-knitters

Off to knit more of my socks!

Happy Knitting!

Everyone who has seen me knitting the Pretty in Pink socks from Storm Moon have all said the same exact thing to me. "That would make awesome fingerless gloves!"

Now, we are talking a great deal of non-knitting people here! Considering that I was going to do just that with the yarn in the first place, I am feeling the need to acquire more of this yarn so that I can indeed make some fingerless mittens out of this yarn. Because let me tell you, I am NOT denying my tootsie toes this great yarn experience.

Already the girl child is circling the knitting. I knew I should never have let her see it!!!!!!!! I have warned her that she could have them only after prying out of my cold dead hands. She does not seem impressed with this threat, and looks willing to test the theory. I feel a battle ready to be waged. She's going down! It will bring a whole new meaning to the term Sock Wars!

Check back tomorrow, I hope to post finished project 2008 pics tomorrow night.

Happy Knitting!

I'm on fire!

Not only did I finish my Storm Moon Cyndi Lauper socks yesterday (and took a picture of them), but I got straight to work on my Storm Moon Pretty in Pink socks that my knitting fairy (insert Miss Sheila without her own project to knit) started for me. I am using the 12 inch circular Addi's for the first time and I am digging them. My double pointed needles are much faster, but the circulars are easy to pick up and drop quickly, so I was knitting a bit at work today. Heeeeeeeeeeeee!

Here's hoping my finished pics will get posted for all to see this weekend!

I was very excited yesterday when I not only finished my socks, but I also rearranged my sock yarn. I have every single skein for socks in one piece of furniture now! Granted it's five drawers worth of yarn, but it is at least all in the same spot. My joy was quickly squashed when Large Marge asked me how many socks I had ready to knit in my stash. After I counted, even I was a bit shocked and amazed at the tremendous volume of sock yarn I own. So much for the joy of containing it in one area!

Off to welcome my house guest. After my knitting yesterday, I will have to explain why the house is not as neat as it could have been if they were staying with a non-knitting muggle.

Happy Knitting!

Yesterday was Knitting for Me Monday. Not only did I knit for myself all day long, but a knitting fairy also knit for me. Yes, they do exist!!!!!! I'm almost finished with my Storm Moon Socks and the knitting fairy cast on another pair of Storm Moon for me and did quite a bit of my two by two ribbing. Go Fairy!

Since Knitting for Me Monday has been such a big hit, I am throwing in one more knitting day this year. Every month on the 25th day is from here on out to be reserved for knitting all of those Christmas presents that we need to knit. Perhaps with these extra 11 knitting days throughout the year, we won't be so crunched next Christmas. This month the 25th is on a Friday, and it's only 17 days away, so let's get digging around for patterns and yarn so we are ready to knit our first present!

My second finished project of 2008 are felted mittens (thank goodness I have them ready for the 71 degree weather today!). I took a great photo of them with paper snowflakes my kids made, so that the winter feeling is at least in the photo if it isn't in the air. Until my computer learns to upload my photos to photobucket, however, you will just have to use your imagination.

The mittens are knit out of periwinkle 'Stockbridge' from Valley Yarns(WEBS). I got the yarn and free pattern at the 2006 Stitches East, and the project kept getting passed by until the Cabin Fever Sit 'n Knit on Sunday. Stash Appreciation at it's finest.

I'm off to do some spring cleaning. A last minute guest is arriving Thursday, and my house still looks like Christmas threw up. So much for finishing those socks today....

Happy Knitting!

My knitting is smarter than I am!

I really did have every hope that I could master that Brioche neck warmer in the round. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After many hours of staring at my work in progress last night, I have given up the ghost. I have always been of the theory that if you can read you can knit. This pattern has proven otherwise.

I felt a lot better today after heading off to A Good Yarn's sit 'n knit today and the owner Miss Loraine announced that she too thought twice about the same project as it was in progress, and gave up the ghost on hers as well. Suddenly I don't feel as bad.

Now I have to hurry up and find a new project for the Cabin Fever Sit 'N Knit tomorrow. Perhaps I can whip out that Kristin Knits book I've not used yet and find something fun and colorful to work on. Hummm

Off to deal with stinky little people. One is much stinkier than the other. I can't wait for tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Knitting!

I did live up to my new year's blog resolution and take a picture of my first finished item of 2008. My photobucket hates me, however, and will not upload the picture from my computer. Just when I thought I would have photos to prove that I do knit with the yarn I buy.

The finished object is a feather and fan scarf for me to go with my camel long coat for winter. I was really not into knitting it in the end, but once it was off the needles and on my neck, I remembered why I started the project.

Tonight I'm going to start my project for Sunday's Cabin Fever Sit' n Knit at the Daily Grind. It is a pattern out of Melanie Falik's book 'Weekend Knitting' that is a Brioche neck warmer. Time for me to go stash diving and find some colors to play with.

Happy Knitting!

I'm not one for resolutions, but I think this year I might have to make one for the blog. I do hearby announce that I will attempt to take more photos of my finished projects and actually post said pictures to this blog. ( Notice the word attempt)

Thank you to Large Marge for my wonderful Mongolian CASHMERE that I received for my birthday. Yummy goodness.

Looking forward to a great couple of knitting days coming up. The Lakeside Cafe is on Thursday night. Saturday I might get down to A Good Yarn for the first time in many months, and Sunday afternoon is the Guild Cabin Fever Sit 'n Knit. Also, if I play my cards right, Monday might be a knitting day as well! Good thing, too. All this new yarn, and I haven't knit squat over the holidays!

Happy Knitting New Year!