I'm in BIG trouble!!!

I just got my first purchase ever from etsy.com. I am in so much trouble now that I have broken THAT cherry!! There is so much yummy sock yarn on there to be had!!



This one is a superwash wool in a color called Strawberry Banana....now I have to find the perfect pattern for them. I think I might make Monkey Socks with it!

I DID IT!!!!!!!

I just got back from my first run!!! WOW! Do I feel good; both mentally and physically. I took Kris' advice about running one length between telephone polls and then walking one, but since this was my first exercise in about 6 years and my first run in about 16 years, I walked two and ran one. Tomorrow I plan to walk one, run one. I will probably do that the rest of the week and then next week, I want to move to walking one and running two, and then build up from there.

I fit into one my old sport's bras. Before I met my hubby, I used to take step aerobics about 5-6 days a week. I loved it but it got to be too much with three small children. Now that they are older and I have Fred to help, it is much easier to make the commitment and follow through on it. I have decided that I am not going to let anything else get in the way of running, because I now remember how much better my body feels and how much energy I will have on a daily basis.

I'm not sure how far I went tonight. I have track the mileage in my car since I don't have a pedometer. I'll have to ask Kris how she knows how far she has run each time...

Kris this is all because of you. I didn't think my I would ever consciously decide to let myself sweat again in my life. LOL

I took a before picture, but I refuse to post it until I have cut myself in half. :)

One down, one to go....

I said that knitting socks was beginning to feel like running. I really want to do both but just haven't taken the plunge on either one. Well, that changed tonight. I cast on, and knit two rows of my first sock, using the two circular needle method. I have to tell you, I love it! I actually tried starting a sock a month or two ago with DPN's and wasn't enjoying it. I think it might have been because it felt like I was knitting with toothpicks since they are so thin and there is not much to them. The sock pattern I decided to try first, left a little bit to be desired too since it was all stockinette. This one that I am doing, is the one that is recommended as the first sock to attempt with this method in the book by Cat Bordhi (pictured underneath the knitting). This book was fairly inexpensive, around $10 at amazon.com. I suggest buying it if you have been wanting to try this method. I'll never turn back now.

I have 4 more skeins of sock yarn and about 40 sock patterns that I have downloaded on the web, mostly from knitty.com. This, I am sure, will be the first pair of many!

So, now tomorrow, I will overcome my hesitation for running. My plan is to go right after I wake up, so I can shower and get ready for the day after I have accomplished the goal. The trick is to not, undo the good of the run with some really unhealthy eating for the rest of the day, since we have my FIL's 60th birthday and Father's Day dinner right after.

Think good thoughts for me!

THANKS "Spring Felted Bag Exchange" Pal!!!

YIPPEEEEEE!!!! I got this awesome goodie package from my Spring Felted Bag Exchange Pal.

The package included 2 Dagoba chocolate bars. One is dark chocolate, LAVENDER and blueberries and the other is dark chocolate, ROSE HIPS and raspberries. My breath should smell purty after eating these and no moths will try to enter when I inhale. hehehehehehe SNORT! I can't wait to try them.


It also included "Bill Laurie's Seasoning Greetings". The label says that you can use it to jazz up your Ranch dressing, guacamole, and Bloody Mary's". I'll be sure to try the latter very soon! :) I'm looking forward to it!

Next, I received 2 skeins of Kraemer Yarns "Mauch Chunky" in an awesome color called Apricot. Reminds me of Mangoes. YUM!

If you look in the picture, you can see my new little friend sitting on top of the book. It looks like a "Black Sheep" bobble head. AWESOME! LOL Guess my pal has a great sense of humor! (I probably am the black sheep of my family but they're kind enough not to tell me...)

AND FINALLY......the item that caused me to jump up and down, is the Rowan Felted Collection book. I have looked at this book a million times in my LYS and always put it back down and walk away. I absolutely love the bag on the front cover and have coveted it. Now I can make one of my OWN!!! YIPPEEEEE

The packaging even suits me to a "T". I love polka dots, and I especially love Lime Green, Orange, Brown and Teal!!! Now I feel like a schlepp for sending my pals package out without frills and special packaging. ;0)

Thanks Pal! I adore everything and this (even without the bag yet) is my best swap experience EVER! I feel very special tonight.

....one final note about the packaging. Not sure if it was planned, but, it was all packaged in a running shoe box. LOL

A new goal....warm weather always does this to me

Anyone who has ever been in good physical shape at one time in their life, and is not anymore, will be able to identify with this. I was in the Army. I went through Basic Training in 1990. I left home in a size 16 at 148 pounds and came back 5 months later STILL 148 pounds but in a size 6. That equals a lot less fat and a lot MORE muscle. From there, I gained weight on top of that muscle and have not see 148lbs in a loooong time. I stopped looking at the scale during this time in my life, because no matter how thin I got, I was always very heavy. When I met my husband he was very jealous of my muscular legs, considering the fact that I sat on my a$$ most of the time and he worked out and ran nearly every night.

It's been 7 years since we met and I have gained quite a bit more weight, due to my complacency and contentment. I have had good intentions over the years to lose weight. I even have a very expensive elliptical trainer at the foot of my bed that I have used maybe 5 times in the past 5 years.

I had always hated running, but of course, did a lot of it during training. It always made me feel good afterwards. Now I am always tired and my body aches. I need to get active in order to feel better. I know this, but do not have the willpower to do anything about it.......that is, until yesterday when I was blog spying and read a blog written by a girl named Kris who is in a bag swap with me. So, guess what I did last night? I BOUGHT A NEW PAIR OF RUNNING SHOES!!!! Thanks Kris. I will keep visiting your blog for inspiration. Now I need all of my "blog followers" to keep my true to my goal. :)

Knitting Aspirations and Accomplishments

Things I want to try but have not done yet

1. Knitting with metal wire
2. Afghan
3. Two end knitting/Tvåändsstickning
4. Knitting with camel yarn
5. Mittens: Tip-down
6. Knitting with silk
7. Moebius band knitting
8. Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
9. Knitting with banana fiber yarn
10. Domino knitting (modular knitting)
11. Knitting with bamboo yarn
12. Toy/doll clothing
13. Slippers
14. Norwegian knitting
15. Knitting with someone else’s hand-spun yarn
16. Teaching a male how to knit
17. Dying yarn
18. Steeks
19. Knitting with cashmere
20. Darning
21. Jewelry
22. Gloves
23. Knitting with linen
24. Knitting for preemies
25. Free-form knitting
26. Pillows
27. Dying with plant colors
28. Knitting items for a wedding

Things I have accomplished

1. I-cord
2. Fair Isle (or other stranded) knitting
3. Knitting with cotton yarn
4. Knitting with soy yarn
5. Knitting in public
6. Shawl
7. Baby items
8. Socks: top-down
9. Mittens: Cuff-up
10. Hat
11. Household items (dishcloths, washcloths, tea cosies…)
12. Knitting socks (or other small tubular items) on one or two circulars
13. Participating in a KAL
14. Charity knitting
15. Knitting with circular needles
16. Continental knitting
17. Designing knitted garments (bag and socks so far)
18. Writing a pattern (Shamrock Shenanigan Socks)
19. Participate in an exchange
20. Scarf
21. Teaching a child to knit
22. Knitting to make money
23. Knitting with dpns
24. Holiday related knitting
25. Knitting a gift
26. Knitting with synthetic yarn
27. Bobbles
28. Knitting and purling backwards
29. Knitting with self patterning/self striping/variegated yarn
30. Knitting two socks on two circulars simultaneously
31. Fulling/felting
32. Knitting with wool
33. Kitchener stitch
34. Knitted flowers
35. Purses/bags
36. Knitting with beads
37. Swatching
38. Intarsia (working on a bag now)
39. Short rows
40. Stuffed toys
41. Sweater
42. Buttonholes
43. Cuffs/fingerless mits/arm-warmers
44. Thrummed knitting
45. Knitting with alpaca
46. Knitting with your own hand-spun yarn
47. Knitting with dog/cat hair (Glittens knit with Great Pyrenees Dog Hair)
48. Socks: toe-up
49. Cardigan

Things I have no Desire to Do

1. Graffiti knitting - don't know what this is
2. Publishing a knitting book
3. American/English knitting (as opposed to continental) (why bother?? LOL)
4. Knitting for a living
5. Machine knitting
6. Knitting art

A Proud Moment

I have officially "rubbed off" on someone!!! I guess all of my bags have been inspiring. Today when I got into work, one of my co-workers walked over to my desk and plopped the Stitch 'n Bitch book down on my desk. She explained that she mentioned to her boyfriend that she would like to learn to knit after seeing everything I have been making so he went out last night and bought her needles, yarn and the book. (isn't that sweet?) She said that she spent hours trying to figure out where to put the needle to knit and then finally realized that she was going between stitches and not into one.....LOL I invited her over tonight to knit in front of the American Idol finale so I could give her some pointers. I have a g-e-n-u-i-n-e in-the-flesh knitting friend! :0) LOL (not to discount all of my wonderful online knitting peeps of course!!)

And I must say thank you to the person who posted that they were impressed that I have only been knitting for 6 months. Thank you for your compliment! It made my day!!

This is the Berroco Tioreg Bag. The pattern is from the #257 "BAGS 2" pamphlet that came out this Spring (2007). The yarn is Berroco Love It in Monday Monday, which is exactly what their sample was knit in. I loved the color combo!! I bought the handles at quilting warehouse (believe it or not) http://store.quilting-warehouse.com/083505.html . They're an awesome price for the pair.

Now that I have lined my first purse, no bag is complete without one, including my famous zippered inside pocket. But I added something new to this one. You can see in the bottom picture that I made a little pocket for my debit card, which gets a lot of use, and also included two pen pockets. LOL This is addictive

This is a bag I designed for a co-worker. She fell in love with my Rose Bag but wanted a tote bag shape and wanted longer knitted straps so she could wear it over her shoulder. I made an i-cord closure that loops over the middle rose to close the tote. The lining is all black (again what the customer wanted), and has a zippered pocket. I put a piece of plastic canvas in the bottom before sewing in the lining to help the bottom keep it's rectangular shape. Before you ask, I never wrote down the pattern as I went a long. LOL Live and learn I guess. This is my first design.

My beautiful daughter...

This is my oldest daughter (the one who makes me feel old - even though I had her when I was 6....j/k).

Not knitting related, but she just sent me the picture and I wanted to share it. I don't see her nearly enough!!

This is the "Felted Doctor's Bag" also designed by Julie Cashin. I knitted it for ITE III (International Tote Exchange). I hope my partner likes it! I used Cascade 220 for this.

My first Hats

Well I have added one more trick to my one-trick pony show. I've made my first hats.

This hat is the one from the Knitty Gritty Ski episode. I substituted a different chunky yarn because my kids need something that they can get dirty and be washed easily, and frankly, I was not spending $15 per skein for something I know they will leave lying around outside when the snow is melting and everything is muddy. :)

The colors match their Winter Coats. I made the pink one first so you can see the improvement in the second hat.

Rosebud Bag by Julie Cashin

This is the Rosebud Bag by Julie Cashin. Julie is a local designer in CT. Her patterns can only be bought locally. I buy mine at my LYS, Creative Fibers in Windsor CT. Their website is http://www.creativefibersonline.com/ , but they do not currently have online salaes. If you MUST own it, you can probably call the owner, Laura, and arrange a phone order. If you're local, they are doing a class in March. But I am a wee bit impatient, so I bought the pattern and supplies and made it myself (in 2 weekends). When I saw the sample at the store, I just had to have it!

It's made with Lamb's Pride Worsted in Black, Kiwi and Raspberry.

I am now ready to begin my next bag which I think is going to be the Round Lattice Noni bag. I have the supplies ready and waiting....more soon.

I began knitting this buttonhole bag last night. I knitted until 2am and then sat back down this morning and finished it. I popped it into the washer with a couple of pairs of jeans and forgot about it!!! The cold water rinse spin cycle shocked me out of my stupor! I ran into the laundry room and threw open the washer like a mad woman. LOL

Disaster averted! It felted very nicely, if I must say so myself. LOL And I didn't sit there being anal about it like I did last night when I felted my B4 bag. (which took FOREVER to felt!) It turned out very hairy but I like it. It adds character to it and my color combo looks ever better felted. (seafoam green/white/ and coffee brown) As I expected, there is still a lot of stitch definition left in thewhite stripe which is why I only did 4 rows with it. But again, I think it just adds texture.

Yarn is Lamb's Pride Bulky - double strand throughout and pattern can be found here http://www.stitchcharlotte.com/WhatsNew/ButtonHoleBagMasonDixon21.pdf

B4 Bag (Bobbles, Beads, Bumps and Buttons)

This purse was so fun and interesting to make. It was my first experience making Bobbles, knitting with beads, making bumps and with felting.

The yarn I used is Classic Elite Beatrice in Begonia (3219) . I used one strand so the bag is not very stiff/sturdy but it will be fine the way it is. Using a double strand would have been too costly, since this took 6 balls with a single strand throughout.

I could not find Crow beads anywhere, except online, and I did not want to have to wait for them so I found these spacer beads at Michael's that had a hole big enough to pass a double strand of yarn through. They are metal with pearlized enamel paint on them. They worked out great!

I am not a "button" type of gal, so I chose some rectangular glass beads that coordinated with my colors to substitute for the buttons. I like the finished product very much. They are in the bottom picture. If you can't see them, they have pink roses within the glass.

WARNING!! This yarn take FOREVER to felt. I didn't do a swatch so I was panicking when after the first full cycle in the washer it didn't look like it had felted at all. I didn't have any tennis balls, or jeans laying around, so I tried towels. Although the lint did not travel to my bag, they were not sturdy enough to cause much friction which is probably why it took so long to felt. (you know darn well if this was something I didn't want to felt, it would have been ruined in 4 seconds flat).

The pattern can be bought here http://b4bag.blogspot.com/

This past Thursday was my birthday. I turned 29 (again). Since my husband's grandmother is in the hospital, I told my kids not to expect to go out for our traditional birthday dinner. My daughter Molly said, "That's OK mom, we can have a sushi-pa-looza!"

I almost died laughing! Where do kids come up with this stuff?

This is her eating Sushi that night. I love it and she's adventurous and wanted to try it one time when I was eating it. Now she's addicted too. She's 8 and she even eats it with wasabi!!! My other daughter is VERY picky so needless to say, she ate pizza for dinner that night.

Her comment made my day. We did end up going out to eat Chinese for my birthday, but we'll have sushi again soon!

I've completed my first crochet item ever and coincidentally, my first bag. I fell in love with this bag when flipping through a book at Wal-mart and had to buy the book so I could make it.


Yarn used is Classic Elite Beatrice and Classic Elite Renaissance. The pattern is from the book "Total Crochet Fashions" by Gayle Bunn. OH boy, do I love it!!

Knitting needle case rolled up.

Needle Case

I have been looking for a knitting needle case that is a good price and big enough, with enough pockets, to hold my crochet hooks and other various knitting/crochet paraphernalia. I couldn't find any that I liked that were worth the price for the materials or design. So I decided to make my own.

This took me about an hour last night. It's complete with quilting, and two rows of pockets. I didn't spend a cent on it. I had the material left over from the days when I was crazy about making clothes for my kids, the batting was from my days as a quilter, and the ribbon is from my scrapbooking stash. yep - I'm a multi-dimensional crafter. LOL

No pattern was used. :)

I can't figure out how to show it rolled up in this same post so my next post will show it rolled up.

This is my very first mitten. It was knitted in the round with superwash wool. I want them to last for a long time and never shrink on me. I actually play in the snow with my kids so if they get dirty, I'd like to be abke to wash them thoroughly with no worries. I've used the same pattern a few more times. Once I used Patons new wool/soy mix. It stripes up nicely. I donated them to a charity auction and forgot to take a picture of them. That yarn changes the gauge quite a bit because it is not a stretchy fiber, so if you plan on using it, check your gauge before starting.

I am working on a new pair of mittens now that are knitted on straight needles. I am not crazy about seaming but they are very cool. When i am done, I will post a pic and the name of the pattern.