I was gonna post this yesterday

But I couldnt get the picture uploader to behave.

I havent posted about the boys or girl lately and thought I’d update on the boys sizes. They are getting big especially Bligh who is HUGE

 This is Bligh in November 07 right after him and his brother KooKoo came to live with us. Lookie them cute ears they are huge just like the kitten he has become today… He weighs around 8lbs of muscle and and is such a sweet ball of love and purrs. Just like a little kitten at 9 months he rarely shuts off the motor HEHE!

And of course who can forget my little Mama’s boy KooKoo:  this was taken a few days after we got the boys. KooKoo sat there for about an hr that am just moving his ears up and down And heres KooKoo today doing what he does best… waking up just as I’m taking his pic, he sure loves the camera He is a confirmed Mama’s boy, he loves to sit in my lap while I knit, he also like his brother sings to me and hates it when I go outside and out of his site. Kinda like Charlie used to do last year.  He is about 5 lbs of fluff and purr, definitally the petite one of the 2 but he can hold his own against big brother Bligh.

Of course I have to show the 2 of them together cuddled up… fisrt up at about 6 or so weeks. And now at 9 months… Boy they have grown!!

Next up Pics of the Girlies; Sannybug and Charlie, they havent grown any, well except weight wise, but they still deserve a blog post all about them

Have a Nice weekend everybody!!

SOS and other Socks Updated

The following Sock In Progress pics are brought to you by…oh who knows, LOL!! I’ve been working on all of them alternately usually the Summer of Socks pairs during the day and the other 3 before SOS socks in the evening. (Click on the pics below to embiggin)

  Heres the DSS Soldier Socks. They will be my long term “Plain Vanilla Socks” to work on when I need a break.

 Whispering Leaf: I have yet to be able to get a good picture of these. The color in this one is close to accurate. Just wish the pattern would show up better.

 Brian’s Test Sock: I need to have him try it on again so I can see how its fitting before I start the heel/gusset shaping.

 This one is a test knit I am doing. Illusions By Laura Patterson, I am testing it out in Knitivity Yarn to see how well they go together. As soon as the sock is done I’ll block it and hopefully the pattern will show up better in the pictures. It does show up in real life nicely.

 This is My Blended Frog Scallopini Sock. I am considering a few changes to it once the socks are done. I may add a small cable to the cuff down the sides between the pattern repeats but that remains to be seem

Thats all of them. I hope to have at least one or even better more than one pair finished in the next week

Monday is for Cleaning Revisited and a Rant

Yep I am reviving the “Monday is for cleaning” routine. Actually I cleaned the house last week so that I could work on SOS08 without to many interuptions of the cleaning sort other than pick ups and laundry. But I figgered that if I finished up some stuff today and do the laundry tomorrow I could get more done on the Knitting front. The boys (Brian and Josey that is) help some IF I ask them too LOL!!

Most people who read my Blog and my Profile on Ravelry know I’m disabled. I dont hide it. But I also dont flaunt it either. I try to do as much as I can without causing a flare up, or without exhausting myself which includes letting Brian park wherever he can find a spot and walking to the store. Some days this is harder than others especially when it is hot out. The reason I am bringing this up is because of a comment on Ravelry in the Yarn Harlot fans group in the I have to disagree thread. The person said something about bein angry because of “obviously non-handicapped” people parking in handicapped only spots. Now I dont disagree that people do that, I know they do but…and I am just as guilty if those thoughts as she is, the person who is parking in the spot might have a disability that is like mine and isnt always visable. Can you tell if a person has lung cancer just by looking at them from a distance? You cant if they arent carrying an O2 tank or you arent right up close to them and listening to them breath. What about a Person who has difficulty standing and walking long distances and is getting groceries they might be leaning on their cart through the store or using a store provided power/non power cart…again unless you know the person or see them later in the store with the above mentioned helpers you dont know. I do know that some people take advantage of another family members placquard/license plates (my MIL for example while my FIL was still alive and after) But we all need to reserve judgement on those that park like that unless we know for a fact that they arent disabled. I personally make the choice to try not to pull the disabled trick outa my hat unless I know that I’m gonna need the assistance it will bring.

Ok Rant over

I got the second repeat done on the cuff of SOS Sock number 1 yesterday and 3 more repeats done on the foot of Blended Frog Scallopini. I have been working off and on on the DSS Soldier sock today when taking breaks from cleaning. I will work on it this evening while watching Star Trek TNG tonite. Tomorrow I will work on the second DSS sock and Illusions or Brian’s sock. I figure that I’ll work on SOS during the day and in the eve until all 3 pair are done I’ll work on the non SOS socks. I wanted to have atleast one of the 3 pr done before SOS started but oh well

Thats all for today, I’ll try to get pics either tomorrow or Wed of the SOS and NonSOS progress and post em here and on Ravelry.

Off and Running with pictures to share

 Meet Summer of Socks sock 1, Pattern: Whispering Leaf by Lijuan Jing. Pattern from JoJoland designed specifiaclly for their yarn to showcase the long color changes. Yarn: JoJoland Melody Purples Reds and Greens 100% Superwash Wool. Size 1 needles. The pattern is easy, just a series of yo’s and decreases to form the leaves with a garter stitch border on each side. Unfortunately my camera doesnt like the color of the yarn and I only had one patt repeat done here, hopefully when I get more done the pattern will show better.

 And last but not least my second pair of cast on socks to start off SOS08…DSS or also known as Desert Sand Socks for Socks for Soldiers. Stats:  Yarn, Regia Stretch color number 17. Pattern, Same as the BBS from before only this time I will be using a larger set of needles for the cuff and foot since my gauge was off a tad (I had 9spi instead of the called for 7-8spi) and the other pair ended up being smaller than I had planned. OOPS! These are planned to be Male size 9-10. Oh for this pair I will be making a plain stockinette foot instead of ribbed like the last pair :-) 

The other 3 pair I have been working on for the last 2 weeks are still in various stages of doneness and I will continue to work on them too. At this point I dont have any deadlines for them or any other pairs other than to make as many pair between yesterday and the first of September.

Thats all for todays update and pics. I will be taking pics of all the socks on the needles in the next day or 2/3/5 however many  it takes that is…and posting updates. Oh I do have a deadline…The Blended Frog Scallopini Socks have to be done by the 31st of July. Yikes guess that pair should be moved to the top of my list :-) 

I will find time to finish them…I will find time to finish them, and every other pair of socks I wanna make this summer….. I will, I will, I will  I tell ya

 

Summer of Socks starts Tonite!!!

WOO HOO! at 12:01AM Saturday morning Summer of Socks officially starts! This year will be my first time ever participating in this type of KAL and I am looking forward to the challenges it offers There are a couple of threads in the SOS 08 group asking what your goals are for this summer so I thought I would share mine here…

1) There are 10 weeks this year for SOS so as a amount knitted for me I would like to complete atleast 5 pair. As well as 2 pair of Soldier Socks and a few beanies if possible. I know that I am a slow knitter but I am getting somewhat faster so this goal maybe totally doable.

2) I would like to be able to succeed in doin 2 socks at a time either with 2 circs or magic looping or both. I have tried this before and the yarn got hopelessly tangled to the point that I had to remove the socks from the needles and rewind them back into a ball. Kim from SFS likes for us to do 2 at a time either concurrently or together so that the socks are done pretty much at the same time and are as close to identical as possible.

3) I have enough yarn to knit 25+ pairs of socks and even more patterns that I would like to do. I would like to use up some of my sock yarn so that I can purchase more sock yarn without taking up most of my corner of the living room. We currently live in the LR, Kitchen and Bathroom because the upstairs rooms are habitable yet, not to mention the fact that my family doesnt want me climbing up and down the stairs esp at nite to use the rooms they way I would like. The downstairs bedroom is bein used for storage for the time bein, and as soon as we get the upstairs fixed a bit the stuff will be moved up there and it will become a bedroom once again! Then I will have a closet to keep part of my stash in and will be better able to utilize my little corner of the world

 4) Part of the reason I’ve joined SOS as well as several other sock knitting groups…Socks are easy and portable, you can make one pair per pattern and skein of yarn and never have to make the same pair again if you dont want to. And last but not least…I want to be able to give completed Christmas gifts this year not skeins of yarn patterns, and promises and this seems like the best way to accomplish this goal. I have a couple of other projects that I will have to start concurrently with this one and the other KALs I am a part of including a small bit of lace knitting I want to do for my 17yr old neice who will be graduating this yr.

Thats all for now, I will be including more pics and keep all of you updated as to where I am on my goals. I hope to be able to get everything done that I have set out to do in the next 10 weeks. Wish me luck!!

Something Rich and Yummy

I guess since Brian has been asking for a Rich Yummy dessert for the last few days I better get off my duff and make him something HEHEHE Rich and Yummy takes on many forms but for Brian, and Josey too, the description defines Chocolate anything. Will take pictures of the desert when and IF I get it made, with all the knitting I have to do he may get lucky to have supper and a semi clean house (Joking of course LOL!)

The felted slippers from Christmas 2007 have been put in time out for now because I simply can not stand the feel of the yarn, it is very irritating to my hands and as much as I would like to finish them for atleast the MIL I dont think it will happen at least not until this fall when its a bit cooler (maybe that will help). I do love the way the yarn is colored as it knits up but the felting yarn is def not my cup of tea!

I made some more progress on Illusions yesterday, the heel flap is about half done so am hoping to have it caught up with Blended Frog by later today so I can trade the 2 off and on and get them finished quickly. Especially since Summer of Socks starts at 12:01am the 21st. I have yet to decide beyond the Soldier socks which pair I’m gonna cast on first. I think this pair will be a pair of womens size 7-8 but one never knows until I cast on. I will be goin up a needle size on these from the pair I made before because the gauge was to small (9spi) on size 1s and the pattern says 7-8spi. Before you say anything about swatching, I did check my gauge but do to my semi confuzzled state (I forgot to check the pattern DUH) I thoought 9spi would be fine…OOPS

Well back to work I go, gotta get some more of Illusion done so that when SOS starts I can justify (HA) C/O another pair or 2 dozen socks HEHEHE!!!!! Have a Nice Day

And finally…Some Pictures!

I have pics of my 3 on the go projects!!

First there is June Sockdown 08 Design Your Own Pattern:

Stats: Yarn, Lime & Violet Sasquatch Sock Blender Frog, I am calling this pattern…Blended Frog Scallopini after the yarn color name and the Basic Scallop pattern. I got the pattern from 365 Knitting Stitches Perpetual Calendar. I am using KP Fixed Circs size US 1 Magic Loop. The pattrn is easy to memorize and the yarn is great to work with! I will definitally be purchasing more of it!!

Second is the Patons Stretch Sock Test pattern for Brian, I am having to fit the sock as I go to make sure that it will fit his feet.

The yarn as I stated in an earlier post works up like KP Risata due to the fiver and elastic content. I seems a bit rougher bit should soften up nicely in the wash. I am using Size 1 KP fixed Circs for this also Magic Looped. So far he is liking the fit!

Last but not least:

Meet Illusions by Laura over at Fiber Dreams. I am test knitting this pattern to see how her patterns and Ray’s yarn work together. This particular yarn is one of his Test Dyes for different techniques and isnt showing the patterb as well as I would like but I will reserve Judgement until it is done. Most likely I will need to use one of his Fades for this pattern, or a darker semi-solid but again we will see I am using KP Size 1 DPNs to get the gauge she specifies. I am enjoying the pattern so far and I cant wait to knit more of her patterns as well as offering them for sale in the Knit-n-Stitch!!!

Thats all of the pictures for now, am off to post them on Ravelry. WIll see ya again tomorrow hopefully earlier than today!! Sorry for the absence Brian has been using my computer in the afternoon the last couple of days since the 14yr old doesnt like to give up the other one

Have a Nice Nite all and I’ll see ya tomorrow!

WWKIP Day take 2… actually its not but…

I can say that if I wish!!!

Ok its Monday now, I fully planned to finish the above thought yesterday and never got back to it. My Mom and Sister were back yesterday but we didnt do any on the porch work like Sat since the temp was 90+ here and humid So we sat inside with the fans goin, my mom and I both worked on our projects. She started the Mystery Shawl C(crochet)AL and I worked on the Illusions test knit with Ray’s yarn for the kits I’m planning for the Knit-n-Stitch. I havent taken pics yet of it but I have 3 repeats done and so far its looking good. The light today isnt good either so pics today may be a pipe dream LOL! Karisa didnt work on her afghan yesterday, she says she dets bored with it because of the plain colors, so it went into hibernation again and she shopped my mom’s and my varigated sock yarn stashes for something pretty and varigated to use She chose the Whiney Cheese merino/nylon sock yarn from mine and the Blue to Teal fade from my mom’s. I dont think she wanted to crochet yesterday anyways but she wound the skeins into center pull balls and then shopped Ravelry and other pattern sites for free crochet patterns that use fingering weight yarn.  She found a couple of them but didnt print any off so we will see if the sock yarn gets used. She may end up making them into some design of her own or they will sit in her stash only to be used by the girls at some point in the future when she has forgotten they are there

Sat I finally got the Blender Frog yarn to behave and knit into a nice pattern for my DYO June SOckDown hallenge on Ravelry and have officially named the Socks “Blended Frog Scallopini” for the name of the yarn and the name of the pattern I used on it. Its a basic Scallop pattern from the “365 Knitting Stitches A Year Perpetual Calendar”  Oct 15 pattern. I had to mess with the positioning of the pattern to make it fit but it did and looks really good I think I took a couple of pics and will upload and edit them today hopefully they will show the yarn and pattern to its best advantage if not I’ll have to try again with the pics.  The funny part of this sock…I ordered the yarn because my mom saw it on TLE  and liked it and I figgered I’d be able to design a sock for my mom from it as a joke since she seems to spend alot of time “talking to the froggies” when shes crocheting esp with the last project she worked on (Christening dress for her Great-Neice). She picked out the scallop pattern and it works really well with the yarn, YAY!!!! WHat she doesnt know is the socks are for her LOL!! Grame if you just read that ignore it!!!  I better strike that out just incase she reads todays entry

In other knitting news, The Jaywalkers remain in hibernation until I can try them on Miranda (youngest niece) if they fit her great if not the sock will be bound off and saved because of the pooling pattern that the Sannybug yarn knit up into. I have plenty of the Sannybug colorway so Loosing half a socks worth isnt gonna cause to many problems. The Felted slippers have also gone into hibernation for now as i cant stand the feel of the yarn on my hands esp with the temps being so hot. I may finish the first pair for MIL just because they are 80% done with the knitting so wont take to much longer to finish, but that has yet to be decided.

I have some housework to do so I better get started. Have fun today and I will try to get more pics taken of the knitting from this weekend and uploaded for posting here and on Ravelry!

Its WWKIP Day today!!

Hey everybody!!! Go to your favorite Yarn Store, find a comfy spot outside somewhere, or just do like my mom and I are gonna do and sit out on your front porch and show the passerbys that Knitting and Crocheting is COOL!

More to come on this later

I finished the Sannybug sockies for Josey the otherday   He likes them even better than the first pair of sockies I made thim, and they certainly fit him better! Thats all for now, will either follow up later today or tomorrow about the KIPing on my front porch… maybe we’ll get some company. This weekend is the Rocky Comfort Annual Yard Sale so there should be lots of people in town

Knit-n-Stitch Updated

HI All!

I’ve been busy fro a couple of days, working on the boy’s socks and updating the Knit-n-Stitch. I added 2 new Sock Yarns (Patons Stretch, and Lion Brand Sock-Ease). I am expecting to receive some Sock Ease and Red Heart Heart and Sole to come in from my distributer so I can test em and post my results here. The Yarn Harlot test knit the Sock Ease herself and posted about it on her blog, click the linkie and check out the archives for 2008 (I dont remember which post it was but do check it out). I have a few more surprise coming in the next month or so so even if you dont want anything now just remember to check the site for updates I will announce when the Updates are goin live here.

Josey’s socks are almost done all that is required is to finish up the last half inch of the cuff, bind off and weave in the ends. I’ll take pics then and post them here and on Ravelry when I’m finished.

Thats all, I dont feel much like blogging today.