i'm on vacation!

This is my view from the living space in our Florida condo. It is so wonderful to be somewhere that is warm, even if it is too windy to be on the beach. We have the pool and it is heated and the kids are all happy! I have to say that I love knitting in the sun.
I started the first square of the Lizard Ridge afghan. I saw it on Knitty.com and fell in love instantly. The pattern is pretty easy to follow although I may do four repeats instead of three if yarn allows. I will put up a picture of the first square soon. I get alot of knitting time here as we have both grandmas with us!

Here are the finished baby socks. They turned out to be pretty cute and I hope they fit. Little babies can be so chunky you never know. I will get to meet my new neice in a few days. I am looking foward to a little baby snuggling time.

comfort doll update

Here is the update on our comfort doll project. The kids are really excited about it and I have a couple of girls who are knitters at home who have already made more than one! WE would love help from others to reach our goal of 100 so if you are interested the pattern is on this site (scroll down)and you can e-mail me for our address. It is a great way to use up odds and ends and they knit up very quick!
We are having a blizzard here today in Vermont and we got the day off of school. YEAH!! My family is gearing up for a trip to Florida next week with all of the grandparents and I really have to use today to unpack the attic and pack up the suitcases! I am looking foward to the 12 hour car ride to DC- I am planning on finishing up the scarf and sock on the way. Happy Valentine's Day!!

it all works out

My daughter Abby has three pairs of handknit wool blend socks that I love for her to wear in the winter to keep her toes warm. She does not feel the same as they fall down alot! I decided to make her another pair in her favorite color- pink- with ribbing and smaller needles in hopes that they stay up and she will wear them. I also cast on less stitches which, in hindsight was not the best idea so...
...here is the sock. Isn't it cute? It is fingering yarn from Brown Sheep. What is the problem? Here is the sock on Abby...
It is so small it doesn't even go onto her foot! Thankfully I have a new niece that I haven't given a welcome to the world gift yet so I am now making them for her. A gift completed and my first pair of socks for the sock KAL 3!! It all works out! Just one last picture of Abby as she is helping me write this post today.

too fun!!

These mitts are so fun to make. I am having a hard time getting things done that I have to do because I just want to sit and knit (is this any different than any other day?) The second one is almost complete and my kids all want a pair.
I joined my first sock KAL. I am excited. A pair of socks a month for the next six months. I believe I can do this! To find this knitalong go to knittinmom.blogspot.com

scarf interrupted...

I have been faithfully chugging away at my mother's alpaca scarf but I find myself each evening staring at the stash (my wall of yarn, my husband calls it!) looking for something new to start. I need a break from socks as I have just made three pairs this month but I love the sock yarn, so... I am making fingerless gloves out of Koigu. I have had these skeins for a couple of years and I have started socks and a scarf out of it but neither were its destiny. I decided on the mitts because the room where my husband and I watch movies and TV is always COLD and when my hands get cold I don't want to knit. I am hoping that the mitts will help or else my husband will have to start watching movies alone while I knit in front of the fire!

comfort doll project

My students and I are making comfort dolls to send to the AIDS orpahns in Africa this spring. I have around 40 students from first to seventh grade and they are each making at least one. Our goal is 100 dolls by April 1st. Anyone interested in doing a quick project that will use up leftover yarn and make a little child very happy?

The pattern is quite simple. I use worsted weight yarn and size 8 needles. CO 32 sts with brown yarn for the feet. Knit 8 rows. Change colors and knit approx. 3" for pants. Change colors and knit approx. 2" for shirt. Change to brown for face and knit approx. 1 1/2". Change colors again for hat and knit as follows.
Row 1: Knit
Row 2: Purl
Row 3: decrease 4 times evenly across row
Row 4: Purl
Row 5: decrease 4 times evenly across row
Row 6: Purl
Row 7: decrease 4 times evenly across row
Row 8: Purl
Row 9: Knit 2 together across row

Thread needle and sew through remaining stitches pulling tight. I like to make the face before I sew it all up. Sew up center seam in back. Stuff head. Weave a string around neck and pull tight to make a neck. Stuff body and sew up feet. Using a backstitch sew from waist to just below neck to form arms. Define legs in the same way sewing from bottom to just below waist.

This is a great project for beginners and a quick knit for more experienced knitters and a great way to bring a little love to a little person. Email me if you have dolls and I will give you the address. Happy knitting!

I'm finally a blogger!!!

I have been thinking about blogging for a couple of years now just to have folks with whom I can share my love and passion for fibers and knitting. I believe my family and friends get a little tired of hearing what project I am working on and what new yarn I have acquired. I have just finished my first knit from your stash project- some new leg warmers. Now that I teach I find that I wear more skirts and the leg warmers make this possible in vermont winter. These are made with 44 stitches in Manos del Uruguay yarn.

I am trying to finish up a hat/scarf set that my mother requested and bought the yarn for. This is a big deal because she is not into any animal fibers. It is a soft alpaca in pastel green and blues that we got together at the VA sheep and wool festival. The colors are not as nice in the photo as they are in real life. I am hoping to get better at all of this over time.

Well, the picture is up at the top. I don't know yet how to put it in the right place. I just cast on the second sock for my first month's gift project. I am a little behind but more than half way! Here goes the posting. Thanks for reading!