just nice

Hubs made it home safely and we celebrated by dining at a local Italian restaurant. The restaurant was new to us and is just what we've been longing for in our new haunt. We splurged for a terrific bottle of Chianti and enjoyed each other's company. I felt like a stuffed sausage afterward and realized I haven't eaten that much in quite awhile.

On the knitting front, there has been a lot more time to finish projects during the past week. There are officially two WIPs (Swirl Shawl just needs blocked, so it does not count) and both are nearing completion.

The Textured Baby Blanket from Itty-Bitty Baby Nursery is coming along fine. I simply need to stitch all of the squares together and then knit on the border. This is knit with KnitPicks Crayon and the color availability concerned me at first. I've gotten past that and think that it is an interesting blanket full of possibilities.

The other WIP is my Camellia top from Rowan. The chart had me struggling due to the size and lack of repeat sections they published. They charted the entire row in very small font. My copier enlarged the chart, but it was still quite small and became blurry in the process. The newest issue of The Knitter published the pattern as a book excerpt - to my delight, their chart was larger font and listed the repeat section. The top is flying like a dream now and I just wonder why it did not occur to me to re-chart it in the first place.

Camellia: a work in process

The cover top left me drooling. My LYS ordered The Milk Cotton Collection, but I didn't begin with the cover design that had reeled me in. Camellia was the one I started with because it seemed like it would be easier.





Cast-on occurred just before we moved. The chart in the book is teeny-tiny (come on, Rowan, give us a break!) and increasing it on my copier left it a little fuzzy. The result: I couldn't follow the pattern consistently.




Since getting a little settled, there has been more time to work on this beautiful project. I won't lie, there has been ripping and it was almost tossed into a little pile in the corner. This is mostly due to the smallish, fuzzy chart.

The curve may be passed and the back is nearly finished. This yarn is super soft and I'm happy that I didn't give up.

One note about the yarn - I did have difficulty getting gauge. Size 1's are in it and it was still a little off-gauge so I went down a size to compensate.

I hope to move a little quicker now that things are settled - this will look great with my white linen skirt and there is a little project I'd love to cast-on.

Looking up

I've always said that I didn't know what I wanted to be when I grew up. Shouldn't that decision be well on it's way to being made?

Success has been attained and I had a very equitable career which was enjoyable and challenging. The people I worked with were wonderful and these are things that I truly miss.

My kids are older now and the time we've spent together throughout their teen years has been incredible. I feel like it is time to go get my career back. Not just a job, but my career.


So, what am I going to do about it? If you know me, you can guess that I am already working on a little something-more to come soon.







The Swirlin' Shawl is coming along nicely and is easier to work on once you get into the second row. Jojoland's Melody is nice to work with and I've been intentionally placing color to avoid the random two swirls being very similar.


Can you believe all of those colors come from one colorway?

Rowan's Fine Milk Cotton called my name and I've chosen two (yes, two) sweaters from their Milk Cotton Collection to knit. Of course, I will be changing each design up a bit, but they will be recognizable. I've been having trouble getting gauge on the first sweater and have nearly decided to use size 1 needles and make the smallest size. These sweaters will not be for the faint of heart.


My son's school has been closed this week due to the h1n1 virus. There were no confirmed cases at his building, but it seems that a feeder school who did have a confirmed case houses a sibling who goes to his school. It has been nice having him home this week and it became a little nicer when we found out that he would not have to make the days up.



FYS found this fella heading to one of the ponds in our neighbourhood. We brought him home to show the boys next door and then he was set free.



He may have been smiling.



We are very near the edge of town and there are wooded areas close by. The hackle of coyotes sent chills down my spine last night as we took a dip in the pool. We could tell they were about 20 yards away and they called for awhile before finally stopping. The clubhouse pool is surrounded by a fence, but we were high stepping it back home. The new house is more populated and the possibility for coyote sitings will be somewhat diminished. Darby and Lucy are pretty happy about that!



Countdown to Bugg's arrival: 6 days

Look it - Lacy top

The Lacy Tea Top is finally finished.

It was thrilling when our postal carrier brought my belt buckle and I was able to find two more buttons at a different fabric store near home.

In trying on, it is apparent that a skirt would be just the ticket. A nice white linen has come in at work and I will try to go by there today and see how it fits. FYS took these photos for me after work yesterday and I know the jeans just do not do it justice.

After looking high and low for matching ribbon, this woven became an easy choice. Nothing else came remotely close to matching.



Originally, the design contained a ribbed sleeve which I converted to the overall lace pattern.

4 balls Kidsilk Haze in color #582, Trance

Needles US sizes 1 and 2

See it on Ravelry

My view

Time just slips by and March arrived before I knew it. Every day has been a good day since we've moved. Even I am amazed at the turnaround of my outlook.



Every morning, I awake to this view from my coffee pot. There may have been one or two days that the sun hasn't shown at some point. That is pretty good for 3 months. Whew! we have been here for 3 months already.



It has turned a bit colder, but it warms to the upper 50's during the day. The sun shines and there is no snow...no chance of snow. I am happy.

Sunshine is good!

The days do fly by quickly. I have found a nice stitch shop which has open stitch once a month and a very friendly yarn shop. My LYS has much to offer and I don't just mean fabulous selections of Rowan yarn (they carry other brands, too). I can stop by any time and find a multitude of different knitters talking fiber, planning their next project, or just enjoying the camaraderie. Jason's intro in the newsletter hit home and describes my exact feelings this move brings.

A word from Jason about .Who.s ya mama?..
The phrase might seem cliché by now, along with .Can you make a roux?.. But even so, it.s one of the most frequently asked questions in our area . but not because folks are being nosey, no. It.s all about establishing a connection. In the big picture, there really are no strangers: everyone is connected somehow, even if it.s through a close relative or as distantly as the neighbor of your aunt.s baby sitter. That.s just the way we are here in Acadiana . an intriguingly fascinating people salad.
We belong together, and that.s fine. We search for connections, because they unify us, knitting us into a network of friends. Besides the yarn, needles, hooks, bags, patterns, and notions, this is what Vermilion Bay Yarn is all about: bringing people together and establishing a connection, building a community of fiber friends. .Jason, why don.t your chairs match?. My answer: .Why should they match?. A strict designer might advise that our knitting area would look trendier, classier, glitzier, slicker, were everything the same, a uniform circle of perfectly coordinated seating and perky side tables. That.s nice...for a bouncy magazine spread, but that.s really not our look. Our knitting area reflects the beautiful diversity of the folks sitting there: Cushy upholstered love seat, fluffy ottoman, leather lounge chair, wicker settee, art deco seats, farmhouse rockers, cane rockers, and often for Knit Café, plastic folding chairs and a 1960.s pipe organ bench. Who is VBYC? We.re teachers, artists, nurses, homemakers, engineers, lawyers, musicians, counselors, designers, paralegals, office managers,
secretaries, dreamers, administrators, bankers, husbands, wives, partners, children and everything in between. The binding thread? Our fascination for and love of working with fiber and creating wonderful, delightful things for ourselves and the people close to us. .How do you know her?. .We knit together on Tuesday nights, and we both love Rowan Kid Silk Haze.. What a tremendous, amazing gift! VBYC celebrates difference, because just like our dear Acadiana, we seek to establish connections with our neighbors to create the most beautiful
patchwork of friends. Pass the word to those you know, whom we may not yet know and
invite them to join the community of knitters, crocheters, lace-makers, sweater creators,
and lovers of fiber at Vermilion Bay. Oh, and by the way, to start your gumbo, take
equal parts fat and flour to make that roux. Let it cook in the pot until it.s a dark, mahogany
brown like your Nana.s sideboard. All the while, keep stirring so it doesn.t burn!

...I LOVE it!


I must divert to a cute little fellow that FYS brought home

This is the tiniest frog I've ever seen. FYS found him on a plant outside the door.

As for knitting, there has been activity. It was instant love when I saw this pattern by Erika Knight. My LYS was on the way home from the bookstore and the Kidsilk Haze fell into my possession. This color is difficult to match, but interesting alternatives have been chosen and we shall see how that works out. My original intention was to make this in every color - heh, heh, no surprise that the plan has changed and this will be one of a kind.

Angella and I also started making Rivolo out of some Malabrigo Sock. Mine is in the Velvet Grapes colorway and hers is in a beautiful green.

We opted to double the scarf sized pattern to make a wrap. It will be incredibly soft in this yarn.

It doesn't look like much right now, but the proof is in the blocking.

Hub's Almost Valentine Socks

Thank goodness I've finished something. Although it was a few days late, my wonderful husband has focused on the fact that he has a new pair of handknit socks to wear.

Knit with Rowan Felted Tweed on size 2.25 and 2.5 needles, these finished up pretty quickly.





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They fit like a dream which is always good when you have the person you are knitting for right there to size along the way.

Knitting with Felted Tweed was so pleasing that there is a green color waiting to become a pair of socks for me.

Those socks will have to wait. My new friend Angella and I are beginning our shawl-a-long today. We've decided to knit Anne's Rivolo.

My thought is to increase the width of the scarf sized design to make it wrap sized. It is an incredible pattern and I can't wait to cast on.

Long lost work in progress

This design is in Rowan's The Kasbah Collection. The colors mixed with a simple crochet detailing caught my attention and made me want to knit it.

Easy enough! It was cast-on...um, so long ago that the date escapes me. The body and sleeves were easily finished and Stitcher Bomb aka Sharon helped put the first rows of purple crochet on the neckline. We ran out of time and I was confident that it could be finished with my mad crochet skills.

So, the top languished until selling some extra yarn on Ravelry and remembering that there was a WIP around here somewhere. Turns out the crochet wizards blessed me one day this weekend and the neckline was finished.

Some boring details:

The neckline as written was too floppy and I tightened it up by skipping every 3rd space on the raffia color row. On the final row, I eliminated one of the chains (same for the sleeve edging). The length of this was extremely short and I added by taking off the final border, picking up stitches, and knitting until it looked good.

Turns out this is one of my favorite tops now and it has escaped the WIP status!

My new scarf (ISE5 Complete)

Big, Huge Thanks to my scarf knitter for ISE5!

Sarah knit this beautiful lace pattern with Rowan Kidsilk Haze in Fern.

It is absolutely wonderful and I love it.

Sarah also sent yarn that I must make into a dishcloth, an adorable knitting notebook and...candy, yum!

Thank you Sarah!

P.S. Apologies for the wonky photos

Multidirectional scarf

This yarn hasn't been in stash long. A few months ago, Corinne knocked my socks off with a posting of her version on her blog. I've been reading her blog for a few months now and love the way she chooses to use color.

As luck would have it, I have the EXACT same yarn and colorway she used which is fabulous. I wanted to experiment first with this Rowan Tapestry that seems to be a colorway that my mom will absolutely love - shade 171 which they call Rainbow.

This will be a FO before I know it!