Another entry with no pictures

I know, you're disappointed that I didn't get any pictures taken. Sorry, you'll have to deal with it the best way you know how. I had a day that ended well, after not starting out all that nicely. But we won't dwell on the bad.

The good was going to knit-in. It was relaxing and we managed to break rule #11. If you don't know what the rules are, then you should stop by KnitWitz some time and check them out. (Or maybe Kathe will post them on her blog after she gets home from training next week? Yes, that's a hint, do with it what you will.) I managed to work on my mate for the 1st pathway sock from Cat Borhdi's new book. Have I told you how much I like her book? Have I said how I absolutely love that she teaches you something new with a pair of tiny socks? You may be asking yourself what you'll do with all those tiny socks for babies. I'll be storing them to put with baby shower gifts. I mean, they are perfect for that. Just one idea. I also worked on my Lynton cardi. Came home and worked on it while watching t.v. I'm still working on the back, but I'm shaping the armholes now. There is definitely an end in sight. I actually think I might have it finished by my deadline. That would be so exciting!

I have a couple of other deadlines to work on this week too. Must get those finished. Must find some energy to do them all. Perhaps going to sleep would help. I'm very aware that it's currently 1:20 AM or so at my house. I'm also aware that I really should get up fairly early in the morning to run to the bank since I didn't get to make my deposit this afternoon after waiting for over 40 minutes. Something about having only 1 teller and a computer problem. Oh, and then there's football tomorrow that must be watched. The worst part is my team won't even start playing until 10 PM my time, it will be a few hours earlier where they'll be playing. At least the game will be televised. I can knit while sitting in bed, right up until I get so tired I become scared I'll poke my eye out with the needles. We'll have to see how well I can stay awake for that game. We'll also have to see how well they play this week. There are so many reasons I'm not too sure they'll win, but that won't keep me from cheering for them, so.... GO 'NOLES!

Finally pictures

As promised....

The top on I took without a flash, the bottom one with a flash. The bottom one actually shows the color better. But, since I didn't get a chance to retake the photos, this is what you're stuck with.

For those who were wondering about my dad, he went back to the G.I. doctor yesterday. He's quite pleased with how well daddy looks. Said more then once he thought daddy's color was more normal. I've noticed he is looking less like death warmed over and more like a living person lately. The doctor said he feels the iron therapy is working and that he's also not loosing blood anymore from the AVM's. He'll have to go next month for a blood test to see what his levels are. He also has an appointment with his heart specialist on the 24th so they can all decide whether he should go back on Coumadin or not. Until that's decided he'll stay off it. His G.I. doctor doesn't want him to go back on it because of the bleeding, but we'll have to see what the heart specialist has to say because of the atrial fibrillation.

In further stitching news, I worked on the Summer block of "cubie" again tonight. I'm down to the "ribbon" portion at the bottom. I'm leaving the lily flowers to the end. She gave us 3 different ideas on how to do them, none of which are thrilling options and I might add, none of which she gave directions for. I'll probably go with bullion stitch, but only because I have directions for those right there in my bag since that's all that's left on the Indigo Rose piece I have out to work on this month. The other likely choice is detached buttonhole. I might just do that, if only because my friend Judy hates that stitch and I don't mind it all that much. I'll decide when I get to it.

Lastly, for some reason I think I've lost my mind even more then normal. I said to my mom yesterday that I needed to email my friend Melody about this Sunday's guild meeting. Obviously I was momentarily crazy and thought it was October already. Now, I'm looking forward to October. October means a trip to Louisville for ASG, time spent with my friends, some of whom I only see there. However, I'm really not in favor of the year going any faster then it's been going already. In fact, I wouldn't mind if things slowed down a bit. I know, that's asking way too much, but it was worth thinking.

Tuesday musings

Tuesday's seem to be an odd day around my house lately. Not exactly sure why. Today was no different. I can't tell you exactly what made it odd, it just seemed that way to me. Of course, some of my friends may be thinking that it's not the day, it's more me. That could be true. Not to mention that today was 9/11. It's a hard day for so many people. I was blessed not to have lost a loved one or friend that day. But like many, I took time today to thank God for those who serve each day to try and make our lives a little safer. From the soldiers, sailors and air men & women to those who check our bags at the airport, I'm thankful that they are there to do a hard and often thankless job.

In other news, I actually finished putting my little turtle scissor fob together this evening. I finished it quite a bit differently then the model. Added some beads in the finishing to match the way I finished scissors sleeve. I'll try and get a picture tomorrow when there's some decent daylight.

Continuing with theme of "smalls" I worked on the Summer panel of "cubie". The frog is finished and I've started on the lily pads. Yes, I'll take a picture of that as well when I get the camera out tomorrow.

This weekend I went to the first FSU home football game of the season. Thankfully we won! It wasn't pretty, but it was a win and to be honest that's really all I cared about. I worked some on my pal's HP sock on the way over and on the Lynton jacket for a bit when we were heading home. Most of that was while we sat in the parking lot waiting to get into traffic and then through town while I still had some light. I did find that I'm beginning to be able to knit without having to look, or in this case in the dark. The problem came with knowing which row I was on so I could decrease. So far I've managed 11" of the back. That's more then half-way! Yes, I'm excited. Of course I haven't worked on it since, but my dad has a doctor appointment in the morning so I'll take that with me to work on while we wait.

No other news, which is probably a good thing. Now, if only the weather would get cooler....

Smalls, smalls everywhere

Having already admitted to the fact that I have more WIPs then I may possibly finish in this lifetime, I bring you further evidence of the sad state of affairs.

I have been wanting to work on a class piece from Ellen Chester for awhile, but felt like adding that into my rotation might create total havoc. So I've resisted and continued to work on the other pieces that have been screaming loudly at me. But with September being all about smalls, I thought it would be a great chance to pull it out and work on it without feeling bad, not that I ever feel bad about stitching something that is so loudly calling my name mind you, it's just well, you understand if you have this whole stitching ADD thing. So, last evening I went looking through my stash to find said piece entitled "Call of the Sea". Well, it may be calling, but I can't find it. I've looked in the 2 places that I was sure it would be. Not there. However, I did find a host of other things to keep me busy while I hunt some more. Thought I'd share the list and then at the end of the month see what I've managed to accomplish.

1. Turtle Scissors Fob (Moss Creek) - so, here's the deal, I've stitched half of this once already, for my DF Heather with another DF Jill doing the other side. We did this because H. lost hers on a plane trip right before she was ready to put it together. I have no idea what was keeping me from finishing this. I didn't get a picture before I started on it tonight, but here's how it looked by the time I was through.
The deal is the top/front with the cute turtle - already finished. The bottom/back side, complete except for the blackwork on the right and bottom sides, and the next 3 bands/squares of 4 sided stitch, chain stitch and the nun's stitch I'm currently working on. I should have gotten this all but put together, but I took time out to do a couple of things, like talk to my DF C.J. in CA (that's a lot of initials all strung together!) Oh and watch "Over the Hedge" with my parents, since I don't have children and hey, you have to watch those types of great movies with someone else. If I pick this up tomorrow, I should have it finished and maybe can find the beads I used when I put together the companion scissors case. Yep, for those not in the know, this is the 3rd part of a 3 part series from ASG. The other 2 parts are completed and I've been using them for years. So, it will be wonderful to get this all nice and completed. It's a really pretty set. I'll take pictures when I've actually finished this one.

2. Pedestal Pin Cushion - Indigo Rose - Yet another ASG project, but not quite as old, it's only from 2005. This piece is so very cool! This is done with not just 2 different colors of fabric, but the stitch counts are different too. It works because it's on the diagonal As you can see from the picture of the bad you have to pull the fibers of the gray fabric through the white fabric and then tie together the pulled through fibers to make it say put, oh and yes, it's stuffed. And yes again, those are Bullion Knots on the gray. His is finished except for the Bullion knots that are in the white fabric at the tip of the corners of the gray fabric. Then it's a matter of getting it ready to cut and put on the cute pedestal, and voila! a pin cushion. Count this as another quick finish in the wings.

3. She Maketh Fine Linen "Sampler Pocket" - Moss Creek - Yep, this is from ASG as well, 2004. This is actually the front part all completed I think. Just have to do the other side. I didn't want to make it from the larger sized fabric she gave us, this was the teaching piece for the bigger project The whole set is a Nantucket basket with scissors pocket, needle slide case, double sided pincushion, stitched ruler, emery, needlebook and then the teaching piece was this pocket made to hold a small tape measurer, you could also make a miniature stocking as your teaching piece, both designed in 28 ct, although the actual set is done in a 32 ct. linen. I wanted them all to match and between the aforementioned Heather (who in all things math is most excellent), figured out how to make it work with the materials given and what other changes had to be made in the stitching to accommodate the size. So, have to stitch the other side to be ready to make anything from this.

4. Deck The Home - The Trilogy - (sorry no picture of this one). I saw this done at a shop in the Atlanta area, Abecedarius, and just HAD to have it to do. It was done over 1 and then made into a needlework set. A pincushion, scissors fob and scissors case (I think). See, I took a picture of it when I was there and saw it and bought the kit. However, that PDA has since bit the proverbial dust and I don't have that picture to look back on. This means I'm going from memory at this point. I know that the ornament was the fob, so I just have to finish another side. I think the case was the tree, so again, have to figure out the other size. The pincushion will be the present. Now, this might not be exactly what they did, but I'm going to wing it. I have plenty of fabric to be able to do another tree and ornament so that's my goal (so to speak, if I had goals, which I don't.)

5. A Needlework Garden Thread Pallet case - Old Colonial Designs - I purchased this in June of last year while in AZ for...gosh this sounds awful...ASG. I started working this on Jan. 1, 2007 and there really isn't much left to finish this one off as you can see. Just another bunny and some borders.

6. Jacobean Thread Winder set - Moss Creek (again) - Another ASG class piece, this one from June 2006 in AZ. I've actually started the scissors case, but haven't made massive progress on it yet. I adore this piece and want to work on it so much. It's another one that's been calling my name a lot lately.

7. Sewing Case - Catherine Theron - ASG Oct. 2006 class piece. Bargello for the front of the case, maybe 1/2 done? One other part of this piece is finished but don't have it in front of me to tell you which part.

8. "B" Is For Bunny - The Sweetheart Tree - give from Heather for my birthday, 2 years ago I think. It feeds my love of rabbits, so I'm willing to call this a small, but I'm not sure it qualifies.

9. (I almost forgot this one) Pineapple Pin Purse - Moss Creek - This is all but ready to be put together. As soon as I figure out where I put to so I'd find it to work on it this month, I'll take a picture of it.

There are others, but these are the ones I feel calling my name. Check back for progress reports or maybe pictures of other smalls in my collection that I've come across. (Which reminds me, must redo my organization of these things. Can't believe I can't find some I really want to work on.)

It's Wednesday already?

Seriously, I'm totally off by a day this week. I know, that's what happens when Monday is a holiday. But still, I usually can figure it out by the Wednesdays. Not this week. I completely forgot that I have both a standing meeting and band practice on Wednesdays. Oh, I remembered it at some point today, even told someone I had band practice and a meeting. But when it came right down to it, I forgot. I think it had something to do with going to JoAnn's and finding the perfect materials for 4 smalls I've finished in the last year.

Yes, that's right, I went to JoAnn's to find fabric and actually found something that would work. This of course means that I'm one step closer to doing some actual finishing. I think I'm almost inspired. Who knows, I might sit down tomorrow afternoon/evening and get to work. Not that anyone should hold their breath or even be waiting patiently to see pictures here. No, just the thought of having what I need is not enough. I need to feel inspired to do finishing. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

While we're discussion stitching...I took some pictures of what some friends I and affectionately call "cubie" today. Thought you might enjoy seeing what I've managed to accomplish. The first is a picture of what I've actually finished. The top is the "Autumn" side, the bottom the "Winter" side. Oh yeah, the actual name of this piece is "All Year Square" and it's by Betsy Morgan. It was a class from ASG back in 2005.
As you can see I started working on the "Summer" side. What it's not obvious that this is the summer part? You can't tell that's a frog there in the center? Wow, I can't imagine why? I'm actually quite pleased with how much I accomplished yesterday night. I'm sorry that the picture doesn't show the fabric color that well. But I'm very happy with how well you can see the alphabet in this picture. I don't think it shows up this well in real life, but that's just me. This is really a cute piece, so we'll see how much I can get done during this "month of smalls". I went through my stash today and found several pieces that are smalls and that are almost finished. I'll be working on some of them this month as well. Maybe clear out a few things.

Speaking of WIPs. On one of the boards I read someone asked how many WIPs everyone had, whether they thought they'd finish them all, and finally what keeps you from finishing something. Well, I was appalled. Only a few people had answered, but still, here they were apologizing for having 5 of 12 of 17 WIPs. Amatures! Seriously that's nothing. You want embarrassing, try somewhere in the 75 WIP range (give or take a few). That's potentially embarrassing. However, I'm not embarrassed. Why should I be? I enjoy stitching. I do it to relax. I do not stitch to be the first to finish a piece. Rather I stitch to be somewhat creative and, although here I'm repeating myself, to relax. I think the first year I found a stitching retreat I thought I'd found heaven. Here's this opportunity to go, take classes and learn something and get new patterns. I thought it was wonderful. So wonderful that for as many years as I went to those stitching festivals...and some of you know which ones I mean...I took at the minimum 5 classes. And then there's ASG. I have been to every fall ASG since Rae & Ron first starting having them. So that along is another 4 projects each year. It's amazing how many actual class pieces I have. And since I like to start stitching in class, all of them have some stitching on them. Heck, I could stitch from my class stash alone for several years.

Anyway, I loved the question, but kind of felt odd with my answer to the first question. And really I should finish more stuff. And as you can see, I actually do finish things. I especially finish when I have a real deadline. I'm not so great with fake ones, but the real ones I can usually manage. So, anyone else want to give a shout out with their count of stitching WIPs here in my comments? I'd love to know I'm not alone out here with this many WIPs!

Weekend Round-up...sort of

Friday Night I managed to finally get out and to the knit in at KnitWitz. I've been so sporadic with going what with work, being sick and just stuff. Glad I went Friday though. Managed to purchase the new Cat Bordhi book "New Pathways for Sock Knitters: Book One". There were only 2 copies left and I snagged one when I figured out what it was. Let me just say this book is so very cool. So very different...and so very totally making me want to sit and knit socks. So, Friday night when I finally got home after knitting and eating fabulous Mexican food, I found a single skein of yarn that I was fairly certain would work and did my little gauge swatch like she tells you to, well almost like she tells you to, and then started the 1st of the practice socks. I worked on it Saturday and then finished it Sunday evening. Between the book and working on my HP year 2 Sock Exchange sock, all I did was knit from Friday until Sunday. Actually I only knitted yesterday for Labor Day (what a funny name for a holiday...Labor Day and we get it off, well some of us do at least.) Anyway, it was an all knitting long weekend.

But back to the new book....I highly recommend this book. It has great pictures to help those of us who need visual aides as well as great written directions. I haven't quite figured out that very cool cast-on she shows you, but I'll get it eventually. I was too excited to really sit down and concentrate. Just had to get started on this first pathway sock. I've started it's mate, so it will eventually go to some deserving child. Just have to figure out which one.

In other knitting news. I also put together my Eliza Tank on Friday at the knit-in and got to ring the bell! I haven't posed for pictures with it on yet, stay tuned for those. Finally I did work on my Lynton cardigan yesterday while watching football. At least I managed to do something constructive during a game that for at least half of it I was not feeling the love, or the football for that matter. Let me just say that I have hopes that the rest of the season will go a bit better now that they have that nastiness out of their system. But I'm a realist and know that an almost entire new offensive coaching staff and a few months does not a National Championship make. But like my Michigan friends I have other things to look forward to in the season and I'll set my sights on those little tidbits of possible football joy. (BTW, yes, I did graduate from Florida State, so I earned the right to be a 'Nole. I fully believe that if you graduated from any school you have the right to be a huge fan. But that's another post, for another time.)

A quick stitching note. September is "September Smalls" month, which means working on any of those small projects that have accumulated in my WIPs/UFOs/Stash. I deviated from the normal Tuesday Christmas Ornament stitching to pull out "the cubie" and have a go at it. I have fall and winter side done, so opted for Summer, since hey...technically it's still summer. Managed to get a bit done. I'll try to take some pictures and post them tomorrow.

I think that does it. Happy knitting and stitching!

Ornament Happy Dance!

That's it! The completely stitched Quaker Reindeer by The Workbasket from the 2006 Just Cross Stitch ornament issue. All ready to be finished into a pretty ornament. I think I've already said that this was one my mom really liked when she was the ornament issue last year. I don't think I would have put it on my list if she hadn't said how much she liked it, but honestly it's so beautiful in person. The fiber is Caron Waterlillies, Copper and the shading doesn't show up in the picture like it does in person.

In other news, I think I've finally knitted all I need to on the straps for Eliza tank. I have to pin it together and make sure they are long enough before I do anything drastic. I'm a bit concerned that this is actually going to fit me. I was looking at some people who had finished it on Ravelry and it doesn't seem that anyone was extremely pleased with how it fit when they got it finished. So that's got me worried. I hope I'll have worried for no reason. I really like how it looks. Cross your fingers for me.

In other, slightly related news, I've decided on a pattern and fiber for my HP Sock Exchange year 2 socks. Not to make sure I have enough yarn before I get started. If not, then I'll have to do some quick rethinking. Need to get started soon, so I'll have them all done in time. I'm excited about the pattern. I think it will look very cool when I'm done. I love to start new things, so this will help my itch to start something new.