Knitting accomplishments for 2009

For times when I think I don't get anything done.....I'll look back on this list......this is a list of what I knitted in 2009

Worsted weight socks 2 pairs

February Lady Sweater
Baby sweater
Baby caps
Baby socks
Childs hat & mittens
3 flip video covers
8 coasters
3 dishcloths
3 Baby blankets
wedding purse
Scarf
Elephante
2 shawls
6 doiles
Christmas stocking
Men’s tie
5 turn a square hats
Lace scarf
RPM socks
Prayer shawl (that worked by the way, by the time I was done the cancer diagnosis was reversed!)
2 pairs mittens
ladies sweater
Men’s cabled vest
6 baby hats for charity
2 Hemstitched receiving Blanket

Not a bad year, not bad at all…… 2009

Vacation time....

Alrighty I've got the week off! It's another staycation, my favorite....staying home and doing my thang. I have so much I'd like to get to, but let's see how we do. If I had a perfect week I would do this each day:

• Sleep in until 8 a.m.
• Watch a good movie
• Knit a little bit
• work in the gardens
• clean a little debris from the woods

and sometime during the week I would

• clean out the craft closets
• clean out the back room

or not...................

alone in the woods

I've been hanging loose in the woods with no Scotty.  I think this is the first time in our 11 years of marriage that we've gone this long without talking to each other....weird.  He's up in Canada with my brother Roy fishing and building a cabin.  I hope they aren't too cold, I heard it is going to snow there in the next 24 hours....oh my.

I've been keeping busy with the dawgs, tending to my gardens and of course with work.  My friend Kristen came up for the weekend and that was very nice!

It's summer in the Northland and I'm loving it.  Long days, sunlight in the morning.  Flowers growing, birdies singing.....  Just can't beat it!

What's on the needles

Green baby blanket.....1/4 done

February sweater.....1/4 done

Roys socks......1/4 done

Noro socks 3/4 done

Today I dyed, and lived to tell about it

Oh how cool!  I've been wanting to try and dye yarn, and today I took the plunge. I did it on sock yarn blanks....here's some pics and notes:

Please note you are looking at pictures of two different sock blanks - sorry for any confusion.

Step one is to soak the blank in a solution of water with a couple of tbsps of vinegar.  I soaked them for 1 hour, then rolled them up in a towel to squeeze off as much water as I could.  Then I laid down newpaper and saran wrap on top of that, and then the damp blank.

Then I grabbed the dye bottles and began to have fun!  I'd lay down the die and then pat it with my fingers to make sure it was being absorbed by both sides.

When I was done with that tomfoolery, I began to wrap the saran wrap over the blank, bringing the sides in first and then rolling it the long way.

I then coiled it up, and put it on a pan that had two inches of boiling water in it.  The pan was covered with tin foil that had multiple holes poked in it.  I steamed the coil (with the lid on) for 30 minutes, let it cool, and then rinsed it until no dye ran out (I saw NO dye run out!!!).   Then I soaked it in a bath of eucalan & water.

And here's the final result for my first sock blank!  Unreal! So fun & Cool.  Can't wait to knit with it....