Admire your work often!

I have been knitting and knitting these small stitches endlessly..... I decided to try it on my dummy and see how it was coming along deciding that I'm almost there. So I snap a couple of pictures for the "meticulous" records I keep and I turn the dummy around and......


I could not believe my eyes! Right in the front, not even in a spot that I could possibly live with but smack in the middle of "front and center"

Dropped stitches!
Not one or two but three!
Not a couple of rows ago but inches and thousands of stitches ago!
All garter stitch and I could not pick them up, I tried and tried....

How could I have done this and not notice?????


I have said this many many times to new knitters and yet I did not take my own advice!

I HATE when this happens but "oops I did it again"

The project is a top down raglan sleeve little sweater. The yarn I'm using is "Blue Heron" Mercerized Cotton. Love this yarn! I've made several projects from Blue Heron last summer I could not get enough of this stuff.

Amano yarn store had a very nice stock and I also bought some at the Fiber Festival at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. The color is "kelp" actually looks a lot like seaweed similar to some other items I've knit I must like this color I keep getting it.

There is a 1,000 yards to a hank and I have two. Much more than I need for this project but we'll see what I can do with the left overs. I love the the silky smooth feel and shine of mercerized cotton and the garment it knits is really nice.

This was the last of my Blue Heron booty so I decided to knit a top down cardigan should be an easy knit and I'll just keep increasing until it fits. That is the nice part about top down knitting you can try it on and adjust your stitch count and make adjustments as you go. This is the guide I "loosely" followed. A very old formula but it works! Once I realized the simplicity of it I don't have to do much math, when you start seeing the logic of the stitch count you realize that all you have to do is get a gauge and the measurement and stitch markers and lots of knitting.

Then I decided to increase along the front also so my stitch count is growing rapidly, I love lots of stitches and the weight of this yarn. I'm using a size 4 circular needle and happily knitting along. Periodically I would knit it on to a 60" circular so I can try it on.

The Knit Pick's Options needles and multiple lengths is perfect for this job. But I got lazy and quit trying it on and sure enough there is a dropped stitch that I just can not pick up it is too far gone. Sh.....t!

Now I have to frog! Hours and hours of knitting.....So many stitches so much knitting...... ouch! and I have to go back! I was so close to finishing. Boo hoo! Oh well here it goes another lesson learned, how many times do I have to learn this lesson?

I've traced it back to knitting with a bunch of friends over at Stitches from the Heart yarn store. My favorite knitting hang out. Big table to sit around always fun people to gossip with and the conversation must have been so good that I was not paying attention to what I was doing.

Most of the time I pick out a project that is a "no brainer" to knit when I'm out because paying attention to counting or anything complex is hard when you are half paying attention. So again another lesson learned.



what is mercerized cotton?
Sometimes referred to in the crafts as pearl or pearle cotton. It is cotton yarn or fabric which has been put through a series of processes, primarily to increase luster. The added desirable water handling properties gained are a secondary bonus.
(want to read more? click here)

About wars......

Another anniversary..... we must never forget the pain and misery war is....

I have chased, clipped and felted and felted

I have been soooo busy torturing wool and felting that I've not had time to blog.

I finally chased down the sheep, cut their hair, beat the wool and voila my new hat.


(Well I could have. ;-) ........in reality I bought roving @ Amano the closes store carrying roving and wet felted the basic hat and just to give it a nice touch I needle felted the edges with Koigu wool sock yarn that I had left over from a pair of socks.




This is a combination Halloween and / invited to an afternoon tea hat.

I was invited to the annual Honoring the Volunteers Afternoon Tea at Stitches from the Heart. The invitation said for us to wear our best hats for the formal tea. Shish I don't have a "formal tea" hat! I don't go to that many afternoon tea parties especially ones that ask to wear a formal tea hat. As a matter of fact I can not remember the last one I was invited to. So I decided to make a new hat.

I'm looking forward to this event at Kathy Silverton's home, my fun roommate from the "Sea Socks" cruise we went on earlier this year. We had so much fun and enjoyed the cruise that we are planning another knitting cruise. But I digress.... The cruise is next year so I have plenty of time to write about the fab places we will be visiting to gather more wool.

As I was "sculpting" this hat it came to me that maybe I could combine the two events Halloween/Afternoon tea. It's almost Halloween and Ellen always has a wonderful costume and party at the original Farmer's Market and this year I want to make a costume and go visit and have fun with the fun bunch of knitters at the Farmer's Market.








Can you guess who I'm going to be?
clue she lived to the ripe old age of 101 and wore these great hats......