Oh no-- more blankets!

Just when I thought I might finish a couple of blankets and move on to some other type of project (my daughter's and my godson's are both getting close to being done), I find that I will soon be casting on for two more. My secretary is pregnant. So is another friend of mine. Do I have to make them blankets? Of course not. But it gives me a purpose to knit! :-) Besides, both of my kids received hand-knit blankets as baby gifts, and I have always cherised them. I would love to give these babies a gift that will hopefully last them a looong time. But it is ironic to me that, just as I'm seeing the light at the end of the tunnel on two blankets OTN, two more come along to replace them. Hmm. Do you think these pregnancies were planned? Maybe there is a conspiracy with the yarn industry, to keep me buying tons of yarn for baby blankets? Ha ha. I have some thoughts already on what to do for both blankies. Just waiting to hear a boy/girl verdict on each!

Happy weekend everyone!

THANK YOU SECRET PAL!!!

What a wonderful secret pal I have! I am so lucky. My husband and son went to the Grand Prix yesterday afternoon. My daughter and I went to dinner with my parents and spent the night with them. We just came home, and I discovered a large padded envelope from Australia! I have never gotten mail from Australia before. That was fun in and of itself. Inside were these pretty, bright colored packages:

My SP spoiled me! She sent me two beautiful skeins of yarn in blues and whites. Some really yummy looking chocolates that I will be devouring shortly, and a beautiful Jo Sharp book. It has some wonderful, elegant items in it, and I look forward to exploring it further and making something from it! THANK YOU SP! I love everything. Here's a peek at the contents:

The felted purse

I finished the felted purse. I'm pretty happy with it, but it came out a little bigger than I expected. It is roughly 16 x 13. I need to put a cord through the top of it (the pattern calls for an I-cord, which you felt to match) to cinch it somewhat. Then I need to figure out what to do about handles. I had envisioned oversized bamboo or plastic handles. My LYS has some cute black plastic handles that are fairly wide that might be cute and would contrast nicely with the brights of the bag. Any thoughts???????

Here it is finished. Sorry it's a little blurry:

And before felting:

The block of the month afghan

I just began the April block for the block of the month afghan. This block will complete the first panel (there are 3 panels total). When I got the pattern, I came home, pulled it out, and freaked out a little. There were abbreviations that I didn't understand and techniques I had never done before. While there is a "class" each month at the LYS on how to do the pattern for that month, it would be impossible for me to attend this time because it conflicts with my Chinese class. I pulled out some of my knitting books and spent a while trying to decode the pattern. To my surprise, not only is the pattern a lot easier than it sounds, but it's fun, too! I like the ribbing that it's creating as well. Here is a picture of the progress thus far:

My newest project

I had so much fun doing the felted cosmetic bag for my mom, I've been positively itching to do more felting. I have really wanted to do a purse for myself for the summer. So far, I haven't knitted too much for me-- it's all been gifts. Today I went to my LYS and bought the most vibrant, beautiful yarns to do a purse. It's all Cascade yarn... a green and an orange from the Jewel line, and then a varigated yarn from their Nikki line. I plan to do the bag in mostly the green, with orange and the multi-color stripes in the upper 1/2 of it. I haven't decided yet whether to make the long, knitted straps that the pattern calls for or get some nice, large Lantern Moon or other wooden handles to do a hand-bag. I will probably wait and see what the finished product looks like after felting, to determine what would be better suited for it. I'm really excited. Here are the yarns (the first two on the upper row are the Nikki, then the Jewel in Orange, and the Jewel in Green):

And here is the beginning of the bag:

A Non-SP10 Surprise Package!

I got a huge surprise today. Chris' (my DH) grandmother, who lives on Cape Cod, sent me a package containing her own knitting supplies. Chris and I have been married for almost 15 years. We dated for several years before that. But somehow, in all that time, I didn't know that Ruth (my grandmother in-law) knitted. Chris mentioned to her in passing that I had become obsessed with knitting. So she put together her needles and scissors and shipped them off to me. What an amazing treat. I was so touched that I immediately burst into tears. Here are the contents:

You aren't hallucinating....

I changed the blog. I didn't really mean to though! I was trying to add the SP10 button to my blog. Couldn't figure out how to do it with the "old blogger" through html (I am programming challenged!), so I thought the "new blogger" might make more sense to me. Nope. No such luck. The end result is that I couldn't use my old template with the "new blogger", so the look of the blog has changed entirely. Do you ever have one of those days where things just don't go as planned? Of course you do. Well, I'm having one of those. LOL. After all of that, if anyone can tell me how to actually add a button to my page, I'd LOVE to know!

The weekend's over

I had a lot of fun knitting this weekend, as planned. I didn't accomplish quite as much as I hoped, but I did enjoy it nonetheless. I finished the block of the month for March (for the afghan kal I'm doing through my LYS), just in time to get the next block next weekend. Here is a link to the finished product sample-- I'm doing the "brights"-- the one in the right-side photo http://www.thehenhousetx.com/541206.html

The yarn that we're using is Rio de la Plata. We are using the wool, hand dyed yarn. It's beautiful, very saturated color. It is very soft, but it is quite fuzzy, for lack of a better way to put it. I'm glad that I only have to do a block of it a month, because I start to dislike working with it toward the end of each block. I think I prefer smoother yarns. Am I a yarn snob because I like cashmeres and silks? I hope not. :-) Besides, the Rio de la Plata isn't exactly cheap or shabby! And I do love hand dyed yarns.

As for the blocks, we started off with the blue block in the upper right hand corner of the photo. Then the pink, and I just finished the green. I guess the block we start on this weekend will be the bright pink. So far, the patterns have been very easy to follow. It will be fun to finish the hot pink block and have a completed panel!

Okay, enough babbling for one morning. I better get to work. That's what they're paying me for, after all. But I would much rather be knitting!

Happy Monday!

It's Friday (on a Thursday!)

I can't remember when I was this happy to have a long weekend. It's been a loooong week. Hopefully this weekend will be relaxing. I'm hoping to make some progress on various knitting projects in the next few days. I cast on for the China Doll jacket that I am making my daughter. I started on the back, and got about 8 rows in--- not a world of progress, but a start, nonetheless! I must admit, I'm a little intimidated by the pattern. And I'm not sure I fully understand a couple of the instructions. I plan to go to my LYS and see if they can set me straight.

I've been having a LOT of fun with the SP10 exchange. I've had communication with both my SP and the person who is SP to me. They both seem like very nice people. I've really, really enjoyed putting together packages and surprises for my SP. But I have to say, doing so is dangerous. I tend to fall into the "one for her, one for me" trap! In trying to find things to include, I end up finding things for myself, too! Oh well. I was snooping around, looking for some yarns to send to her, and came across the Etsy store "Sereknity". Wow, are there some gorgeous yarns and colorways there. Unfortunately, the one I like the best, and positively drool over, is all gone. :-( Take a look at this:

















I just LOVE these colors. It's so bright and cheery. That green is one of my favorite colors, and with the orange and pink in there, well, it just makes me happy. Alas, it is gone. So sad. The good news is that I DID find some nice things for my SP!

Happy Easter!