Table runners and cowls

We had an incredibly busy weekend, but I still managed to get some sewing and knitting in!

First, I made this table runner for Jessie's dresser: I started on it Friday evening and finished it up Saturday evening sewing the binding on by hand.


I couldn't follow the pattern exactly - it is supposed to be a 6x2 layout of the blocks, but....her dresser isn't that big! So we improvised a little. I must say I do like it, and have enough blocks, backing and binding to do another smaller one (using only 3 blocks) for her other dresser and I will have 4 blocks leftover for a mini quilt/wallhanging for in her room.


Jessie did finish quilting this for me (I just stitched in the ditch around the blocks and on the insides of the blocks) and sewed the binding on for me. She liked doing this well enough she now wants to take the quilting 4-H project and make a table topper.


My Mom has been saying for a while she wants to learn how to knit cables. And my brother's girlfriend Ashley and her friend Danielle also wanted to learn how to knit cables. So on Sunday we had us a little party. The 3 of them came to our house and we knit simple cowls:

Pattern: Awbrey
Needles: 10 1/2 16 inch circulars
Yarn: ? I'll have to check the tag when I get home.

We had fun, everyone realized that cable knitting (at its simplest form) is not really all that difficult, and I now have a new cowl. It only took about 3-4 hours, with lots of getting up by me to go get sweaters for my Mom to try on that I have knit.

Last week before everyone came over, I tried it out to a) make sure it wasn't going to take forever to knit and b) make sure there were no surprises in the pattern.

Pattern: Awbrey

Needles: 10 1/2 16 inch circulars

Yarn: Reynolds Lopi

So I actually have 2 cowls now.

And all that snow in the first two photos? Is now rushing down our driveway. Torrential rains/thunderstorms last night mean lots of flooded roads around here and flooded basements. I didn't check our basment this morning (I really should have and am even now debating if I should run home to check) but our driveway is underwater (still passable with my Durango and Todd's truck but barely) and the basement at the office where I work is about 8 inches deep. And Todd's been out on emergency calls since 5:30 this morning for stranded motorists who tried to drive through high water. And a gas line leak at a local business.

Stay dry everyone!
Kris

More quilty goodness...

I think I'm on a role here....

Due to a horrendous winter storm that sent me home from work at 9:45 this morning, (which I then managed to get stuck in our driveway half way up it), I had LOTS of time this afternoon to sew.

So I sewed....and sewed....

This table runner I've had the top together for who knows how long (2 years? 3 years?). It should have 2 more triangular pieces on the side, but I cannot find them for the life of me. I know they are made, they are just burried somewhere in my sewing room. Oh well. It fits our kitchen island pretty good just like this:

Yes, it still needs the binding, but...I don't know where it is:)

I also quilted this potholder. I've had it together for a couple years, just needed to finish it up!

And I got a dust ruffle done for my newest nephew:

And I started on a table runner for in Jessie's room, but I don't have any pictures of that one yet. It's a pattern and fabric from Anka's Treasurers, and let me tell you - the book is great on directions. And the fabric is gorgeous.

Hopefully tomorrow I can finish up the table runner for Jessie's room, in between basketball and chores.

Have a great weekend!
Kris

Finally....a quilting blog with quilty content:)

I did promise something quilty, didn't I?




And I actually have almost 2 completed quilts!




This first one, I'm embarassed to admit, has been languishing in the bottom of a pile of quilt tops for .......several years. I first blogged about it here. The original intent was for it to go in Jessie's room as a wall hanging to match her batik flip flop quilt. She wanted it as a bed quilt, but I didn't have enough batik fabrics....

And it is now quilted and awaiting it's binding. Which i have to go BUY as I can't find the binding I picked out for this quilt when I first finished the top!

But she has been making noises about wanting her room repainted. Truthfully, she's been wanting her room repainted since Thanksgiving. I told her when your room is cleaned out, I'll repaint it. This past weekend she hauled 3 garbage bags out of her room, so I guess I'm painting over spring break...if she can keep it semi clean. So far it's stayed clean, and they've been off school for 5 days due to a teacher inservice day, the holiday, and a major snow storm yesterday:)






I'm hoping I can talk her into yellow walls with lime green and pink accents, and her furniture painted white. Right now she is lobbying for lime green walls and YELLOW furniture.....



Of course, along with the new paint, she wants a new chair (lime green) for in the corner so she can read, and a new quilt (look at the Diamond Diva kit - that's the pattern and fabric she picked out!) and dust ruffle. So while this little quilt won't be of use in her room, I figure it will be a good lap quilt on those chilly spring evenings!


I'm plugging along on another baby quilt for my nephew, along with a dust ruffle for his crib. I used the tutorial here for the dust ruffle, and talk about a piece of cake! I hope to get the binding sewn on tomorrow when I get home from work, and then it will just be stitch the binding down and deliver it. I'll show pictures of it once it's completed (hopefully tomorrow).





And finally? Jessie made a cake:





She's enjoying baking cakes, brownies and cookies lately. I'm just glad to have a little something sweet in the house every now and again:)

Taking over.....

I think basketball is taking over our lives this winter:)

She STILL cannot hit a foul shot to save her life,

but she is getting a little closer....

We've been to more basketball games in the last two weeks than we have been to the entire 15 years we've been married. It helps when you know some of the kids on the JV/Varsity boys and girls' teams. Both the girls and the boys Varsity teams are in the tournaments/playoffs, so I think we're going to 2 games this week and a game this weekend....or as far as they make it!

But then Jessie also plays every single Saturday in the Parks and Rec league.

I think her favorite part of the game is being a post player. She's not afraid to take the ball from an opponent, and get down on the floor and fight for it.

Although I think we are going to have our hands full in a few years....some of the Varsity boys and girls AND the some of the 5th grade boys' team came to watch her and her friends play on Saturday....although she did tell me on Saturday morning before the game...."boyfriends and cell phones are so overrated Mom".

Final score - 19 to 0. Our girls did well.....

Oh....and I've started a new sweater....but it's going very slowly. Because I've been quilting up a storm! Hopefully I'll have some finishes to show you in the next couple of days!!!

Creating a Monster!

After what seems like months and years of sub zero weather, weather in the teens and lots of snow, ice, sleet and general uck.....

it warmed up to 48 degrees yesterday. Which really felt like a heat wave.

Tyler has been at Jason's elbow every time he clips on these calves. Wanting to learn how to clip...wanting to know why Jason clips them the way he does.

And Sunday was the day we put a set of clippers in his hands and said "Go to town."

Jessie and I washed and dried Huey and Jason and Tyler got to work. Huey has not been clipped since the middle of October. And we've been growing lots and lots of hair since then on him. I think they took off about 3" and left 2" on him.

While they worked on Huey, we then washed and dried Tank, bedded up the steer pen (again) and started on chores. Tank and Huey are hopefully going to the Beef Expo show in Columbus the middle of March....it's been a nice little break not washing calves every day (or so) but it's time to get back to work....as long as the weather holds.





Tyler is now asking for a set of clippers for his birthday.....I think we've created a monster!

A sign of spring

After months of not getting any fresh eggs out of our young chickens, I remembered last night to tell Tyler to check for eggs....

I'm so glad he did. Spring may be coming after all!

Too bad I didn't remember to tell him to check before the -3 degree weather we woke up to yesterday morning. The other 4 eggs in the chicken coop might not have froze....

It's supposed to be in the mid 40's this weekend.....which will feel like a heat wave after the last couple weeks of barely getting into the 20's, and mostly in the single digits and teens. Now if the snow would just go away, and not leave mud behind, we'd be doing good!

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!
Kris

Sorelle Lace Pullover

This sweater was quick! And my type of knitting.....



In the round, so not a whole lot of purling involved, and the lace and the twisty columns kept it interesting!

Start to finish this took exactly 2 weeks. And I only worked on it in the evenings and the weekends when we didn't have anything going on. I think last Saturday I managed a 3 hour stretch of knitting on this sweater.....

Size 8 needles meant easy.

I normally don't block my sweaters right away. Usually I'm too impatient and want to wear them right away. And I did want to wear this one in the worst way, but I knew the lace would need a good blocking, and you could really see my increases and decreases at the waist shaping I put in.

Soooo.... I dumped it into the kitchen sink and got it good and wet. I think I freaked Todd out doing it that way.....but......after laying it out on a towel to dry, and flipping it a few times even he noticed the difference in the lace!

Pattern: Sorelle Lace-Edged Pullover

Yarn: Valley Yarns Colrain, color lapis blue (and only 3.49 a skien)

Needles: size 8

Size: 38 (the only modification I made was to make it about 2 inches longer and do some more waist shaping).

Also, I'm not sure why it only took me 5 skiens of yarn (or about 550 yards), when others used 700 - 900 yards. I'm thinking that maybe this yarn is a little heavier than what the pattern called for.......

Since I was blocking sweaters that night, I blocked my Collins as well. I've worn this one a lot, but the collar was never long enough and never laid flat. I steam blocked it right after finishing, but this time I soaked it good and laid it out flat to dry. I've decided that is the only way I'm blocking sweaters from here on out.....get them good and wet!

The results?

The collar lays perfectly now and is an inch longer, I gained an inch in the shoulders (which I needed) and somehow managed to shrink the waist a couple inches (which I also needed).

So now I have 2 perfect fitting for me sweaters, and can't even wear them to work. See, I'm painting the office at work, and I would be really irked if I got blue and green and grey paint all over my nice sweaters. Hopefully this weekend I'll get to wear one of them at least!


And after all that hoopla about the big snowstorm? We ended up with about 4-5 inches, some ice and 3 days off of school. I'm REALLY hoping that the kids go to school tomorrow - they have about had it with being home all day......

Stay warm everyone!
Kris