Trish Knits.com

Category: Finished Objects

  • Be Warned: Loooong Knitting Post Ahead

    And Thank You for that, oh Cable Internet Provider Craptacular! I’ve been offline more than on since last Wednesday so this is the first chance I’m getting to update since our Bowie Knitting meetup on Saturday. So, bear with me, as this is sort of a catch-up post.

    First, I have an FO Report!!

    Lady Hawk Hat
    Lady Hawk Hat

    Project Name: Lady Hawk Hat
    Source: Me!
    Yarn Used: Cascade 220, less than one skein each of Navy and White
    Needle Size: 5 (I’m a loose knitter)
    Date Started: October 17, 2008
    Date Completed: February 7, 2009

    Tammy did the duplicate stitching on the hat
    Tammy did the duplicate stitching on the hat
    Notes: I did this hat using a simple top-down formula and changed colors back and forth basically when I felt like it. Except that I knew that the letters I’d be using were 10 stitches high so I had to do one of the white bands at least wide enough to accommodate the lettering. I am not sure why this hat took so long to finish, except that it did. Perhaps it was that I was dragging my feet about doing the duplicate stitch lettering, and it turned out that was for good reason, because I sucked eggs at stitching. I’m going to have to practice with some swatches before next time.

    So, enter in Tammy, who graciously (and patiently!) tried to show me how to do duplicate stitch at our last group meeting. She felt sorry for me and my pending sense of disaster, I think, because she took pity on me and offered to do the stitching and bring the hat back to me. This was so generous of her! It looks great, doesn’t it? And I do think that my generally hard-to-please, almost-teen was genuinely thrilled with it, even if it was in her usual understated way. Thanks to Tammy for helping to make this project a success!

    February Bowie Borders Meetup Report

    Our little monthly group met on February 7 at the usual time in our favorite little coffee shop. There was much yarn and much fun enjoyed by all! Here are some photos of the afternoon’s doin’s!

    I brought my little Flip Ultra video camera with me to group for the first time and I got a few shots of the fun.

    It was a great day! I am always so excited to go to group every time. I love the bunch of people that I am getting to know!

    And Finally, A Ravelry Connection!

    You know, I am amazed at the number of ways Ravelry has impacted my life over the last year and a half. Over the weekend I got my glasses done, at long last, after being frustrated with my poor quality of vision correction for at least 4 years. Wouldn’t you know it? Someone I met on Ravelry is a Master Optician at a local optical chain, and she helped me make some good decisions about my eyes. I have progressive lenses, and have had them for the last several years, but my mid-range vision for the computer has been consistently awful. Anne Marie (“Roxy”) fixed me right up! Given the amount of time I spend at the computer, she recommended two pairs of glasses, one for distance and reading, and one for computer use and reading. Wow. I never would have thought to do it this way, but it works and I love them! Of course I had to make sure to document the occasion for the blog:

    Trish with Anne Marie... I can see again! THANKS!!!
    Trish with Anne Marie… I can see again! THANKS!!!

    So as you can see, Saturday was a great day filled with many rewards. I do love the knitters!

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  • Candy Hearts

    small knit hearts in various colors
    small knit hearts in various colors

    I’m totally obsessed with Valentine Hearts. I started last week with the full-sized version, and once I finally figured out how they worked, I was able to downsize to these cute teeny hearts. I started by casting on 31 stitches instead of the 61 called for in the original pattern. At half size, I can do a heart in about 45 minutes.

    The cool thing is that I don’t think I’m even going to weave in any ends, because I’m going to use them to tie onto little baggies of candies for my co-workers, kids, and a few other friends. I don’t know how many I’ll get done between now and Valentine’s Day, but we’ll see!

    Bloggy Stuff

    I moved my Feedburner blog feed to Google today. They say the transition will be seamless. We’ll see about that. I’m a little nervous. I’m just starting to gain a few readers here and there, and so I hope I don’t lose anybody!

    All this technical stuff makes my head explode. I’d really rather just be knitting.

    Good night for now!

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  • If You Squint a Little…

    It kinda looks like a heart, sorta, maybe??

    knitted heart on a greeting card
    knitted heart on a greeting card

    I got the idea from looking at a short video on Vickie Howell’s blog, but mine doesn’t look as “heart-y” as hers. Oh well, it’s the thought that counts, right? I have a good friend who has been trying to reconnect by writing letters, and while I’m thrilled to receive them, I don’t really write letters anymore. Not since the advent of e-mail! So you know it’s a special friend. I hope she likes it!

    We’re hoping for snow tomorrow. We haven’t had a good snow around here for a couple of years now. I like snow when it’s enough to cancel school around here, because then I get to stay home with the kids and knit and sip hot chocolate all day. Oh, that sounds divine! The kids went to bed with their jammies on inside out, for luck. Let’s hope it works!

    Ciao for now.

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    Listen to this article

  • It’s Done! It’s Done! It’s DONE!

    long stocking cap with cables and spirals

    I finally finished the Santa Stocking Cap! Yay! I can’t believe this project took nearly two months to complete. But I’ve said it many times — I’m the slowest knitter in the world.

    To recap — pun not intended! — The pattern is called, “Long Winter’s Nap” from KnitPicks. It was from “A Trio of Cabled Hat Patterns,” and unfortunately the pattern is no longer available. I also used Wool of the Andes, in colors Hollyberry and Cloud. I used about 3 1/2 balls of the red and one of the ivory. All in all this hat was very fun to make, but it did take a long time, so I don’t know if I will do another one. It would have to be for just the right person, that’s for sure!

    My daughter saw me trying the hat on yesterday and pronounced it just goofy enough to be “me.” Now the question is whether I am goofy enough to wear it to the office, even when it’s not Christmastime. Maybe I’ll save it for our first real snow.

    Now, I move on to a rainbow-y colored baby blankie, inspired by the Aran Afghan project from Knitty Gritty, and my buddy Joan. I’m going to do a bunch of different squares in different stitch patterns. The squares will be done in panels so hopefully finishing will not be insurmountable. Wish me luck!


    Five!

    Steven the birthday boy

    Happy Birthday, Steven! May all your dreams come true. It only seems like yesterday when we were bringing you home from the hospital! Time moves quickly when you’re grown, so don’t grow up too fast. I love you!

    Love, Mommy.

  • Diane’s Hat!

    Diane, wearing teal blue hat


    My cousin Diane came by today to get the hat I made her! Doesn’t it look pretty on her? I think she liked it! I’m so happy with the way this one turned out. I guess my next hat will be for DH’s sister Laura, as I did also promise one to her some time ago, but of course I have a whole stack of UFO’s to attend to first!

    Library Updates

    Over the Christmas holidays I went nuts buying a lot of new knitting books, and I’ve been busily adding them to my library page. I’ve been adding a few new ones every couple of days, so please do check back if you’re on the market for some knitting books! I participate in the Amazon Associates program to help offset the costs of one of my other web projects, Parents with Disabilities Online. So, if you are going to buy a knitting book on Amazon anyway, please consider clicking through from the links on my site. Thanks!!