Finishitis Strikes Again!

So I finally finished The Red Thread. I wasn't able to obtain the "finishing kit" that Bent Creek put together, so I went through my supplies and found snaps and heart-shaped buttons. I think it came out pretty cute! I think that if you click the photo, you'll get a larger version of it.

I've started reading Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen. Okay, it's part of a larger scheme. I joined the Jane Austen Yarn Club. It goes for a year and every two months a new reading suggestion, hand-dyed yarn, and original knitting pattern arrives. I know, it's a total indulgence, so I paid for it out of my own money, not the household expenses... Besides, anything that encourages me to get reading these days is a good thing. I used to read a great deal. In fact, my parents used to claim that I was born six days early because I didn't have anything to read in there!

Oooh, Have I Been a Busy Girl!

I've had burble-gut for a few days so I have been barred from the kitchen, but pretty much stuck at home. Just as well, all I get to eat is the BRAT diet: bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast. What this means is... I've had more time to make stuff!

Playtime at Azkaban socks are finished. When I told Tiny they only took 2 1/2 months to complete, she was noticeably unimpressed. Phooey. My last socks took well over a year! So, if my count is correct, this is the 9th pair of socks I have made!I started a new pair. I'm calling these Soy Toys because that's what the fiber is: Soy! It's in our burgers and our paper--why not our socks? The fiber is a woven kind and it's worsted weight, so the sock will be thicker and pillowy. (10th pair)
The TV show, Fringe, was recommended and recommended to me, so finally I watched the pilot on Hulu last night. It's pretty darn good. I had avoided it because it sounded really violent--it seemed no more so than Battlestar Galactica and Heroes... And, while watching it, I got some work done on the final Red Thread panel. Isn't it shaping up to be cute? Okay, the snowlady doesn't have eyes or a mouth, but her nose is quite distinctive, don't you think?
I'm part of a group that holds me accountable for finishing up quilts and expects at least one every quarter. Well, I haven't done that this quarter so I thought I'd get back to Cielo. Remember, I pinned it and put it away? Okay, maybe you don't, but I did. I put it inside a cupcake box and tucked it away, all ready to go.

So yesterday I pulled it out and started to pin the edges. Then I took a gander. A really good look. Then I went away and came back. It was still wrinkled. Pretty badly wrinkled. I asked myself, "Do I want it done or do I want it done right?" Then I sighed, because I knew I had to iron the thing. I pulled out all the pins in half of it and wrestled it, by layers, onto the ironing board. (You non-quilters may not know this, but you can't just iron a quilt. It may have polyester in the batting or something equally unfriendly to heat.) Then I repinned and unpinned the other side and ironed. After this arduous exercise, arduous because it involved folding down my table to expose floor space and pinning on the floor then putting the table back up to pin the edges and support the quilt for ironing (twice over!), I was finally back where I had started. Minus the wrinkles. Mostly.

Oh, gimme a break. I'm looking for good. Perfect is reserved for the heavenlies.

So I was ready to quilt. Yay! I had a reasonably large spool of blue Guterman so I got to work. I got about halfway done and ran out of thread. Yes. Out. Reasonable isn't good enough. (sigh) So I went out this morning and got more. In the rain. Will this saga never end? (eyes closed, back of hand to forehead)

Spot the Semicolons

Yes! The knitting for the Red Herring Purse is finished! And I used almost exactly two (of the three) skeins purchased. So, let's see, what's left:

1. Weave in ends
2. Wet and block it
3. Embroider the flowers
4. Add interfacing to handles
5. Add dowels (or chopsticks--they're free!)
6. Sew up the sides

As you can see, the second skein has just a few yards left; I think that will be enough to seam it up. Cooliyo! (Did you notice the sophisticated use of the semicolon? I did.)

And the Red Thread Project: November (that's No-Remember in Anthony-speak) has been completed. I suppose Canadians could switch the October and November blocks as their Thanksgiving falls earlier. I was naughty and used a different grey for the platter because I ran out of the color that was called for. I'm trying to get better about using my available resources. So maybe that wasn't naughty; maybe it was admirable. Fanfare here. (Or maybe it was lazy: don't tell anyone, but I just didn't want to go to the store!)

Knit Happens

First I have to tell you about Saturday morning. My knitting friend, Sherry, and I met at Liberty Station, as we usually do. Sometimes the group is much larger, but this week it was just the two of us.
Now and then we are joined by a new friend who finds us through Ravelry or Yahoo groups.
Well, there we were, chattering on, knitting our little brains out, when who should show up but Daryl Hannah. You know, the actress who knits those lovely garter stitch scarves? She sat down and we taught her how to purl. Okay, Sherry taught her. I got distracted when Debra Messing showed up with a sumptuous sequined silk/rayon DK weight that she's working into a shrug. The whole morning kinda fell apart, though, when our new members got into a tussle about the right way to knit: picking or throwing. Heavens! That was just when Lawrence Fishburn appeared with an amazing grey cashmere and... well, you'll just have to imagine the rest because I'm done. The only part about these celebs that is true is that they all knit.

Now a little update with my cross-stitch projects: I completed Snowy Evening... at least the stitch-y part. I think I'll finish it the same way I did Liberty Bears.
And here's the October portion of The Red Thread. I sewed most of it in a breezeway between two coffeeshops near Tiny's school. I call that spot "my happy place."
Also, I pulled "Warm Water Wash" out of the closet and got some more work done on it. Frankly, I think it could be finished pretty quickly at this point. All that's left is a bit at the bottom. I completed the sand castle today while I was watching "Persuasion." You can see theblue bucket is about half done. All that's left is the picnic basket, the right pole, and sewing on the buttons.

This Little Piggy Went a-Stitchin!

I've been moving along on the Red Thread, but I forgot to show you.

So here's August. I really like the little crab. He's got personality. I think he should have a name. How 'bout Shmooie? Shmooie the crab!


And September's County Fair. How cute is that little piggy? I think he should be called porcellus balloonicus. I got the idea from some doctor who was looking for names for the middle toes. You know, there's the big toe and the pinky toe, but the others were anonymous. So he wiped the slate clean and came up with new names for all five. I think they are lovely offerings:

• porcellus fori (the little piggy who went to market)
• porcellus domi (the little piggy who stayed home)
• porcellus carnivorus (the little piggy who ate roast beef)
• porcellus non voratus (the little piggy who had none)
• and porcellus plorans domum (the little piggy who cried wee! wee! wee! all the way home.)

A Journey Begins with but One Small Step

...or something like that. I have to keep repeating that quote to myself as I work on moving my projects forward with the little goals I set. This is the progress made on the "Red Thread" project going at it 15 minutes a day.

However....
I did set aside my goals for a day and worked solely on cross backs for the quilting ministry. We like to have a cross of some sort on the back of each quilt. As the Scrap Queen, I want to use up some of those scraps filling four bins in my studio, so I scrapped the crosses! Here's the back (and the front) of a quilt we named "Tic Tac Taffy." Lynda did the front--the pattern's called "Barbara's Antiques." Yeah, I don't get it either.
There's a little more room in the scrap bins, now!

Detail of cross back

And look what little goals do: only a few inches left on this binding. And I came up with a name: "Eastern Lights."

Just Under the Wire!

It's 10:37 pm, June 30, and I just finished my June installment of the Red Thread Stitch-Along. Phew! I did almost the whole thing today, which included accidentally stitching the trailer in red and pulling it back out again. I didn't like the charted color of the car, so I changed it to yellow. Does it look too much like a school bus to you?

Tiny (formerly known as DD) got her braces off today; talk about a happy camper! What a pretty smile.

The Middle is Always the Biggest Part!

The I-Spy blocks were made by entrants in a block lotto. I now present a list of the participants:

• Julie, NE
• Nell, VA
• Sue, AZ
• Sandy G.
• Silvia, LA
• Pat, CA
• Myna B.
• Bonnie, IN
• Lee Ann, UT
• Judy S.
• Amy B.
• Laura, GA
• Michelle, OK
• Kristi, MS
• Stacey S.
  
• me

Thanks, girls! It still has a ways to go, but it's looking good.

Speaking of which, take a look at the knitted dress! If you look real close, you can see that I just started shaping the armholes. I haven't that much more before I can, uh, start all over and do the whole thing again for the front. (sigh)The red thread continues to progress. You'll have to take my word that I finished May's block in May. A maypole--gotta love it! Here's what the whole piece looks like now:

Simple Life

Praise God, Emily's okay!

I'm stitching today: I hope to finish the April portion of The Red Thread...and I did! I don't know why the picture turned out so yellow; the close-up of the flowers is more true-to-life.

A very good activity for a quiet day. It was HOT today--that means my solar clothes dryer worked lickety-split! You know what a solar dryer is, right? Here's a picture of one: Take a look at the captions: it's wryly funny. If you click on the image to enlarge it, you'll be better able to read the words.

Kiwi Twist is Finished!

Kiwi Twist is FINISHED! Hip-hip-hooray! I FINALLY got the binding on. The same night I put the label on ("It's not finished until it's labeled!") and I'm so glad. I put it right on the bed. DH came and looked and was amazed by the quilting. Yes, Yuki, the quilt diva rocks!

Next news: I'm awarding myself yet another round tuit for getting out the batik and cream Jacob's ladder swap blocks and sewing them into a top. I just love the way they all set together, like facets in a jewel. I think that one-third of the blocks I made. The rest I sent out my blocks and received others in trade. Also, (stashbuster alert!) I pulled out five yards of fabric from my stash and put it together to create the back. There's an adorable fabric featured, but you'll just have to wait until I get it back from Yuki to see it!
You have GOT to see the new sewing machine: the short arm quilter! Take a look, even if you don't sew at all!

Finally, the red thread lives. These little kites are the March installment. I'm working on April. Perhaps I'll have it done tomorrow. You never know!
PS: Please lift up a prayer for the safety of Emily. Thanks!

Borg-Vision!

This is what my work would look like if I had borg-vision. I guess that's why they're not known for their handwork. (Yes, my camera is misbehaving.) The baby blanket is green, but not this green! And what's with all the horizontal lines? This is my stitching without a flash--it's usually a little dark, but oh, dear! And here is my stitching with the flash--a very green pink, wouldn't you say? The good news is that I have completed the March stitching on the Red Thread SAL and started the border with weathered barn floss--I like it a lot better than the coffee color for my fabric... although it's hard to tell....

... and the Red Thread Continues!

Here's the February installment of the Red Thread. Gosh, I like this project! I almost want to start March now, but discipline is a good thing. You might be able to see where I used the hand-dyed threads as opposed to the standard DMC colors: The hat & little heart and the red thread itself. It's nice to have options. Especially less expensive options!Warm Water Wash is moving right along. The trunks are a little like my DH's, and I've had a black bathing suit with a gold buckle--how funny is that?And here's Liberty Bears! I'd like your opinion. As you can see, the pattern calls for a checkerboard border around the whole thing. I'm thinking of deleting the border and just framing it without. The border seems awfully busy and will just underline the country theme which is not really my style. Will the no-border look just kinda bleed off the edge? Am I just trying to finish it sooner?

Rainy Doris Day

This is my patio. Note that it is wet. Today, something special happened in San Diego: water fell from the sky! For hours! It was like something out of a fairy tale. I sat myself up against the window and listened to it. The rhythms as the wind pushed it around were almost musical. Maybe that's because I was listening to Doris Day on my iPod. Hmm...
In the meantime I finished my little snowman from the Red Thread SAL. See how his scarf is trailing off the edge of his frame? It's going to be incorporated in the next block. And the next and the next. Cool, huh?

Red Thread--Here I Come!

Hooray! I finally got all the materials together to start the Red Thread Stitch-Along (SAL). A SAL is an online group that all works the same piece together. In this case, it's a monthly piece with charming little patterns and a message about the people you are destined to meet. I'm a month and a half behind!
I had to wait until my LSS (local stitchery shop) owner came back from Nashville, where they have a big convention/sales thingy--I don't know the real name--people just call it "going to Nashville!" She brought me back this delicious peachy-pink cloth--Bittersweet 28 ct Jobelan. I was so excited upon leaving the shop, I went right home and took a nap. Well.... it's a long drive.... and I had a busy afternoon and evening ahead.... okay, I'm a wimp. But I'm going to work on it today! Oh, boy! Oh, boy! Oh, boy!