Putzing along...

It's February and I am enjoying not having any deadlines to finish sewing or knitting projects.  In fact, I have finished another Summer Flies (actually about 3 weeks ago) and have yet to get it blocked.  Why?  Because it's for me and I'm not in a hurry.  Feels good too, I might add. Can't say enough about this pattern and it would be perfect for all of you who do not enjoy knitting from a chart (like me!)

I am finishing up today a quilt I started out of all Kaffe Fassett fabrics .  I have wanted to do this Plus Sign quilt for the longest ever since I saw it on one of my very favorite quilting blogs, Film in the Fridge. Why she does most of her own quilting, I will probably send this off.  Not sure just yet.  I only have 4 more rows and I'm done!  This one's for me...

In knitting news, I am working on a large cable wrap stole and I am enjoying every single stitch.  For the yarn, it's Blue Sky Alpaca's worsted Organic Cotton in natural, doubled.  So yes, the needles I am using (size 13) feel like broomsticks compared to my previous projects. This one is for me too.  I have been wanting to knit this for a very long time since I saw Susan knitting one at our knit group. 

And I found a picture of my mom holding up her Neck Down Summer Cardigan from Knitting Pure and Simple.  I love Diane's patterns.  Love love love them.  I started this about 1-1/2 years ago - put it down and picked it back up this past December 1st to finish in time for my mom for Christmas.  I only had the sleeves to finish and I did make them a longer.  I just knit until I used up all my yarn.  I honestly can't remember the name of the yarn but I do remember it was an awesome twist, superwash 100% Merino and I had bought a bag of 10 skeins from my LYS during a huge sale they had.  I know I didn't pay over $3.00/skein for it.  And Mom loves it.  I added some great pewter buttons and there you have it.  I'll try to get a photo of her in it. 

The pin I made from a Felt Flower project on Pinterest.  I haven't been on Pinterest in a while because when I do, I am on there for a long time.  Love it though.  A very inspiring website and I made several gifts for the holidays from it.  And most will do again!

News from the Shop:  The Hiya Hiya SHARPs needles are extremely popular.  If you have not tried them, do your knitting a favor and do so.  The Yarn Grove carries all the sizes that are currently available in the SHARPs, including individual interchangeable tips in both 4" and 5".  LOVE them.  Especially for all those K3togs, etc...

Did I mention I love the new Hiya Hiya SHARP needles?

Happy New Year!

What a wonderful holiday I spent with all my kids and grands.  It was marvelous!  Now that I have a little downtime, I am tossing around a couple of ideas for knitting projects.  I am still knitting on Sothia - she stays in the car and is for the hours I spend taking my mom to doctors appts.

I was going to show a few of my projects I made for gifts this year.

First up, I bought a vintage Bucilla Felt kit off ebay (my second one) and made this adorable ABC wall hanging for mini Island Boy. Mini Orange boy got one last year for Christmas and loves it.  All the ornaments are hand sewn.  Only thing machine sewn is the rick rack around the edges.

Second, I made these adorable ABC letters and a bucket to put them in.  My only regret is that I did not do numbers.  Didn't even think about it.  Got it off PINTEREST .  Here is my photo of the ones I made.  Loved loved loved this.  Will most certainly make again -  great gifts. And, by the way, if you haven't been to PINTEREST, you are missing A LOT!  Love that website.

Next up I found these adorable tea mugs w/sidekick from Angela Ingram on Etsy.  Bought one for Cheryl and one for my mom.  Then I found a "tea wreath" to make on PINTEREST which I thought was the coolest thing.  I made mine a bit smaller than the one on the tuitorial but let me tell you, they were a huge hit.  I bought 2 boxes of assorted tea bags - mainly for color - and used those.  I painted the clothespins, covered them in scrapbook paper scraps and voila!  I love it so much that I just ordered my own mug from Angela's etsy shop on Monday!

I made some cute little felt citrus coasters for Island Girl. Here is a link to the Purl Bee tutorial.  Adorable!

I Island Girl a blanket out of Minkie fabric and Citron and Gray bird material on the back from Michael Miller but no photo; I made a slouchy hat for my niece and no photo.  I forget to take them sometimes!

Off the blocking mat this morning,  a plain old cowl I made from Cascade Yarns Eco Duo which is a glorious combo of baby alpaca and Merino wool that is undyed.  Seed stitch border and just plain old knit. 

Finally, here is a photo of Mini Orange boy who absolutely loved his car/train track quilt.  I had shown it in a previous post .

A few other handmades but this was about it.  Some I forgot to take photos - others the photos did not come out. 

OTN now is Summer Flies - again - this time in a cashmere blend.  AND the wonderful new Hiya Hiya SHARPs needles.  If you haven't tried them, you don't know what you're missing. 

Wishing each and everyone of you a most joyous, healthy, crafty and peaceful 2012...

Psssst... They're here...

Of course I am talking about the new Hiya Hiya SHARPs Needles!  They arrived yesterday here at The Yarn Grove and already they are a hit with lots and lots of you knitters!  In stock, currently, are the 4" and 5" Interchangeable Sets in Steel US size 2-8, Sizes 4" and 5" individual tips in US sizes 2-8 and also fixed Circulars (US sizes 2-8) in 16", 24", 32" and 40" lengths.

Some sizes of circulars are already sold out but rest assured, there will be more on their way soon.

These needles are of the same exceptional quality as all the other Hiya Hiya needles and products - and let me tell you, they are pointy tipped for all those lace projects you have been procrastinating about.

Any questions, please send me a message on Ravelry (janiegirl) or janeATtheyarngroveDOTcom.  Try them - I know you will love them.  I sure do...

Happy Holidays everyone!

Apples, fabrics and some yarn...

I cannot believe it is the middle of October already.  I sit here trying to gather my thoughts for all the little gifties I have in mind for gifts by December end.  My mind is frozen - so I decided to update on what I have been doing.

Apples galore.  Every year this time finds me heading to North Georgia for my delectable Winesap apples.  We will be blessed with Grandson #3(aka micro orange boy) in just a couple of weeks so it was necessary to restock my homemade applesauce! 

One day, whilst visiting my Trader Joe's, I came across an over abundance of apples.  Cortlands, MacIntosh, Jonathan, Rome, Delicious, and the list went on.  What if I didn't go to NGA for my apples and bought locally instead?  That is exactly what I did.  I bought the equivalent of one bushel (7 square bags) of Cortland apples and made from it:  5 quarts of canned just sliced apples, 9-1/2 pints apple butter, and 7 pints of applesauce, no sugar please.

I was thrilled.  So I treked back to TJ's and bought approximately one more bushel - this time Honeycrisp and MacIntosh.  Little Mommy came over (yes!  Orange boy and family moved to Marietta from the Rocket City which also took place end of September/1st of October) and we made more applesauce with the MacIntosh.  The Honeycrisp I put up for apple desert delights over the next year.  I. love. canning...

Next up I finished a quilt for Micro Orange Boy (see blue quilt below left) who should arrive on or around November 3rd.  Each of my babies has to have their own quilt.  I also found this adorable panel at my local quilt shop with trains and roads on it.  I added a border, some flannel "nuts and bolts" fabric for the back and my long-arm quilter quilted it right up for me. Mini Orange Boy will get this at Christmas time. 

As for the knitting front?  I finished this hat for which I bought 2 kits.  It is Techno Hat from Blue Sky Alpacas and I got them at KPixie. Love the yarn - so soft, fluffy and alpaca! 

And to end it all are some most precious Baby Booties.  This pattern hailed from Churchmouse Yarns and the pattern is Stay On baby Booties .  Fun, quick and easy, I made these with Karabella Aurora 4 which I had leftover in my stash.

In shop news, I have put in a pre-order with Hiya Hiya needles for their new Sharp needles - both in fixed and interchangeable.  Hiya Hiya anticipates that these needles should be ready for distribution on or around the first of December or shortly after...  I have a pair and let me tell you, they are the best yet...

So I guess I have been busy. I'll end this by saying the next items up on my sewing/knitting agenda will not be able to be shown until after the holidays... 

A lot of quilting...

I sent 4 quilt tops to Hazel, my longarm quilter. (click on the photos to see them larger). 2 are small Moda Halloween square quilts (about 36" x 42") which Mini Island Boy(with the Riley Blake spider fabric on the back) and Mini Orange Boy (with the Alexander Henry Pumpkins on the back)are already the recipients of.  The 3rd Halloween quilt is quite a bit larger and stays here at Gaga's house.  The 4th quilt is not finished yet - by that I mean I have to bind it.  I hope to do that over the long weekend.

In other news, I have been working on Sothia and I am using the exact combination of Madelinetosh light yarn that Robin used.  Why?  Because Tern is my absolute favorite color and this is not the first piece I have knit in that colorway.  Please don't pay attention to how ugly the colors look in my photo - look at the link above.  This has been a fun knit and I look forward to blocking it.

I lost my sweet sweet Aunt Ruby last week.  She was 91 and up until about 2 years ago, she was fully aware of everything.  My Aunt Ruby is the one who got me canning and sewing and I swear my family used to say I was more like her than my mom (at least in the crafty sense).  The weekend before she died, I had picked so many tomatoes from my garden.  Since I have already canned about 22 quarts and frozen approx. 10 quarts, I did not need to can anymore so I decided to make my Aunt Ruby's salsa.  When I spoke with her on the telephone a couple of days later, I was happy to share that with her. I know she heard me. Next weekend I will take my mom to Annapolis so we can attend her memorial service.  I loved my Aunt Ruby...  She will forever remain in my heart.

Here's hoping all of you have a splendid Labor day and a safe one too!  And if you have an "Aunt Ruby" hug her real good...

A little Autumn Flutters

Gosh, I bet most of us would love a little of that Autumn feeling about right now.  Just got through watching the news and so many places have had record breaking heat. 

Speaking of Autumn, here is a finished photo of Autumn Flutters.  Loved this pattern - just like SummerFlies.  I knit this with Malabrigo Sock yarn in the Terracotta colorway.  I used one full skein and about 1/2 of another.  This one is for me.  The only change I did is a picot edge instead of pleated edge.

Where have I been?  I actually have been up to my eyeballs in textbooks, workbooks, stethoscopes and the like.  I have just finished - today actually - a nursing asst. class.  This class was great but very accelerated and intense - especially for someone my age!  It was a lot of class, then most nights I had 2-3 hours of homework.  Written final was yesterday and lab finals today.  I passed.  Now I am a candidate to take the state test which should be in about 2-3 weeks after I apply.  Not a lot of knitting has been done I can promise that.  Or sleep for that matter!  What will I do with this?  I have no clue at the moment but I hope to eventually work in a hospice setting on a part time/as needed basis.  We'll see...

The only other thing going on is the PGA golf this coming week - one mile from my home.  Directly - straight shot.  Do I care?  Yes because traffic is going to horrendous.

Tomorrow I am going to my quilt shop for a little fabric therapy...  I have 4 quilt tops ready to go to my long arm quilter but haven't had time to get them to her yet.  3 are Halloween ones and one is from an Amy Butler kit I bought over 2 years ago...  I'll post soon...

One Charlize, Two Pickle Dishes, Salsa and a baby...

It's that time of year when my hands get twitching to can something.  Anything.  Little Mommy called me to tell me she made the most awesome Mango Salsa and that our grocery store had mangoes on sale for $1.00 each and we only needed 4-5.  Yep, I got the canning bug.  So last weekend I put up only a couple of 1/2 pints of Mango salsa and boy is it good.  Recipe here:  .  Also that is a great website to use as a resource if you have questions about canning, water bathing, or pressure canning.  This did not require pressure canning (although I can't wait to use my pressure canner again) - I did use it for the water bath.  

Then I saw blueberries on sale last weekend.  I looked up a couple of recipes for blueberry jam and decided to make some.  What I originaly was going to can was Blueberry Syrup which can be used on anything.  Well guess what.  My jam did not gel like it should have (I used less sugar like the recipe called for) but let me tell you, it is delicious.  I now have a blueberry syrup!!  Will be great on cereal, oatmeals, cheesecakes, icecream etc.  I am more than thrilled with it now.

I finished my Charlize.  It is on Ravelry for those on there.  Loved it.  Will most certainly knit this again. Madelintosh Sock in Logwood, bought at Stitches South.  OTN now is :  Autumn Flutters .  I am knitting in Malabrigo sock in Terracotta which is more like an orange.  Love the patterns by Holly and Ella.  I will knit Summer Flies again which I knit last fall.

Already in queue is Cambridge by Sunday Knits.  This is a brandnew pattern and you can purchase it through Ravelry.  I don't see it on her website yet.  This is modeled after Princess Kate's Shopping Shawl with the ruffles.  I'm not sure about my yarn choice yet.  I'm thinking gray alpaca....

In sewing news, I took the Pickle Dish class and loved it.  It is so fun but when putting it together, is quite fiddly.  It will be a work in progress but I try to do a few every week.  I also made Mini Island Boy his own softie blankie out of Minky(ie?) fabric.  When I visited him for his first birthday, I noticed he didn't have a softie blankie like Mini Orange Boy does to rub when falling asleep.  He does now and Island Girl says he loves it! Now Island Girl says she wants one...  I'll be looking for a sale on it.

 I leave you with a photo of Mini Orange Boy who was here for about 5 days during the tornados that took out power in the Rocket City.  We had so much fun!  I know Little Mommy and he were glad to get home but I have never had him for so long and was able to do fun stuff.  Train museum, fountain playing, and picnic. 

And it is with great gusto that I announce there will be a Micro Mini Orange baby!  Yep, Mini Orange Boy is going to be a big brother.  We currently believe the baby to be a boy!!  One more ultrasound and we will know for sure. Expected November 3rd...

And a photo of Mini Island Boy where I went to celebrate his first birthday the middle of May.  He is walking everywhere.