Up to my eyes in ... a lot

I cannot believe the last time I posted was over 2 weeks ago. Yep, time sure flies when one is busy. Besides trying to keep up with my garden I have had a lot of other deadlines as well.

First I finished 2 baby quilts and mailed those off. Here is a photo of one of them - almost done. (Binding was still hanging on). Then I made a beautiful quilt (of which I did not take a photo because I literally finished it late one night and mailed it the next morning) for a friend of my mom's (also a friend of mine) for a special birthday. I put some embroidery squares on it as well that pertained to her life. Like she is a nurse, the Netherlands flag (where she was born) and various other stitchy things. She loved it.

Oh and there is knitting too. I am still chugging along on the top down sweater and I love it.

The pattern is from Kntting Pure and Simple #221 Summer Cardigan (take a minute to look over her patterns. Love them all). The yarn I am using is Zara 100%Merino wool in a gorgeous gray color. I think I will make this for my mom but bought extra so I can make longer sleeves. This is the project that goes with me on my many airplane trips recently. Love all of Diane's patterns.

And speaking of travel, I am leaving yet again for California a week from tomorrow (the 27th) for a corporate business trip. But before that, I am truly hoping to have lots of Hiya Hiya Interchangeable needles in the shop! I know many of you are on my original "I want one list" from many months ago and once that list is fulfilled, I will list the others on The Yarn Grove. So stay tuned!

Hope this finds your summer going great.

Oh and p.s. to my Island Girl. Feel free to join Cheryl and I in blogging anytime.

WWKIP day and other stuffs...

Nothing like being a little behind blogging but here is a photo of just a few of our Noble Knitters on WWKIP day. We went to our usual hangout and knit. It was a fun day - a little steamy outside - but fun none the less. There were a total of perhaps 15 of us and we broke up into smaller knitting groups after dining on a wonderful lunch together. Here is a photo of some of us - I am second from the left - and we were all wearing our Noble Knitter T-shirts.

Not only am I behind in my blogging but also housework, gardening and just plain everyday stuff. I have been traveling for 2 weeks with my corporate job. I only work a few hours a month but was needed for a project, so off I went. I did get a lot of knitting done on the flights so that was nice. I am working on a top down sweater. It is the gray heathered one in the photo.

Last month at our Knitting Guild meeting, Deborah Fillmer aka The Nautical Knitter came to speak to us about the world of KAL's. I have been in her Secret of the Stole groups before and thoroughly enjoyed it. She is a delightful and charming lady. Deborah has designed a Secret KAL for our knitting guild members only so I decided to venture out on Saturday in search of the perfect yarn. I ended up with Classic Elite Silky Alpaca Laceweight in a topaz/orangey color from one of my LYS, Cast on Cottage . The KAL calls for beads and I chose some beads that are 2 tone - pink with topaz on the ends. I am still not sure how I like the 2 of them together (I bought the beads first) but so far I think I do. We'll see. Haven't even had time to do a swatch. In fact, I haven't been able to pick up my sticks since I flew home late Thurs. night.

The first weekend I came home after traveling, Orange Boy, Cheryl and Stephen were here to visit Gammaw. We had a wonderful weekend together. His personality is really coming through at 4-1/2 months.

And my garden has exploded whilst I was gone. Including weeds. So yesterday I spent pulling weeds, picking beans, jalapeno peppers, tomatoes and cukes. (the photo shows the first trip to the garden's loot). The beans I blanched and froze; the jalapenos I just froze so they will be readily available when I get ready to make my annual batch of salsa and the tomatoes I put in hot water, peeled the skins and chopped them up. Next was the freezer bags and I was able to get 4 full quarts of tomatoes for winter consumption. There will be lots more soon.

I hope you all have a happy and safe 4th of July celebration. Hub and I are going to visit Island Girl so the shop shipping (say that 3 times) will cease on Wed. July 1 and begin again on Tuesday, July 7. As always, The Yarn Grove is open 24/7 for your shopping pleasure!

One twisted braid...

I'm done. Here is a photo of my Twisted Braid Wrap from SWTC in their Therapi yarn. I saw a lady at Stitches South when I was working the AKG booth and commented on it. Had to have it. Went and bought the kit and chose this gorgeous (this photo was taken when we were having terrible t'storms) color in a gray/green. It was an easy knit and I believe the pattern is available for sale on Ravelry. I will certainly do this one again but in a 100% wool so there is a little more stretch. Thanks Mom for modeling... She has claimed all rights to this!

I hope a lot of you have been able to view the video/story that Cheryl linked up on the blog on June 3rd. It is truly an amazing story that started with a simple request. Maybe some of you American Idol followers remember her from a couple of seasons ago. I believe it was Season 5 (Cheryl please correct me if I am wrong). Her voice is incredible and most especially she is a beautiful person. Cheryl is the very pregnant one - this was filmed before my precious Stephen was born.

Don't forget Saturday, June 13 is Knit In Public day. Noble Knitters, my Wed. night group, are going to spread all over the Forum on various benches scattered throughout this quaint outside shopping center. B&N is there where we meet in the cafe every Wed night. It will be fun. Anyone in the area, stop by to join us.

And last, a picture of my Stephen who is in his little red corvette and trying to figure out how to get to Gammaw's house!

Grab the tissues

Hey everybody- Check out this amazing video of my friend (I'm in there too) and her story of hope and faith.

I'm alive!

Hey everybody. I'm alive! I haven't been swallowed by diapers, spit up and laundry (yet). Stephen is 3 months old and life is good. He is napping regularly and sleeping 5 hours most nights. YAY!! As soon as I start knitting again, I'll post some pictures. Until then, here's a picture of the little man.


Also, make sure to check out The Yarn Grove on facebook!

Key Shawl

So it's finished. My Key Shawl. I mean when you live on an island, why would you need a full sweater? Most of the time you don't so I jumped all over this adorable pattern at the local yarn shop. I will say that I did not knit the actual pattern stitch - just stockinette. Why you ask? Because I needed something to carry with me to all the doctor appts. I take my mom to. Sometimes I can wait for up to 5 hours and it keeps me occupied. When you go as frequently as we do, all the magazines have been read!

I call this my "fake" sweater. It only has a back, no sides and gives the illusion of having sleeves that you tie in the front (as if you were wrapping a sweater over your shoulders). Love it. Just the thing to throw over an outfit. Oh, and the yarn was Karabella Aurora 4 and I don't remember the color number. And I see I already have a pick on it that needs fixin'.

Keep checking out our yarn sales as we undergo some changes at TYG!

I leave you with a photo of my precious Stephen (isn't this what Gammaw's are supposed to do?). Cheryl said he was yawning - I think he is calling for me ; )

Happy Mother's Day!!

For Jane (aka Momma G, Gammaw and Momm-ay)

Roses are red
Yarn is fuzzy
You're the best Mom
That ever there was-zy

We love you so much. Thank you for always supporting us and loving us unconditionally. You are the most loving, generous, kind, caring and selfless person. WE LOVE YOU!!!!

love
Chris, Stephanie, Eric, Cheryl, Stephen, Spottie, Mona, Cleo, Junior, Shorty and Mully

Mr. Smiley

This makes me smile. My precious 10 week old grandbaby, Stephen. He must be thinking of Gammaw...

Stay tuned so I can show off my loot from Stitches South yesterday. I had a blast...

I am A ....

Twitter Knitter! Check out my new T-shirt from Melissa and Albert here. If they are not posted for sale yet, they will be soon. And while you are visiting check out Melissa's fun blog, The Nifty Knitter. She also has gorgous hand dyed yarns for sale.

My twitter id is: lilypurl .

The book is here...

As most of my knitting friends know, I only knit from the toe up. It is the way I learned to knit socks from the Sock Knitting Queen herself, Zina several years ago. I have never witnessed any knitter turn out more pairs of socks than Zina. She is amazing.

Also, most of my knitting friends know that I cannot knit anything without a pattern. So most of my toe up socks have been straight knitting and that has kept me pretty satisfied. When I heard Wendy Johnson was coming out with a Toe up Sock book, I could not have been more excited. And it arrived today!

I am currently blocking the body of my Key Shawl (more on that later) and am getting ready to begin the final section of it. My goal is to have it finished by Stitches South which is rapidly arriving !

Again, if you are coming to Stitches South, drop me a line....

Sassafras Creations

Check out my new earrings from Sassafras Creations. I have been an admirer of Nancy's recycled knitting needle jewelry for some time now. Nancy was at our Noble Knitters group last Wednesday, and Diana had a great suggestion that we should all wear Nancy's creations whilst at Stitches South. Nancy will have a booth there so if you are coming, check her out! All of her items are marvelous and unique. Great gifts too. Also,

I will be working the Atlanta Knitting Guild booth on Saturday from 10-12pm so please stop by and say hey...

We are getting in lots and lots of sizes of Hiya Hiya Needles at The Yarn Grove so check us out!

Kudzu... Keeps on growing

I have finished all my kudzu for Stitches South. Why did I choose to knit kudzu? It is a southern thing. Kudzu is everywhere here. I cannot wait to see all the finished items we have made for the centerpieces at SS.

Anyone going to attend SS? I will be working the Atlanta Knitting Guild (AKG) booth on Saturday morning and would love to meet all of you! Please stop by or PM me for further details!

I'm off to the Rocket City again tomorrow am to see my precious grandbaby. Apparently he is crying for Gammaw ; ) .

Have a great weekend.

Little Stephen

Here is a photo of my new grandbaby, Stephen. I was with him for 4 days this past week and he and I had so much fun. Especially the night time feedings. I tried to give mommy and orange boy a break. He is so precious... I miss him already! These are actually older photos of him because Gammaw forgot her camera...

I did get a little knitting done on my Malabrigo sock which I bragged would be done during my visit with Island Girl but that didn't happen either... And I started another project which is fun and will show that soon...

Have a fun fiber filled weekend.

Happy Birthday, Island Girl!

Happy Birthday to my precious Island Girl. I am honored and blessed to be her momma.

In shop news, I will be gone again... this time to the Rocket City to visit my new grandbaby, Stephen. What does this mean for you? Slight shipping delays as follows:

Any order from the US received after 5:00pmEST on Wed. March 11 OR any international order received after 5:00pm on Tuesday, March 10 will not be shipping until Monday, March 16.

Have a great fiber filled week!

Perfect Timing...

It is snowing here in the south today and all I can say is .... Yippee! I'm leaving to go visit Island Girl!! Can't wait. I leave before dawn on Tuesday and this is my first direct flight there. All other trips I have made have had various connecting flights via Tampa, Ft. Lauderdale and Miami on propeller planes. Tuesday - Direct!! Thank you Delta!

With that said, please note that any USA order placed at The Yarn Grove after 5:00pmEST on Monday, March 2nd will not ship until Monday, March 9. All international orders will be mailed on Monday, March 9. Of course, as always, we are open for your shopping pleasure. AND the sale continues!

I will have a pair of Malabrigo socks finished by then to show you and I also need to photo my Lorna's Laces Sport socks in Aslan that are done.

Have a marvelous fiber filled week ...

Check it out...

Just stoppin' in to say we are having a storewide sale on in-stock yarn products. If you get a minute, stop by...

Happy Birthday Orange Boy!

Just wanted to take a little space and wish my Orange Boy a very Happy Birthday. When he was little, he used to tell all the girls that he was a sweetheart because he was born on Valentine's day! And he truly is a sweetheart and a wonderful young man... It is an honor to be his momma.

I also want to report that little Stephen entered this world on Wed. Feb. 11 and mommy and baby are doing spectacular. It was hard for me to leave and I am practicing being a grandma. It is fun!

Baby Week!!!

Oh my gosh, its Monday of baby week. Stephen is being induced on Wednesday at 4am. I hardly slept a wink last night between the excitement, anxiety, heartburn and extreme baby kicks. I guess Stephen is excited too. Chris, on the other hand, was snoring 2 minutes after his head hit the pillow. I bet he was the kind of kid who even slept through the night on Christmas Eve. Not me! And I doubt the next 2 nights (or 18 years for that matter!) will see much sleep. I spent about an hour on Ravelry looking for some easy patterns for the hospital. Anything with little to no counting or shaping or fancy stitches. I'll probably start something this afternoon.

Here is the Baby Kimono I finished for my friend's little girl, Brookelynn. Isn't that the cutest name!! She is 3 months old. I hope it fits. I used Nature's Palette Green Sheep Organic Wool, which you may recognize from Kiki the Kitty, completed last week. This was my second project using only 2 skeins and I STILL have some left over! Great great yarn.Here's my diaper bag- finally finished! I really wanted until the last minute, huh? Amy Butler fabric- LOVE her. There are lots of great pockets inside and the top zips closed. Oh yes, its quite fancy. And its full of wipes, butt creams, diapers and disposable breast pads. Isn't motherhood glamorous?I'll post pictures of the little man as soon as I can. Gammaw is coming to Huntsville on Wednesday. Can't wait!!!

Stash Busting!

Well, I think the nesting has really kicked in now. I just can't stop. But its not cleaning I'm doing...its knitting! I can't stop! As soon as I finish a project, I have to start another one!!

Here's a little pair of mitts I made this weekend. I used a random skein of Louet I had in my stash LOVE Louet, btw). The pattern is very loosely based on this. I think they will come in handy for stroller pushing in the early spring. For some reason, Chris doesn't want a matching pair- whats his deal??? (please excuse the belly shadow in the picture! lol!)
Here is Kiki the Kitty I made from Nature's Pallete Green Sheep Organic Wool for a friend's daughter. The wool softens up with every wash, so Kiki took a few dips in the hot tub with some laundry before I sewed her up. Great easy pattern for stash busting!I started another baby sweater too and finished half of it during the superbowl last night. I imagine I'll be posting pictures of it in the next few days. What should I start on next....

The little man's coming home outfit is all finished! I found these sweet buttons that say "Little Lamb" on them. I thought that was appropriate for my little wooly booly. :)
On Saturday, Chris had to work so I did a little shopping. Lately, I've had an uncontrollable hatred for the way our living room was decorated- its so dark and outdated- ick! So I hit up my favorite thrift stores and scored these cute pots for $.75 each and found this awesome fabric at the fabric store on clearance for $4 a yard! Here's a shot of the unfinished curtains. It just brightens up the whole room. I feel much better, but I don't think Chris will be leaving me unattended on a Saturday anymore.

Little man is due to arrive at anytime. I was 1.5 cm dilated at my last appointment, so he probably won't come tonight, but we are moving in the right direction! Chris and I get our diplomas from childbirth class tomorrow, the carseat is installed, the nursery is finished, the coming home outfit has buttons, the wipe warmer is warming- we are READY!!!

Month of Nesting- Week 2

We had our 36 week appointment this morning- I'm not dilated or effaced at all (boo!), but Stephen is head down and moving in the right direction. We had another ultrasound and got a great shot of his little button nose (Gammaw's nose actually!) and his manhood- he's definitely a boy! The doctor guesses that he will be about 8 lbs if he comes on time. I think I can handle that.

I finished the little bundle of joy's coming home outfit this week. It was one of those projects I couldn't put down. I just have to sew on the buttons. Cute, huh?
The curtains are hung! I love them! They need one small alteration that will be completed tomorrow...and I've been saying that since Monday. Really though, I'll do it tomorrow...:)Here's the sailboat "artwork" I've been working on. The fabric will be wrapped around a wooden frame we got from Ikea. LOVE Ikea. I just have to finish hand stitching the boats. This was a really fun and CHEAP project that anyone could do.
All you need is:
fabric scraps
heavy interfacing (I used decor-bond)
a wooden frame
Cross stitching thread (or you could machine stitch too I suppose)

First, I made a pattern of the shapes I needed using butcher paper.Then, I cut out my fabric shapes with a 5/8 in border to be folded over.
Next, I used my pattern pieces to cut out interfacing, which I ironed onto the wrong side of the fabric.Then, I ironed the border over onto the wrong side, to make a nice clean edge for the front.Now, all you do is pin the pieces where you want them and hand or machine stitch them on. I'll probably line the white fabric so you can't see the wood frame.
Easy!Next week, I'll be making the cribskirt and my diaper bag, which I purchased fabulous Amy Butler fabric for. I can't wait!!!

Did anyone watch Lost this week? Whats with the time travel? Speaking of TV, time for Grey's...gotta go!