Merry Christmas!

With love to all my family and friends.....This is a digitally scrapbooked page I did using Adobe Photoshop Elements, version 8 and a ready made template from Katie Pertiet at Designer Digitals, an awesome scrapbooking site for digital scrapbookers...I hope to do a lot more this coming year using our photos from our travels.

My sister and I wish everyone a VERY Merry Christmas!  Love, Jeannie and Lyle

Winding Paths

I saw something online the other day, a gadget for winding balls of yarn by hand...not a ball winder or a swift, but a nostepinne. It's a beautiful piece of wood turned on a lathe, and it's used to help you wind a better center pull ball of yarn by hand. Sort of a cross between hand winding a center pull skein using a couple of your fingers, and the swifts and ball winders that make the chore a little easier by using contraptions.

I bought one off Etsy...the crafters' website. I bought one of the cheaper ones, and I think it might be a little too short, but it was still fun to have something to turn the yarn on, and not just my stubby little fingers! And I think I might have this nostepinne upside down, as the hook is meant to hold the outside starting yarn, I think! It didn't come with directions, so I'll have to go watch good old youtube! I think I'm going to look a little more for a second one that's longer...this one is 6". I think it needs to be longer, judging from some of the other ones I've look at online.

I love this sock yarn! It's Sausalito, an 80% wool, 20% nylon blend with a beautiful ocean blue, turquoise and purple colorway. Can't wait to make some more socks with it! Speaking of socks, I'm going to attempt Cat Bordhi's "Sweet Tomato Heel" socks one day soon...Gotta get those Christmas and birthday presents done and mailed, first!  I also want to make Cat's Moebius Cowl for someone in my family, but don't know who, yet.  Not sure if my daughters would like something like that, so time to check in with them.....Until next week.....Sunday is Christmas! Can't believe it's here all ready!

Going Green with Plarn

I had never heard of plarn until I got on the Knitting Paradise forum...I thought crocheting and knitting with plastic bags was cool, but not very pretty, most likely. This morning I found this site and check this out...it's amazing what people can do with plastic bags!  Creating with plastic bags 

I've decided to keep my eyes open for pretty plastic bags in different colors....they must be out there, but everywhere I've seen, they are white....That's all I need to do...collect yet another source of craft materials. The RV is bulging out the sides already with yarn totes! :-)

We're in Naples for the month of December. There's a wonderful yarn shop here. It's called Knitting With Nancy. As far as yarn supplies, needles and ideas go, this is a small shop, but it's full of hand knitted models of shawls, baby stuff, scarves, vests, accessories and she has a terrific selection of yarn! I'm going to have to really behave myself and not go crazy here. To top it off, the store is within walking distance of the RV park we are staying in, like half a block away.. I am going to go and knit on Wednesday mornings with them. I really need to develop my skills and learn some new techniques before we leave the area in January. They need help making ruffle scarves for a local women's shelter so I am going to sit and knit scarves with them to help them meet their goal of 60 scarves before Christmas.

felt hand sewn snowman and crocheted snowman face

I put up my little 4 foot Christmas tree in the RV. It's got my little handknitted sweaters on it, mini hats, stockings, mittens, knitted angels, felt ornaments and the usual glittery ones. It's about as close as I can get to my 7 foot tree I used to put up when living back in Indiana. Every year I made some type of homemade ornaments to put on the tree. One year it was copper cookie cutter styled ornaments, ornaments made out of cocktail toothpicks, felt ones, crocheted ones, and this year it's the year of the knitted "minis".

martial arts dobok

Little mini handknitted sweater made from leftover Red Heart sock yarn....

And a little mini hat...got at least five of them on the tree, again from Red Heart sock yarn...they were actually fun to make! I think they need BLING! But wanted to get them on the tree for now. I'll go looking for some sparkly things to sewn on the tops of the hats..maybe some jingle bells! or little charms....Tis the season!  Until next time......

What'll It Be This Week?

Finished my "cosmopolitan" baby booties...what a nightmare! The first one I blithely knitted along, doing purl 1 increases (m1P)  incorrectly. I had some holes where there shouldn't have been holes. So-o-o-o, on the second bootie, I googled and youtubed pearl increases and started fresh. Messed up the stitch count several times, ripped out and started over several times...got to the instep and somehow, I thought there was a mistake on which side I was supposed to be starting the instep. I began the instep row one row too early. Got halfway done on the instep, realized my mistake, and ripped the entire bootie out and started over. Seventh time, got to the instep again, made the SAME darn mistake AGAIN on the instep, not remembering I thought I knew better than the pattern writer! Ripped out the bootie and started completely over for the eighth time! I was bound and determined to get this second bootie done. Mission accomplished! I didn't give up, I perservered, I know now how to do M1P's and I'll never do this particular pattern again! Yes, I will....it's too cute in sock yarn not to do it again. BUT---you have to seam it up the back, so I may try to find a pattern with no seams on circular needles instead....I've seen seamless ones on DPN's but really get confused on the heels with those and picking up stitches.

Ta-da! Whew! That's enough for now....

Time to switch gears....How about a little mini martial arts dobok uniform ornament? It's about 4" tall...

I made it for Eldy's granddaughter to hang on the family Christmas tree....It was very easy to do on two circulars....the neckline is single crochet after you finish knitting it. The tie belt is an i-cord, the directions had a single crochet chain but I thought an i-cord might look better. I found the free pattern on the internet, of course!

We are in Naples now....time to get out and enjoy the absolutely gorgeous scenery of the city and the beautiful weather. Home just got socked in with 8 inches of snow, but it's an early snow and it won't last in Indiana very long! I miss it, though....Until next time.....When I decorate my little four foot Christmas tree!