Countdown Clock by Zoodu.com

It's been a long time.

Well, it's been about 2 months since I last posted to my blog. I have been busy working, crafting, sorta cleaning the house, and more recently feeding my Ravelry addiction.

Once again I signed up for Knit Michigan which raises money for local cancer charities. So far, I've knit 2 chemo caps. It's the Foliage hat from Knitty.com.




I also made a scarf for the Red Scarf Project. This year they were stressing quality over quantity. So I made one scarf and included Visa and CVS gift cards.



And here's a Tulips baby cardigan from the Dream in Color folks. It was a popular kit and got even more popular once the Yarn Harlot spoke of her obsession with it. This particular colorway way put together by the wonderful guys who own Threadbear Fiber Arts Studio.



While on vacation, I crocheted this vest for Afghans for Afghans. The pattern is available on their sit in both a knit and further down the page a crocheted version.



I also made this crocheted Katamari ball for my desk. I found the pattern on Ravelry but you can find it here if you're not a Raveler. It's designed by Amy Shimel.



In case, you haven't heard about it yet... Ravelry is an online community. According to their website, "Ravelry is a place for knitters, crocheters, designers, spinners, and dyers to keep track of their yarn, tools and pattern information, and look to others for ideas and inspiration." You can find out more here. And if you want to find me on Ravelry, I'm PhillyPa329.

There are several things in the queue but I'll save them for another day.

Sockapalooza Socks Arrive

My sockapalooza socks arrived on Tuesday. I was so excited to see what my pal had knit for me. Kelley knit me these amazing socks. Check them out down below. The yarn is Knit Picks Dancing (41% cotton, 39% wool, 13% nylon, 7% elastic) in the Rumba colorway. It doesn't have the feel of wool but the socks are very comfy and they fit my size 11 feet perfectly. The pattern is the Baby Cable Rib from Sensational Knitted Socks, over 80 stitches.

I've made several pairs of socks in the past but none of them fit quite right (but I keep trying). So I figured I should sign up in the beginner category. These socks I received from Kelley are way better than beginner level work. They are advanced level work. The stitches are fine and even. There's no loose stitches or "holes" in the gusset area where you pick up stitches, the cuff edge is smooth and even, and the toe join is amazing. I can't tell from looking at them if Kelley knit them toe up or top down. The socks are truly a pleasure to behold. Thanks Kelley for my amazing socks.

Sockapalooza socks are done

I finished my Sockapalooza socks last Thursday. If you look back at my prior post about the socks you'll notice the socks don't look quite the same. That's because I changed not only the yarn but also the pattern.

I liked the socks but they were a slow knit. The pattern had a number of twisted stitches in it. I kept messing up the pattern. And the deadline was looming. So I switched everything out and started fresh.

Details on the new Sockapalooza sock's:

Yarn: Cascade Fixation #6388
Pattern: Diagonal Fixation Pattern by Lela Conrad
Needles: CPY dpns size 3mm

Wendy Rocks

I was the lucky recipient of an ISE4 scarf package on Monday. The box was from the UK and arrived via Air Mail. I wanted to open it right away but knew I would be distracted for a while if I did. So I waited until after I did my workout to cut the box open.

Inside the tissue paper was my favorite color, purple, and just the right shade of purple. On top was a card from my pal. Wendy of Wendy's Woolies.

After carefully removing all the contents from the pacakge I laid them out and took a picture. There was a lot of cool stuff in the box. Shower gel, Burt's Bees hand salve, soak, round bar of soap, chocolate foil wrapped lips, a chocolate pig, a Kendal Mint cake (a favorite of mountaineers and hill-walkers...definitely doesn't describe me), Pony point protectors, a purse size nail buffer, beaded bookmark, and earrings. Oh, yeah, and my scarf. Wow, I am so lucky.

Here's a picture of me after dinner in my scarf in 80+ degrees F. People were looking at me kind of funny. I just ignored them and smiled.

And here's a look at the scarf all by itself. Isn't it beautiful. It's my favorite color and it's nice and warm and long and snuggly. Thanks Wendy, you're the best.