Like Free Yarn?

If you like reading blogs about fiber and enjoy the possibility of being the receipient of some lovely yarn, then you have to check out Yarn On The House.

Warning: there are currently some truly gorgeous photos of some Malabrigo Twist on the opening page. Just sayin'!

Enjoy!

An Owl Arrived

An owl arrived yesterday while I has making a hasty trip to Sioux City to deliver misplaced negatives in time for a photography assignment to be completed. It came from Indiana and had this terific package:



This is the Reducio Sock Swap I'm in on Ravelry. This is Round 9, and I've done several of the rounds. I'm just so thrilled each time I participate. It's fun to see what other knitters do, and now I have this ADORABLE little amaguri owl in addition to the terrific HP items and the wonderful owl mug cozie!

Thanks so much to Freya Lovegood for such a SUPERB package!!

Defining the Goal

I think it's important at this point in the Knitting Olympics to clarify my goal.

My goal for the games is to complete the New Traditions Afghan from Knit Picks.

It is made up of 12 blocks (6 each of two different patterns.) The games last for 17 days. In my mind that means if I complete 1 block a day, I should have 5 days left over to add on the borders and stitch the blocks together.

Thus "completing" the afghan.

What I need to clarify is this:

While the blocks are coming along swimmingly.......


(I have 5 and 1/3 of the 6 done!)

......the one small detail I forgot to factor in is this:


(all the darned finishing work of weaving in tail ends this pattern involves!!!)

So, I have decided that my original goal still pertains, as long as we all understand that a completed project means having all the knitting and sewing together done, but may/will lack the fine detail of having all the ends woven in.

Happy Knitting!

Knitting Olympians Beware!

This is my opening volley in the 2010 Knitting Olympics. I cast on during opening ceremonies and made it this far in 4 hours....

.....my goal was to have one square (of 12) completed by the end of the program.

Here is where the warning to all Knitting Olympics participants comes in:

No one warns you that you are likely to get sidetracked by some of the most beautiful knitted wear (hats, sweaters, mittens) you are likely to ever see in one place in your life, thus virtually crippling you in the process of knitting your own item.

Did you see the team hats for countries like Andorra, Canada, the U.S., and Sweden??

Were you pausing your tivo to see if you could discern the stitch patterns on sweaters like those being worn by the US athletes??

Eeegad! I spent the entire morning online trying to find patterns for what I saw during the opening ceremonies.....


(turns out the team Andorra hats were made by a European company called Kama...found the pic on their website!)

Really, now I have to finish my block from last night AND complete another one for today!! (If I don't produce one block a day, there is NO WAY I will finish the project.)

Back to the needles!

Let the Games Begin!

I have signed up for the Yarn Harlot's Knitting Olympics and have pledged to do my New Traditions Afghan during the 17 days of the winter games.

(Dear lord, I hope I haven't bitten off more than I can chew!!)

I'm going for the gold people: a completed afghan!

Happy Birthday Marie-Jolie!

Today is a special day over at one of my favorite blogs, Permission To Unwind. It's Marie-Jolie's birthday and she is celebrating with a blog party! You will want to head on over there straight away as she has a delicious recipe and some terrific give-aways going today!

(Hurry! Click there now! You can always come back here when you've finished at PTU!!)

PTU is a wonderful blog. Not only are the knitting and photography fabulous, I think you'll enjoy Marie's philosopy, sense of humor, and reflections on life.

To help her celebrate, here's a decadent recipe from my recipe stash.

Aunt Katherine's Brownies

Preheat oven to 350*F

Combine in a small cooking pan:
1/2 cup oleo
1/2 cup shortening
4 Tablespoons cocoa
1 cup cold water
Bring to a boil and cook for a minute or two.

In a large mixing bowl combine:
2 cups of flour
2 cups sugar

Pour the hot cocoa mixture from stove into the flour & sugar mixture. Beat well.

Combine in a seperate bowl:
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
Add this mixture to the above flour/sugar/cocoa mixture and beat well.

Pour into a 10" x 15" sheet cake pan. Bake for 20 minutes at 350*F.

Frosting:

1 stick oleo
4 Tablespoons cocoa
5 Tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Bring ingredients to a boil. remove from heat and add 1 lb. (16 oz.) of powdered sugar. Beat well. Can add chopped nuts if you like. Frost the brownies as soon as they come out of the oven.

Enjoy!



Happy Birthday Marie-Jolie! Have a terrific day and thank you for the gift of PTU!

Brioche Cables

Starting on the brioche cable stitch scarf by ravelkate mentioned in the previous post. I'm using some leftover alpaca from a sweater project in a blue that will look nice with my black coat.





If this turns out I may have to set it aside for a possible state fair entry....we'll see!

What will you be working on this weekend?

Happy Knitting!

Hungry For More

If you Google "brioche" you're likely to find lots of yummy photos and recipes for a delicious, sweet French bread. Brioche makes the most delicious French toast and bread pudding!

However, brioche is also a stitch in knitting, one that seemed to have an aura of mystique about it. Naturally, I had to give it a go!

I chose to learn the basic brioche stitch to a scarf in the yarn DH bought me for my birthday last month. It's a lovely moss green tweed from Queensland Collection called Kathmandu Aran. It is 85% merino, 10% silk and 5% cashmere.



I think it looks lovely against my black, wool coat. And DH says it sets off the color in my eyes.

Here's a close-up look at the yarn and stitch:



Brioche is sometimes called "Prime Rib" or "Fisherman's Rib" and can be worked in a couple of different ways. The method I used involved bringing the yarn forward, slipping a stitch purlwise, then leaving the yarn forward and knitting the next stitch and it's "over wrap" together. You sort of have to forget the knitting rule about moving your yarn forward back in order to knit the next stitch(es)....but once you get it, it falls into rhythm quite nicely.

Knitters will notice that instead of the regular purl bumps between the raised knit stitch rows, there are slanting stitches, giving this rib a totally different look. It feels different too! It's a bit thicker and "loftier" than a normal rib.

I really like it and am pleased with the way this turned out!

One knitting goal for 2010 done....I learned a new stitch!

(Now I want to try some variations on brioche! Check out this beautiful brioche cable knit by ravelkate @ Ravelry!)




Happy Knitting!