The Scottish Lamb

Made with Love

One of the best things about knitting is getting to make a gift from the heart.  Knitters seem to be very giving people.   You'd have to be blind not to see that with all the charity knitting being done in blogland.  Personally, I don't think there's anything nicer than giving something that you made with your own hands.  It shows that you took the time to really care about someone else.

I finished the chemo turban last night.  I have to say...  I like the way it turned out.  It's very forgiving in way of fit because of the stretch not only in the ribbing, but the yarn.  I hope I get a photo of the recipient in it.

In case you missed it, here are the particulars:

Pattern:  Elann Chemo Turban

Yarn: Elann Esprit in Mauve (very lavender for being "mauve")

It's basically a long 4x4 ribbed scarf that is cast on with a provisional cast on then kitchener stitched into a loop.  A bit of seaming and voilà.  A turban. That Ann at Elann is a genius.  She did this pattern in honor of her mother who past away from breast cancer.   Their last design challenge was a chemo cap pattern contest.  I can't wait to see what everyone came up with. 

I really need to start moving my stash out the door.  I have about six months before the movers come.  You really don't want them laughing at me about how much yarn I have do you?  I've lowered the prices of the yarn so that I can move on to the next bunch:

Lavender:  Beautiful medium Lavender color with flecks of white.   Wool yarn from Ireland. Reminds me of the rustic mill spun yarns.  About 700 yards to the pound. That should be an Aran Weight but it looks more like Worsted to me.  I'm selling this by the pound at $17.00.  I have 12 pounds left.

Mixed Purples:  Not quite as bright as the photo. Gorgeous shade of purple with flecks of majenta, blue and deeper purple through. A little more rustic than the other yarns up. Absolutely gorgeous stuff.

Wool yarn from Ireland. Reminds me of the rustic mill spun yarns. About 700 yards to the pound. That should be an Aran Weight but it looks more like Worsted to me. I'm selling this by the pound at $17.00.  I have four pounds left.

Rust:  Very similar to what I see on my monitor. Deep Pumpkin or Medium Rust color.  Wool yarn from Ireland. Reminds me of the rustic mill spun yarns. About 700 yards to the pound. That should be an Aran Weight but it looks more like Worsted to me. I'm selling this by the pound at $17.00.  I have 4 pounds left.

Black:  Wool yarn from Ireland. Reminds me of the rustic mill spun yarns. Black pretty much says it all about the color. About 700 yards to the pound. That should be an Aran Weight but it looks more like Worsted to me. I'm selling this by the pound at $12.00.  I have nine pounds.

Email me and we'll figure out the postage.

K4, P4 for 40"

What's better than a little mindless knitting?  A little mindless knitting for a good cause.   Elann's free pattern for a Chemo Turban.  There's a civilain family that goes to church with us.   The woman that runs our Playhouse theater moved here years ago.  You may remember Daniel and Joe being in The Pied Piper last year. She was awesome with them.  She met her husband here and had her kids here.  Her parents moved here a few years ago and her mother became the boys' school nurse.  Her sister, only 40-years old, was diagnosed with breast cancer this summer.  They did a double mastectomy and last Friday she started chemo.  I'm using Elann's oh-so-soft Esprit leftover from my Hopeful.  I didn't realize it until just now that it's kind of serendipity.   Proceeds from the Hopeful pattern went towards breast cancer research.   Here it is so far.  I have about another ten inches to go:

I went with a friend to a German thrift store today.  What fun.  Look what I found!

That, my friends, is a handknit lace table runner.  The cost? About $7.  It's gorgeous.

I finished another baby gift.  A dog quilt for a baby boy....

I Hear It's Your Birthday

Aggie one year ago today (she's the third one down from the top):

Today:

Happy 1st Birthday, Girl!  She's been my buddy and constant companion while Dan's been away.  I'm going to have start training her to sleep with the boys.... in a couple of months....  Take a trip down memory lane through my archives and you can watch how Aggie grew into such a pretty girl.

***************

Sometimes I come up with a really good idea.  It's not often but it's usually really good when it happens.  I've wanted a Woolee Winder since I first heard about them.  I'm *terrible* about remembering to move my yarn on the flyer hooks.  So I finally ordered one a few months ago and I couldn't be more excited about just spinning and spinning and not stopping, though that took a long time to remember.  I kept stopping at first out of habit:

When I was getting ready to order it  I got to thinking....  How about if I contact Nels at Babe's Fiber Garden and see if he can make the electric spinner to fit the woolee winder that Nathan was making for my Majacraft Rose.  He was great about it!  He and Nathan worked together.   When Nathan finished the winder he sent it to Nels.  Nels made my electric winder to fit and and sent it on to me. I'm a very happy girl.

Instead of paying for a whole second flyer, I can just switch this one back and forth between my wheel and the electric spinner.  I wanted the electric one for trips and such.   It's so easy to stuff in a bag and be out the door.  It's taking some practice, but I'll figure it out.  I bought the dimmer switch but it doesn't work with the transformer over here.  Once I get back to the States next year all should be well.

Remembering...

Hard to believe it's been five years since that horrific day.   Even after all this time the disbelief, shock and deep sadness are still there.

For most, the first thought is that of NYC.  For us, though the images of the World Trade Towers are forever engraved in our memories, we think of the Pentagon. 

Dan and four other Agents from the Ft. Campbell office got in two cars and drove to the Pentagon on the evening of 9/11 after watching everything unfold on television all day.  They met up with other Agents from offices around the East Coast.  They were going to help collect evidence at the scene.  By far, it's the most difficult thing Dan has ever experienced.  Even worse than the devastation he saw rolling into Kuwait City during the Gulf War. 

I was glued to the news and he knew it.  The 2nd night he called me, "I'm okay.  I'm okay."  My finger hit the remote, flipping through the channels until I saw the Pentagon in flames.  It had just collapsed again.  My heart sank.  His mother and sister both saw it and knew he was working the night shift.  They called while I was still on the phone with him.  Thank God for Celluair.  They'd given everyone working there a free cell phone with unlimited minutes to use while they were there.  I would have seen it and panicked until he got back to his hotel and could get to a phone.

He saw terrible things that he'll never be able to forget.  He was there, searching through the rubble, for about five weeks.  Three months after he returned to Ft. Campbell, he left for his first deployment to Afghanistan.  He was still fresh from the scenes at the Pentagon and now he had to go to such an unstable place so far away. Things were so fragile then and I've never been more worried about him.  Now he's there again on the 5th anniversary.  Full circle.

Out of that tragic day came a stronger Nation.  We pulled together, whatever our differences, and showed how much we love our country and how, in times of trouble, we'll stick together.  For a moment in time it didn't matter what sex you were, what color you were, what your political standing was, what your religion was.... for one perfect moment in time we were all just Americans who cared about each other and our Nation.  I've never been more proud to be an American than I was the months following 9/11. 

To all those that lost someone because of that tragic day in NYC, the Pentagon, Shanksville, Afghanistan or Iraq, I wish you peace and blessings.

One flag, one landOne heart, one handOne nation evermore! - Oliver Wendell Holmes

And They Said It Wouldn't Last

Today Dan and I spend another anniversary apart.  It's our 14th.  He asked me to marry him only a week after dating and I said yes.  This is the first photo ever taken of us together.  We were engaged for about a week and had gone up to my visit my family in NH and my Aunt took this snapshot.  We were in an Army school together at Ft. Devens (closed now, but it was about an hour west of Boston).  We got married by a JP in Annapolis, Md. almost exactly two months after we met with just a couple of witnesses.  We just knew.   Everyone else thought we were nuts (except our families - they seemed to know it would work).  Like a lot of military couples we had two weddings.  The JP one was to get the paperwork rolling so we could be stationed together (I was at NSA in Maryland and he was in San Antonio).   It only took the Army about two months to get the paperwork through and I moved to San Antonio on Thanksgiving weekend.  The picture below left is us after the JP marriage on the courthouse steps and the one below right is a photo from the big church wedding that we had for family almost a year later at the Ft. Sam Houston chapel in San Antonio.  No laughing at the poodle-do please.   Even Oprah had bad do's and she had someone doing her hair.

I think I picked the right guy.  Even from Afghanistan, he has managed to do well in the gift department:

The Celtic Knot arrived for my birthday back in May and the Midnight Sky one arrived yesterday.  They're getting to know him very well at Golding Fiber Tools!  Let me tell you... these babies spin FOREVER!  Beautiful to look at and so nice to work with.  The fiber is some that I hand dyed last year.

Last but not least, I have done some knitting during my hiatus.   A bunch of us on the Elann chat site had a knit-a-long for the Bed and Breakfast sweater from 2003 Winter issue of Interweave.  I have most of the back done and most of the front.  I cheated and just did the rib pattern on the back.  It wasn't laziness ... I swear.... it wasn't.... it was simply a matter of comfort.   I thought it'd be weird on my back with those cables.  You  call it a weak excuse but I call it practicality.  The color is a darker green.  Not so grey as it came out in the photo.

I meant to mention... in the video in the last post.. if you click on the little box with arrows in the bottom right of the video box, it goes full size and you can see their fingers a little closer.

Dan's uncle was released from the hospital today for three months of rest at home!  Yeah!  Thank you for all your well wishes and prayers.

Eureka! Sort Of, Anyway...

I've been trying for a good part of the day and I can't figure out how to get a post and a video in the same posting so this will have to do.  In the next post down you'll find a little video.  Neat, huh?  It'd be better if I could put it all together with this post but this will have to do for now.

This was video we took at the Isleburgh Exhibit in Lerwick.  Watch those fingers fly!  I told you they knit fast!  Now, with the magic of video, you can actually watch them yourself!  Way cool, no?
The woman in the white is knitting a lace hap shawl and the one in the green is knitting a fair isle pattern. I can't knit plain 'ol one-color stockinette that fast!

(*&#$*(#&$(  *(&^($&$!!!

I just checked and that post is gone now!  GRRRR.  Okay.  I'm going to try again.  Obviously, it'll be in the post above this now.... I hope.

Okay... it worked.  That's me standing off to the left.  See what's in my hands?  The gloves I showed you before! 

You can blame Dan that he didn't zoom in on their fingers closer so you could see the belt and needles. He gets embarrassed taping people.  Yeesh.

This and That

How about a little of both sewing and knitting today?  Not that I knit anything but I still have lots of knitterly pictures to share from Shetland.  I kind of feel like that person that you go to visit and they pull out all their vacation photos and make you sit there looking at them for hours.  At least here you can just scroll by if you want to and I'd never know it.  :-)

First though!  I did more sewing last night and today.  Joseph's kindergarten teacher moved away while he was in 1st grade and had a baby last year. I promised a quilt.  You know my motto:  Better late than never.  Perfect timing for the first birthday actually!  I finally finished it today.  Yeah!  The kit came from one of my favorite quilting sources who happens to be in cahoots with one of my favorite knitting sources.  You guessed it... Connecting Threads and Knit Picks.  See... my knitting sort of lead to my quilting.  That counts for something doesn't it?  The kit was called Daisies, Ducks and Dogs. 

Back to Shetland....

These first two are for Tracy:

What we thought was wool all stuck to the grass was actually a common plant in Scotland called "Cotton Grass".  We didn't realize it wasn't wool until we saw a bookmark with a photo of it.  I took the picture above with full intentions of posting all about the wool everywhere:

There actually was quite a bit of wool all over.  There was quite a bit of something else the sheep left everywhere that Daniel had a very hard time not gagging over. lol.  Part of his Asperger's is that he gets very grossed out, very easily.  Sheep poop everywhere was not easy on him.  Nothing like ruining a perfectly beautiful photo by talking about poop, huh?  You're welcome.

Vest outside of the "Croft House" at the Isleburgh Exhibit:

Sheep on Fair Isle near the Bird Observatory:

Everyone is friendly in Shetland.  Shetland Pony saying howdy near Eshaness.

Hap shawls at the Crofthouse Museum:

Turning Five In Style

Just got an update on Dan's uncle.   Looks like he's going to be okay.  He's breathing on his own and actually joking.  A couple of weeks in the hospital and two months of downtime at home with lots of loving care from his wife and he'll be almost good as new.  Thank God.  Thank you for all your prayers and well wishes.

More Shetland pictures to follow. Just didn't want everyone to think I'd lost all my creativity and would just be showing pictures from our trip forever.

I have a confession to make. I haven't been knitting much this Summer.  There.  I said it.  I have been sewing though.  I decided that I don't care how it looks and set up a little sewing corner in my dining room so I could get to sewing and finally put that special little machine to work.  There's absolutely no place else in the house with enough light and space to do it.  There's a huge walk-in closet (unusual in Germany) upstairs but it's dark and full of wool.  With Dan gone we don't entertain now, so who cares what it looks like.

Having to pull everything out and put it back again when I feel like sewing something really puts a hamper on my creativity. I have this awesome machine and I use it so little that I have to reinvent the wheel whenever I take it out because I can't remember how to do the gazillions of cool things it can do.  So when I'm actually sewing, the dining room table is covered but it's easier to clean up by just putting stuff neatly in this little corner than to haul everything up and down the stairs and I find I'm sewing more now.  Which I like.

A neighbor girl (her dad also works in Dan's office) is turning five tomorrow.  I have all boys.  It's a treat when I get to make something for a girl.  I went all out girlie-girl because once-upon-a-time in a far away land I was a very girlie girl and I miss it.  With some inspiration from Autum and the Amy Butler "In Town" pattern, this is what I came up with for her gift:

I used the main purse fabric for the pocket on the back side of the little zipper bag (which I used this pattern for).  Yes, I messed up and somehow ended up with the pocket on the back instead of the front.  Worked out though because I also cut it wrong and if I'd put it on the front the pocket would have covered the zipper.  So when I screw up it's kinda like a double negative. lol.  It erases itself and no one would ever know.... except you.

I bought a handmade tissue pouch at the local fabric store and tore it apart to see how it went together.  There are plenty of tutorials on the web so don't ask me why I didn't just go the easy route.  The edging in red was also an accident because I had to use the scraps as I could. Just turned out that way.   I was using a set of fat quarters and didn't want to cut into another set just to make a little tissue pouch.  Really funny because the fat quarter pack is called Serendipity.  Guess it's true to it's name.

I was so excited about it that yesterday I told the birthday girl that I couldn't wait until she saw what I made for her.  She said, "I hope it's not a baby present!"  LOL. I assured her that it was very much five-year old style, in fact,  people would probably think she's six!  She was very happy to hear it.  You'd think she was 36 the way she talks.  It's hilarious.  The ensemble will go very well with her beautiful red hair.  I also put a little tube of kids hand creme I found in the German apothecary (the tube is the perfect shade of orange) and a tube of cherry flavored lip balm (also German) that matches the red in the bag.  And it's bad luck to give a wallet without money it it so there's a $1 bill in the pouch.  I hope to hear squeals of delight this afternoon.

Another Elannite has started a blog.  Go check out Jayne and say hello:

http://seejayneknit.blogspot.com/

Woolen Souvenirs

Wendy asked about yarn purchases in Shetland.  I know I was just talking about how I had way too much stash but I went to Shetland and you know what that means, right?  No one would really expect me to go to *Shetland* and not buy wool or yarn, right?  Seriously.  That would just be cruel.  Forget that I still have loads of yarn left from our first trip there in '97.

At the shop in the Jamieson's Mill, I couldn't resist this tam.  I'll never wear it (I look like a dork in hats - especially tams) but I loved the colors and just couldn't leave it.  It's machine knit but it was less than $20.  Here are shots of the front, back and up close and personal:

We went to the Isleburgh Community Center where they have an exhibit each Summer.  It's so much fun to watch the ladies knit.  You have never seen fingers fly so fast.  Intricate lace or fair isle patterns.... their fingers are a blur.

I bought these handknit fingerless gloves for a mere $9.

I bought a kit for the Firs and Flakes shawl (click here) and a kit for Dan (click and scroll down to the Noss sweater here). Dan's is in the colorway on the man in the tiny picture in the gallery page.  We saw a sample knit up and it's gorgeous.  Back at the B&B the next day I got to talking about knitting with another woman staying there.  She informed me that I could buy a fleece at J&S also!!  Back we went the next day.  I picked out a gorgeous gray one.  When she totalled it up at four pounds (about $8) you know what happened next.  Even Dan said, "Go get another one!"  Told you.  He's a good man.  Here's the gray one washed:

And the white one unwashed:

It's in the washer right now, soaking.  I had to skirt this one a bit more.  Pretty gross on the back end.  I had thought that I would process these completely by hand, but they're pretty full of dirt and grass.  I think I'll just wait until we get to NY and take them to get processed.   I have two others that I had no business buying this past spring that are still in the boxes they came in.  How long can I leave them like that?  Can it wait until next summer when we get back to the States?  I should just bite the bullet and scour them.  They're both covered fleeces so it wouldn't take much to clean them.  But I digress....

Then at Jamieson's shop on Commercial street I bought some beautiful denim colored yarn for another shawl.  It's bluer than in the photo.  What's with blues and purples anyway?  They never come out in pictures quite right. Anyway, it's way thicker than what I needed (insert hand backwards on forhead and martyr voice)...but I'll make it work.  I thought the yarn in the kit for the shawl was thicker and it was back at the B&B but who cares, right?  It's wool so it's all good.

On a personal note... Dan's uncle had a massive heart attack the night before last.  Dan's mom called me last night and I was able to get hold of Dan within an hour or so.  It looks like he's going to pull through but if you could please include him in your prayers we'd appreciate it.  The next few days will be shaky.  Dan's family is very close and this has been a real blow. We'll know more in a couple of days.  They're keeping him heavily sedated so he can get some much needed rest.  I'll keep you posted.