Summer Knitting Goals

Ali over at Skeins Her Way is having a Summer Knitting Goals Contest with some great prizes. It is actually the kind of event that I would love to host one day when I have a larger readership, and more money. Until then, here are my goals;

1. Finish my sister's bag by her birthday, which is only about 3 weeks away. After about 5 different design iterations, I think I have finally landed on an idea that I can stick with.
2. Finish the Gone With the Wind (ravelry link) hat. I have actually finished the knitting, I just need to install the brim wire. I have been having a hard time finding a local store that sells millinery wire, so I may have to go online.
3. Fix my mistake, and knit at least one repeat of the Icarus Shawl, installing life lines at least every 20 rows.
4. Finish all of the large projects that are currently on the needles before starting any more large projects. I am going to consider the sweater that I swatched for last night as on the needles. This goal feels like a not knitting goal, rather than a knitting goal, but I just can't leave these projects languishing any longer.
5. Take pictures of and notes on the progress I am making while knitting, rather then the finished project alone.

Thats it.

I should note at this point that Ali, the woman that is running the project, has shammed me with her knitting goals. Despite the fact that she has 6 kids and one on the way, she seems to have more knitting time than I have day light hours. I need to find out her secret.

Back in the Hospital

For the second time in two months I spent most of the night in the emergency room with my husband. He again had symptoms reminiscent of a heart attack. He appears to be in no immediate danger, but we still have no idea what is wrong. So another barrage of tests is on the horizon.

Ironically, I spent yesterday in our doll hospital, performing plastic surgery on Isa, my daughter's iguana friend who was brutality attacked and mauled by our dog. She will always have the scars, but I believe that once she fully recovers from the surgery she will be able to lead a normal life.

The following pictures are of Isa post surgery. I will not be sharing preoperative pictures, as they are simply too gruesome.

On the up side I was able to do a lot of knitting in the hospital. I finished the large swatch for my sister's bag, and felted it today, Swatched for the Holly Jacket, and made an apple and lime which I finished today. Here they are;

The Diaper Dash

Wow. Somehow it seems like it has been a long time since I posted last. Even though it has only been a few days a lot has happened. Last week my kids ran the Diaper Dash with M's kids. The local track club holds a track series every summer, and the first several races are 40 meter dashes for the under 5 crowd. Despite the sweltering heat here on the gulf coast the kids had a great time. Here is a picture of the girls getting psyched for the race. Little brother is running around in the back ground - there are no boys allowed, of course.

Below is a picture of my son running the race.
Here is my DD and her friend M on the home stretch.
This is another one of M before the race, ......
and one of my son after.
It was really hot, and bed time was approaching.

I have a lot of new projects to share with everyone in the next few days, but for now I will leave you with just a little peek.
I got my new bag, and so far I really like it.

What is living simply/voluntary simplicity?

That is actually a difficult question. Living simply means different things to different people. As I have tried to practice it over the years my concept has evolved, and will probably continue to evolve as my priorities change. At the moment I believe that living simply means getting rid of the excess in our lives in favor of the basics, and getting rid of those things that do not positively contribute to our lives in favor of those things that fulfill us. Things can mean objects, projects, jobs, or even people.

One of the ways I have simplified is by becoming a SAHM. I decided that my kid's care was more important to me than my job or the income that it brought in. Now that my kids are getting older, and will be able to start preschool soon I may decide to go back to work or work more extensively from home.

Another way in which I have simplified is by getting rid of nearly everything in my home that had no greater purpose than collecting dust. Now my house is rather more empty than it was, but those things that remain have value for me and my family. In getting rid of those things I have saved my self time and money on the upkeep of those objects that I can instead spend on something that really matters.

Does living simply mean getting back to basics or living like the Amish? It can, but I think that "basic" living simply highlights those aspects of our lives that matter. It highlights family, people, self reliance, and social connections; however, a technologically advanced lifestyle can highlight those values as well.

Organopónicos

I came across this article the other day while researching organic gardening, and thought others might find it interesting as well.

Prior to the collapse of the Soviet Block Cuba got most of it's fertilizer and other agricultural chemicals from the Soviets. After the collapse their chemical supply was cut off. The city of Havana had been producing food through hydroponics. The hydroponic facilities were almost immediately converted to container gardens. Now small scale container gardens are all over urban Cuba, even in highway medians. These gardens now produce about a million tons of food a year. All of these gardens are sanctioned by the government, and use organic gardening practices (the only type of gardening allowed in Havana proper).

This practice in Cuba reminds me of Gorilla Gardening, but instead of being illicit, it is legal and encouraged. Just imagine what Gorilla Gardeners would be capable of producing if they were encouraged to produce.

Mmmmmm......Fiber

See!!!!! I haven't forsaken knitting!

This pattern is Knit Strawberries by Pezdiva. I followed this patterned EXACTLY as written, which is very rare for me, but it is a really good pattern. It is actually my new favorite intermission pattern (that is when I need a break from a larger project). It takes only about 20 minutes to make a strawberry so they give me near instant gratification. Knitting one of these little babies helps me remember that larger projects will eventually be finished.

Knitting the fake food has also helped me realize that my kids don't need anymore cheap toys. Notice that I didn't say inexpensive.

According to Merriam-Webster cheap means "at minimum expense," and inexpensive means, "reasonable in price."

Christmas of 2006 my DH and I bought our DD some cheap toy food from the dollar section at Target. We bought a mix of fruit and vegetables. They were all one color, and about one size, regardless of the fruit or vegetable represented (the strawberry and celery were the same size). The following picture is a comparison between the strawberries I knit, and the plastic strawberry that was in the set we bought at Target. Sure there is a place for cheap plastic foods, but that place is not in my house anymore. Instead my kids are going to get inexpensive toys like these knit strawberries. The yarn was already in my stash, and it took very little time to knit. The cost to make these strawberries in both time and money was quite low, but they were not as cheap as $1 during a trip to Target. So now instead of supporting a big box store, the inappropriate use of oil (in the form of plastic), and instant gratification, I am supporting hand work, renewable resources (wool), and patience (waiting a little while for mom to finish the new toy). Most of all I enjoy making the toys for my kids, and my kids have already played with their fibery fruit than they ever played with the plastic stuff.

Speaking of reasonably priced, but not cheap stuff.......
After months of researching all of my options I have finally ordered a new knitting bag. It was a difficult decision to make. All of the options were really quite good, and the decision finally settled on preference alone rather than any particular strong point in the bag I picked or weak point in the bags I didn't pick. In only a few short days I will be receiving a Swift by Tom Bihn. It seemed the most utilitarian and adaptable for me. In a few weeks I plan to do a review on it.

Finally, a little something from the Tom Bihn website.

Simple Sunday

According to Duane Elgin, "we can describe voluntary simplicity as a manner of living that is outwardly more simple and inwardly more rich, a way of being in which our most authentic and alive self is brought into direct and conscious contact with living."

Loving life with less......

Stay tuned.

Don't recycle paper........

until you've gotten every possible use out of it.

According to the Bureau of International Recycling, paper can only be recycled 4 to 6 times. That really isn't very many. So instead of dropping it in the recycling bin as soon as you are finished with a piece, reuse it.

Ways to make paper more useful, or less used:

1. Print on both sides to begin with. PC's, and probably Macs, allow every other page of a word processing document to be printed, for instance, you could print only the odd numbered pages. After the first set of pages are printed turn the paper over and print the second set of pages. I usually put a mark in one corner of the top piece of paper in my printer, so that I can figure out which way the paper needs to be oriented to print correctly on the second side.
2. Use paper that has already been printed on as drawing paper for yourself or the kids. Chances are your doodles will not be the next Picasso.
3. Reprint on paper that has only been used on one side. The backs of the paper won't make any sense, but the fronts will look fine. Just remember to re-orientate your paper again, so the blank side is being printed on.
4. Make a avant guard used paper note book. Cut paper that was used on one side into 4 equal pieces. Cut one piece of thicker paper in 4 equal pieces. Arrange the paper so that the blank sides are all facing up. Poke two or more holes in the left side of all the pieces. Stack the pieces with the thicker paper on the outsides, and tie ribbon through the holes.
5. Throughly used paper is an excellent biodegradable weed blocker. Just stack several thicknesses of paper, overlapping edges, on level, weed free dirt. Put several inches of dirt and compost on top of the paper, and plant. Week new weeds can't come up through the paper, but the roots of your seedlings will be able to penetrate the paper as it biodegrades.
6. Shredded paper can be used in addition to leaves and other brown matter in compost.
7. As business cards. Crafting a Green World has a great tutorial on making business cards/seed packets out of used paper grocery bags.
8. Shredded paper also makes great confetti!

There are so many more uses for used paper it would be impossible to list them all. I would love to see some of your ideas as well.

Note: Protect sensitive information! Papers with personal information can be used against you. It is best to shred all sensitive information.
Lest you think I have forsaken fiber, I have some fibery goodness to come.

Napkins, napkins everywhere

What can you make with nearly any piece of clothing past it's prime? A napkin of course.
Napkins range in size from a 16 to 18 inch square dinner napkin, 12 to 14 inches for a lunch napkin, to 4 to 6 inches for cocktail napkins. You can cut at least one square, of one of these sizes out of even baby clothing.

A little while ago my husband ripped a large gash in a nice button down oxford shirt. When I finially got around to cutting it up, I was suprised to find that I was able to cut 4 12" squares from the back and sleeves of the shirt that I can make into luncheon size napkins. The rest of the shirt should yield at least 4 more 4 to 6 inch squares for cocktail napkins. One of the finished napkins is pictured below.
How to do it:
1) Cut as many squares of the desired size as possible out of the ruined piece of clothing (make sure you cut the squares with the grain of the fabric, rather than at an angle to it. If the fabric is woven, and as thick as you feel a napkin should be you can simply stop here (woven fabric cut on the grain will unravel very little after washing).
2) I felt that my squares were too thin, so I doubled them up. You could then hem the pieces under, or stitch around the edges so that the pieces stay together and leave it at that. I decided to make mine a little more polished, and decided to use bias tape to finish the edges.
3) Bias tape can be found in any craft store; however, it can also easily be made out of any light weight woven fabric, and since this is all about reusing that is what I did.

how to make bias tape;
Tutorial
If you have any questions feel free to ask.

4) Pin the bias tape around the edge of your napkin, so that the bias tape encloses the edge of the napkin, then stitch around the edge of the tape.

Ta Da! A beautiful napkin.

An Ode to the Humble Flat Sheet

A spare flat sheet is one of the most versatile implements in the home decorating arsenal. Why you ask?

1. It is one of the cheapest fabric values you can find. For example, a 100% cotton, 250 thread count, Queen size flat sheet from Target is $14.99. How much fabric is that? A Queen size flat sheet is 90 inches x 102 inches. That is twice the width of a wide piece of cloth available from a fabric store, and almost three yards of length. That is about $2.50 per yard, and better values can be found at discount stores.
2. A flat sheet that same size as your bed (a queen size sheet for a queen size bed) can serve as a bed skirt on beds of standard height.
3. Flat full size sheets are about the same width as most beds are long making them great candidates for bed curtains - and can be a perfect match for your bed sheets.
4. Sheets are also so long that they can serve as floor to ceiling curtains on all but very tall windows.
5. Sheets are the perfect no sew option for the always popular toga party.

Below is a picture of my sheet, turned one time bed skirt, and now bed curtain.

Cork Trivet

Do you try to recycle? Do you drink wine? Do you save all the corks from all the bottles of wine you drink, because you don't have a way to recycle them, and feel bad about throwing them away? Well I do. I must have a hundred or more corks in my house from years of collecting, and I never had any idea what to do with them. Until now....
How to make a trivet out of corks
Materials: One pipe clamp (I used a 5" to 7" pipe clamp. It was about $2.50 at home depot.), and lots of corks of approximately the same height (the number of corks you will need will vary based on the size trivet you make, but 50 is a safe number to start with).
Procedure: 1) Gather corks, standing on their ends, inside the pipe clamp; 2) Organize corks as desired; 3) Move clamp so that it is centered in the middle of the corks - see pic below; 4) Tighten pipe clamp - At this point you may need to adjust the number of corks so that there is a tight fit; 5) Trim loose end of clamp if desired
That is it. A brand new trivet for the cost of a pipe clamp. It even looks cool.

I also found a book that is all about reusing objects in fun new ways, and I thought I would pass it on. The book is "Ready Made: How to Make (Almost) Anything."

Enjoy!

More than one use for cereal

Ok, not the actual cereal, the box. My kids eat a lot of cheerios, so I buy the giant boxes that never fit on the shelf correctly. Rather than struggling with the giant box several times a day (cereal is not a breakfast only food if you are 1 and a half), I decant, leaving me with a cereal box in pristine condition. Typically this box would immediately be broken down and sent to recycling, but in the throws of organizing, this box looked suspiciously like a magazine file box.

Mark a 45 degree angle on a large cereal box. The high side of the angle should end in one of the top corners of the box before the flaps begin (if the high side is at the top right on the front, it will be on the top left in the back).Cut along the mark you made. Be careful cut the box cleanly.This is what the box should look like after it has been cut.Wrap the box in heavy weight paper. I used craft paper, which requires strong tape.Then shove some magazines in it. Ta Da! The box really can't stand up to the weight of the magazines on it's own, but it does a great job when propped against something heavy, like other magazine boxes.

Enjoy!

Reuse

This is the start of something new! I really hate to waste things, but our disposable culture makes it not only necessary at times, but cool, to simply throw something in a land fill when we no longer have a use for it (think the swiffer sweeper pad - use and toss, or the latest digital gadget that costs more to fix than to buy anew). Well, I have decided that about once a week I will show you one of the ways in which I have made something into something new; however, this week, until next Friday, I will try to show a way in which I have reused every single day.

Without further ado, reuse of the dreaded bride's maids dress.
A little more than a year ago my sister in law got married, and asked me to be one of the bride's maids. The dresses she picked really were tasteful, but like nearly all bride's maids dresses really wasn't appropriate to wear ever again. That, and the fact that the wedding was only 1 month after I gave birth to my second child, meant that this dress was doomed to spend the rest of it's days in the back of my closet.

A few months ago was my sister in law's birthday. I find her difficult to shop for, as we are not terribly close, and our aesthetic differs considerably. I had recently made some pillows for my sister's new apartment, and thought that my SIL might like pillows for her new house, but which fabric to use? Then I realized, I already had fabric she liked. In fact I had yards and yards of fabric she had picked out. I had a bride's maids dress.

I ripped the seams on the dress (rather than cutting) to get the maximum amount of usable fabric out of the dress. The bodice area was not wide enough to provide usable fabric so I cut it off. I cut 4 15 inch squares from the remaining fabric, giving me materials for 2 14" square pillows with .5" seam allowance. Then I simply sewed up the sides, stuffed the pillow, and shut the opening. They turned out well if I do say so myself.

I will try to update with a picture of the dress if I can find one.

High Fiber Diet

I would like to introduce the latest in high fiber foods. The eggplant.
I am so happy about the way this turned out.

The original pattern is Baby Fruit and Veggie Rattle Patterns by Allison Judge; however, the pattern makes the leaves look like they are growing directly out of the top of the eggplant. Since I have never seen an eggplant that looks like the pattern, I picked up the stitches at the cast on edge, and knitted up, decreasing between the leaves every other row (give or take a row), until there were 4 stitches left, then i-corded the stem. The leaves tended to roll up, so I tacked them down on either side with some thread.

I used Lion Brand Fishermen's Wool, that I hand dyed the appropriate colors, and US6 double pointed needles.

I love, love, love the finished product!

If I knit it again I will probably knit it from the top down, rather than the bottom up, and avoid picking up quite as many stitches.

Back Home

Well DH and I are back home after a long weekend away in Missouri. Why Missouri you ask? Well my very good friend, and children's godfather Aaron graduated from medical school. Now he is officially a doctor. Wow. We have been doing our best to help him through this experience for the past several years, and the knowledge that it is over seems so huge to me. I can only imagine what a relief it must be to him.

We were also able to explore Kansas City, MO with our friend K. She just moved into the downtown area and we were able to explore her new neighborhood together.
The city is currently undergoing a transformation. Abandoned factories and warehouses are being turned into living spaces and store fronts. Small businesses appear to be thriving , and low income areas are receiving much needed improvements. I really enjoyed the downtown area, except that we were exploring on a Monday, and nearly all of the businesses were closed on Monday.

We were able to find one open local yarn store, "The Studio." I would recommend the studio to visitors in the area. The store was well staffed, the staff seemed knowledgeable, they had a good selection of inexpensive yarns, and a wide selection of straight and DPNs, as well as other accessories. Their high end yarn was on the lean side, but the lack didn't take much away from the store.

Now that I am back home, I thought I would share pictures of the birthday loot, as well as the spoils from our Ikea trip.
The birthday first;
My brand New Niddy Noddy

My giant new swift
Next, Ikea.....

DD's New Bed, complete with DD

Bookcase with glass doors, and our new bed.

I love Ikea!

High in Fiber, Zero Fat

First of all, two days in a row. Whoo, hoo! I may be able to make a habit out of this yet.

In the past couple of days I started knitting my kids some play food, and I had to share the outcome. They are incredibly cute! The kids already have cheap plastic versions, but with all the talk recently about the toxicity of plastic, my DS's ability to fit the vast majority of it in his mouth, and the dog's unfortunate affinity for the plastic variety, I had to do something.

As a result, I present to you;
Realistic Carrot
For this carrot I used the Baby Fruit and Veggie Rattle Pattern by Allison Judge.
I modified the cute baby carrot pattern she created, to make one that looked more like it had just come out of our garden. I basically made it "ugly" by adding purl bumps, paired increases and decreases, small cables, and circular ridges embedded in the knit fabric.

I also made an apple;
(try to ignore the dog hair)
For this piece I used the Ms. Saucy Apple pattern by Peachcake Knits.
However, the original pattern had to be altered because it was incorrect. The modifications I made were as follows;
After k4, kfb around there are 36 stitches as stated, next the pattern indicates that you should kfb 3 times spread out across the row. This adds 3 stitches, for a total of 39 stitches, not 40.
There is 8 rows knit even (I knit 9), then the decreases begin.
The pattern indicates that you should k9, k2tog around. This implies that there is some multiple of 11 in a single row (k9, k2tog involves 11 stitches, and the pattern does not say what to do with the left over stitches). Instead, k11, k2tog around, knit 2 rows, skip the instructions to k8, k2tog around, and it's corresponding knit row, and restart the pattern at k4, k2tog around.

Hope this helps anyone struggling with this pattern.

As you can see my kids really like the new toys.
Finally, for you viewing pleasure.....proof that pit pulls are safe with children (at least my pit bulls with my children).

Almost Over?

Well the past two months or so have been some of the craziest of my life. As my previous post noted, my husband was thought to have a bleed on his brain, which after "minor" brain surgery was fund to be nothing but begin calcium deposits. Then shortly after coming back from the hospital , I remarked to A (a friend who is finishing medical school) that a tick had left me with a strange rash (picture below). He rushed me off to our local urgent care clinic where I was diagnosed with a probable case of lyme disease. I was put on a course of antibiotics and the CDC was contacted. Next came my birthday, anniversary, and Mother's Day within three weeks of each other (pictures of all the cool loot to come). This period was really great, until the end, when on Mother's Day my DH went to make me some chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast, and found a tiny chew hole in the bag of chocolate chips. Yup, mice.

I actually don't have anything against mice in general (rats are a different story), as long as they are where they belong, ........outside. However, these are in my house!

I really can't blame them for coming in my house either. Their natural habitat is currently being destroyed by a developer that is trying to put high end housing in an area that was until recently, fairly rural (for example, the people that live behind us still have cattle and horses, and at one point raised sheep). As a result of the development we have had to cut a new driveway as well, further destroying their homes.

We found the first mouse last night. I was putting clothes away, and opened a nearly empty drawer in my DH's dresser, and to my surprise found a cute little mouse looking back at me. Feminists everywhere will cringe when I say this, but, I have to admit, I screamed and called for my husband. I even got up on my bed as if this mouse, that was about the size of two cotton balls was going to jump at me and begin eating my face (thank you "1984").

The mouse was eventually caught in a mostly humane fashion, and was taken to the loading dock of a nearby big box store. Good luck mouse!

Stuff I have learned since I began fighting the good fight against mice:
Since I would rather the mice simply leave my house than than have to kill all of them I thought I would share with you some of the natural deterrents I have found effective against mice. Note: these do not kill the mice, they simply make your house an unpleasant place to live.

1) Mice, and most rodents, do not like mint. Grow it inside and outside your house (orange mint is an espically aggressive variety, but can become invasive). Get mint essential oil, natural potpourri, candles, etc and put it all over your house. I found that a combo of canola oil and peppermint and spearmint essential oils in an oil burner will quickly fill your whole house with the scent of mint.

2) Get rid of all possible food sources. Sounds simple, but this means even the tiniest crumb in a crevice that you have never even thought to clean. With a 2.5 yr old, 14 month old, and two dogs, I have found this extremely difficult. This also means decanting all food that could be chewed into, must be decanted into chew proof containers - metal or glass with tight fitting lids.

3) Sonic wave plug in pest deterrent products do work, but for a limited range.

4) Eliminate all possible nesting places. This is the hardest part. Mice can fit into a hole the size of a US dime, and can chew a bigger hole if needed. The most important part is to minimize their hiding spots, and remove all clutter so that disturbances can be easily seen, and deterrent efforts can be concentrated on a limited number of areas.

Good luck!

Can it get worse?

It started around Easter when the kids got runny noses. We thought it was just allergies (the pollen down here is already turning my car a sickly shade of yellow-green), but when I started getting the same symptoms plus exhaustion and aches and pains, we discovered it was the flu. I felt terrible, but being a stay at home to two small children, it is very difficult to take time off to rest and recuperate (my 2 year old daughter did her best to help however; she made me a lovely pick-nick of plastic fruit and vegetables, and her homemade tea).

After a week of aches, pains, and breathing through our mouths, the kids and I started feeling better. Then Tuesday afternoon my husband called me from work, telling me that he had just experienced some chest pain, and left arm numbness. My first thought was that he had a heart attack, and then that it was probably nothing, after all, he is young, and in good physical condition. After a long day in the emergency room a CT scan revealed fresh blood on his brain. Another day in the hospital and a MRI later revealed an AVM (a congenital malformation of blood vessels) in his brain had burst, and he would likely need brain surgery. He also needed to be transfered to a bigger hospital with neurologists who routinely deal with AMVs.

An incident like this really puts the fragility of life into perspective. My husband literally could have died, just suddenly, without warning, dropped dead at work Tuesday afternoon. He still could. Before Tuesday my biggest problem was running out of tissues. Now, just two days later my husband is about to have brain surgery.

We are not guaranteed our next breath. Life is not a given. The young and healthy can die suddenly and unexpectedly. While I knew all of this before, I had never been confronted with the reality of these statements. So I asked earlier, can it get worse? The answer is yes. As cliche as it may sound, enjoy the moment, it may be your last.

Adventures in Dyeing

I experimented with dyeing for the first time today, and it turned out better than I could have expected. I used Wilton's dye paste in Golden yellow, and no taste red. I tried both kettle dyeing and hand painting. Both techniques turned out beautifully, but the kettle dyeing produced more vibrant colors.

Gadaboutknitter's Handspun

Gadaboutknitter gave me some beautiful handspun for Christmas. This one is in the color way river walk. Can you believe that she has only been spinning for a few months?

The second one is from Flawful fibers, and is also beautiful.

There is not a lot of either, so they are going to have to be used for something small, or a border of some kind. Any suggestions?