Eye Candy

Happy Valentines Day!  I’m not feelin’ the love; the fur-girls decided this was just like any other day and we should be up at 6:45 or so.  They did let me go back to bed about 90 minutes later, but then a lady we know called the house to check on the outdoor burn laws…

I owe you a finished object report, and assuming MJ delivered them this morning according to plan, here are my Ka-Vangeline mitts.

Pattern: Evangeline, available only as a free Ravelry download, since Magknits fell off the face of the earth.  I did the short version, as written, save the thumb.  The recipient has short fingers, so I only did five rounds on the thumb.  I REALLY liked this pattern!

Yarn:  Bernat Natural Cashmere.  (Which actually has only a TINY amount of the good stuff in it, not even enough to tempt Gretchen.)  I liked it though, right much for an acrylic blend.  Didn’t even use a whole skein, so I have enough to do another pair for me.

Needles:  US #6 KA bamboo circs.  I like KA bamboo, I really do.

Verdict:  Yet another mitt pattern I’d do again.  It seems I like mitts…

Now, to go decorate for that dance!

Cowl You Care

Sissy was delighted that so many of you were worried about her lack of cowl in yesterday’s post.  So for the lurkers and those who didn’t ask, she wore her cowl out the twenty times prior to the photos.  The cowl was soaked – freezing rain, anyone?  – so I decided she was better off without a cold, wet, pneumonia necklace.   Rest assured, Sis loves her cowl and had it on this morning.

Grab a snack, a beverage and plop down somewhere comfortable.  This is gonna’ be a long one.  Firstly, I failed to note that yesterday was Gretchen’s five-month birthday.   She’s really starting to develop what I assume is going to be her adult personality.  She’s affectionate, confident, and lives to please.  None of that is new, but she is starting to become more independent, in true JRT fashion though, which is to say that she is loyal to her pack and wants them VERY near, but she picks moments to express herself.

Now, an FO report.  MJ had requested black mitts, so I complied.

Pattern:  Fetching.   I used a worsted weight yarn and smaller needles, but the only real change I made to the pattern was I eliminated the picot bind off.  MJ has small hands, so there was no need for looser or longer.

Yarn:  Patons Classic Wool, in black.  (Hence, the lack of detail in the photos.)  A great, basic wool.  I think this is my go-to, worsted wool.

Needles:  Addi turbos #5, 24″.  The tips were a bit dull, but I do love that Addi cable.  I must confess to using a cable needle quite a bit on these.  Between the black on black yarn, the fuzz, and knitting with smaller needles than the yarn would have otherwise liked (to make dense, warm mitts), I just couldn’t always grab the cable stitches, especially on the cable back mitt.  (Anyone else find it easier to cable front without a needle, or do I just need more practice?)

Mitts would be my new socks if not for the fact that here in the freezing rain zone, there’s still more need for warm socks than a collection of mitts.  I can surely see why this pattern is so popular.

I also got a happy package in the mail yesterday. 

Actually, despite my name being on the package and the card, the rest of my household keeps laying claim to the goodies.   (Never fear; the chocolates won’t get near the fur-girls.)  The girls love the smelly soap and the cloth, and the Knight told them to eat the green stuff off of “his” cloth.  Hem, hem.  The man is very secure in his masculinity, but misguided enough to believe that EVERY knitted or crocheted cloth that enters the house is his.  Thank you, Dawn!  We’re all going to enjoy the goodies, it would seem… 

(And no, the girls won’t be allowed to chew on any of it.)

So, tell me ’bout your weekend!  We have an all-day scrapping event planned tomorrow, but I need to run out to Pins & Needles  (my favorite LYS, no website yet) before I settle in for a few hours.  Tonight, I’m going to push to finish the legs and maybe start the heels on my socks in progress.  (And yes G, I am into the legs!)  I’m trying the afterthought heel for the first time…   Sunday, I think we’re having breakfast with Bubba and his wife (maybe their teen son too, if we’re lucky; he’s a great kid, but we’re not cool enough to always get him to join us), and then I have the one o’clock meeting I slept through last Sunday.   I’ll be starting another pair of socks for my Super Bowl knitting, because I don’t have other knits I should be doing.  Hem.

steelerbannerpartyanimalGo Steelers!   If we didn’t have the scrapping thing tomorrow, I’d whip out some cowls in black and gold for the girls to wear…

I’m pretty excited.  Not only are the Steelers in the big game, but the Knight will actually be watching with me for a change.  He’s in a pool of some sort, so suddenly, he cares. 

Have a great weekend!

It Happens

I just deleted my whiner post.  I’ve been sitting here jamming to It Happens by Sugarland, that says it all, except for the minor detail of the Knight turning the alarm clock off last night!

Okay, so it’s not like that at all.  I was only ten minutes late, and while my father inlaw has a reputation as a hard boss, he’s never called my house or said anything more caustic than “Good afternoon” when I turn up late, which is something I never did in my past life.  (You know, back when I had it together?) 

Anyhoo, now that Comcast fixed their problem “outside” and I’m back online, how’s your Friday going?  I’m really looking forward to tonight’s meeting.  The Knight’s sick, so he’ll drive, and I’m ordering some sparkling wine, maybe even a bottle.  (See, because I whined   do have local friends, the meeting is being held not at the firehouse, but at a restaurant…)

So, how ’bout that FO report?  I still owe you one from last week, but just hang in there, because there will likely be another quicky FO in the morning, but I’m blocking the Voyager tonight, so its report will come…

Thinking Thin Mints Mitts

Pattern:  Kathy‘s quick and easy Wooly Warm MittsThey’re also my first pair of mitts, so I went out of my way to find a pattern I couldn’t mess up.  Thanks, Kathy!   I’m now a mitt fan.

Yarn:  Swoon.  I think this yarn was my first Etsy purchase, but I know it was my first stash enhancement from Jessi.  I’m delighted that I have more Alabama Fiber Dreams yarn in my stash, because this stuff even meets Gretchen’s approval.  It’s a worsted weight wool in a colorway called Grasshopper.  I can’t find the tag, so contact Jessi for more information.  I’m not sharing!  In fact, I enjoyed this yarn so much that I immediately cast on for another project with the rest, but that’s for another day.

Needles:  Knitpicks Options Harmony tips, size #8.

Verdict:  I love ’em.  They were a one afternoon project, but I started Monday night, finished one, and then it took me two more nights of almost no knitting either night to finish #2.  MJ tried dropping hints, but not too hard, because she knows I love brown and green, so perhaps I’ll make her another pair this weekend, with a shorter thumb…

So, my weekend?  That meeting and some wine, tonight.  I’ll also finish up the matching neck and/or ear warmer tonight.  Tomorrow, if we don’t have snow, I’ll go get new glasses.  I do want to try contacts one more time, but my left lens is cracked, so I don’t have a choice.  Then, I’ll block a little lace, work on my lace ribbon scarf (maybe finish it?), go to FIL’s birthday dinner (um, order him a gift certificate from ____  [just in case he reads]), and go grocery shopping.  That’s all I have planned!

What do your weekend plans include?