Art Rocks

Hi Knitters,

The Collector and I finally had some time yesterday to do a couple quick craft projects. She worked and worked. It felt so good to see her in the creative mode.
She mixed cement...
placed glow in the dark stars...
smoothed with a popsicle stick...
added glitter-filled glass... waited a couple of hours for the cement to harden and signed off.

Peace.

Her peaceful garden stone will take several days to dry and will then be placed in her fairy garden.

Every year I look at this little mosaic terra cotta pot I made to see what else has fallen off. Joy has become Jo but there is still some good and interesting stuff to look at. I like it more the older it gets. Can you see the teeny tiny ceramic spoon hiding in there? On the other side there is a blue glass turtle still hanging on.

I really want to make some more of these.
Next, The Collector had come home from the neighbor's carrying a rock with a heart on it. She wanted to make more. She gathered up some more rocks from our yard. If they could stand upright it was a score so we tested them all. Only a few stood up on their own. I pulled out a bunch of Sharpies and it looks like I need a new set of these. I pick them up every once in a while but they wear out and get lost.
We brought the rocks inside, it was so hot and humid. We snacked on our favorite pretzels, HK Anderson's Peanut Butter Filled Nuggets. They are the best. Have you tried these? We buy our jug o pretzels at Costco if you are interested.
She pursed her lips in concentration...
she placed my bird rock in a tiny hummingbird nest she found a couple of months ago...
she drew ladybugs and clouds and hearts...
and I did, too....we decided this rock was shaped like a little bird...
she took a gardening scooper and dug up some moss in the back yard... she knew right where to look...
my sister stopped in and joined us to create her musical notes rock... TC placed the rocks on the moss...
we packed a few up in a gift bag and dropped it off on our neighbor's doorstep as a gift and the rest are now on our coffee table to enjoy.

Love this little crafty girl!

This morning I spotted another rock craft that I'd like to try. Here is the link to that! How about that?

Hope you all have a good start to the week.

best, susie

Made From Scratch

Hi Knitters,

I am measuring, calculating, knitting, trying on, reading various sweater formulas, measuring again, estimating....

Well, you get it. I am working on a top-down raglan from scratch. I considered doing a knitalong on Spud says! but then I thought since it is my first try it might be better to just go it alone. I wouldn't want to be responsible for making anyone rip out a sweater's worth of knitting.
I will share what I find out in the end. This is going to be the simplest of sweaters. Nothing fancy at all just straight forward and plain. In the end I always like and wear the simplest sweaters so that's my goal.

Maybe/Possibly if I like the end product I'll knit another one and we can do a knitalong together in steps. Let me know if you'd be interested in something like that. I keep hearing from people who have never made a sweater before and are nervous about it. This would be a perfect first step.

I have some fun and twisty ideas to go along with the sweater that I might just try. They are all in my head and I should write them down before I forget.
So far, so good! It is looking like a sweater. I have lots of notes written in my sketchbook. The yarn is Grape Jelly Spud & Chloë Sweater. I love this color so much, it is really deep and rich. I have no idea how many skeins it will take. I am still on my first skein.

There is something exciting about starting from scratch on any design. You never know what might happen...

You have to take a look at Jaime's blog for some sticky summer fun! I want to make some this weekend. She's a fun girl with recipes. Can't beat that.

Yesterday I baked sugar cookies and peanut butter cookies. The kids were so excited and so was I. We had the air conditioning on so I took advantage and fired up the ovens. I miss baking when I don't do it for awhile.

Have a good summer weekend everyone!

best, susie

Fallen

Hi Knitters,

I have been one happy and busy knitter. I really thought I would launch into a bunch of other crafts this summer but I have absolutely fallen in love with my knitting all over again. I literally can't get enough. So I will keep going with what is giving me so much fulfillment. I have been toting my rooster bag all over town, high and low and just around my house wherever I end up sitting.

I know I will get asked about the tote so here goes:

I sewed the Rooster Tote last winter.

I made up the pattern on the fly.

I bought 2 rooster kitchen towels at William Sonoma at Christmas time for the outside of the tote.

The red fabric is from Spool.

The natural cotton for the lining is from Jo Ann's.
I emptied it out this morning and I thought I would do a quick show and tell.
On the bottom of the bag is the sock I started knitting while I was on tour last fall. Don't you love how the ball of yarn looks hand-wound? It is wound in color sections. I just like looking at the ball while I work. It is awesome.
The free pattern for the sock is right here! I modified by doing the foot in stockinette stitch. I am at the toe! The yarn is called Zauberball and I bought mine at The Wool Cabin. Call them and they'll send you a ball, too. Here's their phone number and tell the ladies that Susan says hello:

801-466-1811

Next up, I have the Citron packed up in my Sew Bendy bag (these are the best little project bags for sale on etsy) so the lace yarn doesn't get tangled.
I bought 2 skeins of the Malabrigo Lace yarn in the Sealing Wax colorway right here at the Sow's Ear. They had a lot of colors when I was there. Give them a call and they'll send you some, too:

Phone: (608) 848-2755
Spud & Chloë in Grape Jelly (it's new!) is simply a gorgeous colorway. I mean just look at that yummy yarn. I am in the midst of doing lots of research and experimentation.
I'll keep you posted on the progress and talk more specifically later... I am having so much fun with this. You can buy your own Grape Jelly right here! You will have your yarn in a couple of days.

I am making good progress with my Slinky Ribs sweater. It looks teeny tiny because of the ribbing but when you stretch it out it measures right on the mark. Love it.
The yarn is an oatmeal color in Elsebeth Lavold's Silky Wool which I have had in my stash for many years. I have a lot of this yarn stashed in a couple of different colors for some reason.

I have become obsessed with knitwear designer, Jane Richmond! She is insanely good and I have purchased a few of her patterns. You have to check her out. She'll knock your socks off. Plus she makes a gorgeous model to boot! I will share more about her projects when I start knitting them up.

Here is her blog link.

Here is her pattern etsy shop link.

Gotta run out the door!

best, susie

A Room with a View

Hi Knitters,

I don't have a room with a view so I'm sharing my view in a room today. It is filled with work and computer time and knitting and a new tiny project for the Spud & Chloë blog in the works. When TC saw the sweet delicate little butterflies she gasped. She immediately tried the rings on. I want to make a bunch more in different colorways. I love knitting little things like that. Coming soon.....

I have been working away on my Citron shawl. I'll take pictures soon to share. Maybe even tomorrow. Lace weight is a new thing for me. I am using the Malabrigo Lace and I really like it.

I have also been working away on Slinky Ribs. I like this one, too, and will share that progress as well. I have moved on to the fronts and those are going pretty quickly. The construction of this pattern is really different for me. It keeps me anxiously waiting to see how it is going to come together and that is fun. For the sleeves you need 3 different colored stitch markers. This sounds complicated to me but I am not going to judge until I try it! It probably is going to be pretty simple in the end.

Both of those projects are fun but neither one is fast! Slooooow as molasses to be exact.

I have a few new favorites to share, a couple of these projects I am making for my teenage daughter who is in love with the Twilight series:

Shaelyn

Bella's Eclipse Hat

Bella's Mitts

DIY Ruffles Ruffles are still all of the rage around here.

Coquille Shawl from Knitty

Mustard Scarf! I love mustard and I love this scarf!

I have a big bag of Summer Tweed from a long time ago and I am going to make Summer Storm with it.

Talk to you soon!

best, susie

Skirts, Anyone?

Hi Knitters,

The 4th of July has come and gone. We celebrated at my sister's house with a feast and a family gathering. The girls had flags painted on their nails. Their friend, who is only 13, did the nail designs for them. She is like having a salon next door. She does hair, make-up and nails for the girls at the drop of the hat. I keep telling her that some day we will all be coming to her salon.
My sister called me the other day to tell me that there is a new store on Monroe Street in Madison. She told me that there is a rack of skirts on the sidewalk and that they looked incredibly cute. I couldn't pass that up so I popped in and was happy to see that the owner is none other than Orangy Porangy! That's right, she's opened her own shop right here in town.
Her shop is called Zip-Dang, Handmade Menagerie and Vintage Boutique. She has handmade skirts out of vintage and other fabrics, t-shirts, paper goods, vintage plate sets, artwork, eyeglasses, necklaces, magnets, bags, cool flea market home furnishings.... It is all gorgeous and handmade and fun. For the knitters out there, it is right next to the Knitting Tree! You could pop in both shops in no time at all.

My sister and I burst out laughing when we both showed up wearing our new Orangy Porangy Opal style skirts (which you can also order online) for the 4th of July gathering.
For the blog for the shop and website click here! One interesting and knitterly side note is that Debbie Stoller loves these skirts. She has featured them in Bust magazine and has worn an Opal skirt on tv before for interviews. The skirts have also been worn on Jimmy Fallon's late night show by the bassist, Kim Coletta, for Jawbox. It's all on the blog if you are interested. There is a famous scientist sporting the skirts around, too. It's an interesting mix:)

I am holding a second skirt that is owned by my sister. She looked so cute in her skirt she had to have a second. My skirt is summery so I'll have to get a couple more for fall and winter wearing. It will be the perfect excuse to pop back in the shop. Plus, Zip-Dang may be my new shop for gift shopping. There is a little something for any occasion and I love to shop at locally owned stores.
You can see the colors better here. I'm a total skirt girl. I live in skirts and these are quickly becoming my favorites! I love that Orangy Porangy is Madison based. The creator and her husband live right down the street from the shop. They have a shop set up at the Saturday morning farmers markets, too, right at the top of State Street on the square. Monroe Street, where the shop is located, is such a great neighborhood-y area. There is something for everyone on this fun eating and shopping street. Some of our favorite local restaurants (Pizza Bruta, Pasqual's and more) are just a few blocks away from Zip-Dang and the famous local custard shop, Michael's, is right across the street. For our anniversary my husband and I rented a canoe at Knickerbocker, also right across the street from Zip-Dang, for an hour and enjoyed a paddle around Lake Wingra. There is so much to do down there. Trader Joe's is right in the middle of the action, too. If you are in town don't miss out on Monroe Street.

I'll end the week with a few more fun things to look at!

I'm making this sweater from the new issue of Knitty, Mythos in Madelinetosh Sock in Tart! Here is the designer's blog post about the sweater. I think this is my favorite pattern in the bunch this time around on Knitty. There are lots of other interesting patterns as well. I think the construction of Mythos is what sold me right away. You make two halves and kitchener them together down the back. I love doing the kitchener stitch for some weird reason and I've never done it down the back of a sweater before.

Quince & Co. is a new yarn and pattern company. It is gorgeous! It's Pam Allen and Carrie Bostick Hoge so I would expect nothing less than the exquisite yarn and pattern line being offered. Congrats to all involved!

Carrie's blog is fantastic and fun. This is a new find for me.

Check out soulemama's view of the Quince & Co. yarns at KnitWit in Maine, the flagship shop.

I am making this sweater after seeing Amanda's gorgeous review and yarn recommendation. This should go fast on size 13 needles.

These linen totes have caught my eye big time. I would love one of these.

I like this big comfy cardigan, too! I would love an entire sweater in Manos wool. Wouldn't you?

Finally, my new free pattern is up on Spud says! It is a simple and quick pillow called Cush. It's perfect for your couch or for your child's bed or a sleepover pillow to pack in an overnight bag! You can whip this one up in no time at all.

Click here for the pattern!

Click here for the Ravelry page for Cush!

Have a good Friday and weekend everyone. The weather is so beautiful today. The humidity has vanished.

best, susie

Finishing

Hi Knitters,

Wow! It has been a whirlwind this summer. Another birthday has come and gone for both Peachy and TC. They were born 2 weeks and just under 3 years apart so every summer we have a stretch with lot of celebrating to do and that includes the fourth of July. This year both my nephew and sister-in-law have been in town at separate times. It has been so nice to see them and catch up a bit. My nephew stayed with us for a couple of days. Summers are a good time to visit and get together and celebrate outside. That's a good thing. I'd like to say I am finished with birthday parties but TC still has a friends party coming her way. I'm hoping to keep it on a small scale. We'll see. The fun just goes on and on.

I have the winner for the Vogue Stitchionary #5: Lace Knitting. Here is Kelly's winning comment. Congratulations to Kelly!

shinergirl said...

Woot! Another giveaway. I want to start collecting the Vogue stitchionary books.

You really do have great giveaways.

Kelly
I've been sneaking in some fun knitting here and there and have two new finished projects to show for it. The first is the Petal Shawlette. The pattern is free. I just love this little project that is so easy and fast. The yarn I used is Manos Cotton Stria in a gorgeous purple shade #202. I used most all of two skeins and made mine bigger than in the pattern by increasing to 161 stitches before adding the edging.
It's a gem! I want to make a bunch more for me and for gifts. Blue Sky Worsted Cotton would work great for this pattern, too, and maybe even on a US 10 needle size. I'll have to try it.
I finished my Garter Yoke Cardigan in Peace Fleece. It is perfect in every way. What a fun knit. I highly recommend this pattern for anyone interested.

I finished up two giveaways in the past couple of weeks and that has been busy and exciting. I have one more giveaway on this blog coming soon so keep your eyes open for that.

Hope you are finishing things this week, too. It feels good.

best, susie

Do I Dare?

Edited to add on July 6: The contest is now closed!!! No more entries are being taken. Thanks to all for entering.

Hi Knitters,

Well, do I? Of course I do.

I have a couple more giveaways to offer you. It has been the summer of giveaways around here. The next giveaway I have to offer you is the beautifully done Vogue Knitting Stitchionary 5: Lace Knitting. It lives up to all expectations. I have all of the Vogue Knitting Stitchionary Volumes and I was waiting on pins and needles for volume 5 to come out. I've already read through the pages and with my post-it notes at the ready I have marked some of the lace patterns I will be trying out soon.
I love the fact that the stitchionaries are done in color themes. This one uses shades of blue to highlight the chapters which are: Easy/Mesh, Allover, Edgings, Motifs, Combos and Chevrons. That just about covers it.
There is great variety and the patterns are both written row by row and in chart form. This book covers all bases.
This pattern of overlapping leaves will definitely show up in something I will be making. No questions. Isn't that gorgeous? Love.
The range of difficulty goes from super simple all the way to ultra-complicated. Vogue always hits it out of the ballpark.

Anyway, for the giveaway I am offering a copy of Stitchionary 5 to one lucky knitter. Please leave a comment on this post that includes a way to get in touch with you in the chance that you win (email, ravelry name, link). I will randomly select a winner in a couple of days and post the winning comment here. At that time you will need to get in touch with me to give me your mailing address so the book can be sent out. One entry per person, please.

Have fun and go for it!
I dug around in some bins the other day and found this bountiful bouquet of Manos Cotton Stria. What a fantastic cotton this is. I love the texture and the tonal hues of bright and subtle color. I have wanted to knit up the free pattern, Petal Shawlette, since I saw the pattern in May from Loop in Philadelphia (Craig has a great blog with free patterns). I finally hand-rolled a couple of balls and got to it.
I always think this yarn looks like candy. The Manos Cotton looks very similar to the recommended Cotton Blossom yarn for the pattern. The Cotton Blossom comes in skeins of 200 yards which is very generous.
The shawlette is a simple quick pattern worked on a US size 9 needle.
I haven't even finished the first ball of cotton so I think I will make mine a little bigger and keep going for awhile before I add the final edging. You might like to make one of these, too. Cotton and summer just go together.
The sleeves are coming along on my Garter Yoke Cardigan, too. I have been having fun working a few quick rounds here and there when I sit in this chair in my living room. I just leave it sitting on the arm of the chair. When others sit there they just ignore my sweater hogging up the chair. They sit right on it. Good thing it's a sturdy piece.

Did you see the Knitscene preview? I can't wait.

I am running the Spud & Chloë Facebook page if you'd like to join me. Click here.

Blue Sky Alpacas just started a Facebook page, too! Click here to check that out.

My new free hat pattern is up and available on Spud says! Click here for the pattern.

Guess what? Someone dear to me is sending me her spinning wheel! It is just sitting in her closet and she wants me to use it. Mama may have a new hobby! I am calling Liz at the Sow's Ear (they are having a big sale from July 2-4th) when I get it to see if she'll give me some private lessons. I can't wait.

I am thinking about that fun quilt top I finished two summers ago, too. I think I will pull that out and finish it up. I have all of the materials I need to finish. I have been thinking about my old granny square throw that is half done. That I would like to finish as well.

That's enough for this post, right? I keep thinking of more things to tell you.

Enter the giveaway!!!

best, susie