LET IT SNOW!

It is snowing in Salt Lake City today.  The air is crisp and clear and the mountains look beautiful.  What a great change of season.  It puts me in the mood to bake bread, make soup, build a fire in the fireplace, and sip hot chocolate with marshmallows.  I'm hoping to actually have time this weekend, to do some of these things!

Don't the snow covered mountains make a beautiful backdrop to the cityscape?

However, since I work in "road building", this is more what I see on a cold, snowy morning in Salt Lake City.

Here is my "little SNOW CHICKEN", out building herself a Snowman. and eating its head.

Since the weather has turned cold . . . I thought it was the perfect time to unveil the little baby Christmas Hats, my daughter and I have been designing. 

She sells them in the gift shop at a women's hospital near her home, and at a beauty salon here in town.

Knit in varying strips in red, white & green, they should provide some warmth and Holiday Cheer for little newborn babies and toddlers on the go.

These hats bring out the little elf, with their pointy crowns and little top-knots.

We plan to put them up for display the week of Thanksgiving.  They have been so fun to knit, and we have a lot of them sitting on the kitchen table at my house.

This is a little sneak peak at what we are planning for Spring.  This is the "The Berry Baby Hat" by Michele Sabatier.

Our Knitting Group held a Beginning Knitting II class this past week.  It was well attended, and we had a lot of fun, learning about increasing, right and left leaning decreases, wet blocking, stitch gauge and swatching.  We also talked about yarn weights and fiber blends, along with a lot of our personal lives.

Kristen shared these darling little fingerless gloves, made for her little toddler.  Knit on double pointed needles, she did an excellent job getting the perfect fit.  Notice how the thumb is exposed.  Perfect winter warmth for a little "thumb sucker".  One of the gloves was quickly misplaced by these cute little fingers.  Hopefully, Kristen will find the missing glove before she breaks down and makes another.  Thanks for sharing Kristen.  You inspire us all!

Erica, although just a beginner, is tackling the endeavor of knitting all of her Christmas gifts.  I have done this many years too, although every year I say "never again"!  She is a natural-born knitter, and after discussing some options for gifts for both boys and girls, she is off and running . . . I mean "knitting".  I wish her the best!

I look forward to our next "Knit Night", to be held on November 1, and I hope others will bring their finished projects to share.  Happy Knitting . . .

PARTY . . . PARTY!

This weekend was our Annual Family Halloween Bash!

Frankenstein and his Bride scared all the little kids.  It took them a while to figure out they were their Aunt and Uncle.

All of the "Star Wars" characters were there, including YODA.

"Tinkerbell" and her crew were there too.

We had two Wii controllers . . .

a cowboy and saloon girl . . .

and even two Zebras.

But the WINNERS of the costume contest, were these two "Minnions".  Sooooo funny!

You can see the party was held at my daughter's hair salon, as the two Minnions are getting their non-hair dry in this picture.

We had a yummy soup/salad/breadstick dinner, and played a fun family Jeopardy game.  Here you can see all of the prizes and categories.  We all took home lots of treats! 

Such creative costumes really made the evening a lot of fun.

And now to some knitting:

FINALLY . . . my "Cabled Embrace" is finished.  The last time you saw this vest, it was a mess.  It was too big, had a big gap in the back and buttons were all crooked.  So off to the "Frog Pond" it went.  It was completely pulled apart and re-knit.

This time it fits perfectly!  A wonderful pattern, it includes great body shaping (if you choose the correct size) and knit on US 10.5 needles, it is a really quick project (if you don't have to knit it twice).  Mine was knit of 100% Alpaca Yarn, so it is extremely soft, even though the yarn was over-worked.

It was knit in two pieces from top to bottom.  All of the edgings, waist detail and armholes were included in the two pieces, so there was very little finishing.  Even the best knitters have problems sometimes.  I am completely happy with this project now, however, I missed the final cable twist on the right side of the back.  This would have gone together so much better, if the twist had been included, but I'm just too tired to unravel it back to this point again.  I guess somethings are just not meant to be perfect!  These were all my mistakes, not errors in the pattern, which was beautifully written.

The pattern was written by Maria Lee, and can be found at:  Ravelry.com.  A kit, which includes the yarn and pattern can be purchased from Knit Picks.

"Beginning Knitting II" will be held on Wednesday, November 24.  I'm looking forward to seeing everyone's progress, and their finished projects.  I hope to include some in my next post.  Also, I'm still working with my daughter on designs for Baby Christmas Hats, which she'll be selling at various locations.  I should have some pictures to share soon.  Happy Knitting . . . .

Pumpkin Fun

WINNER, WINNER, chicken dinner . . .

I couldn't decide, so we have "2" winners of this Give-Away.  A hank of soft, 100% Alpaca Yarn in Worsted.  The winners are:  Shara & Wilson 628. 

This yarn comes from the fleece of Spud and Melvin. 

Each will receive their yarn at the Knitting Class on Oct. 24, where I will wind their hanks into a center-feeding balls.  It will spoil them both, for knitting with acrylic yarn.  Amazing enough, the feel of the yarn makes a big difference in the enjoyment of the "knit".  Thanks for participating in my little contest!

Last Saturday, the company I work for, hosted a Fall party at Historic Wheeler Farm.  It was great fun, with a pumpkin patch, a corn maze, wagon rides, farm animals & a dutchoven dinner.

It was the perfect opportunity for my "lil pumpkins" to wear their pumpkin hats.  It was cold, but that didn't stop us from having loads of fun!  My sister knit this little version.

We loaded up lots of pumpkins for carving, and let Nola lead us through the corn maze.  She was really funny when we came to a dead end, saying:  "Oops we're stuck again!"

The leaves are quickly changing here in the Salt Lake Valley, and they offered a great backdrop for lots of family photos.  We have started working on designs for Christmas Baby Hats.  I'll have some to share in my next post.

I had completely forgotten my youngest daughter knew how to knit.  She has been working hard on her education for the past 4 years, and has had very little time for any extra activities. 

She is currently in a holding pattern, as she applies for Physical Therapy School.  Working as a Physical Therapy Aid, she knit this cabled scarf for one of the Physical Therapists she works for.

It only took a little refresher and some instruction on turning cables, and she was off and running.  The entire scarf was knit in just a few days.  She did a beautiful job, and I'm sure the receiver of this gift will really appreciate it.

The scarf is nice and long, and will wrap many times, to provide lots of warmth this winter.  Happy Birthday Melody!  Alex has many skills.

The Beginning Knitting Class II will be held next week, so let me know if you are interested in attending, and our next "Knit Night" will be held on Thursday, November 4 at 7:00 pm.  Everyone is welcome.  Happy Knitting . . . . .

"Witch Knit"

Last night was my knitting group "Witch Knit".  We had a great turn-out, and look at all of the good sports who dusted off their witch hats for the event.  We had some yummy treats, made by Tiffany and Judy, and even voted on our favorite witch costumes.  Jill, Tiffany & Carolyn were the winners, and took home some little Halloween Lanterns for their efforts.  We had a "cackling good time", and spent the evening helping and inspiring each other with our knitting projects.

Even my darling little grand-daughter came, wearing her mother's green shoes.  Quite a "witchy" fashion statement, don't you think?  I think some great friendships are going to be formed at our "Knit Nights", even though knitting seems to attract people of all ages, and from all backgrounds.  It is always fun to have someone to talk to and knit with.  We'll be meeting again on November 1.  Remember . . . everyone is welcome, even non-knitters!!

Last week I spent the weekend at my daughters house.  She is making these darling little pumpkin hats for children.  Made from a pattern of my design:  "Lil Pumpkin Hat", which you can find through this link at Ravelry.com.  The pattern is a free download, and a really easy knit.

We spent the weekend knitting these little hats, as she is selling them in a few hair salons.  The hats are $15 each and come in several sizes, from newborn to size 8.  Please let me know if you are interested in purchasing one, or you can make your request on her blog:  The Coats Closet.

I almost forgot to share this great prize, which I won at our recent "Girl's Trip" to Palm Springs.  My sister recently went on a business trip to Toronto, Canada.  While there, she scored these great, hand-knit mittens, made for the 2012 Olympics in England.  I won them playing a game, and I'm so excited that I did.  They remind me of the "Roots" clothing that were produced for the 2002 Winter Olympic Games held here in my hometown (Salt Lake City).  I believe "Roots" is a Canadian Company, thus the resemblance.

Reminder:  I will be GIVING AWAY, this 250 yard hank of 100% Alpaca worsted weight yarn on October 15, 2012.  All you have to do, is comment on this post, telling me what you think you would knit from the yarn.  It is easy to WIN, just enter your comment today.

This yarn comes from our very own alpaca (SPUD).  It is soft and creamy, and is just waiting to jump on your needles.

It is truly FALL here in Utah.  We are harvesting the last of the tomatoes, green beans, eggplant and spaghetti squash.  We are churning up the dirt and spreading out the newly created compost.  Our house is all decorated for Halloween and my closets will be switched out this coming weekend.  Another summer bites the dust, and so does another year for me.  It is my birthday this month, so I grow another year older, and another year out from cancer.  It is good to be alive!  I'm looking forward to many enjoyable years to come.  Happy Knitting . . . . . .