Multnomah

Another word that I didn't know what it meant so I looked it up and it is the name of a County in Oregon.  I admire the creativity of people when it comes to naming things.  I for one always had a hard time coming up with names for my glass beads.

The Multnomah shawl is another pattern that I found on Ravelry and the yarn was a gift from a dear friend.  It is Crazy Zauberball made in Germany.  It has all my favorite colors in one ball!  The dark red in the photos is actually more brown in real life. The self striping is very pretty and it doesn't pool unattractively like some other variegated yarns that I have used.  I blocked this fairly aggressively and pulled out the feather and fan patterns into sharp points.  I like it that way.  I promised myself that I would get back to making beads when it cooled off and there is a slight chance that will happen this weekend.  I am ready for cooler weather so I can wear my new shawl!

Ishbel

This has been finished for a while and I thought I would share this wonderful pattern.   I saw this shawl knitted in person and it was absolutely beautiful.  Ysolda Teague is the designer and it is in her first book, Whimsical Little Knits 1.  It is a top down shawl and can be made in different sizes or different yarn weights.  If you look on Ravelry, it has been listed as a project 7,743 times!  This one is the smaller size out of Colinette Jitterbug which is a rather squishy sock weight.  I left off 2 rows on the border because I was afraid I was going to run out of yarn.  I am pleased with this one and will probably make it again.

Phoncible

I am not sure what that word actually means, but that is the name of my latest hat.  I found the pattern on Ravelry.  What did I ever do before discovering Ravelry?  This one is going to my daughter because she picked out the pattern and the yarn.  The yarn is Noro Kureyon which is rather scratchy to knit with but it should keep her head warm.  I learned how to knit jogless stripes with this pattern and I think I finally got it down.  The hat is not quite a slouchy as it looks because the wig stand has a tiny head.  When I blocked it, I soaked it in hair condition after using Sweater Soak and I think it helped to make it a bit softer.  I hope she likes it!

Side Slip Cloche

Laura Irwin is an incredible designer.  In her book Boutique Knits, she has some beautiful patterns.  This one is the Side Slip Cloche knit with Berroco Vintage.  I am not sure who will get this one as a gift but I know it will be adorable on someone.  It would be cute with a variety of brooches or buttons added to the brim above the ruffle.  You could even change the look by changing out the accessories.  I have been uploading my photos so look for more projects soon.

Lotus Hat

 

I thought that this pattern (Lotus Hat on Ravelry) might be a little difficult but it was really easy.  This hat was made for a sweet family friend who has lost most of her hair due to chemo.  It is 100% cotton and very soft.  I have been stalking Ebay for an antique hat mold that wasn't completely out of my price range.  Looking at the Styrofoam wig stand, I am thinking that there must be a more attractive way to display my hats but  I haven't found one yet.  Let me know if anyone has any suggestions.

First Real Lace

There are a lot of firsts in my latest project.  First time using lace weight yarn, first nupps ( that is a story within itself), first twisted loop backward cast on, first short rows, and first purl 2 tog bind off.  The pattern is Annis from Knitty and the yarn is Miss Babs Yet.  There is a sad story on Miss Babs blog about her unfortunate smoke incident but happily, she is dying fiber again.  Don't you just love the name of her company?   I will be ordering from her again.  Back to the nupps - which I considered leaving out but I am always up for a good challenge and a challenge they were.  These are basically 7 stitches in 1 stitch and the tricky part is purling 7 together on the back row..  Luckily I found a video on Utube that uses a crochet hook otherwise I would have given up.  Even with the crochet hook, those rows took me a long time.   Not to mention the initial cast on of a whopping 363 stitches.  It was worth the effort and I will probably make another one which should go faster the second time around.  I love to watch the stitches open up with wet blocking but get impatient waiting for the project to dry.  The left part of the bottom photo is the curling mess that it looks like before blocking.  I am ready for Fall and a break from this 99 degree heat!

Figs

Being raised in Houston, we always had fresh figs in the summer that I took for granted.  My Grandmother, Aunt and Mom made preserves every year.  At one point, my little brother would not touch a piece of bread unless it was covered with fig preserves.  Who would have thought that they would become a delicacy served in only the finest restaurants.  These are from my Dad's tree that he managed to pick before the deer and the birds munched on them.  Aren't they pretty?

Malabrigo

Malabrigo yarn  is so soft and a pleasure to knit with.   The hat pattern is Amanda on Ravelry ( my latest obsession) and the fingerless mitts are The Irish Hiking Wrist Warmers also on Ravelry.  There is a generous amount of yardage in each skein so I was able to make the hat and the mitts out of one with plenty to spare. They are the same color but for some reason, my monitor is showing them a tad different.  This is the worsted weight and I have another skein of sock weight on the needles for another project.

I am starting early on Christmas gifts because as we know, it gets closer every year.

More knitting

I am still knitting because it is portable, I have tangible results, I can stop and start whenever I need to, I love the fibers running through my finger, I have something tangible to show when I am finished, and I can totally escape from reality by having to count every stitch.  My poor little studio is being neglected but I will get back to it someday when it gets cooler and my life gets back to somewhat normal.  We have more medical issues to deal with and this one will take us through October.  
This is my first real lace project, first triangle shawl and it won't be the last.  Blocking it was an experience but it completely made the stitches come to life.  I used weed eater string because I don't have any real blocking wires.  I don't have blocking mats either but my old trusty fabric cutting board did the job and it even has diagonal lines on it.  There will be more lace knitting in the near future now that I have conquered my fear.  I used sock yarn weight merino instead of lace weight.  It  has more "umph" and I haven't graduated to lace weight yet (don't tell anyone but I ordered some luscious merino silk lace weight yesterday.)   I got a notice today that it has been shipped.  Don't you love online purchases?  It is so much fun when the UPS man pulls up in front of my house!  I am easily excited.

I have a few more projects to photograph but I was so proud of myself  for finishing this one that I had to show it first.

More Chalcedony

This glass is still amazing to me. The variations in colors has kept my interest and lately, it is all the glass that I want to play with. I am still making beads for Beads of Courage but I didn't photograph them before they were shipped off. Our bead group, The Houston Society of Glass Beadmakers (aka Houston Hotties) has sent over 2,000 beads so for this year and that was only three months worth. Keep it up!

Luscious Yarn

Here is a photo of my latest project and the yarn before I started. I am rather proud of myself for knitting this since I am still a novice knitter. Thanks to Ravelry, I have a whole new world of knitting that is at my fingertips. When I saw this pattern for the first time, I knew that I wanted to knit it but had to wait a while since I had no idea what I was doing. It is the Cedar Leaf Shawlette, by Alana Dakos and it is a beautiful pattern. Her site is Never Not Knitting if you want to see more of her work. The yarn I chose is Madelinetosh Sock yarn in the colorway Copper Penny. It wasn't my first color choice my first choice (Cove) was sold out. I am happy with my shawlette and will do another one soon. Blocking made a huge difference in the final outcome. I will be blocking everything from now on. I have more beads too but that will be in the next post.

Still knitting

I do have some new beads but the knitting seems to be taking my focus at the moment. I started a rather ambitious project (ambitious for me) and it is taking longer than I had planned. My goal is to finish everything that I start before casting on another project. If I am not happy with the direction it is going, I just rip it out instead of letting it sit unfinished. Yarn is too precious to waste! Here are a few of the things I have completed lately. Some of the hats went to my daughter who lives where it is cold and others to a family friend who is going through chemo. The little fingerless gloves will go to my daughter if she will wear them and if not, they are mine. I was very proud of myself knitting a thumb! When I first started trying something besides straight scarfs, I didn't know what I was doing but with the help of books and gracious knitters who write tutorials, I am slowly adding to my stitch repertoire. My studio is beginning to feel lonely and I have promised myself that I will start making beads on a regular basis soon. But for now, the knitting needles are still calling.

Too cold!

It has been too cold to go to my studio. We had low temperatures in the teens so my studio was temporarily converted into a greenhouse. I found this luscious cotton yarn and knitted this cozy scarf. It is Maya made by Thaki yarn and it feels like knitting with cotton balls. Stay warm!

My Christmas tree is up!

I always feel better when the tree is up and decorated. My tree is fairly small so I load it up with handmade ornaments hand painted by me. I would love to have hand blown glass ornaments but until then, these will suffice. My studio is still lonely but I did manage to paint the inside of my house and take some photos of beads I made several months ago. The holidays speed by so maybe after Christmas, I can start making beads again. Have a great day!

This year is almost gone...

April? What happened to this year? I do have some new beads that I made several months ago but I am just now uploading them. My computer was sick and I had to uninstall all my software and reinstall it. Not an easy task for someone who knows next to nothing about computers. I was thrilled when it actually worked. No more surfing unknown sites for me!
The glass makers know how to entice beadmakers by coming up with new wonderful glass. Chalcedony is one of these. These beads were all made with one single rod of glass that produces multiple colors. The glass will "strike" to different stages depending on how many cycles of heating and cooling it goes through. Some of these are encased in clear which produces another element to the mix. I have more beads that I will post soon after I edit the photos. Have a great day!

New Venture

I have been gone for so long that it is hard getting back online again. After loosing my Mother, my creative energy took a hiatus. My life is still not my own due to family issues but I have managed to squeeze in a little ME time. I have been bitten by the fiber bug once again and I think I needed to go in another direction for a while. The glass will wait and I will get back to that soon I hope.
For now, I have been dyeing and felting which I had never done before. I stumbled upon a Felting Forum while searching for something and that opened up a new experience. I had actually purchased needle felting supplies a long time ago but what really interests me is wet felting. Getting my hands in those raw fibers and turning them into something using only water, soap and agitation is very rewarding. I have posted photos on my Flickr site and here are a few of my fist items. The following is a general explanation for Nuno or Laminated Felting: The silk chiffon and the fibers are hand dyed. The wool fibers are "laminated" to the silk using warm soapy water and by rubbing enough to migrate the wool through the silk. The whole piece is then rolled using bubble wrap until it starts to firm up. It is then dipped alternately in hot and cold water and thrown (yes thrown) down to cause the wool to shrink. This has been quite a learning experience since I am teaching myself. I still have a lot to learn but I am having fun in the process. There are other methods that I am using also which I will explain in another post.

Sad News

I know I have not posted in a long time. My Mother passed away on November 22 and her Memorial service was December 1 which would have been her 83rd Birthday. In the previous post, I mentioned that she fell and broke her hip. After having a partial hip replacement she was recovering nicely and then a staph infection showed up. They went back in, removed the prosthesis and left it out. The infection turned out to be a MRSA and even with multiple IV antibiotics, her body could not recover. It is tragic but I know she is in a better place and will not have to suffer any more. My Aunt and Uncle continue to have major health issues as well. My Dad ended up in the ER two days ago but it was stress related. He has been ordered to not do any more care giving for at least three months.

My art will have to be put on the back burner for a little longer as I help my Dad get things in order. My torch will still be there when I am ready but I also have to take care of myself during this grieving period too. Thank you to all who have continued to pray for us. We could not have survived without your prayers and support.

REVISED FALL SHOW SCHEDULE

My family is in a medical crisis at the moment. My Father's only Brother had major surgery and five days later my Mother fell and broke her hip. They are both in their 80's and require around the clock care. My Mother's only Nephew had Heart Bypass yesterday. I won't be doing the Market Street Show October 4th or the Trunk Show this weekend. I probably won't be doing any shows in October unless things drastically improve. Wish us speedy recoveries!

HURRICANE COMING!!!!

The trunk show this weekend has been canceled due to Hurricane Ike. This is a big storm and they are comparing it to Carla which I remember as a child. I have brought all the plants in and tied up the furniture. We are staying put and hopefully we won't have major damage. We could loose power so I am unplugging my computer as it gets closer.

Stay safe!!!

Fall is coming!

The past two mornings it has been in the high 60's and I can tell that the weather is finally changing. I can't believe another week has flown by and I have lots of shows to get ready for. I have been making more leaves and there will be a tutorial on my leaves in the upcoming HSGB Newsletter. Have a great weekend!

Whoever dies with the most wins!

Do you think I have enough beads? Yes, I made everyone of them and there is another shoe box full that I didn't even get to. I ran out of jewelry trays. Why is it that when I start getting ready for shows that I don't feel like I have enough beads made? If you have the answer, please let me know.