Flurry of FO's

Zippin' off the needles in the last weeks....

Socks for Bill; 2-at-a-time on 2 circulars, toe-up, Dyenamics custom over-dye, Sport weight yarn.

Fingerless mitts for Madison; Periwinkle Sheep worsted weight.

Fingerless mitts for me; Dyenamics Alpaca/Wool blend using a Dyenamics exclusive pattern.

Socks for me; using a Lion Brand Magic Stripes sock yarn (a freebie from a friend's stash) which Madison decided SHE liked, so....

I dove back into my sock yarn stash/ends and found some blue sport weight for the contrast...and VIOLA! Two pairs of socks out of 660 yds. (or so)

Right now, stitching another pair of socks for Madison from a colorway she designed herself. Details soon...

And of course, can't have just ONE WIP, so there's more fingerless mitts at the bottom of the knitting bag...

Trying to set an example...

Shame on me if I pester the girls about laying and don't keep busy myself...so I have to post about my efforts...

It's the Pretty Thing cowl by the Yarn Harlot. It's actually the second one I made; the first was for my sister for Christmas, and I was so enamored with the easy lace knit and the yarn itself - I had to make a second.

But truthfully, it goes beyond love of yarn and knitting. It goes to frugality and thrift. Because the story of the yarn goes like this: I bought it back when money was MUCH easier. (Like when I had a paying job...) It is Mongolian cashmere, and I had never paid that much for so little yarn before in my life. When I went to cast on, I discovered that "something" had happened to the yarn causing multiple breaks throughout the whole skein. In some past life of mine, I might have thrown up my hands, boo-hooed a little, and tossed the yarn in the trash. Not in THIS life...

I gingerly wound the ball and kept every little piece. As I knit, I patiently tied end to end as I came upon the multiple pieces and kept working. (Talk about having a lot of ends to weave in!) When I finished the gift, there was no way I could simply toss the remainder in my stash bin...it had to be used. Just as we try to use every little scrap around here that might have any use beyond its first assignment...

So, I knit a second one for me. (Really, no selfishness here - Christmas is over and nobody on my list has a birthday for months...so of course I was the logical recipient...denial is such a lovely river...)

And do you know, there's still yarn left over!

And it's going into a special stash bin - because I'm using every last inch of that stuff if it's the last thing I do!

Next project...

P.S. The girls have squeezed out three eggs. I am still giving them stern looks as I pass by...

A resolution, of sorts...

I don't know about you, but I start thinking about New Year's resolutions weeks before I actually have to. Not that I settle on one, mind, but at least the thoughts start to percolate...

I finally settled on one when I was in the midst of a semi-frantic search for my size 9 circular needles. As I rifled through tote after tote, project after project, corner after corner...I was hit smack in the face with the reality of my startitis...I have too many projects.

So 2010 is going to be the year of the Finished Objects. I dedicate myself to finishing more projects than I start. Especially those of the knitting variety. ESPECIALLY those...

I won't bother you with the gory details; the knitters amongst you can run right over to Ravelry and get all the latest scoop. (I'm rugbplayr).

Here's to 2010: it's gotta be better than 2009. Please.

In Review (or how to knit several posts into one)

Plant Something: At this time of year, it's hardly news to plant something...but the corn is in the ground, and about a third of the vegetable plants, and raspberry starts, and the best so far was some horseradish from a friend farmer, Becky.  Horseradish fans - when do you harvest and grind?  Why? I've heard both Spring and Fall...

Harvest Something: I've told you about my aspirations of supporting myself from our farm...how about including the wild?  I picked fiddleheads from our camp a while back and made a nice big dish for dinner - yumm!

 

Preserve something: (Allow me a little latitude on the word "preserve") we are trying doggedly to incubate and hatch heritage turkeys.  After fifty eggs, rats, skunks, bad weather, faulty thermometers, four different incubators and pretty uncooperative hens, we are just letting nature handle things.  This season, the preservation of Narragansett, Bourbon Red, and Midget White populations is just going to have to rely on the whims of nature.  

So far:

Born this morning.

Prep something: Spent days and days winding and dyeing yarn for the summer festivals and markets.  Don't want to touch sock yarn anytime soon...

Cook something:  In the never-ending quest for things made with maple syrup instead of cane sugar...I present maple-banana-fudge bars: (a made-up recipe, but my ample butt can attest to the goodness)

Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees.

1 C maple syrup, Grade B preferred

1/2 C softened shortening (butter)

2 free-range eggs

2 C flour

1/2 C rolled oats

1 t baking soda

1/2 t baking powder

1 C semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 C walnuts, chopped (optional)

2 Soft ripe bananas, mashed

Cream shortening and maple syrup.  Add mashed banana.  Mix, then add eggs and mix again.  Sift flour, oats, soda, and powder together and add to liquid ingredients in portions; mixing after each one.   Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.  Pour batter into prepared 9x13 pan, bake for 40-45 minutes.  Test for doneness with the toothpick thing...

Manage reserves:  (Well, more emphasis on the "manage" than the "reserves")  About a week ago now, we checked the hive to make sure the queen had been released.  Yep.  She's left the wee box and is off to laying eggs and eating royal jelly, or something like that...

Work on local food systems: We've finished taking memberships for this year's CSA and have compiled the little surveys on what folks want.  Beets are a new request, and less greens and lettuce was mentioned a few times.  Other than that, we appear to be on target.  We are trying more dry beans this year, more onions, broccoli and herbs.  First Market weekend: June 6th.

Reduce Waste/Recycle:  We finished our 3-bin compost system.  (Plans from the Winter issue of Organic Gardening magazine)  Due to the presence of bears in the neighborhood, we cannot compost food waste; just chicken coop droppings, barn sweepings, grass and weeds, etc.

Learn Something: Never think that you're done learning anything.  Even after all the socks I have knit, I learned a new technique - knitting on two circular needles.  And I like it!

Be a friend:  I have connected via the phone with one of my blog buddies, Michelle.  It is always so interesting to hear an actual voice to go with the persona you have already put together in your head. We are having a wonderful time delving into the world of sock knitting...actually, I already live there, and I am pulling her in to join me...(*evil grin*)

Braided Ear Warmer

Here's the "down and dirty details" for those who were asking...

I knit this with a locally produced yarn, and although it came to me natural, I couldn't resist dying it, so into the pot it went with the Avocado dye, and due to the lanolin and nature of the wool - we got the lightness and variagation...

I would say this yarn knit up like a heavy worsted or even Aran weight.  Gauge is not really important (sorry, knitting police) as you are just knitting it long enough to fit around your head, but play with it, that's where the fun is...

Size 8 needles and a cable needle

Less than 100 yards of yarn

CO 23 stitches.  I like to use the German Twisted cast on for almost anything...but you decide.

Abbreviations:

K=knit

P=purl

C2B=hold 2 stitches in back with cable needle

C2F=hold 2 stitches in front with cable needle

KCN=knit off the cable needle

Row 1: (right side)

K3, P1,  [K2, C2B, K2, KCN]  P1, K1, P1,  [K2, C2B, K2, KCN]  P1, K3

Row 2: (wrong side)

P3, K1,  [P6]  K1, P1, K1  [P6] K1, P3

Row 3:

K3, P1  [C2F, K2, KCN, K2]  P1, K1, P1  [C2F, K2, KCN, K2]  P1, K3

Row 4:

P3, K1  [P6]  K1, P1, K1  [P6]  K1, P3

Repeat Rows 1-4 as many times as necessary to fit around the head in question.  Finish with a wrong side row.  Bind off in knit.  Sew ends together.  Viola!  You are warmer for the barn chores, and stylish besides!

Fair News

Summer has unofficially ended; the Schaghticoke Fair has come and gone.  That's our county Fair, and 4-H project year wrap-up.  Madison entered a slew of vegetables from the garden this year and took away 8 blue ribbons out of 10 entries.  (She needs to work on presentation...hear that, Martha?)

And the chickens didn't do too badly, either!  Here she is standing with her Reserve Champion, Blueberry, who is a Splash (Blue) Cochin.  Blueberry didn't want to cooperate for the photo, so she is hiding behind Madison's head.  (She also didn't want to cooperate on salon day, so she won with dirty feet.  Go figure.)

There was showmanship:

And plenty of showing the chickens to the public:

If you are wondering why I am holding the chicken, just take a peek at my right leg - once there's poop, I become the holder and she does the introductions...(sigh)

That's Spring, one of my favorites.  She is a Rhode Island Red from two years before, when she was part of the day-old baby chick display that the kids get to divvy up once the Fair is over.  This year our family set up the entire chick display, so all the babies are ours. (Pictures in a day or so...)

For Madison, one of the Fair highlights was the guy with the reptiles - 

 But for me...well, I'm simple.  I like the Fair food (who doesn't?), and the simplicity of one blue ribbon.  Yep, Mommy won a blue ribbon.  

(Fellow Ravelers, those are my Mystery Socks from my projects page...)

Of course, it is only one ribbon, compared to the dozens that Madison racked up, but I handle that situation like the mature, non-competitive,  supportive adult that I am...

Yarn Harlot!

Many of you may not know, because it's not something I bring up on here often, but I knit. I love to knit. I am currently embroiled in an insane tribute to knitting known as the 52 Pair Plunge where I and 90-some-odd other knitters try to knit a pair a week for 52 weeks (yeah, I know...I didn't think it all out before I pushed the send button on the sign-up e-mail...) So, when the call came many weeks ago to sign up to see the Yarn Harlot speak in Northampton, I jumped in with both feet.

It was amazing! I was awestruck by the theater filled to overflowing with something over 600 folks, all knitting. And we all were entertained by Ms. Pearl-McPhee (of course) and she inspired us to "come out" as knitters, and to love our stash, so here it is.

I knit.

I own lots of yarn, known to us knitters as "stash".

I also own sheep, which I consider simply an extension of stash, known as "yarn on the hoof".

And I now own a signed copy of Stephanie's latest book:

And Allison and I even brought her a skein of our yarn to add to her stash. I couldn't tell if she was more impressed with the dedicated colorway, or the fact that we printed the label with the yardage in meters. (That should really be "meterage", shouldn't it?)

Now, if only sheep and chickens could read, they'd understand where Mommy was last night until VERY late....

What have I gotten myself into NOW?

There once were 6 bloggers who knit;
And their stashes were causing a fit.
So a game they did play,
To give yarn away,
(Now, whose yarn will YOU git?)

They took turns being Swap host,
Beth, Lauren, Michele all did post.
Now it's my turn, you see
To show yarn to the three
(Who will bid to win what I post?)

(Honestly, sometimes I don't know where it comes from...it just spills out. Sorry.)

Here's the thing - my stash is mostly sock yarn. I can't seem to go anywhere without picking some up. I go nowhere without my DPN's, and have several patterns committed to memory so I can start right up if I find an especially nice skein. That might leave some of you out in the cold, since not every knitter does socks. (To make, I mean. Most wear them at least...) So here's what I'm gonna do:

The fastest bidder, (Stephanie or Anne K. by my count, right?) can choose either a fingering weight or sport weight, hand-dyed skein of 100% merino superwash. That way, if they're really not into socks, it makes a baby sweater, or who knows what. Oh, yeah - 430 yards. That's a skein - enough to make a pair of women's socks. Color? You call it. I'll dye it as close to your request as I can. Like give me some general color guidelines (e.g., "I hate purple", or "Let's try pink, yellow and black together", something like that...)

If you are really unable to think up a color combination on your own, you may cheat and go to our website, and choose from what we have posted so far.

Now, the other reason I am breaking from the true "stash" swap yarn, is to further make up for the fact that I cannot stick to the noon bidding deadline, as I will be sitting in a gymnasium filled with 160+ little karate people and their parents, waiting for my daughter's two minutes of fame. So let's say 6:00 p.m. EST. If I'm not home by that time, then something has gone terribly, terribly wrong and I will have sworn off karate forever.

The good thing - I can knit pretty much uninterrupted for many farm-chore-free hours while we're waiting...

Thrummed mittens

It hasn't been my habit to showcase my knitting here, since I meant to focus on the farm. But I promised, and since I'm using fleece from Victoria, our first born-on-the-farm ewe, well....why not?

It was the first batch of fleece I've ever processed from our Shetlands (see November 27, 2006 posting). And dyeing wasn't as easy as I had hoped...

But the actual finished product is absolutely dreamy. So soft and warm. I've gotten plenty of requests, but Madison and Bill are next. Just have to process some more fleece. What I processed the first time barely covered both mittens.. (Madison says absolutely NO pink in hers...)

What's amazing is what is created inside the mitten with the thrum of fleece...see?