Vacation Knitting... dishcloths.

DISHCLOTH #4



DISHCLOTH #3



DISHCLOTH #2

DISHCLOTH #1

Phew, I am catching my breath after vacation and after a week at work (I work Sunday through Thursday right now).   Here's what I made on vacation... four dishcloths.  The photos are completely out of order so I labeled them.  I knit dishcloth #1 en route to Carlsbad, New Mexico.  We passed through Roswell, New Mexico.  Nope, did not see any UFO's or Aliens from Outer Space while in the Roswell area, but we found a Church's Fried Chicken Restaurant and my husband was pretty happy about that.  We stopped there for lunch.  Dishcloth #1 was inspired by the "Hurricane Hat" pattern I've been making lately.  We explored the Carlsbad Caverns. Have you ever been?  They are amazing and worth the trip, but they are kind of the middle of no where.

After our cave adventures, dishcloth #2 was made en route to see my father-in-law in Tuscon, Arizona.  The pattern was inspired by a hat pattern I printed off called "Boardwalk Hat".  I repeated the lace chart two times to come up with this width.  It's a fun pattern; I need to make this hat!  I left dishcloth #1 and dishcloth #2 at my in-law's place for gifts.  In Tucson, we ate at lots of great restaurants including Bubb's Grubb for good BBQ and Claim Jumper (known for ridiculously large portions... I had a salad... good girl!)

Dishcloth #3 and #4 where made on the trip home.

Dishcloths are perfect car knitting and I enjoyed making the patterns as I went along.

In-law's dog, Ginger. She's quite a princess!  She keeps her front paws nicely groomed.  She looks so pretty in the early morning light.  Good girl, Ginger!  Ginger and I went for a walk one evening when the sun was setting and I loved looking at every one's front yards... filled with different kinds of cacti, mesquite trees, and other things that only grow in the arid desert climate. 

Chemo Cap #10... Odessa in Blue with Jewel-toned beads

Just returned from vacation... did a little hat knitting and a little cotton dishcloth knitting. 

Suddenly, I am experiencing difficulty posting photos.  Let's see if this works... I hope so.  I have lots of photos to share.

Blue Jean Beret (Chemo Cap #9)

Sure would look cute with blue jeans...

This cap is knit from the top down (start with 4 stitches, join in the round,
increase to a diameter of 8.5 inches or more,
and then decrease to make the ribbing as tight or as lose as you like). 
Can be made with any gauge, any needles, any yarn. 
The increases make a nice design I think...

Oh, I kind of like this one on me.

Pattern:  One Day Beret
Designer:  Kirsten Kapur
Click HERE for pattern link on Ravelry.
Yarn:  Berroco Comfort (worsted weight) in "Security Blanket" colorway

Chemo Cap #8

Pattern:  Odessa (with beads)
Designer:  Grumperina
Pattern Link: Click HERE
Yarn:  Berroco DK (my favorite!)

Chemo Caps #6 and #7

I am having some blogging issues, but wanted to post these photos to show you my latest hats. I posted about them earlier today...

Happy Pi Day

Today's date is 3/14.  Math lovers probably love March 14th.  Get it... 3.14... Pi.  You know... as in, how do you figure the circumference of a circle... or the area of a circle?  Pi!  In honor of Pi Day, the teachers at my son's school asked kids to bring... pies. I baked pumpkin pies. Dang it, son couldn't carry two pies to school so we had to eat one at home.  It was rough.  We can polish off a pumpkin pie in our house in no time at all. 

Speaking of Pi (and pie), I've been noticing beautiful lace shawls called "Pi Shawls" on Ravelry and it wasn't until recently that I started to read more to find out the details. 

Apparently, Pi Shawls were "invented" by Elizabeth Zimmerman.  I don't know much about this gal, but I see her name everywhere and understand she is quite an iconic figure in the hand-knitting world.  On Ravelry, I read that Pi Shawls are a circular shawl based the geometry of Pi--the relationship between a circle’s circumference and its radius containing six shaping rounds. The other thing I am learning about Pi Shawls is that they are incredibly versatile.  The construction is such that you can insert just about any lace pattern to tailor the shawl to your liking... simple or complex.

Elizabeth Zimmermann’s elaboration on the Pi Shawl (from Ravelry):
“When you set out on the annual family trip naturally you have to take your knitting; something has to keep you sane in face of the possibly quite ferocious situations you will be up against in the next two weeks.  Try a shawl.  I have a circular shawl for you which starts at the center, has absolutely no pattern, and only six shaping-rounds in the whole thing.”

Hmmm, now I am really curious... this deserves some attention... another knitting goal for me in 2011:  make a Pi Shawl!  For today, if you are interested, check out this project (click HERE).  I plan to sit down with this pattern and some cotton yarn tonight... in observance of Pi Day!  Too bad the pie at home is all gone.

Ocean Blues... Blue Jeans (2011 Chemo Cap #6 and #7)

Two more chemo caps completed.  The patterns are the same... Eyelet Ripple and Hurricane but this time I am using Berroco Comfort (worsted weight) in a color they call "Security Blanket".  When I've been knitting with the Berroco yarn I've been using lately, I get lost in the colors... day dreaming of what the colors resemble.  The last few hats were made in a color called "Pot-au-Feu". I had to Google it to learn is translates to "Pot of Fire" in French.  I guess I can see that; the colors reminded me of the desert southwest... in particular Moab, Utah.  When I read more, I learned that Pot-au-Feu was also a name for a traditional French beef stew with veggies that you cooked in a pot over an open fire.  That just made me chuckle. I'll stick with the Moab, Utah vision.

The colors in these latest hats... they remind me of the Oregon Coast. Soft shades of blue, sea foam green, and an amazing shade of purple. When I found the yarn on the shelves at the knit shop, I was drawn to the color because I thought folks would like it since it would go nicely with blue jeans.   Maybe it's because I am sending my caps to a treatment center in Oregon that I have the Oregon Coast on my mind.  Whatever the case may be, I am enjoying this yarn and these caps.  I think I prefer the Hurricane Hat over the Eyelet Ripple pattern.

Oops! Blogger says I've exceeded my free photo space. I'll add photos later today hopefully... I'll keep you waiting in suspense! 

Hurricane Hat (2011 Chemo Cap #5)

I am back on track with my chemo caps.  I set a goal for myself to make two chemo caps per month in 2011.  I found myself a few days into March and I had made no chemo caps all year long... zilch, nada, none, zip.  This is hat #5 for the month/year.  Once you get started on cap making, it's hard to stop and it's amazing how quickly you can churn them out when you set your mind to it (that, and I haven't been allowing myself to be distracted by any other projects).

Pattern:  Hurricane Hat by Andrea Goutier (Click HERE for pattern link).
Yarn:  Berroco Comfort (worsted weight)

NOTE: If you go to the link above to print this pattern, be careful.  If you just click "print", about 30 pages churn through your printer due to all the nice feedback the pattern designer got on her blog. I suggest you cut & paste just the pattern, or else you'll waste a lot of ink and a lot of paper... like I did.  Argh!!!

Odessa in Blue with Beads (2011 Chemo Hat #4)

Pattern:  Odessa by Grumperina
Yarn: Berroco Comfort DK
Beads: little crystal beads from Austria (clear with an iridescent sheen).

Moab Ripple Hat (Chemo Hat #3)



I think this photo shows the colors best.



Colors don't look so accurate in this photo, but I wanted you to see how the cap's top came together.

Pattern: Ripple Eyelet Baby Hat by Bonnie Brann

Click HERE for pattern link.  On my Ravelry page, I made notes about how to knit the hat in the round (instead of flat as the pattern directs).

Yarn:  Berroco Comfort (worsted weight)

I took several photos to try to let you see how great the colors are in this yarn. I love it. The colors are so pretty in person and remind me of colors in the desert southwest... such as Moab, Utah.



See what I mean about Moab, Utah...



Photos from Spring Break 2010... blue sky, red and orange earth, sage green foliage...



Lace Trim Chemo Cap (2011 Hat #2)

Pattern:  Lace Trim Chemo Cap by Maureen Keenan. Pattern found at http://www.knitmichigan.com/
Ravelry pattern link HERE.  (Note: Link updated 05-20-2011).

Yarn:  Berroco Comfort DK

Rosy Shawl is Complete!

Ugh! Not a good photo of me, but I wanted you to see how this wrap looks on a person...

Finished up my Rosy Shawl at my Thursday Knitting Group. The cast off row took 40 minutes.  That was a LOT of stitches to cast off!  The yarn is called Heirloom Cotton Breeze. It was a cone of yarn I got from my Mom's stash (I actually have two cones of the same yarn... I'm a lucky gal... Thanks, Mom!).  The yarn is quite bumpy and has a darker burgundy thread winding through the cotton fibers which is rather shiny.  You can't really see that bit of "bling" in the photos.  The pattern is called "Simple Yet Effective Shawl" and the pattern link can be found HERE.  The pattern's title is quite accurate. This was a simple and fun project. You can make it small, like a bandanna, or rather large like mine.  I alternated between garter rows and stockinette rows.  The stockinette portions have varying numbers of rows for a random look; however, for the garter rows, I consistently made garter rows with three garter bumps. 

Lacy Sampler Scarf is Complete!

Pattern:  Superior Lacy Sampler Scarf (Click HERE for link)
Yarn:     Queensland Collection Bamboo Cotton

I started this scarf in JULY 2010. Click HERE for that post with some close ups of each lace repeat.  Much like the Second Sock Syndrome, I was very excited when I finished the first half and then promptly moved on to other projects... leaving this to collect dust.  I am excited to be finishing up so many projects.  I still have some WIPs and keep starting new projects.  Crazy, I know!!!  But I am happy to announce... it's March and I still have not bought any yarn this year!

The two halves of this scarf are not identical.  I think I MIGHT have missed a few rows at the end of the Diamond Mesh pattern... either that, or I just did not block the two halves to the same size. Whatever the case may be, it's one of those mistakes only I would notice (probably).  I did not think I would like to wear this scarf but I think I might keep this for me.  Besides, if there's a big mistake in the scarf, I can't give it away, right?  The yarn drapes really nicely and the scarf is really long so you can tie it around your neck in a stylish fashion that lays nicely.  I'll try to get one of the girls at the Thursday Knitting Group to snap my photo today so you can see how it looks.  I think what is great about this pattern is that each of five different lace patterns would make a great scarf all by itself.  And of course.... as I was knitting it, I kept wondering where I could insert beads within the lace patterns.  

Spring Green Lace Edged Women's Hat (2011 Hat #1)

I am behind on my goal to make two chemo caps per month.  It's the beginning of March and this is hat #1.

Pattern:  Lace Edged Women's Hat (Click HERE for pattern link).
Yarn:  Berroco Comfort DK (Color reminds me of Kermit the Frog!)
Notes:  This time I made the largest pattern size but used US Size 6 needles.  I am still uncertain how I like the size of this cap. This is the 3rd time I've used this pattern.