Sweater Hunt!

I have received a few requests for Free Sweater Patterns links, so I decided to go on another link hunt. There are tons of free sweater patterns out there, so I imagine this one will take a while to complete. If you have any favorite links, feel free to send them in. Any help is totally appreciated. I started going through some of the sites I have bookmarked that offer free patterns, and I already have 42 links. This list is going to be a whopper folks! I'll probably start posting the links tomorrow and just add them as I find.

Still no project pics, so I'll give you another picture of my baby. She's wondering (supervised of course she is an inside cat) through a clover patch in the back yard of our house back in VA. Doesn't that just melt ya!?

I finished something!

I finally finished Ribby! I wish that I could show you a picture, but my mom hasn't seen it yet. She is visiting on November 3 or 4, and I plan on having her model it for you. Now I'll be focusing on the Fair Isle Bag. Hopefully that won't take a long time to complete.

Since I don't have a picture of my knitting to show you, I'll just show you a very cute picture of Zoe when she was a kitten. I had this basket out on the floor, and she crawled in it and fell asleep. She looked so cute I had to run and grab the camera.

The Mail Man Cometh

And he brought me this....

Isn't it pretty! It's so pretty it gets a frame! That is twenty balls of Dale of Norway Kolibri. It's 100% Merconized Egyptian Cotton DK weight yummy yum yum yarn! I love the way it feels, and I can tell that it is going to be a pleasure to knit with. Do you have any idea how hard it is going to be to not start a project with this stuff right now!? I'm going to have to lock it up somewhere until after I get my Christmas knitting done! Must stay focused....

Work work work

All work and no knitting make Stacie an unhappy girl. I have been working so hard lately I can barely stay awake when I get home. That's why you haven't heard from me in a couple of days. I've just been too tired to blog.

My grandmother liked her scarf so much she bought some more yarn for another one. This one is going to be her Christmas scarf. If you mouse over the image you can get a close up of what this yarn looks like.

It's pretty neat stuff don't ya think? Hot Stuff yarn for a Hot Stuff Grandma! I was considering doing a yarn over pattern, but I decided against it. Honestly you don't need to do anything special with this yarn, and it still looks great. Sometimes life just calls for some good old mindless knitting. I plan on casting 20 stitches on size 9 needles just like the last yarn. It was the same type as this, but it didn't have the little sparkly bits.

Yarn Glorious Yarn!

Did I mention that I have yarn on the brain?? I'm not sure. I can't quite remember cause I have yarn on the brain. Did I mention yarn? Ok ok I'll stop. Haha! Well I did not resist temptation. Not in the slightest little bit. Do I feel guilty? Nope! I bet you want to know what I bought. All will be revealed with the arrival of the post man. A girls gotta have some blog material you know. I will say that I am very proud of my bargain finding skills.

My husband has recently justified another yarn shopping expedition. He wants me to make him the Basket Weave Pullover from the Fall 2004 Interweave Knits.

It is made with Patons Classic Wool which is pretty inexpensive. He's not too keen on the idea of handwashing it however. Actually he kinda groaned when I said it. He's just not a hand washing kind of guy.  I'm not really an hand washing kind of girl either. I'm currently looking for acceptable substitutes, and I'm seriously considering using Patons Canadiana. It is the same weight as the Classic, it is machine washable, and it comes in great colors. I have no problem at all using acrylic yarn. Especially if it is a good quality acrylic. I would love to hear any feedback you have on this yarn.

Friday

Man oh man did my grandma get alot of compliments on the last post. Thanks from both of us! We're gonna have a hard time getting her head through the door. I thought about having a "Guess Her Age" contest, but she would kill me DEAD. Haha!

I have this urge coming over me. I am trying to fight it but it is so hard. Every time I look at my computer I think, "There is yarn in there!" Yarn glorious yarn all over the internet just waiting for me to buy buy buy! So I say I'll just search a little. You know, just shop around some. I'm just looking right? It can't hurt to look right??? My poor husband just shakes his head as I blather on about this deal and that deal. He truely could care less. His main comment on the situation, "You are completely addicted to yarn!" They say the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem. Nah!! In other news, I finished Ribby. I just have to sew up the shoulders. I'm too tired to bother with that right now.

The Spice Scarf

As promised here is a picture of my grandma showing off her new scarf. You can click on the image for a larger view. Don't adjust your set folks. You are seeing right. That is my grandma. And before you ask, noooo I'm not ten years old. She's a hotty don't you think?? I'm just hope and pray that I have a large portion of her genes.

Moving Right Along

I actually got some work done on Ribby today. Are you amazed? I am! So far I have completed the back and the right front. All I have to do after that is the left side of the front and the seaming. I should have it done tomorrow. I'm going to be giving it to my mom next month, so I'll be able to post pictures of it then.

After Ribby I am going to finish that Fair Isle Bag. I can't believe how long it has taken me to finish these projects. Unfortunately, I don't get but about an hour or so a day to knit because of all the other stuff I have going on in my life. Some days I'm lucky to get in an hour. Today I was off, and I didn't clean my house so that I could get some knitting done. I can actually be productive when I put my mind to it. On top of all the work I did on Ribby, I made two swatches for future projects.

Something seems to be wrong with the links to Groovy Crochet. As some of you may know, the pages are accessed through an internet archive site. The actual Groovy Crochet site has been closed down for quite some time. Maybe there is something going on with this archive site. I have no clue. I'm going to leave the links up anyway, because it may be right back to normal soon.

Finished

I finished the Spice scarf during my knitting group on Saturday. The scarf itself is 5ft long, and I put 6 inch long fringes on it. I think it is a good length for a dressy scarf, since it isn't necessary to wrap it more than once. It isn't going to be used for warmth, not where we live. Now if the hussy will hurry up and come home, I'll be posting pictures soon. (Hi Grandmommy, yes I just called you a hussy now come home and get your scarf! Heehee!)

After I finished the scarf I worked on the Fair Isle Bag for the rest of the time. I wanted to work on Ribby, but I left one of my needles at home. I wasn't complaining. I really enjoy working on it. Noone can believe that I am planning on giving it away, but I don't mind not keeping it. This is one of those projects that I really wanted to make, but I knew I would never actually use it. I know for a fact that the recipient will use it, and I know she will be very appreciative. I'll just make sure to take some good pictures of it.

Thread Bears

Andrea wrote:

It sounds like you had a blast. We have wanted to go there for years...now I definately want to go to Epcot! Off the topic... Do you know anywhere I can get a free pattern for crocheting a thread teddybear? I know they sell patterns on E-bay. Or does anyone have a Sept 2003 Crochet! they could share with me. That had a pattern for a thread bear scarf clip. I have been trying to get a back copy to no avail. Thanks



Hi there Andrea,

It isn't off topic to talk about crochet patterns. I crochet, make jewelry, paint, spin, etc. Feel free to talk or ask about any craft you want to here. I did a google search for Thread Teddy Bear Patterns, but I had a hard time finding free patterns. I did find a website where you can join a Bear of the Month Club, sign up for a free Thread Bear pattern, and also buy Thread Bear patterns and kits. I have never bought anything from them, so I can't vouch for them at all. Click Here to check them out.

You can't really "share" magazines (as in making copies) due to copyright laws, but if I run across anyone that has one for sale, donation, trade, etc. I will definitely let ya know :) Pleaaaaaaaaaaase take no offense. I'm not saying that is what you want to do, I just thought I should throw that out there before someone else did. It tends to be a touchy subject.

I hope that this helps you out a little. I'm sorry I didn't find that much. I guess the Google Gods weren't smiling upon me tonight. Haha! As for Epcot, you really ought to go. I truely did have an absolute blast, and I'd go every single week if could.

Take Care and Happy Crafting!
Stacie

 
I haven't posted pictures in a while, so I thought I would show you one of my babies.
If you look close, you can see that she has one blue eye and one yellow eye.

Fun fun fun!

I had a blast on Tuesday. Rob, The Spice Scarf, and I all went to Epcot and Disney together! I did some major KIPing (for those of you that might not know that is Knitting in Public). I knit in France, China, Japan, Morroco, and Italy. I'm an international knitter now! I never got bored waiting in the lines. I did get a few strange looks, but I'm used to that! Haha!

I want to tell you. I absolutely loved Epcot! The food is incredible and the shops are wonderful. We had lunch in China and desert in a pastry shop in France. After desert in France we decided that we needed more desert! We went over to Italy and bought a funnel cake. Can you believe that Rob had never eaten one before?? I was shocked. I wanted to eat something in every country, but I don't know if my stomach could hold it all!

In France we went into one of the perfume shops. They had the most amazing smelling perfumes. My absolute favorite is called L'instant Guerlain. I sprayed some on my wrists at about 2:30pm and I could still smell it after my shower at 11:30pm. In Morocco one of the shop attendants had us sample some Rose Water and Orange Blossom Water. They smelled so good! She told us that in Morocco they greet their guests by pouring Rose Water or Orange Blossom Water onto their hands. I would love to be greeted that way. Wouldn't you? I bought both from the shop, but they met an awful fate. Rob accidentally left my bag on the monorail and someone snatched it right up. Waaaaaaaaaaaa!!! Can you believe my luck? We told the people at the monorail right after it happened, and they checked for it on the next stop. Someone had already taken it.

I pouted for a few minutes and then we went over to Disney World. You can't stay pouty for long when you are in Disney World. We had a excellent time riding the rides like two little kids. We even went on the Buzz Lightyear ride. It is such a cute ride. It's like one big video game where you shoot at targets and acquire points. I would like to let you all know that I whooped Rob's butt! I think that ride and the teacups were my favorite rides in the Disney Park.

Quicky

Emma wrote:


Hello- first time here. I can't stand it, what is "Ribby"? A sleeveless top of some kind? I'm always looking for those. I live in hot steamy FL and am always looking for sleeveless knits. Yes, we've been running from hurricaines all summer too.



Hi Emma,

Yes Ribby is a sleevless top. I bought and downloaded the pattern from Chicknits. They have several patterns to buy, and they also have some free patterns as well. For more summer tops you can also click on "Free Summer Tops Links" over there on the left. I hope this helps :)

Also, Holly posted some links for Easy Lace Capelet and Easy Poofy Capelet. Thanks Holly! You rock!!

Simple Scarf??

This was supposed to be a simple scarf right? Well what was I thinking. Nothing I do can ever be so simple. I started out by casting on 20 stitches on size 9 needles. I got about 9 inches into the scarf, set my knitting down, dropped a stitch or two or three, and then couldn't find them to pick them up! This yarn is really neat but it is really hard to find dropped stitches. I don't recommend it for beginners.

I cast on 20 stitches again and start knitting. After about six inches I realize that I am totally not liking the color pattern the yarn is making. Guess what I did. Yep, I ripped it out. This time I decide that I was only going to cast on 15 stitches. Well that took care of the color pattern, and I thought that I would like the new width.

Wrong! After knitting about 2 feet of this scarf I decided that it was way too skinny. I definitely liked the width of 20 stitches compared to 15, so I ripped again. This is a simple scarf right?? At this point I decided to cast on 20 stitches but start at a different color point in the yarn. This fixed my color pattern problem, and I have now completed 30 inches.

What a simple little project. Hahaha! That's ok though. My grandmother had to go out of town, so I have time to keep making all of these mistakes. However, I truely hope I won't make another.

I've been a baaaaaaad girl!

You remember how I said that I would only work on Ribby until it was finished. Welllllllllllllllllllllll, I got a little side tracked. I'm sick I tell ya! Sick! It is for a good cause though. I promise. My grandma has done so much for me and I wanted to do something for her. She's been wanting a fancy scarf to wear when she goes out, so I decided to make her one before she heads down to Key West.  My husband and I went to the LYS and he helped me pick out one of those pretty novelty yarns. We decided on a yarn called Spice. It's 100% Nylon, made in Italy, and distributed by Knitting Fever.  I'll post pictures right after I give it to her. I should be finished with it tomorrow.

Yikes!!

I have been working a lot the last couple of days, so I haven't been able to do much knitting/crocheting. I really need to get on the ball. Do you think they would mind at work if I asked for a month or so off to make Christmas presents? Naaaaaaaah! Of course they wouldn't mind. I am off tomorrow and I plan to finish Ribby if it kills me. Then I will work on the Fair Isle Bag. Once I have finished the Fair Isle Bag, I will work on Eeyore. I haven't decided what project is coming after that. It will more than likely be my sister's hat and scarf. I don't know how I am going to finish all of this in time for Christmas. Heeeeeeeeeelp!!

I Need Your Advice

I need your advice on Ribby. Until I make this decision I am stuck. I completed the armhole shaping and I ran into a dilemma. My mom requested that I make her top in medium. I am worried that if I use the length the pattern calls for on the medium size that the armholes will be too large. She has a short torso like I do. We are only 5'2". I was thinking that I would use the medium width and the small length. So what do you think? Mom you are probably reading this. What do you think? My gut says to go with the smaller length, but I would still like to hear your oppions.

New Image Host

You will notice that some of my pictures are reappearing now. That is because I am trying a new image host. I have never heard of ImageShack.us before, so I'm not going to upload every single one of my pictures. I am just going to try a little at a time. Thanks so much for your patience.

Getting It Done

Well we survived yet another hurricane. That makes number 4 for Florida. I just can't get over it. I move to Florida, and they end up having a record making hurricane season. I can't remember ever wanting winter to come as bad as I do now. My nerves are completely frazzeled. At least I have my knitting to keep me calm, and I am really moving along on Ribby.

I have been keeping my promise to work on Ribby faithfully until it is done, but working on one project without touching another is really hard for me. I don't know what my problem is. I'm seriously wondering if I have ADD or something! My mind just keeps wondering while I'm working on Ribby, and I keep thinking of other projects that I could start/work on. 

I am now to the part of Ribby where you stop working in the round and knit the back and front seperately. I am almost done with the back and will be starting the front soon. I would really like to show you a picture, but my mom (Hi Mom!) reads my blog everyday, and it is her Christmas present. I will post pictures of it as soon as I give it to her. Heck, my image hosting isn't even working, so I couldn't post a picture of it anyways. Grrr! I really need to consider some different hosting options.

Late Night Bloggin'

It is 1:24am and I just got back from hanging with my knitting buddies :) Rhonda's hubby went out of town, so she decided to host a PJ party at her house tonight. Unfortunately, I have to work in the morning, so I couldn't sleep over. Janette made lasagna, avacado, and spinach pie. It was sooooooooo delicious. Nancy brought some no bake cookies that you make with oatmeal, peanut butter, and chocolate I believe. Yum! We all just sat out on Rhonda's back porch laughing, eating, chatting, and doing very little knitting! It was so nice to have a night out with the girls. Nancy surprised me with felting needles. She had ordered some for her and her sons and they decided to share with me. They are too sweet! I'll take pictures and go into more detail on that later. I'm too tired right now.

I hope that I will have power after tomorrow night. It looks like Jean is about to pay us a little visit. Have you watched the tracking of that hurricane? It is unreal. It was headed out to the Atlantic and then she thought, "Hey I forgot to go and kick the crap out of Florida! Everybody else is doing it!" and she turned around. Well thank you Jean! Thanks so much for not neglecting us Floridians. Click Here and you can see the crazy path for yourself....

See what I mean! It is unreal. We really thought we had nothing to worry about with Jean and now we are right in the path. As a matter of fact, I am more in the path of this one than any of the others. We may get a good whoopin' this time. Can you believe that I just took the darn tape off the windows about two days ago?? Well it's bedtime for me. Hopefully Jean will be kind and I won't be without internet for too long. I'll keep you posted. Goodnight :)

PS.

You may have noticed that I cleaned up my project list on the side. I have decided that I need to stop messing around and start getting stuff done. I have taken way to long on them. I am now just going to focus completely on finishing the Fair Isle Bag and Ribby Shell. I'm not even going to look at another project until their done. I need to get on the ball!

Fiber In

I figured out my camera issues so now I can tell you about my weekend. I had a wonderful time. It was great to see that there were so many Fiber Lovers in Florida. I had a hard time dragging myself out of bed that morning, so I missed some of the demos. Thankfully I managed to make it there in time to catch the Spindle Spinning Demo. The demonstrator was selling spindle kits for $3.00. This is what you get.

What a wonderful deal.  The fiber spun easily, the spindle was very well balanced, and the pamphlets where very informative. After Gina showed us how to use the spindle, she taught us how to Andean Ply. It is incredibly easy. The link that I just gave explains it very well.

After the demonstration I bought some fiber from a nice lady that gave me and Nancy a demonstration in Needle Felting.




She makes the most adorable sheep! That snowman was pretty darned cute too.




Now I have to try this! Like I really need a new hobby! I can totally justify this new hobby however. It is a way to use up the bits of fiber that gets torn away while spinning. So there! After that Clarice brought out a little friend of hers that I was quite anxious to meet.




If that face doesn't melt you, then something is seriously wrong! Didn't she pose so pretty for the camara! When I was a kid I always had pet rabbits, but I have never owned an Angora. As soon as Rob and I get out of this apartment and into a house, I plan to get one or two. You get a wonderful pet, and you get the added benefit of their wonderful fiber to spin. Getting to pet this cutey patootey was worth the two hour drive I tell ya!

As you can see I had a great time at the Fiber In, and I can't wait to do it again next year. Honestly, I wish we could do it a lot sooner.