Howdy!

Posting from an internet kiosk at the Dallas/Ft. Worth airport.  Had a good flight from Seattle, despite being directly behind a whiny toddler with a hacking cough.  Thank goodness for my iPod and good country music.  ;-)

I was able to get the entire cuff of my Samus finished on this flight.  Will start the cable for the body of the sweater on my flight to Atlanta.

Just had a most delicious strawberry mango margarita at the airport.  Yum, yum.

This is the first time I've flown in 7 years.  I got a little flustered going through airport security in Seattle...  didn't realize I had to remove my shoes.  Then the gal at the gate raved on and on about my cologne and I had to write down the name for her.  I wear Be Delicious by DKNY and have never gotten so many raves about a fragrance.  Men, especially, seem to love the scent.

Well, guess I'd best run.  Will update again as I am able.

Countdown to takeoff!

I'll be leaving in the morning for Atlanta.  A whirlwind of packing will ensue tonight, I'm sure.

I've decided I will bring my Interlocking Balloons scarf since I haven't gotten as far on it as I'd like and will have to gift it just a few days after I return.  Hopefully security will not confiscate my bamboo circulars.  If they do, I'll pack some spares in my suitcase, and bring along my trashy reading - Cosmo and Glamour.

I don't expect to be able to visit any yarn or fabric stores in Georgia, but stranger things have happened.  Not that I need any more stash, but I feel I must live up to my blog name!

Countdown to Takeoff...

I leave Thursday for Atlanta - going to visit my dad and for my stepsister's wedding.  I will miss the kids terribly, though I am looking forward to a few grown-up days away.  And quite nervous about flying by myself.  It's been 7 years since I've flown anywhere, and never by myself.  Too late to turn back now!

I spent the weekend trying to cram in as much Supermom Fun as I could.  I baked 4 dozen cupcakes and decorated them with mummy faces and spiderwebs.  I did mountains of laundry and cleaned bathrooms and floors.  Hopefully it will remain clean until my return, but I'm not counting on it!

I still haven't quite decided what knitting to bring with me, or if I will even get a chance to knit while I am there.  I do have a lot of "airport time" so I'll need a good book, or magazines or SOMETHING.

I'm halfway through with the Interlocking Balloons scarf.  Using aran weight yarn instead of DK was a mistake in that I didn't order enough yarn.  I have 5 balls and 4 got me to the halfway point.  I have another 3 balls headed to me from Jimmy Beans, and fingers will be crossed that the dye lots match or at least are not too different.  This inexpensive scarf project is now costing me a fortune.  Grrrr....

First sports injury

Almost 2 weeks ago in my kickboxing class we did a bunch of relay-type things, including some where we all stood in a circle and TOSSED a 60-pound punching bag to each other.  I had a great deal of trouble catching the canvas bag and didn't realize it until the next day, but I seriously hurt my shoulder by doing that.

I suffered over the weekend until I could get to an already-scheduled chiropractor appointment on Monday afternoon.  He diagnosed that I popped a rib head and that's what was causing the incredible, searing pain in my shoulder.  It took a week of seeing him every day to get back to feeling normal again.

I asked him if I could try kickboxing this week and he told me yes, but to be careful.  Yesterday was my first day back (the instructor felt SO BAD about me getting hurt!).  I quickly discovered my shoulder was not up to punching, so I just worked my right side.  It was good to get back to sweating, though, I really missed it!

Finally, some pictures!

I finally got a chance to take some pictures of my current projects.  First up, the cable band for one sleeve of Samus.

Next up, the Interlocking Balloons scarf in Rowan Cashsoft Aran, yummmmmmmmmmmmm - the yarn is divine!

Last but not least, here are the Hello Kitty fabrics that I will be using to make my daughter's quilt.  The first picture shows them all laid out.  Each rectangle will have a 2" sashing around it, which you can see in more detail in the second picture.  She is so anxious to have her quilt on her bed - she gets her patience gene from her mother, no doubt!

Rowan Cashsoft Aran - I'm in love!!!

Received my order of Cashsoft Aran from Jimmy Beans Wool (great service, BTW).  Wow, this yarn is amazingly soft and gorgeous!  I think I should knit underwear from it, this stuff is so fabulous!  Well, maybe not to that extreme.

I knit the first 26 rows of Interlocking Balloons from Scarf Style.  This yarn is heavier than what is called for in the pattern, but I think it will be great, just a little wider than the pattern, which I don't mind.

Yummy, yummy yarn folks - buy some now!!!

Zigged when I shoulda zagged

I finished one 32-row repeat of the Saxon braid cable on the Samus cardigan.  Then I sat back to admire my work, discovering that about halfway down, I purled a leg of the cable when I should have knit the stitches!  I tried just ripping back to the mistake, but lost count of the row - I'm so cable illiterate, there was no fixing it.  But the good news is, I ripped back, cast on again, and got through another repeat of the cable and then 8 rows of the next one!  It was obvious much easier having all that PRACTICE!  Plus, I've loosened up on my tension and it looks much nicer than the first attempt.  Will try and post a picture tomorrow.

I decided that the Artyarns Supermerino did not want to become the Traveling Cables scarf.  It looks horrible with the stark variegation in the yarn.  Definitely needs something much more subtle.  Oh well, I only had about half the number of skeins I needed for that pattern, so it will be frogged for something else.

Stop me before I cast on again!

Since I'm kind of at a crossroads on a lot of my projects -

- Wildfell.  Has gotten too big to knit while riding the stationary bike.

- DB baby cardigan.  I made a mistake in the fair isle pattern.

- Berroco Suede purse.  Needs to be stitched together.

- Nothing But a T-Shirt.  I'm at the shoulder shaping.  I want to use short rows, but I'm scared to proceed without step-by-step directions....

So I started the lower edge band of the Samus cardigan.  Love the cable pattern!  Love the yarn in the smoke grey color.  I also started the Here and There Cables scarf from Scarf Style, but I don't have nearly enough of the yarn to make it long enough (I need 8 skeins and only have 4).  I think I might knit for awhile longer just to get into the flow of the pattern.

I ordered Rowan Cashsoft Aran to knit the Interlocking Balloons scarf to start and finish in time for a mid-November birthday.  Nothing like a few more projects and a looming deadline to make my head spin!!!

Progress, but nothing to show

I've made a little bit of progress on a whole lot of projects, but nothing exciting enough to show here.  I'm 4" past the armhole shapings on Wildfell - just 6-3/4" and I can start the neck shaping.  It's becoming quite awkward to knit while riding my bike, so I may have to devote some TV time to knitting on it.

I'm working on cutting strips of bright fabrics from my stash for Lily's Hello Kitty Quilt.  I need to sew 1-1/2" strips together for the sashing between the blocks, so we're talking a bazillion strips.  This is going to take a long time, but I hope to have the sashing done and take the project with me to my quilt retreat in November.

I'm also going through my fabric, magazine and book stash to see what I might want to try and sell at the retreat's "sewing room sale".  I thought I had culled pretty much all of my fabrics in the past years, but the stuff seems to multiply from year to year.  Funny how it's never the "good stuff" that I find taking up space!

Costume - done!

I was finally able to finish my daughter's cheerleader costume on Saturday - what a relief.  I'm not sure what it is about this project that I didn't like, the color, the pattern, the way the fabric hangs... but I just did not enjoy it and am so relieved to be finished (well, except for hand sewing the IRON ON letter appliques to the front because they won't STICK).

While at the fabric store Saturday, seeing this adorable applique made me want to make a poodle skirt for my daughter - they have a sock hop at school every year.  So I found the perfect magenta pink wool felt and whipped the skirt up in a couple of hours.  It is adorable and should fit her for at least 2 years.  Now to sew on the applique and the sequined "leash" - a really fun project.

I also found out Sunday that we did get into our fall quilt retreat!  Outstanding!  I have two quilt projects I want to take to work on.  My hope is that I can finish a Hello Kitty quilt for my daughter.  I've been collecting various prints off ebay for a couple of years now and it's finally time to put them all together, I think.  I know she will love it, and it would be a nice surprise if I could come home with a finished quilt top for her.