Yarn-along: March 30th ... new design and new book ....

~ Two of my favorite things are knitting and reading, and the evidence of this often shows up in my photographs. I love seeing what other people are knitting and reading as well. So, what are you knitting or crocheting right now? What are you reading? Take a single photo and share it either on your blog or on Flickr. Leave a link below to share your photo with the rest of us! ~ Ginny at small things

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 This week's yarn-along finds us with a new design on the needles and a new book on my table.  The new design (close-up below) is a spring-shawl in a fun lacy pattern.  The yarn is fingering weight cashmere/bamboo from Spring Gate Farms (whose yarn is gorgeous -- she'll be at the Olde Liberty Fibre Faire -- as will I -- on April 16th if you want to head down for some fun and a good cause ... all proceeds from the Faire will go to area hospice!).  The idea from the shawl came from a question from Ginny ... so it's quite appropriate that it's presented here on her Yarn-Along!  

BTW, to get the nice airy look and wonderful drape, I'm using a size 8 on this yarn.  The bamboo gives the cashmere enough body to really show the stitch definition.

On the book table -- we're continuing to read-aloud the Another Whole Nother Story ... which my kids have deemed even better than the first book, A Whole Nother Story (which ranks right up there as a fabulous read-aloud).  Another one we're delving into that is great fun is M.B. Synge's A Book of Discovery -- wonderful short readings for history/geography!

In yesterday's mail, I received my newest reading book ... one for review for Thomas Nelson's Book Sneeze program.  Titled, No He Can't: How Barack Obama is dismantling hope and change, this book is written by Kevin McCullogh and details not just how Mr. Obama's administration is taking away our hope and changing what is good, but also gives suggestions on how to stop the hemorrhaging in economics, national security, human rights and accountability.  I went to bed at 8:30 last night so I could get reading this one!  It is really good.

Won't you join the yarn-along.  Check out Ginny's post and add your own link.  And let me know what you think about the burgeoning design by adding a comment at the bottom of this post!

Off to read and knit before the squidges get up!

 

Yarn-along: April 13th and Spring has sprung!

After what seemed like YEARS of winter weather (not snow, but ooky-mooky, icy cold days and dreary skies), we are FINALLY getting a bit of spring.  This week we're getting rain that promises to have our garden blooming fit to beat the band -- the dogwoods are blooming out, the hostas are unfurling and the Japanese maples are covered in red-green leaves.  Gorgeous even if the sky is not!

But, you've come to see what I have for this week's yarn-along, haven't you.  Here's the idea:

~ Two of my favorite things are knitting and reading, and the evidence of this often shows up in my photographs. I love seeing what other people are knitting and reading as well. So, what are you knitting or crocheting right now? What are you reading? Take a single photo and share it either on your blog or on Flickr. Leave a link below to share your photo with the rest of us! ~ Ginny @ small things.

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This is our yarn-along!

On the needles:  a baby blanket for a dear friend (and dh's colleague) whose wife just had their 4th child ... a beautiful baby girl ... last week.  The blanket is knit in the round, so you're not getting the full effect here (as it's still on the circs), but the yarn is different shades of Dale of Norway's Falk (a washable wool version of their traditional Heilo).  With a pink center and than 3 shades of purple ... it's very appropriate for a baby born right before Easter!

The yarn skeins on the right are kool-aid dyed yarns we did yesterday in our St. Agnes Fiber Club.  The greens/blues is in fingering weight for a pair of socks for me and fingerless mitts for BamBam while the reds/purples is a worsted weight for me to make String Bean a pair of fingerless mitts, too.   

On the reading table: we finished Another Whole Nother Story and I decided we'd do a fun introductory unit to Shakespeare.   Using the classic Charles and Mary Lamb Tales from Shakespeare as our spine, we'll learn about the master's comedies and dramas.  We've started with Macbeth ... having read the Lamb synopsis, and having memorized the witches' "boil, boil, toil and trouble" speech, we're now in the process of watching a BBC version.  We're just about finished and will then turn to Merchant of Venice for something just a tad "lighter".  This is a GREAT way for the kids to learn about (and learn to love) Shakespeare before having to analyze his works to death later on.

My reading:  I'm building a new website (to be unveiled soon ... please pray for me!) so of course I've been poring over books like WordPress for Dummies (which is excellent, btw).  I'm also continuing my early morning spiritual reading/prayer time with the classic, Abandonment to Divine Providence.  Since I'm such a fiber-fanatic, and to prep for my talk this past weekend (which went wonderfully ... thanks for the prayers), I've been loving reading the pre-publication copy of The Fleece and Fiber Sourcebook (review coming soon):  this is a treasure trove of clear and concise information about all animal fibers used to make yarn (weaving/knitting).  This book is eye-candy for this fiber fanatic!

Enjoy your day .... visit the other folks who participate in Ginny's yarn-along ... and let me know, too, what's on your needles and on your reading table!

BTW, the wrap I was working on last week ... 

Spring Garden wrap 

... immediate download from my Ravelry store

for $6.00 (MUST be able to read charts!)

 

Yarn Along .... two of my favorite things ... knitting and reading!

~ Two of my favorite things are knitting and reading, and the evidence of this often shows up in my photographs. I love seeing what other people are knitting and reading as well. So, what are you knitting or crocheting right now? What are you reading? Take a single photo and share it either on your blog or on Flickr. Leave a link below to share your photo with the rest of us! ~ from Ginny's blog, small things

This is only my second time posting for Ginny's yarn-along ... shame on me!  It's not that I haven't been knitting ... it's not that I haven't been reading ... it's just that I've been so busy knitting and reading, I haven't had time to post.

So, I apologize.

on my needles:  finishing another cashmere design for Spring Gate Farm ... a cap (which is done) and a coordinating scarf which only has about seven more inches (than I must start the tam for Cast On!).  I'll have this design posted on my site by the end of the week.  If you'd like to see my other original hand-knit designs, check out my knitting blog, By Hand, With Heart!

on my reading table:  re-reading Sweater Design in Plain English ... love, love, love this book! A "second edition" is coming out in April that of which I'm hoping to get a review copy so I can see if it's worth it to buy ... I'll keep you posted!  I'm also reading Defiant Joy: The Remarkable Life and Impact of GK Chesterton that I'll be reviewing later this month.  Our read-aloud, which we started on Friday, is Lost in Peter's Tomb ... a book we've had knocking around for a while so decided to read-aloud.  It's really an interesting read that fits in with our "explorer" unit we'd put on hold during Advent/Christmas.  The story is a mystery set in Rome with siblings and their aunt helping the Pope discover who is getting into the Vatican and why!

Thanks, Ginny, for starting this yarn-along ... it's always fun to see what others are doing!
 

Yarn-Along: April 27th ... Easter break and lots of driving ...

... and therefore, lots of knitting!

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~ Two of my favorite things are knitting and reading, and the evidence of this often shows up in my photographs. I love seeing what other people are knitting and reading as well. So, what are you knitting or crocheting right now? What are you reading? Take a single photo and share it either on your blog or on Flickr. Leave a link below to share your photo with the rest of us! ~ Ginny at small things

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We were blessed to be able to take a short road-trip down to North Carolina to visit dear friends for Easter and a few days after.  About 20 minutes from their house on Easter Sunday, our van started making a very odd, scary sound (so worrisome, I actually stopped knitting for that final stage of the drive!).  We got to the house and the men took care of the van (we got it back on Monday evening, $300 later!) while the kids played with their NC counterparts and the mom and I knitted.  Poor dear, she's pregnant with their 8th and so can't knit too long ... it makes her dizzy.  


But I got lots done.  Here's what I got done since last week:

 Two scarves in cashmere/silk/merino blend (yes, VERY luscious!) -- the top one is a gorgeous teal that I've called "The Long and Winding Road" while the lower one is a beautiful true royal blue that is called "Lapis Lazuli Lace".  Both patterns should be up by the end of the week ....

A cable sampler jacket is currently on the needles.  Knit with KP's Cadena (a wool/alpaca blend bulky) the jacket is going quickly.  The welt is a cable I "unvented" which grows into a 9-stitch braided plait with seed stitch as the ground.  I have jury-duty today and tomorrow, so I can get lots done on the jacket today!


Read-aloud?  Not so much read since it's Easter break 'round these parts!  On my nightstand, I'm just about done with Motherless ... a fiction book packed with Church teaching (and the explanations of) for all things bioethical -- end of life, abortafacients/abortions, IVF, etc.  What a great book ... I can't wait to review it!  I'm also reading Smashing WordPress to get my new website up and running -- I've got a deadline of May 1st to have it ready; next week, the yarn-along will come from there (God willing!).


How has your knitting and reading been progressing?  Don't forget to check-in over at small things and catch up with all the others as we participate in this week's yarn-along.  [Oh and do leave me comments on your reaction to my knitting ... I love comments and advice and suggestions!]

Yarn Along: March 2nd edition

Well, since my two-week hiatus from the internet, I've missed a couple of yarn-alongs.  My last one was February 9th ... and I mentioned reading Sweater Quest as I'd heard good things about it.  Don't waste your time -- she's got great info about fair-isle knitting, but it's random and rude, the language is a bit much (she swears alot in her writing!) and she jumps on the "dissing Alice Starmore" bandwagon.  Carmen, you were right ... I guess I should listen to you more, huh?  I hate when books let me down.

At least I was able to post the design for Victoria's Tee that I'd been working on for numerous yarn-alongs during the hiatus!

 This week finds me working away at a Snow on the Mountains vest in cashmere (a commission project).  This raspberry cashmere is almost idential in color to the "Victoria's Tee" ... must be the new popular color. 

The kids and I are reading Eion Colfer's Airman ... now this is a great read!  Set in Ireland in the early 1900s, it's a bit of Man in the Iron Mask but with great early aviation tidbits.  All of us are really enjoying it.  I'm in the middle of Linking Your Beads: the Rosary's History, Mystery and Prayers which is really well-done.  I'm learning tons about the rosary -- something that wasn't taught in my years of Catholic-school education (since I was in school during the post-Vatican 2, enlightened period in San Francisco!).  I'm also working my way through St. Louis Marie deMontfort's Total Consecration so that I can do my consecration to Jesus thru Mary on my wedding anniversary: March 25th (Feast of the Annunciation!).

So how is your knitting and reading week going?  Check out Ginny's yarn-along post and add your own link.  Don't forget to check out all the lovely ladies doing the same ... it's great fun and you'll get great ideas for books to read (or read-aloud!).

Yarn-along: January 26th edition ....

~ Two of my favorite things are knitting and reading, and the evidence of this often shows up in my photographs. I love seeing what other people are knitting and reading as well. So, what are you knitting or crocheting right now? What are you reading? Take a single photo and share it either on your blog or on Flickr. Leave a link below to share your photo with the rest of us! ~ from Ginny's blog, small things

Can I just say that I love these "yarn-alongs" that Ginny started.  What a great way of peeking into homeschool-rooms and seeing what's on the needles, the reading table and other interesting tidbits!

On my needles:  last week I started Victoria's Tank but only got about 1/3 of the way done with it during the week as I had a cashmere design (Birds in Flight cowl/headband) to prep for a meeting with my supplier of cashmere (and cashmere goat owner) Miss Jane.  Miss Jane was coming on Monday, so the weekend knitting was devoted to prepping that design.  But I did get a bit done and love the way the top is coming out.  The unwound skeins in the picture are for a design that Jane commissioned ... a Snow on the Mountains vest in this lovely dusty rose ... that will imitate the Snow on the Mountains scarf I've already designed for Spring Gate.  So, I'll be working on BOTH knitting projects this week ... glad the weather is supposed to cooperate by being nasty AND the van is in the shop so I can't go anywhere anyway!  Great knitting times ahead!

Reading table for the kids:  Last week we gave String in the Harp a shot.  After reading more than 20% of the book (our standard if-it-don't-hook-us-it-ain't-gonna), we decided to set that particular book aside and pick up something else:  the kids picked The Bridge to Terabithia (not knowing the ending!) and so we sailed right thru that one, finishing yesterday afternoon (and then watching the latest video version ... which led to some interesting discussions of what was in, what was out, what we liked/didn't like from the movie, etc).  Today, we're starting a creative writing unit to encourage the kids' writing:  Word After Word After Word will be our read-aloud today .... a lovely book by famed author Patricia MacLachlan (Sarah Plain and Tall series, etc).  We're also using this week:  Writers Express, You Can Write a Story: A story-writing recipe for kids, and we'll start doing the exercises in Unjournaling.  I'm looking forward to pulling the creative writer out of each of my littles -- they can tell stories but avoid writing stories!

Reading table for mom:  continuing to read the Agatha Christie's notebooks book ... fascinating (and maybe why I'm on a creative writing kick with the kiddoes!).  I have also started Dr. Ted Sri's latest book, A Biblical Walk Through the Mass, which is a GREAT book and particularly interesting since he's using the new translation for the Mass that will go into effect this coming Advent!  Very cool to see all the links to scripture that are included in every Mass celebrated every day throughout the world.  Dr. Sri is a homeschooling dad and amazing theologican I was privileged to know during our sojourn in Denver.

So what do you have on your needles and your book table this week?  [BTW, make sure you link your yarn-along post to Ginny's this week; she's giving away a gorgeous skein of yarn!]

 

Yarn-Along: April 20th .... lots of knitting accomplished this week!

~ Two of my favorite things are knitting and reading, and the evidence of this often shows up in my photographs. I love seeing what other people are knitting and reading as well. So, what are you knitting or crocheting right now? What are you reading? Take a single photo and share it either on your blog or on Flickr. Leave a link below to share your photo with the rest of us! ~ Ginny at small things

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Wow, this has been an amazingly prolific knitting week (must be because we did a 6-hour round-trip road-trip with dh driving and me knitting!).  That said, here is what I got accomplished since last week:

Spring is Blooming baby blanket (30" diameter) - (immediate pdf download $5.00)

 

 Malcolm's Easy-Peasy, One-Piece One-Button Vest (pattern coming soon)

 Hand-dyed Harvest Fingerless Mitts (immediate pdf download $4.00)

Ruby Red Butterfly scarf (pattern coming soon)

Cool, huh?  But with that much knitting, not so much reading got done.  I did finish No He Can't (scariest book I've ever read but a must-read for all voters).  Here are the books we're reading this week:

The family reading:  we're still working on our Shakespeare unit using the Lamb book and BBC dvds (got thru MacBeth and Merchant of Venice; this week, we'll do Taming of the Shrew and As You Like It).  We're also reading Chasing Vermeer, a great first novel with puzzles and mysteries woven throughout the story ... plus all the rabbit trails for art history!

My reading:  I'm still getting up to speed on CSS and HTML and WordPress tech stuff.  I'm such a geek ... I LOVE this stuff!  I also just started Motherless ... an amazing bioethics novel that grabs you from the get-go!  Written with a decidedly active Catholic world-view, this is an interesting story about end-of-life issues.  Very good so far.

On the knitting needles:  since I just finished the Ruby Red Butterfly last night, I haven't cast on yet.  But that little ball of yarn?  A blend of cashmere (50%), silk (25%) and merino (25%) in a lovely deep teal color ... yes, I swooned when I got it!  (The Ruby Red is made with the same fiber blend ... knits lovely and has GREAT color definition).  I've already charted the stitch-pattern for that one ... a cable/lace scarf!

Ginny is a little late posting this week's yarn-along ... but feel free to leave comments below and let me know what's on your needles and on your reading table!  And a blessed and happy Easter to one and all.