The Knits of our Lives

Like yarns through the needles, these are the Knits of our Lives.

When my kids were small, I was a stay at home mom, which I loved. I also loved to watch the soap opera Days of our Lives at naptime, and my own life was punctuated by the death and resurrection of Roman, by Sami's antics, and by all the friends and enemies of the Brady family. I kept watching until Marlena was posessed by Satan. At this, I could no longer willingly suspend my disbelief. Everyone has a breaking point.

These days, I work full-time, which leaves little time for watching a daily soap opera. So, rather than fictional characters, my life is now punctuated by the online antics of real people I kindof know. I do know some of them in person, but many are more peripheral to my life, except through social media...I may know what they had for dinner last night (it looked yummy on Instagram) or I may know that they are planning an amazing 4th birthday party for their kid (judging by what they are pinning), or maybe I saw that amazing home run (or heard about it on Facebook, or I was tagged, because I like baseball)...but the social media that truly chronicles my life is the one called Ravelry.

For those who don't know, Ravelry is social media for Yarnigans (people who knit, crochet, spin fiber into yarn, etc.), and I am a yarnigan! I didn't realize how big a yarnigan I was until this past weekend, in the Emergency Room.  

Please note: Mr. Pretty and I, Mork and Mindy, Peanut, Snake and Dollface are all fine. Everyone is ok. Here's what happened:

Wicked Hiccups. Mr. Pretty got a case of wicked hiccups, and he could not swallow anything without throwing it back up again, and it was Saturday night, and the moon was full...so, of course, we went to the ER. Eventually he was admitted to the hospital, and on Sunday he had a procedure to dislodge a piece of food that was stuck (and how!) in his esophagus. We were home by Sunday afternoon, and everyone is fine. But while I was sitting with him in the ER (and then at his bedside on the 6th floor, and in the waiting room during his procedure), fervently praying and knitting socks, I got to thinking about the socks I was knitting the last time he was in the ER (on a Saturday afternoon, for severe back pain). When was that again? I'll just check Ravelry. And I thought about the dishcloths I worked on after I broke my fingers...was that just last summer? I'll check Ravelry. And then there were the afghans I had crocheted for Dollface and for Mindy for their bridal showers, and all the afghans I've knit and crocheted for bridal and baby showers, and to comfort friends going through rough times. I thought about all the sweaters for Peanut, and for other babies born on my watch, and the toys and booties and hats. As I let myself wander down the path of my projects, I realized that each one marks a life event, or a special or challenging time,  for me or someone close to me...and it dawned on me:

MY WHOLE LIFE IS IN MY KNITTING ON RAVELRY!

Well, my whole life since 2007 or so (when I joined) anyway. 

Thank you Ravelry. Thank you Casey and Jess, and all the Ravelry staff, for all you do so that I can chronicle my life through my projects. It is so much more than an online notebook for my knitting, it is a diary, a journal, a blog for my pretty knitty life. Thank you for having the initial ideas, and building on them through the years, bringing together yarnigans and their projects from all over the world! 

If you are a yarnigan, and you are not on Ravelry, run (don't walk) to sign up! And if you are on Ravelry, friend me there (I'm PKJewelry) so I can keep in touch with your life, too! 

Thanks for stopping by, and Knit in Good Health!

Guys, Guys! Guess What?

Well, didja guess? Guess what, guess what!? 

I was looking at my Rav page on Monday morning, and I HAVE 400 PROJECTS! 

When did that happen? I've been on Ravelry for seven years...so that's an average of ~57 projects a year...which is an average of between 4-5 projects a month...who knew I knit that much? And who knew that I would knit such a goofy dog sweater and hat (with plans to make another hat that might actually fit the dog)?

Oh, you knew all that? Well, you must've been paying more attention than I was, because this just blew me away on Monday! 400 projects (and even one green one, not in honor of St. Paddy's Day, but a happy accident), and I may or may not have danced a little jig! And do you know what I did to celebrate 400 projects? That's exactly right...I cast on a couple more! A pair of socks...

...and some tiny knitted dolls for a dollhouse that I hope to share with my darling Peanut on her next visit. :)

Wow, 400 projects! Now...on to 500! Wow!

How many projects do you have on Ravelry?

Love Bunting

Due to my lack of recent, personal knitting and crochet, I bring you a brief tale from the Land of Odd...

When you play with yarn, you fall in love.

When you are in love with your craft, you find other yarn crafters...

...and they find other yarn crafters...

...and so on...

...and so on...

...and so on...

Eventually, you might even meet crafters with a fabric habit...

The two really are not that far removed, one from the other!

Textiles can really bring a group together...even if they are not geographically close. 

And when a bunch of crafty ladies, connected by the magic of Ravelry, find out that one of their own is in need of a little tangible love to help her through some rough stuff...well, then you get a Love Bunting!

And perhaps a Love Mobile as well!

We are an Odd little bunch, that's certain...but the love cannot be questioned. Right, Amy?

We love you, and we hope that all the hugs and hand-holds and prayers and good thoughts arrived safely with your happy hearts! Our hearts are with you, now and always!

A special THANK YOU to Julie for putting this all together and shipping it off (along with that beautiful shawl you made - gorgeousss)! Your kindness must be programmed right into your DNA, you diva, you!

Readers, is there someone in your world who could use a little love? Why not take just a few minutes this week to share a smile, a laugh, a word of encouragement, a moment of your time? Be careful, tho! You might be surprised how much love spills right back into your own lap! Love is funny that way...the only way to get more is to give some away!

Thanks for stopping by, and remember to Knit (and Love) in Good Health!

Projects in my Queue...

173 projects in my Ravelry Queue...

173 projects in my queue!

Download one, 

and knit 'til it's done - 

172 projects in my Ravelry queue! 

Well, except that I can't knit much...not with this...

...so, there are still 173. Maybe more.

Why more? Well, what has actually been happening these past 18 days is that I've been ADDING more projects that I want to knit to my queue...I can add things just fine with one hand...sigh!

Oh, well! I can still knit small, flat things...like dishcloths and scarves...for short spurts. Of course, the relative lack of knitting makes for very boring blog posts. I mean, I wouldn't blame you if you just ran off to enter a contest or something exciting like that. 

See what I did there? (eyebrows up-and-down, up-and-down) 
You've still got time to enter...until midnight!

I go to the doc on Wednesday to see how much longer 'til my hand makes bail...hey! I have an idea...I'll announce the contest winner that morning..you know, for good luck! So thanks for stopping by! Enter the contest, and tune in Wednesday to see if you've won!!!

Until then, Knit in Good Health!!!

Online Community Cover-Up

Not long ago, well 6 years ago, I joined an online community called Ravelry. It's a social networking site for yarnaholics of all persuasions, all over the world. About a year later, I joined a slightly smaller community within this network...the group known only as the Oddballs. That's right, they are my kind of group! 

I love online communities for many reasons. Facebook keeps me in touch with some people I know, or have known, "in real life;" Twitter and Blogger give me snippets of the real lives of people I may or may not know in real life; and Ravelry connects all of those things to fiber and to people who love fiber crafting! Of all the social networking I do, I think I like Ravelry about the best. :)

So, when one of the Oddballs fell on some hard times, there was only one thing to do. Even though she lives "Down Under," on the other side of the world, some of the North American Oddballs got together to make a yarn hug to send on a very long journey, just in time for our Northview's winter. And, since I have heard of it's safe arrival there this week, it's time for me to tell the story of our Online Community Cover-Up...

Once upon a time, there was a Yarnigan who lived in Australia. She was sad, so her friends decided to get together to make her happier. They all took out their yarns and their crochet hooks and their knitting needles, and they made squares of love to send to their yarny friend.

When the squares were all made, one of the Yarnigans (named Pretty, who lives in Ohio) collected them all, and made a note of how many there were, who sent them and where they came from. The Yarnigan's black cat took note of which packages came from homes with pets.

Black Cat tried to get White Cat involved (it was a big job), but White Cat was not very interested...

After the squares were collected and cataloged (there were 18 total), Pretty crocheted a border around each one, and laid them all out on the living room floor to see how they should be put together. All the while, that black cat kept track of her favorite square.

When the design was decided, Pretty put them all together into a lovely little cover-up, 4 squares wide, by 4 squares tall...

...with a little pocket on the back (for cozy feet!).

It was about this time that White Cat decided she'd like to get in on the fun...

...but it was time to launder the afghan, admire it one more time...

...and package it up for it's journey to the southern hemisphere!

Well, I've heard from our Northview that the afghan arrived this week (it was my Thursday when I heard, but I'm not sure if it arrived on her Wednesday or Thursday? or Friday? International time lines have always kicked my pretty butt...), so I knew it was safe to share on Saturday the saga of the Online Community Cover-Up, perpetuated by a bunch of North American Oddballs! We love you, Northview, and we hope you are happier these days! But, even if you're not quite feeling 100% yet, now we know that you have a blanket of love to hide under when you have "one of those days" (or weeks, or months...).

Look! An "action shot" of the comfortghan, in the wild,
after it's journey around the world!

What are you covering up these days? With summer here, I'm sure we are all covering up less than we did last winter! I hope that you are having fun and enjoying the sunshine!

Thanks for stopping by, and Knit in Good Health!

What happens at knitting...

Those of you who know me know that Thursday is my favorite day of the week.  If this is your first visit to the blog, you might wonder why.  There really is no mystery to it - Thursday is the day that my local knitting friends get together for an evening of knitting, and dinner together, and (best of all) lots and lots of laughter!  

For those of you who do not knit (there are some friends and family members who read my blog, even outside my knitting group), you may have some preconceived notions about what goes on amongst the knitters.  Especially after reading the "Heard at Knitting:" status updates, I know that you are all wondering what happens at knitting.  I really wish I could tell you, but knitting is a little like Vegas. . .and we all know that "what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas!"  Still, to protect myself from being considered a dowdy grandmother in a rocker, just sipping tea with the other dowdy knitters in their rockers...well, I'm going to invite you in for some of the fun!

First, what doesn't happen at knitting?  You will not find blue-haired bitties in my knitting group, focused on our own ailments (and remedies), with the occasional mention of the "good ol' days."  You will not find the prim and proper ladies pictured in Rockwell prints, sipping tea and trading recipes as life goes by.  You will not find knitters bargain hunting for the cheapest yarn and needles to make scratchy blankets and sweaters their families may wear and use only out of a sense of duty.  

What you WILL find on Thursdays, in the church library, from 6-10pm, is more of a pajama party atmosphere.  Real women, having fun. . .comparing their latest works in progress (a light-as-air, lacy, mohair wrap to chase the chill of summer air conditioning; a winter head wrap, knit of super bulky wool, as a commissioned piece for a co-worker, and knit without a formal pattern; a new knitter, practicing knits and purls with acrylic yarn, and her mother who is working a thick and squishy baby blanket for her daughter's first son; a sweater with a bit of lace, knit in a cotton/wool blend, with a little re-write to the pattern; a red, wool, cabled-and-hooded cardigan; and many, many more).  You'll find all kinds of yarn, from the very affordable to the all-natural and luxurious animal fibers, some costing a pretty penny per pound!  You'll find new knitters, as well as "seasoned" experts, and you may even find someone crocheting in the group.  We have singles, marrieds, moms, grandmothers, daughters, and the laughter...oh, the laughter!  

"What's so funny," you ask?  Well, the last things I posted to the Heard-at-Knitting status were "You came in late and missed the boob story," and (totally unrelated, I promise) "I like your tassel."  So yes, we talk (and laugh) about boobs and other body parts.  There are double entendres that I will not repeat in my mostly family-friendly blog, many of them quite unintentional (like the tassel comment above), and some that are uber-intentional!  We talk about, and eat, the yummiest treats, and we share a bit of ourselves with each other each week!  We also "share" about our families and the other non-knitters in our lives, and when somebody suddenly raises a hand, declaring, "Wait a sec, 23...24...25...I have to get to 30!," the conversation pauses briefly, and then continues (as though uninterrupted) as soon as "30!" arrives.

This week was really a barrel of monkeys, as one of the gals brought in some toys she thought our 5th-grade teacher friend would like to have for her class...I think she called them Squishies, and there were hundreds of them!

These are just the few that I took home...

There were cows, and dolphins, and lobsters, oh my!  But for some reason, we were really taken with the clams...perhaps it has something to do with the fact that they look a little like sheep from the front...

Or maybe it's because they seemed so into the conversation, even attempting to join in from time to time...

Maybe it's just that they were so CUTE!  

Climbing around, all over the table...

...and then getting all shy, trying to hide!

Of course, they were not really that stealthy, "hiding" on top of my swatch...

...and eventually they just took off running!

Which made us all sing a song together, dissolving into laughter!

C'mon, watch it!  It's only 21 seconds, and it'll make you smile!

What a silly, fun bunch of knitters we are!  I am so glad to be a part of this group, and I'm happy to share some of my joy with you!  If you don't have a local group of people to knit and enjoy life with, I hope that you will find one...and if you live near me in Northeast Ohio (I'm PKJewelry on Ravelry), I hope that you will check out the CKW Group there and come out to "play" with us some Thursday!

Thanks for stopping by, and Knit in Good Health!

Help me make it through the Knit...

With all the "transitional" weather we have had this spring, Pretty thinks it's time to cast on a summer sweater.  You know, one to keep with her ALWAYS...for the chilly morning commute...and for the lower than she needs AC in the office (and almost every restaurant she will enter this summer)...I'm thinking cotton or cotton blend, a lightweight sweater, maybe a little lacy even.  I have some cotton/wool (Brown Sheep Cotton Fine) from last year's Wool-A-Palooza, and some mercerized cotton (Classic Elite Provence) from the year before. and I think there may be others hiding around the stash, so I have the yarn.

Now I have to pick a pattern, and there are just so many options!  The thought of sifting through every pattern I love is throwing me to-and-fro in my Knitting Mojo, and frankly, I am afraid that putting off the decision will only add more "gotta-knit-that!" patterns to my queue on good ol' Ravelry, so will you please help me decide?  I've narrowed it down to 3 choices, and here they are, in no particular order:

Petal is a short sleeved, lacy little number that is sure to ward off the chill of a blowing vent on my shoulders.  With short sleeves, tho, I am not sure she will be warm enough...

Turn of the Glass is a feminine, but substantial DK-weight cardigan, with long sleeves and no lace (but look at the rib detail that helps to shape the waist!), and I WILL knit this one eventually!  Should this be my next cast on?

This DROPS pattern (with numbers for a name...must be some foreign thing), is also in the running.  This one, in the natural, off white yarn shown, reminds me of the stitching on a baseball, and therein lies the charm for me.  Because so many springs and summers found Sweetie and I spending sultry (or snowy!) afternoons watching our favorite shortstop on the field...the lace pattern here will certainly evoke pleasant memories every time I wear it!  Of course, DROPS patterns sometimes make my head spin...

So, what do you think?  I've thunk and I've thunk 'til my thinker is sore! Please leave a comment to share your opinion (and let me know if you have knit any of these, as well!).  While I'm waiting to hear what you think, I have a long-overdue quilt project to get started on with these:

I know, it's not a great pic, but that's a little by design.  This is for a friend, surprising someone, and I don't know who might read what...so, this is me being secretive (yet still posting things on the Internet...yeah, not so secretive...)  I have been looking forward to this project for some time, and I am hoping to go shopping by or before the weekend for the first of my supplies...yippee!!!  I'd say that I'll keep you posted, but like I said, it's a secret, so maybe not.  lolz!  

In any case, there should still be knitting.  You can't hear the TV over a sewing machine, and there are a couple of shows I kinda love, so there should still be quiet-and-relaxing knitting.  Once we pick a cardigan, there will be even more to show off, I am sure!

Thanks for stopping by, and (in advance) for leaving me a comment to let me know which one you think I should knit knext!  Knit in Good Health!

PS - By the way, if you're thinking that post title reminds you of a "vintage" country song, here it is...

Sox and photos. . .

Sooo, this post was going to be all about sox. . .safe sox, pictures of sox, hints about sox, and advice about sox. . .but then I got some better pictures (thank you, Connie!) of the Abalone.  So, here's the sweater:

And here's the detail of that front corner, which no longer puckers anywhere, because the rip and redo were successful:

Turns out that I love it, and I love the way it photographs!  Of course, I also love sox!  As a matter of fact, sox were my first knitting love some years ago, and I have now enabled another knitter to the world of the sock-obsessed:

Her Ravelry name is EternalSocks, because she never thought she would finish her first pair, but after these were finished this week, she exclaimed that she needs to always have socks on the needles!  Welcome to the Dark Side, EternalSocks. . .  I know that the slope to the sock-obsessed is slippery, but there's some wiggle room for other projects.  Still, I have two pair on the needles myself these days!  There are my Back Socks, in the color of Fruit Loops. . .

. . .and the Pretty Helen socks, in more neutral tones:

Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle those toes!

Yes, those are my ugly toes. . .quick!  Look at another sweater picture!

Whew!  That's better!  I LOVE THIS SWEATER!  And I love knitting Sox, too!  Maybe there will be more sox in the next post, maybe not.  But, all in all it's been a great knitting week for me, and I hope that it has been a good one for you, too!

Thanks for stopping by, and until next time, Knit what you love in Good Health!

C-A-T, and other words. . .

Why is it that when I am taking pictures that do NOT involve a C-A-T of any kind, one of my furry friends seriously wants to hone in on the action?  BUT, when I want to take a picture of this:

I have to include a toy kitty, because the others cannot be bothered to jump down from their regal positions on the back of the sofa!  Silly girls!  But, I did finish the letter C and the letter T this week, so even a toy C-A-T seemed appropriate!

At first, I was going to take lone pics, like this:

But look how lonely the "T" looks.  In that last picture, it looks like it's missing a V...I wonder what color V will be...black, like the remote?  Maybe.  But, for now anyway, it can hook up with C and A (or B and U, or C and O, or B and A. . .you get the picture!) and not be quite so lonely.  Whew!  There's nothing quite as sad and pathetic as lonely letters!. . .or is there?  Sweetie and I were both pretty sad and pathetic this past week. . .nothing too major, but we both "tweaked" our backs at different times, and ended up at the doctor's office over it.  Of course, with all the down time, I also started two pair of socks.  One pair waiting for him at the doctor:

(These are my "Back Socks" on Ravelry.  Name's not too

original, it's just a plain vanilla sock in a crazy yarn, 

so I didn't have to think too much while I worried.)

This other pair is "Helen Socks" from a pattern I found on Ravelry, by verybusymonkey.  It's such a pretty lace, but only a 4 row repeat, and very easy to do without too much thought. . .you know, like when you don't want to tax yourself too much, but you need something to take your mind off of your hurty back. . .sigh!

So there's been a lot of sitting at my house this week. . .which means there's been a lot of knitting, and that's a good thing - yay!  And our backs are mostly better (or at least getting there) - yay!  And, although February has not really been about finishing for me, I have gotten a LOT done, in the knitting world anyway - yay!  I hope that you have had a productive week (free from injury), and that it's been mostly good for you, too.  =D

Thanks for stopping by, and Knit in Good Health!

And now, for the big reveal!

So, Pretty has worked with clay. And she has created some counters. And she has spent hours photographing the counters, and admiring the counters, and listing the counters on Etsy. . .phew! Now, guess who gets a cookie? Why, all my blog readers, of course! Here's your cookie, in the form of a discount at the shop! Come Monday, this discount goes live to everyone in the world of Ravelry (where I do most of my advertising), but for now, it's all yours for the taking! And Pretty. . .well, Pretty's going to take a massive NAP! But first, she is gonna knit on this hat for the hubs!You know, I put four balls of yarn on the table in front of him, two tan and two grey, and I said, "Which color would you like?" He answered quite plainly, "The blue." Well, I guess "Flint" is kind of a blueish-grey. And besides, we are both kind of blinded by the cuteness of one little Peanut who lives very close to us now. . .She loves to read and to play with her Grampa! (and her Gramma!) And we love to play and visit with her, too. . .we are so blessed.I hope that you have had time to count your blessings this week.

Thanks for stopping by, and Knit in Good Health!