Outdoor knitting

The day before yesterday my Sweetie and I took a drive to our local park on the river to read and knit. Then I remembered that in the beginning of summer I suggested to the Chicks that we should meet at the Henry Hudson Park for a knitting session. So today was the day we sat by the river, listening to the peaceful sounds of nature and the lapping of the waves against the sea wall. The sun peeked out from behind the clouds every now and then so it was a delightfully cool afternoon.

 Cinzia arrived with a child's sweater which needed the ends woven in so it was ready to go into inventory.

 Debbie tried her hand at crochet and made a darling little baby bonnet.

 Then she returned to her cheerfully striped socks so she could learn the Shadow Wrap or Twin Wrap heel technique.

 Liz started a Watchman's Cap with Knit Picks Wool of the Andes.

 Barbara B. started her Palindrome scarf with a pretty light blue Debbie Bliss Cashmerino yarn.

 And Barbara K. cast on and worked her way up to the first cables of her Palindrome hat.

 My mittens are looking more like mittens every minute. Also in Knit Picks Wool of the Andes.

 For two weeks I've had to keep a secret that Beth Mashmann was coming for a visit. She came up from her new home in N.C. to see the tennis tournaments in New York.

 She got her fill of hugs tonight. It was nice to have the old gang back together again.

 In between conversation we actually knitted a bit too. Maureen's socks are getting their ribbed cuffs as we speak.

 Margaret started a Helix hat. I love her choice of colors!

 And Dorah joked that she's going to get kicked out of the Chicks because she's still working on the same pair of socks. Nah! It's not that easy to leave the group. LOL!

 Carole started a pair of toe up baby socks so she too can learn the Shadow Wrap heel technique.

 Margaret left off her afterthought heel socks for the inventory.

 And Carole added an 1898 hat...

 as did Barbara B.

I'm hoping the worst of the heat and humidity is gone for the season so we can get a few more days of outdoor knitting before it gets too cold.

See you next week!

Happy 14th Anniversary Chicks!

The Chicks celebrated 14 years with good food and great company! Not only are my Chicks good knitters, they can cook up a storm. The ladies brought all kinds of good food to share. We had deviled eggs, Gazpacho, mini quiche, bruschetta with peach salsa, bruschetta with salami and provolone, Caprese salad, Baba Ganoush and crackers, crudite and hummus, fruit salad, Ramen noodle salad, lemon squares, and blueberry cake. I hope I didn't forget anything. 

The ten of us filled the dining room table with good conversation too. 

 Seated from left to right: Janna, Dorah, Barbara K. Liz

Standing from left to right: Jody, Elaine, Barbara B. Margaret, Debbie, Carole

Sorry to have missed Cinzia and Maureen. They had conflicts and couldn't attend.

Well, there's another party in the books and it's time to get back to our knitting.

Thank you Chicks for another successful year of hard work and friendships. I don't know what I would do without you!

Mother Nature isn't cooperating

Thank goodness for air conditioning! I was all set to have the Chicks on the deck today but it started to rain when I went out for my morning walk and it turned on the steam heat! So we stayed inside where it was cool. Barbara K. wound some pretty green sport weight yarn to start another hat and matching scarf.

 She is making a hat based on the Palindrome scarf and will have enough yarn to make the scarf to match.

 Janna's TAAT socks on magic loop are coming along beautifully! She has a few more inches to knit before she starts the Shadow Wrap heel.

 Barbara B. is working on her 1898 hat but the yarn is tripping her up since she found a few knots. It's an acrylic yarn so she can't spit splice it. Instead, she used the braided join.

 Elaine is working on her Aran Watch Cap, using a lovely cream colored, worsted weight yarn.

 I needed an easy project so I could talk and knit at the same time because my other project requires that I alternate counting 5 and then 4 stitches and well...you know... I can't chew gum and walk at the same time. This is the Ribbed Watchman's Hat in a soothing shade of grey Plymouth Encore.

 Carole finished two Helix hats and...

 her green socks. These are sized to fit a large youth or small woman. The stitching is so uniform it almost looks machine knitted.

 Margaret practiced her kitchener stitch on the second sock since she didn't like the finished stitching on her first one. I think she's got the hang of it now.

 Maureen's socks are growing in length. Soon she will be picking up those pink waste yarn stitches to knit the afterthought heel.

 And Dorah is at about the same spot on her socks as Maureen.

 Carole's 1898 hat has grown and is now in the decreasing stages. A few more rows and she will be done.

Next Tuesday we Chicks will be commemorating 14 years...count them 14 YEARS of knitting together! Be sure to check back then to see how we celebrate. 

The Chicks have a new hatchling!

We have a new Chick! Barbara Bradford has been a Capital District resident for two years and we're so glad she has joined forces with us. Here she is casting on for a baby hat. We look forward to seeing her put her skills to good use with us. She is an afternoon knitter but might be visiting the evening group on occasion. Welcome to the flock Barbara! 

 Liz is working with a lovely spring green to make a basket weave patterned scarf. It even matches her shirt.

 Debbie hit a snag last week but between the two of us, she got back on track with her festive colored socks. I always say it's ok to make mistakes. That's how you learn and besides, there are no knitting police!

 Cinzia's baby sweatshirt is almost finished. Just a few more rows and ribbing and it will be ready for the inventory.

 Margaret picked up the stitches for her afterthought heel and is well on her way to finishing her first pair of TAAT magic loop socks. I'm so proud of my Chicks to be willing to learn new techniques.

 Carole's lime green socks are sized for a narrow youth foot. The heel stitches are on hold on the other side. She should be picking up stitches for the heels soon.

 This comes under the category of "It's ok to make mistakes". I apparently didn't make myself clear when I described to Dorah how to do the heels on her afterthought heel socks. She began knitting a beautiful heel flap. Unfortunately, this technique does not require one. But it took about 5 minutes to frog back to the contrasting colored yarn and knit in the round again. The funny thing is that we all sat around the table watching her without realizing what was happening. No big deal! It was an easy fix.

 Maureen's socks look nice with the pink yarn holding the heel stitches. Too bad it has to go. I love the colors in this yarn!

 I'm working on the heels of my men's socks. I have a few more stitches to decrease and then it will be time to kitchener the heels closed.

 Every night before I go to sleep I check out Youtube to see if there's anything interesting to watch. Last week I came across a video tutorial for what is called a Shadow Wrap Short Row Heel. I think it makes an even nicer heel than the afterthought heel. There are NO GAPS where the angle of the heel turns like on a traditionally knitted heel flap heel. The sock on the right shows the cuff unfolded and the heel flattened. The cuff folds down so the baby can't kick his socks off. And notice how the heel and the toe, when flat, look the same.

 My munchkins are visiting this week. They had arts and crafts night on the deck while we Chicks knitted inside. 

Oh! And my 12 year old grandson is now officially taller than me! He's so proud! Although since I'm only 5'3" ish, it isn't all that hard to beat me at this young age, but don't tell him. ;) Our family joke is if you're taller than your grandmother by the time you're 12, then you're officially Italian. LOL! And yes, my grandmother said I could eat spaghetti off the top of her head when I was 12 so it's only fair for the next generation. Get my bowl ready to balance on my head.

I'm going to go enjoy my daughter and grands while I can. Knitting can wait until next week.

In the meantime, you keep your needles clicking!