And the rains came down!

Last night we had a DOOZIE of a thunderstorm with lightning that hung in the sky for a few seconds making everything outside look like daylight. This 20 pound behemoth was terrified of all the noise and flashing lights so he stayed close by my side or my husband's side. But I think Fozzie is getting used to the knitting ladies visiting every Tuesday. Today he worked up the courage to walk through the kitchen where we knit around the table, with his belly hung low, hoping not to be noticed.

My current project gained a few inches since last week. It's the 2x2 ribbed hat which is so easy I actually memorized the pattern.

But after a while the beige color gets pretty boring so I spiced up the work with rainbow socks. It's a plain vanilla pattern from my head. I haven't decided whether to do an afterthought heel or a short row heel but there's still time to decide. In any case, the heels and cuffs will be in the solid green yarn.

I forgot to ask Liz if she decided this is a hat or a cowl. She's put quite a few inches into it since last week.

This cowl is a popular one. 

Margaret liked Maureen's so much she decided to cast on one also.

Maureen is at the point where she feels like her Sightseer Cowl is taking forever. I see the 

progress though.

Barbara K.'s Palindrome Scarf is showing off those beautiful cables. She has such nice tension to her knitting which adds to the beauty of the work.

Carole's Honey cowl is wider this week too. It's a good tv knitting project.

 The wind is still pretty forceful out there and it's still very overcast but I think the worst of the rain is passed. So the next few sunny days I'll be keeping those needles clicking! Will you?

Nice day on the deck

It's so nice to have such a full group again. My deck was filled with laughter and good conversation! I think even those of us who are introverted, and you'd be surprised at how many of us are, are thankful to once again be in each other's company.

Carole is making the Honey Cowl, a free pattern on Ravelry. To make the lovely pattern, a simple slip stitch creates the thick, warm fabric.

Debbie is working on the Favehat. I didn't catch where she found the pattern, but I'll bet it's on Ravelry too.

Jan has chosen the Irma Hat to use some pretty coral yarn. You can see the beginning of the pattern slowly emerging from the stockinette base.

Dorah chose to knit a hat too. Neither of us could remember the pattern name.

Janna's scarf is in the final rows.

And here it is completed! She will block it to open up the lace stitches and have a nice long scarf to wrap a few times.

Margaret is making a bulky weight cowl to match a hat she made. 

We call her Queen of the Bulky Knits! LOL!

Liz can't decide if her work will be a hat or a cowl. It's still early enough for her to make up her mind.

Maureen's Sightseer Cowl is coming along beautifully. The slip stitch pattern is very easy to knit and looks great with high contrast colors.

Barbara K. is just starting her favorite oldie but goodie, the Palindrome Scarf. It's a good pattern when you don't know if a man or woman will receive it.

For a 2x2 ribbed hat, I casted on a few more stitches than the original pattern called for because I'm using a slightly lighter weight yarn than worsted and smaller needles than the pattern recommends.

 I gave myself permission to start something new because I finished this scarf last night. It's a variation on Martina Behm's free pattern called "22.5 Degrees". I knew I wouldn't have enough yarn in the only skein I had so I did a different bind off. The original pattern calls for a scalloped edge bind off which take tons of yarn. Instead, I made a picot bind off for the first half of the scarf and a standard bind off for the other half. 

Now it can be worn with either edge facing out, depending on your mood!

I'm feeling in a sushi kind of mood and my husband, who is NOT a fan of sushi, won't be having dinner home tonight so this is my chance! Have a great week and check back to see our progress next Tuesday. And as always, keep those needles clicking!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Oh! How I've missed these faces! And the Chicks who couldn't make it tonight too! We caught up on current knitting projects and current events. Dorah hit a dry spell just as I was coming out of one. More on that later. She threatened to quit knitting but I'm a hard taskmaster and told her she should take a sabbatical from knitting for a while and catch up on her reading. We all hit a wall now and then. It just takes time to regroup.

Janna worked on the 1898 hat with a variegated yarn. The stripes very clearly define the direction of the knitting.

Then she made a pair of matching fingerless mitts by following an easy mitten pattern and just finishing them off before the decreasing portion.

To her collection she added her version of the Palindrom Scarf, a reversible cables pattern, but she made an infinity scarf instead of a flat scarf. Very clever!

Maureen used a Cascade DK weight yarn to make a lovely baby blanket for her niece. The waffle pattern will make a nice, warm, thermal fabric.

Carole wanted to make a pleated scarf which is made by cleverly arranging knits and purls.

She inspected the last one she made quite a while ago to figure out the pattern.

Barbara B. took the holiday break time to make a beautiful sweater for herself. I saw a picture on Facebook of her wearing it and it's a perfect fit!

She also made a hat (center top) and...

the 1898 hat in a pretty turquoise and...

a pair of Hermoine's Everyday Socks using Cece's Wool fingering weight in the colorway "Oh Rhinebeck, We Miss You". It's a vibrant, pulsing tonal, almost tweedy orange. Really gorgeous!

Dorah did manage to crank out two adorable Helix Hats which she thoroughly enjoyed knitting.

Oh, and here is one more hat, top center, that Barbara B. made. She's been a busy little bee!

Cinzia made a sweater for one of her daughter's using yarn she bought for a song last fall at a garage sale. She just knitted along without thinking but when her daughter tried it on, all the white stripes aligned perfectly. 

In the bottom right corner is another sweater she's working on which has cables. Sorry I couldn't get a better picture.

Lastly, is the project I referred to earlier in the post. This lovely yarn was a gift from my son and his partner when they visited South America a few years ago. It is the prettiest cross between a citron green and a sage green, spun from baby alpaca and a bit of wool. I kept picturing lace patterns and textured patterns for a cowl but no matter how many times I sample knitted and changed needle sizes, nothing was coming out right! Very frustrating! Talk about wanting to quit!!!

Normally, my motto is 3 strikes and you're out but I was stubborn this time and after 12, yes TWELVE tries, I finally hit on a pattern and needle size which fit the gauge for the yarn and I'm very happy with the end result. It's called the Trinity Stitch or Berry Stitch. I have a few more inches to knit and I'll have a cozy cowl before winter's end.

 So now that I have my knitting mojo back again I'll head back to my knitting cave and get to work. 

I hope the new year fills you with hope and good health! And as always, keep those needles clicking!

Riverside knitting

There were people all along the shore enjoying the Henry Hudson Park today. The air was dry and the light breezes made the 78° day feel very comfortable. We didn’t see any herons or eagles this afternoon but we did see a fisherman. I wonder if he caught anything.

Barbara K., Barbara B., and Janna sat facing the river so they had the best view.

While Debbie, Liz, and Annika sat in the dappled sunlight.

Janna finished her teal blue scarf (around her neck) and added to the length of the Palindrome scarf.

Liz worked on her “Old Shale” Pattern scarf using yarn that has a sparkle thread through it. It glittered beautifully in the sun.

Barbara K. started the brim of a hat using a bulky weight yarn which will make it knit up quickly.

Annika’s scarf is coming along nicely too. The self striping yarn gives a simple triangular shawl some pizazz.

Debbie put the finishing touches on the hat she worked on last week.

My Sightseer Cowl is about an inch longer than ot was last week...

While Barbara B.’s is about the same size. I love her color combo!

Liz brought her winter knitting to add baby and adult hats, sweater, fingerless mitts, and a scarf to our inventory for a future donation.

We’re hoping the weather continues to be this beautiful so we can meet at this lovely park each week. It’s a peaceful spot to spend a few hours enjoying the fresh air while we knit. So keep your fingers crossed that Mother Nature will continue to bless us with pleasant temperatures and light breezes that we may keep those needles clicking.

Knitting and baking

 This week on Zoom with the Chicks I remembered to have them show their projects. Maureen is making the Sunnyside baby cardigan. Janna is working on a Palindrome scarf to go with the hat she made last week. Carole frogged her original cable hat because the cables drew in too much fabric making it too small. She added enough stitches for another cable and now it’s perfect. Annika is making a variegated yarn scarf and Debbie is making the ribbing for her project. Barbara is between projects at the moment. But she told us about the yummy oatmeal cookies she made which required one quarter cup of batter per cookie! 

I’m wearing my latest FO, the “Shawl With No Name” and I casted on for a second one to donate with our next round. The picture below is my shawl but the one I am currently knitting for donation will be cream, russet, and brown colored yarns.

We talked about recipes of interest and I’ll be sharing the no knead white bread recipe I found on a YouTube video tutorial. The top crust baked up more like a crunchy artisan bread, so as soon as it came out of the oven, I rubbed it all over with butter to make it a soft sandwich bread. My son declared it the best he ever tasted.

Janna told us the story of when her son was in grade school, studying foreign countries, he had to bring items that represented the country and maybe some food from that culture. She made an Ethiopian dinner which one little boy loved so much, he asked for seconds. Later when her son was in high school, he asked if a friend could come for dinner. Janna likes to cook ethnic foods with lots of spices so she warned him the friend might not like what she cooks. Her son’s response was, “Mom, your cooking is legendary!” How wonderful that he recognizes the effort and talent his mother puts into feeding him!

So as we approach another week of social distancing, I will search through patterns and recipes to see what new things I can learn. In the meantime, stay well, stay happy, stay home!