Sunday, October 28, 2018

Yarn and socks and a little stitching on Slow Sunday Stitching...

Another week sped by... went to dinner and a play (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) on Tuesday... dinner and a great evening of conversation and projects with my quilty lady group on Thursday...ran around all day Friday doing errands: bank, hardware store, Costco, grocery, garden center, Target...  Dan, my handyman, was here all day on Saturday but got lots of things fixed/repaired...and a Chinese dim sum lunch today...  I ate well this week but didn't get a lot of crafty stuff done.

Biggest accomplishment in the crafty realm was finishing this pair of socks...


I used two different self striping Opal yarns alternating every round... LOVE how they turned out...


not knowing what patterns will develop next keeps me knitting and knitting and knitting and knitting...

And since the weather was cooler and I wore hand knit socks every day I looked over my stash of Opal yarns and that lead me to purchase more... certainly NOT because I don't have a very healthy stash of them... because I DO... but because I can't resist the allure of a self striping yarn that washes and wears as well as Opal does. One can NEVER have too much Opal in their stash...that a FACT...LOL... and  it just makes me happy!!! Its not illegal or immoral...we won't talk about inexpensive.

The last 2 years I was able to purchase an Opal Advent calendar...24 mini-skeins of stripe-y fun...this year I couldn't find it anywhere on line and from what I could figure out they didn't do one...insert frowny face... However, I had seen mini skeins for sale on Instagram accounts of some yarn stores in England and  Germany...but again no luck finding them in the US... then I stumbled across an Etsy shop in Lithuania and they had an offering of 28 mini skeins for a price I thought was reasonable and shipping to the US for less than $8 ...so I bought what I think was the last batch they offered...


Aren't they adorable???? Now I did notice that these only weigh 10 grams where the Advent calendar mini's were 15 grams... I'm okay with that as I'll be making scrappy socks with them... like this sock I started  yesterday...


I've already used 4 different yarns in this one and I'm hardly started... they are the knitting equivalent of a scrap quilt.

On the cross stitch front I did stitch more snow...so boring I didn't even take a picture...but I did start a new Fall project... Lizzie Kate's Thankful String...



I dyed  a piece of 28 count evenweave  with Rit Golden Yellow and Tan...



And here's a close up of my meager progress...



I had to change a few of the flosses... I'm using DMC ... it is a quick stitch if I actually picked it up... maybe this afternoon.

Right now I'm sitting out on my enclosed porch with the Dude...




it was grey and rainy when I first came out... turned on my  new little space heater which really warms up the space and now the sun has come out but boy is it windy... it is just whistling around the house... I took down my flag as it was really whipping about ... I'll put it back up after the wind dies down.

Oh I forgot I did work in the yard last week... cleaned up my flower beds a bit and cut down the dahlias as a windy day had broken some of them... this is my final harvest...


I got 6 nice sized bouquets ... I will be planting dahlias again next year... in a more sheltered spot than this year  which should help prevent as much breakage.

Well I'm hoping for a couple of nice weather days this week... I have about 150 daffodil bulbs I want to plant... and I have my fingers crossed for the Trick or Treaters on Wednesday...weather guys are predicting rain  which  would reduce the number of kids we'll get and then I'll have to eat all that leftover candy .... oh nooooooooo.... I bought two giant bags at Costco and I'm trying to keep from opening them... but I probably should eat one or two  Almond Joys or Mounds to be sure they are good. Wouldn't want to give out bad candy, would I?   LOL

I'll link up with Kathy's Quilts ... for the upcoming week, along with my planting plans I have sewing plans too. I finally got around to cleaning up my basement sewing studio... I have been dumping stuff and I needed to get things sorted and put away... spent a couple of hours doing that but oh does it look better and more inviting to sit down and sew... I'd love to make a new Christmas quilt...something lap sized and easy...I have several patterns calling my name and a bunch of new fat quarters... hope your week has some productive crafty time in it...

happy stitching-
carol fun

8 comments:

  1. It looks such a lovely and sunny spot there on the porch; perfect for a little slow hand stitching. Love your socks; fabulous colours in that wool. Your new cross stitching looks like a great project. Those shades give an autumnal feel.

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  2. I know nothing about knitting and nothing about self striping yarns, but you have educated me today! That yarn is amazing! When I see those socks, I always imagined the knitter was changing yarns with every round or so. Yours are beautiful and what a treat, not to know what your design will be, until it happens. Cute cross stitch piece, too!

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  3. I like my socks as scrappy as my quilts too. they are lovely.

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  4. Your dahlia bouquets are gorgeous. I love your 'autumn' looking socks you shared in the first photo. What fabulous yarns you used. You are off to a good start on the LK piece. Enjoy your upcoming week!

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  5. I love the Fall colors of your socks! The linen on your LK project is very pretty. I just picked my final Dahlia bouquet too. Mine get bent over too. For some it is the size and weight of the flower as well as the wind.

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  6. I know exactly what you mean. Knitting socks with self stripping yarns just keeps me going....just one more row! I love your opal yarn, it makes me want to go to a wool shop and buy some and get knitting again!

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  7. I love love love your new fall socks. They are just so playful and make me smile all over. Wish I could put my quilting needle down long enough to learn to knit socks. Glad you were able to find the small skeins, so cute.

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  8. Look at those dahlias! We had a hard frost (no warning) in early October so no more bouquets. Loving your newest dyed linen and autumn socks.

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