Catching Up -- and Turning Toward September

Raspberry Jam II
Aug 4-2026

The summer is slipping away.  The days are growing visibly shorter.  As a Certified Morning Person, I am rebelling against the fact that as long as we're in Daylight Savings Time, the mornings stay darker far longer than I'd like, even now -- and the evenings, lighter for longer than is necessary! LOL! 😄

Soon I'll be changing up the photo in my "Header" for something more autumnal.  

That said, the Battle of Cool/Rainy versus Hot/Steamy here continues.  Me?  I prefer "Warm with a Breeze"...but apparently Mother Nature ran out of that some time ago. Sigh...

In the midst of all this, and the ongoing global angst, I continue to try to Create Beauty Every Day, as one of my heros, Deanne Fitzpatrick, would say.

In fact, I spend so much time on that objective that I've not had a lot of time to sit down and share what I've been doing in that regard -- so today is the day -- even though it's almost a full month since my last post.  

This means it's time to catch up!

Let's start with knitting. At the end of July, I showed yet another pair of finished mittens, and mentioned the Caribou Mountains Hat, which I have, indeed finished:

Pattern: Caribou Mountains Hat
Designer: Kalea the Luddite
Yarn: Diamond Galway Heather (discontinued)

This is the third of these hats I've made and I confess, it's one of my favourite patterns!

After the hat, comes mittens -- per my overall plan for this summer.  Thus I followed that hat with these fingerless mittens in 2 colours:

Pattern: Simple Bi-color Mitts
Designer: Cathy Dages
Yarn: unlabelled synthetics

And I followed these up with another hat.  This time, I tried a new-to-me pattern.  It was a bit of a challenge, as it required me to knit a stitch pattern I'd not tried before: the Honeycomb Stitch. What it is, is a closely-packed series of cables.  I love cables but I confess that making these, one row (seemingly) on top of another, in worsted/aran-weight yarn was a bit hard on my old hands, and definitely required some focus, to ensure the cables were going the right way! I persisted, and the result was a close-fitting, cozy hat that fit a small-medium head -- in large part because I increased the number of stitches I cast on...and adapted accordingly:

Pattern: "Tweedy Honeycomb Toque"
Designer: Kent Turman
Yarn: 1. Unlabelled maroon/wine-coloured
worsted weight yarn; 2. a few grams of 
elann.com Peruvian Sierra that matched

Now that those are finished, I'll be casting on another pair of The World's Simplest Mittens from Tin Can Knits -- my absolutely favourite mitten pattern which, of course, I commend to those of you who live in parts of the world wherein it gets cold enough to need warm hands!

Up next?  Not a lot of quilting going on -- too hot! But there have been cloudy, rainy days in which I've spend some time in my sewdio, cutting fabric, prepping pieces and making units that will end up in a quilt.

There have been horrific fires again this year in the Okanagan Valley, so I've put out feelers re: sending tops or quilted throw-sized quilts to those who might be in need.

And a few weeks ago, a young woman in my area who'd seen my art quilts contacted me, because she wants to learn to quilt -- so we got together.  We met for coffee and then came back to my home for a look at what I do.  I sent her home with some fabric, a list of supplies she needed (cutting mat, rotary cutter, etc.) and a couple of simple patterns -- the first being a Rail Fence. She's made a start, and we'll keep in touch once her seasonal job winds down.

Aside from that, I've been adding units that will end up either in another postage-stamp quilt or in 16-patch blocks that will be combined in a more expansive way.  And I've started cutting scraps into 2" x 3 1/2" rectangles, and 3 1/2" squares, to combine in a pattern from Bonnie Hunter that I want to make into a throw quilt for a neighbour of mine who's been particularly helpful: a "Fun With Bricks!" quilt!  

It's a pattern that involves two distinct four-patch units which, when put together, create a larger block.  I began with one four-patch design and then tried out the second...just to get a feel for the full block.  

Left: Unit 1; Right: Unit 2.

I've discovered I need to use fewer 'lights' in the Unit 1 pieces in order to make the entire block - two of each type -- work harmoniously. So...on we go! I'd like to have it done for Xmas but...well...time will tell!

Now then...what about cross-stitch?

August is the month in which I focus on "A Quilter's Dream", which I selected well over a year ago as the piece I wanted to do in tribute to my late hubby, my greatest art-quilting fan.  He died 20 years ago this month, and so I've been working steadily on that piece, designed by Jacob of Modern Folk Embroidery.  I'm using 2 colours of Roxy Floss Co. hand-dyed floss: Pippy (a red, after the character 'Pippy Long-stocking'); and "Greater Porpoise" -- a blue-grey, because...well...you know. 😉

Here's where I was when I left off at the end of February this year (that's the month in which we got engaged in 1975):

And here is where I am as of yesterday (August 22, 2026):

It's slow, steady, meditative work.  At the end of this month it will go away until November, the month that marks my late husband's birthday.  And so...we'll see how far that takes me too.  

I confess, though, that as a big fan of Jacob's work, I couldn't resist participating in his first-ever "Fast Frisian SAL", which is taking place now, through August 31.  I'm stitching it on a small piece of 36-count "Wren" from Picture This Plus, left from another project, using 1 strand of 'Maritimes' highly-variegated floss from Roxy Floss Co., over 2 fabric threads, mostly doing one 'X' at a time, given the nature of the variegation.  And yes, there are errors here and there where I've fudged it, but no matter -- I'm enjoying the journey!

And that's really about it, folks, for the textile crafts.  

Oh yes, I've spun a wee bit from an alpaca roving, but nothing to write home about.  

As for rug-hooking, I've only the sky left on the kit "Singing to the Choir" that I won in a draw at the Makers' Meet-up at the end of March (hosted by Deanne Fitzpatrick Studios). Here was my progress as of July -- some time after my last post. 

Kit variation: "Singing to the Choir"
Deanne Fitspatrick Studios

In the past week or so, I've added the rest of the stars (not shown) and started filling in the night sky above the blue-coated gal on the left.  It's going to be very pretty when it's done -- and once I get back with the Meet-up in September, that shouldn't be too long!

With September just over a week away (!), what are my hopes/plans/dreams for that month, one of my favourites in the entire year?

Quilting: 

• Get back to the Block of the Month (BOM) from A Quilting Life;
• Keep working on creating units and then blocks for the "Fun with Bricks" quilt top;
• Keep making 16-patch blocks for a future charity quilt;
• Keep the hopes of another Bonnie Hunter Mystery Quilt in the back of my mind;
• Follow up with my young learning-to-quilt friend as dictated by what she needs.

Knitting:

• September is for shawls and sweaters, with WIPs taking priority, but with at least one new start in one or both categories;
• Continue with small projects -- maybe adding in a cowl -- for the 2026 Warm Things Box.

Cross-Stitch:

• Finish the Fast Frisian SAL by the end of August;
• Move into Sampler September with work on the following projects:
• "Emeline Hotchkiss, Lacolle, 1846" -- a Canadian sampler reproduced by Kathleen Littleton of Cross Stitch Antiques; and
• "Memories of the Past", my birthday sampler from a few years ago, from Hands Across the Sea.
• Start a new sampler for my birthday this year.  It's a toss-up between Isabella Carter MaClean, 1799 -- a Canadian sampler with Scottish ancestral influence -- or Elizabeth Eason, 1827, a Scottish sampler.  I've bought the pattern and kitted up the former; the latter is still on my wish list!

Rug-Hooking:

• Finish "Singing to the Choir" as described above; and
• Lay out a new large piece on linen -- drawing for inspiration from Deanne's book on Landscapes and her online courses on "Working Big" as well as "Wildflowers in the Glen" all of which I've purchased; and
• Participate actively in the Makers' Meet-Up/Inspiration Sessions, which have been combined into one programme!

Some of what is started in September will, of course, continue through the winter months.  I've no requests for knitted items for Xmas, but may make the odd stitched one if inspiration strikes and time permits.  I'm not a "holiday" stitcher -- no Hallowe'en or Christmas-themed pieces for me (and that includes ornaments).  

I'm just going to cozy up and work on pieces that are relatively slow, rhythmic, and meditative -- to soothe a troubled mind!

It seems, too, Gentle Readers, that these hopes/plans of mine dovetail perfectly with the ideas that Nina-Marie is sharing on her Off The Wall Friday post this week: having fun, letting the work flow, not comparing what I'm doing with what others are doing, being fulfilled from within rather than from validation from without.

What about you?  Take a look at her post, and ponder...

Until next time, may you be safe, well and remember to find and/or create a bit of beauty every day.  A bientot!

All the Things

Well, Friends...My annual bout of New Year's Startitis is still in high pitch.  I've been trying to tame the Beast by sticking to a certain routine - Making My Bed, as it were -- and so far, I'm Getting Things Done and Holding the Fort -- to use a variety of time-worn cliches! 😉

So here's the gist of it, with my loosey-goosey "goals-that-aren't-carved-in-stone":

Hooked Art

As I mentioned in my last post, I've applied for a spot at the local art show/sale again this year (won't know for about a month), and I've been working toward that a bit with a new hooked landscape or two.  

I finished the first -- 12" square -- which is the one I think I'll donate to the silent auction fundraiser at the local performing arts centre:

"Under a January Moon" (c)
Finished Feb. 2026

I have to thank my cyber-friend, artist Holly Maclean of New Brunswick, for permission to use her painting of a deciduous tree as inspiration for mine. 😊

On the same piece of burlap, I drew out another 12" square piece, modelled after a long-finished art quilt from 2012.  This hooked piece will be the third iteration of this idea.  The first was "Trio" -- the art quilt I made as my final exam piece for my London City & Guilds Level 2 Certificate in 'Creative Techniques: Quilting' (with everlasting thanks to my tutor, the great Linda Kemshall):

Trio - (c) 2012

The second iteration: in June 2019 a long-time friend commissioned me to turn this piece into a bed-sized quilt -- she wanted to buy it for herself for her 99th birthday in October!  I agreed, gave her a price, and proceeded to get to work, creating this, with the help of Katie Pasquini Masopust's book, "Artful Log Cabins":

"Prairie Quintet" (c) 2019

I had to add 2 trees to make it the right size!  I finished it in time, and can still here her voice mail message of thanks.  She used it for several months -- never sleeping under it.  She put it on her bed only when it was made up, and took it off each night!  Alas, she died of heart failure in May 2020, a few months shy of her centenary. I miss her still.  I only hope someone in her family has kept that quilt.

So now...a third iteration: as a hooked piece!  I'm now working on the last bit of it -- that blue sky:

"Duo" in progress - Feb. 6, 2026

It's only 12" x 12", so I've put in only 2 trees, and gave them a slightly different look.  I'll show you the finish in the next post.

Quilting

I'm still moving right along on the 2026 Bonnie Hunter mystery, "Lupines and Laughter".  It's so darned pretty!  

In my last post, I'd just started Clue 6.  Now I've only a few units left to make for that clue, before I move on to Clue 7 (more units!!)  Here's a progress photo:

Stacks and stacks!

And of course I couldn't miss the BOM for February, from "A Quilting Life" -- which I'm doing in "Canadiana" colours:

Something tells me I'm going to be very good at making those stars when this is finished! 😉

As a sort of "leaders and enders" project at the moment, I've returned to making crumb "sections" and scrappy, wonky log cabin blocks, which will end up going to those in need -- eventually.

Knitting

This is where starts and finishes line up for me at the moment.  I've finished a hat, and started a pair of socks, and am nearing a finish on a blanket.

First, the hat -- the "Melt the ICE" hat -- from Needle and Skein via Ravelry.  YES, I paid for it in CAD, even at the 30% exchange rate. It's a worthy cause!

I used an unlabelled stash yarn, which the 'match test' revealed was mostly -- if not 100% -- wool. I enjoyed the knit, but could have done without the tassel. Full disclosure: I don't like tassels, pom-poms or bobbles on the things I knit!  I used only 100 sts, but it fit my small-medium (22") head just fine.  However, if I make it again, I'll go up to 108 sts, and leave off the tassel.  This one -- and future ones -- will end up in my Warm Things box, for indeed they would be Warm Things.

As for socks, I'm trying again to revive my sock mojo.  This month it's with a pair of textured socks from a vintage pattern (1947), which satisfies the criterion for the February 2026 challenge in the Socks from Stash group on Ravelry -- something they're calling "Ultra-unappreciated patterns".  In other words, patterns with very few projects recorded on Ravelry.  Mine is #3! 

Yes...this is the source -- and I have the book. It was my mother's -- or maybe her mother's! -- and it's in a page protector in my collection of knitting patterns.  I've made other socks from it, but not recently.

Anyway, the one I selected is called "Fancy Rib Socks", and I've been thankful for another Ravelry member -- a Canuck living in B.C., to boot! -- for the notes she made when she knit these.  It's not every day you try a pattern that someone else has knit, and you become cyber-friends with that person! 

I've only recently cast them on, and adapted the pattern (with the above-mentioned help) to 64 sts (from 80 as called for) -- so this is what they look like as of this morning:

Yarn: Estelle Highland Alpaca Fine
Colour: "Lagoon"

I think I'm going to enjoy knitting these, but whether or not they'll be enough to restore my lack-lustre sock mojo remains to be seen!

While the Sylph Cowl is still in the queue, it's become my 'train knitting' -- carried with me in the car in the event I'm stopped at the local train crossing, which is not just for trains passing through. It's a switch-point for CN Rail, which means I can sit there for 15-20 minutes, depending on the day and my timing!

However, I'm working hard on my January Blanket, started in 2024...and closing in on a finish. This was a photo taken a month ago; it's now longer -- I've finished 24 of a called-for 35 pattern repeats, and am on the 8th of 10 balls of yarn.  I thought I might try to use up all 10, but that would make it far longer than called for, so I'm just going to stick with the pattern as written!

I've done nothing more on my red-and-white cowl, or on my Bernie sweater -- just focusing on the above-mentioned projects for now.

And then there's Cross-stitch

I'm pleased to say that I finished the (recommended by Jacob) January section of the "Little Acorns" SAL from Modern Folk Embroidery -- at 8:30 p.m. on January 31! 

I then took a few days "off" but yesterday evening I started the February section (again, recommended by Jacob in his pattern notes).  Here's how it looked at the end of the evening:

NOTE: the border on the left isn't really skewed; it's just that the linen in the hoop has been pulled off grain!! It's really a straight line, and would look that way if I took it out of the hoop!!

Of course, I've been distracted by other things, as one is.  I've not done any more on the Elsa Williams "Winter" piece, or on "Disagree" by Rebel Stitcher, but I did have a new start.

Being February -- the month in which I was engaged in 1975 -- I've returned to "A Quilter's Dream" (also Modern Folk Embroidery) and have made a bit more progress on that:

Yes, it's only one teen motif, but each one is a mini-accomplishment, eh?! 😁

As for my "squirrel" moment? Well...again, given what's still going on in the world, I downloaded this new free pattern from Ellen Reid of Maximum Cross Stitch, and made a start:

It's entitled "Go Show Love", and is available in both Canadian and American versions re: the -- ahem! -- spelling of "neighboUr". 😉 

I found a large piece of 22-count white evenweave in my stash (I believe I inherited it from a dear friend who died in 2020 -- heart, not Covid) and I'm using the called-for DMC, 2 strands over 2 fabric threads.  Because I messed up on the colour instructions, I'm using black for both the 1st and 2nd inner borders, but I'm okay with that.  It's the perfect counter-part to stitching 1 strand over 2 on 40-count as I'm doing with "Little Acorns" and "A Quilter's Dream".

That's really all the news that's fit to print for this post, Gentle Readers.  My heart goes out to those in Eastern Canada, the Maritimes and all down the east coast of the US into places not as used to snow as we are, as they experience really overwhelming dumps of the stuff.  We out here on the Canadian prairies could use some more, as without it we're likely to remain in drought territory this spring and summer...not good.  Sigh...

And I continue to hope and pray for better days for all my US readers...

So I leave you with those wishes, and my usual link to Nina-Marie's Off the Wall Friday.  This week, she has the Great Reveal of her Studio Reset -- it's a WOW!  

And until next time...a bientot!

The Best Laid Plans...

 The best laid [plans] o' mice an' men gang aft aglay..."  --  Robbie Burns 

Sigh.  It's been one of those weeks.  I'm not particularly impulsive (just ask my kids).  I don't like surprises, pranks or practical jokes.  I'm such a planner that I made my living as one for a good 20 years, back in the day.

So when there's a week that includes disappointments (even just one or two), I can get rather grumpy.  "Disappointments" can include unexpected interruptions -- so yeah.  I'm writing you post-grumps but still sulking a bit.

One disappointment was that a packet of embroidery floss -- including specialty floss -- and fabric, that I'd ordered 2 months ago, and which was mailed Tuesday from a shop a mere 3 hours' drive southwest of me -- didn't arrive.  I was so looking forward to the package, anticipating a new stitching start this weekend -- but no!  My mailbox on Friday was empty.  Sigh...

Another was today's weather, which turned in the wee hours.  I was hoping to get up to Camrose today to listen to my friend Terry play his improv keyboard music at Main Street 1908 Cafe, and have lunch there with his wife (and my good friend) Mary -- but with the wind high and snow falling, and the road reports showing the highway north partly snow-covered...well...I decided it would be safer to stay home.  Of course, a few hours after that decision -- and too late to change my mind -- the sun shone (for about 10 minutes) and the snow had stopped.   Sigh...

To make the best of things, I decided to finish off the "string HSTs" I was making for another charity comfort quilt.  Like the one I made a while back (photo at left), I needed 4 HSTs to make each block.  I got to 80 units and found I had more string blocks to convert into HSTs (Half-Square Triangles), so I kept going.  That said, 90 would produce an odd number for a top, so I pushed to 100.

Along the way, I discovered pencil marks on the cream-coloured half of four HST units.  Duh!  I must have marked them on both sides before I assembled them.  No problem; I knew the pencil marks would wash out.  What I didn't know was that within these particular blocks was a singular fabric that would "run" when washed.  And it was a polyester-cotton blend!  I'd no idea!  It was from a collection of fabrics I'd been given when a dear elderly friend of mine died a few years ago.  I thought I'd washed everything she gave me, but I must have missed this yardage -- or discounted it as 'safe' because it was mainly polyester.

Anyway, the maroon fabric in question ran in the blocks I washed.  Sigh.

What to do?!  

First, I went through the stacks of HST units to check for that rogue fabric.  There were fifteen of them! I have a bottle of "Retayne", which is a product designed to help fabric hold onto dye and prevent it from running -- so I put the lot of them plus the two rogue blocks --  into a solution of that with hot water in my bathroom sink, swishing the blocks around every 5 minutes for 20 minutes.  Then I rinsed them and hung them over my shower bar to dry:

Some of the blocks on the shower bar;
the others are on the towel rack to the left (not shown)

Then, remembering that I still had several metres of this dark maroon fabric left, I chucked it all into the wash with more 'Retayne'.  There were a couple of long 2" strips that I included -- in my little white lingerie bag.  

WHOA!  When the wash was finished, here's what had happened to the bag:

I couldn't believe it! I've never seen anything like this!  So...all I can do now is pray that the treated HST blocks and remaining fabric will behave and not run further!

Once the blocks on the shower bar were dry, I pressed them and kept going. (I made an extra pair of HST blocks to replace the ones that had bled.)  I've now managed to finish six pinwheel blocks, each of which will finish at 11" in the quilt.

On the left is a stack of four; on the right, a stack of two.  Note their different lay-outs.  Hmmm...

No matter!  I've decided to make an equal number of each layout (though with 25 blocks that means there'll be 12 of one layout and 13 of another. Ho hum...) and let it be what it will be.

What else is new?  

Like I said: it's been one of those weeks.

I did manage to get a few other things accomplished since my last post:

• I finished the "Scrappy Starburst" throw quilt top, which will be going up to Leduc, AB (south of Edmonton) to be quilted and given to a refugee Ukrainian family:

• I finished a small cross stitch piece and sent it to a friend:

Designed by Lizzie Kate

I finished it as a flat piece and sent it along with another finished flat piece (fabric-covered) that she can use, or not, as she sees fit.

• I made progress on my daughter's socks and am now well along on the foot of the second sock;
• I've also made slow but steady progress on a mitred square blanket using left-over soc yarn:

Yes, I've a long way to go -- BUT
I also have a LOT of left over sock yarn!

• Speaking of sock yarn, I've also finished a simple 3:1 ribbed hat using 2 slightly different blue yarns held together:

Yes, it's now finished...just no photo of that yet!
Design: LOSY Hat
Designer: Barb Engelking
Free on Ravelry

• And I'm working on a different hat using left-over sock yarn in solid colours:

Design: the Mash It Up Hat
Designer: Barb Ausherman
Free on Ravelry

Since the above photo was taken, I've finished the grey stripe as well as a grey-and-green stripe and am now on rounds of solid green. Soon I'll add brown to the green and then top the hat off with solid brown.  This is a really fun knit, and I can see more of these in my future!

On the stitching front, in addition to that little piece I mentioned above, I'm much farther along on my 2023 Birthday stitch -- "Memories of the Past":

Design: "Memories of the Past"
Designer: Hands Across the Sea Samplers

I made some more progress on the 2022 "Holiday Count-down" piece from Modern Folk Embroidery:

And I started a new MFE piece for Valentine's Day/Lent:

Design: "When This You See..."
Designer: Jacob of Modern Folk Embroidery
Fabric: 32-count Belfast linen
from Zweigart - a printed fabric in the
"Smoky" colour-way
Floss: Vierlande from Roxy Floss Co.

All are great fun to stitch!  That said, the March WIPGO numbers will be called tomorrow, so we'll see what next month brings to the fore!

On the art front, "Craft and Care" opened on Friday, Feb. 15, at the Viewpoint Gallery in Red Deer.  God willing, I'll be there to do an Artist's Talk on the First Friday in April, but locals can see it sooner during the week (Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) and the First Friday in March, when it's open till 8 p.m. Artists' talks start at 6:30 p.m.

That's all the news that's fit to print for this post!  Given the challenges of this past week, I'm glad I managed to do what I did -- and to get in a few decent walks in the occasional February sunshine while I was at it.

Now...I leave you with my usual link to Nina-Marie's Off the Wall Friday, and a fond wish to all of you, Gentle Readers, for health, creative delights, and plans that actually work out the way you want them to!  😉  A bientot!

Playing Catch-up

Having spent most of the past week filling in for the store manager at The Crafty Lady (I generally work only 1 day a week), I'm trying to catch up -- my energy, house cleaning (yes, I do some!), gardening (green bean harvest), blog reading, and studio time.

I have been working -- here and there.  I even have a Friday Finish!  Here is an on-the-wall view of my 10 x 10 piece, Tree Study II, mounted on the canvas provided by the City of Lacombe for their event, "10 x 10: The Unknown Artist", which opens at the Lacombe Memorial Centre on September 12:

Tree Study II (c) 2013

I'm keeping the picture small so you can't see the details.  Even though I don't think my page is read avidly by the population in and around Lacombe, I thought I'd try to be as "unknown" as possible in the weeks leading up to the show! LOL!

I had great fun doing this one, creating a wrap for the canvas that worked amazingly well.  I might just have to do more pieces this way!

Another finish: the Niven shawlette as a shop sample, done in Berroco "Lustra" yarn in one of my favourite colours...which has been discontinued!

Then there was the first of my "Ten Weeks; Ten Hats" project for the charity tree at our church:

It's child-sized, shown here drying on an over-turned former-peanut butter jar.  :-)

At #2 is on the needles, as is another hat -- commissioned by a customer at the shop, the first of two I am making for her.

On the quilting front, I finished the "Cinnamon" BOM #8 -- "Broken Dishes":

And...I'm working on a both research and sampling for my "Time"-themed piece for 15 x 15 (deadline: September 30) and for my next set of miniatures (also for the end of September) -- at least 12, methinks.

So I shall link this up to Nina Marie's Off the Wall Friday...and go back to blanching green beans for the freezer!  See you later!  :-)

No Knitting, You Say?

This blog used to be called "The Lady Who Knits on the Bus", which was how I was known by my travelling companions for some twenty-five years on the Calgary Transit System.  I was a knitter then, and I remain a knitter.  Despite my forays into quilting, embroidery and textile arts, knitting was my first love.  Since the age of about eight, I've always had something on the needles.  I realize, though, it doesn't always show up here.  The last time I talked about it was almost a month ago.  I've done more since then...

I continue to work on hats for the charity knitting tree at church.  This one is the "Bulky Yarn Watch Cap" from Twin Willows Farm, a pattern saved from a page-a-day calendar I had in 2006.

Then there's this tam, from Patons Yarns, made partly in their Classic Wool. and partly in Galway Heather from Diamond Yarns:

I really like this one, but it's too small for me.  :-(  There's plenty of yarn left for another; perhaps sometime I'll transpose the pattern so I can make one to fit my head (another inch around is needed.)  I can create original quilting designs, but knitting is a greater challenge.  I prefer to stick to the pattern as is!

I continue to work on a prayer shawl, and my friend D's socks are coming right along (I know, I know, not fast enough!)  Meanwhile, I've started another hat -- a cabled toque from chunky donated yarn, appropriately named Chunky Cable Hat by it's designer, Emily Wessel.  It's a quick knit and should be finished soon.

Back in the C&G, this morning I finished my last assignment for Module 7, and shipped the photos off to Linda.  It involved needle-turn applique using a design from one of my sketchbook shapes.  I selected the bottle shape because I didn't want to struggle with half-circles or triangles...but it wasn't a great deal easier.  I ended up 'decapitating' the bottle and putting its stopper/top down on the 'ground' beside it, producing this little sample:

I call it "Topless on a Grid" (wink).  The yellow and blue are commercial fabrics; the blue-dotted red squares were cut from a piece of hand-dyed fabric I'd stamped with a sponge, and to which I'd applied fusible web.  I've been waiting for a chance to cut into it and use it, and this seemed to work.  However, it's far from my favourite piece and won't see the light of day outside my sample collection.  The needle-turn applique is actually quite well done, but the quilting -- especially around the shapes -- is only so-so.  I confess, I just wanted to get 'er done, and move on!  Module 8 is my final module and my Major Assessment Piece, featuring applique.  Onward and upward!

In the Pink

I've been Ravelling all week, embarrassed by my stash, and working to reduce it. In the process, I've made these two "Rollin' Baby Berets" -- so cute, doncha think? They'll be going to the Family Services in Lacombe.

Next, I joined the Monthly Dishcloth group, and produced a Pot o' Gold in time for St. Paddy's day yesterday. I'm now working on the mid-month project, awaiting 'Day 2' of the KAL pattern. There's touch of mystery to this, which makes it even more fun, as you don't really know what design you're knitting till you get close to the end of it.

Meanwhile, as I wait, the stash burning continues, with the start of the back section of Jeff's Pub Jacket for my son. I'm enjoying the Peace Fleece for this project, but changed from the 4 mm needles used for the ribbing, to 5 mm for the body. It was getting too dense, and for reasons unknown, the pattern didn't mention going up a needle size. Nothing in IK errata either. Go Figure.

I'm off to Calgary now for a day with The Applique Society. TTFN!