Christmas

May you have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!! Christmas is a very busy time of the year with shopping and baking and...but we have to remember the true meaning of the holiday that it is a holy day and that Jesus our Savior was born on this day.

The afghans are almost finished. The fringes are a real job, it takes almost as long to do the fringe as it does to knit an afghan. Obviously, they will be late but next time I will remember how time consuming a fringe is.

I am going to set some New Year goals this week--one of them will be to write my blog at least twice a week and hopefully three times a week.

Merry Christmas

The Not-so-wonderful world of knitting

I have been making an afghan for a Christmas gift. After I finished the last panel--Panel No. 7 and laid out the rest of the afghan, I realized I had 2 left outside panels and no right outside panel. So now I am knitting frantically trying to finish the right panel in time to mail the afghan!!! When will I learn that knitting under pressure never works? The last time this happened, I was making a sweater for a gift and the back was longer than the fronts (Yes, I had planned to make the whole sweater 2 inches longer than the pattern stated, but forgot my plan halfway through). There must be a law somewhere that states that knitting is only to be done as a hobby or at your leisure otherwise it will not cooperate. Oh well, humility is a virtue and my knitting is often humiliating.

The wonderful world of knitting

Once again, I was reminded of how much of our learning to knit is in the mistakes we make. One of my students had to rip out a good portion of her vest last night because she hadn't understood the pattern. However, she has really advanced as a knitter; when she first came to me she would argue if I used the word "Rip". Now she very calmly rips it out and corrects her mistakes. She is becoming a more experienced knitter and as such knows that (All together now) "As we knit so shall we rip"!!! The other students refer to her as the "Advanced" student and she is becoming a very good knitter.

Thanksgiving

I hope everyone has a very blessed and safe holiday. Hopefully, the roads will stay clear and we will all arrive safely at our destinations whether it is near or far. Have a very good Thanksgiving.

Knitting and crocheting Group

Several of us have been talking about starting a knitting and crocheting group. We would meet on Saturday afternoon, probably one Saturday a month. Right now we are looking for a location that is centrally located. It would be open to anyone who is interested in knitting and crocheting--even those who just want to sit and talk about knitting or crocheting. It is still in the discussion stage, nothing more will happen until after the first of the year but I think it is exciting.

I tried one of my old and favorite fudge recipes tonight and it was really a flop!!! For some reason, I doubled the amount of butter I was supposed to use so I have this greasy, chocolaty goop in the pan. Oh well, back to the basics. Next time I'll be more careful with my measuring. At least I know where I went wrong...

The bazaars were very informative. The variety of items and prices was amazing.

More Morris books

I have been reading the House of Windsor series by Gilbert Morris and really enjoy it. I finished book four "The Gentle Rebel" and liked it although it's a little hard to believe that a girl could have passed as a man for that long. Although the same premise was in "Ahab's Wife". I guess they didn't develop hips and breasts as early as some of us. Anyway it is a very good book.

I am also reading Marian Coel's "Drowning Man" and really like it. She has a very good mystery series that takes place on the Arapahoe Indian Reservation.

My knitting is coming along. When I am working on a large item like this afghan, it seems that every evening runs into the previous one, I know that I am accomplishing a lot and eventually it will be finished but only after a long, long time!! Maybe I'll work on my socks for awhile tonight to break the monotony.

Lots of bazaars are on this weekend. I think I'm going to several to price the knitted items.

Knitting Magazines

I love knitting magazines and I think I have every knitting magazine I ever bought. For years I subscribed to Vogue Knitting but then became so busy with classes, working and everything else that I couldn't justify it. I still buy it occasionally, however now that I'm in an apartment storage has become an issue. Often I would buy an issue and find that every pattern in it was just what I was looking for. I have an old Vogue magazine that's at least 12 years old that has a great tree sweater pattern in it and also a nice sock pattern that I still use.

I also like Knitter's Magazine and have found their patterns are exquisite. I knitted the Scoopit sweater in the Spring 2005 issue in a pale raspberry. It turned out so nice that I made it for my daughter in a chocolate brown.

I copy the original pattern from the magazine so that I can fold it up and put it in my knitting bag; it protects the original and the magazine lasts longer.

If you find a pattern that fits and is easy to make, keep it for all eternity. Styles may change but the basic fit doesn't and some of your basic classic patterns will always be popular.

Too many knitting projects

I have been sorting through some of my in progress knitting projects and began working on a couple. One is a pair of lacy socks that take a lot of attention and the other one is an afghan pattern that I've made before so I have an easy project when the socks become too complicated and I want a break.

I am determined to finish all of the projects but some sooner than others! One of the projects that took precedence was the prayer shawls as I wanted to have several for a backlog. Also, I was trying to get some items ready for the Christmas bazaar however we aren't going to have a table until next year which was very disappointing. Hopefully, by next year I will have a nice little inventory--if I don't start too many fun projects.

One of the drawbacks of having several knitting projects in progress is remembering where I left off in the pattern and also the intricate details of each pattern. Using a Post-it for a line marker on a chart helps me keep my place and I write notes about the size on it.

Books, books and...

I have been reading the Gilbert Morris series; "The House of Winslow" books 1 and 2 (Yes even during the move when I didn't have time to blog). I love this series and plan to read all of them--there are approximately 30 in the series. Gilbert Morris is a historian and did not have his first book published until he was 57! Now he is a very prolific author with several series to his credit.

His books are very factually correct. The first one "The Honorable Imposter" is about the Mayflower and the pilgrims coming to America. The main character is fictional but several of the other characters are real. The second book is several different events in England and American history rather than just one main one.

I also read Lynn Austin's "The Daughters of Eve" and really enjoyed it and "Oceans Apart" by Karen Kingsbury. "Oceans Apart" was the story of a man's sin finding him out and how he and his family became stronger and learned the true meaning of love. It was very insightful.

I also finished the Beverly Lewis saga "Annie's People" which was good but would have been better if it had been two books instead of three. I felt she was setting up the next book in the ending of the previous so there was no clear delineation but that's just my personal view. Others told me they loved all three books.

Life goes on

Finally I am back. The move is over albeit there are still boxes to be unpacked in every room. It seems that moving always results in at least one or more loss and right now I can't find my cell phone charger. However, it could be worse--last week the cell phone itself was lost.

I have finished three of the prayer shawls I was working on. Pictures will be later as I'm having trouble posting them. All three were very easy, although the bluegreen was very time consuming as it is a tighter weave and about 5' by 3'. Tonight I will take them to the Craft ministry.

One of the results of the move is that I want to get rid of a lot. I went through all my yarn last night and I am simply tired of packing the same old boxes of the same old yarn. I think the Salvation Army would be a good place for a lot of it.

I moved from an upstairs apartment 1-bedroom apartment to the 2-bedroom right below it. One of the reasons I moved is the stairs are so steep, also, my parking space for the downstairs apartment is right outside my front door!! Life doesn't get much better than that.

Moving

The move is now in full force. I will be in my new apartment on Saturday. I have hired two men with a truck and the next door neighbor. Hopefully, it will go as smoothly as possible.

In each room I have set up an "open me first" box. My knitting is in the living room box and I just pray it doesn't get lost or buried in transit. My latest prayer shawl is working up nicely but is by far the slowest one yet. The pattern is easy but it is 3' wide by 6' long so is taking awhile.

I have been reading "Eve's Daughters" by Lynn Austen and really love this book. This is the first one of hers that I have read but it won't be the last. Her characters are so believable, she touches on WWI and WWII without losing the story line.

New student

I have been helping a lady with her knitting. She has done some knitting, has made several dishcloths but now wants to knit a vest. We picked out a beautiful grey tweed yarn and she knitted her gauge swatch. She found that her stitches were looser than recommended so went down to a smaller size needle. After she knitted several rows she dropped a couple of stitches. I recommended that she rip it out and start over. She was not very happy, but as we all know--as you knit so shall you rip!! I remember the first time I had to rip out a sweater. It was several days of fuming and fussing before I finally picked it up from the corner I had thrown it in and ripped it out. Fortunately, the second time the pattern was much clearer and I didn't have to rip it out again. When I have made knitted lace, I have ripped out several rows several times, usually because I made a mistake but occasionally a pattern is wrong. In that case, I finally had to give up on the pattern and find another.

I was making a baby bonnet from a magazine that I thought followed the standard knitting rule of finishing each row at the same point. However, the pattern was Australian and their rule of thumb (as I understand it) is just to stop at the end of the row and start the next row above it. I finally called the company and they had the designer call me. Call me a coward but I haven't had the nerve to work on that bonnet since.

 

Yarn sale

Michael's had a yarn sale and, as an appreciation for their employees, they had a once-a-year coupon special. Since I work there, I received a very nice discount on my purchases and, of course, came home with a huge bag of yarn. Moving or not, I needed that yarn and anyway how could I ignore that sale?

I have been working on a shawl using a very old pattern. In fact, the book I'm using was published in 1959. Originally the pattern was for a baby blanket/christening shawl, the center is increased from 3 stitches to 102 then decreased back down to 3 stitches before it is cast off. Since I am making it for an adult I only used the increases then cast off making the center triangular (see picture). The sides are worked separately in a feather and fan pattern then sewn together. I only have one side finished, since it is triangular rather than square, there are only two sides.

September 11

Today is September 11 and like so many people I have been thinking about the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center six years ago. There was so much pain and suffering and even for us on the West Coast it has changed our lives. One way it has changed my life is to make me appreciate my everyday life more. Another way is to realize how very important this country is to each of us and how fortunate we are to live here. The American flag is a symbol of our country and today on Kim Komando's site of the day, she had a small symbol of the flag that will fly on your desktop as you are working. The site is www.deskflag.com if anyone wants it.

I am packing for my second move this year and I am constantly amazed at the JUNK I have in my life. I am trying to sort through things but sometimes it is so much easier just to box it up and plan to deal with it later. After all, I'll be moving in about three weeks.

Prayer shawl

I am working on another prayer shawl. I finished the beige one and started a second one, it is grey, brown and white tweed. The pattern for all three is the same so it is amazing the difference in the colors alone. I think I like the tweed one the best. I want to make a red one next just for the variety. I am also ready to try a new pattern!!! I have finished three lambs and am working on the fourth. I changed to a size 9 needle (pattern called for a size 10)and think it makes a tighter more easily felted lamb.

Lambs and moving

I have been knitting felted lambs for the bazaar. They are really cute and quick to knit, however there is a lot of finishing work on them. I have found that if I finish each one completely it is easier than leaving them until I have several to finish at once although that was my first inclination.

I am moving the first of the month. I have been living in an upstair one-bedroom apartment that is very nice, it has a great view and I really like it but it is so small I have had to have a storage for the rest of my things. The apartment I am moving into is right below this one but it is a 2-bedroom and the parking space is right outside the front door. Also, the stairs to this apartment are really steep and it does get cold enough that they would be slick this winter. The new apartment has a patio so Miss Daisy can go outside.

Reflections on Ahab's wife

About two months ago I read Ahab's wife by Sena Jeter Naslund. I still can't decide if I really liked the book, there were some parts that I loved and some that made me shudder. The ending, I felt, was a letdown but the story was basically that of a woman's life and, as such, was fulfilling in that I felt I knew her personally. A friend read it and felt the same ambivalence. I hope all of Ms Naslund's books are as compelling.

I think I'm going to start a lists of the best books I have ever read. Some books stay with you and most of the ones I remember are books I loved. Louisa May Alcott's book "Eight Cousins" was one of the first that drew me in and made me part of their lives. I still have it and every now and then reread it.

Beginner Knitting

I've been thinking about the multitude of questions a beginner knitter has, everything is so new; the needle sizes, the yarn sizes and all the specialized language. Yarn over for instance, yarn over what? A needle? Another piece of yarn? Or maybe just over the hand? Just getting to the point of the physical act of knitting is an accomplishment. Then there is casting on, everyone has a preferred method, and any and all of them are fine but for a beginner they are all confusing. There are several knitting books that explain the basics but the best way is to have someone who is willing to sit down and knit beside you. My granddaughter learned at camp and I taught another granddaughter. A classroom setting is also excellent. A friend's daughter's teacher taught his class to knit. Another friend actually taught herself to knit from a book, but most people don't have the time or patience--I would hate to have to do it myself! It is so easy to become discouraged because it takes time and concentration but for most of successful knitters there is a time when they can see the result of their hard work and have that first feeling of accomplishment.

More books

I also want to read "Eden's Outcasts" by John Matteson. This is the story of Louisa May Alcott and her father. He was a social misfit, ahead of his time in some ways and sometimes just unwilling to conform. Almost all of her life, money was very scarce for Louisa May Alcott and her family. Mr. Alcott tried several careers but didn't seem to stick to any for long. After reading the reviews, I am anxious to read the book.

Another book that sounds very good is The High Road to China" by Kate Teltscher. This book takes place in the 1800s and is the story of the opening of China and Tibet. It is basically a travel book and I love travel books.

Weekend of Book Reviews

I spent a lot of time this weekend reading or watching book reviews. I love to read a blog by Rick at ricklibrarian.blogspot.com and read several good ones, namely one about a book by Bailey White and another by Roald Dahl that I want to read, he also had a link to CriticalCompendium.com which I loved. There were several books there that I want to read.

Then I watched Book Weekend on Cspan 2 and found more interesting titles. The most fascinating one, I think, will be "Half life of a Zealot" by Suwanee Hunt. Several others sound interesting so I will be reading some very good books soon.

I finished "The Orkney Scroll" by Lyn Hamilton and really enjoyed it. This is an archeological mystery series, she has a lot of historical facts in her books so they are set all over the world. This one was about the island of Orkney and its history. I have read several in this series and enjoyed all of them.

Well back to the knitting for the bazaar.

Christmas bazaar

I contacted the South Medford high school about a table for their Christmas bazaar. Last year's bazaar was cancelled and they are not sure if they will have one this year. We met last Thursday and several are working on projects for the bazaar so I will continue to look for a table in case we aren't able to have one at the church. There are several bazaars so I'm sure I will be able to get us into one IF we aren't at the church.

I am going to make felted lambs for the bazaar, they are a little more intricate but are too cute. One of the girls is making tatted crosses, tatting is too hard for me.

 

 

The new Vogue Knitting magazine is out. There are several vintage patterns in it and most of them are excellent. Vogue has very nice patterns and always has good finishing ideas. The patterns are almost always free of mistakes and well written. One of the patterns is "Enchanted Forest" by DKNY. I have knitted it twice; once as a gift and then one for me, both turned out great. It is a bulky-knit sweater with great details.

I am reading "The Goodbye Body" by Joan Hess. It is a light little read, nice for an afternoon at the pool.

Pictures at last!!

Finally here are pictures of the baby reefer sweater and the prayer shawl. The baby sweater is finished and ready to mail. The prayer shawl will go to a lady who recently lost her husband.

Today at church the youth pastor presented the workers who had gone to Canada and also a girl who had gone to India for the summer. All of them were awed and overwhelmed by what they saw, especially the girl who went to India. She talked about the poverty that she saw for the first time. She also was in an area where there were Christians and she talked about the difference they made. When we forget how fortunate we are, we are reminded by people like her who have seen poverty that doesn't exist here.

Finishing work

Today I did a lot of finishing work, boring but necessary. I finished the baby reefer sweater and hope to get a picture of it as soon as it finishes drying (I always hand wash a gift before giving it probably a holdover from my 4-H days). I also made several dish cloths and finished a birthday gift. I am working on the prayer shawl again, this time it seems to be going better--I am using the right needles!!!

We want to have a table at the church bazaar. At this time, we are third alternative however it occurred to me, here in the middle of August, that if people back out we will be responsible for filling in at the last minute, hence the sudden spurt of dishcloths. I want to make several other items; the bootees in the Debbie Bliss book for example and some larger items.

I finished Beverly Lewis book "The Preacher's Daughter". I enjoyed the history of the Amish and their lifestyle of today, however the ending was disappointing as it was obvious just a lead-in to the next book in this series. I will continue to read it however as the characters are very believable.

Now that the prayer ministry is getting under way, we have decided we need officers. We elected a secretary and treasurer, and I am now the Publicity chairman. I think it's a very good idea to have officers, people who are accountable and will have the final say. We decided against having a president and vice president as we felt they weren't necessary. I wasn't able to attend the meeting don't know who the other officers are.

The continuing saga of the baby sweater...it is now almost done. All the knitting is finished and tonight I am going to sew the sleeves in.

Rrriped prayer shawl

Last night I realized the prayer shawl wasn't as big as I thought it should be and the beginning (the point of the triangle) bowed up. I reread the instructions and realized the size 11 needles that I thought were going to be fine--weren't. The pattern called for a size 13. I spent the rest of the evening ripping it out, all 7 ounces of Lion's Brand Homespun. Tonight, yes you guessed it, I will finish the baby sweater before I re-start the shawl.

As we all know, always check your gauge and use the RIGHT SIZE needles. Fortunately, this error on my part is easily corrected by just ripping out, however on a more difficult pattern with several colors it would have been a nightmare.

Knitting show

I love to watch "Knitty Gritty" on DIY network. Vickie Howell is charming and her show is very informative. She has had some interesting guests with some new and unusual projects. I loved the lingerie show, there was so much work for such little garments!! Also, she shows how to do various things (casting on, carrying the thread across behind another color, etc.) in a simple yet clear manner. She now has a book out that is very clear and concise. She has knitters on the show and usually has at least one that is a beginner.

I finished Margaret Coel's "Eye of the Wolf". It was very good. Now I am reading "The Preacher's Daughter" by Beverly Lewis.

Long, long week

This has been a very trying week. On Monday, my clutch went out on my car and it was very expensive to replace plus I was without a car for two days. Fortunately, the repair place isn't very far from here so they were able to take me to work, bring me home and then pick me up the next day. I can't believe how dependent I am on a car, I guess that's the way cowboys used to feel about their favorite horses.

Today I attended the funeral of a good friend. He was a retired pastor and everything we want a pastor to be. His wife, too, is a very good person and I feel blessed to count them as friends.

I finished reading Bruce Alexander's book: The Color of Death. It was very good but very long. I felt as if I was lost in a maze of people and personalities, he had way too many characters and I had a difficult time keeping them straight. I did like his subject and felt I learned a lot about slavery in the British Empire in the 1800s.

I just started Margaret Coel's book: Eye of the Wolf and I love it. I always love her mysteries and have read several. They are stories of a priest on an Arapahoe-Shoshone reservation in Arizona. They are always good reading, people are believable. In fact, a couple of times after a book is through, I have caught myself wondering if on of the characters is all right!! I have also noticed that almost always the books are set in winter, I find that interesting and wonder if the author is trying to set the mood for the murder.

I started a shawl for the prayer shawl ministry last night. Yes, I know I still have to sew the second reefer baby sweater together and finish it but sometimes just starting a new project makes it easy to face the excruciatingly boring job of finishing. I know people who are so disciplined they won't start a new project until the old one is finished and mailed or given away. I never could do that. A new project sings its siren song to me and I always succumb. Such is life. I will finish the baby sweater, I will finish the socks and I will finish the vest, but in the meantime the shawl and I were meant for each other.

I gave the first reefer baby jacket as a shower gift today. I hope they like it. I didn't stay for the shower as I need to run errands, etc. My mother and her next door neighbors have been here for a few days. Her neighbor, Cal, has been having heart problems so they did an angiogram and discovered that although there is blockage, it is to his arm and not considered serious. This is the third specialist he's seen, the first two thought the blockage was in the carotid artery and were advising surgery. This specialist did an angiogram and discovered that the blockage was not that severe. He has been so worried that he has been having anxiety attacks and has been in the emergency room several times. Now he is going to see a neurologist to discover why he is having dizzy spells but otherwise the doctor says he is fine. Of course, the dizzy spells could be from a number of different sources so he is anxious to solve that problem too. Then they will be able to treat the anxiety as a separate issue. Isn't the mind a wonderful thing?

I have been reading The Color of Death by Bruce Alexander. It is very well written and has a lot of detail. It takes place in London in the mid 1800s. Interestingly, the black population of that city are a main feature. Slavery was outlawed in England long before it was in the United States and this is one of the main themes of the book. The protagonist is a blind magistrate. There are lots of details of the problems he has and the ways he circumvents them, of course it helps that he is well to do and lives in a house with several servants. However, he also has a ward he has taken in off the street and the narrator also lives there and is studying law under him. So far it is a delightful story (if a murder mystery can be considered delightful) and I am really enjoying it.

I have a miniature dachshund named Miss Daisy. She is very friendly, loves people, other dogs and would like to love cats but they think she's too hyper. I took her to a local pet store where we bought her a bow for her collar. While we were checking out, two people were standing behind us in line and Miss Daisy, friendly huckster that she is, bounced up to them expecting petting and adoration. Instead, both of them stood like zombies. Finally, the girl cautiously petted MD, she then explained to me that dachshunds had been so inbred they have become aggressive, surly and tend to bite. Obviously, Miss Daisy and I have never read that evaluation and, hopefully, Miss Daisy's begging for attention showed her another side to the dachshund personality.

Sadly, there are a lot of dogs who have problems and some breeds have gained a bad reputation. I know if I see a dog that weighs over 120 pounds, I back off until I am sure it is friendly so I understand that woman's reaction to a dog she was afraid might attack. Caution is always best when it comes to a strange dog especially when it is out of its element. Hopefully, after meeting Miss Daisy and her zany antics, this lady will be willing to give the next dachshund a more friendly greeting.

I think the hardest lesson for a beginning knitter is ripping out. I know there have been times when I have had to put aside a sweater or afghan I was working on because I was going to have to rip it out, maybe not all the way but enough that I couldn't face it at that time. Fortunately for me and my sanity, I always have several items on needles or something else ready to start. I think the time I had to rip out a man's cardigan sweater was the worst. It had an elaborate pattern and as I was ready to sew the pieces together, I realized I had made the back 2 inches longer than the fronts. Since it was a gift, I couldn't shunt it to the back of my closet for a couple of months but had to rip out the fronts and redo them immediately. I never made that sweater again.

One of my students refused to rip out and cast on over when she ran out of yarn, instead she joined a second ball and continued. Fortunately, the yarn was knobby and the knot was hidden in the pattern. However the next time she cast on she pulled out plenty of yarn.

Knitting at the County Fair

Today I did a knitting demonstration at the county fair. They had a very nice demo area set up, a tatter was demonstrating his craft and a leather crafter was chiseling leather. There were some teenagers interested in learning to knit so I showed them how to cast on and knit. They were thrilled they caught on so easily and are interested in lessons. I find it totally satisfying to teach someone to use two needles and yarn to make something they can wear or give as a gift.

I am working on a second baby reefer jacket but only brought the size five needles so had plenty of time to people watch after I finished the ribbing. I actually did the ribbing for the back and then pulled out the other end of the ball of yarn and knitted the ribbing for one of the fronts. Fortunately I was using my circular needles so had plenty of room for both pieces of ribbing.

It was cooler today than it usually is during fair week, last year it was up in the low 100s, today it was only 85 degrees. I talked to the tatter and learned a few more techniques, tatting is almost a lost art and when I have time I want to do it more, also beading, painting, scrapbooking, the list is endless but for now I'll stick with my first love, knitting.

Judging at the county fair

For the past two years, I have judged the fiber arts at the county fair. It is great to see the work that is being done and the interest in these crafts. This year's Grand Champion was a doily tatted by a man here in town. He is very talented, teaches classes and gives demonstrations around the valley. All of the entries were well knitted and there was a good variety. There were items knitted by students 7 to 9 years old and articles knitted by an 87-year-old woman.

I finished the Debbie Bliss baby reefer jacket for my niece's baby and hope to have a picture of it to show here. It wasn't very hard, it just seems to take me forever to sew a knitted garment together. I am looking for a pattern for a sweater that has no seams!! I finally found an afghan pattern that is knit from beginning to end with no sewing together, of course, it is so heavy that I can only work on it in the winter.

I am reading a Marcia Muller novel, Cape Perdido. I really like it and admire her style. The story is very believable, there are several story lines and she is a nice job of keeping them all going.

Knitting and attention deficit children

I work part time as a cashier at a crafts store. A few days ago, a woman was buying a basketful of yarn, when I asked her (as I always do since I am also the knitting instructor) what she was making, she explained that she works with young people and children that have been abused, have attention deficit syndrome or other emotional problems. She discovered that many of them respond favorably to knitting as an emotional outlet. She was buying wool yarn for them to knit then they felt it into bags. She says it prevents them from doing serious harm as in cutting themselves. Shetold me that when the students begin to feel emotionally stressed, she hands them needles and thread. The concentrating on the knitting soothes them and seems to work especially well with the boys.

Since I was working, I couldn't talk to her more but am going to look into this. I have talked to several people who have told me that knitting has a calming effect on them but her experience is so much more. I have talked to students in elementary schools who have teachers that taught knitting in the classroom. The first student told me her teacher (a man) taught the class to knit and they knitted during their recesses. This 10-year-old pursued her knitting and even took classes at a nearby yarn shop. She then proceeded to teach her mother how to knit. Two more converts!!

In the beginning

This is going to be a knitting blog with a little chatting and discussion of a few books thrown in for good measure. I started knitting in 4-H (head, heart, health and hands) when I was 12 and gradually grew to love it. Originally, I thought the 4-ply cap and scarf were dorky, nothing I would ever wear or give. Oh please!! However, my first project after finishing the required ones was a baby sweater with a pattern and I was hooked after that. I also love to read and chat, hence the title of this blog.


I am involved in a church ministry where we knit and crochet prayer shawls for members of the church that we feel will be uplifted by this gift. As we get going, I hope to post pictures of the members of our group and hopefully of the shawls and other projects they are doing.





I work part-time at a crafts store and one of our customers told me about