Catching Up

The last few weeks that lead up to Maryland Sheep & Wool always have me trying to keep up with everything that needs to be done.  There is a lot of behind the scenes work for Shalimar that gets done ahead of time, then getting everything here at home ready to go is a whole nuther issue.  Our dog is getting older and requires medication three times a day now.  Plus we have a house rabbit.  We have a wonderful pet sitter who comes and stays here.  I don't know what we would do without her!  This year she rearranged her annual camping trip to take care of our critters.  Thank you Lea, you rock!

There are two secret projects that Ive been working on and Beth has test knitted.  One of them will be released sometime next month.  The other one won't be until later in the year.  It's all very exciting and rather 007ish.  So while I can't really talk about what Ive been designing, I can talk about what we have been up to and what Ive been knitting for fun.

Last weekend we went fishing on Sunday.  It was freezing cold and very windy.  It was so cold that my fingers went numb.  I know your thinking, why would you go fishing when it's nice and warm at the house and there are things to knit?  I enjoy fishing and especially getting to spend time with Andy.  He's a trooper and comes to all my fiber and knitting things and is wonderfully supportive.  So Im not going to complain about nearly freezing to death being a little chilly.  Plus for the second weekend in a row, I outfished him.  Yes that's right, I outfished Fishing Yoda.  I have a feeling that may change this weekend, but for now I am the 2013 Fishing Champion of our house.  I need to be careful with that though.  I lost a serious bet to Andy a few years ago and wound up making him a pie all from scratch.

Ive been knitting away on my Audrey in Unst.  Love the pattern and the fit.  The yarn is Breathless DK in Copper Pennies and I can't say enough about how much I'm enjoying knitting with it.  Im hoping to have it done in the next day or so.  All that is left is the neck band and button bands. 



Ive also been working on the everlasting hexipuff project.  Earlier this year Kyle Kunnecke was kind enough to share the hexi's he made with me.  They are the cute ones at the top in gray, turquoise and lime.  I love them and someday before the end of time the quilt will finally be done.  I have 219 of them total.  384 of them will make a small quilt.  It's good to know that it's halfway done.  We have a few road trips planned this year and I plan to work on the hexis then. 





My very good friend Stephanie and her family recently adopted a Doberman from a rescue after their older Dobie passed away.  This guys name is Zeus and he's a whole bunch of fun in a giant puppy body.

 
They had only had him a short time and had to rush him in for emergency stomach surgery.  Something they hadn't been prepared for, and it was astronomically expensive.  Anyone that has pet's knows that vet bills can be expensive, but this vet bill was over and beyond expensive.

The Doberman Rescue is helping out by having a raffle this weekend.  If you are in the area and can help out by purchasing a ticket here they will be at:

DAR&E Spring BBQ

Bennett Cerf Park

544 Manchester Rd

Westminster, Md

April 27, 2013

noon until 4 pm

There are some great things that people have donated for the raffle including yarn and there is a gift certificate to my pattern shop as well. 

Spring Fever

It's one of those times of year when it's still a little too cold to do a whole lot outside and we have been inside so much that Andy and I both have a bit of cabin fever.  It's better than having Bieber Fever (right Shannon?), but I'm not sure how much better it is.  Andy can't wait to get out on the boat and do some fishing.  The past few weekends we have cruised though a few tackle shops to check out the latest lures and new gear.  I enjoy fishing too, it's really nice going out on the boat on a warm day and spending time together.  It's even better when I catch more fish than Andy, but that doesn't happen very often.  Hopefully we won't have to wait too much longer to get out there.

While Andy keeps tabs on the weather and is getting his fishing gear ready, Ive been counting down the days until Maryland Sheep and Wool (MDSW).  As of today there are 35 days left until we head to Maryland.  A week or so ago I realized that I hadn't had a chance to use all of the yarns that I came home with from last year.  I wound up casting on for several project with reckless abandon!  It's hard for me to go shopping for new yarn when I know there is perfectly good yarn sitting in my stash.  Ok, who is laughing at me now?  I know, I know, yarn in a knitter stash has never stopped her or him from buying more!

 Frost in Bloom in Breathless Love Potion for the Shalimar Yarns Knitters Gone Wild KAL on Ravelry.  This colorway is so much fun!  If you haven't had a chance to check out the KAL, there are some great prizes being given away!  Yes, those are flowers and it does look like spring.  It's really not though.  They were completely covered with snow over the weekend.  It's some kind of early April Fool's joke from Mother Nature.

Kristi had given me the most beautiful yarn, Breathless DK in Copper Pennies for a sweater.  The first one I cast on for was a beautiful pattern and I knitted the sleeves and about 8" of the body before I realized that it just wasn't going to fit my body type not matter what I did.  I wound up using that wonderful ball winder from the last post to help me frog the entire thing.  I do have to say that it was much less painful to do it this way and faster too.  One way to find out how a yarn is going to behave over time is to frog it.  I have to say, Breathless DK held up like a champ.  I cast on for Audrey in Unst and I really think it's going to be a lovely sweater for me. 

Im about 14 rows away from dividing the fronts from the back.  Since it was going so well, I also cast on for Ardelise in Verdant Gryphon Bugga Seaside Dragonlet.

My new Candy Necklace pattern is finished and is being test knitted. Beth is already done with hers, and Debbie and Linda are working on theirs. My fingers are crossed that it's nice enough out this weekend for a photo shoot.  I took a quick picture the other day on the mannequin:

Speaking of test knitters, Tierney has a beautiful picture of her Mirrored Step socks on her blog.

On Stranger Tides is in the final portion of test knitting.  Look for a release in the next week or so.

I also have a secret project on the needles.  I'm so excited about it, I'm just about to burst!  It won't be released until May but I will be dropping little hints here and there. 

Tonight I'll be casting on for Anne Hanson's new Fringetree Shawl pattern from the Bare Naked Knit's club.  I have some lovely baby kid mohair yarn that I spun a few years ago that should work perfectly.