Antarctica or it's Time to Turn on the Heat and Start Wearing Handknits

By nature, I am a cold blooded creature.  Most of the time this isn't a problem since I live in Virginia.  It's swealteringly hot here during the summer.  Spring and fall tend to be very mild and there are only a few cold months.  After spending a week in a tropical paradise where it didn't get below 70 degrees, the weather here seems rather chilly.  When I got up this morning it was THIRTY SIX degrees.  Quite frankly, this is unacceptable.  It means that car windshields need to be scraped and it's not even November! I'm sitting here wearing fingerless gloves while trying to type and hoping that the feeling in my cold to the bone fingers returns soon. I have given in and turned the heat on but only to 68.  It is far too early to have to do this.  I think we are going to be in for a very cold winter and I'm hoping it brings lot's of snow.  As soon as I can adjust to the sudden drop in temperature, I will be a much happier camper.

One thing is for sure, hand knits will keep you warm!  I tend to pile them on in layers in the colder months.  Ok, who am I kidding?  I wear my shawls all year long!  Speaking of shawls, Iridill my new design is shawl and shawlette pattern in worsted or fingering weight yarn.  It's currently being test knitted and should be ready for release by the end of November.  I have the worsted weight one (on the right in the photo) on right now and it's really helping to keep the chill off my neck and shoulders.  It's a super simple knit and perfect for that variegated skein of yarn that's been hanging out in your stash!

The shawlette (right) is in Miss Babs Yummy in Maryland 2013 and the shawl (left) is in Miss Babs Yowza in Perfectly Wreckless.

  
I also have a new sock design that will be coming out at the beginning of November, Frost Bite. Shown here in Socks That Rock Lightweight in the Boobie colorway.  I couldn't resist this colorway! Not only is it beautiful, but the name cracked me up.

I just finished reading Doctor Sleep by Stephen King.  If you are looking for a book that will scare the heck out of you, give you nightmares and you still won't be able to put it down - this is it.  I LOVED it!  Now that The Walking Dead is back on tv my week winds up being complete on Sunday nights.

Vacation

Aside from planning, the hardest thing about taking a vacation is coming home and getting back to reality.  This is the first vacation that Andy and I have taken together that was more than a few days and had very little contact with the outside world.  The week went by a little too quickly and looking back it was like being in an alternate reality.  Flying down was relatively easy.  In fact, the drive to the airport took longer than the flight itself.  Once we collected our bags the driver took us to the resort and we didn't get into another car until it was time to head home on Saturday. We were shocked to hear that the Government was still shut down when we came home.

The resort we stayed at had a tropical island feel and even had a small sandy man made beach.  Part of the pool was designed to look like a beach and even had sand in one area.  We got up early every day and headed over to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure and then came back tor a relaxing afternoon swim.  We would sit and float on pool noodles and enjoy some much needed down time together.  In the evenings we would either head back over to the parks or have dinner at CityWalk.  A few of the restaurants were closed for private parties so we wound up eating at Bubba Gumps three times.  The food was great there and they had the best service of any of the restaurants that we ate at.  We were able to find some healthier choices on their menu too which can be hard while traveling. 

Thursday evening we went to Universals Halloween Horror Nights (HHN).  It was so scary and so fantastic and the best part of the vacation.  We stayed in the park and had dinner at Finegans Pub while HHN was set up.  They kept us in a special area and we were able to go in to HHN thirty minutes before it was opened to the public.  The first house we went in was themed after An American Werewolf in London and it was FANTASTIC!  There were eight houses total, which doesn't seem like a lot, but when you are being scared shitless to death it was just the right number.  My favorite one was The Walking Dead.  The front desk clerk at the resort told us that some of the original props from the series were used in it and that someone from the Walking Dead special effects helped to design the make up and costumes.  There were zombies walking all over the park through out the evening.  They would sneak up on you and I have to say there was a lot of screaming going on!  I'm pretty sure this is actual car that was used in The Walking Dead.

 Dale's camper.

We also got to see a tribute to one of my all time favorite movies... The Rocky Horror Picture Show!  Woot!  Andy and I got up and did the Time Warp and it was just so much fun.  The actors were fabulous and very authentic. 

The scariest thing of all was that Andy bribed managed to convince me to go on a roller coaster.  There is a picture of us riding on it that we purchased.  I'm not posting it here or anywhere else publicly.  I'm white as a sheet and the look on my face would be good to use for a model of what to look like if you are auditioning for a role in a horror movie.  I went on it twice more after that. Heh.

We wound up having so much fun that I didn't even have time to knit.  I did do a little bit while we were waiting to board the plane and go home and when I wasn't passed out from shear exhaustion on the flight I managed a few rows on a second Camberwell. 

While there were no yarn shops to be found on site, we did find a window display with yarn on one of the side streets at Universal.  Yarn.  It's everywhere!

I'm heading outside in a bit to take pictures of a new design that will be coming out in December.  It's a shawl in Miss Babs Yowza and shawlette in Miss Babs Yummy.  I'll have pictures to post next time.  I always wonder what our neighbors think when they see me hauling the mannequins around outside. 

Camberwell

Butterflies have been a source of enjoyment for me since I was a child.  I loved to see them flying around my Grandmothers rock garden in the summer time.  Many species of butterflies migrate to warmer climates in the fall.  Their flight path is incredibly long and I find it amazing that a creature so small can travel so far.  Last fall when Andy and I were fishing we got to experience seeing Monarch Butterflies on their path to Mexico. It was incredible to see the huge number of them all flying in the same direction. I've kept an eye out this fall, but so far haven't spotted any.

When I started the design for the Camberwell Collection, my inspiration was the Camberwell Beauty.

I love the brown, blue and golden color of it's wings and almost chevron like edging. The contrast between the colors is so striking.

I think I've come pretty close with the design and colors.  The yarn is Shalimar Breathless in Butterscotch, Neptune and Bark.  The cowl is long enough so that you could wrap it twice around your neck on those really chilly winter days that are right around the corner.  The mitts come in two sizes and knit up in no time.  This is a really fantastic stash busting project.  My test knitters all did stash diving to make theirs!  I have a few friends who live in colder climates who tease me about my fingerless mitts. While they may not be the ideal thing for subzero weather, they are perfect for keeping the chill out here in Virginia and work great layered over full fingered gloves on cold days.  If you work in a chilly office or live with someone who tends to be more conservative with the heat than you would like, fingerless gloves are great to wear inside as well.

The Camberwell Collection includes the cowl and mitt pattern on Ravelry for $8.50.  They can also be purchased separately in my Raverly Pattern Shop.

A HUGE thank you goes to the best group of test knitters: Beth, Margi, Tina, Sherry,  Pam, and Isabelle.  They knitted like the wind to get their projects done on time and had great feedback for me as well.  Tina blogged about the Camberwell Collection and has a pattern giveaway there.  The drawing for a copy of the Camberwell Collection is on October 11, so be sure to leave a comment on Tina's blog before then!

A couple of months ago, I had mentioned the KAL that Wendi from Indieway Yarns was hosting with my Ferry Beach and Wandering Wildflower patterns.  The KAL has wound down and it was so much fun!  I had a great time getting to know all the fun gals in the group and had a chance to knit another pair of Ferry Beach socks in Wendi's First String Sock Yarn.  My all time favorite thing from the KAL is this picture!

 

Photo by: Keith Spiro

Ferry Beach socks AT FERRY BEACH!  How cool is that?  Adrienne, aka killerb on Ravlery, and her husband Keith were on vacation and just happened to stop and take a picture of Adrienne and her socks at Ferry Beach State Park.

I won't be blogging next week because Andy and I are taking a much needed vacation.  The biggest worry is what to bring to knit on.  My current WIP is a shawl design that should be coming off the needles tonight.  I may make another Frost in Bloom.  It's a super easy to knit pattern and makes a great gift.  The holiday gift giving season is nearly here and that might put me ahead for once. 

The Outer Limits

The Outer Limits has been released and is now available on Ravelry!  Shalimar Yarns will have kit's to make The Outer Limits at the Shenandoah Valley Fiber Festival this weekend.  They will also be carrying the Oktoberfest, Ribbon Street Cowl and Frost in Bloom patterns along with the yarn's to make them. If you are in the area, be sure to stop by the booth.  Andy and I will be there and are really looking forward to meeting you.

 

The Outer Limits is a super fun knit and makes a great gift. Knit it in your school colors, favorite team colors or to coordinate with your winter coat. The pattern is addictive so you may find that you have knit a whole bunch of them and have your holiday knitting done ahead of time!

The pattern requires 210 yards of each color of Breathless. One skein of Breathless in each color will make two hats. You could make them identical, or reverse the colors on the second hat.

Laurie was so kind to test knit this pattern for me.  This is her adorable grand daughter who I think may have a future in modeling!

 My morning was full of surprises including an email from John Warley asking if he could write about me on his blog.  If you have a moment hop on over to his blog and check it out. I just finished his book, Bethesda's Child.  Not only is it a great read, but it has a surprise ending which I really enjoyed. I really think the blog post he wrote is to shame me into starting his socks and sending them to him.  There is nothing like calling a knitter out in public!

Oktoberfest

First, I have to say how very wonderful my husband is.  The day I wrote the Dance of Spider Lunacy post he came home, donned a hat and went on a spider hunt.  I followed him around (he is much taller than me and I figured if he went first he had more of a chance of the spider jumping on him) while he searched under the eaves on top of the pergola and through the bushes.  I knew the chance of finding the offending spider was very slim and we were just about to give up when we came across him.  He was curled up on the side of one of the beams that goes across the top of the pergola.  Let's just say that he had an untimely demise and will no longer be scaring the crap out of me building his gigantic webs of horror on our deck.  The patio is now safe and hopefully spider free!

We were happy as clams (are they really happy?) and thought we were spider free.  Then we went to Busch Gardens for Hallowscream.  We love to go through the haunted houses, they really are so much fun.  What was not as much fun was having to walk through the spider bridge of horror.  I kept wondering if the was some sort of bad karma that comes along with eradicating a spider from you patio.  As large as these were, at least they didn't move.  They were creepy non the less.

Oktoberfest is now available in my Ravelry Pattern Shop.  It's a fun and very easy knit.  The stitch pattern is easy to remember which makes it a great take a long project. 

"Cool crisp days, falling leaves, fresh apples, and heading out to our local Oktoberfest are just a few things that make Fall my favorite time of year.

The Oktoberfest Cowl is the perfect accessory to wear to while apple picking and at fall festivals like Oktoberfest.  When the sun goes down and the air cools off, wrap it twice around your neck for extra warmth.  A luxury yarn like Shalimar Breathless DK will be extra soft around your neck and feel like a cozy hug!"

Margie, Diane, Holly, Robyn, Peggy and Linda did a fantastic job test knitting.  They had wonderful feedback which I really appreciate.  Be sure to check out their Oktoberfest projects on Ravelry.

The Dance of Spider Lunacy

There is nothing I find more terrifying than a spider.  I love scary movies and can watch them by myself in the dark.  Want to go through a haunted house?  No problem, I'll go and will even go through them ahead of you if you don't like to go first.  Put a tiny eight legged monster within ten feet of me and I turn into a shrieking lunatic.  The larger the spider, the louder I scream.  So the other morning when I went outside and nearly walked into a web that was more than two feet across I completely panicked.  And when the spider that made the web scuttled onto it with it's creepy legs and bounded around in a threatening manner I nearly lost my shit had a hard time keeping it together.  I slammed the sliding door (this is possible, who knew?!) grabbed a broom and a can of wasp killer.  If it kills wasps, it should be good for other bugs, right?  The can also guaranteed to shoot from as far away as twenty feet.  Broom in my left hand and wasp killer in my right, I went onto the deck and fired away.  First lesson that should be learned, wasp killer does not work on spiders.  The second is when you spray an insect that can shoot a web out of it's behind it's not necessarily the best way to go.  I'm spraying away and the spider starts swinging back and forth on a new web from it's behind and it's getting closer and closer to me.  I spray more and more wasp spray now wishing that I had gone with my original idea of a can of hair spray and a lighter.  I am now trapped in a corner of the deck while the spider from hell is swaying closer and closer.  The can of wasp spray is nearly empty and there is a puddle of it under where the spiderweb is. When the spray runs out, the spider lands on the deck and starts creeping around.  I scream like a little girl and start beating the heck out of it with the broom.  I'm swearing and screaming and beating at something that can't be seen from a distance.  So of course one of the neighbors was outside and saw the Dance of Spider Lunacy.  Of course they saw because what I haven't mentioned was that I was also in my pajamas.  It doesn't get much better than this.

Now the spider has had an entire can of wasp spray on it and is now being beaten to death with a broom.  What is the worst possible thing that could happen and go wrong here?  Yes, that's right the spider got away.  He managed to scuttle between the deck boards and was then no where to be found.  I looked all over.  Andy looked when he came home.  We figured that the spider must have died and all would be well.  That would be the logical thing to think and obviously the best case scenario.  As luck would have it, this morning I went out to take a few pictures of The Outer Limits hat before I send one of them off to Kyle.  Not only is there a new web the size of Manhattan on the lilac bush, but now there is an even bigger one on top of the pergola.  It's so large that part of it is connected to the birch tree growing next to the pergola.  The spider was in it and I swear he was laughing at me.  I doubt they make more than one web so I think he must have invited his friends and now there is an entire colony of them living out there.  I am sure they are conspiring to attack us while we sit on the new patio in the dark.  Little do they know that tonight when Andy comes home, it's going to be our Take Back The Patio night.  I'm heading to Home Depot for some spider spray in a little while.  

 I kept feeling like they might be crawling on me or plotting revenge, but I was able to take a few pictures of The Outer Limits without being attacked by the spider. The one's on the left and right are in Breathless Blue Raspberry and Ore.  The one in the middle is Breathless Love Potion and Ore. It's a really fun pattern and one skein of each color can make two hats.  Laurie has been test knitting the pattern and should have a picture to share soon.

 

Finish Line

"There is nothing like the feeling you get when crossing a Finish Line. Whether you cross first, last, or somewhere in between it is unlike anything else and gives us a wonderful feeling of accomplishment."  

I'm so pleased to announce that Finish Line has been released and is now available in my Ravely Shop for an introductory price of $4.50 until September 14th.

After I had writers block on the name for this pattern, Andy came to the rescue with Finish Line.  It's the perfect name for this fun to knit sock.  He came up with it right after we finished the patio which was a major finish line for us to cross. It had taken me a while to come up with the original name of Walk The Line and as soon as the test knit went out another pattern was released with that name.  Lydia suggested Hold The Line, which I loved, but had also been used. 

The Finish Line socks are the perfect sock for first time sock knitters and seasoned knitters alike. This unisex pattern is quick to learn and easy to knit making it a great take a long project. The completed socks sure to please your favorite guy or girl on your knitting gift list.

Finish Line written as a cuff down sock, but can easily be modified for knitting toe up. Instructions are given for using four double pointed needles, but can be converted for using the magic loop method, two circular needles, or your preferred sock knitting method.

The Test Knitters all did a fantastic job and you can see their projects on their Ravlery project pages. Lydia, Jen, Karen, Cathy, Andi and Steph, thank you so very much for all of your help! This was Steph's very first time knitting a sock and she did a wonderful job!

Have I mentioned that the patio is finished?  I'm so excited that we can finally sit out on it and relax, I can't even tell you!

I got the idea for putting large stones around the fire pit from Tierney's blog.   She has amazing ideas and if you have a chance, be sure to take a peek at her blog.  I'm hoping to find a few more stones to add to it when we are fishing.

Last night we light the tiki torches and started a fire in the fire pit. We put our feet up and had a chance to relax and have some time together enjoying the cool evening air.  Fall will be here soon and I can't wait to be able to wear hand knits and sit by the fire with a nice cup of cocoa. 

PS The den/spare room is finished too!