It’s a Boy or a Girl! Therefore, Let It Be Yellow

Right before Christmas I shopped for yarn in order to make my daughter and her husband scarves.  I’m a sucker for richly colored and textured yarns.  I’m a weaver, which explains it.  Since I no longer weave as my livelihood I occasionally am drawn to creatively express through knitting.  There was a huge bin of those discontinued yarns and colors on sale that I couldn’t resist.

There are no babies that I see in my future or anyone that I know for that matter, but still I picked up some yellow, which I thought would be perfect for a baby blanket.  That is what I’m attempting now.  I started it this week.  Perhaps it will be finished in another couple of weeks.  As Random Acts of Kindness Day was just recently celebrated, this is my random act of kindness act.  The finished product will go to whomever synchronicity or divine will dictates.  So, I hope some pregnant mother or new mother with babe in arms isn’t alarmed when I slip the finished blanket from my knitting needles and say, “Here, for you.”

On the other hand, there is always the possibility that my daughter might say, “Guess what, mom!”  If this should happen,  this will double as my random kindness piece and practice piece for many baby-knitting projects yet to come.

The pattern is really easy.  I found it here:  http://www.debbiemacomber.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=nnp&pageID=194

I also found this great opportunity, which might be of interest to any students who knit or crochet.  It was found on this site:  http://www.indigirl.com/blog/2011/02/beans-for-brains/

Five $3,000 scholarships are now available to hardworking students who can knit or crochet! Jimmy Beans Wool has teamed up with many people in the fiber arts industry to provide the Beans For Brains Scholarship for deserving knitters and crocheters! This merit-based award is for students who will be attending an accredited institution in the Fall of 2011.

You can get more information and an application by visiting the Beans For Brains Scholarship page.

Start applying today, as the deadline for submissions is April 1st! Not attending college but know someone who is or will be? Share the Beans For Brains Scholarship via Ravelry or print out a flyer for your LYS (flyers available here)! Spread the word and help the next generation of fiber artists fund their dreams of higher education!

You can also find more information about the program here: Jimmy Beans Wool.

I’m thankful my husband supports my knitting habit.

Supporting My Habit

My husband supports my habit, and I’m thankful for that.  On Friday I went into the hobby store for yarn, just one skein, for just one knitting project.  However, the on sale bin was newly loaded with discontinued yarn, which I couldn’t resist.

My thought process was all the knitting that would take place on those cold winter days.  I didn’t have to wait long, as the snow and freezing temperatures began on Sunday night.

I didn’t wait until I got home.  I spent a good portion of the morning at Starbucks working on those handmade Christmas presents.

I’m learning cable and completed the green scarf for my son-in-law.  I also bought some bamboo knitting needles, which I discovered I love.  Although my knitting career has spanned forty-seven years, I’m still just a beginner.  I think it was fate that I was given a whole set of knitting needles complete with case when I was ten.  An experienced knitter in our town died, and for some reason I was given her tapestry case of needles.  I always was attracted to yarn, and the year before my aunt had tried to teach me to crochet.  I both knitted and crocheted simple projects throughout the years, making hats for everyone while in college.  I eventually turned to weaving which became a business.  Now, I’m back to knitting, but as a hobby.

The Skinny on Knitting

I’m hoping skinny is a side effect of this past couple of weeks of marathon knitting.  On Friday I sent a cabled red scarf to my daughter for her to wear during the Christmas season.  http://athursdayschild.wordpress.com/2010/12/02/knitting-a-cable-scarf/ Shortly thereafter, I began a green one for her husband.

I’ve also recently been counting calories using an Iphone application called losit.  You certainly can’t snack very well, or at least I can’t and still keep track of what I’m doing, while knitting.  That helped cut down on calories consumed.  Also, I thought there is some movement involved.  Out of curiosity I looked up the average number of calories burned while knitting.  A web source said 102 per hour.  Hmmm, four hours of knitting equaled almost one hour on the elliptical machine.  I did take a break from knitting today to burn more calories on the elliptical.

Hopefully I will get this new scarf sent off before the week is over.  I hope to post a picture of the finished result along with the pattern (altered somewhat from the first).  And, today I’m thankful I’m getting the hang of the cable stitch.  Perhaps next year, we’ll be talking socks?

Thankful to be Snug As a Bug on This Cold Winter Day

Today was our first snow-covered day.  Temperatures are currently in the twenties and dropping into the teens.

We’ve been having problems with our wood-burning stove.  It has been smoking.  Today my husband took on the job of chimney sweep and now it’s working fine.  I’m so thankful for that.  We have a toasty house.  It has been a good day to knit and eat Indian food, which we had both for breakfast and for dinner.  Both had an ample supply of cumin.  I’ve been reading about the health benefits: http://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/seed-and-nut/health-benefits-of-cumin.html

For breakfast, although good anytime:

 

Upma Sooji for Two      

1/2 tsp mustard seed
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp salt
juice of i/2 lemon
½ cup Cream of Wheat
1/2 cup peas or mixed veggies
20 peanuts or cashews
2 cups water
1 Tbsp oil (I use safflower)

In pot cook peas or veggies in two cups water.

Warm up oil in skillet with a lid handy. When oil is hot quickly add mustard seeds and cumin stirring quickly and covering. The mustard seeds will pop all over the place. Turn heat down to medium after mustard seeds have finished popping and add nuts. After nuts have begun to brown add the cream of wheat and stir for 2-3 minutes. It will turn a little darker.

Slowly add the peas and water, stirring. Add salt, still stirring and lemon juice. It’s ready. Garnish with cilantro.

Cilantro also has great health benefits:  http://www.globalhealingcenter.com/cilantro.html

And now we’re ready for some popcorn and a movie.  My husband’s a master popcorn maker…. none of that microwave stuff.

 

Knitting a Cable Scarf

For the last three days I’ve been consumed with knitting.  It’s going to be a homemade Christmas for the most part.  I’m really on a beginner level in knitting but have wanted to do cable.  I found an easy pattern – http://www.squidoo.com/cable_knit_scarf.  I’m thankful for that.  I at first tried a more complicated one but was in trouble after the first two rows.

This is for my daughter, and I’m shipping it off tomorrow so she can wear it during the holiday season.  Then I will attempt one, possibly green, for my son-in-law.  I’ll be looking for yarn tomorrow.

They were here for Thanksgiving and for some reason started talking about knitting.  He mentioned hand knitted socks.  Maybe with practice next year.  For now it needs to be straight flat pieces.

While making it I watched back-to-back episodes of the remake of Dark Shadows.  I was particularly paying attention to the sweaters the cast was wearing.  The tastes of the wardrobe person were like my own.  Perhaps one day I might advance to sweaters.

At any rate I’m happy with how this one turned out and thankful I got it completed in a timely manner.