A Sojourn Into Broomstick Lace

Yesterday, I met with my crochet guru - she taught a one-time class on Intro to Broom Lace and Crocheting with Beads. It was a one-afternoon only class, so we didn't go into a lot of depth, but it was fascinating enough that she has me intrigued about using this technique in my Freeform work.

What is broomstick lace? From what I understand, it's not a separate type of crochet, but rather, it's a technique in crochet that can be very useful in doing openwork lace-like effects using both a crochet hook and a HUGE knitting needle (size 35 or 50). At one time, people used broomsticks to hold the loops, and thus the term "broomstick lace." But I borrowed one of my teacher's size 35 needles. I also understand that someone over on Ravelry uses an empty paper towel roller and it works fine too. You're just using the roller/needle/dowel/pin etc. as a "holder" to make very large loops within the crochet.

In knitting, this would be the equivalent of perhaps a drop stitch, where you wrap the yarn around the needle several times and then "drop" it on the next row to create an open, loose effect in the work.

In the magazine Crochet Fantasy, No. 181. It is the Summer 2005 Crochet Fantasy. This magazine includes A Sampler of Broom Stick Lace, Waves Stitch Shawl, Desert Safari Shawlcho, Shell Cardigan and Iris' Blooming Cardigan.




The cardigan on the cover is crocheted using the broomstick lace technique, with Tess Yarns Microfiber Ribbon, which is 100% Nylon Microfiber with a size E crochet hook and size 35 circular knitting needle. This cardigan shows how sophisticated broomstick lace can be when done in contemporary fibers.

I don't think that I PERSONALLY would want to make a whole sweater, blanket or shawl out of it, but it was really fun playing with the technique and I can definitely see how it could be used in many different ways. The very uniqueness of it makes it fascinating to me. If you'd like to explore it or at least take a quick look at it, there's an online tutorial of the technique here.

The latest issue of Interweave Crochet has the pattern for a broomstick lace capelet/shawl.





We also played BRIEFLY with beads - and how to incorporate beads into both knitting and crochet. My teacher highly recommended the Lily Chin book called
KNIT AND CROCHET WITH BEADS by Lily Chin, Interweave Books. It has some gorgeous things in it, and she's pretty detailed about telling you how to put the beads in your work, and the different methods and effects of how you place the beads. I checked this book out of the library for now (because I'm so broke, I hate to buy another book) but I think I may eventually break down and buy it because it looks like a good resource - again particularly as I start bringing beads into my work, which I think I'll soon be ready to start doing.

I never was a big fan of Lily Chin, but I have to admit this book is a pretty good one. I really like the idea of combining knitting with crochet and beads. In the book, she demonstrates and explains using 16 different methods of putting beads into your work.

My teacher also suggested that she likes to prestring beads onto her yarn by dampening the end of the yarn with a dab of glue. This makes the yarn firm enough to string the beads, and then of course when you are done, you just snip off the crusty end of the yarn. This is much easier than putting them on with a needle.

Chocolate Rasberry - in Coffee and Sweaters

Thanks to everyone for all the warm, sweet comments. Yes, I am a hormonal basket case. It's not a coincidence that this blog is called, "Hanging By a Thin Thread." But your thoughts are kind and make me feel better. Plus, do be assured that the moods come and go. Most of the time, I'm fine.



At MisKnits the other night, I took along the Ruffled Roses scarf and tried to work on it a bit. It's okay - boring but pretty. I know it's not enough to keep my attention right now. I will probably work on it gradually and try to finish it, but it certainly isn't interesting enough to be my ONLY project.

My Freeform friend Janice Rosema tells me that she frequently works on multiple projects, and it all works out just fine. So perhaps I need to not worry too much about having many many things started and jumping from one thing to another so long as it's keeping me from crying over '70's songs.

I tried to use my intuition and just see what drew me to it. What I was drawn to was this:

Warm chocolate brown and some raspberry --- chocolate raspberry!!!! I have been drinking chocolate raspberry flavored coffee all week. It's delicious - and it reminds me of the project I just started: A chocolate raspberry Einstein coat using one of my favorite yarns from my stash. It's a gorgeous chocolate shade with intermingled deep raspberry tweed. Here is the start of the Einstein - it's the lower (bottom) portion. I many, many more rows of plain old garter stitch on this baby, but hopefully if I do it gradually, interspersed with many other projects, I won't get TOOOOO bored. I've wanted an Einstein coat for myself ever since I knitted one for my daughter four years ago.



And I'm thinking about using the Valentina Devine freeform technique of making a squarish/log cabinish yoke at the top with some of the yarns I have pictured here. I'm not exactly sure how to alter the Melville pattern to accomodate this colorful yoke - but hopefully I'll figure it out as I go. Any suggestions would be welcome.

Tomorrow I have another one-time crochet class with my crochet guru, she'd going to teach me to dabble in Broomstick Lace. I thought it would add to my freeform reportoire.

Overwhelm Mode

People are coming onto Ravelry in amazing numbers. And with the expansion of Ravelry comes more and more exposure to information, patterns, finished objects, books, forums, projects and yarns that are calling to me - more than I can ever accomplish in a LONG lifetime. Arggh!!! I'm in "overwhelm" mode. Visions of projects are dancing in my head.

I just finished two projects that I'm really happy with 1) The Harriet bag; and 2) the denim sleeves. Now where do I go from here? Warning: what follows is a mental rehashing of my knitting queue:







Finishing Unfinished items? I've thought that finishing up some already unfinished objects: 1) the Wrap Me Up that I started on the bus going to Stitches Midwest - it's in funky colors of pink, purple and green. Don't know if I'll wear it for a wrap (it's rather bright) or just use it as a wrap up afghan for around the house. 2) Annie Modisett Ruffled Roses scarf that I started and loved, but never finished from last winter.

In looking at my overflowing yarn room, I realize that I really need to spend less money on my knitting and use the yarn, books, patterns and materials I already have. There's a treasure trove in that room. There needs to be some figuring out of what I'm going to do next - what direction I'm going.


Freeform Vest or Jacket. One thing that calls to me, but I don't really know where to go with it, is Freeform. This yarn is some lovely stuff I picked up at Stitches Midwest, my only Stitches yarn purchases - and I could use them and some other yarn to do a freeform vest or jacket, I'm considering freeforming a colorful yoke and then knit or crochet the rest of the vest/jacket onto that? I have thought about making an Einstein but then replacing the regular yoke with a fancy freeform montage.



Vintage Vest. I could do the lovely Vintage Vest that I acquired last year at the Studio Retreat. Pictured is Stacey wearing her completed vest.


Tuscany Shawl. I'd like to do another shawl. Nothing was as rewarding as finishing that Forest Canopy shawl that I made last May, but shawls take such concentration, and my mind is in a fuddle here lately. If I could make the shawl and magically look like this woman (pictured), then I'd make it in a flash! But alas, a transformation like that is unlikely.




Jane Thornley Southwestern Vest - which I have all the materials for. It's freeform but it has a pattern that guides you through it too.

As you can see, my mind is just TEEMING with possibilities but I haven't settled on what to do next. I feel unsettled, restless, bored, depressed. My husband is complaining that I knit too much and think about knitting WAY too much.

I think my hormones are in an uproar, I feel old, fat, tired and unhappy and plenty grumpy about it. But other than that, whew, nor problem. I just need an attitude adjustment. Remember that smart-assed character - what was her name? The one who always used to say, "Snap Out of It!" That's probably good advice for me right now.

Ta Da! Denim Jacket - Finished

In this photo, one jacket sleeve looks longer, but it's just lying on the floor wonky. It really looks pretty good. I'll model it another time, when I'm not so tired.

All in all, I'd call this jacket venture a success. Next time, I'll do more real freeforming on the sleeves. This was just a first experiment to see how to make the sleeves fit into the jacket, be the right size etc. I'll get more advent garde next time perhaps. I may still add some scrumbles around the collar.

Finally A Fall Weekend! Yes!

We've had a seemingly never-ending summer here in the Midwest. Until late last week, temps were in the low 90's. The leaves haven't even begun turning and we're in mid-October. What's going on? Al Gore - maybe you DO have a point, huh?


Late this week, though, and over this weekend, we've been blessed with wonderful COOL weather. We even had an old-fashioned fall thunderstorm last night, with tons of thunder, lightening and pouring down rain. Yes! It was so nice to sleep to that rain, and to wake up late to the sound of falling rain and cooler temps. We spent the late morning watching Dracula with Keanu Reeves and Winona Rider and directed by Francis Ford Coppola - that 1992 Oscar winning version.

Saturday's activities were pretty simple but relaxing. We puttered around, took the girl to play practice and bought our Halloween decorations. Made chili - that WW taco chili.

Taco Chili
1 lb lean ground hamburger (I used low fat ground turkey instead)
1 can of chicken broth
1 onion, chopped
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can of red beans, drained and rinsed
1 can of Rotel tomatoes
1 package of taco seasoning
1 cup of frozen corn

That's it - brown the hamburger, put all the ingredients in a crock pot and warm it up on low for a couple of hours.

1 cup = 2 pts. and it's CORE if you're on the CORE plan.

Sanity Saver I I bought the new issue of O that is out on the stands now. Oprah's magazine is really really good. The October issue is even better than usual. It has some articles about beating the blues - without medication. I can always use that type of info. I don't take anti-depressants but I could use some natural mood elevators, and this issue has some good tips in there and a few articles on journaling your way to better mental health, as well as a lot of tips on beating stress and the blues.

Sanity Saver II Speaking of Oprah's suggestions, I'm reading EAT, PRAY, LOVE by Elizabeth Gordon. It's really good so far. This woman takes a journey to three places, Italy, India and Indonesia in search of overcoming depression right after a divorce. She's on a spiritual quest and this book is fun so far. I'm in Italy with her right now, and wishing I could literally be on a trip to Italy. When my daughter was there, she absolutely adored Venice. The author of this book is in Rome. What I like about this book is that when she feels in despair, she turns inside herself and does some journaling, asking her inner voice for some answers and letting the answers pour out of her within the pages of her journal. I haven't been journaling in quite some time, not since the Morning Pages recommended in Artist's Way. I think I need to try it again, only this time, instead of just pouring out all the stuff that is bothering me about life, I think I'll try asking some questions of myself and seeing if I have some answers instead of the usual complaints. If I get away from complaining and into searching, maybe there will be something there. Ya never know!

Sanity Saver III I've been wanting to take vitamins on a regular basis. I have been reading about Flax Oil to help with depression, as well as helping with a variety of other health conditions. I want to take a daily vitamin, my vitamin C, calcium etc. So I bought myself a pill container with the days of the week marked on it. Those pill dispensers aren't just for the aged - I'm going to use it to make sure I fill my vitamins on Sunday and take them all week long. Maybe I'll get better about doing that on a regular basis.

Still knitting on the second sleeve of the denim jacket. But I'm getting close . . . really close . . . to getting this wrapped up. Maybe I'll be wearing the new jacket soon, now that the temps are dropping. Happy weekend.

Larger Than Life Block 1

During my final crochet class session last Saturday, I started the Larger Than Life block, trying to see if I like the block enough to do the full Larger Than Life bag which takes 12 blocks like this one, in varying colors.

I finished the block this week all on my own. I'm starting to figure out this crochet thing! Very proud of myself. I used the new Berroco Comfort yarn - it's an inexpensive acrylic with such a soft, lovely feel. Purchased at the Studio. I love this yarn. It is soft enough to make the most cushy baby items.

As far as doing the Larger than Life Bag, I like the bag but I don't know if I want to do all the sewing that goes along with it. You have to sew a cloth lining in it. I was originally planning of sewing or gluing the blocks onto a regular tote, but so far I haven't found one that will work.

While knitting and crocheting are a blast, sewing is NOT my thing.

Cleaning Out the Refrigerator - Literally and Metaphorically Speaking

This morning, as I was trying to fit a pitcher of tea into a stuffed refrigerator, I realized that for some reason, I couldn't get the thing closed again. No matter how I rearranged the pitcher into the crowded shelf, I just COULDN'T get it to fit in there for some reason. As soon as I closed the door each time after a rearrangement, I still heard that annoying, "clunk" sound that told me the door just wasn't closing. No matter what.

So I started taking things out, throwing away old food, cleaning up spills, cleaning it up. Still it wouldn't close. After doing a refrigerator cleanout, and reducing a lot of clutter and mess inside, I finally stood back, looked at the WHOLE refrigator, both inside and out. Then I saw the problem, a sack of dog biscuits my husband stored on top of the fridge had slid down slightly at the top of the door and was blocking the door.

What this taught me is: 1) I sure don't clean out my fridge very often. I recall in the old days, when I was a child, we didn't have a self-defrosting freezer, so cleaning the whole freezer and fridge from top to bottom was a monthly ritual. I don't do that anymore and SHOULD. 2) Sometimes in figuring out one problem, we find other things that need to be addressed too to fix a nonworking situation; 3) Sometimes I get too narrow or short sighted in problem solving and don't step back to take a larger look until I've run out of all other options. 4) Why do I have 4 containers of lowfat cream cheese? Probably because I haven't been organized enough nor paying close enough attention. 5) This is all really irrelevant, but feels oddly relevant somehow. 6) Cleaning and decluttering, when done in small doses, targeting one area at a time can be very effective without a huge time investment. 7) Even mundane tasks like cleaning up the refrigerator can give me insights - and it's oddly carthartic.

One Sleeve Down . . . . One to Go

Here's the sleeve - as of a photo late Wednesday night. Last night I got on a knitting spree and finished it up. I even fitted the sleeve into the vest with pins and tried it on. The sleeve seems to fit.

I really got snapping on this project. I started the sleeve last Saturday afternoon and finished it last night. It was done in just under a week - hard to believe how fast it went. Now I will have the second one to do, trying to duplicate the first. The pressure is on.

I haven't cast on for the second one yet, but I hope to get it started tonight or tomorrow morning. Even though we are still having a last snap of summer - with temps expected to reach the 90's all weekend, I'm hoping that Fall will return soon so that I can actually wear this jacket. I'll probably put a little decoration on the collar too. Not sure what I'll do with that yet.

With having had second sock syndrome in the past, I hope I don't get second SLEEVE syndrome.

You Are the Moon

You are The Moon

Hope, expectation, Bright promises.

The Moon is a card of magic and mystery - when prominent you know that nothing is as it seems, particularly when it concerns relationships. All logic is thrown out the window.

The Moon is all about visions and illusions, madness, genius and poetry. This is a card that has to do with sleep, and so with both dreams and nightmares. It is a scary card in that it warns that there might be hidden enemies, tricks and falsehoods. But it should also be remembered that this is a card of great creativity, of powerful magic, primal feelings and intuition. You may be going through a time of emotional and mental trial; if you have any past mental problems, you must be vigilant in taking your medication but avoid drugs or alcohol, as abuse of either will cause them irreparable damage. This time however, can also result in great creativity, psychic powers, visions and insight. You can and should trust your intuition.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

Oh my goshhhh. Is this mini personality/tarot card test EVER true! I love Tarot cards, and this brief little quiz came out eerily accurate. The part about the mental/emotional trials is so true. I am not on medications, but sometimes I feel that I probably should be! Seriously. Whew. Take the test yourself . . . if you dare. Ha!


In other news this week, my daughter got the biggest part in the children's community theater production of THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER. She plays the mother/play director. I'm so thrilled she got the lead. She's a talented actress and she LOVES the theater. We'll be busy shuttling her over to play pratice these next couple of months, but it will be worth it.

I was thrilled to learn that The Studio has announced their Winter Retreat, set to take place on the last weekend in January. January 25-27th at the Elms Hotel & Spa in Excelsior Springs, Missouri. We all had such a BLAST last year. I couldn't have had a better, more relaxing time. This year, I may even partake of the spa services, who knows? I could maybe be talked into a hot stone massage. The Studio really knows how to treat their customers like gold. Wow!

I hope your week is going well so far, and that you are having at least a LITTLE time to read, soak in the tub, knit, sip tea/coffee, chat with a friend, or do something fun and relaxing to nourish the part of you that is . . . hanging by a thin thread.

Harriet is No Frump!

Yippee!! That is how I feel about my latest Finished Object, the modified but oh-so-wonderful Harriet bag, a Two Old Bags pattern. I am so proud of this bag. I bought the handles at Stitches Midwest from this wonderful vendor, Homestead Heirlooms, makers of leather handles that take your plain old felted bag up to that higher level of truly "Yeah, I want to be seen carrying this bag."




Lori and Karen, the proprietors of that shop, had a bag very similar to mine on display there and I just absolutely fell in love with it! I had to have one just like it, and now I do. Thanks Karen and Lori. You are the best. I'd long admired this Harriet bag, but frankly the original pattern fit it's name - practical and "sturdy" but a bit matronly. With the dowel and leather handle modifications, I thought they'd made this bag truly outstanding. So now I have an outstanding version myself.

The photo with the bag flat on the automan is the pre-felted version - the bag was 17" tall and 24" wide when it started. After two feltings, it ended up at 13 inches tall and 20" wide. Very useful.


Another thing that I must point out is that my husband, Bob, helped me out by painting the dowel rods. He did so by hanging them from the tree. Very innovative. The paint went on very smoothly and evenly that way, without glopping up. Thanks, Honey. (He's always a supporter of my knitting efforts).



Post felting, the bag is magnificent and will carry my large supply of yarn when doing Freeform projects, big sweaters or afghans. I needed this suitcase size. Before I felted it, Bob said it looked so big he thought it was sleeping bag size, but it wasn't THAT big.

Sometimes when I build my expectations up too high, whether its for a movie or a special event, or a knitting project I've highly invested in, I end up disappointed. This project did not disappoint.

Finished the One Skein Crocheted Scarf

Hey, not bad for a first effort, right? It's the One Skein Crocheted Scarf from Debbie Stoller's Happy Hooker crochet book. I used Plymouth Tweed worsted weight yarn.

Crocheting is new to me, but this scarf went pretty fast and I like it. Don't know if I'll wear it, since I don't wear scarves very often, but at least I feel good about getting it done. I now feel like I have a grasp on some concepts - the double crochet as well as the shell stitch.

Other things to point out: I am doing pretty good about eating healthy. On Sunday night, I cut up a bunch of vegetables, made salads and prepared for the week ahead with healthy choices in my fridge. I made this: and this:



Diet Tip/Sanity Saver: I also made the chili recipe posted the other day. It was really good. And one thing I was really thrilled to find at the grocery store was this Wishbone Salad Spritzer - I bought the Caeser Delight with olive oil (only 2 calories per spray) and also an Oriental salad spritzer. This is really a happy find. What's better than delicious AND low cal?

The Fudge Factor and a Really Good Low Cal Chili Recipe

When I say "fudge" I don't mean the chocolate kind. Several serendipitous events have come together to send me a message, loud and clear, that if I want to get better dieting and exercising results, I need to quite guestimating and need to be much more accurate and REAL about what I truly put in my mouth and how I often and what type of exercise I'm calling "good enough."

We've already established that I don't lose weight or inches very quickly, and I pack it on almost the instant I eat a candy bar or go two weeks without exercising. The middle age hormones aren't helping a bit, either. But enough with excuses already.

The fact is, seven or eight weeks ago, through diligient Weight Watchers journaling, water drinking, and point counting, I'd managed to lose and keep off 6-7 pounds and my jeans were starting to feel loose. I was hoping to continue the slow downward climb on the scale. Instead, over the last 3 weeks or so, I've managed to UNDO whatever amount of good I'd done in the name of progress. This is a pattern for me, and one I don't like at all.

When I start a diet/excercise routine, I am very strict about it and do what I'm supposed to do. Then a few weeks into the program (no matter WHAT program I'm on) I get busy, stressed or whatever, and I start fudging - call it fudging, call it cheating. It's actually more insidious that outright cheating because it's not big like eating a hot fudge sundae. It's a slow and dangerous assault on my self-control with thoughts that begin like - "I don't need to journal what I eat. After all, I eat the same healthy things every day . . . why write it down?" Then the next day or two after that, I get even busier, the journal gets blanker and I find myself "guessing" at portions, points, and I stop planning my meals ahead of time and start trying to figure out AFTER THE FACT how many points I've eaten for the day. It isn't long before I find myself stopping at McDonald's instead of bringing my lunch . . . avoiding the treadmill and into a whole nasty cycle of unhealthy living again.

So I went to Weight Watchers this morning and found out I weigh exactly what I started out with on July 28th when I began this weight loss journey (this time). Ugghh!!! I'm exactly the same. Oh well, it's back to the drawing board as they say.

At the meeting today, our leader talked about the very thing that I'm fighting, she wanted us to identify why we want to lose weight. We need to make a concrete list of the reasons that are important to US. We're supposed to fight the self-sabotaging thoughts and impulse eating by making a list of what is important and reading it to ourselves every single day for the next seven days. I have made my list (I won't share the list, it's personal, but I'll let you know how this process works after I've tried it). Chrisitie suggests that there's something magical in writing down and proclaiming every day what is important to us and why that bigger reason should have much more power over us than the momentary food craving or bout of laziness that tries to slay our will to be healthy.

This is so true. I KNOW that my deeper sense of satisfaction is going to come from making different choices. From fudging less. From being real with myself and curbing the urges that derail me. I CAN be successful at this if I just plan ahead, moniter myself closely and perservere each day, by changing my head first. My body will follow. I don' have to be perfect, I just have to be honest with myself and stop lying to myself about how "it won't hurt to do this one X thing" - yes those little choices, over time, day in and day out, are what create the result that I'm seeing right now.

Change of subject, something more positive. As it gets cold, I'm more inclined to want soup rather than salad. Here's a healthy alternative I picked up from WW. I tried this recipe today that was given to us at the meeting, and it was delicious! I made it in my crockpot and left it in on low for a couple of hours. Delish and low points/it's also Core.

Taco Chili

1 lb lean ground hamburger (I used low fat ground turkey instead)
1 can of chicken broth
1 onion, chopped
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can of red beans, drained and rinsed
1 can of Rotel tomatoes
1 package of taco seasoning
1 cup of frozen corn

That's it - brown the hamburger, put all the ingredients in a crock pot and warm it up on low for a couple of hours.

1 cup = 2 pts. and it's CORE if you're on the CORE plan.


Here's my plan for the week ahead. This week I'm doing Core for one week. I will write everything down. Just this week. I'll plan my meals in advance, drink my water, take my lunch, do my treadmill. Every day. For one week. I'll also read my list of bigger reasons to myself each and every day so I remember why I'm doing this. It's not about fitting into a size 5 jeans anymore - it's about feeling in control of myself, knowing that I can be healthier, more confident and feel better about myself if I eat healthy and excercise.

A Little Bit of This . . . A Little Bit of That

A while back, I said that I was starting multiple things at once, but it was okay. Well, I have to admit that I've started so many projects recently that maybe I'm just getting a little bit of this and a little bit of that knitted and not much progress on any one thing. It still seems okay because usually when I'm stuck on one project, I can still work on another. Or when I need some mindless kniting, I work on easy projects such as the bag. When I need something portable, it's usually Freeform. I am also learning crochet and trying to find a shawl pattern that is doable for me long-term without driving me crazy.

A case of severe Startitis seems to be spreading in the knitting world with the coming of Fall. What is it about Fall that makes us want to start new things? I think my recent exploration of Ravelry hasn't helped me stay focused, either. But hopefully I'll get something done pretty soon.

My large bag project - a modified Hariett from Two Old Bags is more than halfway there. It's going to be carpet bag size, so it's taken quite a while. It's growing slowly but surely. I still haven't found the dowels Bob painted for the bag, so there are new ones now (replacements) to be painted.

In compiling projects on Ravelry, I've noticed that I have a few of what I would call true Unfinished Objects (those I've started and may be temporarily hibernating because I want to eventually get back to them). But then there are many projects this year that I've started and made a conscious decision to either frog or permanently ditch. The Jane Thornley Not a Poncho immediately comes to mind. There are others . . . too. Like the Jaywalker socks - great for some people, but they were by design just too narrow for my average-sized feet, so I immediately and non-guiltily ditched them.

Growing up as an avid bookworm kid, I used to think I had to finish every single book I started, no matter how boring. I recall slogging my way through LONG boring books, James Joyce's Ulysses immediately springs to mind. Now I wonder, WHY? What purpose did that serve? As I've drifted into middle age, I've released a lot of things that just don't make sense to force myself to complete. Books - if they don't grab me in the first 50 pages, sorry but they are given, loaned, returned or passed along to someone else. Knitting projects are getting like that too. I usually just rip them out without a second thought and move on. That makes the ones I keep and perservere with all the more precious.

Relaxing Weekend at the Lake

Last weekend we had a real AHHHHHHH kind of relaxing weekend. This is the lovely view of the lake that we had from our cabin balcony (it's a two story cabin and we were on the top floor). We stayed at the Lake of the Ozarks, one of our favorite quick getaway spots. We have a regular place we stay. Wish we owned a cabin down there, but we don't.


Anyhow, the weather was PERFECT - cool, crisp and a bit overcast. The trees hadn't started turning pretty colors yet, but everything else was ideal. Felt like fall and we all had a great time. We brought both the daughter and her friend, and they had a blast too.

I mainly crocheted on my beginner scarf I'm working on from "Happy Hooker" (Deb Stoller) book. I will show you a photo of it next time - I haven't taken a picture of it yet. It's turning out pretty good for a first effort.



Don't worry, I haven't turned to the "dark-side" and become a total crochet-holic. Not by any means. I'm still a knitter, but I wanted to be "bi-craftal" so that I can have more creative tools to do what I want to do, and I like to try new things. Crocheting is fun, even though I'm still very awkward with it.

The weekend was fantastic. Ah . . . . now I need to go to work. Groan.

Happy Jewish New Year - Yesterday

As Elysbeth pointed out the other day in her post, we've now entered a New Year in the Jewish calendar - it was Rosh Hashanah officially on sundown Wednesday night. With me being an odd religious mixture of many things - and being officially a non-observant Jew by marriage who also attends Unity whenever I fit religion into my life, I hardly know what to say other than, "Happy New Year" and am I ever ready -- to welcome in a new year, turn a new page, a new beginning.

I take my truth wherever I find it . . . in Judaism, Budhism (especially Zen), through Unity . . . wherever. In the Jewish tradition, during this time of year, we are supposed to reflect upon our lives and it's a period of deep soul-searching and seeking out of foregiveness to those we have wronged. For me this past year, 2007, has been a really low year for me - and one in which I haven't behaved the best either. The absolute worst in me has come out in response to life stuff that seems BIG at the time, but is really very petty in comparison to the real traumas that are happening in other people's lives - and in the world at large. The wars that are going on outside, in the world, are reflected in my internal war - and as Byron Katie (Loving What Is) points out, we cannot hope to find real peace in the world until we first cultivate peace and love in ourselves.

When I am at my BEST, those are the times that I'm actively meditating, praying and "going within" to find ways of connecting with that silent, unseen presence. As a rule, I don't feel one has to go to temple, church or anywhere in particular to find that divine being - I just need to stop, slow down, go within and connect. I need to do spiritual work, Byron Katie calls it "The Work" and has an actual process you can go through on paper that really helps as well.

Here lately, I haven't been using my spiritual tools nearly often enough, such as meditation. I KNOW how meditation soothes me, so why don't I go there within myself and listen to the "still small voice" more often? Instead, I'm being sucked in by the whirlwind of anger, frustration, despair and spread those - instead of being inspiring and uplifting by making the choice to do so.

I've been so out of touch, in fact, that physicially going back to Unity, meditating in their delightful Rose Garden and surrounding myself with the uplifting people who attend their classes and services wouldn't be a bad idea.

Elysbeth linked back to my January post, where I talked about how each new year, I select a key word that guides my life for the following year. This being the official Jewish New Year, and me not being officially anything, I think I'll use this time, from now until the secular New Year, to engage that reflection process. What astonishes me is that I've been such a train wreck this year, that I'd totally forgotten about my theme for 2007 - "self control." Oh my gosh, this has been the most conflict-ridden, out-of-control year I've had in YEARS. Overreaction, worry, resentment, and hypersensitivity have been my handmaidens. But shaming myself about my many failures won't make it better. Now that I recognize it, I need to pick myself up, dust myself off and try to do better. Much better.

I've signed myself up for a "Managing Emotions" seminar in late November, but it's just a one day crash-course. And I need to now. So I'll do some self-study. Reflection. Calming down. Slowing down. Meditating. Walking.



Reading. Again - "This Year I Will: How to Finally Change A Habit, Keep a Resolution, or Make a Dream Come True" by M.J. Ryan.

Have a good weekend, everyone. I'm taking off work today and ohmmmming myself into a better emotional and spiritual place.

Eye Spy - A Crochet Hook

I'm having hormonal problems and feel really bad right now - really BLAH. Not sure if it's perimenopause or menopause - it all seems to blend together at this in-between age. But I'm feeling physically really bad. Emotionally bad too. It's all blending together.

Even my weekends, usually my salvation from a boring job have been pretty "eeeeeh" lately. Nothing exciting. Though I'm not unemployed, I'm certainly UNDERemployed. It pays really low and it is mentally so boring I can barely stand it. I should get a better job, but my friend Greg put it pretty succinctly when he said, "I think you probably need to get a better job, but you don't have the energy right now to start something new or to even interview with a new place." The only thing I like about my job is that it is low-stress and you can dress casual. Dressing casual means a lot to me right now, and I'm not sure why. I rarely feel this lazy and unmotivated, but it's something that will hopefully pass.

On a happier note, guess what I did yesterday? I went to The Studio and took a lesson in crochet from a teacher named "Nirmal." She's a tax accountant by day - a crocheter at night. She's been crocheting since she was seven. Very nice, serene lady. I really liked her. She was just what I needed right now. A breath of calm and focused help.

As you know, I love Freeform and have been fascinated with it. My latest Freeform project are the Freform sleeves for my denim vest - hoping to turn it into a jacket. I did some scrumbles last week at home with knitting but wasn't satisfied with them. Don't like the colors and they just looked too blah (like I feel). I'm wanting to jazz the project up with some crocheted pieces. I need to learn crochet so that I can enhance my Freeform work, and also to do more finished edges on knitted projects.

Nimal was the perfect anecdote. She and I had a one-on-one two hour crochet consultation. It wasn't supposed to be that way. One other person may join us next time we meet, in two weeks, but she was out of town yesterday and couldn't make it. So I had a nify private session getting valuable tips from a crochet guru. She sat right down next to me, watched me crochet, and she was one of those wonderful (and rare) teachers who didn't need to take the needle/hook out of my hand in order to teach me. She watched me work, and she could tell where I was at and what I needed to do when I got stuck. But she also let me figure a lot of things out on my own. When I needed correction, she gently guided me without making me feel stupid.

Maybe she's so gentle because she's a long-time vegetarian? I don't know, but she sat there next to me so serenely that I drank in her calm peace and walked away feeling like I'd meditated for two hours instead of crocheting.

This is what I made - nothing impressive, but I enjoyed every minute of it. I want to get in that same serene mental zone and find the spiritual where-with-all to find that somewhere within myself.

I walk around most days so hyper, in a hurry, frazzled, I want that AHHHHHHHH feeling.

Icelandic Shawl - Forget About It!

I've tried in vain all week to make headway on this Icelandic shawl and all it has done is caused me BIG frustration. I made a mistake somewhere around row 9 or 10 and have been trying to get it back on track ever since.

After knitting and tinking the 339 stitches several times, I decided that I don't like this beautiful shawl well enough to go through this aggrevation right now. I'd like to go back to this someday, but for right now, my frazzled mind and patience are simply NOT up to the task.

Thus, after one week, I am officially putting this baby away for a while.

Whew. Relief. There are so many things in my life that I don't have a choice about, but choosing my knitting projects - both those to keep and those to scrap - is the one thing definitely IN my control.

Organizing Kinda Weekend

A little bit of this . . . a little fit of that.

This weekend was long and relaxing. We accomplished a lot around the house. Cleaned it. Did the organizing I wanted to do - or at least got started on it. Had the oil changed in both cars, plus the tires rotated (discovered a nail in one) - did a lot of errands and needed catch up.

We even cleaned our sink traps. Organized the bathrooms. Washed the floors and thoroughly vacuumed, cleaned out some cluttered drawers - many of the boring but necessary chores that we normally don't have hours to do.

I also knitted some. Didn't accomplish as much knitting-wise as I'd hoped, but I never do get as much done on the needles as I'd like. Sometimes I understand why some people turn to knitting machines . . . but that would defeat the purpose of helping me relax. Messing with a machine would NOT relax me. Nor would I feel the pride I feel in knitting something with my very own hands.

Started both the Icelanic shawl as well as the Freeform jacket sleeves. Pictured are the yarns I'm using for this project. Here's what I've done so far. Not much - but a start nevertheless.



Also got a bunch of projects and photos entered into Ravelry. I can see that becoming more useful as I build a library of projects and future projects as well as (eventually) catalog my yarn stash. I haven't gotten that far yet, but I'm beginning to learn my way around Ravelry and see the possibilities. Intriguing.

Over the weekend, I organized, filed and punched my huge stack of unfiled patterns into notebooks - I have notebooks for Sweaters, Scarves, Shawls, Socks (3 volumes of those!), Baby gifts, Vests and don't forget "Miscellaneous." The projects I really want to do SOON (meaning sometime in the next year) I store in a special binder called "Hot Projects."

One thing I'm doing is by having a more organized list of projects - both those done and those to do - plus those put aside that I need to eventually pick up again - is that I'm figuring out that I have a real wealth of knitting projects and yarn. Luckily, over the past year, I've gotten rid of most yarn that I don't have a specific purpose for - those impulse yarn buys are gone now. What I have left are yarns matched with specific projects that I'm excited about. In most cases, I even have the yarn bagged with the pattern and needles needed. Now I just need about 70 years of full-time knitting hours to accomplish all that I wish to do!

P.S. Late last night: I tried to forge ahead two more rows on the shawl and ended up tired and goofing it up. It's disappointing when you mess up a shawl with 339 stitches across each row - just goes to show that you shouldn't work on said shawl when you're tired. Bad idea. Also goes to show that it's a good idea to have some "dumb knitting" projects so that when the smart ones outsmart you, you still have something to work on that makes you feel less outsmarted. Grrrrr.

Icelandic Shawl Started

Finally the month of hot, nasty August is over and we've started into September, which means my favorite time of year FALL is not far off. And to celebrate the start of a new month, I've started a new project, the Icelandic Shawl. This morning I cast on (yes I know yet another project). This is the shawl I've been itching to do for weeks! Yarn kit - check. Addi Turbo Lace Needles in Size 4. Check. Cast on 339 stitches. Check. Now I've finished the first four rows in white. I'm ready to do my first color switch soon. But I need to stop for a few hours and clean the house.

I'm working on several projects at once, but it doesn't feel scattered to me. It feels okay right now because I have a variety of things going. 1) An easy felted bag to do in my "dumb knitting" time; 2) an Icelandic shawl to do for thrills; 3) my Wrap Me Up which has temporarily been sidelined by the other two things but will go back into play once the felted purse is finished. 4) Lynn's "Florida Footies" (socks) to bring along when I need an extremely portable project.

In fact, you may roll your eyes when I tell you that I actually want to start ONE MORE new project this weekend and that is the Freeform Sleeves for my denim jacket that I've been wanting to get started on since BEFORE Stitches. I think that's going to be a long-term project, but one that I'll never get started on unless I just . . . get started. So I'm going to do at least a few beginning scrumbles in that as well. I wasn't happy with the scrumbles I did at Stitches so it's a total fresh start that I need to really get started. I already have my sleeve templates cut out of cloth.

For some reason, I'm feeling more centered about my knitting than I have in a long time. Though every project definitely doesn't always turn out as planned, I feel that I have a better handle on the stash I do have, and the projects I want to make in the next several months.

With my intro into the Ravelery world, I need to continue to use it more as an organization tool and less as a distraction. It is so easy to fall in there and go into an Alice in Wonderful world of fantasy projects. "Oh I want to do this!" and "Oh, I want to do that too!" but so far I've been good about not going crazy over there and wasting too much time.

This is going to be a relaxing, knitting weekend for me. Yipppeeeee. I also need to do some organizing and cleaning around the house, as well as getting back to my Core WW diet. I got a little off track on that last week.

I'm so happy to have a few days off. Oh man! It's wonderful. It's cool out this morning. Such a breath of fresh air. I love mornings like this.

Happy Labor Day weekend, everyone.

Look What Came In the Mail Today

Ah ha! It arrived, my Icelandic Shawl Kit from Sarah's Yarns. I am so thrilled! Sarah got this yarn kit to me to make the Icelandic Shawl, which I've been wanting to make ever since I first read about it over on Knitting Daily. It's a free pattern, and you can go to the link and download it for free. When this pattern first arrived in my email box several weeks ago, I felt like I'd been given an early birthday present. Now having the yarn kit from Sarah for only $25 including shipping - can you believe the bargain? It feels like a gift as well. She gives excellent service and an unbelievable price. Wahoooo!!!!




This is so exciting. Of course, I'm in a knitalong (through Yahoo Groups) that starts Monday for this Shawl and I'll be wanting to cast on, probably tomorrow. As all of you know, I've been in "shawl love" ever since I completed my first one earlier this summer. I can't wait to begin another one. This will be a blast.

I'm making the Icelandic Shawl in the original "natural" colorways with white, brown, and several shades of grey. This is what I'm shooting for. High expectations be damned. When it comes to shawls, you can't love them enough or enjoy knitting anything else even half as much. I'll be in shawl heaven -- and best of all, I'm off on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Bet you know what I'll be doing . . . . casting on very soon. Maybe I can hold off until tomorrow?