Matching Finished Objects

This is my Stripe Cocoon. It is inspired by Andi's hat and anything that can use up those leftover balls of yarn in an ever growing stash :) I also knit it for MySistersKnitter KAL and Knitspiring Odyssey's Beanie Along With Me.

I was a little unsure of the gauge and tension of the broken rib stitch on this project. The yarn is a worsted, heavy worsted, (maybe) in my opinion. Ravelry defines the yarn as bulky, hmmm. Anyhow, I did not modify the needle size or stitch counts, and it seemed to turn out. I was already wondering what other yarn I had that I could try this pattern again when ...

I realized, it's even prettier on the "wrong" side.

I think I'm going to block it. I know, crazy pants.

And look I knit a coffee sleeve from my leftover yarn. It was a prototype for some soccer team ones I want to make later.

Finished project takeaways:
My head is ginormous and I must always knit bigger / longer than a pattern dictates if I ever want to make a hat for myself.

October Yarn-away

My good friend HM knows:

a) I love yarn

b) I have a blog where I love knitters & the internet, and we all like to share the happy.

So this really nice person gave me some yarn to give to you. 5 4 skeins of Sitka, Cascade Yarn. 80% Merino Wool, 20% Kid Mohair.

It really is in the spirit of Autumn. :)

If you or your knitting pal is interested in some PSL (pumpkin spice latte) looking yarn, leave a comment and the best way to get in contact with you. (Ravelry ID, email etc.) from now until end of day Thursday October 31st, and I will enter you in the October yarn away.

Happy Knitting!

Update: It's actually 4 skeins, I thought I had fixed that typo before publishing. Sorry for the false advertising! I did a strike-through above, so in case you saw 5, it is not your sanity, but once again, my lack of attention to detail! 

Do Ahead Dinner

I have decided I really enjoy a good Thai vegetable curry. Red or green preferably. I am a meat eater, so I can just roast and slice something and put it on the side, which is what I did for Middle School Mom night. (A group of us, with no older children are beginning the touring of Middle Schools. We are one of the last years in our public school district that allows us to lottery for a school(s) of our choice.) 

Anyhow, curry is like Asian stew, the leftovers were pretty tasty the next day, and my husband offered up an unsolicited compliment :)

We are scheduling a follow-up chat in December (which will hopefully devolve into laughter and chatter again as well.) I'm thinking maybe a braised white wine chicken (borrowing from the Manfriend's repetoire), Stuffed Italian Cabbages or Braised short ribs this time (things that go with mashed potatoes, ha!). I like something I can leave on the stove to simmer or sit on low in the oven. What do you like to make for "do ahead" lunch or dinners?

October Post

I really am a fan of October. I love that it seems a wonderful mix of Indian summer, and crispy fall air.

It's spooky and fun.

It makes you want to ... make stuff.

It's the beginning of season of celebration, when it still feels inspiring and festive and not quite so obligatory, overwhelming and commercial.

I hope you're enjoying your October.

Whirlwind Recap

It's been busy here at Chez Ellen. The Wrath of Asia and The Colonel came for a visit. I made my sister send me a picture of them before they left their hotel. We were too busy having fun for me to capture it.

We did all kinds of things together. There was lots of squealing grandsons and 5 card poker games.

Some people forgot to do their homework ...

We had a baking day where we made hand pies. Apple hand pies (I used store bought crust, there was not enough time) and Meat pies (Sausage with spinach, onion and cheese, and Ground beef with onions, cabbage and smoked mozzarella.) The Kid had an evening soccer match, and I love feeding the parents on the sideline. This dough was made from scratch, but I really cut down the sugar in the dough from 1/4 cup to 2 Tablespoons.

I swear there was a prettier batch than this, but those were eaten!

We were always running about or cooking and laughing.

I did get a littl time to myself while the parents picked up nephew ...

An odd perspective, but I was a little embarrassed doing a "selfie" at the salon.

Shopping for Fall

I am almost ready for a new round of knitting.  I have a few finishing details I'm doing on some old projects that are having a slow birth, due to over-extending my extracurricular activity hours. Unfortunately knitting has become a low priority. My fun things are on the peripheral of knitting, but not actually knitting, i.e. visiting an LYS during my lunch errands for birthday presents and dry cleaning drops, or en route for weekend groceries.

However the inspiration of fall is felt.

Andi announced her next KAL

Click to go to Ravelry Group!

Fickle as a toddler on grandparent sugar, I gave up the pullover dream. I now want to knit a cardigan. I want to knit something that won't take me forever to knit. So I chose Common Ground, since it looks cozy. I remember liking the pattern when I saw it on the Nonmipareilcaso blog. I tried to be economical with my yarn choice, since I didn't have anything in the stash that would be enough. I also went for a dark color. I don't know how wise that was, but I feel like I am more likely to wear it if it's dark.


I did start a Cocoon in some leftover yarn for Knitspiring Odyssey's BALWM. This is the first time I've ever done a hidden increase. I'm not sure how it will turn out with this self-striping yarn, but that should add to the element of surprise with a new pattern.

Between the bakery and the bus stop is another one of my favorite craft stores.

I went to pick up the Downtown Abbey inspired knits magazine, but didn't feel like I would knit more than 1 pattern. The style is too specific for me, as lovely as I thought the patterns are. So, I opted for the Jane Austen.

And yarn ...and a hat pattern.

More reasons for me to freak out about the Norwegians

Knitting on t.v.

This was sent to me by a good friend under the header of, "Since Fox Soccer Channel is No More".

Ha!

Knit & Purl Mama directed me to Ylvis.

Anyhow, it's the beginning of October. It's chalking up to be a busy but excellent month. I'll post soon on projects and things to come.

What's raising your eyebrows these days?