Pischi Days

With a Face Like This...

...what's not to love. Today was the final Fleece Dog needle felting class and Mandy Dog's big coming out. Isn't she cute? It was just a few weeks ago when she was just a bundle of raw flees and a pair of glass eyes. Today was spent making ears, a tail, facial features, filling out the body, and creating a bit of personality. I dug through the trash for a yarn ribbon and used my little scrap of leftover fleece to fashion a bone. I love the results. What a departure from knitting. I had a great teacher. Thanks Barbara. thanks also to Ann, owner of my closest LYS, Knit & Stitch, for providing such a welcoming environment.

As always, I couldn't leave empty handed. My latest yarn procurement , (all in support of, of course) were 7 balls of Dream, a wonderfully cuddly baby blue yarn. All with Sitcom Chic in mind.

Sir Galli Needs a Bath

Sir Galli is not a new character in the Deathly Hallows. Rather it is a Muench yarn, albeit a new acquisition, who's name could be misconstrued as a Filch's sidekick. When I received the package and opened the bag, the stench was overwhelming. Perhaps this is the reason that it has been discontinued. If only the computer screen were scratch and sniff.

After the Dementor-like (in a good way) soul sucking that is Ravelry abated, there is much to organize if this site is to work for you, I was able to travel through the land of patterns, projects, and yarns. I came across this pattern from Interweave Fall 2006. Bianca's Jacket is just the kind of sweater that I need to toss over a white tee-shirt and a pair of khaki slacks. The fact that it was made from a silk yarn appealed to me as well. I Googled about and found the yarn at a purse pleasing price over at Little Knits. Sold. There were 6 other Bianca's in the Ravelry database, complete with comments, photos, dates of start and completion, and the various yarns that were used ranged from wool to cotton as well. As mentioned above, the only downside to this endeavor is the smell of the yarn. No matter, I have cast on my gauge swatch and will press my sweet Handmaiden SeaSilk Shawl to my nostrils when Sir Galli becomes redolent.
I have my copy of the Deathly Hallows in hand and am poised to dive into its pages when I've completed the Half Blood Prince. It's too traumatic that the series must end, as all good things must. Hopefully JKR has it in her to enchant us with another series of stories and characters. I'm not holding my breath...until I sniff Sir Galli.

A Lab in the Making

I spent day 2 of felting class. yapping away with the woman to my left. She was busy knitting something fluffy and pink. I had brought in an assemblage of knitted socks for the shear pleasure of hearing the ohhs and ahhs, Purely narcissistic on my part. Not enough felting, too much chatter.  I did manage to construct a body and a head. My fear is that wool will run out. I'll have to beg some body fluff from my patient teacher.

In the interest of keeping my newfound LYS in Bliss, I purchased 15 balls of the loveliest Cashmerino Aran in a luscious pea green. My plans are to knit the Rouge in the not to distant future. Too much yarn, too little time.

Sheep to Dog

My local LYS, Knit and Stitch in Cocoa Village, sends out class schedules monthly that have been glanced at and cast aside with guilty regularity. The drive there is a 45 mile round trip that I'm usually too tired and to frugal to make. The store is small but nice, increasingly better stocked than in the past. The owner more a gracious hostess, than a mere shopkeeper. I was intrigued by a class that involved needle felting, something that I have not tried and know very little about. I made the commitment to take the series of four lessons.

Class is based on the book Fleece Dog by Nobuku Nagakubo,  and an accompanying kit of various shades of raw wool and trim to create a variety of dogs. I have chosen the Yellow Labrador and I will try to capture the essence of our shop dog, Mandy. Here is the teachers model of the Westie.

When I left for class yesterday afternoon, I was looking forward to a table full of classmates making a variety of dogs. When I arrived, I was told that I was the only student. Great, one on one. My teacher, Barbara, is very thorough and explains every step . I learned about the differences between roving, pencil roving, and sliver. I learned to card and blend the colors to achieve a Mandy-like coat. Barbara suggested that I bring some of Mandy's fur, washed, of course, to combine with the wool for some good doggie karma.
  After my wool had been blended, I made a wire frame with the coil in my kit. The next step is to slip a piece of spindle cord on each leg of the wire frame and crimp the end. Then the fun begins. A bit of yarn is wrapped around the  first leg and then you take the felting needle and repeatedly poke the wool. while turning the leg so as to keep it looking, well, leg like. Not a quick process. The needle is very sharp and any slipping can end in impalement.

So, blinders on, no distractions, please. I don't want to bleed on my dog.
Next week, the body beautiful...I hope.
 

Two Horcrux for Harry

I don't know about your household but tension is building and our goblets are boiling over with the anticipation for the latest Harry Potter movie. Midnight is the witching hour and when our small theatre is showing the new release, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. We are not going to make that showing. Erik thinks that we should tonight go and then see it again tomorrow. As for me, there is no Starbuck's within 25 miles of here and I would probably not make it through the previews.
I knit another pair of Horcrux socks just because. The pattern is among my favorite, they are treats for the feet. These are knit using Debbie Bliss Cashmerino, this time in a rich cranberry. They are knit on size 5's over 40 stitches and can easily be knit in a weekend. The pattern can be found here on Susan's site.
I intend to sport these around the house this winter. With a house full of tile floor, my feet will thank me. Too bad that the temperature is in the 90's or these would be on my feet during the movie.

It's Just a Thing

Having spent the better part of a weekend visiting my stash and  placing pictures on Ravelry, my attention has now turned to another compulsive pastime. Ravelry has a page where ones books are inventoried. Within that page lurks a link the LibraryThing.  Intrigued, I visited and realized that I had a membership long forgotten. I can't quite remember when I signed up.  Or why. Years ago I sold off quite a few of my books on half.com and I just couldn't face taking my 1000+ books off of shelves and typing in all those ISBN's again. Just as I was about to blow the whole thing off, I clicked on the tools page and their was a cute little scanner in the shape of a cat a CueCat. Only $15.00 includes shipping. I can do this, scan my books and have a handle on just what I own.
Now I'm addicted. I have scanned 3 rooms of books and am working on the main library. It's been a happy pastime visiting all those children's books, finding misplaced cookbooks, and rediscovering old friends.  There is a widget at the bottom of the page for the totally bored and wanting a glimpse into what's on my shelves.
I made room for my 2 preordered copies of "The Deathly Hallows". Bring it on!

She Knits Seacell by the Seashore

I first heard about HandMaiden Sea Silk while listening to a podcast. The name of the program escapes me but  I do remember the rich description of the yarn, a blend of silk and cellulose made from seaweed. Its healing properties include the release of vitamin E and minerals when in contact with the moisture from the skin. It is reported to even smell like the ocean. How could I resist the lure of the sea.
At the time the program aired, knitting lace was but a faraway notion but I knew that I had to own a skein of this fiber. My wish was granted when Olga destashed a skien online. It came post haste in the form of a pre-wound cake in a rich shade of Berry. I found the Storm Water Shawl pattern along with a second skein at Knitty Noddy. I splurged and when the yarn and pattern arrived, it sat in a basket for quite a while.
Meanwhile, I cut my teeth knitting lace on the Candle Flame Shawl. I was now ready for the challenge and looking forward to knitting with this exquisite yarn. The pattern is knit using two alternating skeins of yarn. A recipe for failure. I cast on at least five times until I got it right. about half way into the pattern repeat I saw the I had my rows and skeins twisted. Back to the frog pond. After several more attempts, I finally have the rhythm of the pattern and can recognize the knitting path ahead of me. I have to credit Shannon, a fellow Canadian whose shawl I admired on Ravelry. I was able to pull up the pattern and see all the knitters who completed the shawl. What a great resource when the questions arise!
Know that I found my rhythm, I love the interplay of colors as I  knit the skeins together. Ball two has very subtle shades of pink while ball one is riddled with brilliant fuchsia.
I enjoy this yarn so much that I'm contemplating this pattern using the Sea Silk in ebony. I received 2 skeins of the new Sea Wool sock yarn, a blend of Seacell and Merino in last week post. We'll see if the yarn can heal the feet as well. (puns intended)