Fog!

What do Alaska and my brain have in common?  They’re both foggy.

My brain is foggy because I decided last night that I needed to learn how to crochet granny squares.

I don’t crochet.

I learned, darn it.  And finished two squares at 4:30 AM.  And it’s Cindy’s fault.  All those beautiful squares….  Now that I think about it, I could make quilt squares and achieve the same affect much more easily.

I made those squares and thought I had it out of my system.  Now I’m sitting here wondering if I should run to JoAnn’s and buy some decent crochet hooks and a “Crochet for Idiots” book.  Because, clearly, I’m an idiot.

And here’s some Alaska fog.

I realized that I don’t have a ton of landscape photos, because the weather wasn’t very nice.  We spent Sunday thru Friday on a charter fishing boat.  I did something nasty to my knee the first day, so I didn’t fish.  Standing on the deck of a rocking boat on one leg sounded pretty dangerous.  Besides, I thought I’d signed up for a knitting cruise.  And, as you saw in the last post, that’s what I did.

Oh, we ate a lot too.  I didn’t know it was possible to gain weight eating fresh seafood, but I think I did.

Yes, folks.  That’s fresh crab.  If you look closely, you’ll see little bowls of melted butter.  So much for eating healthy.  And here’s my very sweet brother-in-law kissing the crab goodbye.

We saw this guy one morning.  Well, My Hero and I didn’t, because we were still sleeping.  Someone grabbed my camera and took photos for me.  Actually, that kind of reminds me of me in the morning!

Here’s our bunch checking out a ginormous waterfall.  A little bit later, after some of us had moved away from the front of the boat, the captain got in close enough and drenched my BIL.

My sister and husband are on the left.  Then we have Mom and Dad.  My Hero and I are on the right.

I just realized I didn’t put in any photos of the fishing and the subsequent fish they caught.  We have fish, trust me!  There are a couple of shelves in my freezer that are full.  They caught king, coho, and sockeye salmon.  We also have some halibut, black cod, and red snapper.  Yum!

Oh, and like the smell of bad fish you can’t get rid of,  guess who’s coming back to my house on Saturday???

See you in two days, sis!!!!!

Noro’s Next Top Model

There’s your first glimpse.

Have you seen enough?

Just one more?

How about a shot of the back?

Take your time.

Check out the variation in the colors.

Touch it.  Oh, you can’t.  I wish you could.  It’s so soft and drapey.

Now for the details.

Pattern:  Panda Silk DK Shawl It’s a free pattern from Crystal Palace Yarns.  Thanks, CPY!  This was a good one.

My name for it:  Waves of Alaska

Yarn:  Noro Silk Garden Lite  Color 2039

How many skeins:  I’m pretty sure I used 8 skeins, but a 9th would be good insurance.

Needles:  Size 7 Addi Turbos

Time:  8 days.  I knit this on a fishing charter in Alaska.  I was sure I’d signed on for a knitting cruise!

Measurements:  85″ across and 33″ from top to point.

Mods:  There are 7 tiers and 28 fans in the pattern.  I did 9 tiers and 45 fans, plus the 10 partial fans that finish off the top edge.  I could knit 7 fans from each skein of yarn.  Notice that it’s Silk Garden Lite, which is supposed to be DK weight, but you know how Noro yarn varies.  Regular Silk Garden would probably work.  It would just be a bit heavier.

Conclusion:  I am beyond thrilled with this project.  I wish I had taken a photo before I blocked this shawl, because it was lumpy and nasty.  If you start it, don’t quit because you think it looks ugly.  The blocking absolutely transformed this shawl!

Here’s one more shot with my trusty assistant.  She can always be counted on to help!  (Oh, and note the flowers in my crack!)

What’s next?  I’m finishing two more projects this week.  My Quadrille quilt and Trevi shawl are both getting their borders.  And I haven’t forgotten about Alaska pictures.  I’ve been too busy staring at Waves of Alaska.

I’m off to my sewing room.  I’m pretty sure I hear my name being called from the laundry room, but it may just be my ears ringing, so I’m going to ignore it!

Noro Rocks The House!

Noro rocks my house.  That’s right!  We’re home.

The pump for the swimming pool died and the pool is green.  I have a ton of laundry to do.  We got the highest electric bill ever.  I need to get groceries.

But we’re home and I’m content.

And this is blocking!  Nothing tops Noro yarn.

Details and a photo shoot coming soon.  I also have tons of Alaska photos to go through.  You’ll get to see some of those as well.

Fishing In Alaska

Wow!  That was an experience. We caught halibut, salmon, red snapper.  We trapped crab and shrimp.  (I didn’t actually fish.  I took a lot of photos.)  And we ate a lot.

Here’s my catch of the week!  (Why does the lettering space out like that?)

I knit an entire shawl!  There are strings hanging out all over, and it desperately needs blocking, but I did it!

We’re parked in a harbor in Sitka , Alaska.  We’re going to spend a couple of days in Seattle with friends.  On Sunday, we’ll be home!!!!

More in a few days when I’m back from this wonderland I call The Middle of Nowhere.

I Found It!

I found the middle of nowhere and it’s amazing!

We’re in Sitka, Alaska. This is the view from our motel room.

My Hero and I had an hour of sleep last night.  He hadn’t packed, and I needed to get groceries.  I think the kids are set!  I think someone is already in vacation mode.

Tomorrow morning we get on the charter boat for five days.  I guess the fishing has been awesome.  It’s definitely a new experience for me.  The forecast is for about 55 degrees and rain.  Fortunately, there’s no such thing as bad weather when you’re knitting.

I’ve heard rumors that The Genius is going to hijack the blog this week.  I think that’s a great idea.  How about you???

Where Is The Middle of Nowhere?

I’m not sure, but I’m going there.  And I’m going to need my knitting.  And my camera.

Here’s a little something I started playing with last night.  I have some gorgeous Noro Silk Garden Lite.

This is my Fan Shawl.  It’s a free pattern from Crystal Palace Yarn.  The original is done in a gorgeous cream Panda Silk.  Of course, I need to crank it up several notches.  I do love color.

I wasn’t so sure after three fans if I wanted to keep going, but after pinning it, I think it has potential.  I love anything lime green, and the green you see is actually brighter, if that’s possible.

Yes, I think I’m going to like it.  It can’t look too much like a granny shawl with the bright colors.

Here’s something else that’s going with me to the middle of nowhere.

The boots are going.  The flowers are staying here.

My Hero and I are going fishing in Alaska, along with my parents and my sister and her hubby.  We’re staying on a charter boat on the ocean.  That’s the middle of nowhere, right?

The forecast is nasty, (55 degrees and rainy) so I’m pretty sure these boots will come in handy.  I plan to take lots of pictures, knit miles of yarn, sleep, and eat lots of seafood.  Oh, and enjoy the silence, because the kids are staying home!  The fishing part?  I’m not too sure.  I’ll give it a shot.  My sister will be out there from 6 AM until they make her come back in.  I wouldn’t want to deprive her of her fishing time.  So unselfish of me, huh?

Anyway, you probably won’t hear from me until about July 27th.  I’m pretty sure you have other, more important things to do anyway.

So, off to nowhere I go!  Bye!

Thank Goodness!

After 25 years of quilting, you’d hope I could do better than the quilt you saw in the last post.  That was my first quilt.  Here’s the latest.

This is Quadrille.  The pattern is a Miss Rosie’s and the fabric is an older Barbara Brackman line.  It still needs the pieced border, but I’m pretty sure I only have one speed these days.  At least it’s not reverse.  You’d think after 4 days of a quilt retreat, I’d have more to show.  I think I talked too much!  I worked on one other project that I’ll show you sometime.

Do you see the two bright green striped arrows pointing at each other?  Yeah, I do to.  Too bad I didn’t notice them until it was sewn together.  I’m not ripping it out.

Yeah, I love it too.

Oh, and the famous quilter at the quilt retreat was Heather Mulder of Anka’s Treasures.  I know what’s going in her next books!!!!!

I’ll be back with one last post, and then I’m in the middle of nowhere for a week.

Butt Ugly!

It’s been pointed out to me by The Genius that I haven’t done a blog post in almost a week.  So what do I blog about?  My first quilt, which really is butt ugly.  Here’s your first hint of the badness.

Camille and Carrie came up with the idea of showing your very first quilt and your most recent quilt.  So, here’s my very first masterpiece.  Hey Carrie, it’s an icky.  This should make you feel a lot better!!!

The year was 1986.  I was a senior in college in Oklahoma.  My fiance (now My Hero) was in Minnesota and I was bored and lovesick and lonely.  So I took a quilt class.  I found out part way through the first class that I was supposed to do every bit of it by hand.  No offense to those of you who do all of your quilting by hand, but if quilters had owned sewing machines 200 years ago, they would have used them.  If you look at the goose on the first photo, I appliqued the body and did a sloppy satin stitch around the rest of his parts!  My star was pieced really well.  But those calico fabrics!  Now lets look at that lovely binding.

I’m sure it was purchased bias, sewn on by machine.  Nasty!  I took the photo along with the flowers in my crack.

Now, according to the rules, I’m supposed to show you my latest finished project.  You’re just going to have to wait.  I have 12 ladies at my house for three days for a quilt retreat.  I’ll have lots of stuff to show you soon. (If you want to see some finished quilts, just click on the finished projects tabs at the top of the page.)

Oh, and there’s also a famous designer here.  If you want to guess, leave a comment.  She’s working on new stuff for her next book!

So, to offset the butt ugly, I have some gorgeous flowers to show you.  One of my guests brought me the most gorgeous bouquet of flowers I’ve ever received.  And they’re out of her garden.  Amazing!

I must go.  I hear lots of sewing machines humming and mine isn’t one of them!

That’s What Friends Are For

Remember this quilt?  This is the black and taupe quilt I made for my friend.  Yes, I’m aware that it was pieced 8 months ago.  I got it back from the quilter last week and I’m thrilled.  One of my blog stalkers stopped over the other day and we stitched binding.  We stitched binding.  And we stitched some more.  Do you want to see the finished quilt?

The main part of the quilt is meandered and looks like ribbons.  The big cream blocks have a custom feather quilted in them.

My friend is thrilled!  (Her husband is smart enough to ooh and aah too!)  Here’s another shot with herWal-M*rt Neiman Marcus  pillows.

It just thrills me to make a quilt for someone who loves it so much.  She’s high on my list of favorite people and it was so much fun to bless her.  And in return, she’s going to come and quilt with me and a bunch of other friends next week.  More about that later!

I’ve been the slug of ‘09 this week.  I worked on a quilt for about 5.7 minutes one day.  I’ve been knitting, but it’s a big green blob.  I started the Cap Shawl from Victorian Lace Today.   Sally of the Rainey Sisters knit a beautiful one using Kidsilk haze.  I’m knitting mine as a blanket using Araucania Nature Wool.  I’m on row 97 of row 171.  I’m just starting the Print of the Wave pattern.  So, I’m halfway right?  Ha!  We all know what happens with a circular shawl.  The rows already seem really long.  Unfortunately, it’s going to look like a big green blob for a very long time.

In honor of July 4th, I’ll leave you with one photo from our Washington DC trip.  This was taken from the Clock Tower at the Old Post Office.

I’m so thankful for this country we live in, with its flaws and all.  Have a great holiday weekend.  I’ll try to be a little more exciting next week!