Ms. Create (It's always about the sticks and string...)

Same Ole Stashing Theme

Let's get to it, eh?  Here's a bin of what is mostly Caron Simply Soft.

At this point in the stashing, you are agreeing with my reaching S.A.B.L.E., aren't you?  There's still more, but I may finish this up at some point in the near future.  I think I need a yarn will.  Do any of you have one?

Here's another bin of mostly one pound sizes of Caron.  I call this my afghan stash.

I've got two more in my closet (don't tell Paul).  We'll get to those later....  I'm thinking therein lies the blues, greens, reds, and anything that isn't white, off white or light colors.

Oh, and hey, here's my crazy hoard of crochet cotton for when I decide that I need to crochet 1,000 doilies.

What?  It could happen.....

Here's the next pair of socks I started on.  It's Knit Picks Hand-Dyed Stroll in the Tree Fort colorway:

and still trucking on the Indigo Playmate sweater.  Nice easy stockinette stitch.  Ahhhhh....

at the waist shaping stage.  I'm pretty sure I need a big one.  HA!

Until next time.....

Still stashing, and projects finished and begun...

Here I am again, with the stashing.  I'm getting down to some of the old-old stuff in the craft room.  I had to stop after while, because I was getting lazy and starting to photograph stuff in bags through the plastic.  That is not terribly bad, but I want to be able to see the color really good so I had to take a step back and reflect.  LOL  Anyway - here's some stuff:

Bulky Bits... and more bulky bits...

and.... Do you see that ORANGE?  I'm not sure what I was thinking when I bought that, although it is supposed to be Tangerine.  I have no idea what I could make with that, except for something for a construction worker.  Close-up?  SURE

and.. there's so much of it!  HA!  Any ideas?

Here's the yellow-dyed socks that I finished:

and some socks with samon and grey leftovers.  I still have to weave in the ends on the second sock.

I also started a new sweater.  It's called Indigo Playmate, and I'm using my worsted weight Chroma in the Soft Rock colorway.

Love this color, but not sure how it will wear.  We shall see!!

I've got lots more stuff to show you, but I'll leave that for another day.  Hope your summer is going well!!  

Still more stash... and some rocks and artifacts

I'm still adding stash onto Ravelry.  I was going really good there for a week or so, then I needed a break. I'm a little more than halfway through my stash, I think (probably wishful thinking.... and more like a third of the way).  I've added over 200 different yarns onto Ravelry so far.  I wonder what the final number will be?

Here's the next round of, yep, worsted:

Those pink, green socks are done, and I do love those pink toes.  

matchy matchy too!

Next is a pair from my own dyed wool.

Love knitting these because no-one else has this colorway since I made it up myself.  Also, you never know how they are going to turn out!

I've been spending some time in the creekbed too looking for colored flint.  We live where a lot of Flint Ridge colored flint comes down our creek in the rains.  Very pretty colors.  Did you know that Flint is Ohio's Gem Stone?  Yep.  I'm thinking of getting a rock tumbler/polisher and making some pretty stitch markers (always about the knitting, LOL).  I've also found some flint artifacts.  Parts of flint arrowheads, scrapers and cores.

Lots of quartz too.  Did you know that flint is a type of compacted quartz?  I do like the shinies.  Oh, and a few fossils too.

Lots of ancient wormy-type stuff.

and corals.

Nice to get out when on break from my stash-along.  Plus, those waist bends when picking up rocks?  That is exercise, let me tell you!!  More later and have a good week!  Cheers!!

More Stashing... Worsted and more Worsted

A couple of bins today of worsted weight.

Next is one of my favorite bins - lots of color mixing and self-striping.

Maybe I'll knit a project from it next if I ever finish with the stashing.

I also found a bag with some kits in it.  I'm going to check on Ravelry to see if I can stash the "kit".  I don't really want to take the yarn out and stash it separately.

More Coffee!!

More Stashing... Patons Classic Wool (Merino and not)

Quickie Today.  I found a bin of mostly Patons Classic Wool.  Lots of Merino in there that is older.  Some of the newer where they removed "Merino" from the package.  Boo Hoo.

Off to Ravelry to stash them!  

 

More Stashing... Sport Bin

Today we are featuring the sporty bin.

Notice the Knit Picks theme going on.....

If I had to take a rough guess, I would say that about 65% of my whole stash is Knit Picks yarn.  I slowed way down on the purchasing as Knit Picks' prices went up.  Honestly, though, their prices are still cheaper than most.  One more side view, and then maybe the bulky next?  Or, one of my worsted bins?  There may be a few or five of those....

Cooper says its time for dinner, Mom, so the computer must go away!

More Stashing... and pink toes!

Remember that I wanted to wind those ten skeins of sock yarn?

It took a few days but victory was achieved.  I had to wind them twice because when winding from the swift the yarn gets too tight and I think it's not good to leave your yarn in that tight of a formation.  I heard that somewhere so I may be wrong?  Anyway - Score!

I can't wait to knit a few of these once I finish my pair that I'm working on now using leftovers.  I love these, by the way.  So cute!

That pink toe!  

Stashing Update:  I'm finally finished adding the sock yarn onto Ravelry.  I'm moving on to the Cottony Bits bin.  Yes, it's the smallest one besides the lace.  It's a long process and I'm not looking forward to the worsteds.

Side view?  why not...

 

Yes.  That's a finished baby bib.  It even has a button.  HA!

While on Ravelry today while I was looking at lace patterns my lace stash was popping up to show what I had and what I could use.  That's what I'm after.  There is a reward at the end of this!!

and so the stash sorting and photographing begins.....

I was home from work today, so I decided to pick out 10 skeins of sock yarn that needed to be wound.  I'm forever not picking these colorful beauties because I don't have the time to do the winding.  So today was the day for winding.

For those of you who read my post yesterday I did add my pittance of lace weight onto Ravelry.  So far so good.  I don't think I lost any friends either.  HA!  Next I was going to do my cotton and cotton/mix bin.  Well.... since the sock yarn bin was open and I was sorting, I figured I would do it next.  yeah...

10 hours later.... I have somewhere around 160 pictures to load onto Ravelry.  This stash thing may take some time. It's totally going to be worth it though, right??  Also, I know there are skeins of sock yarn in the wild that I haven't found yet.  I'm not sure but there may be some bags around the house that I hid (apparently so well that I can't find them myself).

Here's some photos of my sorting of the sock yarn.  Remember that there are layers here.

All I have to say is that I can't believe I have 80 skeins of Palette, and I still haven't wound those 10 skeins.  Ugh.

I may need to go outside and have a drinkie at the picnic table.

A Full Year, More Socks and Stash Revealing Time

I was going to wait until June 9th so it would be a full year since I've blogged......  A whole year has gone by.  Where did it go?  I just looked at my last post to see where I left off... and, yep, finished that green cardigan for my MIL.  Have no finished picture of it to show you.  She loves it though.  Maybe next visit I'll get a picture if she'll let me near it!  We got Cooper and I think I lost my mind.  That's the only explanation I have.  I'm pretty sure my son was easier to raise than this dog.  LOL.  I was blogging and training him at the same time for awhile, then he beat me down.  Truly.  He'll be two in July, so he is finally getting reasonable (not really)  ;)  I get on the computer and this is what happens....

Look at that face.  How can he be denied???

ANYWAY, I've been knitting.  Not at full speed, but knitting nonetheless.  I have no proof, except a few things that are in my basket right now:

Here are some socks that I finished.  I'm still trying to get through my partial skeins to use them up.

some purple variegated (no ball band left on it), and red and purple Palette from Knit Picks.

I also dyed this purple variegated using my slow cooker (free directions on the right there).  I used Knit Picks Bare in the fingering weight.  I should get back to some dyeing. That was fun!  If you do use my directions, please let me see your results.  So many combinations you can do.  :)

 

I'm working on this pair right now.  Left over Imagination from Knit Picks.  It's called Unicorn or Wonderland, or something like that (no ball band left on that either - it's leftover!)  Also a light green Palette to match.  I may have to find a light pink or matching to finish the foot.  I'm about to run out of what I have for the first pair.

I'm also working on a Tranquility Tunic from Finish Free Knits.

I'm using size 4 circulars and sport weight yarn, so this may take awhile.  :)

I have all of my books and magazines listed on Ravelry, and I really like being able to go to my "library" and find something I want to knit without taking all of my books and magazines out and going through them.  After I find the pattern I like, I just get out the book or magazine it's in.  The only problem I have is what yarn to use.  I have lots and lots of layers of stash stored by weight (mostly) with a skein here and there lost in the wild....  Most times I will just take what's on the top.  That's not a good system.  I'm not getting the benefit of looking at it all and picking out the best color, etc.  Also, I've bought yarn twice now and already had it in the stash (don't tell Paul).  I do believe that S.A.B.L.E. has arrived.  Yes.  That's right.  I have achieved Stash Acquisition Beyond Life Expectancy.  Seriously folks, I'm not going to live to be 100!  I don't plan on leaving my stash to anyone.  I plan on using it all!  Right???  So I've decided to take on the monumental task of putting my stash on Ravelry.  If I stick to it, this will be one my greatest achievements.  I need lots of mojo for this, so send some my way please!  Comments are always welcome and make me feel like I'm not talking to myself!

I'm starting with the easy stuff, my lace weight.  I don't have lots of it.

So if you are my friend on Ravelry, please pardon me while I add my tonnage on there!!

More later.  I promise to not be a stranger!  Don't be one either!

Ginevra Finished, and new MIL Cardigan on the way

I finished Ginevra, but since it's 80+ degrees out, I didn't put it on.  It really should be worn to show off the cool neck, but, we'll make due with these photos for now.  

I was having a hard time finding a nice lace color to match the pink body as it's worsted and the neck is lace.  I had lots of pinks, but none that matched or shaded close (some shaded too close).  I finally decided on this blue-gray.  I like it, especially with the sparkles and with adding it into the sleeve and hem edges to tie in the color.  What do you think?

another pattern that I had a great time knitting.  Yay!   Next up is a cardigan that I'm knitting for my Mother in Law Mary Ann.  She gave me the pattern to knit for her.  It's from Joann's website, although I can't find it on there.  I think it's been discontinued.  Here's the information from the sheet of paper she gave me:

I don't think I can give you a picture of the pattern instructions as that would be copyright infringement I'm pretty sure.  But I'll show you a picture of the finished cardigan from the front of the page so you can see what I"m making.

cute, huh?  I'm using Caron Simply Soft worsted in the sage colorway so the color matches pretty good.  I finished the body part before I did the sleeves (although it called for me to do the sleeves first).  Now, of course, I'm ready for the sleeves and I don't have them done yet!

One sleeve down and one to go, then I can join the whole caboodle at the top and do the yoke thing to the collar.

and I'm happy to be using some of the deep stash on this one.  I forgot I had a whole container of Simply Soft that I bought.  At this point I am thinking with all the spinning I have to do (fleeces coming out the ying yang) and all the yarn I have, I'm definitely approaching S.A.B.L.E.  For those of you not familiar, that's stash acquisition beyond life expectancy.  I better get more projects going!!!  Talk to you soon!