Off the wall

 Friday was onto the frame for pin basting. Saturday was under the needle for free motion machine quilting with swirls and hooks and echos. Sunday was prepping the binding and sewing  it by machine and now I'm ready to curl up like a cat in the sun and sew the binding by hand the black polka dots with black thread I need all the light I can get.
Last week I went to Pierre for an eye appointment, the pressure in my eyes is good, then met a friend for lunch we caught up on each others lives and how we were quilting from our stashes and only buying fabric if we needed it to finish a quilt. I had this quilt top in the car its just kinda awkward to show a quilt in a restaurant even though the lunch crowd had long gone by the time we were done. So we went to the quilt shop to unfold my quilt, I needed some turquoise for the corners, its not a match to the diamonds or center triangles but it pulls the quilt together. I bought the turquoise and the polka dots for binding since all my black and whites were fat quarters then we both broke our rule and bought more fabric just because it was there.

 Both of us being farm girls we couldn't resist the barns, I'm going to fussy cut the barns and sew log cabin strips around. I'm in bright fabric mode so I bought some stripes for borders and bindings. It was a great day I've had a productive weekend now I can curl up in the sun and hand stitch the binding. Check out and be inspired by all the quilts at Patchworktimes Design Wall Monday.  Happy stitching--Ann--linking to FMQ

On and Off the Needles

 I finished my sweater and love it. I do love wool. Thank You Ruth for suggesting I rip and redo the neck. Fewer stitches and smaller needles is just what it needed and I did the 2 X 2 ribbing. It fits so nice now. Spring was yesterday for real!! but temps are back in the 30's so I will be wearing it.

 Just started more socks. Linking to On the Needles at Judy's.  --Ann--

Design Wall Kaleidescope

Like a kaleidoscope I can turn the blocks and change the look. These log cabin blocks made with diamonds and triangles have so many possibilities.  In the end I followed the configuration in the book. Scroll down to last Monday's post or click. Now I just need to square it up by adding borders to fill in the corners. Then cut more strips and make another one. Linking to Judy's Design Wall Monday and be inspired. Happy St. Patrick's Day! and more snow in our forecast  --Ann--

Happy Saint Patricks Day

For 'tis green, green, green, where the ruined towers are gray,
And it's green, green, green, all the happy night and day;
Green of leaf and green of sod, green of ivy on the wall,
And the blessed Irish shamrock with the fairest green of all.~Mary Elizabeth Blake

Happy St. Patrick's Day --Ann--

On the needles

A concentrated effort on my sweater, I'm working on the second sleeve. The pattern is Beginner Cable Sweater from Knitting Pure and Simple the yarn I am using is Cascade 220 superwash wool. SW Rainier is above the barcode that might be the color name but amethyst is the color that comes to my mind. If I had known how easy this pattern was going to be I would have started it during the Olympics but it had markers so I thought it would need my undivided attention so I waited until the Olympics were over. I could be wearing it by now. The markers make it easy so I don't have to count very important for the numerically challenged. I have to remember markers make it easy. I think one sleeve is long enough to start the ribbing but I'm going to knit the other sleeve to the same point and try it on again. I did the neck ribbing but am not thrilled with the way it looks maybe I need to go down another size with the needles or try a different bind off, it is rippled even when I put it on. I used the knit 2 then knit those 2 together then knit one and knit together for a stretch binding. Maybe I just need to knit the bind off stitches tighter any suggestions fellow knitter?? linking to Judy's On the Needles.--Ann--

Design Wall Monday

I was in search of a design for a baby quilt and was leafing through this book by Sara Nephew and found a bright fun quilt.
Decades ago when my daughter was very small I would let her pick out a couple fat quarters whenever she was fabric shopping with me. Her stash became known as the Erin colors click to see the series of Erin quilts. Anyway since she is all grown up and on her own I called her and asked if she had any objections to me using her stash of bright fabrics for this quilt. She said "what fabrics?!!?" So I am free to use them and I'm sure I will barely put a dent in the stack.
The directions are very clear in this book just go slow and pay attention to how the log cabin grows around the starting piece. I did figure out that I could cut the pieces for the B blocks by layering strips right sides together I could cut B and B reversed at the same time.  But I'm only sewing one stack at a time to keep everything in order.

And so many fabrics to choose from! I sorted them into a pile of lights and darks. My goal for the year is to only buy fabric if I need it to finish a quilt. Our snow is almost gone but now everything is a dirty brown so these colors are extra fun to play with. Linking to PatchworkTimes and be inspired. --Ann--

On and off the needles

I started my sweater last weekend when it was too cold to do anything else. I practiced the cable on my gauge swatch and had questions as to where the yarn was supposed to go when I moved 3 stitches to the cable needle and held them in back. Does the yarn go behind the cable needle? in front? between? I looked in a magazine featuring cable patterns......didn't answer my question. I looked in my Vogue knitting book...... didn't have the answer. I looked at youtube videos. My question was never addressed, finally I came across one that the photography was clear enough that I could see where the knitter was holding the yarn. When the cable stitches go to the back the working yarn is in front of the cable needle and behind the next 3 stitches to be knit. If I keep at it I might be able to wear this before the spring thaw.

 Some finishes: top reading mitts were a gift, the recipient told me she wore them to bed that night.  The yarn I used for the variegated mitts is too heavy for the stitch pattern they are bulky to wear but they are pretty and warm. And another pair of footies I used the twin stitch also called the shadow stitch instead of wrap and turns. Much easier, you insert the needle into the back of the stitch in the previous row and pull the yarn up and onto the needle then turn and purl back. You  treat the two stitches as one when you come back. Much easier than lifting the wrapped stitch over. Find it by entering twin stitch short rows in the youtube search window.

A few more rows of ribbing and these will be done. I have another skein of this yarn so I can make 2 more pairs of socks or maybe reading mitts. Maybe I can find a stitch pattern that makes the color more interesting. Staying warm in hand knits. Check out what is On the Needles at Judy's. --Ann--