Some "Fair-ly" exciting news~ a post by Kelli

Oh another exciting time to be at the Skagit Fair, in Mount Vernon Washington. I'm happy to say I'm a 2nd place winner, (that would mean a silver metal) and I got no problems with that. I talked to the overseer of the stitching items, and she told me it was the hardest judge she's ever seen.... tookout her magnifying glass and all. More exhibitors got a 'particpation' ribbon then ever before. That means I got great feedback on my shawl and I'm glad to have it and glad to have my red ribbon. I'll let Melissa post her findings on her beauties. Oh and yeah the KAL, I do need to step it up and post some progress...but it might be all finished ~gulp~, but not blocked yet. With those 'world-wide games' that are going on and knitting the Prairie that is so quick and easy I don't get to the ole internet like I usually do. I hope everybody is enjoying our KAL! I do want to know others progress. Kelli~

four, three, two, one ~ a post by Melissa

Tomorrow is the big day!  Are you ready to cast on Kelli, Kelly, Kimberly, Morgen and Pamela?  Don't forget to get the little bits of errata before getting started ( here's the link again if you need it ).  And if there's someone reading this that wants to join, it's not too late!  It only takes a minute to add you to the group so just let me know!

I'm calling our 2012 New Year's Day Knit Along officially closed (thank goodness!).  I'm hoping NOT to be the straggler this time around but I make no promises.  Here are some final photos of my Bridgewater .  I wanted to get some shots at the beach but haven't had time yet, so these will have to do for now:

It was fun knitting this with everyone watching everyone knit this while mine sat in my knitting basket for 7 months.  I guess it's not really a 'knit along' if you don't knit along, right? 

I'm excited to get the new kal started, so I'll share my yarn choice:

I haven't been able to get a true picture of the color yet.  I'm going to do the lace weight version of Prairie and I'm using Madelinetosh Tosh Lace in 'Clover', which is a bright, happy shade of green.  I usually like to use a US4 or US5 needle with my lace but since this shawl has nupps I'm going to use a US3 since I like them nice and tight.  When you use a fine yarn on bigger needles they tend to look a little loosey, goosey (just my opinion!).

Can't wait to see photos of all your yarn choices and especially Kimberly's hand dyed yarn!  I'm excited to knit with you all and I should let you know Kelli is also, even though she hasn't chimed in for awhile.  She's having problems with her google log in that she's hoping to have fixed soon!

Prairie Party starts tomorrow!!  ~ Melissa

peaceful waters ~ a post by Melissa

My rav site is full of bugs that won't let me edit projects right now, so I'll just have to share my excitement on the blog (shucks!).  Bridgewater is blocked and drying ~ hopefully it doesn't take more than the day since I had to pin it to our bed.  I don't relish the thought of sleeping on the floor tonight...that would be a crummy way to spend our 18th anniversary (can I get a whoop, whoop!!).

Ready? .........

Isn't it gorgeous???  The center square looks like a calm tidal pool with not a ripple to be seen.  The yarn was amazing to work with (as usual) and blocked easily.

Preblocking the shawl measured 34" x 34" ~ I blocked it to 48" x 48" (I could have blocked it bigger but liked how it looked at this size) and I think it will probably relax down to almost the exact pattern finished dimensions.

I'm glad this one is finally done.  It's my first square shawl and there are a few things that I wish were a little nicer....that darn kitchener seam at the very end is not invisible when it's used to graft lace ends together and the seam bothers me.  All in all, though, I'm glad that I did it and am pleased with the result.  I have to admit ~ that 'holy crap, dude, have you gone mad?!?!' face that Wil gave to Jeff when he signed on for this kal kept randomly popping up in my head and Wil, yours was definitely the voice (face) of reason on this one!   ~ Melissa

late to the dance ~ a post by Melissa

My Bridgewater is finally off the needles.  Tomorrow it's time to weave in ends and block her.

I feel like the last person to finish a marathon....I took so long that everyone has gone home and mine is the only car left in the parking lot.

Annoyed at my time but completely proud that I finished.  I'll feel better when I see how the lace blooms and opens up tomorrow.  Much, much better!  ~ Melissa

the tank was on empty ~ a post by Melissa

Last night at 10:30 while I was online on consumer reports trying to figure out what we are going to get to replace our desktop computer with that got fried during a thunderstorm power surge last weekend, my husband remarked that I looked tired.  Boy, that was an understatement.  I felt like I was in a fog all day yesterday and by dusk I was trying to figure out why I felt like all my energy was zapped.  So, doing what I do best (and I know a certain Swanski that will appreciate this!), I sat down and made a list of everything I've done this week and all of a sudden I felt better because holy cow, I've been busy!  Aside from working all week and having quite a few sleep deprived nights calming a storm-frightened puppy, here's what I've been up to:

Batches of blueberry and strawberry jams were made with my farmer's market haul from last weekend,

and a triple batch of To Die For Blueberry Muffins were baked from the leftover berries for my husband to bring to work (I asked him to please not bring any leftovers home since I would eat them but not to worry, he phoned me and said they were devoured by 10am!).  I tweaked the pattern recipe just a little ~ I used regular size muffin tins (a triple batch made 24 filled-to-the-brim-with-batter muffins), baked at 375 degrees for 25 minutes, and substituted a sprinkle of Turbinado sugar before baking in place of the gut-busting streusel topping).

I started a book that I've always wanted to read, as it's been on my mind since following Loritimesfive 's May and June blog posts about her trip to Africa (a side note ~ it's a blog worthy of your time ~ she wrote a travel journal like no other you've seen and the pictures are breathtaking).  It's the first book that I'll actually finish since I started knitting, and I used to read a book a week before I became yarn obsessed!  I also took a peek at both my Elizabeth Zimmerman books for hints on pi shawl increases since I started this 2 days ago:

It's Dinner in the Eiffel Tower Shawl that I'm knitting along with Kelly Lightbeam while we're waiting to begin our July 31st knit along.  The pattern calls for dk weight yarn and I'm using lace weight so there are some modifications I'll have to make to get a shawl large enough to wear...which means adding at least one increase section and thanks to EZ, I at least know where that increase now needs to be, even if I don't know exactly which sections I want to repeat, and where, to maintain the integrity of the design.  This is fun!!!

I've also been getting our newest guest bloggers for the upcoming Girls in Sheep Clothing Anniversary Knit Along up and running as authors on the blog so they're able to officially join in the fun ~ I've already mentioned Kimberly and as of yesterday we've added blogger number SIX, Pamela!  I'm so excited that she's decided to play along since she's declared herself my official stalker on Ravelry and she's a wealth of knowledge and alot of fun!  This is getting really exciting and I'm looking forward to our cast on date of July 31st with more anticipation every day!  There's still time to join ~ the more the merrier ~ just let Kelli or I know if you're interested.  And it just got a WHOLE lot easier to get started since Kelly Lightbeam, with her past experience of guest blogging, was nice enough yesterday to post a very useful tutorial for logging on and getting started once you've received your official invite to join.

That's it for now.  I'm well rested ~ my husband made a thermos of French Press Italian roast coffee for me and let me sleep in this morning before heading out to look at new computers so the day is starting out so good!  He's making dinner tonight (bonus!) ~ homemade taco-truck-style carne asada tacos (and they are dang tasty!!) ~ so no cooking for me today!  Just a few chores and working the edging of my Bridgewater shawl closer and closer to the grafted seam.....I'm sooo close! 

Here's to a peaceful and relaxing weekend for everyone, especially our newest blog followers!  I love to see new little faces pop up over on the sidebar every once in awhile!  Blogging has been a fun adventure I think for both Kelli and I and we love that a few of you enjoy reading along!  Hope everyone does something fun today!   ~ Melissa

random ~ a post by Melissa

sunset last night from our deck ~ northern exposure

sunset ~ western exposure

sunrise this morning ~ yup ~ I didn't sleep much!

I was up before dawn this morning on webmd making sure I wasn't dying....did you know that if you eat alot of fresh farmers market beets for dinner, your pee will be bright red the next day (too much information???).  I was so glad to learn this was the case and I didn't need my husband to rush me to the ER.  Instead, I took advantage of the fact that the camera was sitting next to my computer and took a few pictures of ole Mr Sunshine raising his sleepy head after putting on quite a show last night.

And knowing you could care less about the color of my pee, the real reason I popped on tonight was to welcome a new blog guest for our upcoming knit-along.  Her name is Kimberly, and she brings our number to 5 (Kelli, myself, and guests Kelly, Morgen and Kimberly).  There's still plenty of time to jump in on the fun ~ we don't cast on until July 31st ~ so if you're interested, just contact Kelli or I and we'll add you as a contributor so you can post along with us while we work on Prairie and watch the Olympics and celebrate Girls in Sheep Clothing's 2 year blog anniversary.

I'm excited to have our past knitters join us again and also for someone new to join us.  We'll have so much fun as usual!

Off to work on Bridgewater.  I turned the last edging corner this weekend and only have about 40 edging chart repeats to go before I graft, bind off and block this puppy.  HOORAY!!  ~ Melissa

eta: I was just thinking I should mention ~ in the photos above our little 'postcard view' is of Puget Sound and Whidbey Island on the opposite side....and I think that may be where our newest guest blogger Kimberly lives.  I guess this post wasn't so random after all :)

guess who's turning 2 ? ~ a post by Melissa

It's us!  Girls in Sheep Clothing has a blog-anniversary coming up at the end of the month!  It will be 2 years July 31st that Kelli and I started this blog ~ there have been canning parties, county and state fairs, speaking engagements(!), retreats, train rides, family functions, loads of new friends, much laughter and lots and lots of knitting ~ my how time has flown by!  And to go along with our annual New Year's Day knitalong ~ and we've got a few of those under our belts ~ we've decided to add a mid-year kal to celebrate the anniversary of our blog adventure.  Who knows...this might just have to be a regular thing!

After a few hours going back and forth trying to decide what we should do, Kelli and I (with some additional help from past guest blogger ~ Kell-y with a 'y') settled on a triangular lace shawl from the book Juju's Loops by Juju Vail and Susan Cropper.


It's a fitting choice, with both the book and the summer Olympics this year originating in London, England.  The book is currently in 2nd edition print and should be hitting stores in the US 'anyday' (or so I've been told!).  So, if you're not lucky enough to own a copy or know someone that does who might be so nice as to lend it to you for this kal, check with your lys and see if they'll be stocking it.  Unfortunately, when we chose the pattern, we didn't realize that you couldn't purchase it online individually but for future knitalongs, we'll keep that in mind! 

The pattern we chose from the book is Prairie (this link will take you to the Ravelry project page so make sure you're logged in!).  There is just a bit of errata for this knit which can be found here on LoopKnitLounge , so make sure to make any corrections to your 1st edition copy before getting started.  If you're lucky enough to pick up the 2nd edition before the end of the month, I've read that they've tried to correct all the errors throughout the book and not just on this shawl.  My fingers are crossed for the new books at my lys before our cast on date of July 31st, otherwise, I'll be borrowing a copy until I get my own.

So, if you're interested in joining us, please let us know!  Contact either Kelli or I on Ravelry (each of our 'about me' page links are on the blog sidebar to the right) and let us know that you want to knit with us and we'll let you know what we need from you to add you to this blog as a guest poster.  Then you'll be able to blog along as we share yarn choices, answer questions, encourage each other and post photos.  We've made some good friends over the last few years with our knitalongs and we're looking forward to maybe making a few more!

Don't forget ~ cast on date and blog birthday celebration is July 31st!  We can knit an English inspired shawl while we enjoy the 2012 London Summer Olympics!  And until then...I'll be finishing up this puddle of wip ~

New Year's Day 2012 KAL ~ Bridgewater

I'm embarrassingly so close but yet so far...I'm going to kick myself square in the behind when I get it off the needles and blocked since I know I'll love it and wish I had finished it months ago!  Feel free to shame me....I know you want to!  ~  Melissa

ta dah! ~ a post by Jeff (guest blogger)

it. is. finished.

 

busy as a bee

Hello, all!
     Just checking in since it's been awhile.  We've been doing loads of yard work (the picture above is one of the lavender plants we put in this past fall...they bloomed last week and the bees are hard at work now!).  Still finding a few minutes here and there between work and chores and goofing off to get some knitting done, most of which has been for Christmas or top-secret test knitting so I can't share any of it (darn it!!).  I was asked a few weeks ago how many projects I have on the needles right now and to my horror, I actually had no idea.  Not a great feeling for this queen of organization as I've never had more than a handful of things going at once.  So, I've been pulling out wip's and getting some things finished up and hopefully in the next week or so, I may actually have something I can share with everyone!
     I do know that Jeff has finished his Bridgewater and I think pictures are soon to come!  I am officially bringing up the rear on this kal, also not normal for me.  I do believe I have lost all control! 
     Hope everyone is enjoying this glorious spring weather!  Dozer sure is ;)       ~ Melissa

i'm not dead... yet ~ a post by Jeff (guest blogger)

one... more... side... to... go...

a pesky rumor

I thought somebody told me the other day that they had finished their Bridgewater.  Patience is one of my better traits but, c'mon, throw me a bone (and maybe a picture!), Miss Kell-y!

                                      ~ Melissa

Ta Da!

Morgen's Just Before the Thaw:  59" x 59"

Well, my Bridgewater is not......

...done, that is! Far from it, but my horseshoe lace is! And just in case I haven't mentioned it recently

 .... I (heart) Jared Flood!        ~ Melissa

(My project notes can be found here )

Well, Bridgewater is done!

Greetings all!

First off, thank you for all the kind comments and good thoughts sent my way!  They were all very much appreciated.

I did finish Bridgewater on Tuesday, sort-of.  The knitting was all done but I didn't get her blocked until today.  I really poured on the steam to finish by Tuesday, and ended up having to tear out big chunks of edging when I realized that I had made mistakes.  I lost about a day and a half's worth of work.  But I did it.  Bridgewater is currently blocking on the bed and I hope to take pics tomorrow.  Oh, and I never weave in ends until after blocking, so I still have to do that!

Everyone's shawls are looking so beautiful!  There is quite a bit of talent in this little group!!!

Hugs to you all,

Morgen

When knitting isn't solace...

　 Morgen here, just checking in. I’ve been off the radar for the last several weeks, (although I thought of you all every day!) but now I finally have a chance to sit down and write a bit.

Some of you know about my mother who lives with us and who has severe dementia. She is a retired teacher whose focus in teaching was working with/developing curriculum for advanced placement middle-schoolers. She taught Shakespeare and the Constitution, and when students left her class, they Knew. How. To. Write. a paper. Her students loved her. I still receive (well, she receives) letters from former students and their parents letting her know who they’ve become and thanking her for her influence.

She spent much of the last 20 years scheduling her year around traveling back to Minnesota to help care for her parents, specifically her own mother who also suffered from Alzheimer’s.

I think of it as a few years ago, but I guess time passes quickly. It’s been longer than that that I started to recognize my own mother’s “dotty” behavior. My son and I spent nearly every day with her, and although she still lived on her own in her own home, I was slow to recognize just how out of touch she had become. About three years ago I got a call from the Kirkland police. My mother was at a neighbor’s house afraid to go back to her own house because Dustin Hoffman was in her house trying to steal from her. (Dustin Hoffman WAS the cover photo/story of the AARP magazine that was on her coffee table.) She came home with us that night, and has been with us ever since. Until a few weeks ago she had had a very slow downward progression into dementia. She has been very physically active and able, but is completely incapable of caring for herself due to her cognitive deficits. One of the saddest things for me has been that I still do not know precisely when she stopped recognizing me as her daughter. I have figured out that it was likely sometime while she was still living on her own.  It haunts me to this day.

Up until a few weeks ago our house resembled Bedlam. (The real Bedlam, not the adjective although I suppose that applies as well.) A 98lb mental-4 -year-old dominated the house causing destruction and havoc from one end to the other.

Then, quite literally overnight, there was a dramatic change in her behavior. Upon waking one Saturday morning she had lost her balance and coordination and whatever little ability she had to respond to others was gone. She was walking, but broke two lamps by walking into them. We knew something was terribly wrong and got her into the Urgent Care of her regular clinic/hospital immediately. 4 tests were  ordered, but as she was uncooperative in removing her clothes to have the tests done, she was put into restraints and given a shot of Haldol to calm her down. It didn't work.  It took 4 nurses and myself to get a hospital gown on her with her screaming and fighting every step of the way. They never did do the CAT scan or EKG because of her agitation, and due to the fact that she walked in under her own power (though unbalanced) they did not think she had had a stroke. The recommendation was for me to call her regular doc on Monday morning with an urgent request to get her in to be evaluated by the Geriatric Psych department. Uh huh.

We were certain she had had a stroke. She was exhibiting weakness on her right side and confusion that was not normal for her, but the weakness wasn’t pronounced enough for a droop on one side of her face, and as she has been unable to follow directions for some time, they couldn't do the typical evaluation of asking her to smile, or squeeze her hand, etc.  But I was pretty damned sure it was a stroke.

On Monday morning when I called her regular doc we were told to get her to the emergency room right away. (Different hospital). There they were able to get the CAT scan and Ekg and other tests. The CAT scan ended up showing a large bleed on the left side of her brain, and a smaller bleed on the right side. (I'm still puzzled by this type of stroke; she has no history of high blood pressure and she hadn't fallen.  And I am now horrified at what we put her through at Urgent Care when we first took her in on Saturday.  I wonder now how much the ensuing fight with her over getting her into bed and a hospital gown must have spiked her BP and worsened the bleed.)  Her enzyme levels also showed she had suffered a heart attack. The location and size of the bleed along with her present cognitive condition did not argue for surgery. The best advice we were given came from her neurosurgeon who recommended letting “nature take its course” with the likely outcome being her eventual death, sooner rather than later, as in a matter of hours or days, and while I had been sure she had had a stroke, I was completely broadsided by the prognosis.

I spent nearly a week in the hospital with her. This was the moment for which knitting was made! Endless hours of worry and sorrow with nothing to do but sit and wait. Bridgewater had one stitch on the needle just waiting for me to pick up and start the horseshoe border, but I knew I wouldn’t have the patience for anything that fiddly. I grabbed the beautiful periwinkle Rowan Felted Tweed out of which I had started the Churchmouse poncho which should have been perfect knitting, plain old stockinette, no thought required.

Nope.

I knit about 6 stitches on it and wanted to throw it across the room. I. Couldn't. Knit.  It  just wasn’t the distraction I needed and I am still kind of flabbergasted at that.

What did work was my Russian spindling. It is a new passion that I picked up at Sock Summit last year, and that I had set aside before Christmas. But it did the trick. I think the key was that it required my entire focus and attention. I wasn’t able to spin AND think about death and living wills and social workers and hospice and being an orphan. When knitting, my hands move and my mind floats away to other thoughts. With the spindling, both hands and mind are engaged in the process (maybe because I am still learning?) and my mind wasn't allowed to get into trouble by thinking of all the bad stuff.

As it turned out, my Mum stabilized enough for them to recommend hospice and I chose to have her at home. She is technically in hospice right now. But as with my gut feeling early on that she had had a stroke, my gut feeling now is that this is her new normal, and that she is not checking out any time soon. Every doctor and nurse is telling me otherwise. To be fair, they have had much more experience and knowledge about strokes and end-of-life conditions than I have had. But I know her, and much much better than they do. She is tiny, but she is tougher than steel and she has the longevity genes of both of her parents who lived well into their 90’s. (She’ll be 76 in a week or so.) She is at much higher risk for another stroke, and I realize aspiration pneumonia is the other great fear, but she has a good appetite (must be spoon-fed and only pureed foods) and she must remain in bed or in her wheel chair due to her balance issues. She is now a 98 lb 2 year old. “No” is her favorite word, and like a 2 year old she has no understanding of what the word means. She has much nervous energy, but no balance, so keeping her in bed or her chair is the constant battle.

There ARE rays of sunshine however.

I am slowly reclaiming my house. I no longer need a chatelaine of keys to get from one end of the house to the other. Locks are coming off the doors and my pretty things I love to look at are slowly coming back out onto the shelves. The house is quiet again and I haven’t been called names in weeks. I haven’t had things thrown at me. She is so much calmer now, and instead of Bedlam, this is simply becoming a house where a family lives, one of whom has a handicap. The physical work is much harder, but the environment is so much nicer.

And I’ve started knitting again. I started knitting her a bed-jacket (really a February Lady sweater but a short version) and I have finished the horseshoe lace border and will begin the edging on Bridgewater today. I hope to have Bridgewater done by Valentine’s Day as I have a whole calendar full of shawls scheduled to knit for 2012 and I want to move on. (Next up, Point.)

This was the life I envisioned when my Mother first moved in with us. My house would be clean and calm and I could keep my mother company and I could knit to my heart’s content.

Life is what it is. And it is good.

Deception Pass Bridgewater

Just another day in the beautful Northwest. Here I am just 15 minutes away from my house, Deception Pass Bridge. A must see if ever up this way. The shawl helped keep me warm being that it's about 45 degrees outside. It's a breath taking view, snow covered moutains, swirling waters and the long drop as you look down while walking the bridge.

Kelli

Slowpoke's Update

the end is in sight! only 50 sts left on the needles. i will finish the garter square tonight! woot woot!

Hip to be Square

Ok, this may be the last time you hear from me for days and days (I know, promises, promises) so I thought I'd show you my finished center square before I go pick up 700+ stitches for the lace border.  I do love Madelinetosh Prairie lace weight in garter ~ it makes such a warm, squishy fabric that's hard to stop fondling.  I even made my husband grab a handful and give it a good squeeze so he could feel it.  My increase sides each measure about 23 1/2" and my decrease sides measure 25", this despite the fact that I made a good effort of never having any unsupported weight hanging from my needles on the downside and distorting/stretching my stitches.  I'm sure I'll get it to even out in the blocking process, but it is definitely a poser why the same number of rows on each side of center would have that much of a size discrepancy.  Hmmmmm ~ I've got lots and lots of time to try and figure it out in the next couple hours while I'm getting all those hundreds of new stitches on the needles for my first lace chart....and a color change!    ~ Melissa

Geometry and knitting

I had a Spirograph when I was a kid that I would spend hours with making all these intricate symmetrical designs.  I think that's what I love about lace.  What do you see when you look at designs by Herbert Niebling?  I see such beauty in the minute detailed repetitive order of everything that his brilliant mind came up with.  And I see the same beauty in even the simplest symmetry, like my cake of Madelinetosh 'cove' caving into itself as more and more of it disappears into my Bridgewater.

I so love every part of knitting ~ from planning to completion ~ but especially the transformation of your fiber as you select it, wind it, knit it and block it, and all the different forms it takes during each step of the creative process.  I might be a faster knitter if I wasn't so darn distracted with every little thing that happens along the way!

If you had to pick one thing, what is your favorite part of a project?  Is it the planning?  Is it casting on that first stitch?  Or maybe wearing your finished piece?  What a wonderful craft we all are lucky enough to have discovered and come to love.

Hope everyone is having a good weekend and I can't wait to see the first finished Bridgewater!  I'm feeling like it's only a matter of days before there's a FO posted.....and I'm anxiously awaiting it!

~ Melissa

Melissa's 'progress' ? ? ?

97 stitches of garter this row
97 stitches of garter
I knit 2 together
then knit to the end
96 rows of garter to go.......

96 stitches of garter this row
96 stitches of garter
I knit 2 together
then knit to the end
95 rows of garter to go........

heavy sigh.......