That’s right, it’s time for a Celebration. My Tweedy Aran Cardigan is now a Finished Object. All I can say is it’s about time. I started this sweater about 3 years ago a little after I first started knitting. I put her down to start some other projects…which in fact I will never do again…Once I start someting I will finish it before moving on. I am extremely happy with the outcome. Unlike Eloise…this baby fits perfectly. Now thats the way it should be all the time. Don’t you think? Take a look at Maya modeling her front…

And without her knowing…her back…

Here is moi…so proud of her completion…



I was so excited when I finished putting on the buttons yesterday, That I had to wear her last night to dinner. This sweater was definitely the hardest piece that I have knitted to date. There were times when I had 3 counters going at once. The stitches are also more intricate. Now I can finish Olive. I’m also going to start Rick’s Wall Street Cable Vest…also known as ‘LABOR OF LOVE’ today. As soon as I finish Olive, I’d like to finish Smooch & start Rowan’s Butterfly.

About MD Sheep & Wool...I am so upset that I’m not going to be able to meet up with all the bloggers who are meeting at 12:30. I have an important family function that I have to be at. If anyone is interested in meeting up at around 4:30…let me know. I would LOVE to meet whoever I can!

There is a Yahoo group called KnitPug. It relates to knitters who use their PDA for knitting. I am so intrigued by this as I hate carrying around the big pattern book. I have printed out patterns, though I really love putting the patterns on my PDA. It is so awesome. I also downloaded this software called CountAble  I switch between the 2 applications. They have some very cool software for the PDA for knittiers. I have already downloaded Wall Street Cables to my PDA. Now I just have to figure out how to put the Cable pattern in Excel.

I will be getting Rogue back hopefully this week. I can’t wait to see what she looks like with her zipper in!

Take care & have a fantabulous week!!!

I’m a Scardy cat

That’s right bloggers…I wimped out. I decided to let a seamstress put the zipper in Rogue. This is one cardigan that I do not want to mess up. The only zipper I could find is a dark brown. I decided to go for it because I did not want to wait until next season to have Rogue be in my FO’s album. The zipper pull is in antique brass which I do think blends well with this yarn. So now…I patienly await her arrival!

I am allmost finished my Aran Cardi...except for the seaming & the collar…

I can not wait to finish this cardi. I need an opinion though. I did short rows for the shoulders for a smooth line. I intended to do the 3 needle bind off. Would an Aran weight cardigan be too heavy to support this bind offf…or should I bind off first & then seam it? Please feel free to comment.

This is not the clearest photo, but I’m going to use these Pony Wool Needles to seam this cardi. My housekeeper must have accidently vacuumed up my cable needle…so in the process of buying another set, I found these seaming needles which I have been told were awesome.
I have also done the first bind offs for the right front of Olive...

I haven’t been working on Olive a lot as I wanted to finish my Aran Cardi. The rest of this piece shouldn’t take too long…as long as I do some knitting on her.

RAOK News...
I recieved a couple RAOK’s in the past week.

This is from Shannon I love flip flops & these stitch markers are just adorable. And who can resist fine Chocolate…not I! Thanks Shannon.

This one is from Maggie. There are 2 soaps from the Bellagio in Las Vevas & a collectable gambling coin. I have never stayed there but I heard it is fabulous. I hear it is a favorite place to stay while in Vegas. The soap smells wonderful. Thank you so much Maggie!

Last week, my Mom & I went to The Little Greenhouse. It is an Orchid house in the area. The last time I went there was last year when the 17 year Locusts were out. That was a crazy visit. Anyway…we bought some orchids. Here is a pic of the big arrangement I bought…

This is so gorgeous in person that I had to have it. My Mom twisted my arm. I put it on my foyer table & it looks stunning. I was a bad girl…I bought 6 more orchids besides this one. It has been awhile since I bought any since I usually wait for my older ones to rebloom. Here are a couple more photos I took while at the Orchid House…




I sure hope I don’t bore you all too much with my Orchid photos. I just feel the need to share their beauty!

Have a fabulous weekend!!!

And will be for at least the next 6 days!

Man oh man is this my kind of weather. We have those deep blue, crisp clear skies, low humidity (equals little sweat)...that are begging me to come out and play…golf that is. Saturday we have a surprize party in the afternoon…but we will be playing golf on Sunday. You can bet on that!

I forgot to show you the new knitting bag I got (I need it like a hole in the head)...

This is call the Zelda purse and it is available at Offhand Design’s
It has 5 small pockets inside…just enough for the basics. It is short and wide…no big pattern books here. I just copy the pattern & bring that with me. So basically, it’s good for a small project. I like the look though as I think it is pretty classy looking.

On the Knitting Front

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Let’s see…where to start. I finished the first sleeve of my Aran Cardi...

I guess I’ll be starting my last & final sleeve today. Woohoo! I’m starting to close in on this baby.
I also finished the left front of Olive...


and started the right front. I adore knitting with Karabella Aurora 8. It is such fabulous yarn.

I stole this from Norma as I think these really make you think…HOW_TO_STAY_YOUNG.htm Thanks Norma!

Workout Update

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Last week was a pretty good week for my workouts…
Monday: Pilate’s
Tuesday: Cardio & Upper Body weights
Wednesday: Pilate’s and 9 holes of golf (Our first time since last season)
Saturday: Cardio, Upper Body Weights and 18 holes of Golf (my knee went out on me on the 14th hole…I hate my knees)
Sunday: 18 holes of Golf (I was able to play with 3 advil & 1 Tylenol…nothing will stop my golf game)

Enjoy your Day!!!

Change is good

I am so excited with my new website design I can’t stand it. Lots of times…it’s the little things that make me very happy!

On the Knitting Front

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I have been spending most of my time working on my new site (trying to figure out how to put items in the sidebar), the gallery (still needs lots of work), etc…I am really enjoying all this geeky computer stuff…that’s because I am a geek when it comes to the computer. Always have & always will. This is all the knitting I have done in the last week or so…

The pattern stitches in this sleeve seem to take longer than regular 1by1 rib. This is a twisted stitch pattern. I am getting closer though. I only have 2 more inches & then I start the sleeve cap. Then it’s a whole other sleeve. Tonight is Knit night so I’m going to be working on

Olive

 

On The Workout Front

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I have been doing my workouts regularly. Pilate’s 2 times, cardio 3 times, upper body weights 2 times each week. Plus now that it’s getting warmer…golf! That’s my goal & I have to say I’m doing pretty good. I don’t do weights for the lower body as my knees are too bad…but Pilate’s works a little legs. I feel stronger doing the weights again & I’m starting to see a difference in my upper body…at least in my eyes. The most important thing is…it feels great. Yesterday I talked Rick into playing 9 holes of golf. I LOVE golf. It was the first time we played this year so far. I have to say I did real good. I got a PAR & my long game was fantastic. I hit farther than ever. My short game sucked though. My putting was ok. I need to practice on the short game! Did I mention to you all that I LOVE golf? I did? Oh!

Flower Pics

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I really need some new Orchids. Most of mine are reblooming. There are a couple Orchid sites that Tanya told me about that ship to you. I’m going to check them out! One is The Orchid Mall and the other is Orchids.com
They both look wonderful! Thanks Tanya for letting me know about them!

Blogline News

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I put a subscribe to Bloglines button in my sidebar…so don’t forget to subscribe to my new site!!!

Make it a great rest of the day!

All right fellow knitters...Now I really like working on one project at a time but I have to confess...I've lost it. I think a little bit of Froggy is wearing off on me. I'm working on 2 knits at the moment...and will soon turn to 4. Number 1 is Olive. Olive is my mindless knitting with my knit buddies project. Number 2 is my Tweedy Aran Cardigan... I started this about 3 years ago. I love this cardigan. I don't know why I ever put it down. Well I picked her right back up from my UFO's. This is the back & was finished long ago. I've been steadily working on the front...which you can obviously see is now finished. I am so proud of myself...I remembered how to do the short row shaping without even looking in a book. The shoulders are nice and smooth. No choppy bind offs here & there. See...lots of knitting pays! Now I'm on the first sleeve... I am in love (I know you have heard that one before) with this sweater... This pattern is from the IK 01/02. This is the hardest knit that I have ever done. It has lots of very different stitches and you have to pay attention to increases, decreases, stitches, rows and shaping all at the same time. This is not a knit night project like Olive is. I need to be by myself...all alone. I'm loving how she is coming out so far and from the looks of her when I hold her up, she will fit perfectly...I hope! Number 3 will be my hubby's Cable Vest. I should probably get that done for his Birthday in November or even better...Father's day. Number 4 is Lara... Most of you know that this pattern is from Debbie Bliss' Alpaca Silk. I really like this sweater...but totally fell in love with it when I saw my Mom's finished Lara. She did it Karabella Aurora 8 in Burgundy. Not only is it gorgeous, it fits unbelievable (I should know...I tried her on!) It is shorter, like a bolero & fitted but so cute. I'm going to knit her up in Karabella Aurora 8 in this color... This is color 18. It is a deeper burgundy that what my Mom used but will go with so much. Well that's it for the projects for now...I hope! I picked up this little dodad... This is really cool. It automatically measures button placement without all the math. Now that's cool! Now...the best for last... Another fabulous knit night with my knitting buddies. We went to the new restaurant...Cheeseburger in Paradise in Pasedena. They have great drinks and the food was fab. The best part...the Chocolate Nachos(to die for) & theKey Lime pie. YUM!!!! Then off we went to the local Starbucks to knit. We met this girl Wendy and her hubby (it was his Birthday) there. She was nice enough to take this photo. Thanks Wendy & huddy. It was so nice to meet you! Well that's all folks...until next time...have a great week! P.S. I didn't mean to forget about Rogue. The problem is the zipper...I don't have one yet. I've had some problems finding a 2-way zipper. Zippestop doesn't have any in the right color. They said that the season is over and they won't be getting the one I need (a 2-way in the color I need) until next season. :-( If anyone knows where I can get a 2-way zipper, please let me know! There is one place about 45 minutes away that I'm going to check out shortly. Otherwise Rogue is all finished...minus the zipper! And she's looking damn good! P.S.S. I replaced the pictures of my Aran Cardi so you can actually see the stitches more clearly!