Need your help, quick!

No, not finding the missing skein of Malabrigo. I haven't found it yet, but I'm ignoring it, so I'm sure it will show up soon.

I was going to use the Malabrigo for a Damson Shawl by Ysolda Teague, but in the absence of the yarn, I grabbed some Cascade Heritage I had lying around and have been whipping it up. I would have finished this morning but ran out of yarn 4 rows before the end. Grrrr. Have some now in my hands and will try to finish it by tomorrow.

Anyway....

As I was saying, I need your help! I'm looking for a great tam pattern. Do you have any favorites? I'm heading out of town for a week to Drummond Island, which is located at the tip of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. We rent a cabin there each year. I will have lots of time to sit on the deck overlooking Lake Huron and knit happily away watching the sail boats and tankers go by and the kids kayaking and swimming and fishing in the bay. It's my favorite vacation every year. I can't wait, but I need some good knitting to take.

Help!!! Please!!!

Frustrated

I may or may not have quickly stashed away a new yarn purchase last Wednesday before the Cute Guy could ask the inevitable question "Did you just buy MORE yarn?" It's not that he minds, but sometimes I'm a little embarrassed to explain my yarn hoarding habit. So, I hid it away. Now, I can't find it. Am tearing apart my house trying to find this one ball of Malabrigo Sock Yarn.

On the up side .... I did find a cashmere hoodie/sweater that I purchased over a year ago which still had the tags attached and I had completely forgotten about.

Again.... I obviously have many issues. Will seek help just as soon as I find that ruddy ball of yarn!!!!

Hiccup

Just found a little mistake in my Lloie cardigan. I finally had a few minutes (it's after midnight) to sit down and start knitting the applied i-cord edging and discovered that somehow I didn't center the stitches I used in the steek to crochet and cut. It'll be fine, but one side will be a little different than the other on the wrong side. Noone will know it's there (I hope - well, except all of you now that I've opened my big blogging mouth), but I'll know. I will try to not let it annoy the snot out of me.

Here's a tip: don't try to knit an applied icord edging on almost 7 stitches to the inch and 10.6 rows to the inch in a semi-lit room after midnight. It's a guaranteed way to become frustrated.

She gets it!

Knitting Camp was a wonderful experience as always. Jessica and I had such a great time and met some wonderful new knitting friends. I had the opportunity to meet some online knitting friends in person and reacquaint myself with old camp friends. Jessica and I managed to act a little more our age this year.... okay, maybe more like fifteen year olds instead of the thirteen-year olds last year. Camp has that effect on you though. We're all so giddy sitting at the feet of greatness (Meg) that we forget to act like grown ups. That mixed with the fact that very little sleep occurs at camp. I averaged around four hours of sleep a night.






(Left to Right: Jessica, Amy Detjen, and me - it always takes us at least three tries to get a picture where at least one of us is not talking.)

I knit like a maniac while at camp on my Lloie Cardigan and finally finished crocheting the steek at cutting it at Breakfast this morning with Amy Detjen, Jess, and the Indiana girls cheering on. Now, all I have to do is knit on the I-cord edging and sew the underarms.



I love this cardigan! It is probably my favorite project I have knit in a long time. It turned out exactly, if not better, than I had imagined. The colors worked out; the fit is perfect; it was fun to knit. So much fun, that I picked up the yarn to make another one for me and one for my daughter, Madison.

Talking of Madison.... Upon returning home I was showing her the yarn that I had purchased to knit her Lloie Cardigan, which she loved. I reminded Madison, who herself is a knitter with spot on tension and skill for a 9 year old), that it might take me a month or two to complete it. She replied "Well, that's the beauty of knitting!" I looked at her a little shocked and asked her what was the beauty of knitting. She replied "The fact that the cardigan will take a month or two to make is the beautiful thing. Knitting is all about knitting in lots of caring and loving stitches. That's why I love it! That's why you love it!"

Wow! She gets it! She really gets knitting!

Talk about a wonderful mum/daughter moment. Now, I'm really motivated to knit her sweater. Clever girl!

A possible overshare

I'm finally ready to come back. Life has continued to throw some interesting things our way this summer. My oldest son developed pneumonia this summer! Who gets pneumonia in the middle of the summer? Must have been the non-stop traveling and lack of sleep that he experienced while traveling to DC, New York and Virginia, then headed back home to leave hours later for a Scouting High Adventure kayaking trip Up North. He's better now, and our summer still is the busiest we have ever had. We've taken the time though to have some fun thrown in the midst of all the craziness. On the fourth we went tubing down a river for an afternoon with friends. It was a blast and a wonderful stress reliever, even if it did start to pour down and thunderstorm the last hour of the 3 1/2 hour ride down the river.

Camp starts Thursday and I'm knitting like a maniac trying to get the body completed on my "Show and Tell" project, the Lloie Cardigan. I only started it two weeks ago even though I had purchased the yarn last year at camp so that I'd not be rushing at the end. Apparently procrastination should have been my middle name. Jessica (www.rose-kim.com) arrives on Wednesday and I'm looking forward to hanging out with her and other knitters at Knitting Camp. I'm especially looking forward to the deep-fried pickles with mustard sauce at the micro-brewery in Marshfield. I swear they make the best deep-fried pickles ever! I despise pickles normally. I think they taste like I imagine urine to taste (I know, I'm oversharing), but when they're deep fried..... they're delicioso!!!!! I know, I have issues.

Back to the knitting. Why does it seem that stocking stitch in the round on the body of a sweater never seems to progress, no matter how long you knit on it?????