What a difference a gauge makes!

Last winter I decided to knit a shawl for myself similar to the afghans I had knit. I loved the feel of them - lightweight and yet warm.
When I finished this one it was half as long and twice as wide as it is now. It stretched way out of shape.
I realized I used too large of a needle and knit it with too little tension as I knit.
I chose to use a rainbow of colors so it would go with anything.
I still love it, but I have to fold it in half or do some other creative things with it to wear it.
I used Size 15 needles and 100 stitches.

I assembled another group of yarns and changed several things when I knit this one. I used size 13 needles, 80 stitches and a tight tension as I knit it.
This shawl has a totally different feel to it and is hardly long enough to wrap around me. But - it covers my back and shoulders. It too feels good. The colors of this one are more similar and yet there are many things I can wear it with.
I probably used about 50 different yarns for this one.I love this type of knitting. I use up all my leftover yarns and have so much fun putting them together to create a pleasing design. No yarn is too short to use if it is at least 12 inches long!



This shows a size comparison of the two of them. The rainbow colored one is folded double.

I won't be getting much use out of either of them soon as I head to Florida tomorrow.
Everything is ready as I had planned on going a week ago and had to delay my trip. I've been packed for a week, the house is organized and my house sitters are ready for me to leave!

My favorite cut for tonight's puzzle!

21 years ago today I became a grandmother

Today is my granddaughter Heidi's 21st birthday. This is one of my favorite recent photos of her. She will soon be graduating from college. Where have the years gone?

This is another photo I really like I believe it was taken at some kind of retreat.

A few months ago she had to dress up as a rock star at work one day. I think she did a fantastic job and I can just picture her and one of her guitars on stage with one of her favorite bands.

The stars are shining on Heidi today!

It was a dark and rainy Halloween night. . . .

If you follow my blog you may be wondering where I am. I am all packed and was supposed to fly to Florida today but had to change my plans.
So when I could have been blogging I was packing and trying to get all my ducks in a row.

I am sure many of you haven't seen the photo of my Halloween tree so I'd like to share it with you.
At one time I decorated a full size tree for each holiday. I got tired to doing it so all the decorations (and lights for each tree) are stored away. It was fun while it lasted.
I feel like I should get out Charley Brown's Great Pumpkin book and read it to myself.
My 3 year old grandson came over to show me his flying monkey costume. I gave him his candy last night. Tonight he went home with two more decks of Panda playing cards. (He also got 2 decks last night). I didn't have the camera handy but his head piece came off as soon as he made it through the door. Big sister was a cheerleader with long blond curly cheerleader hair.
His favorite thing to do here is my puzzles. He picks the one he wants me to do and I just do the auto solve. I have a set of family puzzles and he has a hard time figuring out who his older sisters and brothers and his Dad are in those puzzles. He also loves the quilt ones.

Each time he does puzzles with me he looks at Journey which is hanging in the family room and wants to do THAT puzzle. I guess it's about time I made THAT puzzle!

More color influences in my life

This photo is a jumble of the serapes in my collection. I love the way colors change and repeat in them. Fortunately they are one of those things that are affordable to collect. I feel my collection is now complete so I won't be competing with you if you are looking to buy some! My passion for them was reignited when I visited Santa Fe, New Mexico and saw them repurposed to make gorgeous expensive clothing.


I grew up in Racine, Wisconsin, home of Johnson's Wax - at least that was what we called the company as I was growing up. It seems we drove by these buildings so often I didn't even realize how they had influenced me. They were designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, another Wisconsinite. When I was almost done with "The Colors Of My Life" series I looked at the quilts and realized there was a definite influence from these buildings.


The Fourth of July was a big occasion when I was growing up. We decorated our bikes with crepe paper. We could go to one of the playgrounds and they would GIVE us the crepe paper to decorate our bikes for the bicycle parade. I loved that crepe paper as much as I love fabric today. I bought the crepe paper you see here at the same dime store I shopped as a 5 year old. It is still there and it still has the same wooden counters and many of the same items I bought way back when. Instead of spending my weekly 10 cent allowance when I visit, I now use my credit card and usually end up spending over $100. They have everything you can't find anywhere else so I stock up on those things.

Since I don't have photos of myself from those Fourth of July parades (they didn't even have colored film back then!) I'm sharing photos of my great nephews from the 2009 parade. I guess they no longer use crepe paper.


This is Roan who is very content riding in the parade.


Quinn and Kale, Roans big brothers are enjoying driving their car in the parade.

I was allowed to go shopping each week with my allowance and often bought crepe paper. My favorite color was American Beauty Rose. I have searched far and wide for a package of American Beauty Rose crepe paper to show when I lecture and I haven't been able to find it.
This is very close to the crepe paper color American Beauty Rose. It was a little darker and a little brighter. I have almost perfect pitch when it comes to remembering the color of something.

One of my first sewing ventures was making myself a flower costume for a program at the YWCA. I used American Beauty Rose and green crepe paper. I was 8 years old and able to use my mom's treadle sewing machine. It turned out great. When I wore it for dress rehearsal I perspired and the color ran down my face! A kind mother provided a dance costume she had and I wore that for the program.

If you're still with me after wading through this long blog I have a crepe paper puzzle for you!

Felted Bag and its inspiration

I finished another felted bag. This one is slightly larger than my previous ones.


This is what it looked like before I felted it.
Before felting this measured 29 1/2 inches high and 24 inches wide. After felting it measured 21 1/2 inches high and 19 inches wide.


This sweater was the inspiration for the pattern on the bag.


This was also an inspiration for the bag. This vintage serape I purchased is a very important piece to me. It is very similar to the one my Mom had on our cedar chest and was one of the most important things that influenced the way I use color. This is about 1/4 the size of my Mom's but is uses colors in the very same way.

I was not copying either of these items, I just let them influence the way I used my yarns.
I also was working with a limited amount of yarn and had to "make it work" as Tim Gunn would say. I actually got out my gram scale when I was working on the I cord for the straps and weighted and divided the amount I had of each color to make a mirror image strap.

Since this is one of my favorite ways to use color and lizards is my favorite puzzle cut I just had to use it for this puzzle.

It's knitting weather!

I love the coloration of this Noro yarn. It is the perfect yarn to knit this scarf with the diagonal design which changes to form opposing triangles.
I got the Agate scarf pin at International Quilt Festival in Houston. If you didn't see me there it is because I probably got this at least 10 years ago. This is my first chance to use it.


This long skinny scarf is also knit diagonally but in only one direction. I had it about 80% done and put it away. When I took it out there was no pattern to follow. It is so simple I was able to figure out what I had been doing.
If I just throw it around the back of my neck it is long enough to reach my knees.
It is so soft and warm.


Here's another way I can wear this scarf. I had no one to model it so I hope you get the idea. (If I waited until tomorrow I'll have someone here but I don't think any of the men that are putting in the new furnace would be comfortable modeling it!



This is how I am wearing the scarf right now. I can also do a lot of other things with this scarf and can use the scarf pin with it too.

Enhancing commercial fabric with paint

I chose two pieces of fabric I liked. I spent an enjoyable evening or two painting on each of them to make them more complex and interesting. The squiggles, dots, slashes, commas, etc you see are what I painted.

Un Heuvo Grande 30"W x 24.5" H $400

I chose to cut the fabrics with gentle curves and sew them together alternating the two fabrics to form the design.
I added a lot of decorative stitching along the seams for another layer of pattern.

Although I had not intended the shape I used for the focal point to resemble an egg, it definitely does and that lead to the name.

Enjoy the puzzle.