Start Thinking About Christmas In January

I've been busy knitting.
I finished another shawl except for the blocking and
started another.

Will I have enough made before Christmas?
Not sure,
but they'll be ready for Christmas 2017!  

The finished shawl is made from some stash yarn: Bernat Satin Sport in Jade.
Very soft and light weight - perfect if you live in the "tropics" like I do!
(Otherwise known as the Texas Gulf Coast.) 

The off white shawl is made with Patons Classic Wool,
DK Superwash in the color Aran.
Heavier and will go to live with someone who has cold weather.


*

As it gets closer to Christmas,
I'm trying to decide what my next crochet project will be. 
I spent too much time at pinterest and came up with these as my first choice.






The pattern for the snowman afghan can be found here.




The pattern for the teapot cosy can be found here.

The Gingerbread Family ornaments can be found here.

Decisions  decisions! 

It's obvious I should start thinking about Christmas in January 
if I'm going to make wonderful things. 

From the Fortune Cookie Journal:
"You can't start a new chapter if you're stuck at the table of contents."

Wishing YOU well and much joy!

Mosaic Monday

Monday Social 

Yarn Along 



  

Yarn A Long

One of my sisters-by-choice is a member of Annie's Creative Woman Kit-of-the Month Club.

She doesn't crochet and since I do, she sent this kit to me.

I'm between yarn projects (just finished an afghan).

I needed an easy project while I decide what I want to try next. 

When I'm finished I'm going to send the scarf back to her!
Surprise!

When I need to take a break from the crochet hook,

I grab a book.

I'm reading Paris Letters by Janice MacLeod.

I was lucky enough to visit Paris with my knight in shining armor.

The Louvre with its amazing art collection 
and the crowd around Mona trying to get a picture of her.
The amazing windows of Sainte Chapelle.
I could spend days just sitting there.
Notre Dame
The amazing gardens and parks.
The Eiffel Tower -- it seems to hide and then suddenly -- there it is again.
The bread.
And, last but not least, 
I can still imagine the taste of the lemon tart I had in the little store on the Rue St Honore.
One must remember not to hurry these experiences, but stop and enjoy.

In Paris Letters we learn that Janice has job burnout.

She wants an answer to the question:

How much money does it take to quit your job?

She finds out, gives the reader suggestions,

and plans to spend a couple of years traveling in Europe.

She finds romance and a new business. 

Janice has a blog that you can find here.

I also follow Carol Gillott's blog.

She is another Paris lover and I enjoy her adventures in the city.

Wishing YOU well, much joy, lots of new yarn and a good book! 

Yarn A Long with Ginny.

An Experiment

I won this lovely crochet pattern (Basic Circle Scarf) from Olivia at My Favourite Things.

I admire Olivia's crochet work and was delighted to try this pattern.

I had two skeins of Alpaca yarn.

One in a solid blue/grey and the other in a multi color.

The original pattern called for crocheting with two strands and since the Alpaca yarn

was quite chunky -- I decided to experiment and see what would happen.

Would I have enough yarn?

Olivia's scarf is 8 inches wide and mine is a tad over 4.

I was able to repeat the pattern once instead of the number called for in the original pattern 

 and held my breath on the last row.

I tried it on today and I love it.

The Alpaca yarn is so soft.

I want to cuddle the scarf.

Perhaps I'll sleep with it tonight! 

We have more cool weather (cool for us) coming. 

I will be ready.

Wishing YOU well and much joy!

Comfy Cozy

I guess beautiful cool weather brings out the comfy cozy in me.

I've been happily crocheting between cups of tea and reading. 

I think these Santa mug rugs are too cute.

Instead of putting a pom-pom on top of Santa's hat,

I'm going to put a jingle bell. 

When I've done all the crocheting (I figure everyone needs a set of four)

I'll go back and embroider the face.

You can find the pattern at Moms Love of Crochet.

You may remember that I made 4 of these last year.

I had yarn left and decided to make a couple of lapghans using the moss stitch.

I first saw this stitch on Lemonde De Sucrette.

You can Google moss stitch crochet and you'll find several You Tube videos featuring this stitch. 

If you can chain and make a single crochet you can do this stitch.

Easy!

Speaking of yarn and textiles,

I had the pleasure of meeting a fellow blogger last week.

Linda Lewis is a wife, mother, grandmother, weaver, textile artist and all around talented lady.

She loves Maine, tablescapes and roses, too.

We had a lovely breakfast.

Please go by and visit her at Lulu's Musings.

Say "Hi" from me!

Today I'm joining Sandi at HOME.

Wishing YOU well, much joy, and a beautiful Thanksgiving.

Is it cool yet?

As you can tell, the sun is shining here.

We set heat records every day and

I'm getting tired of the weather!

So, in an effort to feel cooler,

I finished this little scarecrow.

The little scarecrow was easy to crochet.

He's lots of fun.

The design is by Sheila Leslie for Crochet World/DRG.

I purchased him as a kit from Mary Maxim.

And, NO, I don't feel cooler.

But I am smiling!

Wishing YOU well and joy filled day!

For those who might be interested, I found a pattern for 

a scarecrow online that is very similar to the one I made.

Click here to see the pattern.

This and That

It is way too HOT.
In the words of one our local news broadcasters:
"and we haven't gotten to Ughust yet!"


***

I wanted to finish my little crochet owl.

The pattern is in the Summer 2011 issue of Interweave Crochet.

It never crossed my mind that I would have problems finding

sew on animal eyes for his face.

I can find the stick on kind, but I want the sew ons.

My sista is looking in her part of the world. 

If all else fails, I'll hit the button box and come up with something.

Meanwhile, I've pinned on the face.

You can change the owls attitude by placing the face

high or low.

Fun!

And, the blue owl is for the Rice University Owls (blue and gray)!

This is a great way to use up your stash.

I can make a whole parliament of owls! 

***

Many of you have asked about Cassie.

She went to see the vet again.

This time for her annual exam and shots.

She's doing very well.

Her hip and knee problems seem to be genetic.

As long as she has no pain and the problems don't become chronic,

we will leave well enough alone

(especially while she is still growing).

She is pretty much back to running, jumping and playing with Teddy 

with no problems.

She was on my shoulder this morning, purring and loving. 

(In the picture above, the baby sock is stuffed with cat nip, her favorite toy.)

***

   

Dr. Siri Paiboun is the 73 year old national coroner of Laos. He is off to the north to attend a communist meeting, something he is definitely not looking forward to. While there, he is kidnapped by Hmong women who believe he is Yeh Ming, the 1000 year old shaman who is supposed to inhabit Siri's body. Meanwhile, back in Vientiane at the morgue, Nurse Dtui discovers that a body delivered for autopsy has been booby trapped. Curse of the Pogo Stick is different from the previous novels in the series as Dr. Paiboun and his staff are separated, with two different mysteries going on. 

Curse of the Pogo Stick (and yes, there is a pogo stick in the story) by Colin Cotterill is the fifth novel in this mystery series set in the late 1970's in Laos. It is one of my favorite mystery series. I was hooked from the beginning by Dr. Paiboun. Laos is an exotic location. There are endearing and quirky characters including Dr. Paiboun, Nurse Dtui, Madame Daeng, and many others including a transvestite fortune teller. There is plenty of political satire, otherworldly phenomena and most importantly, Cotterill shows a deep understanding of the Laotian and Hmong cultures. I finished this book in two days. I enjoyed every minute. Please start with the first book in the series, The Coroner's Lunch, and read them in order. I'm an out of order reader, but even I read this series in order!!!!!

***

Wishing YOU well and a JOY filled week.

This and That

I feel like a This and That Day!

I thought I'd start with a knitting project that I've almost finished.

Pretty colorway -- Bernat Mosaic Ambrosia.

I needed to knit 12 fans.

I put them together to make the scarf.

I enjoyed this pattern. 

Knit one fan a day and two weeks later .. a scarf!

(I still need to weave the ends.)

Teddy had to help me photograph the finished project.

It takes 3 skeins of the Bernat Mosaic.

I ordered the kit (from Mary Maxim I think) and received the 

Bernat Mosaic booklet with 10 knit and crochet patterns.

This is an acrylic yarn that feels much like cotton!

***

Sappy and homespun, Big Stone Gap by Adriana Trigiani was my perfect summer read. Set in the real place of Big Stone Gap, Virginia we meet Ave Maria Mulligan. She is 35 years old, a pharmacist, a member of the rescue squad, and calls herself a spinster. The highlight of her week is the arrival of the bookmobile. (Remember bookmobiles? I do and just knew I'd like this book because Ave likes bookmobiles, too!). Ave's favorite book is about the ancient art of Chinese face reading.  A surprise, family secret sends Ave Maria on a quest. There are the requisite Southern quirky characters: "sexpert" Iva Lou who runs the bookmobile and crusty, chain-smoking Fleeta. I was delighted when I found out there are three more in the series! 

***

I started ICAD (Index Card A Day) on July 1 ... one month behind everyone else.

Here are my three newest ICAD's.

It's been fun to see my work pop up on Tammy's blog as she reviews the latest ICAD's of the group. 

Wishing YOU well and a  joy filled week! 

Yarn Along!

It's been awhile since I've joined Ginny at Small Things for her Yarn Along.

She believes folks who knit and crochet love to read and I agree!

This is the Bear Blanket Buddy I finished yesterday.

The little blanket and all the bear pieces are knit.

Mary Maxim has a kit for several different Blanket Buddies.  

He even has a tail!

My Grand God Son is due any day.

This little bear and a crochet blanket will be on their way soon. 

I finished HEARTSTONE the fifth book in the Matthew Shardlake Tudor Mystery series by C. J. Sansom. I love historical mysteries and this has to be one of the best series I've read. The detail in each book is amazing. You are in Tudor England while you are reading.

In HEARTSTONE it is the summer of 1545 and England is at war. Henry VIII's invasion of France has gone wrong and a massive French fleet is preparing to sail across the Channel. Matthew is given a case by an old servant of Queen Catherine Parr which deals with the corrupt Court of Wards. Matthew and his assistant, Barak, travel to Portsmouth (where the French and English fleets are massing) to look into the case. While they are there, Matthew plans on looking into the mysterious background of Ellen Fettiplace, a young woman incarcerated in the Bedlam hospital for the insane that he has befriended. Somehow, someway, Sansom weaves all of this together (in 600+ pages).

The other book I finished is THIS IS GETTING OLD: Zen Thoughts on Aging with Humor and Dignity by Susan Moon. Susan is a writer and longtime Zen Buddhist who teaches popular writing workshops. This book is a collection of essays on the "sometimes confusing, sometimes poignant, sometimes hilarious condition of being a woman over sixty." With chapter titles like "Where Did I Put My Begging Bowl" (those senior moments), "Leaving the Lotus Position" (joints that refuse to work), "The Tomboy Returns" (return to childhood), "Tea with God", "Alone with Everyone" (something I'm going through now after the death of Mr. Dragon), I really did think this would be the book for me. I was disappointed. I'm not sure what I expected, but I didn't get it ... then again ... maybe I did and I just haven't realized it yet!!!!! (I tried to upload a picture of the cover of the book and Poor Blogger ... it wouldn't let me.)

To see what fellow *yarners* are reading and working on,

visit Ginny at Small Things.

Wishing YOU well and a lovely day. 

Yarn Along

I found a new MEME to join.

Perhaps Ginny will get me to crochet, knit and read more!

I've been crocheting this baby blanket.

It's a Herrschners kit called Lil' Lullabies Baby Blanket.

The Mom of the baby likes the color purple, so I thought this was perfect.

It was interesting. I crocheted the blocks and put them together first

and then the interior of the blanket was  crocheted in place. 

Something new and different for me! 

The Nora Roberts book VISION IN WHITE is perfect reading material for the treadmill!

Here are the happy parents to be.

I'm so happy they were able to visit the states in October while Mr. Dragon was still with us

and able to enjoy their visit.

We always take the family to our favorite Thai restaurant and take photos with "Bob"!!!

A tradition that I'm sure will continue.

Be sure to visit Ginny at Small Things and see what others are making and reading.

Wishing you WELL and a JOY filled week.