Making progress

Here is the progress on the baby blanket. If you would want to quilt along so far I have cast on 123 stitches and knitted 12 rows. Yes, you knit all the rows - no purling to this point yet. My next row will be the first row of the pattern. I will share that on Monday. I am using a 4-ply worsted weight yarn. The pattern calls for 12 ozs., but I have some big fat skeins of vintage Red Heart yarn that are 8 oz. I may be able to get two blankets out of three skeins.


My plans this weekend depend on the weather. We have received 3 -4 inches of snow so far and all the schools are closed. Tonight my nephew's band is participating in a battle of the bands being held at a local high school. I don't know if they will pospone it or not since the snow is still falling and the roads are not so good. I have a haircut appointment tomorrow morning and it just depends on the amount of snow as to whether I can make it or not. My car can only handle about 5 to 6 inches of snow. I would like to get the yellow zig zag quilt quilted and the binding on Stage 11. I think I will just play it by ear this weekend!

And the winners are ... (yes, I am a day late!)

And the winners are zizzybob and Vicki W. zizzybob e-mail me your adddress and which piece you would like - the hand dyed purple, gold, and lilac or the african fabric piece. Vicki e-mail me your address too. Congratulations to the winners and thank you everyone for your participation.

This piece is Stage 6. It is the largest one I have done to date. It is 59" wide and 46" high. It is made with my hand dyes and I splatter painted it.

I did manage to get the stitches cast on and a few rows knitted for the next baby blanket. Let's see how much I get done on this that otherwise my hands would be doing nothing.

A few more things done

Here is the back and front of the second giveaway piece. It needed binding so that's one more thing done since the drawing is tomorrow. You can still leave a comment until midnight tonight. It is not a perfect rectangle. I like the more organic edges that are not straight - a little wonky. I forgot to measure it, but it is about 9" x 12".

The binding is now ready for the yellow zig zag quilt. I had this cute polka dot in my stash and I thought I was perfect. The backing is in the dryer so I am going to try and get it ready tonight after work.

Today at lunch I will finish the edging on the knitted baby blanket. That will be four done. I have three to giveaway and I am trying to find a local charity that would want them. I need to get another one started so I can knit at lunch time and while watching the Olympics.

I must say that I have been getting more done since I started this blog. I now think about it all the time and what am I going to post the next day. Sitting around doing nothing but watching TV would not seem like a very interesting post!

Working on another UFO

Last night I was watching the Olympics and my hands were idle. Donk! (my hand hits the side of my head) I could be finishing up the crochet edge on that baby blanket! So I got it off the shelf and started. The yarn I am using came from a man at work last year. His mother died and she crocheted (I hope that is spelled right - it just looks funny). He found a bunch of yarn and asked me if I would be interested. I told him I would like the light colors for giveaway baby blankets. He was delighted that I would use the yarn for giveaway/charity blankets because that is what his mother did. The pattern I use came from my late grandmother who was a fantastic knitter. She won a ribbon for Best of Show at the Illinois State Fair for an afghan that was knitted and embroidered. This was a simple blanket that she could whip up so fast. My mother also knitted and she also used this pattern. I do not have a daughter to pass this on to and I don't think my son is interested in learning how to knit, but I have never asked. Hum, maybe I will at least ask!

So anyway, I have two blankets just sitting waiting to be blocked and a third one that needs the crochet edge added. The orginal blanket pattern calls for a knotted fringe, but the fringe looks sad after the blanket is washed a few times. I had a book with all kinds of crochet edging so I just figured out something that would work. I am not a crocheter and my technique is probably incorrect, but I works for me. I think I have enough yarn for three or four more blankets, so I think I will get those needles out and start cranking out those blankets!

Successful weekend!

I got another UFO done! This quilt has eight different floral prints in it. I did vary the quilting in the green inner floral border. I stippled it in soft green thread. The rest of the quilt is quilted in off white. The size is 80" wide and 89" long. The back is a white on white piece that I hand dyed a green to match the green in the inner border. I did not have a pattern for this. I just cut the center rectangle and just worked my way out from there. I don't really like square quilts so I made some of the borders on the top and bottom wider to get some length to the piece.


Here are the yellow and white strips from Friday's post turned into a top. This weeks goal it to get the back pieced and get it pin basted for quilting.

I also got the four pair of C's pants hemmed. We met up for dinner so I could give her the pants and my fortune cookies said "Set high goals". Maybe that means all the time and not just when I feel like it? This is going to take some serious thought!

The weekend is fast approaching!

I can't believe it is Friday already. This week has gone by quick! I have several things lined up for the weekend. I want to finish quilting the floral quilt I showed the other day, I have four pairs of pants to hem for a cousin, and I want to get the strips pictured here pieced into a zig zag quilt. The some of the strips are sewn together and others are not that far. The baby this quilt is for is not due until June, but so far this year I have done really well getting baby quilts done before their born! So far I am two for two!

Last time I saw the weather it looks like no snow for the weekend which of course means no shoveling - yeah! Have a great weekend everyone!

The "Boss" quilt

The quality of the picture is not good. It is a picture of a picture. Again, I did not have a digital camera until 2009 and this was taken about 4 years ago.

Now the story - my brother was on tour with Bruce Springsteen. This was the Pete Seeger Sessions Band Tour. My brother called me and needed a lighting mask - a curtain - and needed it fast! So I gathered the materials for two 20' long x 2' high masks with velco along the top. He was home to get the masks before they were off to Europe the first time. I even make some nifty bags to keep them in.

I decided I needed to make a quilt for Bruce so I got started sewing. All the fabrics had a musical theme to them except one and it was of faces of a crowd that looked like an audience. The blocks were 14 or 15 inches square. I spent about 45 hours quilting this. It was quilted heavily - every 1/8". Once the tour came back to the states and they performed close to where I live, I got to go and see my lighting masks. I gave my brother the quilt. The tour went back to Europe on a charter plan with 48 seats that turn in to bed so everybody could sleep. When the tour was done in Europe they were flying back to the states, the quilt was presented to Bruce as a thank you gift for a great tour. Before lights out one of the band members - not my brother - tucked him in with the quilt. My brother said that Bruce appreciates hand made things.

So anyway that's the story. I have a few more encounters with rock stars and my quilts - stay tuned!