Merry Christmas ...

I'm still without any Christmas Spirit. But, I'm ready for Santa!

I've got my favorite PJ pants on ... compliment of a dear friend ... who not only sews, she quilt too ... and knows how much I just love Thomas the Tank Engine.

Wishing you all a wonderful holiday season!

Merry Christmas!

Bah humbug! 

Looking for some Christmas Spirit ....

Have you any? I seem to have lost mine. I love this time of year and yet ... I'm blazé about it. 

Last weekend, in search of some Christmas Spirit, I went into New York City with Pumpkin. Every movie I've ever watched mentioned how there's nothing like Christmas in New York City. Heck, Rob Thomas even wrote a song called A New York Christmas. I thought it would be a great place to find some Christmas Spirit. Off we went!

Pumpkin knows how I absolutely love trains ... so she booked Amtrak into NYC ... I was so excited to be on a train. I was the kid and Pumpkin was the adult! LOL

Once in New York City, we did what every tourist should do, get a New York pizza. We ate at this small joint and the pizza was amazing.

Stomach full, we walked to all of the holiday places recommended to us. We did the Winter Village in Bryant Park and off to Rockefeller Center we went. I even saw Santa and an Elf skating.

Everyone talks about roasted chestnuts ... I did buy a bag at a street corner vendor (which seem to be owned by this chain). Anyway, don't try the roasted chestnuts, they were awful ... and expensive. They weren't even warm. 

We continued walking around, going to some personal favourites ... American Girl Doll, Lego, Barnes & Nobles etc ... Saw Macy's Holiday window displays .... so many people .... people everywhere ... you couldn't avoid bumping into people. We did over 22,000 steps! 

By the time we had to catch our train back home, we were pooped. I think we were also overwhelmed with the number of people. I figured New York City would be busy, but this was overly busy. It was like a dance floor at a busy bar! No room to move! It was quite the experience. 

After being in New York City during the Christmas season .... I'm still without Christmas Spirit. Not sure what is going on here ... I haven't done any shopping either ... Sigh!

Thanks for stopping by! Catch you all later!

Another knit finish

I've been thinking a lot about covid and it's devastating effect on our society. Many people have lost so much and it really doesn't seem to want to let up. We seem to be getting into this routine of staying home ... ordering online as opposed to supporting local business ... the mom and paps stores.  

I'm guilty of being comfortable at home .... I have so much to do, so many project ... so many books to read .... so little time. I know I have to force myself to get out. I mean, I was never a social butterfly but it was getting a bit much! Thankfully, we can travel ... that's a bonus. 

I'm enjoying some down time. It's been a busy four months ... but it was fruitful and I am pleased with the results. 

In between busyness I manage to knit a few rows here and there. It just seems that picking up the needles is easier than sitting at the sewing machine. Not that I don't have a few quilting projects that needs finishing .... There's this quilt on Penelope that's been loaded for the past six (6) months ... that's a first! Oh well ...

I finished the kept and I just love how it turned out. 

I love the top!

I'm pretty please with my colourwork. It's getting better and better with every project.

Thanks for stopping by! Cheers!

Down to the crunch!

Three more weeks to go on this life changing project and I get a small break ... before I'm back at it again! So looking forward to not having any deadlines! Come on Carole ... you've got this!

FaceTime my mum yesterday!

I love her so much. She gets an A+ for being open to using new technology! 

Finished another pair of socks. The pattern is called Shepard Socks by Patricia Anne Fortune of Knitography Designs. I used Rauma Garn 2-Trads Gammelserie.

Love how they turned out however, I feel they are too big. I'll be unraveling and reducing the amount of stitches for the foot so they are not too wide. I don't mind frogging, but it will have to wait because ...

I cast on another projects ... The pattern is called Katie's Kep by Wilma Malcolmson. I'm using Jamieson & Smith 2 ply Jumper weight.

I'm liking how my colour work is improving with each project. 

Well, that's pretty much it for now. I try to pick up my knitting needles every chance I can ... in between the busyness of life. 

Thanks for stopping by. Cheers!

Just insanely busy .... Sigh!

That's all ... Not much time to do anything worth blogging about. However, I have been picking up my knitting needles every now and again. 

I've been working on colour work socks. Colour work on a large project is challenging enough in itself... you should try it on a pair of socks ... using double pointed needles!

I was having difficulties dragging my yarn across four needles. My yarn dragging tension was not consistent, causing loose stitches. I decided to invest in some Addi Flexiflips to see if it would solve my issue. 

They come in a set of three needles housed in a lovely tube.

It took getting used to them. I started out using size 2mm (US 0) and found that I couldn't get a grip on the needle. When a row is done, my little pinky tends to grip the working needle, as I move to another section to stitch. The needle would slip out of my hands. I even lost one, which fell in between the cracks of my mother's wooden back porch. Costing more than your typical double pointed needles, I was ready to write them off! Thanks to two extremely persevering men in my family, they managed to fish it out from between the cracks of the wood planks. Note to self, do not use in places where the needle can get lost between the cracks.

I found that using Addi Flexiflips improved my tension and lead to better stitches. Instead of four gaps that you need to cross the yarn, I only had two.

I am getting more and more comfortable with colour work socks to the point where I was no longer frogging my attempt. I lost count of the number of times I took it all apart. I decided that I had to stop and just knit. 

The pattern is called Forest Path Socks by Patricia Anne Fortune of Knitography Farm Designs. It is available on Ravelry here. I used Rauma Yarn 2-Trads Gammelserie, a wonderful yarn from Norway.

I do like how they turned out. Pumpkin fell in love with them .... Can you guess who now owns these socks? LOL I don't mind. It's just a joy when my daughter loves what I create. I can knit another pair for myself. My colour work will only get better! 

The pattern is easy to follow with clear instructions. I do love how Patricia does the back of the heel. It's a stitch sequence I can see myself incorporating in other sock patterns. 

Thanks for stopping by. Catch you all later! Cheers!