Satin Floss

The Halloween Topiary that I am working on recommends using DMC Satin floss for some parts.....the jack o'lantern, bats and cat. I really dislike working with it and I don't really love the way it looks on the piece. 

I will stick with it as I don't feel like picking it out, but I am finding it somewhat difficult to work with. I am using shorter lengths to discourage fraying. I can't get it to lay nicely on the fabric either. I have read some tips and watched some You Tube videos, but I just don't like it. To tell you the truth, I don't really feel like it is adding anything special to this piece either. I would be just as happy with standard embroidery floss rather than the somewhat shiny satin. I actually was avoiding finishing the jack o'lantern, because I don't like the floss. I am now trying to finish the cat and the bats so that I am done with the offending satin floss.

I have been slowly working on the sweater for Hubby. I am finished with the ribbing and just started on the body of the back of the sweater. 

I have changed to the larger needles, so I now I can work on more than one row at a time. I am trying to avoid aggravating the arthritis in my right thumb. It is better with knitting than with crochet. 

That fact is quite discouraging for me as I really love to work on crocheted items. I am still slowly working on this lavender scarf.

I can complete one four row pattern at a time, but then I must put it down. There have been several nights recently where all I want to do is sit and either knit or crochet all evening, but I just can't. 

I have been getting some reading done instead. This book was on the swap rack at my local library.

The author is new to me. I am totally enjoying this book. The characters, setting and story line are quite interesting. I am so glad that I picked this book up. I will definitely look for more of her books in the future.

I am joining Kathy for some Slow Sunday Stitching. Pop on over to her site to see what other bloggers are stitching. I will be working on the Halloween Topiary.

Thanks for stopping by!

In or On

I finished stitching the confetti on the Halloween Topiary. 

Now I can move on to the rest of the stitching which is all solid blocks of stitching one color. I have already started the Jack-O'Lantern at the base of the tree. The rest should stitch up fairly quickly barring any mistakes.

The title of today's post comes from the first sentence. I was debating whether to use "in" or "on". Obviously, I used "on". That got me musing though about a sure way to tell a native Long Islander from someone who does not frequent Long Island, NY. Now I have relatives who live "in" Boston or Racine or Florida. I claim to live "in" New York, but I live "on" Long Island. Don't ask me why this is so, but when an acquaintance or TV personality talks about going somewhere "in" Long Island, you easily know they are not from the Island. They might visit often, but they haven't learned the lingo. I am sure there are quirks in language wherever one lives that easily identify "outsiders".  

Well, enough of that. I bought yarn! Okay, so it is not any high-end yarn, but I want to knit a sweater for my hubby and he is not real enthusiastic about it. He wears pull-over sweaters in the winter and I have never made him one.

I am not an accomplished knitter (I will try anything though), so I did not want to buy expensive yarn. I am going to make the Dan sweater from Ravelry. I have swatched the pattern in this yarn and had to change to smaller needles. The pattern is quite easy though and I think hope Hubby will like it.

I am joining Kathy for some Slow Sunday Stitching. Pop on over to her site to see what other bloggers are stitching. I will be working on the Halloween Topiary today. I want to finish that Jack-O'Lantern. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Slow Sunday Stitching

There is a lot of confetti stitching of 4 different oranges in this Halloween Topiary, but I am working through it. 

I decided to start with the confetti, because then the rest of the piece will go quite quickly as it is all solid colors. I am finishing up the third color and there is not much of the 4th. I am quite please how it is looking.

I finished the second donation scarf. 

What I thought was a full skein of red yarn wasn't so I had to add a different color. I had just enough of the blue yarn to add 11 rows to either end of the red. The scarf is just over 50 inches now so I can stop. I just have to weave in the one blue end.

I am joining Kathy for some Slow Sunday Stitching. Pop on over to her site to see what other bloggers are stitching. I will be working on the Halloween Topiary. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Yarn and Books

I finished the knitted variegated donation scarf. 

I discovered that I don't have enough of this awful red yarn to make a full scarf. 

Thankfully, I have more of this yarn in blue. I think I will just crochet blue on either end of the red to get the length I need. At least that will get more of this yarn out of my stash.

I enjoy reading, but during the school year I just don't have the time to invest in reading a novel. I am trying to make up for that this summer. I have finished these two books recently.

I loved "Last One Home" by Debbie Macomber. This is the first book that I have read in a while that I just didn't want to put down. I enjoyed "The Sugar Camp Quilt" by Jennifer Chiaverini. This is the 7th book in the Elm Creek Quilt series. I was surprised that this entire book was set in the past which was not what I was expecting. Other books in this series usually have both a contemporary and historic part to them. Never-the-less this was an enjoyable book to read.

I am about to start reading "Angel Falls" by Kristin Hannah. I am hoping to finish this book and maybe one or two more before the summer is over. 

Joining Ginny for Yarn Along today. Pop on over to her site to see what other bloggers are knitting and reading.

Thanks for stopping by!

Slow Sunday Stitching

I am making progress on my Halloween Topiary. 

The topiary stem stitched up quickly, but the top is full of a confetti of 4 different colors. It is taking some time to make sure that I am not making any mistakes, but I am really enjoying stitching this. 

I have briefly put aside "Jingle as ye come, Jingle as ye go" in favor of the Topiary, but I did make some progress on it at the beginning of the week.

I added the holly berries. Not much, but I am pleased with the way this is going.

Yesterday, I paid a visit to a local quilt shop in order to start gathering fabrics to make this quilt for my daughter. It is a scrappy quilt and I will need a multitude of fat quarters. This is what I have so far.

Life has been hectic here since last weekend's shower. My MIL hadn't been feeling well for quite some time, but is very doctor adverse. She did not make it to the shower on Saturday. On Sunday, Hubby had to call an ambulance. MIL needed 3 units of blood due to an extremely low hemoglobin number and then tests to determine where she was bleeding. Needless to say, she had surgery on Friday to remove a tumor from her colon and is now on the mend. It has been a long and stressful week. 

I am joining Kathy for some Slow Sunday Stitching. Pop on over to her site to see what other bloggers are stitching. It is a beautiful day here, so I think I will sit on my porch and work on my topiary.

Thanks for stopping by!