Knitting update: projects 1, 2, 3

My first try at knitting grew and grew. What started with 30 stitches was stopped when I realized that I was now doing more than 60. Sometimes, the yarn untwisted enough that I put the needle through only half. Then I knitted the other half, too. Other extra stitches appeared with no understanding.When it was done, it was not a square. It is a Rorschach test. Everyone sees something that it *could* be.









So when I started my second project, observers asked, "What will it be?" and I replied, "A square."
"No," they all countered, "what will it be?"
I explained. "The last time I tried to knit a square and failed. This time, I only hope to make a square." and I succeeded.

I really like using verigated yarns. It helps me keep track of my stitches much better than if I was looking into a sea for sameness. I like the surprised of what goes with which. What combinations appear that I wouldn't have chosen but now rather like?



For my third project, I wanted to branch out a little. I am attracted to fun fibers and wondered how they would knit. I wanted to make a small swatch, only 13 stitches across. But once I got started, in a gather of homeschool moms, I was encouraged to continue on. "Make a scarf," they said.
"But it's not really all that soft," I protested.
"Make a Fashion Scarf," they said, and one showed me her accent scarf, worn in that loose Lark's Head way.
"I am the one who wears a lizard hat," I reminded everyone.
But I'm making a scarf now, anyway. I like having one 13 stitches before flipping.



I'll declare that for Project Spectrum, CHG is reading aloud "Wintersmith" for the family. The third Tiffany Aching book from Terry Pratchett, it is full of grey skies, white snowflakes with curious properties, and the little blue Wee Free Men, the Nac Mac Feegles. While he reads, full of spot-on voices, I knit.

I really should try knitting with something blue, grey, and white, but I like these colors. I'll think about it. I have a second set of #10 needles, which are grey.

I'm coming along nicely. It reaches from my palm nearly up to my shoulder now. I expect that I'll keep going until I finish the skein or reach my arm's span across.

Kitchen switch and outlet covers on display

The ceramic covers have been fired, picked up, and installed around the kitchen. They add a lovely, personal touch to the place.



These are Ganoush's. She included her initials, which I have craftily disguised using MS Paint. The pink puffy paint that she had used is now purple. It does not affect the design.



This was CHG's first time with ceramics. He did a lovely layering on the leaves that is hard to see now. The dark greens overpower the lighter greens. The stripes are bold.



On the flip side, my leaves could have used more layering. I used rubber stamps, and they are difficult to align for second or third stampings. The boldest fern, I went over the paint with a brush, but it seemed too thick. I do like it. I just wish that the leaves had come out darker. I also initialed (and masked here) my work.



Gonzo's Electric-type Pokemon cover turned out great. It features Voltorb, Electrode, and Pikachu.

Valentine's Day Countdown

Lisa Vollrath is having another Countdown giveaway.

Do not pass along the pictures you may download from there. Just spread the news and let everyone download for themselves.

Hats

I like hats. Hats add to or enhance my character. Hats keep the sun out of my eyes.

In the summer, I wear a brimmed hat. I pin buttons and pins on it. Once, a librarian found a pin in my vicinity and asked if it was mine. It was not. "Oh, well," sid the librarian. "It should be," and gave my the button. A quote from Albert Einstein about education. Rather unschooly.

My hat has style ~ Heidi style. It is not a Tilley. It is from Lands' End. CHG has a real Tilley.

They are white-ish to reflect away sunlight. They are green underneath to minimize reflection into one's eyes.

They have a cord for windy days. I usually tuck mine up and around the back to keep it out of my way.

They have a fun foam insert inside the pocket inside the top; this will help it float in water.

The sides can snap up, though I don't wear it that way.

They have grommets to let the breeze blow through.

I can found in a crowd. The lady in the hat.

When I have summer band concert, the hat means that I am the personnel manager. I take attendance. When I remove my hat, that means that I am ready to be a musician.

In the winter, I wear a hat that was a gift for my son when he was younger. But I liked it much better than he did. So now it is mine. It was made by Doni Jo McBeath at Art for Your Frame. Go click. Not only does she make lizard hats, she makes chicken hats, rabbit hats, Knights visors, Viking hats with Brunhilda braids attached. She also makes coats for wee ones and pillow.

She is delighted that I send her an e-mail every year, letting her know that one lizard is still out in the world, making people happy. When we coordinate, she says she can make a winter hat for me with a brim. A duck in a pond.

Drivers are nicer to pedestrians that make them chuckle.

People smile at me when I wear the hat. I smile back. I rifle through my mental RolodexTM. Do I know them? Do they know me? No. They like my hat. Brave people find the courage to say out loud, "I like your hat."

There is a wire in the lizard's tongue. It usually keep it pointing up and out of my way.

If we have a large snow, I need to brush the snow from the roof of my car. In doing so, snow usually get on the lizard. Typically, I brush off my car because I intend to use my car, so after brushing, I get into my car. I turn on the heater. The interior warms up. The snow on my lizard hat melts. It drips. On my face. While I'm driving.

Lizard spit.

Valentine ATCs

Since I don't sign up for swaps much, mine are more AGCs, Artist Giving Cards.

My kids don't want to make their own Valentines for their exchange. I don't want to buy licensed cards. So they contracted me to make their cards. I was delighted.



These were for Ganoush's exchange. The background is Marvy ink pads, direct to paper. The patterned pink is store bought tissue paper. The bright pink hearts are just Astrobright copy paper. I added the Snoopy stamp after they were punched. For a time, Ganoush would hold out her arms, throw back her head, and tappity tap dance whenever she heard the word "Snoopy," as shown in this stamp. She was tickled that I used it on her Valentines. And it added that wee bit of licensing that the kids have come to expect.

I also broke my big heart punch during this session and had to make it work without its plastic casing.

I finished up with a lit of little "exploding heart confetti" stampings and one heart with wings stamp.



Gonzo's cards have a more masculine look. The cards are darker. I had started with the same pink and purple, but overstamped them with Marvy orange direct to paper.

All of the hearts are punched from one page from TV Guide magazine. The ad is for Cheez-its. The ad shows that a Cheez-its brand cracker is small but shows it next to a large block of cheese to represent the big taste.

Again with the exploding heart stamp and the winged heart stamp.

Gonzo surprised me with his thoughtfulness. On the cards to his close friends, he is adding original art tailored to their preferences. Pikachu for one, light sabres for a couple of others.



Ganoush has one friend in Gonzo's class, so I made this card extra for Ganoush to give and for Gonzo to deliver during the exchange. It will be a surprise when she looks at her Valentines.

Same formula. This heart is punched from some random paint art that Ganoush made one day. Most of our painting sessions end with time for "let's use up all of the paint you guys poured out but haven't used yet" background making.

And in true ATC form, I am continuing to number them. My last card was #658.


Ganoush's exchange was today. Gonzo's will be next week.

Ganoush's received cards had many kittens, kittens with puppies, Veggie Tales, and a few Disney princesses. She likes the card of Will Turner from Pirates of the Caribbean.

Her b-o-y-f-r-i-e-n-d drew his cards on copy paper, saying "Best Firend" and showing a bald head and a head with flip curls. Ganoush said that he made those for everybody. She said that he doesn't know yet that he's her boyfriend. She didn't know until last night that the boy's father work with CHG. They have had a chat about their children. As far as I know, nothing about dowries was mentioned.

She received candy on about half of the cards. I don't believe in giving out candy. It makes it too much obligation. But I did accept the Hershey's mini-bars, Bottle Caps, and Butterfinger hearts that she didn't want.

Project Spectrum 2.0

February / March
Blue, White, Gray

April / May
Green, Yellow, Pink

June / July
Red, Black, Metallics

August / September
Brown, Orange, Purple

Poppins has been excited about Project Spectrum and I'm ready to give it some attention. This was started last year and basically asks folk to be aware of color in their lives. It draws attention different colors each couple of months, and certainly invites craftiness if that suits one.

I have some ideas, but nothing to show yet.

New outlet and switch covers

The kids and I like visiting a local pottery store. We can paint bisqueware with glaze, they fire it for us at the store, and we pick it up a week later.

Since the kitchen's design phase, I have had a dream of each of us in the family decorating an outlet cover for the new kitchen. Today, my dream came true. We were all available to go painting together.

We realized that their stock had just the right switch covers for all of our configurations as well. Each of us now has ownership of one corner. The pink spells out "dad."

Near the dining room are the pieces by Ganoush. She made the three-switch plate and the outlet cover next to it. She finished early, so she also painted a cat.

The electrics between the stove and the garage door were decorated by CHG. His pieces are at the top, striped or leafy. What looks like a cover for one switch and two outlets is really for three outlets. Original to the house, at least since we've been here, is one "regular" switch for the kitchen overhead light, and two left-to-right switches, one over the other, for the light in the garage and the light for the landing just before the garage.

The corner by the pantry is mine. I used rubber stamps to make a leafy theme. The kitchen has a lovely summer to autumn feel without really having any glaring orange in it.

The three of us used the same palette of three green and three wood-beige colors.

Gonzo went off and did his own thing. He didn't use any of our colors but had a definite theme in mind. He drew Pikachu from Pokemon. He also drew Pokemon Voltorb and Electrode. These are all Electric type Pokemon. For an electric outlet cover. Cool.

The big revealing entry!

We've moved the dining table back to the dining room part of the house. We've written big checks. The Access Key box has been removed. The kitchen remodel is done.

Last week, we hosted my mom, my brother Goof, his wife Equestrian (sounds nicer than Horse), and their college chum, Raven's Path. They came over for a day. We played Apples to Apples with the kids. We left when the smell of varnish got to bothersome to a few.

We had Final Christmas with my family. We were showered with Target gift cards, most of which are already spent on the kitchen.

But you want to see photos of the finished product, don't you?



This is the view from the dining area.



Over the fridge is more once-a-season storage. Not full. Yea!



Everyone who saw the refrigerator in the dining room and the space that was reserved for the fridge was certain it would not fit. It does.



The little cabinet by the fridge. Gonzo noticed that we still have the little shelves around the garden window. I liked those in the old design. Open, airy. This one holds meds. It isn't the shelf visible from the living room. The paper towel holder was from the Target cards.



Here is my fancy new super Flylady-shiny sink, all polished and pretty.



The sink in use. We bought a sink guard at Bed, Bath & Beyond when we bought the pans, since I scuffed the sink when I washed the crock pot. New cookware is drying in the rack because none of it can go in the dishwasher!



There was a small leak under the sink. It soaked the lower third of the box of dishwashing detergent.

We called back Top Jimi. He tightened the connection between the handle and the silver pipe leading to the dishwasher. We all agreed that if the trouble was with the red plastic pipe, we were calling in the plumber. So far, no more leak.



Lower shelf holds baking utensils, upper shelf has food storage. Target gift card bought the new RubbermaidTM storage set with handy-dandy holding frame. The nicest part is that the two large sizes share one lid size.



This long shot shows the little pocket lights over the sink, replacing a small fluorescent fixture.



I really like the pantry. Lots of roll out shelves.
The lowest shelf is for baking foods: baking powder, brown sugar.
Next up is for pasta. A box of lasagna fits exactly from side to side. Gotta love industry standards.
Then semi-snacky foods: graham crackers, peanut butter, Nutella, raisins.
Then canned goods.
The fixed shelves hold Coke with Splenda and coffee for CHG, Cub Scout microwave Double Butter popcorn.
The upper section holds really-snacky foods on the roll-out. Pretzels, blue chips, Girl Scout cookies.
The uppermost shelf is out-of-season storage.



Here is the view from the landing, as I had taken at other times. The step stool is where the stove used to be. If you click to the larger view, look at just how close the top of the PringlesTM can clears the underside of the roll-put above it. If the can is under the roller track, it won't stand.





Bulk food storage to the right of the stove. Good stuff. Falafel mix, oatmeal, unbleached white flour, whole wheat flour, corn meal, burger mix, varieties of beans, and we finally started using the oil decanter from Endora, Christmas 2005.



Top Jimi made this special over burner cover for me. It has little feet that reach out over the stove and rest on the counter, like a little bridge. Extra counter space, protect the glass top. Way cool.



This shows the inner wall without the stove cover.



The main hub. Dishes, bowls. Overflow bulk food. CHG wants a different plate holder. Not one that is white. We'll look at BB&B this weekend.



The new spice rack bought with Target gift cards. And bananas. And the Lego model of the kitchen that Ganoush and I made. [See below.]



The drawer holds silverware and "fixin' food" utensils: cheese slicers, apple slicers, can opener.
Below is the cereal shelf. The lower shelf holds the toaster and water bottles. The theme there was: They both fit.



The angled appliance cabinet.
Wedding-gift heart-shaped-waffle maker.
Blender.
One-Cup-at-a-Time coffee maker v. 2 after the wedding-gift v. 1 died last year.
Popcorn popper (behind the blender, that splash of green) From my nine months at the apartment, I think.
Steamer. Pre-wedding.



Close-ups of the LegoTM model for Ganoush's Kitchen Remodel display for the Homeschool Share Fair.



We dug through the bins and even found pieces to make the Vanilla Wafer colored wall. White for refrigerator, black for dishwasher (though Top Jimi spray painted the Harvest Gold to be Spruce Green), blue for sink, green for lower cabinets, red for stove, yellow for upper cabinets, flat pieces for the flooring. She even found a garden window piece and I found some roof bits.

Then she found little LegoTM people to be those involved. Designer, painters (stormtroopers), carpenter (Top Jimi was a ninja), banker, plumber, electrician, dry wallers, appliance guys, and inspectors.