In Gauge In July

So far in July I have had some wonderful celebrations with family and friends and I hope you have too.  I celebrated the freedom I have where I live. As part of the celebration on July 4th I made  fruit kabobs that we whirled around in canning jars full of homemade raspberry-lemonade spritzers...fun to make and yummy to drink and munch on.

Admiring flowers and the moon and having a tea/chocolate almond milk party with my granddaughters have occupied some of my time during the unusual stretch of very hot weather we have had so far in July.  Also,  water has figured prominently in my activities. I have continued to swim frequently at the gym pool, and I've watched others swim or play in kiddie pools, and my oldest granddaughter asked her pastor to baptize her as a Christian in the river by his house which I got to witness. [a bit of swimming and boating happened afterwards].

For those of you who crochet and or knit, do you crochet or knit a swatch to determine your gauge before you start a project like most patterns suggest you should?

I don't....or haven't....I know, but don't judge please :)

Monday night I joined a group of ladies at the church that I have been attending who gather to crochet or knit baby blankets for babies who arrive at a local neonatal unit. Before I came I had been told that we were asked to make blankets 16x22, or 22x28, or 28x34 inches in a non-lacy pattern, and if knitting use size 8 knitting needles with worsted weight, soft acrylic yarn.

Since I had appropriate yarn, I dug out my Knit Picks size  8 circular needles and attached them to a size 24" cord figuring that would be enough room for a small blanket. Then I cast on stitches until it looked like it would be big enough and started knitting.  I knit and knit and knit and knit...

I know :)

I completed very few rows before arriving.

When I showed the leader of the group what I had started she kindly told me that the blanket might be big enough to fit a twin size bed.  Really?

I started to frog my work, but before I had finished frogging she said, "Wait a minute.   Let's figure out your gauge." [I at least knew enough about "gauge" that I had brought my little ruler-knitting-needle-sizer-thingy with me so I efficiently whipped it out] [ahhh pride]

My new friend-teacher said, "See.  You have four stitches per inch so all you have to do is multiply the number of inches you want the width to be by four and you will know how many stitches to cast on."

See my enlightened mind?

In my over 44 years of knitting I am certain I have figured out how to figure out gauge before, but I am hopeful that this guided hands on experience will help me internalize the information forever and put it to use in a timely fashion in the future :)

So far July has had many exciting events, including the first awesome close up views of the dwarf planet,  Pluto, and devastating losses of life and property around the world, so my mind has not only been trying to wrap itself around stitching in gauge but also  thinking and feeling in gauge about life in and around me.

Life is engaging to me!  Is it to you?

Wishing you life engaged in love,

Gracie  xx

"You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit them together in my mother's womb.  Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!  It is amazing to think about.  Your workmanship is marvelous-and how well I know it."  Psalm 139:13-14 TLB

One Scarf's Story: 2014 My First Year Using Alpaca Fiber

I knit two bunnies from this fiber I bought at Sue's in Jamesport, Missouri.

I knit one bunny from the Boucle Mix, and the bunny hopped across the pond to live with friends there.

This luscious alpaca silk yarn I purchased from talented Rebekka's Camellia Fiber Co.

My youngest son and I visited Prince Edward Island in September.  I had dream's of absorbing the beauty of LM Montgomery's setting for writing Anne of Green Gables.  My son dreamed of playing golf.  Our dreams came true!  

While on the island one thing neither of us had dreamed of was visiting Green Gables Alpaca Farm, but we did that, too.  Tim took the photos of some of the alpaca on the farm.  The alpaca were not keen  on smiling for him, but rather were intent on enjoying a meal.  

When I got back to Oregon I ordered some alpaca fiber from Green Gables Alpaca Farm to knit a scarf for Tim for Christmas as a remembrance of our great trip. My friend Teresa gave me some guidance on knitting the scarf, 22 stitches on size 8 needles:

First Try...knit 2, purl 2,....get distracted... rip out.

Second Try...repeat first try...get distracted... rip out.

Third Try...knit one row, purl one row...get distracted...rip out.

Fourth Try...knit, knit, knit, knit...

Darling granddaughter came to visit.  Grandma looked up to see her darling granddaughter waving a pair of empty knitting needles around...the very needles that had held the Fourth Try.  Mercy!  Darling granddaughter said she is sorry and offers to help get the stitches back on the needle.  Grandma forgave her and hastens to say she will put the stitches back on the needle, then miraculously succeeds in doing so...both the forgiving and the getting the stitches back on correctly the first try!

I knit and knit and knit and finished the scarf on Christmas Eve!  Hooray!

After Tim unwrapped the scarf he immediately modeled it for me...I spared him the harrowing tale of the scarf's birth.

While I have not got the hang of spinning alpaca fiber yet, I have enjoyed knitting my first alpaca fiber projects this year, and just before Christmas I purchased 285 yards of 80%alpaca 20%silk in a logwood and iron shade that is begging me to knit something wonderful.  I had another scarf in mind when I bought the fiber, but it only took 180 yards to make Tim's scarf so I am debating whether to make a longer or wider scarf or something else.

Do you have any suggestions for my first alpaca project of 2015?

Happy New Year!!!

xx

Gracie

Another Arctic Blast

We are in the grip of another arctic blast in the valley below Mt. Hood, near Portland, OR.  My car thermometer registered 28F on my way home from swimming at LA Fitness with Teresa this afternoon.  The pool water was wonderfully warm inside but the wind chilled our bones in the short walk from the building to our cars.  The meteorologist I listened to on the news tonight said that the wind chill made it feel like it was -9F.  Brrrr~~~~

In the photo of downtown Gresham where my blog friends Teresa, Betsy, Taci, and I met for lunch and exchanged gifts yesterday, you can see snowflakes whirling around if you look carefully.  More snow is predicted to fall in the next four days, but most of the snow near us lands on Mt. Hood, and stays there year round.  I drove on 307th street several blocks from our house and took some pictures this afternoon of Mt. Hood and the foothills with my zoom lens to show you.

Our ponds are glazed with ice again, and yet some daffodils are defiantly thrusting their leaves toward the sun near our house, and moss is lush and green on the petrified wood nearby.

Inside the house I have some pretty little purple blue Iris bulbs and a Primrose in bloom. I've been enjoying candlelight, and my little electric heater in the fireplace.   I included a photo of Baby Rose in bloom cuddled in her pink and white hoodie for you to admire :)  She smiles frequently now at 3 months of age, but I have not caught her doing so in my photos so far.  And I thought you would be impressed to know that I have 116 rows of continental knitting to go before my next color change on my blanket :)

In the last photo there is a plastic wind-up snowman.  Our winter has been so dry and mild so far this year I thought this was the only kind of snowman I would see close by.  But today I am wondering...do you suppose we will get enough snow here for my granddaughters to make a snowman before Spring arrives??????

Gracie xx

Crafting Time Around Mt. Hood

When I attended Central Missouri State University and graduated from San Jose State University I am convinced now that I should have worked on a Dabbling in the Arts Degree instead of a B.A. in Speech-Communications :) I want to paint with water colors, knit, crochet, quilt, write, photograph, and now I want to work more with polymer clay mixed media projects thanks to a craft night I attended at our church.  Shirley Rufener, who has a regular craft segment on the KATU morning show in Portland, demonstrated how to make a polymer coated pen, using colored chalk to enhance textured designs we made in the polymer clay after wrapping the clay around a pen.  Although I was not familiar with Shirley's work I was very excited to discover she has a book she has written with directions to make many beautiful polymer clay mixed media projects....now all I have to do is craft my time to enable me to do more crafting!

I have six rows of Continental knitting I have done on the blue, Merino wool blanket I am knitting!  The blue dishcloth is another story.  I used the Continental method of knitting for about  three rows, but somehow lost the garter stitch for one row.  So I ripped out the three rows and tried again...with the same result :(  When I showed my friend Idella what I was working on she picked out three or four rows for me and thinks that when I used the Continental method on the dishcloth I somehow twisted my stitches so in effect I did a row of purl stitches.  [If at first you don't succeed try try again...]

For several Saturdays over the last two months I have worked on a scrapbook album for my youngest granddaughter, Rose.  So far I have made a special scrapbook for five of  my grandchildren for their first birthdays.  I incorporated pictures of them in their first year along with some sort of story that highlighted the alphabet and numbers. Before Christmas I purchased some Faber Castell watercolor pencils and have used them on the first page of Rose's album...I had visions of using them to add an impressionistic touch to the work, but so far I have just managed to create some smudginess around "ROSE" :) More learning necessary for G'ma!

While I am not wild about the planning and the process necessary to swim on a regular basis, Teresa, definitely helps keep me motivated.  Both of us love the feel of being in the water and gently swimming laps for an hour and chatting while doing so :)  It is especially cheering when the sunlight glistens through the water.

When I visited Meredith's last post, I was so pleased to see that Fluffy Baa-Baa now has a little buddy to play with from time to time!  My Grand Girls enjoyed seeing FBB being kissed and pulled around in a wagon.  Thank you for the pictures and story, Meredith :)

As I am out and about I am always looking for some views of Mt. Hood to share with you. Even after seven years of living here, I am excited when I spot Mt. Hood, and I want to share its beauty with anyone who will let me share it with them :)

A friend made a gluten and dairy free peanut butter cookie recipe for me a year ago, and ever since I have been fiddling with the recipe to create variations on it. I can get fresh ground peanut or almond butter at our local market so I have been experimenting with using almond butter.

Chocolate Almond Butter Spice Cookies  350 degrees for 9minutes

1cup almond butter
3/4 cup palm sugar [or brown sugar]  [can try 1/2 cup honey or agave]
1teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon vanilla
dashes of salt, ginger, cinnamon, cayenne pepper
2-3 tablespoons of cocoa powder
1/2 cup Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips [gluten, dairy, soy free]
1 beaten egg

Combine ingredients. I use a small cookie scoop and scoop out 30 cookies.  Pat down the balls of cookie dough before baking. Let the cookies cool a few minutes before transferring them to a rack.

If you try the recipe, please let me know how you like it or how you modified it.  I am curious :)
And I am also curious to know how you are crafting your time! I love your comments and learning what is happening in your life.  Often you inspire me, which I appreciate so much, and I long to encourage you as well :)

Gracie xx

Practicing in 2014

On the way home from swimming on January 1, 2014, I practiced using my iPhone to try to capture my view of the gorgeous sunset that reflected on Mt. Hood.  After weeks of fog it was wonderful to get a glimpse of Mt. Hood although my photos were not as clear as I had hoped they would be.  

Several days later the weather remained sunny.  I enjoyed [more successfully] practicing taking some photos with my Lumix 20x camera of the sun shining down on Mt. Hood and at home around the ponds.

Most of our Christmas decorations are packed away. I planted a new crop of wheat grass in my two blue flower pots inside. I stitched together the pretty Granny Square pin cushion kit Taci gave me, and I am leaving the roll top of my desk open to prompt me to practice better filing/discarding of 

paperwork :)

I am trying to practice better time organization as I schedule my involvement in a East Hill Church Thursday morning life group study of Stasi Eldrege's book, Becoming Myself: Embracing God's Dream of You.   Trying to lovingly serve, aiming to swim three hours a week,  completing craft projects, learning Continental style knitting,  attending/helping organize other activities, and Blog about  all the preceding is challenging me!

Those of you who live near the Gresham, OR area might like to participate in a Ladies Craft Night at East Hill Church January 23.  Shirley Rufener from KATU's morning show will lead us through the craft and share her story.  Space is limited to 60 attendees. Tickets are $5.00 each. For more info, call 503.661.4444 + ext. 387

Are you practicing anything special in 2014?

Gracie xx