Hello September

Our routine has changed. The buzz of everyday school life, children spending the waning summer light outside after homework, and us hanging onto the weekend. We are welcoming fall with our whole hearts.
Plans of picking out the perfect pumpkin, maybe a hay ride through a field, and some apple picking are in order.
Fall is the absolute best where we live. I can't imagine not seeing the leaves change color or smelling the change in the air. There is this musty damp crinkling crunching of a New England fall. If you never have experienced one you must take a trip here when it all happens!
Right when all this starts to happen I get back into the knitting, making mode. I feel this need to bake yummy pies while wearing an apron and to light candles at night. It's almost like this internal alarm clock goes off warning that winter is right around the corner and to enjoy the comfort of fall before it's too late.
Things are still crazy hectic around here but soon, very very soon it will all slow down a bit. I need to keep reminding myself of this. The long days, the tired overwhelming feeling will just melt away and soon my favorite month will be upon us. But this month, this September, we are happy to be right here right now.

Sea Lattice Scarf

This was the last craft of 2012. Finished about an hour before the ball dropped. It's my first real knitting project following an actual pattern. Lacey, delicate, and soft - it's everything a scarf should be. There are plenty of mistakes in there. Some that are very noticeable and some that are not. Usually I would rip it all out try again, make it perfect. But this one was made just for me. Imperfections and all. It's about the experience, the lessons, the practice and not so much the results - even if I do think it came out pretty wonderful. 

I added all the info of it on my Ravelry page - if you want to know the fine details :)

Unraveled

The winter cold finally caught up to our house. Damien, who hardly ever gets sick (in fact the last time we can really remember him being truly sick was when he was 3), has come down with a cold. This weekend we gave him some children's NyQuil and sent him to bed. Still there is this persistent dry cough, one that gets under your skin and makes you give the poor boy a million cough drops.

We did manage to paint the dining room and are planning on finishing it tonight. There hasn't been much craftiness lately beside an ornament which I will show you soon. My plan was to try to finish up the scarf I've been working on. Last night, while dear hubby watched one of his movies, I sat on the couch and did a row of knitting. The next row I did unsuccessfully. Panic set in, as I'm not that much of an experienced knitter and this row needed to be unraveled. Searching the internet I did find how to do this without unraveling my whole project, that is 85% done. The only problem is I messed it up - not once, not twice - but 3 times! So just when dear hubbies movie was finishing I got my scarf back on track only it's now at 50% done. Needless to say it's going to take a bit longer than I thought. 

Fall Knitting

Yesterday we discovered on Halloween we will have a lion, a bumblebee, and Mario from Nintendo collecting candy. I've always said, since Odyn's first Halloween, that he would make a great lion. We also drove around looking for antique thrifty store in the area. Landing at some of my favorites up in Woodstock, Connecticut - I found a cute little enamel table in a soft butter color with wooden folding sides (in the first picture) and an old wicker hamper for the bedroom. The table fits perfectly in our kitchen between two windows. There was a bit of a panic when didn't think it would fit in the car with all three children but we did it. Dear hubby's knees were a little squished but he managed.  We took a scenic route home...right into Rhode Island, oops, but getting lost made us admire all the colorful trees. It's the best time to get lost in New England.
It's been a bit chilly lately, with us having to turn on our heat for the first time the other night. The perfect weather for knitting a pair of socks scarf. I tried double pointed needles (DPNS)  the other day and realized I just wasn't ready for them. Someday I will make some knitted socks just may start with a loom instead. With the kids in school on Friday, my face a bit swollen from a tooth problem that is being taken care of today, and just a general need of getting out of the house, Odyn and I took a trip to the yarn store. I've never seen it so busy on a weekday and played bumper carts with a woman going down the same isles as me. Odyn picked out the prettiest red yarn, a color I don't use often enough. I still haven't decided exactly what to do with it yet - any ideas? The silky blue gray bamboo yarn was my pick and with a headache, due to the tooth, I came home and found a scarf pattern to start right away. At the moment it's satisfying my need of knitting something.
*Just a quick note - I want to thank everyone who has left us comments about our new house, or about finding my blog someway, or just all the warm kindness lately. I may not be the greatest at replying to everyone but I just want to say I appreciate every comment ♥ Thank you!*

Smocked Knitted Winter Scarf

Pure perfection. You can't miss me in this coat. Dear hubby quietly had doubts about this coat but has come around.

While I started making my smocked knitted scarf for my brown suede coat I think it looks just as swell on this one. Smocking was intimidating. In fact I did it the "old" way and read about it in the book The Complete Guide to Needlework. Questioning myself I decided to research the technique a little and discovered that many people actually knit the smocking while they are making the scarf - the "new" way.

After basting several threaded lines - 18 to be exact - I crossed my fingers and started the smocking. It turned out better than I could have imagined. Each end has a bit of smocking, giving the scarf a more feminine feel. The edges become more scalloped and ruffled, just enough to make a statement.

When I wear it I feel like I am doing just that ... making a statement!

Knit, Sew, Jacket

Outside the air smells like crisp fallen leaves, earthy pumpkins, and cabin wood stoves. At night it's starting to get chilly enough to huddle under a blanket and curl your toes under your loved ones leg. With winter right around the corner I have been trying to make time to knit my scarf. Against the bright white snow, and my cherry colored nose in the winter, I think it will end up looking rusticly perfect on me.

There are still some sewing that needs to be done before Halloween. Miss Aries has one blue gingham Dorothy apron that needs to be cut and sewn. Odyn's traffic cone costume is in the works and Damien has all the items needed to be the perfect Star Wars Clone Trooper. While out shopping for all the tid bits a Yoda costume caught my eye for Odyn. There was some debating on making a costume or buying one but when the costumes sound like a beginning of a joke, " A Clone Trooper, Yoda, and Dorothy walk into a bar.." , it's best to stay with the original plan.

In the works is a special little jacket . If only time would slow down a bit and spare a couple hours. 

Dainty Winter Scarf

My first knitted piece is a scarf for Ms. Aries. When beginning to knit I didn't check to see how much I had of a certain yarn or use any pattern - just picked up what I had and practiced knit and purl stitches. It was only after I had gotten these stitches down and how to rotate between them that I realized I didn't want to waste what I had began to create.

With my yarn ball (Sugar and Cream: Pastel Delight 00158) slowly getting more and more depleted as I moved the needles, it was time for more yarn. Using my trusty friend the internet I typed the yarn name into the computer ... and without fail you can only order it online.

It was not long enough for scarf or pretty enough to make into a neck warmer for myself (I don't really think Aries would go for the whole neck warmer thing). After trying it on Aries a couple of times I decided that it would be a scarf... with a few tweaks. Looking at my pile of doilies and box of beads I got to work.

Now it's long enough to wrap around Aries. Plus the dainty chic quality of it just makes it even more special. Doing a happy scarf dance this morning and posing for pictures (including funny faces) I could tell I was not the only one that was happy I learnt how to knit.

There is Finally Light at the End of my Tunnel

After 6 days of no power, no water, moody children, and a BIG dog afraid of the dark I can finally take a breath. This morning at 9:36am the power was restored. Now comes the clean up - dishes, laundry, fridge (YUCK), and toilets need a good scrubbing.

Without power you find a way to entertain yourself. Luckily for us my mom and her husband Eric have a generator, so most nights were spent up there. Breaking out the old craft books that show you how to do anything, even how to make rugs, it seemed like the perfect time to try my hand at knitting. Now with power, I can actually watch some videos to see if I am doing it correctly.

One thing is for sure - no peanut butter and fluff sandwiches tonight!