Two Retreats in February

Hello all,

https://fiberfuninthesip.com/

I started the month of February with 2 retreats in a row.  Last week I went to a crochet and knitting retreat (ok most ladies at the retreat would call it a knitting and crocheting retreat).  The name of the retreat was "Fiber Fun in the 'Sip Retreat" at Tara Wildlife  in Vicksburg, MS.  I went with my sister-in-law Katie.  We had a great time.  The retreat covered everything, lodging, food (which was awesome), and 1 class.  I went with one goal, to start and finish an afghan.  I did it.  I finished a corner to corner afghan using Caron's Chunky Cakes yarn, Ballet Sorbet.  Katie and I both participated in the dinner entertainment on Saturday.  We had a murder mystery.  Both Katie and I were "murdered".  It was a lot of fun.  I am planning on going again next year.

Corner to Corner Afghan

I also took a crochet class that was being taught by Dawn from Dawn O Designs.  The class was crocheting a shawl.  Below is my progress, I am about halfway through the pattern.  It was a lot of fun.

Rose Garden Shawl

We were supposed to go on an airbus ride around the area but the water level was too high.  So to fill the time we had a knitting competition to see who knitted the fasted.  I didn't participate because I am a very slow knitter.   We also had a crocheting competition.  I did participate.  I won!!  I beat Katie by 1 stitch.  Whoo hoo!

http://www.cross-stitchretreats.com/

Tonight, after I leave class, I'm picking my sister Bridget up and we are head to Orange Beach, AL for a cross stitch retreat with Katrina Boyd.  My sister Jennifer and our friend Lisha are already there.  I can't wait.  I'm bringing all twenty-something of my WiPs with me.  I will work on all of them this weekend.  I will post pictures when I get back.  But you can look at my posts throughout the weekend on Instagram.  28 minutes before class is over.  I can't wait.  Well got to go, I need to review a test with a student.

Thanks for stopping by,

Sharon

July Activity

I really was planning on writing every week since it was summer.  But the best laid plans of mice and men....  I didn't get to do what I wanted.  So here is what I did all summer.  I worked on the last plastic canvas seasonal stickup.  Bridget had cut the guy out for me but I hadn't finished him.  So, I worked on him and finished him on July 4th at almost midnight.  I think he turned out pretty cute.  I used the smaller version and a couple of pictures online to create the one I stitched.  You can't see but the entire back of the guy was stitched in blue.  Then I put two yellow Rhode stitches for the buttons.  I was thinking that Uncle Sam usually has on a coat with tails, so I stitched it that way.  That same weekend, I put the spots on Theron's Yoshi egg.  I thought he wanted light blue but he choose royal blue instead.   Now I need to crochet his Yoshi amigurumi.  The first full week of July I participated in Vacation Bible School.  We had a great time.  Only a total of 10 children showed for the week with 6 coming every day.  Our theme was "Mighty Kingdom".  The kids had a great time painting, gluing and putting stickers on things. 

As for my crafting and stitching I worked a lot on stitching and some on crocheting.  First up is my Rose of Sharon.  The progress you see is from June.  I was at Jennifer's house early in the month stitching on it. As you can see, I was working one color at a time (which is kind of difficult for this pattern).  The lower front section of the dress that is a few rows, I had to take out and put back in.  Because this is such a color changing pattern, I made a copy of the chart to highlight my progress.  Well, I decided to try to fill in the areas rather than run one color down the full length of the pattern.  So, I was highlighting my progress on this pattern when I dropped my bright pink highlighter on the dress.  I had to pull out a small section of thread.  Then, use a Tide pen on the fabric to remove the color.  And, finally restitch the area.  I was so upset, I almost threw it away.  I didn't but I can still see the slight pink area on the dress.  My friends say that they can't see it.  I hope they are right.

Next up is the Tiramisu.  I am behind again.  In June, I finished April and May's band.  I still have to finish June and July's band.  June's band has two colors and is about as wide as May's band.  July's band is a single color and about the size of the second band.  August starts tomorrow so I need to get busy.  I love blackwork; it is very easy to stitch but you have to follow the pattern carefully.  I chose to stitch it using several shades of one color, orange.  I signed up for this class though EGA twice but didn't get enough finished to turn it in to be evaluated.  Now I hope to finish it by December.   I look at the pattern and think man this is going to be hard and a lot of work.  But, when I start, the stitching goes really fast.  I just have to make myself sit down and work on it.  I think I will work on this today.


As you know from my previous post, my mother had found several projects that she started but hadn't finished.  I started with the ones that were nearly finished.  So here they are.  One was the Hip Hop pattern and the others were seasonal kitchen towels.  The Hip Hop pattern, Mom had stitched the letters A through N and part of the rabbit.  I finished it quickly once I figured out where I made my mistake.  She is very happy with the results.  She had me put both of our initials on the fabric. The first towel was the gingerbread people.  My mother was stitching it for my sister Bridget.  The gingerbread people were nearly finished.  I finished them and the border.  The jingle bells towel I'm not sure is finished.  I finished outlining the words but we couldn't find the pattern.  The Thanksgiving towel, I finished the border, added the g on the end, and outlined the words.  My mom gave Bridget her towel and put the other two away.




 




    

As you know, my sisters, Jennifer and Bridget, our friend Theresa, and I attended the stitching retreat at Silver Needle.   We drove up to Tulsa for the weekend (a 11 - 12 hour trip).  The week before I had gotten my contacts and tried to wear them.  I burned my eyes with the cleaning solution (I didn't realize that you were suppose to wait after using the solution before putting them in your eyes).  My eyes were horrible.  I had to wear sunglasses all the time and when I walked the wind hurt my eyes.  They are better now but still slightly light sensitive.  Anyway, Jennifer help me finish the JABC pumpkin with our buttons on it so we could display it on our table.  It turned out adorable.  Sharon from Chicago (she sat with us this year and last year) said that it made her want to finish her pattern the same way.

While we were at the retreat we had a great time meeting Amy Bruecken and Miranda Weeks.  Even though I am allergic to wool, I had a great time dying the wool and making the project.  While stitching, the girls and I played a sort or game.  We all brought 10 projects along to stitch on.  Every hour we would draw a chip out of cup.  The chips were numbered 1 to 10 or 3 chips had words on them.  The words were "seriously" which meant the person who drew the chip picked the project, "awesome" which meant take a snack break, and "yeah yeah" which meant shopping for an hour.  When you look at what I brought, it doesn't look like I stitched a whole lot but I did a lot of the borders on all of the projects.  Well one of the projects that I brought was one of my mother's.  She had completed the red part of the apple and the leaf at the bottom.  I put in the white spots on the apple and the two leaves at the top.  I didn't finish it at the retreat but the Monday after we returned home I did.

Last but not least, my friend Sharon from Louisiana came to visit this week.  She drove up Monday and stayed until Wednesday. We had a great time. I gave her the grand tour of Sumrall (15 minutes) - Monday Night and of Hattiesburg - most of the day Tuesday.  For lunch, she didn't want to go to any fancy or expensive restaurant; so I took her to Glory Bound.  We had the trio appetizer (we chose chipotle lime, sundried tomato pesto, and original humus) and the surf 'n turf gyro.  It was delicious.  At night we sat around looking through her patterns and talking.  She has recently moved and wanted to deplete her stash.  So I, being the craft hoarder that I am, accepted everything she didn't want.  We also stitched and I tried arm knitting.  Arm knitting is really easy to do.  I knitted this scarf in about 40 minutes.  The scarf was for my friend Liz.  I told her if she didn't like it that I would take it out an crochet her a scarf.  She didn't like it; the hole were too big.  She said that she would get caught in it.  I agreed.  I really didn't like the scarf but I love the shawl pattern and the cowl pattern.  So I will take this apart and crochet her a scarf.  Then I going to buy the yarn and arm knit myself the shawl and cowl.

Now that I have bent your ear (or strained your eyes) long enough, I will say adios.  Thanks for stopping by my blog.

Sharon

Knitting Projects completed since January

So here are the projects that I have knitted. I knitted the same baby afghan twice for the two new nephews. Tyler got a baby green one while Leif got the Sunshine Print one. I will edit this post and put a picture of the green one when I find it.












For my friend, Vercher, I knitted a dish towel and crocheted a wash cloth. I really enjoyed doing this and plan to knit all the girls in the family at least one. Next, I want to knit everyone a pair of socks but I have to find yarn that is stretch but does not have any wool in it.

Thanks for stopping by

Sharon

Sorry I Haven't Posted

As you know, the satellite modem was down at my house. Well my brother Pete got the part and put it in the machine. Then..... nothing happened. So now we are waiting on a technician to come out to the country and check out the satellite link and everything. Right now I am using a friends computer to post.

So what is new? I found a temporary job teaching math in a high school (the one I posted about in my last post but it is only 1 hour away). I'm teaching 9th and 10th graders Algebra I. At present we are preparing for the state test (which they need!) I now remember why I went to work at a community college. But, the students are cute, somewhat well behaved (they love to talk), and are generally easy to work with (when they aren't whining). I like working with them. I am continuing to teach one night class at the community college, and working for Sylvan. I am still looking for and praying for a permenant job at one of the local universities.

Oh, Oh, Oh! I almost forgot----my sister-in-law had her baby boy 8 days after my sister had her little boy. The new nephew was 8lbs 110z and 21 inches long. The babies are so cute. Leif is so laid back and calm while Tyler provides his opinion whenever he wants. That makes 6 nephews. Too many boys!!! Another set to play trains, swords, and video games with.

As for stitching, I have completed several things. I don't have any pictures right now but I will tell you what I have completed:
Knitted: dishtowel and two baby blankets
crocheted: an afghan (almost finished) and a dishcloth
cross stitched: finished my portion of a round robin (waiting on the next installment) and a biscornu
needlepoint: Finished a geometric square from the club I joined a couple of years ago.

I finished listening to the Left Behind Series on CD and am now listening to DaVinci Code on CD. I finished reading the Hobbit and am reading The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

Well I got to go. Thanks for stopping by. I hope to have internet access soon and will post pictures of all the things on which I have been working.

Last night

So, last night I started on my stitching rotation. Monday and Tuesday I was working on my exchanges and round robins. I spent two hours on Miriabilia's Christmas Fairy. All I finished were her boots. I have her wings, face, hands, and the Christmas Tree to go. Oh, and a little on her skirt. I really should be ashamed of myself that this is still a WIP. I started it March 30, 2007. It has been almost two years, but I have trouble seeing 32-count. And am refusing to by the magnifier (as of right now). I hope to finish this one soon.

I knitted on the baby blanket for Bridget, also. I completed one set of blocks and have 11 more sets to go. That is 110 stitches by 10 for each set of blocks. I hope to have it done by her C-section date of the 4th of February. I will be cutting it close. Then I have to work on the one for Mari, whose due date is the 21st of February, along with a round robin, my rotation schedule, and an exchange. When it comes to stitching, I will be busy for the next month.

As for my reading, I have read 3 of the 19 chapters of the Hobbit. I have been very bad and not reading. My sister Jen decide to read along with me. She started on January 1st or 2nd like we were suppose to be and is almost through with the book. I need to hurry up because we are reading The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Rings.

Well got to go. My nephew needs help with Mario Party for the DS.

Thanks for stopping by

Sharon

What's going on?

Well, I took up knitting again. My sister and sister-in-law are both due in February. So, I decided to knit a baby blanket for each. Since it had been a while since I knitted the last blanket, I decided to knit a dishcloth. It was a good thing that I did it first. Got all the oops! out of the way (for the most part). Right now I have knitted the first 26 rows for both blankets. I have to repeat the last 20 rows until the blanket reaches 36 inches then 6 rows later of the knit stitch only and I will be finished. One is in honeydew green and the other is in sunshine print. I also started an crocheted lap throw that will be finished today (I'll post it tomorrow.) At the same time I have two exchanges due out next week: HoE Lizzie Kate and HoE Valentines.

But the worst part of the whole week was..... I have to find a job. Where I was working (a community college) they cut me back to one class this semester. I have been working as an instructor at community colleges and universities for the past 13-1/2 years. It is very hard to find a job outside of education. I have put in applications at the local hospitals and clinics, hobby shops, bookstores, temporary worker services, and banks. I have to go be fingerprinted to be considered for substitute at the local area schools. I am a little worried but the lord will provide. (In church this week the pastor's wife read a story about Mr. Buzzard and Mr. Hawk discussing breakfast and religion. And Mr. Buzzard's comment was the Lord will provide.) So I am trying to be optimistic.

Also I registered for classes at UNO. I hope to finish my degree this semester. I really need to finish it this semester. The amount of money that I have put out for this will never be recomped once I finished. I really don't know if it was financially worth it. I know for my self it has value but moneywise not really.

This week has been a rough week. After tomorrow night, I think I will just let it all go and stitch until I can't stitch anymore.

Well, sorry for complaining. I am going to be optimistic. Like Mr. Buzzard said "The Lord will provide." I must have patience.
Thanks for stopping by.
Sharon

First Finish of the Year

Yeah, I finished one!!! This is Bent Creek's Thankful from the Red Thread Series. I started it before the new year but I had to get some thread from Bridget (the owner of this one) to finish it. As of the 1st of January I had stitched the box and the word thankful. On the 1st I finished the tablecloth and turkey plate. Last night, the 2nd, I finished stitching the turkey. Now all I have to do on my Red Thread is the border and the words. I will post a picture when I finish it (some time later).

Today I am going to work on the Rainbow Birds for my mother. I have been working on this one for about 3 years. I plan on finishing it next. My goal this year is to finish all started projects first. Then only work on 2 cross stitch projects and 1 needlepoint at a time.

Also, since my sister and my sister-in-law are pregnant and due at the beginning of February, I need to knit two baby blankets. I think I will go get the yarn today and start on them.

Well, thanks for stopping by

Sharon

What a week!

I continued working on finishing. I started back on the blanket that I was knitting for my nephew, Theron. I started it because he and Tucker were fighting on the blanket I made for Tuck when he was 1. It turned out great but I learned not to use variegated yarn when you are working with two skeins. They never match up. But, this turned out okay. I got the pattern from the "I Taught Myself to Knit" book that I bought at Walmart a couple of years ago. It was an easy pattern to knit. There wasn't a lot of counting needed like I have to do with crochet. But I love crocheting more. This pattern has about 5 skeins of yarn in it . You knit it using two skeins, so I started with six skeins but only used half of t he last two. Since there was so much left over, my mother is going to make him some footies out of the left over yarn to match his blanket.




On another note we had very bad weather on Thursday. So bad that we decided to go stay at my house because it was sturdier than my mom and dad's place. Of course, the babies loved it because it was a new set of toys to play with. We got very strong winds and hail. (A tornado touched down in a nearby area). So, I decided to begin working on the scissor fob that I have to mail out by the end of the month. The instructions say to use 28-count linen. So I thought alright I'll use 14-count aida instead. So, I cut out the six inch squares and gather my supplies then I begin to stitch. At which time I noticed that the instructions say "stitch over 1 thread". Oooohhhh. So now I have to dig through my stash to find some fabric that is appropriate because the fob is too perfect not to stitch.

Next I will work on my exchanges that go out this month, and the rainbow birds for my mother.

Thanks for stopping by.

Sharon

Knitting

Well, after years of wondering I decide to try knitting. I started May 2006. The first thing I attempted was a scarf which my cat, Midnight, promptly pulled off the needles. I waited a month and then knitted a baby blanket for my nephew Tucker's 1st birthday. He loved it and uses it quite often. Then my nephew Theron decided he liked it and kept trying to take it. So, I decided to knit the same blanket for his 4th birthday. Well today is his birthday and I am halfway through. But the thing that I realized while working on his blanket is: I don't really like to knit. So, I gave my brother Pete's friend Katie all my knitting stuff. (There really isn't much there). I've decided to finish Theron's blanket then return to crocheting instead.

There is not many things in the world of crafting that I don't like, but I know that knitting is one of them. Well, I will post a picture of Tucker's and Theron's blankets when I finish Theron's.