Lunch Hour in Riverside

On days that I don't have appointments out of the office I'm able to ride Hoolie around on my lunch hour. It's a nice break in my day. Sometimes it's to Riverside Cafe for lunch or on a day like today, I just rode around the river and park.

Knitting in the Heartland

Becca, Judy, Jackie (my KIPer peeps) and I met up early this morning for a day trip to Kansas City for the 2010 Sunflower Knitter's Guild expo, Knitting in the Heartland. There were several alpaca fiber, yarns and spinning batt vendors. I came away with an ArtClub assorted batt and another Tracie Bunker felted dread ponytail holder. Our next destination was a stop at Stuff where I found the pretty Amy Labbe pearl cross necklace that caught my eye several months ago. It was just meant to be mine afterall.

Simple Things Shawlette

I found a simple pattern on Ravelry, Simple Things Shawlette, that's perfect for the denim colorway yarn I purchased during my last trip to Columbus.

The yarn hand dyed merino goodness by Neigborhood Fiber Co. at Wonder Knits. The pattern a basic stockinette design with garter eyelet ridges.

This scarf goes well with my vintage, denim Levi's duster. Yes, I've had it since the late 80's. It can also be snapped up the front for a dress and I like to think of it as retro-cool (NOT stuck in the 80s!) But then again, the 80's were the best...

St. Patrick Parade in Delano

I had some high hopes of riding my bicycle from home to downtown for the parade at high noon in Delano but it was too cold. So, instead, I loaded Hoolie up in the truck and unloaded at the stadium. Rode to the Vagabond for some coffee then over to Twist to find my spot facing Douglas Avenue. Jill and Shelly's kids kept me company as the parade passed by us throwing candy and beaded necklaces at the crowd. My favorite was the salon girls crazy, green balloon hair and hats. Then I rode down to Bicycle Xchange to take care of legal matters: a bicycle license, head/tail LED lights and a bell. Now I'm in full compliance with the city's bicycle laws.

Maiden Voyage

The temperature rose to 54 degrees today so I threw on some knitted mitts and scarf and took "Hoolie" out for her first ride over to Harrison Park. I made several passes around the park and discovered I need to get a bicycle bell. Pedistrians just don't have a clue when you say, "Passing on your left". I stumbled a couple times taking off after walking her across busy intersections, but come on, I haven't rode a bicycle since junior high. Then when I came upon a slight hill coming home I was thanking my lucky stars I have more than one gear. I'm in love with a bicycle...

February Disappointment

I was supposed to be wrapping up my February Lady Sweater (KAL) project tomorrow but instead I frogged it all today. I just wasn't feeling this project from the very start. Turns out, I don't care for the square neckline nor the way the yoke increases puckered. Just not something I would wear so I'll save the yarn for another day. Goodbye February, I'm looking forward to March and a new project.

Country Music Tour of 2010

Country music royalty came to town tonight for a sold out show. That's George Strait and Reba McEntire along with the beautiful, LeAnn Womack. Having the stage in the middle of the Arena made for a more intimate feeling concert. Also, this time, I wasn't in the nose-bleed section which made it all the more enjoyable. With over 50 #1 singles, it was hard to imagine which songs George would perform but it seems like the King (& Queen) covered all my favorites.

Schwinn Homecoming

I was soooo happy to get the call that my (new-to-me) bicycle was ready for pick up. Big Al at Hooligan Hot Rods did an amazing job on the rebuild complete with flat black powder coating, custom pinstriping, new red cables, stainless steel spokes, new tires, new pedals and new seat all the while keeping true to the original design of my 1968 Schwinn Breeze. She's a beauty and I can't wait for warmer weather to do some cruz'n around town.

Back to Portland

How exciting to get a call from my Aunt Janine saying that's she getting hitched to Dave. That means I'll get to make another trip to Portland, Oregon for the wedding in September. Such a great occasion and wonderful place to visit. Congrats, Aunt J!

Lady February Progress

I'm making slow knitting progress on my February Lady sweater. So far, I've used 3 skeins of Cascade 220 in this yummy chocolate brown color. The body is complete and now I'm starting on the quarter length sleeves.

Columbus, Ohio

I had an overnight trip with a coworker to meet with a client in Columbus, Ohio. Out of town meetings present opportunities to catch some good meals and do a little sight-seeing along the way. This time we drove dowtown past the Ohio State University north on High Street and came upon a yarn shop, Wonder Knit. Just the kind of hip knit shop you'd expect to find close to a college campus. The knitted art behind me is a master thesis project and I met Karida who dyes yarn at the shop. I selected a skein of her dyed merino in the color: Columbus Circle.

Cast-On Party

We called it a cast-on party for our February Lady Sweater knit-a-long. About 12 of us met today at Twist to cast on together and I've never experienced so much angst in starting a project. What yarn, what color, which buttons, which increase stitch, which button hole technique, oh, and if you need more inspiration or choices, check out the 7,982 February Lady Sweaters that have already been completed currently posted on Ravelry. A girl can have a meltdown from making so many decisions.

Red Scarf Project

Craft Hope is an on-line community of crafters who donate handmade items to various charities. I've joined in on Project 6 that is partnering with the Orphan Foundation of America to knit up scarves for college bound youths. Mine are ready to be shipped off with Starbuck gift cards. I used Berroco's Comfort Chunky yarn in the red-est shade available. You, too, can get involved and spread the HOPE. The deadline for this project is February 14th.

Sweety Bird

I have a bird that hates coming out of the saftety of her cage. Every Sunday I have to clean the cage and coax Sweety out. She always bites me once and then settles down for a grooming. She never breaks my skin, but that's just our routine. She's the only one in the household that appreciates how I like to whistle and her favorite song is Patience by Guns n Roses -- she's cool like that.

In Progress

My flea market find is now in many pieces at the shop. Dents on the fenders are being worked out and parts are ready to be dropped off for powdercoating. There are numbers on the frame that I'm hoping will give us an idea how old the bike really is. At this point what I know is that it was registered in Aurora, CO in 1974.

Cover Hat

I got a little distracted from sweaters and just had to make the hat on the cover of the recent issue of the winter knitsimple mag. It was a super easy seed stitch pattern from two skeins of Cascade Chunky Baby Alpaca. The softness of the alpaca yarn makes it floopy so it can be pulled to either side or back. It's fun.

2010 Knit Forecast

I can tell I've been on a knitting hiatus. I'm flipping through two new knitting mags and have found four sweater projects that I've just got to start immediately. Maybe my first step should be to rank them in order of knitting importance:



1) Helleborus Yoke
2) Loretto Vest
3) Wrapped Cardi- Make it Work (4th pic)
4) Shawl-Collar Jacket- A Winter Wonderland (4th pic)

Then there's the one(s) I've already committed to with yarn purchases:

5) Little Lace Vest
6) February Lady Sweater KAL
7) Diorama Vest
8) Liesl Cardigan

In summary, I think I'm over-committing myself just a little for 2010. But what the hey, isn't the hat on the cover of the Knitsimple mag simply irresistible...

In Search Of: Antiques

I had the day off from work so mom and I made it a road trip day in search of antiques. The fog was heavy all day but that didn't stop us from covering a lot of ground from Ottawa to Lawrence to Paxico and finally Abilene, KS for a total of ten antique shop stops. Pictured is just one room from my most favorite antique shop in Ottawa, KS. It was a full day of 12 hours of driving, shopping and singing with the radio. A very good way to spend the holiday.

Vintage Flea Finds

She's all mine. Mom and I were rounding a corner at the monthly Colliseum flea market and my eye caught this old vintage beauty, a Schwinn classic cruiser bicycle. She's a little rough in places but for 40 bucks and a vision I wheeled her off to my truck. Husband and I now have a project we can work on together and we are fortunate to have access to some guys who are really good with rebuilding, metalwork and paint. She's going to be a blacked out/pin stripped version just like my other motorized cruiser.

I must confess this is my 6th Samsonite suitcase. How could I pass up a $5 bargain? I don't have this size and the inside lining is in pristine condition. I just couldn't pass it up. I'll recover it in my usual cowgirl fashion.

Somewhat Selfish Knits

Now that Christmas gifts are complete, I can get back to selfish knitting projects. I was very happy with the Araucania Panguipulli gifts I made so I decided to make a hat and mitts for myself. I wore them to the office this morning until I warmed up from the cold, flurry weather that continues. I also made up a pair of the mitts last night for mom (as requested) from washable Wool-Ease. Such an easy peasy knit.

Brad Paisley in Wichita

YEEHAW!! Brad Paisley was honored to open up our new arena and made a joke that we wouldn't find any gum under our chairs or beer spills under our feet (yet). It was exciting just to be there and that helped us deal with the very tight seating arrangements. I knew every word to his songs and he expertly played his guitar throughout the entire set. He's very entertaining. I must also mention my girl, Miranda Lambert, was her sassy, redneck self just kick'n it in some killer rhinestone boots. She sure can write some good songs. Besides hanging out with our good friends, Dave and Laurie, I ran into several other girlfriends who were just as excited to be there as I was.

KIP New Year Cowl Swap

Our Knit in Public group started 2010 with a cowl swap. Swaps are always a blast and I'm constantly amazed at how I can draw the gift that's just perfect for me.





This time a cowl knitted by Jenny out of Noro wool. What's the odds out of 12 that I would pick the only Noro item -- just plain knitting karma.

Arena Countdown

Only one more day to go until Brad Paisley opens our new Intrust Bank Arena. Wichita will no longer be a cowtown that big acts pass over. We will now have a 15,000 seat capacity venue to draw some great performers which will put a big dent in my entertainment budget. I've got our tickets to the first sold out show and baked some sugar cookies to celebrate.