I Am Alive and Well!

Hi to all who visit this blog. I am alive and well and still knitting!!

I have heard about 'blog fade' and I know I am suffering from this ailment, but I am not really ill, just busy.

I am on Ravelry as Swimmingpeg - don't ask why I did not use Woolinmysoup - I have asked myself that question far to often to count!

I spend too much time reading blogs, checking Ravelry, taking six courses a week and living to even apologize for not blogging.

I will blog again, but for now I am taking a break - not sure when I will return, but I will!

Thanks for any concerns you might have had about me - I am just fine! Now to tend to the knitting needles and yarn!

Do You Remember Your Semaphore?



If you remember your semaphore from Girl Guides or probably Sea Cadets, I have spelled out (I think and hope) the name of this little sweater. If not, and you remember, let me know - not that I have much use for semaphore anymore, but I thought it would be fun to let the little sweater signal to you!

I learned semaphore in Girl Guides, but have never had a use for it! I also got my Knitter's Badge or something like that. I can remember having to knit a 'square' in Brownies and it was absolutely filthy when it was finished, but a wash and a prayer and I got my badge!!

I used some reclaimed yarn from a sweater and left overs from sock knitting to make this little sweater for - well, a good reason will come along!! The blue is cotton, but it is so soft and the colour is wonderful, I think. I am now knitting the February baby sweater (my 4th, I think) from EZ's Knitter's Almanac, with the remainder of the blue cotton! I have been trying to use up some stash!

I did order the Wool Gatherer from Schoolhouse Press and also a DVD and a copy of the book 'Knitting Around' by EZ.

Now, time to get back to my knitting!

Hats, Scarves and Vests!

These two little hats - completed in a day and a half - are for the little twin boy and girl that I have made a few sweaters for and since this is their first Halloween, I thought these might be cute. The cotton was on for 40% off in July - who thinks pumpkin hats in July - and I had some green left over from some 'strawberry' hats, I just grabbed up yarn and needles and had fun! I think that if they only wear them for an hour that their parents will still appreciate the effort. Their Daddy looks after our computer, and although we pay him for his work, he always goes above and beyond, and we appreciate that, so a few little hats and sweaters are an easy way to say thanks!


If I had paid full price for the yarn to knit the scarf above, it would be the most expensive scarf to date. The yarn I used is one of the fun yarns that originally sold for $17.95 a ball and I used 3 balls!! It is made by (I think, as the name is obscured by the sale tag) Godlifra - and I saw it in one site called fetuccine, as it is rather flat with a bit of glitz sewn up the middle of this 'unspun' yarn! I got it for $4.50 a ball and it only has 30 metres to the ball! It will be tucked into a Christmas present! It has more orange, brown, rust and gold than the photo shows, and it will be a warm scarf - I cast on 12 st. on a 9mm needle and knit until I ran out of yarn!!

The green scarf below is similar to the orange one that our dog, Isla, modeled for me. She does not think she looks good in green, so I just placed it on the work table! Instead of starting with 80 stitches, I cast on 100 stitches for this one. I think it is a better length for an adult, but it all depends on how long you want the scarf - for decoration, but no real warmth.
This vest was knit from Takhki.Stacy Charles Santa Fe yarn that I enjoyed working with - again bought at a 50% off table. This vest - size XL - does look good with jeans, so what more can you ask of a garment. I also knit the same pattern up in a small size in the same colours as the Rib Warmer Vest below. I like the buttons on the black/grey/cream/brown vests better than the other vest. I find purchasing buttons can be a bit of a trial and do not always look forward to that little shopping expedition - much easier to buy yarn!!
Who said I loved the Rib Warmer Vest pattern? This yarn is 95% Extra Fine Merino Wool and is wrapped with 5% nylon. It is so soft and warm and I know it will get lots of wear this winter. I showed a close up of the button!! That little snip of red on the lower left corner is my MP3 cover. I listen to books and podcasts as I knit - oh yes, I usually have classical music playing in the background.

I did finish the knit of the XO Irish Vest by Cheryl Oberle, but trying to get buttons has not been successful just yet. One of my LYS has some bone and also wood buttons, so I will make a trip there and then show the vest - buttons and all! This vest may not be the project I am most proud of from the point of view of beauty, although it is very nice, but from the point of view of the final cast off - I was over the moon when I cast off the last stitch!! I washed it in Woolite on cold on a gentle cycle and it is so much softer. It has taken two days to dry! As I said, this will be my Irish wind breaker!!

So You Don't Have Any Pics!

I have decided that I can still post without pics, as that seems to be some of my hold up lately.

Is it the time of year, or is it me? I notice someone else who happens to be a 'cancer' stated that her mood was not great just now. Perhaps my planets are in the wrong position!!

I was just looking at my library's new acquisitions, and they have Elizabeth Zimmermann's DVD. There were not a lot of details on it, but my name is on the waiting list. I am third in line, so it will be a week or two, but I want to see it and perhaps then order a copy for myself. I have done that previously with knitting books - I like to handle them a bit longer than the bookstore owner wants me to, so the library will loan them to me for three weeks and I can sit and stare as long as I wish!! If I like more than a couple of patterns, I order from my bookstore or online!!

I am currently working on an EZ Rib Warmer Vest and a Baby Surprise Jacket - restful knitting, and just what I need for the moment.

For any gals who get the Canadian Living magazine, there was a nice little kimono-style baby sweater in the last issue. I tore it from the magazine and stashed in my binder. I have taken several binders and I store patterns from the internet; enlarged charts; hints on knitting practices and handling of stash, etc. in them. I worry that 'free' patterns on Knitty.com might disappear. Probably not likely, but I want to be safe - rather than sorry.

Just a quick post and I will get the camera out and get busy, as I have a few FOs to photograph!!

I Am Still Here!

I just wanted to let the people who read the blog know that I am fine. I am busy knitting and trying to put together a music appreciation course for our ElderCollege for the Feb/Mar semester.

I have completed three vests in the past two weeks, but alas no photos. One of the vests was the Irish XO Vest from Cheryl Oberle's book, Folk Shawls! Hooray! Ever had one of those knits that you thought would just never end? I must admit that I had only started it on 8 August this year, but it did seem to go on forever. I am so happy! I was told by a wonderful Irish lady in my LYS the other day that if I gave it a machine wash on gentle with something like Woolite, that it would really soften up. That is how I will block it. A good wash and then a rest on a towel while it dries and blocks!! Then the fun of choosing buttons!!

Oh yes, I finally got my invite to Ravelry. I also listened to a wonderful podcast from Stash and Burn of Jesse and Casey, who started Ravelry. What a success story!!

So you see, I am here, but busy. I do read some blogs, but do not post. Oh yes, in the last few weeks my DH has been putting together a wine course that he gives and that means he needs the computer lots. We only have one car and one computer, so we share. I then can sit and knit and not be distracted by wanting to look through Ravelry. I put in my name for Ravelry, and now I want to change it and am not sure if that will work, but I will try!

Thanks, Ann, for your concern. Life just happens!

This is embarassing!
Hi knitters! My name is Isla and I am a Cairn Terrier. I would rather be sleeping, but the knitter in the house needed a model for this scarf she knit yesterday! She got the pattern from someone named Kate who also has a blog - whatever that is!! She made this for my buddy, Madeline, who moved away - darn, 'cause I really like her.

She is not much of a photographer, and she did crop these photos, but that did not work for her either. She also does not know how to set up the 'photo shoot', so I will just rearrange this darned thing! However, I must admit that I do look good in this orange boucle!

There, that is much better. You know, I am a reluctant model, but I am not anorexic, and I do only get paid in dog cookies.

Perhaps the knitter in this house will put down the needles, books and garden tools and write in this thing called a 'blog' a bit more often!

Knitting - wish there were more hours in some days!

I finally knit up the first skein of Sea Silk that I bought while visiting Nova Scotia a year ago. The IK Summer 2007 had a wonderful pattern designed by Amy R. Singer and she called it Montego Bay Scarf. Since I was at Oak Island in NS for my nursing school reunion last year, it is my Oak Island Treasure Scarf!

I have about 2 yards of yarn left, so that is good use of a skein of a wonderful souvenir yarn and I know I will get lots of wear from it! The Sea Silk was just so wonderful to knit with and I am so happy that I have three more skeins in my stash. One skein is a deep raspberry with only a small amount of variegation in darker shades of raspberry. The other two skeins are a subtle variegated cream and I think they will become a shawl!


We are having eight people in for lunch on Wednesday, so I got out my pans and made some Peanut Butter Cookies today. As I was making them, I wondered where the cross-hatching with a fork ever came about - my Mom always did it that way, and I know many others do too! I did not roll the cookies in balls, just used my little scoop and thus the ragged edges, but my DH says they are delicious! I don't eat sweets, but I love to bake.

I did make some banana and oatmeal muffins that I can eat. The round cookie jar sitting behind them was around when I was a little girl. In fact, we lived in an older home that always had mice come in the cellar in the fall. My Mom had told me to stay away from the cookies, but I thought she would never hear me pull out the jar and just have one - now would she? Well, I carefully start to pull the jar forward and a little grey mouse scampered out from behind. My scream gave me away, and my Mom caught me in the act. When Mom asked me if there were any things from our home that I wanted, I asked for the cookie jar, the honey dish and two little porcelain rabbits that have openings in their backs and can hold water, so they get tiny blossoms in them, especially in the spring. Memories - money is nice, but memories last forever!


I have been busy tidying the garden - don't want the company on Wednesday to think I am an untidy gardener! Anyway, I picked these cosmos - I think they are one of my favourite flowers, along with lilies and roses! They are such a simple flower and they always make me smile!