ready to string up

the last of the planned twirly beads is now complete

today the plan is to dump out all the cool odd beads that can possibly go with it and lay out about 24 inches worth to create a necklace

I consider this is great opportunity to use up those beads that are left over from other projects and have just languished in the tub, waiting for me to rescue them

while I was stitching up that last bead it occurred to me that that very narrow twirly technique might lend itself to becoming a bangle bracelet if I worked up a long enough piece and figured out a way to either zip the ends together or bury a magnetic clasp in the ends

this idea deserves some further consideration after I finish up the necklace



the turtle quilt top is all stitched together

I need to spray it with cold water to make sure all of the "spit pen" marks come out before I can press it

yesterday I was in Walmart and I checked to see if they had any suitable fabric --- no luck

after payday I'll hit my local Hancocks -- they've had what I needed for the last two baby quilts, so I'm hoping they'll come through again


this is the first block for the Hoffman Challenge piece I'm doing

it is only the second time I've attempted to do something that actually stands away from the block (the first was a rose on the quilt I made my daughter for Christmas)

practice improves technique

what you can't see very well in the photo are two other "texture" things about this block

1. the stem for the cat tail is trapunto work -- I used some knitting worsted weight yarn inside it

2. the cat tail itself has two layers of warm and natural batting (cut in two different sizes so they stacked and stitched down nicely) inside to make it "puff up"

I have one more of these blocks to do -- in reverse -- so I'll be marking up the next one today
you might note over there on the side bar that my Knitting Olympics challenge piece is 20% complete

and here is the picture of the back of the sweater

this pattern uses a four row repeat pattern to create an all over seed stitch texture which is pretty cool

(and which forms a knitting rhythm in my head -- forward, forward, forward, back, repeat)

I cast on both fronts last night and did about 4 rows on them too

yup, I think I can, I think I can