Knitting, Sci-fi and other stuff...

      As the year comes to a close, I've been looking at my queue and starting to plan out a few projects for 2025.  After having to cold sheep for the majority of this past year, I'm going into next year with some guidelines.  When I purchase yarn, I really want to stick to purchasing for specific patterns.  I took advantage of Miss Babs annual gratitude sale and purchased specifically for two patterns.  I also want to continue to knit from stash whenever possible.  I have paired up yarn with patterns for several and they've been moved up in my queue.     I'll have more time, so I plan to participate in several swaps in 2025.  I'll be getting yarn from these so I'm going to try to stick to swaps only for "unplanned" stash acquisition.  I have several carry-over projects I didn't get to this year, which seems to be a theme every year.  So tentatively this is my meager list for 2025: - Butterfly--Papillon  with Urth Ya...

     I finished up my swap and got my package mailed yesterday.  More on that hopefully next week once my swapner gets her package.  I was able to go down to Syracuse Wednesday.  I had lunch with my former colleague and mentor Sal and then took myself yarn shopping.  It was really nice catching up and our lunch was delicious.  We went to a noodle place that has very good ramen and dumplings among other dishes.  Then I went to Yarn Cupboard in Jamesville, which is just outside Syracuse.  I got a skein of yarn for my swap and I also picked up the yarn for my next long term project.  I've been wanting to make  Butterfly Papillion  for several years and decided to finally take the plunge.  I got the Urth yarns specified in the pattern.  This is also Christmas for me from my husband.   I also had Susan order me enough Malabrigo Rios for another Killer Queen Cowl .  Since it's been very cold here I've be...

      I've been quite busy but unfortunately not with knitting.  I have managed to finish my  Always be Brave .  I even got it blocked which flattened out the i-Cord bindoff that wanted to roll.  We've gotten our first major snowfall of the season; the final tally was three feet where I live.  Our second snowstorm is in full blast right now.  I wore this for several days and unfortunately, it's a little too scratchy to wear for any length of time.  If I wear it on my short drive to work, it's okay.  I really enjoyed the pattern though, so I'm on the lookout for softer yarn so I can make another one. I've been wearing my Killer Queen Cowl this week.  When I first made it, I wasn't sure about the style and if I'd like it.  Now that I'm actually using it, I really like it.  It's soft and the neck area is long so I can pull it up to surround the back of my neck or my face if I need to.  I have a few other cowls in my...

     I finished the Boo Knits MKAL on October 30th.  I got it washed and and pinned out later that day.  It lost a ton of dye.  I rinsed it three or four times and it wouldn't stop bleeding, so I just gave up and blocked it.  When it was still wet it looked very splotchy.  It looks better now that its dry.  So here is the big reveal: The kids were nice enough to help me take pictures.  I need to find a better place to take pictures though; our front porch looks as old as I feel most days.      Our new boiler has been installed and is working, however the three circulation pumps that actually make the system function all need to be replaced as well.  My car is having more issues (a flat tire now) so I'll be driving the truck until we can get that hashed out.  I'm very happy we have two vehicles.  I'm also really happy we have a tire warranty that will cover this.      I have to figure out what ...

      I nearly forgot it was Sunday and time for another blog post.  I didn't post last week as all I've been working on is the Boo Halloween MKAL.  I'm finally on the last clue and I hope to make some more progress today.  I have pictures from each clue but they're terribly lit night pictures as that's when I was able to finish each clue.  So I think I'll wait 'til I have it done and blocked before I show off mine.  There are plenty of pictures of other's shawls in the spoiler threads of the Boo Knits group on Rav if anyone really wants to see the Enchantress Halloween MKAL.  Here's a link to the group if anyone wants to take a gander:  Boo Knits .  While I'm at it I'll throw in a plug for Boo Knits.  There is always a KAL of some sort going on and all of Boo's lace designs are beautiful and fun.  Beverly AKA Boo is very active in the group as well, and she answers questions especially when doing MKALs as they are new pat...

     Let's see, what have I done this week?  I finally moved all the totes of china out of the hallway and living room.  I made sure a couple of the totes were secure enough and then re-packed two.  The one tote had fallen when a couple of the cats knocked into it.  Several dinner plates broke along with a bread plate and a couple saucers.  I was quite disappointed by the dinner plates breaking as those are arguably the most important part of the set.  But it was quite a large set to begin with so I still have service for six.  The other tote I repacked is the partial set I retrieved from my grandmother's estate.  I don't know much about the set other than no one else in the family wanted it and my aunt had already claimed some of the larger pieces from it.  I did some rudimentary research on it yesterday from the back stamp.  It's a Howard Laughlin print called Virginia Rose and the vast majority of it was manufactured in...