Zoom!

I sat down after supper and knitted like the wind. I finished the second Prospectors purse and got the 3 of them felted. Now they're drying. They smell a lot like wet sheep.

Here's the purse pre-felting.






I'll post pictures of all three when they're dry and not so smelly.

Rescued Crocheting

I went to Goodwill yesterday afternoon in search of a last minute Christmas idea. While flipping the rack in the Domestics dept. I saw something I just couldn't leave there. It's a crocheted doily made with a teensy hook and thin crochet cotton. It's 20" in diameter and quite plain but pretty. I think it needs to live here for a while.












I worked on the snowman at FNKC and I cast on the third of the purses I need to have finished and felted by daybreak on Thursday. I did work on the last of the Stealth knitting, but of course you have to wait to see it until after Christmas.






Remind me next year to scale back by Christmas knitting enthusiasms.

Hub Deep To A Ferris Wheel

That's how much snow we got. You think I'm kidding? Look. That poor mourning dove was so confused. 14.6" total snowfall in 2 days.













I started another project. I just had to; I can't work on only one at a time. It's a crocheted snowman that sits on a table or mantle. Don't think that the Stealth Project and this little snowman are the only things OTN, but the other three (four? maybe more) are on hold until after the Stealth knitting is finished, to be picked up soon.
















I bought myself an amarylis bulb week before last. I'm amazed at how quickly it grows.

It's A Lock

We're having a white Christmas--guaranteed. Here's how it looked yesterday in the early evening, about 6 PM. (Fifi is my 9' tall Christmas lawn decoration. I tell people who are silly enough to ask "why a flamingo" that I'm rebelling against traditional Christmas themes. I ask you, who wouldn't rather have a flamingo in their yard than a snowman? There's a 12' palm tree that goes with her but I can't carry it by myself. There'll have to be some modifications to it before next Christmas so she won't be alone.)





And here's how it looks this morning. Blizzard Alison has moved in and
she's pissed. So far we have 12" of snow and it's blowing like crazy, with more snow expected before noon. It's the wet, heavy stuff.










This is what I'm thankful for today. My big red snow blower with the electric starter. Thanks again, Durwood.

And For Those Hoping For A White Christmas...

Friday morning there were snow flurries. See the little white spots on the patio?






The weather guessers have issued a Weather Advisory for 2"-4" for tonight into tomorrow, and we're supposed to have another 4" on Wednesday. Here it comes! I got my warm boots out to wear to work tomorrow. Goodbye mismatched socks, hello warm wooly ones.

Wha...? Project Monogamy?

Who would be foolish enough to promise something like that? That would be silly given my history of never being able to stick to one thing for long. I must have been drunk on mulled cider and shortbread. Yeah, that's it. I didn't know what I was typing. Besides, you do want to have knitting or crocheting to look at for the next week or so, don't you? Of course, you do.

Aaanyway, Friday on the drive all the way up to the Holiday Open House at The Clearing I worked on Stealth Project 4 like a good little knitter. The Open House was very nice. The Christmas tree was in a grouping of other trees and natural decorations and was very beautiful.













There was a large table of goodies with big silver urns of coffee and mulled cider with real mugs to drink it out of. Durwood and I made certain to taste each and every one of the treats, some of them more than once, just to make certain that they were all up to the high standards we expect of The Clearing.









We sat with Mike the director for a while and got to see Kathy and Melinda and Tammy from the office too.








I saw what looked like the world's largest ball winder up on a shelf above the Jensen center room. It's probably something for weaving but it sure would make yarn winding go fast, wouldn't it?





On the way home I knitted on Stealth Project 4 too, maybe not quite as diligently as I had on the way up but still I worked on nothing else and got about 1/4 along. We stopped at Red Sock Yarns in Fish Creek where I found this bulky yarn in Kiwi and Pomegranate. I wanted something to make stripes in the dark variegated brown of a pair of purses that I am making for Christmas gifts.






Well, then I couldn't resist casting on Prospectors Purse 1 when we got home and then I kept going at Friday Night Knitting Circle, getting to the Kiwi stripe near the end of the evening. Then yesterday I was anxious to see how the bright green looked so I kept going. By bedtime I was at the point of binding off the handle stitches on the next row, so I decided to go to bed and finish today.






I will work more on Stealth Project 4 today, I swear. Once I see about getting Fifi my 9' tall Christmas decoration flamingo out on the lawn, if all her lights light when I plug her in. And after I finish that purse.

Still No Snow

But Durwood said he saw a couple flakes goofing around in the back yard this morning, so maybe we'll have some for Christmas. I hope we do, just enough to make it look Christmas-y and Norman Rockwell-ish, then it can go away. I know, I have a snow blower, a nice big red one, but I'd rather have it spend the winter in the garage with the snow shovels.

Just in case Christmas really is coming, I've been working on knitting prezzies. Here's the purse I'm felting for my beautician. It has to be ready on the 19th. No problem getting that one done.




And here's the beginning of Stealth Project 4. It's going to be a challenge to finish this one in time if I keep veering off to play with other projects that need bigger yarn, etc., but I won't. I'm going to be a monogamous knitter on this one. Cross my heart. Pinkie swear.







I'll let you know how that little vow works out. I have to admit my track record on project monogamy is not very impressive. But I try and I have the best of intentions.

(Are those the Gates of Hell I see yawning open at my feet?!?)