moonfrog

Andi, the list owner of the Monthly Dishcloth KAL, designed this cool Motorcycle Dishcloth . It’s the perfect thank-you gift for the family we stayed with in Sturgis during Bike Week. Actually, I have a few friends who would like one of these. I’m hoping to get some done here and there when I need a good distraction.
The yarn is the Blue Sky Cotton that Knit Happens sent me free because of a store error. This is the softest cotton I have used so far! I’m curious about how it wears, but I couldn’t resist rubbing it on my cheek as I knit. Soft! But, of course, expensive as far as dishcloth cottons go. Compared to Bernat’s Cotton Tots, which is a soft baby yarn that costs $5.50 per skein, Blue Sky Cotton sells for $9.50. Knit Happens has it on sale for $6.15 right now, so I plan to buy a couple skeins for future use. I really like the shading in the plies of the Poppy color and hope the other colors have it, too.

The voting is over for the next knits for the Sexy Knitters’ Club. The patterns chosen are Simple Knitted Bodice and Sizzle. I am tempted, but I really need to finish Soleil/Rose and Something Red before I start something new. Well…except for small distractions like dishcloths and hats.
Speaking of hats, I plan to start Knitty’s Shedir, one of the featured hat patterns for Caps for a Cure. It intimidates me a bit, so I will need to count carefully and use lifelines. I am such a knitting chicken!
I have been working on DH’s Trekking socks this week. They were stalled due to that same chicken principle. I was worried about how to do the toe-up heel. So far, I am almost done with the gusset rows. I’ll take a progress photo as soon as the heels are done. Until then….Happy Knitting!

I always look forward to traveling through Grants Pass, Oregon because downtown is populated by bears. Each one is different. And they change from year to year. It’s called BearFest and is a fun art event that helps local causes. This is the third year of BearFest and I have been lucky enough to see each one.

While we were riding the motorcycle through the South Dakota town of Custer during our Sturgis trip, we happened across buffalo art. This display is called the Custer Stampede. We only saw a couple of these statues, but it reminded me of home. I say home because Grants Pass, Oregon is where my grandfather was born. It feels like it is in my neighborhood.During that same trip, we drove through a town in Oregon called Milton-Freewater. My sweet biker pilot made a bit of a wrong turn, giving us a bit of a detour through the town. Imagine my surprise and joy when I saw this frog reading a book! And then another one sewing!
They call their area “Muddy Frogwater Country.” This froggy persona was adopted to promote tourism and it sure works for me. Frogs! Lots of fun, artsy frogs! I’m going to return to Milton-Freewater someday and see all the frogs — maybe even get my picture taken with each one. You can see more of these frogs here. There’s even a company that specializes in these city art projects. I had no idea these things could be found all over the US!
In knitting news, there are two new dishcloths to share. Carol sent me this beautiful blue Teacup Cloth for the Monthly Dishcloth KAL exchange. Isn’t it pretty?! I’ll use it when we have company. She sent me a variety of teabags and I am enjoying trying the new flavors. So far the French Vanilla is my favorite. It disappeared before I even took the picture.

And the last picture is the mid-month kal, the Three and One Checkered Cloth from Dishcloth Boutique. This cloth turned out great. I love the contrast. It’s a great way to use leftover yarn, too.
So now I’m back down to two WIPs, the Trekking socks and Rose (Soleil with sleeves.) I guess it’s time to cast on for Something Red. Speaking of Something Red — if you are a member of the Sexy Knitters’ Club it’s time to vote. Voting only last a couple days, so hurry on over and cast your vote. I’m voting for Something Red!

Just when I was starting to feel settled back into my routine, we were off on the motorcycle again. I ran around packing my things. The last addition was my Trek sock bag and a new pattern to try. We met another couple and zoomed three hours south, toward San Francisco, and stopped in the small town of Ukiah. It seems Elvin Bishop married a local girl and was giving a free concert in the park. The park was full to the brim and the music was fantastic. Bishop may be aging, but he can sure entertain a crowd. And while the soulful music and dancing swirled around me, I made one more hat for Caps for a Cure.

  I chose crochet to make it quick and minimize the equipment (and concentration) needed. I picked out a ball of Cotton Ease because it was handy and made a basic half double crochet hat, then switched to double points at home to add a ribbed brim.

After binding off and finding the edge too tight, I ripped it out and used a double crochet bind off. I like the finished hat and it fits me perfectly. I would like to make the ribbing more compact next time, so I am thinking about how to do that. I may need to increase the number of stitches and use a smaller needle.

To keep me enthusiastic about motorcycle trips, my thoughtful spouse searches out yarn stores when we travel if there is extra time. So while our friends visited relatives the next day, we trotted off to find some stash enhancements.  I kept my purchases geared to chemo hats, since that is on my mind lately. I picked up an Inox 16-inch circular and some Crystal Palace bamboo double points. I’ve been wanting to try an Inox needle, and this one is very smooth. I don’t usually like the shorty size of the actual needle in the shorter cabled circulars, but in such a small space it didn’t seem to matter.
I also picked up some Cascade Kaleidoscope DK (nylon/acrylic), some Plymouth Jelli Beanz (acrylic/wool) that I’ve wanted to try, and a beautiful Baby Twist alpaca in a color I love. I had some wool in this purple heathered color and was very happy to find it in a very soft alpaca. None of these yarns are available in our area, so I was very happy to get to pick them out in person, rather than online.

I have another hat finished, which brings me to four (plus one Mom made) that will be sent to the featured treatment center for Caps for a Cure. I didn’t realize it would be so hard to get things done in the summer months.  This one is called the RoseHip Hat by Jessica at Winged Sheep. I like the stitch pattern, but couldn’t get the count to come out right on one of the rows. I think there may be a slight error in the pattern. In my hurry to get this done, I managed to get off on the row sequence and have an odd row. That’s where the pretty ribbon comes into play.
I must admit that I became a bit discouraged while knitting this one. It seems I just can’t knit something without some glaring error. You know, the kind that is too obvious and should be frogged. Then I have to start over from the beginning and lose interest. The finished hat is still pretty and very soft. It is made with JoAnn’s Sensations Dolcetto yarn, one of my favorites for chemo caps. Despite my disappoints, I am looking forward to the next cast on. I’ll let you know as soon as it happens!

My grandma used to say, “My get-up-and-go done got up and went!” Well, that just about sums it up for me this week. I’m slowly getting back in the routine, though. Managed to drag myself to the gym and do half a workout. It was a little embarrassing, but at least I went, right?

I did get my fingers moving and made a hat. This is made from some of the Cotton Fleece that Mandy, my co-host at Caps for a Cure, received as a donation to our group. It is also made from Mandy’s very own pattern, Pink Squared. I like to think of this one as Pinecone Squared, since that is the name of the tan yarn. The pattern is a joy to make. I did the squared holding a strand of yarn in each hand and it went really quick.

But true to form, my hat came out too small. I know this happens, so why don’t I use bigger needles… or add more stitches? Here’s proof of previous episodes of this phenomenon. The black and burgandy Cascade 220 is a simple 4X4 rib hat. The orange alpaca — oh so soft! — hat is the Marsan Watchcap, I think. All three are a good size for a child, but too big for a newborn. What can I do with these guys?

Another hat appeared at my house a couple days ago. My mom donated a hat to the group. Thanks Mom! I started working on another pattern and will probably make another Pink Squared for this round.

In my last post I had the fantasy that I might finish all my WIPs before I started something new. Ha! Marji commented, “clean knitting slate? That’s almost sacreligious. We must inspire you to cast on some more.” Well, I think you did it! Not only have I cast on two hats and a dishcloth, I found a new KAL. This one is for the discontinued Cotton Ease that I found at my LYS. Nothing like unavailability to make you want a yarn real bad! I joined a group called cottonease that just started knitting Something Red by Knit and Tonic. I’m making mine in Licorice black. I think I’ve reached my WIP capacity! I’m off to listen to some free music on our boardwalk, by the bay. And I’m taking some of that knitting with me!

What an Adventure! We’ve made the long trip from California to Sturgis Bike Week in South Dakota twice before, but we have never done it all on the motorcycle. It’s kind of like the US Postal Service … through hail and heat and dark of night. I’ve never been so tan, but I use that term loosely. For me a tan is when my freckles and splotches run together, but at least I have some color.

We camped all the way out. We went to concerts and on local rides in Sturgis. We stayed in motels and at some hot springs on the way back. Our longest day was 660 miles in 15 hours. That’s a picture of it above. Our last day and it was exhausting but exhilerating. And we survived it!

So… you want to see more pictures? [pout] For some reason my camera ate all the photos on the way out and replaced them with gibberish. Older photos are still there. Newer photos are still there. Huh? Ah well, my friends will share theirs with me later.

I actually knit two rows on a hat while I was gone. My poor little sock bag was stuffed into any available space. It was a whirlwind of activity. I’m looking forward to picking up the needles. So far I’ve been too tired to concentrate, but I think tomorrow looks good.

 I had a wonderful package waiting for me on my return from the Knit the Classics Travel Swap. I was really surprised when I saw that the package came from Pooch , since I sent one to her, too! She sent me beautifully wrapped goodies. Check out that cute froggy bookmark on the left. Each parcel had a goodie on it. A cute lady magnet, a starry magnetic notepad, and a beautiful postcard on the Colorado Garden of the Gods. It was lots of fun to open. 

Inside were a matching picture frame and journal and Bella Tuscany by Frances Mayes about Italy, which is great since DH is half Italian and we hope to visit someday. I will enjoy reading this one. She also sent Knitting Over the Edge and there are some very cool stitch patterns in there! Oh, and there was some Birch and Mint lotion that is really helping my sun and wind dried skin. Such a generous and fun package!
I have lots to catch up on in the next couple weeks. First up is one more hat for Caps for a Cure for this round. At the same time I want to do the mid-month KAL for the Monthly Dishcloth group and start on the KTC book selection, Lolita. Then I need to finish my Rose/Soleil lace top and DH’s Trekking socks. Then the schedule is wide open! It will be hard to resist all the new KALs, but it’s time to clean up the UFOs. I’m glad to be home!