Some completed projects and a few days closer....

to retirement. I have a dust mop that uses replaceable cloths. Serendipitously I ran across a crocheted pattern for a washable, reusable, greener cotton cloth and here it is in all its glory.

I also found another interesting dishcloth pattern, harmonic mosaic, to try knitting. It looks harder to knit than it really is. It is also a very peaceful pattern while knitting and to gaze upon later. I hope you agree.

Last, but not least, are our two pets, Zeke (the basset nose) and Zach indulging their curiousity and getting in the way of my picture taking.

Thoughts of retirement (and crafts)

I've been to see the New York State Retirement advisor and am planning to be retired on 4/30/11. My last day of work will be April Fool's Day!!! As of today I have 38 days left to work as I've piled up so much vacation time over the years.

So, I'm blogging about up and coming retirement and what I'll be doing. Here's a sample: crocheted Sylvan Star cloths. They were made in response to the Ravelry.com K/Cal project for January. (K=Knit and C=Crochet, al=along.) I'm looking forward to completing many unfinished projects and taking on some new ones and I'll let you know how it goes.

Waffle knit dishcloths

Waffle knit dishcloths
Originally uploaded by lavaughn

My mother-in-law had seen my first effort at a knitted dishcloth and admired it. She said she had had some many years ago that had worn like iron. As her 82nd birthday was coming up on July 5th, I rushed into production, taking the July KAL as my guide. I picked up another cone of yarn (Peaches & Creme shaded brown) as well as a small gold ball and decided to use them with my natural colored yarn. I finished them in time for her birthday and earned a big hug and a smile.

More progress on a new project

Having finished both shrugs, I decided to try something a little different - a tank top in deep plum. I'm using Caron Simply Soft Eco, "helping to save our planet one stitch at a time." The label states that "NatureSpun is a high-quality polyester fiber made from 100% post-consumer recycled plastic bottles." I've never worn a bottle before. LOL! Tonight I made it to the neck decrease. I might have been a little further along, except I got invited to join a lovely forum on Ravelry known as Dishcloths R Us. I had absolutely no idea that so many people knit so many different dishcloths. Here's my very first venture, a pattern known as Grandmother's Favorite.It knit up quite quickly and gave me a sense of accomplishment that might hold me until I finish the tank top.

Project completed!

Here's a picture of my first completed shrug (flash and all.) It's a bit heavier than I thought it would be, but it's done. My stitches are regular - the stockinette stitch is easy - simply knit one row and purl the rest. The first part of the week is supposed to be somewhat chilly, so maybe I'll wear it to work.

I began my next project, another shrug, on May 12th. Here's a link to the pattern site www.canandianliving.com and a picture showing my progress to date:

Re-igniting an old interest

I'd been to one of my favorite websites, the Pioneer Library System, and downloaded the audiobook, The Friday Night Knitting Club. It was a very engaging book, so much so that I found myself picking my knitting needles back up and starting a project.

Then, being me, I simply had to roam the world wide web to see what had transpired in knitting during the intervening years. Whoa!!! What a plethora of patterns are available, some for free, some not. And the types of yarn that are now available to order simply by clicking a few keys. (I grew up using Red Heart knitting worsted that I bought at the Wolcott Bargain Center.) This is a whole new world of wool with access to yarns I had not been aware of. And the materials they now use to make knitting needles - it boggles the brain. I saw lovely handcrafted rosewood needles and some that seemed to be made of glass. And the websites that are devoted to knitting - a Google search pulls up 20,900,000 that are currently indexed and available.

I've located an excellent site, Ravelry - A knit and crochet community. It not only has searchable patterns, but it functions as a living community with forums, groups and a place to share the project that you're currently working on. I'm a neophyte there, but I did see that what I blog about here can appear there. So, I'm once again inspired to blog.

On becoming a Squidoo lensmaster

No, I'm not one yet, but I have created my first lens at Squidoo.com. Translated into English that means that I've created a web page on a special topic, in this case it's about our basset hound, Zeke. The website can be found here.

Squidoo gives you a forum to share on topics that you're passionate about. Because Google ads appear on each Squidoo page, a little bit of money is generated each time someone visits the site. That money can be deposited into your checking account or donated to whatever charity you'd like. I'm the only one that's looked at my site to date so I'm not getting rich anytime soon!