The Swiss Cheese Scarf–Another Knitting Project Done, Yay!

I’ve just bound off my Swiss Cheese Scarf, and I’m so pleased – even if my mom does think (rightly, I guess) that it resembles one of those rubber strip doormats …

I knitted this up from Winnie Shih’s free knitting pattern, downloadable from Ravelry, using Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sport yarn in the Mineshaft colorway. Is this gorgeous yarn, or what?

I edited Winnie’s pattern for my sport weight yarn (gauge 6 sts per inch on US 4 for an 8” wide scarf) as follows:
CO 48 sts
Rows 1 - 6: Knit
Row 7: K3 (BO6, K6) 3 times, BO6, K3
Row 8: K3 (CO6, K6) 3 times, CO6, K3
Rows 9 - 14: Knit
Row 15: BO3, K6 (BO6, K6) 3 times, K3
Row 16: BO3, K6 (CO6, K6) 3 times, CO3
Row 17: Knit to end, CO3
This modification gives you alternating 3 and 4 holes per holey row.
I gave up on the backwards loop cast-on she uses, I just couldn’t get it to look right. Instead, I used a cable cast-on, which meant I had to flip the scarf each time, but it looked better.
I love the finished scarf and so does DH, so we can share it - and I enjoyed the pattern. I didn’t mind the tedium of all the bind-offs and cast-ons, I actually found it soothing! This was a great travel & TV-watching project.
I might have liked the finished scarf to be a bit longer (my version came out 58” long) but I didn’t have more of the yarn and was ready to move on anyway … next up, I’ll be knitting another of Cat Bordhi’s awesome Anemone Hats (number 5!), this one for my nephew. I swear, every time I wear my Anemone Hat in public someone begs me to knit one for them!

ETA: Duh, I hadn’t blocked the scarf when I took the measurement! Blocked length is a generous 71 inches, and blocking made the holes nice & round. Here's the "after blocking" photo. Dang, what a difference!

--MaggieBelize
Designer, kNotes for kNitters
Creator, Happy Hands Hand Cream for Knitters
Grower, Maggie’s Microgreens
Sandia Park, New Mexico

Let it snow …

 

Oh the weather outside is frightful

But the fire is so delightful

And since we've no place to go

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

Stay warm, y’all!

--MaggieBelize
Designer, kNotes for kNitters
Creator, Happy Hands Hand Cream for Knitters
Sandia Park, NM

Decoupaged Suitcase - Quickie Project!

 

The night before I flew to Austin I took a long, hard look at my favorite suitcase. It’s a “million-miler” bag that’s traveled all over the world, still sturdy with maybe another million miles left in its useful life.

But it’s solid black.

Seriously, how many solid black suitcases have you seen on the baggage belt? Hundreds? Thousands? The only problem with this bag is how hard it is to identify it at luggage claim.

I’ve tried tying various flashy objects to this suitcase on previous trips. Christmas tinsel, worry dolls, fuzzy yarn – you name it. But every time my embellishments have been torn off in transit, or looked ridiculous. I wanted a more permanent solution to the basic black bag.

So, the night before I flew to Austin, I decided to decoupage my suitcase. And thanks to the bone-dry climate of our high mountain desert, it was done and ready to pack an hour later.

While I would have liked to go completely crazy with this decoupage project, with maybe Frida Kahlo and dancing skeletons, I only had an hour to work on this – AND my husband also uses the suitcase, so understatement was the order of the day.

Here are the finished pix, taken AFTER I flew to Austin and back again. I was thrilled to see how well the decoupage survived the armies of baggage handlers!

 

How I Did It in Under an Hour:

• First, I located the flattest, least-flexible part of the suitcase – which was around the reinforcing frame of this particular bag – and measured it.
• Next, I cut a strip of gift wrapping paper to my measurements, in this case, a strip 2-1/2” wide by 66 inches long. I did a “dry wrap” to be sure that the strip fit the frame.
• I’ve had best luck decoupaging paper that’s wet. So I rolled the long strip into a loose circular roll, and dropped it into a bowl of water.
• I immediately swiped Mod Podge around the frame of the suitcase using a foam brush. I worked as quickly as I could so that meanwhile the paper didn’t soften too much in the water.
• Then – the moment of truth – I removed the paper from the bowl of water and allowed the excess water to drip off as I unscrolled it.
• I picked the midpoint of the paper and began to apply the paper to the pre-Mod-Podged band around the suitcase, starting at the top center, moving down the sides, finally wrapping around the lower corners to meet at the bottom center.
• I sealed the strip of paper to the suitcase with more Mod Podge – this project used quite a bit of the stuff – pressing out any air bubbles with wet fingertips as I worked.
• After this coat of Mod Podge was completely dry, I applied a second coat.

And done! At the airport I recognized my bag immediately! And as I said, the decoupaged paper held up remarkably well to its first round trip.

I can’t wait to do another …

--MaggieBelize
Designer, kNotes for kNitters
Creator, Happy Hands Hand Cream for Knitters
Sandia Park, NM

Double Rainbow over Sandia Park, NM

 

Today’s rain showers missed us by inches, but we did get a double rainbow out of the deal.

If you look closely, you can see the second rainbow – very faint – in the upper left of the picture:

Should I tell the neighbors, or just sneak over to dig up the pot o' gold from their yard?

--MaggieBelize
Designer, kNotes for kNitters
Creator, Happy Hands Hand Cream for Knitters
Sandia Park, NM

Whoa, Funnel Cloud! At 7,000 Feet?

 

We had an energetic thunderstorm this afternoon (August 19). When I walked out on my back porch to admire it, here’s what I saw:

I’d guess it was about half a mile to the north-north-west of us.

And then it got closer:

Mind you, here in Sandia Park (NM) we’re at almost 7,000 feet elevation. I didn’t think we got tornadoes … so what the heck is it?

A neighbor who is meteorologically sophisticated told me it was a downspout. According to the National Weather service, it was a funnel cloud. By definition, a funnel cloud isn’t a tornado unless it touches down and wreaks some havoc on the surface. I watched this one for 20 minutes or so and never saw it touch down.

This phenomenon was unusual enough to make our local news:

• Residents see funnel clouds near Sandia Park, Cedar Crest

I didn’t realize that "tornadoes can and do occur at high elevations" - this summer, one was spotted at almost 12,000' in Colorado.

But they are rare - either because so few people live above 5,000' that the tornadoes that do occur aren’t seen and reported, or (according to MSNBC), because mountains like ours break up the large-scale weather systems that give rise most tornadoes ...

What a long, strange summer this has been!

--MaggieBelize
Designer, kNotes for kNitters
Creator, Happy Hands Hand Cream for Knitters
Sandia Park, NM

Feather Feather & Fan Shawlette–Knitting FO

 

Great use for a single skein of sock yarn!

This free knitting pattern by Betty Balcomb is easy, and forgiving - considering my boo-boo of accidentally starting with US 11s instead of 9s, for instance.

I truly love this yarn - Stricken Smitten’s Shimmer Glimmer – a 50/50 silk and merino blend. Lovely match for the pattern.

I bought the yarn at Sock Summit 2011 in Portland, and cast on while flying home (that’s when I made my needle size error) … and then the project lingered forever in my UFO basket.

Fast forward to New Year’s Eve 2012, when I resolved that this year I would make myself finish one UFO for every new project I cast on.

All that I needed to do on this one was weave in the ends & block it (and take its pictures), now it is all done!

--MaggieBelize
Designer, kNotes for kNitters
Creator, Happy Hands Hand Cream for Knitters
Sandia Park, NM

Peace, Quiet & Permaculture: New Mexico Ranchette for Sale

 

Yes, we’ve listed our East Mountain “ranchito” for sale. And I know this will be somebody’s dream home, just like it was ours!

This is a custom 3 or 4 bedroom (2 masters, one up, one down), 3 bath, 2,520 sq ft Pueblo-style home on a 5-acre horse property … passive solar … part fenced pasture, part wooded with pinon and cedar.

We added 700 square feet to the existing home, including a ground level guest suite (or second master bedroom) …

and a home office/4thBR with floor-to-ceiling bookcases & captain's bed … Sliding French doors open to the back patio and deck.

The home is heated with in-floor radiant heat and a massive kiva fireplace with heat returns.

Thanks to the kiva, the open floor plan, and the passive solar orientation, our propane guy told us we had the lowest propane usage in the whole neighborhood.

We installed Saltillo tile throughout the downstairs, which looks great with the tongue & groove ceilings and Southwestern wood detailing.

Kitchen has granite counters and a fabulous 29-cubic-foot French door Samsung refrigerator that I’m crying to leave behind …

The garage is an oversized 2-car with custom storage cabinetry & a workshop.

The outbuildings (2 barns and 2 coops) have electricity, and there are 4 freeze-resistant pumps for irrigation (reduces your fire insurance, too). And the entire perimeter is “Invisible Fenced” for dogs.

Beautiful views of the Sandia Mountains and the Sedillo valley …

We’re asking $349,900 for our dream ranchito … you can see the Keller Williams listing with more pictures here http://bit.ly/McXiBH …. and take a virtual tour here http://www.pfretour.com/7921 !

--MaggieBelize
Designer, kNotes for kNitters
Creator, Happy Hands Hand Cream for Knitters
Sandia Park, NM