VACATION!

We recently spent a week full of wonderful weather with some good friends at Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.


As I was packing, I made sure I had plenty of sock yarn and patterns to keep me busy. Did I touch any of it? NO! I had my face buried in a book all week. I spent every spare minute reading the first book and half of the second book in the thrilling Stieg Larsson trilogy.

Even though I didn't get any new stitching accomplished, some of my past projects made an appearance at the beach:


I had the opportunity to visit the local yarn store called Kitschy Stitch where I spent a considerable amount of time browsing at all the beautiful yarns. I gave up buying ice cream for myself all week so I could treat myself to some Plymouth Encore Colorspun yarn in the grey/blue colors of the beach.


I'm still not sure what I'll do with this yarn, maybe it'll become a new shrug or maybe a lacy cardigan. Regardless of what shape this new yarn takes it'll be much more becoming than what a week's worth of ice cream would have done to MY shape!

Addicted to Sock Yarn

Hi, my name is Olive. I am addicted to buying sock yarn. In the past two weeks I have bought embarrassing amounts of sock yarn. All kinds of pretty, pretty sock yarn. See for yourself:

Aren't those colors lovely? With the Patons yarn below I plan to make the toe, heel and cuff with the greyish color in the center and the foot and ankle sections with the heathery-blue yarn.

I read about something called "monster socks" where you alternate rows of your funky colored leftover sock yarns along with a main solid color yarn. That's what led me to buy the basic black yarn on the left in the picture below. Why did I buy the rest of the yarn in the picture? So I could get free shipping. And because I have an addiction to buying sock yarn.

I even have the pattern picked out for my next pair of socks. The pattern is called Ravissant Socks by Robyn Chachula and I plan to use a fingering weight spring green tonal colored yarn.

But first, I should finish my current project. The pattern below is called Step By Step Socks. I have one sock completed so far.

I really like the linked double crochet stitches used to create the sole of the sock. It makes a very sturdy fabric. The top of the foot and ankle sections are made up of alternating rows of a v-stitch and a dc ch 1 stitch. I modified the original pattern slightly. Instead of using 16 rows of single crochet to construct the after-thought heel, I continued with 8 rows of linked dc. I also made the ankle section longer, but I shortened the length of the cuff from 9 stitches to 5. Another thing I like about making this pattern is that counting your rows is very easy, so I'll be sure to make another sock in exactly the same length.

The kids have put me on a yarn diet. And I can't say that I totally disagree with them. I mean, yes, I may have blown my grocery money on sock yarn this month, but who needs groceries? At least I'll have warm, pretty socks to wear this winter!

SOCKS!

I'll start by saying that I found myself sitting at two nights of cheer leading practice and one night of Boy Scouts this week...soooo...I had plenty of time to "yarn" while I waited.

My first pair of socks is finished. I chose a pattern called Toes Up Socks by South Bay Crochet. The pattern was very easy to follow. The heel decrease/increase was very easy. Overall, these were very easy socks to make. Here they are, don't they look very easy?
The only pattern deviation I made was that I added a front post/back post double crochet cuff.

As I previously mentioned, I used Juniper Moon Farm Sock yarn in the colorway named Daisy Fay & The Miracle Man made of 80% Super Wash Wool and 20% Nylon. I had 420 yards of sock yarn and have a good bit left over. I'm hoping I have enough yarn left over to make Jalen a pair of ankle socks.

Now that I have my first pair of socks under my belt, I will be searching for a pattern with a little more difficulty. I'm all about the socks right now! So much so, that I bought a set of sock blockers and some more sock yarn online. Oh, and a pattern book with a pretty sock pattern in it.

Other than working on the socks, I have been busy adding some of my finished projects to my Ravelry profile this week. This takes a little bit of work. Finding the correct pattern name, finding a corresponding picture, remembering what size hook I used, remembering what yarn I used, figuring out what size I made, etc.

So, what am I going to work on next? Well, I really should force myself to finish my kids' afghans. Not that they need them NOW, but in a few months they will and I will be nagged to death by Miss Jalen if hers isn't finished by the time she needs an extra blanket on her bed.

Giovanna's Cardi (X2)

In my last post I mentioned that I was working on a project called Giovanna's Cardi. This cute sweater was so quick and easy to make that I got carried away and made myself one too! The problem is...the pattern wasn't written to make a mom-sized sweater, so I had to figure it out. Here we are on a recent Sunday morning, dressed alike for church:I believe I unknowingly told a fib in my last post about the content of the yarn I was using. I reported that I was using 100% acrylic mill end yarn. When I went to the yarn closet to grab another skein I took a better look at the packaging and found that the yarn is actually 100% unknown fiber mill end yarn. It looks like acrylic and feels like acrylic, so I'm just going to pretend it's acrylic. OK? OK.

I took a trip to the beach over the 4th of July holiday and got a little reading done. I have the entire collection of Betty Hechtman's crochet murder mystery series and finally had time to read the first book called "Hooked On Murder". It's a quick read revolving around the main character, Molly Pink...an event coordinator at a local book store, who stumbles upon the corpse of the leader of the crochet group that meets weekly at Molly's book store. All signs point to Molly as the killer, so it's up to Molly to figure out who the real murderer is. As the story unfolds, Molly learns how to crochet. Each book has a pattern and a recipe mentioned in the story with instructions printed at the end of the book. Hooked On Murder's pattern is CeeCee's Granny Square Washcloth made of cotton yarn.
Can you believe this is the first washcloth I've ever made? Why? Because my mom makes knitted dishcloths, so I've never had to make my own. :-) I WAS going to give this washcloth to my mom because she supplied the yarn so I could make this washcloth, but she complained that it was too small, so guess what? I'm keeping it!

On to the next project.....SOCKS! Socks is something else I've never made before and figure it's high time I give it a try. The yarn you see below is Super Wash 80% wool/20% nylon sock yarn from Juniper Moon Farm. I am a shareholder in Juniper Moon's Community Supported Agriculture program, and when sock yarn went on sale to help fund shade structures for the farm's sheep I couldn't help but pitch in and buy some yarn to help out. Besides, who can resist a sale on yarn? Not me!
I am still mulling over patterns I'd like to try. I'm leaning towards a toe-up pattern since you can try them on as you go to ensure a perfect fit. Wish me luck!

A new project, a trombone and a haircut

After I finished my Sea Breeze Top, I sat for a few days with "no project"...which means...I have afghans to work on, but I'd rather be crocheting something else. Something that I can carry around with me wherever I go. Something that won't take months and months to finish. Something that I (or Jalen) can wear.

The project I settled on is another Lion Brand free crochet pattern called Giovanna's Cardi and I'm making it for Jalen. I've had this pattern in my "someday" binder for a year or so. The pattern calls for Vanna's Choice Yarn in Dusty Purple, but that's not what I'm using. The yarn I chose came straight out of the Yarn Closet. I don't even know exactly WHAT this yarn is...other than a dusty purple 100% acrylic mill end yarn. This is what it looks like so far:

The pattern is an Easy+ pattern constructed mostly of double crochet stitches and clusters.

On the kid front...

Miss Jalen has decided that she will follow in her brother's footsteps and play the trombone in the elementary school band next school year. Since Troy is still using his trombone, we found a used trombone for Jalen to play.

Anyone want to take a guess at how many "songs" I've listened to today? Actually, I think she's going to do well at the trombone. She's already able to make good sound and she has nice tone. I'm thinking about getting her a beginner book so she can start practicing now while she's enthusiastic about her new endeavor.

Troy left today for boy scout camp. But not before getting his annual haircut. No, he doesn't get one haircut a year, he gets a few trims throughout the year...but he usually ends up getting one "major" haircut each year.

BEFORE

AFTER

He looks like he did when he was 5. Only he's as tall as me now. He (and his sister) can both stop growing and getting older any day now...I won't mind.

Sea Breeze Top

My Sea Breeze Top is finished! Just in time too, it's going to be H.O.T. this weekend.

I used Lion Brand's Cotton-Ease yarn. This is a 50% Acrylic/50% Cotton blend, perfect for summertime garments. The color is Maize.

The pattern is rated Easy+ and is worked in half double crochet stitches. Two different hook sizes are used (F and I are recommended). The smaller hook creates a firmer material for the straps and top panel, while a larger hook loosens the drape for the bottom portion. You can find this pattern at www.lionbrand.com.

Buttons are used to to connect the straps at the back and along the back closure. I just happened to have some maize-colored buttons in my button tin.I enjoyed working on this project. It was quick, it was easy and best of all, it has a flattering fit. The buttons on the back add a nice touch. It also seems like this will be an easy pattern to create in a smaller version for Jalen.

And now...I'm going to brag a little. I recently completed the Crochet Guild of America's Master of Advanced Crochet Stitches and Techniques program. The program asks you to demonstrate your skills in understanding and following crochet instructions, as well as your mastery of several advanced stitches and techniques. I knew that I turned in a solidly-worked portfolio...but you never know...ya know? Well, I received my review last night and am pleased to announce that I have been granted the title of "Master Crocheter". Yay me! What does this mean? Honestly, I'm not sure, but I love the bragging rights that come with the title "Master Crocheter"! Seriously though, I have hopes of working as a contract crocheter or pattern tester and this accomplishment takes me one step closer in that direction. Anyway, I'll say it again...YAY ME!

My Garden Overfloweth...ALREADY!

The garden may be small, but it's packed and overflowing with yummy veggies...and it's only the first official day of Summer!

Today's harvest...1 green pepper, 8 zucchini, 2 bunches broccoli.

We've already eaten 3 heads of cabbage and the remaining 3 are just about ready to be picked.

It looks as though I'll be up to my eyeballs in cucumbers in another week!

What to do with all this freshness? Well, I sliced up 5 zucchini and froze them in two bags to be used later for zucchini lasagna...just replace the noodles with the zucchini slices. Once frozen they are soft. You can use fresh sliced zucchini, but you have to bake it longer. Can you say YUMMY and HEALTHY?

It's been an excellent year for broccoli. What I can't eat right away gets blanched and frozen.

Last year I had so many zucchini I had to get creative finding different ways to eat it. I have made an "apple" pie...with no apples, only zucchini. You can't tell the difference.

One of my favorite recipes is for Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Zucchini Cookies. Peeled and shredded zucchini makes these cookies super moist.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Zucchini Cookies
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 cups peeled, shredded zucchini
1 1/2 cups flour
2 cups oatmeal
2 cups chocolate chips

Cream butter and sugar. Add vanilla, egg, baking soda, zucchini and mix well. Mix in flour. Stir in (by hand) oatmeal and chocolate chips. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes.



Another favorite is "crab" cakes....without the crab. Mix together 2 cups peeled shredded zucchini, 1 cup Italian bread crumbs, 1 tablespoon Old Bay Seasoning, 1 tablespoon mayonnaise and 2 eggs. Shape into patties and fry until golden brown on each side. Makes 6-8 "crab" cakes. I like to sprinkle a little extra Old Bay Seasoning on while they're cooking.

It looks like I'm going to have a bumper crop of zucchini this year. If YOU have any favorite zucchini recipes, please pass them along! I'm always looking for new ways to disguise one of my favorite vegetables so my kids will eat it!