Basic Dishrag

My mother and I have made so many of these, we don't even need a pattern anymore. A friend of my grandmothers used to make these and by studying her's we figured out how to make them. Her arthritis had gotten to the point where she couldnt make them anymore and had lost the pattern herself.

• Size 8 straight needles (short lengths work fine, theres a bit of a squeeze at the middle but if you don't leave them hanging for long your fine)
• G/7 Crochet hook (for crochet cast on)
• Peaches and Cream 100% cotton yarn

OR

• Lily Sugar 'n Cream 100% cotton yarn

I use solid balls because the ombre's (while pretty) tend to only give me one and a half dishcloths, the solids I can get 2. The cones are a great way to go too.

Using your hook, crochet cast on 4 stitches.
Row 1: Knit 2, yo, knit to the end
Rep row one till you have 44 stitches on your needle. Start decreasing:
Dec row: Knit 1, k2tog, yo, k2tog, knit to end of row
Repeat this decrease row until you have 4 stitches left on your needle, bind off (I use the hook again, makes it nice and snug) weave in those pesky ends and tada! house warming gift for all, but be careful you who give this to. I made the mistake of handing these out with some towels one year for christmas and now I get pestered for these constantly! :)

By the way, you will find this pattern on Ravelry, but I'm not the one who posted it. I'm posting it here for anyone who doesn't have an account and simply because I can :) Please let me know if you have any problems!

Bulky Ribbed Scarf

This is almost insanely simple, but I've made lots of these and they've been very popular. Perfect for men and woman (all depends on the colour you choose), and if you add fringe, you can make a personalized creation.

You will need:

• Size 11 needles (short lengths are perfect, considering the small number of stitches)
• Red Heart Light and Lofty yarn (2 balls, although you might be fine with one, I've never sat down with a skein before. I used these bags of odd sized balls I nabbed from the thrift store)
• Alternate yarn (yarn used in the pictures) Lion Brand Homespun or Holiday Homespun 2 balls (again, unsure but better safe than sorry, right?) I used "Holly"

Cast on 13 stitches.
Row 1: Knit 1, purl one, rep to end of row, ending with a k 1
Row 2: Purl 1, knit one, rep to end of row, ending with a p 1

Rep these two rows for about 82" or until they are long enough for you. Bind off in rib. Weave in ends and bundle up!

please ignore the scissors and laundry soap, my washer has the best light for photgraphs lol

As soon as I can dig up some pics, I'll show off the Phoenix Rising version I did of this, same scarf just added some fringe to make it like tail feathers. My sister snagged the one I had just finished so I barely had time for pictures. Again, insanely simple, but please don't sell :) Charity knitting is ALWAYS acceptable, please post where your work was donated so we might bask in the good deed!

Quick and Cozy Cowl

After walking home with the snow plastering my face, I decided I needed a cowl. My scarf wasn't cutting it and the wind made the ends whip around like mad. I've been eyeing the patterns out and I haven't found something quite right, many similar. But I decided to post my version on here for the fun of it.

not a very good picture but so you get the idea

Need:

• 1 ball of Loops & Threads Charisma (#5 Bulky, 109 yds/3.5 oz) in whatever colour you like, mine is in Red (Colour 10), 100 % acrylic
• 1 circular needle, size 15 (10mm), 16'' length, or size 15 straight needles if you don't mind a seam in the back.
• Stitch marker
• Crochet hook or darning needle (for the heavier yarn, I use a hook rather than stuff it through a needle eye) for weaving in ends (or sewing the seam, you might find it easier to use a worsted weight in a similar colour if you plan on doing it this way)

Gage: For the cowl 2sts = 1"
Listed on the ball band 11sts = 4" on size 13

Cast on 52 stitches, place marker and join in the round. Purl one row, then work in st st (knit) for 12" (measured from the beginning). Purl one row, bind off. Weave in ends and don to collect your offspring.

Straight Needle Instructions:
Cast on 54 sts. Purl one row, knit one row. Starting with a knit row, work in st st for 12", purl one row, knit one row, bind off. Using either yarn ends or worsted weight yarn, seam the cowl edges together, weave in ends. Flaunt your knitty work.

It curls on the one edge but it stops drafts quite well

New Setup

Finally got around to rearranging the blog to my liking, I had a post written up, tried posting a picture of my wip and it refused to load. Then it glitched and erased my blog-in-waiting. Grr.. Stupid thing. Anyways, still checking out gadgets, I like my fish (click and feed them!!) but I'm nosy and curious as to what else is offered. Linked my first pattern to Ravelry, really excited to see it favourited and queued! Need to work on getting a few more up there, my creativity is stirring. I have a baby hat, I just need to dig out the By Me notebook I wrote them all down in. PDF files are easier, I know, but I"m clueless as to working with them. I can open, close, save, delete and thats my limit. In the meantime while my laundry is NOT getting done, nor are my dishes, I'm looking for (whate else) more stuff on Ravelry to make. I'm trying to limit my queue to things I have the yarn for but some stuff I can't help but click. At least I don't have to watch hubby play Dragon Age (origins for all you curious readers that exist in my imagination). And besides, maybe I can cadge some more yarn funding out of him while he's distracted by the eternal debate: Gore Setting-On or Off?

Basic Wine Bottle Cozy

This pattern is free, but please don't sell it. I did work semi hard on making this and I'd like to keep it as a freebie. If you do decide to make it, please send pics, I'd love to see variations! Also, this pattern is the same idea for any crocheters out there. My sister tried it and the chain length and decreases worked out the same for her. So if your a chicks with sticks or a happy hooker, enjoy the pattern!!

Fits a 9" diameter bottle, height depends on your wine of choice
You will need:
Worsted weight yarn (I used Red Heart Acrylic) unsure of exact amount but any yarn that gives you 4 stitches per inch works fine
Size 8 dpn (set of 4)
Wine bottle (empty is fine, but I don't recomment gifting the empty)
Crochet hook or darning needle for weaving in ends
Optional: novelty yarn for trim CO 36sts and divide among needles (12 on each)
Starting with a PURL row, make 2 ridges in garter stitch
Switching to st st, work until piece measures 7.5 inches (or it reaches the bottle neck taper)
Dec Rnds:
Rnd 1: *K1, k2 tog; repeat to end
Rnd 2: Knit
Rnd 3: *K1, k2tog; rep to end.
BO
Optional trim: Using novelty yarn and size appropriate crochet hook (size H/8 worked fine for me) sc around top and bottom edges. Fasten off and weave in ends.
Thats it! Tuck in the ends, and you have a cozy wine bottle! The fun part is that this is such a basic pattern that it can be dressed up into anything. Motifs can be added, different yarns can be used to make stripes, whatever you can dream up.

I made a Santa bottle (crochet belt and buckle, sewed the buckle on, sewed the belt together to the cozy itself). The belt was an afterthought, you could knit it right into the cozy itself. Support your local wineries and show off your knitting all at once!

Anti Kitty

I don't like cats. I don't mind cats, some people have had some very nice ones. Personally I don't want one. Or have any desire to have one. They are indifferent at best, nasty at worst, and poop in a box while expecting you to clean it up. You are your cats slave and they know it. I really don't like the cats around here. Why you ask (like anyone reads this but I'm humoring myself here)? Because the nasty rotten furballs STINK! They spray all over my rug, door, porch, rock salt, flower pots, shovel, rake, whatever happens to be out there. Again, why me? Because the neighbors had a cat (who knows what happened now) and instead of doing to proper thing of taking it to the spca when they didn't want it, they tossed it outside. Nature happened and she got pregnant. She hung around MY door yowling btw the entire time she was in heat. And while she was pregnant, 9 times out of 10 she was outside. Meowing at my door, laying in my windows (outside sill), and because she was a she, all the males in the neighbor hood took to staking out claims to her. She had a baby (there were complications and had to go to the vet, I suspect poor diet and probably being kicked caused it), they kept kicking her out and leaving the baby inside. Or the kids carried around the baby outside. Weeks old, btw. No clue what happened to that cat either. But mommy still lurks around my damn door. I tried shooing her towards their door, she got halfway and bolted back to my door and ran off the porch (again, I suspect kicking). Still stinks out there because they so kindly hosed down my bag of rocksalt, and the snow that gets the treatment gets tracked in on our boots. You guessed it, smell get onto the floors. Mop, mop, mop. One clever little snot managed to get his stench inside the outside door and onto the main door. I had to wash that off, plus the other door, plus the porch. In winter, I can only do the inside, I try scrubbing outside and its frozen. So I have a nice puddle of kitty poo (one cat was sick and had seepage, seen it around. Things feral too, won't let you near it) on my porch because the little fiend was laying on my rug. Can't wash it because otherwise I have an ice patch right where you step. So we step over it and try to pound snow onto it while counting down till spring. Why I'm a dog person.

Technology Hates Me

Go to boot up the desktop and the mouse decided it didnt want to move..at all. So I get down, wiggle it thinking maybe it came loose. Nope, instead the computer restarts. I touched nothing else. Mind you this is after the floppy drive decides to cop out (Yes, still has a floppy drive. And yes I still have floppy disks. Shut up.), one of the cd drives has a motor die, and its fried a usb storage thingy. So while waiting for the silly thing to start up (again) I come back to the kitchen, where I'm working on a pair of mittens (Bella's Mittens by Mariellle Henault) on my worktable/photography setup/washing machine, and try looking at my phone where I'm browsing the news. It glitches and restarts because I missed a call. Seriously? The stove didn't like me yesterday and scorched lunch and the pan (I'm no great cook by any stretch of the imagination, but tuna helper?) so the house smelled like blackened fish all day. Small wonder the cats kept sniffing around the door. (save that one for another blog). And every time I go to type on this thing after pausing to do a few more stitches (or a round, whats a round or two between typing?) it wants to start typing halfway back through. Or it tries bringing up some file I don't want! Grr. This is why I don't play games, like WoW or any console games. I'd find some way to either fry the sucker or bring down a server somewhere. Before you scoff, I washed my last mp3 player in a load of jeans.

Plain vs Pretty

I've been browsing other peoples blogs through here and they all look so much prettier than mine. I know I just chose a stock background, I'm not too techno savy so I stuck with what they had. I'm more interested in putting things down than making them look interesting. Besides, I kind of liked the ducks. They looked better in the brown (so I think at this moment anyways). I honestly started this to post a pattern of mine, seeing as I haven't the first clue how to make a pdf file, let alone link it to anything. But since myspace has been sinking like the titanic, I've been wanting a ranting outlet. So the looks aren't really what I care about, its more whats being said. Some day I might pester hubby to give me a hand with making it "me" but for now, I'm content.

Why Children Are Our Future

Yes, cliche, but this actually made me tear up. After a long involved day, we went to get hubby's W2's from his old work (a bakery). We had just gotten Bug from school and she's been having a rough couple of days. Acting out, growing like a weed, having one of her little boyfriends move away (she has several and a few husbands as well), all the typical kid stuff. She always used to get a cookie when we went there (she was little and cute so they used to gift her one), so this time I bought her a muffin. A giant chocolate chip muffin. Got home, finally got dinner, and all that fun stuff that involves coming home. She got half her muffin. Hubby said he wanted a snack, something chocolate but we didn't have anything. Just speculating, one of us probably would have gotten shoes on and tromped down to the store. We thought she wasn't paying attention, engrossed in *shudder* Spongebob. She looks over at her father and offers the other half of her muffin. And meant it. She got up with me and took the plate back out to her father without a hint of regret over offering. Some days this kid does things that make me feel like we're doing something right. And funny enough, she hasn't ruined it yet.