Long Time No See!

Geesh! A whole month since my last post. Well, like most of you, I've been working like a crazy woman trying to finish Christmas gifts. I made 8 lovely bookmarks, and forgot to photograph them. Here is that afghan for my son that took FOREVER to complete:



Yes, this is me holding it. I used about 13 ½ skeins of LB Homespun, in Metropolis and Edwardian, done on a 5 ft. Infinity Loom. There's quite a few boo boos, but Nick loves it anyway! You can see the loom behind me there, on the sofa.

One of Britti's gifts was a new coat, so she decided she needed a hat and scarf to match. She knitted the scarf, and I crocheted this hat:



Isn't she cute?!!! She likes to do self portraits.
The body of the hat is LB Homespun in Rocco, mixed with Red Heart (can't remember the color). The trim is The Cat's Meow, Milano. The pattern, Cat Hat, is by PLC Designs , and was oh so easy! Makes a great quickie gift.

Just when you think it's all over, I still have 2 incomplete gifts. UGH, the shame of it all. I'm almost finished with my SIL's afghan, and need to make one more golf club cover for my brother. But, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel!!!!

Y'all be blessed!

Baby Blankie

Here's a quick blankie made for my cousins baby, using LB Homespun and Bernat Soft Boucle. It's about 35 inches square.

I sure will be thrilled when I can make this for my own grandchildren!!!!

Have a good 'un, y'all!

Fully Dressed Turkey

For some reason, this reminds me of Lady Linoleum, of Monster Crochet fame.

Happy Turkey Day, y'all!

Big Granny

Ahhhh...finally finished mom's granny square afghan. Yarn used is Homespun and Bernat Chunky. Well, it's almost finished. Still gotta weave in the ends. Now it's on to more Christmas WIPs!!!!

Have a blessed day, y'all!!!

Walk On The Trail

Hubby and I enjoyed a beautiful day on the New River Trail!!! Here are just a few photos

Yellow Biscuits and Blue Whirlies

Hey y'all! Happy October! It's a beautiful, sunny day here in Virginia. I even had one of my flower photos featured on a local TV station. A Yellow Hibiscus. Ain't it cool???

And for the blue (since yellow and blue are 2 of my very favorite colors), here's my first ever attempt at doing a chart only doily:
This is the Purple Whirly (done in blues). The pattern was in Greek (literally). Kudos to the wonderful ladies over at Gathering Threads for helping me understand charts! I only had to frog it a dozen times or so.

Got the "Cold Shoulder"

The Cold Shoulder Capelet that is. Pattern is from the SnB Happy Hooker, crocheted in black Caron Bliss. This one is a surprise for my DD, and I think it'll look nice with the Chic Hippie Skirt.

I'm dealing with her absence a little better. I went for a visit a few weekends ago, and that helped me tremendously! We had such a fun weekend! I was able to see for myself that she was happy, and adjusting to college life rather well. She's doing great in all of her classes, with Psychology and New Testament being the most difficult.

This capelet will be in her next goodie package from home.

Chic Hippie Skirt

I am so thrilled, My first crocheted article of clothing!!!!! This is made from Sinfonia yarn, about 9 skeins. The pattern is in the book "Hooked On Crochet". Here's a close up of the yoke:



I'll be mailing this to my DD, who has waited oh so patiently.
I'd love to hear your comments!

Yarn Find!

Nobo yarn from Wallyworld, on clearance for $1.00 a skein! So I had to buy all they had (except for the green). I don't think my hubby was over joyed, but I was ecstatic!!!! I don't usually find the good buys, I just hear about 'em from other lucky people. Yeah, I know, wa-wa.

I Think I'm Gonna Make It

My DD is off to college, and I've just experienced my first full week of empty nest. Gosh, it's been such a killer. It just didn't occur to me that I'd get physically sick. All I can say is, thank the good Lord for "happy pills". I'm embarrassed to say that I had to resort to that, but it was either take 'em or die! I miss her smile, her giggle, her sense of humor. She is so much fun to be with. Good grief, I'm making it sound like she's passed away.

On a brighter note, she's doing great!

Bad, Bad Blogger!

Yep. That's me. I am ashamed. No updates in over a month! I'm not even sure that I have an excuse. Well, my DD is going away to college this week, and I guess I've been a little blue. I made a simple afghan for her to take with her, and I'm working on the Chic Hippie Skirt from Hooked on Crochet. That's kept me somewhat busy. She is soooo excited; I'm trying to be.

Here's a photo of that afghan

Ah....The Reveal Package!

My reveal package from ....
Tada.... Darlene (Houndog)!
Darlene was a great secret pal, you're certainly blessed if you get her as an SP!
The tote will be perfect for transporting projects. Isn't it gorgeous? And that doily booklet has a pinwheel pattern!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh yes! Pinwheels! Love 'em!!!! And they sure are hard to come by, lemme tell ya.
I'm afraid my photo doesn't do the yarn justice. It is so pretty, and I've never seen that brand before. Isn't yarn exciting??!!
Wish I could blog the wonderful lemon scent of the body lotion and shower gel. Wonder when they'll invent scratch and sniff monitors?

Thanks Darlene! You're awesome!!!!

Back From The Beach

Photos courtesy of BT (my DD)



The lovely sailboat was photographed at Southport, NC. I just love this quaint town!






The next 2 were also photographed at Southport. This is one of my most favorite places in the world! Lots of antique shops and victorian homes. The perched birds crack me up!!!

































Ah... the Oak Island sunset! This was our daily evening view. What more could you ask for???

More Goodies!!!

Here's Keegan checkin' out my new goodies. The weird part? Britti and I were just looking at the Caron yarn yesterday, oooing and ahhing. And I've had my eye on that Purse Panache pattern booklet for sometime!
I also received a note pad, a lavender vanilla candle, a heart shaped dish, Pullover patterns, gorgeous Red Heart yarn, and a card, all from my Crochetville Secret Pal.

Thanks SP, you're awesome!!!





On a different note, my baby graduated from high school Thursday night. Oh the parental pride, oh the parental agony. I spent the day being a little klutzy. First, I fell up the steps. Thought I broke my wrist, but not; busted 2 toes. Second, while baking a cheesecake, my head collided with the kitchen cabinet. Nice little lump. Third, I fell up the steps again, busted my other big toe. I think I was a little stressed.
Not sure how I'll deal with empty nest come August.

Some Goodies Have Arrived!

Lookie y'all at my goodies! My SP is being so good to me. She's also sent me several ecards. It's so nice to come home from work to a sweet surprise!!!

Thanks for making my day SP! Hope yours is blessed, too.

Latest Hobby

Well, here it is folks. My latest venture, watercolor painting. I made these cards for Mother's day ( hope you all had a great one ). I think they resemble flowers, don't you? I've even discovered that I like sketching more than I thought I would. James and Britti are very encouraging of my endeavors, but my extended family is rather ho hum about my new hobby. Oh well, I guess it's mainly to please myself anyway.

Speaking of family, Britti is on a Storm Chasing trip out midwest with VA Tech for the next 2 weeks. She was so excited when they left yesterday. My hope is that they view any tornadoes from afar. Very far afar!!! While she's away, I get to send out her graduation announcements. Wasn't it thoughtful of her to make the address labels for me?! ( yes, you do detect a note of sarcasm ) Don't high school seniors magically turn responsible at some point? I guess in her defence, I should say that she is a busy girl. School full time, partime job, piano lessons, dance classes, youth group, AP tests. Yeah, she's pretty busy. Just forget my previous sarcasm. What was I thinking????

Have a very blessed week, y'all!

Lola

I just might need to make a bunch of these!!!

Type A

You Have A Type A- Personality

You are one of the most balanced people around Motivated and focused, you are good at getting what you want You rule at success, but success doesn't rule you. When it's playtime, you really know how to kick back Whether it's hanging out with friends or doing something you love! You live life to the fullest - encorporating the best of both worlds

Do You Have a Type A Personality?

Swap Scarf and Goodies

Would you just look at all the goodies
Sherri sent to me!!! The really neat thing is,
I'm making myself a purse from that pink
Moda Dea Ticker Tape! So I'll have a scarf to
match my purse. Yay!

Thanks Sherri! You're a doll.













And here's Keegan, all pooped out
after running the fence. My
neighbor was dog sitting, so there
was a new doggie face next door.
After all the excitement, he had to
cool his little belly off. He's quite
the little stud muffin.

Latest Scarf

This is the scarf I made for the Crochetville Scarf Swap. I wanted to make something really different, and the recipient requested something creative. I think this fits the bill.

It's Arrived!!!!

Yay, my birthday present, a 30 inch AJAL, is here! Now I have 3 projects on 3 looms. An afghan on the 60" Infinity, a purse on the 12" AJAL, and a light weight afghan on my new 30". I also need to start the crocheted Spider Web skirt for Britti, and her afghan to take to college.
I have discovered that I get so easily bored, so I have several things going on at once to alleviate the boredom. Do any of y'all do that?

On a sadder note; It was confirmed this morning by my Vet that little Chloe has Cushings Disease. She seemed to think that it's been found in the early stages of the disease, but cannot tell me how long she will survive with it. We will be starting medication soon, and will know more by seeing how she responds to it. I stood at the reception counter to pay, and started to cry. I kept biting my lip, trying to hold it until I got in my car, but had little success. Chloe is 9, but we've only enjoyed her for a about 1½ years. She was rescued from a puppy mill, having lived all of her life in a small kennel. Then she was "rescued", only to be neglected by her new owners. She was in such pitiful shape when we got her, and needed a lot of medical attention. She would often sit in a corner with her little face to the wall. She has finally come out of her shell, and has even been potty trained! She's become quite a happy little baby. Now, to find out that she has this disease just breaks my heart. Ack, I think I'm going to cry again.

Happy Easter!

Easter; a time to celebrate our risen Lord, and the new life that we have in Him. Because of His sacrifice, we have eternal life. I'm so grateful for the peace that comes from knowing Him! Do you have that peace? If not, what a wonderful time to have a little talk with Jesus, to ask Him into your life. To finally experience perfect Love. To experience new life. Yeah, that's what it's all about.

Have a blessed and joyful Easter!!!!

A Birthday Surprise

Nope. It's not a surprise for me, but for a new friend. I hope she likes it! It's one of my favorite doilies.




But today is my birthday! And I don't feel any older. James ordered a loom for me, but it hasn't come, boohoo. I've received several nice gifts, and money. Lots of email cards!

So far, I've spent the day sifting through emails, and being lazy. My daughter and I spent the last 4 days away at a college weekend. I came home so tired, but it was lots of fun!!! I met the mom of one of Britti's friends, and had a great time getting to know her ( I think Britti and Chris planned this so the moms would stay outta their hair ). Anyways, it's great to feel comfortable with her choice of a college.

Gotta go and spend some more time being lazy, hehe.
Y'all be blessed!

Something Old, Something New

The something old? A desire to be an artist. A desire that's so old, I don't even remember when it started. My perception was; if you can't draw, you can't paint. So I took up photography to express myself ( no drawing there ). A few years ago, I came across my old sketch pad from high school art class. You know what? It wasn't half bad. Oh, definitely not a prodigy or anything like that, just not totally horrible. My daughter always tells me that I'm overly critical of myself.

The something new? I finally jumped in. I took a watercolor class at Michaels. Now I know that one class does not a professional make ( it was so very basic ), but it did generate a little spark of hope. Just maybe, with a little perserverance ( ok, lots ), I could be be a decent painter. My first 2 trial pieces really s--k! But, I think I'm ok with that, for now.

If anyone has advice (or watercolor supplies they don't want, hint hint ), I would love it. I'll soon have a little b'day money coming to get some more necessities. Yay!

Have a very blessed day!

Lola

Do your pets identify??? A few years back, I photographed my collie mix in a coconut bra and grass skirt. She was definitely humiliated! You could see it in the hilarious photo.

Have a happy day, y'all!

Sierra Flame and A Birthday Jaunt

I'm on a roll!!!! Another project completed! Hooray for me! This is the Sierra Flame Scarf, my first attempt at short rows. I only had to frog it a few times. Then it just clicked! Aren't you glad when something clicks in your head? That "aha" moment. You know, that moment when you realize that you're not stupid after all. Hey, I'm really fine if someone just draws me a picture.

Moving right along. Enough with the self deprecation!

We visited my son last Friday for his St Paddy's birthday. That kid dragged me all over Charlotte looking at cameras, like I don't have a camera phobia when I'm not at work. Anyways, something about wanting my "professional opinion" and all. I wanted to go to Hobby Lobby sooo bad!!!! But my patient hubby reminded me that it was Nick's birthday after all, and that we should do what he wanted to do. Okay, okay. I'm not always so self centered. My little town just doesn't have a yarn selection, ya know what I mean? In spite of the camera safari, we had such a great visit. We went out for steak, and I had made a Chocolate Truffle Cheesecake for his birthday enjoyment. Nick wanted something "really chocolatey". Ha, I'm not the only chocoholic in this family. I do have to brag on Nick, though. He found a really upscale yarnstore, "A Peace Of Yarn", just to take me to. Is that a good son or what??? My daughter and I thought we had died and gone to Yarn Heaven! The guys just meekly went over to the little mens corner, and waited patiently. Very good guys, don't ya think? It was so much fun looking and petting all that yarn!!! But reality soon set in, and we discovered the average price was about $20.00 a skein. Oh well. Thank goodness petting isn't illegal. We're definitely making time for Hobby Lobby next visit.

Done Deal

Yes indeedy! The doily is done!!!! And it's only 8 days late. Hallelujah!!!

The pattern is the Crochet Along Hearts Doily.
I cannot tell you how many times I frogged this baby. I must be a really tight kinda person, cuz this ended up about 2 inches smaller than the pattern indicated, and I used a 1 size up larger hook.

Anybody wanna rejoice and do a happy dance with me?

It Ain't Gonna Happen

Okay. I'll admit I was just a little too ambitious. Nick's afghan ain't gonna be finished for his birthday this Friday.




So I've put myself in the doghouse. I really wanted to have it ready , but I'm only about a third of the way through. My only consolation is that it's really warm now in North Carolina.

It's really a good thing that I'm blessed with an understanding and generous son!!!

I am Lily, Hear Me Roar!

You are a Lily:

You are graceful, gentle, calm, and pure and

perhaps a little shy (though your shyness is

part of your charm). You are a very honorable

person who always wants to do the right

thing. Your calm attitude has a soothing

effect on others.

Symbolism: The lily has long been used as a symbol

of majesty, honor, chastity, and purity of

heart.


Which Flower are You?
brought to you by Quizilla


I got this one over at Lucy's blog. It always amazes me how some of these quizes really hit the nail on the head! My favorite flower happens to be the Stargazer Lily. How ironic is that?

Looming Progress

On the left, we have the Sierra Flame Scarf in progress, designed by Tina. I'm using the 12 inch AJAL in small guage. Isn't it a cool pattern?

On the right, an afghan for my son, using the 60" Infinity Loom and Homespun. This is supposed to be for his birthday in 2 weeks. It needs to be a minimum of 72 inches. Hmmm. Houston, I think we have a problem.
Ya think?!

Doily in Progress

This is for my Aunt's birthday next week. Uh, it may be late.

Finished Purse

Yay!!! I finished it this past weekend! It ended up being about 8 inches tall, 10 inches wide, and 5 inches deep. Quite a bit smaller than the original size. The button is a vintage find. Yarn is Paton's Classic Merino. I used Dawn's Well Traveled Bag pattern again ( luv that pattern ) and just lengthened it.

Now maybe I'll have time to play with my new small gauge AJAL from Decor Accents ( my valentine's gift from Hubby, isn't he romantic)! Whoops; almost forgot that afghan I'm workin' on. Isela suggested that I just stay up longer to get in some play time, but that would only mean sleeping late. Oh the sacrifices!

Happy Valentine's, Y'all

Valentine Fortune Cookie My valentine fortune cookie says "Love doesn't make the world go 'round. Love is what makes the ride worthwhile." Click here to get your love fortune cookie from JokesUnlimited.com

I'm Organized!!!

Lookie y'all, I'm organized!!!! It's a miracle! Yep, that's right, a true bonafide miracle. And some of you thought that there was no such thing! Tsk, Tsk!

This is in my computer room, which once housed my tanning bed. With that gone, I had room to get my yarn out of little pop up hampers, and into clear containers, on shelves. With room for more! On the third shelf down I have my pattern books, all in one place. Yipee!

The shorter bookcase is the new home to a very small percentage of my books. On the wall above the shorter bookcase, I'll hang some of my knitting looms.

Organization can be good.

Pre - Felted

I think I'm making this purse for myself ( bought the wool with Christmas money ), although my mom has a birthday coming up the end of this month. My goal is to felt it this weekend, but I meant to last weekend. I've started an afghan for my son on the Infinity loom (whose birthday is in March ), so that is at the top of my priority list right now. My aunts birthday is also in March, and I'm planning on making a doily for her.

Well, maybe I'll get that purse felted this weekend! Let's not hold our breath.

Y'all be blessed!!!

Finished Loom Blankie

Keegan seems to know that this is HIS blankie. What a smart little boy!

And here is dear Reilly, giving me THE LOOK. I believe he is plotting to take over the blankie.


Thanks for looking!
Be blessed, y'all.

To Infinity And Beyond

Keegan is overseeing the loom knitting of his new blankie. I'm using only half of my new Infinity loom, after deciding that I really needed some practice before moving on to something bigger, like an afghan for Nick. Leftover Homespun is working up quite nicely, too. Keegan is an aficionado of Homespun, always trying to hog our family afghan.


Here's my little boy in his new bed. He seems to go through beds rather quickly, and I'm not sure why. Isn't he a doll????

Purple Pizzaz

This pattern is from the November Crochet! magazine (and the only reason I bought that issue). Although it's not purple, it's still pizzazy. It is sooo soft, ya just want to leave it on!

It's made with LB Suede, Fun Fur, Homespun & Chenille; Patons Bohemian & Carmen; and Bernats Boa.

Would look nice with that brown Fendi, don'tcha think?