Ravelmpics: Closing Ceremony

I am happy to report I finished three of my four events. Obviously, my eyes (and eagerness) were bigger than my evaluation of the time I had available.

All in all it was a great way to participate in and watch all the Olympic hopefuls do their very best in their chosen events.

Now I will be working on the project for my fourth event, the Scallop Edge Beaded Scarf because it is being used as a demonstration in a class coming up in March.

I hope everyone found fun ways to enjoy the 21st Winter Olympics~!

Let the Frosting Begin

The Cupcake Mitts are complete and ready for frosting. I am looking forward to spreading out my various threads, beads and fun buttons to make these a very unique pair of handwarmers.

I was so excited about them that I knit another similar pair from the leftover yarn of my Ravelympic Beret so I can frost them as well.

These will make the nicest gifts to knit because they knit up fast. Then the decoration can be personalized.

I will probably be knitting these at Loopy Ewe Spring Fling because they are ultimately portable and easy to memorize. And they can be knit on acrylic dpns so they are TSA friendly. It doesn't get any better than that.

I hope everyone has found their next favorite thing~!

First Blank Canvas

Here is the first of the Cupcake Mitts, now waiting for the "frosting" as Karendipity's pattern calls for.

These are a really fun knit. I am halfway throught the second one and can hardly wait to start decorating them.

My Olympic knitting has slowed with unforseen events this week. I am still on track to finish the third event with no trouble.

The fourth one might become a WIP. I can say that I have done my best and will continue to do so. I hope everyone is having a great early Spring with fun pursuits~!

Good Day to Knit

With this on the outside and Olympics on the inside, it was a great day to stay indoors and knit.

I started on my third event, Mitten Moguls, that can be anything in the handwarming category.

I am working on the very exciting Cupcake Mitts by Karendipity. They are lots of fun and the pattern in super easy.

So far I am already thinking about other color combos for more mitts.

I hope everyone had a fun, warm, excitement-filled weekend~!

Ravelympics: Finished Second Event

I finished the Twisted Rib Beret for the Hat Halfpipe tonight. I plan to wear it tomorrow with the one finished mitten that matches it. The second mitten should be finished tomorrow.

I blew up two circular needles making this hat. It was a good test of Boye Balene II 16-inch needles. They did not like all the stitches and maybe next hat will be done on 24-inch needles. The joins did not hold on the working needle. I guess I was knitting at Olympic pace. :-)

And, as you can see, Loopy is tired from the exertions of this version of the halfpipe.

Tomorrow I will cast on the much anticipated Cupcake Mitts for the Mitten Moguls event. I am so excited to get going on these. It has been difficult to wait to do them.

I hope everyone is pursuing fun things this weekend~!

Phat Tuesday and LOST

Tonight is a bye night from Ravelympic knitting and Olympic watching because LOST is on. I will be finishing Dad's second mitten and starting on my mittens that will match my Hat Halfpipe beret. Those are the most mindless projects I can manage during LOST and even then I have to put the needles down between commercials for fear I will miss something.

And today was Phat Tuesday, so I wore my beads and very party scarf to work. It added a little fun to the day. I hope everyone is having a great week so far~!

Happy Valentine's Day

Pedro is my Valentine. I chose him because he is cuddly, never critiques me if I watch Titanic over again (yes, I know the ending), he always greets when I come home like he has missed me and is happy to see me. He appreciates his meals and prezzies I bring him.

He loves his grandparents. He is a great protector when anyone knocks on our door, of course, that is from a distance.

He communes with the birds and the squirrel, yes, he is a whisperer. And he always kisses me good morning, however his version of what time is "morning" does vary.

All in all he is the best Valentine ever. I hope everyone had their favorite Valentine to celebrate with this weekend~!

On the Go: Mini Road Trip and What I Knit To

This weekend was packed with fun things to do. To kick it off was the Mass Cast On for Ravelympics. I got a good jump on my first event and finished it before Saturday was over.

I got to visit with my friend, CatWithCats, at the Tattered Cover in Highlands Ranch. We knit and visited for a few hours then went off to try the much-touted CheeBurger, CheeBurger place in Lone Tree. Great food and atmosphere. That will be a repeat sometime this spring.

I raced home afterwards in a wintry mix and avoided the stoppages both east and southbound by doing some backroad driving. Arrived in my yard at the tail end of the mini blizzard.

I watched the beginning of Bones Season 3, Coco Chanel with Shirley MacLaine, Just Cause with Sean Connery, Couples Retreat with Vince Vaughan and highlights from the Olympic events that have gone on without weather/condition delays.

All in all a great weekend all round. I hope everyone found fun ways to enjoy their weekend~!

Ready, Set, Cast On, Knit, Light the Torch

The graphic presented here is Bob's (Ravelry mascot's own Ravelympic) ravatar. So there is no misuse on my part, I want to say it up front, this is a great graphic and should be shared with the world. Click on it to go find the best fiber fanatic group on the World Wide Web, realio trulio.





I started, completed and medaled in my first event, the Single Skein Speed Skate. The cowl will be used as a shop sample for my circular knitting class.


Next on my needles is my first beret attempt for the Hat Halfpipe.

I hope everyone is enjoying the Olympics~!

Last Day for Training

One, two, three, four....repeat for speed, stretch, breathe, apply muscle salve for sore spots and get a good night's sleep. Thank's, Coach, for the training tips. I am psyched up and ready to participate in Ravelympics Vancouver 2010.

Tonight I will be watching Cool Runnings in preparation for the big event. It is my favorite of the sport-themed movies that I own.


The mass Cast On is scheduled for the opening of the games tomorrow. I have all my events prepped, all my tools gathered and I am starting off with the Single Skein Speed Skate event. My goal is to complete the project during opening ceremonies starting at 7 p.m. tomorrow night in my time zone.

Good luck to all the athletes and let's make the USA proud of our endeavors~!

Wednesday: It's A Good Day for a Giggle

Simon's Cat plays in the snow. This is a must see!

And there is a really cute Valentine's Day card to print from his website and give if you are so inclined.

HAPPY WEDNESDAY GIGGLE~!

Mittens: First Pair Finished

Just a quick update to say that I finished a pair of mittens which I am giving to my mom for Valentine's Day. I think she will like the fact that they are pink and have kitty buttons on them.

This is the pattern I am working the kinks out of and hope to make available to all once I am done. If anyone wants to test knit it for me, please let me know.

The other mitten pictured is the one that I started without a pattern to keep me patient while I waited for my mom to go through all the tests at the ER a couple Friday nights ago. I filled it with bright flowers to remind her that, even though we had a "fun" time at the ER, we do not need to spend a lot of "Friday" nights having that much excitement. (Love you, Mom).

I hope everyone is finding fun projects to keep them busy and patient at the same time~!

Note: Mom is fine, it was a simple side effect to some medication . Thank goodness!

What I Knit To and Another Proof of Warmth

This last weekend, around my knitting classes, I was entertained by the Super Bowl, two audiobooks: A Cold Day for Murder by Dana Stabenow and Born to Run by Christopher McDougal. In the movie department I watched the last episodes of Bones Season Two, Brother Bear 2 and The Butterfly Effect 2.

I started an Easy Mitten pattern on the correct needle size and so far so good. (Thanks to Knitting by the Pond for the suggestion of pattern.)

I signed up for an online mitten class with Kelley from Knitpicks. This pair will be made with the Magic Loop method on a 32" circular knit cuff up. I am looking for the correct needles so I can get started when she puts out the beginning video.

I received another proof of warmth from my sister. Her little dog, Jackson, has taken over the bucket purse I knit her last year and it is his favorite warm spot to cuddle in. Of course, the cuddle spot includes her lap.

I hope everyone has warm, snuggly things in their world~!

Who Dat! Sunday

I have the game on, I am waiting for the Saints to actually get their gear out of neutral. It is only 4 minutes in, I know, patience. So, to keep my fingers nimble, I am knitting on some Mardi Gras flavored yarn that will become coffee sleeves.

This is another project to show what you can do with circular knitting.

WooHoo! The Saints win! That was a great game and I finished the coffee sleeve I was working on. What a great Sunday evening.

I hope everyone had a great day doing what they love~!

In Training for Ravelympics

This weekend, when I was not in knitting class, I was prepping my "event" entries for Ravelympics. I had help from my cheering team.

I have officially entered four events, knitting for two teams. For Team Loopy, I am knitting in the Beading Biatholon with the Shell Fringe Scarf that I have had in the wings for two years and trying my first beret pattern for the Hat Halfpipe.

For Team Tank (because the creator of the Cupcake Mitts is in this one) I am entered in the Mitten Moguls with Karendipidity's Cupcake Fingerless Mitts and for a fun, fast start to the two weeks of atheletic excitement I am starting out with the Single Skein Speed Skate by knitting a cowl I am going to use as a sample in my upcoming beginning circular knitting class. My goal for the cowl is to have it done before opening ceremonies concludes on Friday night, February 12th.


I cannot cast on until 7 p.m. our time on Friday. So I will be working on finishing the pair of felted clogs, and other UFOs this week to keep my fingers nimble. I really enjoyed participating in the summer 2008 event and hope I have chosen enough to keep me busy for this winter version. This time you can enter other events during the time if you have successfully completed the ones you originally signed up for. That is great.

The only evening during the week that I cannot watch Olypmics while I knit is Tuesday during LOST. And, since I cannot really knit while the show is on, I will call that my "buy" night.

I hope everyone has fun plans during the Winter Olympics~!

More Felted Clogs

More felted clogs are on my needles at them moment. I had a great class the last two Saturdays and the pair I worked on for demonstration is slated for far away feet. The added fuzzy yarn is fun and should look great when they are felted.

I really like making these and, all things said, these are a great gift item for anyone that lives in cold country.

More pics of more pairs to come. I hope everyone has a favorite item they like to create to gift~!

Cupcakery Comes to Town

3, originally uploaded by anniemaude.

Off the subject of knitting and onto cupcakes, another favorite topic. This weekend I discovered that we have a new cupcake/cake bakery in town. The picture was borrowed from their website and is something they do for weddings. Isn't it fabulous?!

I can hardly wait to go try the place out. It is near our big Cinemark theater on the east side of town. When you go mention you saw it blogged here so they know folks are trying to help them be a success so they will stay in business. That is what we all need to be doing for our favorite small businesses these days.

Happy discovery of all things that make you go YUMMY!

More Winter and LOST

The groundhog had the audacity to predict 6 more weeks of winter today and I can't blame him. Why, because knitting is so much more fun when the weather outside is frightful.

He is one smart rodent. He knew to give us overachievers some more time to work on the really long list of projects that we made at the beginnning of the cold season.

And with six more weeks of winter, tonight started the long-awaited, much-anticipated sixth and final season of LOST. I cannot believe this will be the last round of confusion and pondering the fate of the crashed plane's passengers.

I understand from a friend that the hullabaloo in Waikiki last Saturday night was big. They got to see the first hour of the season premiere five days early and on a big screen on the beach. How much fun that must have been. Hope to see some pictures soon.

So, I will be LOST on Tuesday nights for a while this late winter and spring. Hope to get some knitting done during the commercials. I hope everyone has fun things to do during our extended winter season~!

February? When Did This Happen?

My, how the year is flying. It is already February and I have done 7 classes, learned how to knit mittens through trial and error, prepped at least 4 projects for Olympic events and have begun making preparations for the Loopy Spring Fling in April.

I think that is a lot done for one month. Sometimes I have to sit down and evaluate it like that or I believe that I have not been as productive as I would like to be. Anyone else have that problem?

The weather here has been mild for winter so I expect some great spring snows with any luck at all. We really need the moisture.

And I am beginning the month on a positive note: Lots to knit during the Olympics, more fun classes, and lots of progress on some shop sample projects. All in all, a great way to spend the shortest month of the year. Best get to it. Happy projecting to all~!