Trying something new

 Amidst the projects which I am already trying to finish, I found myself compelled to try something new.  I am using some of the same yarn that I am using for my granny squares.  I love these blues and greens together.



It looks funky in the middle because there is a hole.



Any idea what it is yet? 

 Here's a big hint...

 A teapot cozy!  I am trying to follow a pattern from the lovely blog Crochet with Raymond.  My teapot is shaped a bit differently so I must make adjustments.  My goal  is to figure this out on my teapot, then purchase another teapot and make it a cozy for my husband to bring to his aunt in Holland next week.  Wish me luck!

Some more progress

I have made some progress on Daniel's blanket. I think I am finished with the stripes on one side of the blue center and have started working on the other side.

 I am trying to add different textures along with the colors. The latest are these purple popcorns. I intended them to look like diamond shaped clusters of 4 bumps each.  Not sure if that's the way they read but they are there to stay!

 I am using Caron's Simply Soft.  Love the yarn, but oh boy am I having trouble getting the skeins started. I can't seem to find the free end of the yarn easily.  Have you ever reached into the end of the skein hoping to pull out the loose end and ended up pulling out the skein's innards instead?   A special thanks to Kathy and Carol last night for untangling my latest rat's nest!

a gift that speaks a thousand words (to me anyway)

Happy New Year!


As I was making my morning tea I decided to photograph one of my favorite gifts this year. 

And Santa apparently did not get the message as I found NO yarn under the tree this year or in any packaged handed to me that day.  Not that I am complaining (okay, maybe just a little), as I have more than enough yarn in my yarn stash (just ask my husband - he likes to complain about it).  I am sure the wish for more yarn is in every knitter's or crocheter's dreams.

Thank you Ruth, I love my mug and really appreciate the sentiment.  Maybe next year Santa will get the hint.

Peace,
Carol

Inspirations

Where does your inspiration come from? I started playing around with granny squares after making one for a swap with  Debi Y. I played around with different color combinations and liked what I was getting but wasn't 100% sure where it was all leading.  Then Santa, in the form of my husband, gave me this beautiful Vera Bradley tote bag for Christmas.  (I had admired it while we were Christmas shopping and he remembered!)  I love the combinations of the lights and jewel-tone colors against the black background.

I took a second look at my stash and realized I had many of the same colors. 

There's a few I did previously that may have to be weeded out, but maybe not.  We'll see.  I am planning to connect them and edge the blanket with black.  Stay tuned for yet another work in progress.
Peace,
Cynthia

Eldorado

Gaily bedight,
A gallant knight,
In sunshine and in shadow,
Had journeyed long,
Singing a song,
In search of Eldorado.

But he grew old-
This knight so bold-
And o'er his heart a shadow
Fell as he found
No spot of ground
That looked like Eldorado.

And, as his strength
Failed him at length,
He met a pilgrim shadow-
"Shadow," said he,
"Where can it be-
This land of Eldorado?"

"Over the Mountains
Of the Moon,
Down the Valley of the Shadow,
Ride, boldly ride,"
The shade replied-
"If you seek for Eldorado!"
       Edgar Allen Poe

In memory of  someone very special. The poem his daughter said he loved. Rest well my dear friend.  You are missed.

On the opposite side of the world

My daughter Emily is studying abroad in Australia.  She arrived yesterday which is our today and is now onto tomorrow.  We are just figuring out the communication thing because she currently does not have a phone.  It is 4pm today for me and 7am tomorrow for her.  This is exciting for all of us.  And if I must admit, a bit scary for me.  While Emily spends most of her year in Boston, Australia is the farthest she has ever been from home.  Really, really far!

So when I stand up and my feet touch the ground, her feet are touching the ground, our heads aim opposite, and the whole world separates us. Got it? 

g'day, Carol