The Castoffs had a good November with meetings at the homes of Michele, Marsha, Deb, Marylane and Leslie. I hadn’t realized there were five Mondays in November until I started writing this blog post. We went from sunshine to below-zero temperatures to 40 degrees – typical Montana weather. We’ve watched our first snowfall of the season as it froze, iced over and melted. Who knows what we have in store for December?
Likewise, our Castoffs have started and finished a multitude of projects. Let’s look at some of them.
Knitting at Michele’s House – November 2
We were a small group at Michele’s house – Linda and Michele and me! Sometimes it’s pleasant to have such a small group, although large ones are a lot of fun, too. Michele had started a skirt for herself (if it fits, she prefaced). The construction is interesting – she knits with two colors, so the interiors of the ribs show complementary hues. The skirt is shaped with darts that make a pleasing pattern on the length of the skirt.
Michele’s skirt.
Linda finished a triangular shawl. She ran out of yarn at the outer edge, so she found some yarn that looked good with the other colors and knit a picot edge. I loved the way it looked.
I wish I’d gotten a closeup of the picot edging. Beautiful!
I also took a photo of an older project of Michele’s – a sweater that I’ve always loved.
Love this asymmetrical front.
Knitting at Marsha’s house – November 9
We were a small group again – many of us were either out of town or otherwise engaged. I remember that some of us knitted, but it must not have been our primary activity. Of course, talking was what we did the most of – as usual. I did take ONE photo just to prove we actually met. Like I said above, sometimes small groups have the best conversations.
Deb’s the only one who’s knitting. Julie and Linda discuss it.
Knitting at Deb’s House – November 16
We went back to Deb’s beautiful new home. I love the drive out there almost as much as I love the house. I got a good photo of Deb in front of her fireplace with Glen’s sweater in her lap. Now that hiking season’s over, she is knitting more. Winter inspires us all.
Happy knitter.
Carol was back from her travels and finishing her Squishy Blanket. It looks fabulous. She told us about the problems she’s had with dropping stitches when holding two strands of yarn at the same time. Good old You-tube showed her how to correct this and Carol was very excited to finish the blanket stress-free. Yippee for You-tube!
She was tying in yarn ends and deciding on the edging.
Marylane wore her sweater that she finished and it is stunnnning. Yes, I know there are a lot of ‘n’s’, but I needed them to tell you just how beautiful the sweater is. Best of all, she really likes to wear it! That’s the best compliment of all for a finished project.
She was wavering between several different decorative buttons.
I am almost finished with my short-row scarf. It’s a series of triangles that lay in a semi-circle on the shoulders. This is the second time I’ve used the pattern. I love it.
Hey! I have that book!
Izzy the Yorkie was delighted to see us, but when our focus turned away from dogs and onto knitting, she lost interest in us and sought her down blankie. She loves her new house.
Izzy in the warmth of her blanket.
Knitting at Julie’s House – November 23
Thanksgiving week, we met at Julie’s house and it was VERY cold. Linda came in with her knitting in one of her market bags that she knit. These are great bags – and stretchy, too!
Love the color, too.
Michele had a few problems with her skirt and had ripped it out. I think there was a glitch in the way it fit her. RIP! We’ve all been there, right? When I started to take a photo, she said not to bother because it would look the same as it had the last time I photographed it. I did anyway – that’s just the way I am.
Michele was cold, as noted by her gloves, coat on her lap and layers of clothing.
Julie is knitting a hat for her daughter using an ear-flap pattern but without the flaps — does that make any sense? I guess you had to be there.
Blue hat, blue jeans, blue vest.
Linda is using sock yarn to knit a hat for her grandson. Cute, cute, cute. Both the hat and the baby. Here’s a picture. Ears!
Darling pattern.
Knitting at Leslie’s House – November 30
It was the last day of the month and Christmas was in the air – at least at Leslie’s house. Every year, she has a non-traditional Christmas tree and this year was no different. I think she’ll stick with this minimalist tree – because she gave all her ornaments to her daughter. Her trees are so imaginative that we always look forward to them.
You can see through it!
Leslie showed us a half-linen stitch eternity scarf similar to one that I’ve made. I love this stitch and I really like this steel gray color.
Circular cowl.
Leslie was knitting a cabled hat for her daughter. This color will look great on Sienna.
Hat!
Marylane gets the prize for most interesting, and versatile, pattern. Depending on the weight of yarn, the pattern looks different. Here is the hat with a sport weight:
Small yarn, small pattern.
And this is how it looked with bulkier yarn:
Larger yarn, larger pattern. And, BTW, great vest!
Carol finished her Squishy Blanket! It looks great! She is so glad it’s over – now she can knit something else. As much in love as we all become with a project, there’s always a sense of relief that it’s finished. The desire to begin something else usually sets in long before the working project is near completion. At least, that’s been my experience. Perhaps I should live more in the moment? Hmmm.
Yay! Done.
Michele was plugging away on her skirt – I think it’s nearly finished. What I really liked, though, are the slippers she brings along to knitting. She slips out of her outdoor boots or shoes and slips on these felted slippers. I think it’s cozy of her to bring along a piece of her knitting that she uses all the time.
Such slippers!
I’ll end this post with some candids of our other Castoffs at Leslie’s house. I can hardly believe Christmas is almost upon us. December, here we come!
Julie and Carol in deep discussion.
Deb and Francy.
A final look at Leslie’s tree.
Bye-bye to November. I can’t wait to see what the Castoffs have on their needles for the Christmas seasons. Keep those needles blazing and I’ll see you next time at Linda’s house.
