Linda had crackers and dip for us and yummy wine – Cupcake red and a Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling. Michele was scheduled to bring a peach/rhubarb cobbler.
When Michele got there, she had her cobbler wrapped in a garbage bag. Not a good omen, but it had tipped a little in the car and she was afraid of leakage, thus the garbage bag. It was so good, however, that we gobbled it up in spite of its less than perfect appearance. When I finished my plateful and had the presence of mind to think of a photo, this is all that was left.
Everyone clambered for the recipe, so Michele sent it to me and I’m passing it along:
Michele suggests using a 9X13 inch pan.
Marylane has started on a Linen Stitch scarf that is beautiful. It is knit long-ways and the yarn is a Mochi blend.
I’ve noticed that some other Castoffs have used this kind of yarn in their projects. It is so soft and pretty!
Leslie brought her scarf that she’s working on and so many people wanted the pattern that she sent it to all of us later that day. It’s a very modern, abstract look and it’s going to be stunning.
I pulled my top-down Henley over my t-shirt and modeled it. I still have to add the button placket and band and then it will be finished! yay!
Michele is still working on her daughter’s sweater. It has a beautiful pattern. I believe that this is the back of the cardigan.
“What yarn is that, Michele?” I asked.
“Pima cotton and beechwood,” she replied.
“Beach wood? You mean driftwood?” I was a little confused and it was only my first glass of wine.
“B-E-E-C-H, not B-E-A-C-H.”
Oh, I guess she won’t have to shake the sand out, then. Well, regardless of what kind of wood, it’s still a little strange, isn’t it? Anyway, love the feel of it.
Julie is knitting a shawl out of a basic dishcloth pattern – it’s very airy and holey – perfect for summertime. I like the color of the yarn.
We decided on our first ever Castoffs road trip to East Glacier where we’ll sit and knit on the lawn (if the weather cooperates) of the historic hotel, then go to Serrano’s Mexican restaurant (YUM!) and drink Margaritas with our meal. At least, Linda and I will. Don’t know about the rest of ya. We haven’t designated a driver yet.
Next week we delay a day and meet at Mary’s house on the lake. Mary is a retired woman now. And she is very happy about it already! So are we, Mary. We’ll meet at Julie’s house and carpool down to the lake. I’m excited to sit on her deck (weather permitting) and drink in the gorgeous scenery. Thanks, Mary.
I’ll leave you with a couple of candid shots of us eating the cobbler and knitting our separate projects. Joan and Linda were working on scarf and elephant, respectively.
Until next time, keep those needles blazing and have a wonderful summer week.
Everyone loved the cake and clambered for the recipe, so Linda sent it to me.
Francy brought her friend, Roxanne, who was knitting her first project. It’s a long scarf – pretty! We were glad to see Roxanne and hope to see her finished project soon.
Everyone was finishing works-in-progress. Leslie was deciding how to put together her rug blocks.
Linda was still working on her shawl with tassels. I love this color. It will look great on her.
Marylane was knitting the first sleeve of her sweater. Having done the back and sides, she was wondering about matching the sleeves. Should she try? Or should she just take it as the yarn comes? Not sure anything was settled, but it surely is going to be a beautiful sweater.
Francy is working on the henley topdown sweater for her son-in-law.
Francy is the crochet Queen of the Castoffs. She showed Leslie how to do a triple crochet to join her rug blocks (although I think Leslie decided to stick with a double crochet) and she showed me how to do a single crochet around Lucky’s (my husband’s) earflap hat that I just knitted.
If you think it looks goofy on me, just wait. Lucky reluctantly modeled for me when I got home.
Mary sewed the horsey button onto her green hat for her friend’s baby, Slade. Isn’t that a great name? Slade. Makes me think of lanky cowboys who roll their own ciggarillos. The hat doesn’t make me think of that, though. It’s adorable.
We missed Julie, who had an upset tummy that she didn’t want to share. Thank you, Jules for being so considerate, but we did miss you. We missed Carol, whose kitty had to be put down today. So sorry, Carol. We were all thinking of you. We don’t know where Deb was but we missed her too. and Michele was doing a teacher conference thing. Anyway, we hope to see everyone next week at Leslie’s house.
I’ll leave you with a photo of the Castoffs in their natural habitat. Beside the wine!
Until we meet at Leslie’s house, have fun and keep those needles blazing!
]]>Sometimes I think I describe the food more than the knitting at our meetings. Speaking of excellent things, Mary served a few of us a great wine (with lime wedges) that we’ve had before. Wine of the week? New Age!
We are such a diverse group. I feel very lucky to be a part of these women. So much fun! Several of us have taken the big leap to SOCKS. Now, socks are not the easiest project if you’ve never tackled double-pointed needles. Yes, I know that there are other methods for knitting socks – teeny circular needles (which look very cool and which I’d like to try) and longer circular needles (the ‘magic loop’ method). Double-pointed needles, however, are the traditional way to sockdom. Carol has graduated to sockdom and we were thrilled to see her first finished sock. Carol was pretty thrilled, too.
Another Castoff who is really branching out is Deb – finally finished with her scarf. Yay! She started on a beautiful hat and we all love the yarn.
Deb came for lunch, dashed out to go to a wedding, dashed back to join us for a little knitting and talk. Thank goodness the wedding was close to Mary’s house.
Marylane brought her finished needlepoint picture and we were all very impressed. Next summer when her sister Joan returns from Arizona, Joan’s husband Jeff is going to make a frame for the needlepoint.
Marylane also brought her gorgeous sweater that she started, but she didn’t work on it here – too much distraction. We get that, don’t we, Castoffs? Instead she worked on a hat for a library fundraiser basket raffle.
Speaking of ambitious sweater projects, Francy is knitting a top-down sweater for her son embellished with a three-color design that she made up as she went. Wow. You are the diva, Francy.
Mary, once a self-described ‘knitwit’ (her words, not mine – well, most of the time) has really come on strong. She showed us the ubiquitous polar bear scarf that is, really, nearly finished. The poor bear finally has a nose and claws. Can eyes be far away? We suggested a tiny trail of red yarn streaming from his little mouth, but Mary wasn’t impressed.
Mary also showed us the sweet little fleece baby hat that she finished. So adorable!
I glanced over and saw Michele RIPPING yarn off a hat in a most devil-may-care manner. Don’t worry, she was just taking some off in order to make it longer. Huh? Yep. It is so liberating to rip out, isn’t it Michele?
I brought my chevron scarf. As of this posting, it is all knitted and I only have to graft the two ends together to complete it. Then I might start a hat or finish a sweater that I goofed on in the spring and put away in disgust. Now that it’s cooler, I will give that sweater another chance.
Julie, Julie, Julie is working on her shawl, although she ruefully told us that now the heat is coming on more in her workspace. Yesterday it was 75 degrees – hardly shawl weather. Ah, but knowing the workplace (I used to work there), the temperature is notoriously unreliable. Keep knitting, Jules.
We had so much fun – missed Leslie and Joan, of course. Next week we meet at Deb’s house to felt mittens that Michele has knitted. Should be a lot of fun and I hope to see you all there! Until then, keep those needles blazing. I’ll leave you with the silent version of our meeting – photos of the busy bees.
]]>Mary brought to our attention that this was National Doughnut Day (who knew?) and she shared a pattern with us.
When we looked at the pattern and discovered that the doughnut in question was knitted with size 00 needles, we decided to skip the calories. But thanks for thinking of us, Mary! Mary was still busy knitting a dishcloth – she had even knitted some between meetings. Good knitter.
When I looked across the room, she and Michele were deep in thought looking at a pattern and I think the question was about the poor neglected polar bear scarf. Poor bear – put away until cooler weather.
Michele had sad news about her bathroom curtain. When she placed it beside the existing curtain (that this color will be added to) she discovered that the needle size was wrong and that she had to start over again. ARRGH! Sometimes knitting is frustrating. Anyway, she has come a long way since the great ripping so we all have high hopes for the curtain.
Francy is knitting mittens! Mittens? Yes, mittens! I think this must be an interim project between baby things, don’t you think? They are pretty and are made with a pattern that Julie gave her.
Linda was knitting a dishcloth too – the famous ball band pattern that we all love. She had finished Carol’s scarf and it looks great on Carol.
Carol told us that her son, Duncan, got a great job offer in Alaska, so he, his wife and unborn son are moving up to the Great North. We are sad for Carol because she won’t be there when the baby is born, but we are happy for Duncan. Carol will just be planning trips to Alaska! The little family will be home in the fall for Grandma Carol to see the baby.
I am making progress on the afghan that I’m knitting for my sis-in-law Marty. Everyone likes the color much better now that they can see it in a pattern. I like it better myself.
Marylane is only a few bracelets away from completion for her reunion. Here is one that she made from yarn leftover from Michele’s block afghan project. We all liked the way it came out. Sorry for the out-of-focus shot. Just call it artsy.
Deb was working on her daughter’s scarf. Mary said that earlier in the day, Deb came into Mary’s office and casually asked where knitting would be today…”Uh, YOUR house, Deb.” Mary said that the look on Deb’s face was priceless. Here is the serene hostess.
We all had fun playing with Izzy, Deb’s Yorkie, who examined and sniffed us and our projects. We loved having her little nose in our business.
Next Saturday is Knit in Public Day! Hard to believe that a year ago is when I started this blog. Marylane sent me the information for our day of knitting in Kalispell, so I’ll pass it on to you.
WORLD WIDE KNIT IN PUBLIC DAY
June 12, 2010 in Kalispell
Join us as we knit with thousands of other knitters
around the world on the same day!
This event will take place between 8 am and 6 pm in several locations around Kalispell.
Come to any or all scheduled locations.
10-12 Corner of Main & Center Streets at Kalispell
Center Mall. If rain – inside the Mall.
12-2 Bonelli’s Bistro, 38 First Ave. E.
2-4 Conrad Mansion, 300 block Woodland Ave.
Described as the most authentic pre-1900 Mansion in the Pacific Northwest, open 10-4, Tuesday–Sunday. This historic home features antique furniture, original clothes, and personal items belonging to one of the founding families of Kalispell.
4-6 North Bay Grill, 139 1st Ave. W.
Finish the day with a cool drink.
For additional information call: Paulette 257-9514 or Marylane 257-5793
World Wide Knit in Public Day was created by Danielle Landes in 2005.
To find out more about WWKiP Day visit wwkipday.com.
We will meet next week at Julie’s house and talk about Knit in Public Day. See you all at Julie’s! In the meantime, keep on knittin’!
]]>It was almost Carol’s birthday, so we sang to her and she was thrilled, I’m sure.
We talked a lot about social issues this week, about the Radical Right and their abortion opposition and about the Right to Die issue that was recently voted into legislation in Montana. We were all heartened to hear about that. Our state is a weird mix of lefties and righties, unfortunately the righties are louder. We Lefties are a hardy bunch, though and make our feelings known, especially at knitting.
On a lighter note, Mary brought her newly pedicured toes to show us. Lefties and righties. Just thought I’d throw that in.
It was good to see Deb and Linda knitting so diligently – Deb on the scarf that is almost finished, and Linda on Yoga socks.
Linda asked my help on a loose row of her yoga socks, but I had to admit that I had never knitted socks on double pointed needles. I’m knitting some now using the ‘magic loop’ method which isn’t so magical for me. Michele exclaimed in rapturous tones about the ‘magic loop’ method, but I’m not loving it as much. I’m getting the job done, but I find that the loop stretches the gap between the front and back of the sock.
I shouldn’t moan so much until I finish it. I am enjoying the cable pattern, however.
Mary is knitting her daughter, Larissa, a cool hat with self-striping yarn. Although Mary swears that she determined how the stripes would come out, the rest of us have our doubts. Not to mention the yarn company…Pretty colors though! Mary is one of the few of us who got a lot done at this meeting. The rest of us, as you can see from the next few photos, were not so diligent or so serious.
Leslie (yes, that IS Leslie behind the bridesmaid bhurka) is actually showing us that this is the FIRST (of seven) ‘thick and thin’ scarf for her daughter’s seven bridal attendants. There’ll be a whole lot of knittin’ goin’ on before that wedding. Can’t wait to see number 2.
No, I wasn’t looking to heaven for guidance, this is the neck of a top-down sweater that I’m knitting. I needed something easy to work on instead of my ‘magic loop’ sock. Julie caught me in a goofy pose.
Speaking of, Julie DOES look rather angelic. Maybe she was just pooped from working too much. She working on a hat – don’t remember anything else about the hat – just a hat.
Marylane is knitting bracelets for all of her female relatives that are coming to their next family reunion. I think that sounds a little gender-exclusive, Marylane. What are you going to knit the guys?
Sorry this photo was a little fuzzy, but at that point, so was I. Marylane was sitting so close to the stove in my den that Leslie and I were afraid that the bracelets were going to spontaneously felt themselves right in her hand. Hot, hot, hot.
Next week the meeting will be at Marylane’s house. I will be on my way to Florida to soak up some sun (I hope) and I will really miss my Castoffs a lot!!! They have promised to send raw data for the blog…now this could be very interesting. I can’t wait to see what turns up in my email. Have fun and keep on knitting! See you in a couple of weeks, Castoffs!
]]>Leslie came in and shrieked “That is the most un-homemade sweater I’ve ever seen!!” I took that as a huge compliment. Thank you, Leslie. Speaking of, Leslie told us all about her daughter’s proposal. We all are thrilled with her good news.
I had made a pound cake and Eli made salsa, so we had the food groups covered, what with the wine and lemonade and chips. So all we had to do was to keep the yellow jackets away from everything. Unfortunately, the little buggers were all over our food. Julie was particularly blessed with insect life. First, one dive-bombed into her wine:
Then another and another committed self-immersion, but Julie persisted in pulling them out until she had quite a collection on her plate.
Thankfully the wind came up and kept them away. Although, after everyone had gone home, Eli poured a glass of Riesling and a yellow jacket slid into his glass. Hmmm. Glad he got the last glass.
It must be fall. Carol and Francy are knitting fingerless gloves and mittens, respectively.
Francy’s matching mittens and hat look beautiful. I think they are Christmas gifts. We all think that Carol should keep these gloves for herself. They look great on her!
Linda and Michele are both working on socks. Linda’s are striped and very colorful.
Michele introduced the WHINE OF THE WEEK with her socks. She is trying a new pattern that is worked toe-up, but she keeps getting holes as she decreases stitches. She is following the instructions, but still has HOLES. Grrrrrr. The rest of the socks are worked using a “magic loop” method. I had an explanation of the method in a magazine (with photos). It uses long circular needles, but the work is pushed up onto the needle tips in between rounds. I want to use this method myself, so I hope Michele is having some success in figuring it out! I’ll have a photo next time, I hope. It really is frustrating when you follow the instructions faithfully, but still have a problem, like with HOLES. This is more than a WHINE, right Michele? I had a whine of my own. When I ripped out some of my top-down purple sweater, I put the yarn back on the needles twisted. Sooo, I had a funny twisted row that I knew I’d have to rip out again. Michele explained to me how to make sure my stitches were on correctly – it was something about the cowboy’s legs are thrown over the needle (the horse) with the right leg forward. I got it, even though everyone else laughed at Michele’s illustration. I’ll have to remember the right leg forward rule when I rip out any other rows (which I’m sure I will).
Leslie worked on her little scarf, Marylane worked on her yellow sweater and Julie was agonizing over a cable stitch headband that refused to go the way she wanted. We all knitted, talked, ate and drank and brushed away pesky insects. It was a wonderful afternoon.
]]>But the point of our blog is to share our triumphs and frustrations, our joy in knitting and our love for our companions. We will be posting whatever we discuss at our meeting, from sailing on the beautiful Flathead Lake to hiking in Glacier Park; from Michele’s excellent recipe for chocolate Grenache cake (yummmy!) to the kinds of wine we like to drink while we knit (gimme a red!) and occasionally we will bitch about Republicans, so consider yourselves warned.
So grab a skein of yarn, a couple of needles, sit back and join us. We love to knit and we are quite knowledgable (if I do say so myself) and plan to share a lot of great patterns and opinions.
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