We had a full house at Carol’s house–good thing she has a new, enormous couch for us. Even still, there wasn’t enough room on it for all the Castoffs. It was great to have so many of us together.

And this is only HALF of the couch!

Little kitty was very needy, so we tried to give her a lot of attention by enticing her to model some of our projects. By ‘enticing her’, I mean Julie and Francy held her down while I took the photos. Good kitty!

Little kitty modeled the scarf for my great-niece that I finished. It’s really adorable, but I didn’t enjoy knitting with this lace-strip yarn. Turned out cute, though.

Oh la la, Little kitty!

Here’s another scrunchy cowl in a bulky yarn that I knit for a Christmas gift. I like it, but I’m not so sure about Little kitty.

Little kitty tried to use the cowl as a skirt. Saucy kitty.

The hat that Mary knit her granddaughter was a tight fit, although Little kitty rocked it.

A hat! A hat! Cats don’t wear hats!

After the fashion show, Little kitty sought refuge with Michele. Good thing the kitty is declawed, or Michele’s sweater would be shredded.

“And they dressed me up like a doll!”

Marylane felted her knitted slippers. Looks like her feet will be cozy this winter. This is a great pattern. You can add rubber or leather soles, or go with the doubled bottoms.That reminds me to find mine. It’s getting cold in the evenings at my house, too.

I like the contrasting trim.

Leslie is knitting some ‘non-felted’ slippers. No, really. That’s the pattern name. These are for Leslie’s grandson, knitted in Seattle Seahawks colors. (Ick, ptui! Just an editorial comment from a Broncos fan). The slippers are knitted in a bulky yarn in one piece. Sounds easy, and once they’re finished–they’re finished. No pieces to sew together.

Great slippers, even though they aren’t my colors.

Deb is still knitting her skirt–round and round and round–it’s not very challenging and even though she’s tempted to cut it short, she probably shouldn’t. It would be very short indeed.

Yes, the photo is slanted on purpose.

Julie is praying to the goddess of pink yarn. No, I think she’s just showing us her latest project. It’s round–it’s pink–it’s a senior moment because I can’t remember what she’s knitting. Sorry, Jules. It’s pretty, whatever it is.

Cowl? Neckwarmer? Baby hat? Ya got me.

And now comes the hand model portion of our show. I’m modeling a fingerless mitten that I’m halfway through. Looks like I have piercings, doesn’t it? I’m afraid I annoyed our resident hand-model, Leslie. Sorry.

Fingerless mittens.

Francy is modeling  a swirl hat–on her hand. It’s not big enough to fit on her head yet–without losing the dp needles, that is. Love this hat.

Nice swirl hat, Francy. Just noticed that we were both wearing red.

Mary knitted some tiny little mittens for her tiny little granddaughter (she of the pink hat above). They really do look small! Marylane has a similar pattern for mitten ornaments.

To be strung through tiny coat sleeves.

Linda is working on the metallic-hued cowl for her daughter. I think she’s planning to take it with her at Thanksgiving if it’s finished.

Wonderful holiday yarn.

That’s it for now. We had a lot of fun and next time, we’ll be at Julie’s house. Until then, Castoffs, keep those needles blazing and have a great Turkey Day!

Baby, it’s cold outside.

The words to the old standard were never truer than the day of our meeting this week. An Arctic Vortex had descended and covered the Northern Plains with frigid temperatures. Brrr!

We met at Linda’s house and were glad to have lumps of wool in our laps to keep us warmer. Leslie had finished the Swirl hat that she was knitting, and it looked good. She blocked hers, hoping that it would be large enough to fit her son-in-law’s head. We think it’ll be fine.

Another Swirl hat. Love this pattern.

Leslie found some great yarn at Camas Creek Yarn Shop and started a hat  with ear flaps for one of her grandchildren. Great yarn, great pattern. Here’s the tip of the flap.

You can just see the pattern picture and the beginning of the ear flap.

Marylane has been knitting fingerless mittens. Very appropriate to the weather. I was inspired to start on some myself, and vowed to do so before the week was out.

Two patterns for fingerless mittens.

I’m making progress on my ‘fancy’ scarf. This one is not for warmth, it’s for fun. I’m giving it to one of my great-nieces for Christmas. Hope she likes it!

Boa, baby!

Linda found some very pretty yarn at our new Michael’s store. It’s a shiny metallic yarn by Patons. It looks very different when it’s knit, though. It loses some of its shiny appearance. I wish I could think of something to knit from it, but it’s very dressy, and I’m not.

Cool metallic yarns.

The yarn and the cowl. See how it’s less shiny?

Michele is busily working on a Christmas sweater for her daughter. It’s knit from  a stitch that I call a half-linen stitch, but her pattern calls it a staten (sp.) stitch. Whatever it’s called, I like it.

Busy knitter, Michele.

That’s about it. I’ll leave you with a shot of two happy knitters, Marylane and Carol. Aren’t they adorable?

Carol and Marylane.

Next time, we meet at Carol’s house. Until then, keep those needles blazing and KEEP WARM, Castoffs!

We can tell that the days are growing shorter every week. By the time we left Leslie’s house at 5:15, we had to turn on our headlights. But, when we arrived, it was a lightly overcast day with all the beautiful fall colors right outside the window.

Linda was back from Denver where she got a week with her first grandchild – Michael Ian – and we saw pictures! He’s adorable. Looked much older than three weeks. We saw photos of Michael wrapped in the blanket that Linda knit for him, but I don’t have a copy to show you. Take my word for it, he has his first heirloom.

Linda knit some fingerless mittens while she was there. Marylane recently gave me a copy of this pattern, so I’m looking for yarn right after I post this blog. Linda showed us the buttons that she’s thinking of attaching to the cuffs. I like them.

Aren’t these pretty? I want some.

Last week we saw Leslie’s bears – well, two of them. I caught a glimpse of her newly finished items and found three little bears sitting on top of some other knitwear – they looked pretty cozy.

Cuties. Leslie’s been a busy little bear, too.

Leslie’s knitting a swirl hat for her son-in-law. This is a great pattern that Michele and I have also knit. I’m giving one away for Christmas, but I want one for myself. As Michele says, it makes a great hiking hat – light, takes up very little room in the pack and it’s warm.

Swirl hat – Michele’s on the left and Leslie’s on the right. Nearly finished.

Marylane needed some more help on her sweater vest, so Michele, Leslie and Francy were happy to oblige. It’s not ready for wearing, but here it is, with Marylane peeking over the collar.

Peekaboo!

I am slowly making progress on a scarf for one of my great-nieces. The yarn (I use that term loosely) is not fun to work with, but I only have six stitches cast on, so I really can’t complain. It will be cute when it’s done.

It’s fancy.

Francy just got home from Michigan where she finished her ‘stash’ sock yarn scarf and gave it to her daughter, Betsy. It was so intricate that we wanted to see the finished product.

“We need to see a picture!” Okay. Here it is, with Betsy modeling it.

Beautiful scarf, Francy! Betsy’s beautiful, too!

Carol joined us. I missed her while I was in Nebraska and while she was away, so it had been a long time. So good to see you, Carol. She brought her entre-lac scarf, but she isn’t sure where she stopped last time. I think she’ll figure it out, though. It’s a beautiful scarf. She looked at Leslie’s and liked the blocked and joined version.

Wow! Very dramatic.

At one point during the meeting, I looked over and saw Deb and Carol deep in conversation. When I picked up my camera, Carol was laughing out loud. That Deb’s a crack-up.

We Castoffs have a lot of fun.

Next week, we’ll meet at Carol’s house. Until then, Castoffs, stay warm. Snow is on the way and when it comes, ward it off with your blazing needles. Can you believe Thanksgiving is only three weeks away? Gobble-gobble.

We have had a beautiful fall–great colors, mild temperatures and NO snow! The day of our recent meeting was no exception. Everyone came to my house and it was fun to catch up with Marylane – who has been to Italy with her sister Joan. Sounds like they had a great trip. Because she didn’t take her knitting with her (can’t imagine why – I have some well traveled projects – of course, I didn’t knit a stitch on any of the trips), she brought two works-in-progress to ask advice.

She gets by with a little help from her friends.

“I can’t remember what I was doing! Help me!” So we did. Michele helped her with a sweater vest and I helped her with some fingerless mitts. That’s what the Castoffs do – help each other.

Michele has knitted several inches of her sweater – just like I said she would. It’s a beautiful half-linen stitch and it looks great so far.

This is going to be a fabulous sweater.

Michele’s pattern and my wrinkled hand.

Michele was wearing a long vest that a friend of hers from Livingston, MT knit for her. It’s a sideways knit that I covet. We all loved it.

Cool sideways knit.

Leslie brought two little friends. Two bears in dresses! Very cute. One, alas, had no eyes, but Leslie will remedy that.

Squishy bears.

Deb put buttons on her sweater and modeled it for us. This is an exquisite work of art, Deb. I know a man who goes to your church who noticed your sweater! Yes, he told me how much he liked it. Admiration is universal.

Work it, girl!

I found some novelty yarn to knit a scarf for one of my little great-nieces. She likes ‘fancy’ things, and this will be pretty darn fancy. Mary and Michele and Leslie helped me figure out the stitch. Thanks, gals!

The yarn fluffs out when you’re finished. Fancy!

Our friend Lisa dropped in – great to see you! She is going to be a grandmother again. Greta will be a big sister! We’re so happy for you, Gram.

Drop in anytime!

Two of our knitters are making hats. Mary is knitting a baby hat for her youngest granddaughter, Adela. So far, she’s knit the lining. She’ll be gone visiting Adela and her big brother, Moses, for a couple of weeks. I’m guessing she’ll finish the hat while she’s there. Take a photo, Mary.

Little pink hat…lining.

Julie is knitting a newsboy cap. This is a pattern that several of the Castoffs have knit. Love the color, Jules.

You can see the bill – or what will become the bill.

That was our fun day. We missed Carol and Linda. Hope to see you two soon! Next time we’ll meet at Leslie’s house. Until then, keep those needles blazing and stay warm, Castoffs. Winter’s coming sooner than we want it!

Wow! It’s been a while since I posted something. I went to Nebraska, came back and it was fall. No more knitting in Woodland Park – boo hoo! But that’s OK, now we can really get serious about wintertime knitting.

We met at Deb’s house on a crisp, sunny day and caught up on our projects. Deb and Michele took advantage of the sunshine. Such a cozy corner.

Talking and knitting.

Deb is still working on her skirt. Like some of the rest of the Castoffs who have knitted this pattern, she is slogging through the boring part (which is most of it after the lacy bit on the bottom). Knit, knit, knit and nothing but knit around and around.

It’s going to look great on you, Deb!

Michele is just starting a sweater, and insisted that I wait to photograph it until there’s something substantial to photograph. Oh, all right. Knowing Michele, there’ll be several inches knit by next week. Don’t tell her, but I took a picture anyway – only the shoulders, but I liked the driftwood.

Tiny shoulders that Michele will pick up on.

Leslie was industriously sewing something – it’s a bear! She had made one like it earlier in the summer. Very cute – he has a lot of personality for a lump of yarn.

He’ll look more like a bear when he’s stuffed.

Mary is knitting a scary spider for Halloween!  BOOO! She’s taking it to her grandson, Moses, when she goes down to Denver.

Scary!

She’s planning to stiffen the legs with pipe cleaners. The photo doesn’t show the scale, but it’s about 8 inches long.

I am toiling away on my poncho. Another fairly boring slog. It’s knit on one side and purl on the other for a 52″ by 20″ rectangle. I’ll then sew parts of the edges together and add a cowl neck.

Looks like a ghost, but the round thing is the yarn ball.

Deb’s Yorkie, Izzy, licked us all and then took cover under a handy table. She loves us from a distance. A whole lot of talking goin’ on.

She’s such a sweetie.

Next week we’ll meet at Marsha’s house (that’s me). Hopefully the rainy weather will stay away – but then, it’s better than snow. Right, Castoffs? In the meantime, keep those needles blazing and think about Christmas. What? Did I really say that??

We were surprised with joy (thanks, Louise Penny) for the beautiful day – sunny, warm and reminding us that summer was giving up its last gasp. Several of our number were at after school meetings on retirement benefits. So glad I’m already there!

Joan joined us for her last meeting with us for the summer (boo-hoo! We’ll miss you, Joan!). She’ll be going home to Arizona soon for the harsh southern winters – HA. She made felted soap – that is, she wrapped roving wool around a fragrant bar of soap, put it in a sock and agitated it with hot water. Voila! Now she’ll have great gifts for her Christmas list.

This one smells like cloves. Wonderful. There’s Joan’s head at the corner.

Joan was still knitting her ‘knit-only’ scarf. Almost out of yarn, so that’ll be the end of it. Marylane brought a lot of tomatoes from her garden to give to us. Yum.

End of the vine tomatoes.

Marylane is working on her bulky sweater vest – she needed some help from Francy, who is a wonderful knitter.

Marylane’s vest – the back.

Francy has about a foot to go on this beautiful tubular scarf. It’s for her daughter Betsy, and Francy assures us that it’s easier to knit than it appears…sure, Francy, sure it is.

Such a gorgeous scarf!

I’m toiling away on my asymmetrical poncho. It’ll be a long (rather boring) slog – stockinette stitch. I think it’ll be worth it though.

8 inches down, 42 to go.

Julie has returned to her mauve sweater. Winter must be coming.

Pretty yarn, Jules!

I wanted to share a photo from last week that I didn’t post. Leslie finished her entre-lac cowl, blocked it and modeled it for us. Blocked, it’s much less puffy and has a completely different appearance. I really like it this way. The one I did was left puffy, but I might revisit it.

Love it, Leslie!

That’s it, Castoffs! We’ll try again in the park next time, and hope that the weather continues to be glorious autumn. Until then, keep those needles blazing and think winter!

It was chilly, but bearable in the park for our knitting. I had finished my sweater vest, so I kept it on and was very comfortable.

The back of my half-seed stitch vest.

…and the front of my vest.

I had planned to begin a wool poncho, but was tired of big projects, so I found a cabled fingerless mitt pattern and started a pair. I finished this one while I was nervously watching the Broncos play the Colts. Broncos won by the hair on their chinny-chin-chins.

These knit up quickly.

Linda finished putting together the strips of squares for her grandson’s blanket. She was adding an I-cord edging all around it. Looks great! She hasn’t decided if she will face the back.

Hooray! A baby blanket!

Leslie entre-lac scarf is coming along. I love that the multi-hued yarn makes each square pop with its own color.

Beautiful shading.

Michele has just about finished a roll-neck sweater for her friend’s baby. I believe this is a top-down pattern that some of us have done in various sizes.

Cute sweater!

Deb joined us. Now that school is back in session, our teacher/guidance counselor/writing room teachers are glad to come to knitting once Monday is over. Whew! Working is hard — but I wouldn’t know that. Ah, retirement!

Deb’s working on her sweater and talking.

Mary wasn’t knitting – why is that, Mary? Larissa and Aurora joined us. They’ll be going home soon, so it was fun to see them again.

They’ll be heading back to hot Las Vegas soon. Bye-bye!

Julie returned to a sweater that she started a few months ago. Summer isn’t conducive to knitting – too hot and too much fun stuff to do.

Hey, what’s so funny?

Marylane picked up a bulky sweater that she was working on earlier in the year. She needed some help, so Leslie gladly obliged. We’re eager to help each other – guess that’s why we’ve stayed together as a group for so long. Oh, and we’re all delightful companions, of course. As well as excellent knitters!

Castoffs in their natural habitat.

We’ll see if the weather cooperates for next time. The forecast says yes, but the sky might say no. If we can’t go to the park, we’ll meet at Michele’s downstairs knitting room.

Until then, Castoffs, keep those needles blazing because winter’s coming.

ROAD TRIP!

The Castoffs went on a road trip to Linda’s lake house on beautiful Shelter Bay – Flathead Lake. The day was perfect – sunny and in the seventies. We took potluck salads and ate on the deck (the upper deck, that is – the house has four decks). The food was fabulous, of course.

Barely got a photo before we dove into the meal.

It had rained earlier in the week, but the day was absolutely gorgeous. Linda must have arranged it that way.

Here’s a toast to knitters everywhere!

Linda had set the cushions out to dry – all except for one – which she sat on. Honestly, we didn’t plan it that way before she sat down!

Wet-bottom girl.

Linda served a delicious ice-cream dessert. I really liked it and so did everyone else. I’ve included the recipe below the photo.

Yum, crunchy ice-cream.

The view across the bay to Shelter Island.

And some of each other.

Then we shared our projects for a while.

Mary is making good progress on Aurora’s tutu.

Carol’s entre-lac scarf is growing, as is Julie’s sock.

Here’s a good look at Linda’s beautiful house.

Linda and Marylane had both had mishaps, spraining their ankles. Linda fell down on slippery tiles in her bathroom and Marylane slipped while on a hike (Siyeh Pass). They both rested and iced their feet while we knitted.

Ouch! Icing the sprained ankles.

When we had knitted for a while, Linda asked if anyone had brought their swimsuits – three of us raised our hands and sprinted up the steps to change. No. I didn’t take photos of the swimming. Nobody wanted to put that online, thank you very much. Suffice it to say that Julie, Carol, Linda and I did pretty good imitations of mermaids, dipping in the cold lake and sunning ourselves on the dock. The temperature was perfection. Marylane, Joan and Mary declined. Mary might’ve gone in, but she forgot her suit and didn’t want to skinny-dip. Maybe next time.

We enjoyed the afternoon so much! Wished the other Castoffs could’ve joined us. Thank you, Linda for inviting us and for being such a great hostess. Next week we’ll be back in Woodland Park at the regular time.

In the meantime, Castoffs, keep those needles blazing and here’s a parting shot of knitters on Linda’s deck.

Castoffs under the umbrella.

 

 

 

 

 

We loved having Leslie back. She has been busy with children and grandchildren. And, she’s been knitting up a storm! She’s finished a baby hat and sweater for a friend’s new baby boy and she knit a very cute and squishy bear.

Garter stitch with contrasting garter stitch yoke.

I love this little hat. The white edge is soft and fluffy.

This bear was so adorable that Linda decided she needed to knit one for her grandson.

The softest bear EVER!

Linda is still working on the blanket for her grandbaby that will be born in the fall. She is knitting the final strip (I think), then she’ll join them together and back the strips with fabric. Gonna be cute.

Blanket is coming together.

Mary’s tutu is slowly growing. She’ll have to step on it to get it finished by Labor Day. Right, Mary? I’m sure by next week it will be nearly finished.

A patriotic tutu. Never thought I’d write those words together.

Carol shipped off the tutus and crowns and has started on an entre-lac scarf. I’ve done one of these and the pattern is challenging at first, but once you have it, it’s easy! And it LOOKS so difficult that everyone will be very impressed. She’s using a Noro knock-off that feels softer than Noro. And cheaper, too, but still is 100% wool.

Looks like basket-weaving.

We enjoyed our time in the park, although we had to keep shifting our chairs as the sun chased us across the grass. Some other park denizens wandered by, too.

Honk, honk.

Next week, Linda has invited us to her lake house for lunch and knitting – and swimming, too. I’m looking forward to being on a road trip with my friends, and I’m looking forward to being on the lake for an afternoon. Thanks, Linda!

In the meantime, keep those needles blazing and enjoy the rain! It’s greatly needed.

We were a small group today, but we shared our projects and had a lot of fun. Several of our knitters decided to hike on Mondays and we miss them! But we know they’ll be back as soon as the weather turns icky.

Carol has finished (almost) the tutus and crowns for her granddaughters. They are adorable! She is struggling with measurements now – how much stretch should she leave in the waistband and headbands so that they’ll fit around the girls’ little middles and heads? We tried to help, but couldn’t. I’m sure Carol will get it right before she sends them off to Arizona.

Tutus and Tatas

Turns out the waist measurement for Mabel’s tutu was the same as Carol’s head. Well, you know what happened next…

Looks like a bathing cap for Esther Williams.

And here are the unfinished crowns:

Jeez, Carol.

Mary was so inspired by all the tutu-knitting goin’ on in the group, she decided to make one for Aurora. Mary chose red, white and blue for her to wear to her daddy’s air show on Labor Day (he’s a Thunderbird!). It will be adorable.

Only the first ruffle.

Julie is knitting short socks for a friend. She modeled the one that she’s finished. I like it, although I’m not so sure about knitting socks. I’ve done three…socks, that is. The fourth one lies languishing in a bag somewhere, half-knit.

That’s a lot of needles for one little sock.

The finished product. I like.

I have been working diligently – okay, not so diligently – on my sweater vest. I’ve finished the two fronts and now I have to continue on in the back. From the front, it looks great. From the back, it looks like a halter-top.

It covers a lot more than my halter tops from the seventies.

I’m trying to finish it before the cold weather sets in.

That’s all for this day’s meeting in the park. I’ll see you all next week – same time, same place. Until then, keep those needles blazing and try to stay cool.