Carole Knits

Eye Candy Friday

Carole — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 10:00:16 +0000

I thought you might like another look at those purple crocuses. Spring comes officially this weekend. Hoo-ray!

Make the most of it, my friends!

Secret Garden Socks

Carole — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 10:00:22 +0000

If it seems like I haven’t finished a pair of socks in ages, it’s because I haven’t. Being at home with pneumonia for practically the whole month of February really slowed down my sock knitting. You see, I knit socks in the car, at meetings, while having lunch at the library – you get the idea – and I just didn’t frequent those places much over the last few weeks.

I’m back on track now, though, and I’ve got a newly finished pair of socks to show for it.

Behold the Secret Garden Socks. They look great posing with my yellow crocus.

And equally beautiful with the purple crocus in my father-in-law’s yard.

The yarn is Sophie’s Toes in the color Secret Garden. The pattern is Carole’s Picot Edge Sock, of course. And they are a gift for my stepdaughter, Jessica. Things haven’t been easy for her lately and I think these colorful socks will give her a nice little lift.

If I can bear to part with them, that is.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Carole — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 10:30:29 +0000

In honor of the day, some green photos:

Green fiber.

Green gardens.

Green knitting.

Green vegetables.

Green socks.

Eat, drink and be Irish. Or at least pretend to be!

Ten on Tuesday

Carole — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 10:00:40 +0000

In the spirit of this week’s holiday, today’s Ten on Tuesday topic is 10 Ways to Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day.

Wear green. Duh.
Drink Guinness. I’ve already done this but I’ll probably do it again.
Visit an Irish pub.
Eat corned beef and cabbage.
Have some Irish soda bread with that corned beef and cabbage.
And then make red flannel hash with the leftovers.
Buy some green yarn. My friends at Kpixie are having a special St. Patrick’s Day giveaway and you really ought to go check it out.
Sing Irish songs. The Guinness really helps with this.
Go to the St. Patrick’s Day parade. We didn’t go this year because of the horrible weather and I really missed it.
Pretend you’re Irish – even if you aren’t. I’m not, but honestly, everyone is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day.

How will you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day?

A Meme for a Monday

Carole — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:00:17 +0000

On Mondays I usually talk about what I did all weekend. And, while I did some fun stuff, I don’t have anything really blogworthy to talk about. So I found this 20 questions meme thing and I’m doing that today. I encourage anyone interested to copy/paste and play along!

20 Questions

1. Explain what ended your last relationship?

My last relationship was my ex-husband and he cheated. That pretty much ended things.

2. When was the last time you shaved?

Saturday morning because I was going to get a pedicure and didn’t want the nail tech to freak out.

3. What were you doing this morning at 8 a.m.

I’m answering these on Sunday night so this morning at 8 am I was sleeping.

4. What were you doing 15 minutes ago?

Again, Sunday night, so 15 minutes ago I was drinking a Guinness in an Irish pub.

5. Some things you are excited about?

A new job opportunity. I don’t want to talk about it much yet but I’ll tell you all about it if it works out.

6. What is your favorite flavor of JELL-O?

Red. I guess that’s a color and not a flavor, though.

7. Your prom night, what do you remember about it?

I remember that my favorite song came on and I wanted to dance and my date was in the bathroom. Good times.

8. Do you have any famous ancestors?

Maybe. I’ve been doing some ancestry research lately and it’s really cool.

9. Last thing received in the mail?

The spinning wheel cart set up for my Schacht Matchless. Dale set it up for me today and I think this is going to be just the thing for making my Matchless much more portable.

10. How many different beverages have you had today?

3. Coffee, water, Guinness.

11. Do you ever leave messages on people’s answering machine?

Yes, of course.

12. Do you draw your name in the sand when you go to the beach?

No. I sat on my ass and I knit when I go to the beach.

13. Any plans for Friday night?

Friday night is date night and usually involves a nice dinner and hanging out at home. It’s my favorite night of the week, actually.

14. Do you like what the ocean does to your hair?

Hell no. This is probably why I don’t go in the water.

15. Have you ever received one of those big tins of 3 different popcorns?

Yes, we get them at work every Christmas. They are pretty gross. Someone always eat it, though.

16. Do you re-use towels after you shower?

Yes. I’m not a fan of daily laundry.

17. Describe your keychain(s)?

It’s a yarn ball made of silver.

18. Where do you keep your change?

In my change purse. Where else would I keep my change?

19. When was the last time you spoke in front of a large group of people?

I went to a meeting last week with about 9 people, is that large? I speak at Kiwanis on a regular basis and that’s definitely large. I’m not intimidated by speaking in front of large groups of people.

20. What kind of winter coat do you own?

I have several. My most favorite is grey/black wool plaid. It’s more of a blazer than a coat but it does the trick.

So, were you bored? Was it fun reading my answers? Hmmmm?

Eye Candy Friday

Carole — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 11:00:31 +0000

I’m still coughing and we’re ALL tired of it! The other day Dale brought me these flowers and said he wished I’d “get better . . . or something.” Hahaha. Good thing I know he loves me.

I know you all love the weekend! Have a good one!

Baktus Scarf

Carole — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 11:00:00 +0000

I finished my first handspun Baktus Scarf. I can already tell that it won’t be my last. These things are like potato chips – you can’t have just one.

The wood pile is an excellent model in the absence of the human variety. The yarn and the wood act like velcro – pose and shoot, repose and reshoot.

I took way too many photos, in fact, because the light was right and the colors looked beautiful and I snapped 30 before I even blinked.

I made a vow to use more handspun and this scarf is perfect for handspun. In fact, I adore it in my handspun. It almost looks woven, I think.

I knit it exactly according to the pattern. I weighed my yarn first, knit until it was half gone, and then started decreasing. No waste, no fuss, just a great scarf!

I’m already planning my next one.

One Word Wednesday

Carole — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:16:19 +0000

Spring!

Ten on Tuesday

Carole — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 11:00:05 +0000

Today’s topic, 10 Movie Stars You Would Like to Meet, is inspired by this week’s Academy Awards Ceremony. No big surprises on my list, I bet.

Meryl Streep. I’m putting her right at the top because I honestly think she’s the finest actor of our generation. She nails every part that comes her way.
Mo’Nique. She certainly has a different take on things and I’d love to learn more.
Sandra Bullock. I think she’d be a lot of fun – I’m thinking we could get mani/pedis together.
Julia Roberts. We watched Pretty Woman the other night and it made me fall in love with her all over again. Plus, she knits.
Gabourey Sidibe. The girl is just full of life and optimism.
George Clooney. I think this one is self-explanatory.
Jeremy Renner. Perhaps he can explain the appeal of The Hurt Locker to me.
Stanley Tucci. But only if he promises to keep his Lovely Bones character well hidden.
Colin Firth. I’ve loved him since Bridget Jones’ Diary. And he IS Mr. Darcy, after all.
Morgan Freeman. The voice. It’s all about the voice.

It would truly be such an honor to meet any one of these talented individuals. I’ll just keep dreaming. In the meantime, if you want to be included in the weekly Ten on Tuesday topic emails, please let me know.

Oscar Thoughts

Carole — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 12:33:52 +0000

In no particular order, my random thoughts on the 82nd Academy Awards.

Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin weren’t nearly as funny as I thought they would be. Bring back Billy Crystal.
Sandra Bullock looked lovely. I thought her dress was elegant and her hair was simply beautiful. I’m happy that she won for Best Actress.
Precious won several awards and I think that’s awesome. It’s not an easy movie to watch but the overall feeling is one of hope and you can’t go wrong there. Hooray for Mo’Nique.
My opinion of Charlize Theron’s dress: here are my boobs! look at my boobs! they are RIGHT here!
I predicted 13 categories correctly. I think that’s pretty good.
I saw all 10 best picture nominated films. Hooray for meeting goals.
We played Oscar Bingo but I never got bingo. All I needed was someone to “thank God” and no one did. Bunch of heathens there in Hollywood.
I loved the way they introduced the nominees for Best Actor and Best Actress. It was touching and wonderful to hear the things said about each nominee.
Good for Kathryn Bigelow for breaking through and winning Best Director – the first time for a woman.
I did not think Hurt Locker was the right movie for Best Picture but I’m not surprised that it won.
I was hoping for a win for Avatar but it was not to be. James Cameron is laughing all the way to the bank, I’m sure.

And finally, I made Oscar cookies.

They were yummy!

And this way . . .

We all got to have an Oscar!