Thimble Thursday on Friday, again

Two thimbles given to me in June, 2002. Cloisonne. From China. (hint, hint)

Last shawl!

This is a ruana that I knit myself from a free Lion Brand pattern. You can find the pattern here. I of course, changed the colors, but it was a lot of fun to knit. I've worn it once, and I want to modify it before I wear it again. The panels in the front are too long, so I'm going to unravel a section to make fringe (the one I knit has the fringe in the back), and trim it off. It is wonderfully warm and cozy, and the ruana shape makes it easy to wear.



There are 6 different yarns, and some of the yarns have metallic in them, which is why the picture isn't very wonderful.

We are done with shawls! (unless someone gives me a beautiful one from overseas, which I always hope for). Thimble Thursday will give you a clue as to our next topic.

"Scarf" from India

I put scarf in quotes in the title for this piece because it is so gauzy it would provide no warmth or protection. It is absolutely beautiful, but I have never worn it because I'm afraid of catching it in a button, a zipper, a ring, or anything else that might be in the neighborhood. I loved the colors so much that I put it up in my office (actually cubicle, but it has a window!). When I looked closely at it a couple of months later I noticed it had faded badly; it is a noticeably lighter color on one half than on the other. But it is beautiful!



I finished my temari last night, so here's a (slightly blurry) picture. I ordered a new Temari book off the Internet last night, because this was so much fun, I want to learn to do it better. This one will make a nice addition to our guild Christmas display this year.



My sister prepared the base wrapping for this one so that is another thing I have to learn to do. I started last night. Each base has 3 or 4 layers. The first is a core made of rags, or dryer lint, or anything else you have sitting around. My sister uses plastic grocery bags, so that's what I used. The second layer is yarn, wrapped tight rather than with ease like you would prepare a ball for knitting. You can use old yarn, or mill seconds, or anything else you have sitting around. I'm up to this point in the base I am making. The third (optional) layer is 3 strands of sewing thread, covering the yarn, and the fourth layer is a single layer of thread, giving you a uniform surface. On this ball you can see the 3rd layer (blue-green) through the outside layer. This thread doesn't have to be high quality, but you do need a lot of it. Its rather mindless work, so it will be good for evenings when I'm really tired. I may be making a lot of these.

Warm and cozy scarf

I'm not sure what this scarf is made of. It could be wool, but it could be an acrylic too. It is thick, and when I wear it it feels like I'm wearing a blanket. This is another scarf that I could wear more often if it had a set outfit. I think I will try to wear it tomorrow. The weather is so cold that I think I would enjoy something cozy around my shoulders.



As you can see, it is from Italy. I don't remember at all where I got this one from.



We had a wonderful family reunion this weekend! There were grand kids, grand-parents, nieces and nephews, in-laws and friends, and all kinds of siblings. We had our usual chili and cornbread lunch (with all kinds of delicious extras). Instead of playing games, we have started bringing a craft for everyone to participate in. This year was a mosaic on a ceramic tile; every one of them was beautiful.

After the get together, my youngest sister showed me how to do temari. Here's the two of us concentrating together on our work. I will show my finished temari when it's finished, but I wanted to thank my sister for showing me; I've wanted to learn this technique for years. My guild did it one year, but I missed that meeting.



I have to laugh at this picture, a little bit. The two of us were off in our own little world, while there were at least 11 other people and a dog in the room. You can see from the way I'm holding my mouth that I was concentrating. Needlework has been a wonderful past-time for me throughout the years. All I have to do is pick up a needle and I'm in my happy place.