I Heart Sparkle

I spent a lovely Saturday morning with my ball of Scrubby Sparkle but first I had to wind small balls off the original ball because I could never find an end inside or out to cast on from.

 In no time I had two cloths done. Sparkle is definitely the easiest of all the Scrubbies to work with and the best for washing dishes.

 Then I noticed that the label had a pattern for a striped dishcloth. I had some leftover pink.....

 ....but I didn't like the back.....

....so I knit this one longer and then sewed the ends together. This may just be the best scrubby ever.

Handspun

 The Mister and I overdid it this week out in the yard. By Thursday we were out of gas. We are working on the biggest of the trees right now and it's a bear. At night the only thing I can manage to do is spin. I can always spin. My two bobbins of the mystery fiber are done.

They are becoming some mitts. The rest of the fiber is going to get carded together during the TdF.

 I've still got the green stuff on the Ladybug. It's my TV spin and you can see I haven't been watching much.

I've got this pretty plum on the Traditional wheel. I am spinning for a Hitchhiker. I think. Sometimes the fiber has to be what the fiber has to be.

 I've got a bin of fluffy batts now.

Nine to be exact. I need to weigh them to see how many I will need for a pair of socks.

Speaking of handspun, I did rip back the cowl. I'm just going to decrease the daylights out of the last stockinette section and hope for the best. Thoughts and prayers please.

Casting On

 I went as long as I could without any socks on the needles but I finally caved. Plain vanillas all around.  I just wanted something to keep my hands busy. This is some Hawthorne in the Happy Valley colorway.

 Even though my last ball of Cascade Heritage was a bust I went back for more.

 Remember this? I picked it up at last year's MDSW. I loved those bright colors.

It now looks like this. The colors that were so vivid in the skein are now muted. I can't believe it's the same yarn. I don't hate it but I was sure surprised.

 Then I got the bug to start a sweater and remembered I had this one in the works already. Its time has come. Maybe I can get it done by fall?

I also need to get this Scrubby on the needles. It reminds me of a Peep so I want it for my Easter dishcloth.

Finally, the Willow Cowl is actually done BUT...it's a big disappointment. I loved the pattern. I love my handspun but the darn thing is too floppy at the top. It's supposed to fit snug on your neck but it just hangs open and that's pretty useless against a cold Bay breeze. Oh, well. You can't win'em all. I guess I'll let it marinate a while and then maybe I'll rip it out and try to fix it once I am over being mad at it.

Material Girl

I got some big boxes of material the other day.

I needed backing for two quilts. Isn't this just going to be perfect? It matches the material Daddio and I used to make the Dresdens way back when. How lucky that Connecting Threads brought it back for another 30's collection just when I need it.

I found this faux batik on ebay for the rings quilt. I didn't want to pay for real batik for a backing. It's pricey.

Here is the quilt kit that was on sale that jumped in my cart AND the backing for it. I used my head this time and bought the recommended backing at the same time as the kit. I usually wait to see if I am going to make the quilt first but this time I AM so I went ahead and got it.

I really miss having a quilt to piece and this is the perfect thing to get me through spring and summer, right? The only thing wrong with this whole deal is that I FORGOT TO ORDER THE BATTING for all the tops I bought the backing for. Now I am waiting for an order of batting so I can get those two tops on the Juki. It's always something.

Wedding Bells

 Daughter and I hit the shops on Monday to get the clothes we needed for Son's wedding weekend coming up in just a few weeks. See this designer's shop? Doesn't it look like someone's closet? This was pretty much it but I can tell you the price of these sparse duds was out of this world. Daughter found a dress here that looked amazing on her-as everything does. It was just a mere $300. Gasp.

 We were at Tyson's Galleria where if you didn't drive up in a Mercedes and have a million in the bank you need to go elsewhere. I sure didn't belong there but it was the best place to pick up a dress for Son's "dressy casual" wedding.

 I actually wasn't terribly impressed with the clothes but it was fun to see how attentive the salespeople are when you walk in. They offer you something to drink and to "set up a dressing room for you", whatever that means. I couldn't understand what they were saying half of the time and had to get a very amused Daughter to translate as she explained that I "don't get out much."

Daughter is in her element there. She snaps her fingers and they all jump. See her bag? You can't just go in a store and buy one of those. You have to be "offered" them by the designer if they think you are worthy of one. It's an Hermes. Look it up if you want to be shocked by the price and keep in mind she has several of them. Here she is trying to convince me to buy an expensive bag. It didn't work. I'm still carrying my $29 bag from Marshall's but I am still looking for the right clutch to go with my new dress.

Daughter wanted me to get this one but it was $89 at J Crew and I freaked out. What do you think?

Here's my dress. It was the first and only one I tried on. It's Ann Taylor and it was cheap by Daughter's standards but it cost me a pretty penny. I do love it though. My goal was to find a dress that made me want to dance and this one does. I danced all over the fitting room in it. I paired it with a little forest green cardi to hide those jiggly arms I've developed. I need to split more wood.

The biggest headache of the day was finding shoes to go with that dress. We went to Bloomingdale's.  I had boxes all over the place. Even some very interested customers of the very senior diva variety were helping me decide what to buy. It was hilarious. I did not end up buying these gold sandals but did end up buying something similar but in a more diva approved neutral shade. Daughter settled on a pair of Christian Louboutin sandals that cost more than our mortgage and car payment combined. Yikes.

I really had a great time shopping for myself but my favorite part was just hanging out in the bridal section at Nordstroms while Daughter tried on dresses over in another area. Oh, my those gowns were gorgeous. When Daughter was dress shopping 8 years ago it was hard to find a dress that didn't make you look like a cupcake or a strumpet. I see things have taken a turn for the romantic again. Good.

TNT

 Woo hoo. My April block of the Sheep Virtues is already done.

Up next for May is Miss Faith. She's a black sheep. That will be fun. I do so hate stitching with white.

The left border is now complete on this sampler and so is the roof. I was tempted to pack this away and bring out a more springy project but I'm on a roll. I really want to finish the house before Stitch Maynia in May.

 My teeny tiny quilting needle has been put to good use on Daddio's last paper piecing project. It's going together much easier and faster than I thought which is good. I really want to get back to Dear Jane but I'm on a mission to finish this first.

Wow.....I really like how this is turning out. Daddio always had an eye for color.

April Fool

 My Wash Day post was not the end of the story. Far from it. Silly me. I left the bag of unwashed fleece on the table on the deck that day while The Mister and I wrangled wood. When I came back to put it away that evening it seems that a kitty-or two, had tinkled in my lovely fleece. Argh.....

 I had no choice but to spend the next day washing the rest of it. I set up an assembly line in the downstairs bathroom heating water in the little electric kettle.

 What a mess. I was not happy. Stupid cat. I'm not sure who did it but it must be one of the deck hangers so it's narrowed down to the two latest male additions to the cat herd.

 Oh, well. I suppose it was my fault. Cats really do love fleece as I have found out the hard way with some expensive vet bills.

 On the bright side, it gave me an excuse to spend more time playing with this lovely fiber.