LizardKnits

Low grade anxiety – one of mine is the fear of running out of knitting, while I’m out somewhere, and having to wait for – whatever. So I always haul around a ridiculous amount with me, and even keep a project in my car. NO - I’m not crazy, I’m just following the Boy Scout motto –
BE PREPARED!

Becky, over at BECKYKNITSTOO is having a contest. Leave her a comment – share your low-grade anxiety moments and win a prize. Have someone mention your blog when entering and get another entry.

So go enter, and tell her you saw it here!

I just discovered Pedigrees Million Dog Mosaic. Pedigree is constructing a “Million Dog Mosaic” to help fund their adoption program. Here’s what their site says…..

“Here’s your dog’s chance to help us help dogs: We’ll make a $1 donation* to The PEDIGREE® Adoption Drive for every dog photo that’s uploaded to the mosaic.

Upload your favorite dog photo today. To help you find your shot in the mosaic, we’ll send you a search code. Then, for a little face time with your dog, simply enter the code and—zoom—you’re there.”

There were nearly 14,000 uploaded photos when I added pictures of Whipper, Redward and Peanut. WOW!

The search function isn’t working yet, but once it is, you can find the photos of my dogs by using these codes.
Whipper1,
Redward1, and
Peanut51.

The Million Dog Mosaic – check it out!

Here’s a couple of other pup photos.

Whipper & Peanut

Redward

KT, over at Knit with KT is holding a contest to choose her next design. Go post a comment to enter, and tell her you saw it here!

I just finished another shopping/grocery bag. (I avoid using plastic bags when possible)

Knit with “Royale Quick Crochet Thread” from Michaels Crafts in Manassas, VA, which was on sale for $2 per ball. It’s 75% cotton, 25% acrylic, very easy to knit with and one ball has 400 yards. It’s about a sport weight thread. I have about 1/2 a ball left after knitting this bag, so I’ll probably make another one. The color is 1009/Mexicana. The bag design is one I made up as I went along. Here’s as much of a pattern as I’m going to write up…...

I started with a garter stitch rectangle for the bottom. Cast on 36 sts, slip the first st, knit across, purl the last st, until you have enough rows to pick up 24 stitches for each side.
I then picked up around the rectangle to make the sides of the bag.

The stitch pattern is a multiple of 3 sts, I had 120 sts on a size 6 circ needle.

On every row: * P1, K the 2nd st on the left needle, then K the 1st st and then slide both K sts off. * When it looks long enough, (about 3/4th of the length you want the finished bag to be) *yo, drop the purl st, K the 2nd st on the left needle, then K the 1st st and then slide both K sts off. *

The purl stitch should ladder with a little bit of help, this makes the vertical openings. (This will also make the bag wider and longer, so don’t worry if it looks small before this step.)

Then knit about 2 inches of P1, K2 rib before binding off the stitches for the sides.

The front/back is a flap of ribbing with a large buttonhole (done at the same time as the sides bind off) for the I cord handle to fit through.

I left a L-O-N-G tail of yarn and used it to sew the flap down, and sew the flap to the handle, so the handle couldn’t pull through the flap opening.

The handle is 24” of 4 st I-cord knit with 3 strands of Redheart Acrylic on size 8 DPN’s.

The bag is pictured with a pillow stuffed inside, because in all the other pictures, it just looked like a blob!

If anyone makes one of these bags, I’d love to have a picture to post!

Leave a comment if you have any questions.

WISHING EVERYONE A GREAT 2008!

I’m starting the New Year off right – I finished a pair of mittens yesterday, and a pair of socks this morning. YEAH! I’ve also got a couple of other projects that are almost finished. Here’s the mittens –

I call these “Pop Top” mittens. They have a “cap” that can be flipped back when you need to pick something up.

I used Socks That Rock yarn in their medium weight Watermelon Tourmaline color. The yarn was a gift from Tony Neil! Last spring, she read on the Knitlist that I hadn’t gotten to MD Sheep & Wool early enough to buy any from the Blue Moon booth, so she sent me a skein. THANKS Tony!

Here’s a photo of the just finished socks –

This is Rio De La Plata yarn that I bought from Webs. Color SL17, it’s 100% wool, so I added wooly nylon to the heels. This is my usual pattern, this time with a K4, P1 rib, done toe up (natch!) with a flap heel.

Wow! Look what Vicki and Christine gave me for Christmas.

Vicki made me a bag to tote around my “socks in progress”. It’s blue with stars and moons. She got the directions for the bag from “Crazy Lanea”. There’s a tutorial on her blog for the bag. Thanks, Lanea!

Christine gave me a ball winder, and I’ve been winding up hanks of yarn like crazy, ever since. Thanks, guys!

I finished the hubby’s sweater.

This wasn’t planned as a Christmas present, I just happened to finish it the day after. I used Knit Pick’s Swish Superwash Yarn, the color is Red Pepper. It took just under 16 skeins to knit the sweater, so I have a couple of skeins left for a cap and mittens – eventually.

Yesterday, was the official Hartsell Family Christmas. Connor had a great time, ripping paper off everyone’s gifts for them.

That boy is a non-stop whirlwind. I got tired just watching him.

This past Thursday was the Culpeper Clicker’s Christmas Party. Vicki, Terri and I had a great time at Christine’s house, with her mother, Marian.

Christine’s 9 yr old cat, “Pewter” decided to investigate my “Constant Companion” Bag. Here’s the photos, taken by Vicki.

But after he spent awhile in this felted wool bag, he must have gotten very warm, because he started G-L-O-W-I-N-G !

I found the above on SusanB’s Blog, “Ramblings from Early Retirement”.

The website has 2 goals, promote vocabulary and help end world hunger.

For each word that you answer correctly, 20 grains of rice will be donated. (They hope to increase that amount soon.)

The rice is distributed by the United Nations World Food Program.

The website is advertiser supported. The rice is paid for by the advertisers whose names you see on the bottom of your vocabulary screen.

It costs nothing but your time to play the game and donate rice. So play frequently!

BEWARE! Some of these words are HARD!!