Solids and Stripes for Love-Squared Challenge!

I've posted here before about knitting and crocheting squares for different organizations to be made into blankets for children at homeless shelters in the winter.  One of my favorite sites is Love-Squared which is based in Michigan.  They have a network of volunteers who sew the donated squares into blankets and distribute them across shelters in Michigan and other states.  They've been having a 'challenge' to see which type of square they receive the most -- solid or striped.  Both are very welcome -- this is just for fun.  

My stash in July.

I've been switching back and forth between knitting and crocheting 8" by 8" squares for months.  The pic above was what I had accumulated by July.  Since then I've added more squares to the pile whenever I have some spare time to work on them.  The pic below is the pile I have now.  There are 23 in this pile and I'm working on number 24.

23 finished squares as of today.

If you have some time -- and can 'spare a square' -- this is a great way to contribute to a worthy cause. I usually send extra skeins of yarn along with my squares to be used to seam the squares into blankets but you can just send squares or even skeins of yarn you aren't using.  From one to hundreds, Love-Squared gratefully accepts all squares.  I wouldn't suggest using cotton yarn due to shrinkage when washed (the water might NOT be cold!) but any type of acrylic or acrylic blend works nicely.

The deadline for this 'challenge' is September 30th but they need squares all year-round.  The solids vs. stripes is really just for fun although Love-Squared will post which type 'wins' with the most donated.  Here is their site on Facebook -- Love-Squared.  You can find everything you need to know to help out this wonderful group!  Now, back to knitting...

Can you spare a square?

As I've posted at various times over the past few years, Linda, Duane and I knit and/or crochet for various charities.  The one we started making items for is Knit A Square where you knit or crochet 8 by 8 inch squares which are then sewn into blankets for orphans of AIDS in Africa.  This is a really worthy charity and we sent quite a few squares but, eventually, we found the expense of shipping to Africa to be too much.  We also made items such as hats, scarves and fingerless gloves for the group The Humble Stitch for several years but the group has been less active lately.  (Remember, these people are ALL volunteers.) 

We know that we have local groups like Metropolitan Ministries which are happy to receive finished hats, scarves, gloves, etc., but I wondered if there were any groups for basic squares.  I searched the 'net and found Love Squared.  The main address is in Michigan (Linda's home state!) and they will take 8 by 8 inch squares made of any type of yarn and pattern, crocheted, knitted, etc.  They also accept yarn donations.  The ladies of Love Squared sew the squares into blankets for children in homeless shelters.  They also operate in states other than Michigan.  So far, we've sent them one package of squares and some skeins of yarn.  Well, lately, I started making squares again.  It's relaxing to do while watching TV at night and I can crochet or knit one in a very short amount of time.  Below is what I have at this point.

Linda and Duane will be helping out, too, and we should have a nice number of squares to send to Love Squared.  It's so nice after a day of recording and/or editing sound files to just relax and enjoy the zen of soft yarn and the idea of helping others -- even in this small way.   

Two Friday Estate Sales

From sale no.1.

Yesterday morning Duane, Linda, and I set out for two large estate sales.  One was a 'living' estate sale because the owner, an artist, was in the process of moving to a much smaller place.  She had not only her own art and antiques but she was a collector, too.

Much of her own painting consisted of delicate work on pieces of white china.  It was a large house for one person but she had used one of the bedrooms as a studio.  Other rooms held a large number of vintage books, particularly children's books, along with various ceramics, clocks, and household items.

Linda found a beautiful enamel on metal shallow bowl made in Austria.
She also purchased a vintage book.  Duane found two small pieces to add
to her Delft ware collection -- a tiny hanging tile and a toothpick holder.

Sale no.1 -- lots of candlewick dinnerware.

I found a beautiful piece of coral -- it's a rose coral fossil.  This artist had collected fossils along with her other passions.

 Sale no.1 -- cabinet containing the fossils.

           

Sale no.1 -- the artist's home studio.

Sale no.1 -- lots of vintage books.

The first sale had begun at 8am.  After we left it, we were close enough to the second sale to make it before it began at 9am.  This was a 'dead' estate sale and everything had to go.  Lots of furniture, china, ceramics, etc.

Sale no.2 -- lots of everything.

The second sale had a lot of nice items, too, but Linda and I ended up buying a cache of yarn and some vintage needles.  The yarn we may divvy up or just send all of it to the latest place we've been knitting and crocheting squares to make blankets.  They'll take finished 8 inch squares and/or yarn donations and we're happy to oblige.  They're called Love-Squared.   Here's their Facebook page.  

After our shopping, we had lots of time for our usual refreshments.  We spent so long talking about various subjects that we were still there when lunch time rolled around to we had lunch together, too.  A terrific day!

Our purchases.

   

A closer look at my coral fossil and Duane's Delft pieces.

Estate Sale Saturday -- Beaucoup Yarn!

Duane and I hit several estate sales this morning.  Linda wasn't with us today -- she has company from out of town AND today's her birthday.  Happy Birthday, Linda!  (We'll be celebrating her birthday later this week or next weekend.)  Duane and I both found a few things at the first couple of sales but the last one was the best.  HUGE amount of yarn along with knitting needles and crochet hooks.  We'll be sharing our spoils with Linda when we see her and there's plenty for all three of us plus lots of yarn to send with the skeins we already have set aside for The Humble Stitch. 

First up are the items we found that were NOT yarn.  Duane's grandson has begun working for Home Depot and she came across a Home Depot picture frame (no kidding -- it's orange with the logo, etc.) and bought it to place a picture of her grandson in his uniform in it.  Then at the next stop, I found a beautifully framed and signed rendering of a building in Bonn-Bad Godesberg from Germany.  The couple having the sale had spent years going back and forth between the U.S. and Europe due to the man's work with U.S. Customs.  I'm going to do a little research to see if I can figure out the artist's name.  It's difficult to read the signature.  I also found a copy of a book that I'd like to eventually record for LibriVox It's a 1908 reprint of a book published in 1903 and hasn't been recorded yet for the LibriVox catalog.  It's going into my pile of 'books for LibriVox when I get a break from paid recordings.'  I with I could do both at the same time but I've found that it's discombobulating to go back and forth between books.  I prefer recording one at a time.

Our last stop was the best.  The lady who had lived in the house had quite a few books and, lucky for us, did a lot of knitting and crocheting.  We filled the trunk of my Mini with bags of yarn, crochet thread and needles and hooks.  It's going to be fun for the three of us to sort it all out and decide what each of us wants to work with.  Duane also found several books so we left the sale with a number of bags.

Afterwards, we headed back to Duane's part of town to hit Starbucks for some coffee and a snack.  Bummer alert!  Due to a problem with the city water system that occurred yesterday, Starbucks was open but had a sign up stating that they could only sell bottled items and prepared foods.  So we had to skip our coffee and substitute bottled water with a treat instead.  There was a big printed sign on the door of Starbucks and another sign (along with today's newspaper headline regarding the water fiasco) sitting on the counter where you place your order.  While Duane and I were having our treats with water, a local news team drove up and took a close-up shot of the sign on the Starbucks door.  Guess a lot of people went without their coffee today.  Supposedly the 'boil water' alert will end after tomorrow.

Ready for The Humble Stitch and a Fashion Show Birthday Party

My buddies Linda and Duane and I have a box ready to ship to The Humble Stitch Project this week.  We have caps, scarves, fingerless gloves and squares for Knit-A-Square to be made into blankets.  You can find out more about both projects by clicking on the titles.  We also have a nice selection of extra skeins of wool and acrylic yarn that we're sending for other stitchers to use to help out.

 

I'm particularly proud of my first broomstick lace scarf.  It was really fun to make and I plan to make more of them.  I chose a pretty mocha brown for this one and made it approx. 6 feet long.  I may make the next one a little wider so that I won't need to make it quite as long.  I just wanted to make sure that it would be warm enough for the lady who wears it.  I looked at a number of sites while trying to learn how to work with this stitch.  The best instructions I found were at this site: Speckless by Heidi Hengel.  She has her own wood 'pins' that she uses to make her lace.  I used a size 35 wood knitting needle to make my lace.  Heidi's easy to follow steps, complete with pictures, really helped me and I wanted to point anyone her way who might like to learn this stitch.  So pretty!

Now, for something completely different, I attended my niece Ava's 6th birthday party last Sunday and, as usual, my sister Carol (Ava's mother) pulled out all of the stops.  The theme was 'A Fashion Show' and the guests, along with Ava, modeled outfits on a runway built by Ava's dad and a friend.  Carol made all of the decorations and the food including the fashion doll cake and the cupcakes.

The tables set for the party.

Cake and cupcakes

Included in the activities, before the 'fashion show' began, Carol had set up three different 'stations' for girls to 1) have their nails painted, 2) have makeup applied and 3) have their hair styled by three lovely girls who were all part of 'Salon Ava' -- yes, my sister actually embroidered that on their aprons with her sewing machine.

Ava having her hair 'done' at the hair station.

A guest having her nails painted.

There were also tables set up with flower shaped sandwiches and cheese doodles for the party-goers to have for lunch.  And, there was a candy table with tiny cardboard purses for each girl to fill as she liked with the various candies on the table.

The 'fill-your-purse' candy table.

Ava's big brothers, my nephews Sam and Ben, were able to make it home from college to attend the party.  Sam also served as 'emcee' for the fashion show.  He entertained us with a little Bobby Darin while we were waiting for the girls to start coming out.

Big Brother Sam as Emcee

Ava's Runway Sign

Ava's entrance.

Ava posing.

One of the guests strutting her stuff.

Finally!  Time for cake and cupcakes.

Ava opening presents.

Mommy helping Ava read the cards.

Big Brother Ben wondering, 'How did I get here?'

As usual, the kids had a great time and took pink or purple gown shaped plastic bottles filled with candy and small toys home as party favors.  Carol never does anything half-way.  I was so tired, it's taken me a week just to blog about it.  Heh, heh, heh.   I wonder what Carol has planned for Ava's 7th birthday...

New Horror Book & Free Short Story on Iambik and Amigurumi Candy Corn

Iambik Audiobooks is currently offering a free short story by Jon Papernick called My Darling Sweetheart Baby narrated by John Greenman.  You can listen here and also read an interview with Jon Papernick.  Iambik also recently released a new book in the horror genre -- perfect for this time of year.  Horror Story and Other Horror Stories by Robert Boyczuk is narrated by Alex Foster.  This is a collection of tales described by James Grainger, Rue Morgue Magazine here:  "Boyczuk builds up his hauntings and often gruesome metaphors and imagery from the base of his stories' human relationships, which imbues his fiction with an uncanniness that mimics the feeling of being trapped in a maze-like dream. Readers need not worry, however. The horror here is very real—Boyczuk just wants you to have a little fun finding it."  You can purchase this book directly from Iambik for $6.99 here.

Of course, I never let Halloween or any 'kid' holiday pass without making something for my three young nieces who are now 6, 5 and 3 years old.  I decided to make them a piece of candy corn (out of yarn, natch) using an Amigurumi pattern offered free from Lion Brand Yarn.  It can be found here.   Since they're rather small, I decided to crochet a chain using the orange yarn and attach it to the top of the candy corn so the girls can wear them as necklaces and then they can later be hung as decorations.  I didn't forget one of their favorite candies, either.  Each of them will also receive a tube of Halloween M&Ms in their packages.  

On the recording front, I have a mystery now in the processing stage and will be starting work on a psychology textbook and a fun contemporary Christmas book soon.

Gearing up for The Humble Stitch Project - 2012

I've been knitting and crocheting items for The Humble Stitch Project  since the beginning of the year.  However, this year's official kick-off began on September 14th and will continue through December 19th, 2012.  More info here.  Basically, The HS Project collects hats, scarves, mitts, and other handmade cold weather clothing for our homeless neighbors here in South Florida.  My little group has already sent in two packages this year and we're gearing up to send more.  Right now, I've finished a hat (unisex), a woman's scarf and a set of fingerless gloves.  Linda and Kristen have also donated some squares for the Knit-A-Square project which we also participate in via The Humble Stitch.  Knitted and/or crocheted 8 by 8 inch squares are sewn together to create blankets for orphans of AIDS in South Africa.  Even if you don't like to knit or crochet but would like to contribute, The Humble Stitch gladly accepts skeins of yarn (preferably acrylic) and knitting needles/crochet hooks.

My current HS project is a woman's scarf using a pattern called broomstick lace.  In years past, women actually used broomstick handles to wrap the yarn around to create this pattern.  Now, most people (including me) use a 35mm wood or plastic knitting needle.  I've made a bracelet before using a broomstick pattern but this scarf will be pretty long.  Long enough to wrap several times around the neck since it's narrow.  I love this brown 'mocha' color and I may add fringe or crochet more decorative stitches on the ends when I finish making the scarf.

If you'd like a lesson in how to make broomstick lace, there are many sites on the Internet that you can access.  However, I found the best place to learn was from a blog called Speckless.  I've learned how to make several items by following Heidi Hengel's instructions.  She's a wonderful teacher and generously shares her knowledge via her blog. 

I find knitting and crocheting to be a relaxing activity when I want/need to take a break from audio recording.  I started crocheting over river rocks after first hearing about it via Etsy and I've given a number of them to friends.  I've also started filling a shell covered tray that I found at an estate sale several years ago.  I wasn't sure what I would do with the tray but I liked it and remembered that I had it when I was thinking of how to display some of my stones.  I choose a stone, select a thread color and then either follow a pattern (old doily patterns are a great start), an Internet pattern or make one up as I go along.

I sent a covered stone to my friend Kate who founded The Humble Stitch.  I had no idea that Kate collected rocks although I was pretty sure she liked crochet.  She took photos of the rock I sent along with her method of displaying it.  It sits atop other beautiful rocks in a glass bowl and looks wonderful.

I've also seen crocheted rocks sitting on fireplace mantels, and on bookshelves and window sills.  Oh, they make great paperweights, too.

  

Update on recording and all things yarn

I've been recording a book of short stories called Sweet Tea and Jesus Shoes by a variety of southern women writers and it's been a terrific read.  Colorful characters (some of these people could be my relatives) and great writing have made this job, well, not like a job.  Except for the editing -- then it's still a job.  I've also recorded a horror short story by Joel M. Andre.  I understand he has a pretty loyal following so I hope I don't disappoint his fans.

Work in progress

On the yarn front, I have another group of items almost ready to ship to The Humble Stitch.  Linda finished her very first piece of clothing -- a man's scarf -- and she did a wonderful job!  It's the light tan scarf on the far right in the photo.  We have 2 hats, 2 scarves, a pair of handwarmers and a bunch of squares (for Knit A Square) -- thanks to Linda and Kristen -- and I'll have a second set of handwarmers finished soon.  I think I'm going to work on another hat when I've finished this pair of gray handwarmers. 

My niece, Bailey, turns 5 later this month and, of course, I had to think of something 'Amigurumi' to make for her.  I made her younger sister, Taylor, an Amigurumi Elmo (see this post) for her birthday in May.  I decided to make a Hello Kitty using an Amigurumi pattern that I found here by Armina Parnagian.  I think Bailey will like it.  Mine is a little larger than the pattern I followed because I used a slightly heavier yarn.  She ended up at around 6 inches high. 

I've also been experimenting more with using finer yarns and thread to knit and crochet and I'll post here when I actually have something to show for my efforts.

Saturday shopping day

Yesterday, I went shopping with my two best buds, Linda and Duane.  We decided to hit the shops around where Duane lives since they're small-owner businesses and fun to explore.  First we hit A Modern Line  (formerly known as Kaleidoscope) and I scored with a new (vintage) piece for my matte white pottery collection.  It's the one on the left -- the bowl with the leaf pattern on the top.  This piece is unmarked.  As we continued to browse, I came across a piece of
wall art that I just had to have.  I've always loved enamel, particularly enamel on copper pieces.  This work is 3-D enamel on copper with 2 separate pieces of metal.  It's signed by the artist, Marlene Tremblay, and now hangs in my dining room  Wish I could have gotten a better picture of it because the colors are lighter than they appear in this photo and the darker section on the left actually has a lot of depth and a tiny bit of sparkle.  Very happy with this!  Linda spoke with the shop owner about a mid-century headboard for the bed in her guest room.  She's going back to the shop to pick out a stain and put down a deposit.

Our next stop was D&D and more.  Always a nice place to browse -- there's a little bit of everything in this shop.  I scored again with a small octagonal piece of Hull pottery in matte white.  (The second piece in the pic above.)  Then we stopped in next door at The Seminole Heights Antique and Consignment Shop.  This store is packed with items in various booths from different vendors.  Linda bought a lovely green vase in mint condition.  It was made by Haeger.

After shopping, we were starved so we headed to one of our favorite places to eat - Nicko's Fine Foods.  We sat in the 'Elvis' booth and Linda and I ordered breakfast food (they serve it all day on weekends) while Duane had her favorite Greek burger -- it comes with a big fat slice of feta cheese.  Mmmm...  After that we headed back to Duane's to relax and gab before calling it a day.

When I got home, I finished the purse I was making for my 5-year old niece, Ava.  I used really bright colors on this one and gave it a touch of zebra.  The purse isn't quite as orange as it appears in the photo.  It's more of a very bright pinkish coral.  I hope she likes it.  

Almost finished -- with several projects

I'm rounding the last curve now on my latest paid audiobook project.  My deadline is next Thursday but I'll be finished well before then.  I'll post here when the book, The Distant Shore, becomes available on Audible, Amazon and any other sites.  Remember this one is for children or, more specifically, tweens, aged 12 and up.  I would consider it a girl's book since the main character is a girl but there are many interesting characters and the story is well-written.  The author, Debora M. Coty, includes plenty of humor but pulls no punches when it comes to the sad parts of life.  I'll have more on this title later.

I finished another scarf to send to The Humble Stitch and Linda delivered more squares last weekend for the Knit-a-Square Project.  However, I also found a little time to whip up a purse for my sister Carol to give as a birthday gift to a little girl.  Carol wanted a purse like the ones I made for our nieces Bailey and Taylor here.  Except she wanted it in HOT pink with a zebra embellishment.  I knew I could find hot pink yarn but I wasn't sure about trying to crochet a 'zebra' style flower.  Instead I found a pretty zebra pattern hair bow which I clipped to the purse.  This way, the birthday girl can either leave it on the purse or use it in her hair.  I did suggest that the bow be removed if the purse needs to be laundered.  These bags wash and dry really well and the flowers that I've made on the past ones are sewn on and wash and dry with the purse.  I'm currently making a purse for my niece Ava (Carol's daughter) and, at Carol's suggestion, I'm using pretty wild (almost neon) colors.  Will post a pic when it's finished.  

Record, edit, repeat. Oh, and Amigurumi Elmo, too.

I'm deep into my latest book recording now so my days are pretty much the same.  Record, edit, repeat.  I like the story so that always helps.  My proof-listener, Betsie, also likes the book and that's even better.  I count on her to catch any errors I miss on my own proof-listening.  I'm recording The Distant Shore by Debora M. Coty.  Betsie says that the story reminds her a bit of Anne of Green Gables.

I did take a little time out last week to make an Amigurumi Elmo for my niece Taylor's third birthday.  He was pretty fast and easy to make.  I found the pattern for him at Sweet N' Cute Creations.  It was so nice of this crafter to share her pattern.  I didn't 'felt' him and I made his legs a little stiffer so that they don't really bend but those were the only changes I made.  He's just adorable.  I hope Taylor likes him.  She's always had a 'thing' for Elmo so I couldn't pass this up.

Back to my editing.  Oy vey...

Recording, editing and more yarn items

I just finished my latest solo,  for the LibriVox catalog, The Girl Aviators and the Phantom Airship by Margaret Burnham.  This one is aimed at teen and pre-teen girls.  Here's the summary I wrote for LibriVox:  "Teenagers Peggy Prescott and her brother Roy share a love of aviation that they inherited from their late father. Mr. Prescott had always dreamed of building an aeroplane that would be free of the defects of planes already invented. Peggy and Roy manage to build a plane starting with the framework their father had begun. Peggy christens it ‘The Golden Buttefly’ and she and Roy are determined to enter it in a young aviator’s contest for a prize of $5000. The Prescotts need the money desperately to save the home they share with their aunt which is about to be taken from them by the rather nasty banker, Mr. Harding. Peggy and Roy along with their best friends, Jess and Jimsy Bancroft – also sister and brother, experience many adventures – many of them while flying the Golden Butterfly. A kidnapping, missing jewels and contact with some desperate characters are just some of what the Prescotts encounter in their Long Island village of Sandy Bay. There’s never a dull moment for these two as they pursue their dream of flying."

If you like young adult books or have a child in the age range, I would highly recommend this one.  I enjoyed reading and recording it.  I'm currently recording another children's book -- this one is a paying job -- called The Distant Shore.   I'm also enjoying this book although it's aimed at a younger audience than the aviator series.

On the yarn front, I finished purses for my four year old and two year old nieces.  I'm flying to Virginia to visit them tomorrow for a long weekend.  These were fun to make and very fast.  I plan to make one for my 5 year old niece who lives near me but since she's so close, I think I'll let her choose the colors for the purse and the flower.  The purse is sized for a young child and the pattern can be found at The Tangled Happy blog.  The blogger, Sara, modified a pattern she had created earlier for adults.  The purses I made are called the Strappy Boutique bags.  I found the pattern for the flower on another site.  Megan at Tampa Bay Crochet had made this bag and pointed me in the direction of the flower -- created by Melissa on the Action Hero: Knitting Weblog.  I used worsted weight acrylic yarn and then blocked the purses (mainly for the straps) using instructions found at the Bead Knitter Gallery.  Wonderful information from the blogger (known as Bead Knitter) on blocking acrylic.  Now, when my nieces get their purses dirty, my sister can just toss them in the washer and dryer (using the temps, etc., for this yarn).  I'm putting the hairbands (which I also blocked) I made for them inside the bags.  To see one of the hairbands, check out my original post here.  I'm making an identical one in a mossy green color for my 5 year old niece -- she has beautiful green eyes.

On the charity knitting/crocheting front, I finished a pair of knitted handwarmers that I like very much.  I used a burgundy worsted weight yarn with colorful flecks.  The pattern, called Carrie Handwarmers, can be found on I am what I knit and was created by the blogger, Doris.  I am so grateful to the crafters who post their patterns and allow others to use them.  These should keep some lady's hands very warm next winter. 

I also finished the black cabled hat I was working on and a couple of more squares for Knit A Square.  My buddy, Kristen, just sent me a handful of squares for the pile so it won't be long before we have another box for The Humble Stitch. 

Recording and prepping for my trip to Virginia

I've had to make a scheduling adjustment to my recording priorities.  Instead of the book I had planned to begin next, I'll be starting a young adult book, The Distant Shore, by Debora M. Coty with the possibility of recording the sequel, too.  Since I have a deadline of May 31st for this one, I've moved it ahead of Dust.  Received the manuscript today and prep work begins. 

On the family front, I'm going to be heading to Virginia for a few days in May to visit my sister Heidi and her family.  Can't wait to see two of my three nieces.  I've whipped up the first of two headbands for them that I'll be taking with me.  This was a cute and easy pattern called the 'Checkered Headband' and can be found here.  I decided to add a strawberry button to each of them since I had some left over after using them as decoration on the Amigurumi cupcakes I made for the girls for Valentine's Day.

I also found a darling pattern for a little purse that I hope I can manage to make for all three of my nieces.  I have to finish the two I'm taking to Virginia first since my oldest niece lives here so I have a little more time to work on her things.  I'll post the pattern with pics when I get a chance to start on the purses.

Now it's time to start reading (and marking up) The Distant Shore.