As Peasy as Pie

Since I've been back from Scotland I've gotten quite a bit done on Peasy:

It's slowly coming along. . . The body is such a slog I made up a chart based on how much I have left so I can tick off rows as I go so I can see that I am making progress. I'm getting 8 rows/inch and decided I wanted about ~14" post sleeve-divide:

I've done more inch since I took this picture on Saturday!

My coworker told me about this blog so late last week I found a recipe for Buttercup Squash on it. It sounded so good that I made one this weekend sort of. I mistakenly read it as Butternut squash so that's what I bought and I cheated and bought pre-made pie crust. It was so yummy I'm planning to make it again soon with the right squash and make the crust from scratch (maybe).

Knitting in Scotland

I didn't get as much knitting done on my trip as I had hoped (isn't that the way it always is) but I did get some work done on Peasy in some beautiful and interesting places:

On the Isle of Skye outside our B&B

In Oban waiting for the ferry to the Isle of Mull

On the train from Ft. William to Mallaig

In the lounge in our B&B in Crianlarich

And wearing my Central Park no-Hoodie on St. Andrew's Golf Course!

F.O Central Park No Hood

If I hadn't had a deadline to finish this sweater there's no way it would have gotten done because seaming it when it was 105 was not fun but it was worth it because now it's done and even better it fits! Scottish Highlands here I come!

Packing, Peasy, and Pickles

Packing:

I leave for Scotland in 2 weeks so this past weekend I began gathering clothes, rain gear, etc!

I know some people can pack in a matter of minutes but I'm not one of those people. I'd end up leaving out something really important like my underwear.

Peasy:

I'd been thinking about what knitting project to take with me (Alexandria and I have had enough adventures already so I thought it might be best to leave her at home) so when I saw LoriNY's Peasy I thought it seemed like a great project to take with me. And a tweed yarn? How perfect!

Given my difficulties in getting projects started correctly I thought I might be a good idea to get it going before I leave. I'm just about to start the lace pattern. The color doesn't show up very well but it's a beautiful blue with flecks of white and black.

Pickles:

This doesn't have anything to do with Scotland. I just felt like making pickles last weekend. I used my mom's Million Dollar Pickle recipe and they turned out great. It was my first time making them or canning anything for that matter so I was a little anxious until my mom pointed out "It's not that hard. You throw everything in together, bring it to a boil then put them in jars". I love how my mom can cut to the chase about a situation.

I let the cucs soak overnight (there is also onion but I forgot to add it until later):

And here they are finished:

Good news and bad news

First the bad:

I had 3.5 inches of Alexandria done but now I have this much. . . .

The pattern near the bands was looking really strange so after much pondering and comparing the chart and instructions, I figured out that when I made a short-cut cheat sheet for the section I was doing I somehow copied the instructions for the section done in the round not flat. Der.

Last night I laid it out flat on my DR table and slowly and painfully ripped out 2 inches (sob!) then stopped 1 row above where I wanted to re-start. The next row I carefully un-knit 217 sts onto smaller needles. By some miracle I ended up with the same # of sts that I started with so I am good to go. . . . yet again. I called to tell my mom (also a knitter) my sad story and how stupid I felt and she said "well patterns are tricky". That made me feel better so thanks Mom :)

Now the good:

Error-free progress has been made on my niece's February Little Lady Sweater!

I'll see her next week so I can do a size check and if she's grown out of it just shoot me now.

Ready for the magic

I finished the blue and white quilt this weekend so it's ready for my wonderful machine quilter Margaret to work her magic on! Here is a link to her blog with pictures of some the quilt's she's quilted. I am always amazed at the designs she comes up with.

But first here are pictures of a quilt she quilted for me last year using variegated thread:

the top pre-quilting

one section post-quilting

the center medallion

and the back which really shows it off.

And here are pictures of the finished blue and white quilt now with borders! And I didn't have a brain freeze when I measured the borders. Since my bed is fairly high off the ground, I wanted the sides long enough so that I could see the cherry side rails but I also didn't want a pillow tuck. In the morning I pull the sheet and quilt up then throw the pillows on top and head out. I think white pillow cases with eyelet trim would look nice with the top.

Click on pictures for a larger view:

on my LR floor

view from the side of the bed - I had to use the flash since it was cloudy.

View at the head of my bed.

location location location

Since I hadn't started my blog back in April when Eskimimi did her Knit and Crochet blog week and location was one of my favorite topics from that week, I thought it might be fun to post pics of where I sit and sew.

Here is my recliner which was given to me by dad as it didn't fit in their house when they moved to Va. When he visits he sits in it :) I love it! It's the most comfortable chair ever and I dread the day I'll have to replace it. Since I eat most ok all of my meals in it, I put a soft fleece on it I picked up at the grocery store of all places. I learned from my mom it's much easier to wash a blanket than a chair.

I keep a basket by my chair and it holds my WIP, patterns, and various knitting tools. The chest with all the drawers was given to my mom by her dad when she was in 7th-8th grade to hold her sewing supplies. She'd just taken home ec and loved it (she taught me to knit and sew). It has funny drawers that don't slide in and out you just stick them back in. Each drawer held spools of thread of a similar color. I've taken over a few of the drawers but the rest I've left as is to remind me of my my mom sewing when she was young.

Here is a picture of my DR table where I sew - I pop the leaf up when I need more room for a big quilt:

My townhouse is built on the side of a hill with a deck off the back. My DR (and kitchen) face a walking trail and I love to watch people walk by as I sew, cook etc. Here are pictures of the view out my DR window:

And the view from my kitchen window (this is also what I see from my recliner):

And a picture taken from my deck: