Yes, We Have Our Tomatoes

The miracle of gardening late in the year.

Remember when I planted two tomato plants in ... July?  Well, BARELY July! 
And I had only one small tomato to show for it when I pulled them up towards the end of October.
Then, instead of throwing them out, I hung them up.  I did this years ago and got some satisfaction so I decided to try it again.  Amazing!  In the garage with temps from mid-40's to mid-50's, they are ripening.

I have to chastise the hub from time to time if he leaves the garage door open too long. But now that he's tasted them... no problem.

A miracle, I say! December tomatoes.

Sleeping cats and dog

When it's COoooLD out, the animals curl up.
Cat in the dog bed:

Dog at my chair:  Can she get a little closer to the leg?

Cat in Dalmatian chair:

Sleep tight!

A Burning Desire... or

Creating warmth in December.
A few blogs ago I directed interested knitters to TechKnitter's blog.  There are three links to various topics and this one caught my attention:  A burn chart to help identify mystery fibers.
I have a few "mystery fibers".  One is several skeins of yarn from a back street Quito, Ecuador trip, and another is carefully wound into balls white wool.  Or I assume it's wool.  
So, I welcomed a science experiment where I might get some idea as to what I have in my stash.

Here's how I managed to eat up a few hours, and make the house (and my fingers) smell not so Christmasy.  
I covered a rack with foil, and assembled some tools.  I collected my mystery fibers and a few others that I knew exactly their content.  That was very helpful in educating me as to what "Burns Self-Extinguishing" and other terms mean.
I tried cotton first.  It was over quickly! 

Dolce Amore

by Filatura Di Crosa

Fingering / 4 ply

100% Cotton

196 yards / 50 grams

It burned, and wasn't self-extinguishing.  That means it burned until there was nothing left to burn. It burned and charred, leaving ash. The smell and color of the ash was difficult to evaluate, but I know it was cotton. (The label doesn't lie...?)

Sock

by Shibui Knits

Fingering / 4 ply

100% Merino

191 yards / 50 grams

I had no idea cotton (or many other fibers) burn so well.  I live a sheltered life.
The catch is that fiber-blends will - well... not behave like all of the fibers in them.  The Merino above didn't want to burn, but I kept lighting it.  I was beginning to think it was a blend with nylon, but no, the label says...
My mystery fiber from Ecuador, which I had treated as some sort of synthetic, appears to behave like acrylic. 

Yarn from Quito, Acrylic

 It sputtered and burned and melted into a neat, stinky pile. I determined it Burns, Not Self-Extinguishing, and Melts.  I couldn't discern what odor (vinegar, burning meat or tumeric: first of all, I didn't WANT to inhale any of the smoke, so I guess I'm not much of a scientist!) but the remains were definitely Soft Black Irregular Ash.  That's the part that scented my fingers.  I thought they just smelled 'smokey'.

Classic Wool

by Patons

Worsted / 10 ply

100% Wool

210 yards / 100 grams

I tested "Classic Wool" from Patons, and it behaved exactly like wool, and identical to my white wool from the '80's.  

Top left: White Wool
Bottom:  Patons Classic Wool
Right: Acrylic

Yes, I'm quite sure that white wool traveled with me from Norway to the States in 1986 only to re-surface a few months ago in a container of other timeless craft items.  Wool sure is resilient!  I see no damage.  It probably was knitted, then frogged...more than 25 years ago!  (That's humbling...)
Christmas is coming!  Later, gator!

Knitting Hats

Granny K has been knitting hats for 9 grandchildren this season.  A definite improvement in her mojo compared to last year when the chosen project was slippers.
I decided to try some hats too.  Three so far:
One for me, with rhinestone snowflake that was my mother's:

 And two for friends to go with their last year gifts.

After thinking and examining my friends' heads, I have decided to frog the purply one and make it bigger.  I hate it when it isn't big enough, and since it took me 3 days, with many distractions the first time, I think I have time.
Patterns used:

#1 and 2: Head Huggers by Gail Tanquary from Ann Norling #55, with my own variations; Yarn #1: Wool-Ease Glitter / Multi by Lion Brand, Aran / 10 ply, 78% Acrylic, 19% Wool, 3% Polyester, 162 yards / 70 grams; #2: Pastaza by Cascade Yarns, Aran / 10 ply, 50% Wool, 50% Llama, 132 yards / 100 grams#3: Zig Zag Beanie by Dawn Leeseman from Interweave Knits, Fall 2008;  Yarn: Shepherd Worsted Multi by Lorna's Laces, Aran / 10 ply, 100% Wool, 225 yards / 114 grams

That's a lot of Ribbing!

The last report from Thursday's group. Jenn posed with her finished afghan:

I guess that's ALL the yarn she had, poor girl...um, young woman!
Congratulations, Jenn!  Hope you can stay warm in SE NM.  LOL

Who knew? Little gifts

It isn't often that I work on small projects, with BIG needles. (I classify any needles larger than #3 as big.)
I've been delighted to see that little projects don't take months (like so many of my other projects) so I keep thinking that since Christmas isn't here yet, I still have time.
Here are a few of my 'make one a day' gifts.

Will they bleed when wet?  Probably:  I'll make a little warning label.
Warning: Skin will have a sunburn glow with use.
LOL (I have some great friends--who don't read this blog!)

Topics: Discuss!

Another successful night with the Knit One, Drink, Too gang.
Topics:  (Too numerous to think of them all, but here are some high-lights.)

1. How can a child be "non-gendered"? Only SA Fran can entertain us with that one.  She insists that since she will be the nanny very soon, the mystery will be revealed.

2.  What size should a hat be?  Try it ON!! Simone's husband has a big head.  Will the body of a newborn pullover be big enough for a man's head?  I tried on my hat, convinced myself that it was time to decrease only to try it on after 6 rows of decrease and discover I must have been 'drinking, too'...  Solution 1:  Rip it back and continue another inch before decrease.  Solution 2: Decrease every row and stuff the hat.  (That sure loses something out of context! LOL)

3.  Guinea pigs wear sweaters.  No, really!  See HERE.

4.  Should we eat meat? pro's and con's...

5.  Let's take a vote:  Who's too lazy to put on their shoes? Have you ever left the house without tying your shoes? or just scuffed along without bending over? Guilty! There, at the door, were my shoes with the heels smashed down.

These and other important topics are the reason that we get together every 2 weeks!
Oh, yeah, we knit a little, too.

Especially proud of MB's completed, lengthened, and gorgeously cabled sweater.   Turn off the heat and put it on!

 Why is this such a big event?  It's 6 months (or more) in the making! 

Baby is not a newborn at 4 months:  Baby-wear is now to be hubby-wear.  The camo hat:
Baby soft, hubby will use it for hunting. (What's wrong with this scenario? LOL)

What became of that baby sweater?

Granny K rewarded herself after picking up a bazillion stitches on her 5th hat of the season. What's going on here?  Boucle yarn disguised as a headband with stitches picked up to continue and further disguise itself as a hat.  The Christmas of the Hat at Granny K's!  One for each "grand".

SA Fran completed leg warmers for anyone "that" size.  A warm up project which will lead to guinea pig sweaters.  We BETTER get some pictures of that project.  I hope she writes to us from NJ...

The never-ending, almost finished, front and sleeve... Yee Girl has no problem keeping busy for YEARS on this one.  I think she likes the color.  I know WE do!

Jee Hostess, who just tore down her kitchen ceiling, is happily placing beads on her scarf while worrying about the cast on edge.  I feel her pain--"It will be fine."

Jenn came late, finishes her last day of student teaching tomorrow, and has a job that starts in January which will take her far away.  Granny K is making the most of the next week.  Jenn curses the skein that won't quit. (I heard her sigh...)  Her afghan is getting out of hand, and, I'm SOOOOO sorry I didn't get a picture.  Granny K, help me out!

Me, I took 3 UFO's and frogged the ONE I worked on.  It's to be worn tomorrow evening... getting cold around here! Of course, I'll be at a keyboard with my bare finger tips tomorrow and 20ºF.  Brrr...