Hobbii Bingo Win!

One of my favourite places to visit on the Internet is an online yarn store called Hobbii. This store has a great assortment of yarns but they do really well in carrying a variety of cotton yarns and cake yarns.

Each week there are new specials and every Sunday they run a Bingo contest where there is a chance to win fabulous prizes. I like to participate because not only do I get chance to win something but because the one hour session is like a mini infomercial highlighting the yarn on sale for that week and the yarn in the bingo prize baskets. Some of the yarn and merchandise shown is available to the bingo players at a deep discount so even if you don’t win there is an opportunity to purchase yarn at a cheaper price.

Well this past Sunday I won a prize. It totally shocked me because I never win anything and given the amount of players I wasn’t expecting to. I love playing because it’s fun and I get to see what the special deals are. I must say I was impressed by the shipping via DHL. I got the notification my package was ready for shipment on the Monday and it just arrived on my doorstep at 4:20 p.m on Wednesday. If you place an order and go for the regular shipping then it takes just under two weeks to arrive from Norway to Canada. Be aware that if you have a large order that it may be split into smaller parcels. DHL does charge a handling fee something to think about.

I won three cakes of Sultan Shadow 100% cotton yarn in a sport weight by Cotton Kings and fourteen balls of Soft Alpaca – 100% alpaca in fingering weight yarn.

Hobbii bingo prize, Sultan Shadow and Soft Alpaca.

Sultan Shadow by Cotton Kings. This yarn is a sport weight 100% cotton yarn, 200 grams, 800 metres /875 yards. Colour 09 black/yellow.

Sultan Shadow by Cotton Kings. This is a sport weight yarn, 100% cotton, 200 grams, 800 metres /875 yards. Colour 03 black/green.

Sultan Shadow by Cotton Kings. This yarn is sport weight 100% cotton, 200 grams, 800 metres /875 yards. Colour is 06 black pink, the pink is more fuchsia coloured than the photo.

Soft Alpaca, this yarn is a fingering/ sock weight yarn made of 100% alpaca. 50 gram ball, 165 metres /180 yards. Colour is #45, Champagne.

Soft Alpaca, Colours are: 45-Champagne; 38-Cayenne; 21-Ink; 14-Warm Yellow; 36-Helleborus; 45-Champagne. The alpaca is very soft.

I’m very thankful and appreciative to Hobbii for hosting the Bingo and for the prize I won. With the Soft Alpaca I have enough yarn to knit a Fair Isle sweater. I’ll probably start that one in the fall with the cooler weather. I’m not sure what I’ll make with the Sultan Shadow but since there are three cakes I’ll probably use one of them to make a shawl. There are some interesting patterns for tops on the Hobbii site. Every yarn has it’s own web page and there are tabs in the page that link to photos of finished projects, patterns and reviews of the yarn. There is also Ravelry where you can explore each yarn and the project photos associated with the yarn.

Karen

#hobbiiunboxing, Hobbiibingoprize, soft alpaca, sultan shadow, yarn

#hobbiiunboxing, Hobbiibingoprize, soft alpaca, sultan shadow, yarn

#hobbiiunboxing, Hobbiibingoprize, soft alpaca, sultan shadow, yarn

Washcloths and Oven Towels

While cleaning out my closet last week I realized I still have a ton of dish towels so I asked if anyone would like some oven towels and my one daughter said yes so I crocheted up a few and then tossed in some of the dishcloths I made recently.

I was quite pleased to use up some of my stash and I’m happy to pass them on.

Karen

Hoodie and Washcoths.

Finally finished the hoodie sweater that I’d started back in October. It was supposed to be a birthday gift for my granddaughter in December but as the saying goes, better late than never.

Hoodies for all the Family, designed by Elizabeth Lovick.

The sweater was a bit big on her but she’ll grow into it. The pattern is by a knitwear designer, Elizabeth Lovick, from the Orkney Islands north of Scotland who also goes by the moniker Northern Lace. Needless to say she has published quite a few books on how to knit lace and lacework shawls. Her blog can be found here at Northern Lace.

Elizabeth has a knitting group that is part of Ravelry, the group is called Northern Lace. She also has a following on Facebook under the same name. The reason I mention this is because she is currently running a KAL (knit along) during the month of March. There are two parts to the KAL, one is a summer cardigan and the other is a series of washcloths and wash mittens that have been released each week. I hope to knit up the cardigan at some point but I’m still working on picking out the right yarn for it. Meanwhile I’ve been busy knitting up the washcloths and wash mitten. So far I’ve got several items done and the local chain store had a sale on scrubby yarn so I plan to get more knit in the coming weeks.

Various washcloths, patterns by Elizabeth Lovick ”Northern Lace”

Scrubby yarn by Redheart.

That’s all I’ve gotten done the last couple of months. A crocheted elephant is in the works as well but I put that aside to work on the washcloths.

Karen

Moose Hats

This year in 2022 I’m hoping to be more productive not only in my crafting but blogging as well. I’d also like to put in another big garden but this year it will be more about quality rather than quantity. I had a lot of fun trying out new varieties like purple carrots, flowers, yellow tomatoes but I overcrowded the garden and the result was a dense mess of plants some of which underproduced and got blighted due to poor ventilation. It was interesting though to see new plants and grow potatoes in five pound buckets.

This January I bought a lot of Briggs and Little yarn inspired by the Saltwater knitting books by Christine LeGrow and Shirley A. Scott – “Saltwater Classics From the Island of Newfoundland” and “Saltwater Mittens.

Briggs and Little 100% wool yarn, a variety of Heritage and Regal.

As a gift for my son at Christmas I had knit another Moose hat.

Moose Cap from Saltwater Classics by Christine LeGrow and Shirley A. Scott. Knit in “Regal” by Briggs and Little. The colours are, Bleached White, Charcoal and Light Grey.

The thing I didn’t know at the time was that his wife had been collecting moose themed items since she was a teenager. So out came the needles and two more moose hats were knit, one at a slightly larger gauge for variety.

Moose cap, yarn used ”Heritage” by Briggs and Little, colours – Grey and White, Bleached White and Medium Grey.

That’s it for finished projects in January. Next month I hope to finish a hoodie and an elephant along with starting some seedlings for the garden.

Karen

2021

Hard to believe but its been a whole year since I last blogged. Going through my photos to see what I’ve accomplished in my crafting it doesn’t seem like I have gotten a lot done. Then, I realized that this has been the year of the garden.

It started in January with the planning and the ordering of the seeds then progressed to sowing the transplants in February and March and then in April to setting out the transplants and hardening them off and then eventually planting them into the garden and five gallon buckets.

I grew tomatoes and potatoes in the garden but also experimented with growing them in the buckets. I found out the buckets work but not as well as the garden, it wasn’t a surprise. I also put in new trellising systems for raspberries, tomatoes and cucumbers. What I learned this year and will apply to next year is to not plant so many varieties and not to overcrowd the garden. Planting new varieties was interesting but the favourites are favourites for a reason and one of those reasons is hardiness. Anyhow it was interesting but a lot of work. I have photos but too many to post. I’ll try to do better next year.

My dad growing older, being 92 years old, has also required more help to the point where I am visiting him twice a day to help out with his toileting needs. It’s a huge time commitment. I’m afraid that the blog hasn’t even been on my radar.

I thought I would post a few pictures of some of the projects I finished this year. I’m sure there might have been a few more things accomplished but if so I forgot to document them.

Tiilda Hat, pattern by Inese Sang, yarn “Boing” by Lion Brand colour “Gateway”.

Hello -Goodbye mittens pattern by Christine LeGrow & Shirley A Scott. Unknown stash yarn.

Ripple afghan, ”Homespun Thick and Quick” yarn by Lion Brand, colours “Azure Blue, Tudor, Woodland Stripes”.

Ripple afghan, yarn Lion Brand ”Homespun Thick and Quick” colours ” Barley, Garnet, Pearls”.

Ripple afghan, yarn Lion Brand “Homespun Thick and Quick” colours ”Colonial, Herb Garden, Dove”.

Dollarama yarn haul for future projects.

Basket pattern by Yarnspirations, yarn Bernat ”Blanket Extra” colours ”Teal, White”.

Hat Power 5.0 by Carri Hammett, yarn Lion Brand ”Wool-Ease Hand Dyed” colour ”Cosmopolitan”.

Wishing everyone a Happy Holiday and Joy-filled New Year. I hope you all keep safe in these trying Covid times.

Blessings, Karen

Moose Cap

Well Christmas is finally over and done with and with it the mad rush to get all gifts finished off. The last of the birthday afghans was finally given out and was well received. I decided not to knit a hat for everyone and only knit up a few more.

Copycat Beanie C.C. By Emily Ingrid

Digging through Ravelry for a hat pattern I found this beanie by Emily Ingrid. It was an easy knit using Lion Brand Wool-Ease Hand-Dyed in the Caramel Apple colourway. It would have looked stellar with the faux fur pompon I had but since it went to my grandson I didn’t bother putting on a pompon. I’m not sure guys wear pompons?

Next up was the Moose Cap by Christine LeGrow and Shirley A. Scott. This pattern can be found in their wonderful book “Saltwater Classics From the Island of Newfoundland”.

Moose Cap by Christine LeGrow and Shirley A. Scott

The hat is a bit too big as I substituted a finer weight yarn for a heavier one and although I did a gauge swatch obviously it didn’t work out quite right. It’s funny how you can do a swatch and then when it comes to the actual knitting the item comes up different. It’s not to far off and if the brim was turned up more it’d be a perfect fit but I wanted to show off the red knitting for the photo. I used Briggs and Little “Regal” yarn for the cap having substituted it for Briggs and Little “Heritage”, which is a slightly thicker yarn.

The last item I have to show is a sweater called “Flax”, pattern by Tincanknits. I made this for my granddaughter for her birthday and I was pleased with how it turned out. It’s been years since I’ve knitted a garment and it’s nice to make something other than an accessory for a change.

Flax by tincanknits

The yarn is Red Heart’s, With Love Metallic, in the colourway Teal and if you look closely you can see a bit of a shimmer from the metallic looking monofilament. I picked this yarn up from the Dollarama at $4.00 a ball and ended up using four balls so it was a very cost effective sweater and Charlie loves the shimmer.

That’s it for catching up on projects for 2020. I’m sure there are a few more items that I haven’t recorded but all in all a very productive year. Next year is going to be focused on what I want to do not with “What will I make for others?”. I think I’ll work where my fancy takes me. First up will be to try and finish a UFO (unfinished object) that has been sitting in my closet for over forty years, here’s to hoping that the yarn yardages work out and I have enough yarn to finish it.

I hope that everyone has a Happy New Year and stays safe. See you in 2021!

Karen

Afghans

It’s been a while since I last blogged but the truth is I’ve not had much in the way of variety to blog about since all the crafting I have been doing since making the Covid masks has been to finally finish off the last of the grandchildren’s afghans. These are the same ripple afghans that I’ve blogged about before made out of the Lion Brand Homespun Thick and Quick that I picked up on sale at the various stores.

In total I’ve crocheted nine of these afghans so far, seven for the grandchildren. Here are some photos of the afghans I haven’t shown already. The large photo is the same afghan as the one too the right of it. The photo of the three balls of yarn are the colours I used in one of the afghans that I forgot to take a picture of.

Sometimes I don’t feel like I’ve done very much but going back through my blog for the last year I realize that I have gotten a lot of projects made. It’s the reason I keep a blog – to remind myself just exactly what I have accomplished during the year. Mind you there are also some things I forget to document. This year I’ve crocheted nine afghans, four ponchos, knit two snakes, hats and dyed twenty-two tie-dyed shirts.

The current project is to use up some of the sale yarn I bought months ago and turn it into hats and mittens for Christmas. One hat down and many more to follow.

Lion Brand Wool Ease Hand-Dyed yarn “Key Lime”

Hat Power 5.0 by Carri Hammett – “Mittens & Hats for Yarn Lovers”

Yarn for hats and mittens

Blessings on everyone and I hope you are all staying safe.

Karen

Covid-19 Masks and Fat Cat.

Just a quick post with a couple of things I’ve been up to lately. First off are a couple of masks for my niece who asked for them. One was the Suay mask and the other four were the Olson mask.

Of the two styles my niece preferred the Olson mask to wear.

Next up is The Fat Cat Stuffie by Yarnspirations and The Crochet Crowd. I made this for my grandson because I needed to give him something because his sisters are getting the ponchos I made them.

That’s all for now. Next up I’m hoping to show yet again another ripple afghan and a Star Wars themed beanie. I hope everyone is staying safe.

Karen

Baking

I’ve been busy today. First I finished the snake then I did some baking. One of the girls in my knitting group wanted a picture when I mentioned I’d been busy baking so I took some photos for her. Then I thought why not post them here as well.

Today I made Lemon Blueberry Cream Scones, 1936 Apple Spice Cake, Honey Oatmeal Bread and for dinner I looked in the fridge and used up leftovers – chicken, cremini mushrooms, sweet peppers, onions, garlic, alfredo sauce, white wine, spaghetti, mozzarella and Parmesan.

This is what is left of the dinner.

Karen

More snakes and ponchos.

I hope everyone is doing well during the pandemic. I have been busy cooking and crafting and working on my garden although the past week has seen freezing temperatures and a bit of snow. Just when you think it’s Spring Mother Nature says “Not quite yet!”.

I have a couple more items to add to the pile for the grandkids. I had an idea of gifts for Easter but that has come and gone so I guess they’ll just be grandma loves you gifts.

I have seven grandkids so I tend to make things in multiples so I’ve finished another poncho and snake.

The poncho is made with more of the Caron Latte cakes and the purple snake is just leftover remnants in my stash. In fact the dark purple and white is some of the first yarn I bought while on lunch break downtown working at my first full time job. I still remember the wool shop. It was full of bulk spools of yarn and the owners put it up on a yarn swift. The purple and white were to make a scarf in the University of Western colours. My how time flies as that was 43 years ago. It also goes against current conventions that say if you haven’t used something in a year or two, get rid of it. I went to use the pizza stone in the basement last week only to discover I’d donated it. Who knew two years later I’d be practicing self-isolation in a pandemic and making my own pizza?

I have two more items to make before handing over the gifts. I was going to make two more snakes but I’m tired of making them and I just used the last of the fibrefill. I’ll have to think of something else.

Karen