This is TJ--he looks freakishly devilish in this picture, but I guess that's sort of the point. He's sporting the Little Devil Pants knit from a pattern in Stitch n' Bitch Nation. They were a stitch n' bitch to knit, let me tell you..but they're finally done. The only problem is (and you can't see them in this picture) that sewing up the inseams for me was really hard, and I kind of messed it up so the front of the pants look like a vagina. No joke. But at least they were too big (he's a huge-ass kid and we were all worried by the time I finished knitting he'd have outgrown them), so they'll fit him for Halloween/fall/probably into winter and Christmas time, too. Pretty damn cute, if I do say so myself! That's the last thing I knitted, besides participating in Faith's beautiful wedding afghan. Currently working on dishcloths, which are kind of boring me right now. I have some lovely Web's-brand wool yarn waiting for me to knit up a cableknit scarf--FOR ME! I have never, ever knit anything for myself--not even a stinking dishcloth, so I want to do it right. I'm unaccomplished at cables, however, the first one I did being on Faith's blanket, so I'm a little nervous, but I'm sure I'll figure something out. Anyway, thanks for all the knitting posts because it's getting me re-inspired, especially now that the weather is finally cooling off around here! ---cd

a powerful AHEM

I hear you, I hear you! Gotta get my needles a-clackin... but what exactly am I supposed to do? As a couple of you have seen, I do have some gorgeous yarn. And no, it's not fun fur. I got it during a Portland, Maine, rendezvous, when a few of us got together. I've got some great pics from that visit (do you guys mind if I post a few?).

Ok, so I've got the yarn. I've got the skills to garter stitch the hell out of it. So there will be a boring-ass section in there - but at least it will exist. What exactly am I doing? Anybody got the dimensions for me? I'll get on it, I PROMISE!!!

My afghan really is amazing - you guys are so damn crafty! I made an afghan of my own a couple of years ago but it's not quite the same. It's nice, in its own way. But it's just row upon row of garter stitch. Stripey & warm & weighs about 10 pounds. Sheesh. It lives on our couch, where it is abused by Danny & the cats on a daily basis. My wedding afghan still lives in the closet, as the room where I'd like to keep it is a complete disaster. It's storage for various wedding related items. I know... that was almost 3 months ago. I still haven't found a good spot for 12 giant platters, 25 strands of Christmas lights, 50 yards of fabric, and 36 snack bowls. Oh yeah, and a dirty, nasty, busted-up wedding dress. Should I even clean the thing? I keep thinking it would make a great Halloween costume. Kind of a pricey joke, though.

quilts of many colors

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itch to stitch

While I'm far away from my fellow nookers, I'm feeling closer these days. Why? A gaggle of pals came to my wedding this summer! Yeah - thanks, guys! It was a bummer more couldn't come, we had half a reunion there. Here we are, plus a few more fellow MHC chicas...

But now that we've got this blog (thanks for setting it up!) we can ramble on just like back in the good old days and bring back that lovin' feelin'.

Part of the goal of this blog is for us to get our craftiness in gear. Well, friends, I'm gearing up. Gearing up! I know I have some catch-up knitting to do... from, like, a million years ago. Sorry - but you know I love you! Some of you have seen the sad state of my knitting in person. I buy the books (Stitch 'n Bitch, Stitch 'n Bitch Nation, Ready Set Knit, and so on). I buy the yarn (and yes, sometimes I fall for cheap acrylic blends). I've got the equipment (needles galore, stitch counters, crochet hooks...). But I don't have much for skills. I could use some tips on how to transform my steady garter stitch into something a little more interesting. Any ideas? I know I can't avoid purling forever.

I'm a long way from this - the gorgeous afghan my nookettes made with their own hands! Normally this is not kitty Pete's hang-out, but as soon as I spread it out to take the photo, he couldn't resist.