2012 February 03 — Patchwork Times by Judy Laquidara

My Bad Finger

February 3, 2012 · by JudyL

In more ways than usual, my bad finger is really a bad finger!

I had surgery on it this morning so my hand is swollen and orange. I am so right handed . . this is definitely going to try my patience.

I have been paying attention to my knitting and was thinking this little procedure wouldn’t interfere with my knitting but I wasn’t expecting quite such a bandage. I might can knit something with bigger yarn but my sock knitting is on hold for at least 10 days.

The blog posts will probably be shorter too — typing isn’t real easy. Heck, I wonder if I can just sleep for 10 days!

· Filed Under: Worthless Chatter · 58 Comments

Vince’s Quilt

February 3, 2012 · by JudyL

The first quilt to get quilted in my new sewing room was Vince’s quilt:

All it needs is the binding. I loaded this top in place of my January quilt (#5) that I couldn’t find and it turns out it’s (#1), which is the February project. I had no idea what number this quilt was til I looked at it yesterday so that’s a good thing but I still need to get the January quilt done.

Vince’s quilt turned out very pretty and I think he’ll love it for a very long time.

· Filed Under: Quilting · 26 Comments

The Next Socks

February 3, 2012 · by JudyL

All the years I’ve been knitting and I’ve mostly made plain, jane socks which are fine but now that I’ve started knitting patterned socks, I’m loving it but it’s so hard to decide which pattern to make next. When I do find a pattern I think I’d like to make, I go to Ravelry and look at others made using that pattern. I don’t like the real open or lacy socks. I like a tightly knit sock. After finishing the BFF socks, it was hard to decide on a new pattern because I loved knitting those and love how they turned out. So many of the patterns work better on solid or “solid-ish” yarns so once I find the pattern, then I have to find the perfect yarn . . from the stash, of course!

Because I’m not very experienced with reading patterns, they all look hard and confusing when I first read a new pattern but I’ve learned that if I just start and do each step as I come to it, things almost always work out. With yarn, it’s not like cutting up fabric. If I make a mistake or the pattern isn’t working for me, I just unravel it, wind it back onto the ball and . . nothing’s lost.

The pattern and yarn I’m using for the next socks:

The pattern is Twisted Celtic Cable Socks (can you tell I like cables?). The yarn is Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock and the color is Island Blue. I wasn’t sure about making cables with this yarn but found lots of them on Ravelry so I think these socks will be beautiful!

· Filed Under: Knitting & Weaving · 12 Comments

Ruby Red Slippers

February 3, 2012 · by JudyL

Did you know that in the original book, Dorothy’s slippers were silver? For the movie, they were red.

While in Abilene, we went by Target. So far, the only shoes I have are one pair of tennis shoes . . which obviously I was wearing on moving day and I haven’t found any other shoes yet. They’re here so I’m not worried. I did have a pair of house slippers but I’ve lost those and just haven’t taken the time to find them.

I needed a pair of shoes that I can slip on and walk from the house to the sewing room, and then take off and not wear into the sewing room. I wasn’t even looking for shoes but just wandering around while Vince was shopping and I found shoes marked down . . from something like $29 to $7.99. They had red ones and blue ones. I bought both! They’re great for slipping on to take Speck out. They’re comfortable as heck and I bought a size up so I can wear them with my socks. They’re all fleece lined so I won’t be wearing them in the summer but I am so happy I found these.

I do think they’re magical and besides, they make Vince laugh every time he sees me wearing them!