Join me for a new KAL!

I'm back in the shop after my fantastic mini knitting vacation at home. And I'm just in time to start a new KAL! Michelle Hunter of Knit Purl Hunter started a new "Progressive Needles" knit along, and her first clue came out today for the Independence Pillow. You will need two skeins of HiKoo Simpliworsted to make one 12-inch cabled pillow. We have the yarn in stock at the shop, so be sure to stop by. You will also need three 1-inch buttons and a 12-inch pillow form for finishing. As always she offers outstanding videos to help you through the process. I'm really excited to watch her "Cables Without a Cable Needle Video." You have a month to finish the project and can win great prizes; check out Skacel who sponsors the KAL for all pertinent information!

As for my mini vacation, we had a lot of fun as a family. Tim took off the doors and the front roof panels of his Jeep and we drove around and played House Hunters in the heat. Not because we are planning to move, just because we like to look at architecture. And yes, it was fun even in our record heat. We also managed to make some good meals together. We made fish tacos one night. And last night we made steak, grilled veggies, mushrooms, and potato salad. It was a feast. 

Whenever I was at home over my vacation, I knitted on my sock yarn blanket squares. I am a few rounds short of completing five squares in five days, so later today I will have 51 total squares complete. (Hey Stacy, are you still ahead of me?) I also worked on the linen version of my Bias Before & After Scarf. I didn't get too far, as it's hard on my hands to knit with linen. I may have about 8 inches done, but it will be an ongoing mindless project I can pick up when I feel like it!

Keep on knitting!

Nancy

The Sock Yarn Blanket Revisited

We had a fantastic long weekend. We started off with a trip to the downtown Farmers Market. There were lots of people and pets wandering around, but the temperatures were cool. Then just before we left the market the sun came out and we could feel the temperature climb about 10 degrees!

As for knitting over my long weekend, I finished my Meandering Mesas scarf and blocked it on Tuesday. It turned out really nice! Then I organized my sock yarn blanket squares. I had 24 done when the weekend started, but by the end of my three days off, I finished two more and have one more nearly done and another started. They are so pretty! I've also searched my stash for some solids and semi-solids to break up the patterns and found at least 4 of them. I think I need a 15 gram ball of a good green and possibly a red, orange or purple solid, too.

Some of the blocked and unblocked sock yarn squares.

I need to get some of the 26 squares blocked. That's not my favorite part, since they really need to be pinned out! I think I'm going to buy a foam square of some sort and draw out the block size on it, so I can pin each square out one at a time for blocking.

Other than blocking, I really like working on the blanket again. I hope I can keep up with it, since I need 63 total to make the size blanket I want.

Keep on knitting!

Nancy

Monkey Business All Around!

Last week we started Renee's KAL for Jacobus. We had quite the crowd last Thursday - the chairs were filled with people starting their monkeys. What with Judi's Magic Cast-On and magic loop learners, we were kept busy. Renee brought Banana cup cakes that were really moist and delicious. They were perfect for all the monkey business as we knitted together!

I got my Jacobus monkey started, and promptly named her Rosetta because of my friend Rose and my yarn. I'm using Regia Flusi sock yarn in a rose, blue, red and orange colored stripe with Size 0/2 mm Addi Turbo needles since I needed to go down a couple of sizes from what I normally use for sock knitting. The fabric seems to be just about right for stuffing. I'm nearly done with her, but I'm afraid I may have issues stuffing her since she's so tiny. My plan is to finish her by tomorrow, so I can parade her around tomorrow evening at the KAL. I still have to knit her second ear, tail and finally her last leg. Right now she's a one legged monkey!

If anyone else wants to start knitting Jacobus with us, purchase and print your pattern from Ravelry and stop in Thursday for our KAL a little before 6 pm. We can help you pick out yarn and needles if you don't have the right size.

One legged Rosetta with her lips still flapping!

Keep on knitting,

Nancy

I Have a Shawlette Obsession

Well, I'm just about to finish my second Hitchhiker using stash sock yarn, and decided I would knit another of Martina Behm's shawlette patterns. The pattern is Trillian and again calls for sock yarn and garter stitch (mindless, right?!), but this one has a simple lace edge on it. Simple enough to not take too much of the mindless part away! I'm also planning to knit Asking for Roses designed by Amy Swenson. It would be the perfect pattern for my Madelinetosh Pashmina in the Nostalgia colorway that is a gorgeous lavender like this Sterling Silver rose!

Sterling Silver Rose

My big question: Will I wear any of my small shawls?! I've knit plenty of them, but don't seem to wear them very often. Kind of fancy for my sweats ... although perfect for my denim wardrobe!

Keep on knitting!

Nancy

Daybreak KAL

We had a fantastic time last night starting the Daybreak shawlette/scarf by Stephen West. Our first KAL of 2012!  It started off by most of us getting to KT just in time to see Suzanne E. finish up her very first knitting project.  It was the Noro Striped Scarf and she did an amazing job considering she just finished Nancy's Beginning Knitting Class on December 10th! Then everyone pulled their color choices out and we spent some time helping each other decide which color to start with.  We all cast on and were able to get our 'Make One's' under control by evening's end. 

I brought a couple bottles of wine and a new recipe called Robert's Corn Dip featured in Where Women Cook magazine.

Robert's Corn Dip (Makes about 6 cups)

• 3 (11-oz) cans sweet corn & diced peppers, drained
• 1 (7-oz) can chopped green chilies
• 1 (6-oz) can chopped jalapenos, drained & liquid added to taste
• 1/2 cup chopped green onion
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 (16 oz) pkg shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• Scoop-style corn chips

Mix all ingredients except corn chips together and refrigerate. Serve with corn chips.

It's not too late to join us for the Daybreak KAL  - Tuesdays in January from 6:00-8:00 p.m.  Most, but not all of us are using two skeins of tosh sock - many beautiful and vibrant colors are left to choose from.

Renee

I Finished My Shawl for Spring

If you are a customer at Knitted Together, you've gotten an invitation to knit a shawl for our shawl contest. I have been busily knitting a shawl, so I could join in on the fun (minus the chance to win a prize of course). 

Yesterday I finished and blocked my Appalachian Shawl. I added 36 stitches (equivalent of two repeats of the Feather and Fan pattern) to my cast on, so that I could get more length to my shawl. I also ended up working the Framed Star Stitch pattern nine times, rather than the eight times called for, since I had to buy a second skein of Alpaca Sox in Nor' Easter which is my main color. The shawl is so soft and airy; it's just plain lovely! It will be fun to throw on over a blouse or T-shirt this summer. I have lots of leftover yarn of both colors, so I can now make two pairs of socks for next winter... no, I don't wear socks much in the summer.

Keep on knitting!

May Trekking KAL Sock Yarn Is Here!

Hey 20 Years of Trekking KAL knitters,

Trekking Hand Art has arrived in the Colombo color that Michelle of Knit Purl Hunter will be using for the May KAL sock called "Lacery." It will be another toe-up sock pattern. I fell in love with the bright colors in this yarn, and know it will go fast. Call or come in soon to get your yarn.

If you still want to do the April sock which is called "Cranked," we still have a few skeins of Trekking Maxima in #906. Remember if you use the color of sock yarn called for on the KAL pattern, you get an additional entry for monthly prizes. Also make sure to send a photo of the pair of socks with your entry, to get a third entry for monthly prizes! The prizes are really nice, so you want all the chances you can get.

Keep on knitting!

Stripes Alive Sock KAL is ON!

I rushed right to my computer on Tuesday morning and immediately printed off Part 1 of KAL 3, the Stripes Alive sock pattern from Knit Purl Hunter. Rose's comment from my last posting is exactly right, it's like a month long present and you get something new to open every 7 days! I've never done a KAL on the web and it's proving to be lots of fun.

For those of you who haven't joined in, we have more of the March Trekking XXL yarn (you can see what the yarn looks like in the ball at the link above) coming in at the shop, so you can have as much fun as the rest of us. I'm sure it will arrive sometime next week; so far only one is spoken for. Here's a little peek at my sock on the needles...

Join Us for the 20 Years of Trekking KAL

I'd heard about the Twenty Years of Trekking Knit Along, but didn't get interested until my sales rep, Kim came in. If you're a sock knitter/sock yarn lover and are interested in participating in the KAL with us, go to Skacel or Knit Purl Hunter for all the important information, including all the ways to win prizes! There are weekly and monthly prizes as well as a Grand-Prize Winner and Not-So-Grand, but none-the-less Great Prize Winners. (Once you check out the prizes, you'll be hooked...)

You can come into our shop for the yarn. The yarn for the January (toe-up) sock is a beautiful blue called Susanne; your purchase of that particular yarn makes a $10 donation to the Marsha Rivkin Center for Ovarian Cancer Research. The March (cuff-down sock) is a colorful striped yarn. The April (toe-up sock) is a yummy striped tweed. The 6-ply tweed for the February (fingerless gloves) is on backorder, but will be in the shop next week. I'm planning to start with the March sock (you know how much I like sock yarn and knitting socks!). I'm not sure if I'll get four of the six KALs completed, but I'm sure going to try. I'd like to be entered for the Grand- and Not-So-Grand Prizes!

I joined the Knit Purl Hunter KAL group on Ravelry, too. There you'll find tips and conversation about each of the KAL projects (at least the ones that are currently in progress). All of the KAL patterns will be up on the Knit Purl Hunter website through July 15th, so don't waste time!

Happy knitting! Nancy

Knitting Winter into Spring

The groundhog recently predicted an early Spring, and we've definitely seen weather changes here! I like to knit smaller projects when it gets really warm, but in the last days of Winter and the first days of Spring, I still love to knit socks (for my small-size projects) and shawlettes (for my medium-size projects). I just finished two pairs of socks, and I'm in the process of helping a couple of ladies learn to knit socks by the magic loop method, so I'll probably be knitting at least one or two more pairs before Spring is actually here by the calendar.

Yesterday we got a good-size shipment of Regia sock yarn at the shop, so I think I'll try one of them for my next pair. Regia is well known for it's easy care and sturdiness. We also got 6 colorways of Regia Lace (100 gram ball with approximately 659 yards). It's a beautiful yarn with long color changes (kind of like Noro only more subtle). It would be lovely for so many of the shawlette patterns that are so abundant on Ravelry. How about Annis from Knitty? Don't forget about our class for the Annis shawlette that starts tomorrow evening! We still have a couple of openings.

So if Spring is just around the corner, what are you planning to knit?

My Husband Really is a Knitter!

Tim has finally become a real knitter. He gets it! He really does! At least four years ago a woman that worked for us at the shop, taught him how to knit. Tension was his problem from the beginning. I remember that on New Year's Eve of that same year, we actually sat around and watched movies and knitted together (hmmm ... that's a great name for a yarn store). That is until he started sweating in our really cold family room and took off his sweatshirt. I noticed he had a white knuckle grip on his knitting needles. I helped him relax his grip and soon he was ready to put his sweatshirt on again. Well, that part of his knitting career didn't last. As soon as spring came, he was back on the golf course. End of story (at least at that time).

Two weeks ago Tim decided he wanted to try to knit again. He pulled out his old sample which was still on the needles and he picked it back up right away. Within minutes he committed to knitting a seed stitch scarf and a hat. We picked out Cascade 128 Superwash in a beautiful nearly-black color called Jet. That night after we went home and finished dinner, he cast on 21 stitches and started knitting a seed stitch scarf. He made a few mistakes that night and because our big-boy cat, Louie was on his lap, I kept having to get up and fix his mistakes. For about a week he knitted on his scarf before he went to bed. Rarely did he have a problem, but every time I looked at it I could tell his tension was becoming very regular. Then this past Sunday he spent 5 hours knitting. The next morning he woke up and told me his left elbow had a knitting injury! The injury is related to an old golf injury... sort of a tendinitis issue. He's taken this week off, so hopefully it will heal soon. Half a scarf won't keep him too warm this winter! With his knowledge of the yarns we carry and his new knitting knowledge, Tim has become a great salesperson in our shop!

Last Friday when we had the Friday Night Knit Club, one of our customers brought in the most addictive snack mix. She sent me the recipe and her changes. I'm passing them on to you now. Watch out though, you might need to make a double batch, just because you can't stop snacking!

Addictive Crunch

• 2 sticks of butter
• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
• 6 Tablespoons corn syrup

In a sauce pan, bring to a boil and boil for 2 minutes. Pour over the following and mix gently, stirring until the mix is well covered:

• 1 large box of Rice Chex cereal
• 4 cups small pretzels

Spread mix out on a large cookie sheet and bake at 275 degrees for 15 minutes. Allow to cool on wax paper. Gently break into small pieces. Store in a cool airtight container.

Here are the variations that Jo made for us: She used a gluten-free rice chex cereal, gluten free pretzels, and coconut. She also added 2 teaspoons of cinnamon to the coating mixture. You can also add nuts of any kind. Jo said she has also added 1-2 cups of miniature marshmallows to the cooked mixture.

The Wrap Group -- May/June #4

Hi Wrappers!

Oh, my goodness! The Feather and Fan possibilities are endless and are taking over my life! In our in-store Knit Together, Judy is using a gorgeous sock yarn that has me all fired up to start yet another F & F. The recipe is only a suggestion...Let your imagination run with it.

On another note, we know that many of you were interested in getting the Zauberball Crazy yarn to make the Baktus Scarf (which was a bonus project for the Mar/Apr Wrap Group, you can find it here). Good News! Nancy has gotten a limited supply in two different color ways. You can buy it out on our website or come into the store! But hurry, because it will go fast!

As always, let us know if you need any assistance with your wrap by commenting on this post.

Wrap On!

Too, too busy!

Sorry about my lack of blogging lately. I've been busy planning and writing up classes and Knit-Togethers for the shop. We've also had a bad flu at our house. Thankfully so far I've stayed well, even if poor Tim and Katie had it. I hope you all are washing your hands and using hand sanitizer. You don't want this bad virus ...

I recently finished my Feather & Fan scarf using gift yarn that was really lovely! Now I'm knitting Truly Tasha's Shawl from Nancy Bush and I'm also making the French Press Felted Slippers. Both of which we will be doing here at the shop. Check out our class list for June for the slippers (it will go up next week after I finish the slippers) and check out our event list for the May Knit-Together on Thursday nights. The shawl is a mindless knit so far. I'm not on the lace edging yet, but hope to be there very soon. As for the slippers, I cast them on this morning and will plan to felt them this weekend. They are a really quick knit, that's for sure!

Happy knitting!

The Wrap Group -- Mar/Apr #5

Hey Wrappers!

Everyone is moving right along with their One Skein - a Shawl, so I think it's time for a bonus pattern. One of my favorites -- the Baktus Scarf is so much fun to make. It's simple enough you can even talk or watch TV while working on it!

I made the one shown here from one ball of Zauberball Crazy.

Sock yarn is a great choice for the Baktus, because it's lightweight. Some of the other ones you could choose from are Araucania Ranco, Opal Hand-dyes, and Crystal Palace Mini Mochi. 100-grams of sock yarn and a US size 3-4 needle is perfect. Just make sure the fabric is drapey, but not too holey!

As always, comment on this post with any comments or concerns.

Wrap on!

Knitted Together customers enjoy a good party!

Last Friday night we opened our shop up for a fun evening event. We had a wine tasting as well as what we called a "yarn tasting." Both were a big success with over 40 knitters present! The wine came from WineStyles of West Glen, a shop owned by some friends. For the yarn tasting, I created kits for a skinny scarf that used 16 different yarns that our customers may not have ever tried. The kits were sold out in 5 minutes and I've already seen some completed scarves. There are some truly creative people out there. For those of you that didn't make it to our first Friday Night Knit Club, we will have the next one Friday night, April 23rd from 6-9 PM.

We will have our first prize drawing for Followers this Saturday morning and announce it on the blog about noon (Iowa time). You have until Friday at midnight to become a follower for this prize if you haven't already joined us. The winner is getting one skein of Opal Hand Dyes in the Leafy Forest colorway. It would be beautiful for a gorgeous leaf patterned sock or shawlette.

Monday night I made a quick meal out of salad and Spaghetti a la Philly. I found the recipe online, but I'll type it in here. It was quick and a big hit at our house!

Spaghetti a la Philly

• 1/2 lb. spaghetti, uncooked
• 1 lb. extra-lean ground beef
• 1 jar (24 oz.) spaghetti sauce
• 4 ounces (1/2 of 8-oz. package) Philadelphia Cream Cheese, cubed
• 2 Tbsp. Kraft Grated Parmesan Cheese

Cook spaghetti as directed on package. Meanwhile, brown meat in large skillet. Stir in sauce and cream cheese; cook on low heat 3 to 5 minutes or until sauce is well blended and heated through, stirring frequently. Drain spaghetti. Add to sauce; mix lightly. Place on platter (or plate) and top with Parmesan.

Happy knitting!
Nancy

Protect your wools & silks from moths!

Knitting Tip #4
It's one of the things that I periodically preach about, but clothes moths will eat your yarn and sweaters. They will lay eggs in your unprotected wool, silk, and wool- and silk-blend yarns and clothing. The hatched larvae will eat your yarn and make holes in your clothing! You can get an infestation in your closets and they will get into your sweaters if you don't protect them! Think of all that lovely work gone awry... You can buy clothes moth pheromone traps that hang in your closets and interrupt the mating cycle, thus ending their horrible lives. (I wonder what IS the clothes moths purpose on earth other than to eat clothes!?) If you encounter eggs and larvae, be sure to try the traps. You'll want to treat every closet that has woolens in them, and replace the traps every 3 months for awhile. Vacuum the closet and infested areas thoroughly (can you say Yuck?) at least once every week to get the eggs and larvae out of there.

Clothes moths are attracted to human oil scents and to the smell of the wool. So an important part of caring for your finished sweaters is to wash them often in a wool wash such as Eucalan (which we love and carry in the shop). There are other good wool washes out there such as Soak and Kookaburra, but please DON'T use Woolite. It's not good for your fabrics. Remember to wash every woolen article that you've worn over the winter before storing them. I store scarves, hats, and mittens in plastic bins over the summer. You could also store your sweaters in plastic bags or bins, as well! An extra ounce of protection will save you more than you can imagine. If you have a garment that has holes in it from moths you can launder the garment and mend it, but the mending can be difficult!

Now on to your yarn closet: Keep your yarn in plastic freezer bags and/or plastic bins and store sachets made with strong scents such as lavender, cinnamon, eucalyptus, menthol, etc. in the boxes. The scents confuse clothes moths, and hide the delicious wool scent from them. Avoid moth balls as they are a pesticide that probably isn't good for you.

In Iowa we are hopefully awaiting warmer weather. In the event that it arrives I thought I would pass on advice for protecting your yarn and handknits.

Keep on knitting!

I've got this shawl thing going on!

Lately I've been intrigued with shawls and shawl patterns. I'm not sure if I'll wear any of them, but they're so much fun to knit.

This weekend I was super busy and for the most part that didn't seem to include knitting. You might have heard me groaning about that! Finally on Monday (and instead of blogging) I dug out a skein of Schaefer Anne that I had intended to make socks with. I grabbed an Addi Lace Size 6 needle and started a triangle shawl using the Gull Lace pattern that Elizabeth Zimmermann used for her baby sweater for the February project in her book, Knitter's Almanac. I haven't made the baby sweater, but I made the February Lady Sweater this past February for one of our Knit Togethers. I liked that simple 4-row lace pattern and had an idea that it would be fun to use again. Carol, who works at the shop, used the Gull Lace pattern on a pair of socks, so I got to thinking it might be fun for a shawl.

I'm also working on Ysolda Teague's Damson with the Ella Rae Lace Merino that I was going to use to make the leaf scarf I blogged about awhile back. Another shawl I'm close to finishing is the Revontuli, using 2 balls of Zauberball Crazy. I think there's at least one or two more shawls in my WIP pile!

Here's the Gull Lace pattern just in case you would like to play with it. If you want to make a shawl with it, you can easily make a rectangular one by casting on multiples of 7 stitches (plus you may want to add on a garter stitch border of 5 to 8 stitches on each side and a garter stitch edge at the bottom and top). If you want to try to make a triangular shawl, talk to me about how to work your 7-stitch pattern repeats into the triangle.

Gull Lace pattern (multiple of 7 stitches)
Row 1: *K1, k2tog, yo, k1, yo, ssk, k1; rep from * across.
Rows 2 & 4: Purl across.
Row 3: *K2tog, yo, k3, yo, ssk; rep from * across.

Now if you get hooked on shawls and lace like I have, you won't have a lot of time to cook! I thought that with cooler fall nights you might like to try my sloppy joe recipe. It's simple and would make quite a few sandwiches. Of course you could always double the amounts if you need to feed an extra hungry crowd!

Nancy's Sloppy Joes

• 1 1/2 lbs. lean ground beef
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 T. brown sugar
• 2 tsp. prepared yellow mustard
• 2 T. cider vinegar
• 1 cup ketchup
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 T. Worcestershire sauce

Brown ground beef and onion; drain off fat. Add other ingredients; let simmer for 30 to 45 minutes.
Enjoy!

My sad sock story

If you've ever knitted socks for someone, you know that knitting them is a true act of love. That said, my story is sort of a sad one ...

Our nephew Ben got married this year and he and his wife Karie came to Iowa this summer to visit the Iowa side of his family (they live in Los Angeles). So on the Fourth of July we had Ben and Karie over for a cookout and a trip to see fireworks. Prior to the fireworks, we ran by our shop to show it to them. Karie told me she wants to learn how to knit and if I'd had more time I would have crammed in a lesson, but time was far too limited. Anyway, I showed her some socks that I'd made and she told me she would really love some. I told her I would make a pair for her, knowing that in California it still gets cold enough to enjoy wool socks in the winter. Her favorite color is orange, so a week or so after their visit I got in a shipment of sock yarn from Skacel. There was a perfect pattern and color of yarn, so I got started. Within a week or two I'd quickly knitted up a pair of socks for Karie. I wrote her a quick note about all the love that goes into a pair of socks and told her how to care for them. I popped them into a padded mailing envelope and Tim took them to the Post Office to mail. As time went by, I began to wonder if Karie didn't like them, since I hadn't heard from her or Ben. Finally, about two weeks ago Tim sent Ben an email to see how Karie liked the socks. Ben sent a return email that they hadn't gotten the socks yet! (This is where I start to get tears in my eyes!) Over a month had passed since we sent the socks, so it appears they are lost for good. That or one of their neighbors will be enjoying warm feet this winter! Our Post Office said the package may still show up as they sometimes get caught in the equipment, but I'm not going to hold my breath!

This past Friday evening I started another pair of socks for Karie. I even like this yarn better. It's a Trekking XXL sock yarn that is red, orange and hot pink. When it's done I may try to ship it to Karie's office, since she and Ben currently live in an apartment. This time when I write my note to Karie I can tell her that the new pair of socks has double the love knitted into them!

I'm getting ready for Christmas

I have to thank Rose the Sock Maniac for her guest blog last week! I've been really busy with the shop and was struggling to get a blog posted. Rose thought you might like to see her recent sock yarn organization. Her husband built some modular shelving for her and she's filled it in with her sock yarn collection. Happily I decided she still has room for more. Of course her husband said he could stuff some old underwear in the back of each bin to fill it out. (Clean or not, no thanks, Mark!)

We recently got in Judy's Colors Stocking kits and in October we decided to knit stockings at the Thursday night Knit Togethers. I suggested Judy's Colors kits or the Nancy Lindberg stocking pattern for the pattern choices. We carry Nancy's pattern, but I knitted it for my daughter, Katie about 14 years ago. So this time I've decided to knit one of Judy's Colors stockings.

After much mulling, I decided to knit the stocking called Christmas Rose. (I should have saved that one for Rose to knit! Sorry, Rose ...) I got my stitches cast-on this week and have been working on my tension. It's been a couple years since I knitted a Fair-Isle hat for Katie, so my tension isn't perfect. I may rip and start over. Then again, after a good blocking it may not even be an issue!

If you're interested in seeing Judy's Colors Stocking kits and actual samples, come by the shop to see the trunk show of her stockings. We will have them in our shop from Friday, October 2 through Saturday, October 10.

Sock Maniac

I'm doing a guest blog for Nancy so she can continue to knit. Sometimes it's hard for her to stop knitting long enough to write a blog entry. This is my first time blogging!

Who am I? I'm known by many names. I'm most frequently known as Rose, Rosie by my family, or Grandma Rose by my granddaughters.

I'm RosieL on Ravelry. And, for anyone who has made my basic sock pattern, I am RosieL of RosieL’s Socks, the basic sock pattern that I wrote. There are now three versions of my pattern (56-stitch, 64-stitch and 72-stitch), plus Nancy has adapted my pattern for Magic-Loop instruction. It's a good basic pattern, and you can always do your own thing on the cuff as long as the pattern you use is a 4- or 8-stitch repeat. To get my sock pattern, you either need to buy some sock yarn at Knitted Together or take my beginner sock class. So I guess another name for me is “sock teacher.” I've been teaching the beginning sock class on a monthly basis at Knitted Together ever since the store opened. To take the sock class, you need to be experienced enough to be able to knit and purl (as in ribbing), increase, and decrease. I teach the basics with my mini-sock pattern on double-point needles (which I prefer). After you learn the basics, you can try other methods of making socks. Magic loop is very popular, and Nancy can teach you how to move on to that method. I personally prefer working on double-point needles.

I just got back from Stitches Midwest in Schaumburg, IL where I purchased my very first pair of Signature Needles. I haven’t yet, but I’ll soon be casting on my first pair of socks with my new needles and can give you a full report. They're on the pricey side but I have heard rave reviews and really wanted to give them a try. Due to the high price, my husband thought they were possibly battery operated or even knit the project for you, but what would the fun be in that?!

I'm also known as “chief volunteer” at Knitted Together. Nancy and I met through knitting at our church in late 2000 and we have been great friends ever since. I was so excited when Nancy and Tim decided to open Knitted Together. I live less than a mile from the shop and I'm frequently at the shop knitting. When Nancy gets busy with customers, I’ll pitch in to wind yarn and help customers. I eventually learned how to work the cash register so if you're in the shop and someone is checking you out that's not the most proficient on the register, it’s probably me (hey, a little grace, please!).

I most recently became known as “sock maniac” when I attended Stitches Midwest with five of my knitting friends. My friend, Marsha's fancy phone actually announces the caller, so while at Stitches, Marsha changed my name in her phone so it would say “sock maniac” when I called. This was my tenth time to attend Stitches, and as usual I loved it. It's the most fabulous get away for a knitter. This year almost all of my "market" purchases were sock related. I think it's my duty to try new sock yarns, especially since I have also been called the “sock maven”. I love socks for their portability, and of course, all the fabulous sock yarns that are on the market. I have a sock bag that I always take with me wherever I go that contains a basic sock in progress. I knit other things than socks though. I'm currently working on a man’s sweater for a friend, a baby blanket for my niece, a bag, three other sweaters for myself, and more WIPs than I dare mention.

This year we started the “KT-Socker Club” at Knitted Together where we are knitting patterned socks. If you're curious, ask Nancy about it or check the Knitted Together Events Page (listed as K-tog #2 on Tuesdays each month). Maybe I’ll save details for that in another guest blog spot if Nancy invites me to blog again.

Nancy frequently closes her blog with a recipe. I’m going to share my favorite cookie recipe. I have made this recipe for years. They are simply delicious cookies as the name implies and the recipe makes more than enough to share! I make them for my boss (of 30 years) for his birthday ever year.

Delicious Cookies (Note: recipe was corrected at 1:05 PM on 9/19/09)

• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup margarine
• 1 cup oil
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 tsp. soda
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. cream of tarter
• 4 cups flour
• 1 cup oats
• 1 cup Rice Krispies
• 16 ounces chocolate chips

Cream sugars and shortening. Add egg, vanilla, salt, soda and cream of tarter. Mix well. Add flour. Blend in oats, Rice Krispies, and chocolate chips. Drop by teaspoon onto cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes.

Enjoy!
Rose, RosieL, etc.