A look inside "I Can't Believe I'm Loom Knitting"

Lugging this boot cast around has become old. I'm hot, tired and cranky most of the time....and trying hard not to share that (aren't you glad?) And since I will have to wear it for at least 2 more weeks, you won't hear much from me. In the meantime, I'll keep my misery complaining to myself. ;)

However, I thought you might like to see more of what is inside of I Can't Believe I'm Loom Knitting...in case you haven't picked up a copy yet. You can look here, and here on Leisure Arts website.

Finished Friday on Thursday night

OK, I'll admit I'm excited to tell you about my latest loom work. And since tomorrow is all about doctor appointments and miscellaneous errands with MIL, I'm blogging this evening.

This what I spent most of last summer and fall working on - I Can't Believe I'm Loom Knitting.


It has just been released so I'm not sure when you'll find it on Amazon, at Walmart, or in hobby stores. But it should be in time for your 2010 fall/winter loom knitting. Of course if you can't wait, you can order it from Leisure Arts. :)

There are new stitch patterns inside that come together for a sampler afghan.

The stitch patterns are then used to make a variety of items. Here's a little peak.

Child hat

Baby blanket or lap afghan

Adult hat and neck scarf

A lace wrap

A total of 18 projects that includes beginner hats but with other more complicated designs that make this perfect for seasoned loom knitter too.

A lot of love and brain power went into this little publication. Hopefully you'll find it filled with goodies that you can't wait to make!

A little knitting, a lotta reading

It's been raining for 3 days.  Makes me miss Southern California sunshine. Since I can't work in the garden, I've spent time knitting and actually finished something!

 

Hubby is happy since they were custom fit.  And I've managed to impress my MIL who is normally not impressed with me - at.all.  She lived with us for 3 months and never noticed that I knit rather well??  Oops, patience....perhaps she's forgotten (at 86, her memory is fading).

I've made time for another favorite hobby in the last two weeks - reading. And instead of buying, I went to the local library (pat myself on the back).

I drooled over thumbed through A Gathering of Lace for a few days.

 

So many patterns I would love to knit but I've put myself on a yarn diet (more about that another time) and do not have yarn for any of the projects.  Drats.  Book is now on my wish list.

And I've managed to catch up on fiction reading (don't you just love the library!?) 

With hubby away helping to pack his Mother's house in Dallas, I'm hitting the library again tomorrow to see what else I've missed.  Suggestions? 

Time to read is bliss!

Done...

...and shipped to publisher.


Now to catch up on sleep and clean the mess up.

Books for summer

...after I finish a re-read of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince


so that I can fill in the blanks of what is edited out of the movie in July. ;)


Dean Koontz's Relentless
DH and my favorite author



Beth Hensperger's Bread Lover's Bread Machine Cookbook
Looking for the perfect sour dough bread starter/recipe

I think the knitting book for the summer will be Wendy Johnson's Socks from the Toe Up


although that is subject to change on a whim. :)

How about you?

wow...

...it's June! May flew past in a whirl of activity.

The repair of workshop was started...

...and completed.

The pool is up and running. We are thoroughly enjoying that!


Most of the fencing that was burned has been replaced except for a small part. But we have a temporary gate up while we wait for that to be completed.


The wooded area behind our property has some green...

although some of the trees appear to have perished in the fire.

The flowers are blooming...

...thanks to all the rain in May. The flooded living room has been dried and had new carpet pad put in. The furniture is back in it's proper place.

The winter bowling league came to an end in May...

and we pick up summer league next week.

I am managing to get some of my unfinished knitting projects completed (new beret design is shown)...

and start new designs. I even have a summer goal - to use up my stash. Well, most of it anyway.

And June is one month closer to the release of next Harry Potter movie. I've started to re-read the book while I wait for that.


Wow. Everything is starting to feel good again. Monica, you were right! :)

Here is a Barnes and Nobles coupon for you

I got this info in an email. It's good for May 27th only. Just click on the link and enter the code P8R3B8C at checkout.

Attitude adjustment

The aftermath of the fire continues to provide for unwanted entertainment in the form of a dishonest contractor. For the past two weeks, I have alternated between anger, frustration, and depression. Neither attitude bodes well for knitting.

Today, I have to frog and re-knit a project which demonstrates my moods - alternating between loose stitches, then very tight stitches. Great if I want to teach about tension in knitting, but sucks for a finished project. Dang!

What I need is an attitude adjustment. Since we can't spend a lot of money on a great vacation (nor is there time since we have to be here for the honest contractors to work), it comes in the form of an inexpensive treat. Summer knitting for me!




Thanks Denise for the reminder of this book! :)

Tempting

No secret that I love knitting socks. So I'm surprised that I missed knowing about the Socks A La Carte book. (Must have been the move, the settling-in, and the broken ankle.)

I do know that it looks very interesting as the pages flip so that you basically are creating your own pattern. Sounds similar to Sensational Socks books but with pictures as you can create a visual to see how a cuff, body design, heel, etc., will look when put together.

Is it a good book? No idea. But I am tempted to find out!

If you have an opinion, let me know.

Hiding in plain sight

A recent discussion on a Yahoo group about patterns from More Knitting Wheel Fashions made me realize that I'm not as active in groups as maybe I should be. For that I apologize. I'm not intentionally hiding. I just get so immersed in *real life* that I forget to read message boards.

I did try to stay on digest with these groups in the beginning. But there are two groups that generate so much daily email, I couldn't keep up. After a few days of not being able to read the digests, I decided it was pointless to keep trying. So I went to "read online only"; and then I forgot to visit the group. sigh

Anyway, that's my excuse. Good excuse or not, it's honest.

I do manage to check direct email (typically) daily. If you want or need to contact me, email me direct at kathy @ kathynorrisdesigns . com (just remove the spaces). I will respond. Really!!

Offer pending and check this out!

We've put an offer in on a house and are waiting for sellers to respond. (Hey Denise...it has a salt water pool!) I would add a link for you to look at pictures but I don't want to jinx it. Once we hear if they've accepted, I'll show you. ;-)

In the meanwhile, check this out! I'm on Leisure Arts designers page.

More Knitting Wheel Fashions

Knitting content

I found the camera! It was hiding out where I couldn't find it - right beside the computer. Sneaky!

Last week I blogged about inspiration, swatching, designing a new project. This is the progress as of a week ago...



A week later...

Some progress is better then none, eh?

Do you remember my post about buying yarn for the move? Well, I finally got my hands on the box earlier this week. The post office evidently decided to hold my box from Knit Picks hostage until I rescued it. They didn't bother to send a ransom note though. I had to call to find it. Makes me wonder if someone at the local station knits and knows just what goodies a Knit Picks box can hold.


Only a 4 days left before packers and movers arrive. Oh joy! Three fun filled days of watching our possessions being disassembled, wrapped, boxed, and carted away.

Ready for more...

....more yarn, more books, more knitting...

Knitting up a few dishcloths must have been just what I needed as a warm up to start bigger projects. I'm itching to knit a sweater. But this time the sweater won't be for a book or for a sample knit...I've decided I need to have special "ME" projects to work on. Not only will Oklahoma be colder then California (so says DH) but it's good therapy during the move (hehe good excuse for buying yarn.)

I saw this pattern in April's Simply Knitting


and just love it! It's a simple knit with basket weave type of pattern. And since the pattern calls for a bulky weight yarn, it's a quick knit. Perfect project for the days in July while the packers are boxing up household goods, while the movers are taking everything out, and for the days during the drive to Oklahoma City in the RV.

As any good knitter knows, you never have just the right yarn in just the right amount. I had to shop for yarn (oh the agony....not!). Off to Knit Picks website I went. And dropped some Wool of the Andes into my cart.

While shopping for the right yarn for this pattern, I saw Shimmer. Oh. My. Hand dyed baby alpaca and silk blend? I can't resist! Plus I really should have a special project for August house hunting, right? I see a lace shawl in my future. So I ordered two hanks.

Of course special yarn deserves special pattern, right? And since Knit Picks is having a book sale (40% off until August 8th), I ordered Wrapped In Comfort by Alison Jeppson Hyde.


Then I saw the great price on Cat Bordhi's New Pathways for Sock Knitters and snagged a copy since it's on my wish list anyway (and I'm a sucker for a book sale).
This move is starting to look good to me. ;-)

Loom Knitting Pattern Book....

...from Isela Phelps is being released tomorrow. If you haven't ordered your copy yet, you can get it from Amazon or you can get an autographed copy from Loom Knits.

I'll try to have something else knitting related to blog about soon. I hope.

Anyone up to adding a review.....

...to "More Knitting Wheel Fashions" on Amazon? If you've purchased it and have an opinion, please take a moment to post it.

If you haven't gotten your copy yet, you read can reviews here (thanks to Ms. Thompson), and here.

Really, I'm interested in what you have to say.

More Knitting Wheel Fashions...

...is now available from Amazon. There aren't any reviews yet so if you have a moment, please stop by and review it.



It would be lovely if the reviews were positive...hint, hint. hehe

A peek at More Knitting Wheel Fashions

Here is a little peek at the projects you can find in the loom knit pattern booklet I did for Leisure Arts.



Most were snapped the day the box was shipped. Definitely not the professional quality you'll find in the booklet.



And some of the patterns were re-knit in different colors, sizes, etc. from what you see in these pictures.



As you can tell from the above picture, I'm no longer a petite size 5. So you might like to know that the sweater pattern is for up to x-large size (42 in).



You can order the booklet from Decor Accents. Or you can order directly from Leisure Arts. And I'm sure....well, hoping....to see it at JoAnn's and Hobby Lobby someday.

If you buy it, I'd love to hear what you think. And I'll even read the criticisms.

In the news

This Yahoo! article caught my eye yesterday - One in four read no books last year. There are actually people that do not read!??!!? How can anyone resist the call of a new adventure while sitting in a comfortable chair? Or the enjoyment of family time spent reading out loud?

I believe that books are food for the soul. So it surprises me that there are people who do not appreciate the rise in heart rate when entering a book store or library. My house is filled with bookshelves and everyone has at least one book they are in the process of reading. And a Christmas wish list from any of us will always include books.

Some of my favorite reads (other then Harry Potter series):
Dean Koontz is read by the entire family so we purchase his books sight unseen, as a new hardback. Odd Thomas is my favorite character. If you enjoy paranormal/suspense type story lines, I highly recommend this series.

During the twice-a-year Friends of the Library book sale, I always look for a book by an author I've never read before. It's an inexpensive gamble. At the sale this past March, I picked up "A Woman's Place" by Barbara Delinsky. It was OK...not great, not terrible...but good enough to try another title by the same author. So I checked out "Three Wishes" from the library.



I love this one! It's a little romantic (yeah, mush) with a little paranormal, and very uplifting (spiritual). I'll definitely be reading more by this author.

Then there is historical fiction. I fell in love with the writings of Gwen Bristow in high school. Celia Garth and Calico Palace....it just doesn't get much better then those two. Of course I read Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. Epic novel! (And yes, the mini-series was good too.)

Obviously these are just a few of my favorites but there are so many other possibilities. So why do people not read? I don't get it.

Just turn off the boob tube, open a book, and let your imagination loose!

New loom knit patterns and techniques

I know I haven't updated my website in...well, months. Last real update was right after the boxes were shipped to publisher (no firm date as to when pattern book will be sold in stores). And it looks like it will still be another few weeks before I finish getting new patterns together for the site.

In the meanwhile, here's a peek of new patterns that will be available.


If you missed the Pinwheel Purse (below) class last March, you can catch it again later this month at Michael's in Lancaster.


New technique: I spent last spring experimenting with loom knitting and stumbled upon came up with a new technique that allows you to change the gauge of a loom. For example you can use 1 strand of worsted weight on a large gauge loom where you have had to use two strands to get a tight knit.

However, since this technique is a little slower and more complicated then the typical e-wrap or true knit, I haven't been in a hurry to get the tutorial together. Plus there are great knitting looms available in a variety of gauges. But if anyone is interested or can think of a need for it, I'll put the tutorial on my "to-do" list, along with the website update.

Let me know. Seriously, if I don't hear from anyone, I'll just shelve the technique for now 'cause I have a long list as it is!
:-)

Three months to go!

At last....a cover....!!

And a sneak peak at the Order of the Phoenix movie.

P.S. I have been knitting just not blogging about it.