A Cold Heart by Jonathan Kellerman

Ok I usually don't read books written by men, because they don't think like I do. They don't write like I think. I was in the mood the other day for a good whodunit. So I was browsing through all of the True Crime stories, one of my favorite kind of reads. I didn't find anything that impressed me. But I still was in the mood for a Good whodonit, so I kept looking around. I stumbled onto a book called A Cold Heart by Jonathan Kellerman, and decided to give it a go. Boy am I glad that I did. This book grabbed my attention and Would NOT let go!!! Yes this book was for sure a page turner!!! This book had a surprising villain, and an amazing Hero!!! So if you are ever in the mood for a Great whodunit. I would say give this book a good look!!

Hand Spun Yarn

I am finally getting it, I think. I am so very happy with the way this yarn turned out. Not 1 problem with my wheel while spinning this yarn. Everything flowed smooth as silk. I think that I am developing a good relationship with my wheel. This is the roving that I dyed with RIT dye the colors scarlet, and golden yellow. The colors reminded me of flames. I got 236 yards of DK weight yarn. That is 14 WPI.

Hand Dyed Roving

I hand dyed this roving using Rit dye in the colors Mauve, Sunshine Orange, and Royal Blue. I see Beautiful shades of Mauve, from light to dark.The orange color ranges from dark orange to light yellow. The Royal Blue runs from deep dark blue to a light blue, then turns green. I am more then happy with the way this roving turned out. I was afraid that it might turn to a muddy color. But it did not, it turned out perfect. I am having so much fun, and learning so much about color dying these rovings. I am pretty excited about getting this on my wheel!!!

Casey

My Beautiful Granddaughter Casey Rae

Astrid Folk Mittens

I have designed another Folk Mitten. I call this one Astrid. Astrid is a Scandinavian name that means fair, Beautiful Goddess. This pattern is knit from the cuff upwards. If you are familiar with color work stranded knitting, this pattern will be easy for you. If you are new to color work this pattern will be a nice challenge for you. This mitten is not lined, but with two color knitting, and worsted weight wool, this is a very warm mitten, with an extra long cuff. This mitten measures 8 inches around and is 11 1/4 inches long. This pattern can be found at
http://www.freewebs.com/folkmittens/

Hand Dyed Roving

I hand dyed this roving with liquid Scarlet colored RIT dye, and powdered Golden Yellow RIT dye. When I look at this roving I see flames!! The colors are reds, yellows, and oranges. I will probably get this on my wheel this weekend!!

Pink and Purple Handspun Yarn

This is the yarn that I spun from my purple and pink roving. I cabled this yarn. It is 10 WPI, and 106 yards. I had a problem while I was plying this yarn. My drive band broke on my wheel. I made another one, then I had a tuff time getting my tension adjusted right. But all in all I am happy with this yarn, and will use it in one of my mitten designs. :)

Candy Bar Fudge

This has got to be the Easiest, Creamiest, Quickest Fudge that I have ever made, and I for sure will make it again. This is my from now on Favorite Fudge recipe!!!

Candy Bar Fudge

1 ( 12 ounce ) package semisweet chocolate chips2 ( 3.7 ounce ) Snickers candy bars, chopped1 can Pillsbury Creamy Supreme Milk Chocolate Frosting

Line an 8-inch square pan with foil, extending foil over edges. Spray lightly with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.

Melt chips in medium saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. OR, microwave chips in medium size microwave-safe bowl on HIGH for 1 to 2 minutes, or until chips are melted, stirring occasionally.

Reserve 2 tablespoons of the chopped candy bars. Add frosting and remaining candy bars. Blend well.

Spread in sprayed foil-lined pan. Sprinkle with reserved 2 tablespoons of the chopped candy bars. Refrigerate for 1 hour, or until firm.

Remove fudge from pan by lifting foil. Remove foil from fudge. Cut into squares. Makes 36 squares

Slippers

I wear slippers everyday in the winter in South Dakota. It is pretty cold here, from December until into March. So I need a few pair of slippers every year. I like quick, and easy slipper patterns. But the slippers have to be warm also. I have found a new favorite slipper pattern for me. I used the Bernat Basic Slippers for the Family pattern. The pattern calls for Chunky yarn, but I did not have any chunky yarn. So I used Worsted weight yarn, and the pattern worked up just fine. For my slippers I used Wool-Ease the color Spring Green, for my Granddaughters slippers, I used her favorite color yarn Pink Camo from Red Heart. Now we will both have warm, and cozy toes this winter :)

Hand Dyed Pink and Purple Roving

I hand dyed this roving yesterday. I used purple Rit dye, and Hot fuchsia Jacquard acid dye. I think that the purple Rit dye took over a lot this time. The color in this roving goes from dark purple, to light purple. And from dark pink to light pink. I will have this on my wheel later today. I am looking forward to seeing it spun up!!!

Hand Spun Purple Yarn

I spun worsted weight yarn again. I am so very happy!!! This yarn is 10 WPI, so it is worsted weight, and Their are 98 yards of it. I will be dying more roving today. Spinning is sooo very much Fun!

Starfish Dishcloth

Can you tell that I like this dishcloth??? It is sooo very easy, and I think so very cute. It is fun to see it knit up in different colors. I used size 7 needles and Peaches & Creme cotton in the colors Sea Mist, and Gumdrops. then I tried a self striping cotton. Sugar n Cream Holiday Stripes. I love the way these cloths turned out. The pattern can be found at Sew Funky http://sew-funky.blogspot.com/2008/06/starfish-cloth.html

My Purple Roving

Hip, Hip, Hurray!!!! I will be spinning wool today!!! I dyed this roving purple yesterday, using RIT dye. This is my first time using RIT dye, and I like it!!!

Hand Spun Yarn

I am so very excited today. I spun this yarn yesterday. It is 2 ply worsted weight yarn!! I was always spinning my yarn to thin. When I wanted my yarn to be worsted weight. I had to cable ply the yarn. This yarn is 2 ply, 10 WPI, and 116 yards! I am a happy girl!! I did not think that I would ever figure out how to spin worsted weight yarn with only 2 singles. I know I need more practice. But I am soooo happy with the way that this yarn turned out. I hand dyed Merino roving with Turquoise dye, which gave me this color!! :)

yarns to DYE for by Kathleen Taylor

I received my copy of Yarn to DYE for by Kathleen Taylor http://kathleen-dakotadreams.blogspot.com/ yesterday in the mail. Their are 3 sections in this book. Kathleen tells you what materials you will need to dye Self-Patterning yarns, and shows you exactly how to do it. There are 22 projects in this book from, hats, and mittens to socks, and a vest. She tells how to heat set your yarn in the Microwave, or in a steamer. I especially was interested in this part of the book, because I also like to heat set my dyed yarns and roving in the microwave. I have a separate microwave that I use just for heat setting yarns, and roving. I was also happy to learn that you can use Rit dye to dye yarns. I have never tried Rit dye before. You can be sure the next time I go to a department store I will be checking out the Rit Dye section!!! The book is illustrated nicely, and has beautiful color pictures. I am sure that I will use this book often when I am dying my yarns.

Zig To The Zag Socks

I finished another pair of socks! I Love this pattern. It is easy without being boring. The pattern for this sock can be found at http://mandiknits.com/patterns/ I used DPN for this pattern.
I used Knit Picks Essential yarn, in the color Meadow Multi. I like the way that this yarn stripes. It reminds me of an animal stripe.

Hand Dyed Roving

I dyed this roving yesterday. I used Jacquard dye the color Turqoise. I mixed it to be a very dark turqoise. I will have this on the wheel this afternoon!!

Peace Folk Mitten

I have designed another Beautiful Folk Mitten pattern. This pattern is knit in color work with worsted weight wool, making it a very warm mitten. Keeping the winter cold, and wind from your hands. It has a very pretty pattern on the front of the mitten, and the word Peace on the palm side of the mitten. This mitten has two thumb charts, so that the word peace shows up correctly. A perfect addition to your winter wardrobe!!! I used Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Yarn in the color Sapphire Heather, and my very own hand dyed, hand spun yarn, with beautiful shades of green.
This pattern is available at http://www.freewebs.com/folkmittens

Handspun Yarn

I have 2 plyed this yarn, and got 17 WPI, so this is sport weight yarn. When I take a close look at the yarn, I see lots of pink, and orange with just a hint of yellow, or maybe it is lime green. What ever color it is I Love it, all 236 yards of it. I have not decided if I am going to leave it a sport weight yarn. I may 2 ply it again, then it would be cable plyed, and probably worsted weight. I am just going to keep it a while, and see if I use it this way. If I find another pattern for it in worsted weight yarn, then I will spin it to be worsted. For now It will sit on the shelf with my other hand spun yarn.
I don't have anything on my wheel right now. I have to dye some more roving before I spin again. Which is a good thing because I have not had a lot of knitting time lately, because I am always at my wheel. I LOVE my wheel!!

My Daughter's TV Show

http://www.caribouproductions.com/TV_Pilots.html

Want to see my hand dyed Roving

I dyed this roving yesterday. It is Merino top roving. I used acid dyes, in the colors Hot Fuchisa, and Charteuse. After the dying, this is the colors that I got, pink, green, and orange. I LOVE this color combination.Now I just have to decide how I want to spin it. I can hardly wait to get this on my wheel!!!!

Casey is learing to sew!!!

I bought my Beautiful Granddaughter Casey, a child's Singer sewing machine. Today she is learning to sew! Way to go Casey!!!

Hand Spun Yarn

This is my kool aid roving spun up! I used Ice Blue Raspberry Lemonade, and Lemon Lime for the colors in the roving. The blue does not show up very well. Next time I want to use blue, and green, I will add more blue to the mix. I am Happy with the yarn. I got 192 yards of yarn, It is 12 WPI, so it is worsted weight yarn. I cabled the wool, to get worsted weight yarn.

Matt got another bird

Matt went pheasant hunting this afternoon, and got another bird! :)

Ice Blue Rasberry Lemonade

This is 64 Count Merino Top Roving, that I hand dyed this morning with Kool aid. It isn't all the way dry yet, but it is dry enough to take a picture. I used Ice Blue Raspberry Lemonade, and Lemon-Lime. I can hardly wait to get this stuff on my wheel!! I told you that my spinning wheel is taking over my life!!

My Spinning Wheel has taken over my life!!!

I think that my Spinning Wheel has taken over my life!!! YIKES!!! I can't stop spinning. I LOVE to spin!! I bought this roving from a lady in Maine. She called this color Maine Lobster. I cabled this yarn, and love the effect that I got. Their are 10 WPI in this yarn, so it will be considered Bulky yarn. I got 120 yards from this roving.

Hand Dyed, and Hand Spun

First I bought some 64 count Merino Top Ecru/Undyed Roving, then I hand dyed the roving with Jacquard Acid Dye, in the colors Hot Fuchsia, and Turquoise. I got a Beautiful blue, green, pink, and purple roving. Then I hand spun the roving, and 2 plyed, the yarn, which made a very thin yarn. I wanted a thicker yarn, so I cabled the 2 plys that I had. This Beautiful yarn is the result of my work. I got 120 yards, of a very pretty blue, green, pink, and purple yarn!!
I am soooo very happy with my yarn. This link shows you how to cable yarn http://www.spinnyspinny.com/articles/cableyarn.html

Hand Dyed Roving

My roving is dry and Beautiful this morning. I have braided the roving, so that you can get a better look at the colors. I used Jacquard Acid dyes to dye this roving. The colors that I choose for this piece are Turquoise, and Hot Fuchsia. I alternated stripes when I was dying the roving, Turquoise, then Fuchsia, and continued over the whole roving like that. I used 64 count Merino Top roving, that started out as Ecru undyed. This roving is sooooooo very, very soft. I love the softness of this roving. The end result for coloring that I got looks like cotton candy, and is a soft and fluffy as cotton candy. This roving is blue, green, purple, and pink. I can hardly wait to get this on my wheel!!!!!!

Hand dying roving

First of all let me tell you that hand dying roving is messy!!! I have practically dyed my whole kitchen this color!! LOLThe roving is on my clothes line right now drying. I will braid it up and show you the finished product as soon as it is dry. I have no idea how long it takes roving to dry!!!

Hand spun yarn

I spun this yarn form 100% Soft Corriedale Roving, in the Colorway Grapevines. It was 3.8 oz that I bought from a lady in Maine. This is 2 plyed, and came out to 220 yards. I love the way this yarn looks and feels. I have no idea yet what I will knit with this Beautiful yarn.

Casey

My Beautiful granddaughter Casey is having a tea Party at Grandma's house. She is my Sweetheart, and my Sunshine. The little bear that she is having the Tea Party with, is Harry the Bear. I knit him for her a year or 2 ago, and she still drags him around. Casey stayed with me this weekend, and we had a wonderful time!!

Love Folk Mitten

I have designed another Fair Isle Folk mitten. I named this Folk Mitten Love, because the word Love is on the palm of the mitten. This pattern has two thumb charts because the thumb is a little bit different on each hand, because of the lettering. The yarn that I used for this mitten is Knit Picks Wool of the Andes, in the colors Fairy Tale,( purple) and Avocado(green). I really love this color combination. the contrast between the two colors really stands out. Because of the way Fair Isle Mittens are knit, this will be a very warm mitten. This pattern can be found at Folk Mittens

Matt got a Bird

Matt went pheasant hunting this evening. He got a bird. Guess what is for supper at our house tomorrow night!

Soap

My Dear, Dear knitting friend Ariel, (some times I refer to her as my Knitting angel, because she has answered so many, many of my knitting questions.) introduced my to soaping last year, or maybe the year before last I don't remember for sure. Any way this is melt and pour soap, so very easy. So many colors and scents can be added to the soap. And a little bar of soap is all ways a nice little add in, to any gift. I usually wrap my soap in hand made paper, that I buy at craft stores. Well today it was time to wrap my soap, and I was out of hand made paper, so I decided to wrap my soap with ribbon instead. I think that my soap is soooo much prettier wrapped in ribbon, that I may continue to wrap with ribbon. What do you think?

My New Spinning Wheel!!!

My new Spinning Wheel came yesterday!!! It is a Kromski Minstrel. It is a very Beautiful spinning wheel. Now I am going to have to teach myself how to use it. I started spinning with a drop spindle, then I bought a kick wheel, after I learned to spin with my spindles, I decided that it was time to get a wheel. I am so very glad that I did. I am sure that I will spend most of the day today getting acquainted with my wheel.

Plain Truth a novel by Jodi Picoult

Plain Truth a novel by Jodi Picoult is one of the most amazing books that I have ever read. It is a story about an Amish girl, in Lancaster County, that had a baby out of wedlock. The baby did not survive. This is an exciting, suspenseful read. You do not find out how the baby really died until the 2nd to the last page of the book. but don't you dare turn to that page to find out how, or why the baby dies. It would ruin the story for you!! Jodi is an Amazing storyteller, and I plan on reading many more of her books. I must say that she is my very Favorite author!!!

I had an Elvis incident today

I had an Elvis incident today. My sister, my daughter and I went to this huge Autumn Festival craft show. There was crafts, food and entertainment there. It costs 6 bucks to get into the place and finding a parking space is tuff. Any way we get into the place pay our $6.00, and start looking around as to where we will start shopping. There are 2 separate areas to shop in. So we pick the one farthest away from us, and decide we will work our way back to the entrance area. We get into the part where we want to shop. I hear singing. Some one is singing an ELVIS song. I am so very excited and delighted. I yell out someone is singing Elvis. So I start heading toward the sound of the music. It is way in the back of the building. This place is just packed. the guy really, really sounds like Elvis. I am so very excited to get a look at this guy. In my minds eye, I am seeing a very handsome, very cool, very suave Las Vegas style Elvis. So I head to the back of the building where I am hoping this way cool Elvis impersonator is. I start to jog a bit, with my sister and daughter trailing behind me trying to keep up. I am shoving ladies with babies , and strollers out of my way. I am pushing people in wheel chairs out of my way. Because you see I am looking for Elvis. I get all the way to the entertainment area, in the back of the building, and to my complete and total surprise, their is a big, fat balding,gray haired guy with a beard and a cowboy hat singing an Elvis song. You can not believe how disappointed I am. I just could not believe that a man could sound so much like Elvis, and look like Roy Clark. Needless to say I was disappointed.By the way I really didn't shove any one out of my way. I just added that in there to show you what a hurry I was in to see Elvis. but I did yell some one is singing and Elvis song. That is my story and I am sticking to it!!!

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