midnight and fire

A beautiful day today but cool. Brilliant blue skies and when the wind drops you can feel the merest hint of warmth in the sun.
A full week we have had what with the Cumbria trip to a case conference on mum and before that a day visiting birthday folks:)

Tomorrow we are heading towards Wales to see good friends. I've packed the knitting and the gifts and later will pack the clothes we need. After all the knitting is the most important item.

Before packing up the knitting I thought you would like to see the current state of play.
The green socks are hanging about to be completed. I haven't knit on the for a week as I was giving my hands a rest from the Knitpicks harmony needles. I am more than ever convinced that the nickel join is irritating the rash. I will hopefully finish the second sock this weekend with the help of cotton gloves. Not sure if you can see but the oak leaf is starting to bud.
Then the midnight's moonlight shawl has grown, a lot.

Picture doesn't really show but I am up to 220 stitches now. I'm planning on edging this with beads.
Following on we have the Beltaine fire shawl.

This suffered a slight hiccup as I don't have enough of the first yarn. I did find some on rav and the very kind raveller agreed to sell it to me. It is on its way as we speak. I have joined in the second colour I showed earlier and it is looking good. My plan is to use some of the second colour but still with the orange twisted sister. Once the new yarn arrives I'll continue alternating. This too will (hopefully) have a beaded edge.
You will notice the needles on this aren't the harmonies. Cae offered me the use of her Denise needles to see if they helped. They only have plastic joins so no irritation. I am able to use these with no gloves. Much better.
The rash is almost gone on my body but still present and a little sore on my feet and hands. I've come to the conclusion that the 2 rashes were different. The body one I think was a virus, the hands/feet not. I am of the opinion that some dye from a yarn has irritated me. A purchased one I'm guessing as all my friends rinse well as do I.

Socks, snow and family

This has been a roller coaster of a weekend. Yesterday we went up to Cumbria. Several reasons, to visit a friend or two and to see Mr Mog's mum.
The first parts went fine we had lunch and much sociability with Cae and Graham. Didn't want to leave as the log burning stove was so cosy. We had a magical journey up to Cumbria as everywhere was covered in snow. I'll upload pictures tomorrow, too tired tonight.
From Cae we journeyed down to Aspatria to see an old friend who we haven't seen for a few months. Had a great evening, lots of laughter and general enjoying being there.
This morning we had a cuppa then decided to leave breakfast til we had seen mum.
You can imagine our horror and upset to find her sitting between 2 rooms unable to move and extremely confused. To cut a long story short we got the emergency doctor and they have taken her into hospital for tests and care. We arrived at 10am and although doctor came as soon as possible it was still after 11 when she arrived. We then had to wait for an ambulance. We were told it could be 4 hours. We didn't want to take her in the car as we weren't sure if she had damaged her hip. Ambulance wasn't that long but it was still nearly 2 when we went over to the hospital. On the way we grabbed a quick sandwich as both of us were flagging.
We left the hospital around 3 to come home in a blizzard. It snowed all the way home. We have to wait to see what doctors say about mum and what options there are for care etc.
Mr Mog is very upset as you can imagine, in fact we both are. Mum is 90 in May so not a spring chicken and any fall, illness isn't easy to cope with.
I've uploaded a picture of my latest socks for the hospice appeal. I thought it would add a little colour

700th post, more socks, total for January + WIP

This is my 700th post according to blogger. Didn't realise I'd done so many.
This is the final pair of socks for January. The colour reminds me of winter skies and spring flowers.
Then a close up of the heel, just because.

That makes my total for YOSH this month 4 pairs of socks, 1 hat and 1 calorimetry. Not bad going is it?
Especially if you think I have done other knitting such as Mr Mog's socks and then the following WIPs (Works in progress)

shawl in mohair boucle plus a thread of fine mohair.

close up. Doesn't it look warm? It also feels it. I'm running short of the mohair boucle so I need to find some more or dye some.

This is current progress on the socks using the yarn I swapped Laal Bear for. Double knit.
This is also a sock in progress for YOSH. The yarns were too fine so I've put them together. I think they look good do you?
Next post will be my poem for Imbolc and the 4th annual poetry for Brigid in the blogosphere poetry slam. Are you taking part? I love following peoples links to new poetry. Its wonderful that so many take part in it.

Knitting allergy:( + finished socks etc

There has been knitting chez Moggies and not just socks.
I wanted to make another calorimetry for a friends daughter and ended up making two as you do.

Both in Adriafil quarzo trends, less than 1 x 50gm ball for the two. 1 to fit a 4year old, the other to fit an adult.
They brighten up the day don't they?
Then I knit Mr Mog a pair of socks using the yarn that Laal Bear dyed for him as part of his Yule gift.
I added a contrast red/yellow yarn for heels and toe on 1 sock. Mr Mog doesn't like matching socks so one toe was done in the yellow/orange and one in the contrast yarn. He loves them and they fit him. What more can you ask of a knitted item?
Now for the other part of my posting. I am allergic to the nickel part of my knitpicks harmony needles:( My hands are manky and I've narrowed it down to the needles. Now I am not going to give up my knitting, it serves me well as a meditational aid and as therapy for arthritic/rheumatic joints. I am not going to give up my knitpicks either as they make the knitting much easier. But saying all that I can't go on with my hands affected so much. I've read that other people with this reaction paint the nickel with clear nail varnish to stop it. That is what I'm going to try so wish me luck.
The sun is fabulous today and we had a walk in our local park to see if it was waking up. As you can see from these pictures, spring is in the air.

there were flowers on show

in odd corners under trees.
There were squirrels
and buds on trees, what more could I ask?

Dyeing results and more socks for YOSH

The results of the dyeing and I am so so pleased with how the yarn has taken the colour.
Firstly this is Alpaca merino double knit yarn from Bluefaced. I wanted something cheery to make socks for me and I think I have succeeded don't you?
I used Cerulean Blue,acid yellow,brilliant orange and buttercup yellow all Procion MX dyes.
Then another view of the same yarn
This next yarn is Knitpicks bare 100% superwash DK
and for this I used Raspberry, brilliant emerald, cerulean blue procion. I deliberately left some white parts for contrast.

Next we have some double knit merino that Artis Anne gave me. This is most definitely my favourite:)

I used Kemtex kenanthrol dyes in jade,vivid violet and electric blue. What do you think?

Last one is the Colinette Isis I over dyed and it looks much better now. I used the same 3 colours as the above yarn but just look at the difference. Partly the fact is is over dyed but also that I forgot it was cotton mix.

lovely muted shades though.
Finally the latest pair of socks for YOSH.
A mix of Hipknits donated by Roobeedoo together with a strand of purple marl 4ply. I think they go together well don't you?
Weather here is mixed. We have just had heavy hail that has left the roads white. This after freezing rain most of the day. Spring is on its way though.

Sock knitting may have become easier:)

Isn't this lovely? A real old lady and in excellent condition.

KOSH 1st hat and socks

1st hospice socks for this year are on the needles and in the red ones case almost off.

I dyed the red yarn for the solid KAL and I'm sadly much behind. They are DK BFL and I love the colour. I decided to have these as January socks because the colour reminds me that this time of year we are longing for the warmth and the sun.
Then these socks I think the yarn is poshyarns. Very silky to the touch and a great double knit. Easy on the hands to knit which helps. The colour of these is perfect for the colour of the sky at dawn with the faint patches of pink as the sun rises.
Then we have the first hat for the year:). This is the aran I dyed and to me is a great colour for the light on snowy ground. Pattern is an adapted one to take advantage of using magic loop technique.
Don't you think Lydia wears it well?
Well there you go the start of my years hospice knitting. We are off.

Poets Calendar for hospice knitting/dyeing inspiration

The post by Leanne at Somerset Seasons today was a reminder that I was going to post the poem by Henry Longfellow called Poet's Calendar. I thought it a great idea for inspiration on my hospice lunar year of socks and hats. Think I need an abbreviation for that don't you? How about YOSH?
Without further ado

The Poet's Calendar

JANUARY
Janus am I; oldest of potentates;
Forward I look, and backward, and below
I count, as god of avenues and gates,
The years that through my portals come and go.

I block the roads, and drift the fields with snow;
I chase the wild-fowl from the frozen fen;
My frosts congeal the rivers in their flow,
My fires light up the hearths and hearts of men.


FEBRUARY

I am lustration, and the sea is mine!
I wash the sands and headlands with my tide;
My brow is crowned with branches of the pine;
Before my chariot-wheels the fishes glide.
By me all things unclean are purified,
By me the souls of men washed white again;
E'en the unlovely tombs of those who died
Without a dirge, I cleanse from every stain.


MARCH

I Martius am! Once first, and now the third!
To lead the Year was my appointed place;
A mortal dispossessed me by a word,
And set there Janus with the double face.
Hence I make war on all the human race;
I shake the cities with my hurricanes;
I flood the rivers and their banks efface,
And drown the farms and hamlets with my rains.


APRIL

I open wide the portals of the Spring
To welcome the procession of the flowers,
With their gay banners, and the birds that sing
Their song of songs from their aerial towers.
I soften with my sunshine and my showers
The heart of earth; with thoughts of love I glide
Into the hearts of men; and with the Hours
Upon the Bull with wreathed horns I ride.


MAY

Hark! The sea-faring wild-fowl loud proclaim
My coming, and the swarming of the bees.
These are my heralds, and behold! my name
Is written in blossoms on the hawthorn-trees.
I tell the mariner when to sail the seas;
I waft o'er all the land from far away
The breath and bloom of the Hesperides,
My birthplace. I am Maia. I am May.


JUNE

Mine is the Month of Roses; yes, and mine
The Month of Marriages! All pleasant sights
And scents, the fragrance of the blossoming vine,
The foliage of the valleys and the heights.
Mine are the longest days, the loveliest nights;
The mower's scythe makes music to my ear;
I am the mother of all dear delights;
I am the fairest daughter of the year.


JULY

My emblem is the Lion, and I breathe
The breath of Libyan deserts o'er the land;
My sickle as a sabre I unsheathe,
And bent before me the pale harvests stand.
The lakes and rivers shrink at my command,
And there is thirst and fever in the air;
The sky is changed to brass, the earth to sand;
I am the Emperor whose name I bear.


AUGUST

The Emperor Octavian, called the August,
I being his favorite, bestowed his name
Upon me, and I hold it still in trust,
In memory of him and of his fame.
I am the Virgin, and my vestal flame
Burns less intensely than the Lion's rage;
Sheaves are my only garlands, and I claim
The golden Harvests as my heritage.


SEPTEMBER

I bear the Scales, where hang in equipoise
The night and day; and when unto my lips
I put my trumpet, with its stress and noise
Fly the white clouds like tattered sails of ships;
The tree-tops lash the air with sounding whips;
Southward the clamorous sea-fowl wing their flight;
The hedges are all red with haws and hips,
The Hunter's Moon reigns empress of the night.


OCTOBER

My ornaments are fruits; my garments leaves,
Woven like cloth of gold, and crimson dyed;
I do not boast the harvesting of sheaves,
O'er orchards and o'er vineyards I preside.
Though on the frigid Scorpion I ride,
The dreamy air is full, and overflows
With tender memories of the summer-tide,
And mingled voices of the doves and crows.

NOVEMBER

The Centaur, Sagittarius, am I,
Born of Ixion's and the cloud's embrace;
With sounding hoofs across the earth I fly,
A steed Thessalian with a human face.
Sharp winds the arrows are with which I chase
The leaves, half dead already with affright;
I shroud myself in gloom; and to the race
Of mortals bring nor comfort nor delight.


DECEMBER

Riding upon the Goat, with snow-white hair,
I come, the last of all. This crown of mine
Is of the holly; in my hand I bear
The thyrsus, tipped with fragrant cones of pine.
I celebrate the birth of the Divine,
And the return of the Saturnian reign;--
My songs are carols sung at every shrine.
Proclaiming "Peace on earth, good will to men."

Hospice year of # 3 will be socks and hats Yarn needed please.

I've come to a decision. The hospice "year of " for this year will be socks and hats. I decided they would do most good for hospice patients and families. Scarves are all very well as are fingerless gloves but what a person needs most to keep warm is socks and scarves.
My aim will be 1 pair of socks and 1 hat for each of the 13 moons of the year. I am hoping that like last year it will be much more.
This will be my third year of hospice knitting. First year was shawls, last year was socks. Getting to be quite a habit isn't it?
As always if anyone wants to donate yarn I'd be thrilled. Preferably worsted, double knit or thicker please due to my hand problems with sock yarn.
I've also had a very generous donation from Ruth Woolly Wormhead who has donated a copy of wee woolly toppers her hat book. Thank you Ruth.
My first pair of socks for January's moon are on the needles.
Watch this space.

Felicitations for the new year, current knitting and SP gift

Happy new year to all, may the forthcoming days bring much joy amongst the gloom.
All the forecasts are of depression,credit crunch and so forth but amongst that there is much to enjoy and be grateful for. Good friends, good health hopefully for all and joy to be taken when and where we find it.
With that in mind look at what the postman brought me on the last day of the year. A gift from my SP:))
Fabulous new book that I'd been eyeing on amazon but decided I couldn't get what with Yule gifts and all.
Mountain colors bearfoot yarn in my kind of colours:) I love bearfoot, I've knit with it before and it isn't too fine for the current state of my hands. It is almost DK I think? A delightful card that my SP got from Stitches. Thank you SP for the lovely gifts.
Then I've been doing some knitting this past week. This is the red I dyed to make socks for the Rav solid socks KAL. Sadly it is a little fine so I'm struggling to knit it. I haven't finished for December but hey ho. I will get them done in due course. I decided they needed a little patterning as they were semi solid and to me that was boring:)

I do love variegated yarns they always make me smile and are cheery somehow to knit with.

These definitely made me smile:) ArtisAnne brought the yarn as a gift when she came to stay a few days ago. Hand dyed by her the yarn is alpaca nylon and yummy. Feels like silk to knit and these socks were made in just over 2 days. Not bad considering we had visitors and neither Anne nor I knit all the time. We went to see the Laal Bears on Monday and had the most tasty lunch there. Sadly I wasn't too well so we had to leave a little early but I was glad we went. Anne and Tony left on Tuesday and it seemed oddly flat afterwards, we had such fun.
I thought I'd better start another project and it is socks again:)
This is the yarn that Ursula gave me for Yule. Isn't it gorgeous? I'm actually half way down the foot now. I've done the heel in a solid yarn that she gave me to compliment the variegated and it does. DK so easier to knit. I am sorry that I can't enjoy sock yarn or 4ply at the moment but comfort my self with the fact I can still knit with thicker yarns.

Yesterday was dreadful, freezing fog all day and dark most of the day. We went to pick up a new laptop for Mr Mog at T£sco. I don't like the firm at all but they did have the most reasonable laptop with a good price so it had to be. Mr Mog is very pleased with it and indeed so am I. So speedy and good to use. It is far easier than this PC and added advantage I could blog in bed on bad days:) Mr Mog has graciously said I can use it:)
Today is glorious though extremely cold. We have been up to the promenade for a very short walk, far too cold for me to stay out long but delightful in a perverse sort of way. Certainly makes you appreciate the warm house when you come back in.
We took several pictures but I love this one. Can you see all the frost on the rocks?
I am thinking of trying to do a photo a day for this year. We will see how long that lasts.
I don't make resolutions per se but normally do a little hand made book with things I would like to achieve in the coming year.
Watch this space next December to see how many happened.

Festive fun to all and good health as well

A little post today to wish you all a happy festive season, whatever you celebrate:)
As we are now (just) past the shortest day and on our way towards spring I thought a few of Mr Mog's winter photos may be appropriate.

I love the blue colour that this picture has. It brings a touch of fantasy in a winter landscape and is completely un retouched.
Berries are always much in demand for our feathered family.
This picture was a reminder that amongst the bare trees there is still a touch of green. I'll interrupt here to say that whilst posting I can hear much chattering. I have my magpies on the roof, least 4 and I think there is a fifth flying around:)
Doesn't this picture draw you in? I (Amber) took this a couple of years ago at the bottom of Castle Howe near Keswick, very magical and although they can't be seen in the photo there were several deer there. It was just taken on my mobile phone through the car window as I didn't want to disturb the deer.
This was a winter haiku I did for a swap a few years ago using one of my photos.

Then a blog post wouldn't seem right without socks would it?
These are made in double knit blue faced Leicester that I dyed a few weeks ago. They are going to be a new year prize for someone on the blog.
Just need to come up with a contest now:)
Thank you for reading and commenting on my blog this past year and for every one's help,support and encouragement during my hospice year of socks.
Don't forget next years project is to be hats, scarves and fingerless gloves.
I've already had donations including the fabulous book Wee Woolly toppers donated by Woolly Wormhead.
It has been great to meet up with so many of you and put faces to names. Here's to more of that in the new year.

Knitting and dyeing results, femme update

I have been both knitting and dyeing.
The sock you see below is a mixture .Colinette jitterbug given to me by Artis Anne and Great Adirondack Yarn Co soxie.
I am not able to knit with 4 ply at the moment as my hands can't feel the yarn so a mix of 2 = DK = usable.

I love the rich colour mix and it makes a very warm sock.
The beauty of DK is that it knits up quickly as well.
Then I did some dyeing and with this there was some success and a failure.
Here they all are on the washing line, mainly bright but with one dour exception.
This was supposed to be 100% wool aran. I dyed it with vivid lime, deep purple and a little charcoal. It stunk to high heaven while being soaked prior to dyeing and even worse when it was in the dye pot. Imagine perming solution mixed with sulphur and manure, that was a little like the smell chez moggies. The only reason there is some colour in it(the purple blotches) is that I added some procion powder to the pot. The dyes I used were concentrated as you can see from the other skeins. This yarn STILL stinks even though it is now dry. What a waste of 300gm:(

This is 100% wool DK from a charity shop.50gms I have a few balls of this. The Laal Bear brought her windmill skein for a visit and we skeined 2 balls to try it out. This is Cerulean blue and vivid lime with a tiny amount of charcoal. I love this colourway.
This is the other 50gm dyed bright orange, vivid emerald and charcoal. So zingy and not enough for a pair of socks unfortunately. This colourway will be done again:)
100% BFL DK, cerulean blue and scarlet. weaker solution as I wanted a more muted colourway. 100gms so enough for socks.
Also BFL DK, acid lemon, buttercup yellow and cerulean blue. Vibrant in a muted sort of way:)
The 5 together. The aran looks a little better here but still disappointing. Someone suggested it may have been bleached with hydrogen peroxide to whiten it. This would account for both the smell and the inability to take dye.
I've had a couple of emails about the yule femmes. If you check out my Nov 19th post you will see them all. The ones left waiting for new homes are:-
Serephina
Artemesia
Kualina
Mara
mayamei