Bichons In Berry Sauce

Every summer, my family goes on a vacation to Oceanside, CA. And every summer, I get a new hat for the beach. I really like to wear hats! This summer, I made my own, complete with interchangable ribbons:

All the ribbons are from Joann's. The blue and white striped one was in the scrapbooking section, but I think it will work just fine! The fabric turned out just stiff enough, but not too stiff. I may do some experimenting with starch to get it a wee bit more firm. Up close:

The pattern was well written, and lots of fun to knit. The repeat is easy to memorize, except for at the end of rounds.. I always had to glance at my paper for those. Go knit this! It's cute, easy, and can be color coordinated to all sorts of summer outfits!

Pattern: Rose of Sharon by Angela Hahn
Yarn: Goddess Yarns Carmen 100% Pima Cotton
Needles: Boye circular, size 7

I'm not sure that Abby is a big fan of the cotton... she didn't bug this project at all. I think she's a sheep dog, through and through. She does enjoy picking at the tail on Midwest Moonlight- it's pretty much felted now from all the bichon biting it's endured. I've decided that if I can knit two repeats on that per night, I can have it done in a month (I haven't really wanted to knit that for a few months now). Wish me luck!

Posted by Nancy at 08:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

We got back a few days ago from visiting Cary's family in Maine. We had a really good time with them, and took a few little day trips. I'd never been further up the coast than the Portland area, and there were lots of spiffy things to see. We made frequent stops at the rest-stops, and Abby kept a vigilant watch for us.

I started my Rose of Sharon on the way up, and got a little bit of swatch done.. it's looking super cute. Nice and ruffly on the bottom, and after the initial decreases, the pattern really comes out. I'm almost done, just four or five more rounds left (since I didn't bring my double points with me). I'm going to try and finish that up tomorrow.

While in Maine, we went inside the giant blueberry:

I really wanted to stop in, and Cary's dad was nice enough to entertain my blueberry curiosity. It's a blueberry bakery inside, and had some nice hats (for kids) made out of a pretty blueberry print fabric.

We also went to a beach near Machias called Roque Bluffs. It was very foggy; Cary's mom stayed near the car, and when us kids went down to the beach, she couldn't see us anymore. There were lots of shells there, some with things still living inside.

Our big trip was to Acadia National Park-- we went to a beach, the Thunder Hole, and Cadillac Mountain. This is a view from Sand Beach, where Cary and I stalked some sand crabs.

It took us twelve hours to get home, and now we have to work a bunch to make up for our time off, but it was worth it. Abby did really well the whole trip. When we got home, she was mopey for a day. I think she really missed Cary's little sister, they were good playmates.

Now it's back to knitting. Finished Rose of Sharon, coming up soon!

Posted by Nancy at 09:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Tomorrow we leave for Maine, which meant today was yarn planning and packing day! I have two projects going, the baby blanket and a scarf, but they are both at that point where it's almost more fun to watch the ball of yarn disappear than it is to look at the knitting, because it seems as if the knitting has been stunted. I dutifully wound one more ball of yarn each for the blanket and scarf, but wanted something new.

I can't remember whose blog I saw this on, but I wanted to knit this as soon as I saw it. It's called Rose of Sharon, and I'm thinking it would make a super-cute beach hat, with a nice, bright ribbon woven through.

Posted by Nancy at 11:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)