Thursday, July 17, 2008

Never Fear

I am not going to forsake quilting for knitting! I do have a couple of small hand quilting projects with me - that is if I find any spare time! (Yes, I'm teaching a course here in Missoula - for Korean primary school English teachers. That's the University of Montana in the photo above.) Below is a photo of the first slipper. I'm a little nervous it might be a wee bit small because I am knitting so tightly. I'm sure I'll find someone it will fit! If you read Swedish, the pattern is available here for free (Gäst tofflor, grattis beskrivning 5-29). If not, I believe Swedish Yarn in North Carolina sells an English translation (Raggi - the name of the Järbo yarn - pattern 5-29). It's super easy and quick and is a great getting-started pattern, I think. I'm using Laines Du Nord Korall Fancy yarn #558. (Here it is on sale - I haven't used this website, though.) I'm going to need a little more than the two skeins (100g) that the pattern suggests.

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Caught a Bug in Maine

Caught the knitting bug again during my quick visit to my mom's in Maine last week. (Unfortunately, I forgot to take photos of the pillows I made or the chairs I recovered - hopefully I can do that in August when I stop by to drop off/pick up luggage on my way back to Finland.) I can now knit on four needles, decrease, and join yarn! Since she couldn't join me in Montana, my mom recommended this site for any questions I might have - I thought it might be useful for others. Working on a very cute pair of slippers - will post photos once I have the internet all sorted out here.

In the meantime, here are a few photos of my Maine travels:




Thursday, July 10, 2008

Not MIA, just on the road

Lest anyone be concerned about my infrequent posting, I am in the US for seven weeks, busy visiting family and teaching in a summer program. This is my rough itinerary, in case you're curious, but I'll be flying, not driving! As much as I love seeing the Gulf of Bothnia in Vaasa, nothing quite tastes or sounds like the Atlantic. I'm looking forward to my first visit to Montana, too!

What have I been up to in terms of craftiness? Well, I did made tons of jam before leaving Vaasa. (Some of the ingredients came out of the freezer from last summer's crop!)

I have also finished up my Summer Four Seasons Swap quilt, which will be on its way back over the Atlantic by the weekend. (I really hoped to get it done before I left to save on postage!) The fish are needle-turned and there's a combination of machine quilting and hand-quilting with perle cotton. I tried prairie points for the first time here, too.

Finally, I'm working on some new couch pillows for my mom at the moment. Here are some of the fabrics - more photos to come!