Knitting the Sky--March skies

Q1 of the 2012 Sky Scarf project. 

2012 Sky Scarf: January, February and March skies.

If March went out like a lion, he was a fuzzy little, cuddly kitty cat. Scattered light showers interjected partly cloudy skies throughout the day... steel blue, light blue, light grey and silvery white.

My Best Friend

My very best friend of 15+ years went to heaven yesterday. Carbon, my big black flat-coated retriever, was my best friend, constant companion, my encouragement and support, a good listener and took care of me more than I took care of him.

Carbon and his little kitty friend, China.

At 16+ years old (I didn't have him when he was a puppy), he had a good life and I'm grateful that I could be a part of it, and he a part of mine. He found me when he was about 1 and half years old (from what the vet could determine) and has been with me since through ups, downs and everything in between—dogs love you unconditionally, you know. He was with me when my husband proposed, and gave Larry his "doggie approval" to move in with his mommy.

Carbon, the Alpha Dog of the neighborhood, knew that a look or a bark would suffice over a brawl, and he led by example. We went to dog school together and learned to work together, but over time, I think Carbon taught me more than I taught him. He was so smart, gentle and graceful. He was the best jumper in his class. He had a sweet disposition, but because he was so smart, he could be sneaky at times. (You know what I'm talking about, Carbs.) He never whined or complained and, though he was no doubt in pain from the bone cancer in his leg, his will and spirit was fiercely positive. He was above and beyond a better human than a lot of humans I know.

He loved to go for rides in the truck and run in the yard. He loved snow, the water and to take walks in the rain, though he did not like thunder or loud noises like fireworks. He laid at my feet while I worked at my computer or my sewing machine and often walked around with colorful bits of thread in his long black fur. He was good with other dogs, cats and people alike, and didn't have to prove himself—like people do. He took care of his family—his humans and his furry siblings. What a wonderful, amazing dog.

My heart aches for him and I will miss him forever. I trust he was met by his uncle Jason and other dog friends and I will meet him at the Rainbow Bridge when that time comes. Carbon, you are the best dog and mommy loves you very much... always.

Bragging Rights

I've been doing a lot of teaching the past two weeks and my students have been quite industrious. Let me do some bragging...

Twisty Star Paper Piecing class

Here are the students from my Piece by Numbers Paper Piecing class. 

Left: blocks from all the students.
Right: Janet's Twisty Star.  

Each student finished at least one quarter block of the Twisty Star pattern in class. Within a few days, several of them had finished the block, sewn the borders, and even attached the binding.

Mary finished piecing and attached the borders (left).
Wanda finished her Twisty Star table topper.

My Knitting II students worked on my Sweet Louise Fingerless Mitts pattern. There are a lot of techniques packed into this class: ribbing, cables, a thumb gusset and an invisible seam, to name a few. Look how well they did!

The Sweater Gals

We're sweater proud!

Sweater Gals 2012 at the River Gallery Sculpture Garden.

The women who took my "My First Sweater" workshop celebrated their accomplishments last week with a lunch and outing. The weather was a tad warm for sweaters, but we wore ours with honor all the same.

They treated me to lunch at Tony's Pasta Shop and Trattoria in the Bluff View Art District, downtown Chattanooga. [I'll have my usual, Spaghettini Con Crudo with grilled chicken, thank you very much.] Dessert was at Rembrandt's Coffee House, and then we walked down to the River Gallery Sculpture Garden.

Here are "The Sweater Gals" in their hand-knit Mr. Greenjeans sweaters.

Sharon's Fiery Red raglan.

Left: Pat in her Silver Gray raglan.
Right: Jane chose Capri blue for hers.

Left: Lois likes to push up the sleeves of her Lichen green raglan.
Right: I used a combination of Grenadine, Ecru and Jet Black on mine.

We topped off the outing with a visit to Genuine Purl, a local yarn shop, to peruse the new spring arrivals and find some bargains in the play pen. The store associate did a doule-take when she realized we were all wearing the same sweater.

It was a wonderful afternoon! And, don't their sweaters look fabulous?!?

Knitting the Sky--February skies

2012 Sky Scarf: January and February skies.

Here are two months of skies in my 2012 Sky Scarf project. March came in more like a lamb than a lion with dappled skies... and self-patterned yarn of faded denim blue, creamy white and steel blue.