The Fan of the Week

If you have been following me on Facebook  you know that this week we have implemented a new feature.  That feature is The Fan of the Week.  In order to be picked Fan of the Week all you have to do is like / share or leave a comment on the page.  We would love to also see pictures of what you are working on so don't be shy. 

Currently I am working on this shawl.  Well actually, like most crafters, I am working on many things but the prime focus today is this shawl.  :-)

It is coming along gorgeously but unfortunately my needle is not long enough (only 100 cm) so you cannot see the size or the detail in the pattern.  

It is still a long way from complete but when it is and after it has been blocked I will post more pictures so you can get a better look at it.

In the meantime, please come on over to Facebook and join the conversation.  Looking forward to hearing from you.

Betty-Anne

Button As You Please Cowl

Wow it is amazing how time flies.  On January 1 I promised to update you on all the cowls that I made for Christmas gifts for my husband's family and now here it is January 9 and I have not even begun.  So much is going on.

Anyway, here we go.

I made 15 cowls for the women in my husband's family.  It was a joy to work on them and every stitch was made with love and great thought towards the woman I was making it for.

This one is called the Button As You Please Cowl (available in Knit Cowls by Lisa Gentry through Leisure Arts) and was made for my sister-in-law Sandy and when I saw the pattern I instantly thought of her.

This pattern calls for 135 yards of a bulky weight yarn and 5.5 mm needles along with two 1" buttons.


I chose this colour because it made me think of Sandy and the buttons can be inserted in any of the holes so she can change the look of the cowl.  It can be a circle or it can be slanted to the side.  (I should have taken a picture of it in that position to give an idea of what I mean.)  It is versatile enough to suit her mood.

When she opened this gift on Boxing Day (that is when we celebrate with my husband's family) she was so excited and effusive about the colour as well as the cowl (blue is her favourite colour) that it made my heart swell.  I was thrilled at how much she liked it and it made me very happy that I had made this for her.

I signed all the gift tags from Mrs. Claus but everyone figured out who that was right away because I am the only one in the family who knits.

Please feel free to share photos and stories of items you made or received as gifts this Christmas.

Thanks for stopping by and keep your sticks clicking.

Betty-Anne

Happy New Year

Hello everyone and Happy New Year.  I hope everyone had a fantastic Christmas and New Year with your friends and family.

I know I have been off the radar for a while but that is because I was knitting up a storm making gifts for family members.  I am excited to share photos and stories with you all over the next few weeks.  I hope you will also have your own stories to share about what you have been working on and what you did for the holidays.

Right now that will all have to wait as I crawl back into my bed to try to get over this flu like illness that I have been suffering with since Boxing Day.

Be well and keep your sticks clicking.

Betty-Anne

Knitting Hangouts

I know it has been a while since I have posted anything and I am sorry about that but I have been very busy preparing for a social media presentation that I was giving at Arbonne Head Office this past Monday.

It was an amazing time and the people who came out were phenomenal.  I was so happy to be there sharing my knowledge and passion of social media to these people who are new to it and excited about how to use this tool to grow their businesses.

Now that that is over (and it was a huge success) I am trying to get caught up on all my knitting for Christmas.  Oh boy am I overwhelmed.  I cannot post the list of items I am making until after Christmas because the people who will be receiving them as gifts would read it and that would spoil the surprise.

However, I will take pictures of everything and I promise to post them immediately after Christmas.

In order to get all these items completed on time (it is going to be tight) I am going to participate in different Christmas knitting days.  The first one is Friday this week.

Are you on Google+?  I am and I am really excited to go to my first hangout.  On Friday, November, Yarn Mountain is hosting a hangout where we will be getting together online to share gift giving ideas.  I am really looking forward to this.  I am a huge social media buff and it is my business but I have not participated in a hangout for fun and this will be great.

If you are on Google+ look up Yarn Mountain they are fantastic and let's see if we can connect.

Have a fabulous day and for all my American readers and friends, I hope you have a great Thanksgiving and if you are shopping on Black Friday, please take care and get home in one piece.

Keep your sticks clicking.

Betty-Anne

Happy I Love Yarn Day

What a great day.  Today is "I Love Yarn Day" as declared by the Craft Yarn Council of America.  I love these people.  Never met any of them but they have to be great people, right.  They love crafting and yarn.  Sounds good to me.

What are you doing to celebrate I Love Yarn Day?

I am planning on finishing my Rococo Shawlee (pictures posted in earlier blog post) so that I can wear it to the Woodstock Fleece Festival which is happening tomorrow.  Wow, this is going to be a great weekend for me.  Today is I Love Yarn Day, tomorrow I go to a fleece festival with a great pal and I know that I am going to buy so much yarn that I will spend Sunday playing with it and deciding what I am going to create with it.  :-)

I am so excited.

Please share you plans for this fabulous by posting in the comments section below.  I can't wait to hear how you are celebrating.

Have fun everyone.

Keep your sticks clicking.

Betty-Anne

Happy Thanksgiving Day Canada

Wow this has been an amazing weekend.  I love Thanksgiving.  Lots of time with the family and a mini vacation in Niagara.  The weather was typical Autumn weather - cool with some rain, mostly at night thankfully.  More reason to be thankful.  :-)




Back to the usual routine tomorrow.  I won't say back to the grind because it is not a grind.  I love the work I do and I love my knitting projects.

I am meeting up with a friend for coffee and I have a gift that I am knitting for her as a thank you for taking care of my dog while I was away this weekend.  I will finish it up tonight and be ready for coffee tomorrow.  These will be mug rugs made in Autumn colours.  I hope she likes them.  I will post another picture when they are complete.  I am also going to be making a set for a friend who is celebrating a birthday this month and she loves this season so they will be right at home in her decor.

When I picked up Roxy I discovered that she and my friends had become a mutual admiration society. She was very excited to see me return but she was also sad to leave her new friends.

I was not a bit jealous but in fact exceedingly grateful for my friend being so loved by my dog because that means that it was not stressful to her and it was a pleasant weekend for my friend as well.

Again more reasons to be thankful.  I am incredibly blessed and am grateful for my family and my friends as well as all my pets.  Yes Roxy has house mates.

This is my second Thanksgiving since I lost my mother but I am grateful for all the wonderful memories I have of her and all the fantastic and funny stories I have of her that I can share.  Including that she is responsible for me being the addicted knitter that I am today.

I hope all of you have had a fantastic Thanksgiving Day weekend and have had the opportunity to enjoy your family and friends as I have.

Keep your sticks clicking.

Betty-Anne

Nine More Sleeps

So are you going?

I am referring to the Woodstock Fleece Festival of course.  I cannot wait.  I have not been to this event but I hear wonderful things about it.

My sister lives in Woodstock and she will be at the festival along with the Oxwood Hooking Artisans.  They do amazing work.

I have taken a look at the vendors and man I am so excited.  There are so many that appeal to me the first of which is Cabin Fever.  I love their "No Sew, Minimal Finishing" philosophy.  I love the knitting but when it is off my sticks I want to be done and move onto my next project. Sometimes that is not to be and we need to sew but if I can find a project that avoids that then I am one happy knitter.

So many booths so little time.  The event is only one day.  Whatever will I do.  Should I take classes or devote my time and money to shopping.  Hmmmm.  What to do, what to do?!

Are you going?  Are there other events that you attend?  I would love to hear about them so please post your comments below.   Maybe there are more festivals in my future.

Keep your sticks clicking.

Betty-Anne