A Blogging Resolution

With 2011 winding down we have a week or so to kind of catch our breath.  This is the time that we spend making lists of all the things that we wished we had done in 2011 so that we don't forget to do them in 2012.  Top of the list is to do a better job keeping up with this blog.  This picture kind of sums up that resolution.

We have been keeping bees for over 10 years.  Some years we harvest the honey and sometimes we leave it all for the bees.  Our bees worked very hard this year and therefore produced a surplus.  Did we blog about the extraction process?  Nope.  We took lots of pictures that day and there they sit on the hard drive.  Next year we'll do better.

Same story for so many things.  Next year we'll do better.  

It's your turn to pick a winner!

One lucky person will receive this lovely yarn bowl made by local Belfast potter, Mary Trotochaud.

Please peruse the contest entries on our Facebook photo album, and "like" your favorites. Whoever gets the most votes by August 30th will win this bowl!

And the second winner is. . .

Oh dear. This photo is too lo-res for anyone to read. We could, in person, though, and the second winner is Jan Tricarico!

Congratulations, Jan!

A second chance!

Oops! Seems that Ingrid Ellison's entry was in our spam folder, and she wasn't entered into the drawing. We scratched our heads and wondered what to do!

The solution? A second drawing! Everyone (except our first winner, Linda Hanford) will get a second  chance to win eight skeins of custom dyed yarn! Woo hoo!

Oh, and here's Ingrid's cow, knit up in Seafoam:

The drawing will be on Thursday, July 21st. Who will be our lucky second winner?

And the winner is. . .

Congratulations, Linda! 

Thank You, everyone, for participating!

It's been really fantastic seeing all your wonderful creations. It's been great to see all the different finished objects folks have come up with using one skein of yarn. 

There's more to come. . .so keep your eyes open. . .

The very last entries have arrived. . .

. . .at five minutes to midnight!

Jan Tricarico's Lazy Knitter's Lacy Scarf:

Meredith Mills' Anthro-Inspired Scarflet:

We also received an entry from Mary McCoy, but we could not get the photo opened. As soon as we can, it'll be posted, along with the winner (whoever that may be!)

Friday at 10:20 p.m.

We just received an entry from Cara Arnold, who wrote, "I didn't think I could knit fast enough to enter the contest, but I saw the Wave Hat entry by Beth Collins, and thought I could make it in time (2+ hours to spare!) I used the colorway Grenadine (love it! - like raspberry and orange sherbet!), but knit Beth's pattern on size 5 needles instead of size 6. Catie is modeling her new hat in this photo.  ."

Here's Catie in her very own Wave Hat:

Is this the last entry?

Don't know! Three hours and forty two minutes to go. . .

Darlene Herbert sent this photo from her phone. She crocheted this Funky Ruffled Scarf:

Friday afternoon entries

Tori Schreiber's Tuesday Night Cowl:

LaNae Moline's Assymetrical Beret:

About seven and half hours until the deadline. . .wondering if any more entries will be rolling in!

Friday morning entries

There's still time left, if you're reading this on Friday!

I'll be posting last minute entries until the deadline. Here's what we've received today. . .

Mara Bonsaint's Marina Hat:

Chris Harrington's Nautilus Scarf:

Elinor Schroeder's Merci Scarf:

One day, twenty seven minutes, and counting. . .

. . .according to the Countdown!

We're going to be sad when the contest is over. It's so much fun seeing what folks come up with using one skein of yarn! The entries have been so varied. Here's more:

Willy Reddick's hat, which she "made up as she went along." She says she cast on 80 stitches on a size 8 needle:

Here's Lisa Card's Star Crossed Slouchy Beret:

Lisa also knit these Eugenia Mittens in Mamma Mia:

Countdown!

The contest is over!

Here's Jill Cariglia's Malabrigo Neck Thingie (or as she calls it, "The Winning Cowl"), knit up in Little Monsters:

Two more days!

There's still time to get your entries in!

Here's Kathleen Olbrych's Brattleboro Hat:

Another 198 Yards of Heaven

We received another entry knit up using the pattern "198 Yards of Heaven!" This one was made by Giovanna McCarthy, who used the colorway Nautilus:

Thanks

Sue Dean kindly sent us the pattern for the Cabled Keyhole Scarf she knit for herself (and the Big Contest).  Thank you, Sue, but the pattern is for sale here, and so we can't share it. The scarf is knit in Nautilus:

Belfast is a small town, so we happen to know Sue finished this scarf over a week ago but hadn't gotten around to taking a photo. Don't let that happen to you by Friday at midnight, for by then, the contest will be over!

The weather is perfect

It's a gorgeous summer day here in Maine. Some folks have said it's "too hot," but Owen looks pretty comfortable here in his new shorties:

These were knit up by his mom, Jenn Steingass, in the colorway Little Monsters.

Another of our latest contest entries is knitted in Little Monsters, the Sprung Kerchief, knit by Betsy Schubert:

Happy Bradford knit this knitting pattern sampler with a crocheted edge using the colorway Sweetheart:

Enjoy this beautiful day, wherever you are!

Little Monsters

Today's entries are both knit up in the colorway Little Monsters. Betsy Schubert knit up a pair of Juniper Mitts. She has renamed them Beachcomber Mitts:

Jen Simoneau knit up this Lacy Waves Scarf:

One week to go!!!

Only one more week until the drawing for the Big Contest.

Mary Kelley, who purchased her yarn at In The Loop when Amy did the trunk show there, wrote: "Since the name Nautilus comes from the Greek meaning "sailor," I worked my scarf in a traditional Sailor's Rib using a 31 stitch cast on. I doubted, the entire time I was knitting, that one skein would be sufficient, but after gentle blocking, I find it to be a perfect length. I think my new sailor rib scarf will be one of the few things I keep for myself, I doubt I will be able to part with it. Thanks for making such a quality fiber." Thank you, Mary! Here's her scarf:

  

Sailor's Rib is a lovely, simple-to-do stitch. Here's how:

Cast on a multiple of 5 stitches plus 1.

Row 1 K1B *P1, K2, P1, K1B* repeat from *

Row 2 P1 *K1, P2, P1* repeat from *

Row 3 K1B *P4, K1B* repeat from *

Row 4 P1 *K4, P1* repeat from *

For you newbies out there, K1B means "knit one through back loop."

Mary Kelley emailed us, and recommended that if you slip the last stitch on every wrong side row as if to purl with the yarn in front, it eliminates the "little loopy stitch with otherwise forms along one edge." Thanks, Mary!

Naomi Foran knit Diana Hannas Birthday Cowl.  Naomi says this cowl only used a half skein of yarn! She sent us this close-up photo:

Keep those entires coming, folks! 

Tick tock. . .tick tock. . .

For those of you to young to remember, back in the olden days clocks used to make a sound that people called "tick tock."

Okay, it's too warm out for us Mainers to make any attempts at humor!

But, the clock is ticking; there's 11 days left to knit or crochet something for the Big Contest! We happen to know there's many of you who haven't sent your photos in yet.

The latest entries are. . .Sea Star knit by Betsy Schubert in the colorway Little Monsters:

EviePants knit by Jenn Steingass in Nautilus:

Beth Collins knit this hat in Mamma Mia, and you can find the pattern on her blog, Demonic Progress:

Happy July! (more entries!)

From Liz Vigorito, the Romney Kerchief:

Sue Black knit up this hat and little bag in the same color way. Isn't that neat?

Diana Rasmussen knit up this Palindrome Scarf, a reversible pattern:

Keep those entires coming in, folks! We're loving it!

The entries are rolling in. . .

 First, we have the  Lacy Baktus Scarf knit up by Debbie Palmer in the colorway Little Monsters:

You'll just have to wait for the rest. . .!

There's 18 days left, folks!

No, the world isn't coming to an end, but the contest will be on July 15th! That's right. You've got 18 days left to knit or crochet something and simply send us a photograph to be entered to win the Big Contest. A few folks have taken this very seriously. Linda Hanford tells us she's used up all her skeins of 60/40 alpaca. Here's her latest, and last, entries:

A Hurricane Hat for herself (she's already made one for dear hubby), a pair of fingerless mitts, and a 

Bainbridge scarf:

Irlanda Isabel Corrales has also sent in another entry! Here's her crocheted neck warmer:

So, folks, get those needles clicking!

A shawl from Edna's Bounty

Linda Hanford's knitting needles must be on fire! In addition to her sending us contest entries, she's still got time for other knitting projects. Here's her Brandywine Shawl:

A close-up (obviously!):

Another 198 Yards of Heaven

Naomi Foran knit up another 198 Yards of Heaven Shawlette for our Big Contest (!) in the color Wood Nymph.

Arf!

Diane McGinnis says her puppy, Lady, wanted to help her knit the Nautilus scarf pattern she knit up using the colorway Clarisse. Here's Lady modeling the scarf:

The needles are flying!

Irlanda Isabel Corrales sent in another photograph for the Big Contest. Again, she used her imagination, and no pattern for this shawlette:

She's a busy bee

We've received two more entries from Linda Hanford. Here's her "scarf with no name:"

And the Traveling Woman scarf:

More entries!

It's so much fun seeing what people have made with one skein our Good Karma yarn! Keep those entries coming, folks!

Linda Hanford knit and modeled this Hurricane Hat, which she made for her husband:

Naomi Foran used a skein of Winter Sky to knit the 198 Yards of Heaven shawlette:

If you're not a member of Ravelry, the last link will not work. Another good reason to become a Ravelry member!

Today's entry

Isabel Corrales designed and crocheted this lovely hat for the Big Contest. She lives in Stockton Springs, Maine.

We're so pleased to see entries that are crocheted. There's a lot of crocheters out there!