And The Winner Is.....

Mariella! Who guessed EZ's Baby Suprise Jacket. Which was a pretty good guess, considering it is something I have never done before, and it could very easily be purple, and wool.

In case you missed the last post, nobody guessed correctly, mittens, so I picked randomly from everyone who participated. Congratulations Mariella! Come on down and claim your prize (in other words, send me your e-mail address so I can contact you and get your address to send the book to you.) (emily at emilyquilts dotcom).

Moving on....in quilting news: I mentioned that I was re-doing the kid's rooms. They were supposed to be done by September but I'm still working on them--you know how that goes-- my new goal is Christmas. I am almost done with the girls' room but I decided they needed new quilts. This quilt is from Rowan Patchwork and Quilting #4, "Birds in the Air". I've wanted to make this for years. I think the last bed quilt I made was pre-kids!

I love this quilt! There are lots of newish quilting cottons plus some very old stuff from stash. I'm using some some of my (gasp!) too good to use fabric!

I need 2 twin quilts, similar but different. I think the other one I will do is from Glorious Patchwork, "Frothy Table Cover". It is the same, but big diamonds, without the "birds" in like the one above. (i.e. it will go together faster, hopefully preventing Second Quilt Syndrome). Sorry for the lack of photos, I will elaborate next week.

Which leads me to this week: Going to California!!! To visit Bro and Sis!!! (Not to mention a quick day-trip to visit Mickey and Minnie!) I am really excited about this trip--can you tell? My sister moved out there last year, so I don't get to see her as often as before, and I miss her like crazy. The last time we were out there with the kids was Thanksgiving 5 years ago. My brother throws a mean Thanksgiving, with lots of friends and a few random relatives, it is a really fun, eclectic group.

Speaking of the trip 5 years ago, I spent most of the 4 hour plane ride walking a crying baby up and down the aisle. Fingers crossed that this trip, with kids ages 7,6, and 3 will be a little smoother! Loads of activity book and snacks. Which brings me to:

Knitting projects. I am spending the day packing up my knitting. Trying to avoid Project Panic, since I already have three children on a plane panic and going away for a week panic, and is the yarn going to dye itself while I'm gone panic.

Ever since finishing Waves in the Square, I've been sorta ambivalent about my knitting. I really need a good sweater project to sink my teeth into, and I have 3 possibilities.

I know, you're squinting. Sorry. What we have in the photo, are, from left to right: Simple Knitted Bodice from Stitch Diva, using a very dark purple Silky Wool from stash. I had seen this pattern on the internet and never loved it until I saw it on Ravelry. I was not a fan of the fancy yarn they use at the neckline, but seeing it in a plain yarn made all the difference. Status: swatched and ready to cast on.

Next is Beryl from Chicknits. Love it! Love it enough to use the last of my treasured Black Cotton Ease. Status: ready to cast on.

Finally, it's Oblique from Knitty. Using navy Jo Sharp Silk Road Aran, frogged from another project that didn't work. I've cast on the sleeve-as-swatch, but I'm having trouble making decisions. There is a fold line for the cuff that I'm not loving. As long as you always fold up the cuff, it's fine, but if the cuff is ever pulled down straight, I think the fold line looks messy. I'm considering ripping and re-doing. Maybe just doing 3" of ribbing and eliminating the cuff?

Another issue is that the ribbing pulls in a LOT. Fine for the cuff, but not something I'd like at my hips. From the photo, it looks like she blocked the ribbing very stretched, because I don't see the sweater pulling in at all at the hips. I've never blocked ribbing severely. I either let the ribbing pull in, or I usually make the ribbing shorter so it doesn't pull as much, eliminate the ribbbing or change it to a different edge treatment that doesn't pull in. I'd love comments or suggestions. Knitting mavens, please weigh in.

Ok, one more thing. I don't have a new bag for Disney. I would like something big enough to hold stuff, but also close, and oh yeah--be stylish. I have the fabric and the pattern for this one sitting on the dining room table.

Is it too much to ask for it to sew itself up while I'm packing today?