theraineysisters knitting and so much more

I blame Kim.  For all sorts of things 😉 , but this time I blame her for my knitting obsession of the last couple of days.  She sent me a picture of a cute new project from CiD Hanscom for a small project bag…

Here is the result!!

My Little Monkey Shines knit in Ella Rae

Yes.  It is a Sock Monkey Project Bag!  My husband said, aren’t you over those yet??  Yes.  But it’s a Sock Monkey Project Bag!  It was fun to make and putsy to finish (which you can tell by looking, I’m sure).  I am going to line it when my fabric arrives from Amazon:

Here are some more pics:

You use plastic needlepoint canvas to give it its shape.  They make circles so the bottom was easy to do.  I think this would make a good holder for a ball of yarn.  Fun and cute, with very clear directions though I really think it needs to be lined.  Nice little project!

PS: To Mary Lou

Sock Monkey Ball Gown Minnesota State Fair

For those of you who live in California and have been hand wringing over 55 degree weather, step aside.  🙂  It is truly bitter cold here right now.  The wind picked up yesterday to blow in an arctic air mass and it is C O L D…15 below wind chills.

Here is a quick and cute neck warmer if you need one during this cold snap: Wham BamThank You Lamb Neckwarmer.

I used one skein of Berroco Borealis and large needles (Sz 13?, 15?).  It knits up in a evening – so start knitting!! 😉

PS – I actually gifted this one.  It was a belated Christmas present.

PS2 – It’s much colder today!! 🙁

Sally and I joke about this nickname for me — “It’s the big one we don’t like.”  BUT, I just added a simple, free pattern to Ravelry and thought I would share it with all of you.  The Biggest Cowl Ever.

The ‘Biggest Cowl Ever’ in Loops and Threads’ Dewdrops, Color Smokey Quartz (71 yds/85 gms, 5 skeins, sz 13 needles)

See?  Big.  Really big.  But I wear it and love it.  It sparkles!  My daughter had a cowl like it from a store so I borrowed the concept. 🙂

I wore it with my coat yesterday in the killer windchill and did not bother to wrap it around my neck, but wore it long.  It was really warm!

You can subtitute other bulky yarns or hold two yarns together.   Anyway, it knits up in a couple of evenings and is a fun fashion forward accessory to add to your wardrobe!!

We joined 7.9 million viewers to watch the Season 3 premiere of Downton Abbey, again amazed by the grandeur of the home and the splendor of the fashions.  My hubby and I laughed at what our house would be named: Dumpy Abbey did not sound quite classy enough, so we settled on ‘Downtrodden Abbey’ to describe the grand mess of our home and the squalor of the fashions.  🙂

A compilation of some great Lady Grantham quotes:

Yes, there are still two Rainey Sisters in case you were wondering. Sorry I have been so absent.

As you may recall, in one of my last posts, I was trying to decide whether to use some lovely glass buttons on my Burr cardigan. The problem was that I feared they were too heavy. Despite repeated attempts to convince myself that they were fine, they weren’t. Many of you offered opinions and suggestions. One was to use grosgrain ribbon to reinforce the button band. The problem here is that the button band is unusually wide — I didn’t think I’d find ribbon that would work well. So the beautiful glass buttons are now in a bowl looking beautiful, and a different set of buttons from my button stash are now in place.

This cardigan fits very well, and I am pretty pleased with it. I made it using a modified bottom up contiguous method, so that the set in sleeve was knit in as I went along. It was an interesting experiment, and I think I’d definitely try it again. It required a little thought to plan out, but the actual doing was relatively simple.

I have a silk scarf that goes well with this cardigan (shown in the last photo). I’ve had it a long time — I bought it at the same time that our signature Rainey Sister photo was taken.

The holidays are finally wrapping up.  Wow.  What a December it has been!  We held a family gathering at our house last night – the final chapter in this year’s festivities (we aren’t much for New Year’s Eve).  Anyway, the flu depleted our numbers somewhat, but it was really fun.  I have been sick for over two weeks, and the whole city has fallen victim!

I made a mobius for a family friend and gave it to her last evening.  She loved it and it looked great.  I used my usual Easy Missoni Style Long Mobius Cowl pattern, with a little edge to it.  I cast on 100 sts in a baby alpaca/bamboo blend held double with Kidsilk Haze.  I started out on sz 10.5 needles for the main cowl.  When I ran low of baby alpaca/bamboo, I switched needles to a sz 7 and using only the KSH, knit into BOTH loops of yarn to double my stitch count.  I worked a few knit rows and then did a picot bind off.  I pressed the edge and steamed the cowl to open it up a bit.  Voila!

The light edge gave it a delicate look.  Holding the Kidsilk Haze with the other yarn allowed me to knit it on much bigger needles and speed through the project.

I am now going to roll up some yarn and start something new.  I have also made a couple of infinity scarves in BULKY yarn and sparkles for my daughter and me – though I think she has designs on mine!!  Yes, my younger daughter asked me to knit her something…!!

Our newlyweds!!  Long had never heard of The Grinch, so we watched the original animated version — what’s not to love??

Long and Laura’s First Christmas

Sally may have a picture of her newlyweds to share — they are spending the holiday together in DC.

Knitting has totally been on the back burner, but will return soon! 🙂

It has been a whirlwind of a week, filled with lots of family activities.  Here is hoping that yours is wonderful!!

With Best Wishes for the Holiday Season
Susan and Sally Rainey
The Rainey Sisters

Thank you for the wonderful congratulatory words about both my daughter’s wedding AND our anniversary.  John and I went out to dinner and enjoyed a lovely evening!

Is it too late to make something small and cute?  I thought I would mention a fun little gift to make for the knitters in your lives.  These cute ornaments are made from small amounts of lace- and sockweight yarn from your stash.  The Emergency Yarn Ornament is a fun way to connect to your knitting peeps.  I made about 28 of these this year and enjoyed making them very much.

Clear glass or plastic balls are available at craft stores.  The little paper slip says, “In case of knitting emergency, Break Glass!!”  There are miniature skeins of yarn and mini-knitting needles made from toothpicks inside.

On a completely different note.  If you enjoy knitting hats and, like Bartholomew Cubbins, have too many for the heads in your immediate circle, Hats for the Homeless is accepting donations well into the winter season.

Hats knit by the lovely and generous Elizabeth D!!

Are you ready for the holidays yet?  Me neither… 🙁

Who are those youngsters in the ginormous glasses?

Thirty years ago on December 18, this happy looking couple tied the knot.  Still in love and together after all these years!  At our daughter’s wedding, sister Surly asked the DJ to play “our song” – the song that my friend Elaine sang as I walked into the ceremony (can you can share youtube videos without ads?).

John, you still make me laugh, you still surprise me, and there is no one else that I could picture myself with. Let’s try for 50!!