Garden is Closed

The garden is offically closed for the season. Saturday Jeff planted garlic and shallots and tilled in the compost that was ready. Then he covered it with all the leaves that could be collected near by. I was assigned the leaf blower and moved a fair pile to the garden for Jeff to spred around. Then together we cleared the rest of the lawn and he filled the compost bins. (Photos to follow...need new memory card for the camera.)

Sunday the new panry was assembled. Actually, the old sewing room was cleared out and cleaned, new shelves put up and all the jars labled and put on the shelves. It looks very impressive to me but Jeff is wishing we had done more. Hopefully, there's next year to look forward to. He's already busy ordering heirloom seeds.

I've been knitting...hats and scarves for swaps and the shop. Tried to knit snowflakes with crochet thread...think I'll go back to crocheting them!

Little Piggy Went to Market

I did this market bag a couple of times for swaps. It's so simple...it's the ribbon yarn that makes it fancy! I loved the yarn...got several skeins on sale...then didn't know what to do with it until this swap came along. And the gray heather yarn is a silk blend...again on sale that I didn't know what to do with. I'm sure it will work up beautifully. I try to include something funny/cute in my swaps and this pink note holding duck is just too cute! Hated to send it away!

Necklace

This is one of 2 beaded necklaces I knitted for swaps. I used #3 cotton crochet thread and a pattern for a scalloped edge necklace I found in 101 Designer One-Skein Wonders. Of course, I changed the weight yarn it called for, the size beads, size needles; I strung the beads differently and then added the lace travel pouch to go with it. The Dove Bar and postcard of General Herkimer were extras for the swap. I did 3 more necklaces & pouches for the shop.

OTN

This is so true!







I've got so many projects started I'm running out of needles!! OTN: a size 2 baseball sweater, v-neck, raglan from the neck down, on size 7 circulars in RedHeart soft navy. I'm using my newly acquired beading ability and working in the shank-baseball buttons as I go. It's keeping the buttons and buttoholes even!! Yesterday I was in Walmart and found some new yarn with Love from RedHeart. It looks very good: vibrant colors that are much softer than the usual RedHeart worsted. Can't wait to get some to try. OTN: a size 2 striped pullover , raglan from the neck down, on size 7 circulars in lime green, blue and white baby/sport. (Can you tell I'm trying to reduce my stash? The white is the only new skein the other 2 have been partically used.) Every time I do stripes I swear I won't do them again, but it's an easy way to use up the too-small-to-make-anything balls of yarn I'm finding. OTN: Jeff's socks, knit toe-up in 'Dust' Stroll from Knit Picks on 2 size 2 circulars. This is 'my project in a baggie' that I keep in my purse. Yesterday I finished the foot on the sock at the laundromat and turned the heel at the doctor's office with my mom. Now I just have to use up the yarn on the leg. OTN: a size 9- months baby sweater in a pretty pink, raglan from the neck down with rolled cuffs and pearl buttons for the girl who cuts my hair's 1st baby. Good thing she's now due soon!! And I'm sure there's more in those bags beside my chair!

Garlic

Jeff was disappointed with the garlic our garden produced this year. He used the garlic we had gotten at the workshop held at the library last year. It was his first try at growing it and between inexperience, the weather and a late start we didn't get much. I mentioned this to my cousin Tom who's been very successful at growing garlic at his place in Berne, NY and he offered to send us some seed garlic. It arrived yesterday and if those cloves are seed and an indication of how big the bulb was all I can say is WOW! We'll be putting them in next week. Jeff has to pull the beets and carrots, dig the sweet potatoes ( with crossed fingers!) and pick the rest of the peppers...sweet yellow bananas and scottish peppers that started out green, turned yellow and are now on their way to orange...and maybe red? The scottish are suppose to be hot...hope so! He doesn't think the beets or carrots will be very big...they were late getting thinned...but as long as there are some.... The lettuce this year was a waste of space. Jeff's head lettuce never headed and my leaf lettuce got tough fast. Better luck next year. His purple green beans have been fantastic! I picked them again Wednesday. Our butternut squash are ready to pick...we only got 2, there were others but they just didn't grow. And we only picked 2 zucchini...something beat me to them every time! I picked the last of the summer squash Wednesday, too. And lemon cucumbers...ever hear of lemon cucumber pickles? I'll let you know how that turns out.

In between garden adventures I've been busy knitting... beaded necklaces with #3 cotton crochet thread on size US2's ( I'm getting better at pre-stringing the beads), another baseball sweater set for the shop, and Jeff's next pair of socks. Got a couple winter swaps coming up...one a scarf and the other a hat...that I'm looking forward to doing. Pictures to come later.

We're suppose to go out for fish-fry tonight but we've both been battling colds so I don't know if we'll make it. Hope so!

OTN: What's not?

I really got involved with swapping on a knitting site this year and I'm having so-o-o much fun I highly recommend it to everyone. For one of the 1st swaps I signed up for I had to do a Victorian Lace scarf. I so loved that pattern...and yarn...it was a silk blend I found in my stash...that I made several. Sent one to the swappee, put one in the shop, changed the yarn and made a scarf for another swap, then used the lace pattern in a bookmark for still another swap and last night used the lace pattern again, this time in a jewelry pouch. I finally knitted with beads this summer doing a necklace I found in 101 Designers One-skein Wonders...but of course, I changed the yarn and needles and strung the beads differently than instructed. In fact, I did 2 necklaces...with pouches...for the swap, and another set for the shop. (Last night I did the pouch for a 2nd set to go in the shop.) Found a doll size table that I had done back when I did American Girl doll stuff...we did chairs & sofa and table as a set. I took the table apart and now it's a necklace display rack. I'm having so much fun knitting with beads...once I get them on the yarn, that is. (One of the group moderators gave me a link to a video that showed how to string beads using dental floss. And another member told he how to use double-faced tape to keep loose beads undercontrol. Both very easy!)

In the mean time, I've done some baby sweaters for the shop, just regular-raglan- from-the-neck-down with novelty buttons to spruce things up, and a couple of hoodies. One was a 'varsity' jacket (white hood & sleeves on navy blue body) with baseball button s (what else for Cooperstown, huh?) and the other was a pumpkin...a orange hood with green stem on a green body with pumpkin buttons. Now that one went quickly so I did another one!

In the baggie in my purse a sock for Jeff is slowly growing. I got several inches done on it when we went fishing last week and another inch or so when I did laundry this week. He may end up with another pair yet!

Tomaotes tomatoes tomatoes....

Monday morning Jeff went up to his sister's to help her with some yard work. He cleared off her garden and mowed her lawn (mowing his new cell phone in the process!) He came home with 7, yes, 7 grocery bags of tomatoes, a bag of green beans, bag of potatoes, a few peppers, a zucchini, a couple of onions and 1 pathetic sweet potatoe. Tuesday after I got out of work we cleaned, chopped and cooked the tomatoes...3 big soup pots of sauce! Last night we proccessed canned 27 pints of tomaotes...sauce, with green beans and as a soup stock. I don't care if I ever see another tomatoe... until next year! Next in the pressure canner will be apples...sauce and pie filling. Somewhere along the way we've got to pick the last of our purple beans and peppers...hopefully some will be hot! ...and dig up our sweet potatoes. Jeff wants to get some pears to dehydrate and I'd like to can some. And I'd like to do some peppers and onions together, too. Jeff dehydrated some of the green beans he brought home and has another grocery bag of tomatoes lined up for the dehydrator. I guess you can say we're getting our money's worth out of the dehydrator and big pressure canner. We were disappointed that we didn't get that much from our garden...all the work he put in to it...but because of having our garden we were ended up with the fruit from Peter's and from Sherry's gardens.