Tag Archives: Noon and Wilder

Konlabos. With a K.

Knoontime Knitting

(Any Rundown [the movie with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson] out there?)

2016-04-13 The Letter K

“K” was a tricky one.  I took three shots in total, but this is my favorite of them and therefore my image for today’s letter.

My theme here at my Knoontime Knitting craft blog is Letterforms In Nature and the Built Environment.

 

Thank you for joining me for the A-Z Blog Challenge.  If you’re blogging in the challenge, please leave me a link so I can come visit you too.  If you have a moment, please check out these other fine blogs:

The theme on my main blog, Explore the Worlds of A. Catherine Noon, is The A To Z of the Zoo.  Join me as I explore Brookfield Zoo and finds animals, birds, and insects from A to Z.

The theme at Noon & Wilder is The A To Z of Chicago.  Since I live here in the city and we have our Chicagoland Shifters based here, I figured I’d share a window into the city, Noon & Wilder style.

The Nice Girls Writing Naughty have a new home, and we’re blogging in the challenge again this year.  Throughout the month you’ll be hearing from each of the Nice Girls, and during the RT Booklovers Convention from April 12th to the 17th, you’ll be getting live convention reports.  Join the conversation!

The Writer Zen Garden’s brand new website is up and running, and we’re bringing you posts from me, Noony; my partner in crime, Rachel Wilder (the Wilder half of Noon & Wilder); the talented Darla M. Sands – a blogger in her own right, see below; as well as Grace Kahlo, Evey Brown, and author Tina Holland.  Check it out!

My friends who are participating in the challenge (and if you’re not on this list, tell me and I’ll add you!):

Write on, and Happy Blogging!

Jump Out At You

Knoontime Knitting

The Letter J

I’ve noticed, in doing this project, that I’ve started seeing letterforms everywhere – the wheel wells of cars, branches of trees, even the intersections of power lines.

This one reminds me of a day I spent at the park near my house during the summer.  I reclined against a tree to meditate with my eyes closed, (you know, it’s called napping), and something made me open them.  A racoon stood not ten feet from me, and we stared at each other in shock.  He trundled away and climbed up a tree.

By the time I realized what happened, he was thirty feet away and mostly hidden.  Some photographer I was!

In my defense, racoons are, basically, bears.  Getting in a tangle with one because I’m napping in his backyard would ruin my day, y’know?  o.O…

We have some awesome stuff going on this week for you because of the RT Booklovers Convention going on in Las Vegas.  If you’re not familiar, RT is the largest romance genre event of the year, with over a thousand readers and several hundred authors in attendance for a week of workshops, parties, networking, and fun.

Not going to Las Vegas this year?  Don’t worry, Dear Reader.  I will be posting at The Romance Studio for the Staying Home Party, and I’ll have live convention reports – Tina Holland, Live at the Rio!, behind-the-scenes, interviews, and reminiscences from yours truly about RT’s past.  And just for you, Dear Reader, it will be five posts a day for six days – PLUS the challenge posts.  So there’s plenty for you to read and do this week!  Rest your eyeballs, ‘cuz you’re gonna need ’em!

Don’t miss it.  Truck on over now – plus, you can enter to win a bunch of awesome prizes, including a $100 USD Amazon store card.

2016-04-12 Party Pic

Thank you for joining me for the A-Z Blog Challenge.  If you’re blogging in the challenge, please leave me a link so I can come visit you too.  If you have a moment, please check out these other fine blogs:

The theme on my main blog, Explore the Worlds of A. Catherine Noon, is The A To Z of the Zoo.  Join me as I explore Brookfield Zoo and finds animals, birds, and insects from A to Z.

The theme at Noon & Wilder is The A To Z of Chicago.  Since I live here in the city and we have our Chicagoland Shifters based here, I figured I’d share a window into the city, Noon & Wilder style.

The Nice Girls Writing Naughty have a new home, and we’re blogging in the challenge again this year.  Throughout the month you’ll be hearing from each of the Nice Girls, and during the RT Booklovers Convention from April 12th to the 17th, you’ll be getting live convention reports.  Join the conversation!

The Writer Zen Garden’s brand new website is up and running, and we’re bringing you posts from me, Noony; my partner in crime, Rachel Wilder (the Wilder half of Noon & Wilder); the talented Darla M. Sands – a blogger in her own right, see below; as well asGrace Kahlo, Evey Brown, and author Tina Holland.  Check it out!

My friends who are participating in the challenge (and if you’re not on this list, tell me and I’ll add you!):

Write on, and Happy Blogging!

There Is No “I” In Tree

Knoontime Knitting

There Is No I In Tree

I love these trees; and it finally occurred to me that it’s because they’re evergreens.

Though, I do wonder what the folks in the neighborhood think of me wandering around loose, photographing the local flora.

 

Thank you for joining me for the A-Z Blog Challenge.  If you’re blogging in the challenge, please leave me a link so I can come visit you too.  If you have a moment, please check out these other fine blogs:

The theme on my main blog, Explore the Worlds of A. Catherine Noon, is The A To Z of the Zoo.  Join me as I explore Brookfield Zoo and finds animals, birds, and insects from A to Z.

The theme at Noon & Wilder is The A To Z of Chicago.  Since I live here in the city and we have our Chicagoland Shifters based here, I figured I’d share a window into the city, Noon & Wilder style.

The Nice Girls Writing Naughty have a new home, and we’re blogging in the challenge again this year.  Throughout the month you’ll be hearing from each of the Nice Girls, and during the RT Booklovers Convention from April 12th to the 17th, you’ll be getting live convention reports.  Join the conversation!

The Writer Zen Garden’s brand new website is up and running, and we’re bringing you posts from me, Noony; my partner in crime, Rachel Wilder (the Wilder half of Noon & Wilder); the talented Darla M. Sands – a blogger in her own right, see below; as well asGrace Kahlo, Evey Brown, and author Tina Holland.  Check it out!

My friends who are participating in the challenge (and if you’re not on this list, tell me and I’ll add you!):

Write on, and Happy Blogging!

Tuesday Tips – Cat Litter Containers

Knoontime Knitting

2016-03-01 KK Pic 1

I have a lot of yarn.

No, really.

The problem is, that all that yarn piled into a mountain in the middle of my living room would be a lot of fun, for about five minutes.

Then, The Cats.

So, what to do with it until I’m ready to turn it into something?

Cat litter containers!  I might as well get SOME use out of all the shitsand we use at our house.  ~grin~

Many of the litter companies sell litter in large plastic three or five gallon-size containers with locking lids.  Once you’ve used the litter, wash them out and store your yarn.  They also have the advantage of stacking well, which is useful if you have an unused corner behind a door, say.

What about you, Dear Reader?  What are your favorite supply storage tips?

Stash Sunday

Knoontime Knitting

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Rachel and I wander around a lot, and as part of that, we search out local yarn shops, or what knitters like to call LYS’s.  During Rachel’s last trip here, we visited The Knitting Pot in Elmhurst, Illinois.  Rachel fell in love with some lovely overdye purple yarn, but there was only one skein of it.  It’s been sitting on my idea board for the last two months while I try and figure out what to make with it.

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I like Cascade yarns.  This is a nice, chunky yarn that’s soft and has a nice hand.  This colorway is interesting because it’s so understated, all plums and grey.  It’s a lot darker than it seems in these pictures.

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Here’s a shot of the back of the yarn band.  The colorway on the left tells you what the manufacturer’s color it is.  The lot number on the right tells you which batch it was dyed with, so that if you’re using more than one skein, you can make sure all the pieces are the same lot number.

Here’s the tough part:

I don’t know what to make with it.

So, here are my ideas:

  1. A stuffed elephant/truffle.  (A truffle is an imaginary creature that Rachel and I invented for our Persis series; it’s a cross between a cocker spaniel and an aardvark.)
  2. A lace table runner.
  3. This is currently my favorite:  an Amazeball.  Here’s my idea:  make a large ball, stuffed and cushie.  Send it to a friend when they’ve done something amazing.  They get to hang onto it, kind of like a trophy, until they feel like it’s time to pass the award on to the next person.  Ooh!  As I’m typing this, maybe include a pocket, and each person giving the award can write a note to put in the Amazeball to pass it along to the next person.
  4. A set of tree ornaments.
  5. Use it in a woven piece where I wind on a continuous warp, and use this as one of the weft pieces.

What about you, Dear Reader?  What would you make with it?

Saturday Stashbusting

Knoontime Knitting

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I’m working on busting my ginormous stash.  In order to do that, I need to work on the projects I started.

The Stash List

  1. Block the Jewel Scarf
  2. My hat
  3. The red cable bag
  4. Line the Uglii Bag
  5. Bind off the Uglii Afghan; decide if I’m adding to it
  6. Buttons to the red blouse

This was originally a list of 5 things, but I realized I need to block the Jewel Scarf too, and that’s something I can do on Sunday.

Oh, and here’s Boria keeping the Uglii Afghan warm for me.  I know, I featured him a couple days ago, but it makes me laugh so I figured I’d share again.

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What about you, Dear Reader?  What’s in YOUR stash?

 

Thoughtful Thursday – 3D and Writing

Knoontime Knitting

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No epiphanies this week.  Just a hat.  I decided to try making one with lace, rather than straight ribbed stitches, and like how it’s coming out so far.

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Boria and Kolya both keep sleeping on my Uglii Chair Afghan, which is annoying.  Kolya wants to chew the ends of my knitting needles.

I think I’ll make him into a hat.

Tuesday Tips – Sheet Protectors

Knoontime Knitting

2016-01-05 KK Pic 1

I know those really neat fabric roll-ups are a cool way to store needles and hooks.  But until I can afford one, or make one for myself, what I’ve been doing is using sheet protectors and a large binder.  I organized the needles by size, and put the crochet hooks in the back one (which you could reverse, if your primary craft is crochet).

I keep my circulars in a zipper pouch organized by needle size; I splurged one year and got a set with detachable needles.  I highly recommend this, if you can swing it, because it makes sorting out the circular needle mess so much easier.  I really like KnitPicks needles for their smooth joins.

What about you, Dear Reader?  Got any favorite storage tips?

Make Something Monday – The Jewel Scarf

Knoontime Knitting

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The Jewel Scarf is done.  It’s nice and soft.   I’m not sure what I’m going to work on next; maybe a top-down sweater.  For now, here are some more views:

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I like long scarves, but I think this will fit well on the person for whom I designed it.
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It actually drapes well, which is nice.  I haven’t blocked it yet; this is just off the needles.  But I like the flow of the fabric even without blocking.

What about you, Dear Reader? What are you making?

 

Stash Sunday

Knoontime Knitting

20160103_0001

Now that I’ve finished the Jewel Scarf, I’m at a loss for what to make next.  I want to do a top-down sweater, but I don’t feel up to something new and complicated.  I have a bunch of yarn left over from the Bryce Canyon Shawl, and I don’t like the hat I made with the leftovers.  I decided to take another shot and make another hat.

Top-down hats are easier than they seem.  The nice thing about making them is that you can try it on halfway through and make sure it works how you want it to:

  • Cast on 8 stitches; join to work in the round.
  • Increase in each stitch; 16 total.
  • Work 1 round even.
  • Increase 8 stitches in next round.
  • Work 1 round even.
  • Repeat last two rows until it’s round enough to cover the crown of your head.
  • Work straight for as long as you want it, down to the ears or longer, if you want a foldable brim.
  • Then bind off and you’re done.

I like Elizabeth Zimmerman’s sewing needle bind off best, because it’s a nice edge, and isn’t tight or rigid.

  • Leave a long end of yarn and thread it in a blunt sewing needle.
  • Insert the needle into the next 2 stitches as if to purl and pull through, leaving the stitches on your knitting needle.
  • Insert the needle into the first stitch as if to knit and pull the stitch off the knitting needle.
  • Repeat these steps across the end of the row.

What about you, Dear Reader?  What’s in your stash?