Cosmo's Costume

Cosmo the black cat loves to help. Everything and anything he encounters is His Toy, and he is quite fond of helping me knit. He thinks the Jackyll & hide balaclava hat from Knitty is also an excellent place for a quick nap, but not as exciting as a crinkly paper bag.
It also makes a lovely kitty blanket.
He didn't think it was much fun folded up as a hat, but he stayed nearby to make sure it was still His Toy.

Ready to Spin

Okay, I'm ready to learn this spinning business. One of the SIFAC members makes spindles, so I had to buy one. Another SIFAC member brought in a huge bag of merino roving from a festival in Michigan, and let us each pick some colors - of course, I was immediately drawn to the blue/green/purple colors. Before I start spinning those little lovelies, I have to get the basic spinning down - I found a bag of merino roving to practice with at The Yarn Shoppe in Herrin.

Sunset View

Here is a view of a gorgeous sunset from our dock.

Another Multidirectional Triangle Scarf

I am completely addicted to Iris Schreier's Multidirectional knitting! Here is another Multidirectional Triangle Scarf, this time for stepdaughter Kelly's birthday. She likes burgundy, forest green, and navy so I scoured the internet for handpainted yarn in those colors. I found it at Mystical Creations Yarn on eBay, and it is a heavy worsted weight thick-and-thin silk/wool. The colors really popped when I took the scarf outside to photograph it - the burgundy looks almost fuchsia in this picture, but it really is a dark red. Check out the MCY eBay store, they have branched out into many kinds of yarn, all gorgeous!

Halloween Swap for Illusion Knitting And More

Above are the lovely items I recieved from Kim, my swap partner in the Illusion Knitting and More Yahoo group's Halloween swap. In addition to the cleverly decorated Boo cloth, Kim sent me a tin of yummy caramel cocoa, a wonderful pumpkin soap that is too cute to use yet, a Pumpkin Pie Yankee Candle Tart, Vanilla Sugar lotion and spray, a packet of Burt's Bees honey lip balm with a sleeve to attach the balm to my keychain, a big cappucino chocolate bar, and some absolutely delicious toffees! Cosmo the evil black cat got into the picture as he was trying to steal the Boo cloth - he has a 'thing' for dishcloths and towels. I have a dish towel hanging on the oven handle, and Cosmo routinely snags it with his claws, then sinks his teeth into it, and drags it away to cover up the kibble in his dish. Sometimes he puts one of his toys in his dish, then covers it with the dish towel. Clearly he does not like to share food or toys!
Here is Kim's picture of the Halloween goodies I sent to her. I had such fun shopping for things she would like, and only stopped adding items when I doubted that I could get the box taped shut. While I was googling for pictures of angels and nutcrackers, I came across Marilyn Scott-Walters' whimsical website, The Toymaker, where I found the Halloween gift bags and black cat greeting card. It's a wonderful place to explore, even if you don't have kids!