Mar24

Wow, I completely stink at this!!

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TWO YEARS!!!! Two stinking years and I haven’t written anything here!!!

Well, it’s been pretty crazy.

Basically, my back injury ended my Air Force career and I was medically retired last year… and I’m still pretty sad about it. I miss my friends so much it’s ridiculous. Call out to the Air Force and the VA, they have taken very good care of me and I have no complaints.

Secondly, on a whim brought on by boredom, I decided to use my GI Bill and go back to college. Since I retained my GI Bill from my active duty time, I began my first “brick and mortar” college career at Cape Cod Community College, which has an adorable campus and the most amazing staff. I’m really having a wonderful time and making some amazing friends while I’m doing it. Granted, I’m old enough to be their mother but I don’t think it really matters. They probably think I’m a crazy old lady since I normally wear my old sage green combat boots (believe it or not, they’re extremely comfy!!) and the old Harley Davidson hoody that I acquired from my husband (about 2 sizes too big for me but I practically live in it). The craziest thing of all was I was invited to become a member of the National Honor Society for academic excellence… ME!?!?! The one that has stood steadfast that a higher education is a worthless expenditure of time and money?!?!

Yep. Me…

Apparently all of the classes I’ve been taking over the years had an accrued GPA of 3.85 and somehow I became an academic person. I’m still kind of puzzled about that one.

Anyway, I’m still having a ball with college and will keep going as long as I can. I’ve gotten a few art and computer based graphic design under my belt and I’ve become pretty good at it but wondering what I’m going to do with it.

*transition to applicable subject matter…

So now for the big news! Hubby and I just bought laser engravers!!! He bought a more powerful one for engraving metal and relief carving wood. I bought one that can help me with the outlines of my wood projects (I hate starting and outlining a new project!!!). The BEST part is that both run on computer based graphics!!! The magic is coming!

We haven’t gotten them yet but I’m just throwing it out there that this blog will be coming alive again!!!

I’m sorry I’ve been gone so long but I’m back 🙂

Apr3

Wow, I’m a little embarrassed…

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Wow, I’m a little embarrassed…

I haven’t written in my blog since JUNE 2016??? Wow, that is embarrassing. Not only is that embarrassing, but where in the world did the last year go? At least winter 2017 is over.

Anyway…

Knitting…I have been doing my best to keep up with my knitting of baby blankets even though my latest hobby seems to be bouncing from doctor appointments to other doctor appointments.  It gets a bit old.  But, I have been knitting; two are chunky weights (yarn weight “Bulky” or #5 weight), and one worsted weight.

As always, the patterns can be found at:

https://www.etsy.com/shop/CapeCodStitchery

This is affectionately called “Dapper Diamonds”; knit with a machine washable friendly wool/acrylic yarn blend, this simple yet bold design is a delight to look at and a breeze to knit because of it’s bulky yarn.

Beautiful twisted stitch really sets off the lines
Rust Orange baby blanket
Perfect for the rustic country decor
mostly knit and purl stitch with an occasional twisted stitch

This flashy cabled lattice baby blanket is a deceptively easy repeating cable that creates an heirloom piece that can be cherished for a lifetime.  Knitted loosely with a cozy washing machine friendly acrylic, “Lovely Lattice” is a masterpiece to create for most any skill level of knitter.

Our final baby blanket is a simple knit/purl only baby blanket that is an incredible project for the beginner that is ready to make the next step in knitted.  Knitted with 100% acrylic Red Heart yarn, this pattern is a delight to the eyes! The traveling lines and the flashy pinwheels are impressive to everyone who looks at it, even the experienced knitter would be delighted to create this charming piece.

 

Again, these knitted baby blanket patterns, and many others, can be found at:

https://www.etsy.com/shop/CapeCodStitchery

Please feel free to contact me if there are any questions.  Thanks!!!

Jun24

Portuguese Knitting Pins

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For the sake of diversification, I’ve been “expanding my product line” in my Etsy store (I can’t sell physical items at Ravelry…at least I don’t think I can) by making these beautiful knitting pins used in Portuguese style knitting; the pins are very unique because I made them out of Czech glass buttons, of which are incredibly beautiful!!!   If you don’t know what it is, check out this video on YouTube:

I normally knit by the method of English “throwing” (right hand does all of the work) but I prefer to use the knitting pin when I knit a knit/purl blanket because it’s very efficient, faster (I can knit about 150 stitches a minute) and doesn’t strain your hands so much.  However, I have my own way of doing it; I do the purl technique the exact same way as in the video but instead of the demonstrated knit stitch, I do a continental knit stitch…someday when I’m bored, I’ll make a video of it because I haven’t seen anyone else do it.

Anyway, if you’d like to check out some unique knitting pins, please check out my shop on Etsy at: https://www.etsy.com/shop/CapeCodStitchery

Here are some of the pins that are currently available…

If there are any questions, please feel free to ask or leave a comment.  Thanks!!

Jun4

Stag Horn Cable Baby Blanket

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Stag Horn Cable Baby Blanket

Hello everyone!  I though I would share my latest baby blanket; it’s knitted in Aran off white, worsted weight, acrylic yarn, and it consists of a beautiful array of stag horn cables.  It looks very difficult (and like a Klingon’s forehead, according to my husband) but trust me, it’s incredibly easy to knit…dramatic results with minimal skill.  If you can do a simple cable, you can make this blanket.  I created a pattern, for this blanket, consisting of line by line instruction, an abbreviated chart that shows the repeats, and a full blanket chart that can be blown up to a readable size at any print shop.

Patterns are available at:

https://www.etsy.com/shop/CapeCodStitchery ~or~ http://www.ravelry.com/stores/cape-cod-stitchery

Thanks for looking!

May30

Playing with my knitting machine

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Playing with my knitting machine

I’m finally starting to come out of my latest adventure…spinal surgery!! YAY…not.  I was expecting the surgery itself to be way worse than it was, but it wasn’t horrific.  Granted, feeling staples brush against the vertebrae in your back is not a good time.  It’s been slow but the incision is finally healing.  The nerve damage from the blown disc pinching off my S1 and S2 nerves for 9 months will take longer to heal, if it ever heals at all.  I hope I finally heal completely because walking with a cane really sucks.

The worst thing about the whole thing was that I couldn’t sit for more than 10 minutes at a time (and then I had to sit in a reclined position), thus I COULDN’T KNIT!!!!  It really stunk but I found a way around it; I had the fore-site to elevate an old card table and dug out an old Bond Knitting Machine, that I’ve had for years, and set it up.  About two weeks after the surgery, I was standing and walking so I designed a simple baby blanket that I could make; it wasn’t exactly like knitting but it was the best I could do at the time. The good thing was that I was able to gauge it out to a hand knitting pattern.

If you’d like to have this pattern, it can be found at:

https://www.etsy.com/shop/CapeCodStitchery

~or~

http://www.ravelry.com/stores/cape-cod-stitchery

long viewcable close upfolded close up

Apr18

Busy, busy, busy…

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It seems like everything that could have happened lately, has.  I’ve been working on getting more worsted weight patterns made but life sort of has gotten in the way; a few weeks ago was my precious husband’s birthday, the next day we had to put our beloved 13 year old German Sheppard, Minnie, to sleep because her poor body was just giving out on her.  Then barely after going through the anguish of losing her, and seeing how much our Jack Russell, Dexter, missed her too…I had to get spinal surgery.  Needless to say, it’s been a tough months so far.

In between the gaps of activity, I was able to get a few patterns done: Worsted Weight Diamonds and Worsted Weight Quilted Stars; both were originally chunky yarn patterns but I converted them to worsted weight yarn.  Chunky yarn blankets are lovely in the winter, because they’re soft and heavy, but way too warm for summer (however, they make lovely floor blankets!).

I’ve also have developed a new obsession…Portuguese pin knitting!  I love working with worsted weight yarn but lets face it, knitting a blanket with smaller yarn seems to take forever!!  But, once I got the hang of pin knitting, I was easily doing 100 stitches a minute, almost twice as fast as standard knitting.  I loved it so much, not only did I make a few knitting pins for myself, I made some to sell in my Etsy shop!

If you’d like to see the new knitting patterns, and the older ones that I’ve had posted for a while, please see them at:

https://www.etsy.com/shop/CapeCodStitchery

 

Feb16

Chunky Yarn Baby Blanket in Wavy Lines

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My latest baby blanket design; this creation was a happy accident because I was going for a large basket weave but once I started knitting it, I noticed that the main vertical lines were waving on their own…and I love the way it turned out!!  I’m thinking that I’m going to make this one into an adult sized blanket but that will be a project for another day.

If you’d like to obtain a copy of this knitting pattern, it is located at:

https://www.etsy.com/shop/CapeCodStitchery

Thanks for looking!!

Feb6

Chunky Yarn Baby Blanket in Stars

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Hello everyone!  The good thing about winter is that there is plenty of time to knit and I’ve been busy.  My latest is a chunky yarn knit baby blanket that has the illusion of stars in it, or snowflakes (I’ve heard both…) in charcoal gray.

To  get a copy of the pattern, please feel free to visit my Etsy store at:

https://www.etsy.com/shop/CapeCodStitchery

Thanks!!!

Dixie

 

Jan31

Knitted cubes, in 3D

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I thought I would share my latest design; a reversible knit and purl baby blanket knitted in a stunning spice red, chunky yarn.  Very soft and appropriate for an evening out with Mom and Dad!

This pattern is available, along with many others, at:

https://www.etsy.com/shop/CapeCodStitchery

Thanks for stopping by!

Dixie

Jan18

Busy…busy…busy…

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It’s been a pretty busy couple of months for me, between the holidays and everything…thankfully, I was able to add two new baby blankets to my design collection of non-traditional baby blankets.

The first is a knitted, chunky yarn, mustard colored baby blanket, that’s large enough for a toddler.  It’s very soft, fluffy and quite cozy!

The second blanket is also knitted with chunky yarn but in a subtle denim blue, this one is also a good size for a toddler.

Both patterns, along with the other chunky yarn baby blankets patterns in my collection, can be found at:

https://www.etsy.com/shop/CapeCodStitchery

Feel free to message me if there are any questions.

Thanks!!!