Wyoming Breezes

Star Struck Quilt of Valor 63 x 81 inches Star Struck  (the Quilt of Valor Mystery QAL - A6) was finished over the weekend. I loved and appreciated working with the large pieces/blocks for the weeks my knee was somewhat achy and tender. Working the foot pedal of my sewing machine was excellent rehab. This pattern has a lot of possible adaptations - pinwheels in the center of the big stars, star points one color and the centers another color, and maybe a couple of smaller stars in the large white areas. Thanks, Alycia for hosting this Quilt of Valor Mystery. Star Struck is #119 on my QOV roster .

Eclipse "Pop" art Safeway store - Riverton, WY August 2017 The total eclipse has been in the news in my community for well over a year. Preparation has been made on the city, county and state level - extensive preparation, with predictions that the state's population could double during the event . Locally, my area could see close to 10,000 - 20,000 visitors. If that prediction is correct, Riverton could more than double in population in a three-day period. My town is nearly smack dab in the middle of the totality band, and the tiny town of Pavillion (pop. less than 200) where I taught for 25 years is THE place to be in Fremont County with an eclipse duration time of 2 minutes and 23 seconds. Residents are being urged to purchase their groceries, gas, etc. the week BEFORE the event and also warned that the hordes coming to witness the eclipse will put a strain on cell towers and local utilities, clog the roads, and create delays in travel. I purchased a ...

Mountain Meadow Wool August 2017 I purchased two skeins of Mountain Meadow Wool at the 2016 Fiber Fest in Riverton, and in my recent knitting frenzy, I finished a cowl with one of the skeins. The wool was milled and dyed in Buffalo, WY, and next month the Fremont Fiber Art Guild is going to take a trip to tour the mill. I haven't decided if I am going to block the finished cowl. Mountain Meadow Cowl Pattern : Dailey Park Cowl (Ravelry link) by Sunne Meyer Needles : US, size 7 Yarn : Mountain Meadow Wool - worsted weight - produced in Wyoming           (color - Fall)  100% merino wool

QOV mystery - A6 Clue #4 August 2017 Clue 4 of the Mystery Quilts for Military (A6) used several of the previously prepared units to create what I assume to be half of the quilt. The bottom half will likely have the bottoms of the two stars as well as another large star made with the light fabric used for the small star shown in the upper left. This is going to be a dynamic quilt when it's finished. Previous clues for this quilt can be found here .

Rainbow Sherbet socks July 2017 I enjoy browsing and shopping in thrift shops. A couple of weeks ago, I found a full skein of Berroco Sox yarn in the local shop for the bargain price of $1 - a great deal as it normally sells for $10+. The colors in the skein are a bit funky, but they remind me of rainbow sherbet. The official name for the color way is "Sprinkles." This yarn is a bit stiff to knit because it contains more nylon than normal - 25%, so I anticipate that the additional nylon will allow these socks to withstand a lot of wear and laundering. a matching pair Pattern : my standard ribbed cuff "recipe" Needles : US size 2 just a few "sprinkles" in the yellow section Yarn :  Berroco Sox (color 1411 - Sprinkles)            75% superwash wool, 25% nylon Have you found any great deals recently?

new and old thermometer July 2017 A couple of weeks ago, the daytime highs were close to 100, but my old thermometer (shown on the right) wouldn't budge above 80. I decided it was time to invest in a new model, and hung them side by side for several days. Oddly, the old thermometer was nearly 10 degrees off during the day, but was within one or two degrees of the new thermometer in the evenings. Today's ponderable:  If I didn't have another source of temperature (internet, apps, radio, etc.) would my mind accept the number on the old thermometer as fact; thus, thinking it was cooler than it actually was? Is heat (or cold) a matter of perspective? Is it only a number? What's your "ideal" summer temperature? (I am very comfortable with temperatures in the mid to high 70s and will tolerate temperatures in the low to mid-80s before I begin to get uncomfortable. Anything over 95 is nearly unbearable. Thankfully, Wyoming doesn't have a lot of humidit...

Swap box contents from Betsy Fat quarters for quilting, double-point needle keeper, knit dishcloth, removable stitch markers, needle gauge, yarn cozies, Japanese coin purse, washi tape, note pad, tea, air freshener, and coaster August 2017 KathyB hosted another swap this year, which I gladly joined. The theme was " Anything But Yarn ." My swap partner was Betsy (you can see what I sent her on her blog: The Simple Life of a Queen ), who was also my partner for the previous swap. Since Betsy and I started reading each other's blogs nearly two years ago, we have picked up a few details about each other's life, including likes and favorite colors and crafts. The items Betsy sent are perfect - things for quilting, knitting, and relaxing. Thanks for being a great swap partner, Betsy! Thanks, KathyB for hosting another successful swap.

Clue #3 July 2017 The directions for this clue had some errors, but they were easy to correct. This clue resulted in two saw tooth stars; whereas, one each were made in clues 1 and 2 .

sign made from old fence pickets July 2017 Two summers ago, I had the privacy fence around my yard replaced. I saved some of the better pickets and took them to Brenda (my niece) for her painting projects. I thought she might want to turn the weathered pickets into snowmen or some other decoration. When Brenda came to visit recently, she gave the "Freedom" sign, painted using two fence pickets, to me. I think it's fantastic that the pickets that served me well for over 20 years and that I took to Denver have come back home. They were here, there, and back. Thanks Brenda - I love the sign!

Walgreens Laramie, WY June 2017 I'm sure you've heard the advertisement about Walgreens being on the corner of "Happy" and "Healthy." Because my surgery was over 200 miles from my home, I knew I'd need to pick up some medication before heading home. Marilyn, Brenda and I sought out the location of the nearest Walgreens Pharmacy, and what we found was an oddity. It appears that corner real estate in Laramie, WY (near the University of Wyoming) is hard to obtain: the Walgreens is just that - a pharmacy only. Thus, in Laramie, it appears that Walgreens is only on the corner of "Healthy."

American Two-Step Quilt of Valor 61 x 73 inches The final clue for the Two-Step mystery was to assemble the top. I am pleased with how the units came together. Clue #1 and 2  (January and February) Clue #3  (March) Clue #4   (April) Clue #5 (May) Clue #6 (June) Clue #7 (July) American Two-Step is Quilt of Valor #118

Purple Tweed Cowl July 2017 Another single skein project that knit up quickly in two evenings. Purple Tweed cowl Because I had a single 50 gram skein of yarn, I heavily altered the Eternity Scarf neck warmer pattern. The cowl measures 7.5 inches by 22 inches - just enough to keep the neck warm under a coat collar. Pattern : Eternity Scarf by Michel Wang (purchased pattern on Ravelry) Needles : US size 9 Yarn : Blackstone Tweed - Berroco           Color #2677           50 grams - 130 yards           65% wool, 25% mohair, 10% angora Do you alter knitting patterns to accommodate for the lack of yardage?

Karna cowl July 2017 It has been great fun to work on the kits that I prepared earlier this summer. My goal was two-fold: to have some diversions as my knee healed and to use single skeins of yarn from my stash. The LANG Merino+ Color came from a Guild member who donated yarn for a fund-raiser. The vivid colors attracted me to this skein, and the resulting cowl is an amazing display of color. This superwash yarn was heavenly to knit. I'd purchase it again in a heartbeat. I blocked the cowl, but it really didn't require it. The cowl measures 9.5 inches high and 22 inches in circumference. Karna cowl Pattern: Karna cowl (free pattern on Ravelry) by Almond Biscotti Needles : US size 9 Yarn : Merino+ Color by LANG Yarn (color #926.0061)           100% virgin merino wool - superwash           100 grams (180 meters)

Amerie cowl July 2017 Amerie was a great project for evening TV viewing. The two-row pattern was very easy to memorize and to knit. The photo doesn't show it clearly, but the cowl is doubled (50 inches in circumference) and 5 inches wide.  It would not have required blocking, but I did it anyway to open the stitches a bit. Knit flat, a three-needle bind off (pattern uses a provisional cast on) grafted the two ends together. The Yak/wool blend is soft, but somewhat splitty. Yarn details can be found on this earlier post .

Little Free Library  in front of Pizza Hut Riverton, WY July 2017 I finally stopped to snap a photo of the Little Free Library in front of the Pizza Hut. Every other time I thought about stopping, there were cars parked in front of it, so I couldn't get a clear photo. Other Little Free Libraries in Riverton can be seen here:      •   Riverton High School      •   Village Drive Have you spotted any new Little Free Libraries in your community?

My Friend Jean cowl July 2017 My Friend Jean is off the needles and blocked. As predicted in an earlier post , I had enough yarn to knit 20 of the 32 lace pattern rows. The blocked cowl is 5 inches wide, and with the full pattern, it would probably be close to 7 or 8 inches. The single skein that I used was only 50 grams: a 100 gram skein would result in a wider cowl. The pattern has directions for a small, medium, and large cowl (length), and I knit the large because even with a narrower cowl, I wanted it to be long enough to loop around the neck two times. I think my first, chart knit project turned out pretty good. felted needle case July 2017 A squishy package arrived in Friday's mail - a felted zip bag from Kathyb. She drew my name from those who sent twiddle mitts in memory of her mother. Thanks, Kathyb

QOV Mystery A6 Clue #1 I managed to get the fabric cut and prepped for the first two clues of the Quilt of Valor mystery. The clues were similar and worked up quickly once I got the fabric cut. QOV Mystery A6 Clue #2 It felt good to sit down at the sewing machine again. The third clue will be released on Wednesday. This is the third mystery Quilt Along that I've participated in this year, and all have been fun.

four scrappy baby hats July 2017 Sock yarn scraps were turned into baby hats while watching movies on Netflix. Pattern information can be found here .

Amerie July 2017 I'm slowly picking up the project kits that I prepared earlier. Once I memorized the two-row pattern, I began to make more progress.  (The white yarn is the provisional cast-on edge. ) Pattern : Amerie by Lucy Hague (Ravelry link - free pattern) Needles : US size 9                (I started with one circular but soon transferred the project                  to two straights for easier handling) Yarn : YAK (Lang Yarns) 50% yak and 50% virgin wool           50 grams (color #772.0074)

Aww, what a flirt! he even waved to us as we stood watching Humpty Dumpty July 2017 Humpty Dumpty visited the Riverton Rendezvous Balloon Rally again. He draws a crowd of admirers of all ages. His previous visits can be seen here  and here the crowd enjoyed milling around the launch field on a near-perfect morning for flying a hot-air balloon.