• Off the Needles, Hook or Bobbins
• On the Needles, Hook or Bobbins
• From the Armchair
• Some Years Later
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• Life in Focus
• Ask Me Anything
• On a Happy Note
• Quote of the Week

• Yarn: Spun Right Round Squish DK in the Shock Star colorway
• Needles: US 5 (3.75 mm) & US 7 (4.5 mm)
• Pattern: none
• Ravelry Project Page
• About the yarn: cream base with small bits of neons + black.
• 92 sts
• 130.5 meters for Stash Dash

• Pattern: Ball Band (free pattern on Ravelry & LoveCrafts) & Ball Band with a Twist ($2 crochet pattern on Ravelry & LoveCrafts)  by Jennifer Lassonde
• Yarns: Loops & Threads Capri Eco Cotton in Colorway: Cranberry. Loops & Threads Everyday Cotton in Jade. Leftover scrubby yarn for lighter green
• Hooks: 3.75 mm (F) & 4.25 mm (G)
• Ravelry Project Page
• Inspiration- Ali (starryeyesali) posted a watermelon bowl she made with leftover yarn on Instagram
• Small Jar cozy (16 oz wide mouth Mason jars). All sc (like the original ball band pattern). 7 rounds of Jade, 2 rounds of light green, 9 rounds of red. Black "seeds" sewn in later.
• Large Jar cozy (24 oz wide mouth Mason jars)- following Ball Band with a Twist instructions. 6 rounds of bottom section in Jade. 2 rounds of light green and the rest in Red. Black "seeds" sewn in later.
• Large Jar cozy #2  (24 oz wide mouth Mason jars)-  rounds of Jade, 2 rounds of light green,  rest was done in red. Black "seeds" sewn in later.
• 156.4 meters for Stash Dash

• Yarn: Woolens & Nosh Targee Socks- 2022 Advent Calendar
• Pattern: OMG Heel by Megan Williams ($5 Knitting Pattern available on Ravelry)
• Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm)
• Ravelry Project Page
• 20g mini in dark purple; used for cuff and heel.
• 285.8 meters for Stash Dash

• Pattern: OMG Heel Socks by Megan Williams ($5 knitting pattern available on Ravelry )
• Yarn: Patons Kroy in the Zebra Stripes Colorway
• Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm)
• Ravelry Project Page
• 273.6 meters for Stash Dash

• Fiber: Into the Whirled Cheviot (4 oz) in the Children of Time colorway
• Twist direction: singles = Z plied = S
• This means when I'm spinning, my wheel is spinning clockwise and when plying my wheel is moving counter-clockwise.
• Ravelry Project Page
• 1 ply of Wool of the Andes in 2 colors of blue + 2 plies of Into the Whirled
• Skein 1= 94g. 116.91 yards or 106.9 meters
• Skein 2= 82g  120.3 yards, 110 meters
• Total meters of yarn 216.9
• For Stash Dash= 4 x 216.9 = 867.6 meters

• Fiber: Fluffypuf #130 Hand Dyed Roving Batt Purple/Pink. 1.4 ounces. 50% BFL, 40% merino, 10% Tussah Silk.
• Twist direction: singles = Z plied = S
• This means when I'm spinning, my wheel is spinning clockwise and when plying my wheel is moving counter-clockwise.
• Ravelry Project Page
• 2 skeins of finished yarn with Fluffypuf & Kingdom Fleece & Fiber Works
• Skein 1- 66g. 80.97 yards or 74.04 meters
• Skein 2= 66g. 79.44 yards or 72.64 meters
• Total Meters= 146.68
• I still had singles left of the Kingdom Fleece & Fiberworks fiber, so I plied that with some mystery purple singles.
• Skein 3: 28g. 54.44 yards or 49.78 meters
• Meters for Stash Dash- 49.78 x 4= 199.12
• Total Meters for Stash Dash for all 3 skeins = 795.84

• Pattern: Basic Crochet Hexagon Pattern & Tips from Make Do and Crew Website & YouTube Tutorial
• Hook: F (3.75 mm)
• Yarn: Mini skeins from 2022 agirlandherwool Advent Calendar, 24 Days of Cheer Swap minis + other scraps/swap yarn
• Ravelry Project Page
• I've been closing the end of each hexagon with this join- link to Instagram post
• 4 rounds per hexagon.
• 3.75 inches each. Likely need over 300
• Twin sized blanket is 60x80 inches. 17x22 hexis- 374.
• Learned double magic circle from this YouTube video. The trick is to know how to pull both loops to tighten the loop.
• As of 7/25/23- 51' wide by 58" long. (13 x 17 hexis)

• Yarn: A Whimsical Wood Yarn Company Pixie Toes Socks in the Silver Spoon Up My A$$ colorway
• Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm)
• Pattern: OMG Heel Socks by Megan Williams ($5 knitting pattern available on Ravelry )
• Ravelry Project Page
• Progress: on the foot of the first sock.

• Pattern: Christmas Stockings to Knit and Crochet from Family Circle Magazine. Available in this web archive link. I’ve also saved it to my podcast Gmail Google Drive in case it disappears!
  web.archive.org-Christmas Stockings to Knit and Crochet from Our Archives.pdf
• Yarn: Red Heart Super Saver in Cherry Red, Hunter Green and White
• Hook: G (4.0 mm)
• Ravelry Project Page
• Progress: I have 3 of the 4 front/back panels I need for the frist 2 done. The forth is onto the leg. I am going to crochet up 2 more and then iron them, and start seaming them.

• Pattern: 100% improvised.
• Yarn: Lion Brand Re-up. Colors: Ecru, Red, Orange, Sunflower, Lime, Aqua, Lilac and Raspberry
• Hook: E (3.5 mm)
• Ravelry Project Page
• Wide, oversized crochet top that I completely improvised on the go. Thought I'd do all granny squares but didn't think I'd have enough yarn.
• Originally finished in June 2022, but it was too short and I only wore it once.
• Had hdc rows in rainbow colors at the bottom. Ripped all of that back and instead of doing 1 round of each color, I did 2. Extending beyond blue to include purple and pink.

• Yarn: Andre Sue Knits Sock Blank in the My Little Unicorn colorway
• Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm)
• Pattern: OMG Heel Socks by Megan Williams ($5 knitting pattern available on Ravelry )
• Ravelry Project Page
• Gray background with white and pink unicorns that look like My Little Pony. My inner 80's child loved this one.

• The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston. Bookshop Affiliate Link. Amazon Affiliate Link.
• Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica. Bookshop Affiliate Link. Amazon Affiliate Link.
• Recommended by Dan's cousin Melissa
• Just the Nicest Couple by Mary Kubica. Bookshop Affiliate Link. Amazon Affiliate Link.

• Mom sent 2 socks to be repaired. Her Knit Picks Felici Zen Socks had a hole in the foot. It was easy to repair with a bit of yarn. I washed them and they're ready to give back. I only finished these in May 2022, right before Mother's Day so these haven't held up very well. Click here for my Ravelry Project Page.
• I also did a blanket repair on a knitted blanket a friend's mother asked me to fix. I was assuming it was crochet, so the fact that it was knitted was a surprise. The section that was torn was part of a very long strip of knitting that was knit on the bias, so it was a little tricky but it was in garter stitch and I did a good job of pulling the stitches back up. Its not 100% invisible, but I'm happy with it. I have it washed and ready to return.

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• Many of our Sponsors are offering coupon codes. Find them here- Google Doc or Ravelry Thread.
• Tune in to hear if you won a participation prize.
• End of the event winners will be announced in Episode 260

• Stash Dash, hosted by Leslie & Laura of the Knit Girllls Video Podcast starts May 26th and runs through August 31, 2023. Check out details in the knit girllls discord
• My total as of this episode: 8,140 meters
• You can check out my Stash Dash 2023 Progress on this Google Sheet.
• Legacy Fiber Artz Knit Your Stash MAL- check out the details on the Treehouse Fiber Arts website
• Runs May 29- September 4, 2023
• #legacyfiberartzknityourstashMal and #flashyourstash
• Crafty Bingo- Craft Cook Read Repeat Podcast
• May 26-September 4, 2023
• Grab the Bingo card over on their Instagram feed
• The Grocery Girls are hosting Hot Granny Square Summer MAL. Check out details in their Ravelry Group & in Episode 183 on their YouTube Channel.
• Summer Sock Camp hosted in the Crazy Sock Lady Ravelry Group
• 5/26- 8/31/2023
• Vermont Sheep & Wool: Sept 30 & Oct 1 at the Tunbridge Fairgrounds
• Check out some West Coast (US) Events on the Seattle Knitters Guild site (thanks Kristen- kips206)

• After 3+ years I got Covid.
• Mom's July MRI & CT Scans show that the cancer has not grown/changed! Great news!

• AnnahB wants to know how many UFOs I have. (12 somewhat active + hibernations)
• MaysMomNH- How your Mom is doing.
• Elisa.Knits- How you pick yarn for sweaters and cardis please.
• Nali_Knits- what motivates you to keep knitting/podcasting after so many years?
• KGZKnits- Can we watch instead?
• Red-Christina- trying to knit men's cardigan for my grandpa- any suggestions?
• Classic Cardigan by Tin Can Knits. $8 knitting pattern on Ravelry or Tin Can Knits website.
• Slade by Michelle Wang (for Brooklyn Tweed). $10 pattern available on Ravelry; $9 on Brooklyn Tweed Website.
• Reading Cardigan by Jared Flood. $16 knitting pattern available on Ravelry & for $15 on Brooklyn Tweed website)
• DogMomKnits- Fall Knitting Plans- Pigskin Party (if there will be one) info?
• There will be a Pigskin Party. I'll be planning it very soon!

• After a day of resin crafts and pool time, Mom, Dad, Gayle, Meagan, Liz and I headed out for ice cream and then back for 2 round Tock match (Meagan & I won one, Gayle & Liz won one).
• I went to Minute Clinic to confirm I had Covid, but mostly to see if I also had strep throat, and was treated by my childhood bestie, Maribeth!
• Grateful for my own craft room with a comfy chair in a cool part of the house. Perfect for isolating and making sure Dan didn't get sick. I did go outside a bit on the weekend days. Dan brought up my wheel. I still spent a lot of time lying down between projects but it was nice to get out. I missed our nephew's 16th birthday pool party, though, so that was a bummer.
• Jeff was able to get an extra ticket for me to join he and Riley to see Lainey Wilson at the Mohegan Sun casino on Friday night! We had dinner, loved the show, got a cool Watermelon Moonshine Stanley Tumbler, and then I slept over at their house. Hung out with Riley & Millie in the morning, singing Hamilton as Riley made us homemade waffles.

• Check out the Down Cellar Studio Patreon!
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• Sign up for my email newsletter to get the latest on everything happening in the Down Cellar Studio
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• Knit Picks Affiliate Link
• Bookshop Affiliate Link
• Yarnable Subscription Box Affiliate Link
• Music -"Soft Orange Glow" by Josh Woodward. Free download: http://joshwoodward.com/
• Note: Some links are listed as Amazon Affiliate Links. If you click those, please know that I am an Amazon Associate and I earn money from qualifying purchases.

• Off the Needles, Hook or Bobbins
• On the Needles, Hook or Bobbins
• From the Armchair
• In my Travels
• KAL News
• Events
• Life in Focus
• On a Happy Note
• Quote of the Week

Off the Needles, Hook or Bobbins

• Pattern: OMG Heel Socks by Megan Williams ($5 knitting pattern available on Ravelry )
• Yarn:  Desert Vista Dyeworks Viso base in the Summer Rainbow Colorway
• Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm)
• Ravelry Project Page
• 253.8 meters for Stash Dash

• Pattern: Freedom Water Bottle Holder by Wendy Serrao (free crochet pattern available on Ravelry & on Wendy’s website)
• Yarn: Lion Brand Re-Up
• Hook: G (4.25 mm)
• Ravelry Project Page
• About the project: Hattie (age 5) saw a water bottle holder at the local refill store and asked for one. Her Mom, Megg texted asking if I could please make one for Hattie. The pattern is designed for an adult/larger sized water bottle so I knew I wanted to make mine smaller than called for in the pattern. I started in blue and increased up to about 38 sts around. Instead of double crochets, I worked half double crochets instead. 6 rows hdc, followed by 3 rows of (ch1, dc around) in purple. Then I repeated that in pink.
• I had planned to do the strap half pink and half purple, but when I had Hattie try it on, it was too long (even though I had been accounting for a serious amount of stretch). She said it needed attention regardless because there wasn’t any blue in the strap. Noted. Thankfully, I’d anticipated my picky client and brought all three colors with me to the pool. I ripped back, adjusted the length, added some blue to the second half of the strap and voila!
• 80.2 meters for Stash Dash

• Pattern: Seeing Spirals Washcloth by Lindsey Dale (free crochet pattern available on Ravelry or on Lindsey’s website)
• Yarn: Lion Brand Re-Up
• Hook: G (4.25 mm)
• Ravelry Project Page
• 14 meters for Stash Dash

• Pattern: Musselburgh by Ysolda Teague ($7.77 US/ 6 GBP knitting pattern available on Ravelry or on Ysolda’s website)
• Yarn: YarnBaker Fingering in the Blazer Colorway & On The Round Nimble Sock (unsure of colorway)
• Needles: US 2 (2.75) circular- 32 in (magic loop for beginning & end of project & US 2 (also called US 2.5) 3.0 mm 16-inch circular for the body of the hat
• Ravelry Project Page
• Size: Adult Medium
• About the project: Half light blue, half darker denim blue, about 8.5 inches tall. You can still fold up the brim if you really want to.
• 384.7 meters for Stash Dash

• Pattern: Chevron Scrap Blanket by Maria’s Blue Crayon (free crochet pattern) available on Ravelry & the Maria’s Blue Crayon Website.
• This pattern presumes you already know the c2c crochet technique.
• Yarn: Knit Picks Brava Worsted in White & Tranquil (light green), Lion Brand Pound of Love in Pastel Pink and Loops & Threads Snuggly Wuggly Big! in colorway Soft Lilac
• Hook: J (6.0 mm)
• Ravelry Project Page (I crocheted one of these in summer 2020- click here for that Ravelry Project Page)
• For help learning the Corner to Corner Crochet method you could check out this free Ravelry Download from Lauri Bolland or this video tutorial from Lion Brand on
  https://youtu.be/mQPVlaRE4Gw
• Each section is 11 squares tall. Green, white, pink, white, purple, white.
• I used mattress stitch to seam  all 6 strips together. I used white to do a dc border round, then a hdc round. From there I did a crochet pom pom border using 2 puff stitches that you fold over to make bobbles. I first used this border on a Cozy Clusters Blanket last summer (Ravelry project page here). I learned about this edge technique on this website.
• 3,024 meters for Stash Dash

On the Needles, Hook or Bobbins

• Pattern: Basic Crochet Hexagon Pattern & Tips from Make Do and Crew Website &
  https://youtu.be/X4hgFCAKHkg?list=PLsrz34yAA5TqZ9zDYjyLp4A1tx_2x0Ub6
• Hook: F (3.75 mm)
• Yarn: Mini skeins from 2022 agirlandherwool Advent Calendar, 24 Days of Cheer Swap minis + other scraps/swap yarn
• Ravelry Project Page
• I’ve been closing the end of each hexagon with this join- link to Instagram post
• 4 rounds per hexagon.
• 3.75 inches each. Likely need over 300
• Twin sized blanket is 60×80 inches. 17×22 hexis- 374.
• Learned double magic circle from this YouTube video. The trick is to know how to pull both loops to tighten the loop.
• Progress: I started seaming!

• Pattern: Christmas Stockings to Knit and Crochet from Family Circle Magazine. Available in this web archive link. I’ve also saved it to my podcast Gmail Google Drive in case it disappears!
  web.archive.org-Christmas Stockings to Knit and Crochet from Our Archives.pdf
• Yarn: Red Heart Super Saver in Cherry Red, Hunter Green and White
• Hook: G (4.0 mm)
• Ravelry Project Page
• Progress: I have 3 of the 4 front/back panels I need for the frist 2 done. The forth is onto the leg. I am going to crochet up 2 more and then iron them, and start seaming them.

• Pattern: OMG Heel Socks by Megan Williams ($5 knitting pattern available on Ravelry )
• Yarn: Legacy Fiber Artz Steel Toes in the Portal Colorway + 50g skein in a mystery colorway
• Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm)
• Ravelry Project Page
• About the colorways: both have a pink base. The mystery skein leans more to blues and purples. Portal has some brighter sky blues and bits of green and maroon. Together they just look like one beautiful colorway. 
• Progress: a few inches from the heel on the first sock

• Pattern: OMG Heel Socks by Megan Williams ($5 knitting pattern available on Ravelry )
• Yarn: Patons Kroy in the Zebra Stripes Colorway
• Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm)
• Ravelry Project Page
• About the colorway- approximately 3 round stripes of black and cream
• Progress: Finished first sock. Turned the heel on the second sock.

• Yarn: Woolens & Nosh Targee Socks- 2022 Advent Calendar
• Pattern: OMG Heel by Megan Williams ($5 Knitting Pattern available on Ravelry)
• Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm)
• Ravelry Project Page
• 1 stripe a day. So manageable– then I got to Vegas and realized I was using US 2 instead of US 1.5. Thought the gauge looked strange. Ripped back to cuff. I got off track after that.
• 20g mini in dark purple; used for cuff and will use for the heel.
• Progress: I finished the first sock (did not use the mini for the toe). Cast on the second sock, using the mini for the cuff.

From the Armchair

• Watching: Shrinking (on Apple TV+)I finished reading:
• Beach Read by Emily Henry. Bookshop Affiliate Link. Amazon Affiliate Link.

In My Travels

• While in Phoenix with Mom, she, Merry & I took a day trip tour to Sedona through Detours. Nicki was our guide. First stop: Montezuma Castle. where the Sinagua people built dwellings into the side of the rock face. It was a 20 room, multi-story structure access via sets of wooden ladders.
• Bell Rock trailhead/ vista. 
• Chapel of the Holy Cross – beautiful setting with nearly 360 views of the red rocks all around, beautiful face of windows on one end with a large statue of Jesus over the altar.
• Uptown Sedona. Lunch. Coffee. Shopping. Ice cream!

KAL News

• Sign up using this Google Form.
• To confirm you’re signed up, check the Stats/Registration Spreadsheet here.
• Splash Pad '23 Sponsors
   with all the links you need to their websites & social media.
• Many of our Sponsors are offering coupon codes. Find them here- Google Doc or Ravelry Thread.
• Tune in to hear if you are one of our Participation Winners

Events

• Stash Dash, hosted by Leslie & Laura of the Knit Girllls Video Podcast starts May 26th and runs through August 31, 2023. Check out details in the knit girllls discord
• My total as of this episode: 5,630 meters
• You can check out my Stash Dash 2023 Progress on this Google Sheet.
• Legacy Fiber Artz Knit Your Stash MAL- check out the details on the Treehouse Fiber Arts website
• Runs May 29- September 4, 2023
• #legacyfiberartzknityourstashMal and #flashyourstash
• Crafty Bingo- Craft Cook Read Repeat Podcast
• May 26-September 4, 2023
• Grab the Bingo card over on their Instagram feed
• The Grocery Girls are hosting Hot Granny Square Summer MAL. Check out details in their Ravelry Group & in Episode 183 on their YouTube Channel.
• Summer Sock Camp hosted in the Crazy Sock Lady Ravelry Group
• 5/26- 8/31/2023
• Vermont Sheep & Wool: Sept 30 & Oct 1 at the Tunbridge Fairgrounds
• Check out some West Coast (US) Events on the Seattle Knitters Guild site (thanks Kristen- kips206)

Life in Focus

• I shared in the last episode that my mother-in-law, Marilyn, passed away shortly before I left for Phoenix. When I returned home, we finished the of the plans and held her funeral mass that Thursday morning. Dan’s younger sister Kathy (and her husband Tony) came in from Florida and stayed with us as did my friend Laura (from NYC). We all met up for dinner on Wednesday night with Dan & Matt’s aunt who came in from Maine and 2 of her daughters and their families.
• The services and lunch afterwards were beautiful. Readings and music were all specially chosen and read/performed by people she loved. Its was a beautiful send off. We had a small gathering after at my friend Megg’s house. She, Laura and I walked down to the beach just before sunset.

On a Happy Note

• While Laura was in town we went for a late lunch with Kris and Megg at the Salt Society and then Laura, Kris and I got ice cream at Hornstra and Laura and I went on to see No Hard Feelings at the movies.
• Saturday July 8th we had a big pool party for our friend Trish’s birthday. Fun day with all the kiddos before they head off to their various camps.
• On Sunday, Dan’s friends came for a visit and brought us a delicious homemade strawberry rhubarb pie.
• Monday night we did a double date night with Megg and Tom to The Snug, an Irish pub, for live music to catch up before they head to Ireland for summer visits.
• Thursday I celebrated 20 years at Mass General with the annual Ether Day Dinner (normally held in October but ours was postponed) where they celebrate staff with milestones in 5 year increments from 20-60 years of service. Cocktail hour with live music followed by a delicious dinner for over 600 people! It was made especially fun because my dear friend Waveney and her husband Atticus were there- and Dan ran into a friend from work whose wife was also celebrating 20 years.
• On October 16, 1846, the first successful public demonstration of the use of ether for surgical anesthesia was performed, making pain-free surgery possible.
• Friday pool night. Meagan and Gayle, up from NH, brought resin/acrylic crafts and the fam decorated cutting boards and trays. I missed it but Dan and the others who learned are going to teach me.

Quote of the Week

• Check out the Down Cellar Studio Patreon!
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• Knit Picks Affiliate Link
• Bookshop Affiliate Link
• Yarnable Subscription Box Affiliate Link
• Music -“Soft Orange Glow” by Josh Woodward. Free download: http://joshwoodward.com/
• Note: Some links are listed as Amazon Affiliate Links. If you click those, please know that I am an Amazon Associate and I earn money from qualifying purchases.