Think Pink

Monday was a holiday, so we took the pups to Run-A-Muk Dog Park, so they could have a good run.

This is "Think Pink" time. Various groups on Ravelry are running activities to support breast-cancer awareness. The Götz group has had a different theme for each day, October 11-20. Here's what I've done so far. Each day is listed, with what I wrote about each one.

Wednesday's Theme--Favorite pink possession:

We just got back from the local "Walk To End Breast Cancer," but I got this photo at the top of the bleachers in the gym right before the event began.

They were giving each participant a "Think Pink" water bottle. Can you guess what their favorite pink possession is now? Hint: it’s the same for all four.

Dolly had to dash off to get in line. (She was the rest room putting up her hair when the others were signing in. She just stuck her head in now to be in the photo.)

It’s impossible to get four girls to look at the camera at the same time and not blink. I took a bunch of photos, and this was the best. Vroni just glanced away as I snapped the shutter. There was probably a cute boy walking by. Either that or a dog.

Thursday's Theme--Post your doll saying hi from your part of the world, wearing pink mittens or a ribbon for Breast Cancer Awareness, or the appropriate color if you choose to support a different cancer on this day:

Vroni and Mandy wanted to honor their two aunties today. Vroni is wearing a magenta ribbon for Auntie Eileen, (although the Götz girls always wear their magenta bracelets) but the best Mandy could do was wear teal pants for Auntie Cheryl, the mother of Amanda, after whom Mandy was named. However, Mandy thought that pink mittens were a great idea, so she CO a pair. Winter is coming.... 

Mandy has to sit, because she has only just learned to knit with DPNs. 

She made me take another photo because she said that one looks like she’s just holding yarn. 

Friday's Theme--Hair Loss is common with chemo. Post a photo of your doll wearing pink headgear:

My girls had a little fun/discussion over today’s task. Here’s what ensued—

Mandy: "I made a pink hat."

Vroni: "That’s a boat, not a hat! THIS is a hat!"

Mandy: "Well, at least mine is pink!"

Vroni: "Well, mine is pretty, and it has pink on it."

Me: "Girls, girls! They’re both great. Vroni's hat is very pretty, and Mandy's hat is fun—and handy in case of a flood."

Saturday's Theme--Invited to a dance wearing pink:

October is known for Think Pink and Halloween, but it's also time for...Oktoberfest! Vroni was invited to come to Oktoberfest and dance the polka with some other girls and boys.

When it was time to get ready, she dressed, put on her dancing shoes and checked herself out in the mirror.

She even did a few dance moves to make sure her costume looked OK in motion.

Vroni's new coat and hat were ready just in time for this occasion. Of course, she had to look in the mirror again, just to make sure everything looked OK.

It was just a short walk through the woods to get to the hall where the Oktoberfest is held each year.

The children's performance went well, and Vroni loves to dance, but this is what she really came for.

Even though Vroni was born in China, she is German, and she has been allowed small amounts of beer since she was very small. (Actually, she's still small....)

Sunday's Theme--What does your doll like to do best on Sunday:

Mandy came home from church. She says her Sunday School teacher asked each of them to think of something they could do today for someone who was in need. Mandy decided that since Dolly has a cold (she got it from me, I think), she could read to her in bed to try to make her feel better.

After Dolly fell asleep, Mandy came out to the kitchen to work on the mittens she has been knitting. She has only just started learning to use DPNs, and she's so excited. She loves knitting, especially when the weather is too unpleasant to play outdoors.

Mandy sat where she could use the light from the big window and watch the squirrels while she knitted. She is so sad that Dolly isn't feeling well, so she has decided that she will give the mittens to Dolly, to keep her hands warm when they play in the snow. (Pink is Dolly's favorite color.) 

Mandy has already made some progress on the first mitten. She says her favorite thing to do on a Sunday is to do something nice for someone else. She will try this every Sunday from now on.

Monday's Theme--Hot or cold? What would you wear when you exercise where you are?:

This morning, while Dolly was asleep, Mandy crept into the bedroom and put the finished mittens on Dolly’s hands. 

Dolly woke up and saw the mittens. She is feeling better today, although she still looks pale.

Dolly loves her new mittens. She hopes there is still some snow when she’s well enough to go outside and play.

There are four more days of photos to take and stories to make up.

Obviously, I finished the Tyrolean coat, using the Kitty Cat 3 pattern, a hooded cape in two lengths (only I shortened it further), as a jumping-off place for the coat. The coat pattern was Jacknits Town and Country Coat, which included the hat. 

Here's the coat with the hood up.

And here is the hat.

I had planned to go to Vintage Stitchers on Thursday. It met at Rebecca's. However, I woke up with a cold that morning. (Don't blame Dolly. I probably gave it to her.) I have no doubt I will recover in due course. I missed the opera yesterday, which made me sad, but I knew I wouldn't enjoy it, trying not to cough and knowing I was sharing my germs with everyone. DH went and said it was excellent. It was La Boheme. You know, the one where Mimi spends a good part of the opera in bed, dying of consumption.

I was doing my best Mimi impersonation, but without the singing. Or the dying

What's on my needles: Mandy’s Winter Coat, using the Cabbagetown Jacket pattern. 

What's on my Featherweight: There are still more doll clothes to be made.

What's on my loom: Still waiting.

What's on my wheel: Stanzi is still awaiting her next task. 

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Finished Kill Me Again, by Rachel Abbott. I’m a little more than halfway through Amy Corwin’s novel All She Loves on the Kindle app.

What's in my wine glass: Lindeman’s Cawarra Shiraz-Cabernet. Quite acceptable.

What's my tip of the week: Don't get sick. If you do, stay home so you don't share.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals were harmed during the production of this blog post.

Marching into May

Last week, when Common Threads met at Margareth’s, Lynda finished this shawl.

She didn’t want me to take a photo then, because it needed blocking. It’s the Estonian Dreams Lace Shawl, from a Craftsy kit, and she only had a few feet left over when she finished it. She borrowed my lace blocking wires and let me take the photo when she returned them.

Tuesday we got more (ugh!) snow. Typical for this time of year, we got lots, and then it melted.

Wednesday morning my brother passed away. We were expecting it, and it was a blessing, because he had Alzheimer’s and had been in a memory care facility in Washington State for several years. His quality of life was nonexistent. It was his daughter’s responsibility to see that his care was adequate. I’m glad she can go on vacation now. We weren’t close at all, but we sometimes saw each other when the kids were small. This is my favorite photo of him.

The little blond boy in his lap is our younger son, Peter. The redhead in his lap is my niece, Amanda (after whom my doll Mandy is named) and the other little girl is our daughter, Karen. The photo was taken about 1979 or 1980.

I went to visit Joanie later in the morning. She doesn’t get out much anymore, so she needed a visit. She had her pine tree quilt on the wall, and I got a photo.

Those of you who have read my blog for several years may remember that several quilting friends helped her paper-piece this quilt. Our friend Julie did the quilting on her long-arm. The fabric choices were entirely Joanie’s, though. 

Ah, quilting! Vintage Stitchers met at Barbara’s on Thursday. Remember her arm-and-leg redwork quilt? The photos I took didn’t really show the quilting, but this one might. (It was the quilting, if you remember, that cost her an arm and a leg.)

Janet has settled on a background for her Dresden Plate quilt.

She has decided to put triangles in the corner of each block, the way Barbara did for this one, which Barbara had handy, because she was sewing on the binding.

Rebecca has been asked to do some embroidery for a sample for one of the quilt shops. She says this is an iron-on transfer. Her work is always exquisite.

Janet knew she would see me, and so she brought this dog for me. He is Tatlo, American Girl Kaya’s dog. She brought the travois, as well, but I will have to give it to them when they come this summer, as it will require a large box. She is keeping her daughter's dolls, but wanted to find a new home for Tatlo.

He made a great prop for showing off Mandy’s Mirabella cardigan. Here she is, modeling how you become acquainted with a new dog, presenting the back of your hand for a sniff.

Then, if the dog allows it, you can give him a good scratch behind the ears.

Here’s the official photo of the new sweater.

The pattern is by Debonair Designs. I used Knit Picks Palette in “Bluebell.” I've decided this is the doll Daphne needs for next Christmas, but supplies are running low, so I may have to buy her one soon.

I had been trying to reproduce a cropped cardigan when I made the lavender sweater for Dolly. Well, I actually made it for Mandy, but it looked better on Dolly and went with her dress, so it will go to Daphne Jr., along with the dress. That’s why Mandy ended up with the Mirabella. The reason I was trying to reproduce the lavender sweater was because the original was in French. My attempts at reverse-engineering turned out OK, but didn't exactly reproduce the sweater.

Someone in the My Doll Best Friend forum had used the pattern a number of times and had come up with the modification I liked. I studied German and can knit from German patterns, but that was little help to me, and I really wanted to try this pattern. She said she could translate it, but not right away. She suggested finding a glossary of French knitting terms. I found one here.

I took the pattern, and with the help of the glossary, found all the knitting terms in the pattern. Then I used Google translate for the words not in the glossary. I sent it to my friend in the forum with questions, and she was able to help me clean it up. She also gave me her modifications, because the sweater was actually designed to be waist length. Someone in the forum has already test-knit the translated original, and I have a good start on the modified version, this one in Knit Picks Palette in "Alfalfa."

Saturday is getting to be march day, even though April is over. This week’s march was for Climate, something we’re very concerned about. There wasn’t one in Park City, so we drove down to Salt Lake City to attend that one. There was a good turnout. We met at the public library and marched up to the governor’s mansion. The pups are getting very good about trotting along beside us.

I’ll have to look and see if we have a march next week. They’re going to be expecting one.

Speaking of the pups, today is Dusty's birthday. He's one year old today. It was also my father's birthday, which I think influenced me to pick from this litter. Happy birthday Dusty!

What's on my needles: French Back-to-school cardigan for Vroni. Doing the hand sewing on the Kaleidoscope binding.

What's on my Featherweight: More doll clothes.

What's on my loom: Still waiting.

What's on my wheel: Stanzi also still waiting.

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Still listening to The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson. On the Kindle app, I’m still reading Dying to Read, The Cate Kinkaid Files Book #1.

What's in my wine glass: Crane Lake Malbec, a staple.

What's my tip of the week: When taking photos, watch for things that might be reflected in mirrors, windows, even shiny furniture (none of that around my house). Also be aware of any objects in the background that might look as if they are part of what you’re photographing. (My mother once made her younger sister cry by telling her that the knob in the photo of them was growing out of her head, and they had to have it surgically removed. It was really part of the chair they were sitting in.)

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals were harmed during the production of this blog post.