Thursday, October 25, 2007

Wonder of Wonder...


Miracles of Miracles. My bag actually came out just fine!! I couldn't be happier! I knew I had over 4 hours to knit in the car yesterday, so I just decided to keep on knitting on the bag and try to loosen my gauge a bit and see what happened. The further along I got, and the heavier the weight of the bag, the more it seemed to stretch and loosen what had already been knit. When I finally finished, it was basically the same size and I knew that the felting process would take care of the rest. And so here it is!







And here is the back. It still is one of my favorite bags that I have done. Just not my favorite bag to actually knit! But I can certainly see doing more in my future. Lots of fun color combinations out there that you could do!
(Circle Tote pattern here)














As we were driving out of Galena yesterday I saw this amazing billboard! Can you believe it? A whole medical clinic that sees the value of having fiber in your life. Now, I am just sure that they are talking about the whole fiber arts thing and how knitting or other fiber related activities can reduce stress etc.. I mean what other kind of fiber is there that could really be a 'friend'?





We had lunch today at one of our new favorite restaurants downtown Galena. They have a Shrimp Po-Boy sandwich that I love. I order it every time. Usually I like to vary things up a bit but I do get into ruts at some restaurants. Like Big Bowl. I always have to get Chicken Pad Thai. (And I know some of you can relate... right Karen?) Always. I know that if I get something else I will be disappointed. Am I the only one that does this?








My husband continues to polish his role as my very own 'Mr. Wonderful'. Guess what he did today? He actually made the calls to get more information on and sign up for dance lessons. We've talked about wanting to do this before Ryan and Mallory's wedding and he actually is making it happen. Wow. That certainly will be fun to blog about! Stay tuned!

Until Next Time.....

20 comments:

Anonymous said...

no, and i'm even worse than you because i always order the same thing at almost every restaurant i go to-- like you, i'm always afraid that i'll be disappointed and since guaranteed happiness is one easy choice away, i almost always cave.

pad thai is the best food in the universe, i'd eat it everyday if i could.

Anonymous said...

the bag looks great!! good work.
dancing lessons are a great idea.

Anonymous said...

Your bag turned out adorable.

And I agree...if I know I like something at a restaurant ...that's what I order...EVERY.SINGLE.TIME!

monica said...

Well, we can pretend they mean the yarny goodness type fiber. That is the best kind anyway:)

Your bag is awesome, I will have to keep DD1 away from the computer if I am surfing your site. She will have to have one ... and trust me, her "have to have" list is long enough as it is.

Dance lessons sound fun, good for you and your Mr Wonderful.

Karen said...

WOW your bag turned out great! I would have hated to rip that out. I like to try new things when we eat out (which isn't very often), if it sounds good.
Dance lessons sound fun.

Anonymous said...

Janice,

I LOVE that bag. Where can I get the pattern? I know what you mean by choosing on the safe side sometimes. I usually try new things, but with a safety net since I usually am interested in eating what my husband gets too. I think I just don't want to pay for something I don't like.

rohanknitter said...

Oh yes, Chicken Pad Thai. Why mess with perfection? Must be ordered when at Big Bowl!! Generally I like to try new things but sometimes you just have to go with what works!!

That bag is so gorgeous. I'm glad you didn't have to start over. She will LOVE it!

I can't wait to hear about your dancing lessons. That is something I would love to do. Have you seen the movie "Shall We Dance?"

Karen said...

Love the bag...it is awesome. Yup, I'll take chicken pad thai over anything else at Big Bowl! There's a great little Thai restaurant in the town near me...their pad thai is unbelievably wonderful. Yum, I think I will order take-out for dinner tonight!

What kind of dancing are you going to learn...disco? :o) Iv'e always wanted to learn swing dancing or ballroom dancing but that's something that will never happen with my hubby. He can hardly walk a straight line much less dance!

Sheri at The Loopy Ewe said...

Wait - Stevie is going to take dance lessons? Oh my oh my. That's a good one.

The bag is AMAZING. WOOHOO!!!!

(We need to come up to Galena, because now I want to eat and that fun restaurant. But I'll pass on the shrimp.)

marit said...

SOOOO glad you didn't have to go with the one solution...LOL!The bag turned out great!

Bonnie O. said...

Wow, Janice! That circle tote turned out great! I have admired that pattern for a long time. Dancing lessons will be fun. Looking forward to seeing your progress.

Anonymous said...

LOOOOVE the bag....I just downloaded the pattern. Is there any reason why you didn't work it up on a circular needle to eliminate having to sew up the sides?

Janice said...

Oh, how I wish this could be worked on circular needles!! But because of the intarsia knitting, it has to be done back and forth. And working on straight needles is easiest for that as well!

hakucho said...

Your bag is awesome! I LOVE it. I bet you'll get tons of compliments and 'where did you get that?' questions!!!! Your billboard is priceless....we can interpret it any way we want, right? and I need new glasses anyway so I can't read the small print at the bottom...ha ha :)

happy knitting :)

Unknown said...

I really like the circle bag.Do you mind telling us what yarn you used to knit that bag?
You told us what
yarn you used to knit your bag
and I am curious about what yarn
the second bag too. Both bags are
lovely totes.

Janice said...

The circle tote is knit with Ella Rae Classic wool. It is a great felting yarn!!

AR said...

I love the way your bag turned out! I had to bookmark that pattern, so I can go back and see if I want to buy it.

Deborah said...

the bag is gorgeous!

I believe, the sign, is actually a mantra you recite just before you check into the clinic for yarn OCD!

Allison said...

I love your circles bag - it is so cute! I really have to make one of those. Wow - 18 comments - you are a popular girl!!!

Caroline said...

I love your bag too. It looks very professionally done, like from some fancy shop!

Oh! and your husband is Mr. Wonderful. My husband starts sweating at the mere thought of having to dance in any way at any wedding.