My rag rug is finished!

Last night I finished my rag rug, which probably could have been a bit bigger. What you see here is what you can make with one queen sized flannel sheet. I just didn't have it in me to cut more strips from another sheet and knit some more. It will have to do! I'm not sure if I'll ever make another one. I'll have to use it a few times to see how it works out. Probably it would not make a good by the back door rug because the dirt would fall through all the open holes of the knitting. I think it will be good for in front of the kitchen sink for water splashes. One thing I found out from the experiment is that flannel strips are not my first choice of fiber to knit with. I'm glad I tried and it makes me appreciate other yarns. Now a bag of outgrown tee-shirts wait in my closet for me to try the calamari knitting, which is cutting the shirts up in thin rings, slip knotting them together and then kniting the loops into a rug or mat. I'm in no hurry to try, so it can just wait until I get the urge to make another rug.....and then by then I should have even more outgrown shirts of a greater color assortment, right?

Progress with my rag knitting experiment and a few other things

Slow, but steady I am progressing with cutting and knitting. I have been alternating between the two.

Today is my eldest son's twentieth birthday! I am having a hard time believing I have a twenty year old. On the day he was born my husband decided to go back to work because he was getting anxious waiting for me to be ready to go the hospital. The night before we were at the hospital, but they sent us back home because it was too early. I called my parents at the cape and they came to stay with me. By the afternoon the doctor's office called and asked how I was doing. Pretty much the same. They said I had better come into the office to get checked out. My mother drove me to Boston to the doctor's office. Well this time it was for real and they sent us over to the hospital. My mother was so nervous. She drove into the exit of the hospital and the security guard came over and said, sorry lady you can't come in this way! My mother responded...but my daughter is having a baby -- like I was the first person in the whole world to ever have done this. Later on that night I delivered a healthy 9 lb 6 1/2 oz. baby boy. This is one funny story I'll never forget!

Here is the picture of the birthday cake I made for him this year.
The cake is made with the wacky cake recipe (eggless and milk free) with a butter cream icing. This is the cake I always have to make for everyone's birthday except my husband who has to have a homemade apple pie for his.

Yesterday I also made a double batch of ginger snap cookies, another family favorite.
All in all ( I've been dying to use this phrase...my boys are always using in their school work!)I've been pretty busy the past couple of days.

Rag Knitting Experiment

I have been inspired by the Mason-Dixon Knitting Book method of Calamari Knitting with old tee-shirts. For a while now I have had two worn queen sized flannel sheets sitting in my closet waiting for me to do something to them. An idea came to me. How about cutting the sheet into half inch strips and knit? This is the result of my experiment with knitting with rags. The little bit I have done is still on the needles.You can see my bargain sized 17" circular needles from Joann's that I bought for $1.99. They are not the best, but I'd say good enough to knit rags with! This very well might make a nice rag rug. I cast on 44 stitches and I have just been knitting back and forth with garter stitch.

Here's a picture of the sheet that I'm cutting up. Starting along the edge of the fitted sheet with the elastic (cut that off and discarded) I started cutting all along the edge going around and around. So far the strip has been all in one piece with no joining required. I do have a spool of thread handy for joining when I encounter the holes in the sheet.
I'll post later on with my progress.
I love recycling :)