Would like your advice/ideas

Hi Susan, I can't help you with the knitting stuff. (sorry) I just wanted to say that I'm sorry to hear about your brother's health....My thoughts are with you and your family.

Donna in Philly

Oh Susan, I am so sorry to read about your brother's battle with cancer. I wish him all the love and comfort he can have for the remainder of his life. I wish you and your family love and peace in knowing that when his time does come, he will no longer be in any pain at all. I know that doesn't ease the heartache, but know that the love you give him, he will take with him on his journey, and he will always be there to watch over all of you.

As for the afghan you are going to make your brother, I think he will love those colour choices too. Unfortunately when I make squares for an afghan, I always join them by crocheting them together, so I can't help you with that... but I am sure that you will get helpful responses from a few of the ladies or gentlemen here.

you could join them doing a 3 needle cast off by picking up the stitches on the two squares you want to join together. I learned the

I would join them together with one of the colours you have for another shade of brown.

I would only knit with one strand so that the afghan isn't too heavy for your brother to lift.

This are just my ideas.

Darlene in Toronto

Susan, my heartfelt empathy regarding your brothers' health! You could sew/baste the squares together, or ... this might be the time to learn to slip stitch crochet them together.... and if I had the time, honest, I'd offer to do it FOR you! BIG GIANT HUGS, and prayers, vibes, healing thoughts.... Noreen

Thank you all for the great ideas and kind thoughts. I just talked to brother Ron, who is feeling pretty well for a chemo week. He told me that this time he didn't lose his appetite or sleep all week, and that he was eating like a pig, and that he's ready to kick butt (not his exact words...)! Although I may need to postpone my trip due to the SNNOOOWWW, he was still planning the Polish dinner: kielbasa, sauerkraut, good rye bread, pierogi...I am absolutely drooling! I suspect that if I'm not there this weekend they'll have the dinner anyway. ;-) If I'm not driving down, guess what *I'll* be doing... Peace to all, and thanks for all of your support knitting and otherwise (this is a fun group, ya know?)

Susan K Any other Polacks out there? My maiden name is Strzalkowski - whew! I can still spell it...

That's great to hear that your brother is feeling well this week and has a good appetite. Good for him to have that kick-*ss attitude... that and positive thinking, and laughter help a lot in bad health issues. :o)

So if you're not driving there, you'll be..... making your own big feast and/or starting on the afghan for your brother. ;o)

Yes, this is a fun group... and a caring group who tend to think of each other as family.

Nope, I'm not Polish! I am Canadian (I said it like the commercial too), with English, Irish and a little French (from France) background. :o)

Gem

SUSAN ,,, healing thoughts to your brother . And take care and don`t drive slippery roads ,,,,

I can pronounce your name ,,,, But am no pole ,,, mirjam

I'm sorry to hear about your brother's illness.

Strictly speaking, binding off is a slipstitch crochet stitch.

Different patterns will pull in slightly different amounts, but as long as you avoid cables and lace they'll probably even out enough, so you can use the same stitch count for each square. If you want to knit them in long strips instead of single squares, you could just do something like 4 rows of garter stitch between designs, or just switch to the next design. If you do the garter stitch, you could also do 2 stitches of garter stitch at each end of each row, so when it's all together there is garter stitch on all sides of each square. Then you'd only have to fasten the strips together. That could be done with mattress stitch or just a simple overhand whip stitch.

Just make each square with one color and make half of them with each color. You could make the center one with both colors and work in something significant.

It's faster on big needles but it makes a very heavy afghan and the patterns won't show up as well.

=Tamar

ME! Half Polish! Send me Kolaczy! Hugs, Noreen drooling!

Thanks Richard!! I like the idea of having a garter stitch border on all...much easier to join. Also doing it in strips. I had considered that, but the perfectionist part of me thought "Well, I want exactly the same border on all squares" but then the newly-found family crafts-slogan kicked in: "Done is better than perfect." So strips it is, I think - less sewing. The point is to get this to him in a relatively short time. '-)

I tried sz 13 needles yesterday - never used anything that big - and didn't like them. I think I'll do better on, let's say, sz 10. I will keep you posted - my project list keeps growing...

Susan K

Noreen, I'm embarrassed - what is kolaczy? Is that the filled jelly donuts? Or the crispy fried pastries? (we call those kruschiki [sp?], but I know there are the ones you make with the iron molds, and the bow-tie ones)

All my grandparents came from Poland, so I'm as Polish as it gets for having been born in the US. Although, who knows if it was Poland, the boundaries were very fluid back then - whoever thought they could beat the Polish army won...

We're lucky in this area - Schenectady/Albany NY. There is a company called "White Eagle" (what a surprise) that makes kielbasi, kishka, etc. It is very close to the kielbasi that we used to buy from the Polish butcher when I was a kid. I think I'm gonna have to go out and buy some - but every time I look at the price per lb, I think "but I could buy steak for that price!" Christmas Eve there is no choice - must have kielbasi, good Jewish rye bread, pierogi, sour cream of mushroom soup...

Christmas dinner buffet: Fruity Snow salad (if anyone wants the recipe I will publish it on this ng, it has enough calories to keep you going for at least a month), baked ham, roast turkey, Boston baked beans (homemade), kielbasi, potato salad, cole slaw and Christmas cookies. Yum! Go to the gym the next day - and every day for the next 6 months!

Susan K

I made the decision not to take the trip - I woke up this morning feeling unwell, and the last thing my bro needs is a cold. Thanks again for all the support - it is appreciated!! (you gals/guys are truly great).

Susan, I am so sorry to hear about your brother and think it is wonderful of you to knit an afghan for him. I have not joined any squares to make 1 myself, but was also thinking of using the 3 needle bind off. What I might do is choose 1 color for the border and the color for joining the squares. That would leave 3 other colors to make the squares from. Maybe you could then decide to knit 3 different patterns, using each color for each pattern, and then rotate them per row. For example: Chestnut border; green garter; white seed stitch; brown stockinette; chestnut border. Next row: border; white seed stitch; brown stockinette; green garter; chestnut border...and so on. Also, do not use a stockinette stitch for your border as it will curl. I personally would also not use a standard rib stitch for a square as they seem to pull in somewhat.

Hope this helps.

Janise

Yes please! :o) See I asked very nicely and gave you a nice smile too... I think I should get the recipe for that! ;o) hehehe

Gemini

Pronounced KOE LOTCH KEY. Sometimes the czechs and bavarians try to claim them. True Polish Kolaczy is thin thin squares of the dough, with 1/4 teaspoon Solo filling (usually poppy) (but also apricot, pecan, strawberry, almond, etc) folded over to make little bow-like pastries. (Germanic and Czech and Croatian etc are thicker, and a thumbprint is made and they're not folded over) Other English spellings are Kolacky... but it's prounounced Polishly as I stated KOE *LOTCH* KEY. HTH, Noreen

Oh, and my maternal GP's came from Poland, I'm only 2nd generation here. .... HTH, Noreen

Pronounced KOE LOTCH KEY. Sometimes the czechs and bavarians try to claim them. True Polish Kolaczy is thin thin squares of the dough, with 1/4 teaspoon Solo filling (usually poppy) (but also apricot, pecan, strawberry, almond, etc) folded over to make little bow-like pastries. (Germanic and Czech and Croatian etc are thicker, and a thumbprint is made and they're not folded over) Other English spellings are Kolacky... but it's prounounced Polishly as I stated KOE *LOTCH* KEY. HTH, Noreen Oh, and my maternal GP's came from Poland, I'm only 2nd generation here.

Susan,

I made an afghan from a pattern book purchased from Wal-Mart. I believe it was titled "63 Heirloom Afghan squares. It is beautiful and gives ideas on patterns and connecting them. It was not expensive and it made a beautiful afghan.

Let me know if you can not find, I will find one and you can purchase it from me. I t was under $5.00.

Hugs & God bless,

Dennis & Gail

"Soozergirl" skrev i melding news:tX3mf.1755$ snipped-for-privacy@newsread3.news.atl.earthlink.net...

Hi Susan, I am so sorry to hear about your brother! Warm thoughts to him! He is going through a very hard time, but sounds to have the right spirit! That is so important!

I use to crochet one row sc around my squares, I have often different knit patterns on the square, so even if they have the same sieze, the amount of stitches are different. Therefore the sc row with the same number of stitches on every square. (I count and "adapt" the right number of sc stitches to each square, it is not so difficult.)

Then I chain the squares easily together. For me this is the simplest way. AUD ;-)