Now It’s Spring!

April 14, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Spring has finally sprung here in my neck of the woods. We’ve even had a couple of days in the 70′s, which is warmer than average. We’re appreciating those warm days for the blessing that they are and we’re starting to slip into summer mode — breakfast with the sliding door open, bike rides and long walks with the pooch. So lovely.

Because we’re somewhat in limbo this year, I have not thought much about the garden yet. I think I will plant some starts when it’s time, but I’m not starting anything from seed. Though it is so encouraging to start to see the bulbs come up!

My knitting life these days is a combination of joy and frustration. I’ll start with the joy.

These are the Nanaimo socks — the most recent release from Cookie A’s 2012 Sock Club. I. Love. These. Socks. They are like therapy. Just a simple rotating knit-purl textured pattern that is a welcome break from the complicated socks I’ve been doing lately. My enthusiasm for these has caused me to put the Hibernia socks on the back burner for awhile. I’m sure I’ll get to them eventually, but I’m needing something a little more simple at the moment.

Now for the frustration.

This is my Stephen West Daybreak shawl. I do love how the bold colors are coming together. I do love the modern stripes. And perhaps “frustration” is too strong a word. “Tedious” is probably more what I’m looking for. This shawl is made up of miles and miles of stockinette and I’m finding myself just wishing it was done.

My irritation with this project is probably compounded by two things. 1 — I’m making the largest size because I wanted a nice big shawl. 2 — I underestimated the scope of this project. For some reason I thought I would be able to knock this project out in about a week. So here I am at two weeks feeling like I want it done. I’m pretty close — just about 16 rows to go, but they are pretty long rows. Soon.

I’m knitting this as part of two knit-alongs — one with Diane from the Knitabulls podcast and another with the Knitbytes podcast. It’s fun knitting along with people, sharing observations and seeing their projects. Oddly enough, mine is one of four orange and blue Daybreak shawls that I’ve seen in this knit-along!

That’s pretty much all for now. We’ve got just 8 weeks of school left so things are getting super-busy at the same time that they are winding down. I’m off to enjoy my usual Saturday morning tradition — coffee and knitting with Paula from the Knitting Pipeline podcast.

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Filed Under: Handwork, seasons

Spring Break — sort of

April 4, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Just when I was starting to compose a lovely little springtime post, updating you on things outside the house — chickens, garden, etc. — I woke up to this lovely scene.

Please know that I use the term “lovely” with the most sarcastic undertone imaginable.

Without a doubt, I am ready for spring to arrive. We do have little bulbs starting to sprout and I did get outside just yesterday and do a little post-winter clean up. It was actually lovely outside yesterday. I had the windows open and airing out the house a bit. I’ve dusted, moved things around and given the house a nice little makeover.

But what I really want is to be outside. Well, maybe tomorrow.

For today I’ll update you on a couple of new knitting projects. Though I haven’t finished anything up yet (so I technically should not have cast on anything new) I have officially put Leo’s sweater into hibernation mode. I do intend to finish it, but I haven’t found the motivation to rewrite the pattern. Soon.

I’ve also decided to frog the Twining socks. I do plan on designing my own pair of socks at some point but these just weren’t working out right. I also have enough on the needles with complicated cable patterns. I’m thinking a nice textured purl design is just what I need to do with this yarn.

Until I decide to plunge back into those projects, here’s what’s holding my attention for the moment.

The Peony Cardigan

This is the Peony Cardigan from the most recent issue of Interweave Knits. I love the moss stitch detail. I am so motivated to make this sweater that I even made a gauge swatch. I’m not very far along but I hope to make some good progress over the next couple of days. I’m using Knit Picks Stroll Tonal in a lovely purple color.

Daybreak

This is Stephen West’s Daybreak Shawl that I am making as part of a couple of knitalongs on Ravelry. I chose two incredibly vibrant colors. The teal is Dream in Color Smooshy with Cashmere. The orange is Cascade Handpainted. I’m loving how the colors are coming together. I just hope I have the courage to wear it when it’s finished.

That’s what’s on my needles at the moment. I suppose the upside of this unexpected spring snow is that it gives me a good excuse to stay inside and knit!

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Filed Under: Handwork

Interweave Knits Spring 2012

March 24, 2012 By Leave a Comment

I recently re-subscribed to Interweave Knits and I got my first issue last week. I am so glad I am receiving this magazine again! Though I remember that I was never too impressed with their spring and summer editions, I actually love quite a few of the patterns in this magazine! Here are a few of my favorites.

Chincoteague Jacket

Birch Point Hoodie

 

Kellswater Socks

Odette Cardigan

I really love this cardigan. It’s got some beading, which is a little intimidating — probably not the best way to jump back into adult sweater making.

Peony Cardigan

This is probably my favorite of all of them. I like it so much, in fact, that I went to Knit Picks Friday morning before school and ordered the yarn. I love that it is made from sock yarn so it’s a bit on the lighter side. I also really like the double-breasted style. I’m not a huge fan of how prominent the buttons are on this example, so I’ll probably choose buttons that don’t stand out quite so much. I will also make it longer. Cropped tops just don’t look great on my short-waisted self. I ordered Knit Picks Stroll Tonal in a lovely blue-violet shade.

Next week I am going to visit a Waldorf school in Portland and I’m really looking forward to the visit. I’m hoping this yarn arrives before I leave so I can work on it while I’m there. Even when I have a busy trip planned, I always somehow have more time for knitting when I’m away from home.

This weekend is full of housecleaning, lesson planning and errand running, though I’m sure I’ll find some time to squeeze in a little bit of knitting. I’ve been mostly working on a hat for my sister Mikela. Back in the summer she bought some yarn for me to make her a scarf. I made the scarf and had a skein of the yarn left so I’m using that for a matching hat. I’m using the Springtime in Philadelphia pattern by Kate Gagnon Osborn. It’s turning out cute and going quickly — I might even be able to finish it and take some photos before the weekend is out.

Well, back to the housework!

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Filed Under: Family, Handwork, Uncategorized

Life Too Messy

March 18, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Oh, how long it has been since I posted! You can take my lack of attention here as a pretty good indication that my home life has been suffering as well. Our family is currently quite caught up with the idea of a possible relocation. These thoughts are inspiring lots of travel, which makes it difficult to be as attentive as I’d like to be to things at home. The potential of moving also has me feeling a little reluctant to fully engage in my life here. Home projects just don’t hold the appeal they once did. It’s hard to think about planting a garden that we won’t be around to harvest.

Still, there are some things (other than work) that keep me busy and happily occupied. Here’s a little update on those.

First I’ll share one of my recent finished objects. There are others, but I have yet to photograph them.

These are the Wayward Socks from Cookie A’s 2012 sock club. This is the first year I signed up for a sock club and I joined two — Janel Laidman’s Knitterati Club and Cookie A’s. This yarn is from Alisha Goes Around and it was positively scrumptious. It’s made of merino, cashmere and silk. Just lovely. I did make a giant whopping mistake. I somehow didn’t move the stitches around properly in preparation for the heel so when I went to continue the pattern onto the foot of the sock part of it wasn’t there. I decided I wasn’t going to rip back and that I’d love these socks anyway. I do.

I also finished the socks from Janel Laidman’s club, and the mystery shawl that was also given in the month of January. I’ve linked to the patterns here but I’ll post my own pictures another time.

Here are the current projects that are taking my knitting attention.

This is the Jaywalker Sock that I am doing for the Sock Knitters Anonymous February challenge. I’m hoping to get the second sock done before the end of March, but we’ll see.

It’s a little further along now and it’s a pretty simple pattern, though I have to say that my Signature dpn’s were not the best choice for this pattern. I’m hoping to get them done quickly so I can cast on the March pattern from the Janel Laidman club. That pattern is a very intricate cable/travelling stitches affair — definitely a better use of those sharp Signature dpn’s.

This is the March shipment from the Knitterati club that I’ll be using for that complex cable/traveling stitches pattern. I just love the bright green (even though I have a lot of green socks already) and I REALLY love the little project bag! Those little bags that both Knitterati and Cookie A’s clubs have been sending have been so useful!

These are the Twining Socks that are a pattern of my own creation. The March challenge for SKA is cables/traveling stitches, which I thought would be a perfect chance to design my own pattern using the Twisted Stitch Knitting book I bought after Sock Summit last summer. I cast on and started before receiving the March pattern for Knitterati, which I probably would have cast on instead. Still, I’m having fun designing this sock and it’s going to turn out pretty interesting as I’m making it up as I go. I’m taking some notes, but there are already things I know I want to do differently on the second sock.

Oh well, they’ll kind of match.

The yarn is Nerd Girl Yarns from her Fringe event. Mine is the “alternate universe” and it’s called “Walter’s Bean Bag Chair.” I signed up to receive this yarn after hearing rave reviews of Nerd Girl Yarns, though I know nothing about Fringe. I’ve watched a couple of episodes, but nothing that helps me to know what Walter’s bean bag chair is.

The other project I’m really enjoying right now is my leftover sock yarn blanket.

This project is so nice and mindless I’m really enjoying working on it and thinking about the socks that I knit out of the yarns. My leftover sock yarn bag is bursting at the seams, so I really need to get going on it.

I’ve been using this soak soap for blocking my handknits recently and I just love it. I want to try the other scents now, too.

The one last thing I want to share is what’s new in my musical world. On a little bit of an impulse, I bought a new baritone ukulele.

I bought this Kala Mahogany Baritone Ukulele that had just fantastic reviews. I’m just loving the deeper sound it has. It’s much more guitar-like which gives it more flexibility than the concert ukulele I’ve been playing. I’m once again uke-obsessed.

To that end, I’ll leave you with a couple videos I’ve found inspiring lately. Currently these songs are being added to my repertoire.

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Filed Under: Handwork, Happiness, Music

My Quiche Recipe

January 28, 2012 By 2 Comments

With so much going on in my knitting world lately, I haven’t posted about cooking in a really long time! We’re off to a potluck this evening and whenever I look in the fridge to see what I’ve got on hand, eggs are the first thing I see. Quiche is a great go-to potluck contribution. And in a pinch you can cool it, cut thin slices and make it finger food. Here’s my basic recipe.

Crust

Cut 1/3 cup butter into 1 cup flour. Once it’s good and crumbly add about 3 T of water (just until it holds together.) Wrap it up and put it in the fridge for an hour.

Sauté

Take whatever vegetables you want in the quiche and sauté them. I usually do some onion, mushrooms and a little spinach (or something else green.)

Custard

Mix 4 eggs, 1 1/2 cups of milk, 3 T flour and whatever seasoning you want (I usually use salt and dry mustard.)

Layer

Roll out the crust. Put about a cup of grated cheese on the bottom. Add the sauté. Pour the custard mixture over the vegetables.

Bake

At 375 for about 45 minutes or until the center is set.

Easy as pie! (Heeheehee.)

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Filed Under: Food, food

January Projects

January 22, 2012 By Leave a Comment

It hasn’t really felt like winter around here so far this year. We’ve had just a couple of snowfalls followed by warm days that melted it all away. It’s been nothing like last year when we had a huge storm around Thanksgiving and then a week of under 5 temperatures.

This past week we were finally rewarded for our patience with five straight days of snowfall.

The chickens don’t love the snow like we do, though. Here’s their snow-covered coop.

It’s been awhile since I’ve posted so I have lots of new things to show.

First, my most exciting thing — my package from Janel Laidman’s Knitterati Sock Club.

This is the first club I’ve ever participated in and I was so excited when this arrived. The project bag is just perfect. The stitch markers are so cute (perfect for socks!). And the Hazel Knits exclusive Knitterati colorway called Iceland is gorgeous. I just love Hazel Knits.

The emailed pattern that was included is called Boreal.

I. Love. This. Pattern. I can’t wait to cast on — even though they’re toe-up. I have forced myself to finish a few things up, though, before casting on.

I did cast on the included mystery pattern, though.

I allowed myself to cast this on because I knew it wouldn’t take very long to finish the first clue and then I’d be forced to wait for the next. I’m using some really beautiful Shalimar Yarns fingering weight that I bought at Sock Summit. So soft!

What I really needed to finish up before casting on Boreal, though, was a pair of socks. Two sock wip’s was just too much, I decided. So this morning I put off my schoolwork for awhile so I could finish up these.

These are my Owlies that are my socks for the month for the Sock Knitters Anonymous Ravelry group. This was my first beaded knitting project and I’m so happy with how they turned out. They are a little on the snug side for me, but I like my socks a little tight. Worst case I figure I can hand them down to my daughter who would just love those little owls. They’re done out of some Plucky Knitter yarn that I got at Sock Summit. I lost the ball band, so I’m really hoping they’ve got some nylon content (but I’m pretty sure they do.) Super-cute!

Other projects I’ve got going . . .

This is a sweater for my friend Kelli’s baby, Charlie. Kelli used to babysit my kids and we’re so happy that she has a little one of her own now. He’s adorable and I can’t wait to get this sweater done for him. I’m using the Easy Baby Pullover pattern from PurlBee and it is very cute and very easy, but it is knit on fingering weight yarn, so it’s pretty slow going. I’m actually using sport weight because I want for it to be a pretty dense fabric. This sweater has a pretty unique construction. You cast on the bottom back edge, knit up to the armholes, cast on extra for the sleeves, and continue doing the neck and front all in one piece. It’ll be fun to watch it all come together.

These are my Wollmeise Blathnat socks. These are also for the Sock Knitters Anonymous group — they’re this month’s mystery sock pattern. Mystery patterns are kind of nice because they force me to wait a bit for the next part of the pattern before I can finish them up. Of course, when the final clue does come out I’ll be scrambling and knitting like crazy to finish the second sock, which I suppose could be relieved by taking up a two-at-a-time method, but I really prefer to knit one at a time.

So, that’s what’s on my needles at the moment. The legwarmers are just about finished up and will go into the mail next weekend and I’ve made the difficult decision to frog my Snooks mitts. They were just too tight and I didn’t like how the long color repeats of the Chroma were turning out. The sock yarn blanket gets occasional love as it is such a mindless project. I’ve pulled it out at school now that most of my handwork students are on either their second sock or the foot of their first. Looks like handwork will be a piece of cake from here on.

I’m going to make more of an effort to take photographs these days. I’ve definitely noticed my picture taking taper off over the past few months. There are such beautiful things in the world to photograph — I just need to get out there and do it more!

 

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Filed Under: Handwork

Warm Legs

January 7, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Today was a most pleasant Saturday. I woke up and knit a little, worked in the yard a little, and walked the dog a little. We’re due to finally get some snow tomorrow so I wanted to make sure I got out and enjoyed the fresh air a bit. It was nice.

The knitting was nice, too, because I got working on a project that I’ve been ignoring a bit since I cast it on and had a late night binge knitting a couple weeks ago.

This is one of the legwarmer set that I’m making my swap partner in the Ravelry swap I’m participating in. It was nice to finish it up and I’m really happy with how it turned out. I made up the fair isle patterns as I went, consulting my Alice Starmore book of fair isle patterns. I was almost exactly halfway done with this one when I picked it up today, so it’s good to know how long it’s going to take me to knit the match. The package gets sent off at the end of the month, so I better get working.

One of the things I love most about this legwarmer is the way the colors go together. I chose mostly heathered yarns from Knit Picks Wool of the Andes (though I think the pink and the orange are Swish that I had in my stash.)

I anticipate having lots leftover of several colors so I’m already thinking about what’s next. I’m thinking I might make a hat for my friend’s baby who is almost a year old and has not yet received his gift for being born. I’m sure there are some super-cute fair isle patterns out there for hats, though I’m so happy with how my design-your-own worked on this legwarmer, I might just do it for that, too. Remind me to check my gauge on the legwarmer so I don’t have to do a swatch!

I’m really proud of myself for sewing in the ends on this legwarmer the minute I finished it, too.

As you can see, it was a bit of a chore.

This evening I’m planning on getting a little bit of school work done, but I’m also hoping to make a bit of progress on my Owlies.

These poor socks have been cast on three times now. First with my new Wollmeise, then with some String Theory yarn that I ordered, and now finally with some yarn from Plucky Knitter that I got at Sock Summit. I’m not exactly sure which Plucky Knitter yarn it is, though, because I threw out the ballband. I’m just hoping it’s got a bit of nylon in it. It looks like the third time is the charm with these socks, though. I’m loving how these little guys are turning out and I’ve astonished myself as I took the plunge into learning a new technique to add the beaded owlie eyes. So cute! I also think grey is the perfect color — doesn’t detract from the owls and it makes them completely wearable. Love!

I also listened to a couple of podcasts that I’m definitely adding to my list of subscriptions. The first is 2 Knit Lit Chicks, which is the mother/daughter team of Barb and Tracie. I love that they chat about not just knitting but also books that they’ve read and/or listened to as audiobooks. Listening to them really inspired me to get active on my Audible account and download some listening material. A good part of my knitting/yard work/dog walking today was accompanied by Walter Isaacson’s biography of Steve Jobs, which is a great read, by the way.

I also watched the videocast of Round the Twist with Carin, thanks to a mention of her in another podcast — The Knitting Samurai Plus 1.

I’m happy to add these podcasts to my growing list of favorites. They’re great to listen to while I’m on the treadmill, walking the dog, doing mindless work around the house or classroom or, of course, knitting. In case you’re interested, here’s a list of my current favorite podcasts.

The Knitgirllls

Knit Knit Cafe

90% Knitting

Knitting Pipeline

Cloudy with a Chance of Fiber

Knit Picks

and the ones mentioned above. If you know of any others I should add, share them in the comments!

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Filed Under: Handwork

New Year, New Life

January 4, 2012 By 1 Comment

I was looking back through my recent posts and I noticed how knitting really has taken over on this little space. I suppose with winter upon us not so much is happening outside so life is all about home. We’re having a particularly snow-free year so far, too, which makes it even harder to get outside. Right now it is 45 degrees and raining.
I thought, though, that it would be nice to talk about some of the New Years resolutions that I’m striving for. Though I’m not really a big fan of New Years resolutions because I think they’re a pretty much guaranteed recipe for failure, when the new year comes I do look ahead to the coming year and try to muster up some intention and decide what I want to focus on as a theme.

Here are my thoughts for this year.

1. Health. I realize that it could be a bit trite and almost self-defeating to commit myself to living more healthfully recognizing that I make this same commitment every year. This year I am approaching it a little bit differently, though. I planon visiting a naturopath and finally getting an annual exam (after going several years without.) I also want to eat right (no sugar so far in 2012 for me) and exercise but I really feel that getting professional health advice will really help.

2. Be present and connected. I recognize that I am one of those people who has so much going on in her life that I sometimes have a hard time being present and fully engaged with what I am doing. While I cook dinner I am also doing dishes, thinking about tomorrow’s lesson and helping with my kids’ homework. As a result, sometimes my kids ask me a question three times before I’ve really even registered that they’re asking something. I really don’t want to give anything in my rich life up so I’m realizing I just have to try harder to look for what is essential and focus on that.

3. Continue blogging. It may seem that keeping up this little space is Just one thing to add to my long to do list, but I really do love blogging. I love how this space helps me focus on the more pulled-together, specific topics of my life. Here my life doesn’t seem like a jumbled chaotic mess of laundry, homework and piles of mail. Here I can see that my life is artful and beautiful. I am so grateful that this blog gives me the opportunity for recognizing this.
So, here’s to a healthy, present, connected new year full of posts.

BTW, I just realized that over the Christmas break this little space had its one year anniversary. Here’s to many more!

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Filed Under: Happiness, seasons, things I love, Uncategorized

Holiday 2011

January 2, 2012 By Leave a Comment

We’re on our last day of vacation here before we get back to the daily grind. I thought I’d take some time to post some pictures of our family’s holiday. It sure was a fun one!

Playing with holiday bokeh

More bokeh.

William the Elf

Don't you just love how terrible everybody looks in Christmas morning photos?

Alice got ice skates

Lucas got the Nimbus 2000

Leo got a pogo stick

Alice got roller skates, too. Let's hope her feet don't grow.

Lucas and Aunt Mikela

Christmas breakfast

Those glasses hardly left his face all week!

Just Dance 3 was a big hit.

Getting dinner ready. I love this photo of the women in my family working together.

My brother-in-law made these awesome pomegranate martinis.

My sister Mikela

The grown-ups danced, too.

In the end, it was a little bit stressful with ALL 11 of us staying at my mom’s house, but we had a great time. These are the kinds of experiences that I know are creating memories for my children and I’m so happy we go to all of the effort. In the midst of the chaos it is sometimes easy to forget, but we are truly blessed.

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Filed Under: friends and family, Photography, photography

New Year, New Knitting

January 1, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Well, I knit like a mad-woman to get so many things done for the holidays that I was left with hardly anything still on the needles. I was happy, then, to cast on a few new things with the new year. Here’s a little rundown of what’s currently in my current projects sidebar.

Super Secret Legwarmers

These legwarmers are for the 80′s themed swap I’m participating in on Ravelry. I suppose they’d be a bit more in keeping with the theme if I’d been able to find some neon pink or green yarn, and fair isle doesn’t exactly scream 80′s, but they are legwarmers, after all. I’m designing them on the fly, keeping my handy book of fair isle patterns nearby for inspiration. I’m currently working on those pink dancers and I can’t wait to see how they look once they have legs. Fair isle is so addictive because you just can’t wait to see the motifs take form!

Leo’s Sweater

No new photos to share of this one. This poor sweater has been languishing because I still haven’t located the pattern that I so painstakingly and artistically drew out using Elizabeth’s Percentage System. I really want to finisht his sweater, though. I love the yarn (Cascade 220) and the way it’s coming together. I really need to either find that pattern or draw it out again.

Wollmeise Owlies

So, my family Secret Santa (my kids’ dad) gave me the best present ever — my very first skein of Wollmeise. I told him that what made this present so great is that I never would’ve bought it for myself so it really feels like an indulgence. I was so eager to work with this yarn that I rolled it into a ball on Christmas Day (with the help of some skein-holders who were standing around.) I did wait to cast on, though. I’ve decided to make Owlies Socks because the theme for January on Sock Knitter’s Anonymous is Flora and Fauna.

There are so many great animal sock patterns out there, but a lot of them are fair isle, and I’ve got enough fair isle projects on the needles for now. I’ve been wanting to knit something with these owls for awhile now, and these socks are just the thing. I’m hoping the detail will show enough, even though the color of this yarn is pretty dark.

Snooks Mitts

Welcome to my current favorite project.

Before we went away for the holiday I placed a little order with Knit Picks, primarily for the Wool of the Andes for the legwarmers, but you know how they give you free shipping when you reach $50? Well, that gets me every time. As a result I ordered the yarn to cast on the Hippocampus mittens which are a current knitalong on the Stranded board on Ravelry. Well, I cast them on last night and started having second thoughts. Though I love fair isle, I’ve noticed that when there are long expanses of one color I become quite dissatisfied with the wonkiness of my knitting. Seems like no matter how many times I twist my yarn to catch those strands my gauge ends up being a bit off. I could also see that I would have wanted to modify the pattern so the cuff goes a bit higher on the wrist.

Anyway, all of this led me searching for a new pattern. This is what I came up with.

Oh my, I can’t tell you how much I love these mitts. Now, I think part of me is swayed by that gorgeous pink color, but I just know that my Knit Picks Chroma is going to produce some pretty beautiful mitts.

They are also such a joy to knit and with strands no more than three stitches long, I’m sure they won’t go wonky.

So, combine the fact that they’re fair isle, and that the Chroma has color changes and you’ve got one addictive project. Yay!

I’m pretty sure that I’ll make the mitts, rather than the mittens with flap. I can’t wait to get my work done so I can work on them some more.

Sock Yarn Blanket

No new photos there. I did, however, decide at the last minute to cast on a pair of socks to fit the “leftovers” theme of December on SKA. I worked on them the whole drive home from Seattle and though they’re kinda cute, I really needed the needles to cast on the mitts. Also, I realized that by making them I was using up all of my leftover yarn that is supposed to go towards my blanket. I wasn’t happy with how the heel turned out (cuff down short row heel, something new for me) so I pulled out the needles but haven’t frogged the sock yet. We’ll see what happens there.

So, that’s what’s on the needles these days. Happy knitting!

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Filed Under: Handwork
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