by Kat | Apr 28, 2017 | General
Tonight, Steve will be away at a work function. So that means no normal happy hour. Before you get too depressed for me, we had an “emergency happy hour” last night. Priorities, after all!
Speaking of Steve, sometimes he sends me the most hilarious things from work. Today’s gem involved the wonder of getting double monitors…
Really… I cannot make this stuff up.
Enough hilarity from outside sources! Today kicks off my “Home Alone” Day!
On my agenda:
- Finish reading The Mountain in My Shoe – I only have a couple of chapters left!
- Begin and finish The Lake – I have a due date of Monday! Yikes!
- Knit!!! I have begun the crossed stitches in the shawl and I love how it is looking!
A few things, but it feels like a full plate!
Now, how about some links!
There you have it, Gentle Readers! See you back here on Monday!
by Kat | Apr 27, 2017 | General, Words
This week’s Think Write Thursday topic is to write a post that begins with the words, “Remember the time . . . “
Memories are curious things. The strangest things can trigger them. I showed you those hankies I found, the memory it triggered was doing this as a child. I could not remember exactly how to do it though, so I am thankful for YouTube which has videos on all things, even babies in a cradle!
But, in thinking about this post, there were lots of Remember the time moments…
Here are some of my Remember the times:
- Remember when spring actually was spring and there were not numerous days when it got to 90 out? We are slated to be near 90 today. In April. This worries me greatly.
- Remember when we had a president we could be proud of? Yeah, me too and most days it seems like a lifetime ago.
- Remember when I had a “real job” and actually had to leave the house to go to work? Some days I really miss having a “real job” with interaction with co-workers, regular hours, etc. Thankfully, these are fleeting moments – but they do happen, sometimes frequently – like this month. Yeah, even staying home to work has its ups and downs.
- Remember when gas used to be 25 cents a gallon? I do…especially when filling up the car now costs $55. Ouch.
- Remember when spending the night at Nana’s house was the best thing ever, staying up late to watch Charlie Chan in black and white, eating “Denver Omelets”, playing solitaire with Grandpa, and sleeping under this quilt.
Those are some of my Remember the times moments, what are yours?
If you would like to see what others remembered, you will find them here. If you want to join Carole and I for Think Write Thursday’s, you can sign up here.
by Kat | Apr 26, 2017 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
Hello Unravelers! Happy Wednesday to you all!
I hope your week has brought lots of good reading and even more good crafting!
I am almost done with my book for the NetGalley review, I will give you the CliffsNotes next week. I do have a second NetGalley book to read, and thankfully, this one will go much quicker! And, perhaps even be more interesting!
On the knitting front – I have one project that I am knitting to review some yarn from Kraemer Yarns. This yarn is very unusual for me in that it has some sparkle to it! However, I really like it – it is wool, but it has an amazing cottony, soft feel! I am knitting Settler Shawl – and I love it! It is a great match for this yarn and will be a lovely summery shawl. The yarn is Kraemer’s Sterling Silk & Silver in Estate Green. The yarn is 63% SW Merino, 20% silk, 15% nylon, and 2% silver poly – an interesting mix of materials, but it is so soft and it is knitting up beautifully in this shawl. If you have someone who finds wool scratchy, this yarn might be a solution for them.
On top of this knitting I am plodding along on my Air Soft shawl… I really love this knit. It worries me that a new month is next week, therefore a new technique. However, my knitting basket filled with things that I have to finish – so I really need my summer knit along to begin… yesterday! LOL
And, perhaps at the same time, all necessary work can end so I can just sit and knit all day.
Someday in a perfect world…
What are you reading and making this week?
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by Kat | Apr 25, 2017 | General, In This Moment
True confessions, clutter is part of my life. I am not a “pick up” person – and neither is Steve.
Yeah, that was not very good planning, but what can I say. Hilariously, this is actually a bone of contention at times between us. I know, what?
Anyways, for me there comes a breaking point. That moment when the poor repressed “I hate clutter” inner self struggles her way to the surface and the big De-Clutter-a-thon begins.
Last week Thursday was that day for me. And, I am proud to confess that I have maintained this for 5 days thus far and while this is not a record, it does feel good to sit in my office with a clean desk.
So, in my clean up, I found several things:
- Sweater 1: Mr. GreenJeans – I will be taking this off the needles today to try it on and see if it fits at all. I really have no clue even what size I knit because a marked pattern was not found.
- Sweater 2: The February Lady Sweater – this is not far at all. I ripped back a few rows to redo the button hole and now has joined other WIP’s in my basket of things to knit.
- A skirt I knit about 10 years ago that was in need of mending (which languished because it no longer fit) Mending is complete (yay for keeping the “left over yarn and double yay for finding it with the skirt!) I have worn it twice because IT FITS and it fits better than it ever did!
- More Kid Silk Haze to finish my Air Soft Shawl
- And hankies, pictured above, that I think I got from my Great Aunt Sylvia. They are sitting on my desk today, I am not sure what exactly to do with them, but they are a bright spot and have prodded so many memories!
Before with the chair stacked miles high with stuff from my grandpa’s table, an assortment of mugs and cups, and more clutter my desk.
I promised before and after photos… I am sorry for the poor photo quality. The room is really hard to photograph (it is only 8’x8′ so hard to take a photo from anywhere but the door) but as you can see, my desk which was a mess – is now not so messy. I love this room, because I am surrounded by things I love – a table my grandpa made when he was in high school and an old painted wardrobe that a dear friend found for me. The wardrobe has shelves in it that Bob made and as you can see it is filled with my crafting things – lots of yarn, some fiber, some pattern books, and now even my LipSense things – all contained neatly within. There are still a few odds and ends that I need to find a place for, but essentially it is done.
After, clear space to write or work, one glass for water and photos of my kids.
Grandpa’s table, sans a billion pieces of paper. Books for work easily found!
My treasured wardrobe, neatly organized.
Have you found any good things lately?
by Kat | Apr 24, 2017 | General, In This Moment
It was really a great weekend with some must do things and some fun things – good balance is the key in all things, right?
A big high point for the weekend was the first trip of the year to Janoski’s and the local asparagus was in so of course we loaded up! They also loaded us up with some “free for the taking” hyacinths which were still blooming beautifully! I cut the top-heavy ones off to sweeten my office. They will be planted in the garden along with the paperwhites from January. But, that fragrance! It is so heady. I really love it!
The lilac bush has burst into a tiny bit of color, but the most amazing thing is all the new shoots that came up this year! Great job to Steve from snatching it from the trash pile – it took three years of nurturing, but I think it is going to make it!
I started the MDK KAL on Friday and sadly, by Saturday I knew these colors had issues. They aren’t playing well together at all. To my eye, it looks muddy and even though I love both yarns individually, together…. not so much. So, by Sunday Plan B was hatched and wound and cast on. I will be joining Mary on the One-Color Yarn Bus. This is not necessarily a bad thing. This is some of my oldest stash that was procured eons ago at the Michigan Fiber Festival (I think it was the first one I ever attended!) Anyway, the colorway is Basil and I think it will work.
I cannot see the stitch pattern at all in the two color version.
Muddy, even in black and white
We even got a tiny bit of work done in the garden as well and that feels so good! There is plenty more to do, but the work has begun.
How was your weekend?
by Kat | Apr 21, 2017 | General
It took you long enough to get here!
There was a good bit of focus yesterday (although time ran out for stitching, but I will catch up this morning!) It is that time of the year when all the week “things” need to come to a close for the year (choir, meetings, etc.) I am so ready for a break and some time to spend at a less than fevered pitch! However, the end is in sight – choir is almost over for the year and after this weekend “active” resisting will settle down a bit…I hope!
In the horrible blogger category: I know I have been super lax at responding to comments – and I profusely apologize for that! All your comments are deeply appreciated and it is not my intention to not respond to you! Really!
In the Today’s the Day category: MDK’s Spring KAL starts NOW and it is not to late to join in! Really, Colorwash Shawl will be a fun knit! Join me! As you can see, my yarn is all ready to go…cast on will happen shortly!
Andrea Mowry wowed me with Find Your Fade and now Miss Babs has Find Your Fade Sets… yeah. I thought the exact same thing! Then, I saw So Faded and I think I might need to queue this up with one of Miss Babs sets! Amirite? And wait… there is even a So Faded Pint Sized… Cuteness overload!
If you love lopapeysa’s and long to knit them year around, perhaps the Norwegian Lopapeysa is what you need! I really love the colors!
Calling all Miss Marple fans… At the Vicarage and Bluebird Cafe socks are out!
In the free category: Espresso Shot Shortie Socks
Escalator Wrap
And, finally… this showed up in my “Hot Right Now” list on Ravelry. Yeah. I love this so much. And, a billion years ago I taught some beginning knitting classes at a yarn shop in Holland. The shop owner was knitting it… just a few rows a day. She was knitting with Cotton Glace as well. However, it is worked flat, which is just crazy to me – all that color work and purling! Gah! I promise you I could not even begin to understand the significance of that back then (and really, I probably should not have been teaching beginning knitting, lol but that is another story!) Anyways, I still love that sweater but would only knit it if I could figure out how to knit it in the round like Mary Scott Huff did recently. (and her latest episode in the continuing saga of the sweater from flat to round is insane…really, go read) I think it is safe to say that my knitting skills are light years behind hers…see this post for proof positive of that!
And, with that – have a fantastic weekend! I am going to try for one more day of focus and I will see you all back here on Monday!
