by Kat | Sep 7, 2016 | General, Making
Happy Wednesday in a goofed up week, because I think it really feels like Tuesday today.
That being said, the weekend is one day closer and that is not a bad thing.
This week I have this incredible urge to knit sweaters! Ravelry and a certain blog are not helping in this urge but I am plugging away on my repurposed Custom Fit That No Longer Fit Pullover Turned Cardigan. In the game of picking up stitches it is always a challenge to get the perfect balance between too few vs. too many stitches, I lost the first round (in the too few category) so I ripped back and started over again. This time looks much better which reinforces that you do indeed win some and lose some! Also, this pro-tip might be of some help in the Crochet Steek Category. I did not find this on any website or blog, however, with my Steeked Stopover – I noted a bit of flaring of the steeked edges. I followed instructions to crochet in each stitch along the edge. I noted this same occurrence in this sweater, so I crocheted in 3 out of every 4 stitches. This gave me a much neater edge with no waviness. I likewise picked up less to begin the sweater bands, but I did not need to do so – I should have been smart enough to figure that out. However, I hope this tip helps you in your future sweater projects!
I am also working on finishing Triticum and I am really itching to cast on some new things. I am trying to hold off, but I am not sure I will win that battle. The sweaters are just calling to me, what can I say.
I finished listening to LaRose, and while I finished it I really have mixed feelings about it. I loved the detailed storytelling, but it really surrounded a devastating story. I am still troubled by parts of it.
However, this week I am back to a story that I truly do not want to end – The Secrets of Mary Bowser. I have just a few chapters left and I am entirely enthralled with the story. I think Mary is a wonder and as the tale expands I am more in love with her. She is a true heroine!
I am also reading book six (The Hanging Girl) of the Department Q Series – so, so good! I just adore Carl Morck!
That is all I have for this mixed up day – and as usual, I am joining Ginny and her Yarn Along.
What are you itching to cast on?
by Kat | Aug 31, 2016 | General, Making
The inability to be monogamous to knitting has always been an issue for me.
However, now the library is encouraging the same tendencies in my reading. I have been ardently listening to The Secrets of Mary Bowser, with LaRose waiting in the wings. However, LaRose is due back soon and there is a LONG wait list so I cannot renew.
So, Mary must wait while I have a LaRose marathon. I am not quite halfway though and I am not sure how I feel about the story. However, I won’t spoil any surprises for those who have not yet read it.
And, my Knitting ADD is strong – as you can see.
Triticum has one repeat and I can bind off for the shoulder – then I have a few repeats of the lace pattern only. Then I will be on sleeve island, thankfully these will not be long sleeves (as this is all the yarn I have).
I completed one sock and will cast on the second sock sometime this week.
Cladonia grows slowly and I am in love with this tweedy yarn.
Joining up with Ginny for her Yarn Along today.
by Kat | Aug 26, 2016 | General
Last night I achieved a goal I really never imagined I could reach – I finished reading Knitlandia, and with it completed my Summer BOTNS Book Bingo card.
A cover all, people! Twenty-five books read in eighty-seven days!
There were good books, great books, amazing books, and some books that were not any of the above. In no particular order, I present my summer reading:
- Knitlandia – 4 stars (With a one-word title)
- To Kill a Mocking Bird – 5 stars (Published the year you were born)
- 81 Famous Poems – 4 stars (Poetry Collection
- She Stoops to Conquer – 4 stars (From the Harvard Classics 5-foot shelf)
- Let’s Explore Diabetes with Owls – 4 stars (By or about a member of the LGBTQ community)
- It Itches: A Stash of Knitting Cartoons – 5 stars (BOTNS BOOK BINGO free square)
- Emma, Vol. 01 – 2 stars (Manga)
- Shear Spirit: Ten Fiber Farms, Twenty Patterns and Miles of Yarn – 4 stars (From the top shelf of one of your bookcases)
- My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry – 3 stars (With a family member (wife, son, uncle, etc.) in the title)
- The Book Thief – 5 stars (Told by a child narrator)
- My Kitchen Year: 136 Recipes That Saved My Life – 5 stars (With food as the theme)
- The Inner Circle – 1 star (Hated by someone you know)
- Charlotte’s Web – 5 stars (A non-human main character)
- Doc – 3 stars (Western)
- The Summer Before the War – 4 stars (Most recently added to your TBR)
- Blue Lightning – 4 stars (Read another book by an author already used for this Bingo card)
- A Man Called Ove – 5 stars (Borrowed from the library)
- Hamilton: The Revolution – 4 stars (Nonfiction in graphic novel format)
- The Redbreast – 4 stars (A classic mystery)
- Still Life – 5 stars (Recommended by a librarian or bookseller)
- The Paris Architect – 5 stars (That you think you will dislike)
- The Goldfinch – 5 stars (With an animal on the cover on in the title)
- Written in My Own Heart’s Blood – 2 stars (Six words or more in the title)
- White Nights – 4 stars (Set in another country)
- The New Yorker – 5 stars (A literary magazine or journal of any genre)
This was a colossal undertaking for me. I have not been the most voracious reader in recent years, but this has truly brought my love for reading back to life! A huge thank you to Carole for talking about this all those many weeks ago – I would not have even known such a thing existed! It was a throwback to my youth and my local library summer reading programs!
And speaking of colossal – while nothing much looks fab in the gardens right now with much of it looking worn, weary, and burned out. Not so with the Coleus and the White Salvia we planted this year!! It is the King of the Garden right now and even the bees are paying homage!
That brings us to the linky portion of this post, enter at your own risk! You have been warned!
I will close with some incredible bloggy goodness, thanks to Kate Davies (who ALWAYS has the most phenomenal photos ever!) However, recently she shared some really incredible things:
That is all I have for you this week, the knitting continues – and last night I sat at my spinning wheel for the first time in almost a week! Have a fantastic weekend and I will see you back here on Monday!
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by Kat | Aug 24, 2016 | General, Making
I am scraping the bottom of my Summer Knitting basket and have finally pulled out Triticum to finish it up. I have begun the arm decreases on the right front, so I should have this piece done soon and then just two sleeves stand between me and a new sweater! I think it is a stretch to think I will get this done by Labor Day, but who knows, perhaps some Slow TV on Netflix will help me get it done!
I have been listening to The Secrets of Mary Bowser while I work in the mornings and I am really enjoying it. I am not quite halfway through it but I hope to have it done this week. Up next is LaRose, which I am very eager to get to! Also, I am still not done with Knitlandia…
I have been gathering together my knits to get them washed, and while I am doing this I am pondering their future – do they stay or do they go? Knit Kon-Mari is coming soon!
As always, joining with Ginny and her Yarn Along today!
by Kat | Aug 18, 2016 | General, In This Moment
On Being Cranky: As the heat and humidity stretch on unbearably, I am sitting here longing for a change. I am cranky pants at so many endless days of a closed up house, encased in air conditioning. And, when I say cranky pants – I mean really CRANKY PANTS! Perhaps, even more than a little verschimmelt, as my nana used to say.
Reading, reading, reading: I finished reading To Kill a Mockingbird and wow. How appropriate on so many levels. I really loved it, so much! It started out a bit slowly for me, but from about chapter 13 the book grabbed me and pulled me in and kept me engaged to the very last pages. I, like Jem and Scout, could not understand the guilty verdict. I am profoundly struck by how the more things change, the more they stay the same – and it is something that disturbs me greatly. If you never read this when you were in school – try it! I think you will enjoy it! And, today I will begin my last book for my Cover All and I am so excited! I had hoped that I could listen to Clara read it as I read along, but alas, there are still 3 people ahead of me at the library. So, I will read it solo first and then listen to Clara and see how that changes the dynamics of the story for me!
Knitting like the wind: I pulled one of the Jen Lucas shawls out of my basket (one that has a delicious autumn flair) I have plowed through the knitted on border (I had seriously less done than I thought, I was less than a quarter of the way through it, but after an afternoon’s worth of knitting I am about halfway done. My goal, finish this baby up today. This might be a bit ambitious because I think I will have to wind another skein of yarn… I am hoping not… yarn chicken makes for an exciting Thursday.
How is your week going, Gentle Reader?
