by Kat | Aug 16, 2019 | General, In This Moment
Mid-August… yes, I said it. Unbelievably, the month is half over. I am having zero success in my efforts to slow August down and my garden is beginning to show “end of season” signs. All of this is putting me in a bit of a melancholy mood – although I am more than ready for the neighborhood kids to head back to school, thank you very much!
Thrilled —
I don’t know if its just my “Ravelry Pattern Highlights” but I have enjoyed seeing a much more diverse group of models and designers recently! Models are not all 20-something, stick-thin, and white – and I say bravo! It is lovely to see diversity of age, shape, and yes, beautifully multi-cultural! It also makes me so happy that the “never-ravelry” nitwits have seemingly burned themselves out.
Go Sew —
I have spent much of the week pinning and cutting out a bunch of patterns. Honestly, this is my least favorite part of the entire sewing process and I figured that just sitting down and pinning/cutting in assembly line fashion would minimize the pain. As of this morning I have three things cut out, with two to go! In other words – next week will be full of my favorite part of the sewing process – the sewing part! My sewing next week will include: two Uniform Tunics, one Esme Tunic, one pair of Rose Pants, and yes, one Zadie Jumpsuit! I am excited to sit down at my machine with a stack of sewing to work on!
Irritated —
Yes, the aging process has positives, however this week I cannot think of a single one! Perhaps that is because I am focused on the aspects of aging that are just downright irritating. Things like the increased occurrence of UTI’s in postmenopausal women (hello, why yes, I do have another UTI…thank you very much!) and needing a different strength reader to *read* the damned computer monitor! So, this week I am navigating the pitfalls of growing older – and not very gracefully. My irritation is extending to Happy Hour as I am weighing the pros and cons of having a cocktail while on an antibiotic.
Forward looking —
Next weekend Steve has a work function and I am really looking forward to the time by myself! It feels selfish to say that, but boy it is so true!
What about you? Are you looking forward to anything?
That’s all I have for this week! I hope you all have a great weekend and I will see you all back here on Monday!
by Kat | Aug 2, 2019 | General, In This Moment
This first Friday in August just seems like the perfect time to do an “around here” post!
Around here – I am so happy to welcome August with its warm, sunny days – although there is a perceptible difference in the hours of daylight. It is no longer light out when I get up and the light is fading much earlier…BUT!!! We still have so much summer to enjoy and there is still lots of time for Al Fresco Happy Hours!
Around here – I will celebrate some special dates next week: the 8th would have been my paternal grandfather’s 112th birthday and the 10th will be the 26th anniversary of my Nana’s death. Both people were so influential in my life and I still miss them so much.
Left to right: my dad – Gordon, Grandpa John, Aunt Janice, Grandma, Uncle Kenneth As I recall, this photo was taken about 6 months before my Grandpa John died at age 62.
Heidi’s Baptism, left to right: My sister, Susan, my mom (holding Heidi) me holding Rachel, my ex, and finally, My Nana – Mae Huxhold How about those hair styles? I have permed hair – so awesome! Haha! This picture was taken about 3 years before my Nana died. I looked for a photo with her from Sam’s baptism – but there are no photos that include her and that makes me so sad. She avoided the camera – so photos that include her are rare.
Around here – I have happily reached the “little flowers” portion of my shawl and the end is in sight! Good thing because, as you can see above, I am well into the second half of my yarn! Also, a good thing because I am itching to cast on a new project! This crossed my radar last month and I have been bouncing it around in my brain for about a week now and I think going to Sock School sounds like the perfect thing to do and I might even learn something that will inspire me to knit more socks! Plus Carole’s finished socks really inspired me and I have a skein from Knitterly Things that needs to be socks in a bad way!
Vesper Sock Yarn in the “Happy Accident” colorway
Around here – I am picking more and more from my garden. I have a plethora of peppers that will make their way into our meals this week! I am also picking more than a handful of tomatoes each day as well and I am this.close to the raspberry apocalypse!
Around here – I have been surprised by some of the unexpected moments at the debates this week! Now, granted, there were way too many unsurprising moments, but those brief unexpected ones are standing out for me! But, best of all might be the post debate commentary – from Clorox discussions to how much “Moscow Mitch” hates his new moniker and I laughed at all of them, but this one… well, I am with Miranda Yaver!
And, there you have my brief but, hopefully spectacular “around here” moments! I hope today ushers in an amazing weekend for all of you and I will see you all back here on Monday!
by Kat | Jul 26, 2019 | General, In This Moment
It is almost painful to type these words: The last weekend of July is upon us…and while I have no desire to return to the ungodly temps we had last weekend, I would like to put July on pause and slow down these days that are just racing by!
Thinking –
I did not make a “Summer Bucket List” this year, but with July almost over I have been thinking about what things I’d like to do before September is here. One thing I have wanted to do for some time is visit the Woodville Plantation which is around the corner from me. Sunday I will be able to check that off as I am going with a girlfriend!
Grateful –
I have struggled with finding gratitude in recent days and I realize that finding even one thing to be grateful for is crucial to my wellbeing. This morning’s Tiny Bit of Quiet is an excellent reminder to pay less attention to the “what” and more attention to the “how”… Today I will pay more attention to all the how’s of my day – and I am so excited to have this reminder that sometimes you need to change your focus, to look beyond.
Inspired –
By so many things! But this crossed my radar today and I love that steps can be art!
Finally –
I laughed at a tied vote between Daelyn and The Weekend yesterday. I bound off my Early Bloomer yesterday… she is having a bit of a spa treatment currently and I hope to be wearing her soon! And, I am hoping that plums will be available at the farmer’s market tomorrow – they are one of the best tastes of summer!
That is all I have for this week! Have a great weekend and I will see you back here on Monday!
by Kat | Jun 7, 2019 | General, In This Moment
Spring being a tough act to follow, God created June. – Al Bernstein
June days are simply magical. The light gently wakes me, inviting me to greet the new day. The birds fill the air with their melodies and the low buzzing of the bees join to make the loveliest of harmonies. The lavender is full of velvety purple wands that dance in the breeze. The morning in the garden is my favorite time of the day. And, this morning I was greeted by the first Stella d’Oro daylily – a bittersweet sight because it means the deer will soon be here to snack on the blooms. But that first bloom was a glorious to see!
Triumphing!
Yesterday afternoon I finished the last sleeve of my Marsa Alam and this morning it is enjoying a Spa Treatment and will soon be laying out to dry. Pearl buttons will be sewn on this weekend (thank you all for your input!) Pre-blocking this is perhaps the best fitting sweater I have ever knit! The sleeve/shoulder fit is incredible – and can I just gush about Holst Coast yarn a minute? It might be my favorite yarn ever! The stitches are beautifully even, the ribbing looks nice, the hand of the sweater is incredibly inviting, and it is next-to-skin-soft. And, lets talk about value – I purchased a 500 g/3800 yd cone for about $24. Shipping from Denmark is not bad, and it only added about $10 to the cost of the yarn – and you get the most wonderful updates from Holst and PostNord. (Also, PostNord got the yarn to the USA in less than 24 hours, but it took the USPS more than a week to deliver it to my door…) My Marsa Alam used 324g of yarn – so yes, I have more than enough left-over yarn to use to make a Screen Door, which I cast on last night and flew through 8 repeats of the easy to memorize pattern! Knitting wins are such a good feeling!
Getting Ready!
I have a stack of fabrics that have been patiently waiting for me to begin cutting and assembling them into this quilt. Why that quilt? Genevieve is turning 4 next month and my plan is to make that for her birthday! With my new sewing set up, I think that I can manage to do the machine quilting myself. And while I love the overall stippling effect on the linked quilt, I think that will be a bit beyond my very-beginner abilities. However, I think that concentric circles might be lovely… sort of like the stitching I did for this piece:
Inspired by…
Something I saw on Pinterest last night, which made me go to see the original post on IG. Oh.my.gosh. I have the tamrack pattern – I picked it up in Grainline’s pattern sale earlier this year but had not been inspired to make one, thinking it would be a good fall project. And then I saw the magic that cjoy2 did with her tamrack (also her artwork…) WOW!! It is not bulky, I love the length, and it is incredibly creative – yet simple! She hand-stitched around the butterflies in the most wonderful way! And, her binding around the edges… it is brilliant!
Flattened!
I absolutely LOVE the MBR’s Rose Pants. They are wonderfully easy to make and to wear. I want to make a pair from a light denim – but denim and pleats or gathers seemed, well – bulky in an area I don’t need any extra bulk! So I had been wondering how hard it would be to remove the pleats/gathers from the front… well, wonder no more thanks to this post, which led me to this post. I have enough fabric to make a muslin trial run pair of shorts with a flattened front! Wish me luck!
And, that is all I have to share with you all for this first Friday in June! I hope you have a wonderful weekend and I will see you back here on Monday!
by Kat | May 31, 2019 | General, Looking Back
May has felt unbelievably long to me – at times it has felt like it has been on pause with the days running into one another. While I know and am trying to remind myself that there have been plenty of very good May days they seem to have been drowned out by the very challenging days of unexpected expenses, arguments, and upsets.
As this month closes, it feels like it has been ages since I was in Michigan – so, I am sending May out the door with a pictorial reminder of just how wonderfully it started:
Have a great weekend and I will see you back here on Monday!
P.S. A dear reader shared the most wonderful link with me this week which is perfectly timed to help us start PRIDE month. I did not know that 73% of the LGBTQ community have been harassed online due to their sexual orientation/gender identity. If you want to share this link with friends, please feel free to do so! No one should feel at risk or harassed ever.
