by Kat | Jul 1, 2020 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
My plan for today was to share a completed (and well-fitting) Zadie Jumpsuit. Well, it is completed but not so well fitting. I shortened the rise, so the pants fit well but I neglected to contemplate the length of the bodice (which I generally never have issues with) and it is way.too.short! But, I am not out much… I used the cotton fabric I got from IKEA for $1 a yard… so for $4 I know what changes I need to make.
So today you get a progress shot of my Mystery Shawl as I am working my way through Clue Four!
I also am moving right along on Purl Strings at night. I will share an updated image on that next week!
However, the reading this week was stellar. Oh.my.gosh. So, so good! Mill on the Floss gave me another bingo this week, but still no cover all. I have two squares to go on that Bingo Card. AND…I have five squares filled in on my second card.
Mill on the Floss by George Eliot
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
The Saga of Maggie and Tom Tulliver… from childhood through adulthood. This is truly and epic novel… there is so much to unpack here and days after finishing it, I am still processing this magnificent story.
I laughed, I cried, and I cried some more. And the ending… wow. I did not see that coming at all. The writing and the language are just spectacular. It is brilliantly crafted and it is perhaps the gold standard for Victorian Age writing. If you have not read this, why not. Really. Get it and listen. (the audio version read by Wanda McCaddon is a stellar choice!)
The Rain in Portugal: New Poems by Billy Collins
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
The trouble with the present is that it’s always in a state of vanishing.
I simply loved every.single.word. This is a book I will read over and over and over!
That is all I have for this week! As always, if you wrote a post to share, please leave your link below and thank you!
by Kat | Jun 24, 2020 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
Oh the making! It sings for me this week!
I am almost done with Clue Three (Clue Four is out, but I have not peeked…yet) and this shawl is singing to me! AND!! It is spurring me to get some sewing done – this will be perfect with a denim Uniform Tunic this fall! I know that high contrast is key sometimes…however, I have several high contrast shawls and I just don’t wear them much. I like this muted contrast so much better…and this will get worn!
Not much to look at just yet, but that inky color and the stitch definition!
But the best thing of all was getting gauge ( I was deeply worried when Mary told me that she could **NOT** get gauge with Coast to knit her Purl Strings) However, NO WORRIES AT ALL! I was spot on on gauge once I washed and laid the swatch out to dry! So… last night I cast on my Indigo Purl Strings and began. Of course I twisted the damned cast on and did not discover it until **after** I had completed all the short rows for the upper back section. So, I unraveled one row, twisted the crochet chain of my provisional cast on, and moved on. I will have to cut the chain there, but that was far better than starting over! (and it is singing in tune now! lol)
The reading this week was powerful. When I saw the Now Read This selection for May, I got on the wait list at my library. It is not a new book, it was published in 1946 – but the message in the book is eerily relevant to life today.
The Street by Ann Petry
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Like all the masters of noir, Petry looks into the abyss without falling in. This is a story that is dark, but not depressing. It is disturbing, yet intriguing. Tayari Jones
Teyari’s introduction set the stage for Ann Petry’s novel. It is an incredibly dark story. This story changed my thoughts about what life in Harlem was like… I had fairy tale beliefs that sadly show my ignorance and my white fragility. Ann Petry invites me in to real life in Harlem. Real life is gritty, it is not fair, and it does not always have a “nice” ending. This story is Lutie Johnson’s though… and Ann tells her story masterfully.
Streets like the one she lived on were no accident. They were the North’s lynch mobs, she thought bitterly; the method the big cities used to keep Negroes in their place. And she began thinking of Pop unable to get a job; of Jim slowly disintegrating because he, too, couldn’t get a job, and of the subsequent wreck of their marriage; of Bub left to his own devices after school. From the time she was born, she had been hemmed into an ever-narrowing space, until now she was very nearly walled in and the wall had been built up…
Yes, there is lots of despair but through it all Lutie does not give up. Her struggle is this story. I had originally rated this book 3-stars, because the ending was so “not white” but I have not been able to stop thinking about Lutie and through her the struggles that are real daily life for much of the Black community. I highly recommend this book!
That is all I have this week! What about you? Any good reads? Is your making singing in tune?
As always, if you wrote a post to share, please leave your link below and thank you!
by Kat | Jun 17, 2020 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
Greetings Unravelers!
Be the change you wish to see in the world. — Mahatma Gandhi
First up, I wanted to talk briefly about change. It is never easy but two well-loved sites recently changed things up… and I love both of the changes!! MDK is now Modern Daily Knitting. Well done ladies! I am standing and applauding this change! Ravelry also changed things up in a very good way! Kudos to both of them for showing us all that sometimes change is a very good thing!
I am s-l-o-w-l-y working my way through Clue Two of the TTL Mystery Shawl and I confess… it is not at all what I expected! I love it… and I love these yarns together. I was a bit worried there would not be enough contrast, but I like the muted differences very much. I did not need another “stripey” shawl, but this is not that at all.
I have refrained from swatching for Purl Strings, but just barely.
I have been spending lots of time in the garden weeding and watering. I realize that the later increases weed growth, but it also inspires new vegetable plant growth!
A slow week for reading – no new bingos but still, an excellent reading week! Thank you Katie for recommending this book!
The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
A book full of fascinating relationships, interesting characters, a riveting story, and a bit of a mystery.
If you like history, you will like this book. If you like real character growth, you will like this book. If you like mysteries, you will like this book.
The story unfolds on two timelines – present day, and during WWII – told by to strong female characters: Alice and Alina.
There is love, love lost, deep friendship, and the love of fellow man. I highly recommend this book!
I also owed you all a review of Mourning in Malmö… and here you go!
Mourning in Malmö by Torquil MacLeod
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
If you read the reviews, you would think that this book was entirely about Anita. But it’s not! There is some wonderful character development of Anita’s team, especially Hakim Mirza. The story ends with a shocking twist that I did not see coming and I can hardly wait for the next installment of this series!
That is all I have for this week! I hope your making is not in the slow lane, and your reading is the kind you want to savor!
As always, if you wrote a post to share, please leave your link below and thank you!
by Kat | Jun 10, 2020 | General, Uncategorized, Unraveled Wednesday
It seems that in all things, I have this idea that whatever it is I am making will go quicker than it does in actuality.
However, at long last, I have a finished Ranunculus! It needs a nice wash, but I should be wearing it before the week is out! AND!! Just in time because the 90 degree temps have arrived in Pittsburgh this week! And it will be the perfect sitooterie sweater! Yes, thanks to Scott Simon, I learned a new word this week and I am wanting to use it all the time! I mean shouldn’t we all have a sitooterie of our own?
No, I have not started the TTL MKAL… yet. I did wind one skein of yarn, but have yet to cast on.
And no, I have not finished Larissa Brown’s Lunar Phases shawl either. Sigh…
However, I can’t stop thinking about this, or this, or this, or this!
Do you see a pattern here? Yeah, me too… I can’t settle myself on one project. Perhaps I need to change it up and do some sewing to cleanse my palette! Ha!
Summer reading continues to be awesome though.
Disappearing Earth by Julia Phillips
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This story pulled me in from the first paragraph and it took me on a journey full of unexpected things. I expected something different, but I was far from disappointed! What a beautifully written and engaging story. I know nothing about this area of Russia and I was fascinated with the people and the story. I highly recommend this book!
I also finished Mourning in Malmö late last night and I have yet to write my review. But with that finish, I have another bingo!!
Pink Bingo Titles: Shadow Pass, New Poets of Native Nations, Mourning in Malmo, The Crane Wife, American Dirt.
As you can see, I have a plan for where I am going and I have some ideas for “set in the state where you live” but I am on waitlists for several books that will fit this category at the library… and first up will fill the square!What about you? How is your reading moving you this week?
As always, if you wrote a post to share please leave your link below and thank you!
by Kat | Jun 3, 2020 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
Greetings Unravelers!!
First, thank you for all the very kind comments for my Me Made May post! It might be the first time I have been successful in wearing things I made for an entire month and I did not make anything new, outside of the Romi Mystery Shawl that I finished during the month! Yes, that’s right – no new articles of clothing were made to get me through the month! I impressed myself and my closet space has increased dramatically! Where to go with all the things I have removed are the next thing I am contemplating. Donating in Coronavirus Times is turning out to be quite tricky! I will update you when I have found an outlet.
Sadly not much making going on in my house these days, but I have departed for Sleeve Island with my Ranunculus! Yay!
I have not picked up my Lunar Fade in a couple of weeks and I have yet to even wind the yarn for the TTL MKAL.
But if I can get those sleeves done sooner than later, I might get to one (or both??) this week!
I have two awesome finishes this week (and another bingo, but still no cover all!) Two excellent and dramatically different finishes! I also started a new bingo card this week!
Tightrope: Americans Reaching for Hope by Nicholas D. Kristof
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I am not sure reading this book in the midst of a pandemic was smart, but there you have it. This was a hard listen. I cried multiple times in this book and without making this book be “all about me”, I absolutely saw much of my family in these pages. I am grateful for grandparents that made a difference in my life, like many of the people in this book. We as a nation must care about everyone, especially those outside the margins. I highly recommend this must-read book.
The Crane Wife by Patrick Ness
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I did not know anything about this Japanese tale but I needed a book for a “retelling” for SAH Summer Bingo. Enter George Duncan and the book opens with him finding a wounded crane in his yard. And so the story begins. George has not been successful in life in relationships, but then comes Kumiko. I loved everything about this story. Love, loss, friendship, and a battle of good over evil. I highly recommend!
That’s all I have for this week… I am going to try and get those sleeves done! What should you be working on this week?
As always – if you wrote a post to share, please leave your link below and thank you!
