by Kat | Aug 5, 2020 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
I don’t know about you, but I have some serious Knitting-ADD going on right now. I can’t seem to focus on any one thing and keep at it until it is finished! I spent some time last week going through my stash and odds and ends to see what I could find to make a sweater for Winston. I settled on five colors from two Blue Ridge Yarns Footlight sets and some left over yarn from a previous project and printed off a copy of ML Egan’s Leland (sorry no links to Ravelry any more) and cast on Monday night! I think it will be the perfect wintry sweater and I am loving how these colors look together! Why did I suddenly have the urge to cast on? Well, my daughter sent this photo and it was the best reminder that I needed to get moving on a sweater for that sweet boy! My nana heart aches that I cannot hold him, but Vivi promised me she is holding him all.the.time! I think she is doing an excellent job!
Vivi’s winning the mani/pedi contest (and I am in awe that her mom found the time to do that!) and that yawn!!
I have not forgotten Ranunculus, but neither have I picked it up since Sunday…I am on sleeve island and almost done with the first sleeve and I really want to get it done but, yeah. That desire is not inspiring me to stay project-monogamous..at all, lol.
Fortunately, my reading has been much more focused! I do love audiobooks, but sometimes a book does not work in the audio form… Song Yet Sung was one of those books for me. But The Summer Book was PERFECT!! And I have been reminiscing about similar conversations I had with my nana and chuckling to myself. I had sooo many questions and so many crazy ideas but my nana was as lovely as Sophia’s grandmother! I am sure my nana spent lots of time wondering where the hell that conversation came from! Haha!
Song Yet Sung by James McBride
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Sometimes listening to a book is not the way to read it. This was one of those times. I struggled to keep up with the cast of characters. I needed to have a book where I could flip back to remember. Still, the story is compelling… I recommend reading it versus listening to it!
The Summer Book by Tove Jansson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Gathering is peculiar, because you see nothing but what you’re looking for.
This book was wonderful. A friend stated that this book was one of the best reads of the pandemic and I wholeheartedly agree! This book is a conversation between a grandchild and her grandmother, and I loved every word! I saw conversations I had with my nana in these words. I laughed, I cried, and I did not want to leave Sophia’s island! I highly recommend!
That is all I have for today, if you wrote a post to share please leave your link below and thank you!
by Kat | Jul 29, 2020 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
Let the blue sky meet the blue sea and all is blue for a time. — Moncy Barbour
I am in sea of blue knitting and it is so good! I am working away on my second Ranunculus… I have put the body on hold and have started on the sleeves. One thing I did not take into my calculations on the first sweater was “growth” which does happen with this yarn knit at this gauge. So, I wanted the sleeves and body to be a wee bit shorter, and I ordered 1 less skein of yarn. But, that niggling feeling that I might not have enough yarn is circling around my brain. To appease that feeling, I started on the sleeves.
I also went back to trying to finish up the “never-ending” seed stitch section of Purl Strings. I am happy to say, the little bits of time I plugged in worked and I am done with that section! Woo!
One would wonder if I am actually trying to achieve a Bingo Cover All, lol… or perhaps which bingo card will get that cover all first! Ha! I am in a bit of a holding pattern on bingo card one, and have focused on bingo card two mainly because of holds that became available from the library. That was the case with this week’s reading (and will likely continue next week…and I should definitely get bonus points for creative square filling!!)
The Lewis Man by Peter May
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Finn has “moved” back to Lewis and is grappling with his past, his present, and his future. He is working to make his parents house livable. And what happens? A body found in the peat, a mystery to be unraveled. What unfolds is a bitter tale of life for orphans. The story was gripping, the writing brilliant and this was an excellent continuation of Finn’s story. I highly recommend this book!
Afterlife by Julia Alvarez
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I had higher hopes for this book based on the brilliant start, but I soon got lost in the weeds of jumping around from problem to problem…The book touches on some significant topics but never really goes beyond scratching the surface of them.
That is all I have for today. Do you have a “never-ending” project going? Inquiring minds want to know!
As always, if you wrote a post to share today, please leave your link below and thank you!
by Kat | Jul 22, 2020 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
The Mystery… she is finished! (and, as you can see above, I did have enough of EACH yarn!!) It needs to have all the ends woven in and some blocking, but this humidity means that won’t happen this week. But I am sharing it sans blocking. I am not so sure I like the bind off. It feels a bit like the designer thought “I need to have something different to finish” and this is it. I just am not sure “it” works. Maybe I will feel different post blocking, but right now I am thinking it is not staying. If that is the case, it will just have a simple…plain… bind off. Overall I am happy with the results, however I am putting mystery knits on the back burner for a bit.
Even unblocked, it is beautiful!
After all the beauty of this shawl, this ending is just “meh”
The transitions are just so smart!
Meanwhile… this arrived! and I immediately cast on! There is so much joy right now!
Yum!
It’s amazing how quickly things go on US 10.5’s!
The reading was good this week as well! Two more squares filled, still no cover all….yet! Ha!
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I know that LOTS of people were disappointed in this book, but I enjoyed it. It had all the bits of the previous books that I loved plus a main character I loved to hate (I had hopes Coriolanus might be salvageable, but nope… I hated him to the end) I also found this book to have an interesting take on Science Gone Absolutely Wrong.
Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
“Ships at a distance have every man’s wish on board. For some they come in with the tide. For others they sail forever on the horizon, never out of sight, never landing until the Watcher turns his eyes away in resignation, his dreams mocked to death by Time.”
“They seemed to be staring at the dark, but their eyes were watching God.”
The writing in this book is absolutely incredible. I listened and the narrator was excellent with the beautifully nuanced text! I loved Janie’s journey… it is compelling, honest, and full of hope and love. I cried at the ending… and I highly recommend this book!
That is all I have for this week. If you wrote a post to share, please leave your link below! See you back here next week when I join Honoré and share my Word Update!
by Kat | Jul 15, 2020 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
Greetings Unravelers!
The weather has been simply divine! I have been doing a bit of outdoor knitting and I am *this*close* to finishing my mystery shawl! I really can’t wait to see what blocking does to the sections of lace! It might be one of the favorite pieces I have knit in a while! I don’t know if I will have enough of the brown/grey yarn to do the edging that Kirsten did, but Carole made an excellent suggestion! If I don’t, I will try that…stay tuned!
Thanks to all of you, I have a nice list of little boy sweaters! To start, I am tossing the stash to see what I can put together to knit a Leland for “little” Win!
I also can’t get another Ranunculus out of my brain. It is the best summer sweater, ever! I am thinking that another one will be on my needles soon. (Then it will be back to all things woolen, I promise! 😆 )
The reading this week has been mixed. I really tried to join in with the Read With Us selection, but I just could not. I tried to read Wild Game, but this is not not a book that is for me.
I am still circling around that cover all on my first bingo card while filling in a square on my second card with one excellent finish this week!
The Night Watchman by Louise Erdrich
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I really enjoyed this book and for me, Louise hit it out of the park. The story is compelling, the characters are endearing, and I loved how expertly Erdrich weaves this beautiful story. I had originally given this book 4-stars, but I changed it to 5-stars… it is worthy of a 5-star rating! I highly recommend!
That’s all I have for today, I am going to try and actually be back on Friday…including hitting the “publish” button!
As always, if you wrote a post to share please leave your link below!
by Kat | Jul 8, 2020 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
Greetings, Unravelers!
Summer has arrived in Pittsburgh in full force. We are on, what feels like, day eleventy billion of 90+ degree weather. My yard is entirely burned out, as is every yard in my neighborhood. Yard burnout brings a bonus though…it is not growing so Steve does not have to mow! But boy does it look bad! We had some brief rain showers late yesterday, but I don’t think it was enough to revive the grass! And all this heat is making knitting not much fun either!
I *finally* completed Clue 4 and have begun Clue 5…but I am still on the first chart of Clue 5. Yes, it is slow going. But my love for this shawl grows with each clue! I am so happy with my low-contrast yarn choice! This will be done and ready for fall weather, once it arrives… oh, maybe in November! lol
I am also working slowly on Purl Strings… I love the dark, inky yarn but boy… not after sundown!
I also have been looking at baby boy sweaters! I usually knit up a BSJ with fingering weight yarn…but this is not sweater weather! So, I am thinking that something for the fall will be just perfect. I welcome all your little boy sweater suggestions!
The reading this week has had highs and lows. One book I loved, and one that really missed for me. AND!! I am one square away from a Cover All on my first bingo card!
So brave, So young, and Handsome by Leif Enger
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
I did not like this book. I could not connect with Monte at all. A failed writer, who then flees his family… taking off with a criminal. Seems likely…not. I so enjoyed Peace Like a River and was eager to read Virgil Wander… but I think I am taking a break from Enger’s works.
An American Childhood by Annie Dillard
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Loved! Entirely!
If you grew up in Pittsburgh, you should read this book.
If you live in Pittsburgh, you should read this book!
If you want to know about Pittsburgh you should read this book!
We said “tele pole,” pronounced “telly pole,” for that splintery sidewalk post I loved to climb. We said “slippy”—the sidewalks are “slippy.” We said, “That’s all the farther I could go.” And we said, as Pittsburghers do say, “This glass needs washed,” or “The dog needs walked”—a usage our father eschewed…
It is the epitome of Pittsburgh! I highly recommend!
And that is all I have for this week! What’s good in your world this week?
As always, if you wrote a post to share, please leave your link below and thank you!
