Greetings dearest Unravelers!
I have finished the Airy, Anne of Green Gables, Ranunculus and I am entirely smitten! I was reminded how brilliant the designer, Midori Hirose, wrote this pattern. The directions are clear and there are multiple videos of techniques! Want a narrower neck… no problem, clear directions! Want short sleeves, again… clear directions! Worried about binding off too tight? Yep, you got it… CLEAR DIRECTIONS! With this iteration, I followed her long sleeve with I-cord bind off. However, I knit a lot more than 7″… I knit 70 rounds, did the decrease round, and then the I-cord bind off. It needs a bit of a bath and some ends woven in and then I am putting this baby on and wearing the heck out of it!
The Airy Anne of Green Gables Ranunculus.
And I will be casting on another… Anne of Green Gables with a Rosy Hue Ranunculus as soon as I confirm the larger needle size for gauge.
I want to talk a minute about The Farmer’s Daughter Fiber… they have amazing customer service. I had these skeins of Foxy Lady… merino/silk singles that I really wanted to use… it is gorgeous yarn! But… I did not need another sweater of the same color so I emailed Farmer’s Daughter and their help was really as if I was standing in their shop. They sent me multiple photos of several color combinations that will allow me to utilize the Foxy Lady in another Ranunculus. If you have not discovered the joy that is The Farmer’s Daughter Fiber… you should!
And…if you are following along on my stitching on the AC Varigated Stripe Shawl… I have just one stripe left… which will take me two days! I am kind of sad to bring this all to an end. I have so enjoyed this project. I have loved the deep dive into the variations on stitches from the Geometry of Hand Sewing. Up next… learning all the in’s and out’s of seaming a garment! The journey continues!
My soon-to-be-finished Variegated Stripe Scarf and the Ollie Top waiting in the wings!
The reading… oh my. Summer Reading might be the best thing ever! The NYTimes Summer series made a suggestion in the “sleep edition” about good books to read before bed and one of their suggestions was Kate DiCamillo’s The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane. I had never read it, so okay… I gave it a try! It was brilliant. Moving. Heartwarming. And perhaps the most perfect bedtime stories ever. I wish I had read this with my kids but it is now on my list to send to my grandkids!
I finished A Good Animal… and the finish did not disappoint. At all. I highly recommend. Sheep! Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan! And a young man who will stay with me for a very, very, very long time.
I did have one very disappointing finish, Téa Obreht has a new novel coming, Sunrise. And I had such high hopes! I loved her previous novels… so much. So I began Sunrise with very high hopes. Sigh. Those high hopes were crushed flat and quickly in this really awkward book. Nothing in it is even remotely believable. Nothing. And it goes from wait… what? to are you freaking kidding me. And the ending… in a book that needed to have something… anything… to pull all the nonsense together was even more unbelievable. I wondered multiple times in the reading if the author was on mind altering drugs while writing. I do not recommend. This novel will be published August 11, 2026.
My current listen… Land… Maggie O’Farrell’s latest. So far, so good… but I am still in Part One (iykyk) and, I watched Hamnet yesterday on Netflix (thanks for getting me through Sleeve Number Two!!) It was very good… but I still loved the book more.
Are you surviving this blast of hot and humid summer days? How do you take your mind off the heat and humidity?
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KAT!!!!! What a beautiful finish. Your Ranunculus is gorgeous! Stunning! And your yarn for the next is lovely. Also, beautiful hand stitching. I’m looking forward to seeing the full AC shawl in all its glory. Thanks for the reminder of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane – I’ve seen multiple reviews and have been meaning to pick this up. I’ve been debating about whether to watch Hamlet or not, but I’ll give it a try. I loved the book so much…not sure any movie could live up to that. And I just received notice that Land is waiting for me at my library!
I’m one of the few people who doesn’t particularly care for the Ranunculus pattern, but I love your version — that color/texture combination is fantastic!
I think I’m done with Tea Obrecht; I’ve read two of her books and didn’t really care for either one, so it’s good to know I won’t be tempted with the new one. I did just find out yesterday that Barbara Kingsolver has a new book coming out this fall (and just requested it on NetGalley)!
Anne is beautiful and I’m anxious to see your next one! Not only do you have a stunning sweater, you are now equipped to deal with the ac onslaught. I’ll be sad to see your scarf stitching end but I’m sure glad I got to see those wheels. If you enjoyed Edward Tulane, you might also like Because of Winn-Dixie and The Tale of Desperaux. Both are by Kate DiCamillo, and I see she’s written several other novels that I haven’t read, so I might have to remedy that. I have dithered about watching Hamnet, but it’s supposed to be hot today, so I might have to knit on my towel while watching. Enjoy wearing this Ranunculus and casting on for your next one!
LOVELY sweater, Kat! It looks like a perfect foil for way-too-cold summer AC issues. And Farmer’s Daughter sounds like the yarn-shopping experience everyone deserves! (And given that it was remote . . . even better.) I’m with Bonny here . . . Kate DiCamillo was a huge favorite in our house when my kids were young. So many titles to choose from! Enjoy.
And I also just finished Tea’s “Sunrise” . . . but had a much different experience than you did. Although not perfect, I thought it was a delightful adventure and I flew through it. It was inventive and clever, and . . . “believable” and “Tea Ohbreht” don’t really belong in the same sentence. 😉
Will look forward to hearing your thoughts on Land. I know lots of people loved it . . .
Your Ranunculus is beautiful! Congratulations! I’ve BOUGHT yarn from Farmer’s Daughter Fiber, but never experienced their customer service. I have had a similar experience with Lamb and Kid when I was choosing colors for my pink Sodotna. Good advice on the phone.
If you can do that scarf, you can do anything AC, I think. There’s more ahead.
Edward Tulane is one of the few Kate DiCamillo that I have missed. I really love the Three Amigos Trilogy (start with Rainey Nightingale). She is a beautiful author. She’s a favorite of Ann Patchett, I think.
TODAY I’m staying cool by having eye surgery. Not a general recommendation though the surgery area is freezing. The first eye was good so hoping for the best.
That’s a wonderful sweater and, knowing how you dislike AC, it seems perfect for you for this time of year. I just want to go on record and say that I loved Land – all parts. The tone does shift and it becomes more family saga but I didn’t mind that at all. It is a lot of tragedy for one family, though.
I love this Anne Ranunculus Sweater! I have been on the fence about knitting one but you might be nudging me toward it. I think I want to knit one at a slightly tighter gauge so maybe I should just but the pattern and see what I can do with it. Kate DiCamillo is a good writer. Thanks for reminding me about her. I’m interested to read your final thoughts on Land. Sometimes I think books get so much hype that it’s hard for them to live up to all expectations. Although I’m sure the more publicity boosts sales, the better for the writer and publisher.