by Kat | 4 hours ago | General, In This Moment
Is for rounding out my “packing list” with some “insurance”…
- A skein of sock yarn and sock needles
- Stitching bits and pieces
- and yes, a warm coat, another hat, and mittens!
I added those last bits yesterday when I saw the much chillier than expected forecast for this week. I don’t think the vest I already had on the list will be enough. I seriously contemplated not bring anything to knit, thinking perhaps that a break might be a good thing. But I don’t know of any yarn stores up near Erie, so in case my knitting mojo comes roaring back I will be prepared!
I have debated with myself a dozen times about bringing stitching or not… and I reminded myself of what happened last spring when I did not take the stitching… so I pulled out a small bag to put some bits in.
Now to unearth a warm hat and some mittens… because you know that by committing to bringing a warm coat, a hat, and mittens I won’t need them! (But if I did not pack them, well… you know how that would go!)
Happy Monday everyone! See you all back here on Wednesday!
by Kat | Sep 16, 2024 | General, In This Moment
We know that in September, we will wander through the warm winds of summer’s wreckage. We will welcome summer’s ghost. — Henry Rollins
Summer’s ghost was alive a well last week… again it was (very) dry with temps climbing into the 80’s. But I see signs of change … signs that things are leaning into a new season. Birds are flocking… most notably, the Blue Jays that arrive in my yard each morning patiently awaiting the “Nut Lady” to bring out the peanuts! Blue Jays that can tell time make me smile! Some have progressed further through the late summer molt than others as there are one or two who look quite haggard. But they all are expert “nut weighers”… I like watching them pick through the peanut shells to find the heaviest one which they quickly whisk away!
I have hopes for rain this week… we need it so desperately but maybe not tomorrow night, which will be the 4th and final full moon of summer… A Super Harvester Moon with a partial lunar eclipse! And I caught the ISS soaring overhead last night… it was my first time seeing it and it was exciting! I freed my inner little girl and waved in the dark as it sailed overhead. Or perhaps it was a bit of leftover exuberance from the Makers for Kamala call! We have such an amazing community… I am proud to be part of it.
This week, my making plans include making a bit of a “book” (and I am using that term VERY loosely!) to participate a bit in Karen Abend’s Sketchbook Revival. I have some sheets of cold press watercolor paper that I am going to break down to make them more useable and make them into a bit of a sketchbook.
The other important thing I did for myself yesterday was to make a batch of steel cut oats for breakfasts this week (which is super easy to do in the crockpot!) The tiniest bit of work on a Sunday morning makes for a week of healthy, ready-to-go breakfasts for myself! (And I have no excuse to skip brekkie this way!)
Happy Monday everyone, see you all back here on Wednesday!
by Kat | Sep 13, 2024 | General, In This Moment
September days have the warmth of summer in their briefer hours, but in their lengthening evenings a prophetic breath of autumn. — Rowland E. Robinson
Happy almost mid-September! This quote… so very true. I love the warmth of the September sun that gives way to a hint of the coming autumn at night! Yes to another blanket on the bed… at least on my side! Ha!
Ruminating —
I have been doing a good bit of thinking about my making life… how I really want to spend my time next year.
My Rumination List:
- I think I would like to do another temperature project… perhaps a bit of a riff on this genius little book that Jo Avery is doing this year. I think square within a square would work… and would be a touch simpler than stitching circles.
- I am pretty sure that I will be letting Ali Edwards go… no, I am NOT giving up a word! (My new word has me so excited!!) What I don’t think I need any longer is a video of direction and ideas. And while I am not a scrap booker, I the past two years I have worked a bit in a Word Journal… one which I print out a photo of me sort of for posterity (and really to get more comfortable with taking *and appreciating* photos of myself). But next year I am trying a new calendar/journal… I ordered a Hobonici Weeks MEGA (thanks, Carole for the inspiration) and I am going to do *all-in-one* next year… calendar, thoughts, images, word, etc.
- I am not letting go of Ann Wood’s Stitch Club… the group of people there is most inspiring! And I am looking forward to another 100 Day Book!
- I am waiting to see what Karen Turner does for 2025 daily stitching before I make a decision there.
- And… I am thinking about paring back on knitting. I know. I know… but I am just thinking about it at this point.
Indulging (my) Inner (painter) —
One thing I have really loved this year was my impromptu sketch/painting time. I am spending about 15-20 minutes every weekday just doing. I generally use a photo I have taken for inspiration and I am learning so much! Do I see room for improvement? Absolutely! Do I expect perfection? Oh hell no! It is all about the process and I am liking painting so much more now than I did trying to recreate someone else’s painting. Now, don’t get me wrong… I learned volumes in all those classes I invested in… but I needed to find “my style” and I think I am figuring that out!
September’s Paintings…
I am making my way through lists each week this month… I have somehow been fortunate to get Michigan voters. I am enjoying jotting a note about the JOY of voting. I hope my letters inspire everyone to go vote! I am especially loving sitting outside on these glorious sunny afternoons and writing a letter or ten!
(RE) FILL —
The loss of Sherman has not easy but this month we began to contemplate being ready for a new furry family member. I did some research, made some phone calls and, wonder of wonders, we have a plan that will find October welcoming a new little furball into our lives! Yes… after we get back from Erie we will be taking a trip to pick up a new pug! I don’t know which I am more excited for… a vacation with just the two of us or that vacation being over so we can go get the new puppy! I have not had a puppy in EONS… Sherman came to us when he was six months old! I am nervous and excited all at the same time!
This little boy will be coming to my house soon!
That’s it for me this week! See you all back here on Monday! Have a great weekend everyone!
by Kat | Sep 9, 2024 | General, In This Moment
Over the weekend I planned for the future… planning as in ordering bulbs to plant. This is the kind of future planning I think I like best, a colorful promise of delight after a long, brown winter!
And that got me thinking about what else is a promise of delight.
A big one on my list used to be sweater knitting… cast on, invest some a good bit of time knitting, and before you know it a new sweater appears! (or apparently not, in my case…)
Perhaps you all can see where this is going… if you think back to my last sweater project… and add in the new sweater project. And you end up in a place that I found myself in over the weekend… how much more time will I invest in this sweater that I am not sure will work in the end?
One sweater is still waiting to be taken apart and “unraveled”… do I really want to add another sweater to that pile?
Sigh… so the new sweater is going to take a bit of a time out. Time out for me to contemplate a bit longer… before I will probably just unravel it all.
Sometimes the promise of delight is in knowing when to quit!
Success does not lie in sticking to things. It lies in picking the right thing to stick to and quitting the rest. — Annie Duke
I hope your Monday is full of actual delightful things…like a fall tinged morning, the sound of the school bus rambling through the neighborhood, and a steaming warm cup of coffee!
See you all back here on Wednesday!
by Kat | Aug 19, 2024 | General, In This Moment
Good morning gentle readers and Happy Monday!
Today I am sharing a thing… a maker thing
Yes… a Makers for Kamala sort of thing!
Spread the word! #ImIn
Also… Threads is just delightful, if you were wondering!
See you all back here on Wednesday!
by Kat | Aug 12, 2024 | General, In This Moment
Is still full of the energy from Friday’s class with Cecelia Campochiaro!
Yes, three hours on Friday afternoon have re-invigorated my life! If you ever… EVER… have the chance to take a class that Cecelia teaches, TAKE IT!
She is brilliant, her style of teaching is so engaging… she is a deep font of knowledge and she does not hold back! And she is smart… so smart. Knitting micro-swatches as I listened to her talk about color, about marls, about knitting… was genius. It allowed my brain to just focus on her. And when we got to the portion of the class where she began to use her micro-swatches to bring order to the little bits… well, my brain was just buzzing! It was amazing!
“Labeled” cones awaiting their turn to join the magic of marling!
I spent a good amount of time Saturday afternoon setting to order my micro-swatches… Thank goodness for Washi Tape! It worked perfectly to affix my swatches and also allowed for easy removal to work out my order (I lined them up in several different orders, but the one I finally settled on really flowed best for me!) So I mapped out my “course” through these swatches… the brilliance of Cecelia’s method is that your goal is to never change more than one strand of yarn at a time… this path achieves that and the colors (I thought) flowed best. (and her tip for not having to weave in ends made my heart sing!)
The next part was to determine the number of repeats for each color. (Note… a buzzing brain might not be as accurate with the maths… please double check your work! LOL)
I cast on late Saturday and I have never been so excited about a pattern in my life!
I would like to take a moment to thank Ann and Kay for making this stunning class available to “the masses”! This class is, hands down, the best class I have EVER taken! To Cecelia… I almost have no words… she is a phenomenal teacher. She is generous, she knows SO much… so much! And her color sense… genius (yes, she picked the colors for our kits!) Thank you, thank you, dear Cecelia!
Now, I am going to take this energy to do a spot of cleaning so I can get back to the knitting! Happy Monday everyone!
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