by Kat | Jul 10, 2024 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
Greetings dear Unravelers and Happy Wednesday!
The making has been very varied recently… I think the heat is influencing my making this week as there has been little knitting but I have been focused on doing other crafty things.
First up, a wee little poppy painting…
I have spent lots of time thinking about what to do next, doing that thing, and then thinking more about what it might need next. You might think all this effort is kind of silly, for a 4″ x 4″ page in a journal but I am loving every bit of the process! I think this one is done! I think a painting “journal” is the perfect thing (as are these water pens!)
As you can see above, the stitching is really fun this month. And while I am NOT a big fan of *red, white, and blue* at all, it just seemed the thing to do – especially since my brain bandwidth is… slow… these days. Simple for the win! I am loving that the process is overtaking my thinking… it has been the loveliest way to start my day.
And!! There is another full bobbin as well as some new little skeins of yarn!
Bonus points for me as I have begun and finished the Great Summer Closet Clean Out! My reward… today I will begin the next RWU book, The Ministry of Time!! I have one bag almost ready to go to the local free store… I have a few sweaters that I want to wash and put in the bag. I was not even thinking about sweater donations… until I read this in Anne Vally’s latest Substack post:
…Why do you think that someone you know will love and care for something you made better than a stranger in need?… Honestly, the quality in thrift has plummeted in the last decade, thanks to fast fashion, and we low-income folks want to also find treasures that will last decades.
That comment stopped me in my tracks when I read it and I have been thinking about it LOTS since. I have a plethora of “shawls/scarves/etc.” that I will be going through and sending those off to the free store as well.
And speaking of reading, have I been reading! Escape Reading is saving my life right now! I have a plethora of finishes, including a book that will likely be in the best reads of the year – Hard by a Great Forest. I am staying in the Escape Reading lane this week with book 7 in the Max Tudor series (in my ears) and with my eyes, Clear by Carys Davies (which just might qualify as a “road boat trip” for Kym’s Scavenger Hunt) and Robert Bryndza’s latest in the Kate Marshall series! (and I just checked out A Gentleman in Moscow (audio version) from my library!)
There you have my scattered week… what about you all? What is keeping you sane this week?
As always, if you wrote a post to share please leave your link below and thank you!
by Kat | Jun 26, 2024 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
Greetings Unravelers and Happy Wednesday!
This is the last Wednesday of June… so let’s have a moment of silence… sigh.
Last week also ushered in the Great AC Temperature Wars at my house. I now am wearing a wool sweater and socks IN THE FREAKING HOUSE. And yet, Steve thinks it is TOO WARM. I am not sure we will survive this summer if the temps continue on in the 90°+F range. Monday, he headed off to work and I turned off the AC and opened all the windows. It was pure bliss. Bare, sock-less feet and a t-shirt for me! (until he got home from work and flipped out at how warm it was in the house… 72° for those wanting to know…)
I am knitting though… and Unravelers… we have DIVISION! Yes, that is right, the fronts, sides, and backs have been separated! I had to knit 5 and 1/2 repeats of the charted pattern to get to the length, which is 1.5 more repeats than Albíona needed at her gauge. Luckily, she gives measurements for every possible angle of the pattern, so I think I will be okay. My only concern is the shoulder angle/decreases… but I am a long way from that, so I have some time to work it out in my brain!
I set myself a goal of getting to the “split” and I have moved back to Steve’s sock. My goal is to get this done this month… and I think I can do it if I put my mind to it! (and the cuff and short leg were completed last night so finishing this week just might be possible!)
The reading this week has been lovely! I got a hold from the library for a book with the most intriguing title, Hard by a Great Forest by Leo Vardiashvili. I put my current read (a Netgalley book) on pause while I got started on this book. I am loving it… and maybe even more so after hearing an interview with the author on NPR’s Book of the Day podcast! I am just over half way done and expect to finish this one soon! In the most timely read… I finished Summer Solstice: An Essay last Thursday! I wish there were more essays, they were delightful! I have put this book on my “wish list” with the hopes of having it in my library to reread as necessary (the writing is really so beautiful!). I have also set a reminder for myself to read Winter Solstice: An Essay in December… and if the 90°+ days aren’t enough to make me think about winter, this book does! Ha! (also… I am still listening to and loving 4 3 2 1… perhaps loving it even more than the first time I read it!)
And with that, I have a sock to knit! If you wrote a post to share on this last Wednesday of June please leave your link below!
by Kat | Jun 19, 2024 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
Greetings dearest Unravelers, Happy Juneteenth, and Happy Hot as Hell Wednesday (at least in most of America… I saw that it snowed in Scotland recently and I am having some heavy contemplation about relocating there…)
I am managing some minutes outside in the morning, but even early yesterday it was warm and so muggy! Sherman and I have embarked on a multiple times a day de-shed-a-thon … now I know Pug’s are super shedders, but he has lost at least 4 Sherman’s in floof this week… yes, we have shedding on steroids… and he is still shedding!
But…in spite of all the deshedding, I have managed to squeeze in some knitting time. I was having the hardest time tracking the “pattern” of my pre-knit sweater… so I made myself a little note to help. Most rows are k2, p2…. but the row before and after the wraps are different. (Yes, wrapped stitches… not cables, but they look very cable-ish and I love how it looks!) Now all I have to do is look at the number (does it have a “p” or is it “wrapped”) and the rows are going faster now! Woot! My gauge is off… so I will need to do at least 5 or 6 repeats of the chart before I divide fronts, sleeves, and back…good thing I am enjoying the process!
I finished sock one and started sock two but, as you can see, it has not gotten much love this week.
Now for the reading… mmm, mmm, mmmmmm! Summer reading is the best reading in the world! The first time I read 4 3 2 1, I read with my eyes. This time I am listening to Paul Auster read it to me (It is ALWAYS available on Hoopla!) and I am loving it even more this time than I did the first, if that is at all possible! It is long though (35+ hours of listening) but I just love how Auster crafted this intricate story! (And I can’t believe how much I have forgotten since my first read!)
Vera reminded me of Summer Solstice: An Essay this week… my library does not have any copies… but Hoopla to the rescue again! So I started reading it last night. I should finish before Thursday, just in time for Solstice!
I had just two finishes this week, Elizabeth Strout’s Tell Me Everything, which will be published September 10, 2024 and Percival Everett’s I am Not Sidney Poitier.
I know some of you have read Tell Me Everything already and loved it as much as I did! I laughed, I fell in love with characters all over again, and I cried… a 91 year old Olive makes me so sad. I am in the “Olive must live forever” camp and I am hoping Elizabeth feels the same way! Perhaps the best part of the story… was the stories, the listening… really listening, and the realization that everyone’s story is important. Good reminders for us all… and me especially!
I am Not Sidney Poitier won’t be for everyone, but if you like Percival Everett… you will love this short, spot-on, brilliant little book!
And there you have my goings on… mostly, we are trying to stay cool (and get a handle on the shedding! lol) What about you? What’s keeping you cool this week?
As always, if you wrote a post to share leave your link below and thank you!
by Kat | Jun 12, 2024 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
Greetings dearest Unravelers and Happy Wednesday!
I confess that not much knitting has happened this week. I did make the tiniest bit of headway on my test knit sweater…but these are some long rows! I have not knit a stitch on those socks either… but I did cast on a new Hitchhiker! (I mean when all the knitting seems “meh” Hitchhiker to the rescue!)
Yes, I am juggling 3 balls of yarn, but it is working nicely… no obvious striping. Although, it looks like there is some pooling in the photo, it does not look that way IRL.
Steve’s mom and dad went to “The Peach Truck” drop site and got us a box of peaches… surprise! So I have been baking up a storm. And I will make Peach Ice Cream later this week! (Summer Bucket List FTW!) Take that 12 lbs of peaches!
On Monday, Carole shared a pizza dough recipe that I tried on Monday night and I am here to tell you… IT IS A WINNER! I did not mix the dough until noon-ish, so I just left the dough balls on the counter to bake for dinner. I did not use our Ooni, but instead just baked them in the oven on the baking steel. This dough came together easily, the instructions are not hard, and Carole is right… the dough is easy to shape (very little “spring back”) and it did not stick to the peel at all! If you like pizza… this is the perfect dough!
The reading this week… whew. I am happy for some “lighter” topics after squeaking in under the wire with the RWU selection! I am finally getting to the advance copy of Elizabeth Strout’s Tell Me Everything. I am racing through it and after that I have several new “mysteries” from Netgalley to dig into. I also picked up the next Max Tudor Mystery from the library… it is this week’s afternoon porch reading (and it is perfection for savoring this late spring days!) I am going to begin listening to Paul Auster’s 4 3 2 1 later today! Summer reading is my favorite!
There you have my (lack of) making week! What about you? Is making happening in your household?
As always, if you wrote a post to share please leave your link below and thank you!
by Kat | Jun 5, 2024 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
Greetings dear Unraveler’s and Happy Wednesday!
The header image is my morning starting place. While I might want to stay here for the entire day, sadly that is not feasible! I mean… we have to eat, lol! But mornings working out great because my presence is a bit of a deterrent to the starlings and grackles that want to “hog” the feeder. I have made myself a “portable desk” that holds a book of poetry, The Comfort of Crows, my drawing/painting book, and my Traveler’s Notebooks… (so calendar and journal.) I also added a small jam jar to hold pens, a pencil, and a roll of washi tape. It is perfect!
I am motoring along on my 6th pair of socks… this time I am “making it up” as I go… sort of. I love the 3×1 ribbing for both look and fit. Steve prefers a shorter sock, and I really love Hermoine’s heel… I am moving down the foot with miles to go before I get to those toe decreases. But it the perfect companion for sipping coffee on the porch… and also works well for night time television watching!
A sock and a bit of stitching!
My other fun thing this week is a vessel… a stitched vessel. I have the “outside” done… I am working on the inside… and will keep stitching in little bits of time. Fun… so much fun! (I will share construction, but I was long past the “starting point” so be patient!)
I am back on the Sweater Train!
I have had “start the sweater” on my list for a couple of weeks now… with not a single stitch cast on. Well, this week that all changed. A morning of porch sitting had some “extra time” to get those stitches cast on! Now I have some ribbing to knit!
The reading this week… really just so delightful! I am racing to finish the RWU book for next week! Talk about under the wire!! And I am tucked away in Paris with Ruth Reichl’s soon-to-be-released book, The Paris Novel. After a bit of a bumpy start, I have settled in… Ruth’s writing is just so great. I am enjoying the story and am racing up to the end!
There you have my week. What are you all thinking about as June begins?
As always, if you wrote a post to share please leave your link below and thank you!
by Kat | May 29, 2024 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
Greetings Unravelers and Happy Last Wednesday in May! It is bittersweet to think of bidding May adieu but June is there… so close I can almost touch her!
I have been busy since we last talked. Stitching and knitting… knitting and stitching.
First up, my finished 100 Day Project! I spent a good chunk of time pondering the layout, figuring out the “tab and slot” fabric book method, realizing I needed inside pages for the front and back pages, not understanding how those extra 4 pages would fit in, thinking they would somehow “fit” over the finished book, realizing they would not, ripping out lots and lots and lots of seams, pinning pages together to figure out the puzzle for those 4 extra pages, marking up my sewing map, sewing, pressing, hand stitching the “tabs” and “slots” closed, and assembling!
Page adjustments and sewing map!
Whew! (For those wondering, I used Ann’s guidelines for the book… part one and part two.) I also did a good bit of googling to see if there was a theory of how to add pages (I did not find one.) In the end, it came down to me and a big jar of safety pins… Yes, I needed to unpin and re-pin several times to get the order to work. I expect the next tab and slot fabric book will be easier since I worked out all the hurdles (probably, lol)
But I am in LOVE!
I can’t wait to see Heidi’s face as she looks at it (I will include a long(ish) letter for her in which I talk about my thoughts as I stitched and the fabrics I used – though I think she will recognize them!)
I also have May’s socks in just under the wire! Yes, this is the fifth pair of socks I have knit this year! I began winding the yarn (some very vintage sweetgeorgia tough love sock in the sitka colorway, for those wondering) for pair six on Monday and would have cast on Tuesday afternoon… but it took me almost more time than the making of the book to figure out the video!
The reading though… oh my! It was a sweet week of reading! I stumbled upon Dan Flores Wild New Word thanks to Libby… it was the “Big Library Read” earlier this month. I am about 75% through and enjoying it thoroughly (although, I really am disgusted by our actions beginning in about 1800’s… sigh) But I am learning so much… so much! At night I am closing in on the ending of The Hazelbourne Ladies… it is delightful. (and I am also learning so much!)
What about you all? What is on your reading and making lists for this summer?
As always, if you wrote a post to share leave your link below and thank you!
A bit of housekeeping for the remainder of this week. I have a flurry of activities tomorrow and Friday (which includes my first visit back to see the audiologist since getting hearing aids) so this might be it for me this week! If I am not here on Friday, I will see you all back here on Monday!
