April Fool’s?

April Fool’s?

Oh, the snow… Yep, s-n-o-w. Crazy how that white contrasts so intensely with the new greens.

However, I immortalized my fragile lilac buds in my stitching yesterday because I fear after today they will be gone. It makes me so sad but I am hoping that it does not get as cold as they are predicting (or, frankly, that we get WAY MORE snow to insulate the tender buds so that they won’t just be a memory stitched into April.)

Stitching has become an obsession for me – I am stitching for my #The100DaysProject but, beyond that it is that thing that rattles most frequently around in my brain. I wake up at night with ideas and inspiration to stitch. It has expanded (??) or perhaps unleashed my creativity and I am eager to get to my stitching every day. With three months of work complete – it has gone from habit to passion. I also love the slowness of the process – a little bit each day and each day builds upon the last. I do not map out anything at all for the month. No drawing, planning, plotting, nothing – just pure inspiration. Somedays, I am really uncomfortable with that days stitiching, but I leave it and come back the next day and build on it. By the end of the month, I am surprised by this: that which made me most uncomfortable is what I like best about the piece. I am learning so much from this process which is always a very good thing!

Now, how about some links?

First up, PAKnitwit shared this gem with me and I simply had to share with you all. I had never heard Carole King sing this, but I love it!

**sorry for the earworm…

In the insanity rules category… this is the penultimate grand champion

This might qualify in the knitting insanity category… The Dropped Stitch

Åsa Tricosa’s Mayhem Cardigan reminds me of Eileen Fisher’s designs… and I love her contiguous sleeve caps!

I love Beneath the Pines (the DK version…YES!)

Mary Lou Egan has a new baby sweater from sock yarn! (P.S. She writes excellent patterns!!)

Speaking of sweater – Tegan is the perfect weekend friend. (and more fingering… sorry about that!)

Finally, Calliopsis is Bonnie Sennott’s latest cowl – and she is having a sale on cowls through Sunday. (Who is up for a KAL with this one? It would be the perfect summer cowl!! I think Mary has already started….)

That is all I have for today! Have a great weekend and I will see you back here on Monday!!

Unraveled Wednesday, April 5

Unraveled Wednesday, April 5

Welcome to Unraveled Wednesday!

Spring is whirling around Pittsburgh – it has been windy and a bit rainy. My grass is about as high as an elephant’s eye… hopefully the rain stops and the winds help it dry out enough to get the mower out soon. I fear if it does not, next week’s post could include a machete…

The winds seem very March-like and not very April-like at all. But all this windiness has me thinking of Maurice Sendak’s Chicken Soup with Rice, which is one of my favorite books ever. I love when a book lives in your brain and that something as simple as the weather brings the words echoing in your head. There is something comforting in that process and I hope it never ends!

This week’s read finds me back to Menace in Malmö by Torquil MacLeod. There are two things happening simultaneously in the book right now and these things have not crossed paths yet. However, the story is getting very interesting and my initial thoughts have been proven wrong. (I love when that happens!) The series is very good and if you like Nordic Noir I think you will enjoy it tremendously.

On the knitting front, as you can see – the sweater is now too big to photograph! And, by the time you read this, I will have begun the short rows to make the back a bit longer than the front per the pattern. Then I am on to the ribbing and then I will be on Sleeve Island for a bit. I am going to do something differently this time – I am going to knit the sleeves at the same time, which I think will greatly improve the likelihood that they match!

If you have a post to share with reading or crafting, please feel free to leave your link here!
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Product Review: Javori Designs

Product Review: Javori Designs

In March, I was asked to review one of Javori Designs beaded knitting kits. I selected the Chelsea Necklace Kit as I have not knit much jewelry – and in fact, the only knitted jewelry I had made thus far was with wire.

The kit comes with everything you need – sparkly yarn, beads, bead threader, a ring (on which you cast on) and the clasp.

The directions were very clear, however, the Andi Javori has a wonderful tutorial on YouTube that made the clear directions clearer if you are, like me, a visual learner.

You thread on the prescribed number of beads before you begin and then you cast on. Can I just say BRAVO for this bead threader? It is really a wonder – sort of like a big-eyed needle! I loved how easy it made threading the beads on the yarn!

The cast on felt a bit fiddly and awkward, but you only cast on four stitches. The most difficult part of the knitting was counting rows – really. Casting on side two was much easier, and I had this cute necklace knit in about 3 hours – that includes the tassel and adding the beads to the tassel. So, this is a very quick project!

I am not sure I am supposed to tell you these parts, but obviously, the yarn is not my usual wooly want to stick to itself yarn and weaving in the ends worried me. I did not think they would stay – so I did the same wraps that I did to attach the tassel at the base of the ring. I simply wrapped the yarn tail around my knitting just below where I attached the clasps. I then used a crochet hook to pull the tail through and pull it tight. I made sure the yarn came through the back of the knitting so it is hidden in the necklace.

I did surgeons knots with the cast on tails on the wrong side and snipped them off. As you can see, I even had left-over yarn and beads – so I probably could have made it a little bit longer and there are enough beads that I could have added a row of beads to each beaded section.

I really like how it turned out! (And, I hope my sister will too – because it is heading off to her for her birthday!)

Andi Javori can be found on Instagram, Facebook, Ravelry, and Pinterest.

She has a wide variety of kits available on her website and she is graciously offering my readers a free pattern as well as a 15% discount on your entire online purchase from her website. Please use the code: KATKNITS before April 30, 2017.

If you decide to knit a Chelsea Necklace, please let me know! I would love to hear your thoughts and see your finished project!

Fri-nally!

Fri-nally!

Steve and I are, apparently, creatures of habit. On Tuesday, we began talking about  Friday Happy Hour, which continued into Wednesday and Thursday with confessions of how much we were looking forward to it.

I am not sure we need an AA intervention, but one thing is certain – Friday night is one thing we both look forward tremendously. Meal planning (or rather un-meal planning?) discussion has been our dinner conversation all week.

I promise you there will be icy cold martini’s – and I think I might be able to convince Steve to use the Barrel Aged Gin from the Grand Traverse Distillery… (although he is messaging me asking if I think Margaritas sound good…lol)

On the knitting front – I have a special project that I will share with you all next week. Something different for me – but I am surprisingly happy with how it turned out. Stay tuned on Tuesday for all the details! All other knitting has been ignored. I know. It is a sad state of affairs!

I have been working on some spinning at night – which is very slow going. Why? It is a beautiful Rambouillet from Sheepspot Fiber Club and I am working on consistency and spinning fine. Yes… I am trying to channel Beth Smith for this one – I want a nice 2-ply actual lace weight yarn! I have a long way to go yet!

Now, how a few links to close out the week?

That is all I have for this week! See you back here on Monday!!

Isn’t

Isn’t

Today starts the weekend that isn’t.

It is a weekend, but there isn’t much us time. A good friend of Steve’s is getting married tomorrow and Steve is standing up with him.

So, happy hour isn’t happening tonight.

There will be some brief moments of resistance for me on Saturday morning, but the remainder of the day isn’t what I normally do.

Perhaps we can squeeze a weekend into Sunday… we shall have to see. But, reality tells me that isn’t likely.

But of course, I have some links for you:

It was a quiet week on Ravelry but I recently knit a hat pattern by Mary Lou Egan and she released Swales DK in January which I somehow missed. However, she writes a great pattern and I love the simple pattern.

Virginia Sattler-Reimer has a new sock pattern

This one is for Mary who loves Lori Versaci patterns (And, Mary… Shibui Linen + Pebble!) Interesting construction as well!

This is lovely…

Churchmouse Teas and Yarns has a new Sleeveless Slipover pattern! Oh, man! I love all the options – Dress length, tunic, short… I love them all!

And, finally today begins Round 3 of the MDK March Mayhem… I am amazed how well I am doing!! How about you? Are your favorites still in?

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