Weekending

May 13, 2013 in May 2013 | No comments

I love those Monday mornings where I have to ask myself these questions – where did the weekend go? What did I do?

That’s because on those Monday mornings, the answer is usually “nothing”. And that’s perfect.

It turned into an impromptu long weekend. Thursday was fantastic. Perfect, went off without a hitch. I ran around all day, in shoes that were unexpectedly uncomfortable (that being the only glitch, of my own making, as they were new). By the end, I was exhausted – that kind of exhausted where you are worn out from a truly great day and cannot squeeze even one more thing into it. I crashed when I got home, slept 10 hours and then got up and as predicted by coworkers, called out for the day. I needed it.

I lounged, I talked to my mom for a while, I napped for hours. I got up and went shopping. I bought this for myself:

20130513-113441.jpg
I was too exhausted to get into it all weekend, other than look at the pretty patterns.

Instead, on Saturday morning, I finished I Am Not Myself These Days by Josh Kilmer-Purcell. Fabulous. Light and fun and oddly hopeful. Then, I shopped some more. Mother’s Day and upcoming weddings and such. I drank great wine. I texted friends and caught up on tv and relaxed for the first time in weeks. I knitted a little.

On Sunday, I lounged some more. Then I went over to my parents’ house to hang with the family for Mother’s Day. The highlight of my weekend came as a surprise. We ended up spending hours going through old family photos. Turns out that my mother ended up with her mother’s photo albums years ago and they’ve sat in a closet since. Mom, my brothers, sister in law and sister in law to be and I sat around the dining room table going through hundreds of pictures, many from the 60s, 70s and 80s but some from the 30s and 40s. One was dated 1919. What a gift. So much family history and memories. I now have pictures of my maternal grandparents for the first time – one, a few years before my grandfather passed away and one from 1945, when they were a young couple and he was just back from WWII, in his Navy uniform. Amazing. Mom reminded us all that there’s another 40 years worth of family pictures to go through – all of her and my father’s pictures. Next time, we’ve promised. I had earlier complained to a friend that Mother’s Day was too much a Hallmark holiday. I could do without the sappy cards and commercialism and crap. Totally by accident, we found a way to turn into a day with real meaning, sharing memories and piecing together some of our history. I can’t think of a better way to celebrate.

Tags:

Ten on Tuesday – Why I Knit

May 7, 2013 in May 2013 | 3 comments

20130507-074703.jpg
This topic is a little harder than I thought it would be. The answer would seem obvious. There’s so many reasons. Apparently, putting it to words is a little more challenging. Here goes.

1. I know why I started – I needed a hobby. Desperately. Fall of 2000 – in the course of the previous year, I’d finished grad school, bought a house and worked on it and gotten married in CT while living in NY. Quite suddenly, “all” I had was a husband, house and full time job. I needed something to do with my time, that was creative so I took a knitting class. Fast forward almost 13 years…
2. It relaxes me. Nothing works quite like knitting. On days like today (2 days until work’s annual conference – eep!), the knitting comes to work with me for “emergencies” in which I need to close my office door for 5 minutes and regain my sanity. 2 rows will do the trick.
3. It centers me – I knit every morning, over coffee, after reading the paper. Its my meditation. My day is always a little off if I don’t get that time in. Its my morning me time and helps me to focus for the rest of the day.
4. It feeds me creatively – the colors, the textures, the different fibers.
5. It allows me to keep my favorite people warm and cozy. Especially the little ones. Nothing better.
6. I meet great people – the social thing was the most unexpected part of knitting for me. I never expected that my closest friends would be knitters or that I would meet many of them through knitting groups or spinning guild. Knitters are a diverse, fun, generous, kind and amazing group of people.
7. It keeps my hands busy – far better than fidgeting or throwing my pen cap across the room by accident.
8. I always have something to do. I don’t think knitters get bored. 3 days at home because of snow? power outage? long movie? hour wait in the doctor’s office? knitting will not only get me through, I can accomplish something at the same time.
9. It keeps me in pretty things – my handknits are my favorite pieces of clothing. outfits are often planned around them, tops and accessories bought to match.
10. its a great barometer of guy – go ahead and laugh but seriously? it works. knitting is part of my life – so of course I bring it up. some guys go for the immediate stereotype – I remind them of their grandmother or are too busy feeding my 17 cats to leave the house. dude just shot himself in the foot – buh-bye! some sort of breeze by it – either they don’t know what to say or what to make of it, so they don’t say anything. meh – might be worth getting to know him more but he’s got at least half a strike against him already. then there are the ones who ask about it and really get it. asking me to knit for you gets you serious bonus points. a guy last week immediately told me he thought knitting was cool – he had my number in hours and a date within a couple of days. well played! I think its part taking a genuine interest in something important to me and the rest really getting the creative part of it for me – I think I’m more likely to connect to someone who gets that. another unexpected benefit ;-)

Tags:

CT Sheep and Wool 2013

May 1, 2013 in May 2013 | No comments

Our little local festival was great again this year, with Mother Nature once again giving us a beautiful spring day, perfect for breaking out the flip flops and t-shirts for the first time. Here’s the highlights – in pictures.

20130501-112619.jpg
Camera shy alpacas

20130501-112644.jpg
Naked sheeps and not-quite-naked-yet sheeps

20130501-112727.jpg
floof, with ears

20130501-112759.jpg
the 5 week old lamb that I really wanted to take home – sadly, when I posted this picture on Facebook and asked that question, my landlord gave me a firm “NO”. buzzkill.

and then there were the things that I did take home with me:

20130501-112913.jpg
4 ounces of lovely tussah silk (there was no bombyx to be found on its own, only in blends, so I’m left to “suffer” with this stuff). some of its already on a spindle. its gonna be a lot of really fine 2 ply eventually. I’m thinking giant lace shawl.
and there was this spindle bag from Stitched by Jessalu

20130501-113239.jpg
that smile is because I found cupcakes that have absolutely no calories. score!
the silk lives in the bag now, with one of my Bosworths.

afterwards, it was off to Jacie’s so that Jenni could help her with a sewing project. I was very nearly mauled kissed to death by her extremely ferocious pit bull

20130501-113449.jpg clearly living up to that vicious pit bull reputation.

then Jenni and I did Cheap Wine and Chinese on my patio. perfect kickoff to festival season. and spring.

Tags:

Ten on Tuesday – May Days

April 30, 2013 in April 2013 | 3 comments

Wait, April’s over? It must be, because our missive this week is 10 Things You’re Looking Forward to in May. I still need to figure out where the last month went but before I do, here’s what I’m looking forward to:

1. 4:30 PM on May 9 – otherwise known as the final moment of Annual Training Institute 2013, the monster of a conference that has been my baby for the last year and my nightmare for the last month or so. its all good – in fact, its gonna be great – but this is my first time having it be mine all mine to plan, organize and consume most of my work time and a good part of my sleep in the last couple of weeks. to say I cannot wait for it to be done and over is a massive understatement.
2. a little time off – in the form of an extra long Memorial Day weekend and what will likely only be a half day off after the ATI (holy hell, this month is crazy at work, so I’ll take whatever I can get).
3. Tracy’s wedding and the associated road trip to western PA with Jacie and Jenni. oh, this is going to be a fun weekend!
4. Planting my garden – containers of tomatoes and herbs again this year. more decorative than 5 gallon buckets since they’ll go out front.
5. TV – yes, I hate to admit it a little but I do look forward to season finales in May. its always fun.
6. more warm days on my patio – see yesterday’s post about my new happy place.
7. a farmer’s market “preview” of sorts – my beloved Coventry Farmer’s Market does not reopen until the first weekend of June but they are doing 2 “pop up” markets at special locations in May. I can’t wait!
8. a little road trip to Webs for their fleece market or to NH Sheep and Wool – which one, I don’t know. but I need a little something, especially since I’ll miss Mass Sheep and Wool for the aforementioned wedding.
9. getting my Sheep Share from Foxfire Farm – spring shares are a little behind but promised for sometime in May. Its a new worsted weight yarn, of which I ordered extra so that I can do a Hey Teach cardi. will be stalking the mailman once I know they are on the way.
10. playing outside – I have to admit to feeling a little cooped up this winter, much as I loved all the snow. I think the whole “I have an outdoors now” in my condo – since I was lacking any sort of outdoor space of my own for almost 3 years – is combining with the cooped upness to make me itch to just be outside, go for walks, enjoy the flowers and the fresh air as much as I possibly can, especially on beautiful spring days.

Tags:

My New Happy Place

April 29, 2013 in April 2013 | No comments

20130429-114700.jpg
Ahhh. and its right outside my sliding door.

I needed that reminder on the kind of Monday morning where you text your BFF and ask her to have the shovel and bail money ready.

any time that its warmer than 60 and daylight or when the shit just hits the fan, this is where you’ll find me. I’ll have the box of wine ready in the fridge for you…

Tags:

Handspun

April 24, 2013 in April 2013 | No comments

… 2 years in the making

20130424-115942.jpg
Fiber Fancy Mulberry Silk in Tidal Wave. A gift from Jacie 2 summers ago (maybe 3? I’ve lost track). Beautiful stuff but a slippery mofo – that’s mulberry silk for you. I picked it up, put it down, changed to a Bosworth mini that spun the like the wind – fast and forever, just what it needed. Then I forgot about for a long time. And finally, I picked it up last week, swore at the slippery-ness of it some more, proclaimed in front of Jenni that I wouldn’t spin mulberry silk again, only tussah, which is far easier to handle, got addicted to spinning it, finished the singles and plied it this weekend. Then, a bath and good thwacking (technical term for repeatedly bashing it against the bathroom wall) to even it out and restore the shine and I have the loveliest little skein of handspun – 300ish yards of light fingering weight shiny silk in heathery shades of sea foam green.

Then I dug through the stash until I found the last bit of silk in it – tussah this time – and immediately started spinning it on my Bosworth Moosie. Lovely stuff but it lacks the pretty shiny f’ing slipperyness of the mulberry.

so if you see me at CT Sheep and Wool this weekend, tell me where to find the good stuff – need more mulberry…

Tags:

Ten on Tuesday – Favorite Sweaters

April 23, 2013 in April 2013 | No comments

Carole is talking about sweaters this week – specifically, the book that I must get my hands on, Amy Herzog’s Knit to Flatter. I got a quick peek at it recently – between that and everything I’ve read online, its one that must be included in my knitting library.

Our missive for this week – our 10 Favorite Sweater Patterns. Here goes, in no particular order:
1. Mr. Greenjeans – great shaping and interesting construction to keep you entertained
2. Vitamin D – just a fun knit and super practical – I wore mine constantly this winter.
3. Morehouse Mo Tunic – big, comfy, customizable and quick. and if you use the Morehouse Worsted Weight Merino that it calls for (held double), its super soft and luscious. I made mine years ago and by tradition, pull it out for the first time to go get my Christmas tree in the first weekend in December. from there, it generally stays out. its my go to sweater for chilly winter days.
4. for the wee ones – the Baby Surprise Jacket. I’ve lost count of how many I’ve made over the years.
5. for the kiddos – the Wonderful Wallaby – essentially, a classic pullover hoodie in worsted weight yarn, complete with pockets. my niece and nephew wore theirs out the year I did them for Christmas presents.
6. from the queue – Jadis. simple and comfy.
7. Poplar and Elm – the deep V and wrap are very flattering (explains why I have so many tops of exactly that style in my closet). well, they will be, once I ever knit this one.
8. Henley with a Twist – simple shaping and beautiful texture, plus its just right for handspun and made to match buttons
9. Old Port Pullover – another in the “I can’t wait to knit it” category (and there’s yarn in the stash for it). the combination of cables, lace and shaping will make it a classic.
10. Featherweight Cardigan – there’s a reason that there’s 5100+ of these on Ravelry. lightweight, easily customizable (I’ll make mine longer than the original) and the perfect light layer – in other words, a wardrobe staple.

I see a definite trend – I want my handknits to be classic, comfy and worn for years. as my knitting time seems to shrink, I find myself gravitating toward simple, quick knits. and more and more, I look at shaping and how they will work with my figure. I can’t wait to get my hands on Knit to Flatter so that I can start to think about how to customize some of my handknits to fit even better.

Tags:

Progress/Comfort

April 17, 2013 in April 2013 | No comments

Once again, the knitting and spinning brings comfort. Life has been good but busy and stressful at times. Work has been crazy for the last few weeks. Then the events in Boston unfolded on Monday. I’ve reached that point many times recently where I simply want to disconnect and hide from the world while I tried to make sense of it all for a bit. Its times like this that I make extra effort to take care of myself – that self care often involves fiber and good friends, hopefully in combination, sometimes with a good bottle of wine. and the result? I feel better – and I make progress.

My Fiddlehead Mittens –

20130417-134030.jpg
now up to the 3rd color change on the 2nd mitten.

the Chicklets socks – my go to mindless project –

20130417-134133.jpg
cruising down the foot of the first one.

and the huge monster of a spinning project I started recently –

20130417-134219.jpg
5 beautiful skeins in. I think this is about a third of the fiber? maybe a little less.

and then Jenni came over on Sunday with a spindle and a bottle of wine. she inspired me to pull out a long neglected spinning project – this lovely Bosworth spindle and mulberry silk.

20130417-135243.jpg
several hours, weeks worth of gossip and two bottles of wine later and I had doubled what was on there when I started.

it seems no matter which I pick up, no matter for how long, I manage to make a little progress and feel better – about whatever is going on, whether its my little corner of the world or something far bigger. for that, I am grateful.

Tags: ,

Ten on Tuesday – Daydreaming Edition

March 26, 2013 in March 2013 | 5 comments

So I’m probably not alone in that I spent a good part of Friday wondering “what if I won?” – after I bought my Powerball ticket. This week’s topic asks just that.

10 Things I’d Do If I Won the Big Powerball Jackpot:
1. Quit my job – I may love it but if I didn’t have to do it, I’d put my time and energy into volunteering and creative pursuits.
2. Open a yarn shop and expand my dye studio – in other words, fully realize my dream for The Painted Sheep. It would be yarn shop with a great selection of yarns, fiber, patterns, books and notions – of course, the best one in the area – and full dye studio, with a hugely expanded selection of my handpainted yarn and fiber. So, I’d work – frankly, I’d work my ass off – but it would be doing the thing I love most in the world.
3. Buy a loom and learn to weave. A big one. 48″ to start. Probably a Schacht Baby Wolf.
4. Speaking of Schacht, I’d buy my Matchless. In cherry, with a woolee winder.
5. and I’d need a place to put all of this stuff, so I’d buy a big old house. or a new house with colonial-ish charm. it would have a studio, lots of natural light, huge gourmet kitchen, a glorious bathroom, closet space for all the shoes and handbags I could buy and several acres to garden and play and maybe someday have animals (sheep of course! chickens would be fun too, maybe an alpaca or three and llama and a border collie to herd all of it).
6. Hire a housekeeper – why would I ever clean again?
7. Pay off my debts – ahh, the real dream. no more car payment and student loan.
8. Make sure my family is taken care of and my niece and nephews can go to whatever colleges their hearts desire.
9. Travel – I’d finally see all the places that I right now I only dream of seeing.
10. Give my time and energy to the causes closest to my heart – the National MS Society (speaking of which, don’t forget to donate to my walk!), my local sexual assault crisis center and the great homeless services that I work with. Having the time and resources to do some good would such a gift.

Tags:

The Fiber Speaks…

March 24, 2013 in March 2013 | 1 comment

Sometimes, yarn or fiber speaks to me. most often, it says “buy me” in a not-so-subtle whisper.

rarely does it speak to me as clearly as this merino/tussah blend from Ashland Bay did when I sat down to start spinning a sweater quantity of it on Saturday morning.

20130324-201251.jpg
a few inches into the roving, I pulled out a bit of the singles and let it ply back on itself to see how it was coming out.

20130324-201415.jpg I immediately knew what it wanted to be – fingering weight, maybe a touch closer to a sport weight, 2 ply, knit into a buttoned cardigan or maybe a pullover with a open front and button detail, textured, to take full advantage of the beautiful heathered quality of the yarn. further, one of the Knitspot patterns I’ve been wanting to make – Leaving or Blumchen or more likely, Henley with a Twist. beautiful glass buttons from Moving Mud are a must and made to match at that. when the spinning is done, I’ll send a sample of the knitted fabric and specs on what I need up to the lovely Sarina, so that she can create something beautiful that makes it all come together, just as she’s done for me before.

a perfect plan, for a lovely fiber, that will come together over the course of the spring and summer. I see evenings on the patio with a glass of wine and my wheel or my knitting and a new sweater for the fall, all from a pile of roving that’s been in the stash forever, waiting for just the right time…

Tags: ,

« Older entries