Good tennis over the weekend meant I had good sock-knitting time, since I needed something low-maintenance. I’m maybe a third of the way through the foot of my first LolaBean Jimmy the Model sock.
I’m a little disappointed in myself, though, because I forgot to use the purple for the heel! I guess this pair will just have contrast cuffs and toes, and I won’t have to worry about running out of purple yarn.
I also blocked two finished projects this weekend, plus all three dogs got baths, which wore me out. Jack loves water and had a great time. Grace and Duncan hated it, so that was more of an adventure. But now they all smell nice and feel so soft and silky. This morning Grace found a frog in our back yard, but fortunately she thought it was weird enough that she didn’t eat it. I nudged it under the fence into the neighbor’s yard and rinsed out her mouth, since some frogs can be toxic to dogs, and she seems to be just fine. These dogs sure keep my on my toes!
The happiest days are when yarn comes! (Just don’t tell Melanie Hamilton.) I got some good mail today from the Periwinkle Sheep. They were donating 50% of their sales to Fair Fight, an organization fighting voter suppression and systemic disenfranchisement based in Georgia. That was a good reason to buy some pretty yarn!
The two skeins are merino single in fuschsia agate, and I’m pretty sure they’ll become a shawl. The highland wool is purple foxglove, and I really don’t know what it’ll be. It’s a little more rustic so I don’t think I’d be able to wear it against my neck or face. Right now it’s there to feed the stash.
I’m hoping to finish my Dissent Cowl this weekend. It’s zooming along and is so fun to knit. I’ve got a good tennis match to watch tomorrow that will allow plenty of knitting time. We recently watched Defending Jacob on Apple TV+. There are eight episodes and we sped through them, loved it all except the ending. It’s based on a book so I might need to read it now!
The Dissent Cowl might be my only WIP until it’s done. Guys, this is so cool! It’s so simple but looks intricate and super fancy.
I didn’t do the cast-on in the pattern, just my usual long-tail cast-on, and it looks fine. The yarns are playing really well together; they’re both smooth and squishy. It’s making a stiff, dense fabric, and I think it’s going to be nice and warm this winter. The stitch marker is from a Wonder Women set. Just seemed appropriate!
The other highlight of my week so far is that I got to attend an author event for a new book! Okay, it was virtual, but still fun. The Strand Bookstore hosted Matt Haig for a chat led by Kristin Hannah, who’s one of my favorite authors. My book group read Haig’s book How to Stop Time recently and I loved it, and he has a new book out now, The Midnight Library, that I’ve ordered and am eagerly anticipating.
It was great to listen to him talk about the book and his writing process and career, but honestly, the best part was hearing him talk so casually and easily about his mental health experiences. It was just part of the conversation, part of why his books are what they are, part of HIM. It wasn’t a big deal, wasn’t a topic all on its own, just a matter-of-fact acknowledgement that yeah, he’s had depression, had anxiety, that he still struggles with some of it sometimes.
It was refreshing, and encouraging. I’d love to see society as a whole get to a point where it’s not considered shameful or embarrassing to be dealing with depression or anxiety. Especially now, with the stress we’re all under. I don’t make a secret of my history with depression. Fun fact: I had my annual checkup yesterday and mental health was the focus of it. I left with homework to call my therapist plus an additional med to help me handle what my current anti-depressant isn’t handling. (I’m kind of okay most of the time, but I’d like to be better than okay. We’re all a WIP, right?) It helps me to hear from other awesome people who are dealing with similar issues. So, yeah, Matt Haig is awesome. Smart and funny and witty and neurotic. And now I need to read all his books.
Do you have any authors you read partly because you like them so much away from their books?
I know, it’s Monday in Blogville which means I’m supposed to be writing about socks, but I can’t do that. A) I have no sock progress to share and B) I want to share today’s upcoming cast-on. My favorite LYS, Yarn Social, is partnering with another LYS to host a Dissent Cowl KAL/CAL. Since I wanted to make the cowl anyway, this seemed perfect! I’d already bought the pattern, but to participate I needed to buy at least one skein from either store. (Haha, “at least one skein”! Like it’s ever just one!)
Saturday found me at the yarn store along with a fellow knitter buddy, a poor soul I convinced to knit along with me. I’m excited about my choices!
I got a new jumbo winder for my birthday, so I used that to wind the yarn last night. The KAL starts today and I’ll be casting on as soon as my work day is done. But of course that’s not all I came home with. They had a new (to me, at least) color of WYS Christmas sock yarn, so that plus the green had to be mine as well.
Oh hey, look at that: there’s a bit of sock in here after all!
Also, this is my 1,000th post on this blog! Who knew I’d be hanging around so long? Happy Monday, friends!
Okay, well, I knew hats were fast but apparently even cabled hats are a pretty quick project. I finished the Hinterland Hat today and heck, it’s cool. Here’s the Rav link if you want to check it out.
I did mess up two of the cables early on, but there was no way I was going to frog back to fix them. And it worked out well because the folded brim hides the worst of it. I’m still not sure I love the cabling process but I do adore finished cables, and it makes it worth it, at least for smaller projects. I don’t know that I’d want to do a cabled sweater yet.
This pattern had two versions and I chose the second version, which had extra little cables between the purl sections. I know, crazy! The yarn is Island Yarn Blackwater in Silver, and it’s a smooth, squishy superwash yarn. There was a bit of splitting with some of the little cables, but otherwise I love it. Maybe the variegation hides the cabling some, but I think subtle is okay for the recipient. Let’s just hope it fits him!
While I was outside taking photos, I had some furry helpers. What could I do but take a few shots of them too?
Pretty soon it will be too cool for me to want to be outside with them very much, so I’m enjoying while I can. Oh, and last night we watched Enola Holmes. It was cute; I enjoyed it. I loved Millie Bobby Brown but somehow Henry Cavill made Sherlock a little too … likeable. I guess I prefer Sherlock as a curmudgeon.
As I keep reminding myself because days mean very little anymore, today is Wednesday, so I will share my brand-new WIP! Finishing my Sonny & Tubbs socks left me with zero socks on my needles, and that is never acceptable. I had to cast on pronto, and I was excited to finally be able to pull out my LolaBean Jimmy the Model set! (If you’re not familiar with Jimmy the Model, look for him and/or LolaBean Yarn Co. on Instagram. Jimmy is her husband. They are delightful together and on their own!)
My son says he keeps glancing over and seeing Jimmy’s face, and it catches him off guard every time. For me, I like to catch a glimpse of a smiling face! The bag was a collaboration with Mrs. Brown’s Bags and it’s fantastic: roomy and very well-made.
I did work on my Sea Swell shawl last night as I watched the shit storm that was supposed to be a presidential debate. I’ll just say I had to refill my wine glass twice, and it took me a while to unwind to go to bed! Here’s hoping any future debates go more smoothly.
I got too confident, that’s what happened. I was knitting socks with my fabulous Sonny & Tubbs yarn from Show Me Yarn and when I started the second sock, the stripes were lining up perfectly. I was so happy. But then I hit the heel and all hell broke loose, though I didn’t realize it at the time. Two days ago, I was working the foot and wanted to see how close to the toe I was. Well, that was a disappointment because I discovered I’d made the legs different lengths, but it wasn’t a big deal.
But wait, the heel turns were different colors too? Oh yep, I started the heel flap too soon on the second sock. Fine, I didn’t need matching stripes on my socks.
Last night I finished the socks. As I always do, I line them up against each other to see how closely they match. One foot was significantly bigger than the other. WHAT the heck. Friends, it’s a good thing I don’t need matching socks.
Yes, that’s right: on the second sock, I carried the ribbing down the foot, instead of doing a stockinette foot like the first sock. ARGH.
At least they fit. And besides, Sonny and Tubbs didn’t match either!
My other shawl got done sooner than I anticipated, and was blocking by late Saturday morning. Did I then wind my Rasta? Nope. Did I start my LEGO set? Nope. I was good and heeded the hint of finish-itis that’s starting to bloom, and I picked up my Mermaid Shawl. I’ve been working on it all weekend and today I faded in the last color. But good grief, this shawl is killing me.
It’s endless. I have two more short-row wedges left to knit, then an I-cord bind off. So the next time I think I want to make a big five-skein shawl, just slap me, okay? Or at least tell me to use purples and pinks! The silver lining is that the last color is the best, the deep blue-purple meant to represent the deepest part of the ocean. And darn it, I do love an I-cord bind off once it’s done.
I also managed to bake peanut butter chocolate chip bread and start the new Jodi Picoult book this weekend. If only we could squeeze in one more day before Monday!
I have zero FOs this Friday. Not really any that are very close either, though if I have some solid knitting time this weekend, I might get through one of them. I’ve been focusing on a shawl with some new review yarn (early review: it’s scrummy, as Mary Berry would say). It’s aran weight so you’d think it would go quickly, but my brain has been tired at night the last couple of weeks. It’s a good thing, though: I’ve been doing more writing/ content creation stuff at work, and even though it’s taxing my brain, it’s so good. It’s so much more fulfilling than just doing social media stuff. So cross your fingers that this trend carries on!
Anyway, shawl. It’s also a black yarn, and I am old so my eyes need good light for black yarn, especially when it comes to lace. Last night I was zooming along but lost track of which row I was on, and I just didn’t want to deal with trying to read my stitches in black yarn at 9 pm. That’s my goal for today, because I’m on the home stretch with this one and I’d like to be done soon!
You might think I’d like to be done so I can return to current WIPs. Maybe. Or maybe I want to cast on something with some new Malabrigo Rasta??
A cowl with this would be fast! And perfect for the fall weather that’s looming. But yes, I’d also go back to WIPs. I’d like to finish Tubbs so I can move on to new sock yarn. I always have new sock yarn calling my name. And I’ll also spend some time on my new LEGO set. I’ve embraced LEGOs as therapy for when I’m feeling anxious or stressed and I have a big new set waiting for me!
Honestly, I struggle with buying these, as much as I love them. I abhor what JKR has said about trans people, and I worry about doing anything that might support her or make other people think I support the views she espouses. But I have so much love for the HP world itself, the movies are serious comfort movies for me, and I have a lot of great memories with my kids that involve the HP world. So I am conflicted, seriously conflicted. I was talking about it at dinner the other day, and the boy had a great suggestion: donate to a trans rights organization as well.
Today I googled “trans rights charities” and donated to GLSEN: “GLSEN believes that every student has the right to a safe, supportive, and LGBTQ-inclusive K-12 education. We are a national network of educators, students, and local GLSEN Chapters working to make this right a reality.”
They’re both small actions in the grand scheme of things, but I do like the balance I feel with the donation.
That’s my weekend sorted: knitting and LEGOs! Fine, and a few chores too. Anyone doing anything fun this weekend?
Today I told Covid to eff off and had the most wonderful day. Sarah from Mildly Granola only lives about three hours from me, so today we made plans to meet mostly in the middle for an outdoor socially-distanced knitting date and it was SO MUCH FUN. We met at a rest stop, which was actually next to a park, and it worked out so well because we could set up our chairs in the grassy picnic area for knitting and snacking, and we were within walking distance of a clean indoor bathroom. Then we walked across the street to the park and had a fantastic four-mile hike.
For all our grand plans of knitting all day, we actually spent longer hiking than we did knitting. The weather was gorgeous: sunny and lower 70s. We saw a hawk and a deer and a lake and a lagoon and just walked by ourselves for ages, with almost no other people around. It’s so nice to spend time with someone you can let down your guard with and share all your worries with. Okay, maybe not all, but some. I just feel relaxed and calm and almost peaceful, which is weird and unusual for right now but I like it. It was very restorative, which is why we’re definitely going to do it again before winter comes! Happy Sunday, friends.
bonnyknits 