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Showing posts from February, 2021

Knitting Rules

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  Not to brag, but we are on day three of blissful sunshine! It's funny to me that when there are endless days of cloudiness I long for some sun. Then when there is brilliant sunshine, I'm like a vampire squinting away wondering why the sun is so painfully happy. Don't worry, sunglasses cures my squinty-ness. It's a wonderful problem to have and I'll take the sunshine. Not only are we on day three of sunshine but we will have three days in a row of a daily walk. The roads are dry enough and getting my wiggles out is the best medicine. We continue to have snow everywhere but it is slowly melting away.  I've been doing lots of journaling this past week. I picked up some snail washi tape at an art store a few towns away that I thought was delightful. I'm not fond of snails but I am when they are on washi tape. I've been enjoying winter, it's my favorite season but I'm looking forward to a thaw and the arrival of springtime.  I thought I'd so yo

Serpentine Cowl

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  I finished this l ovely cowl a few days ago and finally it's dry enough to give the project a proper photo shoot. If you haven't knit this heartwarmer pattern yet you should, it's fun. I did not change needles sizes for the different stitch patterns - I used size four throughout. I blocked this cowl to be wider than longer hoping there would be less 'bulk' around my neck.  I highly recommend this pattern and the wool, Knit Picks Twill was wonderful to work with! I have one and a half skeins left over for maybe a hat or a pair of mitts, how lucky am I? What are you working on this week?

Weekends

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  My weekend was nice. I spent each day doing what I love - knitting - reading - painting. While winter is giving us another 3-5 inches of snow today (I'll believe it when I see it).  I'm enjoying the soft signs of Spring pushing it's way in. Look at that brilliant sun beam on my clock at 4:30 p.m.! What a treasure to behold. We went for a walk yesterday in the sunshine and I soaked it in. Life is good. I've finished my cowl and it's getting a gentle soak, I can't wait to share it with you. How was your weekend?

Wintry Goodness

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This past week has been a snowy one, I'm not complaining, just letting you know that every day is a snow event day around here. I've worn my snow boots probably two weeks in a row now. Even though it's wintry goodness, there are signs of spring. The days are longer, the mornings are beginning earlier than ever. I hear birds singing when before there was silence. I started another art journal, this time in the A5 size (Stalogy 365 days notebook). The paper is thin and I'm hopeful that the paper can handle a bit of watercolor. As a true notebook fanatic, I have many that I pick up and write in. Journaling has been helpful with my thoughts, feelings and sorting out my days. Writing or sketching also stretches my creativity. I worked more on my cowl this week and have high hopes of finishing it over the weekend. It's doable but will I do it? Holly came out and graced me with a howdy do once this past week. I love how she just sits and stares at me. Frodo was under the

Knitting News

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My knitting devotion has been on one project this past week and it's the color work pullover . I cannot gush enough about how delighted I am to pick up this project and add another row, then another, then another. Last night I completed all of the color work chart and am now swimming in good old stockinette. What are you working on this week?  

Weekends

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  How was your weekend? One of the things I love most about winter, and there are many aspects, is that the weekends blend into each other in sameness. Every weekend might just look like the last weekend and I can comfortably predict next weekend as well.  The constancy of sameness is soothing and calming.  I had a grand time 'rearranging' art and craft supplies Saturday morning. I have ordered another notebook planner cover and a new notebook (yes, another one). This one with hold art journaling. I have LOVED doing the daily haiku challenge and while I love the comfort of a small page I'm excited to branch out to a bigger space. I'll show you eventually. I've been pulling out various watercolor pan sets and using them. The top photo of the woodpecker was a set without black. Good gracious, I really don't like to mix black, but I appreciated the challenge. In the evenings I'm working on my latest fair isle sweater that I cannot stop knitting. All other proj

The Happenings

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  I think my computer is possessed by the devil. It's been a bumpy start to doing this blog post but I believe I am over the bump. You know it's bumpy when you think you might need to buy a new computer... How was your week? I've been doing lots and lots of reading both fiction and non-fiction. I'm enjoying the mixture of both, but I'd like to finish a book or two this weekend. The reading list so far: Radical Acceptance by Tara Brach Bury Me at Wounded Knee by Dee Brown (highly recommend!) Carry Me Home by Sandra Kring I just borrowed Tradition by Jericho Brown and hope to read it this weekend. My knitting has been slow and easy. I've been knitting in the evenings while watching some TV programs. During the day, I've been writing my daily haikus and sketching. Also I've been doing lots and lots of journalling.  I'm writing more - I guess reflective personal essays for myself. I'm in a reflective mood I guess. I continue to meditate twice a d

Knitting News

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  Good morning! How are all of you? The weather has been snowy and so I've been knitting up a storm. First off is my fair isle hat that I have not worked on lately. I wanted to document with a photo and maybe it will spur me on to picking it up and working on it. Next project is my lovely cowl . I love working on this because the wool is squishy and soft. The color is one of my favorites to wear and I'm eager to get this done. However, I am enjoying the savoring of each delightful stitch. Last but not least is my new fair isle sweater that took four cast ons to get right. I am loving how the colors play together and every evening I am knitting away thinking 'just one more row'. It's a delightful headspace to be in. What are you working on?

Weekends

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  Good morning! How was your weekend? I'm sitting here in the family room as the day begins with Frodo sleeping by my side. He is a faithful companion and I love him so. My weekend was nice, we didn't do anything exciting. However 3-4 more inches of snow fell on Sunday and the new snow has whitened up the landscape. I believe we are in for a snowy week ahead. It's a good thing I like to sit inside and knit. I did some art journaling and continued to do my daily haiku challenge. Of course there was knitting, isn't there always?  I baked cookies and wished I hadn't because now I eat them and sleep terribly at night. Today is a new day to resist. I might put them in the freezer (but my husband might want them on the counter...). I started reading Bury my Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Brown. I've had this book on my Kindle for years and thought it was about time I read the Indian history of the American west. It is a must read if you ask me. Last year I read Grant

Around Here

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  Around here there is a lot of snow - I love it so! Today there is a fresh dusting to soften all of the landscape. We managed to go for a walk yesterday after almost a week of not walking due to the weather. It was either too cold or a snow event was happening. On the days I cannot walk, I try to exercise in the house, it's not the same but it's better than not exercising at all. Around here the haiku challenge is chugging along. I've been having fun thinking and writing. I decided to do some sketching or artwork on each entry. My sister is doing this haiku-a-day challenge with me as well, it's nice to have company. Around here whenever my husband or I have a zoom meeting in the studio room, Miss Holly loves to attend as well. I don't think she knows there are real people on the zoom. She doesn't like people and yet she gets so excited when the voices are talking. She either sits and stares (like the photo below) or she struts in front of the the computer just

Knitting News and Mittens

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  I finished a pair of mittens for my husband a few days ago. I loved working with worsted weight and how speedy the knitting was for me. What a delight! These are based on the Bernie Mitts pattern - I changed the ribbing to a rolled knitted edge then a 1x1 instead of 2x2 and I did a simplified decrease at the top. I also did not do any color work on the thumbs because I was a lazy knitter. I started a new sweater three times. The first time, the ribbing was loose, the second and third time I was casting on while the electricity was out for about an hour last night for no particular reason. I couldn't see (even with a flashlight) so my counting of cast on stitches was wrong. Once the electricity came back on in about an hour, I cast on successfully with smaller needles. Phew. I have knit this sweater once before , I wear it all the time! What are you working on this week?

Weekends

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  We are getting pounded by a double snow event and I, for one, am super excited. Right now we have about 5 inches with yet a whole day to go for snowfall. The vistas are beautiful. This weekend I fell down the rabbit hole of thinking what kind of challenge I would like to do during February. I decided that I would write a haiku a day. When I told my sister about the challenge, she said she would join me in crafting haikus. One of my Christmas presents from her was a handmade notebook. (I forgot to photo it..) So in the above crafted planner with a myriad of stickers I purchased from Michaels, I will jot down my poems then transfer them NEATLY into the notebook and do some kind of illustration. I'm not sure if the paper can hold paint, I need to ask her so maybe it will be inking only. My knitting has been wonderful, slow and easy with this heartwarmer cowl . I love spending time on this project. Yesterday my husband made a curry dinner and so I had the luxury of not cooking dinner