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Jewel Box Shawl

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If you are looking for an easy memorizable knit for a gradient yarn, I highly recommend the junction shawl pattern.  I thoroughly enjoyed knitting this shawl.  The simple design lets a gradient yarn shine through! I might be making another one with another skein of gradient.  I also think this is a great gift to knit quickly and a great project for on the go knitting..  My modifications were simple, I opted to not knit the lace edging so I could use up as much of the yarn as possible.  I had 24 inches left, so that fun goal was achieved. Ravelry notes

Weekends

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Another weekend come and gone, how was yours?  I thoroughly enjoyed the cooler temperatures even on the drizzly day yesterday.  Just wearing a light jacket makes me joyful.  Now along with fall comes the fall allergies.  I cannot decide if I am experiencing allergies OR the preschooler gave me something.  Every week it seems she is sharing germs. I guess when you start preschool you receive more than an education. Whatever you want to coin my stuffy/runny nose, it's mild enough to ignore most of the time but annoying once in awhile.  That's why I lean towards allergies.  Anyways, my weekend was mostly quiet.  Friday night we ate at home instead of going out for dinner like we usually do.  We attempted yet again attending a fall craft fair that has become ginormous.  I bailed after an hour of being there.  There were too many people and I could not approach any of the craft tables due to the excessive crowds.  I wrote to my future self in my planner to not attend un

Do Nothing Day

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Finally the cooler temperatures have arrived and I'm in my glory.  Yesterday I switched the summer comforter to the winter comforter feeling completely confident that the heat of the summer is over and done with.  I hope so!  I loved the rainy drizzly day and the excuse to stay home. I had a pressing week where I felt stressed with all of the tasks that were before me.  Yesterday I had a 'do nothing' day. But you see my do nothing day is doing what I choose to do!  I stayed home and strategically plotted out what I wanted to focus on.  Of course I did some pesky chores like laundry and cooking dinner. I also made space for some walking around the yard and taking photos.  Enjoying the drizzle and wearing a jacket. I made space for lots of reading and knitting.  When I needed to stretch which is important to do every hour if you want to be able to knit more, I focused on drawing, sketching and journaling.  Frodo and I walked about the yard once more. Thr

Knitting News

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I was hoping this shawl would be off the needles but yesterday was a babysitting day and a three year old doesn't stop much anymore.  Maybe today I'll be casting off!  I love working on this super simple shawl pattern and watching my gradient colors shift from one to another. I started a hat for me last weekend but haven't worked on it much lately.  Once the shawl is done I will be focusing on a 'me' gift. Last but not least are my mitts that I ripped out and cast on in the larger size.  I've done a lot of knitting but little to show since I started over.  I love working with this earthy wool. I'm reading: Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson (kindle) Glass Houses by Louise Penny (kindle) Everything Belongs by Richard Rohr Trevor Noah Born a Crime by Trevor Noah Joining Ginny

Weekends

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this is NOT my cat  Hello!  How was your weekend?  Well mine was interesting.  I was asked to babysit on Friday afternoon spur of the moment and while I could not do the entire time, I did two hours of the request.  The preschooler was asking me where my carrots and raisins were.  I usually babysit from early morning to early afternoon and share my lunch with her, hence the carrot/raisin request.  Ah little ones, she is a cutie. She spent lots of time creating art and made a picture of me!  I do like the color red so I see the resemblance.  Sort of.  Not sure about the glitter though and where is my smile?? Saturday was a stay-at-home-until-evening-Mass day.  I got caught up on some much needed filing of papers and I assessed all of my knitting from the past year and made preliminary plans of who receives what for a Christmas present.  I'm scaling down on who I knit for, it was quite intense last year with my manic knitting.  I decided on my 'priority' recipie

Reading a Book

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It's beginning to look like fall around here.  More leaves are turning colors but the weather is still holding onto summer temperatures.  This past week has overall been relaxing and calm.  I treasure the calm moments because who knows when and where the chaotic moments will occur. Sometimes the chaos is just in my thoughts. My daughter lent me a fantasy novel she really enjoyed in hopes to entice me into her genre of reading.  Initially when I started reading The Curse of Chalion,  I doubted my resolve to dig deep into a created world and a lengthy story (502 pages).  Like many people I will recite a mantra of 'I don't have time'. I've been treating this past week as a luxurious vacation since I didn't have to babysit on Tuesday.  I have a whole entire week to do whatever I want.  I've been digging deep in the freezer creating easy to heat meals.  Of course I've been knitting and then there is the reading. On Monday, I chose to read du

Heather Leaf Shawl

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How exciting for me to tell you all that I finished the heather leaf shawl .  This has been quite the knit.  I chose this pattern for its simplicity and fantastic stitch definition.  Both are stunning and I wish you could see this shawl in person. To be honest, my most common shapes to wear as a shawl are rectangles, crescents and half circles.  I love to knit a triangular shawl but I seldom wear them.  Oh and I like assymmetrical shawls which isn't a shape or is it?? Anyways back to the banana leaf pattern , yes, it is easy and quick to memorize, well written BUT because of each and every right side row being different I could not read and knit at the same time.  I could listen to podcasts or listen and glance at a very talky TV show. Now could the weather get a bit cooler so I can wear my new shawl? Ravelry notes