I'm Still Here

I didn't intend to let over 2 and half months go by since my last post.  My excuses are 1. I didn't have much knitting progress to show, 2. we put in a garden this year and I've been spending time out there, and 3. I had cataract surgery in both eyes, limiting my knitting and screen time.

The Over the Moon baby blanket was finished and given to my friend on Monday.  She visits her daughter and new grandson every day.  She's not a helicopter grandma.  She has to go daily to give her daughter a shot for a blood clotting condition.  But she says it's a great excuse to get some cuddles in with the little guy.

I am very happy with how the blanket turned out.  The pattern is absolutely fantastic. The only change I might make if I make it again is to use a join as you go method for joining the blocks.  The yarn was Knit Picks Comfy.  It is part cotton and part acrylic, making it machine wash and dry. I have small bits of the blue, green, and brown left and over 4 skeins of the cream.  They may become another baby project some day.

I'm making slow progress on the Cumulus Tee.  After getting splitting for the sleeves I decided to add bust darts.  I've never done those before and thought I'd see how they worked out for me. Because I have a larger bust, the fronts of my sweaters tend to ride up an inch or so.  After I completed the bust darts, I worked on the sleeves. Now I can work on the body until I either get to the length I want or run out of yarn.  I do have a small amount of yarn from the sleeves reserved for the I-cord edge around the neck.  Since this yarn came from a shop about 100 miles away, I have to watch my usage to make sure I am able to finish with what I have.

To break up the monotony of fingering weight stockinette, I cast on a Shakerag Top. The Shakerag Top comes from the MDK Field Guide No. 6 Transparency.  I'm making this out of Ito Kinu in the color Mint.  I purchased the yarn at the MDK Nash Yarn Fest back in April.  My knitting enabler friend and her sister also purchased cones of Ito for their own Shakerags.  We may be 'twinning' next year at the 2027 MDK Nash Yarn Fest.

Once I get one of these two tops finished, I'm going to pick up my hibernating Harrisburg Pullover.  I think I'm on the second sleeve, which just leaves me the seaming and neckline to finish afterwards.  We are having some much loved cool weather and my thoughts are going towards the autumnal knits.

The construction of my sewing room is now complete.  We need my son-in-law to come over and help assemble some desks he salvaged for me from his worksite.  A few weeks ago Ed and I stopped at IKEA to buy a couple table tops.  Once I get the furniture in place I can start moving my stash into place.

As part of the new sewing room plan, I purchased a new sewing machine for myself.  I am giving my old machine to one of my daughters.  Trisha has started making quilts, bags, and clothing for herself and the kids. My old machine is almost as old as she, but it runs great. She currently has a very cheap Singer that doesn't tolerate heavy usage. My son-in-law says the machine cries when Trisha spends too much time with it.  The machine I purchased is still being shipped.  I'm a bit unhappy with how long it is taking to arrive.  The shop told me it would be a couple weeks, but we are going on a month now.  They say it should be in by July 30. If it comes in today or tomorrow, I'll be able to pick it up Saturday.  But if it after this weekend, I won't be able to get over to the shop until August 8.  The shop is on the far opposite side of town (45 minute drive in good traffic) and is only open until 5 Monday through Saturday.  No Sunday hours. Since I work until 4, it is impossible for me to get over there except on a Saturday. You might be wondering why I can't go on August 2. I'm booked up that day with a hair appointment in the morning, a pig roast in the afternoon, and a babysitting commitment in the evening.

To finish off this post, I'll end with a photo dump of some of the activities, little ones, and creatures I've enjoyed in the past few months.  The last picture is some strange insect that stared at me the entire time I did my Bible study Sunday morning while sitting on the deck.

  

Flowers Abloom

 A very long term project will be done this month.  I am committed to finish Astri.  I have 5 more rows of flowers to attach.  Buddy likes this blanket so I'm sure he'll claim it once it is done.

In the photo above, those rows will go along the right side.  After they are added, then I will finish weaving in the ends. I'm very motivated to get this done.  Once this is finished, I'll review all the details.

I finished a baby sweater for a friend's son and daughter-in-law.  This was another Baby Sophistocate made out of Plymouth Encore.  It is my go-to, easy baby gift.

The couple lives in Maine and my friends have moved over an hour away.  I need to figure out how I'm going to get this sweater to the baby.  I made the 12-month size knowing it may take a little while before I get it to them.

I also finally got a chance to sew up the signature quilt from Kristin and Michael's wedding.  It turned out being about 36" x 36".  They are going to just use it as a throw for Henry to play on.

I had some issues with a few of the blocks.  People signed all the way to the edge of the squares.  When I sewed it together, some of the messages got cut off.  There was no other way to handle it.

I'm working on another baby blanket.  This one if for a friend's daughter who is expecting her first.  The pattern I'm using is called Over The Moon by CrochetObjet.  I am working on the inner circles right now. There are 48 to make, 16 in each color:  green, blue, and tan.  I have beige yarn for the background.

Moran is the maker behind CrochetObjet.  I love her patterns.  I've made 4 of her Chunky Benjis.  I also have her Chamomile and Sage pattern as well of the Granny Stripe Shawl.  Those will go on my hooks soon.

Moran lives in Tel Aviv, Israel.  She has a YouTube channel called MDays where she shares her life in a very open manner.  Unless you've been under a rock for the past several years, you know that Israel has been involved in several wars, first with Hamas and now with Iran.  Mo has shown how her family lives with the constant threat of rockets.  Her apartment building did get damaged, forcing her and her family to look for temporary accommodations while repairs are made.  And sadly, she has shared about the death of her youngest son at the beginning of April.  I can't imagine what all she is going through.  If you get a chance, check out her Etsy shop and purchase a pattern or two.

Slow progress is being made on my birthday cast on, the Cumulus tee.

I've joined in the round and have completed all of the sleeve increases.  There are a few more rows of body increases before I split the sleeves and body.  Once I get to that point it will be boring knitting in the round.  Perfect television and car-riding knitting.

That's about all for now.  I have some sourdough proofing in the oven to make an apple-cinnamon loaf.  I also need to put a chicken in the Instant Pot for shredded chicken.  Time to get moving with that.

Spring Flowers

Another finished object is off the needles.  This is a modified version of the Pressed Flowers shawl by Amy Christoffers.  I made this out of Rowan Norwegian Wool in the colors Mountain and Frost Pink, all of which was stash yarn.  This shawl was knit as an accessory to wear at the upcoming Nash Yarn Fest.

I modified the patterna a bit.  First, I did not do all of the repeats of the main chart.  The pattern calls for the chart to be worked a total of five times.  I only did three.  I did not want a massive shawl.  The other modification was the bind off.  Instead of the sewn bind off, I did an I-cord.  Part of the reason I didn't do the sewn bind off was the length of yarn needed to execute the sew bind off.  Norwegian Wool is only 2-ply and not tightly plied.  I felt that with all the drag on the yarn as the edge was sewn would cause the yarn to break.  Also, I've done a sewn bind off on a couple recent projects.  I just wasn't feeling like doing it again.  I really feel I made the right choice.  The I-cord gives the edge a nice bit of structure.

Now that I'm done with this project I have to get moving on a couple baby gifts.  I have a Baby Sophisticate on the needles for a little one that has probably already made her appearance.  This little one was due last week.  I am also working on a crocheted afghan for another little one due to arrive in June.  I'm very far behind on that project.  It will probably be my car project when I head to Nashville in a few weeks.

Besides those, I'm make slow progress on my birthday cast on, the Cumulus Tee.  No new pictures because it looks pretty much the same.  I'll share once I get the neckline joined in the round.

 

Becoming My Buddy

 Buddy has been with us for three months now.  He's definitely learned a few of the routines around here.  When I get up in the morning, he taps my arm as I walk past the foot of the bed to make sure I know he is there.  I actually think it is more of a 'Hey! Don't forget to feed me' tap.  He knows when I got out to the kitchen in the morning, the first things I do are put a pot of water on the stove for me tea, refill his water bowl, and give him a treat and a scoop of his kibble.  He thinks I need reminding every morning.

We have also noticed that he waits on the kitchen island when we come home.  Squeaks used to run down the hall to greet us at the door.  Not Buddy.  He waits for us to come into the kitchen and give him a treat.  It's all about food with this guy.

When we first got him, he seemed to be more attached to Ed.  He would crawl on Ed's lap and take a nap.  He has crawled on mine a few times, but only if Ed it not around.  Buddy also went through a few weeks where he bit me any time I tried to touch him.  I threatened to send him back, which made Ed a bit nervous.  But lately, Buddy has settled down a bit.  He's following me around more, being my shadow like Squeaks used to do.  Maybe he's accepting me now.

Today is the first time he has spent any time in the cat tree in my office.  Squeaks would be there all morning with me.  Buddy jumped up there earlier when some birds were flying around the front porch.  He's decided it's not a bad place for a nap.  I'm glad.  I love having the company in my office.

Since my last post, Ed and I took a couple trips.  The first was a long weekend in Florida at our usual spot.  We got there early on a Thursday morning and were able to get into the condo right away.  After getting a bite to eat and a trip to the grocery store, we spent the rest of the trip by the pool.  It was a nice get away.  I was able to relax and get a lot of reading done.

Out other trip was just a stay at Oglebay Resort.  We had never been there and wanted to see what it was like.  We determined that it was nice, but very dated decor.  Also, it didn't have much for us to do.  We don't golf and weren't interested in the museum or small zoo.  After we took a walk on Saturday morning, we decided to head home.  The weather was going to get very stormy and we thought that if we were going to be stuck inside, we'd rather be stuck in our own house rather than a small hotel room.  It was a nice little get away, but we won't go back.  Checked that off our list.

We took another day trip this past weekend to visit Blake.  Ed and Blake went to the shooting range.  They dropped  me off at Hank.  It was a win-win-win for us all.  They got to have fun and I spent the afternoon inhaling yarn fumes.

While at Hank, I bought myself a birthday present: six balls of Knitting for Olive Merino to make myself a Cumulus Tee.  Since I had a few hours there, after making my purchase I sat at a table and cast on.  This may be a slow project since it is on 3mm needles, but I'm enjoying the beautiful color.

Besides this tee, I have another project active on the needles.  This project is for the upcoming Nashville Yarn Fest.

I'm going to NYF with my knitting enabler Cindy and her sister Jenny.  Cindy and Jenny attended the festival last year and made matching cowls to wear.  This year, they decided they would make Pressed Flowers shawls.  I decided to join the fun and cast on one for myself.  Their's will be green and beige.  I decided to make mine green and pink, using some stash Norwegian Wool.  I'm not going to make mine the full size.  After three repeats of the main chart, I decided to move along to the border chart.  It will be more of a shawlette.  Just something to keep my neck and shoulders warm in the cold conference rooms.  I have 6 more double rows and an I-cord bindoff to go.  I'll easily get this done by the time we take our trip in April.

My sewing room is almost done.  I probably have said that a few times aready, but this time it really is.  We need to install the flooring and then Ed and my son-in-law need to do the baseboards and trim.  Then the room is mine to occupy.  First order of business will be a trip to IKEA to get a couple table tops.  And maybe a peg board or two. Arranging my sewing space is the very exciting part.  Stay tuned for some pictures.