From Sadness to a Smile
A year ago today my grandfather passed away. I can still remember the phone call I got from my mom. I knew something was wrong as soon as the phone rang, and even more so when I picked it up and heard her voice say “hi”. I remember a lot about that day...the tears, the disbelief, the wandering aimlessly around Yankee Candle (I had to get out the house and didn't know what else to do), but I can't remember what the weather was like, or what I had for dinner - if I even at dinner. The week that followed was tough, from the wake to the funeral and beyond. It all still doesn't seem like it really happened, but I can remember snippets crystal clear – like they happened an hour ago.
I think about Gramps pretty much every day (and my Babci and Dzadiu too). It's usually something in passing because something reminds of him. Today was different though. Something that I don't often think of popped into my head, and it made me smile. Several years ago, at one of the holidays (I can't remember how long ago, or which one now), I was walking by Gramps and he told me that I looked good. Now, this may seem like no big deal, but to me it was. I had lost weight and I was feeling pretty good about myself, and...well, I really don't even have any words for how special I felt at that moment (pretty funny since I spend a lot of time coming up with descriptive words for things), or how special that memory makes me feel. And, even though I'm sad today because I miss him, that memory makes me smile.
Love you Gramps! <3
Where’d My Vacation Go?
We went to Disney World (yes, again) WAY back at the beginning of February. It was COLD, but we had a great time. A whole month has gone by and it feels like we never left!
Here are a bunch of pictures from the trip. Looking at them really makes me want to go back!
I’ve also done quite a bit of knitting since my last update. I’ll be back with info on those projects.
The Gorgeous Timesuck
Back in August, Karen convinced me that I just HAD to crocket the Raindrops Broomstick Lace Shawl (Ravelry Link) from Interweave Crochet Summer 2009 for the store, and really, how could I argue. It’s crocheted in Valley Yarns 2/10 Merino/Tencel, has beads, and is really just stunning. I had also never tried broomstick lace before, and who am I to scoff at a craft challenge? :)
I watched some videos online and swatched for a bit to make sure I had the technique down. It took me a few tries to get the increase rows figured out. I had to do a lot of going back and reading and then looking at the close-up pictures and trying it out.
So, I set out with my G hook and HUGE vampire-killing-stake-sized knitting needle and a cone of 2/10 Merino Tencel and went on my way. This was back in August. I took a two and a half week break to work on my Mirth shawl, but other than that, I’ve been working on this one project. Now, that’s a lot of hours, but let me just say, it was totally worth it!
I’m so in love with this shawl. It’s going to be SO hard to hand it over! At least I’ll be able to visit daily if I need to. I know I could make myself one, but this project is the biggest timesuck, it isn’t going to happen this year! I’m already behind on my Christmas projects and I’m never good at making the same thing twice. I get bored. Maybe in a few years I’ll pick this project up again and make one for myself.
By the way, the color is Plum and I used just over two and half tubes of size 6 beads.
Maybe I’ll just let it sit on my desk tomorrow and admire it and hand it over officially on Tuesday. :)
Mirth - A Fitted Raglan Shawl
I follow Stephanie Japel (glampyre) on Twitter and several weeks ago she announced that she was going to start offering classes online through ning.com. (http://stefaniejapel.ning.com/ for more info!). Her first class was for Mirth, a fitted raglan shawl. I’m a big fan of Stefanie’s patterns and have knit two from her book Fitted Knits. This is a rare thing for me…almost as rare as knitting the same pattern twice. I have a heck of a lot of yarn, love shawls, and was really intrigued by taking a class online. It was pretty affordable, so I signed up.
Next, I had to decide which of the many yarns I have that I was going to use. I knew I needed around 600ish yards, so I started digging around in the stash. I didn’t want to use two colors, but knew if I had to, I’m sure I could come up with something. Then, I dug out the Great Adirondack Lolita that I got ages ago. I actually had two giant skeins of this in Copper. One that Ed got me, and one I had gotten myself. I figured this would be a great way to use up the yarn…at least one of them.
I started a couple days late on the class, but I did eventually “catch up” (it’s an online class so you can totally go at your own pace!) and finished it and blocked it Friday night. When I was done, it was actually quite small and stiff and I was afraid what the results were going to be. (No, I didn’t swatch…it’s lace…it grows…I had faith. Plus, it was a shawl!) It let go of quite a bit of dye in the water and I was afraid it was all going to wash out, but it didn’t. I finally got it to run clear and had to set up some towels on the spare bed in the “yarn room.”
That’s a full size bed for size comparison. I could have probably used some blocking wires for this, but I don’t have any…also could have used the thread-yarn-through-the-edges trick, but I didn’t have the patience (it was Friday night after all!). It grew quite a bit and softened up nicely. It has a good weight to it, and I think that it will do a great job of adding an extra layer of warm when I want it.
Don’t I look so happy? :P
Here’s a “wingspan” picture. You can mostly see the shape on it.
I’m really pleased with the finished results. I love lace. It’s challenging enough that you have to pay attention, but it’s really taught my how to read my knitting over the past couple of years that I’ve been doing lace projects. Minnie liked it too!
As soon as I opened the door to the yarn room she made a bee-line for the bed and was on the shawl!
Overall, I’d say the class was pretty great, and worth the price of admission. It helped me stick to working on just one project and took me just under the three weeks the class is running to complete. Stefanie posted many videos that were super helpful as well as some fantastic information on working with color that I’m sure I’ll be able to use in future projects. Having the ability to chat with the other class members was great too. Everyone could bring up and issues, see where classmates were on the pattern, and view their progress as they posted pictures. Since I’ve already knit lace and I’m familiar with raglan shaping, I didn’t run into too many issues, but it was good to know that the resources were there if I needed them! It was also good to have because there was the extra reminder that you have to do something different in parts of chart 2. (I needed reminding at the beginning!)
If I didn’t have so many projects on the list, I’d definitely consider taking Stefanie’s next class, which is re-purposing old t-shirts into yarn and creating projects with it.
I’d definitely consider knitting this shawl again, maybe even in the DK or worsted weight versions that are included in the pattern. While I was knitting this version, and feeling a little behind, I did wish that I hadn’t chosen a sock yarn because it is a bit more knitting, but of course now that it’s done I’m really happy with it! I actually have enough yarn leftover to probably make a scarf of some sort, so it didn’t totally meet my goal of killing a skein of yarn, but that’s okay! Oh, I used size 5 Addi Lace needles for this project. Love the tips – not too pointy like some other needles I’ve used, but they are a little too grippy for me. I generally like super slippery needles so I can go faster, even with lace.
Now, I have to finish the crochet project I’m working on for the store. It’s taking longer than I had hoped, but Mirth was a welcome distraction, and I’m glad I finished a project. It gives me the drive I need to keep going!
What Happened to Summer?
I can’t believe summer is unofficially over! Where did the time go? As I type this, I’m watching the Pats opening game (Monday Night Football) and I can’t believe football season has rolled around again.
I didn’t get much done over the summer. At least, it doesn’t seem like I got much done! I did a lot of baking, because it made me happy. I forgot how much I enjoyed baking. Of course, I had to share the stuff I baked to get it out of my house! The popovers were an experience and surprisingly easy.
Aren’t they beautiful? Then there was the Spice Blueberry Whoopie Pies from Good Housekeeping. They were quite delicious and a great way to use up the blueberries I had in the fridge!
Vanilla Malt Cookies from Martha Stewart
Did I mention I had blueberries hanging around? Good old fashioned blueberry muffins.
The central air came in quite handy! :)
And what about knitting? Well, I finally finished LAST March’s Rockin’ Sock Club Sock. I’m not in love with it. In fact, I pretty much hated knitting it, but I’ve received a lot of compliments on it.
I’m sure I MUST have finished other stuff, but I can’t remember what I did now. You think with Ravelry I would keep better track….no…
Now, I’m working on a crochet project for the store, a pair of socks (because my head thinks everyone is getting socks for Christmas because I HAVE GOT to get rid of some of my yarn….I’m pretty sure my head is crazy), and I signed up for an online class with Stephanie Japel. I love her patterns – top down raglans. I realized that I have knit two patterns from her book Fitted Knits…unheard of for me! :) Anyway, she created a Fitted Raglan Shawl and it teaching an online class through ning.com. I’m a fan of shawls, and I’ve got yarn to use up, so I signed up for the class. I’m already “behind” because I’m still working on Week 1 stuff, but hopefully I can catch up! This is my problem…I take on too many projects at once and then I can’t finish any of them. If I actually want to get projects finished by Christmas, I’m going to have to make a list/schedule and STICK TO IT. Here is my progress so far on the shawl. I found Great Adirondack Lolita in Copper in my stash and I’m pretty pleased with the results so far.
Happy Fourth!
Happy Fourth of July everyone!
Here's a video Ed took a week ago on his iPhone of the Easthampton fireworks. They had to set them off early, and fast, but they were still lovely. The video doesn't do them justice. (That flash and scream at 9 seconds...yeah, that's lightning!)
Testing
Here's a picture of 2007's fireworks. I'm hoping Easthampton's fireworks don't get rained out this year.
Not sure if I like this as much as Windows Live Writer (the only Microsoft product I really enjoy and find super easy to use...)
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