Productivity

Most days, I feel like a work a lot without actually getting a lot done. Laundry, dishes, kids....these chores seem to fill up most of my day, but rarely leave me feeling productive. Today, was not that kind of day.

No, I didn't hang up flip flops. But apparently, Little Boy did.

I spent the morning blocking Gail. I'm sure I was quite a sight, kneeling on the bed in my nightgown, pinning away. I found this a lot easier to block than my last lace shawl. I think the pattern with center lines helped, plus I used my new lace blocking wires that I received for Christmas. I LOVE the way blocking alters the lace to the perfect shape. I feel so smart and accomplished!

Last week, I got a new sewing machine. Today, I made a valence for the front door. It's not quite as wide as it probably should be, but this is my first sewing project ever done without my mom nearby. (Somewhere, generations of Tellefsens and Jorgensens are breathing sighs of relief. I belong with them.)

A blocked shawl, a new valence, dishes, two loads of laundry, and a trip to the library. One productive day.

Yarn

I never really thought I'd become so fascinated by yarn. I have a hard time passing it up in a store. I'm on a budget though, and I rarely fare well if I buy yarn without a project in mind, so that helps me keep my fascination from an addiction. (I don't deny having a knitting addiciton. But I'm not addicted to yarn. I know, because I went to a fiber related festival last week and didn't buy any yarn.)

I really loved knitting with the Baby Alpaca yarn I used for the cool hat (see previous post). And I really enjoyed knitting with the sock yarn I bought from Rainbow Stitches. The 100% silk I used for the Oriel lace scarf was quite nice. But, honestly, although these stand out, I'm also pretty darn happy knitting away with Patons Wool. For me, the yarn fascination is in the feel of it before I bring it home, and appreciating it for just being yarn. Once a project is started though, I'm usually far more interested in what the yarn will become. As long as it doesn't hurt my minds to knit with it, I'm pretty happy.

I'm easy like that.

The Cool Hat

Today's post is supposed to document the current life of a finished project. Before Christmas, I finished this hat:

You remember, the cool hat. The super cool hat. The hat that made me more likable and more popular just by putting it on. Alas, I am not meant to be cool. I brought the hat to my parents' house for the holidays, unpacked it when we returned home, and then, it just disappeared. I was pretty sad about, but kept hoping it would turn up. And you know what? In March, it showed up! It turns out the hat had hidden in a pile of hand-me-downs and wound up with spring small children clothes in a box in the basement. I was so excited! And, it was a cold day, so I wore the hat out to run errands. I got home, carried in my packages, and ran around getting dinner ready.

I haven't seen the hat since.

I'm just not meant to be cool.

Gail (aka Nightsongs)

Last night, I finished Gail (aka Nightstongs). I am so very excited and very pleased with the end product! It's knit with 640ish yards of 2-ply, 100% lace handspun by Jane of Colours From Chaos. I used a size 4 needle and knit 9 repeats and the edging. This makes a shawlette sized piece and I have about 3 yards of yarn left.

I was a little bit nervous starting out, because the chart felt challenging to me. And truthfully, the chart included with the pattern requires a certain level of familiarity with lace. Thankfully, lots of people on Ravelry take pity on those of us less capable. I used this chart to complete the pattern. The shawl is worked from the top down. Honestly, I just didn't get this until I was on the last few rows of the edging. I started with one leaf, so it felt like that should have been the tip of the bottom. Who knew you could knit a triangle by starting in the middle of an edge?

This shawl was an absolute joy to knit. I felt so blessed to be knitting on a project with yarn handspun by the designer. What a wonderful gift! I also know for whom this shawl was named, and she was a great encouragement to me during a rough time last year. There's nothing like counting your blessings with each stitch. And I loved watching how the colors in the yarn change. I loved watching each leaf grow. I can't wait to see how it looks after I block it (sometime this weekend, I hope!) I'm a little sad to see this project go; its become a good friend. Familiar, and comforting. Have you ever had that kind of relationship with a project?

I'm embarking on a top secret, very exciting project. It will be quite a while before I can post details, but know that in the midst of everything, I have a secret project. :)

Happy knitting!

Places to Knit

1. The armchair in the living room, preferably with my feet up on the ottoman.

2. The back porch.

3. In bed, before I go to sleep.

4. In the van, waiting for little boy to get out of speech. Or in the van, while hubby is driving.

5. At the park, while the kids are playing.

6. During playdates, talking to my friends.

7. In waiting rooms, before appointments.

8. Anywhere else it's convenient, I'm bored, or there's nothing else to do.

New Skills

Well, there are plenty of skills I would like to acquire. I'd like to do some entrelac, and I'm under the impression it's a lot easier if you can knit backwards. I'm still pretty fuzzy on the provisional cast-on. I've never attempted intarsia (although, I think I could pick that up easy enough). And, as previously mentioned this week, I think steeking is in my future. The wonderful thing about knitting is it can be as easy or as compicated as you want, and there are always new skills to acquire!

In actual knitting news, I have 4 rows left of Gail. I may be able to cast off tonight!

Admiration

I admire a number of knitters. I check in on about a dozen or so blogs a day. (I know, I could subscribe to them and get emails when there are new posts, but that's just not all that fun.) Some of these blogs I read because of the actual knitting. Some I read because of the writing. Some because the writers are moms like me, and knit for kids about the size of the kids I have. Occasionally, I just feel like the writer and I could be friends, if we lived near each other. To pick just one is really difficult.

I finally settled on Jane. Jane is an AMAZING knitter! (Check out this post on her blog. Not only did she knit that shawl, she designed it!) Take a quick look at her projects page on Ravelry, and you'll see further evidence of her talent. Jane is also one of the most kind and generous Internet friends I have. She is more than willing to help out lace knitters tackling her gorgeous designs, and always has an encouraging word. She also gifted me with some of her gorgeous handspun yarn (I'm using it to knit up Gail). We came oh so close to meeting in person last summer, but traffic and time limits got in the way. (Hopefully, someday....)

I feel so blessed to have such a talented and generous knitting friend.