Zeneedle...needleart as life

More in the Pipeline

My goal for April was to finish Red Lucy (as I call this beautiful lace shawl), but the day before we left on our trip, I had to rip back 15 rows of a 30+ row lace border. It felt as if there were too many errors, the pattern was not clear in my mind, and I suddenly felt overwhelmed.  I thought I'd made too many mistakes, but now I'm not sure how bad it really was...it just seemed hopeless, and I frogged.

After the trip, I picked up Red Lucy and put the stitches back on the needles. Often I find it takes a second time through, whether it be knitting, reading, anything that takes concentration, for something to click, for the light to come on, and the path to become clear. The second time through the elegant lace edge of Luciole there are fewer issues, the lace makes sense, and progress is smooth.

 
This picture is of the roof over our carport. A large pine tree drops a carpet of needles all over the roof and a duck (can you see her amidst the brown?) has decided the needles make a nice ready made nest. She was there when we returned from our trip and rarely leaves the spot she's lined with down. She's very protective and has built up a wall of pine needles on the "house" side so we can't see into the nest...at all. Her wing has a stripe of bright blue, which is rarely visible and she sleeps with her bill under her wing.  I think I'll call her Lucy...for no good reason.

Sweet Dreams

It's raining, it's pouring, with a little sleet thrown in! Take my word for it, it's coming down like cats and dogs. The rain could last for the next 3-4 days, which means no planting, no walking, no mountain view.  If the rain eases up there may be a chance to fit in a walk and I'd dearly love to get back into the groove. Wouldn't you know spring would be wet after a very dry winter. Since the garden is soggy, and I'm stuck indoors, I will turn to my knitting, the sadly neglected Color Affection.

Vicki's Make.Do.Dream is, in a word, dreamy. The softness of the yarn caresses my fingers as I knit, letting me know the finished shawl will be delightful to wrap around my neck. In order for this delight to take place, there must be an act of knitting. Knitting was a low priority during travel, as airline seats are too close together.  Reading was a far easier option. Time with family wasn't conducive to knitting and the short afternoon with friends meant I had time for only a row or two (plus, there was that martini).

Did I mention how soggy the garden is?  The carport garden box is a little better off as it's slightly protected by the roof.

Smith planted a variety of lettuces last fall, but early snow stopped their growth. The longer days have warmed the soil, which has given the seedlings just enough push to grow and thrive. With the extra boost, we might be enjoying a fresh, home grown salad by next week.

Shoot

This week is another week of busy, busy with a side of crazy.  Telling you about it will be easier with bullets.

• Time goes by too quickly and seems to fly by even faster on the weekends.

•  I find it difficult to fit in everything that needs to be done in the time I have "free".

• Things such as, grocery shopping, basic life organization, cleaning,  and anything fun, must be accomplished in two days time.

• And, I haven't even thought about knitting or blogging.

•  It doesn't seem fair, but there you have it.

• The winning names from last weeks blogiversary post have been randomly picked (last Friday), but I haven't notified anyone.

• I will do that as soon as I can get around to it.

• Red Peas shawl is almost finished, as only the bind off is left.

• But, tonight is  book club, SnB is tomorrow (maybe I'll do it then), and Wednesday we'll help a friend move.

• The book club I'm in has been together for 25 years. 

• Reading the books has enriched my life in many ways, as has the friendships forged.

• Maybe Thursday will afford me a day of rest.

• Blogging this week is a big IF...it's unlikely you'll see much, if any of me.

• The picture at the top is of my "soon to be" Color Affection.

• Vicki custom dyed the yarn and it is fabulous in color (I love all three) and softness (yum).

• She calls the yarn (Make.Do.Dream)...perfect.

• Over and Out (for now).

Seeing Red

Thank you for your warm and generous comments on my 8 years of blogging. As spring continues, I can promise more garden updates and photos. Smith has been working hard and good things are happening.

I actually have some knitting to show, but while looking through my Ravelry Notebook I realized everything I'm knitting, as well as almost everything I've finished, is a shade of red.  hmmmm  What's up with all the red?  Red is one of my favorite colors, but at first glance you'd think it's the only color I can see.  

Who can have anything bad to say about the lovely "Tart" Pashmina and the even more beautiful Red Peas? Once I understood the rythm of knitting each rows, and the reason for the construct, everything fell into place.  The shawl is nearly finished, only 2 sections left to do. It's going to be a warm and elegant wrap.

If I show a half finished shawl 5 times does that make me boring? Seeing the process of a project is the what I love about knit blogging. However, I'm not sure there is much to tell about Luciole.  The real story is Kim's yarn, the beautiful New England Red from Woolen Rabbit. She's nearing the end, too.  I have a way of knitting slowly along and then ending up with a little flurry of finished items, which just may be the case with my red shawls.

Do not be swayed by all this red, as my number one favorite color is still blue.  Sadly, my only blue(ish) project is the Sky Skarf, which means I'm spending a lot of time looking up at the sky.  I will not bore you with yet another pictures of the blue, blue sky (which has been amazing the last few days!), but there will be Sky Skarf news later.

The next two projects have been planned and there will be no change in color. I am seeing red, and that's all there is to it.

Psst...there is still a chance to win prizes if you comment on yesterday's post!

Distractions and Decisions

It's March, unbelievably it's March! Yesterday the sky is gray, but enough light pushed through the clouds to create an amazing sunrise. The air is warmer and the birds are beginning to sing their mating songs. It is spring, a time of awakening, with a world full of distractions and wonders. Spring is the time to shake off the cold of winter and to wake from the doldrums.

I love to blog because of the common sense comments from friends who know knitting, who have concete suggestions and good knowledge to share. The comments ranged from encouragement to reasons not to continue, every comment was valid, every one gave me something to think on. I thought, I stewed, I studied the two projects that were giving me pause. And then, clarity came. Denial is a strong emotion, but eventually it gives way to reality. The projects in question were abandon.  One must listen to the voices (of knowledge) they whisper the truth.

The question was what to do in their place? The only projects on my needles (excluding the sky scarf) are Luciole, a very simple, yet elegant shawl and Klemsoctt, formerly known as they TTL Mystery Sock. However, the sock just isn't as portable as I'd like and the small needles keep me from working on it for long. My days of a pair per month are over, it may be a pair per year from now on.

There has been pattern searching and stash diving. There will be decisions soon. This house if full of promise and potential.  I just need to tap it and get my head on right!  Spring should be helpful!  Thank you for helping me see the light, friends!

Lazy, Busy? Who Knows

Before I do anything else I need to let you know about JessaLu's annual blogiversary contest!!  You need to get over there and comment.  You should also do all you can to tell the world about the contest.  JessaLu's contests are legendary and well worth your time...so just DO it. 

You did it, right? Went to JessaLu's...ok, well, then you can continue reading my saga of laziness and blog ennui. Well, truthfully, this isn't much of a saga, either.  (Speaking of saga...you did watch Downton Abbey, didn't you? What a wonderful "soap"!  I'm not a soap opera fan, but I did enjoy hanging around Downton this season.)

Hey! It finally snowed, but it barely made 4".  There isn't much winter around here, but it is cold, very cold.  The skies have been mostly gray, but the blue skies show up almost everyday late in the day.

Cookie has been pulling for the gloves knit with Joan's handspun and I have been knitting the beautiful Blue Sky gloves from time to time.

However, right after I took this pictures I found a mistake and had to take it back nearly an inch and a half. Forward progress has slowed....well, actually, it has stopped because I need to find my place.

This is the No Longer a Mystery Sock, now renamed Kelmscott. I love it, the pattern created by traveling stitches and bobbles is lovely and I will continue to work on them when the muse calls.  They are low on the knitting priority list.

There is more knitting to report, more about the sky scarf, more on a beautiful finished project, and the beginnings of another (one or two), but I need to get going and you need to get over to JessaLu's.  Tell her I sent you.  Start spreading the news!

A Post About Knitting (SHOCK!)

Out of the caldron of burbling WIPs, an FO comes to the surface. The darling Duffers didn't take long to knit and they turned out to be charmingly cute.

A button that matches my two color Duffs "to perfection" was serendipitously found at the LYS, which is the advantage of a large button selection.  I like the slippers well enough, but I will not be one of the many who have made whole hoards of them.  I can see the attraction, but I'm dusting my hands off with one pair.

I'd rather be knitting a shawl, as shawls are part of my daily wardrobe, and I'm of the opinion one can never have too many shawls.  The second WIP to come to the surface of my churning caldron of WIPs is Ziggity!

The colors of Tosh Merino Light, Sequoia the darker of the two and Amber Trinket the light, work better together than I'd imagined.  A failed project left them to marinate in the stash and they came to mind the minute Ziggity was publshed. While there are many more knits to report, this shawl has my rapt attention and, because I love it so, there maybe no forward movement on other knits until this one is complete, which the way I'm going, may not be long.

Toque

My Woolen Rabbit Mara Toque (sorry no link) has been slowly growing, but the gauge must be off, as I had to knit the largest size in order for it to fit my pin-sized head.

Maybe it will grow when blocked and, no, I did not check the gauge when I started. It's lace, it's a hat, it will fit someone (that someone is me!). If my knitting mojo continues to hang around there should be a finished hat some time next week and, since it's been a long time between FOs, it will feel good to have this beauty off the needles.

This is the Sky Scarf at the end of last week. Even though we had hopes for a good amount of snow, there has been pathetically little. This week I will try harder to snap memories of the sky and, maybe, we'll have snow!

In truth, I'm not sure why this post posted, as I thought it was sitting in draft form.  I finished Mara over the weekend and intended an FO post, no this.  Anywoo....TTL!

Congrats to Nancy H, as she was the winner of the Jean Moss book, Sweet Shawlettes.

Gray Matter

Thank you for your comments on yesterday's post. Many of you mentioned Jean's answer of my color question and I thought I'd let you know about her post on color earlier in the week. You have until tomorrow night to comment on Wednesday's post in order to win a copy of Sweet Shawlettes.

The skies are as gray as my knitting, however, they're as welcome as my knitting. We've not had much of a winter and the mountains have been sorely bereft of snow. From the sounds of it, they'll be getting pounded over the next few days, which means I'll have a chance to wear my beautiful Two-Ribs Infinity Scarf.  It should be finished this weekend and, hopefully, there will be FO shots, too!

Pal Cowl

I've been trying to blog about this cowl for a couple of weeks. First, Typepad ate half the post and then I just couldn't seem to get the rewrite to work out. So, here I am, trying for the third time is a charm.

Speaking of charmed...awhile back, whilst visiting with friends in the LYS, I was thumbing through a magazine and saw a picture of a cowl Susan had been wearing at our last SnB. And then, I noticed it had Susan's name on it. It was her new design, the long and luscious, soft and beautiful, Two Ribs Infinity Scarf, right there in Interweave's Accessories magazine.  I bought the magazine and the yarn on the spot.

It's not the first time Susan's been published, far from it, but it was really cool to see her name, once again, in print. Since Shepherd's Wool is comfortable against the skin, and I loved it around my neck, it was the right wool for this project, especially in the lovely color of Pewter.  Hopefully it will look good with my slowly graying hair.

Susan likes to learn something new with each project and I should have known it would be the same with this scarf. In reading the pattern I realized the cast on was something I hadn't used before AND I wasn't sure I wanted to learn. I have a way of digging in my heels and deciding not to do what I'm told (some of you will not be surprised by that confession). However, I decided to turn over a new leaf (at least with this project) and just DO it....because of Susan.

From what I can tell, the cast on is like the Long Tail Tubular Cast On and the first time through I wasn't quite sure what was happening or how it fit in with the rest of the scarf.  I cast on all 200+ stitches and saw there was no way to stop, no way to set it down, and I just wasn't sure what I was doing.  However, I just did it, just worked all the way through and then, started the knit back row. That's when the light went on and I could see the reason for the cast on, why it was perfect for the ribbing, why there could be no mistake in the whole 200+ cast on, and that I needed to do it again.

Off the whole thing came. I started and didn't stop, just got into the rhythm (there is a really cool rhythm to the whole thing), and went for it. I made it all the way through, no errors, no problems, just a beautifully executed cast on, which was verified on knit back row.  It was actually fun to do it right, to create the perfect cast on for the project.  I need to remember this and not be so afraid to try something new, to keep the curiosity primed, love to learn, and just DO it.