As The Yarn Turns

Five Things I've Learned This Week

It's been an interesting and somewhat disjointed week. So in honor of that, here are five things I've learned this week.

1. I can knit an intricate shawl and rarely need to rip back a row, but I can't seem to knit a dishcloth without ripping out every other row. I bought Mason-Dixon Knitting a while back but hadn't knit anything from it. So this week I decided to get into the Mason Dixon mood by knitting a quick Ballband Dishcloth. I don't really use dishcloths for cleaning dishes but I like the look and figured I could use it for something - a unique gift wrap if nothing else. Besides, I have several balls of cotton yarn hanging around. It should have been quick but it wasn't. I'm still knitting and ripping that thing. (Don't let this discourage you if you're planning on making some. It's totally brain lock on my part.)

2. I'll probably never knit a Ferrari, or any other car for that matter, unless it's a minature version.

3. Even a little bit of progress is still progress. I don't feel like I've completed anything (which is why I started the dishcloth), but I've done a little bit on a lot of things. I plied one set of my singles and worked a bit on my scarf. I worked on my postcard for the swap and narrowed down some patterns for my next projects.

4. The neighborhood cats are taking shifts watching the bird feeder in our backyard. They've probably been doing this for months but we've just noticed it. Meet the morning cat.

5. I've got a large red flower in my backyard. Okay I knew it was there, I just didn't realize it had bloomed until this morning when I spotted the morning cat.

I really need to go out in the backyard more often. Hmm... Maybe that should be six things I've learned.

by Sydney  |

A Little Blue

No not me, it's the pottery. Since June is blue month for Project Spectrum, I thought I would show off some of my blue pottery. I love pottery so every now and then I'll buy a piece or someone will buy me a piece as a gift. Yes, I use it too. Here's some of my blue pieces.

That's Phoebe and Katie's tail in the background in the last picture.

Completely unrelated to the color blue, I've joined the Bitchin' Mittens Knit Along. There are so many good swaps and knit alongs going on, but I try hard not to get in over my head and stressing over something that is supposed to be fun. This one appealed to me because there are practically no rules. I've got until Labor Day to get them done. They don't even have to fit anyone. Surely I can accomplish that. As for the Picovoli t-shirt, I'll probably go ahead and knit it but I need to sit down and do some calculations first. The size I would normally make would be too big and the next size down would be too small.

In the meantime, I'll leave you with our ferret Balt playing with his "thing on a string". He likes to hide it under the blanket, no matter that the attached string going to the doorknob is a dead give away.

by Sydney  |

Swatching

First off, a bit of housekeeping. I knew that weeks or months from now I would be looking for the pattern for the Arrowhead Lace Scarf and I wouldn't be able to find it, so I added a link to it on the side bar. I'll replace the picture with a final version once the scarf is, uh, final.

I needed a change of pace from the same old knitting so I did a little swatching this weekend. The Patons Cotton Top yarn I got at the thrift store a while back has been calling me. It seems perfect for a summer top.

If you're wondering why the swatch looks like it's narrower at the top, it's because I changed needle size. I like the way this yarn feels once it is knitted up. Plus the swatch washed up nicely with just a tiny bit of bleeding in hot water. Well it is bright pink. I would like to use it for Grumperina's Picovoli t-shirt. The gauge is off a bit so I haven't decided yet. I may just go with it anyway and make some adjustments. Hey I like to live dangerously. So I'm going to sit on it for a while.

Before I go, I would like you to meet the new cat in the neighborhood. Yesterday afternoon I looked out the back window and noticed this fancy long-haired cat walking across the back yard.

She's a very friendly, nice looking cat. After a phone call, we determined that she belongs to a neighbor one street over. We have a bird feeder in the back yard so I'm guessing that she comes over regularly. We just haven't noticed her until yesterday.

by Sydney  |