Pot, meet kettle.

 So, just the other day I was mumbling to myself after checking the Yarn Harlot's blog "I wish she would update more often!"  And then stomped around, muttering over and over about the lack of updates.  

And then I realized that she had, in fact, updated her blog more recently than I had mine.  

Pot, meet the kettle.  Ahem. 

I have a large number of projects currently underway.  Many of them are store projects, using store yarns/wools and worked on at the store.  I have dedicated today's update to my many store projects!

This first picture is my progress on the Carnival Blanket.  I have opted for the designer's second choice, which is to create circle motifs, and then assemble them into the blanket.  I have also decided to make a smaller version -- crib size, if you will.  My blanket will be nine by nine motifs, which means I have one more circle to create, and then three to connect to the blanket body. 

I do believe this designer is brilliant.  The "two point stars" that connect the bottom of the circles are ingenious, and the single point star for the corners works a treat.  I am using Sirdar Snuggly for the solid shapes, and King Cole Tropical Beaches for the stars.   Both yarns are 100% acrylic so the blanket will be easily washed when necessary.  

My next store project is Flax (from Tin Can Knits).  We used this pattern to teach a class both at the store and at the Uxbridge library.  Both Barb and I found the pattern to be easily understood and accomplished; our students?  Not so much.  There is a strip of garter stitch that runs down the shoulders and arms, right to the cuff.  In addition to the top-down construction, the addition of the garter stitch just throws people right off the cliff.  We persevered and our students will have completed sweaters.

I used Uptown Worsted from Universal Yarns in one of their new variegated colourways, and made a 1-2 years size.  My needles were a 5.0m for the body and 4.0m for the ribbing.  

There are benefits to making smaller sizes of projects when teaching.  At the Uxbridge class, early on, someone was terribly confused as to how we were making sleeves at the same time as the front and back.  I was able to hold up my project, where the body was finished and one sleeve started.  The light bulbs blinked on for everyone!  Note to self -- this is a valuable lesson to have learned and now I should hope to remember it!

My next store project has been a delight to knit.  We ordered Laines du Nord Matera for our DK-weight 100% wool offering.  While the wool is NOT superwash, it is labeled "easy wash."  I am not sure what the difference is, but I will certainly find out. 

This design is called "The Color Evolution" and was designed specifically for this wool.  I did find a minor issue with the pattern -- simply an issue of counting rows correctly.  The charts are easy to read and execute.  I did the colour-work using two hands, and carrying the darkest colour in my left.  Of course, the sweater is not quite finished so I cannot tell how well I did but it looks pretty darn good at this point.  I am getting very nice stitch definition, which also makes me happy.

We have had visits from our many sales reps, hawking their offerings for next spring and summer.  One rep also showed us some fabulous new wool from Gathering Yarn.  Barb and I both "oohed" and "aahed" over this one line, and the sales rep was kind enough to leave us some to play with.  I am not at all embarrassed to say that I walked over to the store computer and purchased a pattern -- TWICE!  Once for me, and once for Barb. 

This is the Bragg Creek Cowl, designed by Caroline Sommerfeld.  This pattern was written for the new wool, named Herlig DK from Ancient Arts.   Now, I don't know what a "Viking" sheep looks like, but the yarn is 50/50 Viking and Merino.  Scrumptious, to say the least!  The rep was kind enough to leave another two skeins for Barb.

She also contacted the very kind folks at Ancient Arts and inquired about the possibility of kits so that we could host a knit-along for this project.  AND ANCIENT ARTS AGREED!  We will be able to order kits (2 skeins of wool and the pattern) for our customers!  YAY!

The final store project to be discussed is this:  The December hat for our year of hat challenge.  This hat is Kaiya Mei by Jamie Hoffman.  I used one skein each of Louisa Harding Scintille and one skein of Louisa Harding Amitola Grande.  I have enough left that I can make the same hat again!

I have to say, I absolutely adore the Amitola Grande.  The colours are delightful and the feel is luxurious as you work with it.  Even nicer on the body.  If I could only knit with one wool for the rest of my life, this might be it.  

As you may suspect, there are ... more projects ... currently in progress.  But they are "home" projects and I WILL update their progress in another post.  Hopefully NEXT week ... 

Happy knitting to one and all!

Highlight of 2022 -- So Far!

2022 is the year that we come out of Covid travel restrictions.  This may not seem like such a big deal to most folks, but for my daughter and her fiance, it was a Very Big Deal.  They had gotten engaged in the first summer of Covid -- 2022.  They were hoping for a wedding in 2021, when they could have a nice party without requiring everyone to wear a mask.  As we all know, 2021 was not that year.  

2022, however, was.  They planned a summer wedding, in his parents' back yard.  The weather was mostly cooperative -- the rain held off until just after the last table was served.  And the rain was only a half-hearted effort -- just enough to kind of cool things off.  And then ... there was a rainbow.  It was, quite honestly, magical. 

Carrie had her good friend design and sew the dress.  It was finished almost at the last minute, but was WELL worth the effort and wait.  The groom obtained a very nice suit for the day.
 

Don't they look happy?   Turns out that in Alberta, you can pay a fee and anyone can perform a marriage ceremony.  They persuaded their friend to do the honours, and he did an exemplary job.  It was very personalized, and perfect for these two young adults.  

Here are some more pictures of The Dress -- 

There are three layers to the dress itself, with Chantilly lace on the bodice.  It was just perfect for my girl. 

Both of my sons were able to attend, requiring flights from Arizona and Washington.  Miraculously, there was very little drama involved.  (Someday I will tell you all the adventures my Jeff endured while flying various places.)  Jason came over to the AirBnB we rented, and pictures were taken!

It was such an awesome time to hang out with the two of them and watch their "baby" sister be all grown up.  The two of them gave a very nice impromptu speech, unrehearsed.  I understand that Jeff had some ideas, that were pretty much all scrapped in favour of Jason's off-the-cuff speech.  Jeff did contribute a most memorable line and item -- a coffee mug emblazoned with "Most Okayest Sister," which was received with great laughter.  Considering that she is the only sister they had for much of their lives ... 

This trip was also an opportunity for Jeff to introduce his Young Lady to the family.  We had sort of met via video chats, which was delightful.  Even better was to meet her in person and watch the interactions between the two of them, and her Little Man.   For privacy and permission reasons, I have not included a photo of him, but he is as adorable as his mama.   It seems I was a great hit, having provided an I-Pad for him to play with!

All in all, this trip to Calgary has been the highlight of my year!  

(Also, please note that this is my post for August, so I am not behind any more!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

July … or how I spent the heat wave!

 Technically, it is August.  August 4, actually.  However, I started this post in July, just before I went away, thinking that I would have time to finish up and polish everything nicely.  Yeah, right.  I should have known better. Having admitted this, let me get going on what I accomplished in July!

This is the Aran Afghan I was knitting for my step-daughter.  That girl surely knows the way to my heart -- she selected the pattern herself from a big pile of patterns!  The magazine, McCall's Super Book of Afghans was purchased by me way back in 1975 or so.  I have knit a few afghans from it, as evidenced by the poor condition of the magazine itself.  On a whim, I searched on-line for it, and found another copy in far better condition than mine.  It lives with me now. 

In any event, this particular pattern is known as the Aran-Stripe Afghan.  It consists of five panels, joined with a garter stitch border at the top and bottom.  Instead of sewing the panels together, I opted for a three-stitch i-cord join.  It worked amazingly well!  The afghan was very well-received by my step-daughter.  You would have thought I had gifted her the sun, moon and stars.  I used a 5.0m needle and James C. Brett Aran with Wool -- 3.5 400g balls.  I rate this a successful project!

Another project recently off my needles is this beautiful wrap.  This is named the Stella Wrap, designed for Ella Rae Cozy Alpaca.  We carry the Cozy Alpaca Chunky in the store, and were accidentally shipped a bag of the worsted weight.  Of course, we didn't discover the mishap until after the yarn had been opened ... What's a girl to do with orphaned skeins of yummy wool?  The pattern calls for 5.0m needles, which is the size I used.  (I guess it's a good thing I have several sets of interchangeable needles, eh?)  The wrap is roughly 17 by 48 inches, so it will be more like a poncho than a shawl.  In any event, it is lovely and soft and warm.

We also ordered and received another fabulous baby/child yarn.  It is King Cole Tropical Beaches DK.  I have no idea why we didn't bring this in earlier.  The colourways are spectacular -- happy, happy, happy and the hand is super soft and comfortable to work with. Since the new yarn had arrived, we needed a sample.  Initially I was planning to make a baby blanket -- there is plenty of yardage in the skein to complete a generous blanket.  Not seeing anything I really liked, I started browsing through our pattern binders.  Sure enough, I found something I liked -- Sirdar 5214.  There was plenty of yarn left, so I went ahead and made up a little bonnet as well.  Except it isn't pictured here ... Anyway, a 4.0m needle for the bulk of the design with a wee bit of 3.25 for the garter stitch edges.  Love, love, love it!

And since knitting isn't my ENTIRE life ... Doug and I went sailing on a beautiful summer Sunday.  And brought home a trophy ... again!  This was the Lake Scugog Sailing Club Memorial Trophy.  The other highly competitive boat/team had a rigging failure and withdrew from the race just as they rounded the last buoy.  Sad for them, but we got the trophy. 

Sailing, for me, is incredibly restorative.  You have the sun, the wind, the waves, and yourself (and sometimes your partner), and that's it.  No interference from radios, telephones, tablets, neighbours, pets, children ... It makes me happy.  I have been away for the past 9 days and am looking forward to a sail tomorrow, weather permitting.  

There is lots of other news, but I am gonna save it for a bit.  My heart is too full to share just yet.  

Cheers, everyone!

It is still June?

 You know, I was so ambitious.  I was gonna post every Friday ... and then it was every other Friday ... I think now my goal will be once a month, on average.  So, 12 posts this year.  That's better than some years.  Not as good as I would like, but it is a small step in the proper direction. 

My thoughts lately have been filled with the political situation down in the United States.  Not surprising, really, since I am a citizen.  It is surreal to be watching from afar, compared to actually living in the midst of it.  The hearings of the January 6 Special Committee have been interesting, and not really surprising at all.  I had suspected most of it already, including the involvement of Trump and his family. While I have long been hopeful to see Trump in an orange jumpsuit (in jail), I think the best case outcome will be a plea bargain wherein he agrees to never run again.  Not what I want to see, but a best case outcome for the United States.  The whole Roe v Wade being overturned by the Supreme Court?  Yeah, that was not totally unexpected but heartbreaking nevertheless.  It hurts to see the United States become a place where women/girls do not have bodily autonomy.  If only there was a way to force men/boys to lose such autonomy ... then let's see how unjust it is. 

Taking a deep breath, because there is literally nothing I can do right now that will materially advance either cause, I will endeavour to think of other, more relaxing things.

Like this finished project! This pattern is Lucy and her Sisters, found on Ravelry.  It is quite a nice little top, and I do recommend it.  I used Araucania Alumco in a solid colour, altho the link goes to the tonal variety.  The solid has, sadly, been discontinued.

The one quibble I have with the pattern is this:

I had noticed on some of the finished object pictures that line you see above.  It is the provisional cast-on, using Jeny's Surprisingly Stretchy Cast On.  Wrapping the yarn around the needles is fine, and they look nice and even.  Sliding the held stitches onto a cord and letting them dangle while you work the other stitches lets them jiggle and wiggle around and become uneven.  I had hoped that blocking would even them out, but alas.  The line is still there, and not really any less obvious.  I will be sure to have that be the back of my top when I wear it.  

The Alumco is an interesting yarn to work with.  It is a cotton twist, and in the lace portion actually a bit splitty.  Once I had the front and back joined up, I switched to continental style knitting and the yarn was far better behaved.  This leads me to suspect that it would also work nicely for a right-handed crocheter.  Since I am left-handed, I am not so sure.  There was a tiny ball left over, and I will experiment a bit to satisfy my curiousity.

In other news, there are some flower beds alongside the driveway that I have been wanting to improve for several years.  I haven't felt that I had the energy and/or the stamina to tackle them, and things kept going south.  My goal is to build these up and make a tiny vegetable garden ... but first they had to be cleared. 

Sunday, in the heat, was the day that everything aligned and I started.  Foolishly, I did not snap a before picture.  However, I did get an after.

I knew there were day lilies in there.  These should do a lot better without all the competition.  If my memory is correct, they will have orange blossoms.  

There was a casualty.  My gardening gloves are so old I don't remember from whence they came.I do know where they are headed though -- retirement, and well deserved! 

This picture doesn't really demonstrate the quantity of weeds I pulled.  I spent three hours, and the wheelbarrow was two to three feet above the top.  I had to tie down the load to get it to the hillside and dump it.  Once upon a time, a friend had given me some valerian to grow.  It is an herb that can assist in sleeping, which was the plan.  Once planted I started some research and saw several warnings about this being dangerous in inexperienced hands.  I am definitely an inexperienced herbalist, and so shied away.  The valerian, however, did not get the memo and spread like wildfire through the flower beds.

The valerian was so enthusiastic that the sidewalk was almost impossible to traverse.  And so I finally summoned the energy and stamina, and pulled as much as I could.  I suspect this will be an ongoing battle this year and going forward, depending on how we build the raised beds.  Time will tell.

There is more knitting ... at last count, I have five projects on needles at the moment.  A little dress with some happy yarn, an afghan for my step-daughter, a sock for the upcoming big holiday in December, a cabled wrap just because, and a beautiful lace shawl.  There was, in fact, going to be a picture of the little dress.  Except that technology has once again gained the upper hand.  At least it didn't take me all morning to get myself logged in. 

Happy knitting!  Happy Canada Day!  Happy Fourth of July!  (And here I would insert some rather derogatory remark about celebrating the days we white settlers booted indigenous people off their ancestral lands, except that I AM trying to be ... I don't know what the word is.  Polite?  Good?  Politically correct?   It certainly bears thinking about, especially in the midst of our celebrations.)

(Sigh.)

 I have spent the last hour and a half struggling to log into Blogger so that I could update the blog.  Struggling is the word.  I had apparently changed the password last time I was here, and did not write it down.  By the time I thought to check out the desktop computer, that “new” password had been deactivated.  I now have a new password, and saved it to a safe place.  Passwords are the bane of my existence, both here and at work.

In other news … 

I have been working on the aran afghan for my step-daughter.  I had completed panels 1, 3 and 5, and then worked on panel 2.  When it was nearing completion, I started thinking about the assembly process.  This required surfing Ravelry, of course, where I stumbled onto a post talking about using an attached I-cord to join the two panels.  Intrigued, I followed a couple of links and found a tutorial video.  The video mentioned that the first couple of rows were a bit fiddley, and they were not wrong.  

I started the process, and I was instantly in love.  From the front side, that 3-stitch I-cord join looks as though it was meant to be there!  The join is accomplished by slipping the first stitch to the right-hand needle, picking up a stitch from the edge of the panel and then slipping the first stitch back to the left-hand needle.  Knit those two stitches together (I used an SSK), knit the centre stitch, and then pick up a stitch from the left panel and knit that picked up stitch with the remaining stitch (I used a standard K2tog). 

I used the Clover stitch markers to pin the panels every 16 rows -- easy to figure out because that was when the cable crosses happened! -- just to keep the panels even.  It worked a treat, and I ran out of stitches to pick up from each panel at the same time! 

From the back side, the join is even more impressive.  As in -- INVISIBLE! 

Have I mentioned that I absolutely love this technique for joining afghan panels?  Especially for afghan panels with a lot of cables and texture?    

I am currently working on panel 4 -- approximately one-third completed.  Top and bottom borders, and then I will be done.  This has been such a fun project.  The best news is that the step-daughter is as excited to receive the blanket as I have been to make it!

In other knitting news, my lovely daughter had gifted me with a set of mini-skeins for Christmas a couple of years back.  I had not knit with them, waiting for the "perfect" project.  At long last, I found it!  

The Brighten Up MKAL, by Lisa Ross, was introduced with a start date of March 2, 2022.  One of my friends (Hi, Liz!) is such a good friend for finding the most beautiful projects and enticing us all down the rabbit hole.  This particular MKAL featured gradient kits from Ancient Arts, which got five of us to follow Liz into that project.  Sadly, we weren't entirely certain that we could actually GET the kits from Ancient Arts, until just before the start date.  No fear -- I was in possession of a beautiful gradient kit from Lizzie-Anne.  In my humble opinion, this was the perfect use for that kit.  I know my daughter will be thrilled that I used her gift.  And now I have another gorgeous gradient kit for another cowl ... In fact, several of us used yarns from out stash, with the Ancient Art kits offering the opportunity for a second project! 

There has, of course, been other knitting.  Pardon me while I try to remember what it was, and where the pictures are.  You know, the mind is the first that goes.  Also, what I miss the most!

Happy crafting, everyone!

Is it still March?

 Is it still March?  May I pretend that it is? 

No?

All right, then.  April it is. 

There has been knitting, and I did, in fact, have photos and everything.  For all that March is a long month, it sure slipped away quickly.

I knitted up a truly delightful little jumper/sun dress as a store model.  The design is Honey Pie, from  Lisa Chemery  I used Juniper Moon Farms Cumulus and 5.0m needles.

Cumulus is a worsted weight brushed cotton, and it is delightfully soft.  This jumper has a hem, which I did not do as nicely as I would have liked.  It is slightly skewed.  I hope the munchkin that wears this is one of those always-in-motion ones and no one will notice.  Also, do you see those box pleats?  They turned out amazingly well.  I had never done them before and was confused by the written directions, until I got there and could see everything in person.  Piece of cake!

This is the back:

The cables on the straps are just over the top.  You probably have noted that there are stitch markers in various positions.  That is where buttons will go, as soon as I find the perfect button.  More on this later.

I also knit up a nice sample from Ella Rae Eco Organic Cotton.  This, as the name implies, is cotton, and a sport weight.  The design is Gauzy Tee by Amy Gunderson.  I found the design in an older Knitscene magazine.  The original wool suggestion was for a lace weight so the design would be gauzy.  In the summer, I am not a fan of wearing lots of layers, and wanted to use a slightly thicker yarn; hence the choice I made.  I did knit several gauge swatches, in the round.  My friend Liz can vouch for that since she not only saw me doing so, she commented on it.

 

It turned out quite nice … except it was too short.  I should remember that Knitscene was really into the whole cropped top look, which is great when you are 20 and skinny as a rail.  I am neither.  In blocking, I tried to stretch it ... with the end result being that the finished gauge was out.  I could wear it … if I didn’t mind looking like an overstuffed chair.  Maybe a daughter or daughter-in-law will like it.

The lace edging at the bottom was knit on after-the-fact.  It turned out really well, and I had the exact correct number of stitches and rows.  I have to say, I do admire the designers that achieve that successfully.  It seems I am always having to make adjustments.

And, as a final blog note.  Yesterday, Sunday, I ventured out to a fabric store.  Doug needs a new housecoat.  Our last two efforts to procure him one have not ended well.  So I thought I would sew him one.  It has been a few years since I ventured into a fabric store.  Pattern prices have risen astronomically.  Fabric prices are even worse.  He would like terrycloth, and what little we found was chintzy looking and feeling, and $35 a metre.  Yikes! Now I am casting about to find another place to acquire good quality terrycloth.

Since I was not standing in line to buy a pattern, or fabric, I opted to not stand in line for buttons.  Even though I have two garments worth of buttons to purchase.  I figure if I am standing in line, it should be a substantial purchase.  I guess. 

As always, there is more knitting.  I will try to get back here before the end of the month to tell myself all about it!

February Round Up

 You would not know from this blog, but there HAS been knitting accomplished.  A lot of my knitting is splashed across the store’s Facebook page … which does explain the lack of posts here.  I am sadly remiss at making project pages on Ravelry.  All this means that I am not documenting my projects as well as I would like.  Socks … those are pretty well burned into my brain, until I start experimenting.

“Experimenting?” You ask. Yes.  I have started making socks for my male family members with 68 stitches rather than my bog standard 60.  Doug now gets longer to wear them before the inevitable shrinkage occurs and they become mine.  And so, even though my daughter and her partner claim to be able to share socks interchangeably, there are now his and her socks!

I used a 2.5mm Addi Sock Rocket Squared for these babies.  I am very much in love with the Squared needles.  I did not find my gauge had changed, and the speed bumps kept the stitches nicely on the needles.  These socks have a 2-inch cuff and a heel flap.

 Next I worked on socks for my daughter.  She had commented in passing that there was some excess fabric on the top of the ankle on her previous socks.  “Hmmm,”I thought. “ Let me try a short row heel and see how that works.”

 

These were made with King Cole Footsie, another all acrylic yarn.  This time I cast on 60 stitches and worked only a 1-inch cuff.  I will have proof of concept in the very near future, and if they fit like I hope they do she will be getting short row heels henceforth.

Another recent finish is this lovely hat.  

The yarn is Juniper Moon Farms Beatrix, a merino/angora/nylon bulky wool.  Normally I am not a fan of bulky yarns.  For Beatrix, I could make an exception!  The pattern is Northward Hat from Tin Can Knits.  This was a very quick project, and fun as well. 

What else am I working on?  Well … I wouldn’t be me if there was not a pair of socks somewhere.  

The wool is gift yarn and from an alpaca farm called Twin Pines, near Millbrook.  I have about 4cm left to go until the toe shaping, and it is going to be close.  Very close.  I knew it would be, which is why the machinations if two at a time.  

My step-daughter’s afghan is progressing nicely.  I have three strips completed, and am a quarter of the way through the fourth. 

OK.  Not a quarter of the way, but definite progress.  De ‘Nile isn’t just a river in Egypt!  I am using James C. Brett Rustic Aran with Wool, special ordered by the store and a 5.0mm needle.  I do still love cables.  Nupp, not so much, but these are fairly easily accomplished.

There is more knitting, but I think I have blathered long enough.  Besides, it is quiet and prime knitting light!

More from the Christmas Trip

 I have been busy knitting and not updating this blog.  I keep saying I am going to do better … and then I don’t.  I really have no excuses.

When we arrived at my son’s house, he announced that he had some plans for the holiday visit.  One was taking his wife for an overnight hotel stay and sleeping all night, and sleeping late.  The second plan?  He announced that he was taking me on a yarn crawl!  (He even had the right terminology!). To say I was delighted would be an understatement.  A whole day, with my son.  Amazing!

First on our list was a store named Finch Knitting and Sewing, located in Leesburg.  I was interested to see how they combined the two hobbies into one store.  The main floor was mostly quilting — fabrics, patterns, threads and books.  Up the stairs we found a room of delightful wools and patterns, as well as a separate class room area.  After much browsing, I settled on a hank of Sno from Woolfolk.  This is a 100%  merino wool in a 50g hank, or 204m, in a fingering weight.  I am thinking this might well grow up to be a scarf … 

This is a warm brown and tan combination.  I am not totally certain it is enough for a scarf; in the meantime, I will enjoy the feel and look of it in my hand.  I have heard good things about triangular stitch markers, and saw this box of them at the counter.  They needed to come home with me as well.  Now that I have blogged about them, I can actually use them!

This was a delightful shop, filled with lots of good ideas.  I did find interesting that there was absolutely no sock wool.  None.  Not a scrap.  The son did point out that this shop is located right at the edge of high-income horse country so that may have played a part.  I also was interested to see the class area totally separate from the retail area.  The staff would not ever be found working on a project, either sewing or knitting, because there was no place to do so and still be accessible to the sales floor.  As I said, most interesting.

Our second stop was at Red Fox Yarns in Vienna.  This shop rather closely resembled my own in terms of inventory selection.  It is located in a strip mall, on the ground floor so easily accessed by one and all.  Parking was plentiful.  When doing market research, I try to purchase things to which I do not have easy access.  Like I said, this store rather closely resembles mine, so I “had” to wander twice around before deciding on my selection. 

On my first go-round I stumbled across the Skacel Addi Rocket squared.  The staff person gave a very high recommendation for them, and I had recently lost my trusty 2.5m Addi anyway.  Then I added the hank of Knitted Wit Worsted in the Rock Candy Brown colourway.  This is a superwash merino, and just the right amount for a great hat.  While standing at the counter chatting, I spied the Sock Ruler display.  Barb and I had pondered bringing them into the store a couple of years ago.  As most of you know, though, I am a bit skeptical of gadgets and tight-fisted with my money besides.  So we did not.  When we got back to the car, I immediately ripped into the packaging on the ruler and put it to use.  And just like that, in that very first minute, I was totally enamoured.  What a GREAT gadget!  We have them at the store already.

Red Fox is a classic wool store.  There was a bit of novelty-type yarns, but not much.  They had varieties of sock yarns, and many different weights.  In wool, or acrylic, or alpaca, or some blends in between.  If I lived in that area, I could definitely see them being my fave LYS.  They also offer blocking and repair services, although I did not get any pricing.  I did not see a class area per se, but there were two comfy chairs up front for a client to use whilst getting assistance.  

Our next shop was called Second Story Knits, located in Bethesda, Maryland.  It felt like every street in Bethesda was undergoing some reconstruction with detours within detours.  I would also note that the weather that day was glorious and there were lots of folks out dining on patios.  Parking was at a premium, whether free or pay.  We ended up having me jump out of the car while my son attempted to find parking.  As the name implies, this shop was on an upper floor of an older building.  The stairs were marginally steeper than one would expect, and no elevator.  This store was likewise very similar to mine in terms of inventory selection.  They had a little alcove for patterns and books, which was nice.  There was also a dedicated class area, in addition to a small table and chairs on the main floor.  After browsing, I settled on a hank of Urth Yarns bulky, despite it being a wool I could access here at home.  The colour was just so happy I could not resist.  I have learned my lesson with Urth Yarns tho — this will be washed before being knit.  These beautiful, vibrant colourways run like crazy. 

Funny thing happened while I was browsing.  A nice lady came in, announcing that she had called earlier to get some help fixing a mistake in her project.  The sales clerk took her over to the work table, spread out the project and the two of them talked a bit and ascertained where the error was.  Then the clerk whipped the needle right out of the knitting.  The poor customer sucked in all the oxygen from the room in one big inhale.  I called out “You should warn them before you do that!”  Everyone laughed, thankfully.  I commented to the clerk and the customer that I owned a store far away, and that our policy is to warn the customer, or better yet — distract them! — before pulling the needle out.  Saves heart attacks. 

Our final stop of the day was Fibre Space, located in Alexandria.  This shop occupies an entire building, shaped like a triangle.  The exterior is covered in a mural depicting sheep, wools, alpacas, and other fibre-related things.  There are Muskoka chairs out front (although in the States they are referred to as Adirondack chairs) and sheep statues.  It was very picturesque.  Inside I found a delightful assortment of wools from near and far, along with patterns, gadgets, buttons and a nice selection of beads.  If there was a classroom area (and I truly expect there was), it was upstairs.  Of the four shops, this was the busiest, altho I was not the only shopper at any of the stores.  One of the podcasts to which I listen uses a lot of Neighborhood Fiber Co wools.  I selected a lovely hank of merino worsted in a lovely handpainted blue/green colour.  The shopping bag was a bonus!

 My son did not say anything in the morning before we set out, but he figured we could make two stops. Maybe three, if we were really lucky.  Imagine his surprise that we were able to hit all four!  Traffic in Bethesda was the worst and we almost bailed on that one.  

This, my friends, was my yarn crawl adventure with my son.  And afterwards, he inquired if handknit socks were worth repairing.  What could I say? The Addi Squared is in the second sock of a pair where he had gone through the sole, up by the toes.  There are three more pairs …

Before I send them off in the mail, I did get some mittens for the grandsons finished.  

I used Estelle Worsted and the Green Mountain Mitten pattern, making the extra-small and small sizes.  These are not exactly matching the Bernie mittens I made for their parents, but close enough.  One skein of four different colours has finished up two adult pair of mittens and two pair of big kids mittens.  I think there is plenty left to make one more full pair of adult mittens.  I am impressed with the yardage!

This concludes my yarn crawl news.  Hopefully I will post more regularly in the future … if not, y’all are welcome to harass me.  Gently, of course!   Cheers!

January 2022

 Welcome, 2022.  Not so welcome, polar vortex.  Also not so welcome, travel cold.

“What’s that?” You ask.  Travel cold?  

Yes, travel cold.  We departed for Virginia on the morning of December 23. We crossed into New York, and I breathed a huge sigh of relief.  When we got as far as Maryland, I was positively vibrating with impatience.  Why were all these drivers on the road, slowing me in my quest to hug the grandsons?  Didn’t they know how important my mission was?  We did arrive safely, and the next eight days were heavenly.  They all looked very similar —

Every day.  A walk to a playground, sometimes with a grandson on each hand, and sometimes only one. Lots of time spent throwing a football and kicking a soccer ball.  Running and in general having fun with the boys.

Games, and lots of them.  Littlest is a Connect 4 champion.  Jenga is much fun.  Shut the Box is also fun.

Christmas Day saw both youngsters receive gifts that tickled their hearts.

Legos and books, and time to enjoy them.  If you look closely, you will see the daughter-in-law wearing her gift hat!  That afternoon we even took turns riding in the ‘Vette with the roof off!

More exciting times were also had!

Knitting with Mama Carol is still fun!

Coming back to Canada was interesting.  We had Covid testing Thursday evening, hoping to have results in time for travel on Sunday.  Did not happen due to the holiday.  We regrouped and moved to plan whatever.  Found same-day testing in Virginia.  Son saw the weather predictions and encouraged us to leave that evening.  Found same-day testing in New York, so we cancelled the appointments in Virginia and hit the road.  Drove until 2:00 am and arrived in Buffalo.  Turns out the Buffalo Bills had played a home game that day and we were lucky to score a hotel room. Woke up, drove to the testing site, waited in line for 2 hours, got tested and had lunch.  Results, both negative, were received within 40 minutes.  Drove to the border, where the ArriveCan app worked a treat.  (That app is a clusterf#ck for the user, but once the data is in it works.  Whole ‘nother rant but I will not go there!)

Arrived home, greeted the cat, and received 

Turns out the weather predictions were accurate.  Virginia got hammered.  Kids lost power at noon on Monday and were without until sometime Wednesday.  56 hours.  The interstate was closed for 50 miles.  We are so glad we listened to the paranoia and left Sunday night.

I note that I failed to acquire the requisite Christmas sock picture.  My bad, but I expect the kids will come through for me with one. 

Something that tickles this knitter’s heart?  Even though the socks were threadbare or worse, the handknit socks from previous years have been saved in hopes of mending.  Though my “mending” pile is legendary, I brought them home.  This might just be the catalyst that destroys my mending procrastination!

All in all, the Christmas/New Year’s holiday was everything for which I hoped.  

Wishing everyone a safe, healthy and “normal” 2022!