Redecorating

 I have spent years decluttering the entire house. Getting rid of stuff we no longer use or need. Creating more space. Finding lost treasures. Taking car load after car load to Goodwill.  Taking selected things to Bookman’s for store credit so I can get new socks for the children’s clothing bank I knit for.  By the way the kids are rumored to like the socks as much as the hats and scarves that I make for them.  

Now enough clutter has been up cycled  and recycled to create newly made space to create a new environment for us.  I did start on the selfish side though. I took 2 previously acquired works of art and placed them with a lovely piece by Navied Mahdavian who is a cartoonist for the New Yorker and author of Searching for Home in Rural America. The piece is so attuned to me, reminding me to unwind. 

So without further ado, here is the new wall of art.  The picture is a little off center due to lighting issues  I know the frame on the sheep did not match the other frames, but a brown frame would not have done the sheep justice. I am just not going to mess with sheep under any circumstances.  

Now I am off to reclaim my knitting room.  It became a way station during my closet tear down and reorganization. Since I am really close to needing to type up several new patterns, I need the room back. Also please don’t remind me that I should only work on one design at a time, my mind just does not work that way. 

Cleaning Out The Cobwebs

 Today I decided to clean out one of Eric’s boxes. I kept the yearbooks and the pictures.  Threw out the yearly journals.  Also a lot of awards for the best smile and friend.  Birth certificates for his stuffed friends. I did some crying too.  In the end I expected to reuse the box for yarn, but that did not happen.  There were several big cracks on the bottom of the box.  The net result was that I reclaimed 2 square feet of space. I also threw 4 bags of recycling into the recycling bin. That is something to be proud of.  The yarn will have to find another home.

The journals that I save because I thought that they would bring me joy, only made me cry.  The loss can still be raw all these years later.   It still amazes me that a child and later a young man with so many physical and medical issues could bring so much joy to so many people.  

I know all my family grieves him in their own way. No form of grief is bad.  We all move forward at different speeds.  

Using My Wheels’s Again

 I found that using my spinning wheels, yes I have 2 spinning wheels. Has helped ease the arthritis pain in my foot. Some exercise is good. So today I finished filling up one bobbin. It was so full John could see it from the couch.. I don’t think I really could have gotten any more yarn on the bobbin if I tried.  I found more roving in the same color way in my stash and started another bobbin.  Yes, I did some stash diving. I also found some nice silk to ply it with from Ito.  I hope I have enough, because Ito Japan, sold out to a company in Europe which does not like to work with American yarn shops.  

Since pictures are worth a thousand words, I thought I would save you some time.  Today in pictures.  The top picture is the really full bobbin. As you can see it is just about to go over the edge which is not a great thing. The second picture is about 8 ounces more roving. That bag should fill 2 more bobbins.  

Depending on how the yarn turns out it will either be woven into a shawl or knit into a sweater. Yardage will help make the decision. 

Knitting Hats by the Dozen

In order not to give everyone hat fatigue, I will only post 1 picture for every dozen hats. That means 10 more hats to knit before the next picture.  Also hats will only be knit in the den.  I have a better set up for patterns that I need to follow instructions on in the craft room. Next to my rocking chair, I have a music stand to hold my patterns.  It is wonderful.  I am wondering why this took me 20 years to figure out.

Anyway it’s late and we should all be asleep.  Stay safe.

It's That Time of Year Again

Its the time of year to finish all my knitting UFO's.  There is a method to my madness.  You see I am running out of yarn for the scrappy hats that the kids love and I find so fun to make.  No, it is not necessary to send me your leftovers, I need to make my own.  So in my looking around the house at various UFO's I have found at least a few scarfs and 5 ponchos that will go to the kids.  I also have quite a few for me.   Not to mention the never ending blanket. 

I think it would be fun for you to join me in finishing UFO's.  Then use the leftover yarn to make some funky scrappy hats for people in need in your own area.   If you are very proud of a finished object weather a former UFO or a scrappy hat, then send it to me and I will post it on my blog.   Common sense and decency rules will apply.  Please send the pictures in j-peg format.   Who knows, there just may be prizes involved.  

Happy knitting,crocheting or weaving.  Now it's time to tackle this bag of projects.  

Conundrums

I will be starting a new picture feed about the conundrums in my life. Check it out on my Instagram, Twitter or Facebook feeds. Then you can add your feed back as to what you would do. Enjoy the journey with me. 

A Day in Pictures

A Non Stop Day

Today was a busy day. I finally got to meet up with the girls for knitting. I only have 6 inches to go on the second half of the never ending poncho. I did not finish the laundry, but will throw a load on before bed. I listed 1 more skein of yarn in my etsy shop. Last but not least, I got the last spot for a yarn tasting tomorrow night at Grandma's Spinning Wheel. I have never been to one before.

The things I learned today is that unlike my Louet spinning wheel, the Ashford Traveler must be oiled before each use or it wont work. It wont spin worth a dam and makes wonky yarn.  It took me an hour to figure this out. Also when taking pictures there is a very sweet spot of natural light in the dining room in the late afternoon that lasts about 15 to 20 minutes. Pictures taken during this time frame come out perfect. I also found out that the word scrumming has many meanings and as it pertains to knitting is also called free form knitting. It is also some kind of computer platform, but that is way above my pay grade.

My advice for today is that if there is a question you really don't want to or should not answer, just return with a question along the same lines and the person usually answers back and then it dawns on them that they just answered their own question. Try it some time and let me know how it works for you.

Well its time to start some more laundry. Then call it a day.