Knitting

Summer Busyness

Posted on by Dan

Needle Felted Viscacha

These summer days seem to slip by a little too fast. We find ourselves spending much more time outside, working on house projects, cooking, gardening, storing up food for the winter. It’s already August, and I realized I hadn’t shared any scratchcraftiness with you in awhile.

Virginia, in addition to the above, has been keeping her needles busy (both of the knitting and crochet variety). I just recently fired up the ol’ dusty spinning wheel and am trying to motivate myself to finish a cardigan that has been on the needles for way too long (it’ll be out of style before I ever get a chance to wear it – and, yes, this is the same cardigan mentioned in earlier posts).

A little glimpse of some of the things created over in our neck of the woods:

vknit_wrap_06c

vknit_wrap_05a

vknit_socks_196

Details may, or may not, be forthcoming. But, more projects are definitely on their way. By the way, the creature at the beginning of the post belongs to the same family as the chinchilla. Can you guess what it is?

See for yourself:

ARKive video - Southern viscacha - overview

Goals, Growth and Gains

Posted on by Dan

May is a big month for us. For starters, Virginia sets herself a goal of knitting 52 pairs of socks each year, with May being the final month. She made her goal, ending with a cabled sock knit using lovely Casbah yarn. The pattern is by Cynthia Levy (Ravelry link)

Socks (52 of 52)

May is also when plants really start to take off in the garden. Last year, I spent a lot of time hearing about all the growing things on a secondhand basis, and imagining it weeks at a time from my very beige and closed-to-the-world room. I am happy to say the tomatoes, peppers, beans and who knows what else I started are faring pretty well.

Bean Sprout

Two days after I took the picture of the above bean sprout, it was practically a foot high. And, our potted tomatoes seem to be enjoying their location on our deck. Portability equals access to more sunlight in our tree-heavy yard.

Potted Tomato

Of course, not pictured here are all the wild and crazy weeds that also love this time of year. But, green is good and being able to get my hands dirty is also good. Even while tackling the toughest of weeds, I need only remind myself of last year, and the chore suddenly turns into a privilege.

And, last, but certainly not least, May is when we gain another year on our anniversary count. As of May 26, we will have been married 9 years.

May 26, 2001

Time flies, a lot good and bad things happen. But, I believe, not a better pairing will you find.

May 26, 2001

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Much to See, Much to Do

Posted on by Dan

The problem with waiting so long between blog posts is that stuff starts to pile up. Unfortunately, I’m going to leave you with a bunch of stuff to look at, but not much to read (it’s a beautiful day and our yard is calling to me).

Virginia finished up another crochet afghan. This one is made up of granny squares, using Jamieson’s Spindrift.

Crochet Granny Square Afghan

(More photos can be found on our Flickr page)

She also finished a tank, knit using Louet’s Euroflax Linen.

Essential Tank

The pattern is the “Essential Tank” by Wendy Bernard in her book Custom Knits.

Socks!
It’s been a while since I’ve posted any finished socks. She’s started a renewed effort to knock off 52 pairs by the end of May (I think she’s at 40, having started last June).

Socks (36 of 52)

Socks (37 of 52)

Socks (38 of 52)

Socks (39 of 52)

The Garden
I can’t tell you how wonderful it is to feel the sun and dirt on my skin. There’s nothing like being shut up in a hospital room for three month-long periods, and then told to not go near the stuff for the rest of the year, to really make you appreciate the sore muscles, new calluses and dirty hands that come from playing in the yard.

Brick Path in Cutting Garden

Our “cutting garden” got a bit of a facelift with a newly-bordered brick path. And, speaking of cutting gardens, our house has vases in practically every room. Nothing brightens the room more than a bouquet of daffodils.

Daffodils

I was also given a couple of black raspberries from a coworker’s yard. They seem to be thriving from the transplant, and hopefully will even produce something this year.

Transplanted Black Raspberry

No more talk. Must go play. So, if you are thinking about staying inside today… get off your ass and get out there. Enjoy the fresh air, sun on your skin, dirt in your fingernails.

Much Knitting

Posted on by Dan

Virginia has been determined to finish off a bunch of projects that have been on the needles for a little while (of course “little while” is a relative term – for me, it might mean months and months, for her, just long enough to start impeding on the creative process). Nevertheless, I’ve hardly had a chance to keep up with the blog posts, so this one will showcase three of the projects most recently finished.

But, before we go in to that, I also want to say thanks for all the encouraging and thoughtful comments and messages re. my last post. I can’t say it enough, it really does make a difference getting through difficult periods knowing there are people who genuinely care about you.

Now, on to the knitting…

Handknit Mittens

These mittens are knit using a combination of Rowan Kidsilk Haze and Fleece Artist 2/6 Merino. The pattern is Theresa Gaffey’s mitten pattern #49.

Pure and Simple Henley (255)

I’m happy to benefit from so much great knitting. This sweater, Pure and Simple Henley, is made with Misty Alpaca Chunky (it is unbelievably soft, not to mention warm).

Magnolia Sweater

For herself, Virginia knit this Kim Hargreaves design (Magnolia, from Rowan Vintage Knits). She used a combination of Kidsilk Haze and Kid Classic.

Magnolia Sweater

That’s it for now. There are several more projects lining up in the cue – not to mention a sweater that I’ve been knitting on for almost two years. If I can just finish that button band…

Herringbone Sweater

Posted on by Dan

One of the many benefits of being married to Virginia is the resultant product of her prolific knitting. While my own projects seem to languish for years – waiting for a final push – she hesitates not, and makes good on her promises to finish time and again. Most recently, she knit me this:

Herringbone Sweater

It’s the Herringbone Sweater, a pattern by Erika Knight in her book Men’s Knits: A New Direction.

Herringbone Sweater

The two-color knitting makes for a nice, thick fabric that will keep me warm for winters to come (I’ll have to wait a little while, as it hangs as a shop model at The Yarnery). She used Nashua Knits Julia (a soft blend of wool, alpaca and mohair). Look at all those herring bones. What you can’t really see from this picture is the Herringbone Twill I’m beginning to weave on the ol’ tabletop – yet another distraction to keep me from finishing my own sweater (which sits in a pile in the other room).

Herringbone Sweater

As long as we’re making stuff, right?

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