Enjoying the sunshine and some knitting

 

I have wished for snow all winter but none so far. We have had some very sunny days so Buddy and I have been enjoying our walks. Tomorrow's forecast is for LOTS of cold rain. Just north of us will probably get snow but not here...but I can wish! 

I cleaned out another closet on Sunday. What?!! Right? No football to watch so I tried to be productive the past two Sundays. I don't enjoy the process of cleaning/organizing AT ALL but I have to admit it feels good when it's done. So I rewarded myself with some afternoon knitting and reading.

I finished the sleeves of my Spark sweater and started the body last night. I can't wait to wear this one!!!!! I haven't been this excited about a sweater in a while. I made it a size bigger than usual because let's face it...I'm a size bigger than I think I am! I love how the colored yarn is working up. It's so pretty.

Hope you have a good week! Can't believe February is almost over. Time flies.

My Jupiter Crop

 Tadah! It's complete. It's not cropped, it's not short sleeved, it's a little bit too small...but it's mine and it's done!

I made mine longer than the original pattern and also made it long sleeved. My project notes can be found here.

February Yarn Along

I finished knitting my Jupiter Crop last night, put it in a bath to soak, set it out to block and immediately casted on my new sweater. I've been waiting to start this since the day I bought the beautiful colored yarn in Rhinebeck! I waited patiently but it's officially on my needles and I'm LOVING it!

This is the Spark sweater designed by Andrea Mowry. I'm so excited about this one. I think I'll get a ton of wear out of it. I was inspired by the pretty leaves of Rhinebeck when I chose the color. That's the view from our house last year. It was amazing. The colored yarn is Ewetopia Helix DK in the Garden Gnome color. I paired it with Cascade 220 in Natural.

I picked up our next book club book at the library over the weekend. I haven't had a chance to start it yet but when I do I'll be using this beautiful bookmark handmade by my friend Debbie. I love it! When she posted it on her blog I secretly hoped it was for me :) 

I finished listening to this book last week and I LOVED it. I added it into Goodreads and realized I read another book by her a few years ago I also enjoyed. The author has a long list of titles so I'm going to look through it and pick another one of hers for my next book.

 

Vogue Knitting Live! NYC 2023

On Saturday, my mom, Andee and I headed to NYC on the train for Vogue Knitting Live in Times Square. We had a great room at the Marriott Marquis. Here are some pics from the adventure!

My only purchase was from Kelbourne Woolens. I really love their yarn and their monthly free hats are a favorite of mine AND Purple Debbie. So when I got the chance to meet the designer of the February hat (a Purple Debbie favorite), Kate Gagnon Osborn I had to tell her how my story of Debbie, how we met through knitting lessons, her MS and how much she loves knitting her hats. Kate was so touched and we snapped a quick selfie before I left the booth.

I bought yarn to make this hat.

This is the yarn I bought.

Mom stopped by her favorite booth, Knit Collage and got some new fabric ribbon to use in her hand loom hats.

Andee was the photographer and videographer for the Katina runway show.

While Andee finished working, mom and I headed to Becco for a delicious early dinner. YUM!

Back to the room to rest up and have a drink before we went to Broadway.

We got tickets at the TKS booth in the morning and went to see Book of Mormon. We loved it!

Right before we left Sunday morning, I had a chance to meet up with Robin from The Knittin Coop in person! So nice to finally meet friends in real life.

Thank you again to my mom for spoiling us. We're very lucky girls!

I came home to these beautiful roses from my husband. It had been a long week and he treated me to a Valentines Day present a few days early. Like I said, I'm a lucky girl.

 

February "Yarn Along"

I was inspired by my friend, Purple Debbie, and casted on a double brim hat.

I think it will be perfect to wear when walking Buddy. Nice and cozy against my ears.

I've made one before but I did a horrible job joining it. This went a lot better but I definitely didn't get it perfect. But that's ok...it's just for me so no big deal.

We have been having an awful few weeks around here. My sister's mother-in-law has been battling pancreatic cancer for almost a year. Can someone find a cure for it please??!!!! It's just been awful to see her suffer. She has been fighting so hard but we knew the end was near. 

As I sat and waited yesterday for the news we all knew would be coming soon, I read this entire book,

We All Want Impossible Things by Catherine Newman.

I found Catherine after reading one of my favorite non-knitting blogs, Cup of Jo.

You can read a few of her posts here and here. We are always trying to find the humor in every situation and the past few weeks has been VERY hard to find the humor. But we tried our best! I inhaled every page. I laughed, I cried, it kept me company while I waited. Grief, death, dying, it's all sucky. That's for sure. But we will celebrate her life and remember her every day. We promise to keep her memory alive for her grandchildren. I don't often write to an author after I read a book, but thanks for social media, it's easy to do that these days. I sent Catherine a message on Instagram and she immediately wrote me back. I thanked her for writing this novel and how it kept my mind busy all day. It also provided a very comforting look at dying and hospice, and friendship. And now I want to try the lemon cake.

As I woke to the news I dreaded getting, a calm came over me. 

It's the clearest my head has been in weeks. The pain is over. Now we can celebrate a life.

And the dog still needs to be walked....so we headed up to the neighbor's pond and got our energy out.

 

Drink the coffee, do the things, and knit!

 I don't typically have more than two projects going at once. I like to have a long-term project like a sweater on my needles at all times. I also like to have some quicker travel friendly projects, baby hats, etc., that I can sell in the coop or gift to people.

I have had a few custom baby blanket orders lately so I knitted up another Knit Four Points Baby BlanketKnit Four Points Baby Blanket. This time I used Lionbrand Mandala Ombre skeins. I picked two different color ways and set them up opposite of each other. This is a really easy and quick knit if you need a baby blanket gift. I knit it on big needles and the yarn is super soft. 

I also did some more knitting on my Jupiter Crop sweater. This project was sitting in a bag for a while because I ran out of the main color yarn. My friend Mandy had an extra skein in her stash and so kindly mailed it to me. Knitting friends are the best right?! The sweater is supposed to be short sleeves but I prefer long or 3/4 length. So I made mine to end right above my watch. I've heard people calling this "bracelet length" lately and I think that's a perfect way to describe it!

It is supposed to be worn as a cropped sweater and although I made it considerable longer than the pattern called for, it's still not me...I just don't look good in that style with my body type. One day I will learn!!!! SO, the plan is to steek it when I'm done with the sleeves. I think I'll get more use out of it as a cardigan. And my mom gave me so me pretty buttons for Christmas that will be perfect! So that's the plan.

I'm still working on my Mountain Mist sweater. I have an inch to go and I'll be ready to split for my sleeves.

Thank you for the kind messages and prayers for my sister's mother in law. She is day to day right now and not out of the woods by any means. It's heartbreaking, a rollercoaster of emotions and it's just so sad. But we have each other for support and we are praying for a miracle!  For now I will keep drinking the coffee, doing the things and KNIT!

I knit when...

I knit when I'm happy. I knit when I'm sad. I knit when I watch tv. I knit when I watch sports. I knit when I have a spare minute. 

But I REALLY knit when I'm stressed. 

When my mind is racing with worry, I knit. Even better, I cast on a new project. As my hands keep busy knitting, my mind and worries slow down a bit. Knitting is how I cope. It's what makes the hard times manageable. When my dog was sick over Christmas, I sat under the dining room table with him, knitting in hand. I knit and knit and knit.

We have had a very sad and emotional week over here. A dear family member is fighting for her life right now after battling illness for the past year. We all feel like we are in quicksand. Unable to function much and worrying every second of the day.  So I started one of my 2023 Rhinebeck Sweaters. Through my tears and worries, I have been knitting. Row by row, my stress has gone into this sweater. I pray for peace and healing. And as I do that, I will continue knitting. 

My Rhinebeck Sweater