25 years ago....

My daughter was born 25 years ago today. I remember it like it was yesterday. It's hard to describe how fast the past 25 years have gone. I still kind of mourne her childhood but on the other hand I couldn't be happier in how she turned out. Sure, I made mistakes along the way and there are some things that I would do differently but I wouldn't change a single hair on her head. She amazes me everyday with her strength and her spunk. She takes shit from no one and that makes me so proud. She is very happy with her life and really - that's all a mom could ask for. 

Here we are some 20 years ago. I love this girl so much that it makes my heart hurt. 

And speaking of babies being born in February (how's that for a segue?) a coworker at the pharmacy is due any day now. I hosted the baby shower at my house. She had such a great turnout. There were about 25 to 30 ladies here! Of course I knitted something for the baby. 

This is a Quynn Hat by designer Woolly Wormhead. I've knit this little hat before. It's fast and it's cute. 

And this little vest is called Milo and it's by Georgie Hallam. I've knit this before too. It's so cute and quick to knit. That seems to be my criteria for baby knits. The yarn is from that mitten club that I was in. Blueberry pie fibers out of Ontario. The dyer specializes in self striping yarns and I especially like her worsted weight yarns. The yarn was meant to be mittens but baby knits are just as cute. Plus the yarn has the added benefit of being machine washable. 

Randomness

Well hello blog. Its been a while. I'm sticking to my story and blaming it on Instagram. I still knit, I still craft, I still take pictures of it all and I still want to share it with the online community. Like I've said before, it seems Instagram is filling that need. I don't even put my projects up on Ravelry with any regularity any more. Shhhhhhhh! I know, CRAZY!!

My whole desire to blog came about years ago as a way of documenting swap packages that I had made and received on Craftster. I can't tell you the last time I went on Craftster. I can't tell you the last time I was involved in a swap. Then the blogging more or less became a desire to document my crafting - a journal if you will. I keep telling the girls that when I'm gone (a long time from now hopefully) and the things that I've made for them are used up and worn out then at least they will always have this record to look back on. My digital footprint left for all my ancestors to see what an enterprising person their great great granny was. I still feel that way, and I still resolve to keep blogging even if I only have 9 followers.

So in that vein, here is what I've been up to the past month.

I knit a headband. The pattern is from Mel Clark's book Knitting Everyday Finery and I love it! This promises to be my most utilized knitwear to date. I wear it a lot because my hair is in a mess a lot. Its alpaca and silk and so far not too hot (mind you, we had snow yesterday, so everything is relative)



I blocked some finished projects. The stripey socks you'll recognize. The others are a cute little baby vest destined for some baby girl. The pattern is Milo and so versatile. Totally worth the few bucks that it cost. I love the little heart cable and I'll definitely be making this little pattern again. The orange beret is called "Meret". I did this as a KAL with some of the ladies on Instagram. Its made from my handspun. Its rather large on me but would likely fit my larger headed offspring no problem. I will likely gift this to her at some point.



I bought yarn! And OHMYGOD!!! Its all Socks that Rock. It is so beautiful!! All I want to do it look at it. Now thats wrong I know. I feel like buying a shadow box and framing them. I'm not sure what I'll make but right now I'm just enjoying the gorgeous colours. I think I may have fell down a rabbit hole when I joined that socks that rock club. I don't really want to knit with any other yarn. This could become dangerous.



I fixed a miss crossed cable on my Hope Springs Eternal socks from my Socks that Rock Club. I thought I could live with it, but 10 rows later it was still bugging me. I dropped those 6 or so stitches back and fixed it all - no problem. Pretty pleased with myself there.



And I finished spinning this beautiful yarn. This was spun from Rolags that I purchased from Blue Mountain Handcrafts on etsy. My first time spinning rolags and I really liked it.



Well thats my randomness for today. Hope all is well in your crafting world!

Apparently Its Spring

I'm having a hard time believing it myself. When I look outside and see that the yard is still covered in snow and I see snow in the forecast, I have a hard time believing that the calendar is correct.

I do realize that I live Labrador and that I shouldn't be surprised by the weather, but each year, I'm a little surprised by how long it lasts. People are still going out on skidoo!!

But there are reminders of spring or at least some signs of it. For example, my latest shipment from the Socks that Rock yarn club!



Isn't it pretty? Its called 'Hope Springs Eternal' and to be honest these spring colours are just what the doctor ordered. They will be socks of course, and most likely the socks that came with the club. They are very pretty and feature a picot cuff which charms me to no end.

I've also been doing some more baby knitting. Again, for a girl! This pattern is called "Milo" and is a clever little vest that allows you to use different cable details on the front. I've chosen hearts. Pretty sweet!



I have one finished object to share with you all. Its a 'For Good' hat by Megan Williams of the Stockinette Zombies podcast. I love the hat, and I love the buttons - a very good match I think.





The buttons are from etsy seller "Woodenheartbuttons" out of London, Ontario. She wrote me the sweetest note telling me her family is from Corner Brook, Newfoundland. Small world!

This post is for you, Cathy!

Last night my friend Cathy reminded my that its been May 22nd since I did my last blog post. She's been wondering if I've given up blogging - or worse...knitting. Not so, I assured her. I've just been doing a lot of baby knitting and not really finishing off things. I like to show finished items here on my blog, though I'm sure I could show some 'in progress' shots every now and again.

So, without further adieu, here is what I've been up to since May 22.

Baby item #1. A little boy vest. Nat is due any day now. Not sure of the sex of the baby. This is quite masculine. I've knit a pink cardi too (more on that in a later post Cathy, sorry)

Here is some yarn that I just finished plying. Its been spun since...forever. They were two very mismatched singles just sitting on the bobbins. In preparation for next months 'Tour de Fleece' I wanted my bobbins clear. Also, I'm going on a SPINNING RETREAT'!!!!! I'm so excited about that. I cannot wait. Its the first weekend in July. Its taking place in a small community on the west coast of Newfoundland. The spots available for the retreat filled up really quickly. The instructor will also be teaching some yoga and natural dying in addition to the spinning. I'm very stoked to be going. I was going to drive, but have opted to fly instead. I'm not sure how I'm going to get my wheel out there.

And here the beginning of a new shawl I'm working on. Can you guess who the designer is? Yup...its Stephen West. Its called Transatlantic and I love it. I'm knitting this from yarn from a recent etsy purchase. I love it. The colours are so vibrant and saturated and bright...retina searing even. Lol.

And lastly, here is a picture of some yarn that I recently spun and plied. Again, an etsy purchase. I love the combination of yellow and grey together.

Not quite there yet

But, I'm not entirely disappointed with my showing at the Knitting Olympics either. Sure, I didn't finish. But, I came pretty close. The body of the vest is done. I've only to knit the neck and the sleeve ribbing. And duplicate stitch in the green stitches on the back. And weave in the ends. Not too bad really for 17 days.

I know in my heart that this was a challenge I could have completed. I'll admit to distraction. Damn you drop spindle. Why is it that when I'm doing the Tour de Fleece, I'm distracted by my knitting and when I'm doing the Knitting Olympics I'm distracted by my spinning. I'm thinking it must be some sort of personality fault of mine.

I'll also admit to being distracted by the real Olympics. I was riveted! From the opening ceremonies and that first gold medal by Alex Biladeau to Sidney Crosby's goal, I was captivated. I am so proud of my country and never knew I was so patriotic. I even went out and bought some 'Go Canada' gear to help cheer on the hockey teams. Here is Max demonstrating!



I plan on finishing up the rest of the vest soon, and then who knows. No real plans. Exciting isn't it? I still have those gift certificates to spend at Distinctive Knitting...about 340$ worth!! I love my family and friends...and boss! Even more exciting is that I was talking to Mrs March (owner of my LYS, Distinctive Knitting) and she is going to start carrying Fleece Artist! OMG...and I am not an OMG type of girl. But...OMG!

In other news my beautiful daughter is home for her reading break. This makes me so happy. She brought back a ukelele. And she is playing it...quite well in fact. Max..not so much, but at least he is trying.


Kev just got back from a hockey tournament in Moncton. He always brings me back a gift whenever or whereever he travels. This time he brought me back a book called Knit Two by Kate Jacobs. Its a sequel to her first book called...Knit Night? or Friday Night Knitting Club? Despite me not remembering the name it did make an impression on me and I did like the book. Brain candy, I guess. A nice light read. Nothing too serious, and that is the way I like my books and movies sometimes.

Knitting Olympics Update

I'm behind on my Olympic knitting. I had hoped to be at the halfway mark by now since we are into the second half of the real Olympics. I figure I've completed about 1/4 of the vest. I haven't given up yet. I really need to focus and stop being distracted by other projects such as this one. Its another pair of Newfoundland Mittens .


I'm not sure why I'm finding these a distraction. Its not like I haven't knit these before. 6 or 7 times in fact, perhaps more since I didn't document my preravelry knitting too much. I'm just not focused at all. Perhaps its because I've made a few mistakes on the colourwork. In the interest of time, Ive decided to forge ahead and fix the mistakes later with duplicate stitch. I'm pretty certain that the mistakes can be managed with that strategy. We'll see.