Mustn't/Must Mantra

I have a lot of diverse projects on the go.

I started drafting this post with a list of those things and honestly my heart started to race with anxiety at the enormity of it so obviously I mustn't focus on barriers, or on the dim prospects of finishing anything...

I mustn't. I mustn't. I mustn't.

No I need to just take one little piece at a time and move some part of any of it forward every day and then give myself credit for doing so.

I must. I must. I must.

'Must start by recognizing successful completions ('Mustn't think how each of these was on its way to being a blog post in real time - mustn't, mustn't, mustn't)...

I organized/hosted/cleaned up after a spring-time get together for my group of friends known as "The Coffee Ladies"...

(I was originally aiming to make this an "Autumn" then "Christmas" then "Winter" get together - obviously missed those targets but I got it done before the end of the school year. Go Me!)

A couple of family dinners were also "produced" including a celebration for My Beloved's Birthday with a cake that demanded the full brunt of my baking experience and resulted in quite possibly the most amazing fire-bearing cake ever "sung" into our dining room.

This thing was a magical combination of eggs, sugar, chocolate, butter and air served beneath a wash of kir-laced, warm, fresh cherry sauce and topped with softly whipped cream. There've been fancier looking, iced cakes around here but nothing more magically delicious and delectable. Beating and baking to just the right moment were uber tricky with this one (As ever its a Martha recipe if you want to try it for yourself !)

I've also been making the effort/taking the time to dig out/integrate things I love from storage and put them to use rather than just racing to cross finish lines with what's handy. Like these awesome ceramic berry baskets my sister gave me a few years ago...

The gorgeous table cloth that reminds me of a wonderful trip My Beloved and I took to Paris...

Assembling colour blocked stacks of well worn vintage and current cook books...

"Styling" these (and other) open kitchen shelves with colour rather than the all-white look I've used the past couple of summers...

I also put myself and attending outfits together for two successful business dinners in two nights last weekend.  The first "black tie" whereof I had less than 24 hours notice and the second that demanded creative purchasing and wrapping of a gift of wine for a young engaged couple (aka the boss's son and his fiance).

We adopted a "Candle Light and Wine" theme using an oversized vase as a "champagne bucket - style holder for the wine and tucked in a big round cande with jars of decorative gravel to put beneath it.

Added wood burned tags we made

And  a card using one of my photographs

All presented in a seasonally-appropriate beachy basket at the pool-side party near the lake.

This was super fun to do, especially since My Beloved worked on it with me and possibly also because we had some Sauvignon Blanc in frosty wine glasses as we "worked". No doubt it helped to fully release our creative energy resulting in something I was happy to see on the gift table.

We got a replacement for the outdoor porch carpet after a hot lawn mower burned a series of holes into the previous one. Lack of a new rug had been delaying the porch up set up for the summer, moving the indoor plants outside to their summer homes bla, bla, bla...its done now though!

I also need to acknowledge that last week's Peony parade  did not remain an idea in my head but actually happened and has been filling the house with the most heavenly scent for nigh on two weeks. Despite peony-knocking rains every couple of days I also continue to successfully manage the "show" both inside and out for the first time ever.

Intellectual "progress" on my attempt to build a Gallery Wall as part of my Living Room upgrades. In other words through much trial and error I am starting to get an idea of what it will take to do this successfully. This is soooooo much more difficult than I had imagined.

(Just realizing how far I've come on this as I compare this photo of the assembly from a couple of weeks ago to what's spread out on the floor this morning!)

So there are successes and progress. I must use it to spur me on to find, somewhere in this knitter's brain, affection for this knit...

I must. I must. I must. There is no reason I shouldn't. It is on gauge, on plan and has already seen many, many hours of effort.

I've also wet blocked the first sleeve as well as the body which is finished to the underarms. So I'm certain of the ultimate size and shape. The thing is, I have a feeling the sleeve could use more ease. It does fit and it is knit to gauge and my original plan so I'm hesitant to rip it out for the sake of a minimal possible improvement.

Resenting that its not done already is only further delaying its completion, turning it into a barrier to planning and getting excited about the summer knitting ahead rather than the gratifying and enjoyable project it should be right now.

Unable to make up my mind as to what to do and distracted by a billionty other things (see above) I've been dealing with the question by not dealing with the question.

I must move on this! I must I must I must!

 'Have to say writing this mantra down is adding clarity and energy and releasing the blocking anxiety already.Thanks so much for dropping by - 'feels like this little "chat" has been a big help!

This Week in Peonies

Mid Life Colour

The May lecturer at the DKC was local Twisted Traditions designer Lorraine Condotta aka blogger The Sherriff of Knittingham.

Lorraine talked about her experience discovering and then designing Fair Isle that had the audience in rapt attention. (Rapt attention changing to gasps when she casually walked over to the dress form adorned with one of her creations and cut unreinforced collar and sleeve steeks to demonstrate her confidence in the stickiness of Shetland Wool!)

In talking about colour she referenced the notion of having a "mid life colour" - one that she previously hadn't considered that suddenly grabbed her attention, demanding use. In Lorraine's case it was yellow.

I've been thinking about that ever since, wondering what mine might be and I think my mid life colour seems to be an absence of colour per se. Natural, undyed, white through vaying shades of grey seem to be my current thing after decades of bold colour choices in everything from home decor to my clothing.

Its certainly coming out in my knitting...

Over the winter the painting I did around the house was all from the "whites" section of the colour deck...

After a decade of driving a cherry red car, the best part of which was the cherry-red dash that matched the exterior, I pushed for the replacement vehicle to be "Pearl White".

The question is when, four years ago this week, I went out in search of a Brown Poodle and instead came home with this...

...was that an early manifestation of my mid life colour change or the trigger that prompted it? Something to ponder as I head off to Ikea to get a pair of basic white curtain panels and a white picture frame for the cottage...hmmmmm

Not that anyone stopping by here might be old enough for such a question but just in the event someone is... do you have a mid life colour? 

P.S.

Should have included a pic of "Dirty Blankie" the other day...

Here's a link to a first hand account about a new female Shearer trained with the help of funds from Shepherd and Shearer. Seem's they're planning a second go around of the Shepherd/Shearer program this year!

Have you seen the new Spring issue of "Wool People" from Brooklyn Tweed? Here's the super fun teaser video. Here's the actual collection. An ingenue and a more mature woman modeling. I love many of the patterns but only the ones on the younger girl. Happy coincidence? Wishful thinking? Denial? A bit of both?!

I attended an Afternoon Tea yesterday - beautifully executed with lovely little tea sandwiches, fresh baked scones, clotted cream and berries and vanilla tea that was the perfect accompaniment to everything. Look at the lovely little personalized gift bags at each of our places!

Will do my second sowing of peas today and will start some pole beans in pots for transfer when/(if?) it warms up out there.

Every day this week, including yesterday, MAY FIRST, I had painfully cold hands while walking the dog - being optimistic and wearing gloves instead of wool mitts! MAY FIRST! At least it makes getting back into my regular knitting habit easier! (As do Raptor's playoff games - WE THE NORTH!)

So despite the ice going out the other day at the lake we won't be opening the cottage for a while. We're hearing there is still a lot of frost in the ground but where its melted the soil is saturated with water that can't run off through the surrounding frozen land so cars and especially trucks/SUV's are sinking into gravel cottage roads/driveways/launch ramps etc. up to their axels. We'll wait until things thaw and dry out a bit.

'Not like I can't amuse myself around here anyway! (Is that Deco calling my name?)

Finally, lest I've led you to believe Hudson's trims make him too "precious" to go out and just be a dog everyday - this is the typical "look" he sports after an afternoon romp with his pals if the weather is at all damp. Here he's demonstrating his "On the Mat!" trick where he stays by the door until I've cleaned him up and released him to race about checking the house for any new developments that may have occurred while we were out.

Have a great weekend everybody!

Bee Stitch Cloths FO

Pattern: Bee Stitch Wash Cloths

Source: Yarn Harlot Blog August 2013

Yarn: Rowan All
Colours: "Organic"#178 and "Bleached" #182

Source: Romni Wools Toronto

Needles: 4mm

Start: December 20, 2013 Finish: January 8, 2014

This Aran weight 50/50 Cotton/Nylon was fabulous to work with. (I love the tactile experience of knitting so its entertaining to experience how changing from one kind yarn to another feels "refreshing" to the hands.) This time it was a nice to change to the firm, cylindrical feel of cotton after the wooley wool of Shearer and this stuff felt pretty "beefy" even after the Super Bulky Alpaca of the Drop Stitch Cowl.

The Harlot's recommended "Bee Stitch" yields a substantial but manageable cloth for washing face, body or dishes.

What I should have done at the outset, will do in future, is divide the balls in half by weight before I start knitting. There's no magic to making an exact size so why not ensure bang for the buck with two per ball?

The Yarn Harlot, from whom I copied the idea, works from a cone of yarn - much better suited to mass production -no ends sewn midway into one of these things or wasting the better part of a ball if the remnant is insufficient to making another without a join.

I experimented with the edges for the wash cloth trying three different approaches before casting off the first one. For the dish cloth version I opted to drop a distinct edging altogether.

I also decided to forgo making any with the pink yarn. 'Not sure why, because when I started knitting these I was kind of saving the pink for the last as I was looking forward to working with it the most.

My Aunt worked up 7 "Spa Clothes" in Bee Stitch (using worsted weight cotton yarn) and packaged each up with a beautiful bar of French milled soap tied with a fabric bow. Hers were bigger than a regular wash cloth and in worsted, with her more relaxed natural tension, more open and drapey. They were beautiful and well received Christmas gifts.

In a season of gift knitting mine were started as gifts but finished as keepers. Such a selfish knitter!

(If you haven't seen enough) "Snow Day"!

'Tried to capture the snowiness here yesterday but it kept sticking to the camera lens and obliterating the view.  This view does a good job of summing it up though...

My "Gear" drying between dog walks and driveway shoveling. (>4 hours outside over the course of the day!)

During one break in my shoveling mid afternoon I looked out to see this...

Men...

Woman...

Boys and their toys eh?!

If you're somewhere the storm just left 'hope you get out and enjoy your sparkly white world today! I find the knitting is so much sweeter afterwards if you do!

Thanks for dropping by!

Cotton Trivets FO

This summer I took only select yarn, needles and planned/in progress projects to focus on at the cottage with the exception of a couple of wee balls of remnant cotton and a Mon Tricot stitch dictionary. My general thought was to turn the cotton into something for the cottage.

That cotton "doodling" yielded three little trivets for the table...

"Trinity" Stitch

Slip Stich Colourwork

"Bat" Stitch

Patterns: Trinity, Slip & Bat Stitch Trivets

Source: Vintage Mon Tricot Stitch Dictionary

Yarn: Debbie Bliss Eco Cotton Remnants

Colour: Red

Needles: 4mm straights

Start: Finish:

They turned out nice and thick to protect the table but it took some experimenting to get them that way.

I started out with big 5 stitch bobbles. I had seen these on Ravelry but that inspiration was in thick wool yarn while I had softer/lighter cotton.

After trying a few bobbles I found them too squishy to stay "bobbly" once any kind of weight was on them so I abandoned the idea. turning to the Stitch Dictionary for something "bobble-esque". I quickly landed on "Trinity" stitch.(on the right in photo below)

Once a square of that was done I switched to a thick garter rib until I'd doubled the length of the piece. Then I picked up and garter stitched matching sides to join the whole thing back into a square.

"Bat" stitch, has long floats across the right side of the work...

...naturally pulling the wrong side into thick ridges that yield a fabric well suited to my purpose.

These two designs, however, used almost all the red cotton so I mixed it with some white, doubling the colours and so, also, the thickness...

I love how the three finished pieces blend in with the vintage trivets that came from my MIL's place years ago...

I also love how Number One Son's Art homework blended in with the whole autumn vibe up north this weekend...

Obviously his assignment was to copy the Van Gogh "Self Portrait with Cut Ear". The colours of the pastels he used are awesome but I think the likeness is more of ex Toronto Maple Leaf Borje Salming than of Vincent!

The colours were at peak up north - maybe even just a wee bit past that point. This shot out a back bedroom window of the cottage is taken from Darling Daughter's lower bunk. (The window on the right is partially blocked by the ladder and upper bunk) The temperatures were truly summer-like although the water temperature was quite a normal-for-October 16 C (62F). Of course that didn't stop the kids from swimming all afternoon, Number One Son from Wake Skating every chance he got...

Or certain large creamy poodles from leaping in off the side of the boat!

So we had a great weekend - I hope you did too!