Wednesday, January 25, 2017

Things Made of Yarn / Reading

I've been more interested in knitting and crocheting than stitching lately. It seems like everything I want to stitch involves fiddling with colors and fabric choices and I just haven't felt like making an effort. I think I'm in a mid-winter funk. 

I've been working on three things. My favorite (despite my troubles with it) being Circumnavigate. I can't believe I started over three times on this. No matter how careful I was it ended up twisted, but I persevered and celebrated each row that was knit without being twisted. The yarn is so soft, and I love the color (of course blue is a favorite) and color name -- Cloudy Sky!


Next is the Churchmouse Vintage Crocheted Blanket. This blanket originally started out as a Christmas gift for my sister but has become a present for her April birthday. I can be more mindless with crocheting than knitting, so this has probably been the most relaxing - very good to work on right before bed. 


And finally the Best Friend Scarf -- you've seen this before, and I don't know you may be seeing it forever because it seems to be the endless project. I keep saying "If it's the last thing I do I'm going to finish this thing!" and it may very well be the last thing I do at this rate. : ) Although it didn't make it for the intended Christmas gift I was hoping to make it for my daughter's birthday which is on Monday -- ha ha! I'm pretty sure it will be quite a while before I knit another scarf. And do you notice a pattern?? I'm terrible at deadline knitting/crocheting!



I'm hoping to possibly, maybe knit a sweater this year. Mary was kind enough to provide some helpful links, and I think I may have narrowed it down to two. Either the Go-To Cardigan or the Featherweight Cardigan. I had downloaded the pattern for the Featherweight Cardigan a while ago, and it seems doable -- emphasis on seems. It's not the stitches I have a problem with but sometimes interpreting what the pattern is asking me to do so we will see.


I'm still not settled on a reading plan for the year. I'm currently reading three books -- The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History which I'm finding very hard to put down. Anna Karenina which I'm enjoying now that I'm more accustomed to the writing style and The Plague of Doves.



We had some wild weather yesterday - a nor'easter which brought some very scary winds that have lingered into today although thankfully not quite as brisk. I find the wind to be a little unsettling as does Lola. She has been very wary -- sure someone is trying to come in the door. : ) At least I caught her upright for a change. It seems she spends most of her time asleep - in the linen closet.


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Well, this post ended up being a lot longer than I intended so until next time -- wishing you peace!

p.s. I think spring is only about 55 days away!

18 comments:

diamondc said...

Hi Penny: Lola is adorable, my cat Blondie wants to sleep under the kitchen sink, if I go under there to toss something in the trash can she scoots in and spends hours there.
I am in awe od people who knit and crochet, I love all your choice's the blue color is stunning, the multi colored red is beautiful, thank-you for sharing with us.
I hope that nor'easter is all gone now, we had about 3/4 inch today, not enough to use the snow blower ugh, now it is blowing back on the sidewalk and driveway.

Blessings
Catherine

Vickie said...

Oh Penny your projects are so pretty. And warm! :D

Barb said...

Maybe no cross stitch but certainly some lovely projects. What a cute photo of your kitty. Isn't it interesting how the weather affects animals?

Preeti said...

Your knitting and crochet projects are so wonderful ! Lovely patterns and color choices for all :) I don't have patience for knitting but I love crocheting a lot. Cute cat:)

Lumiruusu said...

I really admire your knitting and crocheting skills ..all the projects look very very pretty .Thank You for visiting my blog.

Mary said...

ooh, such pretty projects! (and you reminded me I have that afghan in progress from a few years ago...might need to get it back out again!)

Astrids dragon said...

I wish I had the patience to knit, everything you're working on is so lovely!
Lola looks very sweet, don't they always find the best place to sleep?!

Julie said...

I'm drooling at the screen looking at your knitting... love the best friend scarf, might have to knit me one of those.
Circumnavigate looks a bit of a fiddly one, it would be no good me knitting that at the craft group, I'd get all mixed up with it. The blanket looks nice and cosy, great colours combo.
Lola is adorable!

Melissa said...

Well you are busy! You've got lots of lovely things on the go! I like both those cardigans that you are eyeing. I've loved the Featherweight cardigan forever but not sure I want to start with that on fingering, seeing I haven't knitted a cardigan for myself ever! I might try a start on the Harvest cardigan by Tin Can Knits (free) as it uses worsted weight yarn.

Carol said...

Oh, the blue knitting project is just lovely, Penny! I, too, am just not inclined to be fiddling with color changes, fabric choices, and such right now. I need something soothing like a Prairie Schooler with good old DMC! You are lucky you know how to do other creative things like knitting and crocheting... Some day, I'll learn!

Impressive reading list you've got going! Can't say I've ever been brave enough to tackle of those gigantic Russian novels :)

Poor Lola--I'm with her, though. I get very skittish during high winds--just can't imagine living in a hurricane or tornado prone area...

Sally said...

I love your projects Penny. They are just beautiful. I think a change from the usual stitching is nice sometimes.

Margaret said...

Love all your pretty knitting and crochet! Nice nice!!!! Love Anna Karenina. Love Tolstoy in general, at least his famous books. Oh, and beware -- if you choose the Featherweight cardi, I know various people have said the sleeves are tight. You might need to add more stitches to make them comfortable, unless you have skinny arms. Even those who are fit have commented on the tightness of the sleeves. Hope you go for a sweater! I love sweater knitting!

Sarah in Stitches said...

I absolutely LOVE your knitting/crochet projects! The scarf is a gorgeous color. Good luck finishing them off! I can't wait to see the finished products :D

The Eskimo's Wife said...

Those are so pretty. I especially love the one with the purple. I read Anna Karenina in high school and it wasn't my favorite. I revisited it recently and found there were nuances and undertones that I understood much better as an adult. So the second time around was much better.

Rachel said...

You have some very beautiful projects, your kitting is beautiful!

Brigitte said...

Knitting and crocheting grows on me the more projects I see on the blogs. But so far it only happened in my mind. Maybe one day it will also happen in real life, who knows.
I love both your knitting projects. And that crochet blanket is a real dream - colours and pattern.
I haven't read much in January but at least I started a couple of books - just to stop reading them after 100 pages of so. I'll see what I can do about it this month, lol.

Annie said...

Lovely knitting and crocheting. The scarf is so pretty in that variegated blue with such an interesting pattern. Nice to be able to rotate on these larger projects to keep from getting bored. Never thought about starting an afghan to crochet when I didn't want to think too hard, but that's a great idea.

Have fun with a sweater pattern!

Karoline said...

All your knitting and crochet projects are looking lovely especially circumnavigate.

You are reading some great books, I have a feeling I'm due a re-read of Anna Karenina