Take Two

It's been quite a week.  A topsy-turvy week.  My schedule is in a bit of a free fall, and every day I rearrange priorities and shift deadlines.

The holiday baking isn't finished.  To be honest, it isn't even started unless you count buying all the ingredients.  I've delegated some of the baking to a couple of my kids, and I'm hopeful that piles of cookies will appear.  I want to pop a few cards in the mail, there's decorating that needs attention and I should take the vacuum cleaner for a whirl around the living room.  So it goes.  It seems that holidays in a pandemic are just as chaotic as in normal times.

As for knitting, the other day I decided a do-over was in store for my Blurry Cowl.  I was pondering it while waiting for the furnace to be fixed.  I was so cold my options for productive activity were limited.  I wasn't that far along with the project, so it was easy to justify starting over.

I swapped the placement of the two colors, and I must say I like this better.  It's easier to see the texture in this section.  Weekend plans include plenty of knitting (after baking, cards, decorating and cleaning), and this project will probably see plenty of action.

I'm a big fan of winter.  We had a decent snowstorm the other day, and now the world is covered in white.  This week's color inspiration . . .

Peace and quiet in the Back Bay.

Waiting for Heat

I started out with the best of intentions for a productive day but was quickly derailed when I went downstairs and noticed a chill in the air.  The temperature was just above 50 degrees.  I made a couple phone calls and a cup of coffee.  While I waited, I quickly constructed an alternate plan for the day.

Before long, the furnace guy was here assessing the situation . . . up and down, back and forth between the cellar and the thermostat.  He determined he needed a new part and off he went.  While this was unfolding, I scratched baking off the list for today.  It's too hard to bake cookies with a parade of extra people marching through the kitchen.

I found myself hanging out in the dining room so I could monitor the commotion without being in the way.  Since baking was out of the question, I turned my attention to knitting.

That led me to this sock.  This is one of last year's sock club installments.  The first sock is finished, and I've been meaning to make the second one.  Now that winter is upon us, a new pair of socks would come in handy.  

At the end of the day, I don't have fresh cookies, but I do have a second sock in progress.  And more important, the heat is back on.

Sweater Hiatus

I've been focused on sweater knitting, but I had to take a brief hiatus.  It's not by choice.  One sweater is almost done.  I can see the finish line, but my stitch count is off and I had to give it a little rest.  Ripping out mohair isn't a pretty sight, and I can only take it in small doses.  On the other end of sweater production, I'm ready to start a new one but there's some waiting involved.  I dyed the yarn over the weekend, and it's still drying.

It's a good thing I had started this project, because now it can fill the gap.  This is Blurry Cowl.  It takes two colors, and today I'm thinking of swapping the colors.  That means I'd have to rip this out, but I'm OK with that.  Either way it's an entertaining project.

Hot Water and Socks

My family is in the midst of birthday season.  Our birthdays are clustered together, and the fun starts in December.  This year we won't be celebrating in the usual way, but we're still trying to mark the occasions within pandemic restrictions.  Babies are born, birthdays are celebrated, weddings take place . . . all in the midst of a pandemic.  

My daughter Estrella has the first December birthday, and at the beginning of the week, we had a celebration plan in place.  By this afternoon, we had to revisit those plans.  Making plans and then revising plans is part of life in a pandemic.  We'll repeat the whole process in a week or so with another birthday celebration.

After everything was settled, I made a grocery store run for birthday party essentials.  I came home to discover we don't have hot water.  That doesn't bode well, but I shrugged it off.  It's 2020 after all.  This year has been an exercise in rolling with the punches.

Now for some knitting content.  Signups are open for Yarn Knot Socks, our sock club.

Each installment includes a skein of sock yarn plus a coordinating mini.  The club has three installments, and the first one ships next month.  Sign up for one, two or all three.  Details on the website.

With that, I'm off.  I've avoided the hot water situation long enough, and I'd better investigate.  Cheers to the weekend!

This week's color inspiration . . .

A collection of neutrals.

Hat Season

It's that time of year when I'm always wearing a hat . . . walking the dog, running to the post office.  My office can be cool and drafty so some days I even wear one while I'm working at my desk.

My pandemic coping strategy includes looking for cheer, and I decided a couple new hats would lift my spirits.  Last month I made the Star Top Beanie, and I love it.  A soft, cozy mohair hat cheers me up, so earlier in the week I cast on another one.

This time I'm using Dark Chocolate.  It's the perfect project for meetings or those times when I just need to knit a few simple rounds.  Fuzzy Hat Kits are available on the website and include a coordinated pom pom.  Treat yourself or make one for a gift.  It's hat season.

Toetoe

This sweater has been off the needles for a while . . . patiently waiting for buttons.

Toetoe.

I love everything about this sweater.  It was an engaging knit with just enough action to keep me entertained.  

There are twisted stitches and a simple cable pattern running down the front.  I used a tubular bind off on all the edges.  The sweater would have been ready for action a while ago, but I took my time with the button decision.  I had a lot of fun considering different options.

The yarn is Marybelle DK in Sunflower.  This non-superwash base knits up beautifully and blocks like a dream.  It's a hearty wool that's not too scratchy.  I'm smitten and getting ready to cast on another sweater with this base.

In normal times, this sweater would have been a sample.  Since shows aren't happening any time soon, it's all mine and I'm thrilled that it's a good fit.  I still might use it for a sample some day, but for now I'm going to enjoy wearing it.

A Rescue Operation

Yesterday we rearranged the kitchen and scrubbed almost everything from top to bottom.  It was a long day of cleaning and organizing.  Today I still had that cleaning mojo, so I unleashed it on several languishing knitting projects.

I liberated a few pairs of knitting needles and extricated severals balls of yarn for projects to be determined at a later date.  These were the last projects still held captive by my own indecision, and I've declared the whole rescue operation a complete success.  As a bonus, I now have empty bags ready and waiting for new projects.

This week's color inspiration . . .

Festive.