Treat

Today, I worked hard. So, I decided to treat myself to a little something special. 

        Cast on before starting dinner

      And finished in time for my shower. 

 To any and all of my knitting readers: take a few minutes and do something nice for yourself. We all deserve a treat once in a while. We knitters have a special ability to turn the mundane into the memorable, and I plan to use that skill more often in the future. 

Tomorrow: Stitches Midwest Recap!

Surprise

Betcha thought I was gone, huh? Yep, I did, too. But, I'm back. The last five months have been nothing but socks--the equivalent of tying a knot at the end of your rope and holding on. My life seems to finally be in order. Tomorrow, my best knitting pal and I are headed to Stitches Midwest! I really can't wait--I need to sing the song of my people. 

Oh, also? We got married in June. 

It was all we ever wanted it to be. We honeymooned in Disney, and have been back in Chicago for a while now, working our buns off to save for when I go back to school. I think I'm finally ready to come back to the blog, and the improvements Blogger has made to the app are extremely encouraging. I never could get the pictures set into the text before. I hope to get some good pictures of our adventure, tomorrow!

Blue Skies

It has been an embarrassingly long time since my last post. Life has been a blur of early mornings at work and late nights at rehearsal. However, all of my hard work is paying off and this weekend, I anticipate very successful performances. The snow is melting, the birds are singing, and the wild rabbits are reappearing. Spring is most certainly on its way, and I am so ready. I feel like the turn of the seasons will be bringing many good things with it, and that there will be a lot of blue sky in the months to come. I'll be back soon with details about Ysolda's online Squam class, and to talk about all the socks I've been knitting. I have a rare night off, the dark day preceding opening night, and I plan to use it well.

Inch by Inch

This is River.

Slowly but surely, she is growing.

A Fighting Chance

It has been so hard to knit, lately. That pair of red socks that I showed you in my last post? They're still not done. I could ordinarily finish them in something like three days, but it's been much longer than that. I started a new wrap that is gorgeous and promising, but it's only about three inches long. School and work and rehearsal are conspiring to leave me with no free time, and what precious minutes I can steal away from my responsibilities usually turn into an unexpected nap, because I'm using all of the energy I have.

However, today I have arranged a tiny, tiny vacation. I had an unusually empty Monday, with only one thing on my schedule, and I cancelled it. That means that I have a total day off for the first time since Christmas break. I have a few things to take care of, but it will mostly be a day of knitting. A day of knitting and movies and finally getting to call my family. A day of cooking what I want for lunch, and getting to eat it at home. A day of relaxing and enjoying the quiet of an empty house. I'm so thankful for this day. I hope very much that, despite the chaos of my schedule, I will manage to come back soon and share pictures of whatever my needles produce on this marvelous day. I've got a big pot of one of my favorite coffees, and a big pile of yarn waiting for me.

Three

Three years ago today, I cast on my first knitting project--a red scarf for my little brother. I had hopes of one day being able to produce some of the beautiful lace that I drooled over on Ravelry. I had no idea that this new endeavor would become such an enormous part of my life. I didn't know that, one day, I would never leave the house without a sock. I didn't know that there would be a day when movies and knitting were inseparable. I didn't know that knitting would keep me company through the happiest and saddest moments of life, and that it would keep me warm during my first frigid Chicago winter. I didn't know that it would be something I could share, both with strangers and with my dearest friends, and that it would bring us all so much closer together. It has changed me in so many ways, and I continue to see growth every day. I'm so blessed to have found something that has touched my life in so many ways, and will continue to accompany me in little and big moments, for as long as my hands obey me.

There and Back Again

Sorry for the huge lapse in posts! Ben, Spook and I went home to New Orleans for a week, and now school is starting and things are crazy! I've been knitting socks, so I'll probably do a sock post soon with lots of pictures. And I still need to share pictures of the mittens! I had such a nice time with my loved ones in New Orleans, and now it's time to get back to the work-school-rehearsal routine (and squeeze some knitting in.)

Here's a few pictures from my week at home:

Every Time a Bell Rings...

Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays to all of my internet friends! We had a lovely, quiet day here in Chicago, and I worked on Ben's second pair of socks, cooked, and am about to settle down and watch It's a Wonderful Life before I go to bed. Today, just before we settled in to open our presents, it began to snow! It snowed for several hours, leaving just enough of a sparkling layer to make everything glisten beautifully. I'll be back tomorrow afternoon with pictures of mittens and--finally--talk of the Suupa Seekrit Holiday Knitting! I hope that you all are having a beautiful, peaceful night.

Thankful

Sorry for letting a few days go by with no posts! I've spent the last couple of days cleaning the daylights out of our home, and I'm extremely pleased with the results! However, the main reason I haven't posted wasn't the cleaning.
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The next bit of this post is going to be a bit of a downer, but I promise, the post ends with happy things and knitting. Stick with me.
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It's a very long story, but here's the quick version: the other night, I was organizing my stash, and there was an extremely loud noise. After investigation, we discovered that the apartment next door, whose residents were not home, was engulfed in flames. This was the room directly next to our room. The only reason that we still have a home is because the walls in this old building are made of concrete. The loud noise I had heard was the sound of the entire ceiling, complete with ceiling fan, collapsing to the floor. Several hours after our discovery, the firemen finally left, and we returned to our unharmed apartment, incredulous, shaky, and inexpressibly thankful. Incredibly, we had absolutely no damage. The following morning, we saw the interior of the neighbor's room in the daylight, and it had been reduced by the flames to a black and ashy hole in our hallway. It's taken us a few days to recover from the shock of this event, and I've done a lot of knitting, and a lot of cleaning, to cope with my frayed nerves. We are grateful beyond words, and have been celebrating our blessings by making our home as nice as possible.

I've been working on converting one corner of our tiny apartment into a sort of knitting area, with a floor pillow and all of my knitting books and supplies nearby. It's almost done, but it needs an area rug, so I'll take pictures when it's complete. I spent a lot of time sitting there today, listening to records and going through all of my project bags and storage containers, winding remnants of yarn into little balls and getting rid of trash. As a result, my stash, projects, and supplies are 100% organized. I have located absolutely every item I own, and everything has a place and is in that place. My yarn is sorted by weight into a plastic storage container with drawers, and I have made one of my decorative storage boxes for project bags, WIPs, and small finished objects, and the other for supplies. I'm really excited that everything is so well organized now, because I think I'll spend much more time knitting, and much less time looking for things.

I also finally got some pictures of the blue mittens, which I will share with you tomorrow! I'm now going to get started on my one bit of holiday knitting, which is a project that shouldn't take too long. When I get that finished up, I'll be sharing it with you! I'm so happy to be spending this quiet evening safe in my home, with all of the people and things I love unharmed. I hope that all of you are having similarly peaceful evenings.

Doe

This shawl turned out totally differently than I thought it would, and I find that very symbolic. (In case you haven't noticed, I find most of my FO's symbolic. Humor me.)

It's hard to explain how it's symbolic or why, but I can show you how surprising the transformation was. When I finished, I thought that I'd block and wind up with a beautifully simple and functional piece.

But, then I blocked, and the yarn and the pattern worked together to create something even more gorgeous than I originally expected.

I enjoyed this project immensely. It was soothing and the finished product is gorgeous. I'm so pleased.

Details:
Pattern: Damson by Ysolda Teague
Yarn: Malabrigo Sock in Primavera
Needles: 4.5mm

I would normally have used 4.0mm needles for something like this, but I used my handmade needles that I got at VKL at the beginning, and realized when I transferred onto circulars that they lean more toward 4.5mm. So, I transferred onto 4.5mm circulars, and I don't mind the larger gauge. Also, I left off the border because I didn't have enough yarn due to the slightly larger gauge. I think this particular version of Damson in this yarn looks better without the edging.

Also, my Cyber Monday yarn purchases came yesterday!!!!! I'll share some pictures soon, but I will say one thing now: There Will Be Socks.

Oh, and they put up a beautiful tree in the tiny park where we took our photoshoot. It's the holiday season, yay!

Old Faithful

Because I am supremely sleepy, I'm just going to share this one thing from yesterday's photo shoot, and the new shawl will wait until tomorrow when I am making sense.

I made these gloves two years ago, and just took finished pictures of them yesterday. For shame. However, the good news is that they look exactly like they did the day I finished them.

I cobbled these together from a few different fingerless glove patterns on Ravelry, and I've worn them daily for two, going on three winters. They are phenomenal, durable, and comfortable--and I can't say enough for gloves with long wrists.

There's not much more I can say about them, because I didn't really use a single pattern. They were knitted with KnitPicks Telemark, which is a remarkably durable yarn. I think that yarn, combined with the tight gauge, is what's kept them looking the same for the past two years. I highly recommend this yarn for gloves, although I think it may be discontinued.

I'll be back tomorrow with many pictures of my newest completed shawl. For now, I leave you with a picture (one of many) that we took of this adorable bird who kept us company during our shoot:

Goodnight, all!

A Long-Delayed Introduction

It is a beautiful day here in Chicago, and Ben and I went to a little park and had a little photo shoot of several different knits. Now, I can finally share them with you all! It's about time that I properly introduce Esperanza.

She started like this:

And, slowly but surely, she grew:

Then, one night, she was done:

I blocked her the next morning:

I wore her to VKL:

And now, finally, I made the time today to take proper photos of her outside:

It's about time. I couldn't be happier.

Pattern: Queen Anne's Lace by MMario
Needles: 3.5mm dpns and 4.00mm circulars
Yarn: Malabrigo Lace in Verde Esperanza

I love, love, love this pattern. Please knit it, you won't regret it.

P.S. I'll be back tomorrow with more from the photoshoot!

Spooktacular

A year ago today, Spook came into our lives. It was a totally unexpected development for me to have a rabbit, although I'd wanted one for a long time. He was so tense and afraid in those early months, and through the last semester of my undergrad, I was so busy that we didn't get a whole lot of quality time together. That, combined with the hectic nature of my household at the time, meant that his demeanor didn't get a whole lot more relaxed while I was living in New Orleans.

However, then we put him in the big orange truck with us and brought him to Chicago, and everything changed. In the three-ish months since we've gotten here, Spook and I have bonded to a degree that I could only have dreamed of, before. We have a morning routine where we hang out while the coffee's brewing, and we frequently cuddle with him lying on my stomach. Moving here helped so much, because he's near us all day, every day, and we interact with him constantly. I'm so thankful that he is a part of our little family, and I can't imagine our home without him.

(He had been sleeping, and opened his eyes because he heard me taking the picture. He sprawls out like this to sleep all the time, and I love it so much.)


So, Happy Birthday, little man. I can't wait to see what the next year will bring.

Thankful

Thanksgiving got here so quickly, this year. We didn't plan on staying here originally, and suddenly Thanksgiving was coming and we were staying and I needed to cook! I wound up getting it all together at the last minute, and combined with Ben's birthday yesterday, I've done a tremendous amount of cooking in the past 48 hours! But, it was all so, so worth it. We have had an amazing couple of days, and we really needed the break. This was our first holiday in our own home, and I thought I'd be sad and homesick, but instead I was excited, optimistic, and proud of the job we did. I think I'm going to take a page from the Yarn Harlot's book and do this one photo-essay style. I really should have broken out my proper camera, but everything was moving too fast. These will do.

(He didn't eat much of his plate, but it was the spirit of the thing that mattered.)

I'm so proud of the meal I cooked and the experience we had today. This will certainly be a holiday I remember for years to come--I've never had a Thanksgiving where I felt so thankful.

As for knitting, I've been working on a Damson with some straight needles I bought at VKL and some Mal Sock that I bought while my friend Eryn was visiting me around Halloween. I'll be posting more pics of that soon. I'm also going to start knitting Christmas stockings for our house! I'm going to get some yarn for that soon, I can't wait to start them. I hope that everyone had as good of a day as I did--today bodes well for the rest of the holiday season. And now that my kitchen is immaculate one more, time for some much deserved relaxation and knitting. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.

Whirlwind

Holy wow, it's been a while. Since last we talked, there's been the rest of the opera, and finals week. Now, Thanksgiving is upon us! I am enjoying the second of two deliciously consecutive days off, and soon I will make a big post about VKL and all of the goodies I got there! For now, just know that there is knitting going on, and that I'm still alive!!

Crazy Pants

I just wanted to stop by and say that I am, indeed, alive. Tonight is the opening of my opera, and one of my best friends and fellow knitters has been staying with me this week, so it's been amazing. It's also been incredibly busy, which is why I haven't posted much. But, I will be back soon with pictures of VKL and all of the goodies I got there! In the meantime, send me good mojo for this weekend's shows!

The Time Has Come

Y'all. I am at Vogue Knitting Live. The marketplace opens in six minutes. I'm wearing Esperanza. The hotel is gorgeous. And there are free lectures that I just found out about. I am going to take a million pictures, and I'll tell you all about it tomorrow!!

Victory

Esperanza is complete. I have three rows of plain knitting, and then I cast off. I can't believe she's done. It's been hours of work, and I'm so happy with the result, so far. I can't wait to see her blocked! Completing Esperanza is extremely meaningful for me. I cast her on as a symbol of hope, and as she grew, so did I. Things are so much better in my life than they were the day I cast her on, and it's so wonderful to have a physical manifestation of all of the work that went into that change. I can't wait to share pictures of her, completely finished. My Green Hope has grown into something truly lovely.

Day One

Well, today was my first day at Caribou! It was a lot of fun! There's so much new information to take in, but I think I'll have it under my belt soon. My manager and coworkers are really, really nice, and there's really nothing about this job that I don't like, so far. I have more training next weekend, but nothing tomorrow, so I'm going to be spending some quality time with Esperanza while I get a little much-needed R&R! I'm so glad I managed to get a job in coffee. Also, one of my closest friends, who was my inspiration to work in coffee, may be returning to her true calling soon! All of this is very good news, people. Very good news, indeed. Today was an entirely fabulous day. Spook fell asleep in my arms tonight, relaxed and clearly content. His heart rate was slow and steady, his paws and ears were relaxed, and his eyes closed. This is a huge step for us. He also gave me lots of kisses when he woke up--another recent bit of progress. Things are just getting better and better. I can't wait to see what happens next.

"When in doubt, breathe."

Today is one of those really magical days that starts as a total pile of crap and turns into something fantastic. I just had a fabulous haircut--my first since I left New Orleans, and it was so well done! Now, I'm sitting in a pizzeria that I've been wanting to try, enjoying the breeze through the open window and working on Clementine. Later I'll go to rehearsal, and then it's practically the weekend! I would never have guessed how great this day would end up. I hope your day is going just as well!