Confessions of a Cold Wimp

A few weeks back, I was excited to feel that first crisp, ever so slightly damp & cool, night air move in. It was such a pleasant reprieve from the heat & humidity we were experiencing once summer finally decided to show up, here in the usually frozen tundra. That first refreshing sense of coolness had me reaching (too soon) for my wool sweaters, wool hats, and a more sensible alpaca & silk scarf, and dreaming of knitting and designing many more- or what may turn out to be 1 more, with the way my schedule has been working out lately, and that's okay...

But this- this high of 45 degrees, overcast and drizzly rain all day, the kind that just chills your very bones, well, mine sure feel chilled, especially my feet, even in my thick leather Danskos, -this is not refreshing. I'm a cold wimp, and I don't particularly care for the overcast skies, either- it's time to load up on full-spectrum bulbs. And blankets. And sweaters. And more wool socks...

It's also time for more roast chicken and more nourishing chicken bone broth. Then maybe some red chili, some white chili, and even some green chili- can you tell I love chili?! Hehe, thankfully, my children do too! Some chicken tortilla soup, stewed tomato & onion, garlicky potato, corn chowder, broccoli cheese, oh, my, how I love this time of year. I spend my summers waiting for soup season. We even host an annual soup party- (heads up local friends and family, 1st Saturday of November, mark your calendars!)

Early last week, in the couple days before life turned upside down for a while, I designed and knit a new hat for my little Mercy. It's so big and warm, knit with Blue Sky Alpacas Bulky, and as soon as I get my hands on some more of that yarn (which has to wait until I can decide on a color, ooh, that can be so hard sometimes!), I'm going to knit myself a monochromatic one, and I'm very excited about that. Could be a little too excited about that, giddy almost, which could indicate an intense love of big hats or an intense lack of sleep, possibly a little bit of both, well, maybe surely a little bit of both.

Ooh, in other news, there is this "Unique Boutique & Antiques Tour" (travelling antiques and boutiques!?! who knew?!?) happening locally right now- I stopped by a pole barn across the field from us (um, yep, we live in a pretty rural community, hehe) and oooh-ed and aaah-ed a bit today, falling in love with a chunky black bench which I think simply needs to be in my house, even though I'm really not sure where... but it's 5 1/2 ft long, very sturdy, has a nice back, and it's only $65!!, which, I'm pretty sure, is an excellent price for such a large piece of furniture. I want to go back for it, but I need to decide where to put it... seriously.

Ok, back to work,

happy knitting-

ali

**health update- the girls are still coughing quite a bit, still finishing up their steroid bursts, and will remain on albuterol nebs for several days, and controller meds for the entire winter, at least...

March in Minnesota

It got to 63 degrees on Monday (yesterday), and after a sunny and mildly warm weekend, last Friday's snowmen are gone... Mid 50's today, mid 40's tomorrow, and I should know better than to have even looked at the 10 day forecast. It may snow again next Tuesday, but then again, it may not, those 10 day forecasts aren't always that reliable...

At any rate, even given Minnesota's reputation for snowy Marches and even Aprils, now would not be the best time for this knitter to embark on the pair of beautiful mittens I intended to knit this year. Which beautiful mittens? Oh, any beautiful mittens... I hadn't even decided, there are so many I like, I just knew I wanted to make a pair of fancy, beautiful mittens. But do you know what I wore all winter? I wore a pair of those stretchy little glove thingies I picked up last year for $1. Pathetic. Though I did think they were pretty cool when paired with and worn under my Evangelines.

I'm not going to feel like knitting mittens in August, but would somebody be kind enough to remind me to start some lovely mittens towards the end of summer? Thanks.

I think this time of year would be good for a big comfy pullover- kind of like a hooded sweatshirt but less like something you'd wear to the gym. Or maybe a cozy cardigan, for when easy layers are needed. I'm itching to knit something big, like an actual sweater, for me, but I'm having serious decisiveness deficiency issues... Any suggestions?

In the meantime, while I hem and haw over that one, I've got some more little things to put some finishing touches on. Right now I'm working on a girls' shrug and I'm playing with some embellishment ideas. Embellishment can be so tedious, but it can make a garment so much more than ordinary, it is almost always worth it.

One more sleeve to embroider, then I'll pick up and knit the edging, then, hopefully soon, I'll have a finished object- yay!

Teenager has a violin 'performance class' tomorrow- I need to get a better/faster memory card so I can catch some good video, that, and look up the studio's address so I know where in Minneapolis I'm supposed to be heading... Probably shouldn't knit at a function like that, eh? We'll see...

Happy knitting-

ali

All in the family...

In other recent pattern news...
I'm finally getting around to posting a finished pic of the bulky jacket (Girls' Smocked Coat) I did for Blue Sky Alpacas- I think it turned out pretty cute, if I may say so myself (I've got some pink to make my little M one this fall...) The collar wanted to curl a little, but some good 'I mean business' blocking helped tame it. Cute models can really make just about anything look good, combine a cute model and a cute coat made from Blue Sky Alpacas' scrumptious Bulky (check out the new colors), and, well, there ya go!

My sister managed to crank out this georgous thing, knit up in 100% baby alpaca, Melange (so incredibly soft!) and adorned with that fabulous trim- the photo shoot turned out great! Oh, and take a peak at CathiPink's version in Relish... lovely, n'est pas?

And in the 'oh-my-goodness' (stop, remember to breathe...) 'that is sooo georgous!' catergory is our mother's latest piece-de-resistance- The Audrey Coat-

I've worn this coat, and (when I'm not pregnant) my frame is prety close to the frame of this lovely model, and, well, I think I seriously NEED to make, to own, and to wear one of these... seriously, litrally, for real, even... It takes a lot of yarn, but the weight and drape of that Sport Weight doubled is sooo loverly, it's not heavy like it would be knit up out of a worsted weight to achieve the same gauge... Um, yeah, I need one of these coats, move it up the 'must-knit' list...

We haven't managed to coerce the other sister, the baby sister, to pick the needles back up, and catch the plague, er, um, fever, yet- but she's keeping busy with working some and mommying a lot to this little bugger- my first nephew! Couldn't you just squeeze him?! Cute stuff!

TDFKAL2008 final update- my cardigan was my major accomplishment, with my 2nd project, my Loppem, only half-done... and a sock half done... the kitting ADD got me off course a wee bit... oh, and the 2 dolly sweaters, and that other unfinished sock, and the swatching for new designs... each project getting a minute of my time here and there as I lost my focus after the initial project completion euphoria... so there you have it, good enough, eh? At least I got something crossed off my summer list! (Congratulatory self-patt-on-the-back)

And that brings us to the next adventure... more on Team BSA to come (including a little competition, worthy of medal-type prizes!)

Happy knitting-
ali