Care-taking & Finishes

 I don't feel bad about not posting, but I hate falling behind on reading your posts. However, it was quite a week. Keith had cataract surgery on Tuesday (and it was very successful). Then my mom fell and broke her arm on Thursday. She has severely torn rotator cuffs, so I've been helping her with dressing, meals, even bathrooming. I hope to have help hired tomorrow.

I've only been able to finish up some simple UFOs. First was a pair of fingerless mitts for Keith. He chose to go with this color rather than have me buy more yarn. Go figure. The pattern is Maize by Tin Can Knits. If I make it again, I'd flip the knit and purl stitches so it would have more knits.

This hat needed decreases, so it went quickly. The yarn is Eco Duo, which I loved knitting with. Must make a sweater with this! So soft.

And I finished up the drawing of my living room wall. 

I hope to have time this week to catch up with all of you!

Still settling in!

 I am still getting our new house in order. I know, we moved back in March, but between school and traveling,  I haven't been able to get the kitchen or my crafts properly organized. However, at least the living room looks good, now that have our new sectional!

The house isn't the only thing that doesn't feel settled. I haven't figured out what my retirement life is going to look like. This is the time when I'd be easing back into teaching, but now the days are wide open. That is not a complaint! I just need some time to figure out how to structure my life. 

Between the transition and my travels, my knitting has been pretty basic this summer. For my travel knitting, I worked on fingerless mitts using Kristen Kapur's recipe. The color of this first pair is more of a pumpkin tone, and they are super soft because the yarn is MadTosh.

Pair No. 2 is a Knit Circus impressionist colorway, so they also feel very good on the hands. Both pairs are knit with fingering weight and are helping me do some stash-busting.

Now I've moved on to another completely mindless cowl: Kaleen, a Berroco pattern. I'm using the recommended yarn, Berroco Millefiori, so it's working out very predictably. 

You can see which yarn is the main color. The accent color is used every four rounds. Although the colors look different in the balls, they actually are blending together a bit too well. (Note: I wound the yarn into balls because the skeins they come in quickly turn into a tangled mess.)

The cowl is almost done, and I hope to start something more interesting this week. Or pick up the Forever Sweater, but that's for another post!

Nothing Wrong with a Quiet Christmas

I hope you are all enjoying this holiday even with all the Covid restrictions. We are a careful bunch, so I bet you are all having a quiet day, as are we.

I've spent much of the first week of my winter break baking cookies. I love baking, so it has been a good distraction from all the bad stuff in the news -- including possible school reopenings, even though the largest ICU in Madison is at 100% capacity.

I highly recommend this recipe, Browned Butter Coconut Cookies from the Smitten Kitchen. I made them for the first, but not last, time this year!

I also made a pair of Isaac's Mitts for myself. They are very warm and cozy -- perfect for walks on warmer winter days.

And with a finish, comes a cast on. I have been decluttering every day, including my yarn stash. I have so many lovely fingering leftovers that I decided it was time for a Habitation Throw from Helen Stewart of Curious Handmade:

I just love making things with leftovers. They don't always turn out as well as I'd envisioned, but I have an awful lot of fun pulling together the colors.

The temperature here is below 0, so it's a good day to stay home, Zoom with family, and do some knitting.

And thanks for the compliments on the poncho in my last post. It's the Winter Ridge Poncho from Ewetopia, knit with yarn specially milled for that pattern. Ewetopia is both a store and dyer in Viroqua, Wis., and I can vouch for the quality of her wool and patterns.

A peaceful day to all!

Some Happy Things

  As winter hovers, we Midwesterners are eking out every outdoor activity we can. My Urban Sketching group met at the UW Arboretum on Sunday. My sketch is the ugly one. I can't seem to get the hang of trees.

I'll sure miss seeing these folks over the winter.

I finished a project that is making me happy. 

Of course, it is: It's a coffee-themed mini quilt. The background is from cotton scraps left on my cutting board from a throw I'm quilting. The cup is felted wool, and the "steam" is made from beads.

I am also happy with these mitts that will be making their way to my daughter in Denver.

The pattern is Align Mitts. It's free and well-written. I zipped through these with a Madtosh speckled yarn.

And there are some good things about working from home. Sometimes I have company while I'm teaching:

She slept all through a Biology class!

Good Enough

I did fix my About Town mitts -- sorta. The one on the left is correct; the one on the right has some issues: there is a blip on the thumb, holes at the base of the thumb gusset, and the hand part isn't quite right. 

But when I put them on, they look just fine -- and that's good enough for me! I'm going to make a pair for my daughter -- and those will have to be perfect!

Keith is Up North camping this week, so I'm cooking for myself. Last night I made crepes with ricotta cheese and sauteed nectarines. Pretty amazing.

Tomorrow is the first night of Rosh HaShanah, and I'm going to a virtual dinner before services. I'm going to make baked tofu with peanut sauce. It's a New York Times recipe and recommended by a friend, so it should be good. I have to do something festive!

Virtual teaching is really hard, but I feel re-energized. This evening I went to a McDonalds where I knew one of my graduates would be working. She was so happy to see me (and I to see her). Reminded me of why I do this work. The best news: She's going to cosmetology school. In June, she told me she was not ever going to school again. So glad she saw the light sooner rather than later!

These Mitts are Cursed

 I can't find my favorite fingerless mitts, so I've been knitting myself a pair of About Town Mitts, a pattern by Bonnie Sennott. As you can see from the two finished mitts, some things went terribly wrong.

Most obviously, the mitt on the right is too short. I thought it was just a weird design, but then the second mitt worked out beautifully. I missed an entire section on the hand the first one, so I'll have to tear it back and reknit.

Also, there are some weird holes at the bottom of the thumb gusset of the mitt on the right. When I put the mitt on, the holes don't show, so I think I'm just going to live with that. At least these aren't a gift for anyone!

I am always admiring the quilting I see on your blogs. Those of you who quilt perform miracles, like sewing straight lines and producing even squares. Instead of just envying you all, I am working on a modern log cabin pattern that allows me to focus on those two skills.

So far I think I see some improvement in my skills. But I won't really be able to tell until I start putting together the pieces.

I have to admit that I'm feeling a bit down this evening. It's Selichot, a service that is held on the Saturday night before Rosh HaShanah. My congregation isn't even doing a Zoom service, so I feel a bit off. For me it's the first step in the High Holy Days.

Also, I'm tired. Teaching on Zoom is exhausting. And there were so many issues -- technology problems, scheduling issues, frantic phone calls from confused students and parents. It was good to see students, even if it was just online.

You may have seen Madison in the news. Students at UW-Madison are not following protocols and the numbers in Dane County are spiking. Every day is new high. More than half the frat and sorority houses are quarantined, as well as two large dorms. 

It's going to be long winter, I'm afraid.

Taking a Deep Breath on Friday

Thank you all for your kind words of support. They really helped me as I moved through the week, which was a hard one. My jaw was damaged when I was born. When I'm under stress, I clench, which causes terrible headaches. (Yes, I have a bite guard, but that just protects your teeth.) For the first time, the jaw problems are causing severe earaches. Apparently this is a common issue with jaw problems.

I saw two doctors this week. They both said I need to reduce stress as much as possible. Since that's not really possible, they upped my pain and sleep meds.

Still, I hustled all week. I have a lot of freshmen on my caseload this year, so I've been getting to know them and their families virtually. I completed a mountain of paperwork -- and I think I did it correctly! Now we have two weeks of professional development before the students come back virtually.

In the midst of all that, it seemed reasonable to indulge myself, so I started knitting the Annalise Shawl that I was gifted by Bridget:

Clearly I will have to block the heck out of the edges. Nonetheless, it is the perfect antidote to this trying week. Easy, fun, and beautiful.

I also picked up a project that I had cast on and lost track of months ago:

This is the beginning of a fingerless mitten. The pattern is About Town Mitts by Bonnie Sennott, who is one of my favorite designers. It's also an easy knit, which is all I am capable of at this point!

And I squeezed in another sketch of a house in the expensive part of my neighborhood. As you can tell, I really enjoy doing the stonework. The stone here is lannon stone, which is largely found in southeastern Wisconsin.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who is glad that it's Friday!

Thinking about UFOs

My husband was getting something from my Art Room last week, and he commented, "You sure have a lot of unfinished projects."

I, of course, immediately corrected him: "Those are UFOs." It took a few seconds, but he got it. Then I explained they were also WIPs.

I started this hat months ago, but then I got stuck on the decreases. I had failed to note how any stitches I cast on, so I had to recount and then decide how I wanted to do the decreases. Once I counted, it was easy. The lovely yarn is from Knit Circus.

I have never denied that I have a problem with casting on -- but I know I'm not the only one. There is a certain high that comes with casting on -- it reminds me of a sugar high. It feels so good at the time, even if it's the 101st WIP you have going. I have a similar relationship with chocolate.

This is my third pair of Kirsten Kapur's mitts, all knitted in Crazy Zauerball. I have to do one more to use up the rest of the skein. These are addictive, but I think it's time to move on.

While I admire people who can maintain knitting monogamy, I don't even aspire to it. I like the variety. I like giving into the urge to cast on something new and exciting. 

That's not to say that there aren't downsides to having so many WIPs. I do sometimes feel pressured to finish a batch before starting anything new. And it means I own too many needles -- you can't use needles that are in a WIP, after all. (Well, technically you can, but I'm not that organized.)

And I do finish things on a steady  basis. It took me about three days to knit the Hoopla Hat from PomPom.

And then I just had to cast on another Hoopla. I have two good excuses: First, I wanted to practice the Latvian Braid before I forgot how to do it. Second, it's a great stash-buster!

Spring Is Everywhere At Last

Even Wisconsin has finally welcomed spring! Kola and I are very happy to be able to hang out on the screened porch. 

 Last Sunday I noted that there were 31 days of school left, which means we are now down to 26 days -- 25 for me. I'll be eating Jello for dinner and undergoing everyone's favorite intestinal screening procedure tomorrow.  Yesterday a teacher went public on the state of the profession in the Miami Herald. I love my school, my colleagues, my students -- but no one is exempt from the budget cuts, testing culture, lack of respect. Those have become national problems. 

But, getting back to spring, I have started another set of mitts in Zauberball Crazy, and this ball is very cheerful and seasonal:

My quilting project also features flowers:

I like this project, but again, I feel like I'm following the commercial fabric's direction. I fell in love with the flowered fabric and then chose others to contrast with it. 

The projects I really love are more original. I've started working seriously on a piece for an exhibit that my fiber group is having in the fall, and I like this one so far. The show is at the Arboretum so all the artwork has to include Wisconsin wildlife.

I have four Wisconsin birds and a handful of native wildflowers. When I finish the design, I'll transfer it onto cotton twill and embroider it with perl cotton. I think it will be a fun one to embroider.

I've been taking it easy this weekend. I am exhausted following a week of student crises at school and an injury. A student came flying out of a bathroom and banged into my wrist, leaving me with a sprained arm. I spent the whole day dealing with Urgent Care and Occupational Medicine. Still, I did go out for Gallery Night on Friday. There's a new store that focuses on arts and crafts from Tibet, India, etc., and it is furnished with this completely beaded chair:

Really. That is all beads, see:

Five more weeks. I can do it, right?

Kitten, Kids & Mitts

So, where I have I been for the last month? Well, here is one of the highlights:

Mostly I've been working, practically drowning in paperwork and testing. And there was the matter of the lab stool that came crashing down on my foot in biology class, prompting weeks of light-duty. I still can't wear most of my shoes.

But spring break was pretty amazing -- as well as insanely busy. I started by flying to Miami, where I got to have dinner with my photo-shy son. Seth is working 20-hour days, six days a week, so I was thrilled that he was able to get away for dinner.

I had a wonderful time hanging out with Rachel and my grand-kitty, Delilah. Rachel is a true minimalist --except when it comes to her kitty. Delilah is one spoiled kitty.  

This is probably the special ed teacher in me, but I could swear that kitty has an attention deficit disorder. No matter, I fell in love with her. I think Rachel would have disowned me if I hadn't.

Miami is a great town for coffee shops, restaurants and bookstores. This coffee art came to me at Brewing Buddha, where the coffee was velvety and rich.

We spent a morning wandering around Wynwood, the artsy part of Miami. The murals there are phenomenal.

And we found these amazing gourmet donuts:

Then it was off to Seattle. Take my word for this: Flying from Miami to Seattle is a very long trip. But my aunt was celebrating her 90th birthday, so Rachel and I spent 12 hours getting out there.

We didn't have much time for sight-seeing (although we did walk past the original Starbucks), which was just fine. Many of my favorite people were there, so it was a wonderful weekend.

Rachel, left, with two of her cousins, Robbie and Jennifer. I wish
they could spend more time together!

Of course, I had to have some good travel knitting with me, and I was very pleased with my choice:

These fingerless mitts are based on a recipe by Kirsten Kapur. I grabbed a skein of Crazy Zauberball from my stash, and I love the results.

I'm going to get two pairs out of one skein, so I'm quite pleased with that. It's a mindless pattern that was perfect for travel. 

I hadn't knit with this yarn before, and I found it to be a fun yarn to work with. It's hard to stop because you want to see what color is going to come up next. It's a bit scratchy, but I think it will soften with a good soak and some wear. I definitely want to keep one pair for myself.

Keith met us in Seattle, and then he and I took a red-eye back to O'Hare. I actually made it to work that day! 

Always Catching Up

It seems like I am always catching up, both with my blog posting and reading. You would think that I'd have tons of blog time with all this cold weather, but there is always something to do. You know how that is! It's a busy time for special ed teachers. February through April is always IEP season, so I've been working quite a bit.

My main knitting has been two projects that go back to the knitting retreat I went to a few weeks ago.  An older lady named Ruth always vends at this retreat, and I fell in love with her original pattern: Ruth's Risters. The first hand is about done:

 The mitts are made with two strands of Knit One Crochet Too Soxx Appeal. This yarn was discontinued a few years ago. Ruth loves it so much that when she heard they were discontinuing it, she bought all the remaining stock from the manufacturer! I find the yarn is a big hard on my hands, but the finished mitts are cozy and soft.

Ruth also stocks a lot of Cottage Creation patterns. Do you know about this Iowa designer? She is especially well known for The Wonderful Wallaby. I haven't made that pattern, but I love her Babies and Bears Sweater. I had never seen The Rambling Rows afghan before and it was love at first sight.

When I looked through the projects on Ravelry, the ones I really loved were made with Noro Silk Garden. Can you imagine the cost of a Noro afghan? Me, neither. One of the ladies at the retreat suggested that I substitute Plymouth Gina, which turned out to be ingenious:

Last weekend, I took a sewing class with my mother-in-law, where we learned how make fabric collages. I chose a cat pattern, Purrfect:

Is that fun or what? Cutting out all those pieces takes some time, but I like handwork, so I don't mind. It's bigger than it looks, so it is going to be a challenge to quilt it.

So, I'll leave you with a real cat. Kola just loves bathroom fixtures.

And yes, we know we need to update this bathroom. It has the original pink fixtures from when the house was built in 1955.

A Finish and a Sketch

Recognize these? I can't think of the name, but this mitt pattern was super popular in the early days of Ravelry. Mine, as you can see curl. Every pair of these I knit curled. Fortunately, there are are lots of Mitts patterns these days!

These have been waiting around to have the ends woven in for ages, so I did that this morning. After all, the holidays are coming up! Does anyone remember the name of this pattern? Was it Fetchings?

To avoid the crazy traffic of Badger football Saturdays, Madison Urban Sketchers went to Sun Prairie, a suburb, yesterday, and drew in a coffee shop. It's a cute but tiny little place, so we mostly drew each other.

Then we went out to lunch, where Pat drew while most of us just chatted. If you look closely at her painting, you can see that's me on the left!

Pat is our main organizer, so we all love her!

Mercedes was looking through my sketchbook. When she saw my drawing of the Air BnB I stayed in when I was in Copenhagen this past summer, she pulled out her sketchbook. She'd also traveled in Scandinavia this summer and drew a similar picture of a BnB in Stockholm!

Today, I need to get some cleaning/decluttering done -- but also, I hope, more sketching!