Summer's Eve

Something about summer's eve speaks of abundant possibility. The outdoors is lush and green without that wilted look of too much heat and sun. My herb garden is growing well. I have enough oregano to supply an Italian restaurant. When I clip herbs for cooking, I pick extra sprigs to dry on a paper towel. I have little jars labeled with parsley, basil, oregano, and thyme. After the herbs dry, I crumble them into the jars for winter cooking. The only drawback to this low tech method is the pile of paper towels that accumulates on the counter. Usually I harvest enough for my use as well as for my son and daughter. They make great stocking stuffers for cooks. The lavender is full of blossoms. The tomatoes and sugar snap peas are flowering. I could grow sugar snap peas just for their delicate flowers. A thunderstorm on Monday a.m. dropped three inches of needed rain, more bounty for the season.

As for knitting, I have new projects on the needles. I finished the Pebbles socks and cast on this pair. I was a wee bit disappointed to run out of gradient yarn at the toe but the yellow made a good sturdy toe. If I had knit a shorter cuff I might have had enough but ripping out the sock didn't make sense. Watching the colors change in this Beach Glass colorway made for quick knitting. I also knit one of a pair of Spring River Mitts.

Since I keep looking (in vain) through my shawls for a more neutral, light colored one to wear with summer clothes, I cast on the Gemma Shawl. The designer remarks that that pattern is just right for summer knitting and she is right. There is a nice easy rhythm in the stitch patterns. I also appreciate her attention to detail at the beginning of the shawl. This yarn came in an enormous skein. I finally split it into two balls because the first became too big to hold in my hand. There will be enough left for another project. I could have knit some kind of short sleeved, short bodied sweater but I bought the yarn for this shawl pattern so away I knit.

Honestly I would like to cast on more projects. Something about relaxed summer days makes me think of three or four other skeins of yarn that I might like to use for mitts or a cowl. Summer's bounty from the natural world spills into my knitting. This side of summer has a richness that will last only a few weeks. Enjoy these June days.