Hello and welcome to April. The sky is blue but the breeze is out of the northwest. Yesterday was a balmy 74 degrees and I almost bought a pot of pansies. Overnight freezing temperatures and a very chilly day make me glad I didn't stop at the nursery. A few brave daffodils, along with Creeping Charlie, bloom against the southern foundation of the house. (That darn Creeping Charlie is forever.) I have another little bed of daffodils and iris at the back of the yard. The neighborhood fox ate most of the daffodils in that location but a few spears are up so he didn't get all of them. I was surprised he was interested in bulbs but a google search told me foxes do eat some plant matter.
Today is the mid-week link-up with Kat and the Unravelers. I will be a little later with my post as my husband and I are having lunch with some family members. Yesterday I reached the heel flap on the second sock. I made some progress on the hitchhiker.
I have been knitting primarily on the monstrous purple shawl. I'd like to finish it before the weather gets too warm to have a lap full of wool, mohair, silk, and alpaca. The fabric is soft and very warm. To make sure I have enough yarn to knit all of the last lace pattern, I omitted the last full section of garter stitch rows. Even so, the shawl will be plenty big enough to wrap up in on a winter evening. After dropping another mohair strand of a stitch, I bought a new needle with lace tips. I decided not to drop down or tink back through the lace section to secure the stitch. Instead I put a length of the mohair through the errant loop, pulled it to the back, and secured it. The fudged stitch will never be noticeable. The new needle is a better match for these two yarns. So far so good. Although this isn't fast knitting, the pattern keeps the long rows interesting.
As for reading, I am enjoying Atkinson's The Shrines of Gaiety. The many story threads are coming together with cunning and wit. I finished Booth by Karen Joy Fowler. Although the narrative is a bit heavy on descriptive phrases, I'm not sorry I listened to the novel. The story of the Booth family as told through the siblings of John Wilkes is fascinating. As per the author's end note, primary source material was readily available. I'm off to do a little cleaning and hopefully take a walk. I'll be back to wearing mittens and a hat today. The question is do I pick the daffodils or leave them to brave the weather. To those who are celebrating this weekend, Happy Passover. Happy Easter. Happy Spring.
Ravelry Links
Birthday Shawl
Spring Hitchhiker
Hi Jane. I do love the color of that purple shawl. I am glad that springtime has come to your area. We have had 18 inches to 2 feet of snow in our area since Sunday night. The sun in out now however, and warmer temperatures are in the forecast. I hope you enjoy the rest of the week.
ReplyDeleteI've always loved that shade of purple, but the textured stitches are making that purple shawl look even more interesting. And that Gramma pink Hitchhiker is so lovely. I hope you get enough daffodil blossoms to pick a few and leave a few. I didn't know anything ate daffodil bulbs, so today I learned something.
ReplyDeleteLike Bonny, I did not know of any creature that ate daffodils. Ours are left alone (despite numerous foxes in the area). Your purple shawl is such a rich color - very pretty and your Hitchhiker is calming to look at. I say pick the blooms! I love fresh flowers inside.
ReplyDeleteI love the subtlety of the mohair in the purple shawl. You can tell it's there, but it doesn't hit you over the head. It'll be a great shawl when it gets really frigid.
ReplyDeleteThe daffodils in my neighborhood have done okay with roller-coaster weather and even snowfall. They're hardier than they look!
What a beautiful shawl, Jane -- and an ideal "fix" for that errant strand of mohair. I hope you have plenty of remaining daffodils to enjoy -- after your fox and your weather do their worst. (I thought daffodils were safe from all critters, but apparently not. Drat.) Spring WILL come . . . eventually . . . and for real. XO
ReplyDeleteThat purple shawl is truly stunning, Jane! In my neighborhood, the deer have been known to munch a daffodil or twenty. I thought they were safe from critters, but my neighbor assures me they are not!
ReplyDeleteWhen I lived on the farm, I was surprised when I discovered the deer ate nearly all of my tulip bulbs. Your knitting projects look amazing. Enjoy your day, and Happy Easter.
ReplyDeleteI'm happy to hear that you're enjoying Shrines of Gaiety - I love Kate Atkinson! And I really loved Booth when I read it recently -- Lincoln was so wise and predicted so much of our current predicament!
ReplyDeletethat hitchhiker is in the spring-iest of pinks! Love the monstrous shawl, lol. It's fun to start a big project but then when you are nearing the end of a season you wish it was done. I'm working on a second sock, a cowl for me, and a pink baby blanket. I want to work on all of them!!
ReplyDelete.Your knitting is lovely. The purple is so textured with the different stitches...it will be lovely. We have a few hyachinths poking up by the house but that is it so far. Have a lovely Easter.
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