Wednesday, March 3, 2021

Early March

This early March feels like hope. The remaining snow banks trickle away and will be gone by the weekend. Yesterday I walked by a tree where eight cedar waxwings faced the sunny afternoon. I also watched a squirrel climb up the birch to a nest with mouthfuls of grass. Fifteen minutes after he/she left, a blue jay flew in and out of the nest a couple of times. I wonder how that bit of nest building will end. The sandhill cranes are flying. Twice I watched long wavering lines of birds cross the sky. If conditions are right I can hear their calls. Next year, I hope to be on the pedestrian bridge in central Nebraska watching them come down to roost at sunset. Right now it is unsafe to stand on that bridge among a large group of watchers. 


At any rate, I am writing my Unraveled Wednesday notes in order to link with Kat and other Unravelers. I finished the purple sweater. I enjoyed the pattern and now have a dressy sweatshirt sweater. The color is hard to photograph but the mock cable details make the sweater. I knew when I began that the wool/alpaca yarn might grow and it did. After wet blocking, the sweater body is longer than when it came off the needles. I wore it on the last few cold days and it is comfy and warm. I would call it a moderate success. I may knit the pattern again in a different yarn.


After I finished the sweater, I auditioned some shawl projects with stash yarn. I think this Falling Water Shawl (link to designer's website) is a go, although I haven't created a Ravelry project page yet. I knit a little more of it last night and like the look and feel of the pattern and yarn together. This Quince yarn has been in the "up next" stash bin for about 18 months and was calling my name. 


I finished a pair of lightweight fingerless mitts from some leftover self-striping sock yarn. We took the photo on a gray day so excuse the lighting. The yarn in sample drew me to the pattern. Are you as taken in by the colors of yarn as I am? The cable was interesting too. Even after socks and mitts from this skein of yarn, I still  have leftovers. I think little balls of yarn multiply in the dark but only when you are not playing yarn chicken. 

I finished the heel and gusset of the second sock I'm working on and I'm going to have enough yarn. The socks would be handsomer if I had done a little more arranging of the scraps. Live and learn I say. Knitting is always teaching me something. 

I read Hiddenness, Uncertainty, Surprise: Three Generative Energies of Poetry by Jane Hirshfield. The first two essays seem stronger than the third but that could just be the day I read them. One of the things I admire about Hirschfield is the way she writes and includes both eastern and western traditions of literature in her writing. I enjoyed following her thoughts about these elements of poetry. 

What are you learning from making this week?

Ravelry Links

Winter Forager

Love Bug Mitts

As for the spacing in this blog post, I can't seem to change it without the photos being wonky. Sometimes Blogger is a mystery to me. 


10 comments:

  1. The purple sweater is beautiful and you look beautiful in it. Purple is a great color for you.

    I saw Canada Geese the other day. They were flying NORTH! Spring MUST be on its way.

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  2. Your purple sweater is lovely and you look lovely in it. Such a royal color! The Falling Water shawl is beautiful and even more so in that Quince yarn. (The spacing in this post looks fine to me, but blogger and what it randomly does with spacing and photos are always mysteries to me.)

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  3. I love the nature observations you shared - thank you! And the purple in your sweater is so lovely - I'm glad you got to enjoy it before the weather shifted!

    And I agree with Bonny - the spacing looks fine to me. I use Wordpress and am also confused about layout at times... but it usually seems to work out!

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  4. Your sweater is stunning! The color is great on you, and the fit looks perfect. I love those fingerless mitts as well. I generally like to do cables in a solid color, but doing them in self-striping is such a fun look.

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  5. I love the sweater! alpaca isn't fun from a gauge perspective, but I know it's warm! and those mitts ... I'm smitten with self-striping yarn right now and that patterns looks so fun.

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  6. All your projects look great. Love the sweater!

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  7. I think your sweater looks amazing on you!!!!! And yes, I am always drawn to colorful skiens. Your fingerless are wonderful.
    Im not reading much right now. I am new to listening to the Crazy Sock lady podcast. She shows a lot of socks and yarns and bags. She is a capable sweater knitter but focuses on her projects. I can't imagine having a ton of project bags. I use all kinds of thing for yarn bags. I did buy allison a lovely lined bag once, but zipper tops always seem to catch.......my yarn. I am using a slip knot bag for my rib cowl

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  8. Your sweater is amazing and that photo of you is gorgeous! I agree March is welcoming in spring. I hope our snow will be gone within a week. There is so much of it!

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  9. Your sweater is gorgeous, Jane! Hmmm, that Falling Water Shawl looks interesting! I have a single skein of yarn that has been sitting while I contemplate patterns... this might be a winner!

    Also, I love Jane Hirshfield's poetry!

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  10. Jane Hirshfield is one of my favorite poets. I'll have to check out that book!
    Your sweater is very pretty. I've heard about alpaca stretching. I find it itchy, so I just avoid it. I know that it is warm and light -- so it must be lovely for people who can wear it.
    You did a great job on the cables on the mitts. I can't believe how perfectly the colors match up.

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