Welcome Fall

Hello Gentle Readers, Wasn't Labor Day weekend just a few days ago? And now, this past Monday marked the Fall Equinox in the northern hemisphere. A few butterflies drink nectar from the zinnias and coreopsis. The bees buzz in the oregano and lavender. Friday I weeded and thinned the small pollinator garden. 

The perennials along the west side of the backyard are overgrown and full of weeds. An August storm with high winds brought the neighbor's old fence down in places, including the section bordering the perennial bed. Until last Saturday, that section was barely supported by our shed and sweet pea trellis so weeding there was unsafe. The neighbor has removed the fencing so I no longer have that excuse. 

Eventually, I will link this post with Kat and the Unravelers. Yesterday I hosted a group of friends for our monthly gathering and today I am putting together and delivering a meal for a friend recovering from surgery. In between I write this post. I finished the skinny shawl/scarf knit in the mini-skein set. Likely this will be a gift for someone. Knitting the sock yarn on size three needles was very pleasant. Of course, one could do the same color-blocking and simple eyelets at the color change of miscellaneous fingering weight yarns in the hitchhiker pattern. I'm pretty sure Bonny has done that with at least one of her beautiful hitchhikers. 

I cast on a pair of autumn colored socks.  Although the heel turn is my favorite part of sock knitting, the beginning of a cuff isn't far behind in my affection. I thought it would be fun to join Denise DeSantis, known as Earthtones Girl, in her Falling Leaves Sock KAL. I have benefited from her free tutorials and thought this an easy way to support her. 

I've previously mentioned The Lost Spells by Robert Macfarlane and illustrated beautifully by Jackie Morris. This is a lovely collection of lyrical poems and illustrations about the natural world. When the news in the world is so hard, a dose of magical poetry and visual art is a good thing. Revisiting it seems appropriate for this time of the year. 

This week I'm reading The Bookbinder by Pip Williams, another novel by the same author I mentioned last week. For me, this book is an average historical novel. While it's not a sequel to the first, some of the same characters make a cameo appearance. The story does raise interesting questions about women's suffrage and the right of women to an education and knowledge, specifically who is able to own, borrow, and read books.

At any rate, it's now time for me to cook our dinner. I hope you are enjoying these first few days of fall.  

Ravelry Links

Wild Atlantic Shawl

Autumn Socks

Mid September

Hello Gentle Readers. The past week I enjoyed walking on summer-like mornings and literally watching the flowers bloom. The bright yellows and oranges of marigolds, pink and yellow zinnias, red roses, dark purple lavender, chartreuse sweet potato vines, variegated coleus lift the spirits. Sunday I went out to cut a few zinnias and black-eyed susans for a mason jar bouquet. A swallowtail on the zinnias paid no attention to me. Neither did the small brown furry caterpillars trundling across the sidewalk on Monday. The natural world does its best in spite of human beings. 

Today I link with Kat and the Unravelers. Monday I finished the pillow in the photo. I can't remember if I ever included it in a post. Last summer I embroidered the center design on a piece of tea-dyed fabric. The embroidery pattern, a line drawing on a piece of paper, was something my Mom once purchased. If it came with instructions or a designers' name/company, the information is long gone. She was not a knitter but she very much enjoyed embroidery and cross-stitch. This summer I added borders and quilted it as a pillow top. 

I used a piece of an old sheet to make a pillow form and then made an envelope back so that the pillow form could be removed and both pieces laundered. Do I need another throw pillow? No, but I enjoyed making it and thinking of my Mom. 

As for knitting, I continue to work on these two pieces. I finished the second lace section of the wrap, knit a second garter and mock garter rib section and now am knitting the same texture as the first section. Perhaps it's the nubbly handspun but this is so much fun to knit. I have another lace stitch in mind for the next section. 

Changing colors keeps this scarf/shawl project moving while the rhythm of the garter stitch makes for peaceful knitting. I added a remnant of gray sock yarn in order to make it a decent size. After I complete the second green section, I have one more mini-skein to knit.  

Both Kat and Bonny recommend the Bruno mystery series. I borrowed the audio of the first book in the series, Bruno, Chief of Police by Martin Walker. Hearing French pronunciation of words was lovely. Bruno is a gentle kind enforcer of law and champion of his village. He views teaching tennis lessons to children as crime prevention. Even if it's a  tongue-in-cheek remark it says something about his character. My library only owns one more of the series in audio. I audiobooks are expensive for libraries but I don't understand why the system purchased the first and the eleventh book. 

Several nights when I had trouble falling asleep I reread The Dictionary of Lost Words. This historical fiction imagines a bright young woman who worked with the men compiling the Oxford English Dictionary. At an early age, Esme falls in love with and begins to collect words used by ordinary women. Often these words are not deemed worthy for inclusion in the OED. World War One and the Women's Suffrage movement are also part of the story. Although the main character has her ups and downs, the novel with its strong female characters is a comfort read for me.

This is more than enough words from me. What brings you comfort these days?

Ravelry Links

Handspun Wrap

Wild Atlantic Shawl

Early September

Hello Gentle Readers. Here it is early afternoon as I sit down to post. This morning was made for a walk. Later this afternoon the temperature will climb so I went out mid morning. Several monarchs flitted through the air and a few have discovered my late blooming zinnias. The flowers in the pots on the front porch love the cooler days and bloom profusely. All of this seems like September's consolation for decreasing daylight. 

I am linking with Kat and the Unravelers as in better late than never. This little soft pink scarf is finished and blocked. It is a nice pattern, if a little frilly, for a single skein of yarn. One could easy weigh the yarn to determine when to begin decreasing. I added a few repeats because I had plenty of yarn. 

The Cash Mitts with modifications are finished. I forgot to change to smaller needles for the top cuff but liked the look of the finished mitts so knit the thumb ribbing in the same way. I knit a few less rows of ribbing at the top of the mitten to make sure I had enough yarn. This time I won yarn chicken. 

Since finishing these two items, I returned to knitting in the blues. I wanted to knit something with a good amount of handspun Corriedale. Awhile back, I tried to knit a sweater but ran into trouble with the gauge in uneven handspun. A wrap doesn't have to fit so I chose some stitch patterns with compatible stitch repeats. This will be a sampler of sorts and is fun to knit. However, it is a project for that late afternoon stretch before dinner or early in the evening. So far so good. 

When I need something requiring less attention, I knit on the scarf/shawl I'm making from a mini-skein set. 

It's a happy accident that this latest scarf matched the cover of Love Forms by Claire Adams. This heartbreaking novel is beautiful. Adams skillfully weaves the past and present together and I enjoyed learning more about Trinidad. Throughout the story, the main character, a middle-aged woman, is looking back through her life. At sixteen, she is part of a loving but overbearing family. When she becomes pregnant, she carries the baby to term and gives it up for adoption. Although her parents were motivated by love, the response to her pregnancy and adoption comes with repercussions that echo throughout her life and those around her. Love is indeed complicated and takes many forms. This novel would make for an interesting book group discussion. Although I don't closely follow booklists from awards, this novel is on the longlist for this year's Booker Prize. I thought it was an excellent work of fiction. 

One last thought. Shadow and shade are as beautiful as light. Sometimes they are a shelter. And I do love lavender. 

Ravelry Links

Soft Pink Scarf

Cash Mitts

Handspun Wrap

Wild Atlantic Shawl

TGIF 9.5.25

Hello Gentle Readers. This past week our son Aaron visited us. We had a wonderful time together. Fortunately for us, he is able to combine paid time off with working remotely. He loves to cook and so we made several dinners together, including my birthday dinner of baked salmon, cucumber salad, fresh watermelon, and sweet corn. 

Today I am thinking about intentions for September. I done this since February when I wanted to move from constantly reacting to the noise of the world. This practice helps me feel less like a ping pong ball being blown every which way by the latest news release. I learned about this from Mary. It might not be for everyone but I like the flexibility and refocus for each month. 

 Anyway this September, I intend to: Savor the warm September days and early seasonal changes, Flow back to writing time and Recover all my stamina. In another way, I'm hoping to recover basement storage space - wish me luck.  Finally, I intend to Hope because there are glimmers hidden under the rocks.  

I am grateful for the friendship I share with my children. Both are in their forties and doing well in life. Our adult friendships with them are rich with joy, humor, respect, and love. We don't see either of them as often as we'd like but we make the most of our in-person visits. Both Kate and Aaron are great about keeping in touch with technology. FaceTime with the grands is such a gift. Kate and I text daily. Aaron often calls either my husband or I when he is on his commute home from the office. 

I am inspired by the Fall colors and flavors. I love the fresh fruit and veggies of summer I'm ready for the seasonal change in our menu. Last night I made minestrone soup. I used the usual veggies, chickpeas, and garden zucchini from a friend as well as basil, and oregano from our yard. I also toasted buttered crusty hard rolls topped them with shredded gouda cheese.  It was a nice change. And what would Fall be without wool socks?

As for fun, I'm thinking about my grandson Jonah's comment on my birthday. Aaron and Lance were sitting across from me during my birthday dinner. They look so much alike, I took their photo and then Aaron took one of me. We sent them to our daughter. Jonah, aged 10, saw the photo and said, "She looks really gooooood for her age."  At seventy four years old, I'll take that compliment! Celebrating a birthday is always fun. 

I wish you all a good weekend and maybe a little leaf litter.