Last Week

Last week I finished the September Morn sweater I have been knitting this winter. That is, I finished the ripping and re-knitting and finally knit the contrasting ribbing. Since my short neck gets lost in a large turtleneck, I knit a simple ribbed crew neck. Then I washed and gently blocked the sweater before weaving in ends.

The sweater was hard to photograph, especially this time of year with little contrasting color in the landscape. Too much light washed out the color and too little made for a dark photo. The shadows in this photo remind me of an older image of my Grandfather. The photo was taken in 1919, just after he arrived home (a farm in south central Nebraska) after serving on the Western Front in France. When I look at it, I see a shadow on his face and wonder what he was thinking. His smile doesn't seem quite natural, perhaps a little tentative. I also wonder who took the photo and what the family was doing and saying in the yard under the pear and elm trees. Before spinning a story, I remind myself that sometimes shadows occur in photos. Perhaps he was just looking into sunlight on a May day.

I can tell you what I was thinking when my husband helped me with the sweater photos. "Stick a fork in this sweater because this story has come to an end." The Chickadee yarn by Quince and Co. held up beautifully. I knit several skeins four times with no difference in the finished fabric. The wool, tightly spun and carefully processed, has as much memory as an old photo. I will wear this sweater/sweatshirt often because it is warm and cozy without being heavy. I prefer sport to worsted weight sweaters.

However, I am not casting on a stockinette sweater any time soon. Currently I am knitting the hand of a second mitten and a cowl. When I finish these smaller projects, I will tackle a Christmas stocking for little J.

Last Friday morning, he came to visit for a few hours. He is growing but still at the newborn stage when he melts into the chest of whoever is holding him. I can't think of a better way to spend a Friday morning.

January Days

As I write, light powdery snow sifts down on a bitterly cold morning. Last week my daughter safely delivered a healthy baby boy. He arrived to the open arms of his family and extended family. This beautiful little guy is a lucky one. His older brothers, aged 5 and 2, stayed with my husband and I for a few mostly delightful days. The two year old wore the same superman shirt, with a few peanut butter smears, for three days. In life with a two year, this is not a problem. We played, read lots of books, and took turns visiting the new babe and his Mom in the hospital. My husband and I are fortunate to be able to share this time with our daughter and son-in-law. They are all home now, trying to learn a new routine.

After picking up the house and restocking peanut butter and Cheerios, I am back to walking, writing, and reconsidering my knitting projects. Prior to the baby's arrival, I sorted through my yarn and knitting bags. I had knitting tools and notions tucked everywhere so I divided them into three small zippered bags and put them in a basket with patterns I might use soon. I sorted and stored the yarn by weight and made a few notes about what I might knit with the yarns.

Then I put three works in progress in separate bags, each with pattern, needles and yarns. When I actually looked at the projects I discovered a Goldilocks tale. The Oliveta Shawl was just right. The sock was too small and the sweater was too big. I ripped out the almost finished So Simple Silk Garden sock #1 (smallest size) because it wasn't going to stretch to fit. The cable running down the side of the leg was almost on top of the leg. I kept pulling it over to the side thinking, I can make this sock fit. Why, I wonder, does it take so long, to listen to the knitting voice that says, "stop, this isn't working." I cast on a different pattern, toe-up, to learn something new. That is a tale for another blog post. Sometimes knitting just goes haywire. 

I am also working on my version of a September Morn pullover. Evenings, I tried it on over flannel pajamas. When I finally put it on over a long sleeved T-shirt, I knew it was too big. The sweater body took more yarn than I had planned. Since knitting faster doesn't mean I won't run out of yarn, I ordered more. I enjoy the Quince and Co. Chickadee yarn but this shade is definitely a solid color with no tonal variations. Alternating skeins of different dye lots will produce a sweater with striped sleeves. I ripped out seven inches of the sweater body and am putting in more waist decreases. I'll gain a little yardage from the original dye lot but I don't know if it will be enough. I want this sweater to be warm and comfy with long sleeves. I may order a light gray in the same yarn base and go with a color block contrast.

My plan is to knit the body down to the ribbing and put the stitches on waste yarn. Before I start knitting sleeves with the remaining yarn, I'm going to weigh it and divide it so I can knit the same amount of light blue yarn in the sleeves before switching to the contrasting color. I plan to knit the neck ribbing in the contrasting color also. Wish me luck.

In the meantime, I'm going to bundle up in well fitting socks and sweater (I have a few of those) and take a walk in the snow. I plan to savor the peace of this January day while I dream about snuggling a newborn grandson. All is well.