Stasia's Place Of Grace

Friday, December 12, 2003

 

Good Things Of The Day

This about sums up my philosophy on life:

Go To The Winter Issue Of Knitty

To that end, after my annual dental appointment today, I treated myself to this:

What I'll make with this combo of wool and acrylic yarns, I have no idea... suggestions? Please let me know in the Tag-Board!

I also purchased this lovely, greeny-gray ball of Patons Classic Wool (100% Merino). I absolutely love this yarn - it's so soft, and easy to work with. The color is called "Tree Bark Mix" and I cast on tonight for a top-down, ribbed hat for Hubby.

So far,so good, and it's coming along quickly on size 5 needles.

Thank goodness, I only have three more stupid garter-stitch squares to make for my sister's gift afghan! Then I have to attach them all together... I'm trying not to think about that yet. I guarantee that a "cup of Christmas cheer" will be in order when I sit down to do it!

Here is a picture of my sister's new rug, which I'm trying to match with the Lion Brand Homespun:

You can see the color of the afghan (mostly purple and green, with flecks of orange) in my previous entry, if you missed the stupid thing. I do not like knitting with a yarn that doesn't have "give" and I will be very happy to see this thing all packed up in a mailing box.

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A while back, a nice woman offered to trade some wonderful, handmade, lavender-patchouli soap with me for a set of stitch markers. The soap came with this soap sack:

I just tried Mitchell's Wool Fat soap - I like it!

I would love to get the pattern for this soap sack, but now I can't find the gal's e-mail. If you're reading, nice lady from MI, would you please contact me again?

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Is it any wonder my knitting progress is slow?

Someone just woke up from his nap.

"Nice nap, Valentine? Good - as long as you're comfortable."

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The weather has changed from rainy...

to downright wintry. I don't think it got up to 20�F in Milwaukee today. This little bushy-tailed guy was busy munching down seeds to prepare for the coming storm:

If you've ever seen how animals' behavior changes along with the barometric pressure, you probably don't wonder that many people are sensitive to those changes as well. Our need to hunker down in a warm quilt, to take a nap, or to eat something energizing when a storm is coming - they're all part of our instinct for survival.

Coming to terms with chronic pain means learning to listen to one's body and to live by its wisdom. This is easier for me to do when I slow down and recognize what Nature is trying to tell me. Watching the animals and birds outside my window helps me to maintain a view of "the big picture" in terms of my environment and its effects on me. It is also amazingly cool to see them as they go about their daily lives.

Is there anything more calming, quieting, or centering than a winter's dusk, with the scent of woodsmoke on the still, quiet air, and a fresh dusting of snow on the ground?

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The lovely Nanette B. posted some links to some blogs written in French. Unfortunately, I don't read French. Fortunately, Un journal de Marie had a link to a translation website. Plug in the URL of the page you want translated, and voila, tres chic!

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I got rid of my falling Java snowflakes because they seemed to make this page load too slowly - sorry about that!

I hope your day was filled with good things, too. Take a moment to have a cup of tea and just enjoy being.

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Sunday, December 07, 2003

 

Getting In The Mood

Merry SolstiChrismaKkuh!

Happy HanuSolstiMas!

We celebrate everything having to do with light coming back into the world in a season of darkness 'round here. How are you celebrating this month? (Tell me in the Tag-board!)

Some of my Fiber Friends are being Grinchy and aren't in the spirit of the season. For their benefit, I have decorated and provided music here for the holidays.

Play A Ukranian Carol
(Just For Tom Diak - Get Well Soon!)

What's New In My Fibery World?

Got the yarns for my second Colinette Absolutely Fabulous throw thanks to the Evil Temptress, Pamela. This is the "Misty Morning" colorway. They are so cozy to cuddle in when the temps start to drop.

I am still making squares for the Lion Brand Homespun afghan for my sister's holiday gift. I am thoroughly sick of making squares and using this yarn and I'm dreading seaming this up.

Eighteen days until Christmas means only 18 more days and I'll be through with this... at least, that's how I'm looking at it. (Why, oh, why didn't I do a nice Cottage Creations' Rambling Rows?!?!?!)

This was the top of our piano last month - kit upon kit, project upon project staring me in the face each morning. I finally got sick of feeling guilty for moving so slow on things, and put it all away in Rubbermaid tubs. When I finish the holiday projects, I'll take the fun stuff out again. I'm looking forward to getting on with my Peace Fleece Everyday Cardi kit in "Zarya Fog".

I am in a quandary and need your help. These are some socks I'm making for my father for Christmas - he asked for them last-minute (grrrr!)

Here is the "bottom" of the sock, which has no ribbing:

Here is the "top" of the sock which has a 2x2 rib:

I think the ribbing takes away from the color changes in the yarn - what do you think? Should I do them in stockinette stitch, at least up to the ankle?

This is not a self-striping yarn, though it appears to be striping itself anyway! It's Blackberry Ridge's Sport 2-Ply in color Autumn Oak. It's a very sproingy yarn, and I'm enjoying working with it. It makes nice, thick, boot- or clog-weight socks. I think it'll hold up well when worn and washed. At least the knitting is going much faster than it would if I were using a regular fingering-weight sock yarn!

I was taking photos of birds and got this image of two sitting in the branches of a Burr Oak. I thought it was amazing how well they blended in with the colors and textures of their habitat. At first, all I saw was just "brown, naked trees," but as I kept looking, lots of different colors and textures became apparent. I guess the key to seeing beauty in things (and maybe people) is to look at them - see them - long enough.

And what has Tori spied?

A queue of house finches outside the kitchen window...

Got room for me?

... and winter-drab goldfinches at another feeder.

It's so neat how their colors fade as the foliage does, so that they blend in better and can't be seen by predators.

Have a great day, and thanks for visiting. Please leave a note on the TAG board, and do let me know what you think about re-doing Dad's socks!

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