The next tent in our circus has to be the most fun of them all! Let loose and join us in the Cloud Maze.
I choose the content for this card, because the light and airy energy coming from the Cloud Maze encourages adventure, impulsiveness and passion. The clouds give the viewer an opportunity to let loose, and push their stresses away.
We all knew that this was coming… a knitting gnome! The colour came together so nicely on this one and the design was really fun!
Last month was Huntington’s Disease Awareness Month. There was a golf event that happened in Ottawa at the start of this month to raise money for research. I was unable to attend the event, but I made sure to donate some items that could help in fundraising.
Initially I had plans to paint another amaryllis and have that ready to donate. But I didn’t have my energy back in time to be standing at an easel for that long. My Mom suggested maybe doing some of the gnomes that I have been knitting instead.
I have been making these gnomes this year as part of the Year of Gnomes KAL that’s been going on over on Ravelry and other socials. They have been very popular with my friends and family. So I knit up this little gang here and had them ready in lots of time for the event.
From what I heard, the event was a success and everyone had a lot of fun. They raised lots of money too, which is so great to hear.
If you’d like to read more about Huntington’s or find out where to donate please check out this site.
Happy New Year lovely patient readers. Thank you so much for hanging in there while I took my hiatus. I hope that we are able to get a lot done this year. I have big plans 🙂
I do hope that you all had a wonderful holiday and are able to keep safe and healthy through our world today.
I am going to kick this return off with a couple of projects that I have been working on over the holidays. I went all in for the advent knitting this year. I have done the day by day yarn calendar before, and I have knit some advent sock yarn before, but never both at the same time. I did the math and each day of knitting was roughly 3500-3600 stitches depending on the socks. It was really great to have tiny surprise each day. Here’s what I did.
Read moreLast winter, my sister-in-law messaged me a photo with a message, “Can you fix it?”. Uh oh.
When my nephew was born I made both him and his older sister matching bunnies. I saw very few photos where my niece did not have this little guy near by.
Unfortunately, one day while they were all out, the dog thought that the bunny might be a good snack. They came home to this… My sister-in-law said she was heartbroken. I quickly went to look for the yarn to see if I could knit another one, but then on a second look I thought I might be able to fix it. I told the family not to throw it away, hang on to it, I’ll see what I can do the next time I see them. Theeeeen lockdown #3 (?) happened, so we had to wait a little bit.
While I was on vacation in the month of August, I brought all my supplies to see what I could do. I had a “medical” bag full of needles, yarn of different colours, and stuffing. My niece was very close by and was an excellent nurse for the procedure haha.
I had never done anything like this for my knitting before, I haven’t been knitting long enough for something to get a hole in it. I looked at the damage, where it was, and compared it to the pattern. Of course the crafty dog chewed up everything at the start of each section so I would be working upside down haha.
In the end I opted to knit “patches”. On the body, I picked up stitches above and below the hole. I knit a new flap that was big enough to cover the hole, but stitched it into good stitches on either side of the hole (k2tog). Once it was long enough I gave the bunny a little more stuffing (with my niece’s expert help of course), and Kitchener stitched it up.
The head was a little more of a challenge. The holes were at the start of where the head was knit, so picking up stitches and finishing it off wasn’t going to work. What I did instead was start the head from scratch. I knit enough for it to be larger than the holes, picked up a row of good stitches and Kitchener stitched it shut. I was all out of the original yarn and couldn’t find anyone that sold it, so the colour is a little off, but I think that it still works.
My niece was stoked to have her little friend back, she must have thanked me a million separate times over the rest of the weekend. It was really heartwarming to see how much that she loves the little guy, I am also super happy that I was able to fix it up as I had promised. Yikes!
It’s no secret that Ambah O’Brien is one of my favourite knitting designers. Her patterns are so lovely overall, and they are complex enough to present a slight challenge, but not so intimidating that you wouldn’t want to get started.
I wanted to knit this beautiful Orianna wrap the second that I saw it. I wanted to test knit it so that I could have it right away. The yarn requirements were a bit challenging though. Three skeins of mohair is no budget joke. Also, finding dyers that do mohair and fingering yarn that would give six skeins that worked together nicely was sometimes a challenge. So I bought the pattern right away and I put the idea in the back of my mind for any yarn shopping plan.
I left it for a while, and then the perfect sale came along. The Boxing Day sale at The Knitting Loft in Toronto. I feel like I mention this sale all of the time, but I bought a lot of very important yarn at that sale. I had been eyeing some yarn from a local dyer that was dyed especially for this store. The colours that Leo & Roxy had dyed up were fantastic. They even had beautiful special labels made for them. Anyway, this yarn was part of the sale, and I was lucky enough to have three of my choice colours come in both fingering weight and the mohair that was needed. Claire (gray), Julia (green), and Rebecca (blue). Initially I wanted to have pink instead of the green, but this is way better with the green. If I had gone with the pink, it would have been completely different. I would have put the colours in all new locations, changing into something great, but not the greatness that came out of this ultimate colour combo. I ended up using the blue, gray and pink combo on my Snuggle socks instead, a much better compromise.
Anyway, I had finally gathered my yarn within a reasonable budget and I was ready to go. I really liked the element of mohair in this pattern. Some parts had me knitting with just the mohair, some with just the fingering weight, some with both held together. The final result is so wonderful.
I love everything about this project. The colours ensure that it matches anything that I am wearing, which is perfect because it is so soft that I want to be wearing it all of the time.
We’ve all been there. Every once in a while, no matter how much planning or effort goes into a project, sometimes it just doesn’t work out. It might not be a project either, maybe a book you’re reading, show you’re watching. Whatever. Sometimes things don’t turn out the way you want them to.
I used to be in team “Power Through”. Don’t love this book? You’re already this far, keep going. Don’t love the knitting project? I’m already on the second colour, if I stop then I will be wasting the stitches.
But you know what? You know it, you hear it all the time. LIFE. IS. TOO. SHORT.
Not loving this book? Stop reading it. Keep it on a list somewhere, maybe you’ll come back to it another time when you’re feeling it. Maybe you won’t, and that’s ok. Not loving how the colours are coming together? Pull it out. That yarn will be perfect for something that you will actually look forward to knitting and ultimately wearing. If you’re not going to wear it ever, what’s the point?
Now this advice is not to be confused with my 10 More Minutes post. Some things just need a little extra time. But use both of these to help yourself out. If I find I am not feeling a book, I am giving it one more chapter. No spark? No excitement? Still don’t know what is happening? It is not your time book. It is not your time. Do I feel like I HAVE to work on a certain project? Or SHOULD work on it instead of the one I have been thinking about spending time with all day? Maybe it’s time for a time out. The minute I think “Ugh, I have an episode of “fill in the blank” to watch” I know that it’s probably time to trim the list a bit.
Some projects, books, shows, have been saved with my “last chance” approach. But realizing that I am not enjoying something and releasing myself from having to power through is completely freeing. Sometimes the symbol of removing that pressure is enough to let me settle in and enjoy that thing again.
I understand the struggle. I feel like I am wasting time by not completing something. I have put so much effort in so far, now I won’t finish? That’s ok. Especially if you are able to take something from the experience. Maybe you learned that reading a fantasy book book right after a sci-fi one doesn’t work for you. Maybe when work is insane, you need something a little lighter. Maybe you learn that the colours you chose really don’t lend to lace, or that you would choose a different kind of needle for that project next time. See? You learned something, no wasted time.
And even if you don’t learn something. Life is still too short. If you force yourself to read the last 3/4 of that book so you can say it’s done, how long will that take? I know it takes me a lot longer to finish anything I am not interested in. In that time you could have read one or two books that you actually enjoyed. In most cases, these are hobbies, things that we do to balance out all the “have to”‘s in life, why would you spend that time hating it all?
Don’t think of it as giving up, you are just changing direction. Maybe that Cricut project isn’t what you want to work on now (Mom, I am looking at you), but maybe if you do a different one for a while you will have the inspiration and more knowledge to come back to that first project later. I just pulled out a couple projects last night. It was sad to see all of the work undone, but looking at the yarn afterwards, there is so much more exciting potential! A little switch can really change the perspective.
I say, spend that time with something that you are excited about, can’t wait to get back to or experience. Do the things that make you happy.
Every scenario has a “yes, but” I know. Let’s just look at this for what it is though. This is your sign that you don’t HAVE to finish that book, that project sitting in the corner wants to be a shawl instead, and anything else you just want to put on timeout, put on timeout. Set yourself free! There’s so little we have control over. Take control of this!
One of my lovely friends found a book earlier in the year and suggested that we maybe do a book club together. Everyone was down, and as usual, things escalated. We decided that we would read the book over five weeks, and knit a pair of socks in the process. Which naturally meant that we all worked on two or three pairs for the month. It’s what we do haha.
Anyway, the books was The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs. I won’t post my review and thoughts just yet, at the time of writing this, I had not heard if everyone was done reading yet.
I did decide to knit two pairs of socks though. I originally had an advent pair of socks from Area 51 fibres that I was going to knit, but working on those would have had me done ahead of the schedule we laid out. So I added another pair to work on along side my fun advent stripes.
As I mentioned this yarn is from Area 51 Fibres and I am so happy with it. I caught the advent yarn bug on Boxing Day when some of the sock sets were on sale. It’s so fun to see what colour comes next, and it’s a manageable amount of knitting to accomplish in a day. Love it! I had been wanting to try Area 51 Fibres for a while, so when I saw this I thought that it would be the perfect start! Not normally colours that I would pick for me but the socks came out wonderfully. Perfect spring time socks.
I knit a basic toe up sock pattern to make sure that there was room for all of the stripes. Instead of just plain stockinette, I opted for a S1, K1 pattern for one row as the colour changed, just to change it up a bit. I did the same for the afterthought heel, and lined the cuff ribbing up so it would all match. I am so happy with them!
I have had these Centrifugal Forces Socks in the queue for a while now. They seemed like a perfect spring time sock and would go perfectly with the book club idea. The Very Busy Monkey socks always look super intimidating, but I find that they fly off of the needles. I do think that I misunderstood the rotation of the stitches because somehow sock #1 became sock #2 in the pattern and vice versa, but it all worked out in the end.
The yarn I used is a very early day Leo & Roxy colourway called Bees Knees, and it knit up insanely soft. I just want to squish these socks all day.
In a surprise twist, the designer was holding a sock KAL at the same time, that these qualified for. I was able to get them posted on the last day. Guess what? I won the grand prize for the KAL! These are prize winning socks haha. I was completely floored. My prize is in the mail.
Update: My mail arrived yesterday, just in time for this post to go up. The yarn comes from Yarnaceous Fibers, and this is such an amazing prize pack. Two gorgeous skeins of yarn, tea, a Yarnaceous stickers and a label for me to put on my finished object! Thank you so much to Stephanie and Maggie, this was just the best surprise!
Anyway, this whole thing was a lot of fun. It was great to knit along with friends, even if we all chose different patterns. I am sure it will be fun to compare reading notes too when everyone is done.
Did the end of April sneak up on anyone else? Anyone? I know that I am surprised haha.
I don’t have a pile to report this morning. Work is getting busier and busier, so I am finding myself re-evaluating my time management and making sure that I am able to keep up with my plans. April turned out to be a bit of an engine warm rather than a take off, but hopefully that will set me off on the right foot for May.
My Behance project for this month is taking over all studio time, so the balance is a little off. But I already have an idea for May so I think that I am off to a good start. Once I get a good balance back I will be sure to post some of the sketching ideas I’ve had brewing too. Lots to come from the studio.
I am also brewing up a few more Creativity posts. These are a lot of fun to research and write, so I hope that you are enjoying them too. Anyone out there still think that they have no creativity at all? Here’s the time too look back on my posts to let you believe the compliment of creativity that is given to you. Here’s the first post, just in case.
On the yarn side of the world I have been working on a Mystery Knit-A-Long from one of my favourite designers, Ambah O’Brien. She did one back when I first started knitting and I have been eager to get started on another one ever since. So far I am loving the outcome, I do wonder if I should have gone with four colours instead of three, but something new is coming this week that I think might just change my mind. This will all make more sense when I make a post about this project later on.
I also have a KAL with friends coming up, finally getting to my sailing sweater! And I am keeping up with my original sock plans for the year, shockingly enough haha.
This one is short and sweet, but I do promise this silence is not being wasted. I am working away in the background right now, trying to get the best content for you lovely readers.
Here’s a few things that I enjoyed this month for you to explore while I write furiously in the background:
I had to sneak this project feature in before the summer weather set in and it’s too hot.
I have been so excited about this project. As soon as I saw it on Instagram I knew I needed a pair for myself. I bought the pattern right away and was on the hunt for yarn. I had a rough idea of what colours I wanted, but nothing really stood out too much in my casual shopping. And, as knitters know, mohair is expeeeeeensive. It’s really tough to think about that kind of cost for one pair of socks, this is why most knitters don’t track that kind of thing haha.
Anyway, on Boxing Day, the day I was allowing myself to buy yarn again, one of my very favourite local yarn dyers had a shop update and she had my dream combination set to upload. I pondered it, I mathed it out, but I wasn’t too sure. Then when the update went live, she surprised us all with a SALE! I kid you not. So I was able to pick out my dream socks for a cost that didn’t make me ill haha.
I cast them on as soon as I got home. I know a few people that did the cowl and they struggled with how long the pattern took. The slip stitches do shorten the length a bit, making progress feel slow. I didn’t find a huge lag in the process, but this is also a sock circumference, so that could help a bit. The final fabric is perfect for cozy socks too, so warm. They may be good at a smaller size without the mohair, for a nice summer sock.
I did worry a little about the mohair lining. I love a good cozy sock, but I worried that this might be too warm. A million percent, not the case. They are very warm, but breathe surprisingly well. I almost forget that I am wearing them. They are so soft, my feet do not overheat, and they go with everything.
What I am trying to say is that I love these socks so much. I know a few other people who might like pairs, so I am on the hunt for some more beautiful colour combinations.
Finer details:
Pattern: Snuggle Socks by Maxim Cyr
Yarn: The Loving Path Griffin DK in Midnight and Slow Silver, Aura Lace in Sateen
Hues & Tones 