Foreshortened,

Today's post is another in the line of finishing and plodding. There is a baby due at work, the mother leaves at Easter to make that transition from working couple to family of three with the 'responsibility' of a child. I've been there, and survived, and like most parents found that it was both more work and easier than I imagined. Easier in that at the end of the day if your baby is alive, growing, feed, warm, and showing an interest in the world you have succeeded, more work in that it takes all your mind, all your waking hours and some that you would rather be asleep during. Scary in that there is this little helpless living person totally depent on you, and wonderful in when you get it right they smile, sleep and grow.

A few months ago, well last year to be truthful another work friend gifted me a fleece. I embarked on my first real project of fleece to knit project, I washed, flicked, carded, spun, plied, knit, and blocked. The finished blanket is 580g, and probably more a cot blanket than a crib blanket.

The pattern was Quadrature for Kerrigan, but foreshortened. As I carded and spun I realised that I either had two fleeces, one short dark grey brown, blocky locks and soft, the other longer, grey less soft and paler grey locks. At first I processed the locks as they came to hand, then as I got more a feel for the fiber I began to select out locks of simillar colour and feel. I ended up wth skeins that varied in colour, at first more variegated and then either light or dark grey. I decided to use the different colour skeins to mark the transition in the pattern from blanket center to blanket border.

I loved the pattern but was a little confused by the options. I'd been attracted by the stocking stitch center, and the garter border with the twisting cable at the corners. As I read the pattern I realised there were options, I could have a stocking stitch edge or other variations. I knew I was working with the yarn I had ... Rather than spinning yarn to make the pattern as written, so I followed the pattern as a guide rather than a rule. When I realised that I didn't have enough yarn to complete the boarder with its three twisted bubble cables I decided to finish the blanket with a single bubble at each corner and mid point. It still has a nice wide boarder but I wonder how much more dramatic it would be if the boarder was the size specified in the pattern.

I also needed a more portable project and fell back on washcloths. I prefer the term wash cloth over dishcloth as ours are used for more than dishes. I had three colours of sugar and cream cotton, in size medium. I love the colours but find this weight dries to slow here to leave damp, even when wrung out the cloths are cold and wet to pick up and use later. Bear wanted some heavier clothes to use in cleaning and this seemed a perfect solution. Knit thick durable cloths that could be used then tossed into the laundry. Patterns are double bump, Chinese waves and snakes and ladders, 5.5mm needles and all cast on 41 stitches. I think I have enough yarn left to knit a multi stripe one or two.

This week was iD fashion week in dunedin, so there have been lots of talks and shows and events ... All of which coincided with a blood test revealing a rather low iron count. Some how knowing I had a physical reason to feel tired made me feel more tired. Good news is I'm taking iron and vitamin c tablets, eating lots of high in iron foods, and cutting back on the iron sapping foods and activities. I am looking so forward to this coming week, of having a little more energy, plus Deirdre Nelson is talking at work, and it's only a few weeks until the next holiday.

Take care, na Stella

 

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