Belatedly {July}

This post is a little late because I was on vacation on July 1st.

Reading: G is for Gumshoe by Sue Grafton. I've read this book before but since I was just in Santa Barbara where Sue Grafton's books are set, I thought it would be fun to reread a few in the series now that I can picture what the area looks like. X comes out August 25th so I'll be ready to read a new one by then too.

Watching: Poldark: I love Masterpiece's period dramas and this one does not disappoint. I'm a few episodes behind since I've been out of town but I hope to catch up soon.

Remembering: Our amazing California vacation. My husband and I had a wonderful time driving down the Pacific Coast. Every time we stopped we'd think the vista couldn't be any more beautiful than the previous one, but every view was incredible.

Knitting: I cast on two shawls before I left to take on my trip because I have reached the lace portion of Cladonia so it's not travel friendly right now. Henslowe in madelinetosh sock in a beautiful purple (vishnu) and Arcadian Shawl in Prism Merino Mia in variegated color called Fog.

Attempting: to walk 10,000 steps each day. I recently got a FitBit so I've been trying to walk more each day. Instead of parking as close to work as possible, I park further away and I go up or down a floor whenever I need to refill my water bottle. 

Anticipating: During these hot summer days, I hope to read, sew and knit as much as I can!

Summer Solstice

With temps in the upper 90s, my husband and I had frozen yogurt last night so one thing crossed off the summer bucket list!

I'm participating in the Ultimate Reading Challenge and one of the categories is a book that takes place in your hometown. I grew up in Albuquerque NM so this is the book I chose. The title also matches the weather we're having!

2015 Summer Bucket List

1. Go to a baseball game.

2. Go hear music outside.

3. Finish knitting 3 shawls.

4. Read at least 25 books.

5. Finish Trip to Ireland quilt.

6. Go to the farmer's market at least once.

7. Get frozen yogurt at least once.

8. Play Scrabble with my husband.

9. Grill something new for dinner.

10. Have a great vacation in California!


Joining Carole knits

Currently {June}

Reading: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. This book was an instant New York Times bestseller and has won multiple awards and I really like historical fiction so it's been on my To Be Read list for a while. It took me a little while to get into because it's not an easy read but the story is fascinating.

Watching: Scandal. I know I'm a bit behind on this one, but I was surfing around Netflix one evening trying to find something to watch. After one episode I was hooked so now I have 3 seasons I can binge-watch before the fall.

Anticipating: my husband has a conference in San Jose later this month so I will be joining him at the end then we'll a week spend exploring Monterrey and Santa Barbara.

Knitting:  I recently discovered madelinetosh yarn and I love it! I'm working on Cladonia in a blue/grey (aura) and cream (antler) in MadTosh Sport.

Sewing: a quilt that I started over  a year ago. The pattern is Trip Around the World combined with Irish Chain. This is the first quilt I'll finish since a close friend passed away from colon cancer last summer. She always loved my quilts. After I finish it I'm planning to donate it in her memory to a fundraiser at our church.

Still here

I seem to have neglected my blog once again, partially because I was sidelined for ~6 months with sore wrists so couldn't knit. Thankfully they are much better and I can knit again! 

Below are my FO so far for 2015:

Tulip Cardigan for a friend's baby boy:

I participated in my first Mystery KAL: Ysolda's Follow Your Arrow 2. I used Malabrigo Arroyo in Purpuras and it was a dream to knit with. My skeins were from the same dye lot, but I didn't know that you should still alternate when you change skeins. I'm going with it's a design element. I had a great time doing the KAL, even though I fell behind after the first clue. It was fun to get help from others and see how the clues they chose knitted up. Ravelry link here.

Ten on Tuesday: Patterns I could Knit Again

I've been reading Carole's Ten on Tuesday posts for a long time but have never participated. In an attempt to start blogging on a more regular basis again, I decided to join in and today was a good time to start as knitting is the topic! She asked us to list 10 patterns that we could knit again.

1. Umbilical Cord Hat: this pattern works great with most any yarn and is my go-to pattern for a new baby.

2. Snowflake Hats: my first attempt at fair aisle.

3. Shawl That Jazz: this shawl took forever to knit (mostly because I abandoned it for other projects) but I wear it frequently and get lots of compliments about it.

4. Sunday Sweater: I made this for my niece and it's a GREAT pattern. Very well written with lots of size options.

5. Tulip Sweater: I've made several of these and they always get lots of compliments.

6. Occhielli Cowl: I made this with yarn I got in a swap and it was an easy, fun knit.

7. Central Park Hoodie: I made this without the hood and it's the perfect sweater for a really cold day.

8. Dark and Stormy Sweater: another project that took longer than it should have. It's a great pattern.

9. Winter Hiking Hat: another project I made with swap yarn.

10. Simple Summer Tweed Top Down V Neck: this sweater went through several incarnations but I'm really happy with the finished product.

Year of Projects: Catching Up

Dark and Stormy Simple Summer Tweed V Neck     Mork     Color Affection    Husband Sweater    Sunday Sweater     Striped Sweater   Boneyard Shawl 

Even though I am way behind on blogging, I have been making a lot of progress on my projects. I have two finished projects and two more that are very close to being done!

1. Dark and Stormy - done!

2. Simple Summer Tweed V-neck - nearly done!

3. Sunday Sweater - done! This wasn't on my original list, but my sister asked if I'd make my niece (7) a sweater since she'd outgrown the previous one I'd knitted for her. It was a fairly quick knit and the pattern is very well written.

4. Housewarming Quilt

Pattern:

I'm working on the checkered border:

5. After I finish the v neck sweater, I plan to cast on a sweater for my husband using Peace Fleece yarn in Negotiation Grey with Father's Grey along the bottom, neck and cuffs.

Next week I'll post about the project I plan to make for the Ravelry Ravellenic Winter Games.