Blocking

I finally got to block my shawl! I used the wig pins that my friend Kate gave me, and blocked it on the floor of the hobby room.

Of course, I had to clean the room first so that there would be room to block the shawl, that took way longer than I thought it would!

Aside aside, it looks amazing.  I love blocking things - the ritual behind it, pinning each part out symmetrically... If there was a paying job blocking people's handknit work, I would apply today! I love the feeling of a project stretching out, being pulled into its final shape, teasing it and pinning it just so that it looks the way I want it to look. 

Sometimes I feel like I'm being blocked by other people.  You know the type - people that try direct you, stretch you to your limits so that you can discover who you are and what you're made of.  I had a teacher in elementary school that definitely "blocked" me! We had to have our homework done, every night, the exact way that she told us to.  I hated her - but, you know what, because of her I learned that I had to do my homework, because it helped me understand the material that we talked about in class.  And, when I got to college I still did my homework (yes - even the readings!) and I got excellent grades - because I had built those habits when I was a kid.  Mrs. D had blocked me into the shape of a student.

And just like a lace shawl or a hat, we can relax and forget our shape.  Then someone else comes around and helps block us again.

FINISHED! Well... almost!

On the ride home from Maine I finally finished my shawl, but I didn't have a needle to graft the final few stitches together.  So last night, that was done.  And now, I'm trying to figure out when I'll have a spare hour to wash and block the thing!

I'm thinking the way things are going (work gives me only about an hour of free time, and we're going hiking Saturday) I think Sunday is my best bet to get it done... here's hoping.

For now, it's sitting on the back of that couch I hate, so waiting for me to look happily at it while I eat, or read blogs, or whatever it is I'm doing.

P.S. - that's my basil plant in the first picture.  I made pesto from it today!

Getting Closer to the End

With each row I end

The next is faster; and so

I race towards the end

I've wanted to start some new projects recently, but I told myself that I shouldn't until I finish something that I'm working on.  So, of course, I pick the oldest project.  I'm surprised at how easy the garter stitch is, how few delicate stitches I've dropped.  I went to work on it today while Dan was reading a book and I noticed that I have less than a dozen rows until I finish! I'll probably finish it on the way back home from Maine today - and then comes the best part, the blocking!

Hope you are all having a good weekend - I have lots of Maine photos, but the internet is slow here so I'll do a photo post when I get back.

... And in with the new!

My mom came to visit this weekend, so, there's one excuse for not knitting as much.  The other, is what my mom brought with her.

... A new TV! I am freaking out right now.  We've already watched a movie, played flash games, browsed reddit... now Dan is playing Metro 2033. 

Setting up the TV made me realize how much clutter we have in our house.  We've lived together for almost a year, and things still don't have a "place," you know? After we set up the TV, I had the overwhelming urge to start organizing things.  I started to think about how much our "styles" clash.

For example, this /lovely/ couch... With embroidered pillow and stuffed animals (mine),Star Wars poster (his), plants (mine) and Dungeons and Dragons paraphernalia (his.)  It's just... kind of strange looking.

Anyway, my next project is this:

I call it the "hobby room," buut I think the technical word is "that room in the house that you put everything that you don't have a place for."

Game of Thrones Needlework

I've been working on this since I saw an episode of Game of Thrones where they were talking about stitching the different house mottos.

"We do not sow"... change one letter, and it becomes adorably ironic. Pair that phrase with my subpar sewing abilities, and I think that it looks pretty good!

Because really, I don't sew.  My grandma taught me how to sew when I was little (before I learned how to knit) and I ended up sewing most of what I tried to sew to my pants leg.  My dad has a few things that my grandma urged me to make - a needlepoint of some girl holding a present, a cross stitch of a cat.  I even have a pretty epic pillow that I made when I was in the third grade, but mixed up most of the colors.  It looks pretty wild and crazy.

Anyway, I don't sew.  But sometimes I get the urge to sew, and lately it's been hitting me.  Lots of blogs have been posting cute needlepoint kits, and I've been looking at this kit on etsy almost every day... but not buying it, because money's tight and maybe I'll wait until I get Christmas money or whatever.  You know.

So when I got the urge, I just sort of did it.  I sketched out the image of what I wanted first, so that I could make sure it was symmetrical.  Then I used transfer paper to put it on the fabric, and just followed it with thread.  Here's a photo of the drawing in case someone wanted to print it out and do it themselves.

The Lace Panel is Finished! Also, Maine.

My Maine mini vacation was really fun! I got to see sunsets like this...

Jump off docks like this...

Swim in the ocean like this...

And hang out in parlors like this.

Oh, and this:

I'm done with the lace panel of my shawl! Now all that's left is the rows and rows of garter stitch decreases.

So, take a good look because I will not have an update for a while, haha!

Oh, and another crafty thing - while I was there I got a watercolor lesson from Dan's grandma.  The right is my picture before the lesson.  The left is after.   I think I improved :)

Hope you all had a happy July 4th, whether you're in 'MERICA, or somewhere else.  

Coloring

I'm almost done with the lace panel of my Rock Island shawl.  I'm still on the fence as to whether or not I'm going to take it with me on our four-day weekend to Maine... I don't want to get sand on it!

As I finish each row, the next gets shorter and easier to do.  And I reward myself by coloring in a row of the chart with marker.

For some reason I get an incredibly large amount of enjoyment from this! I love doing it.  Does anyone else have those little things that just make them feel really happy?