I do like a nice cozy rabbit hole… and I’ve fallen deeper into the Kaffe Fassett book hole. I have a few books of my own, some that were my sister Sharon’s (I don’t know if she ever knit a Fassett pattern), and I’ll always pick one up at a thrift store.
Still, the man has published A LOT of books! I’ve been perusing some used book sites (concentrating on knitting, because there’s also a slew of quilting & needlepoint books).
These two arrived at my house yesterday. Paging through Kaffe’s Classics, I found this:
Dreaming In Color was also once a gift to someone, but the inscription didn’t make me laugh like this one did. I love that Wayne identified himself as “Your Husband.” Wouldn’t the recipient have known that he was her husband?? How many people named Wayne would give her that book for her birthday??
But the best thing I found in that book (besides the old Far Side calendar page) (not pictured) was THIS:
Yes, I’ve already checked Ravelry to see if I could identify this project. It’s possible the maker gave up because, though her chosen colors are pretty, there sure isn’t much contrast.
I love it, though. And that vest. And finding things in books!!
WordPress has a daily writing prompt, and this is today’s: What was the last thing you searched for online? Why were you looking for it? Lordy. Some of my search history from last night:
n k calculator
what are the combinations of 3 with 6 numbers
I need 35 random variations of 1-6
what are the possible variations of 1-6 in sets of 3 with some repeats
generate sets of three numbers that equal 6 with no negative numbers
etc.
I’m using an existing pattern as a jump-off point — the size of it & that it’s 7-row granny squares, really. That pattern uses four colors, and I’m using six. I want the 7th row of each square to be white, the other six rows a random combo of three colors… or two. I tell ya, my head was spinning last night after looking at (meaningless to me) math nerd calculations; reading the comments/feedback was a whole ‘nother level o’ nerdiness.
Google AI was helping a bit. Mostly, I discovered that it came down to wording: what exactly was I looking for? I’m not really sure, but I think I landed on a solution.
Meanwhile, the little hexi-ish flower above was me getting my crochet legs back… it was supposed to be a square! (Another thing that I’ve discovered is that I prefer a crochet chart over written directions — opposite of my preference for knitting.)
SEWING:
Front & back of my current panel as of last night:
And the back of that same panel last week:
I’ve added just a couple of things on the middle section — usually when I still have a pretty good length of thread or floss to use.
Close up (side-by-side photos are galleries, so click for bigger images).
There are three motifs remaining on that bottom section, and I marked each with a pin.
All three will be done in applique… not certain about other embellishments yet.
READING:
I finished This Long Thread last week — that took a while, but I read a few things in between (and, also, there’s just a lot going on!). It was a good book, and interesting to read so many makers’ stories.
I picked World Travel: An Irreverent Guide by Anthony Bourdain off the pile o’ books. It was written posthumously, using his own words (written, or from a show). It’s going to be a good read, but I’ll be skipping over the logistics part of each locale — perhaps I’d use it as reference if I were going somewhere, but I already know, for instance, that the part about the airport in Lima, Peru, is different! It’s also a book that I can pick up & put down without really losing my place…
And I’ve already put it down, since Kaffe Fassett: Dreaming In Color: An Autobiography arrived on my front porch! It’s rather large & heavy for reading in bed (which is where almost all of my reading is done), but I’m enjoying it so far, especially because Kaffe Fassett Is Coming! to MDK HQ in Nashville… and I’m going! More later.
Finally:
Ali shared this year’s First Day of School photo with us and wrote, “I’m starting to see why everyone sees me in Malina!” Turns out, they’re not as hard to get out of bed in the morning this year, which means they ended up with a little too much time on their hands before they had to leave — one thing led to another & it didn’t end well. From the look on Davy’s face, I’d bet he was involved. Anyway, speaking of Malina, I think she’s probably going to have a growth spurt pretty soon!
The kids had a busy last weekend of summer vacation!
The farmer across the street from their other grandparents’ house hosts a small-craft fly-in & car show every year… and this year, the kids (except Davy) took flight!
Davy helped Grandpa (with an assist from Ali) fix his bike chain so it wouldn’t keep falling off…
…and then we had the last sleepover of the summer.
There are plenty of lovely, summery days ahead (I’m sure of it! and we’ll enjoy every minute of it), but there’s nothing like the first day of school to put a bookend on summer!
It sure went fast.
Meanwhile, still fighting the plague (allergy?), I took a couple of naps over the weekend, but also did a lot of sewing/beading, and started a new crochet project. Did I mention that Addie’s blanket is completely finished? Ends woven in, washed & dried, and ready for delivery in a couple of weeks when Kate & I make another quick trip to MN. I’m still working out the details of the new project, but it’s worsted granny squares, so it’ll go a little quicker. One of my best repeat Airbnb customers gave me some yarn last winter, and I feel obligated to use it… so this is what I’ve come up with. Maybe a photo soon?
Update: Weight, blood pressure & cholesterol were all lower & within range. Mammogram was good. Pesky bug bite & sinus thing continue to slowly improve. Colonoscopy is scheduled.
We went to a baseball game on Friday night.
We stayed late for fireworks & for the kids to run the bases. If you look closely, you might spot the big gap where Malina’s two lower front teeth used to be! So cute. Someone near us recovered a fly ball & gave it to Davy… he kind of tossed it out ahead of himself when he ran the bases, so had to go way out into center field to retrieve it, deviating from the prescribed path — it was kind of funny to watch the “supervisors” react & try to corral him back.
Saturday was a PAJAMA DAY for me, which means a lot of puttering around… in pajamas!
Two little girls showed up at my house on Sunday. “Can we borrow a cup of brown sugar?” OMG, when’s the last time that happened?? Has to be a couple of decades…
The baker’s assistant was patiently waiting to continue mixing up a batch of chocolate chip cookies! They all came over for dinner… and brought us some cookies. Yum.
Things have been happening in the basement…
Our electrician was around to finish the electrical rough-in & laying of the cable for floor heat. Kate mixed & delivered mortar while Rusty spread it… now a few days to dry, then insulation & drywall. Exciting!!
I broke out all the beads yesterday!
I’ve been slow getting back into the major bead work, but that gate is now wide open.
How are we 3/4 of the way through August already? Kids registered for school last Monday & start next Monday!
Thing 1. My Alabama Chanin project can be overwhelming, what with the various fabrics, threads, embroidery floss, beads (seed, chop, bugle) & sequins… not to mention the tools, including various types of pins & needles, scissors, marking pens & chalk. I managed to put together a small project bundle to take up north on my jaunt with Maddy — limiting myself (not easy) to only needle & thread/floss. Well, I brought everything except the main thread/floss that I was using! There happened to be a small hank of Weeks Dye Works Pearl Cotton in Eggplant in the sewing tin that I grabbed — I have no idea where I got it, but it’s gorgeous & I’d been considering how/when to use it. If I wanted to sew, I had no choice but to use it, so I did — and I’ve since ordered more & other colors.
Sewing has been slow of late with everything else going on, but I got back to it last night. Here’s an update!
Front & back of one of the back panels, as of this morning.
Same panel two weeks ago. Spot the differences! haha.
And here’s a more detailed shot of the bottom third of the panel that I’ve been concentrating on.
Thing 2. After I did a little sewing last night, I pulled Addie’s throw onto the table & started going over that with a fine-tooth comb, tucking in ends & whatnot. While it looks amazing, I’m afraid it’s not going to wear very well, so I’ll have to offer ongoing maintenance services. haha. I’ve also been working on the border of the Family Temperature Blanket — whoa boy that baby is a lapful!
Turns out, I had one tooth to knit on my second Hitchhiker, so I finished that off the other night.
I’m not sure what I did on the edge at top/near right — some extra increases, I guess — to make that little bump. No one will know but you & me.
It still needs blocking, and that bump might not be so prominent.
Thing 3. I have tomorrow off, and it’s one of my long weekends — the first “normal” one since early May! I’ve had plenty of time off, so I’m not complaining at all, but it just goes to show that “summertime” & “routine” do not go together around here.
I can’t complain (too much) about the weekend weather, either — there’s rain everyday, but also sunshine! Maybe there’ll be a good thunderstorm to chase, or rainbows to spot.
_ _ _ _ _
I have a doctor appointment tomorrow morning. I saw her a couple of weeks ago (a week+ after a visit to urgent care) about a “bug bite” I got around the 4th of July that quickly turned into… who-knows-what?? Cellulitis? The doc at urgent care thought so & put me on an antibiotic. It was clearing up, but came raging back when the course of drugs was finished. My doc wasn’t so sure about cellulitis; she tested for Lyme (just to be safe – and it was negative, thank goodness), but thought maybe it was a bad allergic reaction, which I’ve had to bug bites before but never like this. More drugs. I finished one of them yesterday morning… and there’s still a big red/maroon (sometimes a little itchy) spot on my leg. So far it doesn’t seem to be getting worse. Geez, I hate this stuff. The good news is, they did all the labs when they drew blood for the Lyme test, so I don’t have to go in extra-early for that — and the results weren’t too bad. Tomorrow, it’s just mammo, physical, and follow-up on the bug bite. Wish me luck.
