We hit 64F yesterday afternoon! For the second or third time already, I cracked a window & the sunroof on the way home from work.
And took my knitting outside for photos on the sidewalk. I knit the rest of that second motif last night & am ready to start the third. I’m considering throwing a random fourth-row farfalle in there, too.
The color progression of the Noro Ito is similar on both sleeves, but not identical. Just going with the flow…
READING:
I finally finished No Time on My Handsby Grace Snyder. There was a bit more about her quilting toward the end, but not as much throughout as I expected… or wanted. I rarely had any sense that it was happening, some vague references to bits of fabric here & there, and all of a sudden there are hundreds of hand-stitched quilts & she’s winning awards. It was an autobiography with her daughter assisting & it was interesting in many ways, if not a literary masterwork.
I’ve started reading The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elisabeth Tova Bailey — recently mentioned by both Bonnie & Kym. It’s hard to describe, but I’m really enjoying it.
There are several more inches to go on this, the first sleeve. I already did the ribbing for the second sleeve, though, so I’ll just be carrying on. It’s been AGES since I knit with Noro, and it’s just as fun as ever. It’s hard to see, but there’s some very bright pink in the recently completed rows, and I can’t wait to hit that gold section!
Now for fun little follow-up. You may recall that three years ago, I Made It With Atlas… and knit a 5 Point Bomber for the kids using MDK’s lovely Atlas yarn. How’s it fitting/holding up?
Well, first, it doesn’t fit Junah at all. He’s only about a half-inch shorter than me & will probably be two inches taller next week.
It’s getting a little snug on Ginny!
It fits Malina quite nicely and she really loves wearing my knits. The sleeves are a little long — always have been. (FYI: that top tooth is barely hanging on.)
Davy! Look at how much he’s grown in the past three years! The sweater was like a full-length coat on him.
The sweater has been washed a few times & is holding up pretty well overall. It’s still one of my favorite projects ever!
QUILTING:
I finished the last quilt block on Sunday morning. (I’m pretty sure it’s the last one.)
Scrappy triangles in a loose “flying geese” arrangement. Sometimes the lights are light, and sometimes they’re dark — and vice versa. I had a different order but messed it up on the way to the sewing machine, so this is what it is.
On one of the snow days, I photographed all of the blocks so I could play around with layout & maybe even audition some colors for sashing & cornerstones… and, eventually, border(s).
Here’s v.1. This is utilizing an Excel spreadsheet, which is one of my favorite things. There will be changes, but it’s a start! I might stop by the quilt shop later today to scout some other color possibilities. I’m considering using all scraps for cornerstones, or using a variety of the polka dot fabrics for those… or using polka dot for one of the borders, and maybe a stripe for the other… or more flying geese (bigger). So many possibilities…
THE BEST WAY TO GET THROUGH A BLIZZARD…
…is together!
Ann & Brian came up on Saturday morning & we all convened for the girls’ afternoon dance recital at the high school. The weather was quite nice/okay, but the storm was looming. We planned meals & did a big grocery shop on Friday afternoon, knowing that Saturday morning would be crazy! I made lasagna on Saturday & Chili All Day on Sunday, and between us, Ann & I came up with enough for a really good chicken soup on Monday. I knew it was going to be snowy/stormy (we even had thundersnow), but I did not anticipate that almost everything would be closed on Monday, and many places still closed on Tuesday, too, so yay for a pretty well stocked pantry.
And we had a party! One of the things we bought at the store was a big birthday cake on which we had written, HAPPY BIRTHDAY EVERYONE! Maddy is rarely here for birthday parties, so we decided to have one. We sang & blew out candles, and it was really fun.
My house was the hub, but there was plenty of movement between Ann’s & Ali’s, too. Between shoveling stints (at all locations), hanging out, and cooking/eating, we watched some movies/shows & played games. Brian taught us how to play Euchre, which taxed our brains a bit; Kate & I taught Maddy how to play Azul (it had been a while for us); Skip-bo & Sequence, sometimes with a kid or two; Nerts & Liverpool Rummy (a new-to-us game that Maddy taught us). There was some crafting here & there; and Junah worked on a big school project. I stayed up late to watch the Oscars (which I recorded).
It was the most fun we’ve ever had during a blizzard. 10/10. Highly recommend.
My knitting time has been limited, but I have been plugging away on my Farfalle Cardigan! Unfortunately, with the changing of the clocks, I didn’t have an opportunity for a picture in daylight. I’m just about to the third increase on the first sleeve, and then it’s straight mosaic garter stitch until I reach the specified measurement. I’d be a bit further if I hadn’t sailed right past the second increase… I had to rip out & redo about a half-dozen rows. Così è la vita!
QUILTING:
The quilting has been a bit slower, too, but somehow I’m only one block away from the required number. Here are the latest two:
This is a block I found online called Sunset Trail (the sample looks more like a sunset).
This is the one I showed last week as a concept of a block. It’s made from all of the corners that I cut off (and saved) while making previous blocks. I sewed the cut-off triangles together to make half square triangles & then arranged them in a way that I liked (it reminds me of the Economy block). The squares are small, so I had to do some math to add a border to make the finished block the correct size… and I did it wrong, so there are two borders. Quilter’s Math is different than Knitter’s Math, but my biggest mistake was thinking I could do it all in my head!
The last block will also be made up of half-square triangles — some of these & some others — I’m using scraps! I sewed & pressed a bunch of them at class last night, now I need to trim them. I’m sure I have enough for three blocks… choices, choices! Most everyone else in class had their quilt tops assembled with sashing & cornerstones, and were working on the border — it was so fun to see them all coming together! Soon… I’ll be there soon!!
READING:
No change… (bedtime pages): No Time on My Handsby Grace Snyder. I think I’m at the point in the book when she really starts getting into quilting… she just got a sewing machine!
Start to Finish: February 6-ish to February 27, 2026
And, as promised, I’ve also resumed kitting on my Farfalle Cardigan… it took me a minute to figure out what my notes, scratches & numbers meant, but I’m back on track (and those notes will be helpful going forward). I’m just about to begin the third repeat on the first sleeve, so it’s slow going but, hey, I’m not in a race with anyone (it’ll be nice to have a finished sleeve though)!
QUILTING:
Oh man…
I had to do some laundry at Ann’s the other day. I took all my quilting stuff so I could lay it out on that large, unobstructed expanse of floor she has over there. On the left, 12 finished quilt blocks, per the pattern. On the right, 13 finished quilt blocks + some ideas for combos for the others I’ll need to make it big… really big! I want it to not only cover my bed, but have a good drop, so I’m probably going to do a double border & I’m considering doubling or even tripling the sashing, too. It’ll take a lot of playing around to figure it out.
But, first, I need to finish all these blocks. I’ve lost count, but these were finished yesterday/last night.
The one on the left is one of my new favorites… which makes up for the one on the right, which is my new least favorite. It’s been suggested that the last favorite block be positioned in the lower left corner — mostly in terms of a wall hanging, I’m guessing — but that would be my side of the bed… so whichever one is in least favor when it comes time to put it all together, it’ll go on the lower right. heh.
I spent some time the other day trimming all of the half square triangle blocks that I made using the cut off parts from previous blocks.
It was tedious, but very satisfying, and…
…this will likely vie for “favorite” status. I sewed it all together last night, but I’ll need to border it somehow so it’s big enough.
I’m so close to finishing my Sophie scarf — I can’t wait to show you, but if you’ve seen Kym’s latest, you already know what it looks like! In some weird coincidence, we were both knitting the SAME SCARF in the SAME YARN and the SAME COLORWAY at the SAME TIME!
Blinders are on in terms of other/new projects, as I really want to get back to the Farfalle cardigan.
QUILTING:
Sawtooth Star & Patchwork Chain
Ohio Star & Log Cabin
I can’t tell you how many Log Cabin motifs I’ve embroidered or knit over the years, but I can tell you that this is the first one I’ve ever sewn! I’ve been enamored with quilt designs/patterns for years, and I really am delighted to finally be doing this.
There are only two blocks left to make: Postage Stamp & Chevron. I’ve already chosen my fabrics & would like to get them sewn up over the weekend… because now comes the hard part!
Choosing fabric(s) for sashing, border, backing & binding. We started auditioning last night. The sashing will be a “frame” around each square, and a contrasting (or not) square at each intersection.
But I’m also considering adding to this — duplicating a few of these blocks or adding new ones — in order to make this a usable bed-sized quilt. Y’know, because the one currently on our bed isn’t bright enough?
BUT, ALSO, HAVE YOU HEARD?? (Yes, I’m shouting!) George Saunders has announced that Lincoln in the Bardo is going to be made into a movie & an opera! OMG. I am dying. If that’s not enough, Tom Hanks is one of the producers and is going to play Abraham Lincoln in the movie! And while I can appreciate opera, I would not say that I’m a fan… but, boy, I sure am interested in this one! Hm. Maybe there’s a birthday trip to NYC & my first visit to The Metropolitan Opera in the cards this year.
