Looking back over this month, I don’t feel that I was terribly productive. I have been knitting, of course, but while gathering and documenting all my makes I feel like I haven’t completed much. I finally finished the summer jammie set (I have a separate write up for that project). I learned a lot from completing those garments and look forward to taking that knowledge into future sewing.
- Finished makes:
Husband socks- 66-stitch socks, toe up. Patons Kroy (best sock yarn Ever!)
Worsted weight socks for me- 48-stitch socks, toe up. Araucania Huasco Worsted.
4 charity hats- 80 stitch hats, yarn doubled to make bulky weight. Used 3 ½ balls of stash yarn
Everglade hat- by Woolly Wormhead, size 20”. Sea Change Fibers by the Dye Project Neskowin DK. This is the second time making this hat. I made one for the mom-in-law back in December and LOVED the pattern. This is going into the gift box.
Summer jammie set
- New cast-ons:
Bean & Olive sweater for Ahleena.
- Works in Progress:
Calliope sweater
Jameson sweater
Knitting my memories blanket
White denim skirt
- Goals for next month:
Sew the damn denim skirt!
Make wearable toiles for 100 Acts of Sewing top and Simplicity 6446
Finish either the Calliope or Jameson sweater, probably Calliope since it only needs sleeves
Knit swatch for the Switchback sweater- see if there is enough contrast between the green and cream. If not… research how to overdye 100% wool yarn without felting it (or royally screwing it up).
Make every recipe that comes in the February Yummy Crate
Oh February, you fleeting month. A lot happens in February, every year. Even though it is the shortest month, it is always jam packed with stuff. We have 7 birthdays, including mine, just in my immediate family. My dad and I are one week apart, so we always get together to celebrate. This year we took him to the greatest Eritrean restaurant in Oakland and rocked his meat and potatoes world. That weekend we took off for a kid-free weekend with the O’s in Nevada City. We got a vacation rental house, and I may have done a quick google to search to find out how to successfully steal a house. The house was so amazing, and the surroundings were beautiful. On the last morning there, it snowed. We sat drinking coffee and watching the snow fall through the wall of windows. New life goal: find a way to become incredibly rich so that I can retire early, buy a vacation house, and sit for many days watching the snow fall while drinking coffee and knitting. While in Grass Valley, I found a darling yarn shop called Heathered Yarns. The shop was joined with another crafty type of shop and was delightful. I bought two skeins of sock yarn, one for me and one for Feebs, and a pair of leather earrings for the Mother as a thank you for keeping Feebs for the weekend. Aside from that, I did end up making a birthday yarn purchase and then a non-birthday yarn purchase. I was able to get in on the Stranded Dyeworks Anti-Valentine shop update. I have wanted that yarn since Jude first shared it and it is only available during February. So, I snagged 3 skeins of Anti-Valentine in DK and 3 skeins of Red Velvet in DK. The Anti-Valentine will be used to knit a Paris Toujours shawl. The Red Velvet will just be stashed and coveted with creepy “my precious” vibes. The shipping from Scotland was cringeworthy, but I have no regrets. I later went down a rabbit hole looking for a warm and snuggly color-work sweater (after a morning spent wrapped up in the Husband’s Dude Sweater). I have settled on the Switchback sweater. I am nervous as there is only 1 completed project and this is a FOR REAL color work pattern. I am also using this as an excuse to use up as much of the Wool of the Andes Moss green yarn that I have had for a long time. I had to purchase two contrast color yarns, so went with Cloud as the body contrast and Midnight Heather as the colorwork band contrast. I will have to knit a swatch to be sure that there is enough contrast between the Cloud and the Moss. If not, I may need to try my hand at overdying. Feebs and I made every recipe in her January Yummy Crate. We made the bibimbap first, and it turned out very good. Then we did the layered smoothies and realized that recipe yields a LOT of smoothy. Then we did the salmon skewers. When we make them again, we will cut the salmon pieces bigger and put them farther away from the broiler. Each recipe was very easy to follow and required minimal “help” from me. With her kid-safe knives, she was able to chop up most of the vegetables (or at least start them, till she decided to move onto something more exciting). The back yard clean-up saga continues. We discovered at least another 1 ton of buried concrete. I have never wished a person to hell as much as I have the former owner of our house. We have started to dig it all up, which completely hijacked our plans to have the yard cleared and done in 2 weekends. This weekend (weekend #4) will be all about backfilling where the concrete was, and where we removed the bamboo. Then it is back to pulling weeds. About half of the yard is done, so it shouldn’t take me too long. The husband started his certification class, and can I just say, we didn’t read the fine print on this course. We were both under the impression that he would have a night or two of instruction and a night needed for homework. It seemed that it would be at his own pace and could be logged into at any time. This was our mindset in October, when he signed up. Fast-forward to February 14th, when the course actually started. He must log on at 4:00 PM, sharp, and be on the zoom call until 7:00 PM. Mind you, he doesn’t get off work until 5:00 PM. He must do this 4 nights per week. Then he has roughly 6-8 hours of homework to complete on the weekend. For 8 months. Yeah, we didn’t read the fine print AT ALL. This is shifting all of the house needs, Feebs needs, and all other must-dos to me. It is going to be a struggle, but it will all be worth it in the end. And the last car on my train of thought is Stitches West 2022. I love Stitches West. I have been going for the last 7 years and I love every minute of it. I only go to the marketplace, as I don’t really enjoy taking large classes. I either go with Ms. H, or by myself. This year is the first year that they will be at their new location in Sacramento. It is being billed as very big deal, since the arena is roughly double the size of the Santa Clara Convention Center. I was doubly excited to go since it was cancelled last year. However, I have decided not to go this year. With Covid still being a real issue, and the mask mandates being lifted, I just can’t justify being a room with hundreds of people all crowding around tables and getting into each other’s spaces. On the flip side, if they change it to be more Covid safe, that will change the entire vibe of the festival. I have decided to for-go this year and make up for it next year. On that note, I am SO OVER COVID. I want it gone, I want it dead, I want it to be over and done. That is all, rant over.
Loves,
M
Mrs. Collins Makes Stuff 