Hello darling. OhMyGodIt’sFinallyDone!!!! The Father’s birthday gift sweater is finally completed. Naturally it is 2 months after his birthday. I knit Zipper Sweater- Man by Petite Knits. I got inspired by NE Knits podcast when she knit one for herself and was working on one for her husband. I knew I wanted to knit the Father a sweater for his birthday and figured it would be a snap since it is Aran weight yarn and size 8 needles. So I jumped onto Webs and bought some discontinuing Plymouth Mojito Merino in Gray. The yarn was delightful and a dream to knit with. I think I may have already lamented my exciting adventures in knitting 8 inches of 1×1 rib twice (you know how much I love knitting ribbing…). When I started it, I figured it would be a slam dunk to finish by his birthday. For the second time a sweater for the Father bested me and I lost the race. Once again my elbows fired up like murder and I had to take several time outs due to pain, then several more due to the sizing debacle.

What went right: The patter was very clearly written. I know her patterns are very popular and considered good for new knitters. I can see why. The yarn was fantastic to knit with. It knits up squishy and soft and washes and blocks out smoothly. The finished sweater feels lightweight, but will be warm. I hated every minute of knitting the ribbing, but it creates a really nice effect. Now that it is behind me, I am really happy with the finished garment.

What went wrong: You already heard all the griping about incorrect size selection and having to rip out the entire neck and shoulders of the first attempt and start over (incredibly painful). You also know that I detest hand sewing, and not only did I have to hand sew, I had to hand sew a non-separating zipper for the first time. That took a metric ton of clips and a lot of maneuvering and patience. I think I did a much nicer job on the zipper for Harris just because it was a nice flat separating zipper. Luckily it’s black thread on a black zipper, so it’s not terribly noticeable. There is some puckering and is a bit catawampus at the base where the zipper is connected, but all in all it’s pretty good. I am not 100% sure the length will be correct, even though I knit it to the measurements that I took of him. He does have a belly to contend with and I probably should have thrown in a short-row or two to accommodate it. I am taking it to him this weekend and he will try it on while I am there. I am taking my whole knitting bag with me so that if there are any adjustments that need to be made, they will be done before I leave his house. I don’t want to bring it home with me again. A slight critique on the pattern is that the fold over collar doesn’t cover the entire zipper. There was a significant gap from the end of the fold over to the bottom of the V, at least 2-3 inches. It made a significant…

[Darling, as I write this, I just realized the mistake I made. There is a weird flap thing at the end of the fold-over collar that I couldn’t figure out what the heck it was for and wove in the ends. My dumbass probably stopped reading the instructions… If I had been smarter, I would have probably read that I needed to put those stitches back on the needle and knit down both sides to the V and cover the zipper. Holy crap, I am dumb… Well, I have one more day to fix it before I see him. Hopefully I will remember to take a before and after. Wow. Just, wow.]

So, back to our regularly scheduled program. The other critique that I had about the pattern was with the fact that the Zipper Sweater was advertised as unisex, so I purchased the pattern. When I started highlighting the sizes, I realized that the sizing was very much for women. I looked on her Ravelry account and sure enough, there was a Zipper- Man. That felt like false advertising and those patterns weren’t cheap. I wasn’t very happy about that. In spite of everything, though, it’s a good pattern and a good sweater. It isn’t my style, so I don’t think I will ever actually use the Zipper- Woman pattern, which is a shame. I think this may have been my first Petite Knit pattern, and it was a pretty good one. I hope the Father likes his sweater and I hope it keeps him warm and safe. I love him and I hope he knows there was love knit into every stitch.

Loves,
M

P.S., It Fit!!!!

Hello darling. I did a thing, and good lord, she is beautiful! I was shopping at Urban Ore, like you do, and was trying to find a headboard for our queen size bed. I couldn’t find what I was looking for, and the copper bed set still had a Sold sign on it, so that was a no go. I went over to the table section and came across this beautifully shaped but sadly abused table. I felt like she was giving “I’ve seen some stuff” vibes and I could justify the $95 price tag. I was going to strip this baby down, give her new life, and use her as a head board.

The Mother and I started to plot the best method for fixing this beauty up. I wanted to buy stripper and remove the varnish and stain prior to sanding her down. I went on-line and found a highly rated stripper that was supposed to work beautifully. I used 3 cans of stripper and 3 full days and it didn’t make the slightest dent in the finish. I don’t know if it was a faulty product, I missed a step, or it was just too cold in the garage, but nothing happened. I was not happy. So after wasting time and money, I agreed with both Mother and the Husband that sanding was going to be our only hope. So we started sanding. We had to buy two new sanders, and use both the circular sander and the belt sander. The Husband was an angel and he stripped the top, the Mother and I did the rest. We couldn’t get all the varnish at the very top of the legs off, due to the curves, nor the cutouts. In the end, I sanded down the texture in the cutouts and left them two-toned. I hymned and hawed about whether I wanted to stain the table or not. There were many different types of wood used to create this table, and each would have taken stain differently. In addition, there had been some repair done in the past and the wood glue would have stuck out against the wood grain. In the end I decided to smoothly sand it and coat it with clear varnish. Ladies and Gentlemen, here she is!

At some point, I will get better pictures and do her justice. I love this table. I love the idea and the execution of this table. I am proud that even though I got super frustrated with the stripping, I figured it out (with help) and moved on. I am NOT a distressed, shabby chic person in the slightest, but I really love how this table has character and history. I am very happy that I went with my gut and kept the wood natural. Aside from the fact that I think it would have been a beast to get the stain even, I could have taken away some of her natural charms. I am so happy with this table/ headboard, and it may have inspired me to finally work on the curb-gnome table that I picked up last summer (that has been taking up room in the garage).

So, here she is and she’s beautiful! I’m excited for the next upcycle!

Loves,

M

Hello darling. Here is my Home Camisole by Caidree. I knit this using my special Hawaii yarn, Cetari Old Dominion DK Cotton. I wasn’t 100% sure of this yarn when I bought it, but it was a local yarn store and the store was going out of business. I wanted to buy something to help the shop owner and I wanted it to be useable. The top took a while to knit because I was sure that it was going to be too big on me. So, she got put in a time out for several months. That was naughty of me, especially considering that while it is a titch loose in the bust/ ribs (like most summer tops I have knit) it fits practically everywhere else. I got a bug in my bustle about finishing WIPs at then end of March and decided to finish it, even if that meant gifting it to someone. That may not end up being necessary. I-cord edging… am I right? That nonsense takes for-ev-er to complete! But it looks so pretty when it’s done. It is truly a labor of love. The pattern was really well written and everything worked out exactly as they planned it.

What went right? I wasn’t totally in love with the color, but it has grown on me. I like the variegation and the fact that it looks purposeful, even thought I didn’t alternate skeins like I should have. The v-neck is fantastic. I think that may be my preferred neckline. It is a bit of a beast to knit and fiddle with, but it is so flattering on me. I also think that it allows the bold color to be farther away from my face, so I appear less splotchy. While it seemed like it was going to be too loose, the fit is actually fine. I bought a tube top to wear under it so that it can work with a looser fit. The i-cord is tedious A-F, but it looks so polished and finished. I did need some help with joining the i-cord. I decided to wing it for the underarms and hem, but there was no way I was getting away with that on the neckline. I turned to ye old YouTube (Knit a Rainbow with Kimberly McAlidin: How to finish knitting i-cord in the round) to find out how to join the ends seamlessly. This tutorial is fantastic and after blocking, you can’t see where I joined at the neck.

What when wrong? I don’t necessarily think the fit is wrong, but it wasn’t the fit I had in mind when I cast it on. When I knit this again, and I will, I will do either a. use a finer yarn and go down a needle size while knitting the same size or b. use dk weight yarn with recommended needles and cast on a size smaller, then increase a bit after I have joined for the underarm to give a slight A-line to hide the breadbasket stomach. This will make the fit a bit better in the bust/ underarm. This tip isn’t just for this top, but for all strappy tops that I knit: KNIT LESS ROWS FOR STRAPS! I always knit the straps per the pattern recommendation and always end up with straps that are too long and need to be ripped back and adjusted. It is tedious. It is fiddley. I do not like doing this. Also, I should have referenced the video on how to seamlessly join the i-cord edging when I first bound off for the hem. It isn’t horrible, but it doesn’t lay as flat as it could. I have blocked the top and pinned the underarms, and will find out if the join still sticks out. If it does, I see myself ripping back to join seamlessly. Prior to blocking the join kind of stuck out at the sides.

So, that is all she knit. This is my second Caidree top, and both ended up being loose. I can’t help but think that it is user error more than designer, but who knows. If I make the modifications that I mentioned, I see the next Home Camisole looking more, not body-con, but fitted. The yarn didn’t dry out my hands, but I did use the wrong needles to do the i-cord around the arm holes so my hands still hurt like mad when they were done. Once I switched to the sharp Chiagoo’s for the neckline, everything went way smoother. As I said, I will for sure be knitting this again. I have the cotton-silk yarn from the shop in Petaluma that I want to find a use for. I realize that it isn’t deep stash, but it is from 2023, so it counts as stash. The designer writes a good pattern. I see myself recommending it to others and letting them know to swatch to be sure the fit issues aren’t a designer error. I see myself wearing this top a lot this summer, and also wearing any other versions that I create.

Loves,

M

So, March is over. I just posted February (literally) and here we are talking about March. I am sad to report that there are no finished objects this month either. I did knit a lot, especially in those few final days, but nothing got the Completed stamp. I must say that I am proud of how much I pulled together at the end, though.

Works in Progress:

Zipper Sweater

Birthday Flax

Travel socks

Home Camisole

Shatar Vest

Goals for next month:

Mending pile-

Sew zippers into Zipper Sweater and Harris

Shorten the sleeves of the Betty cardigan

Work on WIPs

Give the Father his sweaters/ get them out of your house/ head

Meet with a financial planner

So, nothing is done. I finished knitting the entire body of the Zipper sweater and the Home Camisole. I only have to sew in the zipper and weave in the ends of the sweater and do the neckline and armholes of the camisole. Of course, I had to order new zippers for both of the Father’s sweaters and now have to hand sew them in. I am never excited about hand sewing. I think the camisole is going to be too big, as usual with any summer top I have knit in the past year… I don’t know what my glitch is with size selection. I seem to keep over estimating my size or just picking the wrong size to knit. I am not petite, but apparently I need to knit smaller. Mind you, if I ever knit a gauge swatch, it may not be so far off… I could be onto something there. I think the Zipper will be too short for dad and I will have to cut and extend it. I knit it to fit the measurements that I took, but I still don’t think it will work. I go see him next month and will figure it out then. I am taking it and the yarn with me so I can finish it while I am there and leave it with him. I would like him to be able to take it on his trip if he chooses. I also want both sweaters out of my custody. I think April will have a glut of finished objects (fingers crossed). I am in the homestretch of several things. I also think that April will be the month that I buy my sock machine. She will finally be mine. One small bitch is that you have to pay for shipping on an $800+ machine. How can you charge me extra to send it when the cost is so high? Am I too used to buying through big box stores? Gripe, gripe, gripe…

March was pretty okay. My work life is still going pretty smooth, so that is always good. The first week entailed the great annual tax preparation, which is always fraught with concern. It isn’t too bad. Owing taxes means I make enough to have to pay them. Right…? That is what I tell myself to feel better. I had my usual 5 week hair appointment scheduled on the first weekend, but we ended up going to see the Father-in-Law at Stanford. It was a long day, but we were able to spend time with that family. We missed the Edgar Allen Poe Speakeasy, which was unfortunate. Maybe we will get so see it or something like it another time. The following weekend was ladies nights with best girls. We have been plotting a fantastic surprise for the guys and it involves t-shirts and looks of disgust. I can’t wait to give them to the guys at the work weekend at Ab’s house. I had reserved the following weekend for Jamie’s visit to Napa, but we didn’t get to hook up while she was here. Anniversaries are so inconvenient and it interfered with me getting to see her while she was in California. Our Jamie-free weekend ended up being incredibly chill, which was nice. The Mother and I worked on my table and got it mostly sanded. The Father came that week for a visit. We took him to the good Burmese place in Dublin. He was supposed to come back the following day, but his busy schedule prohibited it. He and Jill are traveling to London in April, so we made a plan to get together before he leaves. That next weekend I rescheduled my hair appointment, thank goodness, and I changed my hair color and have gone back to my more natural color. My goal is to let it grow out and cut off the color treated hair overtime. I am very curious what my natural color and texture are now at the ripe age of 43. I know I am very gray for my age, so I will be curious to see how it goes. I will keep it short while it grows out. After my hair, I had lunch with the Husband’s Aunt. She is such a delight. I absolutely love her. We have decided that we will take a trip to Urban Ore so that she can check it out. I will get in touch next time mom needs to go so that we can make a day of it. The next day was St. Patrick’s Day and the Husband made his amazing corn beef sliders. Those things are so good. That week my allergies absolutely floored me. I was in a haze the whole beginning of the week. By Thursday I was still miserable and we had to go to a retirement party for the Husband’s coworker. Unfortunately it was in the park in the reservoir and I felt like garbage. I am sure my snotty cheerfulness really impressed all of his coworkers, but I felt like hell and couldn’t fake it. We were pleasantly surprised by a visit from the Mark. He was working in the bay area and stayed with us for two nights. Feebs had a sleep over with the Mother and they had a nice time. The three of us went on an adventure to Santa Rosa and had good food and (they had) beer. The next day we went to a really good little breakfast place in Berkeley. We also stopped by Avenue Yarn shop so that I could get a tiny bit of the Bay Area Yarn Crawl in. I only went to that one shop, so I didn’t participate in the event. I couldn’t justify traveling to 20 yarn shops in that wide of an area. I do intend to go to the Sierra Nevada one, though. I won’t miss it again this year. The week continued on, and I still felt like garbage. I was off Thursday and Friday to spend time with Feebs for her Spring Break. On Thursday we went the Museum of Curiosities in Sacramento with the Mother. We had a nice time. It was only one floor, but had NEMO vibes and Feebs loved it. After the museum we went to Fenton’s and had a delightful lunch. We were all tired by the end of the day. Then Friday came, and my coughing was really bad and I started to get death breath (what I affectionately call the taste in my mouth when I start to get bronchitis or pneumonia). I know my body and the signs of impending doom so I called my doctor and got some antibiotics and a stronger inhaler. I was wiped out all Friday and Saturday. Sunday was Easter, so I had to rally a bit to make the day fun for my girl. I did, but just a bit. I had absolutely no energy and was pretty lifeless. I think I could have finished my Home Camisole if I could have knit for more than 5 minutes at a time. Oh well, there is always next month.

I have a lot that I want to accomplish for next month. Things to finish, things to start, things to organize. I want to set up a call with a financial planner and get our money better organized. I am almost to my savings goal, that will allow me to shift what I am saving for. We need to start thinking/ planning on buying a truck, so that needs to happen. Once the Father’s sweaters are done, I need to cast on the top for the Mother and get that going. I may not be able to pull it off for Mother’s Day, but should be able to get it done before her birthday. I still want to cast on something that makes my heart smile. I want to sew something fun and feel accomplished for completing something special and useable/ wearable. I want to get over whatever yuck is plaguing me and pretty much everyone I know so that we can all be healthy and well. I want April to bring happy things and more good memories.

Loves,

M

And here we are, February is complete. That means we are almost done with the first quarter of the year. February was really good. Many good things happened this month and I move onto March with good memories. A lot of knitting happened, but not a lot of finishing. No sewing occurred, but I think I have a plan in the making. There are no finished objects, but March should see some, so there’s that.

New cast-ons:

Birthday Flax

Works in progress:

Zipper sweater

Shatar vest

Home camisole

Travel socks

Goals for next month:

Finish the Zipper sweater

Resew the zipper in Harris

Plan out a sewing project

Find a knit I can’t wait to work on

I hope he never reads this because I have really hated both sweaters that I have knit for the Father. He is so knit-worthy, and I love him so much, but both of the sweaters that I have knit for him gave me absolutely no joy to knit. Add to that, they never seem to fit him. Harris was enormous. While I did manage to shrink it (successfully, I think) it was a pain in my ass and I still haven’t resewn the zipper and returned it to him. The birthday gift that should have been finished, by his birthday, still isn’t done. It is very close, but then the dread of “will it fit him” creeps in. That being said, I did allow myself a cheeky birthday knit. I have knit at least seven Flax sweaters, but none have been for me. So I grabbed my Knitting for Olive mohair and Holts Garn combo from our European trip and cast one on for my birthday. I started with a fold over neck, but fell out of love with it and have put it in a time out. I started to browse Ravelry, looking for a pattern that would spark joy, but I haven’t committed to anything yet. I have my eye on using up my old- AF Berroco Glace and knitting another Heartbeat top. I don’t have enough yarn to knit it, but have put out feelers on Ravelry for people willing to sell theirs. So, I will see if this is even a possibility. I had nerve to buy a new sewing pattern, the York Pinafore by Helen’s Closet, and have finished assembling the million sheets of paper that creates the pattern. I feel like I have no concept of what size I am, so am being a chicken about cutting it out. I think it will be super versatile for all seasons, so I need to woman up and commit. I also hacked up a pair of the Husband’s ruined pants and plan to knit a project or mid-sized tote bag. I have to “design” it so, again, I am being a chicken. I am putting no pressure on myself to sew, though. When I do it, I do it.

The month was fantastic! It was full of good things and I am so happy that everything worked out great. Day one started with Feebs’s recovery from her tonsillectomy. You’ve never seen a kid more excited to have surgery, she was hilarious. I was worried about how recovery would go, but the kid flew through it like a champ. I am so glad it is over and she is almost back to 1000%. Two weeks after the surgery, she was sleeping better and no longer snoring. It has been amazing. The second weekend was the Father’s birthday. Sister #1 and Sister #3 and I showed up at his party to surprise him. It was a tiny bit awkward, but he was delighted and that made it worth it. Sister #1, her husband, and I went to dinner that night. It was so great to talk to them and feel like we got some reconnection. With busy lives and a lot of distance, we haven’t been great about maintaining our relationship. We have both pledged to do better. At the beginning of the month my work like drastically lightened up, so that rang through everything. My birthday week was fantastic. I took two days off and Feebs and I went to spend time with the Father at his house. It was a great visit. The day of my birthday started out rough because I have misplaced my 16th birthday, baby, and mother’s rings. I still haven’t been able to find them, but I tore up the house that morning looking for them. Once I finally decided to relax and enjoy my day, we went on a few adventures. We found two crafting thrift stores, one in Berkeley and one in Oakland. The Oakland one didn’t impress me much, but I loved the Berkeley one. I got a huge code of natural color yarn that I want to use to redo the Knitting my Memories blanket for $13. After that, we headed to Urban Ore and I got to walk around and see all the fun things. I happened to go past the display cases and holy hell, there was a bag of beige silk mohair… for $6. It was a whopping $1 per skein. There was also an unopened back of Knitpicks Dream Catcher for $10. I was absolutely floored that I was able to find such a steal, at both stores. I did some Google searching and realized that I spent $29 dollars on roughly $450 worth of yarn. On. My. Birthday. I was giddy the rest of the day. After my major scores we met the Lisa and Jorge for dinner in Oakland at Wahpepa’s Kitchen and had a delicious meal and wonderful company. We came home and had the stellar corn meal pineapple upside down birthday cake. The next day I spent with the Mother and we had a wonderful day. We couldn’t really think of anything to do, but it was really nice to just spend time with her. The last weekend we went to the Treasure Island Treasure Fest. It was an absolute cluster-fluff to get onto the island and none of us were super thrilled with the festival. We went to visit the in-laws after that. Unfortunately, the end is near for the Father in Law. We were told “weeks” at the end of January. We have no idea if that meant two weeks or twenty, so the Husband is just spending as much time with him as he can. He got the idea to cook him a venison dinner, so I called in a favor to Sister #3 and the best bro-in-law hooked him up with some venison stakes. We went to collect them and took all but the youngest to dinner. It was fantastic to spend time with them.

There was an extra day in February this year, so that stretched the good month out a little more, and I am very grateful for it. It was a great month, and 43 isn’t starting off too bad. Next month looks promising and I hopeful that everything continues to run smooth. (Considering this is being posted at the end of March, obviously it was a busy month.) So that sums her up. You and I both had a birthday, and I am grateful that they were good ones.

Loves,

M

 Hello darling. Today you turn two years old. I don’t quite remember what prompted me to log in that day and set up a chronicle of my madness, but here we are. This blog has been everything I had hoped for. It is my own private journal where I can document my makes, my successes and fails, and all of the ways that I have grown. I have been able to document my life and keep track of the highlights. I have seen us grow and change and take on new adventures. I always get a smile when I can look back and track something I made or something that happened in my day to day. I am very proud of our last two years and want to keep moving into the future.

 Speaking of the future… I want to keep documenting and following the same format. I do recognize that I could learn some more tricks to make this more elegant and with a better flow. I may start taking some of the courses that show how to edit properly. My blogging goal for the year is to ask the Husband to save all of this, just in case the internet decides to lose its mind and suddenly turns you on your head. That would truly devastate me. I am so happy to have you and want to keep you safe and growing. I have never been a journaling kind of girl, but I am 100% loving this. So we will keep going and keep growing and see what comes next.

Loves,

M

 Hello darling. My birthday is a mere 12 days away. I am already committed to the Zipper for the Father’s birthday (5 days away), and my elbows are being petty and ridiculous and impeding my very crafting existence. However, I am still planning a decadent birthday cast-on. I want to start something luscious that brings me joy. I have a rough guide for the year: I only want to work with yarn that I already own this year. This isn’t the same as a yarn-buying ban, since who are we kidding…? I will still buy yarn, either for gifts, to stash for later, or in order to complete a project. But I have a lot of beautiful yarn, and I would like to create with it. What better time than a birthday to start something fun and happy?

Pairing possibilities:

• Arcuate Vest by Charrisa. I would knit this in Stranded Dyeworks (RIP) Merino DK in Vintage Red. I like the idea of a cabled sweater vest, and I think this could be very lush and warm. Also, it seems like a nice pattern to knit.
• Hamilton by Josee Paquin. I would knit this with Mod Yarns Straight up DK in Cherry Bomb. I have had this in my queue since Stitches 2023 when I accosted a lady who was walking by me in order to get the name of the pattern. I think I would get a lot of wear from this, and the color is to die for!
• Flax by Tin Can Knits. I have knit several of these, but none for me. I would use one of my mohair combinations and create something truly gorgeous. This is the best sweater pattern ever. It is easy to knit and simple to wear. I think this would be a fantastic combination, and I would thoroughly enjoy knitting it.
• Levee by Casey Day-Crossier. This would replace the one that I gave to Sister #3. I really loved that shawl, but I loved how much she loved it more. I would like to knit another one using the same white Knitpicks Stroll and Soley Knot in sweet potato. I used up the Malabrigo sock in the first shawl, so I would sub in a navy Stroll for this one. It will still be beautiful. I knit the first one fairly fast, but it was my vacation knitting when we went to Ohau in April. I have no delusions of quickly knitting this one. It wasn’t my favorite thing to knit, but it was certainly easy. This would be more of a product knit, than a zen knit.

 That is what I am thinking of at this point in time. I may bump with convention and select something totally different. Who knows? I think my soul is craving something plush that I can sink my hands into. My heart is seeking something that I will love, and that makes me happy. My mind is just pleased to be thinking about this and making plans, however flexible they are. 12 days to go. Let’s see what we decide!

Loves,

M

 Well, hi there! New month, new me? January is always such an unusual month. For me, it is always a hodge-podge of new hope, holiday hang-over, and a blend of excitement and dread for what is to come. January is usually a very busy “selfish making” month since I tend to knit for others from October to December. I kind of flip-flopped it this year and knit very little for others, and during the holidays, and started it in January. There is only one finished object, and, duh-duh-duuuuh! It’s not even a knitted one…

Finished objects:

The self-drafted game bag. I sewed this using one of the Husband’s blown-out pair of jeans. There is a separate post for this, so I don’t need to say more.

New cast-ons:

Zipper Sweater- Men (sadly, this was cast on twice…)

Works in progress:

Home Camisole

Travel socks

Shatar vest

Goals for next month:

Start work on an upcycle sewing project

Cast on a decadent birthday knit

Shrink Harris so it fits the Father

Put together other crafts to alternate with knitting

Get/ keep everyone healthy

 So yeah, not too much to report on the finished object thread. I decided to knit the Father a new sweater for his birthday. You know, one that actually fits him… I decided on the Zipper Sweater by Petite Knits. I bought yarn and the pattern and started to mark it up, then realized that even though it says Unisex, there is actually a whole other pattern for men. I was pretty ticked since this wasn’t a cheap pattern. I want this sweater to fit him, though, and be a sweater he loves, so I bought that pattern, too. I did all the right things. I measured dad, I swatched, I washed and blocked the swatch, and I measured my before and after to ensure accurate gauge. Everything was tuned in and on point. I cast on the neckband from hell (8 inches of 1×1 ribbing) then started the yolk. I separated for sleeves and was about halfway down the body. I was stoked! I was totally going to finish this in time for his early February birthday. I was going to see dad that night (1/17) and wanted him to try it on to ensure that this one fit. I took it off the needles and held it up. Oh girl, it didn’t look good. I tried it on, just to confirm my suspicion, and of course, it fit me just like it was made for me (36″- 38″ bust). It was, in fact, not made for me. It was, in fact, absolutely peeing in my Cheerios. Because I love to live in denial, I still had dad (42″-44″ chest) try it on, just in case it had grown 8 inches around during the workday. It did not. So while we were sitting there chatting, I unceremoniously ripped the entire thing (including the 8 inches of ribbing) out. I had to restart the next day. And then… my elbows started being assholes again. I don’t know what it is about my elbows discriminating against sweaters for my dad, but they sure seem to. The pain started when I was working on Harris last January, and just piped back up while knitting on the Zipper. What the hell, elbows? So I started again and am highly doubtful that I will finish the sweater in time for his birthday in February. Hopefully, I can figure out how to shrink Harris and can at least return that to him when we get together to celebrate. In the middle of all of that crazy I did my cute little sewing project and I am still ridiculously proud of her. It has sparked a desire to sew another small upcycle project. More to come on that next month. 

 So, January started out kind of okay. It wasn’t blazing trails, and as I have waxed trepidation in my end-of-year and New Year posts, I was going in under the radar. New Year’s Day was very chill, and I was off of work that whole week till the following Tuesday. I spent time with the Mother and went to spend the night with the Father. We were finally able to go to the holiday mini-golf place without being rained out. The three of us had so much fun. It was great to spend time with my dad and play games and such. Feebs loves going to see her Papa! That following Monday, I finally got to have lunch with Mr. N! It was so great to see him. The last time I saw him was at Mrs. Teeters’s memorial. I was pregnant then, so you know how long that’s been. It was such a nice catch-up. It is funny how little you can know about a person, and they still have such a huge impact on your life. That man basically got me through high school, and I never knew things about his private life. He turned 80 at the end of the month, which was another kind of crazy. That week began, and by the end, the world turned on its ears. There was major work and parental drama, the Husband found out he had to have surgery on his eyes to keep from going blind, and Feebs got an urgent appointment with a head and neck surgeon since it turned out that she does have sleep apnea. Her appointment was scheduled for the following Wednesday. That weekend was MLK, Jr. weekend, so I got to see Sister #2, which was delightful. I always feel bad, though, because I end up dumping all over her, and she just sits there and listens. When I ask what is happening in her life, she keeps it very short. Poor thing is liable to stop meeting up with me. That evening, we had dinner with J & L in Benicia. It was a beautiful evening. We enjoy their company so much, and they always make us feel welcome. Fast forward to next Wednesday, I had to leave work early so that I could take Feebs to her appointment, then take the Husband to get his right eye lasered. Feebs was scheduled for surgery to have her tonsils, and possibly adenoids, removed on 1/31. I figured we would be a few months out, so I was quite shocked that it was scheduled so soon. Feebs and I went to Ms. H’s house that weekend and caught up with her and Hon. It was a pleasant, though short, visit. The next week was the Husband’s second eye zap, Feeb’s pre-op appointments, and getting myself caught up in order to take the week of her surgery off. We were supposed to go to an in-law’s baby shower that weekend, but we wanted to keep Feebs out of big groups in hopes of keeping her healthy before her surgery, so we opted out and sent a gift. Oh, and she did her belt testing that week, too. She is now a camo belt and pretty nervous about having to start sparing. Everything else was just prep for the big day. Feebs was the first surgery of the day, so we had to be there at 06:30 for an 08:00 appointment. She did fantastic through the surgery. She came out of anesthesia really well, and we were home by 11:30. The first day went really well. (We are still in the healing process, as I write this, but no ill effects to report.)

 January is gone, and now we move on to February. I feel like we got a lot done in that month. There were some big learning moments (almost too many) and some scary health stuff, but we overcame everything. The Husband’s eyeballs are squared away now, and Feebs is recuperating nicely. I am very hopeful that was the end of exciting medical stuff for 2024. I need my people to be healthy and well. 

 I am incredibly happy that I get to post a Bingo card update in this post. A Sewing Bingo card update!!! I think my new goal is to work on one sewing project per month. I don’t even care if I finish it in that month. I don’t mind the thought of sewing WIPs. In fact, I kind of look forward to them. So here we go, update #1!

Loves,

M

  Hello, darling. This bit of sewing hardly counts as sewing, but after the sewing draught of 2023, I was too excited not to share it.  I took an old pair of the Husband’s blown-out jeans and sewed a little tile bag for our newly acquired Rummikub game. The Father got Feebs and I hooked on that game, and it really helps to have a larger bag to shake up and draw from. It was nothing grand; I just selected the length of the pant leg with the side pockets. I thought that it would look pretty cute, and I wasn’t disappointed. Technically, this is my first sew in over a year, AND it counts as an upcycle! Hence the reason I had to post about this. I was too excited not to.

 What went right? 

I am really happy with the placement. I originally thought that it would have been a little better if I could have gone up another inch, but then I would have had to cut into the back pocket. Since I am hoping to reuse more of the jeans, I don’t want to waste something as precious as a pocket. Because this was for me, for my family’s use, I wasn’t precious about measuring or being fancy with the inside. I made it big enough by eye and sewed the side seam and the bottom seam with a boxed bottom. I also had to cut out the inseam stitching in order to protect my needle. I forgot that pair had a reinforced knee, and I had to cut out the extra layer of fabric in the front, or I would never have been able to box the bottom. I struggled enough on the outside seam since I couldn’t cut it off without interfering with the pocket (and the pockets were the entire reason I wanted to use that particular section.) I ended up seam-ripping the bottom of the seam and removing the remaining strip of extra layer, then refolded the rest and sewed through it. I sewed little drawstring channels (I even had to hand sew the little bit of outseam that I had to cut to make room for the channels.) I threaded through a random drawstring that I picked up off the floor earlier in the week. It was probably a rogue drawstring from a pair of his shorts that we will go crazy looking for in a couple of weeks. I threaded it through (trying different ways to make it work) and ta-da! She was done.

 What went wrong?

When I say ta-da, what I mean to say is ta-done. Ta-done is Mrs. Collins’s speak for done is better than perfect. The drawstring doesn’t cinch closed. The denim is so thick, and the channel is so bulky that there is a significant gap, no matter how hard you pull the drawstring. This is not the end of the world, and I am not devastated. If I had made it for someone else, I would have had to come up with a different solution. But since it is for me, and I made it significantly deeper than the amount of tiles that will be stored in it, it works just fine. I am able to wrap the drawstring around it to close it off so nothing falls out. 

 Final thoughts?

I am really happy with this little bag. It was really nice to try something new. It felt good to just have an idea and go with it. It is not the best thing I have ever sewn. It is not even the best thing I have ever upcycled. Still, I am proud of myself. I sewed something. I problem solved and figured out how to overcome some challenges. I didn’t need to fudge anything, but I did have to adapt to a couple of things. Oh yeah… and I used the rotary cutter to cut off the inseam, and good lord, those things just aren’t my forte. I end up trimming bits off of the ruler when I use them. I also need to cut about thirteen times in seven different locations in order to cut all the way through one single line of fabric. You can completely forget about straight, clean edges. If I decide to get fancy, I could always line it with thinner fabric and create a new drawstring channel. I can’t imagine doing that, but it is something to think through in the event that the Father wants one, also. If I make another one, I will be sure to make the insides neater and to take better pictures. Oh well. I sewed something! Hooray!!!

Loves,

M

 So long, 2023! I refuse to say that this was a bad year, considering all of the good that it held. I will say that it was an uncomfortable year, instead. There were many growing pains and trials and tribulations that my sweet, naive 2023 goals didn’t prepare for. I found myself saying, “Oh, girl…” several times as I read my posting from the end of 2022. She was not prepared for the year ahead of her, but she adapted as best she could. While I do want to document the past year and all of her highs and lows, I really don’t want to dwell on the negative. What I can say about the lows is that I learned a lot from this year. I am still learning, and I will take those lessons with me into the future.

 Some of the highlights from the year are all of the traveling we did. We went to Hawaii, camping, Santa Cruz, Mendocino, and Europe. I also had a weekend in Chico with LouHoo, and we will start making that an annual tradition, even though we would like to do it more. We had a lot of adventures, and I loved each one. The Mother moved closer to me, and I am thrilled to have her near. My big work project went live and is something that I am proud to say that I was a part of. We celebrated 9 years of life for Feebs, and the Husband and I celebrated 11 years of marriage. I made connections with friends and some family. I will keep trying to connect with my loved ones, even if they don’t always reciprocate. We celebrated 1 year with our kitties, and they have brought so much joy into our lives.  I made new friends, people that I can see being friends for a long time. I made some very big self-realizations, and I acted on them, even when they were painful. I stood up for myself and did uncomfortable things. I made some enemies along the way, but I am learning to not let them affect my mental or physical health and well-being.

 From a making standpoint, I didn’t do great. I didn’t sew a single thing in 2023. It’s not a huge deal, but it was disappointing. I kept dreaming and hyping but never found the courage or the gumption to do it. Knitting happened, but looking at my Ravelry projects, I see that most of the knitting was small items like hats and socks. I didn’t technically meet the 25-item challenge that I set at the beginning of the year, but I really did. If I hadn’t grouped my charity knitting by month and didn’t double up some hat projects, I would have exceeded the goal. Oh well. 

Finished Objects:

Socks: 6 pairs

Hats: 4

Charity: 9

Sweaters: 3

Scarfs: 2

Shawls: 1

Mitts: 1 pair

Tops: 2

 As for my Bingo cards… Ack! I didn’t make it! I was four squares short of completing my Knitting Bingo card. I didn’t check a single square on my Sewing Bingo card. I could technically loophole and check Zippered Project since I did hand sew a zipper into Harris, but that feels a bit like cheating. I was knitting a charity hat up till 2300 on NYE so that I could check one of my remaining 3 Charity Knits boxes (I made it!). I have to say, overall, I had So Much Fun with the Bingo cards. I love setting goals and being able to check them off one by one. I feel like I pushed myself a little bit and had a happy dance when a project allowed me to check more than one box. I have already updated and posted about my 2024 Bingo cards. I can’t wait to get started on them. Two of the unchecked boxes from this year made it onto the new knitting card.

 I struggled more this year with pain, especially in my elbows. I think my body isn’t a big fan of colorwork and left-handed knitting. I also struggled with finding projects that I wanted to knit. I don’t recall the number of frog ponds that I visited this year, but there were many. There was also a lack of time to knit. Life got very busy this year, and I wasn’t able to knit as much as I wanted to. Gone are my days of knitting during Zoom calls. Between taekwondo and my need for regular workouts, the time to knit at the end of the day gets tight. I intend to do better next year. 

 So, it’s short and sweet, but this was the year. I do not go out of 2023 as I intend to go into 2024. I am saying goodbye to this year and taking the precious memories with me. This year was a lot, and I am happy to put it behind me. As a parting gift, I left a sacrifice to the gods of time. The hair that I cut from my head will be given back to the earth. I am going to let it nourish the ground and release the spirits it held back into the atmosphere. It may seem silly, but I think it will give me a sense of peace. So onward and forward into 2024, we go!

Loves,

M