Learning

It seems to me that learning a new thing is good for the brain.  I like to learn about things and how to do things and what things are and what is the name of that bird/flower/whatever?  Stories, songs, poems---all these things keep me going.  Last Wednesday at the Village Yarn Shop, I learned a knitting technique called "entrelac".  According to what I can discover, the word entrelac comes from the French meaning "to interlace".  The fabric constructed with this method resembles woven strips, although in reality the material is one piece.  I had played with entrelac many years ago and decided I hated it and would never do it as it was all about picking up stitches.  Not my thing.  However, when this class was offered I decided it was time to revisit the technique to see what I found so unappealing. 

Entrelac knitting

Turns out that, with the right kind of yarn and a little encouragement, it's FUN!  The yarn makes a huge difference.  I am using the yarn Gina made by Plymouth Yarn.  This is a scarf pattern which I think is a great way to get used to the rhythm of the structure as I knit.  The method can be used for anything, from hats to socks, but attention has to be paid to the fact that there is no "give" to the fabric.  It is hard for me to think that socks knit in entrelac would be comfortable.  I think hats would have to be exactly fitting.   The scarf feels rather sturdy right now but I have great confidence in the softening factor of washing and blocking when finished.   Which probably won't take me long as it is a slightly addicting sort of knit.  Watching the colors change and seeing the blocks form is quite intriguing.

Hoping it will fit all her hair!

I did find time to finish Alice's hat.  The lining is very nice.  Probably not necessary only she will be up near the Canadian border the next time we have winter and will be glad of an extra layer around her ears when the north wind starts howling.

Socks for someone with small feet

The socks are coming along nicely.  They are just straight knitting, nothing fancy.  Used the basic pattern and construction from Toe-Up 2-at-a-Time Socks by Melissa Morgan-Oakes.  Her methodology appeals to me for some reason and I find that I turn to her book often when I do socks.

The non winter continues.  Although the ground is still frozen and a layer of ice lurks under the mud, spring is trying to force its way in.  The birds sing like winter is over, the sugar makers are boiling and the temperatures stay above freezing during the day.  Nonetheless, we are having our winter picnic this weekend in Cropseyville where we hope to find at least one pile of snow in the woods.  The menu will be the same as always--brats, beer and s'mores.  Well, except for some who will not have beer.  Let's hope it doesn't rain!

Last year's picnic

This year we will have a new member at our picnic.  Little Miss T is changing and growing so fast.  Can't wait to see her again.  I wonder if her Mommy and Daddy will let her have a s'more? 

With great Aunt Katy

Family Fun

There was a time when my parents lived in Pennsylvania.  The house they bought came with many interesting things.  Among these was the board game Michigan Kitty.  It was a very old board with the instructions still with it, a card game of chance involving poker chips and lots of anxious waiting for the right card to be played.  We loved it.  Mostly because it required no thought at all, so if we happened to be consuming drinks that dulled our thinking process we could still play.   My brother and I really took to it.  It was so much fun to play that at one point I even painted the board onto a round patio table (the kind with an umbrella in the middle) so we could play out by the pool. 

Source of hours of fun

The parents moved again after that, always bringing the old board with them.  Another generation learned how to play.  Then, one time when my brother was up, we couldn't find the board.  I assumed it was at my house, as my children loved to play it, and it would have been natural for them to bring it home.  But it wasn't here.  Nor did my mother seem to know what happened to it.  Later on, when we had to clean out the house to put it on the market, my brother was sure we would find it stuck away someplace.  We didn't.  At that point I think we both decided to find a board for ourselves.

And we did--although his is a different edition, the game is the same.  Mine is like our lost one.  Needing to celebrate,  I invited the girls and their attendant families to a lunch and a Michigan Kitty day.  It was great.

Demonstrating chip placement

The star of the show was Miss T., now a whopping 11 pounds of adorableness.  We all took turns holding her and spending inordinate amounts of time watching her sleep.  Cousins and grampa included.

Happy baby

It was such fun to have the family together.  It makes us miss the Wisconsin couple.  We definitely will be playing a game or two with them when next they come east.

Meanwhile, back to the knitting needles.  I finished the two pairs of lace and ruffle fingerless gloves for the woman who requested them.  The one pair has a definite ruffle, the other more of a "ruff" so that she can choose which ever one comes closest to whatever she had envisioned.

Two pair of lace and ruffles

Also finished adding six inches to Annie's sweater.  Now am working on a hat for Alice which is to replace one I made years ago that I had lined with polar fleece.  This one is being worked from the top down with two stitch cabling to give it texture.  The polar fleece will line only the ear area.  The yarn is alpaca plied with merino/silk which has lots of colors in it.  Should go with everything.

Top down construction

Working from the top down allows me to make sure it will cover her ears before I start the ribbing.  My fault in the past has been to make hats too shallow when I start from the brim and work up.  

I also promised socks to her Mum, which I am excited to do because she has such small feet!  She also wants them out of thin yarn which means I get to knit on size ones or zero needles and I haven't done that for a while.  And I get to buy sock yarn.  My favorite yarn to buy!

It is pouring rain again.  It started with snow, turned to sleet and by the time we awoke was rain.  The temperature is at 32 degrees, holding steady.  I had hoped it would warm up so that I would feel comfortable driving, but at this rate I think I will just stay home and work on my projects. 

Rosa is being a good dog and is sleeping away the rainy morning.  She is really settling in now.  Since this last outburst when she was left at home and didn't want to be, she hasn't had another.

The guilty party

Which is good, as she doesn't have a bed anymore.  I put a towel in the empty bed cover and if she gets wild she shakes that.  But no more bed to shred.  I am looking forward to taking her to obedience class.  She is really a smart dog.  It will be fun to train her.

Right!  Enough talk.  I am off to do really important things.  Like make more coffee!!!