Whatever your personal and particular beliefs around this holiday, there can’t be many people who don’t respond to the joy of an extended weekend with longer days of sunlight, the promising warmth in that sunlight and the broadening colour palette in the outside world. I totally fit the cliche and find myself wanting to Spring clean and start, or restart, projects. Energy, vigour and colour is what’s required!
Most exciting of all my projects at the moment is what I’m calling my ‘studio.’ I may be giving this space more status than it deserves, it being a slightly rickety sun room tacked onto the back of our house. Since we moved in nearly four years ago it’s had no particular long term status and has become a storage space for otherwise homeless odds and ends, most recently due to the kitchen renovations. The combination of a more-or-less finished kitchen and a knitting/craft ‘corner’ that’s threatening to take over the entire living room means that it seems high time me and my wool/fabric/book stash had a room of our own.
With the children packed off to their grandparents for a good spoiling C and I went through that awful process of creating a much larger mess in order to achieve a better end. We did manage to chuck a satisfying amount out of the house and store a reasonable amount in the loft though. There’s still some way to go, but I am at least now beginning the more delightful process of bringing stuff in for arranging on newly empty shelves. With luck and a bit more work I should begin to be able to show off ‘after’ pics soon.
With most of my current knitting projects requiring too much thought or pattern following for car journeys, the long trek down to my parents on Friday was a time for me to restart the hexipuffs of my Beekeeper’s Quilt. Still very much at a nascent stage, my collection grew by five and a half as we negotiated the M6 and M5. This is definitely going to be a long time project (as in, years and years) but that’s fine by me.
Over the holiday weekend I’ve also been taking advantage of my mother’s superior knowledge for a restart on another quilt- a long overdue ‘big girl bed’ one I meant to give to M nearly two years ago. It’s mostly made from the fabric of dresses she had as a little girl but the Jacob’s Ladder pattern required more small squares cut, as well as someone to figure out how it will all go together- hence the need for motherly advice. I think I now have a clearer idea, all the pieces I need and a space in my ‘studio’ to set my sewing machine up, so as long as I can maintain momentum I’ve a fighting chance of getting this one finished in time for her birthday in June.
As if to prove what a ‘big girl’ this big girls’ quilt is being made for, I’ve also been able to spend a bit of time with M this weekend doing some proper, sharp-needle-and-thread sewing for the first time. I’d bought a copy of Mollie Makes magazine and it came with cute kit for a ditsy fabric flower brooch. With help, M drew around a lid on each piece of fabric, cut out the circles, folded the circles into quarters and sewed a simple running stitch along the curved edges without skewering herself or my fingers. The finished brooch looks very sweet on her new Spring mac although I think I am more proud of it than she is!
Finally to my main ‘work’ this weekend: The Shawl. I’d been taking a break from it for the last couple of weeks because I couldn’t figure out where my wildly incorrect stitch count was coming from and was too tired in the evenings and too busy at the weekends to sort it out. I knew I had time on my side these last few days but I swiftly decided that rather than trying to work out where I’d gone wrong, it would be quicker and easier to start again. I used the stitch markers again but didn’t bother with the lifelines as they hadn’t seemed to help much before. Restarting with the knowledge I’d gained from the first attempt turned out to be a really good idea. I relied more heavily on the charts rather than the written instructions,did a lot more counting and probably less swearing than the first time around. Although it’s sent me squiffy-eyed, spending big chunks of time on consecutive days/evenings has helped me keep on track and now I’m on the final body section. Next I need to order some beads to take on the challenge of the edging but I feel that again, I have a fighting chance of getting this one in the bag in time for it’s June deadline- my sister’s wedding.
I hope you too have had a restful and creative weekend.
