Spring On The Way

Baby socks for a friend of my sister's, finished this week just a little after the baby made her appearance:

Little people, and now little plants. Several days of mild weather means the snow is retreating, and in its wake, the daffodils in front of the building are coming up already.

And that means I have to get my act together and order seeds. I don't usually do that - it's a small garden, and what I need can usually be assembled from what I save myself plus some extras from my mother, and the occasional purchase at the store or garden center.

This year, however, I got a catalogue from Heritage Harvest Seeds in Manitoba when I was demo-ing at the Farm Show last week, and I couldn't resist. Plus I have a gift certificate from Stokes that should be used. So I've been hemming and hawing over decisions. Flowers from Stokes, veg from Heritage, that was pretty straightforward.

After that...well, there's less varieties for a lot of the veg, but Heritage has something like 200 types of tomato, and I have space for maybe 6 plants, so no point getting more than one type. I settled on Forme de Coeur, a nice multipurpose, productive, Quebec heirloom. But I could have had anything from White Currant (cream colored and half the size of a cherry tomato) to Ferris Wheel (where a slice is bigger than a piece of bread), or Silvery Fir Tree with delicate ferny foliage as well as nice fruit, or red-and-yellow-streaked hollow stuffing tomatoes, or a long-term keeper that ripens from the inside out... Deciding on beans was just as hard, but I ended up with 2 dual-purpose (fresh or dried) ones - Blue Jay, a green bean with navy blue and beige seeds, and Dragon Tongue, a yellow wax bean with purple-streaked pods and purple-striped beige seeds.

And it will be nice to have some pretty annuals to start from seed and pop in gaps in the beds for colour. I'm getting multicoloured zinnias and pink and cream celosia, and multicolored painted tongue (salpiglossis), which I've always liked the look of but never tried. I can hardly wait!

Stripes, Etc.

Happy to report the baby hat is done, along with a pair of mitts to match (kind of).

I like stripes. I just tend to forget about the weaving-in-ends part that comes afterwards...I think it took me as long to do the ends as it did to knit a mitten.

I took pictures, put them to block, and then my aunt called, wanting to know if I could do a similar sweater to the sheep one, (not necessarily in handspun, thankfully), and maybe with horses on the yoke - it seems another cousin is expecting. I don't know why babies come in clusters, but they do - I just heard a couple friends had their second last week, and this makes 5 people I know expecting between now and February. Guess I'm concentrating on small projects for a while. Good for knitting in class, and extras are good to sell to doting grandparents at craft fairs ;)

The last of the dyeing is done, for a while. I spent yesterday and half of today fighting with the indigo, used the last of my reducing agent, but I think everything's blued that needed blue. And now I can finally put the rugs to rights and clean the spots off things, and they'll stay clean. Light's not great right now, but pictures of the finished pile coming soon.

Very glad I was doing the dyeing here though. It's less cleanup working outdoors at the parents', but when I spoke to Mom last night, she said it's so dry that the well has actually dropped below the point where the pump can get to the water. First time I can remember that happening, and they're not wasteful of it, unlike some (She said someone told her they were taking 3 showers a day to stay cool. I maybe take that in a week!) They're not too badly off - there is water in the old dug well, so they can haul up buckets for what's necessary, there's enough space and privacy to use a spot across the fence for a toilet, and there isn't any big livestock, just chickens and cats and dog. Basically like it was during the Ice Storm of '98, except for having to try and keep the garden alive (and at least there is electricity). But the farmers in the area are running dry also, and anyone with plumbing and water knowledge is busy trying to help them - it's a bit more serious when you have 60 cows who need water.  Let's hope the predicted rain materializes soon...

That Voice in Your Head

You know, the one that says things like, "Maybe you should take an umbrella today" or "Better check so-and-so's plans first" or "It's a bit chilly, should I cover the tomatoes?". And then if you don't obey it, it will rain, or your plans will get otherwise messed up...

I had the felted slippers I made and was planning to use for a baby shower gift sitting in plain view for months. And a few times I looked at them and thought, "I really should measure those, they look a little big." You know where this is going, right?

I got around to measuring 3 days before the shower. 5 inches long. I dug out the pattern and checked dimensions. 3.5-4 inches long for the larger size. Why on earth had I not checked this, oh, say, when I was doing the felting? And how did I manage to get a degree in science without learning to check things like this?

Ensuing activities as follows: Hunt through baby patterns in binder, select bootie pattern. Rummage frantically in stash for yarn, maybe a bit larger than called for, as pattern was for newborn. Knit half a bootie and rip out after discovering that it was coming out almost as big as the slippers. Drop down to the needle and yarn size in the pattern (yes, people put information like needle and yarn size in patterns for a reason, apparently). Knit frantically on now properly sized booties in spare time, on work breaks, etc. Finish, photograph, and wrap booties the morning of the shower.

And now back to the regularly scheduled knitting.

Oh, and the shower was lovely. A small group, as several people came down sick and couldn't come, but good food, good company, knitting time, and a couple of cats coming out to say hello. Can't ask for better, really, and sure beats playing odd games involving clothespins or diapers and melted chocolate bars.

Festina Lente

That's Latin for 'Make haste slowly'. One of the quotes that my prof gave us in class when I took Latin in undergrad, and one I remember because I have to repeat it to myself every time I am tempted to rush something, but know I'll muck up and spend more time on the task if I do rush.

Today, though, I'm taking it to mean there is progress happening, even if it feels slow. A little update/recap every now and then sometimes makes me realize that.

Like baby stuff. I've had bits of baby projects started and finished and sitting around for months, but they are finally mostly off to the recipients or soon to be. Three sweaters out the door - I finally got the last one mailed off this week - and a hat and slippers left, but one shower is coming up soon.

And I was hoping to get my cross-stitch done for the fair next week - it's not going to happen, but I am past the halfway point, so that's something.

Hopefully I will have time to work on it this weekend, between washing laundry and fleeces, and perhaps a spot of dyeing...

Wet and Wooly part 2

As promised, the pictures of some of the things I was working on this weekend. First up, the spinning.

I think these are the closest pictures to the actual color I’ve been able to get. And I've heard from the third skein - it got left behind at fleece spa on Friday, and should be home soon.

Next, the Jacob batts. The thing about the Jacob I love is not just that it’s a nice soft wool, but how white the white is and how black the black is. Beautiful stuff.

And of course, the baby booties, not quite done.

And the baby kimonos.

Pattern is the Sachiko baby sweater, wonderfully simple and ideally suited to knit nights. I did find that the diagonal edges are a bit tight and tend to curl because of it, but other than that it’s an adorable little sweater. I used Knitpicks CotLin for the embroidery and ties. A duck and balloons should be nicely gender-neutral, and I like the contrasting ties.

Change in the Air

Not in the pennies from heaven sense, which would be interesting but dangerous. And not just because it's spring and things are expected to change almost overnight. But it does seem that there will be changes in the near future. I'm not against change, but it takes some getting used to.

One of my dear friends got her acceptance to medical school last week, to start the Fall semester. I'm thrilled for her - she's been wanting to go for years. But she'll be going overseas, so I won't see her more than maybe once a year, and I'll miss her. She says, "Come see me", but, well, it's an expensive trip. We'll see what my bank account looks like.

I didn't get the job I was hoping for, but one other interview last week and one in two weeks, so maybe, if one of those pans out, I will be gainfully employed soon, and can save for that trip.

Then there's the Federal elections coming up. Although this is one place I wouldn't mind a change (really, I will vote just about anything but Conservative), I suspect that, like the last couple times, the only real change will be that the government coffers will be depleted after spending the money to hold the elections.

Of course, there's good change too. One of the knitters I know just announced she's expecting. I'm excited, because that means a chance to try out a pattern or so in my new book, making a baby gift.