a satisfying pairing

Maybe the first time ever, this week I  completed a knit while simultaneously finishing listening to the final chapter of a book. 

Sophie Scarf not yet blocked in Lang Premium Cashmere. It is a paler pink than it appears here, the very palest of pink. The stitches along the edge will settle in.It will be gifted to the person it was intended for when I started it in 2022.

If I were one to pair a project and fiber choice with a book I wouldn't have done wrong to match it to Whistler by Ann Patchett, which was also lovely and gentle and engaging and went by fast. Add a nice cool rosé and you'd be all set. Wish I'd though of that! 

Next up in the "finish-or -reimagine-all-the-started-things-in '26" line up is this very lightweight cropped sweater, I am knitting it in a yarn I love, Coast by Holst Garn . Its a lofty, lightweight  cotton wool blend, comes in fabulous shades- I've linked it to my favorite source, The Yarnery in St Paul MN. They ship super fast.

  

This yarn was originally knit into a Lavallette teeby Mary Lou Egan (spoiler alert this pattern uses so-called condo knitting on the faux lace part. SO fun to knit!)

I will honestly say it was a wonderful make however,  I wanted it very oversized, and in 2020 I was larger myself  as I ate and drank my way through the pandemic lockdown so...so it turned out too big to keep in 2021. I never got to weaving in ends and the final touches.  In 2024 I frogged it and cast on for a light airy very simple pullover, using the Vanilla Sweater pattern. I'm knitting it on size US 6 needles even though it is a fingering weight, it's loftiness makes it hang nice and airy. I picture it as a layer with a tank top and shorts in the evening or over a sundress or high waisted baggy jeans.  I may even leave the neckline somethinbg like it is instead of the shallow ribbing suggested in the pattern. Mostly though I am now picturing it finished! 

Now I need a new book. As always I'll be reading through all of the Unraveling posts this week for suggestions (and to find out if anyone has reviewed Daniel Mason's new book).  

next up

The finish-what-you've-started mojo continues. T-shirts stitched! Two begun last November toward the end of my Tshirt modifying (upgrading?) bender of summer '25. They were intended as holiday gifts last December

 

 I'd stalled deciding what to do after the neckline--I stitched the heart and didn't want to distract from the perfect message by being too decorative. This month I saw that running stitch around the letters was the solution. Boom: xmas in July for my sister and bro-in-law. Shirts from Mahogany Mommies.

KNITTING:  I randomly picked up this started project. (I just struggled and failed to find a clever way to desccribe the areas of my office that have bags or baskets of wips, suggestions welcome.) Chosen by virtue of portability and if I'm being honest, the  first thing my hand fell on. It's a Sophie Scarf*. I know, I know, many deride them . I  am a fan and this is my 4th or 5th.  Love the mindless pattern, love using up a luxurious skein or two and  I find them super wearable especially in lightweight cashmere like this one. I love a cashmere scarf and a flannel shirt in winter. This one  started in 2022 as a gift for a model I used to work with a lot , she chose the  ballerina pink. We fell out of touch and so did the knit.  * I use the darker piece of yarn to keep track of my increases or decreases, I flop it across the row where they occur and yank it out when the scarf is done. 

 

READING: Whistler by Ann Patchett. You all are right. So good !

 

PLANNING!!: Ghost Ranch in Abiqui New Mexico Oct 4-10th , co-teaching a class on POWERFUL STORYTELLING: Words & Pictures with Beverly Army-Williams.  Our dream come true teaching gig: if you're not familiar with it, this artful retreat ranch is Georiga O'Keefe's former hang-- the landscape is one you'll recognize from her desert painitngs. 

 Beverly and I met on her porch (with handsome husky Oskar supervising) to finetune our workshop--it is going to be truly wonderful. Our dream-come-true class would be filled with our virtual maker/knitter/blogger/creative friends (aka YOU) joining  us. There's ample free time each day to enjoy the ranch and the stunning northern New Mexico environment . All the details here, there is still room in it. Wouldn,t an early October adventure in New Mexico amongst friends be just right?

 

Summer is summering! I'm looking forward to hopping on Kat's Unraveling links to see what others are making and reading! 

*

finally finally finished with stripes + other recent events

I'm back Unraveling , determined to keep up with the Wednesday habit. On late Thursday (shhh). It's been a constant -motion  couple of weeks. I try to keep it chill in the summer and am failing this year.  I am not mad about it. In the past two or so weeks:

The KnitStars folks came and filmed me and my master class for the new season! (that link is to a flipbook with an overview of all the seasons including "mine" which is still in production, Season 11).  I was dorky and definitely talked with my hands extravagantly.  I had fun, we covered A LOT of material. They were delightful to work with. We filmed a photo shoot of a shawl and a scarf (explaining as I went) , and made yarn still lifes at my local farm, and shot sheep shots (of course!)We filmed  at my house (living room and..kitchen teaching some things, photo things of course NOT kitchen things(!) and we filmed around the neighborhood, I went kayaking with Zoe for local color. I did a little knitting in a favorite neighborhood knitting spot. My flowers behaved perfectly despite torrential rains the day before. 

And in actual knitting news,   I finished my Piilo! This is going to be a fave. I finished it at 11:45 pm on my birthday to give myself the gift of getting'er done!

  Styling? What styling? The next morning it was hot,  I'd just run in from the beach and so you get the sunglasses look and the half down hair selfie. I love how it fits me, it is the same ease-wise as the pattern but cropped in length. I LOVE the funnel style neck, I love the yarn, (Kelbourne Scout) and the muted stripes.

In other styling news: I took Zoe to see Megan Moroney (country pop, huge teen girl fan base)concert in NYC for her 8th grade graduation present. It's a 2 hour train ride for us so not a major trip but it was a happening-- I was coached to wear the right thing (pink! so much pink) and cowboy boots. I am glad I went along with it--the sold out arena was 100% pink. We also went to the Today show taping early early the next morning ans saw her perform right in front of us in the outdoor plaza so had you been watching the Today show last Friday you'd have seen us waving hi to America, we were right in front row. Moral of the story: if a 14 yo suggests you to go to her first concert even if its not your favorite musician, say YES. 

Reading: while I was trying to decide between Ann Patchett's new book or Daniel Mason's new book, my bookgroup chose NorthWoods aka Daniel Mason's last book. 

I'd already  read it a couple of years ago.  Can I recall details well enough to discuss? Not a chance. Thanks to a long drive down to Maryland & back this week listening to it I am in the last chapter -and it is even better the second time. 

In other making: the annual ritual of  a big jar of rhubarb gin cordial happened . It'll sit in the front closet until around Thanksgiving, when we'll remember it and enjoy it in cocktails into the holidays. Recipe (roughly) here.  

 

peachy keen

 

If you see this- my kitchen counters covered edge to edge- it can only mean one thing. The Peach Truck came to town

Uncoincidentally my making thoughts this week are peach-centric. The fruits all ripen at the same time,.  Each one is the platonic ideal of a peach. We've eaten a ton as is.  Made a peach cobbler yesterday (too much lemon, turns out juice of a half lemon was not a great idea) and I'll make another one (less lemony). Some might get frozen.  One year we made a big pitcher of white wine sangria with peaches,...that was good! They are so juicy and never a bad one. Tell me your fave peach recipes please.

Knitting? Still on this sleeve. Reading? Forcing myself through the last 3 hours (audiobook) of Katabasis, on 1.3x speed to help it go.  I'll only recommend it if you are deep in academia, it lampoons that world wickedly. For me? Tedious!  I'm not a fantasy fiction person so there's that too. Next week I'll have a new knit and a new book! 

Leaving you with this sweet goat who stopped to strike a pose on the way out to pasture. I was at Olympia Farm scouting, I plan to have my Knit Stars videos teaching photography for knitters segments filmed there, after the film crew visits me (GULP) at my home base. I thought why not lean into my She Shoots Sheep Shots tendencies?! We'll have a (real person) model with a shawl and also some lessons on still life shooting of their lovely farm yarn etc in the segments. I really really hope the weather will be good!  

PS I am serious about the peach recipes!  

other distractions

Here again for Unraveling on Wednesday, thanks to Kat I am back in the blogging habit. (too soon to declare? hope not!) Not much progress in knitting or reading -at least not enough for interesting photos and you know that's how I roll.  So I'm going to fill in with what's been filling in around here.

Some of my most favorite visitors are back in the 'hood!  We counted about a dozen down the street on Sunday. Always thrilling, we call them our dinosaurs. They are horseshoe crabs, they come to lay eggs during the full moon/new moon this time of year. 

 

With the clock ticking toward the Knit Stars filming, I jumped into refreshing  the rusting vintage style metal porch furniture. The cheerfully mismatched colors (as I liked to think of them) were looking several notches below charming.  Like every project of this kind, it is taking waaay longer, and needs more paint than estimated . And did the weather get humid and then have a major thunderstorm on me? Why yes it did. It is salmon /coral, not pink. And so are my hands!

 

 When  not in the yard sanding or spray painting metal chairs, this week, I am working this gig. Having a fascinating time listening to  speakers and the attendees roleplaying. My work is 75%  fiber/ wool/handmade photography and the rest is non-profits  institutions or corporations. While working I hear a lot of reknowned experts speak. another reason I love my job! (aka sticking my nose in everywhere) . The Campaign School is for getting women up to speed as candidates. It is intense and inspiring, the kind of thing that builds hope!

 

Which brings me to a book for this week, look at me staying on topic. A little .

 

 Link to the book. The author, Zoe Chance, was a presenter this week on building influence and how you present yourself in the world. Riveting! I am getting her book and diving in. 10:10 recommend.

As usual, we were the last to leave the beach Sunday, this is heading into 7 pm. with the tide heading way out.  The girls are 4, 7 and 14(!)  (not shown, Zoe and her BFF sitting a teen appropriate distance from us) . 

I'm looking forward to seeing what you have been knitting and reading over at Kat's roundup of Unravelers !  

Finish in'26 continues

 

KNITTING: Next up in the Finish It in '26  project parade is my Piilo sweater. One sleeve done this past week, one underway. It's a very blocky fit and I think I'm going to love it. Especially that collar. Yarn is Kelbourne Scout and like all of their yarns it is pretty great. (Seriously have you tried Kelbourne Perennial?)

 

While looking for a flat box yesterdayI found this, which may just be next up. I'm trying to remember when I labeled it and put it on top of a cabinet in my office. 10+years ago? 15?  (OMG I see it well underway on Ellen Bloom's blog while I was visiting LA...in 2010.)  As promised it is done and just needs ends finishing...ETC.  I wasn't sure  at first what ETC meant... 

 

It's really lovely airy bouclé mohair from Be Sweet, a South African yarn company, now out of business. It was a kit for a diagonal shawl, I quickly got bored of the even wide stripes and improvised. When I took it out of the box I remembered several things about it...

 

• It is very large as in at least 9 feet , and it'll grow more when blocked.  I'm likely to wear it as a big squished scarf-y piece so all good there. 

• It is very sherbert colored, this I do recall as a problem! Back then I'd regretted the colorway choice.  At first I thought that's how it ended up done but not finished. At the time my hair was dark and these weren't "my" colors.  Now that my hair is silver, I like to wear these colors a lot more. 

Holes! from dropped stitches! That was the ETC and the real reason I put this in a box and ignored it.  It all came back to me.  I'd dropped a few stitches in the curly boucleé in several places. You know what didn't come back to me? Yarn in all the colors. I just have these two! Any suggestions ? I am considering embroidering a daisy or asterisk wherever there's a hole.

 

READING :I am warming up to Katabasis.  It has nothing to do with the peonies, I just wanted to show them off. 

 

More Unraveled Wednesday posts linked over at As Kat Knits!

two finishes

  

The knits: Finish #1 , this quite belated xmas gift scarf !  It's riding around as shown in the passenger seat of my car until it is gifted. It's  pretty,  it'll be good company for a couple of days.  The main yarn is Big Birdie from The Lamb & Kid, if you have never knit with this yarn, you might put it on your list to give yourself a treat.

(Admittedly not summer knitting materials except far north or in strong AC...it's a warm and fuzzy alpaca silk blend.The colors though!!) 

I'm on to my next FINISH IT IN '26 (in which I revisit WIPs and either finish or repurpose materials) project, a Piilo sweater started last September.

The reads: Finish #2:  The Women by Kristin Hannah. Her writing swirls you into a story and the characters  in a cinematic way, she nailed the time period perfectly. I suspect there are people who learn history through her novels and that's a good thing! I'd recommend it especially as a vacation read. 

I started Katabasis by RF Kuang, my bookgroup's choice for the month. It is not a genre I enjoy so let me know if you've read it and send a (hopefully) encouraging word!

On my mind:  I'm going to be filmed for KnitStars *in about 6 weeks (early July). I need to prepare on all fronts. From fixing up my shaggy front yard to make a good first impression to breaking down the teaching modules for photographing your knits.  It will be filmed while I am actually photographing knits!  I have always wanted to teach this way. The end product is going to amazing  but between now and July...yikes! 

* I am new to KnitStars both as a customer and as a subject--and I am VERY impressed. One thing I never realized is you can purchase individual classes, after the season has ended for very reasonable prices ($ 67.). If you scroll down on this link you'll see so many good ones. I recommend Dawn Barker Assigned Pooling.  It's a true pleasure.

----------------

I'm trying SO HARD to blog every week using Kat's Unraveled as my prompt. I tried so hard this week that I posted this on Tuesday, a day early . (ugh! long weekend calendar dysfunction!). You can find others blogging with knits and reads at her Unraveled links.