Unraveled Wednesday 7/3/24

 Hello All!

It's Wednesday and time to talk making and reading.  Usually we all link up with Kat to chat about what we are doing/making/reading, but Kat is taking a little break so I don't think there will be any official link up.

No matter!  We can still talk about what we are doing.  My Shakerag Skirt looks very similar to the photo I shared a week ago, but trust me a number of rows have been added (I've now added 5 decrease rows which means a total of more than 45 rows have been added!)

I'm meeting Dee this morning for a bit of knitting and chatting time and I will be working on this skirt.

Since finishing the (PITA) Fairy Maiden socks, I started another pair of shortie socks and am through the heel flap on the first one.

These are being knit with my January Sock Squad yarn from The Farmer's Daughter.  Gorgeous colors.  You might remember that this is the yarn I used to knit a "crescent moon" sock that would not go over my high instep!  My friend Carol was able to (just barely) get it on her foot and I said I would knit a matching sock for her.  Well...forget that!  I had thrown away the pattern I used (my own creation) and I tried and tried to create a chart for a matching sock and I just could not.  Rather than waste a lot of time on it, I decided to just do something else.  My yarn, my rules.  LOL

Reading is picking back up.  I read Maud's Line by Margaret Verble.  I can't remember where I heard about this book, but it feels like one of you recommended it.  Whatever.  I finished this last night.  It's a well written book (novel) about an 18 year old Cherokee growing up on an allotment.  There is a lot of roughness, many hard times and way too many mentions of snakes, but I enjoyed the book a lot.

Fletch and I are still listening to Nobody's Fool - the first "Sully" book (in a trio) by Richard Russo.  I say STILL listening as the audio book is just under 25 hours.  Given that we only listen at most 20 minutes per night (and not every night), it is taking a bit of time to get through this.  I think we have 15 hours left.  There are some nights we really enjoy this and others that are quite boring...but we will get through it.

I'll be stopping at the library later to drop off Maud's Line and to pick up two books that are being held for me.  I also looked and am moving up the queue for a number of books (I'm now 56 in line for "The Ministry of Time" our next RWU selection and number 12 for both "James" and "The God of the Woods").

Wishing everyone a fun 4th of July and hoping that all of our animals are not too traumatized by fireworks.  We will be heading over to Colin & Mailing's for a cookout.

Tiny Needle Tuesday 7/2/24

 Good Morning!

How are you this morning?  The air still feels so fresh and yesterday was absolutely wonderful.  Not hot, not too cool (though I could have used a little shawl or something when I sat on the patio late afternoon).  This morning it is in the upper 50's.  Almost like September!  I know the heat is coming back...and soon...but right now it is glorious.

Today finds us at the first Tuesday in July and time for a Tiny Needle update.  Gaze by the Primitive Needle is a rather small piece and I thought I would have a finish for you today, but I don't.  There are still a number of little do-dads/tiny little new-agey things to stitch.

This should be wrapped up by next week.  Those little tiny motifs take some time - some of them has as many as three different colors in them...so five stitches here...change thread...another 6 stitches...etc.  It all takes time.  Luckily I am still enjoying this one.  I also need to think about what will be next.

Meanwhile, let's talk flowers.  We planted gladiolas for the first time this year.  Six or eight I think.  They are up and their leaves are tall.  Yesterday we spotted the first flower stem.  I'm curious as to what color it will be.  I'm also curious as to whether we will get more flower stems.

Thanks to all of you Dahlia growers, we also planted Dahlias this year.  Again, six or eight.  Not all have grown.  There are only 3 definite plants that we have seen.  Of those 3 only one has buds.  Yesterday, one of those buds finally opened.

It's pretty, but looks a little ragged...a little worse for wear...kind of like me.  The lackluster performance of the Dahlias is leaving us a bit underwhelmed.

Once again it is time to finish my first cup of coffee and then jump in the shower.  Have a marvelous Tuesday my friends!

Weekending 7/1/24

 Good Morning!

And welcome to July.  We had some good rain yesterday which seems to have cleared the air a bit.  Geesh but it was a hot and humid weekend.  I hope your weekend was a good one.  Mine was good despite the awful weather.  There was cooking, knitting, reading, stitching, just sitting, sipping wine - all the things that I love.

Fletch had an appointment Friday morning, so while he was out of the house, I took advantage of the time to turn on the oven and make the promised peach/rhubarb crostata.  Oh my!

It really was delish!  And there is even some left in the frig!!  While that was baking, I stepped onto the patio and spied a little visitor:

Such a beautiful and delicate creature.  The picture is not the greatest, but each time I moved to get into a better position to capture it on my camera, it would fly up and around and then land again.

We had a modest amount of rain Saturday evening, so Sunday Fletch went out to the garden and pulled all the garlic.  We (He) managed to get some nice heads...others are a bit small, but the scent is wonderful!

Fletch will be hanging the stalks on the patio to dry.  We will share some with Colin & Mailing too.  Last Fall Fletch planted some at their house, but the squirrels dug each and every clove up!  Never would have imagined that squirrels liked garlic...

Sunday afternoon I finally finished the 2nd Fairy Maiden sock.

I say finally because these were such a PITA to knit.  First of all the initial stitch on each DPN is a purl stitch.  I dislike starting with a purl stitch.  The pattern is 8 rows long.  The first 3 rows of the pattern have cables (both front and back) as well as some yarn-overs, SSK and K2together.  I can do all those things, but I guess because I was knitting with DPNs it was more fiddly and awkward.  I was continually messing up my stitch count (either dropping stitches or adding some).  THIS is a link to the free pattern on Ravelry in case anyone wants to make themselves crazy.  LOL. And here is a picture showing a close up of the very pretty pattern:

Pretty but still a PITA to knit!  I'm glad to have knit them but I'm betting I will never knit this pattern again!  LOL. (The yarn is from The Farmer's Daughter - April's Sock Squad yarn)

Finally, I will end this lengthy post with yet another picture.  When I came downstairs at 6 to turn the coffee on, look what I saw outside:

Two little fawns resting on the grass.  So sweet.  They didn't stay there long after Mabel went outside.  (Picture taken through our door so that I wouldn't disturb the little darlings.)

Well, time to finish my first cup of coffee and then hop in the shower.  May July fill you with wonder and bring you much joy!