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Knitting through fear and in public

By on August 1, 2012 in Knits and Crochet

I have been going through my wishlist of projects I would love to get done for baby bean’s arrival.  With just 6 weeks to go I thought I better narrow it down to the projects I really need to get done.  Somehow I had totally forgotten that newborns born at home need a hat to keep their little heads warm since that is usually provided by the hospital for the first day and we are hoping to replace “the hospital” this time with a home birth.

I dug through pages on Ravelry to find a hat that looked like I could knit but would still not be so easy that there would be a seam.  I can crochet almost anything but this year I have decided to devote myself to knitting and oh goodness, how I love it but it is so much harder for me and anything that has a new stitch in it sends me running.  I decided to use some Cascade super sport yarn that I got on my trip to Purl Soho.  How I love this yarn, it is sooo soft and I am so glad I never used it until now.  I can’t think of a better project I would have used it for.

I also recalled all of my babies scratching their little faces up terribly during the hospital stay so I figured I better include some mittens.  I went with this pattern.  I jumped in with both feet only to find the beginning stitch was a new one to me and soooo scary.  As scary as learning to knit with double pointed’s which is now one of my favorite ways to work in the round.  I sat in bed next to Poppa (who was watching the Olympics) with a youtube video playing, this one, and I must have sounded pretty frustrated as I ripped out yarn and started over and over.  At one point Poppa turns to me, though this whole time I am thinking he is so into what he is watching that he is completely ambivalent to my plight, and says “Trish, just keep trying, you know you’ll get it”.  OK Poppa, you are right, I need to calm down and I will get it!

I am happy to say that I can now include the Turkish cast on to my repertoire of knitting stitches though I am far from mastering it. I think if the cable between my needles was a bit longer it would be a bit easier to keep the front half stitches from sliding over the cable and joining the back half.  I may still transfer my stitches over to dpn’s at this point but at least I know how to do it now.  I always wondered how socks that are worked from the toe down did not have a seam and now… I know!!  Happy, happy and I should say that I wouldn’t be brave enough to keep learning new stitches without the inspiration I get from so many of you.

The next day, Poppa invited me to spend the day with him and then dinner for a date night since Alexandra has the day off and could take care of things at home.  He told me we would have to spend some time at one of the restaurants in his district while he did interviews there so I brought my little project.  As I sat there in that restaurant booth with a belly that hardly fits anymore, over a half dozen people came over to my booth to see what I was making.  Elderly men came to tell me of how their mothers knitted with smiles on their face.  Women with children came over to inquire as to what I was doing with yarn and needles.  Many comments such as “I could never do that” and “how sweet, no one does that anymore” oh and “you are so lucky, your grandmother must have taught you”.

I mostly responded with a smile and a thank you, except for all the “wow you must be ready to pop” remarks.  But what I wanted to say was that I was not taught by a grandmother (mine was a crocheter) no I learned through the internet and you can too! and I wanted to tell them that lots of people are making things themselves and they are not all elderly!!!  I guess I was mostly surprised that I got that much attention from the simple and silent act of knitting of public.

One last thing I wanted to share..well kind of.  There is something big happening in my family and I have been keeping it from you all for about a year now.  It’s obviously not a baby since you all know about that.  Won’t you join me tomorrow for the Stash Bash to find out and I would love to see what projects you have made this week from your stash of craft stuff.  Hope to see you then.

I am playing along again this week with Nicole and Ginny.  Hop over to their sites to get your fill of yarn and craft love.

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or follow me by email at the top right hand of the screen to have future posts sent to you. Tricia (Crunchy Catholic Momma)

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Stash Bash

By on July 26, 2012 in Knits and Crochet, Stash Bash

I’ve never met a crafter without a stash of some kind. This year my goal is to use up all the craft supplies I have spent money on that are taking up mental and physical space in my life.  Join me here every Thursday for a Stash Bash.

Where has my week gone?  The days are flying by too fast.  I have gotten alot done off my list but not much that I can share with you yet.  I did get through most of my stash now and tomorrow I hope to get a bunch more done.  I am rearranging my sewing space, making room for a play corner for the little ones and a studying area for the big kids.  I have now removed 7 garbage bags of stash fabrics, yarns and craft supplies.  It has been really hard but I know I will be happy when I do not feel overwhelmed by the amount of things I own.  That is such an important part of living a simple life and one that has eluded me for so long because I always feel I have to hang on to everything craft related.  I need to finish reorganizing and decorating (the fun part) so that I can pull out the bags and put everything up for sale.  I am thinking Craigslist?

I have done some stash bashing but I have also done something that has made my girls so happy.  I let them each pick out three fabrics and yarns and they went straight to it.  The past few days have been full of knitting and sewing of doll clothing projects.  The boys have been taking notice and I have heard some of them ask Erica for knitting lessons.  

My wool papoose is finally done though I want to add some embroidery to it still.  This will keep my wee one warm and dry and I love the look and feel of it.  I lost my notes on it but when I find them I will post them to Ravelry (which I have never done before) in case you want to make one too.

So what have you been up to? I love to see what you come up with. I have added the Mr Linky to the bottom of this post for you to link up your Stash Bash projects.


Here’s what to do. There are no rules. 
Just use what you have and try to not buy new supplies, unless you need it to complete a project that you are making from stuff you already have in your stash. 
Take a picture of your project or progress and blog about it or post a picture to flickr.
Then come back here on Thursdays and post a link to your post.
Don’t forget to link back to the Stash Bash so others can find us and get encouraged too.
Fair enough?     

P.S.  Its so nice to hear from other stash bashers so if you visit some of the links don’t forget to leave them a quick little comment.   

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or follow me by email at the top right hand of the screen to have future posts sent to you. Tricia (Crunchy Catholic Momma)

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