More things finished.

Good thing I got the rainbow cardigan finished when I did, as I couldn't focus on yarning for a while.  I did take "emotional support knitting" to the hospital and hospice, but couldn't pull it out.  Part of the time we were busy with details, part of the time I was holding my father's hand as we took turns letting him know we were there.  And then there were all the details afterwards, and exhaustion, and mostly I petted the yarn.

When I could focus enough, I finished a few items:

Hat of sock yarn scraps, knitted in a half-and-half
style with no seams.  Scarf of Red Heart Super Saver
Jumbo Speckle in "Bubblegum", made-up pattern of
mostly alternating rows of single and double crochet
with a fancy granny square on each end.

The hat and scarf were in progress and set aside so that my first FO of the year would be something I was keeping for me.  Both are charity items.  The hat is a solid sock yarn worked with striped or ragg-style scraps.  I made the scarf because I'd ordered White Speckle, and the label said that's what it is - but clearly the yarn is Bubblegum Speckle.  It would not work with what I have and I'm not fond of pink, so charity items it will be!  There's almost as much left in the skein as is in this scarf, so it may well become another scarf in some pattern.

Then my mother mentioned that the wife of a friend needed a chemo cap, and I grabbed the blue ball of yarn and knit one quickly and delivered it - so quickly I didn't get a photo.  So I am showing the remainder of the ball of yarn.  The recipient was grateful, including that I made it while dealing with grief.  Well, having somebody and something else to focus on for a bit helped, for my mother as much as for me.

After this I turned to some items I picked up in the "FINISH ME" rack at The Scrap Exchange.  All were ready except for running in ends and adding buttons and some cleaning.  There was also an item that resembles a bag in royal blue and white, which you see in the bunting's "before" photo.  I'm not sure whether it was meant to be a sleep sac or another bunting or a tote bag.  I thought that if it wouldn't be useable in the current state I would frog it and use the yarn for something else, but the person to whom I delivered the finished items said it would be fine, so it's in the finishing queue.

The bunting was finished except for ends and buttons.
Not sure what the blue-and-white items is; we decided it's a
sleep sack which I will finish, and maybe add shoulder straps.

Bunting finished.  Close-up of buttons below.

I chose very classic buttons.  The only other
ones I have in sufficient quantity and the
correct size are deep blue flowers.

Pink set before.  Needs some sewing and buttons.

Also, an unknown black stuff on the hat.
Luckily, it washed out with a bit of scrubbing.

Pink set finished.  I attached the items together with a piece
of leftover yarn.  Note the strap on the hat, one side has a
button loop but there are buttons on both ends.

Close-up of the buttons, pink with a white flower.

The third set was the most difficult to finish because there was a definite stain on one sleeve, and only one bootie.  I decided to use the bootie to replace the stained bit of sleeve - which meant I had to figure out the pattern and gauge.

The label was on the package at The Scrap Exchange.

The stain, and unlike the one on the pink hat, it did
NOT wash out,  Removal was necessary.

I simply crocheted from the bootie to the sleeve.

I was successful, and found some cute blue buttons to use on this set.  Like the pink hat, I made a strap for this one with a button on the sewn end as well as on the working end:

Finished set with the leftover yarn from sleeve and bootie.
I attached the hat and jacket to each other for donation.

Close-up of the blue buttons - bunches of grapes.

After delivering the items, I received an email complimenting me on the craftsmanship.  I had to explain that I only added buttons, the real work was done by some other person, unknown.

Another thing.

Although I have a pile of partly-finished items, and it's "Aftober" on KnitTalk, which means we are challenged/encouraged to finish things, I started a new one:

This is the Radiant Rays Blanket, and I'm doing it in the pattern yarn, which is discontinued but I have some cakes.  Not the six the pattern requires, but the final version is around 55" across with all that yarn, so my three cakes (and a smidge I might use from a similar colourway) should do a decent-sized baby blanket.  As you can see, one cake in and it's about 21" across.

Once you get to the penultimate row, you stop and take all those chain lines, then link them together from the centre to the edge.  The final row locks the loops so they stay in place.  I am debating whether to also add a small border so it's a bit more finished, but I'll see where I am when done with the third cake.

The first two or three rows were challenging, then the wedges had enough stitches to be visible.  Now it's almost at autopilot stage, although the first stitch after the chain line is fiddly.

I've also been doing chores.  And listening to news.  I know people in Israel, and when I was there it was during the Lebanon war and we were traveling close enough one day to hear the shelling.  I've heard quite a bit from friends about the air raids and bombings, and I suppose it being the 50th anniversary of the Yom Kippur War was too tempting.  Plus Shabbat, when many Jews would be observing the day of rest.

I try to not be political on this blog - there are so many of those, if you want to read them.  But how can I not mention this?  I've mentioned the war in Ukraine, which is well into its second year.  Parts of my family may have come from that area (documents are a bit sketchy), certainly from that part of Europe.  Both seem to be just more examples of how certain factions of the world want to destroy Jews.

Genocides and wars keep happening all over the world, not just in these two areas, although they are of the greatest attention to most Americans.  That level of hatred and fear of people - so great that you want to wipe them off the face of the planet - is something I just cannot comprehend, despite the examples that show themselves day after day after month after year............

Horsing around. (Memories)

I could have uploaded the previous post earlier, once I decided I was done with it, but have been traveling again (family) and didn't.  So these come close together.

Facebook reminded me that seven years ago I finished this:

There was no pattern, just a photograph.  Somebody I knew (our paths no longer cross, due to pandemic cancellation of the activities when we would usually encounter each other, and not being Facebook friends and so on) commissioned it from me based only on a photograph.  So I had to figure out how to make it.

She reported at the time:

[The horse] had a peaceful night out of cat range and will go to Old Lyme to meet his new person in a couple of hours. Right now he is still on top of the jelly cabinet looking down at me. Baby boy (fill in a name) will love it when he starts exploring. I think the large animal and horse vet mom will like it also. She just has to put it away for awhile so it does not become a dog or cat bed.

I hope the horse has been well-loved in that time, whether by the now-named boy or others.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Another memory came up earlier in the week:

Chemo caps for my cousin Pat in Chicago Bears and Chicago White Sox colours.
On top of a baby blanket my mother "commissioned" as a gift for someone with whom she works.

Sadly, Pat lost her fight with cancer a few years later.  I was told she was buried wearing one of my hats.

The turkey is early. And shy.

 Autumn is definitely here.  I don't go walking in the morning because I am a wimp about going out when it's that cold.  I'll probably get past it in another week or so, but for now, at least on weekends, I walk in the afternoon.  This means I take different routes as two of my usual ones get crowded in the afternoons.

Photos are from one of my walks:

   

   

   

He was coolly walking, then scrambled when I tried to get a photo.

I've been indulging in online tours and events, as a break from work.  Friends are "at" some, so we get to "see" each other.  I miss having opportunities to go out with people, and while there are a few opportunities for picnics or walking tours or socially-distanced arts performances, I haven't partaken.  Part of it is not having the energy after a week of 10-13 hour workdays, part of it is being still uncomfortable being in crowds.  I go out twice a week, once to the CSA pickup and once on the weekend to the post office, farmstand, and other errands.

I do feel annoyed and isolated when I see friends reporting about going out and doing things, including visiting family, and when colleagues talk about traveling.  I've read a couple articles this weekend that discussed how people are feeling "pandemic fatigue" and so are taking risks because they are tired of not being able to do things, and because it's clear that even if you take all safety precautions you can still catch COVID-19, so people figure why bother?  I guess I keep bothering because I have older family members I'd like to see again someday, and I want to be alive to do it.

On an up note, I finally heard about the baby blanket I sent overseas at the beginning of the pandemic.  I had planned to give it to one of my best friends to carry to the new baby and parents, but of course all the trips were cancelled so I had to trust the post.  The mother reported that "Ayala loves it (put it in her mouth first thing which is the ultimate test) and we love the pattern and special thought that went into the colors."  Now I cam post a few photos, taken at each stage of the pattern:

   

I chose the colours because the father is from The Netherlands, the mother is Israeli, and while they lived in the USA for several years, they made aliyah (well, for the mother, just returning home) about six months before Ayala was born.  So the colours seemed natural choices for her.

Mid-month mini-resolutions update

These are the three hats I worked on during Yom Kippur, as I reported in the previous post:

The two with flipped colours are the Color Dipper Hat, without a pompon, and the other is Barley Light from Tin Can Knits, using an oddball I never got around to turning into mittens as originally planned.

Instead of working on my Boneyard Shawl, I started a shawl for my grandmother, and then decided to make a vest to go with it:

The shawl is waiting for the vest to be finished, and then I'll use the remainder of the yarn to finish the shawl.  My grandmother chose it when we were out and about on one of my visits, I hope she likes it as much in the finished items as she did in the store.

Baby Sweaters - including a 40-year UFO

Once again, I've been busy and not updating the blog.  Of course, part of the reason is that I have been busy doing things - such as making or finishing three baby sweaters.  They are going to a "baby house" in FSU (not at the orphanages where I donate things through Mittens for Akkol, but another one) and I had fun with these.

First a sweater from one ball of Patons Classic Wool in "Commotion":

It was supposed to have a hood, but I didn't have enough yarn, even making the three-to-six months size, so gave it a placket and collar instead.  I had fun rummaging through my button box and debated several other options until I found the lone card with three purple "jewel" buttons.  Perfect!  Why shouldn't an orphan have special buttons?

Similarly the ones on this sweater, although they are not the only star-shaped ones I have:

 

The yarn is oddballs of (I think) Cleckheaton and a ball of Noro Kureyon, and I used all of the blue and the Kureyon but have a bit of the green left.  It's the Super-Natural Stripes Sweater in about 18 months size.  I received a lot of compliments about it, including when I was knitting while waiting for the annual Om Street to begin (you can see me at it in the background of picture #107).  The colours show up much better here - they really are bright, and one friend said quite classic:

It's almost hard to give that one away, but I have no use for it and some child will be warm.

Finally, a sweater that I had very little to do with.  You see, my mother found an old knitting bag with pieces of two sweaters in it.  She made them when my brother was an infant.  They are nicely done but were never put together.  Mom gave me permission to finish and donate them.  I had time to do only one for this shipment, since the woman going to visit the baby house is leaving earlier than we expected.  I chose the one that seemed to be more complete:

At the top is a back with two fronts attached at the shoulders.  We're not sure what the middle piece is; I guessed a hood of some sort.  And the two sleeves below.  Since there was no other yarn and of course no instructions, I decided to use my best guesses, and to unravel the hood piece for yarn to finish the sweater.

First, set in the sleeves and sew side and underarm seams:

The fronts have no buttonholes and just touch, so I wonder if they are supposed to have a zipper?  I don't have one, and I do have a lot of buttons, and I've heard that buttoned sweaters are more popular in FSU countries.  How to adapt?  I decide to knit on another six stitches in the same 1:1 ribbing, and attach it as I go.  Like this:

 
For one side, I skip attaching every so often, to create buttonholes.

Then to finish the neckline, I added a ribbed collar:

And of course once some buttons were sewn on (the backside is very much prettier than the front, although the white side would have been fine too), it's a cute little cardigan!

So decades after it was first knitted for a then-little boy, hopefully it will keep some other little child warm.  It's not the first time I've put together a decades-old UFO for my mother, and I said it's proof that dislike of sewing-together is genetic!

Mittens for Akkol Campaign Contributions

I should write stories about the trip to New Zealand, or some of the other things I've been doing, but I'm still busy playing catch-up with my life.  So this will have to do for now.

After I was insulted twice in the blog for another charity, I was told about Mittens for Akkol and how they knit woolly items for children in orphanages in Kazakhstan, and for mothers and babies in "baby houses" there.  Since I have a lot of wool yarns on hand because of the previous charity's needs, I decided to switch and knit for this group.

I found out about them barely in time to contribute to the last campaign.  This time, I was almost too late even though I tried signing up immediately.  Some of those ladies are quick!  I was able to send these items:

Toddler hat at left was made from a free pattern on KnitPicks, out of leftover bits of 100% wool yarn.  The picture seems to be of the back seam, sorry!  It is very cute and very thick, will be nice and warm for a small child.  Also stretchy, thanks to the garter stitch, so not to be outgrown soon.

The yarn from the hat was originally part of the blanket below.  The other charity wants bigger ones that MfA does, so I ripped back the partly-done blanket and finished it at the required size.  It's a couple oddballs of shaded yarn done in two-row stripes, surrounded by aqua handspun and handdyed wool yarn that was a leftover in my wool basket.  I think it's pretty cute.  I folded it in half for the picture so I could get a closer shot:

They also wanted baby sweaters.  The first one is out of sock yarn, from a cute pattern and on US#2 and US#1 needles.  This is the three-month size, and I used a ball of striping yarn and a partial ball of the solid.  It was great carry-around because of its small size, but tedious:

Note that I changed the closure from loops to a proper placket.  I did something similar on this cardi, which is six months size and adapated to use some Limbo, a discontinued 100% wool yarn I had in the stash.  I just made pieces that reached the recommended measurements, sewed it together, added the borders and then added buttons from my stash.  They happen to be rose-shaped.

The socks below were knitted on two different choir tours!  One on the tour of Argentina in 2008, and

the other on our tour of New Zealand this year. I kept meaning to get the second one done..... Basic toe-up pattern, using SWS (Soy Wool Stripes) yarn in "Natural Earth" and US#4 and US#5 dpns.  They fit my foot and I do the K2P2 ribbing so they will stay up better on a leg, and stretch to fit different sizes.  I actually had a repair job to do after the second one that I will write up in another blog post.  They are fraternal because the balls started in different places in the colour sequence and to economize the yarn so the socks could be as tall as possible, I didn't get too particular.  This yarn is 70% wool and 30% soy and too warm for me to wear as socks.

Package was mailed with my usual prepaid, pre-addressed postcard for the organizer to send back so that I know it arrived safely.  She does post a list of packages as they arrive, but I got used to adding the postcard and it's a nice extra confirmation.

More photos of things I have created recently (I did a LOT of knitting and crocheting on the NZ trip) and my yarn purchases, the sock repair, yet to come.  Plus some tour reports, with lots of pictures!