Still Winter Here

I might just finish my Einstein Coat while it's still cold enough to wear it. I'm seaming it now, but it looks like a big cream blob so I'm not going to post a photo.

I did finish my little folk embroideries. They are very cute, but I'm not sure what to do with them. Ideas? (They are 8 x 8).

And while the calendar says it's March 10, my yard is blanketed with snow. My brother is visiting from Virginia and, to my surprise, he walked with me this morning when the temperature was 5 degrees (with wind chill).

I did get a little trip to the tropics Sunday evening. I have a friend who is an exceptionally avid gardener. She grows dozens of elephant ears outdoors in the warm weather. In the winter, she and her husband dig them up and bring them inside, where they place the plants in pots and horse troughs. No, I am not making this up.

As you can see, it's pretty amazing.

Home Again

 My trip to California was great. How can it not be? We drove up to Mendocino, which is just gorgeous. I could listen to the surf hit the rocks all day. (Thinking of you, Kim!)

We stayed in a very vintage cottage. It was adorable, but we were afraid to use the stove, which had no pilot light. We just used the microwave and ate out.

The best part was hanging out with Joni.

We both enjoyed working on the embroidery kits I made up for us.

We were not amused by the antisemitic pamphlets that were placed at homes in Berkeley and six other cities. Scary stuff. 

Sadly, bad news dominates, doesn't it? You may remember that I went to Ukraine a few years ago when my daughter was a bridesmaid at a wedding outside Lviv. My heart bleeds for the country and the wonderful Ukranians I know.

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Hitting the Skies

I was supposed to fly to San Francisco today to visit my best friend from childhood. A couple days ago, I got a text from United advising me that Chicago was supposed to have a major snow storm today and urging me to change my ticket to Friday. I did so. It turns out that Chicago is having a little snow today. Grrr!

Still, I am going to California so I can't complain too much.

Of course, the important question is: What crafts to bring? I'm definitely bringing this one:

It's a design from a book on Kantha stitching. I've wanted to improve my free-style stitching, so I'm looking forward to working on it. 

I started a sock this morning because you can't travel without a sock project.

And, of course, I have my sketchbook. Which reminds me: here is the sketch from my January trip to Chicago. The temps were around 0, so I drew this from photos I took.

And here's a photo:

Now I just have to hope that no passenger attacks a flight attendant over mask regulations!

 

My Quilting Journey

 I've been on a quilting journey. It started this fall when my friend Linda asked if I'd like to take a beginning quilting class with her. I knew I needed to do this, but I had been avoiding it. It sounded so boring. I figured it would be fun if Linda was there.

I really don't t like the pattern that the teacher uses, but it does work well as a learning exercise. And I was happy with the fabrics I chose.

The teacher shared all the "insider" tips that I had not been able to find in books or videos, like how to get the corners of squares to match up. And how to cut straight sashing. Notice I said she taught us these skills, not that I've mastered them!

That gave me the confidence to try a throw-sized quilt with precuts. This one uses Jolly Bars. I still had to square up all my units before I sewed them together. Apparently I haven't mastered cutting or sewing straight.

And now I'm working on the Market Street Quilt. This is a great beginner quilt, and I'm having fun with it. As you can see, I'm trying to get away from pretty but predictable.

I think I'll always like art quilting best, but I do want to build up my skill set. Besides, it's really nice to curl up under a quilt that you made yourself!

Unravelled Wednesday

First the knitting: If you look closely, you can see that I've begun to knit the right front of the Einstein Coat. I'm enjoying all this garter stitch. VERY relaxing!

BTW, a skein of Cascade Ecological is very large:

I'm finally starting on a pair of mittens for Rachel. It's going to take me all year to knit the beautiful Songbird Mittens. The pattern isn't that difficult, but there are lots of long floats, and I'm very slow at catching those. 

I've been on an English mystery journey for the last four months. I fell in love with the BBC Shetland mystery series Shetland a year ago. The series is based on books by British writer Ann Cleeves. So I read her other series, the Vera Stanhope novels. Then I read all the Shetland books, and I just finished the last one:

So, I can tell you that the books are better than the TV shows. All the books are worth reading, though I am partial to the Shetland series.

 That said, the Shetland series is worth watching. Each book is an entire season, so you get an in-depth story. I personally do not like the Vera TV series. Each book gets 3 episodes, so the stories are stripped down. Also, there are a million seasons and only 6 books, so it's an entirely different animal.

Joining up with Kat for Unravelled Wednesday.

 

You'll Never Guess What This Is

 Well?

Believe it or not, it's a sweater! It's the Einstein Coat by Sally Melville. I've wanted to make it for ages, and I was able to nab the perfect yarn (Cascade Ecological) on sale when the Wisconsin Craft Market went out of business last month. I'm really focusing on embroidery, so I wanted a simple but useful knitting project.

Our old house had hot water heat, so our cats have been delighted to discover heating vents. Especially since we keep our house at 64 degrees. 

I'm off to lunch with my mother. I'm bringing food because the dining room in her retirement community is still closed. We are making great progress with getting help in for her, so I expect things to settle down soon.

Care-taking & Finishes

 I don't feel bad about not posting, but I hate falling behind on reading your posts. However, it was quite a week. Keith had cataract surgery on Tuesday (and it was very successful). Then my mom fell and broke her arm on Thursday. She has severely torn rotator cuffs, so I've been helping her with dressing, meals, even bathrooming. I hope to have help hired tomorrow.

I've only been able to finish up some simple UFOs. First was a pair of fingerless mitts for Keith. He chose to go with this color rather than have me buy more yarn. Go figure. The pattern is Maize by Tin Can Knits. If I make it again, I'd flip the knit and purl stitches so it would have more knits.

This hat needed decreases, so it went quickly. The yarn is Eco Duo, which I loved knitting with. Must make a sweater with this! So soft.

And I finished up the drawing of my living room wall. 

I hope to have time this week to catch up with all of you!

Pandemic January

 I hoping to have a photo of my Seth and his partner, Clara, because I spent a few days in Chicago last week. Unfortunately, before I got around to it, both Seth and I got sick. I had the worst GI bout I've ever experienced. And it wasn't fun to be away from home. When things began to subside around 1:30 a.m., I drove home -- almost 3 hours!

I don't regret the trip, though. I had a couple awesome days seeing people and visiting the Art Institute, which featured Barbara Kruger. I had never heard of her, and her social justice themes are perfect for our times:

The temperatures were almost as low in Chicago as they are in Madison, so sketching was out of the question. However, I found an alternative. I know that pandemic life is harder for some people than others. I am a homebody, so I think that I've fared quite well. It seemed appropriate to do a home sketch:

Later on I was warmed up by Kola. I think she missed me!

NOTE: Dane County, where I live, has the third highest rate of Covid in the entire country! It's a good thing I like being home.

Covid and Knitting -- Not In That Order

 I have a finished object:

I have knit sweaters before, but this is the first one that actually fits! It is the Fullerton Cardigan, which was published in the now-defunct Knitscene magazine. It is an easy, well-written pattern that would be a great first sweater. The yarn, Croft West Yorkshire Spinners, is a beautiful, lofty worsted weight. It is pretty scratchy, but it was fine over the turtleneck. I'll soak it to try to soften it up.

There has been a lot of knitting -- all on another sweater, Design 10, which turned out to be a total disaster. It's in time out while I decide whether to try to fix or frog it.

Last weekend I mentioned that I took my mom to the hospital for a colonoscopy. I didn't add that the outpatient surgery center was crowded and there were no Covid safety measures. There were people with masks on their chins and large family groups hanging around.  I knew it wasn't safe, but how do you walk out on your 85-year-old mother?

On Tuesday evening, I realized I had a sore throat, which lasted for a few days. I was also very tired. So, I either had a cold or Covid. I couldn't get a test until Thursday and now, 36 hours later, I still don't have results. I do know that I got it at the hospital because I had been homebound for the two weeks preceding the colonoscopy with a kidney stone.

Here's the worst part: I'm supposed to visit Seth in Chicago on Tuesday. Obviously I don't want to expose him to Covid. I decided that I'm going to go whether I have Covid or not. I'll drive to the Air Bnb, which seems safe to me. By the end of my visit I can go to museums, under CDC guidance. I've been homebound for more than three weeks now, so any change of scene will be appreciated!

Let's Hope for a Better Year

 I usually consider my year to be the Jewish year, but this year I'm going with 2022. The first few months of the Jewish year weren't so great: broken hip for Keith; back injury and kidney stone for me; the death of one of my son's best friends from way back; and a colonoscopy for my 85-year-old mother When does my real retirement begin?

Wisconsin is once again one of the worst states for Covid. Just like we were a year ago. This meant no New Years celebrations for us. Keith went to his parents for X-mas, but I stayed home. I went to the funeral for Seth's friend and it was packed. Even though all those Death Metal kids were wearing masks, I was worried about exposing my in-laws. (Yes, Seth was in a Death Metal band, An End to Flesh. I'm glad he didn't stay with that as a career).

But some things are good, like our loving kittens.

And embroidering my newest design:

And, of course, Keith, Seth, and Rachel. 

There is knitting, but that is for another time.