chasing winter out

Posted on Posted in designing, food and garden, lace/shawls, projects

daffodils are so resilient—just look at them.
the first time i saw our daffs crumpled to the ground under a coat of april snow, i almost cried. but now i know how well they recover from a little setback like that and take cheer from their fortitude.

our yard continues to spring to life, despite the chill of the last few days. with the temperatures due to warm up any minute now (they are climbing toward 60 degrees as i write this), each plant is finding its way to the sun in succession.

tulips dot the lawn and grow in clumps everywhere—david’s efforts to create a random carpet of them are coming to fruition after six years of planting bulbs here and there across the yard.

i’m hoping these are hyacinths; i mentioned to david that i like their scent and asked him to get some bulbs. i see a few of these in the front beds, but i’m not sure that’s what they are (fingers crossed, though).

last year, the doctor across the back fence spent a day dividing and thinning his day lily beds and offered for us to take whatever we wanted from the gleanings. the row of plants we scavenged looked pretty bad most of last summer, but are growing out nice and healthy this spring; they’ll be a colorful border that i can see from my office window later this summer.

the first hostas are upright now, while others are just waking and crawling out of their beds. within the month, they will tower over that rock you see in the background and eventually obscure it completely.

and the bleeding heart has finally made its appearance; a little later than last year, but that’s ok; i’m always happy to see it back.

now this last one makes me chuckle—a new chard plant! there are a few of these in one of the old rows i planted last summer; they must be growing from previously ungerminated seeds that laid there all winter.

which reminds me; i really must order some seeds this week.

i wish the ground was turned up now; i’d plant some chard right away, so we could eat fresh greens in a month or so . . . david is reluctant to till it up yet; he’s afraid most of it will just go to weeds and need to be tilled again.

it’s nice that at this time of year we get to appreciate the work that went into these plants last summer and fall. gardening is really a process—even more so than knitting i think. it’s important to enjoy and learn from the work you put in at the moment—you often don’t get to see the full results of your efforts til much further down the road.

speaking of knitting and things growing

the baby blanket is becoming a size that allows me to fully take in its overall appearance and texture. to me looks visually charming, yet has an indestructible quality i can really appreciate—the fabric is squishy and dense, but still very light.

i know i sound like a broken record, but i absolutely love this classic merino sport yarn—just take a look at those crisp, flat borders and corners

they are handsome and certain to keep their shape. and it’s all in the yarn, i swear. you should take a look at the one that catherine is test knitting in her persimmon colorway—so juicy and lively. i can’t wait to see more of that one.

the other night after knitting class, i sat down and began my re-working of the lace beret i’m designing in miss babs yet laceweight. i think i’ve got something i like this time. i’ve worked all the way through the brim and crown sections which have a lace pattern that looks a bit like wings or leaves.

i wrapped up last evening by starting the decreases across the top of the hat; you can’t see much of what’s going on there, but isn’t the yarn pretty? i’m working with the outback colorway; it’s a little busy, but i think it works—i sure do love the brownish straw, rose, and plum mix.

it’s so hard to tell what it will actually look like once it’s off that little needle; i’m working as fast as i can, just so i can see the result, haha. i hope it’s good.

and for my late-night TV knitting, i have knit almost all the way through my first chicklets sock already—it seems to have knit itself. working with the STR mediumweight will do that for you.

in fact, i think i’ve knit a little too far on the foot (dang!).
one of those situations where i measured and knit, then measured again and it was still the same length. so i didn’t allow myself to measure again for a while (even though i thought i should) and when i did—it was too long.

i really need to stop playing games with my knitting; i always lose.

anyhow, i’m ready to start the toe now, as soon as i rip back about twelve rows.
(heh, loser.)

still, it’s a fun, quick knit, so i don’t mind.
i’ll finish that up later tonight and put in some work on the cabled sock for a break. both of these socks are going so quickly, i hardly recognize myself.

it sure helps my productivity to have fewer projects on the needles, but it’s a struggle to contain my enthusiasm for the projects i have in my head which i want to begin right away, too. i’m trying to practice moderation (and finish some socks for next winter).

but then, next winter is sooo far away . . .

19 thoughts on “chasing winter out

  1. Hi…….your flower pics are great…..got to get my camera out there and take some pics. my crokies are out and my snowdrops are out…….Daffies are sprouting not in bloom yet……We are in upstate NY near West Point…..must be a different zone. Love the Blanket……are you going to be listing it…? Love it…..Betty

  2. Those daylilies will explode over the next couple years. We planted a few transplants in our side yard about 4 years ago and now it looks like a tropical paradise overflowing onto the sidewalk. That garden is bursting at the seams! I *almost* tossed them as I was pulling them out of the garden because I didn’t know what they were. My neighbor convinced me to keep them and now I’m so grateful he did!

  3. Your plants are looking beautiful! We had 3″ of snow when we awoke this a.m. Who would think it would happen in “sunny California” the end of March. I could be wrong, but your plant which you are thinking might be a hyacinth looks kind of like a freesia to me. Might that be? Just a guess! Thanks for the lovely photos. Can’t wait for the baby blanket pattern as I have an expectant couple who would love one!

  4. I agree that the buds look like freesia…another fabulous fragrance! Hour by hour the plants are growing and buding outside. It is fabulous!

  5. Since I’m in the far northeast corner of the US, and our spring flowers take a little longer to appear, I appreciate seeing yours. I haven’t been writing much, much I’m still reading! Oh! When will the blanket pattern be available? Soon, I hope. I love it. I’m recovering from major surgery, and I would love a new project to see me through.

  6. I don’t think that is a hyacinth…but I’m sure it will be lovely. It does rather look like freesia. Lovely projects!!It’s 77 here! Woo hoo!

  7. Your yard will be bursting with color this spring! Our bleeding hearts are up and going strong. I was encouraged to see the peonies popping out. We transplanted one and was worried it was a goner. I ripped out most of the leg of my fishbone gansey. Stupid mistake in the rib. silly me. Enjoy your sunshine!

  8. I am looking forward to seeing more spring flowers pictures. It’s autumn here & I am preparing my garden for some winter vegetables.

  9. oooh the flowers are so luscious anne. and so are both your color and catherine’s color for baby blanket.
    am off to ethiopia for work next week, so you’ll probably be done by the time i get back. a must knit for a good friend’s new grandson-to-be.

  10. I’m having to do the same thing on my current sock. This is why we should always pick yarn/pattern combos that we absolutely love to knit.

    p.s. I’ll be starting my Longjohns next! 😀

  11. Oh, love that baby blanket. I think it will respond well to little fingers clinging to it.

  12. Yes that is a hyacinth and the Swiss chard? That is a plant that never completely died and overwintered itself! If it was from seed it would be much, much smaller. Love the blanket.

  13. Hi Anne,
    That baby blanket is so sweet – I’m wondering how much yarn it will require, since I’d love to choose a pretty neutral for an upcoming baby in the family so I’m ready to go when the pattern releases ;))
    If I didn’t have daffs up and cheering my garden up I would be so envious of you!! Snow this morning but they are there to promise us some more spring after Easter… ah well…

  14. hi,
    I have not been able to resist, I bought you the boss Boxleaf Wrap. I’ll test it with my wireless Helleborus I dye last week.
    Bise
    Esther

  15. Anne- I love Hyacinths too.

    Get yourself some of those forcing glasses- and you can have some indoors in February. I have some of the Delph blue ones in my kitchen- and it smells wonderful.

  16. Oh how I love seeing your garden pop into life! And your projects all look wonderful.
    I so wish I had more hours in my day to knit… Your newest creations are indeed tempting 😉

  17. I love your new pink socks they are beautiful and such a lovely colourway. I hate ripping back socks or any knitting cos of the time put into it, because a mistake as been made. It can be super frustrating 🙂 But it never puts us off knitting more things 🙂 Nessa xxx

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