restarting, renewing, reinventing

i’m on spring overload here—things are blooming, hatching, and popping almost faster than i can take pictures.

spied over a fence from my bike the other day—a tree bursting into flower.

and a big patch of violets just up the block from my house

to my great disappointment, we can’t seem to grow violets in our yard; maybe they need more sun than we can offer them.

further afield, i was lucky enough to find the swans out and about on a pond that i ride past often. when it’s cold, they hide somewhere and i’ve only seen them once this year so far. but it’s been very warm again here—up into the 80s a couple of days so far.

i thought i’d scare them away if i got too close, but after i dismounted and walked to the edge of the water, they made a beeline for me.

first the male came over and preened a bit (i later realized he might be showing off in hopes of getting some food)

then the female joined us and they spent a little time gliding back and forth for me before getting bored and heading back to their nesting area.

it was nice to see them again. it’s been such a beautiful spring for biking, too—it’s good to get outdoors in the fresh air; i miss that in winter. it’s the perfect break from a long day at the computer, before my evening knitting gets going.

speaking of that . . .

well, i’m back to square one on my lace beret. i was almost to the top of the hat when i realized it was voluminous enough to be comic (especially on me), which isn’t exactly what i was aiming for. i had a neat little beret in mind‚ just a little cap. i dunno what i was thinking when i did the numbers . . .

i’ll get it right one of these days. i’m wondering if it might be worthwhile to start the mitts though, just to have something successful to show for myself, heh.

it didn’t help matters much either that i finally looked at my new cabled sock with a cold eye and realized they are never going to fit over my heel. i’d gotten much further than that photo shows—all the way to the start of the heel, before i really saw what i was doing. so much for late night TV knitting on autopilot . . .

the good news is that i can get a lot done on autopilot, provided i have my ducks in a row to begin with. i should have this back where it was in no time . . .

with couple of things in the timeout chair, i needed to feel i was making good progress on something, so i concentrated for a couple of evenings on my baby blanket while i chatted on the phone with friends and family.

i’m past the halfway mark now and the piece is starting to have more substance. while i was thinking this might make a good travel project, now, i’m not so sure—it might be too big to go anywhere conveniently. maybe on this first trip, if it’s still on the needles at the end of this week. on the other hand, maybe by friday, it’ll be done.

so, aside from some socks and a beret i’m rethinking (again), i don’t have much on the needles that i can just pick up and go with. it was time i finally turned my attention to a UFO so old, i’m embarrassed to mention it.

i have absolutely no excuse for why this wasn’t completed in 2007—i can’t at all remember why i put it down, but i’ve never knit the second half of my original twinings stole. i know!!

it’s a real favorite too—i love the gingko-shaped scallops at the beginning edges, i adore the yarn (fearless fibers merino laceweight, colorway rubicund), the stitch pattern is entertaining, and i love the delicately pointed edges.

i was horrified to find it unfinished in my stash a couple of weeks ago, especially since the trunk show could really use a shot of pink. i mean, i knew it was there, sorta, but not at the front of my mind, you know?

anyway, this will make a great traveling project, because no matter how big it gets, it’s never going to weigh more than five ounces or take up more than the space of a little project bag. and i can see already that it’s not going to take long; i completed two pattern repeats while watching half of a movie—not bad. once i memorize the pattern again, it will go even faster.

i’ve been fiddling with new patterns too, trying to get a couple written up before i leave and charting out some new ideas to swatch and play with so i can maybe start a new shawl sometime this month. i have a another baby blanket i want to do and a shawl design just about ready for its first draft. and then there’s the beret . . .

i dunno if any of that will be feasible travel knitting (probably not), so i’d like to get some of it firmly in place this week before the fun starts. i can take socks and a scarf and my twinings with me on trips—they’ll like that.

and we’ll have at least one, maybe two new patterns to release very soon, with a couple more right behind, yay.

i have a load of spring pictures to share, but i think i’ll create a post just for them tomorrow . . . time to go enjoy the afternoon—it’s another beauty and our bikes are calling.