too many secrets

Posted on Posted in designing, lace/shawls, projects

you know that guy across the street who does up his house with fab decorations during the fall and winter? well, as much as i enjoy our quirky views during that time, i don’t say often enough how nice it is to live across from him all summer. bret and his wife connie take excellent care of their yard, indulging it with every extra bit of attention they can think of. and because they are so very nurturing of it, they are rewarded with a profusion of flowers and healthful plants (unlike some people we know . . .). when we got back from our trip the other day, david went over to chat and came home with this perfect hydrangea stem. isn’t it lovely? and flawless??

it really smacks me on the forehead with the realization that my slapdash methods of zipping into and out of the garden most days, giving it a lick and a promise, are not working well for us. hmm. i have too many things going on—next year i gotta set some priorities.

anyway, enough self-castigation on that subject; after all, the garden is failing now and there’s not much to do about it. better to put my energy into planning a better approach next year.
it is, however raining today, which is an occasion for celebration.

i know this is not even close to being joyous tidings for our new england friends, but boy howdie, do we need it here. we’ve not had but two rainfalls since the fourth of july, i think, and one was accompanied by devastating hail, so that hardly counts as helpful. things were really REALLY dry—it hurt just to look at the yard. and then yesterday we had a good soaker—an all-day rain. today it is intermittent but still wet and overcast.

and some of us couldn’t be happier.
even though the tomaotes are dying off i’m still picking some

not enough to last us the winter but every quart helps. i’m going to scavenge at the farmer’s market this weekend to see if i can get a bushel for the freezer. it will surely be efficient—i can put them all up at once and get that job done.

ok, so i’m still drowning in secret projects and have no public knitting i can show you. how pathetic is that? i am knitting my fingers off and can reveal nothing. i didn’t even start a scarf for the blog yet because really, why muddle things up with more WIPs? if i put my head down and plow on, i might have all these little secrets done in a few days—progress is very good and they are coming off the needles pretty quickly, so i’m confident.

i do however have someone else’s knitting that is so spectacular i really must show it off

i got melanzana back from our wonderful test knitter and it’s perfect. oh my—i just love it in the thyme colorway—i bet catherine will squeal when she sees it, too.

and here’s a detail shot of our favorite part. it’s soaking now in a warm bath and i’m going to block it before everyone gets here for class today, yay. looks like we are zeroing in on the pattern proofing too, so i’m hoping for a labor day release, yay.

ok, now, i’m intent on sticking to a tight schedule so as to have all blogging back to normal by next week, so i’m gonna skedaddle . . . more tomorrow.

20 thoughts on “too many secrets

  1. The shawl is gorgeous! And I think all of northeast Ohio is with you in enjoying the rain! Not only is it badly needed here, but it’s just so much fun to have a rainy day for a change!

  2. How beautiful is that!? It’s gorgeous! I love the color,greens and reds seem to make me look alive. (I’m pale so anything dark makes me look ill..which is sad since I like wearing dark things because they hide ketchup stains!!) The stole is just lovely. 😀 Any hey, at least you’re getting tomatoes this year! My mother tried this year to grow some and they just didn’t want to grow at all. Too bad too, they taste delicious on a BLT!

  3. That hydrangea is breathtaking. The hydrangeas (pink/blue on the same stem!) at my previous digs were one of the few really redeeming factors about the place. I still miss them, and got some lovely pics of them before I moved.

    “Melanzana” is gorgeous. I haven’t knitted any of your patterns yet, although I put your blog on my RSS feeds to remind me to do so someday. 🙂

  4. Whew boy, that Melanzana is just simply beautiful! Your fav part has gotta be my fav part too, so stunning.

  5. Dragonflies this time, not lacewings, right? The bodies seem different to me, but maybe it’s just my eyes… Anyway, very pretty! 🙂

    The pink of that hydrangea almost looks unreal. It’s so saturated! I hope you can admire the whole bush (tree?) from your window.

  6. Gorgeous, gorgeous! I love that colorway, and the elements came together so beautifully in the stole form, too 🙂 Hang in there, those secrets will be out in the open soon enough (a lesson for all of us?)…

  7. Lucky!
    We are still awaiting the rain in Detroit. It’s overcast but no drops yet. YOur lettuce looks happy.:)
    Love the Melanzana. Beautiful!

  8. Oh, I can relate to your garden woes… I am surrounded by retired folks who tend to their garden all day and have years of experience. We’re definitely the young ones on the block and our yard shows our trial and error ways. I think they’re all in cahoots though, because they don’t like to let us in on their seasoned gardener secrets. Well, we get nuggets here and there but always after we are out there scratching our heads. I wonder sometimes if they stand inside their houses and laugh at us. hehehe

    That truly is the perfect pink hydrangea. Did you know that when they wilt, you can dunk them upside down in a bucket of cold water and the blooms will plump back up?

    … also? This shawl is amazing. I used to knit a lot of lace before I had my second son a year and a half ago. I don’t have the mindset right now, but I’m always swooning (and stockpiling) your patterns for ‘someday.’ But THIS shawl… this one might be the one that gets me back in to lace knitting. I love it!

    (wow… I’m feeling wordy today, eh?)

  9. I really like the stole. The colour is lovely and I like the break the insects give to divide the patterns which are more open, I was going to say the lacier patterns but I’m not even sure that’s a word. I look forward to the blocking shots.

  10. The stole is a beauty! So pretty! I’m looking forward to seeing it blocked.
    You really wouldn’t like to have me as a neighbour during the summer: I have done about fifteen minutes of weeding since I moved in here, and it’s definitely not because the yard didn’t need more! (not fifteen minutes a day – fifteen minutes total, for the whole summer!). I’ll have to learn how to care properly for the yard, and to turn it into a habit…

  11. Rain? We’re waiting for this new hurricane Gustav? and then Hanna on the other side of Florida. They must be twins….ugh ….it looks a mess and you can have our rain :). All of our motels are booked solid already with an influx of New Orleanians…Here we go again. Let’s hope it’s a little better than the last time….anyway I love the color of the hydrangea. How beautiful! I guess I’m going to have to order this new shawl…(sigh) I am very addicted to this!!! I wish I could repair your garden 🙂 Am trying to finish stuff so I can work on the Lacewing pattern!!!

  12. I love that hydrangea. Very inspirational, don’t you think??! That stole is georgeous, can’t wait to see it blocked and modeled. Either you need to slow down or I need to get with the program!! Just beautiful, Anne.

  13. i believe my mom said you *can* get tomatoes by the bushel-but most vendors sell out quickly.

    i love the hydrangea! very pretty. my boss and i have a weekly friday meeting at the potato chip plant, and their landscaping is just gorgeous (professional, of course) – the highlight of the week.

    and as for melanzana – uh oh – i’m not sure which i like better – the stole or the shawl!

  14. Oh I do love this version just as much as Lacewing and the color is great for it!

    We got some much needed rain here for the last two days, remnants of Fay. It hasn’t been anywhere near as bad as last summer was, but this month has been dry.

  15. I am doing pretty much the same as you are with the garden. Reading lots of books and preparing for better ways next year 🙂

    I really really like this version of your lacey wing 🙂

  16. I love it as a stole! the color and unblocked texture are fabulous. The pink hydrangea is gorgeous too!

  17. Anne- I live in a very established suburb- mature trees and gardens- and I always felt my gardening wasn’t up to standard- and I was speaking to an older gentleman, complimenting him on his garden and he told me that he now has the time to devote to it- but when he was my age he didn’t- so not to worry about it.
    I thought that was nice of him, and really put things in perspective- we are all at different stages of our lives- and not to expect so much of ourselves.
    It’s all about the process, as with knitting.

    Makes you think, doesn’t it?

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