I Sing as I Knit

Singular in my focus? Making a change on that.

Sure, I'm interested in lots of things but when I was a student, years and years ago, I studied voice and piano. You'd think that "once a singer, always a singer". When folks know about my past, they often ask me, "Well, aren't you still singing?" It seems odd to them that I haven't been. I've played piano depending on availability and I have a box of sheet music in the closet, but I've not even been much of a shower singer. Things change though, and for the better.

An article just came out in Neighborhood Notes, an online local news source that I'm quite fond of, about the Flash Choir. They were taking pictures last Monday night at our rehearsal. I've been going for a couple of month now but this is the first time it seems that we're getting some notoriety. We're practicing like fiends this week in preparation for a concert that's been scheduled for a while. Then, on our night for a dress rehearsal, this other opportunity came up for us for sing at a benefit for Haiti.

I've been obsessively watching the coverage of the Haitian disaster on CNN every day while I'm doing my work, my knitting, my whatever. It's been a couple of weeks of planning more than moving great things forward. Mercury Retrograde. Now life has an engine again, so to speak. The Christmas tree came down today. I took care of the neglected plants. Turned on the music to drown out the sad news...

The sun was up in the sky today and it actually kinda looked like this. I understand more clearly now why the Nordic folks wear such brightly colored knits. I'm catching on...

So, this is a sample for Krafti-Kit as we didn't have our own. It's called the Seven of Hearts Tam and I've photographed the blocking on a plate process that gives it a distinct "tam" shape. For those of you not keen on blocking, this hat, like many others would just be a "bubble" hat without this process. And, it actually stays this way. Pretty cool. And, for a change, my colorwork tension was just right! My sample is quite a bit more pink than the first sample but I really like it. For more of the reddish-orange, I could have cut the yarn and used more of the end bit.
I'm ever thankful that I do have multiple skills and interests. I hope that by my readers are sometimes influenced to reach outside their comfort zone to try new things that may end up as new loves.
Make, Heal, Love.

Five Eighty Four

That's the blog post number this is. Wow. New Year, new stuff made. Even with a busy business life, I've been knitting and spinning like a maniac. Truly.

This is going to be a photo content heavy post; the work speaks for itself.

I have started and am halfway up the back of the Forever Sweater. It's a little hard to get each little red crown perfect, but I've actually gotten that part memorized. I've actually finished something I started last year with mixed results. It's the February Lady Sweater (above), or to you knitters, the "FLS" I made it a bit cropped when I felt the weight of the yarn and that's fine but I wish I had lengthened the sleeves a little. You can see in the neckline that I used some ribbon to stabilize and as always, so glad I did!

Finally got to use these handmade porcelain buttons I've been saving.

There were the 2 hats from Vogue Fall 2009. This one below was knit in wool/bamboo sock yarn for the lovely, Dr. Kate.

This is mine, knit in some alpaca that's been sitting in my stash forever. This is the hat I pull on when I'm waiting for a bus and the wind is cold. The second I put it on, all is well in the world! (Oh, and that's a reversible cable scarf I knit a couple of years ago, also in alpaca).

Hmmmm. Then there's the two pairs of mittens. This first pair I started years ago and "shamed" myself into finishing. They came out rather narrow because I was insisting using a yarn that was too lightweight, but I have narrow hands, so that works out.
And then there were these mittens I knit in 3 insane days for Petra. They're really long and gladly, she likes them that way. I do want to knit them again. Knitting plaid is fun.
And then most recently, I threw gauge caution to the wind AGAIN and used a slightly too heavy yarn for these End Paper Mitts and so they came out really long in the hand. That's working out for me as well. I still have my fingertips available for my phone and yet they nearly cover my hand.

There's the spinning, as I try and get the hand of spinning more Worsted weight. There's also some more of other stuff I've spun MORE of to be able to make my projects of choice.

So, yeah. Folks ask how I get so much done and all I can say is that I work at home. Knitting and spinning are my breaks of choice. Oh, but that reminds me: Weaving.

Yeah, another post for that one.