On my needles: Vagabonde

Last week I started the Vagabonde Wrap Cardigan because I needed something to do with my two skeins of Plymouth Mushishi, a wool-silk blend worsted that is extremely squishy and luxurious.  I knit my original swatch for Mushishi on needles that were way too large for the suggested gauge, but after blocking I fell in love with the loose, drapey fabric.  Ravelry to the rescue!  I found this pattern, which calls for a nicely variegated worsted weight mohair, and cast on.

Up until now the construction has been a very straightforward top-down raglan.  I added darts at the bust (learning, in the process, how do do that on a cardigan (found this article from Knitty extremely helpful) but otherwise made no changes.  Now I have reached the "do-I-really-have-to-finish-this" point (it usually sets in shortly after I separate the sleeves), and am grateful for the design elements on the back of the sweater that might hold my interest enough to carry me through to the coveted Finished Object.

I think that the reason I have so many UFO's at the moment has a lot to do with my confidence level at the pattern-choosing stage of the process.  When I look at the array of projects I've embarked on I see very little variation in terms of texture, construction, shaping, color -- you name it -- and I believe it's out of fear that I have limited myself.  It's gratifying, then, to make choices that are a bit more interesting and daring, and even begin to alter written instructions.  Knitting becomes a cerebral experience as well as a meditative one, and life is that much more satisfying.

Frustrated

The results of an hour's worth of "spinning" with combed top:

Clearly, I need to practice this daily.  I was just starting to get the hang of the "inchworm" technique when I ran out of time for this morning.  Glad I have the drum carder so all that wool won't go to waste!

Ten Things: Four

Lately I have been thinking about my Great Aunt A.  I would tell you that she taught me how to crochet, but that isn't strictly true.  She taught me to crochet, while I was teaching myself how to crochet; that is, that crocheting is a worthwhile pastime and can produce valuable, desirable finished objects.  Likewise, she taught me about sewing, embroidering and other needle-crafts.

Aunt A. was a remarkable needle-worker herself and had made beautiful clothing for my mother (and her dolls) when my mother was a child, and had moved on to afghans and pillow-cases and crocheted lace Christmas angels as she grew older.  She never did anything less than her best work.

I would work next to her with my crochet hook or embroidery needle, and from time to time look for her approval.  She was always gentle and kind; the worst thing she ever said was, "You didn't do a good job."

I hear those words now as I look at a crooked seam, a split stitch or a sloppy join.  They don't always make me go back and redo my work -- sometimes it isn't worth it -- but they always make me think.

First, that I should always do my best work, that there is no excuse for that.  I try to remember that and, if I am tired or just don't feel like sewing or knitting, stop.

Second, that kindness and gentleness go far in this world.  They go farther than we can ever know.  I try to remember that and moderate my words and tone whenever I speak.  This is very hard.

Aunt A. died before she knew of the influence she had on my life.  I tell K stories about her while we sew together, and I hope that K will know some of the goodness and richness that my aunt brought to my life.

Ten Things: Three

I am a poet.  At the moment, my poetry is dormant, but I have made a decision to wake it up.  Look for it here. 

I wrote pretty good poetry as an elementary-schooler, pretty typical (read: angsty and obscure) poetry as a middle-schooler, and pretty decent (if somewhat controversial) poetry as a high-school student.  My eleventh grade teacher was a wonderful mentor, and I was published multiple times in the school literary magazine, Pen and Ink -- admittedly I was literary editor my senior year, so there was some serious nepotism going on there.  I spent a summer learning about the ins and outs of life as a poet at the Pennsylvania Governor's School for the Arts, and I wrote prodigiously in my journals and read constantly.

To start off, here's the last poem I remember writing:

Ten Things: Two

Although I haven't done it in many years, I love to make pysanky -- Ukranian Easter eggs.  That is one of the reasons I am trying to clean out and sort my world.  I want to go back to this absorbing and challenging craft, and try some new adventures(such as hand-dyeing wool, yarn and fabric) in a more organized, well-defined space.  I think that, as a crafter and artist, I am at my best when I allow myself access to many different media, but concentrate on just one or two at a time, flowing from project to project as my mood dictates.

Ten Things: One

A friend blogged recently with a challenge to post ten positive things about herself that had nothing to do with a particular demon she had faced in her life -- that her readers might not know about her.  I was most impressed with her response, and I would like to respond in kind.  I am going to do my post a bit differently, however -- I am actually going to do mine in ten separate posts, and focus (in keeping with this blog's theme) on creative aspects of my self -- so here goes:

I love to read and write poetry and was literary editor of my high school's literary magazine, Pen and Ink, during my senior year.  It has been a long time since I wrote regularly, but I am thinking about ways to get started again and how this blog might help me do that.