Happy 4th to you all, and happy 247th birthday to us and the US! On our walks around the neighborhood, we’ve seen lots of flags and buntings, more than we’ve seen in a long time, and it’s great that we’ve survived the last few years. We may actually make it to 250!
Since the last time I wrote, when I expressed concern that Eastern Pennsylvania was turning into a desert, Mother Nature has undertaken to assuage those concerns with rain almost every stinking day. So, alright already! There’s a mini-Amazon rainforest in my back yard now, and my desert worries have been put on the shelf, to be replaced by a vigilant stance against dampness and encroaching mold. It’s always something.
So, in the meantime, we put out a rather short late-summer class schedule, which I hope you’ve had time to check out. I realize this time of year is tricky in terms of scheduling between vacations and other summer activities, but if you can fit them in, the classes will be fun. Deb is doing Sock Camp; this session will be a really pretty DK-weight toe-up sock that is custom-fit.
We have lots of great yarns to use, since DK-weight is my happy place and I love working with that weight for nearly everything. Deb used Nettle Soft DK, a hand-dye from Ancient Arts – so pleasant to work with and the dyeing is uniquely beautiful, I think.
Karen will be teaching two very different cowls.
Beeswax (on the left above) looks lovely in a smooth and soft merino, and the designer has come up with a great way to do twisted stitch designs without a cable needle that gives you outstanding uniformity and definition. Pressed Flowers (right) is our scaled-down and in-the-round version of Amy Christopher’s Pressed Flowers oeuvre. It’s soft and pretty and you can decide whether you like light flowers on a dark background, as above, or vice versa, shown here in a scarf:
There are endless combinations for you to look at. I’m teaching our Eyelet Cocoon, you choose the summer or winter version, sleeves or no sleeves. I love this kind of throw-it-on over anything piece, and the project is perfect for vacation knitting.
The knitting is simple and there’s just one needle to keep track of during 99% of the project. You’ll do provisional cast-on and assembling during class. I’m going to make my 5th during the class, just having trouble (meaning: a really good time) deciding what yarn this time.
Meanwhile, the gorgeous sweater I’m going to teach this fall is done but not blocked so it’s not ready for prime time yet. It looks lumpy, but the magic of blocking will take care of all that!
I’ve started working on the matching hood, which is totally adorable and can be done as a stand-alone piece. Looking forward to fall, but planning to enjoy a hot old-lady summer first!
