Today is the start of Maine’s Free Fishing weekend apparently. Our lake is covered in people ice fishing. There’s one group that was out in front of our boat house last night when I got home from work and they were back at 5:45 this morning. Typically, I’d welcome people to enjoy our lake but this morning I was upset at being awakened by their noisy vehicles and augers so early. The lake is nearly 2 miles wide where we are and 7-ish miles long … dontcha think you could find a special spot that isn’t right smack dab in my front yard? They’ve got traps, at least a dozen, on the ice in front of our house when the next mile plus of shoreline is occupied by summer-only residents.
But I haven’t come here to gripe (much) and I wanted to share with you a couple of knitting projects that I’m enjoying today – and share a yarn shop story, too.
I’m half-way through the Hermione’s Everyday Socks that I’m knitting. I am loving this pattern and can’t believe it’s taken me so long to try something new. It truly has been a while that I’ve been stuck in a rut of knitting my favorite sock pattern, Yankee Knitter’s Classic Sock #29. BUT this one was pointed out to me by my friend/co-worker/knitting conspirator friend, Glenda. She was wearing a pair with her Nancy’s vest a week ago and I thought I’d give it a try. Just so happens I had finished a pair of socks and needed to cast on another. (Needed. See that?!) Anywho … I love the Hermione’s sock and will wind and cast on the second sock today.
Meanwhile, my other friend/co-worker/knitting conspirator, Carol, showed me a pattern on Thursday that she was going to try and I couldn’t resist. The pattern is called Luggage Finders and it’s a free pattern on Ravelry by Skacel. Designed by Kathy Sasser, this is a collection of four little tags that you can add to your suitcase to make it more easy to identify when you’re traveling. I’m traveling later this month and I can’t wait to put my Maine Lobstah yarn name tag on my suitcase.
These two women get me into so much trouble! I really should be finishing older projects from their spots in time out but instead I’m casting on new projects, too. Ha! Ha! The rest will wait a day or two while I play, right? (Kind of like the dust in my house.)
Some of my Friday afternoon class is knitting a Maine Mitten project in class to try something new. They’re using the pattern that we all got from the Maine Yarn Cruise this past year from Jagger Spun, the Original Maine Flag Mittens. I had knitted a pair and gifted them in our Christmas Yankee Swap and that started a family squabble and quite a competition. So, I suggested we try a KAL with the pattern. It’s a fun pattern for a basic mitten and a charted duplicate stitch pattern to add the original Maine flag pine tree and star.
I have several items that I’ve knitted and worn once or not at all (these were one of them) and I really need to send them all off to good homes where they’ll be appreciated. I’m going to get some photos and put them out there with a price on Facebook, I guess, and see what happens. I sold one pair of Malabrigo Rasta mittens to a sweet friend in Ohio. That feels good. I just need to take the time. BUT for now, I’m going to get dressed, throw in a load of laundry and mix up some bread dough so I can bake tomorrow. The hubby and I are heading to town to see the new exhibits at Colby’s Art Museum and maybe we’ll stop somewhere for a bite to eat after that.
Gone knitting … well, you know what I mean. Thanks for being here, friends.