Reengaging Self Care

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Life has been kicking right in the yarn balls lately. And I haven’t been great at taking care of myself or taking time for myself. Last night we had no kid events and the hubs was putting the kids to bed so I secluded myself in the basement for the evening.

I have my 2023 GFOA Socks where I cut in my heels. And then I have a nice Cab Sav with do it yourself cheese and cracker. I literally bit off some cheese and then add a cracker, lol. And I put on a face mask and foot mask while I binged Only Murders In The Building Season 2.

Won’t solve all my problems but it sure was nice to take a breath for a minute! Happy Self Care!!

Punch Bug Vanilla Beanie: Take Two

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I found my Chia Goo interchangeable needles and managed to get my Punch Bug Beanie back on the needles. I am calling this one “Take Two”.

I am still casting on 88 stitches for this redo but this time its on 8 US needles. So the fabric is not as loosey goosey as it was on 10 US. This is a pretty fat skein of worsted therefore I think I will knit the ribbing doubly long and fold it over. In hopes of maximizing using up the full skein.

Happy Knitting!!

Two Rainbow Tubes

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I managed to finish both tubes this week on my 2023 GFOA socks!

They matched almost perfectly! My second cuff might be a hair short but its close enough. I have decided I am not going to use the rainbow yarn to do the heels. I have some plain grey leftovers that should work nicely.

I just need to dig out my DPNs so I can pick up stitches and cut in the afterthought heel. Happy Knitting!!

The Fourth Skein

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I did a little work on my Chromatic Yarns Chevron Blanket this week. Enough to have finished off the third skein and start the fourth!

I am still in the pink/purple section of my planned fade. Coming up after this should be some blues and greens. I LOVE these shades but it will be nice to work with something different. It’s just slow going and is not as motivating since progress is not immediately noticeable. Just have to remind myself this one is a marathon and not a sprint!

Happy Knitting!!

Diversity Training

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I volunteer on a local non-profit board and we are incorporating DEAI (diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion) into our framework. That included mandatory training after work hours. Of course I brought knitting! And then I got the giggles when I realize my project was rainbow and on “theme”.

This is my second tube for my 2023 GFOA socks and I’m SUPER close to the cuff on this. I got two whole stripes done in a 60 minute meeting. I do have to keep checking my first sock to make sure I am putting the increases in the same place for the second sock. It has been invigorating to feel connected back to knitting again!

Happy Knitting!!

Puppy Progress

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The puppy continues to grow and grow. Now that it’s September we are approaching 6 months old. He is my dog and has imprinted on me like a duckling. Where I am…he is…

He is crazy smart and loves to play and learn tricks. We are also entering the “chew everything” phase of puppy teething. Nothing is safe, not even PB or Jellybean’s toys and objects. We are learning important lessons!

I am not sure he is supposed to bend this way???

But he sure is cute and brings so much love and joy after long and stressful work and back to school days! May he also bring you a smile!

Happy Friday!!

Frog Pond: Punch Bug Beanie

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I pulled up my Ravelry and took inventory of what I had in my projects and queue. It was very indicative of my mental bandwidth. Several projects on the go but nothing that sparked my creativity. So I decided to do some clean up!

I had my Punch Bug Beanie started out of some Knit Picks Felici Worsted in the Punch Bug color. I had started this hat to match my Punch Bug Vanilla Socks. I was using Size 10 needles…..because I don’t know why. But I HATED the fabric it was creating.

So during a spirited game of Trouble with the kiddos, I ripped back the whole hat. I plan to find my US 8 needles and restart this hat. The socks are done and waiting for their sibling. Hoping this swabbing of the deck will help fuel my creativity. Happy Frogging!!

Witty Title Here

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The GFOA sock has re-entered the wild. Fall gymnastics have re-started and we have 60 minutes now to kill every week.

The first color repeat is officially now. I am starting the second repeat and have to pay attention now. My increases will start in the bright peach section. I have my first sock in the project bag so I can mirror the increases. I just need time and brain cells now, lol.

What am I going to do for heels? Who the heck knows, that is a future Rachelle problem.

Happy Knitting!!

Washing Poopy Floof

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Awhile back my winery friend gave me a shorn fleece. It’s not professionally done and pretty much all short cuts. But I thought it was perfect for practicing washing and other bits.

I canned some apple jelly earlier this week and had a ton of hot water that I would normally just dump. I had a flash of genius to use this excess water to wash a sample of this fleece!

I grabbed a few ounces and put in some laundry bags and into a water safe tub. I added the hot water with pour scour wool wash in batches to get all the poop and dirt washed off. It was HOT but cool to see the lanolin release.

I got a ton of dirt to release and I have fleece left with a TON of veg matter. Was pretty cool to see the change. And I’m not 1,000% sure I did any of these steps correctly.

I may have felted some parts slightly in this process with too hot of water and a little too much agitation from little miss PB. But I am going to comb a few bits to see if the veg matter comes loose or not. This is all pure experiment with no end goal in mind. Score one for scientific curiousity!

Happy Spinning!!