yarn along: bedtime

This week I've been knitting a Nutkin sock little by little -- a round in the car, on the bus, in bed -- because I'm also still knitting my Multnomah shawl. Nutkin is a pretty, faux cable sock pattern that is easy to knit and easy to memorize. I'm making mine in SweetGeorgia Yarn's Tough Love Sock yarn in the Orchid colorway. You can't tell from this photo, but it's a shockingly bright pink. I'm sure when the weather turns cold they'll certainly keep away the winter dreariness.

Nutkin and Multnomah work well as foils for one another. The Nutkin rounds are quick, so I can take it on my commute; the Multnomah rows keep getting longer but are mostly garter stitch, so it makes good  movie knitting.

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Reading The Marriage Plot piqued my interest in the traditional marriage plot, and since it's pretty embarrassing that I've never read Pride and Prejudice, I started reading Jane Austen's famous novel the other night before bed. I thought I was setting myself up for failure because I've tried to read this book at least three times before and never made it past page 20. Each time before I'd get bored and move on to some other book. But this time something clicked. I felt drawn in, and I don't want to jinx it, but I think I may finish it this time.

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I hope you're having a great week. What are you making and reading?

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Find more people yarning along on Ginny's blog.

yarn along

This week I started on a Multnomah shawl for myself. The pattern is so easy to memorize and knit. I can even squeeze in a few stitches while waiting at the bus stop since I don't have to keep track of a complicated pattern. The yarn is Malabrigo sock in Archangel, the same colorway I gave away. It's a good thing I bought a skein for myself because I don't think I could have parted with it otherwise.

After waiting on the library list for six months, I'm finally reading The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides. The novel explores the Victorian marriage plot and applies it to modern fiction, asking whether it's still relevant. Eugenides sets the novel in the early 1980s and incorporates elements of Victorian novels (there's a madman, a grand tour of Europe, a love triangle). It's an interesting concept and I'm enjoying the novel, but it often feels like the book tries too hard to be in conversation with Victorian novels (The Portrait of a Lady, Middlemarch, Austen novels). I'd definitely recommend Eugenides' other works, The Virgin Suicides and Middlesex, over this one.

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I'm yarning along today. See what everyone else is reading and making over on Ginny's blog!

summer light (and a winner)

top photo: a sign. bottom photo: berries in my mug.

Oh me. Oh my. Summer is here. I've sweated through more clothes and taken more showers in the past week than I can ever remember. Despite the heat, humidity, and sudden avalanche of yard work (Seriously weeds? You're killing me.), I still feel so glad it's summer. I love the summer light (and I've been trying to capture it!).

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I chose a winner for the yarn giveaway using the random number generator. The winner is Kepanie of Knitspiring Odyssey! Kepanie, please send me your info and I'll send you a pretty skein of yarn.

Thanks to everyone who entered! I appreciate that you stopped by to visit, and I'm looking forward to checking out all of your blogs and pattern recommendations.

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yarn giveaway

Last weekend I stopped at ReBelle, a yarn shop in Lexington, Kentucky. I picked up a few skeins of yarn for me and a skein for one of you! I wanted to thank you for reading and commenting. I've been getting to know new blog friends lately and it's so fun!

 Giveaway details:

One person will win a skein of Malabrigo Sock yarn in Archangel. The colorway looks like a sunset to me; it has deep purples, swirls of orange, and hints of yellow.

The giveaway is open to anyone! I'll ship wherever in the world you happen to be.

To enter: 

Leave a comment on this post letting me know what you'd make from this skein (I bought myself a skein and am ready to cast on a Multnomah shawl). Make sure that I have a way to contact you if you win.

For one extra entry each:

• Share this giveaway on Facebook. Leave a comment on this post letting me know.

• Post about this giveaway on your blog. Leave a comment on this post letting me know.

• Tweet about this giveaway. Leave a comment on this post letting me know.

You can enter this giveaway a total of four times!

The giveaway will close on Sunday, July 1, 2012, at 8 p.m. EST. I'll choose a winner at random.

Good luck and thanks for reading!

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good things lately

my list of good things:

Moonrise Kingdom finally opened in Louisville, so my weekend plans are set! 

I have almost finished knitting my Imogen tee. It's gorgeous and girly. I can't wait to wear it! The designer is offering a discount in her Ravelry shop through tomorrow (6/24) if you're interested. Her Sibella is the next sweater on my to-knit list.

This garden looks so dreamy.

Maiden Radio has been keeping me good company lately. I've been listening to their lullabies and old-fashioned songs.

I like these ideas.

Drinking coffee from a rustic mug and eating breakfast outside would make any day feel like a holiday.

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Have a great weekend!

What's on your list of good things this week?

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pots!

The hands you layed on clay

Kickwheeld, curling,

              creamd to the lip of nothing,

And coaxt to a white dancing heat that day

Will linger centuries in these towns and loams

And speak to men or beasts

When Japanese and English

Are dead tongues.

from "The Firing" by Gary Snyder

 

These are my pots, glazed and fired. I especially love the tea set. It's glazed pale, glassy green and has a reed handle that my teacher's husband made. 

The pottery class helped me brush up on my ceramics skills and rekindled my interest in working with clay. Luckily, I think I've found a way to make pottery on a more regular basis. My mind is reeling with possibilities; I'm eager to unite knitting and ceramics in some upcoming projects.

staghorn mitts (and winners)

I stayed up way too late last night finishing these Staghorn Mitts. I needed to finish them so I could give them to my pottery teacher today, and I secretly love an excuse to stay up half the night knitting, watching old movies, and drinking tea.

Summer in Kentucky (so hot and humid!) is not the ideal time for heavy wool projects, but since my pottery class ended I won't get to see my teacher anymore before the weather cools off. She'll have outdoor art shows in the fall, so I figure she'll get a lot of use out of fingerless mitts. 

I've been wanting to try this cable pattern for a while now, and since my pottery teacher likes textured pots I thought she might like textured mitts. She also encouraged me to embrace the imperfections in my pots, so I didn't feel too bad that these mitts didn't turn out identical (can you spot the difference?).

I'm pretty excited about my pots, too, and can't wait to show you all. They look so different glazed! 

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Thanks to everyone who entered the Job's Tears giveaway. 

I couldn't pick a winner, so everybody wins!

That's Amy, Kristen, Evelyn, Jennifer, Katie, Andi, and Jesse. 

Email me your information (fieldwonderful AT gmail DOT com), and I'll send you some natural beads to make your own necklace.