Stuck in the Middle

You know that time during a project when everything is in chaos and you think you will never, ever, no matter what, not ever get done?

Well, that’s where I’m at right now. My yarn studio/living quarters is currently looking like this:

It’s an inside-out room!

As I’m in the process of moving, my previous quarters looks like this:

It’s a room that has thrown up on itself.

My talented, mind-blowing in-demand decorator sis has graciously been assisting doing everything. And thank goodness because I would have totally panicked without her and stood staring at the empty room for a few weeks at least wondering what on earth I should do and how I would get it done. But she is a knowledgeable, brave soul and just dove right in there.

AND! I’m tickled to announce that so far the room is nearly furnished (or should I say in a state of disaster but most everything is purchased) and I’ve spent a grand total of …. less than $100. Yup. Can you believe it? This is due to a magical place called “Transfer Site” which gives away free stuff all day everyday. Or to put it in lay terms, it’s where people drop off their unwanted stuff before it gets toted off to the dump. And people like moi go and save it and repurpose it!

We’ve found wicker, office and comfy chairs. We’ve found full gallons of Behr paint in the colors we needed. We found craft paints. Crayons (for crafts, of course), a salad spinner for my yarn, a yarn drying rack=part of a bunk bed, a side table, a trunk, a new backpack, even yarn (which I left for another deserving soul) and much, much more. It is almost unbelievable but yes, indeed, it’s happening.

We threw it all into the yard, sprayed it with the hose, scrubbed it with Dawn dishwashing soap and a brush and let it dry in the Alaskan sun.

And the rest has come from yard sales and thrift stores. WOO! Yay for saving money.

Knitting Updates

I currently have two main projects going on knit-wise.

1. This delicious, scrumptious, heavenly, melty, watery, glaciery, earthy-feely hand-spun yarn that I spun a few years ago, which I’m turning into a wedge scarf:

I adore gradient/ombre/color-shifting yarn and this is right up my alley. I’ll post the pattern when I’m done.

2. When I went to England in March of this year, my most inspiring moment was walking along the “streets” of Dover Castle, looking out over to France, the wind biting my skin, making me crave a warm, scarfy shawl. I had that invincible feeling that I could do anything I set my mind to. (For example, I had convinced myself I was going to build a castle and live in it but we’ll just forget about that little moment of delusion).

This is a gradient colorway of my Dover Castle yarn and I’m so in love with it and it means to much so me that I want it to be perfect. Thus, I’ve frogged it (rip it, rip it) 3 times already and have begun a simple (usually ends up being my favorite thing to wear anyways) scarf pattern.

I’ll post the exact pattern when I’m done, but I’m just knitting every other row. The other rows I’m alternating between a knit stitch and knitting the stitch below with the stitch. Makes no sense, huh? It creates a lifted look, just slightly different from basic garter stitch.

Crochet

I am working up a hankering to crochet something. A scarf. A shawl. OOH! Maybe an afghan for my new space. (I like saying the word “space” because they say it on all the decorating tv shows and it makes me feel smart and modern. 😀 )

What exactly that will be, I do not know, but I did get a foot-tall pile of books at the library, several of them crochet books, to try and find a stitch pattern I like and can create something beautiful from.

If you know of any really awesome crochet stitch patterns, please share below, along with a link and I will for sure check it out and maybe create my scarf/shawl/afghan out of it!

It’s shaping up to be a busy day, as my dear mother heads back to her home today down south (she’s been visiting here with me), which means a piece of my heart is flying away. No more plopping in her lap and having her hold me like I’m 2. But I’ve had nearly a month with her and couldn’t be more grateful for that. I love you, Ma!

Now I’m off to knit a bit, guzzle more coffee, maybe read a snip, enjoy time with mama, and then back to work on the room.

I can’t wait to update you with the finished “space,” finished hand-spun scarf pattern, finished Dover Castle scarf and plans for the crochet item. But for now, everything is “stuck in the middle.”

Thanks so much for reading and I hope your day is what you wish it to be.

XOXOXO

~Chandi

P.S. The photo at the very top is my view this morning of the stunning Alaskan sunrise. So inspiring! It’s like they say, Alaska is a wild, free woman. She’s beautiful and will love you in the summer, but leave you to die, heartlessly in the winter. And yet you continue to love her. Sigh. 😀