Do you yarn bowl?

Quite a while ago (August, 2016, to be exactish), I glazed a yarn bowl at our local Bisque It Studio. It sat on a shelf, unused, until lately. I was having trouble with my handspun red Tunis - pulling it off the ball any which way added more twist, making it extra kinky. The yarn bowl came to my rescue - the yarn spins around inside the bowl. Of course, this is assuming the yarn is coming off the outside of the yarn cake and not from the center.

Knitting: The red Tunis 'Graham' hat is going well - I'm almost to the crown. (I probably just jinxed myself.)
Spinning: The fine spinning of the mystery yarn is off the spool. There is a lot more of this fiber, but I can't decide if I should continue with the fine spinning or move onto something else.

My daughter and family were all sick at xmas, so the gift exchange happened only recently. During the pandemic, she taught herself to embroider. That's when she started these refrigerator magnets. One is missing from the pic, as she used a glue gun to attach the very strong magnets - the magnet stays behind when you try to pull the object off the refrigerator. We'll have to try something like Gorilla Glue next.

My shoulder continues to improve, to the point I am contemplating warping a loom or two. Yay!

A pleasant suprise

The photo I took for one of the hats I knitted has been selected for use on the pattern's Ravelry page. *blush*

Knitting: Started yet another Graham hat, this one in handspun red Tunis. I'm already messing it up.
Spinning: Returned to fine spinning the mystery fiber.

My granddaughter came over yesterday, and we dyed silk scarves using art tissue, with mixed results. I may redye some of these. Mine, not hers.


I'm in the midst of active physical therapy, although it doesn't seem very active to me, as most of the emphasis seems to be on stretching. Little bit by little bit, my shoulder is getting better. I'm just impatient.

Graham in natural

I tried to finish this slouchy hat before surgery, but kept screwing up the crown. I backed up to a known row and left it for later. Happily, I was able to finish it with only one oops.

Pattern: Graham, by Jennifer Adams
Yarn: Valley Yarns Northhampton Worsted, in natural
Needles: US5 and US7
Modifications: none

This worsted weight yarn is a bit heavier than Cascade Superwash worsted, so I was curious how the yarnage would work out. The numbers are: 0.71 skeins, which equals 175.4 yards (160.4 meters) or 71 grams. Definitely still a one-skein project.

Socks used to be my go-to project for portability, but hats are quicker and easier.

Graham in pink

I actually finished this slouchy hat before the surgery, but didn't get around to blogging about it. This pattern is a fave with my daughter and granddaughter, but I'm not sure what they think about pink these days. (Preferences change.) If they don't want it, it will go to charity.

Pattern: Graham, by Jennifer Adams
Yarn: Cascade 220 Superwash, in one of their pinks, not sure which
Needles: US5 and US7
Modifications: none

I weighed the hat to see just how much yarn it took, as this pattern is great for those odd single skeins one has lying around. The yarnage came out at 0.67 skeins, which equals 147.4 yards (134.8 meters) or 67 grams.

This pattern is unisex, but I have yet to convince any of the men in my life to wear one. Especially a pink one.

Milestones

After surgery, there are milestones one is happy to reach: the day I could stop wearing compression stockings, the appointment where they remove the staples, and this past week, the news I can stop wearing the immobilizer. No more velcro straight jacket! Even though my shoulder is still rather useless, it is *great* to have two hands again. And I can drive now, too. More freedom.

The doctor okayed knitting (but not much else for a few weeks), so I immediately went home and picked up 'Graham', the slouchy hat I was working on over a month ago. Knitting involves micro-movements of the shoulder, which is surprisingly tiring when one hasn't knit for a while. Each day I can do a bit more than the day before, though.

Six weeks of *active* (as apposed to passive) physical therapy is another milestone to strive for. I'm anxious to get back to normal (or as normal as I can be), but I'm also being careful. No sense undoing the surgeon's wonderful work.

Stay warm!