What is my next oldest WIP?

Posted on September 15, 2019 by Kimberly

Because I finished this one! *cough* I finished in July, but let’s ignore that for right now.

Bonus: I won at yarn chicken.

I’ve probably had this yarn for over 20 years and I started the blanket almost 10 years ago. It feels great to have this one done.

The yarn had Sprouse Reitz stickers on it, and the last time I shopped at one was at least 35 years ago in Ft. Bragg. I vaguely remember purchasing this yarn at a Fred Meyers or K-Mart and it was in a clearance bin. The clearance sticker says .84! Which means I obtained the yarn after I moved to Utah and before the Fred Meyers closed.

So, the yarn was nigh unto ‘vintage’ by the time I started the blanket. I bought the yarn for the color and it was pretty nice to crochet with. It is Lion Brand Jiffy and had a fuzzy halo to it, but it wasn’t splitty and the work went fast. Well, fast while I was working on it, not so much when my ADHD had me wandering off to do something else.

I wonder what my next oldest project is. I know for sure that I have older yarn but it’s sitting safely in a bin waiting for inspiration to strike.

A Granny Stripe Or Two

Posted on September 9, 2019 by Kimberly

I started a granny stripe afghan. Okay, I started two.

I first saw one of these on a podcast (Workshop Girls, sadly gone), and I wondered how I had missed such a fabulous thing. I knew I needed to have one. I have a deep and abiding love for a granny square and I know I will love the granny stripe just as much.

I have many afghan WIPs but Granny Startitis would not be denied.

Besides, I had this yarn in my stash and I didn’t really know what to do with it. The blanket on the bottom is made with Red Heart in Gray Heather and Blacklight. I loved the Blacklight colorway on the skein, but every time I tried to make something it never looked right. Mixed in with rows of gray makes it fabulous.

The one on the top is Vanna’s Choice leftover from other projects with new skeins of gray to balance out the colors that don’t look so great together. I’m determined to use it all up.

I try to keep one of these projects under my desk so that I’ll put in a shell or two during any homework breaks I want to take.

The Dining Room Has Been Reclaimed

Posted on September 7, 2019 by Kimberly

AKA – What I did during my summer vacation.

When a kid moves out, you might have extra room. If enough kids move out, you really might have an extra room. As it happens, I did.

The dining room went from this:

to this:

The Wall Of Yarn ™ moved into the spare bedroom over the summer.

I bought adjustable shelves. This allows me to get into a tub at the bottom with out moving ALL of the tubs above it. Don’t you just love it when your yarn is easy to get to?

I created a cutting table out of an IKEA desktop and cube storage shelves from Target. This doesn’t exactly translate into having the sewing station completely set up, but there is a functional ball winder. All the books from the dining room/craft room have also been moved. I still have to figure out the best way to store the WIPs. Another kid is moving out soon, so some things that ended up in the craft room closet will go in what is going to become a home office. Once that happens, I’ll decide if I want my desk to stay where it is, or go into the home office with David’s desk. One (or both) of the two rooms will have a daybed put in so we can have a guest room again. It makes me wonder how we managed all of this in the townhouse with more people. And then I remember, we only had two of the seven living with us full-time. It wasn’t until we moved that we got another of mine and two of David’s as well. We no longer have people sharing bedrooms, so it feels like we don’t have enough rooms, when in fact we have more than enough.

Other things that happened over the summer:

David’s birthday: He’s a Star Wars fan.

Stanley’s wedding:

Isn’t my new daughter-in-law, Brittanie just too gorgeous for words? Chynna was sick so I had to hustle her out of there just after the ceremony so I don’t have more pictures of the happy couple. I seriously wish I had gotten a picture of her shoes.

Groomsmen, Stefan, Tim, a guy I don’t know, Joshua, another guy I don’t know, and Stuart.

Eliza, Joshua, and Stuart. They’re darling.

Chynna and I made a few escapes to the mountains to walk, craft in nature, and get out of the city. If you are familiar with this area, you know that escaping to the mountains is just a few minutes drive away. I love this part of living in Utah.