Survivor knitting...

The night of the fire, after the flames were out and the giant fans had blown through the remains of our home, the firemen let me run in and grab our meds from the kitchen.  To their obvious consternation,  I added a quick trip to the living room to grab the three knitting bags/baskets that were sitting by the open patio sliders.   The bags did a great job of protecting their contents from the smoke and soot.   Only the top projects were smokey and stinky.    So far, I have been able to comfortably work on most of the deeper projects.    This Linen Tunic is one of those survivor projects.

The Linen Tunic caught my eye and landed on my needles more than four years ago.    This is what I was working on when I left for vacation and ended up moving to Florida.   By the time it came out of storage, I had moved on to other things.   Then, recently, while searching my napping projects for something else, it once again caught my eye.   Now four years, a major move and a house fire later, it is finally done.   It has been soaked, spun, and hung to dry.   All that remains is a quick iron and it is good to go.    Assuming I stay on task, I will be wearing this baby on Tuesday when I meet the girls for lunch and a knit.

Home is where we are

Wednesday, Hubby, T2, and I moved into the apartment our insurance company found for us.   Thursday T2 and I picked up Jack (the dog).  Friday T1 came home.    It is wonderful having us all under the same roof again.

The apartment is very nice (think high end hotel grade).  It is furnished, has a pool, and is very close to home and friends.   It isn't our house, but it is already becoming home.   We have all been having trouble sleeping, hopefully that will get better here.

There were a lot of faux plants when we got there.  All of which are now in the top kitchen cabinets (the ones I can't reach).   We were able to rescue a few of our house plants and now those are scattered around the apartment.

I've been knitting a couple of things.   Hubby's other sock for one and my "sticky" knitting.  I finished the black Simple Joys Shawl and a dishcloth but have yet to get  back to the Linen Tunic.   I've also started and discarded two mandala place mats.   That idea my not actually happen.   I love the yarns (Paton's Grace and Cotton Classic)  and the pattern is pretty straight forward.   Although pretty, both seem too thin for placemats.   I am considering Sugar & Cream but may let the idea simmer for a bit.   I can't keep buying yarn and not using it.   One, we can't afford it and two, it does not hold with my plan to be more purposeful about my yarn purchases.

What's on your needles?

Chez Serenity
16May13

NE Florida has really woken up.   The weather has been so nice that outside knitting has once again become a daily joy.

Ridgely has been on hold for the last week.  While knitting with the girls last Thursday, I put it down on the table, leaned on it funny (or not so funny) and snapped the needles right in half.   New tips were ordered from KnitPicks and I am expecting them any day now.

In the meantime, I have been working on my blue Euroflax Linen Tunic.   The back is finished, which leaves just the front shoulders to do.   For the most part I am very much a process knitter but in this case I am really anxious to wear this project.   I can see it now over my black jersey capris.

Also getting a lot of attention is my black Comfy Fingering Simple Joys Shawl.   I am still working on the seed stitch edging.   This is another project that I am as anxious to wear as I am to knit.

So, tell me, what's on your needles?

WIP diving rocks...

The Purl Bee: Linen Tunic

I realized the other day that I would need something other than the KAL to work on over the next month.   The weather in NE FL is finally warming up, which had me thinking of summer knits, specifically a tank top, maybe in linen, maybe blue.    Which brought me to the realization that I had an unfinished blue, linen, tank in the WIP stash.   A short dive later, and I had unearthed the Linen Tunic from The Purl Bee (one of my favorite LYS before the move).  

Not only did I find it in short order but apparently I abandoned it in nearly finished condition.   Were it not for the fact that it had slid off the needles and run back a bit, I could have started on the armholes right then and there.   It was a bit fiddly getting the stitches back on the needles, and working them up (including the last set of decreases) but by Saturday night, the deed was done and I was on my way.

I remember working on this the summer before we moved.    It is knit from the bottom up and  love, love, love the picot hem right at the beginning.   For the life of me, I can't remember why I put it aside.   Possibly it is just another casualty of our move.   In any case, it has my attention now and I can't wait to wear it.