Monthly Recap: June
- kniteweup
- Jul 3, 2019
- 5 min read
Updated: Jul 23, 2019
What a month!
June was extremely busy for me; I finished up another year of university, packed up my life in York, England, and moved back to Canada. Add in some chronic illness relapses, visits with friends, and plenty of housekeeping, and you've got yourself a really hectic month.
But! What is the perfect way to destress amid all this? A row of knitting here, a page read on the go, and some bookcase makeovers (because who doesn't love a good organization session?!) So, as promised, here's what I've been knitting and reading this month...
One of the things I love most about knitting is that I can take it with me everywhere, and sneak in a few rows while I work on other tasks. Reading and researching about syncretism in the works of William Blake? Mindless stockinette stitch in the round will keep your hands busy. Long train ride? Bring along a more complicated pattern.
While normally I'm more of a monogamous knitter, this month I had a few projects on the go:
The No Frills Sweater by Petite Knit -- I love the simplicity of this crew-neck sweater, which was my first-ever sweater (you can find all the details about that one here). This time, I flexed my newfound sweater skills and modified it into a fitted, cropped, semi-retro version. This is by far my favourite sweater to-date, and I will definitely make more of this cropped style in the future (and, just to tease: I think I have the perfect yarn for my next one...)
The Ripple Bralette by Jessie Mae Martinson -- As you can probably tell from a quick glance at my Instagram page, I am in love with this pattern! I've previously worked up two other versions: the first blue variegated Ripple in April (made with Dye Bath sock yarn in the colour Smoky Joe), and the second brightly-faded Ripple in May (made up of four different yarns: Beehive Yarns sock yarn in Gilded; Garnsurr sock yarn in Frevil Shauparak; Explorer Knits & Fibers sock yarn in Passionfruit Tango; and (Vi)Laines single-ply yarn in Coulis de Framboises). It's pretty repetitive, making it an ideal project to work on when you're on the go or doing research. It's also a super quick knit, giving you an instant sense of achievement. This month, I quickly worked up a super soft, cloud-like bralette using leftovers of Pickles Pure Thin Alpaca from my No Frills Sweater. I also got started on a sunshine-y version, using Merino Bliss from Pickles (can you tell I'm a loyal shopper?), for a sweet friend of mine.
The Magnolia Sweater by Camilla Vad -- I fell in love with the lacework at the hem of this sweater, and felt it would be a perfect first lace project. I ordered Pickles Pure Wool in this gorgeous green colour (Cardamom) to make it feel like a spring sweater and opted for the short sleeved version of the pattern. It was a super enjoyable knit (although my hands were aching a bit after all that lace!) and it was so exciting to see the floral motif appear. But alas, the round yoke of this sweater pattern did not suit me; as someone with a large ribcage but a small bust, I was left with quite a bit of extra fabric around the front shoulder and underarm areas. I haven't shared a finished photo yet as I'm reworking the arms to see if I can get a better fit... although I have a feeling this Magnolia Sweater may become a gift for someone else...
I also have a new cast on! Once my order from Skein arrived (Top Half sock yarn in the colour Hint), I dug into the gorgeous Spray Lake Socks pattern by Nicole Bracey. The chevron pattern and delicate twists are addicting! I love how the micro-stripes and soft speckles of Hint play over the stitch pattern, too.
June was also a month of pattern designing: I released the Minster Toque on June 12 (you can find a breakdown of my inspiration and process here) and sent out my test pattern for the North Shore Beanie (you can now read about that pattern here). I'll be sharing more about this classic beanie closer to the release date.
I also spent a few days going through my extensive yarn stash back home in Canada, organizing and destashing, and gosh does it ever make me happy to see now! I'm looking forward to making a dent in my yarn stash over the next few months, and maybe adding to it when I go to Knit City in Vancouver this fall...
While I'm able to multitask with my knitting, reading is something I like to focus on; it's something that, unless using a digital source, is a liiiittle hard to do when you've got your hands full of wool... I've tried audiobooks, but for some reason I never end up really listening.
That said, I have done some reading this month; most of this was the aforementioned research into William Blake's syncretic writing style, and other university-mandated readings. Part of this research, though, included reading through Blake's works, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Having read some of Blake's poetry before, I was expecting much of the same from this course, but instead was introduced to Blake's own illustrations and printing techniques through the free and highly accessible Blake Archive. This website includes most of Blake's illuminated books, commercial illustrations, letters, and journals; you can zoom in to the images, view a modern transcription side-by-side with the original, and compare different versions. I highly recommend taking a gander through the archives.
Outside of school readings, I settled in to some nerdy fun with Ben Crystal's Shakespeare on Toast: Getting a Taste for the Bard. I picked up this paperback after attending Crystal's lecture at the University of York on the language of Elizabethan England (if you're interested, you can watch a similar lecture of Crystal's here). While this book is intended as more of an introduction to reading Shakespeare, I still thoroughly enjoyed it, and it got me excited to reach into my own extensive collection of the Bard's works for future reading.
After finishing a non-fic book, I decided to reach for fiction, and pulled a brightly coloured book off my shelf: Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan. I'll admit, this choice was made purely from how appealing the cover was! It's taken me quite a while to get into this read, as the plot moves slowly and the writing isn't the most engaging. However, I'm curious to see what becomes of the characters, so on I read.
As I hinted at in the beginning of this ramble, I also spent a full day reorganizing what can probably be described as my library (okay, maybe I'm the only one who thinks that...). I'm an avid book collector, and my collection had started to overflow from the one bookcase I had given it, so I decided it was time to refresh, destash (just a little), and reorganize. My yarn and crafting bookcase, now pared down to a much smaller yarn stash, became home to my children's/YA novels, poetry, and non-fiction books. The original bookcase, now only fiction, was reorganized, and my beloved collection of Shakespeare was moved to its own special home on one of my vintage-bar-cart-esque side tables.
So, while perhaps not the most interesting month in terms of finished objects and books, it certainly was a productive one. Hopefully the next few summer months will be filled with more reading, more knitting, and plenty more book hauls.
Comentarios