I took off Thursday and Friday this week so I could watch and work on some of the Knit Stars classes, and work on felting. And then Tuesday night… I wrenched my right hand, spraining the tendons on the back on my hand where they connect to the wrist.
And… there went my plans for any serious crafting. Pinching thumb and forefinger together with any level of force hurt, as well as any twisting or rotating, eliminating spinning and needle felting. I could do plain knit and purl as long as I went slow, kept my right arm very still, and didn’t do it for long.
So instead of launching out on anything new, I stuck to working on my lace shawl. I could work for short periods with frequent breaks since all my focus could be on my hand movements, without worrying about following a pattern anymore. This does mean I finished it though!
My only changes to the pattern:
- I shifted the short row start point to be perfectly centered, and just did a final purl row to land back on the front side for the bind off
- The short rows as written incorporate 5 stitches on each turn, with a ssk or p2tog to reduce 5 to 4 stitches. I wanted a deeper shawl, so for the last 1/3 of the stitches, I alternated ssk – k2 with German short rows and k2 more. It resulted in the same ratio of picked up to final stitches, but doubled the rows to get there.
It used up about 55 grams of the yarn, so I still have a decent amount of the lace weight yarn left.
Now I just need to block it. Um… it and the last shawl I made. I realized I never did block my “Clawed” shawl. It got swept up in my Fiber Fiend Protection Effort and never came out again. Pippin hasn’t stolen any sweaters recently, but no skein of yarn is safe from him. Every project must be in a bag which can be fastened closed OR which is placed out of reach. Otherwise he will dig around in it until he finds what he wants. Our closet is a constant temptation and he must be removed promptly. More than once he’s snuck in undetected only to be found chewing and wrestling with a skein or cake of yarn in his kitty bed later. Not good for the yarn, and potentially quite dangerous for him if he managed to chew loose and swallow any of it…
Anyway, I need to make time for blocking my shawls, and probably need to keep the bedroom closed while I do it.
“That Little Girl was Me”
An image has been floating around Facebook, Instagram and other platforms of Kamala Harris striding out in a dark blue suit, with the shadow of Ruby Bridges on the wall behind her. It’s a powerful image which has received a great deal of well deserved attention. In case you weren’t aware, the image was created by Bria Goeller under commission and in collaboration with Good Trubble. So, if you want to support the artists, you can do so by purchasing a print or t-shirt. I feel like it’s important to call this out because so often images make their way around the internet, receiving lots of attention, but people don’t realize that there is somebody behind it for whom art and design is their profession. Without our support, they won’t have the time and resources to create the art that moves us.