The Unfinished Projects

This blanket began with a woman named Susan, whose spirit I can imagine as she carefully selected the yarn, choosing safe colors that reflect the joy and anticipation of new life. Perhaps unsure of whether a boy or girl would soon be wrapped in its warmth, she initiated the project with a heartfelt flourish of ribbing, infusing it with her hopes and intentions.

Tragically, Susan's journey was cut short after completing just one panel. Yet in the hearts of knitters, there exists a sacred belief: unfinished projects hold a special energy that must be completed for the sake of the family and the original maker. Kathy understood this deeply. Inspired by Susan's spirit, she embraced the unfinished blanket and added another panel with her own love and intention.

Sadly, Kathy too departed this world too soon. Though I never met her, she was a friend of my friend, and even before anyone could voice the request, I felt a calling to honor her legacy. I took up her projects one at a time, pouring compassion into each creation—a blanket for her son, some scarves, and now this beloved baby blanket.

In a beautiful turn of fate, my friend found new parents eager to receive the blanket, and I sense that both Susan and Kathy would be filled with joy knowing their creations continue to embrace and nurture others. 

In the world of fiber arts, I believe we are all intertwined, enriched by the threads of community and connection that bind us. Though I did not know Susan or Kathy in life, I am deeply honored to continue their stories, finish the beautiful journeys they began, and celebrate the love that transcends time and space.

Happy Crafting.

Bright Blessings,

Ruinwen

I Never Have the Right Needles 🙃

I took a week off for Solstice to recharge and renew and now I am back and full of love and light and I can hold space again for everyone and everything.

I finished my goal of catching up on the clapotis and was able to knit with my friend and that was really something. We might actually be done by next week!

beautiful Knitpicks, Swish soft squishy yarn

This week I have been putting my energy towards making some PRIDE gloves for a dear girl that I have watched grow into an amazing woman.

Everything was going well until I found out that I didn't actually own any size 6 dpns.  I still can't believe this is possible!  But it was and I ordered them from Knitty Gritty Shop because we are Instagram followers of each other.

They saved me.  I ordered size 6, 7 and 8 Lykke dpns.  I have never used Lykke before and I am super pleasantly surprised.  They are smooth and feel great in my hands.  I just love these needles!  Thank you Knitty Gritty Shop for being there for me!

So, fast forward and I am here.

progress shot of glove

I want to be happy with these gloves, but the pattern is not fitting, well, like a glove if you know what I mean.

I think I need to rip back to the cuff and then continue in ribbing so that the fit will work regardless of the hand that goes in it.

I don't understand the purl line.  I think it would feel weird, ya know?  I want to get rid of that as well.

The fingers are formed straight and then seamed which I spent a lot of time trying to get as perfect as I could.  I would much rather knit them in the round and not have a seam at all.

So the question is dear readers, do I design my own gloves or look for a pattern that I can tweak a bit as a starting point?

I thought about it and found a wonderful top-down pattern by  Pamela Grossman, with ingenious construction and I am going to try it.  The only issue is it calls for dpn size 4s...here we go again.  lol

I did a swatch for the large size in the size 3 needles I do have and it came out to the medium size so I think that I am ready to go.

Excuse me as I rip out everything...

While I am doing that I was part of a conversation the other day about when do you get good enough to never have to rip, swatch, count, use lifelines, and other knitting processes.  My answer was simple, "never."

Doing these things has nothing to do with your skills or understanding of knitting, we do these things because we have been in a place where a lifeline made all the difference in not having to start from scratch, or counting lets us know right away when we miss a YO on a row.  Swatching may be the most annoying thing in existence, but IMHO will save you hours of work every single time you do it.

This is why I am ripping now instead of waiting until I finish to see if I like it.  I know right now I don't, so I am taking action now before I get any further and I am happy with my decision to do so.

Unfortunately, after getting my second dose of the vaccine I had a fever and my hands felt funny so I couldn't knit.

just a little heart swatch to make sure everything works right

Then my friend wanted to make a design I made for her like 10 years ago.  It needed updating and tweaking and I have learned so much about symmetry and design since then so I added all that in.

Just a peek right now, when she finishes the blanket in a few months I will show you as it is blocking per usual.  

five fingers with little cowls lol

With that done and dusted I got back to the gloves.  As you can see, the fingers are done for the first one and that is some progress which makes me happy.

What's on your needles this week?

Next week is a circle back week so I will be able to make some personal progress on my four projects.  Yay!

Happy crafting!

Ruinwen

😀

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Safe socially-distanced hugs  🤗

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Sending love and light to everyone being affected by this virus.  

May you be safe.  

May your loved ones be safe.  

🙏

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Sending love and light to everyone facing discrimination, hate, prejudice, inequality, or racism.

🙏🙏💖💖🙏🙏

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Vixenpath is a safe space.

If you are:

LGBTQ+

Black

Brown

Asian

Any race

Coming out

Anything.

I am a safe person and I will always hold space for you in love and light.

Ignoring My Inner Critic

The future is not some place we are going, but one we are creating. The paths are not to be found, but made. And the activity of making them changes both the maker and their destination. -- John Schaar

I’ve been working on the slip stitch baby blanket with a new purpose. I’m getting together with a knitting friend who I haven’t seen in a while this week and I want to give this blanket to her new granddaughter. Suddenly, one side of the border is complete…just like that.

I even ran into a snag where I wouldn’t have enough of the green to finish the project so I decided to make a split border that is still symmetrical in both colors.

But at that moment when I realized the green would be short, I felt “it”. I could perceive that shift in energy where a part of me was saying, “Put it away for later when you can afford more yarn.” I pmed a good Ravelry friend and together we decided the two colors would be fine. I asked DH and he agreed. That “feeling” instantly left me as the energy redirected itself back into finishing this project.

This blanket could have suffered if I had caved into that inner critic that is quick to want me to give up. But I chose not to listen.

I’ve always felt it is so terribly annoying to have one inner voice of guidance and support and one of pessimism and erosion. But over the years I’ve learned that the emotion that flows with each voice is totally attuned to its motives. That is how I tell if it is my higher self or my inner critic is talking.

Have you ever noticed if you own a Garmin or one of those talking GPS guidance systems that her voice actually seems to change as you ignore her instructions? In the end, I can hear the anger in her voice as she says, “RECALULATING,” as I continue to make my own path.

My negative voice is the same way. When it doesn’t get its way it stomps and yells as it has a temper tantrum and starts getting mean. “Not having enough yarn” morphs into “You can’t get this done on time, why are you even trying?”

But you know what? There is so much chaos around me that I can’t control that this negative voice only serves to enrage me.

Many times one negative comment at the wrong time can tear us down or it can empower us. I choose to be empowered.

I’m tired of listening to that negative voice that says I “can’t” do something. We really don’t like the word “can’t” in our house. Can’t is usually a cop-out. It is giving up without even trying.

I’m sorry, I’m a gamer and “can’t “just doesn’t cut it. DH and I have spent endless hours trying to one thing in a game. We don’t give up. Sometimes we move on to another area of the game and come back after gaining a little experience but we don’t give up.

So this voice telling me I can’t get this blanket done by Friday just really upsets me. I’m the master of my destiny, not this voice. Where does this voice get off telling me what I can and can’t do anyway…and why am I listening?

Ah yes, that is the crux of it all. Why am I listening? I have free will just like everyone else.

But most of my life I’ve spent listening to that negative voice. I’ve let it tear me down and associated myself with its view of me. No more. Really I’m done…I abjure you negative little voice. As of this moment, you do not exist for me.

You can stomp your feet and recalculate my life as much as you want but I choose to make my own path where I see fit. You no longer have any power over me. So mote it be.

***** ***** ***** ***** ******

Chances are if you are reading this blog you are part of a community. And I’m not just talking about the one you live in…I’m talking about the one that lives in you.

Our Friday night knitting group is like a balm for my soul. I look forward to it with a child’s wide-eyed delight. I don’t know when trying to fit it into the calendar turned into “this is what I do on Friday…end of story.” But it has…and I love it.

All these beautiful women live in my heart and I am so blessed to know each and every one of them. Together we are making something truly inspirational.

These squares are but a few of the wonderful creations that have already been crafted by these generous women. They are to become blankets and lapghans for the Assisted Living in our community. What started as an idea over coffee has turned into something wonderful. This project continues to grow and transform as each woman adds something of her personal essence to its process.

I am blessed to be a part of this community and call these brilliant women friends.

***** ***** ***** ***** ******

After the blanket, my next WIP to work on will be a reversible hooded scarf/hood combo I’ve been designing for a while. I’ve got the basics laid out but haven’t had the time to try out the pattern yet. So that will be where I concentrate my completion energy next. Simultaneously I will be starting the process of creating my Ostra bag for this year.

Every year as spring arrives I decide what spiritual seeds I want to plant and grow and I bring focus to them through color and herbal correspondences. This year I am doing more then that since my goal for Spirit is to plant a garden. So my “seeds” are actually potential plants just waiting for the right combination of factors to come into being.

Last year I bought the containers but never had the time or energy to focus on using them. This year I am ready to have herbs again. I miss them so much! I have felt this longing to go out and snip a sprig to put in a soup or when someone is ailing I feel this need to make some fresh tea…but my herbs were gone.

This year I’m going to fill this aching need to work with the Earth and watch as the elements come together and create new life. I’m going to make tinctures, poultices, compotes, bouquet de garnis, sauces, teas and add beautiful fragrance and flavor to my dishes. Mmmmmmmm.

I wish you all a blessed week of creating your dreams in all you do. :)

Bright blessings,
Ruinwen
:)

Circumstance

Change is created by those whose imaginations are bigger than their circumstances.

-- Unknown source

I often think the circumstances for a project to make it to completion is not that different from a seed growing into a flower. There has to be some alchemical formula that allows us to take matter and turn it into something else.


What keeps us knitting on one project from beginning to end while others we stash away for another day? There has to be some spark that keeps us interested and focused on completing our project.

You have seen this blanket before (and as my sister said, “Is that the same one you were working on two years ago?) and most unfortunately certainly will see again.

What makes this blanket so hard to finish? It is not the fact that it is a blanket and bigger than a normal project because I’ve finished blankets in a weekend. The stitch doesn’t bore me I like the slipping and the interweaving of color. What circumstance…what magical formula…am I missing in order to complete this blanket?


I’ve been meditating on this quandary this week because my knitting isn’t the only thing to suffer from this missing equation in my little world. My life seems balanced by the things I have to make time to do and the things I can never seem to fit in.

Last week I made two items that I was very proud of for two very dear friends on their birthdays. There seemed to be no struggle, no problem to stop me in either of these projects and they were completed faster then I had projected. One was a short row washcloth and the other Who. Both had challenges and were fun to knit. But previously I had made that washcloth and it had taken almost a week to complete and this time I finished in two days.

It boggles the mind. Now, this wasn’t a happy go lucky week with a lot of free time either. Nothing was different with the time I had to complete these projects…so what made them flow…like water through my fingers to their completion?

One thing I did note was that with Who I used double points the whole time. I actually adore dpns where many years ago I used to fear them. And that is when it hit me…I’ve grown as a knitter. I will try almost anything instead of shying away from it like I used to…that does not include steeking, that still scares the willies out of me.


But I digress. I think that maybe one of the elements of finishing a project is what you carry with you. I’m not talking your cable needle, stitch markers and life-line (though those can be very useful), I’m talking about the skills you have as a knitter. You may not be aware that if you are up to mindless knitting on a project…congrats…that’s a skill. A new knitter will look at you in awe as you knit and talk at the same time without missing a stitch.


I’ve picked many projects out of my skill-set and then set them aside because I’ve ripped too many times or I am just so frustrated that knitting is impossible. But then a year later I may go back and say, “Why did I have trouble with this?” Then again the pattern may be wrong and the skills necessary for the project seem to be rewriting and designing and new way to knit the piece. Its all in the circumstance…and each project has different pluses and minuses that add or detract to it being completed.


But in the end it is me that is the final component to a project being completed. I think from now on if I decide to give up on a project I’m going to list why on a piece of paper so that in the future I can understand my reasons and see if I have overcome them yet.


For now this blanket will travel with me. I really want to get it done. I’m not going to set it aside again.


Since this year started I’ve finished everything new I started and steadily worked on past WIPs. My meditation showed me that in each thing I create is a little of my energy just waiting for me to reconnect with it. As I finish old projects I can feel what circumstance was greater then my creativity and caused me to stop. I can see that I have grown from that moment when I gave up on a particular project and that I myself have become part of the creative equation.


Bright blessings,

Happy crafting,
Ruinwen
:)

I almost forgot…Birdsong won the Blogiversary Contest and her gift package will be winging its way to her! Congrats Birdsong! :)

Coming Up For Air

Sorry, it has been so long since my last post...life and all you know. :)

I crocheted this granny square blanket for mindless crafting. I like the way it came out. I mixed the glittery yarn in for a festive touch.

Here is a slip stitch baby blanket I am making. It called for two strands and it really hurts my hands. I tried a single strand version and it still looks as nice. So next time I won't use two strands. It is a fun pattern in which you carry the yarn in the back when you are on the front and in the front when you are on the back. This way the front stays all pretty.

The amazing John was having a sale and I scored some luscious Malabrigo. The pic does it no justice and you can't feel how soft it is either. But it is the most amazing merino I have ever touched and I just can't wait to find something worthy of its amazing texture.

And...of course, there are socks. I want 10 pair for the Fall Fest and here are 3 done and one on the needles. And I started them last week on Monday...so I feel that this is a possible goal.

Well, that's it. DH has to go back in for knee surgery 'cuz they missed something so keep him in your thoughts, please.

Happy crafting everyone,

Ruinwen
:)

Mike's Feather and Fan Blanket

I love this pattern! It is so much fun! I have never knitted feather and fan before but I really like it! The merino I am using is so beautiful that it is really a joy to knit.

Can you tell I'm really happy about this baby blanket? LOL

Happy crafting everyone!

Ruinwen
:)

Mike's Baby Blanket

ETA: Lost this photo. The yarn for this looked like a Victorian garden with sunshine.

How I loved casting it on and knitting a few rows just to let the merino wash away the stress from my last project.

I love the feel of merino. It slides on my addis and I find myself lost in the simple rhythm of its beauty. I feel like I am soaking in a hot tub of bubbles and I find myself totally refreshed. Ahhhhhh! :)

I love this yarn! It is so beautifully hand-painted. This is a new pattern for me and I am excited to try feather and fan for the first time! :)

Happy crafting!

Ruinwen
:)

The Baby Blanket From He-double Toothpicks

ETA: Another photo lost.

 Never has a project vexed me more than this blanket. Normally a blanket takes me a week to make; this took 2 months I'm ashamed to say.

What did I learn? If you make a mistake and you know that you need to fix it - don't hesitate! If you are talking on the phone while knitting; don't let the yarn drop off your needles. And finally, don't let the yarn win.

As you can see the blanket didn't even want to pose for its debut. The colors are dull compared to what they truly are and it would not come into focus no matter what I did.

But it is done and in the mail tomorrow! :)

Baby Blanket

ETA:  Lost this photo in the update.  It was light blue, green and purple.

This is the baby blanket from he-double hockey sticks! I have tinked it back more times then I have knitted forward! But it is lovely and the pattern is really striking. I try to only knit on it when the house is quiet and I can count the rows. I am on the last color and hope to finish it soon!