Perfect Summer Afternoon

Pattern: Gemini by Jane Richmond
Yarn: Cascade Yarns Ultra Pima Fine
Colours: Cranberry
Needles: 3.5mm and 3.75mm Round Needles
Start of project: June 27th, 2015

On Ravelry

Finally I knit outside again! I met Silvia at the Frauenbadi for some swimming, a lot of talking, coffee and a little bit of knitting.

Surprisingly the weather was glorious. At noon it had been pouring down and I was prepared to cancel our outdoor date and meet somewhere inside, but then the weather turned around 180 degrees and it got all beautiful, warm but not too hot and quite windy.

The river was still quite cold, the water temperature was only 18 degrees but we went "swimming" anyway. It's so relaxing to walk up and down the little bit of river and in between we were acutally swimming.

Every time I go to the Frauenbadi I just love the atmosphere. Situated right in the middle of the city, it's such an island of calmness. It's almost never crowded and today was no exeption, especially after the earlier rain. The laid back mood with the self serving kiosk helps making everybody feel welcome and trusted.

Right outside the Frauenbadi there are lots and lots of tourists who are running around Zürich and most of them would never guess what's behind that small door. When some of them accidentally stumble inside, they must feel quite magical.

Definitely one of my favourite spots in the summer time!!!

Getting closer to Vancouver Island

In a month we will on Vancouver Island!!! When we started planning this in October, it all seemed so far away but now it's really just around the corner...

We will have managed the flight connection with the rather short stopover in Reykjavik, we will have picked up our car at Vancouver Airport without problems with the handbreak or the navi, we will have caught up sleep during our first night on the mainland and we will have boarded the ferry to Nanaimo. These steps are all things that are in my thoughts more and more often now that the departure date is getting closer. I am a bit nervous that one or tow of these steps will prove to be a problem, but I really hope we will find a solution if it's necessary.

We will stay in Vancouver, in Port Alberni, in Tofino, in Courtenay, in Madeira Park and then in Vancouver again. I am so looking forward to the ocean, the wilderness, the colours, the food, the people, the knitting and spending lots of time with my kids.

I want to write about our adventures on my blog but I'll probably not do so while we are away, because I don't want to take my MacBook with me and I want to really enjoy the holidays and not stress about processing photos and writing texts. I can do that once we are back, so stay tuned...

Finished Object: Stovetop

Pattern: Stovetop by Tin Can Knits
Yarn: Tanis Fiber Art Green Label
Colours: Sand and Lucky Penny
Needles: 3.75mm and 4.5 Round Needles
Start of project: June 17, 2015
End of project: June 21, 2015

On Ravelry

Finally the time was right to knit this beautiful hat. I had it on my mind ever since I got Tin Can Knits' Road Trip last year. I love the beautiful cables and the moss stitch and a pompom is always a great way to finish a hat.

I wasn't sure what size to knit at first, but size L worked fine with slightly smaller needles and thinner yarn. I think it fits perfectly, it will stay on my head without feeling too tight.

 

I used more of the beautiful leftover yarn from both my I heart Cardigan and the R&R Hoodie because I knew from my Savannah Chap Zebra that they work together well (I think you can feel how much I love all these projects ;-)

I will probably take this hat along on OUR road trip to Vancouver Island next month so that it can go where it was meant to be.

on my needles in June

Currently knitting: Memory Blanket

Pattern: Knitted Patchwork Recipe by Martine Ellis
Yarn: lots of leftovers
Colours: everything but baby pink so far
Needles: 4 mm DPS
Start of project: April 6, 2015

On Ravelry

A while ago, in the beginning of April, I started a new blanket. I had lots of small leftovers, most of them in either Fingering or DK weight. So I decided to start my own Memory Blanket with them. I either use a single strand of DK or I use a double held strand of Fingering. The squares don't all have the exact same measurements but I hope it won't look too wonky in the end.

I really love knitting these little squares in between other stuff, they are so very simple. You start with 2 times 16 stitches and they use about 5gr of yarn each. Right now I used all my yarn at least once so I'll guess I'll start repeating or hoping for new leftovers ;-)

I have no idea how big I want this, I'll just keep knitting until it feels right.

Finished Object: Bunny Girl

Pattern: Well-Dressed Bunny by Barbara Prime
Yarn: Madelinetosh Tosh Sock
Colours: Smokestack and Turtle
Needles: 2.5 mm DPS
Start of project: June 3, 2015
End of project: June 7, 2015

On Ravelry

I knit another one of Barbara Prime's adorable little toy animals. This bunny comes with three different outfits. I chose the pinafore dress which I find just as cute as the hoodie. The knitting went fast and now that I've done a few of these patterns I can see how they all follow a similar but still individual and very clever construction. I really love the bunny feet in this one.

I love the transformation with these toys. Lots of little pieces come together and make such a cute little friend. Today I was a bit tired from too much sun at the pool when I sewed it together so it turned out more wonky than I wanted to but with the dress it's barely visible.

 

on my needles in June

Finished Object: Sproutlette Dress

Pattern: Sproutlette Dress by Tanis Lavallee
Yarn: Rowan Fine Art
Colours: Hornbeam
Needles: 3.5 mm Round Needle
Start of project: May 25, 2015
End of project: June 3, 2015

On Ravelry

This is another pattern by Tanis Lavallee that I had in my mind for a while. I guess I was just waiting for a baby girl to be born to knit it. At first I wasn't sure what size to do, I wanted a dress for a girl between 6 and 12 months but my yarn was quite a bit thinner than the yarn in the original pattern so I cast on for the biggest size. Now it seems that I could have gone one size down as well but I guess it doesn't really matter that much because babies all grow into clothes eventually.

I enjoyed both lace sections of this little dress. They were lovely to knit, not too complicated but interesting and somehow fast moving. The stockinette part was rather long and slightly boring, so I was glad when I was done with it. The end of the pattern brought a new technique for me (and I am not sure if I really knit it correctly but it looks nice) - the Scalloped Eyelet Cast Off. I found it rather fiddly but I think it's worth it because it makes for such a nice end at the sleeves and at the bottom.

I am not totally sold on this yarn, I think the darker parts look a bit untidy but I hope they'll be hidden a bit when the dress is worn. The good surprise was that one single skein was enough to knit the whole dress with it. There is only a tiny little bit of leftover (2gr - you can see it next to the pinned dress on the left). 

 

on my needles in June

Looking Back: 6th of June

 In 2006 I took these photos of my jewelry. I got the C when I was 16, the ying yang when I finished university (around 24 I guess) and the malocchio on holidays in Turkey (around 27 probably). I still wear one of the two pendants all the time, most often the C. The malocchio is in my jewelry box but I don't wear it anymore.

For 2007 I found a photo of each of us. My kids were such cuties then!

In 2013 I was in Charmey on a week long school camp. We had beautiful weather and lots of pollen (just like today) and my students wanted to see what I looked like with straigthend hair. I barely recognise myself.

31 days of Yoga Balance

I wasn't quite as successful in May as I was in April. After a good start I got lazy and didn't feel like pushing myself. I moved almost every day but I often chose the easy programmes over the more strenous ones and I totally failed at my chosen pose, because I never got over 3 minutes of boat pose (and that hurt like hell)

But it's important to look at what I have done:

I went to Osteopathie once.
I did one day of the Tigh Hips Programme (before the Tone Up started)
I did all or part of the Tone Up Yoga programme 18 times.
I did gentle Yoga or Meditation or a mix of both 5 times
I went to Kieser Training 4 times.
I did Carla's workout at school twice.
I went hiking once.
I went swimming 5 times. So far I've only swum a little bit because the water hasn't warmed up enough but I hope that will change now.

There is no new challenge at YBC for June so I'll do the March Balance Programme instead. I hope I can get back into a rhythmn again. I will concentrate on Tree Pose. At the moment I can get into the pose but I don't think I can stay there for more than maybe 30 seconds. I am supposed to do 3 minutes for the start, we'll see how that goes ;-)