Books Books Books

Because we home schooled we have a plethora of books. I can't seem to get rid of them. When we moved I gave a ton of stuff away to families who were beginning to home school their own kids. But I still have a ton of books. (If I actually weighed them I'm sure it would be close.)

I like books. If it weren't for the fact that we were not suppose to love any thing I would say I love books.

I collect children's books. The ones with pretty pictures. The ones that were favorites of my kids when they were little and the ones that were my favorites as well. The ones that are classics. Some are new books. Some are very old books. and some are from the used book store that caught my eye -- or the eye of one of my kids.

I collect reference books. If you want to know all the acceptable two letter words for Scrabble I have a book that will tell you. If you want to know about wolves, mountain climbing, knitting or golf I've got a book for you. My whole family likes books. Now we have too many books. They are spilling out of the bookshelves. I've tried to get rid of a few recently. But how do you cull a bookshelf that has already been culled many times before?

Maybe my kids will move out and I can fill a box with books for a going away present. (Edit: they did move out but did not take (m)any books with them - at least none that I can see.)

I have thought of turning one of the rooms of the house into a library. A cozy chair, a nice bright light and a warm afghan. My idea of bliss. I could stay in for the winter. Oops! Bruce just suggested going for a walk.

I started a new program.

1. Do not go to the library.

2. Read through your own library.

3. Methodically go through the bookcases culling books you haven't read but want to read.

4. Set them in a special place.

5. Read the books one by one.

6. If you can't get through it, give it away. Do not save for another day when you might be interested in it.

7. If you find a book that you value, keep it and put it in a cleaned out bookshelf  (read: empty)

8. If you can do without it, get rid of it by putting it right into a box to give away.

9. Go through the bookcase again and give away all kids' books (that don't belong to your kids) to someone who can really appreciate them.

I'm using this as reference.

Hmm, it's a library book.

A Swatch and a few WIPs

So, I knit a swatch as promised. I think I'm going to like this sweater. But, I have a lot of figuring to do before I get started.

#1. What is the back neck measurement?
#2. How many stitches do I knit per inch?
#3. How many stitches do I cast on for the back? For the sleeves? For the front?
#4. Is this a cardigan or a pullover?
#5. How deep do I want the front neck-line to be?
#6. How far apart do I want the stripes to be?

You can see that I've decided to do the sweater from the neck down and that I'm going to wing it. Freestyle, in other words.

So, since these things take time I've thought I would put it aside and let it simmer on the back burner for awhile. I'm not going to start the sweater until I get a few other things taken care of.

This afghan has been languishing in my WIP drawer for quite a while. I put it away because I thought it was too lumpy and would not block properly. Well, I took it off the needles, got it wet, wrung it out, stretched it as far as it could go and pinned it for all it was worth. After it dried, I spread it out and lo and behold, it was fine! So, back on the needles it went and I've been plugging away at it ever since. Because it's an afghan it will take a while to finish. I had five balls of yarn and I'm almost done with the second. It's not a car knitting project since it's so large so will only be done at my leisure at home.

Hemlock Ring Afghan

I've started my "Grace." I could not resist! The yarn is lovely and smooth - such a joy to work with. But I need to put that aside and let it call to me until I finish the button bands on the pullover I have steeked.

My "Aspen Yoke" will be finished in time for summer. Too bad it's 100% wool! But I think I will get a lot of use out of this one, that's for sure!

I'm working on the second sleeve of my "Periwinkle" cardigan. Not sure if I really like it any more but it's something I can wear with black. After I'm done with that sleeve I will be working on the neck and then the button bands. It won't be long - maybe tonight - that I'll be finishing this, since this is the project I'm concentrating on the most.

You will be seeing a lot of these objects in the future because I am determined to finish them all before I start anything else. Oh, I do have three car knitting projects but that's for another post.

A Little Time Out For Some Crochet

So, I took some time out to finish an old project. It goes in my guest room and thankfully, it still matches the decor. Sort of. But it will do. And I don't think my company minds. After all, it will still keep them warm and that is the point of afghans, isn't it. Oh, by the way, it's crochet. And Saturday night's company did use it.

Guest Room Afghan

Start with a quilt.


 

Add some yarn.



And a crochet hook.




Decide to change the blue to a color that actually matches the quilt.
Work on it for a long time. A really long time.

Pretty soon (or after a long while) you'll end up with an afghan.