paddleboat knitting

I'll start off by sharing a couple recent events. I went to the Midwest Fiber and Folk Art Festival in Crystal Lake, IL to help with the Klose Knit booth a few Saturdays ago.


I am glad that the Midwest Fiber Festival was my first because it is small compared to other large festivals I've read and heard about. I was still overwhelmed by the amount of yarn in one place. I ended up with a skein of Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock Lightweight in the Pond Scum colorway. That skein of yarn is destined for something wonderful. I don't what yet, but something wonderful still. I also got a few different skeins from Briar Rose Fibers and a sweater's worth of rusty orange/red yarn from the Brooks Farm booth. Overall, it was a successful day for Klose Knit and my yarn stash.

I went to a festival (sadly not a fiber festival though) in Chinatown (Chicago) a couple weeks ago with my friend Lauren and if you've ever thought about knitting with a goat, it doesn't work.


Yes, there was a petting zoo in the streets of Chinatown and yes, goats really do like to eat everything in sight.

I spent a long weekend with my Aunt and Uncle in at their vacation home in Minnesota and I'm getting tons of knitting done. I caught a ride with my friend, Patricia (questionable on ravelry) who was conveniently staying in the same town as my relatives this weekend. I hung out with some of Patricia's family for dinner where there was a new kitty to play/knit with.


That's another Daybreak shawl (rav link) in Malabrigo Sock, colorways Primavera and Eggplant.

At my Aunt and Uncle's place, I golfed for the first time. Well, I did five holes before our cart started to get a little sluggish, but it was fun. I swung some impressive lucky shots interspersed with complete misses and lost balls in the woods. My score for the five holes was 50 points or shots or whatever you say.

I loved taking the paddle boat out on the small lake/big pond. Paddleboats are perfect because I can cruise on top of the water, paddling with my feet while my hands knit in the sun's excellent source of light.


That's me working on a Botanic Hat for Three Bags Full. I cranked out two of those hats in a night and a day.

While out on the water knitting, there were tons of sunfish so I fashioned a "fishing pole" out of a pop can tab attached to a long strand of Berroco Ultra Alpaca. I used bits of colorful wool for bait and the fish were biting at it a lot, but I couldn't get a hold of one. The next day, I attached that Ultra Alpaca to the handle of a plastic bucket and submerged it in the water. Then, I threw some bread crumbs out and pulled up on the bucket as the fish went for the bait. I caught four fish thanks to my crafty contraption.


I visited The Yarnery in St. Paul, MN. It's my favorite shop in the twin cities area. The shop is in a cozy house like Klose Knit, with yarn organized by weight in different rooms. They have an amazing selection of yarn with lots of books, magazines, and knit samples. I ended up with a little bag full of yarn for more new shawl designs.

Speaking of shawls, Daybreak is almost ready.


I just have to block the one I finished this weekend and take better photos of all three sizes for the pattern. I'm aiming to release the pattern later this week. In the meantime, you can admire gussie's and sketchbook's gorgeous shawls that they test knit for me. I have a few more equally amazing test knitters working on this shawl which means there will be more to admire soon.