i'm in the midst of some changes but knitting is still happening. right now mostly gift knitting. still fulfilling promises - although i have tons of ideas for things i'd like to knit myself. soon ...
at the moment i'm working on an adaptation of a Shiri Mor sweater from Vogue Knitting Winter 09/10 for my daughter. she asked for pink sweater so i dyed some organic wool with the ever-easy and reliable cochineal.
i've used the word adaptation because my daughter wants a longer back on the sweater and also because i've substituted cables for the main stitch pattern that Shiri Mor used.
this is my first time using organic wool and i'm pleased to stay it's really soft but it also feels like it has substance.
also on the needles are another pair of socks for my husband who badly needs another pair. the speed at which his and my mother's socks wear out has me switching to sock yarn with 25% nylon. it's not nearly as soft as 100% wool but i'm hoping the socks will last longer.
here's a detail photo of the first sock. it's the Riff pattern from Knitty. don't look too close though okay - so many mistakes! my knitting concentration hasn't been what it should be lately. the yarn is Cascades Heritage. after knitting the first sock i did a search for long lasting sock yarns and found out most sock knitters concerned about wear suggested knitting with a tight gauge. they said their socks last much longer this way. i'm knitting the second sock a size up but with much smaller needles. have you tried knitting socks with a tighter gauge and have they lasted longer? or do you have a long-wearing sock yarn you recommend?
part of what's had me distracted lately is that after a dozen years here in southern Alberta i'm moving out of Alberta and back to British Columbia. i've been offered a job on the north end of Vancouver Island in the village of Port Hardy. i finish my old job in a week and start my new job in two weeks. so i've been busy packing up boxes once again. i've moved a lot in my life and it seems every time i move it's an introspective time with lots of memories and conflicting feelings rising to the surface.
i have a feeling my new job will be rather intense. i'll also commute over 12 hours a week - so free time will have a bite taken out of it. i plan to keep knitting of course - but i've put away most of my cameras for now. film photography takes time that i don't think i'll have for a while.
it feels important to have a variety of creative outlets though so i've gone back to drawing - it's easier to squeeze some drawing in with a few minutes here and there. lately i've been working on long multi-week drawings - i'll post a poor quality 'in-progress' photo below. at the moment i'm just drawing for myself and they're a mix of random mark-making and more carefully rendered images from source material. i tape pieces of 24 x 36 inch paper to the wall and add more sheets as i like. i can't say exactly what the drawings mean - they look narrative and yet not at the same time. anyway for the moment they're satisfying to do and i hope i can keep them up.

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