Errata for Summer Sky has been posted to the Purling Plans Designs page - this is where any future updates will be posted. I have contacted MagKnits to have the update made there as well, and posted the link to the pattern in Ravelry. Thank you to Sheila for emailing your question!

I had every intention of making a fresh start on Eunny’s Chuck’s Cabled Socks over vacation. Let’s be honest, I’ve had every intention of picking them up again for months. But time does what it does and life does what it does, and they escaped me for a time. I didn’t so much as look at them while we traveled, let alone give any thought to how I planned to solve the sizing issue (that’s ok though - we did lots of other fun stuff! And one more VERY fun knitterly thing that I have yet to post about!)

Since I was having a hard time getting started on them (or perhaps because they were easily sidelined in favor of other things that required less concrete thought, or god forbid, math) I decided to take a short break from other knitting and swatching and focus solely (ha!) on them for a few days. The essential first step was to figure out how to make a sock that fits after my denial & resulting sadness last winter upon realizing that the first one didn’t just LOOK small, it really WAS small!

I could have tried bigger needles, but I figured I needed to add about 2 inches to the circumference to get the sock to fit over my heel, which would have meant a fair jump in needle size & gauge. Since I was pretty happy with the fabric I was getting out of the first go-round, I decided to add stitches instead.

Eunny has designed this beautifully with 4 cables encircling the leg; One that is carried down the top of the foot, One that ends at the heel, and one on each side that split with half the remaining cable continuing on down top of the foot, while the other half ends at the heel. Simply gorgeous. I LOVE this design. This is the pattern that made me want to knit socks (I’m not a sock knitter folks, many of you already know that!). Each two strand segment of cable measures @ 1/2 an inch. So the plan is to widen the front and back cables by one segment on each side (turning two of the six-stranded cables into ten-stranded cables), which would add about an inch to each and not interfere with the lovely side cables.

Once this knit gets going, it moves right along. A few progress shots, I’m so pleased!

Seven years ago, Tad and I lived in the beautiful little town of Peterborough, New Hampshire. We took a day to ourselves while we were on vacation and spent some time there. We ate dinner at our favorite restaurant (which we once lived within walking distance of - great when you plan to have the occasional celebratory bottle of wine!), stayed in a historical B&B in nearby Jaffrey, and visited all our old haunts. Peterborough is a little hippie town with a thriving arts community, set into a lovely little valley in the Monadnock region. One shopping center with a small po-dunk A&P. Want decent groceries? Better buy at the local natural food store, wait for the once weekly farmers market in the summertime, or drive at least 20 minutes to get to a large chain grocery store. Most of the commerce in Peterborough is locally owned and operated and they like it that way. Want to do some hiking? Mount Monadnock is right down the road or there are trails right on the edge of town. Perfect.

What struck me the most while we were there was that given how much we loved that little town, it just didn’t work out. Much of that had to do with the fact that Tad and I each traveled an hour in opposite directions for work and since our friends were mostly located where we worked (Keene for Tad, also where I went to college & had many friends), we never really developed a community in Peterborough. Another factor was the Winter, with a Capital W. Under perfect circumstances, the winter would still have worn us down - neither Tad nor I do winter sports and the lack of light in the winter is very noticeable compared with here in NC. Leaving in the dark for work, working long hours with no windows, and returning home in the dark, made for an unhappy Mel & Tad. So when we visited some friends in Durham, NC in February one year, and it was 45 degrees at night, and there were daffodils and trees blooming, and it was light out for an hour or more later in the evening - well, we were sold, and we moved within a couple of months. There was a little more thought given to availability of career opportunities, cost of living, proximity to things we like to do etc… but since all those were a good fit, there was no reason not to go.

This was our first place in Peterborough. Adorable, huh? We thought so too. The place has to be all of 300 square feet, and is perfectly placed a short 1/4 mile walk from a trailhead to Pack Monadnock. Priorities being what they were at the time contributed to our dissatisfaction with the teensy rooms and lack of storage for our rapidly accumulating “stuff”. As did the the overpriced rent, very leaky roof (in the tiny bedroom where the bed could only be oriented directly under said leaks), the holes in the foundation big enough to let in light from outdoors as well as mice and other beasties, the leaking water heater that buckled the floor, and the owner’s complete disregard for any of these legitimate complaints. We spent some very happy times there though - bundled up and stoking the woodstove against the cold and snow, decorating the exposed beams for Christmas… Our first Christmas tree that took up almost the entire living room… The hikes up Pack Monadnock, the walks through town, sunrises and the foliage colors on the drive over the mountain when the seasons changed. Our dreams were very different then, but ironically and with the exception of the state of disrepair, that little cabin represents much of what’s important to us now, and what we’re headed for in the future. Funny how some things come full circle, isn’t it?

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After swinging by the cabin, we decided that we had enough time to revisit Pack Monadnock and grab lunch at our other favorite restaurant, the Peterborough Diner (where we were once known by our orders “Scrambled Feta” & “Four Deuces”, and greeted with coffee) before heading off to visit some old friends outside of Brattleboro, Vermont. So we parked the car, filled a couple of water bottles and made the short but strenuous trek up the mountain. The rain had stopped and the sky began to clear, leaving us with beautiful views topped with an incredible cloud cover. Amazing. What a GREAT vacation stop.

Habu Cotton Gima, for Florence, from Ruth. I love the structural, almost architectural quality of it in the skein; it’s difficult to capture the crisp texture - and the color too, palest lavender. It’s lovely.

I’m going to enjoy knitting with this yarn - Thank you so very much Ruth!

I tend to be a fairly focussed knitter. This doesn’t mean that I always complete every project, or that I work on only one project until I consider it done. There is a bit of ebb and flow and some projects that surface multiple times, some that get placed on hold indefinitely and others that are worked in tandem, but I often do dedicate the bulk of my energy to one project at a time. Lately, however, my knitting life is more full than it has ever been - and I am loving it!

IN KNITTING/BLOG NEWS:

I had a contest and sent out some nice prizes… And meanwhile, one of my winners, Ruth, drew MY name for her very own blog contest. I can’t say it any better than she did, “life is strange and wonderful sometimes” - that it is! Ruth’s contest dealt with sizing concerns, and since I have several (small frame but generous bust, very shortwaisted, monkey arms), I jumped in to give my measurements and feedback. The prize was a gift certificate to kpixie and a custom written pattern for my size of her lovely design Florence - what an excellent gift. I couldn’t be more thrilled as I think this is such a classy and flattering knit, and I’m so excited to make it! I placed the order for my Habu Cotton Gima in purple. Thank you Ruth!

Chuck’s Cabled Socks have officially re-surfaced on the WIP list, and the sizing issue is solved - yes, I tried it on! Can you tell what’s changed?

Hege signed me up to participate in the Poetry in Stitches Project KAL, even though the Solveig Hisdal kit I’ll be working on isn’t from the book! I’ve been following this KAL and the work of the talented participants since last winter, and am so looking forward to participating along with them.

IN DESIGN NEWS:

My next design in process is for The Sanguine Gryphon, and I could not be more excited to be working with Gryphon and her lovely yarns.

I’ve been swatching for a couple other design projects that I’ve had on the brain for awhile - both colorwork, and having a lot of fun. I have no set timeframe for these two and no exact plans for how to distribute them, I’m just enjoying the process.

Two great friends of Tad’s and mine are working with me to develop a graphic for Purling Plans. They are very talented (here’s one of them) and gave me a list of thoughtful and thought-provoking questions to answer to get them started. Some of the questions were so good that they caused me to give a serious look at the values that are important to me as an aspiring designer and gave me some great material for further discussions and blog posts.

There has been quite a bit of recent activity on the design blog that I participate in, and that has been really inspiring and fun to watch. Speaking of the design blog, two of our talented members, Ruth and Nicole, were recently featured in Yarnival! Check it out!

IN SPINNING NEWS:

The laceweight blue/green merino tencel (Deep Sea from Bonkers!) is still on the wheel - It will be slow going with everything else, but I will keep working on it in chunks.

Usually when I get so much going on in real life, I tend to get overwhelmed and stressed out, but honestly, with all this going on in my knitting life, I’m just really excited - thrilled to be a part of some pretty cool things, and enjoying every minute. Thanks for reading.

My dad is a good man. Being down here in North Carolina, I only get to see him a couple of times a year, and I miss him an awful lot. Tad and I got to spend a bit of time with him while we were on vacation, as he and Lorna showed up at the end of the 3Day to watch us complete the walk and enter closing ceremonies. They even hung out with us and some of our teammates for dinner (pizza in the hotel room - we were too tired for anything else!) and then we spent a little time with him at home in New Hampshire later on in the week.

My mom used to volunteer for the Science Center of New Hampshire monitoring conservation lands - a little island in Lake Winnipesaukee called Ragged Island in particular - and my dad has carried on this activity each year since her passing. This year, we kayaked out to the island together to check in on it. What a great way to remember Mom by contributing to something that she loved, and what a great morning with my dad. The weather was perfect, the island beautiful, and the company was the best kind. Love you Dad.

She’s our niece and she’s amazing. She’s not yet two years old, but she’s whip-smart, vivacious, independent, caring, and loves to share. Those are pretty great qualities in any person, let alone such a tiny one. Great job mom & dad!

We spent a couple of days with Tim, Martha (my knitting teacher!) & AB (aka the Beaster) after the 3Day and had a terrific time, although it really was too short - as always. There’s never enough time.

Speaking of the Beaster, I’m dreaming up a little somethin-somethin’ for her, that I spent some time swatching over the break. Wanna see?

A huge thank you is in order to all of you who read about, commented on, and even supported my walk in this event, most of you without ever having met me in person. That’s really something. And I truly cannot thank you enough for those generous contributions. There are so many ways to spend your money, and so many worthy charities out there, and I thank you for sharing what you could with this one. Unlike the local Komen Races for the Cure where most of the money stays in the community to support education, screening, and treatment on the local level (also so important), the bulk of the money raised from the 3Day events funds innovative research, that often is not supported by other sources and that would not take place without this funding. I believe that research is the way to prevention and a cure. I believe that it would have saved my mom, if she only had the time. And I believe that it WILL save many of OUR lives.

THANK YOU SO MUCH.

This years event was particularly taxing for many of us due to the extreme heat, but we did it!! Thanks to an amazing crew and medical staff that kept us hydrated and fed, reminded us to re-apply, relocated us due to a lightening storm, gave IV’s and ambulance rides, asthma treatments, antibiotics and blister care (just a few of the health hazards our teammates dealt with this year!) Another amazing 60 miles come and gone. It’s impossible for me to verbalize this amazing event and and what it means to me - I try each year and always fall short. So please allow me to present some photos that may help to capture some of what you’ve supported, with your funds, your well-wishes, and your warm thoughts. There are videos too, but in the interests of your load times, I’ve posted them only on the 3Day page - click here to go see them!

Oh yeah, wasn’t there a contest going on? Well, how about it?!

Under extreme pressure and very scientific circumstances, Tad pulled two names out of a hat -

And the first prize goes to Ruth of Ruthless Knitting!! Ruth, you get first choice of the Three Waters Farm sock yarn or the Alpaca Silk Fiber!
and Second Prize goes to (isn’t he damn cute?!):

Elisa of Concateknit!!

Ruth, I’ve got your address I believe, but Elisa, would you send me your new addy when you have a moment in the unpacking flurry? (melATpurlingplansDOTcom)

Once again, I can’t say it enough - Thank you all SO much!!

Our vacation in review will be brought to you in installments. It was just the break that we needed and we squeezed an awful lot into a week and a half (not the least of which - 60 miles!). We made so many happy memories along the way and there is just too much good stuff and great photos to squeeze into one post. I will save the 3Day write up and the contest results for tomorrow (we did the drawing this afternoon - I’m so excited!!), that whole experience is still sinking in and I need some more time to format pictures etc.

So, the first knitterly thing, on the very first day of our vacation, was my birthday gift (my birthday isn’t for a couple weeks, but since we’re restricting our buying, we’re using special occasions for those indulgent purchases that are difficult to justify otherwise.) Since we were going to be in New Hampshire, we dispensed with the surprise and mystery, and Tad and I made the trip over to Durham to visit Debbie of Nordic Fiber Arts. I cannot say enough about this fine lady, folks. If you have any interest in Norwegian colorwork, she supplies some amazing yarns and kits from Norsk Strikkedesign and Solveig Hisdal’s Poetry in Stitches (which are both in their last printing, two absolutely amazing books!) among others. She was very kind and accommodating and I really enjoyed talking with her about the patterns.

I had a couple of kits in mind, in keeping with my goals for 2007 and my admiration of the incredible designs in these books - I was specifically looking at the cover sweater from Norsk Strikkedesign, and the Wedding Sweater from Poetry in Stitches. I’m so glad that I had the opportunity to see the kits though; the colors were a little different than I remember them in the books. Debbie actually has a couple different kits made for the cover sweater from Norsk Strikkedesign, one with the actual colors called for and another that more closely matches the colors in the book. I was pretty certain that I would leave with one of those, but then she pulled out a sample sweater of another Solveig Hisdal design, in bright Fuschia with purple and blue accents - absolutely incredible, I wish that I had had the camera, the workmanship was stunning. I liked the colors, but not enough to knit a whole sweater in them. Then she pulled out the pattern and showed me the yarn for the cream and blue version, and I was sold! Click here to see a picture of the sweater in both color schemes, Debbie said that it was new and she hadn’t had a chance to add it to her website yet, so look for it there in the near future! The style is very similar to the Wedding Sweater, but what really drew me in was the band across the bottom, it’s so rich and the colors have so much depth.

I plan to wind a few of the skeins and do some swatching later in the month - Stay Tuned!

Good morning from beautiful Shelburne, VT! This will be brief as our lovely niece AB will be up soon and I think that I might be highjacking someone’s wireless network - oops

A couple of quick things:

The 3Day was AMAZING - the 60 miles just flew by and suddenly, sadly it was over again - until next year! I can’t wait to share some of the stories, pics and video clips with you - and of course, draw names for the contest! Thanks so much for your support of this great cause and incredible event!

AND….

MagKnits is up! I can hardly believe it, but there she is, my little Summer Sky! I feel a need to confess that as this was my first design, the pattern-writing was a bit of a bear. Please, if there is anyone out there who wants to make it, feel free to contact me with questions, and any feedback is most welcome - it will only help me improve.

We’ll make our way home this weekend - Talk to you soon!