moonfrog –

The summer Knitty.com surprises came out just when I needed a break from my current projects. My Shedir is resting from its last frogging. Rose looked small on the needles, giving me the nagging feeling that the extra pounds I’d put on since starting it a year ago were too much to fit into it.

I took the opportunity to make something that had been on my list for quite a while. A mesh shopping bag. Amy Singer’s Everlasting Bagstopper had a couple features that were just right. First, it is knit rather than crochet, which is easier on my hands and gives me more practice with knitting. Second, it has a solid bottom, not mesh, so nothing will fall out.

My first thought was: must get new yarn! The pattern calls for hemp. I waivered. It would be better to use yarn I already own. I looked through my stash and found the perfect match. A swap a long time ago brought me some 2nd Time Cotton, a blend of recycled cotton and acrylic. It just seemed so right! A bag intended for repeated use in order to save on trash — made out of recycled yarn. I made the bag smaller than the pattern called for since I only had one ball. It is a good size for putting in my canvas shopping bag for keeping all the little items contained. I made a short handle in double crochet to keep it simple. This was a fun knit and I do plan to make one out of hemp later. My LYS doesn’t carry it, so I’ll have to order it online.

After I finished the bag, I took the time to finish a hat that was almost complete. I crocheted this one with Elann Esprit and am quite happy with it. I didn’t think the elastic yarn would look good in a crochet hat, but happily, I was wrong. Today I added a button-on flower that can be removed if desired. I even found a button in the same color as the hat in my button bag.

The next job was to get back to one of my current projects, so I put Rose on waste yarn to try it on — just to be sure. It fit perfectly! It might be rather short still, but I added a couple inches to the pattern already, so I’ll keep my fingers crossed.

I’m sure you’ve heard it before, but the best thing about Ravelry is that I can look up the patterns I’m using to see what other people’s projects look like. A recurring theme with Soleil/Rose is that it comes out short. That caused me to add a little length and I’m very glad I did.

It felt good to take a break and knit something I was enthused about. Now I can return to my unfinished projects with new determination. And while I’m doing that, I’ll be looking for some hemp yarn for the next bag!

AudioBook Blurb:

I listened to two shorter books this week. America by Jon Stewart of the Daily Show had me laughing out loud. Funny thing, though, is that Stewart’s narration of the book is not the best, but is rather dry. It’s almost as if you need to see his funny facial expressions rather than just listening. I enjoyed the book, but it is not as good as his TV show on Comedy Central.

The second book was The Measure of a Man, an autobiography by Sidney Poitier. I have loved Poitier since I was a teenager and saw him in To Sir With Love. I still know all the words to that song! I found the book interesting because of this, but it also had its flaws. Although it is supposed to be a story of the man, not just his acting career, it is not long before he lapses into covering his movies and excluding all else. It does not reveal much about the man behind the legend.

I am glad I read both of these books, but am well into my next read and it is fantastic! And after that? What else but Harry Potter. I can hardly wait.