new projects, not all knitting

I have new projects to work on these days, but the first isn't really new. The other day, I made the bold decision to start keeping my journal in handwritten volumes again.


This was a big decision for me. When my first son was born nearly 5 years ago, I abandoned the handwritten volumes and started keeping my journal on the computer. After all, I can type so much faster than I can write, and keeping the journal electronically would allow me to keep up the habit of a lifetime during a very busy time of my life. But as it turned out, I hated the Microsoft Word journal. Even though I was able to capture my ephemeral thoughts more quickly, the electronic words had no life of their own. (Ironic that I should say this at the very moment I am creating more electronic words.) Anyway, I was in Harvard Square and went to a wonderful stationers shop, where I found a delectable orange leather journal, with pages and pages of space to write. I bought a new pen and a giant cup of tea, and set about the task of writing all my personal stuff down. It felt so good! I started my first journal in 1974 and have never stopped writing since. Yum.

And more knitting projects on the horizon. I'm making a purse with the Rowan Yorkshire Tweed Aran I bought at Wild and Woolly in Lexington. I'm using Yvonne's pattern Quinn, and it's turning out beautifully so far. The top of the bag is a cabled band worked horizontally, then stitches are picked up along the edge of the band to work the remaining part of the bag.


I have to say, Rowan has just not impressed me with this wool. I've found not one, not two, but THREE knots in a single skein of this yarn! Not only that, but in places the yarn is so weak that it breaks. I'm not a tense knitter--my knitting tends to be on the loose side--so that really means the yarn is weak. All I can say is that I'm glad I got the wool on sale. I would have been mighty angry if I'd paid full price for this knotty, weakling yarn!

Not only that, I received my first shipment of Knit Picks yarn. I've read so much about it on other people's blogs that I just had to try it. I bought their merino yarn for my husband's new sweater, and spent a whopping $37 on it! The yarn is silky soft, and I can't wait to get going on it!



With the yarn for my husband's sweater, I also received enough yarn to make another tam...