Spring Cleaning

I've been quiet here for a few weeks to do some Spring cleaning.  It's all part of that taking time to do things that are good for me, while balancing ever-changing family life.  I am pleased that my grandmother's home is on the market, my house is (mostly) organized, I've made time to get outdoors every day, my backyard looks nice again, and my son is in driver's ed.  All good things, but it hasn't left personal creative pursuits.

I did, however, take the Spring cleaning fever to my knitting basket and finished up a few lingering projects, including my Thing to Wear Cardigan.

I decided to go with the full kimono sleeve, as you can see, and I really like it.  I mainly worked on it while sitting on our patio, since the garden is weeded and planted and things aren't as depressing out there.  I park myself outside, wearing a big hat and try to knit an hour or so a day.

There are lots of green and blooming things this year, just not vegetables (other than lettuces).  They require more water and care than I feel like I can give this year, so I'm sticking with easy maintenance plants.  That leaves me with all of the herbs I like to cook with, fragrant lavender, ground cover that is sun tolerant, some vines, and a few more succulents to add to the patio.  I also planted some things I can use for soap, tea, or yarn dying- like chamomile and marigolds.  Oh and spinach and lettuce.  

My little buddy helped me as I worked the sleeve and neckline edging of my Morning Mist tee, another newly finished WIP.  Here he takes an uncharacteristic break from barking at neighboring cats and dogs.  I think he might actually be mellowing a bit. 

 Guys, this Morning Mist turned out fantastic in Lindy Chain!

I have also started my third pair of socks for the Box o Sox KAL, which will also be another entry in the Holla Knits KAL 2016.  They're Springtastic Socks, by Stefanie Goodwin-Ritter, and are such a great mix of cables and texture.  It's everything fun in a sock, all at once- a perfect followup to having knit plain stockinette for several projects.

I'm loving the spring-y colors of this The Fawn & the Fox sock yarn in the Let's Stay Home colorway.

I wouldn't normally think to knit in these delicate pastel colors, but I'm glad I chose them for this.  It is a short sock, the kind that would look great with clogs or something.

And so now we're all caught up, knitting-wise.  With these three things, plus a shawl off of the needles, I am getting closer to my goal of not being a scattered crafter.  

(more on ravelry, instagram, flickr, and kollabora)

Did I mention I am taking part in the Tops, Tanks, and Tees KAL too?  and a test knit?  Hey, this is an improvement.  I'll only have four things on the needles and one sweater waiting in the wings.  as with my home, I have my own particular version of clean.