Basted knitting: Or, how (and why) to seam a seamless sweater

Helpful article regarding knitting a seamless sweater with seams

KT's Slow Closet

So as Imentioned yesterday, I seamed the seamless yoke of my Amanda cardigan, and I want to talk about both how and why I did it — about the the idea of including what I’m going to refer to as a “basting stitch” in seamless sweaters to combine the best aspects of knitting seamlessly with the best aspects of seamed garments.

SEAMED VS. SEAMLESS

This is the central conflict of knitting, as far as I can tell. Knitters love seamless sweater patterns, for a multitude of arguably legitimate reasons: ease, speed, increased control over the outcome. But what’s best for the knitting process might not be best for the sweater. In most cases, a garment will wear better — hold its shape longer, and look better doing it — if it has seams to lend it structural support. A sweater without seams is sort of like a tent…

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Fantastic giveaway from Crave Photography

A fabulous giveaway I can dream of winning 🙂

Happiness is perspective

Happiness comes in many different forms to different people. Just like any other emotion. It can create a mood and change your outlook. Lately, my outlook has been tested. My happiness has been test. I feel that it has been good character development for me and maybe to another. We shall see. But we will talk about happiness tonight. 

Joy. Pure love. Excitement. Happiness. Contentment. I am defined as this most days I see and hear my sweet little daughters voices. Hearing my oldest (almost 4) pray with thanks at dinner time. It has been beyond heartwarming lately because she is now expressing her emotions outwardly in prayer. Tears filled me and my hubbs eyes. IT was pure bliss. Heartfelt. Happy. Our littlest one (almost 20 months) folds her hands, closes her eyes with the occasional peek & smirk, prays.

Joy in the sprinkler, talking about Disney and meeting a “real” princess… Excitement. Seeing a toddler respond to the simple joys in life and seeing how simple joy really can be obtained. Even if it is just jumping in a puddle. Sticking your tongue out to catch that rogue snowflake. You can have joy without having anything. Zero, zilch. We really can have contentment with simple pleasures.

I have found myself these past few years wanting to simplify, do away and regain my house. Materialism isn’t necessarily bad. But sometimes, you get crowded and you loose focus on what is important. For instance. When I was first married, I didn’t need nice things. I knew I would work towards nicer furniture and so on. But that was not my priority. Once I had my first daughter and did not return to work, I ended up seeing flaws in things and hoping for new. (Little did I know, knew meant it would look old when you have kids drooling, eating and peeing on your sofa. Hehehe) I was seeing myself as not content. Things had to be clean, perfect and really not for others, but for me. To feel like I achieved an accomplishment during my day. I was so used to working for so many years with an end goal. It is funny how you end up in a different frame of thinking. Here’s how.

I had my second daughter. I was tired. And I didn’t care. I was done. In a kind of good way. Let me put it this way, I am grateful to be here. After having my second child, I wasn’t sure I would be here. Pre-eclampsia has really impacted me and my health to this day. I am grateful to be here. And I feel it was a reminder after my first pre-eclampsia fear, I was being reminded in my second. Be grateful. Be content. Be, Happy. Enjoy life, it is the only one you have.

I have gone back and forth with different levels of sorrow. Depression crept in. It wasn’t the baby blues or a condition like that. I am sure it was hormone related. But people in general were really breaking me down and breaking my heart. It was painful to go into public and come home feeling uplifted and happy. I was sick of the drama, mean attitudes, bad drivers and unkindness was flooding in and covering all the good things. Heartbreaking. I was my worst critic though.

It wasn’t until recently I have seen things and people the way they are and have accessed finally that you cannot change them. You can pray for them and hope for the best for them. Even in odd situations that you wished never happened. These experience help us grow. 

What do I focus on? My girls. Their outcome. Being content and just going with the flow. God really has put some things into perspective. Sort of like the character, Anton Ego from the Disney’s Pixar, Ratatouille. He was looking for perspective from this new chef. And he knew he wouldn’t find any, but boy was he wrong. He had a full dose of perspective where he least expected or probably wanted. 

I am a roller-coaster I suppose. Once I was a free spirit, happy go lucky. Then uptight and afraid of making a mistake or making someone unhappy (this was from my childhood thinking as well and a way I thought as a child so it came back to haunt me. Like blasted boom-a-rang. This is something I did to myself. Not my husband, nor my children. It was me worried I would fail as a mother and not live up to expectations. That I would raise my kids a certain way and ruin their futures. But those were lies. Complete lies I was believing. I was a great mom and knew it deep down. I am a great mom and I am happy. I am content. It just took some wake up calls. It took life events to open my eyes to see the truth. My kids tell me everyday that they love me. And I love them. My husband is my love of my life, my joy and my earthly foundation. God is my stronghold and glad I have his grace. I have his love and forgiveness. He sees my heart. He knows my sorrow and He is always there for me. I am grateful. 

I hope you enjoyed my post. I know it is quite random. And a tad all over the place. But it is my hope I am able to help bring perspective to another, who might be going through this as well. 

Our little puddle jumper

When it rains, it pours and makes puddles.

It has been, a while…

It’s not like I have a lot of viewers or people banging on my e-mail door asking for a post. But I will go ahead and give myself an ultimatum because that is what I do. If you don’t put yourself in the corner occasionally, you become a naughty public menus. 

Okay. Where am I? I am in a coffee house with my laptop. First time ever blogging from a “trendy” spot. I am so cool. Well, not really but some people think I am. Am I suppose to be blogging? No. I am suppose to be working. Yes peeps, I have a job among my other duties as a mother raising my daughters which is the best job ever and is my main job still. There came a point where I knew, if I was to reach my goals, I needed to find another form on income. We are truly blessed and not hurting, but need to rethink the need verses want mentality that this generation has encountered. Both of my parents were born at or the end of the great depression. So, the thinking of my grand-parents was to not waste anything nor get rid of anything. I have a reminder of this downstairs in my garage and sun-room. It isn’t until now that I have been really okay with letting go of so many wonderful “collectibles”. E-bay is a great reminder why you should not hold onto Barbies with lopped of hair and beautician in training make up via Crayola. You should see my collection. Yikes. Vintage 1970’s with joints that move. Scary! Anyway. Next topic. 

So, like I was saying and got off topic like I usually do, I found a job doing insurance work from home. It pays well and is definitely challenging my brain. So, after waking at crack of dawn to prep the day with my sweet girls, once they are down for a nap or quiet alone time- I am working on E-mails and spreadsheets. Then, back to focusing on my girls development, and then the day is almost done, hubby home and back to working. Laundry and dishes get a smidge behind some days. But I try to keep it up and not leave to much for the hubs. It is a huge adjustment to keep up with it all and my brain is doing a huge reset after not working (using the other part of my brain very often) in corporate America since 2009. 

I am still back and forth about some avenues i’d like to take. We humans always fear failure or making a bad decision that could domino effect your entire world. It’s much easier to uproot when you are single. When you have small children and a career around your belt, you have a lot more anxiety because you have other mouths to feed other than your own. And diapers. Many diapers. I found that the things that I do have control with like organization and decorating help me feel accomplished in other areas I cannot fulfill yet. I hope to post what kind of organization, baking and decorating I have done. 

Thank you for reading my post. Enjoy the updated image of my two rain drop and dew drop playing.  

Have a happy, always blessed outlook life. And look at the clouds today. Or tomorrow. And find a fluffy sheep, prancing in a meadow. Or a turtle jumping over a dog. Whatever the clouds do, you find it. 

Right now I see a walrus skip roping. No, I am not on meds. You’d see it too…maybe. 

Bring out the groundhog!

For most of the region there has been snow, ice and horrible chills to the bone kind of wind. We on the other hand, in the south-east are at the last week of January and we have a high of 64 and have had temperatures above 50 degrees for several weeks. Did I mention it is monsoon season as well? Don’t get me wrong, we need the rain. We have had very low water counts during the summer putting us at the mercy of nearby puddles that tempt you to splash in them… oil slicked and all. So.  I say. let’s bring out the groundhog before groundhogs day and see what he thinks. No people. Not global warming. 1800’s had their warm winters too.

On another note. My girls are finally feeling a hint better even though they still seem to run a tad warmer than I like here and there.

What’s to come for 2012 posts.

• Fresh Ground Wheat and bread making moments
• More of my girls
• Dealing with debt
• Cooking and baking without white sugar…brave soul I am!
• Organization the OCD way
• Craftiness in so many ways
• Love of family
• Photography via Instagram
• Health in real wheat
• Managing being a mommy of two

At that- due to being a short post. I will post pictures, why? Because they make me happy and they hopefully will make you happy too!

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Awakening

Atlanta has been blessed with some wonderful sunlight from our orange sphere in our galaxy. We have sprung forward, and crawling to the official first day of Spring. Cherry trees, Forsythia, Crocus, Tulips and just about every other type of Spring flower has been teased these past few weeks with our warm weather then cooler weather. But now that it seems that warm is here, again. I thought I would share some photos of the garden and plants that are awakening.

From left to right: Cherry Tree, Bradford Pear, Tulip magnolia, Forsythia, Red Twig Dogwood, Hens and Chicks, Gold Mound Spirea and Wisteria (tree),

My yard is bursting with personality and begging for more. And so, I planted away this weekend. I went to our local hardware store and they had put several plants of interest on clearance… so of course, I had to buy them all! I purchased three Camellia shrubs. One is white with a burst of pink, deep red, and deep pink. These are a winter blooming shrub that really will help the landscape cheer up among all the Spring time blooming plants. I then purchased a Pinata Climbing Rose as well as a Queen Elizabeth Climbing Rose. My hope is that I will be planting my squash, pumpkins and carrots as soon as my husband and I find time and funds to build raised beds.

I hope you all have enjoyed your weather as much as I have. And if you are not quite there, I hope you find a warm spot on the floor next to your vent and imagine you are feeling a warm breeze from the south with love.

Toodles, thank you for visiting!

MAC

Dragonfly vs Damselfly

Dragonfly vs Damselfly

For those of you who are wondering, why “Damselfly Adventures”.

Here is why. I love dragonflies, and damselflies. Wait a minute, come again? Dragonflies and damselflies? Is there a difference or have you lost your mind? Yes, to both. There is a difference. I have always been fascinated by these zippy, elegant insects. One would always perch on my antenna of my car in my youth and it would bring a smile to my face and they still manage to bring a smile to my face. Now, back to the differences. These particular species can be identified very easily by their wings at rest. Dragonflies forewings and hindwings stay open at rest whereas Damselflies forewings and hindwings close together at rest. Dragonflies have thick bodies and are strong fliers yet the Damselflies have thin bodies and are weak fliers. The Dragonfly in the photo (taken by yours truly) above is a male Roseate Skimmer aka Dragonfly. These can be found in the southern regions of the United States and they take flight in Spring- Fall. I hope you can take time to smell the roses, or better yet… pond water? Because that is where you will find these beautiful insects in abundance.

May your Friday be full of delight and warm cozy weather. Because my feet feel like they have been in the freezer. I need warm thoughts. Good night!