Dances With Wool

 

Here is a selfie I took during my first day of work at Dances With Wool.

Unsurprisingly, I've been enjoying my new job SOOOOOO...very much!!! Debbie, the owner, and all of my co-workers have been so kind and welcoming.  The diverse skill set and mad skills of everyone is mind blowing.  I'll be working Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and one Saturday per month in addition to helping out at special events.  I usually also attend the morning meet ups before work starts on Tuesdays and Fridays.  

I am still working on Etsy everyday and assisting The Collectors Club with our virtual speakers series and I just started working with a new planning committee to organize upcoming functions and services at The Collectors Club's new location.  It isn't open to the public yet and we still have a lot of behind the scenes work to do so I'm not going to elaborate on it any further for now.  The main thing is that all of this work, in addition to also trying to get a functioning PTA going at Xena's new school has left me very little time for knitting.

That being said, I have finally finished my Rhinebeck Sweater but I'm going to wait until Rhinebeck to reveal it.  I started my Rhinebeck socks and plan to put some serious effort into them this weekend.  I finished a pair of socks for Xena that's she's been wearing so much that I haven't had time to block them or take photos and I'm about to finish a pair of toddler socks for an upcoming birthday party.  I am also almost finished with my Summer Vibes top which is also technically a Rhinebeck top, because I bought the yarn and kit the first time I ever attended Rhinebeck.  That's all for now.  I'm really looking forward to some M_F sweater weather!

Xena's first day of school with a new capelet!

Well, I had hoped I would have an opportunity to post sooner but it's been a very busy summer.  Last week, while Matt was overseeing his first public auction for his new auction house at GASS in Cleveland, OH, I took Xena camping for her first time at Pocahontas State Park.

It was hot and humid, in the mid-high 90s everyday, with a heat index of 100+ degrees F.  Gross!

So it should probably come as no surprise that we spent the majority of our time at the park's excellent waterpark.

There are a ton of different things to do at the park such as fishing, kayaking, canoeing and hiking but for us, it was worth it for just the waterpark alone.

We spent 5 or 6 hours there everyday!  Annoyingly, it doesn't open until 11AM but if it opened sooner, we certainly would've stayed even longer.

 

In preparation for school to start, Xena attended 2 half days of Kindergarten camp and an open house.

Continuing our tradition of making a poster to commemorate the first day of school out of an old LP cover, we spent the past weekend working on all sorts of arts and crafts.

Xena has been really into sewing and this year she wanted to sew her own poster.

I put my trusty hole puncher to use on the border and my old graffiti mom skills kicked into action on the lettering. 

I used a compass to punch holes into each letter.

Fingering weight yarn was perfect for detailing the letters.

I let Xena pick her stitching colors from my sock yarn stash.

It's no surprise that the first yarn that she picked was dyed by my favorite indie dyer ever, Amalia at Kindred Red.

 

This was a terrific indoor project to beat all of the extreme heat we've had lately.

Here is the finished poster.  Xena took it to the next level by bead-dazzling the border with a rainbow of Perler beads.

(Unsurprisingly) Matt slept in but I woke up at 5:30AM today to pack Xena's lunch and get ready for her first day.

 

Because it's been so hot and humid, I didn't expect Xena to wear a handknit sweater on her first day but she at least graciously modelled the pattern matching capelets I knit for her and her friend, June.

 

I used the first ever pattern that Amanda, the owner of Atelier, ever designed, #001 the Children's Capelet.  I knit one capelet in Lily and Pine Oak Bulky Surf's Up colorway and the other in Peace and Love.  I purchased this beautiful, fluffy 100% SWM yarn when I was visiting Vancouver, B.C. with Sankari last summer.

 

Xena loves wearing anything cape-like that she can quickly throw on over her head and easily whip off.

I slightly modified this pattern knitting the body for 12" (instead of 8") and working the rolling collar for 5-6" (instead of 4").  This can easily be modified to suit any body size or length preference for a child or adult.  There's also an aran weight version.  This is a super quick, beginner's level knit.  It can easily fly off your needles from start to finish in under a week.  I imagine some speed knitters could even finish it in a day.

After I dropped Xena off at school, I went for breakfast at Silver Diner.  It reminds me a lot of CA since offers so many healthy options like tempeh bacon and egg white omelets.

Now that Xena's in a school, I can happily announce that tomorrow, I will start my first day of training to work at my favorite LYS, Dances With Wool!!!  More details coming soon but if you know me, then you must really know just how excited I am for this new, fibertastic adventure to begin!