I know, I know. The blog jumped from Jan 7 to Jan 23 with nothing in-between. While there weren’t any posts, I have been crafting an equal amount of knit and weave, with a lot of administrative schtuff mixed in, because we’re shifting into tax time. Yay tax time! (Did that sound happy? No?)

Weaving: So I’ve had a blast. I can’t lie. It’s so much fun, even though I’m not doing anything more than plain weave. I am someone that usually makes things in muted colors, and weaving has brought out my technicolor side.

The bath mat above came off the loom at 34″ x 27″, and after a first wash, shrunk to 29″ x 25″. I have yet to use it though; it’s sat folded on my desk so I can show it to anyone willing to listen to me drone on about weaving. 😉

I was not really happy with the warp colors after I put it on the loom, but after I began weaving, and the weft colors began interacting with the warp, I came to like it quite a bit. At this point I’ve used up most of my leftover cotton, so future cotton projects will be less randomized colors, and more planned out. I’m hoping to start some new washcloths after my current project.

Currently On The Loom:

My current project, if it works out the way I want it to, will be a long, wide multicolor shawl. I used several different shades of Red Heart Super Saver from existing stash for the warp, and at the last minute decided to use a variegated yarn for the weft that also has some of the same colors. I’m hoping the wrap will measure about 6′ long once off the loom. I might hem this project instead of using fringe, but I’ll save that decision until it’s finished. After another complicated warp session (I’m using the full 32″ of the loom with this one, and my 7.5 dent heddle), the weaving is moving very quickly with this one.

I want my next acrylic project to be something in the blues/greens/teal spectrum. I may actually have to yarn shop for that one.

Just in case the question is out there: I use a lot of acrylic yarn. I have an allergy to most animal fibers, which has limited the yarns I can use for knitting, and now weaving. Occasionally I can find a superwash wool that if I load up on antihistamines, I can tolerate. But those yarns have been few and far between. Many people tend to think acrylic is “lesser” yarn, and I completely disagree. Acrylic yarn has allowed me to knit and crochet not just for myself, but extensively for charity. I would love to be able to play with so much of the yarn out there, and I am truly sad I can’t use most of the Knit Picks line or the hand dyed or spun that friends like to use. But I become an itchy, blotchy mess, with ear and throat irritation with most of it. So acrylic and cotton are my friends. 🙂

Other than the projects above, I’ve been knitting a little each day, trying to build up some Etsy inventory. I’ve been streaming a Tuesday and Thursdays. I’ve at least poked at tax prep, but I’m trying not to start my anxiety spiral with that just yet.

One bright spot last week was lunch out with my former bosses from my previous jobby job. The three of us had not met up since before 2018, and after two failed attempts to meet up post covid vaccines, we chanced a meal together at an Indian restaurant near our old office. It was my first sit-down meal at a restaurant since the pandemic began, and I was a bit apprehensive about this, but it felt like old times once we all arrived and were seated. The restaurant was mostly empty, so we had a corner table to ourselves with great service, and had an enjoyable catch up over absolutely delicious food. The conversation bounced around between Covid, what we’ve all been up to, business, education, our families, and the state of things/current events. As they had to get back to their offices, we all parted about 90 minutes later, agreeing that we will not wait another 4 years to meet up. It was also the one sunny day out of last week, so the hour drive to/from was enjoyable. It was an afternoon out I didn’t realize I needed. And I was very happy to see old friends.

Last week was also my official “get back to working out” week. I’ve been coasting on the fitness/weight loss front. I stopped doing my afternoon walks, and couldn’t seem to push myself back on track. So last week I started front loading my day with 30-minutes of stretching and strength training. I seem to be moving around more with weaving because I currently stand to weave (vs. sitting and knitting all day), but I wasn’t getting enough movement. I had a little less desire to workout today for week #2, but I pushed myself and maybe with a little more sleep tonight, I might have slightly better results and less resistance tomorrow.

I have a lot of plans for the week that I hope to complete. I’m going to drag out the iPad and noodle around with some art ideas — maybe something I can work on in the evenings after dinner. I’m waiting for some cotton yarn to arrive, which will be my next loom project. I’m trying to build more focus time for affirmations/meditation and to work on mindset (that’s probably its own post, to be honest), and I’m trying to read and work on correcting limiting beliefs, which is a bit more complicated than I like to admit. So it’s another full week.

I hope if you’ve read this far that your week is off to a good start. 🌞
-H