Did you see the eclipse on Wednesday? I have been loving all the excitement and watching kids locally make pinhole cameras with cereal boxes - we set up a little projection screen outside our house with whiteboard and a colander and it worked really well. No photos though as I was just trying to appreciate it rather than document it.
I did find all the social media posts around it rather overwhelming though - combined with a new moon and meteor shower it seemed as though everything was suddenly portentous and significance-laden. I started to feel the pressure to journal everything, set intentions (or not), meditate, be aware…
It all started to feel a bit over-hyped and detracted from the massive, awe-inspiring event that an eclipse is. A huge lump of rock in space getting between us and the sun - and casting a visible shadow across the surface of our own planet. You don’t need special glasses from Amazon to appreciate the wonder in that.
This post from Nelly Bryce of Journaling Wild neatly summed up the overwhelm I felt.
There was excitement in the knitting world this week with the launch of a new knitting magazine - reviewed here by the lovely Modern Miss Marple. Purl Magazine is available in a print version (with digital access included) or as digital only. I opted for the latter as shipping costs from the US are prohibitive - plus I am trying to keep my carbon footprint down.
I’ve only had time for a quick look through but it looks wonderfully in-depth and has some really authorative knitting voices - Woolly Wormhead, Patty Lyons, Kate Atherley and many others. It is really refreshing to see a knitting publication focused on technical aspects of the craft - the whole issue is devoted to the humble cast on - and I’m looking forward to seeing how it develops.
It’s also priced very reasonably - $30 for an annual digital subscription to the UK will get you 4 copies - bargain!!
☀️ I am very much enjoying re-reading Dune by Frank Herbert. I last read it as a teen so I had forgotten a lot of the details. Reading about the water saving habits of the Fremen and water as a currency does hit a little harder now though - writing this from draught-hit southern England.
☀️ Speaking of which, this seems like a good time to mention my newly-completed Temperature Blanket panel for July. I think it speaks for itself really. With the exception of those two, cooler green days at the beginning of the month it really does highlight the unbroken hot weather. I’m currently on Day 10 of August and I can tell you that it doesn’t look much different.
☀️ Peppermint foot lotion from Lush - enough said in this heat. I’ve recently rekindled my love for Lush products, although the scent of the store can be a little overwhelming I love the fact that you can take all your packaging back for recycling and the staff are hard to beat for their genuine enthusiasm.
☀️ If you suffer from ladders between your stitches when working on DPNs - these tips might help.
☀️ I haven’t felt like casting on much this week but I have been giving my stash a gentle root through - it’s always surprising to me how much I unearth when I do this - and how quickly I genuinely forget what I have. Part of my intention for this year is to use up what I have first before buying new - but I can’t do that if I have forgotten 🤣I’m definitely an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ person. But short of having all my yarn on permanent display around the house I don’t foresee an immediate solution.
🎂 As it’s my 55th birthday on Saturday I am currently offering a massive 55% discount on an annual membership to the Everyday Knitter Substack.
If you have been on the fence about joining this is a great time to sign up and benefit from a big reduction in your first year’s membership. As a member you get 5 or 6 free patterns per year so your membership will pay for itself, plus all the other extras we have scattered throughout the year. You can read about the benefits of membership here.
Whatever you are up to this weekend I hope you have a good one - I predict a strong chance of knitting for me. Hopefully with cake.
Comments
Nothing yet. Say the first thing.
Sign in to join the conversation.