June 2018

June Knits in the Garden  2018

People Knit. Knitting is a great hobby. You don't need a special place to knit. You can do it on the road, on the beach, at home in front of the TV, in the garden ... 

Click on image to see where people knit

 Shall We Shawl ?  2017

Yarn
I bought this yarn at this year's Knitters' Frolic in Toronto. Look at these cakes! Aren't they beautiful! The yarn is unique. Truly one-of-a-kind. "...gobstopper is all about unique, hand-dyed gradients, created with equal parts inspiration and happy accident. Each cake is its own quirky blend of colours, creating lively gradients that shift with every stitch. Brought to you from the colour-obsessed brain of a hypothesis muppet whose favourite question is “What would happen if…?”
Ideas 
There were many shawls on display. Temptation to buy lots of yarn was huge! But ... I ended up with one 'cake' of this gorgeous hand- dyed colour changing yarn.
Design
The design is simple: Stockinette stitch and crocheted decorative border to provide stability and allow the knitted edge to lie flat. Needle size 3,5 mm

Colorwork
There are many shapes of shawls: round, square, cowls, wraps ... you name it! I wanted a triangular one, and I wanted it to be long. Colour work was done by the yarn - it was dyed this way. The colour palette itself is one of my favourite: tints of blue - and yellow-greens. Yarn: Glowing Goose 50% alpaca, 25% silk, 25% linen,

Shall we Shawl?
"The weather in June may be a write-off, but good news – the rest of the summer looks like less rain and more sun."
Toronto Sun, June 27th, 2017. The shawl turned out to be pretty useful in June. Hopefully, the summer will be good, and hopefully, I will be wearing my shawl anyways :-)  am, actually, knitting another one! Happy Knitting!

Gardens and Roses 2016

Blooming Bag
Gardens are blooming in June. So is my purse. I made it in 2009 and never included it in my website ... except for putting it on the Home Page. The pattern is from the Crochet Today 2009 Magazine. I used three shades of pink and purple, and also added some blue and yellow to make it more colorful. They are gorgeous!
Have a gorgeous summer and happy colourful knitting! 



 

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​Fly, Butterfly, Fly   2015

Butterflies
May the wings of the butterfly kiss the sun
And find your shoulder to light on,
To bring you luck, happiness and riches
Today, tomorrow and beyond.
~Irish Blessing

Flying Flowers
The butterfly is a flying flower,
The flower a tethered butterfly.
~Ponce Denis Écouchard Lebrun

'Butterfly Quotes'
No one can do it for you, choose to use your wings.
Life is like a butterfly – You go through changes before you become something beautiful.
 
Everything in your life is there as a vehicle for your transformation. Use it.

​Like a butterfly evolving, we must love each stage we pass through. Be not judgmental of yourself. You are becoming a wondrous butterfly.

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use
your
wings

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Summer Gardens   2014    Where do spring and summer meet? In the garden!

Some quotes about gardens to start with:
"Coffee. Garden. Coffee. Does a good morning need anything else?" ~Betsy Cañas Garmon
 "In gardens, beauty is a by-product. The main business is sex and death." ~Sam Llewelyn
 "The greatest gift of the garden is the restoration of the five senses." ~Hanna Rion
 "One of the most delightful things about a garden is the anticipation it provides." ~W.E. Johns
Bloom where you are planted. ~Author Unknown
And finally, a quote from The Signature of All Things (so far my favourite book this year) by Elizabeth Gilbert, the author of  Eat.Pray.Love “Beauty is not required. Beauty is accuracy's distraction.” I am not a garderner, but I like gardens. Who doesn't?

Mapas y Mariposas  2014
​Mapas y Mariposas is a series of change-inspired cards. Change in location, seasons, people, y mucho más! I dared to tear (!!) the cover and some pages of La Metamorfosis by Kafka bought at the local flea market (and apparently previously borrowed and not returned by someone from la biblioteca local :-). The rest is maps, paper, fabric and yarn, and quotes about change from the internet. And, of course, la mariposa (as a symbol of transformation) is the focus of each card.That's what happens when your schedule is changed, and you have too much time on your hands :-)

There is nothing permanent except change.
Change happens...
"Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts." Arnold Bennett
Change is a process, not an event
Be the Change
"Change, like sunshine, can be a friend or a foe, a blessing or a curse, a dawn or a dusk." William Arthur Ward
When in doubt, choose change "Very often a change of self is needed more than a change of scene." A.C. Benson

June Garden Knits  2013

Spring Inspired Summer Dress 
Our Roof Garden is beautiful in June. It still has this fresh delight of spring, and summer colors are flourishing. One of the best places to knit too. This spring-inspired summer crochet dress is made of cotton. I started it on March Break in Florida Palm Beach Gardens and finished in Toronto.

Colors The combination of purple and green is so classy spring and northerly summer-like to me. I injected some sort of Florida orange into the arm-hole and low neck finishing. The edging is pretty simple, but the decollete looks pretty charmante :-) Back neckline is V-shaped as well.

Pattern. The dress is made with the simple double crochet stitch. I improvised with the purple stripe pattern. I wanted  something lace-like, airy and light. The pattern for the lower part was borrowed from one of the knitting magazines.Browsing the Internet looking for knit and crochet ideas,  you can come accross lots of "Knit news" - like what "other" people knit ... See the link below.

Blooming June 
My daughters have modelled this dress for me, but the dress itself is not to their taste. Too retro maybe ... But I guess I am one of those "contemporary crochet enthusiasts exploring new avenues for creative expressions and ( :-)) creating their own special kind of couture with their hooks." (Sensual Crochet, Amy Swenson). I've enjoyed the process as usual. I've read (listented to, actually) several (audio) books while making it. This project is over. Now I can smell the flowers :-) .... start a new book and knit something else.

​June: Knit Happens 2012

Summer Knits
This top was made 30years ago. Still looks as good as new! It doesn't fit me though. Yarn: 100% Cotton. Crochet. 
Knit happened 1981, Latvia, Urmala 
I couldn't recall when I made it till I found this photo dated 1981... Sorry for the poor quality. It was a slide which my husband converted into a digital picture a couple of weeks ago. Time flies... and knit did happen... 
Summer Purse
This knit happened last year in Aruba. Same yarn - 100% cotton. Crochet.

Knitting in June 2010

The only thing I made in June was this gorgeous scarf. It's made of the  Japanese yarn called habu. It's a cotton but feels like paper. This   particular habu yarn is called "Gima"  which means "fake linen" in Japanese. This 100% cotton yarn knitted up into an airy fabric that feels crisp and fresh. The scarf stretches and can also be a belt and a bandana.

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