Retirement is . . . . . . . . glorious

OK, so I'm really enjoying retirement. I had to celebrate Monday of course as the first Monday of retirement, then of course that went into celebrating the first Tuesday. Well, you get the idea.  I don't feel rushed, that seems to be the main difference. I don't worry that I've spent too much time in my studio, or too much time on the computer. I do take a break every now and then and clean something in the kitchen or somewhere else in the house. :-)

I finished the lapghan (or baby blanket) that I blogged about here. I find smaller squares are easier to work with rather than holding a large blanket as it's being knit or crochet. I also find it faster for some reason, probably just my mind playing tricks on me.  However, I did seem to get through these blocks pretty quickly.  I don't mind seaming as I love to sew anyway, so seaming the squares together is a quiet time for me and I enjoy it.  I mostly used Mandela yarn, although I did insert a couple of handspun blocks and 1 block using multi-color sock yarn.  Most all of the blocks, except for 1, are crocheted in the Up & Down stitch from the Crochet Dictionary.  The exception is one yellow block crocheted in the moss stitch.

This was a fun project and I love the bright colors. I let the yarn dictate the squares.  Mandela is multi-colored so when one color ended and it was mid-block, I didn't care, I just kept going.

 

I may have mentioned in an earlier post that I purchased a weaving loom. Yes, I already had the Rigid Heddle but I wanted to expand my weaving skills. I did a lot of research into what I wanted. Table loom or floor loom. back and forth I went. It's not a cheap purchase so I wanted to make sure I bought the right one for me now and be able to grow into.  I was leaning towards a floor loom but finally opted for a table loom. 5 years from now if I see that I have really taken to weaving, which I probably will, I will consider a floor loom at that time.  I don't mind the hand toggles at the moment and after spending a weekend taking a weaving class at the Woolery and using a Baby Wolf Pup, I'm really enjoying my hand toggles.

 This is a picture of the loom (with Ikea cart) sitting in a still empty new studio.

While the studio is still empty, I can move the loom near the window on a cloudy day and enjoy my view of the farm.













I finished playing with the sampling and moved on to an actual planned project.  This one is using 5 shafts and it's the 5/1 Spot Lace Diamonds from the Weaver's Idea Book, page 94.  This is a scarf which I've now finished, just need to full it and block it a little.  Finished pic to come later.

So one of my early challenges was listening to my audiobooks, which I love to do. The mp3 players I have were all tethered to wired earbuds. The problem with earbuds is that it secluded me from hearing everything else.  When the DH would come in from outside, he would be calling for me and I couldn't hear him. The small portable speakers (aka tinny) I had in the past also had to be wired and therefore had to be near me and that was a nuisance.  So, I wanted a little bit bigger speaker that could sit off in the corner but I wanted my mp3 close so I could pause it if DH came into the house. So, I found this watch looking item on Amazon that serves as both watch, mp3 players, and voice recorder. I did some research on the best performing portable speakers and the JBL scored high.  I opted for the JBL Flip 4. So I bought both from Amazon and I love them. They paired up easily, the sound for the audiobook is perfect and the sound playing music just rocks! This was a good purchase and I know that it will be perfect in the studio once it's completed.  But for now, I can listen with my mp3 watch and if I need to go into the other room, I can bring the speaker with me.  Happy!!