Friday Faves / vol. 25
Hellooo!!
The solstice has come and gone and the days are getting longer little by little, which means it’s that time of year when I try to remind myself that my New Year started in September, not January. Is this the time of year to be setting goals and starting new habits? NO! This is the time of year to cosy up with a cup of tea and some knitting or hand stitching by the fire, eat cookies, and wear all of the sweaters and knitted socks I worked so hard on the rest of the year. I invite you to join me.
With our hard-earned COVID immunity (thanks to the bout that hit our household in November) Hugo and I flew to Seattle last week to see my family for an early Christmas celebration. We were happy to have a few sunny days amidst the usual dark/damp PNW weather offerings to head to the zoo and out on some hikes with my parents and my sister Elli and her family. We were back in time for Christmas Eve, so I played my violin for the evening Christmas Eve service and we opened presents at home on Christmas morning.
After some hemming and hawing over my studio space (see the previous edition of Friday Faves for more on that), I’ve decided to let the space go. Despite what I said in the first paragraph, I think it’s time for a fresh start with my studio in 2024. I haven’t found a new space yet, but I’m still looking and I’m excited to see what will happen. Your guess is as good as mine.
In the meantime, I do have a couple of months left in the space, so I’m offering a couple of garment workshops (Garnet! Rose!) and sewing meetups in the studio if you’d like to come and sew with me. You can find the details in this Sew Ann Arbor Newsletter if you’re interested. Rumor has it there will also be a Studio Sale. Stay tuned.
Here’s what else I’ve been up to…
reading: After some deliberating over whether to finish it or not, I did manage to read the rest of Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff, which grew on me a bit as I read, I suppose. Still, not my most favorite read of the year. Oh well. On the other hand, The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride was absolutely RIVETING and I could not put it down. Highly recommend!!
stitching: …or at least Future Me will be, because bought myself a Miniature Rhino 2024 Pattern Club Subscription for Christmas. You get four embroidery kits mailed to you throughout the year and I can’t wait (if you want one, they haven’t sold out yet - shop link here)
knitting: I finished an adorable pair of Hop Skip and Jump socks for Hugo (above). He picked out the yarn from Spun and the design and I just love those little bobbles. I also knit up a red quick beanie — see if you can spot it below — and cast on a Gr8 Gingham Raglan (below) with some Cashmere Merino Bloom and Good Wool from Purl Soho that I bought along with many, many other skeins of yarn (ack!) post-Thanksgiving in anticipation of the winter sweater knitting season.
writing: notes of thanks and other greetings on a beautiful set of landscape notecards that my dear friend and artist Megan Roseman made from her original watercolor paintings and now sells in her shop. I always struggle to get my kiddos to write thank you notes for their Christmas gifts, but it’s a practice I want them to learn and remember. BTW, Megan’s offering free shipping for a short time, if you’d like a set of your own (card set linked here).
sewing: I finished a Gemma Top out of scraps (I posted a WIP pic here) and have been wearing it over a Jade Tee as it’s not exactly tank top weather right now. More pics to come here on the blog soon, I promise!
New Year’s Eve is in just a couple of days, so I’ll take this opportunity to wish you a Happy New Year! Thank you for joining me here for my weird little ramblings. And to each and every one of you who sent me an email, left a comment, purchased a pattern, or gave me some other form of encouragement this year, an extra big thank you and hugs from me to you.
xo,
Rae
PS. Just a few more days to save 50% on Ruby when you purchase Garnet in my shop, plus all of my print patterns will be increasing in price on January 1, 2024, so if you want to snag one at $20/$14 (adult/kid), now’s your chance before the prices go up!!
A few pics from our trip to Seattle:
{see all of my Friday Faves here}