Words and Wool

It's time for a knitting update! Last you knew I was working hard on my Mondo Cardi. But, since then, I have ripped it all out and started over with this beautiful pattern -- the Ballyshannon.

My gauge for the Mondo Cardi was right on but somehow the sweater came out far too huge! I just would never have worn it. Possibly I chose the wrong size and should have chosen a smaller size and blocked certain parts of it to fit. Also, in order to get the right gauge I was knitting on smaller needles and so the yarn was being knit too thickly for itself.

 I added to my acorn bunting over fall break. I stitched up a bunch of wool leaves one day while a friend was visiting and they were the perfect addition.

Also over fall break I finally put together a rose tea cozy for my own use!

I started sewing knitting pouches out of some of my plaid fabric.

I'm pretty excited with how they turned out! 

 Several are now available in my Etsy shop and I have lots more cut out!

I also put a few tea cozies in my shop!

Now there is a red one and a pink one to choose from!

As for book news, the most exciting thing is that my mom is now a published illustrator!!! The book she illustrated, George, is now out! Isn't the cover beautiful?!

The only way to obtain books at this point is to contact the author via her website.

Other books read recently:

Contentment: The Secret to a Lasting Calm by Richard Swenson was an excellent and challenging book on the subject of contentment -- not just contentment with material things but with relationships, hardships, limitations, etc. One little caveat: the author loves to study the history through time of these types of things and so if you get bogged down in his chapter on the history of contentment, just skip it and head on to the next chapter.

Jane and Prudence by Barbara Pym. I haven't read Pym in awhile but she really is delightful: easy-going, British, everyday sorts of stories. I enjoyed this because Jane is a minister's wife, although not especially suited to that role it seemed. I did laugh because the book starts in Oxford, which is where all the books I seem to read lately take place!

A City of Bells by Elizabeth Goudge is another easy British read from about a century ago. I read it because I want to read its sequel at Christmas time.

Forever Music: A Tribute to the Gift of Creativity by Edith Schaeffer. I've only read one or two of Edith's books before so wanted to see what she had to say on music and creativity. There was a bit of "wading" to do in the book but in the end I enjoyed much of it and was challenged at how important it is to communicate ideas to children and to fill their lives with lots of exposure to good art forms.


A Severe Mercy by Sheldon Vanauken was a book I found on my shelf and I was intrigued because it contained many letters from C. S. Lewis. What do you know? This book partly takes place in Oxford! Of course! The book chronicles the love story of a young couple just before WWII and their eventual coming to faith at Oxford and then the horrendous trial of terminal illness that they must face. They befriend C. S. Lewis and he is a sort of mentor to them through the years.

A Life Drawing: Recollections of an Illustrator by Shirley Hughes is a beautiful collection of art and the autobiography of my very favorite living children's illustrator (other than my mom :). I loved reading this book and watching how Hughes' art developed over time and what things influenced her career. I would love to one day have talent like hers.

I think that's it for this week! You can find more ideas over at Ginny's Yarn A Long.

Please note: this post contains affiliate links.