Space and Quiet

An extraordinary gift

Here in BC, intra-provincial travel restrictions lifted a few days ago, and my husband went to the hay farm to see how the cabin fared over the last ten months (read: he went to see if the water would turn on and to kick out the rodent squatters [OMG the rodents 😱]).

So the kid and I are home alone, for the first change to our domestic work/life/school experience in those ten months.

First, wow has he grown up. I mean, I knew this. I watched it happen, and noticed along the way. But being alone with him for long stretches for the first time in ages, it’s… well, it’s amazing. We’re just chillin’ and having fun; it’s been really lovely. He woke me up with a hug this morning, which is super out of character, so though he’d probably deny it and might not even notice, he’s feeling it too.

I didn’t think having him home would let me do what I usually do on the rare occasions when I have the place to myself for a few days. Usually, I take that time to sink deeply into the silence. There’s little I love more. It’s restorative and energizing.

Turns out, though, that ten months of everyone here all the time means I’m primed to find that level of deep peace even in small bits of time—when the kid’s at baseball practice, or at school, or asleep.

Yesterday, I sorted out my next weaving project. I did not anticipate that I would enjoy the pre-weaving parts of weaving as much as I do. Everyone talks about all the math (ugh) and the warping (ugh), but I absolutely love doing both of those things.

I’m starting my experimentations for my grand tallit-weaving project. Since I’ve found almost no information at all online about doing this (especially on a rigid heddle loom), I’m taking meticulous notes, and I will put the info up online so if anyone else starts searching around, at least they’ll find a place to start.

My first experiment is to use what I have: a ten-dent reed (meaning, it supports ten warp threads per inch in plain weave—the warp is the yarn you string onto the loom, over and under which you weave the weft), and two skeins of sock yarn I’ve had in my stash for a long time.

Advice online is to weave sock yarn at a slightly finer gauge than this, but I don’t have a heddle for that yet, and anyway, I want to know what this will produce.

So yesterday I did the math to sort out what I could make with 850 yards of sock yarn. This was surprisingly satisfying to do. I’m discovering I feel about weaving as I always have about crochet: I’ll do whatever I please, because I get it. I didn’t expect to feel this way about weaving, and I think it’s part of why I’ve been so obsessed with it.

Then after the kid when to bed, I prepared the warp. After I send this to you, I’ll finish the warp, then I’ll be all set to weave with the remaining yarn.

When I’ve finished this project, I’ll decided if the weave is too loose for my taste. In which case, I’ll wait for the 12.5-dent reed I ordered to come in, and I’ll use that with sock yarn to compare.

I’m grateful I’m finding this kind of peace; I’ve needed the psychological space, you know?

As I tidied up after applying the warp last night, I thought about wanting to read in bed before falling asleep. I’ve written for months and months about how I’ve struggled to get into almost any book. In casually considering this last night, I realized I’ve been thinking about how the author crafted the book. Every time I read a book, I was thinking about how it was written. What an absolute drag!

So last night, I opened a new book, I told myself to just read it and not think about it, dammit, and I enjoyed reading more than I have in ages and ages. I’m so relieved, and glad!

Onward!
Kim

PS Happy Father’s Day if you’re celebrating; and if you aren’t, I see you.

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Items of Note

• Publishing this crochet pattern felt so good. I love this designer, and I love this sweater, and I am making one.

• And I wrote about crochet for the first time in I don’t know how long ❤️.

• Speaking of crochet, these sure are adorable.

• A yarny collab I am here for.

• And speaking of sock-yarn weaving projects.

What I’m making: A woven stole and a crochet sweater.

What I’m watching: I don’t know. What should I watch?

What I’m reading: The Ten Thousand Doors of January, by Alix E. Harrow, which is the first first-chapter I’ve relaxed into in ages ❤️📖😎.

The kid and I are slowly reading The Wanderer, by Sharon Creech. It’s lovely.