There have been a lot of things going on in the last couple of months, and through better and worse I have been dedicating much of my crafting time to the first pattern I've ever attempted, Alyeska by Caitlin Hunter of Boyland Knitworks.  

The best part is that I wasn't even going to do this sweater at first.  I thought it was beautiful but having previously quite an aversion to knitting patterns (note this being my first pattern work, despite you hearing about the Lunar Phase MKAL first) I assumed that I would admire it on Instagram and pursue it no further.

The influence of my magnificent crafting friend and accomplice, Alexis, is the dear soul who drove me to taking the plunge, and by the plunge I mean she had me come along to Starlight Knitting Society where they had kits on sale and a demo version on display for viewing and cat-hand-scrunching pleasure.  While I didn't buy a kit then, I knew that I would have to make Alyeska.

I went home and began to plot.  I gathered some yarn to dye for the orange and white-speckled, and then bought the brown and charcoal yarn to make up the rest.  

To be totally honest with you, in the past when I've read knitting patterns I'd look at about 4 rows of instructions and then promptly get annoyed that it was in shorthand that I didn't understand and would walk away.  I am the same person who will watch Youtubers I like play a game of UNO on xbox for nearly 3 hours and be perfectly content.  I'm not sure why knitting patterns got none of my patience in  the past, but I was effectively a petulant child when it came to not understanding patterns.  That is, until Alyeska came along. 

There's something about how all of these colours started coming together, having one of my dearest friends working on it alongside me, and having this strange obsession of starting this project in Montana (back in the end of February) that created an eagerness to learn and not feel frustrated that I didn't already know how to do everything.  

Plus the colour work made everything feel like it was knitting up so much more quickly.  I love checklists and marking things as complete, so working the chart made it possible to see the very real progress I was making.  I love simple and straight forward designs, but I have a tendency to get bored if I work on them too long because doing the same thing over and over again can make me feel like I'm going nowhere.  

With Alyeska the progress felt more tangible.  Before I knew it I had a super cute crop top that I had to talk myself out of leaving like this, because I am a menace and thought it might be fun to leave it just like the picture below (with a little ribbing at the bottom of course because I'm not a total monster).

But I (sort of) knew that was silly and that I would be happier to see the project fully through.  In no time the body was complete and it was on to the sleeves.  

And yes, I'm glad it's not a crop top.  Sort of. ;)

The sleeves came together quickly, which was good and bad because I got halfway through on both only to find out I needed to make the next size up for my sleeves and had to tear it back to where I started and then try again.  

Silver lining:  I needed bigger sleeves because of my biceps being too big for the x-small sleeves.  Which is definitely something I take a lot of pride in!

I decided for the final detail of the sweater I would stray from the pattern a bit- the cuffs are supposed to be only 1" but I far prefer long cuffs, so I did several inches of cuff.  Otherwise though, I successfully followed the pattern all the way through.

No tantrums, just glowing tears of joy to have seen this remarkable project through.  The sweater that I have now had numerous dreams over and couldn't be more happy to be able to wear.

In fact, a friend who is deeply dear to my heart is now the official godparent of this sweater because let's face it, while the miracle of childbirth is unparalleled and rightly so, this sweater is a treasured piece of my soul brought to life.  If something happens to me, I need to know it will be taken care of and loved by someone who understands what it took to get here.  

Obviously with the posts from the Lunar Phase MKAL I've been working on other patterns now, and have broken free from the odd impatience I had, and I plan to do more of Boyland Knitworks' patterns because clearly Caitlin Hunter is a magnificent genius who works hard to make amazing patterns and I need more of that on my needles and in my closet.

Until next time- stay sweet, stay crafty, and stay tuned.

One of the many perks of being an Oregonian is being close to the Flock and Fiber Festival in Canby, OR.  Magnificent vendors come from all over to sell their beautiful creations and collectings.  It's a magical weekend full of so many of the reasons I love this brilliant crafty community.  

I was joined by two delightful friends of mine who are also quite enamored with this sweet world of creativity and absurdly adorable animals.

I started the day with the brunch of champions -- a rice and lamb stuffed green pepper that made my heart melt.  It, like the rest of the Festival, was one of those things that went far above my greatest expectations of what it would be like.  Even writing this makes me hungry for more.

After the excellent food, we set out to discover all of the wonders the festival had in store for us.

We ventured across many booths, made sounds that would make any non-crafters slightly uncomfortable, and picked out things that we simply couldn't leave without.

Our adventures also took us to the barn where all of the sheep, llamas, and alpacas were housed.

I'm sad to say that no one let me steal their alpacas.

I was heartbroken.

However, that heartbreak was quickly eased as I explored the fiber lot, which was the area where people who didn't have booths set up could sell fleeces.  There were many lovely things to behold, and I happened across one of the loveliest of them all.  

A couple was selling these massive bags for $5 each.  Oh yeah, I didn't think it was real at first either.

They recently had gone through a health scare that lead to some much needed recovery time and the need to focus on their other business instead of selling their alpacas' fiber.  They were sweet and engaging, and I of course bought 5 bags because I know what moderation is.  Before you laugh, there were at least 20 bags of fiber, and I resisted buying more.  That has to count for something, right?

I made my way back to where my companions were having lunch and we all had a good laugh when we caught each other’s eyes as I hefted around these five absurdly large bags of fiber.  We quickly dropped off the load at the car; I would be getting my workout when I carried these things to my front door.

We came back and decided to walk through the sheltered portion of the festival where I had the luck to run into two of the women that helped inspire me to continue being a part of this crafty world.  We chatted for a while and exchanged hugs, and I just couldn't resist the urge to buy one of the many gorgeous rovings they had for sale.

To top off the day we visited the angora rabbits.  It's funny how noble and dignified these rabbits look as little kids positively squeal with delight over how cute they are.  

My comrades and I decided that these rabbits in particular looked like wise sages that would only speak in riddles and rarely regard anyone but each other (we’re creative types).

The festival brought about many joys, however towards the end of our travels, we were all tired and ready to simply sit back at home and bask in the glow of the splendid things we found.

The thing I was most impressed about in this whole adventure was that people of all ages and genders were happy to be there.  I didn't see one grumpy husband or a single fussing kid being dragged around.  Everyone was engaged in the activities or just enjoying the textures, colours, and smells, and it was heart-warming in a way I'm not skilled enough to put into words.  So often I've seen some glum person that looks resentful and bored at events like this, and it makes me sad -- both because it's no fun to feel out of place, but also because they can't seem to be happy for the person they're with that enjoys this.  It was magical to see so many people just happy to be somewhere that I've always considered fun and exciting.  People were kind and talkative to complete strangers, and it makes this massive community feel like it's open to everyone. It makes it a place that people can feel at home.

Thank you for listening to my adventure.  Stay sweet, stay crafty, and stay tuned.