Shawls are perfect background knitting. No need to try anything on, no ripping up sleeves because they fit wrong. No swatching to get the right gauge. Just knit.

This one was lovely to knit. The yarn was super soft and cosy, and the pattern was interesting. Simply brioche knitting all the way, with two increases on every right-side row, randomly placed. Not too much thinking, but also not completely mindless. Perfect for commuting, meetings, watching TV etc.

The only bad thing about it is that I ran out of yarn so I had to stop.

Sun, hitting the edge of the pile of snow I’ve shovelled away from the outside stairs.

Nysse gets cat-quality tuna as “filler food” when he’s begging for more food even after he’s been served his three measures of kibble for the day, or between meals. If he’s hungry for real, he’ll eat the tuna. If he’s just feeling like having a snack, then he ignores it.

These cans are all of human-quality tuna, though. Ingrid eats them almost daily because it’s an easy and tasty way to get more protein in, for building muscle.

It’s a bit chilly out there. And in some corners in here as well.

A moment of sunshine, when the sun reaches between the neighbours’ trees and houses, and tracks in the snow.

I’ve finished knitting the sweater and the cardigan and the shawl (although the latter two are waiting for the details before I post photos and finally call them done) which means I don’t have a single major knitting project ongoing.

Before I can start a new project, I’m going to need more yarn, and the sewing & crafts fair seems like the best solution to that. Buying online seems risky, since I’m picky about my yarns. The spring sewing fair is coming up in about a month, so I’ll hold out until then and make do with smaller projects in the meantime, with yarns from my stash.

Right now: another pair of wrist warmers. The first ones I did in sock yarn just to have something, but now I wish I’d picked something softer. I’m making this new pair in an alpaca yarn that I found in my yarn drawer. On the plus side: super soft. On the minus side: it’s black and very fine, which makes it difficult to see what I’m doing. I can see the difference between knits and purls, but counting rows is hard. Good thing I’m not doing anything fancy, just plain ribbing.

The piano recital series continues. Piotr Anderszewski, playing Bach, Szymanowski, Bartók and more Bach.

Ingrid will turn 18 this year, so she’s part of the cohort of young people who have to register with the Conscription Agency. There was a whole long online survey for her to fill out, with questions about everything from health and physical fitness to what her grades at school are like. And about her willingness to do military service, which was the hardest question of them all. She kept vacillating back and forth, and finally submitted a number in the middle of the range, I believe. Now there will be two months of waiting to see if she will be called to muster.

Embroidery club. Didn’t remember to take a photo of what we were doing, but here’s a detail from a piece of embroidered artwork that was hanging on the wall at the venue.

This is the best part of the embroidery club – seeing other people’s work up close, and being inspired by work that is so different from anything I myself have done. Of course it’s also nice to get a nudge every other week to do some stitching, and to have company while doing so.

I’ve been to a local “knitting café” a couple of times, but never got hooked. I figured out why, after some time: I don’t enjoy hanging out with people I don’t know and won’t have a chance to get to know either. At the knit café it’s a crowd of new, random people every time. Some might come back, but overall it’s mostly strangers. The embroidery club on the other hand is folks I know.

I’m finished with the blingy skirt, and it came out really nice.

Front panel:

Back panel:

Side view:

Lots of different pieces with different styles.

This is the one I did last, when I was running out of ideas. A bit of an afterthought, and yet it turned out to be Adrian’s favourite.

This piece is the only reminder of the silk fabric that inspired the colour scheme.

Eric liked the latticework designs best.

Some are inspired by archaic Nordic decorations, like old Estonian embroidery and Swedish rock carvings.

Some focus on particular stitches, such as French knots…

… and variations on chain stitch.