Little things

Is it just me or does it feel like this year is flying by like crazy? My mind cannot comprehend that March is starting tomorrow. Is there a pause button somewhere?

I’ve been pretty overwhelmed with work lately, and the fact that it feels like the deadline for my PhD thesis is creeping closer is giving me a lot of stress. So even though I’m not necessarily getting a lot of knitting done, I am trying to find moments to knit some stitches. Just little moments where it does feel like time stops for just a bit, as I let myself be hypnotised by the rhythm of the needles.

But somehow I still let myself be stressed by the process as well. As much as I love things like instagram to follow what other knitters are getting up to, it’s also frustrating when it feels like sweaters are flying off needles left and right, and I’m just working on some plain stockinette socks. I started to feel like I had to make time to sit down and plan bigger projects. But the winding of all that yarn, the swatching, the planning, is all just a bit too much for me right now.

So I had a little chat with myself to remind me that if I’m forcing myself onto some knitting project, it completely bypasses the goal of why I’m a knitter in the first place. So for now I’ll happily continue with my simple sock projects, and if I find a day on which I have the energy to make bigger things again that would be great, but I’m not going to force myself to do so.

For those curious about the pics: the vanilla socks are being made with self striping sock yarn from Nicole C Mendez, the gray socks are in Spun Right Round sock yarn (bug jar) in the Wheathly pattern.

Snapshots of Riga

Sometimes there’s nothing like a spontaneous trip to an unfamiliar city. Last weekend I found myself in Riga, and my first visit to Latvia was so lovely that I’ll share with you some of the reason you should visit Riga.

You should most definitely go if you …

… love wandering and getting lost in cobblestone streets..

… if having drinks in the cellar of a place called ‘Black Magic’ speaks to you on a higher level..

… if the prospect of a Baltic winter doesn’t scare you off …

… if you want to admire magnificent art nouveau buildings …

… if big shiny golden domes on churches make you go ‘oooooh’ and ‘aaaaah’ …

But most of all, you need to get yourself to Riga if you want to knit like a Latvian (and buy all of the Latvian wool and mittens)…

And of course I could not leave one of the capitals of knitting empty handed…