28 November 2007

Winter cold, tea and wool

Yep, winter has arrived. We have snow on the ground and temperatures between -15 and -20 most days, cooler at night. The stock tank heater has been installed, we've gone through nearly three bales of hay already, and the trucks are complaining about starting on chilly mornings ... as am I. Somehow I always have much less energy in the winter - the darkness and chill seems to drain me of strength.

Still, a mug of tea for the drive to town does wonders to improve one's morning, I have discovered, as does the heated seat warmer that Princess Girl and Dinosaur Boy gave to me as thanks for chauffeuring them to and from school.

In the evenings, I like to do my spinning or knitting, as the warmth of the wool is somehow warming to more than just my hands. I have done more experimentation with Kool-Aid and wool dyeing, and have managed to come up with a neat variegated skein of greens, browns and beiges that reminds me of Vancouver Island, as well as more pink (no matter how hard I try, things seem to end up shockingly pink).

I've been knitting up some new projects, too: I found a lovely set of fingerless gloves and a beautiful cabled sweater to make from some lovely blue wool that my parents brought back for me from a trip they took to PEI a few years back. It's been waiting for just the right pattern to come along, and so far, I'm pleased with how it looks!

I think I'll go work on it some more right now, in fact.

2 comments:

  1. Anonymous9:29 pm

    Wow! Don't think we will see it that cold in Texas all winter. I have worn a sweatshirt once or twice in the last few weeks. I love to hear about what you are doing with the wool and will look forward to pictures of your projects.

    Love you, AC

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  2. Anonymous9:08 am

    I see the Cunningham love of tea has been passed down!
    I love doing cable patterns and the sweater looks really cool! The one thing I really can't do well is the fair isle stuff. I did sweaters with Winnie the Pooh and horses and even a Blue Jay baseball motif....none turned out well and they were a pain to do. I'll keep checking your links to see if there is an easy way to do that style. Look forward to seeing your finished cable sweater.
    Enjoy
    Sharon

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