WIP Wednesday - 1/24/2018

This project is vexing me. 

It's been OTN for quite a while and you see it now in its present state. I tried it on the other day, and am not confident that it will fit when completed. Of course, I didn't work a gauge swatch. I may have been optimistic in picking a size too small for me. I figured that the lacy nature of the pattern would open up enough. And, even if I were to start over, yet again, I don't have another skein of yarn to make a bigger size. As it stands now, the sleeves may need to be shorter than I like.

Then, there's the Volver scarf.

I'm at the halfway point.

Since neither of these two projects have a due date, I started another shawl.

It's the Jodi, by Joji Locatelli. I'm trying to use stash People! It's a three color shawl, and I know I'm going to use this cream and a grey color. I haven't decided on the third yet.

MK out.

Movie Monday - 1/22/2018

In Mudbound, a white family buys a farm in Mississippi that members of a black family have been farming for generations. Being that it is the South in the 1940s, racism abounds. Some might argue that not much has changed in many ways since, and I'd have to agree, but I digress. Henry (Jason Clark) and Laura (Carey Mulligan) share 2 kids and a loveless marriage. Henry's father Pappy (Jonathan Banks) lives with them and showers them, and his brother Jamie (Garrett Hedlund) with criticism and prejudice. The sharecroppers, Hap (Rob Morgan) and his wife Florence (Mary J. Blige) do their best with what little they have. Their son Ronsel (Jason Mithcell) served in the war as a tank commander. When he comes home after the war, he returns to the racism from which he had a welcome reprieve in Europe. Jamie, who was a bomber pilot, suffers from PTSD, for which he self medicates with alcohol. Jamie and Ronsel become unlikely friends. The racist antics made my stomach hurt, but the movie is really good. The acting was superlative. I'm looking for Mary J. Blige to get an Oscar nomination.

Armie Hammer plays Oliver, a graduate student who travels to Italy to work with a college professor for the summer, in Call Me By Your Name. Timothée Chalamat plays Elio, the professor's 17-year-old son, who is a prodigy in literature and music. The two grudgingly become friends, and soon a romance develops. Being that the setting is 1983 and Elio is underage, the two have to meet in secret. They both understand that their time is limited. Besides wonderful acting, the scenery and the actors are beautiful. I really liked this movie. 

The Academy Award nominations will be announced tomorrow!

MK out.

FO Friday - 1/19/2018

I finished the first socks for the year!

Pattern: Pebbles Socks by Knitting Expat Designs
Yarn: The main color is Must Stash Yarn & Fiber Simply Speckled in Beaver's Dam and the contrasting color is their Mondo Mini in a light teal color.
Comments: I love, love, love this yarn! It's so pretty and squishy!!! I think the speckles are amazing. I wanted a subtle pattern, because I'm tired of plain vanilla but I didn't want anything to detract from the beauty of this colorway. Pebbles Socks did right by this yarn.

In other news, I took a little trip last weekend...

...to the balmy climes of Lake Placid, NY...

...during the Arctic Blast.

We flew into Boston and drove there.

We woke up to a blanket of new snow.

Handknit socks were de riguer.

Even in single digits, we walked around.

We watched hockey in a famous place.

I visited Adirondack Yarns, a charming LYS, and bought some yarn.

I know. It's the first month of the new year, and I bought yarn, when my plan was to minimize yarn purchases this year. Oh well.

MK out.

Book Chat - 1/18/2018

I just finished reading Radio Girls by Sarah-Jane Stratford. It is based on true events and set in the 1920s. It's about the early days of the BBC. Most of the characters are the real players involved. The main character, Maisie, is fictitious. There's a little intrigue, there's a little mystery, there's a little romance...I really liked it.

Other books I've read recently and would recommend:
The Nest by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney
The After Wife by Gigi Levangie Grazer
Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty
The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty
Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple
The Good Girl by Mary Kubica

I've already got another one loaded on the Kindle.

MK out.

Movie Monday - 1/16/2018

The Shape of Water is a fantasy. I think one either liked it or didn't, from what I've read on the Internet. Sally Hawkins stars as lonely, mute girl who cleans at a government laboratory. She befriends a human-sized amphibian that is being studied there. Octavia Spencer, Richard Jenkins and Michael Shannon also star. I really liked this movie.

Salma Hayek plays a masseuse/holistic practitioner and the title character in Beatriz at Dinner. She ends up being invited to her client's dinner party when her car wouldn't start after she gave a massage. The other guests were business associates of the client's husband. To say that Beatriz didn't quite fit in would be an understatement. Connie Britton and John Lithgow were among the rest of the cast. It was a little thought provoking and good. I liked it.

MK out.

Movie Thursday?

I forgot to do a movie post on Monday, but I wanted to tell y'all about a couple of movies I've seen in the last week.

A Royal Affair is set in the 1760s and is based on the true story of Danish King Christian VII. He was mentally ill, he had family issues (his step-mother and half-brother were jockeying for position), his personal physician took some of his power, his wife cheated on him - all the makings of a great soap opera. However, this story, while quite juicy, could have been made trivial with Hollywood's treatment. It's a Danish film with English subtitles. The film focuses on the enlightened reforms that were begun despite the king's limitations. Alicia Vikander, Mads Mikkelsen and Mikkel Boe Forsgaard star in this film. It was very good.

Dunkirk is about a particular mission in WWII to evacuate Allied troops from the coastal town of Dunkirk, where they had been surrounded by the Germans. It was quite a rescue operation that was aided by civilian ships and boats. Kenneth Brannagh, Tom Hardy and Mark Rylance starred in this film. Interestingly, this mission was one of the central points in the film The Darkest Hour. To me, it was just a lot of war. It was alright.

I'll be back Monday with a movie I liked.

MK out.

WIP Wednesday - 1/10/2018

I started the year with three old WIPs that I hope to finally finish at some point this year - the Liesl cardigan, the Penny Candy Tee and the Hitofude cardigan. The first two are very close to completion and I am determined to get them done. The Hitofude has been on hold because I'm not convinced I am making the right size for me.

Despite all that, I've started two new projects.

I'm making a Volver Scarf, pattern by Debby Reece. 

and a pair of Pebble Socks, pattern by the Knitting Expat.

Lots to keep me busy and out of trouble.

MK out.

FO Friday - 1/6/2018

I can't believe I'm a day late with this feature. I have material and everything; so, I decided to go with it.

Pattern:  Ollivander Shawl by Kay F Jones
Yarn: Cascade Yarns Heritage Paints in Graphite and Cascade 220 Heritage Solids in Charcoal
Comments: This project fulfilled the asymmetrical requirement for Loopy Academy, and it was also one of my December entries in the year long Harry Potter KAL at Inside Number 23.  It was a fun knit, and not too demanding.

Pattern: Evergreen Socks by Madeline Gannon
Yarn: Wollmeise Twin in Absinth
Comments: It was my first time to make a pair of socks using Wollmeise Twin. (I've made a shawl with WM Pure before.) The yarn is a little splitty and a little thicker than most fingering or sock weights. I'm not sure if it will ever become my favorite yarn to make socks, but the colors are gorgeous; so, I'm sure I'll find something to make with it.

And I will leave you with a gratuitous picture of all the socks I made in 2017. 

I made 17 pairs. You see only 16 here, because one pair was an auction prize that I made and delivered earlier in the year. My goal for 2018 is to make twelve. I think 2018 might be the year of the sweater. We shall see...

MK out.

Movie Monday - 1/1/2018

Happy New Year y'all!!!

I only have two Hallmark Christmas movies left to watch. Some have been better than others, but I've enjoyed all of them.

I've also gone to the theater a couple of times.

I hesitate to say this next statement out loud, but I did not like Star Wars: The Last Jedi. I lost interest one hour in, and I thought it was too long - by about an hour. I must disclose that I'm not what most people would consider a Star Wars fan. The only other movies I've liked in the franchise are Star Wars: A New Hope and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Rogue One was alright, because it gave some context. All in all, I think this latest installment blew up too many story lines. In summary, I'm not impressed.

Gary Oldman gives a mighty fine performance as Winston Churchill in The Darkest Hour. The film focuses on Churchill's early days as Prime Minister when Hitler was making advances towards Britain. Kristin Scott Thomas and Lily James also star in this film. It was pretty good, if for no other reason than Oldman's performance.

MK out.