Training Needles

I chose this week to visit some friends in Toronto and almost melted into a puddle on the sidewalk. Of all the weeks to visit them, I HAD to pick this one. The trip up was quite enjoyable, I took the train and knit most of the way there. It was my first time knitting on a train and it went pretty smoothly even through turbulent sections.

The way back it was way too warm to work on my ten-stitch blanket so I opted to play on my 3ds instead. (I'm not entirely sure the a/c was working on the train, I was sweating bullets the whole ride.)

Also on the way back I came across a fellow knitter. She was sitting behind me working on a very lovely pink bamboo something. I didn't actually talk to her but we're kindred spirits anyway. Anyone who knits on a 3.5 hour train ride in that much heat is a friend!

I finished my ten-stitch dishcloth while I was away, it turned out as I expected but did seem a bit too bulky.

I wondered how it would look with less stitches so I tried again using just 5 stitches. This time I got the look I was going for, I'm quite pleased with it.

A while ago I was given a ball of Bernat Glow in the dark yarn in 'light bright' yellow colour and I wasn't sure what I was going to make with it. Then I discovered this
adorable blanket. I'm using the glow in the dark yarn for the star in the middle and then I'll switch to regular yarn for the rest of the blanket. I think it'll look really neat at night, with the star glowing like a little nightlight.I'm going to make it a full-size blanket, because I don't know any wee ones to give it to.

I started using my ergonomic crochet hooks with the lovely rubber padding ( as seen above), my crochet callus (I googled it, it's totally a thing) on my finger was getting quite indented and tender. They are a life saver.

I went to Belleville this week (as a passenger) and didn't bring any of my W.I.P's or needles with me, I left them elsewhere. Luckily I found a long-forgotten in-progress granny square in my craft room. I grabbed it and hurried out the door. My ride had thoughtfully brought a bag of yarn and needles/hooks on the off chance I forgot mine. That made me feel warm and fuzzy inside. I grabbed a hook and happily continued on my granny square, finishing the ball I brought and connecting the other yarn. That brought yarn was a life-saver.

I've still got my primrose cowl on the go and my boucle blanket is hibernating in a duffle bag until this heatwave goes away.

Despite the heat and the hustle and bustle of the city, I am glad I went away. It's always nice to visit friends, and sometimes a change in scenery does the soul good. We had some great fun outside and played some great board and card games: Patchwork, Tokaido, Machi koro, Smash Up and Sushi go!

One of the best parts of my trip was a picnic at a lovely park with a small beach in Oakville.

It almost made the heat bearable. Almost.