This was a test knit and the pattern was released today. The construction is top down and genius. It begins with short rows to shape the back shoulders. After the back section is finished you start the front by picking up stitches at the cast on edges where the shoulder seams would have been. Short rows shape the shoulders again and when the neckline is finished and the two sides are joined and the colorwork section begins. The colorwork pattern is charted and written. Once that part is finished, the front and back are joined and knit in the round down to the split hem. The sleeves are picked up and knit down in the round. I hope I'm not making it sound complicated because it's quite easy and all spelled out for you and simple to follow. If this sort of construction is new to you and you'd like to try it, this is a good pattern to give it a go. The yarn required is sport weight and I used Stone Soup Fingering by Bare Naked Wools. It's a kitchen sink mix of: 19% Navajo-Churro, 19% Rambouillet, 19% Lincoln, 19% Columbia, 15% Alpaca, 3% Bison, 3% Rayon from Bamboo, 3% Silk, 2% Llama. What a combo! It's wooly and toothy and wonderful to work with but unfortunately too itchy for me to wear next to my skin. I'm ok with that because the sweater has a tiny bit of ease and I can wear a thin tee under it and I'll be fine. The colorwork section is Woolens by Barrett Wool Co. I'm definitely going to use that again. 

Hebe by Libby Jonson

Stone Soup Fingering by Bare Naked Wools

Woolens by Barrett Wool Co.

My Ravelry project page with all the details

Well this is it folks, we're at the home stretch of the October pantry/freezer clean-out challenge and I wonder if you've been able to go as long as I have? I have been able to incorporate at least one freezer or pantry item for each dinner made, but the important thing is I have limited my grocery shopping to just fresh fruits, vegetable and dairy and doing that was the only way I could make this work. The good thing is no one has complained and I've made some awesome dinners. Tonight we are having salmon fillets and the very last frozen container of a potato casserole. Both my freezer and pantry look empty but we are planning a Costco run so that will change soon. At least all the little bits of this and that have been consumed--things like a green bean casserole, something we call mom's beans, a chicken noodle dish, you get the idea, stuff I save and then forget about until freezer burn attacks and I throw it out. At least that was avoided.

Now for the craft. One day last week we watched a sick 5 year old who was too sick to go to school but not too sick to want to spend the day playing with a captive Grammy and Papa. We have the book 105+ Screen-Free Activities for Kids that for the most part uses household items. Carter loves the book. It's his absolute favorite and he is constantly looking through it and bookmarking activities with sticky notes; he can't read but he can sure figure out the pictures. He also knows he can always con Grammy into an activity. 

I highly recommend the book as a gift for young families or grandparents with visiting grandchildren. Some activities are for babies but most are for toddlers and older kids. Our kids bought us this book when we were doing the Covid babysitting that so many grandparents did in 2020. We did several activities a week which are more like science experiments rather than crafts. Carter loves it and often asks for it to be his bedtime book. Purchase 150+ Screen-Free Activities for Kids by Asia Citro here.

For this prehistoric volcano project we needed a rimmed cookie sheet, tiny plastic dinosaurs, rocks, vinegar, Dawn dishwashing liquid, baking soda, and food coloring.

Our volcano erupted so much that our poor dinosaurs never even had a chance to become anything but extinct.

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