Sometimes, You Just Need to Do It Yourself (DIY)

We've been in the process of renovating/up-dating our home.  For a good portion of it, we've been putting in sweat equity and doing it ourselves.  During this process, some things in our home have changed.  One particular item is how our hand towels are held (or not) in our bathrooms.  In our "old" bathroom, the hand towel used to just sit on the counter.  However, in our "new" bathroom, there's now a hook to hold the hand towel.  Now, the "old" hand towel looked ridiculously small hanging on the new hook (besides the fact that it had lived (significantly) longer than it should have in the life of a hand towel).  So, that meant that it was time to get new hand towels as well (to match with our new bathroom).

To test the waters, I dug up another hand towel we had and found that it was ridiculously large; a Goldilocks effect ensued - first, we had a towel that was too small; now, it's too big.  So, like any DYIer, I decided that I would simply have to make my own hand towel to fit my new space perfectly - so that it was "just right".

Fortunately, I (still) had one (1) skein of Lily's Sugar 'n Cream in Lava Lamp left and decided that it was going to be my test piece.  Using my Denise US10.5 needles, I casted on 25 sts and used the Linen Stitch for 165 rows (ending on a Row 1).  Then I bound off.

Here's what my finished product looks like:

Now, I hope it works out as perfectly as I envisioned it! 😉  If it does, it looks like I'll be making a few more hand towels for our new bathrooms (*yay*, reason to try out different cotton yarns! 😁  There's always a silver lining!😆).

Up-date:  After washing it a few times, it shrunk a bit.  I think I need to make my next one a bit wider.  Additionally, it's true what the many reviews say about Lily's Sugar 'n Cream: if you're using it as a dishcloth/washcloth, it just moves the water around and doesn't actually absorb anything.  Looks like I'll be finding different cotton yarn to try again!

Another Summer Market Bag

Time to use up my stash and finish those "smaller" projects that's been sitting around. That means another Market Bag! :) After making (& using) my last market bag, I found it a bit narrow for our needs so, I found another pattern that I thought would suite our grocery (& other shopping) needs better: Knitted Mesh Market bag by Gretta F. Heddy. Using my Denise US13 & 15 needles and the remainder of my Peaches 'N Cream yarn and a skein of my Lilly Sugar 'n Cream yarn, my mesh bag adventure began.

I tried very hard to follow the pattern. I started off the bag as stated on the pattern. In hind sight, I think I would've done a cable cast on for the handles to make it sturdier.  Then it was onto the body of the bag.  As stated on the pattern I switched to my US15 needles; after doing two (2) rows, I realized that my gauge was simply too big for the body. Thus, for the remainder of the bag, I switched back to my US13 needles and finished off the bag for a total of thirty-four (34) rows (nine (9) inches). Finally, I was ready to finish the bottom of the bag. I chose the flat bottom option and proceeded to follow the instructions. After completing the final four (4) rows, it looked .... narrow. So, I added an additional four (4) rows for a total of eight (8) rows then crocheted the bag closed (instead of doing a three-day bind off. Here's what the bag looks like:

Now, it's time to give this bag a whirl! ❤️

Road Trip!

At my new job, they sent me to Midway Island, literally a tiny island in the middle of the Pacific (essentially and literally, in the middle of no where). So, guess what came along with me? My field bag!

Come fly away, come fly away with me ...

See, I'm really at Midway!

In case you couldn't see the sign above, they even have their own license plates!

And a fire truck!

And here's where my Field bag lived while I was out in the field:

Fortunately, I was only there for two (2) (very long) days (and unfortunately, since I was working most of the time, I didn't actually get a chance to knit). Here's what I was doing:

How many Mōlī (Laysan Albatross) do you see?

Here's what a baby Mōlī (Laysan Albatross) looks like:

And, here's more of them ...

Hanging out at one of the Monuments

Thinking about flying away ... maybe ...

Or not ... (this is how they really sit so they don't burn their feet or tushes)

There's even art work dedicated to them!

I suppose they were hoping the airstrip would inspire them to take flight? (And, no, none were actually on the airstrip.)

Although it seemed as though some tried to take flight off the beach ...

Here's a rare albino Mōlī (Laysan Albatross) (one of five (5) this hatching year).

At least the Mōlī (Laysan Albatross) weren't all over this road - yet.

But it seems that anywhere you go you see more Mōlī (Laysan Albatross) ...

Even at the infamous Midway Monument. As you can see a baby Mōlī (Laysan Albatross) is checking out the inscription. Perhaps it'll inspire him to fly away ...

Although it looks like this one is still thinking about coming out.

Unfortunately, not all the birds make it ...

And, you need to watch out for the ducks! They're endangered.

See, they're smart - hang out on a stump, not the road!

This mama White Tern certainly took a lesson from the ducks.

Here's what a baby White Tern looks like (they're so cute).

And, here's a pair of White Terns watching over their nest.

Here's a baby Kaʻupu (Black-footed Albatross).

One of many Monk seals hanging about "resting".

Can you spot the giant sea turtle (that looks like a largish rock)?

Here's a Red-tailed Tropicbird nesting.

Here's a pair of Christmas Shearwaters.

And, here's a huge flock of sunshine yellow canaries (hidden in the trees). Yes, I said canaries. No, they're not indigenous to the Island; they were brought in as pets when the Navy resided there. Since no one wanted to take them home, they were released into the wild. Now, since they are the only "wild" flock of sunshine yellow canaries, they can't be eradicated.

Other places of interest:

This is the historical "comms" building - great Navy construction work.

Whale bones fronting the FWS building

And finally, my room with a "view" ...

Seriously, this is my view!

While is was definitely "interesting", I'm hoping this was a once in a lifetime trip!