Unraveled Wednesday: 8/26/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today, but I'm also unhappy that I don't yet have a finished towel to show you. 

The last time I was at Ryan's, I measured one of his ratty dishtowels that I hope to replace with these handknitted ones. I didn't have a tape measure so I quickly made a "measuring string" for length from one of the skeins in my knitting bag while Ryan was otherwise occupied. You can see I'm approximately two repeats short of completing the length, but I think I'll do an extra one because I fully expect it to shrink when I wash and dry the towel.

 

 

Hopefully, I'll have this one completed and be well into finishing the purple one by the next time I join Unraveled Wednesday. We're leaving next Monday to visit John's older sister and her husband for much of the week. With an eight-hour round-trip drive, I'm envisioning finishing both towels and maybe starting another one in Dishie yarn using this pattern. We'll see; my knitting visions don't always turn into reality. 

 

What are you making this last Wednesday in August? 

Ravelry links:

Nested Squares Kitchen Towel 

 

Unraveled Wednesday: 8/19/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today. I'm still working on the same dish towels, adding more rows slowly but surely. 

After knitting 10 rows on these, I’m finally getting the hang of keeping my knits and purls straight, most of the time, anyway. I still have quite a way to go, so there’s plenty of time to become a real seed-stitch expert (and also plenty of time to make more mistakes).

 

I think these will be for Ryan. I'm guessing that it will take me at least a couple of weeks to finish them, and then I'll need to get back to stitching the badger on Justin's hat. I'm glad I started these Christmas gifts early (and I still need to think of something to make for Jess). 

What are you making as August winds down? 

Ravelry links:

Nested Squares Kitchen Towel 

 

Unraveled Wednesday: 8/12/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with a good start on the newest dish towel.

There is nothing difficult about this pattern, but it just might be the one that staves off dementia for me for another year or two. It's a bunch of seed stitch and I have to really pay attention when I'm working on the purl side so I keep the knits and purls straight.

 

But just to keep things interesting, I started the same pattern in dark purple Cotlin.

 

 

I haven't even gotten to the first row of nested squares yet, but I've been in a purple mood ever since the yarn arrived and hopefully I'll be able to keep my knits and purls straight. 

 

What are you making this Wednesday in August? 

 

Ravelry links:

 

Nested Squares Kitchen Towel 

Unraveled Wednesday: 8/5/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with a third completed dish towel. Now the stack I envisioned gifting to Ryan is real.

I still haven't washed them but will do that sometime in the near future. They're fairly large, 17' x 27", but I know they'll shrink in the dryer. I just don't know how much yet. 

It's still hot and rainy so I won't be sitting outside stitching a badger anytime soon. Instead I've just cast on for another dish towel, but using a different yarn and pattern. Nested Squares in CotLin is an easy pattern with a nice yarn and should keep me happily knitting dish towels for another month or so. I thought I ordered the yarn in a deep purple, but this Sagebrush doesn't look the least bit purple. I might have to remedy that.    

What are you making this first Wednesday in August? 

Unraveled Wednesday: 7/29/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with a completed wolf on Justin's hat. 

It took me a couple of afternoons sitting outside in the shade to complete him. 

 

I've readjusted his eyes four times and I still can't get them to match, so further eye adjustment will have to wait until I have more patience.  The good news is that I only have one more animal to stitch. It's a badger and only uses four colors so that's a little extra good news.

 

We're in a prolonged period of humidity, severe storms, and hail but no tornadoes yet. It doesn't present any good opportunities for outdoor stitching for a while, so it's back to kitchen towel knitting. 

 

What are you making this final Wednesday in July?  

Unraveled Wednesday: 7/22/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with something you haven't seen for a while. This is what the hat looked like six weeks ago, with the barn owl completed, but just a few stitches started on the wolf to the right:

We had a really nice day (seasonal temps, low humidity, very little smoke) on Monday so I took advantage of it and worked on Justin's hat outdoors in the shade. It's lovely and calming, sitting outside, stitching slowly, and listening to the birds. It rained yesterday and today, but I might be able to stitch outdoors again tomorrow. This is what it looks like now:

A little more wolf-like but still quite a bit more to go. I had forgotten just how slow and tedious this is!

I did cast on with the teal yarn for a third kitchen towel as soon as I finished the green one, but there is still a long way to go on it, too. After three towels in the same pattern, I think I'm definitely ready for a different pattern. But there is still the potential for plenty of hot weather this summer, so I think I'll be knitting with cotton yarn for at least another month.  

What are you making this penultimate Wednesday in July? 

Unraveled Wednesday: 7/15/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with (you guessed it) a kitchen towel. Last week I received a (good-natured) demand to knit a little faster. Becky said, "Your third color of yarn is my favorite, so get cracking!" How could I resist a challenge like that?

I tried, Becky, I really did, but I'm afraid I came up short. I still have 30 rows left before I cast off, and I know that if I had tried to stay up late to finish, mistakes would have been made. So all I can do is show my almost-completed second towel, with a promise to cast on with your favorite color very soon. Maybe even this afternoon. I hope to make good progress on it this coming week as it's blazingly hot again, so all I want to do is sit in an air-conditioned room and knit with with cotton yarn. 

 

Since I've only shown you photos of kitchen towels for several weeks, I thought I'd include a bonus picture this week. See that red tub in the background behind the towel? That's water for the deer since it's been so hot. They drink it, but usually at 2:30 am when it's tough to get a picture. But for some reason, a couple of them visited during the day over the weekend. The fawns are cuter, but these guys are impressive in their own antlered ways. 

 

 

What are you making this antepenultimate Wednesday in July? 

Unraveled Wednesday: 7/8/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with (you guessed it) kitchen towels. Now there are two of them. The blue one is done (but not washed yet).

 I've cast on for the green one and it's in progress. 

I still have quite a ways to go on the green one, but it really is comfortable summer knitting. I may even finish it by next week (and then cast on yet another one). 

 

 

What are you making this Wednesday in July? 

Unraveled Wednesday: 7/1/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with more of the kitchen towel. I know it's a little boring to keep showing you the same old photos of it, so this week I also have some pictures of the yarn colors I have to choose from for the next one. I'm not sure if I'll use the same pattern or try a different one, but I am getting just a tiny bit tired of knitting this one. 

I'm just past the stockinette strip on the end of the towel and now I only have to knit 28 more rows before I'm done with this towel.

These are the other colors I've got in worsted cotton yarn, so I think I'll cast on for a green one as soon as I finish the first one. This really is perfect knitting for the far-too-hot weather we're having, so the next cast on will probably be happening later today.  

What are you making this first Wednesday in July? (Tempus fugit!)

Unraveled Wednesday: 6/24/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with more of the kitchen towel. I know it's not exciting knitting, so I tried to take some slightly different photos. 

Justin and Jess have been with John this week, fishing in the Blackfoot River in Montana, so I've been checking on their cats. It's fine but it's honestly been a lot of driving to go down to their house, check on the automatic feeders to make sure they're not blocked (they always are), clean the litterboxes, water plants, collect mail and packages, put the trash out, etc. ....

So I decided to take my knitting yesterday and see if I could convince Nugget to pose with it for some pictures. A few treats were required to make that happen.

This is on Justin and Jess' oven so I could get an idea of how far along I was. 

Maybe a bit more than halfway? I was picturing gifting a stack (maybe three or four) of these to Ryan at Christmas, but it's looking like that stack might consist of only two towels. We'll see. 

What are you making this last Wednesday in June?  

Unraveled Wednesday: 6/17/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with some less-than-exciting knitting. The kitchen towel is back, and it’s now a bit longer than the last time you saw it.

I’ve been on a roll with this project. The knitting is both wonderfully mindless and relaxing, making it easy to pick up throughout the day. I’ve worked on it outside while listening to the birds and using Merlin, while waiting for loads of laundry to finish, and even at the auto body shop.

John had a car accident last week (he’s okay), but he left for a fishing trip this week, so I had to meet the insurance adjuster at the body shop while he inspected the damage. The knitting may not be exciting, but this towel has been getting around.

Later this afternoon, I’m taking it with me to Justin and Jess’s house, where I’ll be checking on my grand-kitties, Nugget and Fletch. The towel may be clamoring for even more adventures before it’s finally finished.

What are you making this Wednesday in June?

  

Unraveled Wednesday: 6/10/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with a new project on my needles. It was hot last week and I had an unusually busy social calendar, so I didn't work on Justin's hat at all. This week is moderately busy but my new project is wonderfully portable and easy to pick up whenever I have a few spare minutes. 

I was at a loss about what to make Ryan for Christmas. He already has plenty of handwarmers, scarves, hats, and potholders. He doesn’t wear sweaters (which is just as well, since I rarely knit them). But when I was at his house the other day, a lightbulb went off: dish towels! 

Ryan cooks for us whenever we visit and cooks for himself most days as well. The other day I noticed he was using a truly ratty dish towel, complete with multiple holes. I didn’t even nag him about it. Instead, I thought that three or four handknit dish towels would make a perfect Christmas gift, and some wonderfully relaxing summer knitting for me.

I ordered some Dishie and Cotlin from KnitPicks, but while I’m waiting for the yarn to arrive, I cast on this lovely bright blue cotton for a Chili Pepper Red Kitchen Towel (although mine is obviously not red). The pattern is a simple two-row repeat, and I enlarged it slightly because I’m not a fan of skimpy kitchen towels.

I have three or four other towel patterns I’d like to try, and I think knitting a collection of dish towels for Ryan will be the perfect companion project while I work on the duplicate stitching for Justin’s hat. If I have time, and if I’m not completely tired of knitting with cotton, I may even make one or two for myself.

What are you making as we approach mid-June?

 

Unraveled Wednesday: 6/3/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with a completed barn owl in duplicate stitching. 

I've been sitting outside in the shade in the afternoon and stitching. This has worked well because I've got plenty of natural light to make stitching easier. It's also been really beautiful so I'm enjoying my time stitching outdoors. You can see a little bit of brown and gray to the right of the owl; those stitches mark the beginning of the ear of the next animal, a wolf.  

 

I'm still knitting dishcloths as a no-stress break from stitching, but I don't think you need to see a photo of a couple of dishcloths. They are definitely not too exciting, but I do have an idea for a different, small, non-stressful bit of knitting. I'll try to cast that on this week and see what my idea looks like.  

 

What are you making this first Wednesday in June?  

Unraveled Wednesday: 5/27/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with some more duplicate stitching, a completed dishcloth, and a start on another one. 

 

I've finished the raccoon, complete with his eyes, and the deer now has eyes, a nose, and outlined ears. Up next is a barn owl. I've only completed the counting and placement of the first stitch, but I think I'll enjoy stitching this one. It has large areas of the same color, which means I have less chance of misplacing stitches.

A photo of a dishcloth isn't terribly exciting, but knitting keeps me from going crazy when I'm not duplicate stitching. I'm not sure who I'm making dishcloths for, but they will suffice until my rainbow yarn arrives from Must Stash.  

What are you making at the end of May? 

Unraveled Wednesday: 5/20/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with a completed Dream Hitchhiker, a bit more stitching on Justin's Hat 2.0, and even a new bonus project.

The Dream Hitchhiker yarn was a generous gift from a very special person, and I'm happy that I was able to knit it into something soft, warm, and enveloping. I will look forward to getting this out of my Armoire of Handknits ™ on the first chilly day of fall and wrapping its deliciousness around me. It was literally 100 degrees when I went outside to take some pictures, so I scurried back indoors for photos. This is the only modeled shot I'm taking until the temperatures are back in the 50 degree range. 

 

I'm very happy with the size of it (54 teeth) and I really like the three rows of yarnovers I did before casting off. This may be my favorite Hitchhiker so far. 

I've also started the raccoon on Justin's hat 2.0. I've only gotten the top half of his face done, but I am making forward progress. It's been really hot here for the past two days, but I have enjoyed sitting outside in the shade and stitching a bit until my hands get sticky.

On Sunday evening, Justin texted that he and Jess had a wedding cake tasting on Monday in the same town that Ryan lives in. It's not very often that all of us are in the same place at the same time, so John and I decided that we would also go to Ryan's on Monday afternoon so John could tend the garden and then we would all meet up and have dinner. That sounded like a fine plan to me, but I realized that I would be sitting at Ryan's for much of the afternoon without anything to knit! This was completely unacceptable to me, so I grabbed a couple of skeins of kitchen cotton, found my size 7 needle and cast on for a dishcloth. Dishcloths always used to be my emergency projects when we had the house in Elkton and I was away from my stash, and this one served the same purpose. I preordered some lovely rainbow yarn from Must Stash for a possible Christmas present for Ryan, so I may be working on dishcloths until it arrives in a few weeks.

I think I'll be moving my book reviews to Thursdays in the interest of having a little more blog fodder. I am really running out of things to post about but this way I can pretty much guarantee I'll be posting something on Wednesdays and Thursdays at least. 

What are you making on this sweltering hot day (it only supposed to be 98 here today) in May?

Unraveled Wednesday: 5/13/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with the Dream Hitchhiker, which is finally nearing completion. It’s been a busy week, so I haven’t had much time to knit, but I’ve finished all the teeth and completed one row of yarnovers. I’m experimenting with another row or two to see how I like the look. If I’m happy with them, I’ll cast off, block it, and tuck it away until fall. If not, it should be easy enough to rip back the yarnovers. Either way, I expect and hope to be finished by next week.

After that, it’ll be time to focus on the duplicate stitching for Justin’s hat. I may also need to think about casting on another project so I have something to actually knit, though at the moment I have no idea what that might be.

I did finish a book this week and it was a good one. The Book of Birds is nothing short of a marvel, part field guide, part poem, part work of art, and wholly a celebration of the fragile, astonishing lives that share our skies.

Robert Macfarlane’s words are wonderful, lyrical, precise, and full of reverence for the natural world. He doesn’t simply describe birds; he invites us into relationship with them, asking not just what they are, but who they are. Each entry feels alive with movement, sound, and story, expanding beyond observation into something more intimate and essential.

But the real magic happens when Jackie Morris’ illustrations join those words on the page. Her artwork is breathtaking, delicate yet vivid, grounded in close attention but infused with a kind of quiet enchantment. Together, text and image create an experience that feels almost sacred, as though you are being asked to slow down, look closer, and remember what wonder feels like.

As a reader in the U.S., I haven’t encountered many of these particular species in real life, but that didn’t diminish the experience, in fact, it deepened it. I welcomed the chance to learn about birds beyond my immediate landscape, to see the shared threads of fragility, resilience, and beauty that connect them all. The book subtly reminds us that conservation is not local, it’s global, and it begins with attention and care.

I was lucky enough to read an ARC, but this is absolutely a book I will be buying and returning to again and again. It’s not just something to read once; it’s something to pore over, to revisit, to treasure. A future classic, and a powerful reminder that we will not save what we do not love.

Thank you to Edelweiss and W.W. Norton & Co. for providing me with a copy of this book. It will be published on June 9, 2026. 

What are you making and reading on this Wednesday in mid-May? 

Unraveled Wednesday: 5/6/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with a slow start on some duplicate stitch animals and a close to completed Dream Hitchhiker.

I started the duplicate stitching with the deer and it went fairly well. I did discover that despite making a list and checking it twice, I had not ordered the black (or asphalt heather as Knitpicks calls it) used for eyes, nose, and outlining the ears. It should get here sometime this week, so then I'll use it to stitch the deer details.  

I started stitching the raccoon but it turned out I was mistakenly reading the badger chart. What you see above is me removing the badger stitches, being really careful not to clip any brown hat stitches. 

I accomplished that successfully and what you see above is the result of me  checking and rechecking multiple times and doing the first three stitches for the raccoon. I've stopped here, and will recheck several more times before I stitch any more on the raccoon.

But I've been using the time that I'm not duplicate stitching to knit on the Dream Hitchhiker. We've had quite a few cool days, so I welcome the warmth of it on my lap. It looks much the same, just a lot more teeth. I've got 54 teeth which is probably plenty. I've been debating how I want to finish it - bind off after the yo row, do a couple more plain garter stitch rows, or maybe even do those plain garter stitch rows in another color. I've got some of the same yarn in a light gray, but I can't decide if that would look weird or not. If you have any thoughts about the finish, I'd love to hear them. 

I'm reading an ARC, rereading Good People, and relistening to The Things We Never Say but haven't finished anything, so no book reviews this week.   

What are you making and reading this first Wednesday in May? 

Unraveled Wednesday: 4/29/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with a completed hat for Justin. Now all that remains is the duplicate stitching of five animals. That should go quickly! ;-)

I was pleased that I was able to find all of my original notes from when I first knit this hat 13 years ago. It helped me with the counting and determination of where I should start with the duplicate stitching. Now all I need to do is thread my needle with "Doe" (the color at the bottom of the deer, which is actually a buck) and get going. I counted and marked the hat several times yesterday afternoon and once again last night, but just couldn't bring myself to start at night when my eyes were tired. I think this duplicate stitching might need to be done in morning light. But a journey of a bunch of duplicate stitches begins with a single one, which will likely be done a little later this morning. 

I finished two books this week. Allen Levi’s Theo of Golden is the kind of novel that feels intentionally gentle and almost parable-like in its structure and message. Centered on a mysterious stranger who quietly reshapes a small Southern town through acts of thoughtful generosity, the book leans heavily into themes of connection, creativity, and what it means to truly “see” another person.

What works best here is the episodic nature of the storytelling. As Theo returns the pencil portraits to their subjects, each interaction opens a small window into the lives of Golden’s residents. These vignettes are often touching and occasionally profound, capturing moments of regret, reconciliation, or quiet transformation. Allen Levi writes with a clear affection for humanity, and there’s an earnestness to the prose that will resonate with readers who enjoy reflective, heart-forward fiction.

That said, the novel’s strengths are also where it can feel a bit limited. The characters, while likable, sometimes come across more as vessels for ideas than fully fleshed-out people. Theo himself remains intentionally enigmatic, but the lack of deeper complexity left me wanting more substance beneath the symbolism. Additionally, the pacing can feel slow, especially if you’re looking for a more traditional narrative arc or rising tension.

Still, there’s something undeniably soothing about the book’s worldview. It asks readers to consider the quiet impact of kindness and the ways art and attention can restore dignity and connection. Even when it veers toward sentimentality, it does so with sincerity. Given the state of the world now, I can understand how so many readers feel comforted by books like this.

Overall, Theo of Golden is a thoughtful, quietly uplifting read, best suited for those who appreciate contemplative storytelling over plot-driven momentum. This was three and a half stars for me. 

 

A World Appears by Michael Pollan is an ambitious, wide-ranging exploration of one of the slipperiest subjects imaginable: consciousness itself. In true Pollan fashion, the book blends science, philosophy, personal reflection, and cultural inquiry into a narrative that is both accessible and intellectually curious. Only Michael could write a whole book about consciousness and end with this quote, "Because consciousness is the only means we have of knowing anything we can’t step outside it and take up a god-like perspective from which to render a final judgement. So where does that leave us? Exactly where we already were, wandering in the exitless labyrinth of consciousness."  

 

But Pollan excels at being a guide through this complex terrain. He translates dense neuroscientific debates and philosophical arguments into language that feels inviting rather than intimidating, and his curiosity is contagious. The sections that delve into competing theories of consciousness, particularly those that challenge strictly materialist views, are some of the most engaging. He also brings in unexpected perspectives, from plant intelligence to artificial intelligence, which keeps the scope feeling expansive.

At the same time, the book’s “panoptic” approach is both its strength and its limitation. Because Pollan casts such a wide net, some areas feel more like introductions than deep dives. Readers hoping for a more rigorous or conclusive argument may find themselves wanting more details. Pollan often seems more interested in opening questions than resolving them, but that's an approach I appreciated. I'm not sure that many questions can be resolved when writing about consciousness, but the author keeps readers interested by raising more questions.

Where the book truly shines is in its more reflective moments. Pollan’s ability to connect abstract ideas about consciousness to everyday human experience, what it means to feel, perceive, and exist, gives the book an emotional resonance that elevates it beyond a purely academic survey. His writing reminds you that this isn’t just a scientific puzzle; it’s the very texture of being alive.

Overall, A World Appears is a thought-provoking and engaging read that invites curiosity rather than closure, and Pollan's curiosity is almost always contagious. He may not provide definitive answers, but succeeds in making the mystery of consciousness feel richer, stranger, and more worth contemplating. A strong four-star read for anyone interested in the intersection of science, philosophy, and what it means to be human. This was four stars for me.

My apologies for my overly wordy book reviews. I'm going to have to work on writing shorter ones. What are you making and reading this final Wednesday in April?  

Unraveled Wednesday: 4/22/26

I don't think there is an official Unraveled Wednesday linkup while Kat is taking a break, but Wednesdays are my favorite blogging day, especially if I haven't had to do any any actual unraveling. I'm enjoying our cooler and more seasonable weather and have been knitting almost monogamously on Justin's hat.

I'd love to finish the hat soon(ish) and get started on duplicate stitching the animals while I'm feeling motivated. I only have a couple more rows until I start the decreases so the end isn't too far away.

I finished one book this week, and it was a good one. Thanks for the recommendation, Vera! Sex of the Midwest completely won me over in a way I didn’t quite expect. Going in, I was intrigued by the premise, a mysterious town-wide sex survey arriving in inboxes, but what unfolds is something much richer and more nuanced than that hook suggests. This is very much a novel-in-stories, following a wide cast of residents in Lanier, Indiana, each chapter offering a glimpse into a different life, a different struggle, a different quiet longing. The connections between characters are subtle but satisfying, creating a layered portrait of a community that feels hopefully authentic and deeply human.

It’s been compared to Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout, one of my all-time favorite books, and I’ll admit I was a little skeptical. That’s a high bar for me, but I was pleasantly surprised by how well this measured up. Like Strout’s work, Sex of the Midwest captures the small, often unspoken moments that define people’s lives, and it does so with empathy and insight rather than judgment.

One of the book’s greatest strengths is how attached I became to these characters. Nearly every story left me wishing for just a little more time with them. I was genuinely sad to see each chapter end, and by the final pages, I realized I’ll miss many of these people, like the man waiting for his lung transplant after having covid, the aspiring writer behind the bar, the quietly simmering bureaucrat, and so many others.

It’s also worth noting that the title is a bit of a misnomer. Despite the provocative setup, this book has surprisingly little to do with sex itself (aside from one particularly enthusiastic survey respondent). Instead, it’s about connection, isolation, identity, and the strange ways people try to understand themselves and each other, especially in a post-pandemic world.

Thoughtful, quietly funny, and deeply compassionate, Sex of the Midwest is a beautifully constructed mosaic of small-town life. If you enjoy interconnected stories and character-driven fiction, this is absolutely worth your time. Four and a half stars rounded up because I may read it again in a short while; it ended way too soon.

What are you making and reading on this penultimate April Wednesday?

 

Unraveled Wednesday: 4/15/26

I’m happy to join Kat and the Unravelers today with the Hitchhiker still in progress, and I've finally received all of the colors of Palette from Knitpicks that I need to knit and duplicate stitch Justin's hat. 

We're on our second day of unseasonably warm temperatures in the 90s. This is supposed to last until Friday and then we'll return to more seasonable temps next week. To be honest, the Hitchhiker looks much the same as last week so I'm not even going to stretch it out, but I have added another skein. I knit on it a lot yesterday, but my hands get sweaty so I may be forced to set it aside temporarily until next week. That's okay, I have quite a bit to knit on Justin's hat and then the duplicate stitching will probably take even longer. That pile o' Palette is a good reminder that I should get going!

I read three books this week and seemed to write wordy reviews, so I'll post them all together tomorrow.  

What are you making this Tax Day in April?