Sunday, October 14, 2007

Comfort Knitting

I'm a little sad today. I've been reminiscing about my family this weekend because my father's mother passed away on Thursday. My Memeh (a childish French name for grandmother, I spelt it how it sounds) was a lively lady in her 94th year. As the matriarch of a large family, I didn't have a very close relationship with her. Still, I've been remembering her, and the moments she impacted my life. She was gentle, liked to laugh, and she believed in me at a time when I didn't believe in myself, which meant a lot to me.

I think this is part of the reason I fell so hard for a knitting project this weekend. I started a Selbuvotter mitten for my mother on Friday night and finished by the end of the day Saturday. Today, I started my father's glove.

I tweaked my mother's mitten by changing the cuff pattern and I made up the thumb pattern too. The Shelridge Farms Soft Touch fingering weight is perfect for these mittens. It's soft, smooth and just the right weight. I'm really enjoying working with it.

I decided to start my dad's glove from the leftovers of my mother's to see if four skeins of fingering weight would be enough for both. I'm enjoying how these mittens are similar yet different. They feel like ying and yang.

Somehow, knitting these gifts for my parents just feels right and comforting.



12 comments:

  1. So sorry to learn of your grandma's death. She did reach a good age, but that does not lessen the loss! The mitten was the perfect project for the day!

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  2. I'm sorry to hear about Memeh. An intricate and lovely stranded pattern sounds like just the ticket to immerse and soothe.

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  3. So sorry to hear about the death of your grandmother. Wasn't it Elizabeth Zimmerman who said "Knit through all crisis." (or something like that). The mittens are lovely.

    Take care.

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  4. I'm sorry for your loss Laurie.

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  5. Beautiful mittens and beautiful thoughts.

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  6. Anonymous11:41 am

    Gorgeous Selbuvotter mitten and glove start. A wonderful gift to your Mom and Dad and a lovely knitting project to help you through your loss.

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  7. I'm very sorry to hear about your Memeh. I didn't think I was that close to my grandfather, but when he died, I was hugely affected. I still think of him. Your mittens are gorgeous, and I'm sure your parents will love them. Isn't that a great part of knitting, that we can actually show people our love for them?

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  8. *hugs*

    The ying-yang mittens are beautiful.

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  9. Oh, Laurie, so sorry about your memeh! Hugs! And you call the Selbuvotter mitten "comfort knitting"? Gosh, I'm such a neophyte knitter. I'd like to adopt you. This is Connie from the Listowel trip. From now on you'll know me as Connie C. okay, so that I can stop identifying myself as the one from the L trip. I'm enjoying every bit of your blog more and more each time I visit. Thank You.

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  10. Starting a special project is a lovely way to celebrate a life well lived. You'll remember her every time you see those mittens or even pick up the pattern again.

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  11. As always, you stun me with your talent! Beautiful work...

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  12. Anonymous10:55 pm

    I read on yarnharlog that you're having trouble with yoru gloves. please join the Yahoo group http://groups.yahoo.com/group/selbuvotter/ and I'll walk you through whatever the problem is.

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