Never the Write Time

For almost all of the fall, I’ve been occupied with work on the interior of my house. When I planned the renovations, I considered only the preparation and not the aftermath. In essence, I imagined that by now I’d be living “happily every after,” not wondering where I stuck essentials (most notably my underwear) or confronting boxes in need of unpacking.  But there is progress. We can now park in our garage, and I don't stumble over boxes on my way to the bathroom at night. I can visualize an organized end to the chaos. 

The floor refinishing, electrical work, and painting not only put blogging on the back burner, but it eliminated any chance that it would happen.

This was my office around 5 weeks ago after the floor were sanded and stained and when most of the electrical work was done.  The computer is under the drop cloth protected from the wall paint.

This is what it looks like today, as I devote this weekend to revamping my filing system and finding homes for all the supplies.  Now that I have ceiling lights, I think the el cheapo Wal-Mart desk lamp is going to go.  Then it will be on to getting some new shelves and putting up some pictures.

All of September was devoted to packing up every stick of furniture and every stitch of clothing and transporting the boxes to the garage, attic, or basement.  A lot was thrown away too and donated to Good Will. If anything, this was a real wakeup call for someone who has packrat-like tendencies. The floor sanding and refinishing began in early October, during which time the birds were boarded so they wouldn’t die from the smell.  We did not manage to survive the smell either, and spent much of October in a motel (with the world’s slowest Internet connection).

At first, I thought that the time “off” would be a blessing.  I could do all my fall garden chores and shop for things like shoes that require trying on.  But it rained almost every day, or the garden was a mud puddle on the days when it didn’t, so the garden chores waited until we got home.  In all, we were good and bored by time we could move in again.

Our delight at moving back in and sleeping in our own beds was brief. We couldn’t move much out of the storage locations because the electricians and painters were coming, and the birds had to go back to the vet for boarding so the paint smell didn’t do them in.  I also spent time hauling my fabric and yarn stash from the laundry area that has tile floors (no floor or electrical work) but would be painted.  So here it is in the center of my spare room, which is almost, officially my sewing and knitting room. 

Pre-painting:

Post-painting:

That room now has a ceiling light (but no fixture because it is on order), and it will have indoor shutters in a few short weeks. I need more shelves for the sewing notions and the boxes of books still in cartons, but it is shaping up.

The closet will be remodeled with shelves to house my knitting stash, which I just placed inside the old closet to see how it will look.

Knitting has happened for all this time, and because I haven’t written about it, there are lots of posts forthcoming about my progress.  I’ve had fewer knitting hours than usual, but I’ve been working away at night, if only to retain the shreds of sanity that were left.  On the needles now is the Helena children’s sweater/dress from Knitty, which is a present for a member of my knitting group.  It is at junctures like this in my progress on children’s clothing that DH always feels sorry for the poor one-armed baby who will receive the item. I just roll my eyes in response.

The yarn is KnitPick’s Swish DK (superwash).  Despite the size of the stash, I have very little that is suitable for children’s sweaters, and this was a purchase from KnitPick’s CyberMonday sale.  It is nice yarn to knit with—very soft and pleasant to the touch.  It is the discontinued parrot colorway.

There’s still more to do inside (fireplace repair, new furniture), but my routine—which includes blogging—is close to being restored.  And now that I’m such a roll with renovations, I might just redo the blog itself.   

Comments

[Dorothy]

Having been through a major remodel, I can empathize. But it's so nice when it's done and the memories of all the hassles fade away. Thank goodness for knitting! It makes all those potential boring moments bearable!

[Jackie]

So glad you're back! I've missed your posts. Glad to hear your absence was for a good cause. :)

[Caroline M]

You have my sympathies - this is why I try hard to veto all "improvements". It's not having the work done so much as the getting ready and clearing away and then the continual aggravation of having spare people underfoot.

The little jacket is a lovely colour, I'm not sure that "parrot" comes close to doing it justice.

[Lorette]

I hate the process of remodeling; such a mess. It will be nice when it's done though.
I had to laugh at your mention of "very little that is suitable for children's sweaters". This is exactly why I keep buying yarn, I suppose. What I need to do instead of picking a pattern and then realizing I have nothing to knit it with, I need to pick the YARN that I already have, then find a pattern that will work.