Who Doesn't Love a Bit of Tradition?
“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.”
Dear One,
Are you as ready for a three-day weekend as I am? At my house, we've recently been washing windows, installing screens, scrubbing gutters, and re-cleaning the porch furniture that I put out too soon. Also mowing, weeding, mulching. And can I tell you that I am appalled at the sheer volume of spiderwebs that my little strand of outdoor porch lights accumulated in a single season? It feels like there may have been a spiderweb convention when my back was turned.
I guess you could call it spring cleaning for the outside of our house. And it is surprisingly exhausting!
As we turn away from this work for a long, lovely, (and maybe occasionally a bit rainy) weekend, I look forward to fun conversations with family, low-stress meals on the grill, and sneaking an extra slice of rhubarb custard pie---one of our Memorial Weekend traditions.
Another May tradition of mine is the gradual washing and blocking of all of my fall and winter sweaters. I try to wash two on any day when it seems like my dining table will be mostly free. The sweaters typically dry quickly enough to do another pair in 48 hours...but I remind myself that there is no deadline. This is a tradition I enjoy, so it's fine if it takes me a lackadaisical month to complete it.
If there is one washing/blocking tool that I cannot live without as I work my way through the sweater pile, it is Soak wash. I feel like I've tried them all, and this wash comes out on top in every category. My favorite feature is it's no-rinse formula. Because getting all of the soapy bubbles out of a thick Icelandic sweater is no small task. But Soak wash is intended to stay gently behind in your fine washables and condition the fibers.
I also love the gentle scents---and I normally reach for unscented everything. They do make a Scentless version, if you'd prefer that.
One of my kiddos, upon receiving a hand-knit hat for Christmas a couple of years ago, held it up to his nose to breathe in the light scent. He said, "everything you knit smells amazing, Mama!". Turns out, he thought the scent came from my hands. Ha! I had to tell him that whenever I finish a project, I wash it in Soak. And if my knitted gifts smelled like my hands, it would be some combination of garlic, olive oil, and lanolin!
I use Soak in the sink when I do a true handwash, I use it in the washer when I run a "handwash" cycle. (Truth be told, I use it for swimsuits and bike shorts on a gentle cycle, too.)
And if I were to recommend an amazing-but-not-absolutely-essential blocking tool, it would definitely be The Knitter's Block Set by CocoKnits. It's an investment, but also a joy to use. I think the reason I usually block two sweaters at a time, is because the "tiles" allow me enough space to do just that.
Once each sweater is washed, re-shaped, air-dryed, and folded...I get to stack it on my sweater shelves with its friends. Sometimes I stack by color, sometimes by thickness...but I always get the sense that the sweaters enjoy the process and appreciate this tradition.
May the long weekend find you honoring a tradition that you hold dear. It need not be anything as nerdy as my sweater blocking, but do something that pleases you beyond measure.
Always warmly,
Gaby
On-Going Opportunities:
Makers Mornings -- 3rd Saturday of each month (Jan-May and Sep-Nov)
Beginning Crochet Class -- usually once per month on a Thursday afternoon
Beginning Knit Class -- usually once per month on a Thursday afternoon
