First World Problems.

I'm really bummed that all my nice Summer clothes are on the other side of the ocean. Over there, I have four skirts (two are sportswear ones - for hiking and such), two wonderful pairs of dressy/sensible sandals, a pair of seersucker pants, a marine striped hoodie in light cotton and my lovely, lovely paper hat from the milliner near the Old Port in Marseilles.

Since surface mail is no longer an option, sending this stuff back to me makes absolutely no sense, as the fees would cost more than the clothes are worth. What I have in Boston that fits is largely threadbare, knockaround stuff.

Am thankful to have my sewing machine and a good supply of fabric. I'm also thankful to be living in close proximity to a couple good thrift stores, as well as a Target. For my most immediate needs, have been hacking up tee shirts and giving them the Wobi-Sobi treatment. (Have two skirts in the works; just cut up one of the Frenchie's one euro tee shirts into a nightie.) Also turned a couple pairs of pants with frayed cuffs into pants.

With a little bit of time, I'll lose the spare tire and acquire the good quality basics I need. I'd really like my pair of Born sandals back, though. Miss them desperately.

http://wobisobi.blogspot.com/

Keeping Cool.

For as long as I can remember, the transition from Cool weather to Hot in my part of New England has never been a gentle one.  One day, you're wrapping yourself in shawls and donning the fingerless gloves to enjoy the morning coffee.  The next, you're struggling to get the air conditioning unit into the window and seeing how few clothes you can get away with wearing without being considered 'indecent.'

This season, my hair's in an unwieldy transitional phase and the layers are all curling in the wrong directions. Since it's too thick to be properly restrained by barrettes, figured I'd try knitting a headband to keep things out of my face.  This one's a simple pattern knit in my favorite classic lace:  the Gull Lace pattern found in Elizabeth Zimmerman's "Knitter's Almanac."  I chose a worsted weight cotton, Lily's "Sugar n Cream," because it knits up quickly, is soft, absorbent and easy to care for.  Honestly:  not only do I love knitting with this yarn (even in Summer), I like to see it used in things beyond the usual dish cloths and market bags.

Enjoy the beautiful weather, and keep cool!

Gull Lace Headband  (Pattern Available Here.)