We are getting ready for the longest night of the year. This is always a special day for Bruce and me…the anniversary of the day we met and the start of our incredible adventure. This is my version of Thanksgiving, when I think through all that we have done and the wonderful places we have been, and I am so very, very grateful for every day. I will light candles on the railing overlooking the lake tonight, not in an effort to banish the darkness, but to lead with the light into a new year and the next adventure.

I have been working very hard to finish Bruce’s sweater. I just bound off the shoulders and am getting ready to start the sleeves. That is likely to involve some testing and ripping because I haven’t decided whether or not to carry the yoke/ribbing pattern onto the sleeves. There are a couple of choices for that….full sleeves in pattern, or pattern across the sleeve cap to match the yoke (plus the cuffs). I’m leaning toward the full sleeve at the moment, even though it is much slower to knit.

I also just received in the mail the buttons I’ll be using for this. They are antique black glass buttons that are square and have a matte finish. They almost appear to have been sanded.

Swatching is also going well. All of these are from Josefin Waltin’s hand spun yarns from her breed studies. A few of these are headed toward hot water and soap on the fulling board. I’m following Josefin’s lead on felting some of these for those swatches that do not lend themselves to becoming clothing. Felting has a very long history in Sweden, and no surprise given the winter temperatures. I was thinking in particular that some of these breeds would felt down into lovely boot liners, although I dislike the thought of hiding them under my feet when the colors and textures are so lovely.

So in the name of Sol Invictus (the unconquered sun) I wish you joys of the season and a very Happy New Year.