Caught in the Current

The Paint Creek - Clinton River is moving fast through Rochester Hills Municipal Park today. There is similar beauty and power in the handwork room at OSS. We are caught up in the excitement of the school auction, taking place this Saturday. Many busy hands knitted and needle-felted in a combined effort to complete the farmyard blanket. Thanks to all for your willing efforts.

An afterschool trip to the duck park was a welcome break from our work. The children were delighted! Mr. and Mrs. Mallard invited them in for a closer look at the water. The moms were grateful for rubber boots. Everyone is enjoying the change in the weather. Even the groundhog was out of his burrow and nibbling near the roadside.

Winter has kindly stepped aside for awhile, allowing spring to take hold of the earth. Last week, we experienced the mighty winds of March. This force of nature sent garbage can lids sailing down the driveway, along with windswept children holding tightly onto their hats. This week, we are graced with the golden rays of the sun, plenty of smiles, and warm children asking to remove their coats. This afternoon, at a park not far from school, we had a chance to bask in it. How wonderful to be outside - carefree and happy amidst bikes and strollers and dogs.

I worked on joining two blanket sections, beginning where the river meets the pond. A simple knit stitch allows for easy transition of colors and quick completion.

Shannon tackled the complicated road between the hay field and the corn field. She managed to finish it despite my vague pattern, three varied stitches, and six strands of color. In case you can't tell, its a two track road that dead ends into shrubbery. I think everyone who has driven in the country has seen a road like this. Thanks to Melissa for quickly knitting the long gravel road in seed stitch. Yvonne has added a few rocks since this picture was taken.

Kim used the basketweave stitch to make our cobblestone path. Its a repeating combination of 5 knit, 5 purl for so many rows, then reverse. Brown Sheep's bittersweet and praire wildfire create the brick red color.

Kathleen is making a dirt road to connect her plowed field to the flower meadow. I appreciate her willingness to learn color changes. It will come in handy when she makes roads for her own blanket.

Our first photo of farmyard blanket makers in action was sent in by Yvonne. At the top, Judi, her nother-in-law, knits a sheep pasture while Yvonne adds her trademark needle-felted rocks and blades of grass. Her son Jake enjoys watching them work. Her husband Jeff must be up in the maple tree taking the picture. The Stefani family visited Kensington Metro-Park last Saturday to see how maple syrup is made. Many of the Huron-Clinton Metro Parks host similar maple syrup events in March. It is a seasonal occurance, unique to our region of the world. Check out the link for nearby parks and a schedule.

Country Roads

The roads will connect all twelve of our farmyard squares, and have the important job of unifying the whole blanket. When we laid out the squares, we decided that loop stitches would help to lead the eye from one area to the next. Certain yarn colors appear only once and look a bit lost, so they will be incorporated elsewhere. We want the finished piece to look intentional and well-planned, rather than accidental. We are a persnickety bunch, aren’t we?

Here are some ideas taking shape. We can play with color and texture before making a final decision. The first sample is a two track road in stockinette stitch. The second one is done in seed stitch, for a gravel effect, with loopy grass in between. The third is a sandy path leading to the water, with tall grass on either side. Which one will we choose? All three perhaps...