lazy days of summer

As you can tell by the post title, we are in total summertime mode around these parts. There has been a string of gorgeous sunshiny days here lately, which we took full advantage of on our beach vacation. Lots of great food and even some new foodie adventures for the little guy while on our trip. He tried sashimi for the first time and really enjoyed it, which utterly thrilled my husband who is a Japanese cuisine enthusiast. Wish I thought to take a picture of the moment! In fact, we pretty much went unplugged the entire time. As for the beach knitting, the only thing I managed to finish was this:

I also started on a new cardigan, the lovely and popular Hitofude, using Quince & co. Sparrow. Really enjoying the cool & crisp feeling of the linen yarn in combination with the easy to memorize lace pattern. Planning on taking my time with this one.

Also taking my lazy time with the finishing bits on Uniform. Hoping to get the neckband knitted soon so I can wear it with this fun top. Is it sad that I require pretty buttons or a hula halter top to motivate me to finish my knits?

Lastly, here are a couple of new books that I am enjoying.

I want to knit pretty much everything in Sweater Girls. If, like me, you adore vintage and retro sweaters, then this book is a must-have. Lots of beautiful pictures and styling, too. I can tell already that Up, Down, All-Around is going to be my go-to stitch dictionary. In fact, I couldn't resist casting on a new project using this stitch pattern from the book:

Of course, there's no rush on this one, too. It is summertime after all ☼ ⛵ ☼

siri

Siri is finally done and I am thrilled with how it turned out. It's the type of cardigan that will never go out of style and is so thoroughly wearable. In fact, I would wear it everyday if only the weather would cooperate.

Don't you just love the yoke on this pattern? So unusual but at the same time very traditional looking. The brown fishermen's wool and pretty embroidered wooden buttons add to the whole classic vibe of the cardigan. In a perfect world, I would be modeling this while wearing a lovely floral printed dress. One of these days, I will get around to buying or better yet, making one. But for now, my usual jeans & tank top will have to do. I predict that this cardigan will be in heavy rotation once the cold weather rolls around again.

The pattern was very well written by a new-to-me designer, Linnea Ohman. You should check out all of the gorgeous knits on her blog. I'm excited to keep the sweater finishing ball rolling. Next up: Uniform.

happy hodgepodge

sweet basil, italian parsley, lavender, thyme

lavender

cherry tomatoes

❀ Watching all the lovely things growing in the garden. 

❀ Admiring my mom's latest Macgyvering magic: a flower pot grill. So cute and it works wonderfully.

❀ Adding the final finishing touches to Siri.

❀ Loving this beautiful Peerie Flooers kit that arrived today. The project bag is printed with hand drawn illustrations of some of Kate's loveliest sweater designs.