Crochet Diaries: Cozy Scarf Progress & Life Lately
Crochet scarf progress, off-grid cabin construction updates, cycling training, and cozy tea-filled nights in this week’s Crochet Diaries.
Welcome back to another entry in my Crochet Diaries series, where I share my crochet projects, where we’ve been, how cabin life is unfolding, and all the in-between moments that don’t quite fit anywhere else.
This one feels full….and a bit messy. Which honestly feels very on brand for both life and crochet lately.
Crochet Scrappy Scarf Progress (and a Cabin Full of Drywall)
Let’s start with the yarn, because that’s why you’re here :)
I’m still working on this scrappy scarf, and I truly love it more every time I look at it. All of the squares are finished and blocked, and the color variation makes me so happy. This was the perfect way to use up the remaining Color Theory yarn from my Woodland Bloom Blanket and my Granny Square Garland. Nothing fancy. Just letting the scraps have their moment.
The only problem? I don’t have a filming space right now.
As I’m typing this, I’m tucked into a tiny corner of the cabin while my husband and our neighbor are on the other side putting up drywall. Everything we own is piled in the center of the room with a narrow little path leading to the wood stove. It’s chaos. Creative chaos, but chaos nonetheless.
And since I can’t move forward with the scarf until I can film the tutorial… it waits.
Crochet, Music & A Cozy Night Out
Even when construction is swirling around me, I still try to get out and refill my cup.
There’s a local group of musicians I follow, and I try to attend almost all of their shows. This time they were playing at a non-alcoholic bar – which I had never been to before – but when I read the menu online (tea, kombucha, herbal elixirs), I knew it was my kind of place.
It did not disappoint.
I ordered a goji tea and their Firecracker elixir, and later switched to peppermint tea. My husband stuck with his usual americano. It was cozy and calm and the kind of atmosphere that makes you want to bring a crochet project and sit for hours.
And if you’ve never listened to Louiston, you’re missing out. They just released a new album and it’s been on repeat for me ever since.
Bowling, Math Class & Teaching the Next Generation
Speaking of rhythm… my son has really gotten into bowling lately.
His dad is an accomplished lifelong bowler, so it seems he may be following right along in those footsteps. The other night he asked if I could take him, so we went to a local bowling alley that still keeps score the old-fashioned way…pencil and paper.
And somehow, thanks to high school math class, I still remember how to keep score.
So I got to teach him.
The Stove Arrived Early (Because Of Course It Did)
If you watched my recent vlog, you know our stove was delivered two weeks ahead of schedule.
Two. Weeks.
The inside of the cabin looked like a construction tornado had settled in permanently, and it had been raining for two straight days, turning everything outside into mud. We were not prepared.
We purchased a Unique off-grid stove from Home Depot. It runs on propane and uses a D-cell battery for ignition, so it’s very fitting for our off-grid life.
It’s not installed yet because I’m still waiting on our kitchen counters, so it’s just sitting there for now. But here’s the big update:
We finally have electricity.
We’re still off-grid, but we can now plug the cabin in like a camper and use all of our outlets. I haven’t had an actual light switch in five years! I almost don’t know what to do with myself.
I love how the green lights look at night. It feels like progress. Actual, real progress for once.
Training for the Empire State Ride After Surgery
In my last Crochet Diaries, I shared that I had just had all of my restrictions lifted after my breast reduction surgery.
I’m training for the Empire State Ride in July, which is a multi-day cycling event across New York State that raises funds for cancer research and patient support. It’s important to me in a way that’s hard to fully explain.
Even while I was under restrictions, I didn’t want to sit around and lose all of my progress. So I called my cousin Lauren (below on the right) – who is also a personal trainer – and told her, “I don’t want to lose my progress, but I’m restricted.”
Through every stage of recovery, she wrote me a program that allowed me to keep moving without pushing too far. While I waited to get back on the bike, I followed her workouts at the gym.
And then at my five-week post-op appointment, all my restrictions were lifted.
You’d better believe I took that bike off the indoor trainer and hit the road the first chance I got. We had two dry days, and it was glorious. Since then, the weather has turned again, so I’m back inside…but now it feels different.
I’m not waiting anymore.
I’m building.
Living in the In-Between
Maybe that’s the theme of this whole season.
A scarf waiting for filming.
A stove waiting for installation.
Drywall is half finished.
Training shifts with the weather.
Everything feels mid-project.
But crochet has always taught me this: progress doesn’t have to be dramatic to be meaningful. Sometimes it’s just one square at a time. One row. One stitch.
And right now, that feels like enough.
Thank you for being here for this Crochet Diaries entry…in the mess, in the music, in the mud, and in the making.
~ Christine
What to Crochet This Week
SHOP PREMIUM PATTERNS:
These photos are the property of Spotted Horse Design Co. This tutorial is for your personal use only. Please do not copy/paste, distribute, or alter and claim as your own.this Crochet Diaries catch-up. It feels really good to be back.
I love reading your crochet diaries. I understand what you’re going through living in your cabin. We lived in a 32ft travel trailer with 2 Rottweilers for a year waiting for our manufactured home to be built, delivered and set up. We are on 80 acres in Central Oregon. We do have power that we brought into our property as well as a well and septic. We love living in the middle of nowhere.