Craftsmanship

This morning the final coat was put on the floors. Our floors were 41 years old and had never been re-finished. For years they were lovingly waxed and buffed, a task which gradually ended as we grew up and left the house. As time passed, mistreatment took it's toll and the appearance grew worse and worse. It was so bad that even the re-finishers wondered what the floors would like once they started. Sadly, they didn't hold out much hope. On Thursday they found out.


Underneath the years of abuse the red oak was still beautiful. (The paint was a little extra added by the painters who weren't as careful since they knew the floors were going to be re-done.) The entire house is almost complete with the exception of the kitchen, which won't be ready by Thanksgiving, and we can begin moving back in on Monday evening.

Watching the transformation of the house has only intensified my appreciation of those who practice the arts of craftsmanship. What has been even more rewarding and inspiring is the number of young men who have stayed in or come in to assist their fathers in continuing these businesses. Having lived in the midst of and watched the changes on a daily basis, including several weekends, has been inspiring.

Bolero #2 is finished. The background for this shot is the sanded and re-finished floor. The aged floors have a warmth of color not present in the floors of the addtion and I couldn't resist getting this shtp once the floors were dry. This bolero is also for one of my nieces. As I added the ribbing, I couldn't help but smile at the combination of colors. This is my favorite so far and absolutely perfect for a spitfire of a 9-year old. That makes 2 out of 3 boleros ready for Xmas.




I forgot to mention that I'm continuing the "Heels & Toes" experiment. I'm using the "easy toe" from SKS and PGR's short-row heel in the Champlain Sunset socks. This is the first short-row heel I've knitted for myself. The first sock is almost complete and this heel fits perfectly. That may change after wearing but at this moment this is the best fitting heel I've worn. These socks won't have any patterning as I couldn't see disrupting the coloring. They look fantastic in plain stockinette.

Things aren't looking too promising as I'm still deciding on Xmas knitting. I've reached a little stumbling block with all that's going on at work and home. Hopefully this is just a little temporary blip and I can get a few things done before time runs out on me. If all else fails, there's always IOU's.