life with a chronic disease and a really big yarn stash
MacKenzie Speaks: Meet the Danzig Shawl
Hi. I’m MacKenzie.
Do I look a little grumpy here? It’s hot!!
The Mother of Cats has been hard at work getting all of her knitting projects done. The last one in her WIP basket was this shawl that has been dragging on for weeks.
I don’t understand why she is so slow sometimes. I help her as much as I can…Here is her shawl the day that we started it. Nice colors, huh. She got that pink yarn for her birthday last year, and the gray is some yarn that she had in her stash. She won’t let me play in the stash room; I think that she needs to learn to share her toys a little better, don’t you?We finished knitting the shawl early this week and once it was blocked (WHY does she cover it with towels while it is blocking? Doesn’t she understand how yummy it is to roll around in wet wool?) we took it outside for pictures. Gosh, this is nice and squishy. Too bad it isn’t wet any more…Look at how cool the stitch is in the colored sections. The Mother of Cats had to keep turning the knitting back and forth to make the “pebbles”, which was exciting for me as I got to whap the yarn every time she made a turn. She called it “short rows”. Whatever. I called it exciting.She even used a row of the “pebbles” at the edge of the shawl. Yummy!Here’s the big view of the finished shawl. Hmmm… wouldn’t that look nice in my cat bed?
So that’s it. She’s taking a little break from the knitting while she gets gardening and other stuff done. Me, I’m hanging out in the cat mint staying cool. Maybe a little later I’ll visit with the Enemy Cat from next door… NOT!! Yellow Boy put a claw into him a couple of days ago and that was the last time he come over the fence into OUR YARD!! Good riddance. I must say, I was a little shocked by some of the language that came out of Yellow Boy’s mouth. Who knew he was a secret brawler?
I’m such a good boy.
Can I have some cookies now?
>^..^<
Notes from the Mother of Cats:
I am very happy with the size and fit of this shawl. After knitting three “Find Your Fade” shawls this one was the perfect size for easy wearing. The pattern is Danzig by Justyna Lorkowska, and my Ravelry project notes are here.
MacKenzie was an adult when I adopted him, and he had picked up quite a few bad habits before he came home with me. Actually, he was a handful, and clearly needed more stimulation than I could provide. I found him a Maine Coon kitten to be his companion, and while MacKenzie is my pet, Yellow Boy is MacKenzie’s baby that he grooms and fusses over. Yellow Boy is easily frightened and has been know to wail from time to time. Who knew he would put Enemy Cat into his place?
I started a new sweater a couple of days ago and spent time organizing yarn for the next massive knitting project, the Marled Magic Sweater by Stephen West. He suggested that at least 1500 grams of yarn be gathered up to use in the shawl. Done! I’ll show it off in my next post.
I weave, knit and read in Aurora, Colorado where my garden lives. I have 2 sons, a knitting daughter-in-law, a grandson and two exceptionally spoiled kittens. In 2014 I was diagnosed with a serious rare autoimmune disease called systemic sclerosis along with Sjogren's Disease and fibromyalgia.
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16 thoughts on “MacKenzie Speaks: Meet the Danzig Shawl”
😂😂 brilliant post. really made me chuckle. what a talented kitty being able to type! 😮 you should totally sneek into the stash room!!!! 😂 your mummy is a really talented knitted too. her shawl is really beautiful! ❤❤❤
The shawl is gorgeous!! I’ll be checking out that pattern:)
MacKenzie: You are so lucky to have a great protector like Yellow Boy! He was kind enough to save you from that nasty next door cat;) I think both you and Yellow Boy should have cookies.
The pattern is great. I had the yarn in the stash waiting tor the right pattern, and as soon as I saw this I realized it was perfect. The drape and coverage is just what I need on cool evenings. 🙂
Maybe your human can just get yarn for you to play with. Remember, a little chomping is okay, but don’t eat it!! Tell the human that wet wool is yummy too!!
Can we order it for ourselves online? We know all of Human Mommy’s passwords. Purrs, Quicksilver et al
Online shopping and squishy mail is the best! The Mother of Cats does it all the time. >^..^<
What a wonderful shawl! I like how that pink yarn came through the piece. Your cat is funny and how cute he has his own “pet.” I can’t wait to see your marled sweater in progress.
Thank you. I really liked the pink yarn when I bought it, but had trouble finding the right pattern to show off the colors. Then a friend showed me Danzig, and I knew I had a match. The gray tosh merino light was also in the stash, so I was good to go.
I know, how many people need to get their pet a pet? I think MacKenzie is an ocicat, and evidently they don’t do well alone. As soon as I got the kitten things got much better; today he has abandoned all of his bad habits and is a good (but bossy) boy.
Yarn, Books & Roses 
😂😂 brilliant post. really made me chuckle. what a talented kitty being able to type! 😮 you should totally sneek into the stash room!!!! 😂 your mummy is a really talented knitted too. her shawl is really beautiful! ❤❤❤
MacKenzie: Thank you!! It’s just a matter of time before I get into the stash. She’s got yak and rabbit and lots of wonderful stuff in there.
ooh! do it do it! 😊😊
All beautiful
Thank you!
The shawl is gorgeous!! I’ll be checking out that pattern:)
MacKenzie: You are so lucky to have a great protector like Yellow Boy! He was kind enough to save you from that nasty next door cat;) I think both you and Yellow Boy should have cookies.
The pattern is great. I had the yarn in the stash waiting tor the right pattern, and as soon as I saw this I realized it was perfect. The drape and coverage is just what I need on cool evenings. 🙂
Lovely, shawl, Mackenzie! We wish our Human Mommy knitted–it looks like an awful lot of fun for Cats! Purrs, Quicksilver et al
Maybe your human can just get yarn for you to play with. Remember, a little chomping is okay, but don’t eat it!! Tell the human that wet wool is yummy too!!
Can we order it for ourselves online? We know all of Human Mommy’s passwords. Purrs, Quicksilver et al
Online shopping and squishy mail is the best! The Mother of Cats does it all the time. >^..^<
What a wonderful shawl! I like how that pink yarn came through the piece. Your cat is funny and how cute he has his own “pet.” I can’t wait to see your marled sweater in progress.
Thank you. I really liked the pink yarn when I bought it, but had trouble finding the right pattern to show off the colors. Then a friend showed me Danzig, and I knew I had a match. The gray tosh merino light was also in the stash, so I was good to go.
I know, how many people need to get their pet a pet? I think MacKenzie is an ocicat, and evidently they don’t do well alone. As soon as I got the kitten things got much better; today he has abandoned all of his bad habits and is a good (but bossy) boy.
I just LOVE your guest appearances, MacKenzie! You are clearly a writer at heart. ❤️
And oh, my! What a lovely shawl!!
Thank you! I am a cat of many talents. You should see me chase dragonflies!
Don’t you agree that the shawl would be nice in my cat bed? >^..^<
❤️