A Little Progress

I'm moving along slowly, but moving all the same, on the grey vest. It's cardigan style, but I'm working in one piece to the armholes. Why sew more seams than you absolutely have to?



I've added a little detail to the front opening edges, just to add some interest to all the plain Jane stockinette.


I have a vague notion of adding some sort of pattern stitch to the upper back. Still have plenty of time to ponder that. There are at least 9 inches to go before I even get to the armholes.

It was a wet weekend

which was good, as we needed the rain. The first part of the month was gloriously sunny, but dry. It gave the farmers time to harvest a bumper crop of corn (so large they are running out of storage space in this area). Now the earth was ready for a good slow soaking.



I finished off a hat that had been sitting half done through all the sunny weather.



The picture color is actually prettier than the real thing, which is more plum. It's the Burning Love hat, with some slight changes to the top decrease section. The pattern is written and has been tested, now it's off to the tech editor.

Amazing Lace, but not fiber

I love this woman's work. Check out Cal Lane and her works.

Hat tip to Steve at What do I Know?

Updated to add my favorite headline of the week: UK Lawmaker's Wife Accused of Kitten Theft

From the Depths

This yarn has been sitting in the stash a loooooong time. Like pushing 20 years long.

It's a tweedy grey, fairly fine gauge Shetland wool, pretty colors but a bit scratchy. If I recall correctly, it came to me as part of a mixed lot of coned Shetland mill ends. At some point in the past I wound it into balls, holding two strands together.

I finally got around to swatching it. It softened a little with washing, but not much. Still, I think it might make a good vest, nothing fancy, just something to give an extra layer of warmth.

Auction

There was an auction in the park today, a benefit for our pool, which needs some pretty extensive and expensive renovations to come up to new state and federal codes. It's a beautiful fall day, so I strolled on down.



There was a nice turn out,



and lots of stuff to buy

I don't really need more stuff, but I enjoyed walking around, and visiting with neighbors. To support the cause, I had a brat (and tossed a little something in the donation can.)

On my way home, I took pictures of the kind of things I like taking pictures of.

My Favorite Headine of the Week

In Heated Debate, McDonald's Insists Happy Meals Can Grow Mold.

That's all.

All But the Loose Ends

The thick knee socks are essentially done, and I can finish those ends off tonight at knit group. So what to start in on next? I'm kind of at a loss. Maybe it's time to go stash diving.

Procrastination

I had a group of folks from the Free Pattern Testers group on Ravelry testing out my directions for the Burning Love Hat. I got lots of helpful feedback: a few errors caught, some suggestions for improvement in the format, information on sizing/fit. So that's all good. But now I have to sit down and make the actual revisions.......and I've been having a hard time forcing myself to do that.

Coming up with design ideas is fun. Working the initial sample is fun. Actually writing it all down as clearly and accurately as possible, not so much.

Walking With Merlin Takes Patience

Because it involves a great deal of sniffing,

and some tunneling,

several dust rolls,

and time for contemplation.

These are some of the other things I saw while waiting for him to move along.

Because I Have a Weakness for Pictures of Cats Forced to Wear Hand Knits

Thanks, Y'all

for the empathy. I'm feeling much better. Christine, I hope you feel better soon, too.

La Grippe, la grippe,

la post nasal drip....

It started Wednesday, with the scratchy sore throat and dry eyes.

Yesterday progressed to the feverish "head wrapped in cotton while laboriously trying to wade through waist deep molasses" phase. Didn't dress, in and out of bed all day, did get through about six chapters of Battle Cry of Freedom (a history of the Civil War).

Today have reached the nose running, sneezing, but "at least Thank God the congestion is breaking up" stage.

So I have my fingers crossed that I will be feeling halfway normal by the time I have to get up for work tomorrow.

I've rounded the bend on the thick socks with short row heels. As you can see, I decided to make them long thick socks. If I'm going for warmth, it makes sense.



I'd better keep plugging.. The forecast predicts temperatures in the 30's this weekend (though admittedly at night - the days should be a bit warmer than that).