Done!

Today, there were two things working overtime to keep me inside and knitting all day. Firstly, it was wet and raining pretty much from sunup to sundown. Secondly, at 11:00 am, my cats came to sit with me in bed (I was already up and about! Just...being lazy.) and promptly fell into an adorable cuddle pile. Loki half opened one eye, to make sure I wasn't thinking about moving, then promptly fell sound asleep. I could not resist. I declared it a do-nothing day for all three of us. However, while they are naturally cute -- see exhibit A:



-- I have been a slovenly, PJ-wearing lump today. Fortunately, I channeled all that excess energy into knitting, and completed the summertime tunic at last. There would be photos, but my camera died at the exact moment the knitting stopped. It's like it knew.

The ends still have to be woven in and it needs to be washed and blocked and then have a yet-to-be-purchased ribbon threaded through it, but the knitting part is done! I'm not yet convinced about the fit, but I will withhold judgment till I've blocked it.

In the meantime, I have no projects on the needles. I'm not quite sure what to do with myself, really. Off to Ravelry for inspiration!

SP Contest #8: Three yarns I would love to try

The very last SP contest asks ask three yarns I'm dying to get my hands on. Because I am greedy, I want all the yarn, but I made an effort to narrow it down.

1. Everyday(ish) yarn I would most like to try: Blue Sky Alpaca. I have heard lots of good things about this one, and many of my favourite designers use it in their patterns. I'd happily try any in their range, although the Royal alpaca and the alpaca silk are especially tempting. The organic cotton looks like it would be brilliant for summer, also. However, at £6-7/skein, it's still pricy enough that I should wait till my birthday before I splurge. Runner up in this category: RYC Cashsoft (which also has to benefit of being a bit cheaper).

2. Material I would most like to try: bamboo. There are several summer projects that I'm sure would be wonderful in bamboo, and I'm very interested in experimenting with this fiber. I'm looking at the lovely RYC Bamboo Soft bamboo or the more budget Sirdar Just Bamboo. Runner-up fiber: linen.

3. Yarn I will never, ever buy myself unless I win the lottery: Tilli Tomas. It looks luscious. The colours are deep, the yarn is luxurious, and the various sequins/beads/crystals add a wonderful touch of glitter. However, at over £20 a skein, it would cost at least £200 to make one top. I suspect this one will stay on the "I can dream" list for quite some time. Runner up luxury yarn: Cherry Tree Hill.

Now, it's back to the Summertime Tunic. I finished up the back yesterday and only have the front to complete. Hopefully, I can finish it today so I have a legitimate reason to post again later -- and thereby avoid falling afoul of the SP10 4 posts per month rule.

State of the knitting

I am, after a slight knitting depression, once again hard at work on my stitches. The summertime tunic is approaching the finish line, and if I am especially good this weekend, I might finish it. I'm not sure I actually like it at this point, but I will reserve judgment till it is completed. Of course, being my usual foolish self, I have not bothered to take it off the needles yet to check for fit, so the finished product is still something of a mystery.

Lauren has had her timeout status revoked and is awaiting frogging. I enjoyed the knit well enough, but one error kept costing hours of repair work, and it no longer seemed worth it. Besides, I'm not entirely sure I would ever wear it, and I found another project I want the yarn for. The Turkish silk will evolve into my very first design and first attempt at intarsia. I'm not aiming for anything fancy, but I though I might play around with some cushion covers. Like so much of my knitting, however, this is contingent upon acquiring additional items. In this case, I still need the cushions, so this project is off until I can arrange a trip to IKEA.

Right now, all projects seem to be complicated in some way and/or are taking far too much time, but at least I'm feeling inspired again. PLUS, I finally got my invite to Ravelry, which is way cooler than I'd even hoped it would be and is entirely deserving of a post all its own. I'm still getting set up over there, but I am shinyobject and you should all come find me.

Pictures soon, I promise.

Where did I go?

Reasons I have not been updating:

1. My computer died a sad, painful death. I am sorting out a temporary replacement, but for the last couple of weeks my Internet access has been painfully limited.

2. Knitting disasters! The easy summertime tunic was cruising along, until my circular needles broke. I bought a complete set of bamboo circs off ebay, and that was a brilliant decision at the time. New to knitting, I hated having to choose my projects based on whether or not I had the right size needle. Unfortunately, the joins on these particular needles are not exactly high quality, and the needle broke apart from the cord, taking several dear stitches with it. It took me a while to replace that size needle, as I try to limit how much I spend on knitting each month, and last month I was happy to splurge on my secret pal. However, I finally couldn't take it anymore, and splashed out on some Addi Turbos in the required 3.75mm size (and, bless ebay, was able to get a 4mm set as part of the package). I am in love. They really ARE super fast. The material slides along the cord, so I no longer have to waste time pushing the yarn toward the left hand needle. I am now determined to have a set of Addis and a set of wood needles in every size. THEN, I will be a super-duper prepared knitter.

3. I am working on a Super Secret Birthday project, and can't post a thing about that. Shhhhhh.

4. You know, life. Sometimes it keeps one busy.