my first softie

I found this cute pattern for a patchwork cat softie at this delightful blog:
http://www.greenkitchen.com/blog/2007/06/stripe-y-patchwork-cat-
front.html. I wanted to make a stuffed cat for a friend's new baby. I wasn't the least bit creative with the pattern...I even followed her color scheme exactly, although I used quilter's calico instead of wool.

new roommate

fo: patchwork-y potholder

I wanted to use up some scraps from my mom's placemats to make a matching potholder. I found the tutorial at a blog called design sponge online (if I knew how to link to it, I would, but I don't, alas.)

fo: newlywed socks

Pattern: Newlywed socks from Handknit Holidays
Yarn: Kathmandu Aran tweed, 2.5 balls
Begun: December, 2008
Finished: August 11, 2008
It was a struggle to complete these socks for my brother-in-law, especially because it was the second pair of the same pattern (to complement the first pair that I made for my sister.) Forget 2nd-sock syndrome; I had to deal with 3rd- and 4th-sock-syndrome. This is my excuse for why it took me 8 months to complete. Glad to have them off the needles and en route to Massachusetts.

fo: shetland triangle shawl

Shetland triangle shawl from Wrap Style
Yarn: Crystal Palace Yarns Panda Silk (bamboo, merino, silk) 2 balls
Begun: July 2, 2008
Finished: August 9, 2008
This was a super fun and easy knit. I would have finished it a couple weeks ago, but I underestimated how much yarn I would need and had left 2 balls of it at home, and ran out of what I had with just 4 rows left to go. Now that it's blocked, I wish I had made it bigger, but it's still a lovely finished piece. I will probably make a bigger version, maybe in a slightly heavier weight yarn, someday. Here's a closer view of the lace.

grieving

My beloved Sophie, 2004-2008

sharing the joy

I've converted two family members to the club during the course of my visit. Here's a picture of one of them working on her first project (a garter stitch baby blanket.)
And here's a picture of my circular shrug, which is coming along rather slowly despite vast stretches of time spent knitting this week.