I can't believe it's been over a month since I updated this blog.  I've been busy.  See the pictures?

The bobble stitch sampler top needs assembly and some relatively minor finishing work, like adding the neck and sleeve borders.  The Crystal Palace Bamboozle (this color is "Ember Glow") works up nicely and feels good in my hands.  It splits like crazy, though.  One must pay close attention while knitting to avoid splitty messiness.  I haven't made up my mind whether this will go into my closet once it's finished, or whether it will be a gift.  We'll see how it fits and then decide.

This is a hoodie in progress, a Christmas present for one of my nephews.  Simple stockinette with rolled edges and ribbing made with Rowan's now sadly discontinued Plaid in "Spicy".  I love this yarn and am very glad to have acquired multiple skeins in multiple colors before it vanished from the marketplace.

My sister asked for a doily and runner set to go in the guest bedroom in her new house.  Other than requesting the color burgundy, she gave me free rein in design.  The doily pattern was taken from some stitch sampler book somewhere in the house, and the runner is my own design.   The yarn is Patons Brilliant in "Beautiful Burgundy".  I love the subtle shimmery effect....

Lastly, this scarf was commissioned by a friend.  Other than being asked to "keep it simple", I was given free rein in design, and thus came up with a modified moss stitch with two strands of worsted weight, one strand in dark green (Patons Canadiana), the other in chocolate brown (Plymouth Encore, color #1444).  Together they knitted up into a fabulously cushy and substantial reversible fabric.  Someone's neck is going to be toasty warm this winter.

My family has been informed they are all getting something knitted or crocheted for Christmas this year.  Gotta make use of all that yarn I splurged on!

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I'm a sucker for closeout yarn sales.  Especially online closeout yarn sales.  Ever since I discovered Herrschner's and its affiliated sites, YarnSale.com and YarnCollection.com, I've been doomed.  So much pretty fiber, so little money!  Because the stock is mostly closeouts, sometimes the color selections are limited, but I've found enough lovely yarn lately to give spouse heart failure.

Spouse is quite right when he tells me, "When you obsess over something, you really obsess over it." 

I refuse to tell you how much money I've spent on yarn in the last month.  Even I, in the depths of my obsession, am appalled.  But I'll post pictures of the latest order when it arrives sometime next week.

In the meantime, the stitch sampler top is proceeding quite nicely.  When I first bought the yarn, I wasn't quite sure about the color...it seemed much more orange in person than in the catalog.  However, as the project works up, the color grows on me and becomes more and more beautiful.

Another "sit & knit" for this knit-along is scheduled this afternoon at my LYS. 

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I've had a book in my hands more often than yarn over the last couple of weeks.  It's hard to juggle these two favorite pastimes when I've never been able to enjoy audiobooks.  Reading has always been a tactile experience for me:  the weight of the book in my hands, the feel of the paper between my fingers, the scent of the glue and binding (especially if the book is leather-bound!), the crisp sound of a turning page...all these lovely sensual experiences vanish with books-on-tape or -CD.

Maybe the tactile sensation of fabric and yarn is the reason I love fiber arts so much.  I know I buy fabric and yarn for their feel at least as often as I buy for color, perhaps more so.

At any rate, these are the two projects I have going right now:

Slouch Rib Cardigan by Cathy Payson for Interweave Knits in Paton Shetland Chunky.  This is a "back-burner" project for the moment:  it's far too warm to wear the finished product right now.  More than likely, I'll pick this one up off and on for the next few months, and concentrate on finishing it when it gets closer to autumn.

Crocheted Crop Cardiganby Monica Brown in Lion Brand Microspun.  I plan to finish this one fairly soon and add it to my work wardrobe.

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My first big knit project, a mohair blend garter stitch shawl, has been sitting here for the last several weeks telling me it wants to go live with someone else.  I finally decided it was right, and took it to work today to give to a purple-loving colleague.

Colleague modeling her new shawl

Bat wings!

Colleague was thrilled!  She wore it all around the office, and gathered many compliments.  We both beamed.

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Behold, the loveliness!

The front.

The back.

The front, again.

Detail of eyelet yoke.

Now, let's hope it fits its recipient.  Living some 1600 miles apart made in-progress fittings a tad difficult. 

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Hmm.  Knitting eyelet isn't nearly the ordeal I thought it would be.  Before I started, I read the little section on yarn-overs in Donna Kooler's Encyclopedia of Knitting (the most useful knitting resource book I own).

Donna Kooler's Encyclopedia of Knitting (Donna Kooler's Series)

If you don't have a your own copy, it's worth the $25.00 to get one new if you can't find one on half.com like I did.  Anyway, I've gone several rounds on the yoke of Jordan's cardigan, and it looks pretty good, if I do say so myself.

Yoke over one shoulder

Yoke and right front (sideways view)

Just for grins, this is an upside-down shot of the right front showing my valiant attempt at seed stitch.

A few more rows of eyelet, and then I'll make my first buttonhole.  What a learning experience this little project has turned into!

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Recently, and courtesy of Ravelry, I discovered Rowan, and instantly became smitten with their patterns and their yarn.  I subscribed to their pattern book, and my first copy arrived in the mail yesterday.

With it came this nifty little lapel pin.

Which I will probably never wear, but it's a cool gimmick.

Eagerly, I paged through the magazine and found many lovely spring-time patterns which were immediately added to my queue at Ravelry.  Prediction:  I'll never run out of projects.  And the money I spend on yarn will increase dramatically.  These patterns are too gorgeous to make up in run-of-the-mill acrylic.  They cry out for linen and silk and bamboo and cotton.

Speaking of run-of-the-mill acrylic, however, Jordan's cardigan has reached its penultimate stage:  making the eyelet yoke.

Assuming I master the art of eyelet, this project will be ready to send off to the little darling in the next couple of weeks.  Of course, she won't need it until Autumn, so I'll probably hang on to it until her kindergarten class starts and her birthday is nigh.

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My niece's sweater (that's "jumper" to you UK folks) proceeds apace:

Jordan's sweater #3

Considering the sweater is intended for Jordan's autumn birthday and her first year in school (kindergarten, woo hoo!), I probably shouldn't let it take up so much of my time and instead concentrate on the baby afghan.  However, the afghan project gets picked up only when my elbow hurts too badly to knit:

Allie's afghan #3

Seven squares to go, and then construction and border.  The squares take hardly any time at all, just over an hour if I don't allow myself to get distracted.  Maybe I'll focus on this project for the weekend.  But then again, maybe not.  Other yarn is calling my name....

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Picture heavy post!

Two finished baby blankets for a friend who is having twins:

1st Bamboo Baby Blankie #3

2nd Bamboo Baby Blankie #3

Felted crochet hook pouch, to keep all my hooks in one place:

Crochet Hook Pouch #4

Crochet Hook Pouch #3

A sweater for my youngest niece, in progress:

Jordan's sweater #2

And, because so many people around me are having babies these days, yet another baby blanket in progress:

Allie's Afghan #2

None of this activity is doing my tendonitis any good.  Such is the price of productivity!

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Knitted on circular needles from a combination of two yarns:  a mohair blend and a mohair/metallic blend.  Yarn details will be added at a later date.

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