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Proof that my Snow White is done! Whenever I’ve put it on, I haven’t wanted to take it off. The yarn is so soft and warm. ^_^ The knitting went really quickly (I’ve never finished the body of a sweater in just two days before this!) and the only thing that slowed me down was trying to find the right sized circs for the sleeves. Some people on Ravelry have said that they probably would’ve knit a size up because they’re not used to sweaters being so close fitting, but I knew going in that this one would have 2" negative ease on me so I expected it to be tighter than my other sweaters. I probably won’t knit it again because I really don’t need two sweaters that are identical, even if they are different colors. But I do recommend the pattern. Really easy to follow and I didn’t find any mistakes in the size I knit (40"). The only thing I had to look up was how to do the picot bind off and then play around until I found the right amount of sts and where to place them to get the look that I wanted.

Finally a picture of my finished Polly Jeans (there are more pics and details on my Rav projects page)! Or well, of me just wearing one. It’s been a pretty wet and dreary day here, so it was hard to find good light. Turns out that the best light was on the kitchen counter. And that’s exactly where my foot is. You can see in the background the paper towel roll and the black wire is connected to the fridge (which is why I didn’t unplug it to move it away from the background!). All in all, these socks were fine to knit. Not awesome, just fine. The repeat is easily memorized, but I kept messing up on the heel flaps (had to rip back both flaps at least twice and I wasn’t even knitting these at the same time). And I forgot to do the pretty toe pattern decrease and by the time I noticed that, I’d already kitchenered the toe so I just decided to make the second one to match.

My dad texted me yesterday. Apparently, it has snowed in Finland and he just wanted to let me know how great it is wearing the hat I knit for him last year as a Christmas present. I take it this means that my mom hasn’t managed to throw it in the washing machine and felt into a little bowl (just a little worry of mine ever since she felted the socks I knit for her (Twisted Flower by Cookie A) and the Baudelaires (also by Cookie A) I knit for Jaz).

And finally, a sweater update: Snow White is progressing. I now have a sleeve and the second one has been cast on. I’m hoping to get the cuff done by tonight so by next weekend I should have a finished sweater. Yay.

That is my little collection of tea. There’s tea from the Sip N Stitch shipments (the third tea is in the container that’s next to the coffee grinder) and tea from Palais des Thes in Brussels. There’s more tea in the cupboard (ie O’s Earl Grey). The whole reason why I’m showing all this? I went on a little cleaning spree yesterday. I took everything out of the cupboard, cleaned it (found licorice that expired in Dec 2008!), and decided I should rearrange everything so that there’d be more counter space. So now, instead of hiding all of my tea, that’s out on display and all the ugly stuff that was cluttering the counters? In the cupboard all neatly organized. I hadn’t realized how much I disliked being in the kitchen until after I’d cleaned it thoroughly. Now there’s more space and I don’t feel claustrophobic. Things won’t to topple over when you walk by. In hindsight, I probably should’ve taken a a before picture just so you all could see how bad it was. Oh well, too late for that.

In knitting news, I finally cast on Snow White yesterday. I’ve already completed the waist decreases and if I remember correctly, on the next round I’ll be starting the panel bits at the front. It is such a fast knit. But I do need to be doing something else at the same time, like listening to podcasts or watching TV, because 2x2 ribbing can get boring. It’s a good thing I’m working with Malabrigo. It’s like a dream to knit with. No splitting, it’s fairly even, sooooooooo soft.

The baby stuff still has no buttons, the squares are coming along slowly (which reminds me that I need to update the counter thing), my Polly Jean socks are nearing completion and I’ve already decided what my next portable project will be. Can’t say what it is because it’s a Christmas present and I don’t know if they read this, but it’ll be pretty that’s for sure. I guess I should also get a move on O’s hat. It’s starting to get chilly here so he might need it soon…

Where have I been? Cursing a certain yarn and the baby stuff that was requested to be knit in it. Seriously, the yarn is the most awful stuff ever. Especially when one loves stitch definition and this yarn has none. None at all. The stitch definition thing is also why I try to avoid mohair and angora. I want to see stitches!

Anyway, now that the baby knitting is finally done, I can catch up on my blogging. Ages ago I got my final Sip’n’Stitch tea shipment:

Don’t know what the yarn wants to be yet. The second shipment definitely wants to be socks (even now, after fraternizing with the other yarn in the stash). This one hasn’t made up its mind yet. I haven’t tried out the tea or the soap yet either, but they smell divine. I’m really happy with this shipment. Just a bit sad that I won’t be participating in the next round of Sip’N’Stitch (coffee again).

Then last weekend was the Wool & Textile event that my LYSO organises every year. I went there in search of 470 yards of worsted weight to make a Peaks Island Hood by Ysolda and 6mm needles. I got the needles from Wingham Woolworks’ stall (and I resisted buying more fibre), but I didn’t find the yarn. But I did come home with this:

That green yarn is 4ply 100% lambswool (I think the color’s called Stonehenge?). It’ll be paired with a pretty yellow (Marzipan) to make colorwork mittens. And the yellow will also be paired with an orange-y red (Spice) to make another pair of mittens. Those two colors were in stock at the fair, but Jill (LYSO) said that she’ll order them in and let me know when she’s got them. Can’t wait!

I’ve also recently broken down and bought Lady Gaga’s The Fame Monster album (which we listen to in the car) and now I can’t get the songs out of my head. So darn catchy.

Okay, so this year I’m going to Finland for Christmas. I’ve been really looking forward to it since I didn’t get to go last year (had to work Christmas Eve and that’s when we celebrate Christmas so yeah…). Anyway, I’m really excited about going and it occurred to me that I didn’t have a scarf that was appropriate for the weather. It rarely gets cold enough to need a thick scarf over here, so all the ones that I have are made from fingering weight. I had the yarn in my stash and whenever I looked at it, I thought of Christmas because of the color. That’s the color of the decorations my mom uses on our tree (it’s just not Christmas without those exact decorations). And so I came up with this pattern. It’s fun to knit and it goes really quickly because it’s made from thick yarn and big needles (5,5mm needles are very big for me, I usually use 2,5mm!).

It’s available for sale on Ravelry. You don’t need to be a member to buy it. How cool is that? But really, if you’re a knitter or crocheter, you probably already are! And finally, I want to say a huge thank you to my testers. You guys are awesome.

Sadly, I had to rip out the above sock. The pattern and yarn combination just wasn’t working for me. I let it sit for about a week and last night I cast on again. This is what I’ve got now:

A much better fit, don’t you think?

1. Stiletto heels and Sheffield’s sidewalks do not mix.

2. Driving in stiletto heels is difficult, but do-able.

3. Being tickled can also mean being elbowed in the eye.

4. Broccoli and blue cheese soup is not as good as it sounds.

5. People at the office really don’t like other people at the office.

6. It is possible for the fridge to be full yet contain nothing to eat.

7. Snowflake Chunky is really really really awful to knit with. (This I actually knew beforehand, it’s just been re-confirmed.)

8. Tesco brand milk chocolate is bad.

9. Tesco brand plain chocolate is good.

What’s pink and lacy and so totally me? This gorgeous thing!

I used Eos (50/50 merino/silk) from The Unique Sheep on 3.75mm needles. It was slow going, but so worth it. Still, I did get it done in less than a month. The only thing I wasn’t a huge fan of was the weird way the centre stitch separated itself from the rest of the star chart. It doesn’t look bad, just different.

Now where can I wear this? I need a fancy party to go to!

Since I’m still plugging away at Laminaria (only three rows to go before bind off!) and that’s my only current knitting, I decided to show off my scarf. My Mmmmmmmmmalabrigo scarf. The yarn is so yummy it’s unbelievable.

I knit this back in March, but only got around to blocking and photographing it this weekend. Pretty isn’t it? The color’s a bit off in the picture though. It’s actually a very pretty almost mint-y green, not the grey-ish color it’s showing up as.

Another plus is that the pattern’s free (New Day by Heather Zoppetti; it’s on Ravelry)! And it only took me one hank of Malabrigo Lace to make it.

Done! It still amazes me how quickly a pair of sport weight socks go. A nice an easy pattern. I added an extra pattern repeat to the leg since I shortened the cuff a bit. Other than that, no mods. The yarn’s Foot Prints in the colorway Quechua by the Unique Sheep. This was the third shipment of the coffee Sip N Stitch. Isn’t it pretty? And no ugly pooling which is a bonus.

As for Laminaria, it’s still on the needles. Got two and a half Blossom Chart repeats to go because I can start the first edging chart. I’m also still working on the squares for the blanket, but I had to finish the socks before I could make any more. Kinda running out of suitable yarn which means I must knit more, right? :D