celebrating

Although her birthday is really tomorrow, we're celebrating today. My sister turns 50! It must be true that 50 is the new 40, because my sister is a woman in her prime - a challenging career, busy home life and busy social life. The celebration? Dinner at the restaurant where she first introduced us to the man she would marry a couple years later. Coincidentally, my favourite restaurant - super nachos and pitchers of Sangria.

No knitting photos today. Mostly because the photos I took this morning look very much like yesterday's photo. Work progresses on my Noro baby blanket - it's nearly done. The Stanley Cup Playoffs started last night, and from the ceremonial puck drop to the final buzzer in the third period I knit. Quietly urging Crosby and Malkin to find the net and silence the Detroit fans. But Detroit dominated last night, much to Gavin's delight. Oh well, it's best of seven, maybe they can even it up in tonight's game!

Also, I packed up and mailed off my little hats yesterday to Andrew for his charity project. And then posted to his Mom's Ravelry forum where she's tracking hat totals. With the six hats I mailed, his total stands at 420 hats and counting. Great, huh?

words fail me

... really, what can I say? The colours are tremendous. Words completely fail me. And that turquoise! That's what made me buy this yarn in the first place. The turquoise and the indigo peeking out in the skeins.

I've knitted the first skein, and plan to knit two more. Based on what I've got now - 84 sts with bulky yarn on 6mm needles - I expect the blanket will finish at about 28 x 36". The pattern calls for an intricate knitted border to be added to the main blanket panel, but I might just leave it as is. Simple, unfussy and incredible.

now for something completely different

As promised, it's not a hat. In fact, it's the beginnings of a baby blanket using Noro Iro that I picked up at Knit-Knackers in Ottawa a couple of weeks ago. In just a few short rows the colours have gone from peach to brick red to deep indigo blue and now are wandering towards violet. And olive green lies just ahead. My first Noro project, and so far the yarn doesn't disappoint. Unlike so many other variegated yarns, the colours never seem to go yucky at transitions.

And so far, the Cielo Baby Blanket doesn't disappoint either. It's simple enough to let the Noro take the spotlight. The yarn thickness varies, the colours shift quickly and it's super bulky and fuzzy - a nightmare for an intricate pattern. Woo Hoo. Look at me knitting Noro!

last hat, I promise

For this blue hat I pulled out some Bernat Baby Softee from Mom's stash. Hmmm, not as nice as the Wendy 4 ply. It's not just that it's thicker - DK instead of 4 ply - it's just not as soft. Don't get me wrong, it's a nice little hat and still quite soft and comfy. But if I were shopping for more baby yarn, it'd be Wendy 4 ply for me.

Knitting baby hats one after another has been a mental vacation. Like watching hour after hour of daytime TV. Not too challenging. And not much intellectual stimulation. So it's just as well that I'm finishing up my last hat now and getting ready to mail them off to Andrew. Because it's time to shrug off the lethargy. And find a challenge to sink my teeth into!

another day ...

... another hat. This latest uses some Patons Look At Me baby sport that I've had in my stash for years. When my sister, my neighbour and my cousin fell pregnant at the same time I made a series of colourful baby sweaters to welcome the new arrivals. Nicholas turns nine in July - that tells you how long those leftover balls of yarn have been waiting in my stash.

The pattern is a simple beanie - lovely with this bright and busy yarn. So far this is Gavin's favourite. I like the simplicity of the pattern, but the rolled brim is a bit chunkier than I'd want. Instead, the ribbed cuff of the last two hats might be a bit more comfy on a newborn's head. My plan is to mail my completed hats this weekend - expect to see a couple more hats before I'm done. Maybe one more the same as this one, maybe a couple of white hats.

And I can't put off weaving in ends on my Taiga sweater any longer! I've been perplexed about how to go about it - with so many strands in so many in different colours, my usual trick of duplicate stitching them into the fabric won't work. I don't want the colours of the ends peeking through. When in doubt, consult Ravelry! A quick search of the forums led me to this helpful advice. The second method describes working the ends up and down through the purl bumps on the reverse side of the fabric. That should work, thanks Nanette! But how did we get along pre-Ravelry?

sock update

Slowly but surely the sock's coming along. Just finished the gusset decreases and worked half the first chart repeat for the top of the foot. And like so many other things, it looks harder than it is.

But what amazes me is how many people have asked whether it's worth it. "Wouldn't it be easier to just buy socks?" Which is really missing the point, isn't it? Using that logic how would you justify doing a crossword puzzle or playing golf. It's leisure. It's creative. It's not meant to be an efficient or economical way of making socks. For the hours of enjoyment I'm deriving from knitting this sock, it's darn good value for my entertainment dollar.

May flowers

It must be true what they say about "April Showers ..." because there's no shortage of flowers these days. The fruit trees are covered in blossoms and the Lilacs are blooming profusely. Gavin and I spent the weekend at a friend's cottage on the Lake Erie shore, enjoying the beautiful weather. Warm enough even for a couple hours of sailing on a Hobie catamaran!

The first little pink hat is done, and another is on the needles now. Just a couple more days and a couple more hats before I mail them off to Andrew. Then onto a Noro baby blanket!