Changing gears

I've lost steam on the Crow Waltz shawl. I started knitting the leaves again, but I don't like it. The Regia is too light, and it's looking very sloppy. I don't want to go down a needle size because then I will have to knit even more leaves to get the size I want.

So, it's going to sit in the time out chair for a little longer - at least until I can get some sport weight yarn dyed up in black.

In the mean time - I cast on for Bitterroot.
I've wanted to knit this pattern ever since I first saw it on Knitty.

I had intended to make it one of the 10 shawls last year, but never got to it (making three Frozen Leaves shawls might have had something to do with bumping it down the list).

I'm knitting it in our Fluffy Cat ~ which was always my intention, but has been given greater urgency when I realized I don't have a Fluffy Cat shawl.

I made both Artemis and Traveling Woman in Fluffy Cat (in fact, Traveling Woman was my first fingering weight shawl) but I gave them to my friend Bree and her wife Jamie for Christmas.

The colour I'm using is Winter Spruce ~ a combination of two very pretty shades of grey-green. In fact, they are very close to the colour of my eyes.

I have two skeins, so I'm making the full-sized shawl. I don't know if I'll do beads yet - I like how they look, but it seems like a lot of bother. But, I'll worry about it when I get to that point ~ which could be a while.

I'm back in event planning mode at work with another trade show coming up in April. I'll be working most of tomorrow, and as we inch closer to the date, it's going to start cutting more and more into my knitting time.

And, because you've demanded it ~ I'm also devoting some time to poor neglected Beaker.

The only reason he got neglected in the first place was because of the needles I was using. They were cheap wooden needles and they kept splintering on me. But, now that I have my Harmonies, there's no reason not to finish him up.

He got his hair today, as well as mouth and one leg. He looks a little freaky right now - his pupils will be black felt, glued on. I tried knitting them but I didn't like the way it looked.

My plan is to get him done in time to give to Dave for Valentine's day.
If work cooperates of course.