At long Lass....

I am slowly starting to get my patterns together!!!!

First up - a scarf you may remember from Christmas - The scarf for Dave's grandma.
The pattern is now together - so you can knit one for your grandma! (or yourself!)

Here's my description from the pattern:
Highland Lass is a simple scarf with a delicate, but bold lace edge. It was designed as a Christmas present for my significant other’s grandmother. A war bride from Scotland, she came to Canada more than 60 years ago, but still clings proud to her Scottish roots. When I found this stitch pattern in my stitch dictionary, it reminded me of her description of Greenock and the Clyde, where she grew up. The mottled colours of the yarn, combined with the rolling waves in the lace make me think of rocky shores and fantastical tide pools, and hint at mysteries beneath the depths of murky waters. The finished scarf, knit in a merino/silk blend, is at once beautiful but strong. Fearless and graceful - like a true Highland Lass.

It's knit in our Slinky Cat fingering in the ever-popular "Peacock" (Mom is talking about doing more of this soon.)

If you'd like to knit your own Highland Lass you can find it on Ravelry!

Busy, busy

I had a very busy weekend, but all I have to show for it (image-wise at least) is one sock - so I'll start with that:
The colour in the photo is waaaaaaaay off - it's much more warm and golden - but at least you can see the cable, which reminds me of a pretzel. I've modified the pattern to make it an ankle sock, and carried the ribbing right to the very end of the toe. Second sock should follow quickly this week.

I did also manage to complete the second handwarmer for my co-worker, but I haven't taken pictures. Nor do I have any of the pictures of the progress on Bitterroot (I'm on the second-to-last chart)

I also neglected to take my camera to Cake Day - a semi-annual, girls-only gathering at my bestie's house. We enjoyed plenty of food (including cake), wine and jolly good company. It also gave me an opportunity to deliver the Christmas Nessies to four adorable children - and don't worry, they always get their Christmas presents a few months late from good ol' Auntie V - it's tradition now.

The weekend was far too short (and obviously pictureless) and so begins the final four days of the job. Let the countdown begin!

Workaholic

This was my coworker today:Mother Nature dumped another crapton of snow on us this morning, and after determining that my little car was not happy being out on those slippery roads, I came in and fired up the remote desktop. I only have a few days left at this job and I'm trying to get several projects complete before I leave - a day off (no matter how much I would have loved to spend it knitting) was out of the question.

Peno makes a pretty good colleague too - she doesn't talk too much, and never raids my desk for gummy bears or pens.

And I'm much more productive when I work from home. I started earlier (8 instead of 8:30) didn't take a lunch and worked well past quitting time (almost 7 p.m.).

All that work tired Peno out. By 10 a.m. she was already on an extended coffee break.Well - it is Friday. Can't say I blame her!

Another Stray

My socks have been set aside momentarily, while I work on another small project.

Since announcing my departure at my current job (last day is March 3rd), many of my tasks and duties have been shifted to a co-worker. She was hired a few months ago as a telemarketer - but she's done very little of that. She's our Jacqueline-of-all-trades. She helps me with my marketing, sales with their customer service, administration with filing and some accounting, and she evens helps the president of the company with a variety of his tasks.

As a thank you for all her help - and a bit of an apology for leaving - I decided she needed a knitted gift.

Our office, while brand new, was badly designed, with all the work spaces sitting directly under the vents. The HVAC system cycles hot and cold, and when it blows cold, it does a pretty good job of freezing hands that need to use the computer. My fingerless gloves have been invaluable these past few months (as has my collection of shawls).

So....A new design is born. I had enough yarn left over from Dave's last pair of socks, (Stray Cat in Moody Blues) - perfect colours for my co-worker. I whipped this up in just a few hours, and will knit the other one up tomorrow night. I'll share the pattern with you all soon. (I know - I have several other patterns I've promised you too.. they are coming)

While I can't lighten her workload - I can't at least make sure she's more comfortable while she works.

Gone all twisty....

Thank you for all your sock pattern suggestions. I loved them all and my Ravelry queue is even longer now!

As I was looking at them, I realized something. I don't have any cabled socks! I love cables... so how can that be?

And then I discovered Another Faery!

So I cast on last night:

Here's a close up of it.
I am modifying the pattern a bit, but I'll show you more on that at a later date. The yarn I'm using is our Stray Cat (sport weight superwash merino) colour is "Brown Sugar n Spice. It is a repeatable colour, and since many of you have remarked on it on Ravelry, I'll try to get some done up for the shop.

The Stray Cat is perfect for cables as it gives absolutely stunning stitch definition - it makes me want to make a cabled cardigan out of it. The sport weight yarns knits up nice and quick (well, quicker) and I'm already on the gusset of the first sock.

Because of the impending job switch, I am no longer on the event committee at work... that means more evenings to knit (and blog!) for me!!! This pair will be done in no time!

Stuck to it

I did, indeed, stick to it, and finished up the second Blackrose sock last night.Were I to knit these socks again (and it's likely, it's a very pretty pattern) I'd use a less busy yarn that really lets the lace shine. I love this colourway (Nana's brooch) though, and these will definitely be a favourite pair.
I love how the Jungle Cat knits up and can't wait to try it in a shawl or cardigan - it creates such a lovely fabric, squishy fabric. And of course, because I love shiny things, I LOVE the sheen of the bamboo. One thing to keep in mind though... the bamboo is a bit slippery, and if I'm not careful, I end up sliding all over the house (hardwood and linoleum throughout)

I now have absolutely no socks on the needles (just two sweaters and a shawl....) so I'm in search of another pattern. I have a beautiful skein of Stray Cat, so I'm on the look out for a nice sport weight sock pattern... any suggestions?

Sunday 7

1) I finished up another pair of uber-adorable baby socksI have been sticking to gender neutral yarn choices, but baby has been born and it's a boy. I want to do one more pair - probably blue or green - and then I'll get them sent off.

2) When not working on baby socks, I've been making great progress on my BlackRose socks. If I stick to it, I should be able to get them done today. But.. it's hard to say if I will stick to it.

3) Tomorrow is a holiday, so at the very least, I'll probably get them done this weekend.

4) I haven't touched Bitteroot. I haven't been in the mood. But I want to get moving on it, because I'm itching to cast on for the Crow Waltz Shawl again. I didn't like the way the Regia was knitting up for the edging, so I commissioned Mom to dye up some different yarn for me.

This is our Sophisticat - a sport weight Alpaca Silk blend that I haven't gotten around to dying up and getting into the shop. The colour is Chimney Sweep and I think it will work perfect with the handspun.

5) I also have another skein... well ball.... I haven't shown you yet. It's a Top Cat Stripey:This was an accident skein (Mom's - not mine, for once!) I told Mom how to fix it, but she still didn't think it was good enough (not enough contrast between the two colours) to put in the shop. But I thought it was perfect for stripey socks for Dave. It doesn't have a name though... any suggestions?

6) Mom's been busy dying yarn, and I did some last weekend... expect a shop update in the near future (including our new Twinkle Cat GOLD!!!!)

7) I gave notice at my job on Friday. I have a new job in the big city (Mississauga). It starts on March 7th, and will mean a move in a few months. I'm going to miss this small town, and my little townhouse. But I'll only be an hour away, and Ill be back frequently to dye yarn.

It means a better opportunity for me, and less commuting for Dave. If we can save enough to buy a house, the sacrifice will be well worth it!