Yesterday, I went ahead and bought the
Knit Picks Options Harmony wood needles sized 13 and 15 to finish my red string bag. I spent some time on
Ravelry checking out what other knitters were using to make this project and the many good comments about these needles made me take the plunge. Hopefully, these will be the pointy needles I am looking to love. Basically, this bag is just about using large needles and thin cotton to make large loops. It takes other bloggers about two days to finish. Me - I've been stymied again and again by thick, blunt needles. So, today I am ripping it back. And then, I'll start again. This bag has just been chock full of life lessons for me. Don't hurry, don't over think the pattern and do it right even if that's the hard way. I hear you, I hear you!
The "Paws to Remember" scarf for my sister-in-law has become my pick up and travel project since I finished the last pair of socks. Unfortunately, it takes me a few minutes to find my spot and get re-started knitting, so it isn't progressing very quickly. I like to pin the pattern to my chair arm and check it every so often and that doesn't make for quick knitting. It is lovely, though, and has such a nice border of yarnovers and k2t or ssk. I think I came to enjoy tidiness late in life and I really appreciate it when I see it now.
In order to have a travel project, I pulled this sock project out of my sock stash box. It's been snoozing for quite some time - I just didn't like having to stop ribbing and work the cable. Despite my misgivings, this "Cable Rib Socks" pattern by Erica Alexander from the Spring 2005
Interweave Knits made it into the IK
Favorite Socks book. It is a nice yarn (Steinbach Wolle Strapaz Cotton Effekt in Kiwi Green) and makes a nice cable so, maybe, I just wasn't paying attention.
I'm really going to have to get these projects done and out of the way if my "Spring of Scarves" works out. I spent a little too much time on
Ravelry this holiday season and found some great projects on an "Advent Calendar of Knitting Patterns" that someone put together. Unfortunately, many of them were not in English. So, between my limited German language skills and my mother's skillful French, I am going to have a whole new catalog to deal with. If there are any knitters out there who haven't stopped by the
Ravelry site and signed up, make that your next bookmark. It is a great place to look at patterns, ask other knitters how their projects went and to window shop for yarn. I love being able to search for a pattern as well as browse the photos of many different knitters' versions of that one idea.
Youngest Child is truly growing - I weeded out three long sleeved shirts, one short sleeved tee, a pair of jeans, a pair of basketball shorts and one last pair of undies. Of all the clothing, I had to sneak out the undies. They were favorites, even if they were much too small.
