Teeny tiny stitches...

I'm hemming tablecloths for the reenactment society. Good, because hemming goes really quickly compared to knitting. Bad, because it's miles and miles of itty-bitty little stitches, white on white. Yes, I could make bigger stitches, but these are for high table for an event in the spring and I want them to look perfect!

I promise I'm not dead

Though you might think that from the infrequency of my updates these days. I am rapidly approaching the end of the dress, and it's eating all of my time. I feel as though I can't update my blog because I have no finished projects to show, and there's only so many views of a green blob one can take. The wedding is a week on Saturday. Thankfully, I'm off the hook for lining it. Given the state my elbows are in from all the crochet, that's a really good thing!

I've started the toe of the first of hubby's Thuja socks. His toes are quite wide, so I probably won't do the recommended number of toe decreases. I'm working on a novelty yarn garter-stitch scarf as well - the ideal project for evenings when my brain has switched off.

This past weekend was a major Kingdom event - Spring Crown Tourney. My home Shire was hosting, and I (foolishly?) volunteered as reservations steward. Assisting in the running of a weekend-long event for 100 people is not hugely relaxing, but it was a lot of fun. And it meant that I spent quite a chunk of time frantically sewing clothing together to wear to court. My fingers are itching to sew again! I'm pondering taking some time out from yarncraft after finishing the dress in order to ply a needle for a while.

Having said that, Cookie A is in London this weekend signing copies of her new book at Loop. And I have a good-sized pile of semi-solid sock yarn needing a pattern, and I did commit to making myself four new pairs of socks this year...

unanticipated outcomes

A few days ago I discovered that the Student Union was showing the newest version of Sweeney Todd. You know, the one with Johnny Depp singing. So, since £3 is a good price for a cinema ticket in central London, off I toddled. Lighthearted, bit of a giggle, not really worth owning on DVD to be honest.

Anyway. I think I want to take up barbering. Since I have so much free time! I've been toying with the idea for a couple of months now, thanks to all the reenactment. The generally accepted wisdom is that the accessories make the outfit. I disagree. I think it's the hair that makes the outfit. You can have all the accessories you want, but purple spikey hair is going to kill the outfit no matter what you're wearing. So is the wrong kind of facial hair.

I have to learn to put up my hair, and since I end up trimming my husband's hair and beard anyway I may as well learn to do it properly so that it looks right. I think I'll be practicing using a cutthroat razor on my legs first before trying his chin though!

I step away for 5 minutes to live my life...

...and suddenly it's been a week since I updated my blog! Oops! Major happenings on the needlework scene, some of which need their own post. So, a rundown of the minor things.

I still have no camera. This is annoying, but since little brother (who graduated yesterday! Woohoo!) seems to want to buy me one for Christmas, I am going to struggle through without one for a little while longer. However, mum is staying over this weekend and I have high hopes of taking a big batch of photos that I can dole out over the next few weeks.

I've done a bit of shopping. The reenactment group took a trip to Walthamstowe Market to look for garb fabric. I came away with 2 lots of fabric, both courtesy of my mother, and both for the same outfit! A while ago I swapped some yarn from my stash for some lovely rose-coloured cotton fabric. Only trouble was, there wasn't enough to make a full gown from. So I've now acquired some paler pink cotton and some white linen that is all going to be turned into a bodice-and-skirt number. I'm hoping to cut that out this weekend.

I also came home with 2 more giant balls of wool/acrylic to make sweater for the hub, courtesy of Grandmother. It's his favourite colour and I don't make him nearly as much stuff as I should.

There was one other thing that happened that day, shopping-wise, but it gets its own post!

Weaving Friend has now received her turquoise mitts and seems to love them. I'm glad she's happy. I'm gladder that they are out of my flat! (I've been in a bit of a purge mode recently.) Also gave Mum her garters, as well as giving her my Noro Triangle Shawl. She loves the colours, and while I really like it they are definitely more her than me. I've been promised a replacement skein of Noro Sock to make another in my colours.

While on a brief mission to John Lewis, I found 2 skeins of Kidsilk Haze in the remnants bin on half price. Needless to say, they now live with me. I'm rather pleased with them because I've just swapped for 2 more skeins of the same colourway - I'll have enough to make a sweater! Plus Mum found some gorgeous yarn that I am to turn into a pair of socks at some point in the future. I'm thinking Broadripples, personally.

Other needlework news - I finished my Wise Monkeys. They fit, are comfy, and have already been worn so are in the laundry hamper. I've decided that I don't really like the red tunic I started making for Hub last year, so I've ripped out a bunch and am going to finish it and donate it to the Shire guest basket. I finished another stripe of my bedspread last night, which is very pleasing. Halloween Monkeys are now the designated handbag sock, while the Poms are going to be my at home in the evening project. I really just want them finished and off the knitting table! Once those three projects are done, I'm seriously considering resurrecting the Coatigan. Mostly because it takes up a ton of space, and I'd really like to be able to wear it someday.

Back in the saddle

The sewing marathon is finally over. We all had garb to wear to Coronation, where much fun was had. People even admired the stuff we made! Pretty much everything got done, too, which surprised me greatly. The spouse's red tunic is not finished, but it is going to require a great deal of ripping, redesigning and resewing. Frankly, I'm just not into it right now! Also didn't get the garters done, but mum ended up managing just fine without them.

I'm devoting my last day of vacation to doing things that I want to do, rather than things I have to do. I just finished my Odessa hat, for starters! It came out as more of a beanie than I was expecting, but that's alright. I didn't have any beanies. I still think it's pretty. I'd like to make one without the beads, since they were a bit of a pain, but this pattern is definitely going into the "make again" pile. Not many patterns there, truth be told!

Later today I'm planning to cast on for some socks, possibly wind some yarn, and perhaps cut out a new skirt. There is much more garb being planned, now that I actually have time to enjoy doing it.

Sick of lists yet?

I've concluded that because I'm about to go on holiday my brain has gone into overdrive when it comes to list-making. I think it's because it's the only way to still the voice of panic saying things like "No, wait, it's not really Tuesday!" or "You didn't print out your ticket!" or "Go buy a new toothbrush!" or my personal favourite "Must not fall asleep! Might miss flight!". This despite the fact that I'm not leaving for TWO MORE DAYS!

So, listy listy listy to silence the voice.

Still to do for Coronation, needlework-wise

• finish hemming veil (tonight and tomorrow)
• finish teal gown
• hem and embroider handkerchiefs
• make blue court tunic for the spouse (while at mum's)

Holiday needlework stuff

• all of the above plus
• make two pairs of garters for mum (working on the airplane)
• cast on for Anne-trelac socks on the 21st
• finish Odessa hat
• finish booties
• finish Calorimetry

Many things to do. Fortunately I have the day off tomorrow. Let's see just how much I can get done in the next 36 hours!

Stuff that I still need to get done before Coronation

1. Hem and embroider 4 handkerchiefs
2. Put reinforcing gussets into the slit tops of the husband's tunic
3. Finish hemming green veil
4. Finish making teal gown (lots left to do on this one)
5. Make up a pair of green braies
6. Knit 2 pairs of garters for Mum
7. Make a Byzantine court tunic for the husband (doing this while visiting Mum next week)
8. Buy a sleeping bag
9. Finish knitting fingerless gloves for Weaving Friend, hopefully

I think that's everything. There's other stuff that I'd like to do, like swatch for my silk gloves, clean my entire flat and finish reading all my library books, but the above will suffice for now.

I cast on for a Calorimetry yesterday to use up some of my neverending supply of Rowan Tapestry. And actually, I'm really enjoying it. I can see why people knit so many of them. It's made by working short rows, so for the first half of it, every rows gets shorter and shorter. And then when it's time to work longer rows again, well, you're already more than halfway done! Using up some of this yarn is one of my revised Mission:Possible goals, so I have high hopes of finishing that this month. It'll bring me up to 5 finished projects! And 2 of the remaining ones are socks, so they'll get done over SoS.

Pictures! At Last!

I can't believe I went through the whole month of May without a single blog photo. Ah well, I was busy with the making of things. So to make up, here are a couple of the recent objects in my life.

The belt made by my lovely friend, first of all. The picture is crummy, since my camera really hates fine detail. But isn't it lovely? Oh, and did I mention she also made the belt buckle????

And my finished chemise! Lovely medieval underwear! (In the darker picture? That's a fold of the fabric. Not what you're thinking at all.)

And my finished green tunic! Oh yes, between an evening in front of a very silly movie and a lovely spouse who's basically volunteered to do all the cooking until all the garb-making is done, I finished it. It was too late at night for a modeled photo, so this one on the bed will have to do. Amusingly, it also fits me, bar the too-long sleeves.

Bah

Betrayed by the frailties of my own body, I didn't manage to get the green tunic finished over the weekend. I had done so much sewing that I was having muscle spasms in my right forearm every time I made a stitch! So on Sunday I worked on my Odessa hat, which was great. I might even get it finished this month, who knows?

I also worked on my veil. I'd cut it a little wider than I needed, which ended up being a good thing. Turns out that it has some stains on the edges, so I was able to just cut them off. Now it's just a case of pinning, ironing and hemming. I hope to get that done this week, once the last little bits of hemming on the tunic are done.

And I went shopping. For a good reason! I had bargained with a friend who does tablet-weaving for a belt in exchange for some elbow-length fingerless gloves. Foolishly, I figured that she wouldn't have time to make it for ages, but no. When we met up at the Shire picnic on Saturday, she had finished it! It's absolutely gorgeous, and will look splendid with my teal gown. I'd brought along the skein of Alpaca Silk I bought back in March to see if the texture was ok for her gloves (she's allergic to wool, poor thing), and not only did she love the yarn, but she loved the colour! So I went and got a second skein to make her the gloves. And since I was in the yarn shop on the 1st of June, when I'd declared 100g of yarn to be permissable, I indulged in a skein of Jitterbug in the colourway Copper Beach. It's destined to become a pair of socks for the husband once Summer of Socks starts! I also got a set of DPNs in a size I didn't have for the gloves and some removable stitch markers.

A frustrating lunch hour, though, as I'd forgotten my black sewing thread and couldn't sew. So instead I worked on another pair of booties. The first one is nearly done, so I will have a gift to take when I go to visit Baby and his mum! Yes, one of my friends has had her baby. Amusingly, he arrived on her birthday.

Progress and admitting the need to change

First of all - I finished the chemise yesterday! I haven't actually tried it on yet, but it fit after I'd sewn up the major seams, so I'm pretty sure it's ok. I will try to convince the husband to take a photo of it tonight, since I'm now working on his green tunic. I'm getting faster at hemming, so managed to do half of the huge neckline today over my lunch hour. It was good.

In other news, I have been thinking more about Mission:Possible. As it stood from the beginning of the year, there was no way that I was going to complete everything after taking up with the SCA. Sewing is just too time-consuming.

So, rather than abandon the Mission entirely, I’ve decided that I’m going to rework my goals into something a little bit more realistic given my new commitments. Because this is about making progress on using the yarn instead of hoarding it, finishing the projects instead of letting them hibernate! So, my new and improved and achievable goals:
1-4: Finished four of the original list - Monkey Socks, Black shawl, Dr Who leftovers, alpaca neckwarmer.
5: Finish Swallowtail out of crimson Eva
6: Finish the crocheted ripple bedspread that will use up most of my acrylic stash
7: Knit something, however small, out of some of my 6 skeins of Tapestry
8: Knit a pair of Anne-trelac socks
9: Knit a pair of Pomatomus socks
10: Mystery project (I may have signed up for a new mystery knitalong)
11: Finish Interlocking Cables sweater
12: Knit flag for the 198 Countries Peace Project

Not too different from the original list, but reduced a fair bit. I think it's doable!

Plans and lists, for I'm obsessive like that

I have a bunch of stuff that I'm making or going to make that has an external deadline on it and needs working on. Plus I have a bunch of projects that I'd really like to get finished just so that they are done. So, I'm going to do a calendar run-down with deadlines and things to help keep track of what needs doing.

May 22-31: Finish enough garb that the hub and I each have an outfit to wear to the revel on the 31st.

-finish hemming bottom of chemise ASAP
-sew up seams of green tunic, teal gown and red gown on 24th with E's sewing machine
-hand-finish tunic and teal gown once machine sewing is done
-hem veil
-if time allows, apply trim to teal gown and cut out and assemble a pair of braies

ALSO work on mum's birthday present and the bedspread when not able to sew.

June 1: Camden Green Fair. Today I can work on anything I want, and may buy up to 100g of yarn providing I have a plan for it.

June 2-9: Cut out, hem and embroider handkerchiefs for Coronation. Keep working on mum's birthday present when not sewing.

June 10: Day trip to St Albans - birthday knitting on the train and in the purse.

June 11-17: hand finishing on red gown, repairs on red tunic, cut out blue court tunic for the hub, birthday knitting as and when, hopefully finished by June 18, swatching for silk gloves

June 18: pack before going on holiday, no needlework!

June 19-26: visiting mum, finishing up any remaining handsewing plus making blue court tunic and possibly pink gown, Socks on Vacation for SoS

June 27-29: Coronation - knitting silk gloves, maybe finishing some inside seams if I can be bothered.

June 30-July1: Bugger all. Two days off playing in London!

July 2-18: SoS will start properly for me at this point, since all the sewing will be done. Also knitting flag for the 198 Countries Peace Project

July19-31: SoS continues. Other priority project is the Swallowtail shawl

August 1-7: break from socks prior to the Knitting Olympics - will work on one of the Mission:Possible outstanding projects. Probably Interlocking Cables.

August 8-24: Knitting Olympics, during which I will attempt to knit an entire pair of Pomatomus socks in 17 days.

August 25-31: Interlocking Cables sweater and last few days of SoS

September 1-5: finish Interlocking Cables

September 6 - iKnit Day and the great wearing of the sweater to meet the Yarn Harlot herself! A small amount of stash enhancement is also permissable

September 7-10: anything I want to work on or cast on for

September 11-15: Raglan Ffair - silk gloves again

September 16-30: very little of anything, given that term starts and I will be exhausted from freshers.

October-December: finishing up as many WIPs as possible - ideally I'd like to start the New Year with no unfinished knitting, crocheting or sewing projects. NB sewing not embroidery - I'm ambitious, not clinically insane!

Le Weekend

Busy, but not as productive as I'd hoped.

The chemise is coming along nicely. I did almost all of the seam finishing that needs to be done before hemming, and hemmed one of the sleeve cuffs. I've got 4 seams left to finish, the second sleeve cuff and the bottom of the chemise to hem, then it's done. The green tunic basically didn't have anything done to it at all bar pressing the shoulder seams. I decided that finishing one thing at a time would be better for my moral! Having the sewing machine out all weekend really did help, though. Even if it was a pain.

In between rounds of sewing I worked on the bedspread, which is motoring along. I love it, and I'm looking forward to having it done! I also indulged in a little Summer of Socks preparation. All of my sock yarn is now in a bag, I've dropped some bad yarn off at a charity shop and made more space that way, and have been working on using up my scraps of sock yarn leftovers before I start generating lots more. I've been making korknisse! These are little trolls made by knitting a sweater and a pointy hat for a wine cork. Very cute, utterly quick, really good for using up scraps. I'm going to make half a dozen or so for my friend's birthday on Friday.

I've also been planning which sock patterns to make with my yarn. Here's the list, although it will be subject to change:

• Jitterbug in Bright Charcoal - Butterflies and Bees Socks from the Six Sox Knitalong
• Wool-Rich in Fruit Fondue - Bellatrix Socks
• Wool-Rich in Green Pumpkin - Aquaphobia Socks
• Matchmaker 4-ply in Grey - Austrian Socks
• Wool-Ease in Rose Heather - Hiking Socks and Cabled Footies
• Bulgarian Cotton in Orange - Fishnet Knee-Highs
• Kroy Socks in Easter Egg - Wendy's Feather and Fan Socks (pdf)
• Laura in Chi-Chi - Petticoat Socks
• Lucia in Ruffled - Kaibashira Socks
• Regia Semisolid in Blue - Baudelaire Socks
• Schoppel Admiral Dark - Conwy
• Schoppel Admiral Light - Monkey Socks (again!)
• sKnitches Kettle Drum in Aegean - Pomatomus Socks
• Wisdom Yarns in San Diego - Anne-trelac Socks

I'm going to be busy this summer!

Pomatomus is no more

I don't know why I didn't trust the designer. The Monkey socks are the best socks I've ever made. Of course she had a reason to go up a needle size.

In other words, although I could still get it onto my foot, the first Pomatomus was a little on the tight side. So I frogged it. RIP! I am being much more demanding on myself recently. If it's less than very good, I don't tolerate it. Although it did take me almost a fortnight to admit to myself that really I'd be happier with a looser sock.

I've managed to build myself quite a nice schedule at the moment. On the 31st of this month, I've got an SCA event for which the husband and I both need garb. I have 6 full days of weekend to spend sewing between now and then, and only 3 pieces of clothing that must be finished. Hopefully this is doable. I'm spending my weekdays on knitting and crocheting both to avoid sewing-induced RSI and because, well, I like knitting and crocheting better than sewing.
Then in June I can devote my free time to making my mother's birthday present on weekdays and sewing more garb and some handkerchiefs for Coronation on the last weekend of June.

Conveniently, Summer of Socks 2008 starts the weekend before Coronation. So in theory, I should have all my sewing done by that point, allowing me to throw myself headfirst into an orgy of sockish wonder. Now that I've frogged the Poms, I have enough sock yarn for at least 9 pairs of socks. Maybe if I use it all up during SoS, I can buy a bunch more at one of the autumn knitting events I'm going to!

I will be revisiting the Poms at some point in the future. The pattern is great. But in order to make a nice fabric on 2.75mm needles, I'm going to need a thicker sock yarn, like Emily or Lucia from Posh Yarn. The yarn I was using for the Poms is probably going to end up being another pair of Monkeys.

Sewing is good

Especially when one realizes that, much as with knitting, it gets faster when one practices. Last night I took advantage of a sunny evening and an empty flat to cut out a very basic smock-type t-tunic for the husband. Wide neck, square shoulders, and a plan of leaving the lower part with a split 'skirt' so he can move. I finished sewing both shoulder seams in about an hour and a half, which is quite good for me. Especially using black thread on almost black fabric! I'm hoping to finish it and my chemise this weekend, assuming the light is good enough and I don't get cramp.

In knitting and crocheting news, I have resolved to work primarily on the rippled bedspread this month. Mainly so that I can be rid of all that yarn! And of course, to acquire a new blanket thing just in time for summer... I'm also working on a summer tank top which is designed to use up all my DK-weight cotton. Conveniently, there should be just enough yarn to make the top and not have much in the way of leftovers. Whatever is left can be turned into a dishcloth.

I really wish I lived somewhere with enough space to have the ironing board set up all the time. The biggest hindrance to my sewing right now it needing to constantly press a seam or two, but never two seams close enough together to make it worth keeping the board out. My living room is just not that big, and the drying racks take up most of the space!

And we're sorted again

This weekend just gone was one of the best and most relaxing I've ever had. Fantastic birthday party for the husband, who is 30 today(!), a truly impressive haul of leftover wine, glorious sunshine, fresh air, oh, and some knitting and sewing.

I seem to have recovered. It was a case of not really doing much of anything on Saturday, I think. Then in the late afternoon I picked up my mostly finished chemise on a whim, and somehow managed to hem the entire collar in 2 hours or so. Stopped because I had cramp in my left hand, and decided to cast on for a new project. This one's a summery tank top in cotton - basically two rectangles sewn together in a couple of places. Alternating bands of garter and stockinette stitch. I'm doing this one in stripes, with the garter stitch bands in a mystery blue-green cotton that a friend gave me, and the stockinette bands in white cotton that I picked up in a charity shop a couple of years ago. It's worked on 6mm needles, which means that it goes very quickly.

And then I did a bit more sewing. I've nearly finished the last seam, then I need to hem the wrists and bottom. Then it's done! Who knows, I might even post a picture of me in my medieval underwear.

And then there was frogging. A while ago, I started making a Shedir hat in the recommended yarn calmer, which is a cotton and microfiber blend. Lovely stuff, but when combined with 1x1 cables, it gives me neck cramps and muscle spasms. I picked it up, knit for 10 minutes, couldn't turn my head, and ripped the blasted thing out. I'll do this pattern someday, but in wool. Of course, that left me with a single ball of yarn with no pattern, which is just bad. So I went over to Ravelry to browse, and spotted a very nice set of Odessa hats made with Calmer. It's a lovely spiraling lace pattern with optional beads. I thought I'd leave the beads out so that I didn't have to go shopping, but I realized that I already had a small packet of lovely clear glass beads which just happened to fit the yarn and match it nicely. And I had the right sized needles! So I promptly cast on for that as well. I finished the ribbing last night and am starting the patterned part later today. It seems to be going quickly, especially since the needles are a couple of sizes bigger than the Shedir needles.

And I packed everything away in preparation for the party, so I'm reveling in not having so much stuff out. It really feels good.

I'm also thinking about dropping out of Mission:Possible. Basically, I'm making a ton of progress on my projects. I've even finished the neverending black shawl. There is no deadline for anything that was on my list of 12, and I actually do have several other projects waiting that do have deadlines. Plus, now that we're playing in the SCA, I've effectively committed myself to a crap-load of sewing year-round. I even somehow got myself signed up to make some Coronation gifts, which need to be done by June. Plus, I'd really like to get cracking on my silk gloves. I'll think about it for a while longer, but I'm thinking that this knitalong is one to which I'm really not suited.

(And I may have just signed up to have another go at Summer of Socks.)

The project of insanity

I needed something in period to take to an SCA event this summer. And I really wanted to take knitting, since that's my main craft. Now, knitting was done in the Middle Ages, but it was a little different, as far as source material leads us to believe. Mostly very high gauge accessories, like stockings and gloves. I'm not going to spend hours and hours of my life making a pair of stockings at 15 stitches to the inch, because they'd eventually wear out. So, I decided on gloves. Properly cared for, they should last forever.

Now, knitted gloves tended to be made of very fine silk. Conveniently, there is a website (Colourmart) that sells very fine silk at very good prices. They are based in the UK, so I received my silk within 36 hours of ordering it. I was hugely impressed.

Reason I'm insane?

That's a 5p piece, which is about the same size as a dime. The line across it is one strand of the silk. I don't even own any needles small enough to make these gloves. I will need needles smaller than 2mm in diameter! This website stocks the appropriate sized double-pointed needles; someday I'd like to have a set of 5 of all of the sizes smaller than 2mm.

So many things done over the long weekend!

First - a long overdue photo of the mini-Who scarf. The recipient is coming over on Friday, so that'll be good. I like getting rid of the finished projects almost as much as I like finishing them!

Next, an update of my Mission:Possible projects. I only took photos of the ones on which there was any visible progress, so some are just list entries.

• Black drop-stitch shawl Finished!
• Half-hexagon shawl Hibernating
• Dr Who Leftovers Finished!
• Red Posh laceweight Swallowtail WIP
• Acrylic several WIPs no photos
• Interlocking Cables sweater WIP
• Alpaca neckwarmer Finished!
• Coatigan Hibernating
• Monkey Socks Finished!
• Pomatomus socks WIP
• Anne-trelac socks not yet cast on
• Clapotis WIP

I'm quite pleased with my progress, actually. I'm hoping to finish Swallowtail this month, since I have so much laceweight to get through!

I spent most of the weekend sewing, when I wasn't taking photos or cooking. We are going to a big SCA event this summer and need clothing. At the moment, I have a gown and chemise for myself and a tunic for my husband underway. I also have enough fabric to make two more tunics for him and three more gowns for me. I'm hoping to have 2 each finished by the end of June, so there probably won't be as much knitting on the blog as there has been recently.

Those who can't knit go shopping

Or something like that, anyway! Instead of indulging in a morning of needlework, as I normally do on my Thursday mornings off, I decided to clean my flat. It needed doing, and there was a chance that I was going to bring a friend home with me later. So I tidied, washed dishes, and did not a single stitch of knitting. But there was a plan! Said friend had never been to my favourite shop and wanted some 2mm DPNs. I knew they had some in, and since she'd expressed a desire to meet for lunch, I suggested a shopping trip instead. So we met and went up to Kentish Town. 'Twas great. She ended up with a bunch of stuff, and I bought white sewing cotton, cream-coloured bias tape and some wooden buttons. And then we sat in a cafe and poured over the charts for one version of Eleanor of Toledo's Stockings, a very popular piece of historical reproduction knitting. She'd been confused by the written pattern, which seemed to omit some decreases needed to make the patterns match up around the leg. And I, obsessive that I am, just had to rechart the lozenge pattern on the cuff so that it was symmetrical. And we discussed the relative virtues of an assortment of double decreases. I'm fondest of the one showcased in Grumperina's Jaywalker Socks (remember those?), slip 2 together knitwise, knit 1, pass both slipped stitches over and off the needle. In fact, I'm so fond of it that I decided to replace the double decrease in the Swallowtail Shawl with it. It is just more nicely centred, in my opinion.

Anyway. The thread and the bias tape are for the chemise that I worked on on Saturday. I still can't believe that I ran out of white sewing thread. The buttons are for a project that hasn't even been cast on yet! Remember about a year ago when I finished knitting that blanket that had been in the works forever? Well, I still have more of the blue yarn left. So I decided that for her birthday this year, my best friend would be getting a matching pillow. I'm planning to just work a big sack of seed stitch on circular needles and graft one end closed when I finish. No seaming! Just miles of seed stitch. So now I've got some big wooden buttons to hold a flap closed once it's done. (I'm a fan of removable cushion covers. It prevents spillages.) Given that her birthday is less than a month away, I maybe should start working on it...

Lots of progress, no more finishing

I may bite my tongue later, but I don't think I'm going to finish anything else this month. Although it'd be nice if I did!

I was home sick from Friday until yesterday, and I got quite a lot done as a result! Well, up until Sunday, which was when I got to the dysfuntional part of the cold. On Friday I managed to finish the green and yellow mitts for my mother, and I'm quite pleased with them. They were very good practice for working corrugated ribbing, of which there is a lot on the Ivy League Vest I'm hoping to make some time this year. And because I've finished the mitts, I can now add the remnants of the yellow and green yarn to the mini-Who scarf and finish up a fourth goal! Mmmmm, mindless garter stitch.

After finishing the mitts, I decided to indulge in a new project. One of my goals was to knit up the crimson Posh laceweight that I've been hoarding. Trouble was, it was only 400m of yarn, hardly enough to make a shawl and I didn't really want a laceweight scarf. And then Knitting Daily published the e-book of old patterns that was supposed to have come out back in March. Contained therein was the pattern for the Swallowtail Shawl, a truly gorgeous pattern that calls for... exactly 400m of yarn. And just after they published it, the Posh Yarn Group on Ravelry decided to have a knitalong for the Swallowtail. Destiny, surely. So I cast on. The pattern is delightful. It flows beautifully, and each pattern repeat is only 6 rows long. And only 3 of those rows actually have pattern on them - the others are just purling back across. I've finished the first chart and done 4 of the 14 repeats of the second chart. There are then 3 border charts to work through, although they are each only worked once.

The 3rd and 4th charts are interesting. They contain nupps, which are a bit like miniature bobbles. On one row, you do a whole bunch of increases into one stitch, and then on the following row you purl all of the increases together to get back to where you started. There is a popular alternative to the nupps where you add a bead to the knitting instead of working a nupp. Much easier, and uses less yarn, so very good if you're worried about running out. Now, I live close to a bead shop, but I was concerned about being able to do the beads. You see, unless you want to go to the trouble of prestringing all of the beads (which is really bad for the yarn), you need to have a tiny crochet hook. Tiny enough that the head and the shaft fit into the opening of the bead. I had some pretty small crochet hooks, but nothing on that scale. And then I went to the shop on Saturday.

It was an honest trip - we were going to the recycling centre on our way somewhere else, and the shop was just before the centre. So I waited in the shop where it wasn't raining while the lovely spouse got rid of an ancient computer monitor. And I found a tiny crochet hook! This sucker is only 0.6mm in diameter. So, I bought the hook and some black beads to go on the red shawl. Goth I may be, but I was inspired by the Kitri Socks.

And then we headed off to our somewhere else, and I got to be even more productive! It was our monthly Shire Revel, and we'd decided that it was going to be a day of garb-making. So I spent Saturday morning cutting out the pieces of a chemise, and spent Saturday afternoon assembling them. Well, I pinned, and our Seneschal ran them up on the sewing machine. I can use a machine, but she's much quicker than I. Especially since it's her machine! So the result of the afternoon was a completed seamed chemise. I just need to hem the skirt and cuffs, finish and apply trim to the neck, and finish the insides of the seams. And the insides aren't really a priority. I can work on them here and there as the mood strikes me.

One of our members is a whiz-kid with a tablet loom, and had brought a load of trim for finishing her most recent gown. And when she had a bunch left over, she offered it to me for the new chemise! And this of course inspired me to strike a bargain. She's going to weave me a belt, and in exchange I'm going to knit her a pair of elbow-length fingerless gloves. She can knit, but isn't really good at it (her comment, not mine!), just like I could probably figure out a loom, but don't really have any desire to. So it works out well for us both.

On Sunday I dived into my husband's tunic, the one I've been working on for AGES. Or so it seems. The incredibly productive Saturday inspired me, and I've just about finished attaching the bias tape to the collar. There's still a lot to be done on it, but getting the neck nearly done makes it look a lot more like a proper piece of clothing.
And then my cold caught up with me, and I spent the rest of Sunday laying on the couch feeling like hell with a fever, and Monday mostly in bed resting. And crocheting the ripple bedspread. I went through the bag with my Mission:Possible stuff in it (and the contents are shrinking!), and pulled out all of the acrylic that isn't for the bedspread. It's now in its own bag so that I can just get on and make all of the little scrappy projects I need to do.

Pretty busy, huh?

Odds and Ends

The interview yesterday went swimmingly. I am now sleeping like a log since it's finished. And because it went so well, I decided that I deserved a little shopping expedition. Of course that meant going to the needlework shop! I was very good and didn't buy any yarn (although a social event is going to take us perilously close to Loop tomorrow afternoon. I may succumb.). Instead, I bought Rowan Magazine, Issue 40. I've never been entirely sure about Rowan knitting magazines. Their yarn is great (this is the company that makes Kidsilk Haze, referred to by many knitters as 'Cracksilk'), but their patterns have always seems a little too runway model for my liking. Or so I thought. I was organizing my Ravelry queue the other day and discovered that my blog-hopping adventures had put no less than three Rowan patterns in my queue - and they were all from issue 40! So when I went up to buy garb-making thread and noticed that they were still selling this back issue, I took note. And then bought it yesterday.

Upon getting it home, I read through it cover-to-cover, as one does. Closer inspection has led me to the conclusion that while many of the patterns are not something I'd necessarily wear, almost all of them are things that will inspire my own designs. And the things that I had queued are great. A very good investment!

(As an aside, I'd always been put off by the cover price of the magazine. It's £10.50, which seems huge for a magazine. Until you realise that there are nearly 50 patterns in each issue. Most knitting books retail for between £10 and £20, and rarely have more than 20 patterns. In fact, they frequently only have 12-15.)

My library will be expanding even more in the next week. I received a very belated birthday gift certificate, part of which has been spent on knitting books. Hurrah for Amazon! There will soon be a copy of Knitting Without Tears and Son of Stitch n' Bitch cuddling up on my already overstuffed bookshelf. Book reviews will follow, of course!

There has also been knitting. I'd lost my mojo prior to the interview, mostly due to stress and exhaustion from not sleeping. But I've got it back with a vengeance! Last night while watching In Search of Medieval Britain I finished up the first mitt of the pair. And this morning I cast on the second to avoid Second Mitt Syndrome. I also put in half an hour's work on sewing the husband's tunic, so I'm feeling very virtuous.

The plan for the weekend is to completely make the second mitt and to make a good start on using the remnants on the mini-Who scarf. Other than that, I have no fixed plans. Apart from sleeping, of course!