the fruits of my labor

Very little actual "labor" is taking place chez Caffeinated Yarn over the long holiday weekend. Instead I've been knitting, hitting the farmer's market, watching movies and WI Badger football, going to BBQs, and heading up to Ravinia to see Aimee Mann and Squeeze! The concert should be a blast from the past. Last weekend I saw the English Beat, who were still pretty good live, though I'm not sure how many people from the original line-up are still in the band. They, of course, played a couple General Public tunes, too.

Katie's lovely garter stitch shawl inspired me to cast on. I'm using Manos Silk Blend in Juniper, re-purposed from my ill-fated lace wrap (no amount of blocking could get it to lie flat):The pattern is the Weaver's Wool Mini Shawl, made popular by knitting genius Terhi at Mustaa Villaa. Mmm... the silk blend is lovely, though I'm sure it will pill like mad. Now I'm dying to try Malabrigo's Silky Merino, which I haven't seen in Chicago or Madison yet.

A while back I knit up another Windy City hat prototype, this time for a dear family friend who gave me a boatload of sterling silver and silver plate serving dishes (including enormous chafing dishes!!! I could host the most elegant tailgate party ever).

Knit Picks Andean Silk, navy

My little Noro number from my last post is drying and will receive a proper post soon. Thanks, too, for all for suggesting that I contact Lantern Moon! I sent them an email but have not heard back yet.

watching :: In Bruges -- meh.

Hamlet 2 -- simultaneously horrifying and hilarious. Not for the faint of heart, as Steve Coogan's character provokes a similar type of mind-bending embarrassment that Michael Scott on the Office does, but EVEN MORE SO. The irreverent musical number "Rock Me Sexy Jesus" truly is the highlight, and Elisabeth Shue is a very good sport. 'Nuf said.

oh, snap!

Disaster struck at knitting circle the other night. Much to my horror, when I opened my knitting bag, I found my one and only pair of Lantern Moon rosewood needles in this state:
Hmmm... not pleased with the durability of these needles, especially considering the high price. Back to Brittany Birch as my luxury needles of choice! That will teach me to splurge.

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Startitis has struck, too, I'm afraid, but at least I'm actually finishing up the new projects I'm casting on. This little number is already ready for a dip in some Eucalan:

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In the kitchen:

Black Bean and Goat Cheese Quesadillas
(adapted from a Cooking Light recipe)

1 tsp. olive or canola oil, plus a little more for cooking the quesadillas at the end
1 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup salsa – this plays a large part in the overall flavor! Use something that's not too watery.
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. ground cayenne pepper (or to taste)
Tabasco or hot pepper sauce, to taste
1 (19-ounce) can black beans, undrained
1/2 cup roasted corn (frozen is fine)
1/3 cup minced fresh cilantro
1 (4-ounce) package goat cheese, crumbled
8 (8-inch) red chile flour tortillas – available at Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s
Top with any of the following:
light sour cream
salsa
guacamole

Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic, and saute for 3 minutes. Stir in 1/2 cup salsa, cumin, cayenne pepper, Tabasco, and beans, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes or until thick. Mash the bean mixture slightly with a potato masher. Stir in corn; heat gently just to warm up the corn. Remove from heat; stir in the cilantro and goat cheese.

Spread the bean mixture evenly over 4 tortillas; top each with 1 tortilla, pressing gently.

Heat a small amount of olive oil (Cooking Light calls for 1/4 tsp., but I find I need a little more than that) in pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 quesadilla, and cook for 2 minutes on each side. Repeat!

It works well to keep the quesadillas warm in the oven while you’re cooking the rest of them.

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reading :: Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, by Barbara Kingsolver

watching :: Spaced & Slings and Arrows (season 1)

au natural

I'm enamored of the rustic, natural feel to both of my latest projects. I'm ready for fall, earthy naturals, and cool temps.

Pattern: Feather and Fan Comfort Shawl, by Sarah Bradberry

Yarn: Noro Silk Garden, 88D, 3.5 skeins
Needles: Clover US 7 bamboo circs

Notes: Next time I would use larger needles, probably size 9. This color has been discontinued, and the number of skeins in my stash limited the size of the shawl (shoulder size). Beautiful colorway, but plenty of knots in this batch! The pattern is extremely clear and well-written.

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Yet another owl hat, this time for me! Yes, Paul and I can be disgustingly matchy-matchy this winter.

Pattern: Owl Hat, by Ruthie Nussbaum
Yarn: Lorna's Laces Green Line Worsted, "Echo," less than 1 skein
Needles: Clover US 6 bamboo circs

Notes: Mods -- 81 sts for ribbing, increased to 88 for stockinette section after ribbing.

The yarn bled like crazy! All over my circular needles, DPNs, fingers (as evidenced below); I even started leaving purpley-brown fingerprints on my camera and doors. So I contacted Beth at Lorna's, who was super nice about it. She explained that I have one of the first batches of Green Line, back when they used natural dyes. She offered to swap me for some of the newer (non-bleeding) Green Line, or recommended that I just keep on rinsing. It took 14 rinses before the water ended up clear-ish (not entirely clear, mind you).

I do love the semisolid color, and the yarn is nice and soft (and organic, to boot). So I would definitely try the new version of Green Line, but I recommend that you steer clear from the earliest batches.

Pattern: Windy City Hat

ETA#2: Apparently I can't count! I've updated the gauge info below.
ETA: Pattern is now available as a PDF Ravelry download, too.

The Bears are already playing pre-season football games, and there was a cold bite to the air at North Avenue Beach the other night. Time to start knitting hats!

I designed this hat as a holiday gift for my dear friend Suzy last winter. I was inspired by the lace pattern that Melissa (AKA Indigo Mouse) used on the cuffs of her lovely Queen of Diamonds Fingerless Gloves (available here, too). Many thanks to Suzy for modeling!

Windy City Hat

Size:

Fits the average woman’s head. Add or subtract stitches in 8 stitch increments and adjust decrease rounds as needed.

Materials:

• Soft worsted weight wool or wool blend, approx. 110 yds. Suggested yarns: Knit Picks Andean Silk, The Plucky Knitter’s Merino Worsted, Cascade 220. The first time I made this hat with Andean Silk, I had to break into the second ball. The second time I got by with just one ball. So be on the safe side and buy two – you can always make a pair of Fetching or another hat with the extra.
• US 7 circular needles (16”) and DPNs or size needed for gauge
• Tapestry needle

Gauge:

19 sts = 4"

Be sure to check your gauge. I’m a loose knitter – I actually used US 6 needles. You may even need to use US 8.

The Plucky Knitter’s Worsted Merino (single ply) in “Cheeky”

Directions:

Cast on 80 stitches using either the cable cast-on or long-tail cast-on. Place marker and join to knit in the round.

Rows 1 – 4: work in k2, p2 ribbing

Rows 5 – 8: k all stitches

Row 9: (ssk, k1, yo, k1, yo, k1, k2tog, k1)

Row 10: k all stitches

Row 11: (ssk, k1, yo, k1, yo, k1, k2tog, k1)

Row 12: k all stitches

Row 13: (yo, ssk, k3, k2tog, yo, k1)

Row 14: k all stitches

Row 15: (k1, yo, ssk, k1, k2tog, yo, k2)

Row 16: k all stitches

Row 17: (k2, yo, sl2tog-k1-psso, yo, k3)

Row 18: k all stitches

Rows 19 – 28: repeat rows 9 – 18

Rows 29 – 42: k all stitches

*If you like having a longer hat that fully covers your ears, work a few more rows in stockinette*

Shape crown:
Switch to DPNs when it becomes too difficult to work on circular needles.

Row 43: (k8, k2tog)

Row 44: (k7, k2tog)

Row 45: (k6, k2tog)

Row 46: (k5, k2tog)

Row 47: (k4, k2tog)

Row 48: (k3, k2tog)

Row 49: (k2, k2tog)

Row 50: (k1, k2tog)

Row 51: k all stitches

Break yarn, leaving a 10" tail. Using a tapestry needle, thread the tail through the remaining loops on the needle and pull tightly until the hat top is closed. Weave in ends.

Pattern & images © Jodi Haraldson, 2008.

Pattern for personal and charity use only.

www.caffeinatedyarn.blogspot.com

Knit Picks Andean Silk in “Cranberry”

let the holiday knitting begin!

I'm following Chris' lead and getting started on holiday gifts! I don't usually do much holiday knitting, but I want to give some small projects to friends this year.

Here's yet another Windy City hat (I'll share the pattern soon -- just need to get some good modeled photos), as well as some Irish Hiking Wristwarmers. I'm using The Plucky Knitter's merino worsted (single ply -- not sure if she still carries this base yarn) in "Cheeky." It's super soft and gorgeous -- reminds me of Mmmmmalabrigo.

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Lisa Lloyd's A Fine Fleece is a lovely book for both spinners and non-spinning knitters alike. So many beautiful, timeless cable patterns! Consider yourself warned, though, that the sweater shaping is traditional/boxy rather than fitted. I picked it up after reading good reviews here and here. I just cast on for a Twilight Scarf, one of the few non-cabled patterns:

I'm using Knit Picks Gloss Lace in Aegean. The yarn has a nice crunch to it. It's not the softest, but that's fine

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Reading :: The Sparrow, by Mary Doria Russell
An engrossing, thoughtful, and suspeneful novel! Who knew that a sci fi novel featuring Jesuit priests could be so interesting?

Watching :: the latest Inspector Lynley mystery
I'm so sad that the BBC cancelled Lynley! There's only 1 episode left. Apparently the actors had no idea the end was in sight when they were shooting.

Capricha in bed

more owl-y goodness

May I present Owl hat numero tres:

Pattern: Owl Hat, by Ruthie Nussbaum

Yarn: Patons Classic Wool Merino, Charcoal, less than 1 ball
Needles: US 6 Clover bamboo circs

Another one for Paul, as his last one stretched out with wear. I reduced the number of stitches (88 total after the ribbing), used smaller needles, and moved the owl cable pattern closer to the ribbing. I'm not sick of the pattern yet!

Though I still have the sleeves left to knit on my February "me" sweater, I'm already swatching for my next sweater:
Debbie Bliss Alpaca Silk for Ysolda's gorgeous Liesl (round neck, 3/4 sleeves).

A family friend recently gave me a treasure trove of silver and silverplate serving dishes. Gorgeous stuff, far too elegant for my current lifestyle, but I'm excited to display and use them sometime down the road. So I'm knitting her a hat and scarf set as a *very small* token of my appreciation. The hat is done (and I'll be sharing the pattern soon, so no pic yet), but the Lacy Waves scarf is a WIP.
EXCEPT... I somehow managed to lose the other knitting needle. How exactly does one lose a size 10.5 bamboo needle? Craziness. The scarf's not thrilling me anyway, so I may frog and pick something else that works on a different size of needle, as I'm too busy with school & work right now to make it to a yarn store (I'd rather spend that time knitting, enjoying a glass of wine with Paul, and snuggling with my sweet kitties).

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Listening :: The Replacements, Don't Tell a Soul (love that 1980s Minnesota rock scene)

Reading :: Elizabeth Jane Howard, The Light Years & Marking Time (vols . 1 & 2 of the Cazalet Chronicle)

Reentry

Coming back from vacation can be rough. Colorado is so beautiful. I love the laid-back vibe in Boulder, the wildflowers, the fresh air up in the mountains, seeing snow in the middle of summer, etc.

I visited two marvelous independent bookstores (Boulder Book Store and Tattered Cover), experienced the sinus-clearing power of the Mint Room at the Celestial Seasonings factory, hiked in the mountains, drank delicious microbrews, and visited with family and friends. I only hit one yarn store, and I didn't even buy anything, although a lovely 100% Bebe Maillebox kit by Bouton d'Or was calling my name.
Here's Lake Isabelle, up in Indian Peaks. See why I didn't want to come home to Chicago?

It has been very hot, both in CO and here in Chi-town, so knitting has been less frequent than usual. I have been cooking, including an indoor picnic last Tuesday.

Albuquerque Corn Salad, from Cooking Light (not quite as delicious as Avocado Corn Salad)

Goat Cheese Stuffed Dates, from the blog Everybody Likes Sandwiches
(chilling these overnight greatly enhances the lemon flavor)

More knitting content soon, I promise, including a free pattern.

back from wonderful Wisconsin...

and ready to head to beautiful Boulder tomorrow! We're going to a wedding in Denver, too. Anyone have suggestions for things to do? On the list already -- hiking at Indian Peaks and visiting the New Belgium Brewery in Ft. Collins.

I forgot my camera last weekend, which is too bad since there was an overabundance of photo ops. I learned how to shear a sheep the old-fashioned way, dyed a bunch of yarn, pet lots of animals, carded wool, and learned about spinning. The Circle M Farm is just marvelous (and very humane), and Kriss is a great teacher and hostess. The whole "driftless area" of Wisconsin is so beautiful.

The fruits of my labors:

left to right:

red cabbage, red cabbage and soda wash, turmeric, marigold flowers, and beet
I used rhubarb as a mordant for all but the first (which was allum).

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Random Rant (for fellow PBS fans)

Remember the old Mystery theme from PBS?


Fabulous! All the Edward Gorey!

A while ago PBS changed it to this one:

OK, not quite as great, but whatever.

Now they've changed it yet again (to go with their new crappy Masterpiece re-do), and it's awful!!! Hardly any Gorey left whatsoever. Boo, PBS. I do not approve.

summer knitting and eating

I took a break from the February Sweater to knit up another little Baby Yoda Sweater. Just a bit more finishing work to do!This lovely shade of "honeydew" green is Knit Picks' Comfy. Super nice and soft; a little finer in weight than Cotton-Ease, and much easier on the hands and wrists. It may pill, but seems like a good choice for baby knits and things that won't see hard wear.

Some lucky people are heading to Wisconsin this weekend for Camp. I may not be going to Camp, but I am going to Circle M Farm for a woolcraft workshop with some girls from my knitting circle! Shearing, spinning, dyeing... here I come. Can't wait. Plus we get to sneak in a visit to Lakeside Fibers in Madison on Sunday (and hopefully another trip to the Terrace and lunch at Himal Chuli).

On the menu for this weekend is a delicious salad recipe, slightly adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home (my favorite cookbook):

Avocado Corn Salad

serves 4 as a side dish

1 C. fresh or frozen cut corn
1/2 T. vegetable oil
2 T. water
1 tsp. ground cumin
pinch of cayenne or red pepper flakes
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1 medium avocado
2 T. fresh lime juice
1/2 medium red bell pepper, chopped into 1/2" pieces
2 T. red onion, minced (or substitute shallots!)
salt to taste
Tabasco to taste
chopped cilantro leaves

In a saucepan, combine the first 5 ingredients (corn through cayenne). Cook, covered, on medium heat for 5 minutes, or until the corn is tender. Uncover and cook for another minute or so to evaporate any excess moisture. Set aside to cool.

Slice the avocado in half lengthwise, and gently twist to remove the pit. Make lengthwise and crosswise cuts in the flesh every 1/2 inch. Scoop the avocado cubes out of the shells and into a large bowl. Gently stir in the lime juice. Add the bell pepper. Stir in red onion and cooked corn. Add salt and Tabasco to taste, and top with cilantro.

Serve immediately, or chill for 30 minutes.

back from a whirlwind weekend in Wisconsin

Hope you all enjoyed the 4th! Paul and I spent a busy weekend up in Wisconsin -- drinking Strongbow on the Union Terrace, listening to Cracker at Summerfest, checking out all the new development in Milwaukee's Historic Third Ward... As soon as we made it back to Chicago (painfully slow going due to construction), we headed down to Lincoln Park to picnic and toss the Frisbee. All in all, quite a nice weekend.

One of my picnic contributions:

Dill sauce

Serves 8-10

1 C. mayonnaise (not light) (I use Hellmann's, but homemade would be even better; I do not recommend Whole Foods or Trader Joe's mayo for this recipe)
1/2 C. drained dill pickle relish
1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp. celery seed
1 T. freshly squeezed lemon juice (or a bit more, to taste)
1.5 tsp. dried dill

Be sure to drain the dill pickle relish well. Mix all ingredients . Refrigerate for at least a few hours to allow the flavors to blend.

I spread this on baguette slices and topped them with smoked salmon. It's equally good as a topping on salmon burgers. I often make a half batch.

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Progress on the February Sweater is slow (not much knitting in the car this weekend since the a/c is on the fritz):On the interwebs

The NYT gives a list of the 11 Best Foods You Aren't Eating. Hello, my dear friends cinnamon, turmeric, frozen blueberries, pomegranate juice, and canned pumpkin! I'm considering this license to eat even more of you. Cabbage, not so much. Swiss chard, I'm still sick of you from last summer's CSA boxes.

Now that the FLDS sect has opened their own "modest" clothing website, how about revisiting Mo Rocca's discussion of polygamist style with Tim Gunn?

Finally, the hydrangeas are in bloom. :-)

ubiquitous

knitting :: Pam's February sweater

listening :: Vampire Weekend

watching :: Incident at Loch Ness, The Secret of Roan Inish

What else is in store?
A trip to the Green City Market, a show at Second City, and a rooftop party. All in all, it's shaping up to be an excellent weekend.

Also noteworthy:
I met the Yarn Harlot last weekend! She was down-to-earth, very funny, and just plain awesome.

A friend gave me this fabulous button:
She bought it here.

read. knit. repeat.

Father's Day weekend found me in beautiful Minneapolis. Perfect weather made for a relaxing weekend -- going for walks, sitting on the patio, visiting family, and playing with dogs. I almost had a stowaway on my trip!
Yep, that's Kylie cat in action.
When I visit home without Paul, I revert to my old ways. Lots and lots of books.Here's the cream of the crop from my past couple weeks of reading. All of these I highly recommended. Cryptonomicon is Paul's favorite, and Staggerford is by Jon Hassler, a Minnesota author. Alicia (Posie gets cozy) is also reading the Mary Stewart books right now. They're quite charming and definitely a product of their times.

More blue ("air" ) knits in progress:

Take 2 of Plain or Flowery Slippers
Mission Falls 1824 wool, aster

Take 2 of my owl vest pattern

This time I'm using Rowan wool cotton, my new favorite yarn for baby knits. If only it weren't so pricey! I picked up these 2 balls from Laura's destash a while back. I had to go down a needle size (4) to get a fabric I liked. The first version was knit with Elann's Peruvian Luxury Merino Superwash, a pretty thick DK-weight. So while DK works for the pattern, I wouldn't recommend sportweight after all, and I think you could easily get by with a worsted weight yarn like Cotton-Ease or Comfy.

lumpy, bumpy, lumpadeedo

I've got a little puzzle for you...
Exhibit A
Inspired by (AKA shamelessly copying) Leah's beautiful Malabrigo wrap, I cast on for my very own Ostrich Plume wrap (pattern from Interweave's lace poncho, but most definitely not in poncho form).
Lumpy and bumpy, indeed! None of my previous lace projects have seemed so uneven. Can a serious blocking straighten it out? This pattern has one row of lace pattern followed by 3 rows of stockinette. I also may have cast on a bit too tightly. Opinions? Anyone knit with the Ostrich Plume pattern before?

Exhibit B
In a similar vein, check out this Breeze ankle sock.Looks OK so far, but...
the toe is one hot mess. Lumpy AND bumpy. What's wrong with my grafting? I had the same problem last time I knit a pair of Breeze socks.

Any input would be much appreciated.

mosaic madness

My creation, originally uploaded by jodi at caffeinated yarn.

Sarah's post on the game designed by cast on cast off prompted me to join mosaic madness.

The rules:

Using fd’s Flickr Toys,

a. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
b. Using only the first page, pick an image.
c. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into fd’s mosaic maker).

The Questions:

1. What is your first name?
2. What is your favorite food?
3. What high school did you go to?
4. What is your favorite color?
5. Who is your celebrity crush?
6. Favorite drink?
7. Dream vacation?
8. Favorite dessert?
9. What you want to be when you grow up?
10. What do you love most in life?
11. One Word to describe you.
12. Your flickr name.

Note: I actually owned a Little Professor calculator once upon a time.

kitchen knits swap + a trip down memory lane

Emily was my partner in the lovely Kitchen Knits Swap organized by Marisol. What a wonderful parcel of kitchen-themed goodies!
All sorts of things that I like and will use! Coffee, fancy champagne vinegar, a clever kitchen shopping list pad, silicone muffin liners (incredibly handy), dried chili peppers (as well as a chili pepper puzzle), Silky Wool in a lovely light grey-blue. There was also some delicious chocolate, but I'm afraid that has already disappeared. Emily even knit me a dishcloth! I love handknit dishcloths, but have too much wrist trouble knitting with cotton to make them for myself.

A few of Emily's favorite recipes:
Quinoa salad, Tomato Lentil Soup, Tomato Spinach Risotto, and Greek Spinach and Orzo Soup. Exactly my kind of cooking!

I whipped up the quinoa salad for dinner tonight. Very delicious and healthy.

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As I was cooking the quinoa, I remebered my first experience with this ancient grain. When my eighth grade "nerd class" (AKA g&t lang arts) organized a future fair, my partner and I designed a booth on "foods of the future," complete with poster presentation, nutritional info, and samples. The two highlighted foods? Soy milk and quinoa. Back then our regular suburban supermarket didn't sell prepared soy milk, so we reconstituted a powdered mix and served both plain and chocolate. We also served very blandly flavored quinoa (hey, it was Minnesota in 1991 after all).

Can you guess how the soy milk and quinoa went over? One word -- poorly (or four words -- like a lead balloon). We were visionaries, I tell you. ;-)

summertime

Not only is today the last day of classes for the quarter, the temperature has climbed into the 80s! I've already turned in grades, and I'm free from teaching until late September. It truly feels like summer now. This summer I'm working only ONE job, and only part-time -- what a luxury. That means more time for my research and writing, as well as for knitting, hitting the farmer's market, going for long walks, and petting all the neighborhood dogs. ;-)

I picked up a couple delicious heirloom tomatoes at the Green City Market yesterday, and put together a Parmesan Tomato Tart for lunch today. Wonderful recipe -- it's all about simplicity and high quality ingredients.

I've switched to Trader Joe's frozen puff pastry rather than the standard Pepperidge Farms stuff after reading Nicole's review. It's packaged flat (rather than folded), so it's much easier to use; also, the ingredient list is much less frightening.

Other recent successes in the kitchen:

- Low Fat Fudgy Brownies ~ semisweet Callebaut chocolate worked very well

- Chicken Souvlaki (from Cooking Light) ~ I doubled the amount of chicken so that we would have leftovers for lunch.

Alison (AKA brainylady) sent me this beautiful sage-green yarn as part of her laceweight leftovers swap. It's just lovely! There's a pretty good amount leftover -- perhaps enough for a whole scarf.

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Is anybody else having trouble with Ravelry and Gmail in Firefox? I've had to use the dreaded IE lately (shudder).

redefining "air"

Project Spectrum is partly about trying new things; however, the "air" theme of grey, white, and yellow for the next couple months is just not doing for me. Grey just makes me think of dirty city smog, and white is not practical for crafting.

When I think of air, I think of the sky. So this round of Project Spectrum is going be all about the sky here at Caffeinated Yarn.
Exhibit 1: Denim Sky
It's a belisama scarf, designed by Lori Law of Oceanwind Knits. I purchased this as a kit from her website, but I don't think she sells them anymore. The silk noil yarn has a neat, slubby texture, and the "denim sky" colorway is an amazing mixture of blues with hints of pink, purple, and even green. Lori's truly a color whiz.

I added Peter Rabbit Buttons to the little Mason-Dixon baby kimono just in time, as my friend gave birth to a beautiful baby boy on Friday.

Exhibit 2: Sky

Pattern: One-Piece Baby Kimono by Cristina Shiffman

Yarn: Manos Cotton Stria, Sky, just under 2 skeins
Needles: US 5 bamboo circs

Anybody else catch Death Cab for Cutie at the Pritzker Pavilion last night? It was a pretty good show, but the real scene stealer was the beautiful Frank Gehry pavilion, partially shrouded in fog, reflecting the setting sun.

ruby slippers

So I planned to knit up these slippers for my Mom and put them in the holiday gift stash, but I'm not sure I can give them away!

Pattern: Plain or Flowery Slippers, by Sarah Hughes
Yarn: Mission Falls 1824 wool, poppy, 2 skeins
Needles: US 6 Knit Picks Harmony circs (love the Harmony needles!)

So cute and cozy! I really like the Mission Falls wool. It's one of the best superwash wools I've worked with, and the color selection is fabulous. It's a heavy worsted, much thicker than Cascade 220. It's neither plastic-y (Swish) nor scratchy (Lamb's Pride superwash). These slippers fit my big ol' size 9 feet much better than the pocketbook slippers I knit last fall.

So, do I make these flowery or leave them plain? Any thoughts? In Sarah's original pattern she includes a flower that's very fiddly; she recently wrote up another flower that looks more my speed -- the Simple Knitted Rose and Leaf.

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Speaking of knitting for my mom, Gust is nearly done! I'm knitting it much longer than the pattern calls for. I want Mom to be able to really wrap it around her neck. I'm still loving the yarn -- The Plucky Knitter Merino single ply merino lace. As soon as I bind off (which should be within the next day), I'm sending off the leftovers to Joline as part of brainylady Alison's laceweight leftovers swap.

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More baby knits for the gift stash:

Pattern: February Baby Sweater, by Elizabeth Zimmermann
Yarn: Rowan Wool Cotton, "Hiss," 2.25 skeins
Needles: US 5 bamboo circs

Notes: While my gauge swatch was close, I forgot to take into account how loosely I knit lace. So the finished cardi is a little bit cropped. I'm hesitant to frog back the bottom and add a couple inches, but I probably should.

I followed the pattern very closely this time. Next time I'd put the sleeves on waste yarn and knit the body, then come back and knit the sleeves in the round. EZ doesn't mention the buttonholes until you should have already made a couple. I just went with one button.

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The 5 (more like 9) Hour Baby Sweater now sports a white grosgrain ribbon.