Thanks so much for all the kind comments about this year’s SOS on the last post! I’m very gratified to see that many of you feel that the lack of prizes and complexity is actually for the good. Of course, I’m guessing that those that feel otherwise just didn’t comment, and that’s ok too. You might also want to go back and read those comments for an idea for a theme this year. BethH had a fabulous wedding related idea that I’ve posted about in the Ravelry group. Feel free to use it to guide your selections for the summer. Or not. It’s all good!

Last weekend was another very productive weekend of wedding planning. Or rehearsal dinner has been booked and my future in-laws came down to see the area. We also had a meeting with the leader of the band we’ve hired, who is an old family friend, so that was a great time as well. Most of all, I’m happy to report that the invitations went out on Monday and we are already hearing reports of them being received in various places. Since I did the calligraphy by hand, it’s a huge relief to have those out and on their way.

In knitting news, the purple socks I was working on are done but since they are a surprise gift, I’ll be posting about them after they are gifted. In the meantime, I decided I needed a quick project that would not only be satisfying but a change of pace. I received this beautiful organic cotton yarn in a recent swap:

And decided it needed to move to the front of the queue. Our Angie had suggested that it might be good for a washcloth, so I went in search of a pattern and decided on this one. I had my doubts while I was knitting it, but I think the end result worked out just fine!

There’s plenty of yarn left over, so I think I’ll probably knit something with a textural stitch pattern to use it up. More on that in the future no doubt.

In other news, I did finish the 1st of the bridesmaids shawls, but since these are also going to be gifts I won’t be posting FO pics until after the wedding. Here’s a final in progress shot on the first one though:

2nd one is under way. With 130 or so days left to go, that’s a good thing!

I haz it.

At long last this project has come to an end.

Vespergyle Mittens

Pattern: Vespergyle Mittens
Yarn: Harrisville Shetland, 200 yards each color
Needles: US 1.5
Knit: 2.9.2009-1.24.2010
Mods: None. At least not intentionally.

Despite all my moaning about how long these took they really were a pleasant knit. The pattern is well written, the charts are simple to follow and the only really fiddly thing about it was finishing off the thumb. I even got to the point where I figured out the argyle pattern enough on my own that after I got it started on mitten #2 I didn’t need the chart anymore. As one thing gets bigger, the other gets smaller. Easy!

The yarn was pleasant enough to work with and I think made a handsome combination for these. HWJF seems to like them well enough. I’ve warned him not to go shoveling snow in them though since they are shetland and would probably felt like no tomorrow. These are definitely NOT work outside mittens.

I’m certain that I won’t be making the matching pair I originally had in mind with the reverse coloring, so I’ve put the rest of the yarn up on my Ravelry destash page. Make me an offer.

With these done the siren call of a new project was strong (especially since I got some really yummy yarn as a gift this weekend from Sairy!) but I held strong and picked up another WIP that needs to get off the needles first.

Lace and Cables socks from Wendy’s last book. I wish I could say I’m getting close on this one but this is only sock number 1 and it’s been on the needles since 5.6.09 (don’t ask me what the hell I was thinkin’ on that one since that was exactly 5 days before my surgery!)! Knitting these on the train this morning made me realize my needle choice wasn’t the best so I hope to swap them out tonight and get down to work on these in the coming week.

The spinning bug has bitten again too, but let’s just save that for next time.