Here and There

There's been some knitting going on, and I'm having fun. I have to give up on the idea that I will ever be the sort of knitter who starts something and actually finishes it before moving on. I have no knitting deadlines at the moment, and I'm going to avoid making any, so I get to play around with stuff when the spirit moves me. What I'm saying is that I started a new project while there are other scarves and sweaters and socks going on. It's okay by me, even though I panicked last month. I have it under control now, really I do.

I decided to use my handspun to make Nora Gaughan's "Here and There Cables" from Scarf Style. I wanted texture, and I got texture. It looks like tree bark, don't you think? I really like it. The cables are reversible, and the pattern was easy to memorize. It will look better when it's blocked, too, because the cables won't be so scrunched up. I played with the needle size until I got a fabric that I liked, so I'm using US9's rather than the 7's called for in the pattern. I also reduced the number of stitches, or else I'd be knitting a shawl instead of a scarf.

I have been living with the yarn I bought the other day, and I can't for the life of me figure out what I am going to do with this pretty skein. It's 400 yards of Schaeffer Laurel, a cabled cotton that's supposed to knit up at 4-4.5 stitches per inch. Small shawl? Large scarf? Very expensive washcloths? The blue in the photo is actually more grey, and the gold is more muted, but it's definitely making a strong I Am Yarn, Hear Me Roar statement. I guess I'll let it be for now. It's not like I have nothing to knit!

I am going to spend at least some of my random knitting time working on stuff for the Dulaan Project. I have time, I have yarn, I have the desire to expand my horizons. It all adds up, and it makes me very happy to be able to make a small contribution to such a good cause.

The blog looks different (as if you haven't noticed). I've been playing with the template with the hope that it will be easy to read. Will the three or four people who read this please comment? Thank you ever so much.