Works In Progress

I have multiple knitting projects on the go at the moment. Some are mere moments away from completion, were I a speedy, dedicated and skilled knitter. If only.

My lanesplitter skirt....

... is about an hour from having the knitting done. An hour if I drink tea and chat and generally don't knit very much. Of course then there'll be elastic to wrangle. I've an idea for how to make it more flattering than knitting a casing up from the edge as the pattern calls for. Watch this space.

My boot socks for MrK are past the heel on the second sock. So at the rate I knit socks they're unlikely to be finished for our family walking holiday next week.

I might finish them while we're away assuming my Dad doesn't ply me with so much beer I'm incapable the whole time and it's a fair bet he will. Also: unexpected problem with using vintage yarn for these bastards? Lots of places where one of the three plies is broken. Or the yarn is just broken. Or there's a knot. So there are lots of ends to work away. Grrrr.....

The purple neckwarmer is more than half done, and the shawl has a row added now and again and is moving as fast as I'd expect something with lace to move when it's me in control of the needles. But what about Blue Love?

Erm... what indeed. I struggled through the left boob with lots of swearing and honestly can't be fucked to continue at the moment. I suspect (hope?) I'll finish it off sometime over the winter. It feels harsh to complain about a pattern that's free but... just... *sigh* I hope I can remember the alterations I made and the ways I fudged it so the fronts match just a little.Ha ha ha ha ha.

Oh and there's my Sunset Scarf:

I work on this now and again when I want to knit something pretty and fun but not difficult with lovely yarn. It's about a foot long now and I don't honestly care when I finish it. 2015 is fine by me.

Sigh...

This makes me sad ...

Particularly the bit

Unmarried and a virgin at 30, Proctor has struggled with her sexual identity since puberty, believing her same-sex thoughts are a sin. Last year, she says, she was masturbating almost daily, sometimes twice a day. To rehabilitate herself, she became an active member of Dirty Girls Ministries and started driving two hours to attend a 12-step program for sex addicts called Heart to Heart.

One day maybe we'll live in a world where people aren't made to feel crushing self revulsion for just being who they are. I live in hope.

Pink and Purple

In August Project Spectrummers are concentrating on pink and purple and I thought I'd gather together some pictures of pink and purple flowers from the year so far. Although I'm not a fan of pink in many situations, the garden is one place I really enjoy it and I'm sure you've figured out that purple is one of my favourite colours (it does battle for the podium with red).

Purple Passion

August is Purple in Project Spectrum land and look what I happen to have on the needles:

Top is a chunky neckwarmer in the merino/alpaca/silk mix I got from Fibre East. The stitch is ric rac rib which is enjoyable and simple enough to be TV knitting.

Below that is my very first lace shawl, Centifolia. The pattern calls for a heavy lace-weight but I'm doing it in my yummy Zauberball sock yarn. I think it's a pretty good pattern for a first lace shawl thanks to all the stockinette stitch in the pattern but blimey it gives me a headache... nearly 400 stitches per row at its widest point. The pattern is floral in its pink incarnation in the magazine (Knit issue 40) but I reckon it will be a bit gothy and batwinglike in this rich purple-black colour so I'm calling it my Purple Pointy Gotherina Shawlette.

Both are for me of course (mwah ha ha) although I have a sneaking suspicion my darling sister will like the neckwarmer despite her general allergy to knitwear. If she does and it doesn't make her itch, I might give it to her. But let's face it I probably won't.