Dare I say the C-word?

Haven't been posting lately because I have been taking a real lunch break instead.  I started teaching one of my coworkers how to knit, and next thing you know, we started dragging each other over to the pub to get out of our offices at lunchtime.  It's nice to have a real break instead of eating in front of the computer.  Saves on keyboards, too.

The circle vest is done.  I haven't had so much fun knitting anything in a long time.  Last weekend I blocked it, so it's laying out in the guest room now drying and relaxing into its desired shape.  Okay, it's a circle, duh, but it turned out the center of the circle wanted to pouf out, so some blocking was required to flatten it.  Tonight I'll unpin it and see whether it's ready to be worn to knitting group tomorrow.  Except that the forecast is for temps in the 70's -- hardly the weather to wear a knitted vest of that weight.  Well, we'll see.

Now I'm into -- gasp -- a crotchet project!  My new lunch partner is a long-time crotcheter.  When she learned that I also crotchet, she brought in a book of crotchet patterns she was having some trouble with.  Basically the author of the book has come up with one really good technique -- how to use a crotcheted shell stitch and knit a top down, raglan sleeve, seamless garment by increasing the shells a certain way.  She has developed the basic technique into about 20 different garments in this book.  Because the garments are all variations on each other, though, the instructions go something like "start by following the instructions on pg. x until you have a first row that's 6" long, then follow the directions for garment A through the first 6 rows of the body, then follow the directions for garment C until the body is 10" long, then follow these instructions to shape the bottom" and so on.  Then each garment has about 12 sizes, and some of them have entirely different instruction sets for different sizes, and it's just a lot to keep track of. 

Well, I spent a weekend figuring it all out, and I made a cute little summer cardigan.  It's almost done, just a couple inches left on the sleeves.  It really works, and it looks good on!  Very pleasing.

Clearly it's time to take some more pictures.

Mentally I'm now in that between-project zone which is a nice break sometimes, but I think I'm almost ready to jump into something new.  What to choose?  What to choose?

Going in Circles

Finally went to the Westminster library last weekend and checked out their knitting books.  This was prompted by the recent trip to the knitting shop with my gift certificate.  When we walked into the shop, my eyeballs were positively grabbed by a sample project hanging up there.  If you're on Ravelry, go there and look for the Circle Vest from a book called Silk Knits.  It's a big circle with armholes knit with Noro Silk Garden yarns.  Striking, fun, and relatively easy.  All good things.

Well, I had 3 skeins of Noro at home that were given to me as a going away gift when I left Chicagoland, and with my gift certificate I could buy the other 3 skeins the vest would need, but the pattern was not available online or in the shop.  So, off to the library.

What a nice selection of knitting books our library has!  I may never have to by another pattern.  They had the book I wanted, and I could check it out and take it home.  Ideal!  With the book due back in 3 weeks, I had the perfect excuse to start yet another project. 

I'm now into the third skein, so between 1/3 and 1/2 finished.  I've got the pattern down, so no worries about having to return the book.  Life is good.  I just got past the armholes, so it's about time to move it from the needles to a string and try it on to make sure the size is okay.  It's easy to change if I haven't gotten it quite right.  I am loving this!

I definitely have to bring this out to show off at the upcoming North Shore Knitting Weekend (the follow-on to last spring's Bell/Lambert Knitting Week).  I am soooooooo excited!  Can you tell?