it just goes on and on my friends, I started knitting it not knowing what it was, and I will keep on knitting it forever just because this is the shawl that never ends...
Talking lace weight, size 3 needles, and multiply this patch (which takes me 45 minutes cause I'm SLOW) by 108 times and that's without the borders...someday, someday
In the meantime, lovely llama scarf for a cousin who sent me a lovely wooden bowl he had made.
And don't forget the spinnin' y'all. I couldn't quite capture the beautiful colors of this. My friend Erin dyed the roving and it's full of burgundy and light green and brown and gold and pinky-red. LOVE IT! Hard to tell but this is sock weight and probably my most even yet!
Sent in my registration form for a MDSW class. Oh yes, the time is nigh! Any plans, either of you, to come?!
Speaking of MDSW, Abby, your Ravelry pics of the fitted knit tunic sweater with MDSW festival yarn looked suspiciously finished? Did I miss an entry? Something you're not telling us? Anything you'd like to share with the group?
this is the shawl that never ends...
Ravelry Casualty
I've had my first Ravelry meltdown - and it feels so good. I was just browsing. What I was really, honestly doing is searching for a pattern for some yarn I already have in my stash. Then I saw this jacket which I liked but knew it would not work with the stash yarn. But, I thought it wouldn't hurt to see what types of yarns others had used. And of course, I found a version of the jacket in Elsebeth Lavold Classic AL (you can buy it at WEBS online). So I thought, well it can't hurt to see how much it costs at WEBS. What do you know? It was on closeout - half price! I think we all know what happened next. I'll be happily knitting my new jacket in just a few days.
thought I was kidding, didn't ya!
So I really did knit two sweaters, a scarf, two hats, a pair of mittens AND slippers this week...so I didn't mention they were all for four inch high wooden toy mice!!
Meet Basil and Lily, two little mice my Aunt Rhonda ordered from a German company. They are adorable and she's making them a house that is just as adorable. She's making it as if the little mice would have "found" the items. So there is a little vanity table for Lily made out of a sardines can. Their little bed is a cigar box. Think old old Warner or Disney cartoon ideas. I'll try to get some pictures of it when she's done. Lily also happens to be a spinner and knitter, so really she knit these!!
Last night "she" also finished a little vest for Basil to wear when he's feeling especially spiffy. You can see the slippers a little too. If you want to see all the shots from the fashion shoot, check out ravelry!!
I don't want Abby to think she's the only one knitting.
So we got back from the Christmas holidays and started to catch up. Then Caleb and Ellery got the flu. Then they got better and Caleb went out of town. Then Caleb got the offer from Rice and we walked around in a daze. And then Ellery got a cold. It's been an odd few weeks.
Anyway, in the midst of the flu misery I managed to get to Michaels and buy some organic cotton for a baby shower that was four days away. I couldn't find a pattern I liked so I had to wing it. This is the result. It was done on time and I think the recipient liked it though I had to miss the shower itself to take care of my two patients.
Kitchner Stitchner
I made a sock, and when I gave it to the recipient to try on (because there's no sense in making 2 socks that don't fit), found that it was about 5 rounds too big in the instep. Well shoot. That meant I'd have to tear out the cuff and heel. Or did it? I could tear out the toe and pull out the rounds on that end...but then I'd have to KITCHNER. I've done the Kitchner before and let me tell you, it wasn't pretty. I was working off some written instructions and things just didn't turn out. What should have been an invisible seam was actually a very visible, very large-and-in-charge mountain of a seam. I have no idea what I did wrong. But, thanks to Knitty and the wonderful illustrations they provided, I made something wonderful. This is the best I have ever made a Kitchner seam look. And, instead of giving the sock away, I'm thinking of framing it. 
Oh, and what's that under the sock? That's right...thesis draft. Written words. Please don't read them though. Wow, how many things does that photo reveal about me?
A solution to 2 problems
Grad school induces poverty and thesising induces the need to finish SOMETHING: one page, one chapter, one paragraph even (it's problematic). I have discovered a solution to both these problems, though it is not novel nor is it exciting. 
Well, the way the colors arranged themselves on the green one is kind of exciting...
Ballband dishcloths saved my life. Well, they saved my weekend. I can make one of these in approximately 4 hours. Perhaps less than that now that I don't need the pattern anymore. The best part is that I bought yarn for 4 dishcloths and it cost less than $10! I think there are a lot of dishcloths in my future, and if you're someone who might be getting a gift from me in the next few months, one might be in your future, too. Just let me know what colors you want.
My first Etsy purchase!
Ok, it's an awful picture, but you can tell there are two tiny sheep kissing each other, right? How CUTE is that? They are so perfect. As soon as I saw them (the shop is jelby.etsy.com) I knew they would be mine. And the very nice crafter threw in one extra one that has a tiny heart on it (not shown in pic). Tiny little felted balls of joy. My week is made! Which is funny, considering that I was so sick Monday and Tuesday and JUST FOUND OUT that I have...MONO!!! Ugh! I thought that was something you got in high school or college? Lucky me... I'm down to 10 hrs of sleep a day instead of 20, so improvement is in the air. Bon weekend!
4 years ago, cool things happened
You probably caught wind that the Yarn Harlot celebrated her 4 year blogiversary. Well, 4 years ago something momentous happened to me, too. My roommate, Lexi, taught me how to knit. 
We lived in the dorms together, and she watched me produce crocheted afghans in my spare time. One day, she got out the aluminum needles that her grandmother had given her and showed me how to cast on, knit and purl. Well Lex, you really started something, didn't you?
So how did I celebrate this anniversary?
I crocheted myself a bracelet out of Jen's homespun. Sorry Jen, I had just enough left. Hehe.
and there was knitting, just not much
I really have been doing the handcraft thing you just can't tell from this blog. I have a major time-sucking project that still is only half completed so I haven't much to show for myself otherwise. Also, I chose not to knit much for Christmas. I just did two projects for little nephew Pierce and one for my sis-in-law. I'm not a mommy and thus have no free pass to show innumerable shots of the kid but I shall rely on the time-tested excuse that there are knitted objects in the pictures!! Finally, I did some other knitting for a gift exchange and totally failed to take pictures. They were felted hot pads and I liked the way they turned out but you'll never know!!
So, here's Pierce loving the football I knit. 
He's such a funny little guy though. He'll love on you one second and the next he's all little boy action! So here's him throwing the ball immediately. The kid's got quite an arm too!
My favorite was that he put the little football in his new car and drove around with it!
I also made him a little Estonian sheep puppet.
Apparently, they know the ways of the Snoopy Christmas dance in Estonia as evidenced by this photo.
My sis-in-law with her wrist warmers. Alpaca we love thee. They were supposed to be 'Fetching' from knitty.com but I didn't have internet access at Mark's parents so I made them up!
And a little winter tatting to distract you from the fact that this is really very little knitting output for me!
I'd planned a very long post where I went back to my new year's resolution post from last January and did some soul searching about how I'd done on that...but my new resolution is never to look at old resolutions. Perhaps I'll show you an in-progress picture of the all-consuming shawl sometime.
What I got for Christmas!
It needs "some work" and I'm not sure how I will accomplish/pay someone to do that...but I'll be spinning soon-ish. I hope. Thanks, Sam, for the present/curse.