I bet you thought I forgot!

I did not.  It's just that Monday was a busy day.  We met with a sales representative at the shop, looking at spring yarns.  Yummy linen and a great bamboo/acrylic are lined up for arrival in the spring.  Which really is not that far away, now that I think about.

This week I finished the knitting on a very pretty shawl -- Passe-partout.  I used a new wool called Whirligig from Cascade and 4.5mm needles.  This is a superwash merino-acrylic blend and it is delightful and squishy and nice to work with.  Of course, this is a store sample but I WILL be wearing it next winter!

We have been teaching a class in knitting gloves at the store.  I cannot believe how easy gloves are, and how assiduously I avoided them for years and years.  This is my second pair, and I have figured out the pattern and how to make official left- and right-handed gloves.  I feel so accomplished!  This time I am using Painted Desert.   There should be enough wool to make the complete pair, with some left over even.  The pattern asks for 3.75mm for the cuff and 4.0mm for the hand, and I am complying since the gloves are fitting nicely at this point.

Another little beauty in my knitting bag is the Newsom by Bristol Ivey.  I am using James Brett Innocence, a lovely bamboo/acrylic blend.  The pattern suggested a 3.75mm needle, but to get gauge I had to drop down to a 3.25mm needle.  I like the fabric I am getting with these needles and I am really looking forward to the finished product.  I have about 20 rows of yoke, and then three inches of collar to work, in garter stitch.  I think this might just be movie knitting!

The last item currently in my knitting bag is a pair of socks, as always.  This time I am using Alegria from Manos del Uruguay and the pattern is Water Cycle Socks.  The first sock was finished in time for the theme announcement at the shop for our Sock Challenge on January 20th.  The second sock was cast on, immediately.  It has languished however, since officially I am not supposed to be working on it until February. 

I selected these socks because I liked the lace patterns used in the design.  One of the store customers came in and mentioned the story behind the socks.  Eh?  I went back to look at the pattern page, and sure enough.  This sock does in fact represent the cycle of water -- clouds at the top, rain falling down along the front, waves at the toe and heel, and water vapour up the back of the leg.  How cool is that?  

I also have a shawl on the needles, called the Mystic Midsummer Wreath.  Sadly, this little beauty has  not gotten much love lately, as it felt like the store shawl and the socks were a priority at the time.  Now that they are finished or half-finished, I can devote my evenings to this one again.  

We have had snow over the last couple of days, and lots of very cold temperatures.  The snow would be perfect for skiing, if not for the stupid cold and the myriad of chores that MUST BE DONE at home.  Sometimes this being a grown-up just is not fun!