Mother-! Finger!

Well, you remember how two weeks ago, I was trying to kill myself? Yeah, that seems to be the theme lately: Injury Tuesdays. This week, a coworker slammed my fingers in a car door. (He felt really bad.) It hurts like hell. Pics and gory details at the bottom of the post, but first, let's look at some yarn.

Araucania Ruca Multy, from Needlenook, also for my birthday. I, um, went a little crazy. It is going to become this.

ALSO! Primrose Path is finished! Here's a pic I took while picking up stitches for the neckband. Real, actual, finished FO pics to follow when I find someone else to play camerawoman and capture this sweater in all its sexy glory.

Now for horrible slammed-finger pictures. Avert your eyes if you're squeamish.

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Yeah. Ouch. My finger is not happy. Oh, and notice the little black dot in the center of the bruise/blood under the nail?

Yeah, that's where I drilled a hole in my nail with a hot needle to let the blood out and release some of the pressure. (Because it makes it hurt less, heal faster, and I really don't want to lose the nail.) I am hard-core. Let my hard-core awesome toughness never again be doubted. I performed bush surgery on myself. (Bush as in Australian outback. Get your minds out of the gutter. You know who you are.)

low-stashing status: going . . . going . . .

. . . gone, baby, gone. These arrived in the mail last week: Summit Sock, hand-dyed sock yarn from Impulse of Delight.

The top one is Blackberry and the bottom one is Crocus. Here's a more accurate picture of the Blackberry.

The most awesomest and amazing thing about this yarn is: see the pics on the labels? The dyer is also an amazing nature photographer, and those are pictures she took. She then dyes the yarn based on the photographs. It's truly amazing, and all I can do not to just direct deposit my paycheck to her. (I also got this from her for my birthday. So pretty!)

And, AND! She gave me these with my purchase!

Cute little stitch markers! Which is perfect because I don't have any stitch markers! (I just fake it with paper clips when I have to.) Except they are too pretty to use as stitch markers so I strung them on a chain and am wearing them as a necklace.


See the cat hair? That's how you know it's me.

In other news: ta da!

Above picture is more accurate to color, but below pic shows the lace pattern better.

That is how the pieces looked at the beginning of the evening, and this is how they looked at bedtime.

I'm in the home stretch!

Sleeve ahoy!

Sleeve #1: finished! Sleeve #2 soon to follow!

bad knit-blogger! no cookie!

I went back through my archives and realized my last post was the first I'd shown of my recent WIPs. Bad blogger. No cookie.
The socks are Veil of Leaves by Cat Bordhi. Whereas Cat thinks the pattern looks like leaves, I think it looks a lot like the feathers of a peacock's tail all fanned out. And since I happen to have some extra-special yarn that looks just like the colors of a peacock . . .

Dream in Color Smooshy, a gift from Treats for Breathing. I absolutely love this picture. It shows the color and the pattern really well, and I love how the lamplight turned everything all golden. I can't believe I didn't post it before. Hm. Bad knit-blogger, no cookie.
This pattern, I have to tell you, blew my ever-loving mind. Cat Bordhi will do that. Someone way more articulate that I (probably the Yarn Harlot) once said that when doing a Cat Bordhi pattern, you can't try to think, you just have to do exactly what the directions say and it will all turn out OK. Boy! Howdy! Is that ever true. Every time I tried to visualize or otherwise think about what I was doing/supposed to do next, I'd lose days to confusion and head-scratching. Fingers crossed that the second one will go more smoothly, now that I know not to think.


Here's a progress pic with Helpful Kitty Paw (tm). I modified the pattern a little to include a little lace panel going down the top of the foot. I couldn't make it fit with the lace pattern from the cuff because of the increases, so there's a little stockinette border between the cuff and instep. I think it turned out all right, and it proves that I am biologically incapable of knitting a plain sock.

This is something just wonderful I fell in love with at Needlenook (the second-greatest yarn store on earth. Sorry, guys, but there's no way you're beating out Knitch.)


Katia Bombay, a nice sport-weight mercerized cotton. I realized this would be just perfect for something else I had fallen in love with, from Twist Collective

Primrose Path, by Angela Hahn.

It's been a really quick knit, with just enough lace to keep it interesting. (Although I wouldn't recommend it for those who hate ribbing.) I'm using the yarn doubled, which is breaking up the striping somewhat, although it's still pretty stripy. I think it'll come out fine, though. If not, you'll be hearing me say, "Primrose Path? No, I never knit that sweater. What are you talking about?" :-)

The second picture is a more accurate depiction of the colors. The pinks remind me of all the lovely spring flowers we have in Atlanta, from the softer dogwoods to the riotous, kick-to-the-eyeball-neon azaleas. I'm modifying the pattern from set-in sleeves (which are my archnemesis) to a bottom-up raglan. I cast on for the first sleeve last night while watching Mythbusters. Hopefully, more progress to report soon!
Thanks to all of you with your patience for my incredibly sporadic posting of late. Pics to come soon of what was keeping me so busy, as soon as I finish with the touch-ups!

isn't this supposed to be a knit blog?

Why, yes! Yes, it is. I have in fact been knitting, just not blogging. I finished my first Peacock Feathers sock on Monday

Actually, I finished it almost two weeks ago, only to discover that it was way too short. I had to rip out the toe and add another repeat to the foot. Stupid star toe. More attractive than a standard toe, but a lot shorter.

Very pretty, though. I love how this lace pattern looks like feathers.

I've also finished the body for Primrose Path.

I like my shirts a little long, so I may be adding some more length.

I've also decided to do it as a bottom-up raglan instead of doing set-in sleeves, because set-in sleeves like to kick my ass and then taunt me. There's only one lace chart for the yoke, so that shouldn't be too difficult to adapt, right? Right?
Here's a little teaser of what's kept me from blogging for so long.

Pics to follow soon!