Time flies when you're...not knitting much!

Hello there!
Remember me?? After the last 2 weeks, I am not just a few yards short of a full skein, but I think I'm pretty much the little ball you have leftover from that project that you spend the last 3 or 4 rows praying that you'll have enough! It has been more that a week before my last (lame and short) post, but I have been so crazy with life stuff that I haven't had much time to knit, never mind blog about it. I am looking forward to a restful holiday weekend with lots of knitting. We saw Spiderman 3 last weekend, and I made a sad attempt at knitting a mindless dishcloth during the movie and ended up with this:


Needless to say that this will never see the kitchen sink!

As for progress on my EZ Baby Surprise Jacket, I have the body done, and have started the hood that I am making the pattern for. The pattern notes give very general directions, so I'm not sure what it will look like. Once the hood is done, I will bind off the body and hood as one with an applied I-cord edge. I hope to finish this weekend so I can try it on the recipient and see if I'll need to add more length to the sleeves.

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to everyone in blogland. I hope that you were able to spend it with loved ones!

"Spring Into Summer" Dishcloth Swap

Dishcloths are one of my favorite projects to knit. There quick, portable, and practical.

"Spring Into Summer" Dishcloth Swap Questionnaire:

When did you learn to knit? Who taught you?
I learned about 2 years ago at my LYS, Finely A Knitting Party

What was your very first completed object? Your most recent?
My first completed object was a washcloth, and my most recent was my Landscape Shawl.

What was the very first thing you sent to the frog pond? (pulled out and started over) Your most recent?
I don't remember the first frogged project, but my top-down tie cardigan was the most recent.

What is currently on the needles for you?
Oh boy, here we go:
A felted basket
My top-down tie cardigan
Flying Geese blanket from Mason-Dixon Knitting
A pair of socks

What types of needles do you enjoy working with? What have you tried and hated?
I like my Addis and my KnitPicks Options for circs, and also bamboo for straight and circs. I have a Needlemaster set that I hate, all metal straights that I've tried.

Have you knit dishcloths before?
I always have a dishcloth going!

What was your favorite one?
I have a simple pattern that I am always knitting that is knit on a diagonal and has a nice eyelet around the edge. It's portable and the pattern is easy to memorize, so its kinda mindless.

Least favorite?
I don't think I've found one that I don't like yet, although I haven't tried too many!

Do you use homemade dishcloths or face cloths yourself, or give them as gifts, or both?
Both

What are your favorite and least favorite scents? (For your body, such as soap/lotion/etc)
I love fruity smells, cherry blossom, almond, coconut, honey, vanilla, light florals

What are your favorite colors?
I love all colors but not a huge fan of pastels.

What colors (if any) are your bathroom and kitchen decorated in?
My kitchen is sage green and cream, with cranberry accents.

What other hobbies and crafts do you enjoy?
I crochet, and rubber stamp and bead just a smidge. Other things just take away from knitting.

Chocolate: Dark? White? Milk? Ew?
Milk- Definitely (preferably with something like caramel, almonds, etc. in it)

Do you like salty treats? What kinds?
Not so much, maybe pretzels and popcorn

If you could go anywhere in the world for one day and spend the day any way you wanted, where would you go and what would you do?
I think that I would just sit outside in a big city park on a blanket and just relax.

Do you have any allergies? (Yarns, foods, etc. that might impact what your pal can send)
Nope!

I have a bunch of other questionnaires up too, so you can check them out if you need more info!

Caution: Non-knitting content ahead!

There are 2 things that I have found sheer enjoyment out of the last couple of crazy days. I wanted to share them with you!
1. The beautiful tree in my front yard, in all of its pink blossom glory:
2. David Caruso as Lt. Horatio Caine on CSI: Miami
I love how ridiculous he is on that show. You miss the opening and the entire episode is ruined!

International Treat!

I got my Knitter's Treat Exchange package from my Marion, at VARDAKEERUTAMISED all the way from Estonia! Take a look at all of my treats!

She sent me:
A huge hank of Estonian wool in a great colorway (click here for a closeup)
A copy of Filati Handknitting magazine (great summer sweaters!)
An assortment of teas and a bag of cappuccino with a package of cookies
2 chocolate bars: 1 white chocolate w/rice crisp & blueberry pieces & 1 dark chocolate with cherry pieces (YUM!)
Fruittini Ice Mint lip balm and Bourbon Vanilla Smoothie body lotion
A handmade bookmark & earrings

Thank you to my treater, Marion, for all of the wonderful gifts! My thoughts are with you and hope that you stay safe with all of the troubles in your town (read the details on her blog).
Thank you!

We now return to our regularly scheduled knitting...

Isn't high-speed internet access great? Especially when it has been fixed and running smooth!
So much to report... where to begin? How about with an almost finished object?

Yes, that very warped rectangle will soon be a baby sweater. An Elizabeth Zimmerman Baby Surprise Jacket, actually. See??

I am ready to do the bind-off row, but I'm going to add an applied I-cord edging around the body and the sleeves instead of the purlwise bind-off that the pattern calls for. I am also going to try it on an actual baby to check the sleeve length and possibly pick up and add some length and then the applied I-cord. I got little shank buttons in both fuchsia and yellow, and will make a decision when I see the finished jacket, maybe even use both!

I really love this sweater and will be sure to knit more! I will have to do some research about incorporating longer sleeves into the pattern to avoid having to pick up and knit at the cuffs!

Coming Soon!

My Internet access has been HORRIBLE lately and always down, so I have had minimal Internet access this past week as I don't have access from work either!
I am currently Internet mooching from my parents (with a dial-up connection), but should have my own fixed tomorrow, so I promise to have my Spring Felted Bag Exchange Questionnaire and a bunch of other updates as well posted tomorrow.

Stay tuned!