Warning! Grab a Snack First

As when I was teaching, I’m not one to stop for structured breaks. Just quietly get up and do what you need to do, and I’ll keep talking. Food and drink are encouraged, unless you have a known spewing problem…

The things we do for friends! Firstly, pop over HERE and check out Holly and Anne‘s coffee swap. They both seem a little surprised that I’m excited about it, but firstly, when two pals of mine host a swap, I want to be a part of the fun. Secondly, Anne has taught me that I don’t HATE coffee; I hate run of the mill coffee. She’s also promised my pal isn’t allowed to make fun of me if I ask for Starbucks or McDonald’s gift cards. Dudes… even Anne adores McD’s iced coffees. My funny little mother inlaw had FITS on her cruise, because they kept seeing McD’s, but no iced coffees! I guess it never crossed her mind to ask someone on the ship to make her one…

Also, for a great cause, please go visit Nicole’s first contest. I’d also like to encourage you to help her meet her donation goal for the year. Heck, let’s see if we can blow her goal out of the water, okay? Pets everywhere need a helping hand, and the ASPCA is a great organization. You even get bonus entries for adopting a dog this year. I won’t be getting those points, but I can assure you that our next basset will be a little girl from our rescue. There are so many pluses to adopting, but this is going to be a long post anyway…

Now, y’all have been great about reading along without pictures long enough. So, look out! Here come the photos.

First comes my current pride and joy, the shrug done in Amanda‘s yummy yarn. Giving the camera the green table and the gold project bag to focus on seemed to help me get closer to accurate colors. That’s four of the nine repeats of the lace. Then, another cuff, stitch the cuffs together as sleeves, and then pick up about a gazillion stitches all the way around for a little ribbed border there too. It’s warm outside now, but just you wait. I’m going to be wearing this by the weekend, no matter what!

Next comes several days worth of stash and supply building packages. These Peace Fleece needles are Nicole‘s fault. The Knight has asked me to knit *HIS* cloths on smaller needles, so I ordered some #6s. (Don’t tell him I’d already ordered #6 Bryspuns, okay? I’m sure in time, I’ll use them both.) They sure are pretty, and knowing that I’m shopping and knitting and making the world a better place all at the same time is a great feeling.

Next comes the fiber love. It’s been a while since I really did some shopping with Loopy, so I got a little crazy last week when I arrived home just in time to get my Loopy’s Groupies notice that a sneak-up was happening. I scored a couple of Wendy’s sock patterns, and this Bambewe in “Sedona” which makes me want to skip the cruise and go back to those warm, red rocks and The Red Planet diner. But that’s another story. If you haven’t been to Sedona, you’re missing the jewel of the Southwest. If you have, you know exactly what I mean.

I also snagged some Yarn Pirate in Loopy Blues, because I could and because so many of you swear by this yarn. I love the colors. I seem to be hung up on turquoise again, not that it’s a bad thing. The brown actually has some red in it, but I guess the redwood stain on the deck didn’t help draw that out.

Last, but hardly least in my Loopy haul is the Yarntini in Designated Driver. It looks like my favorite pair of almost thread-bare jeans, and I think it will make socks just as comfortable and long-lasting. Yummy, yummy yarn, all of it. And stash police? Don’t worry. When my inlaws retire, I’m taking my knitting to work and my productivity will double. I will use up my stash, but I thank you for caring.

I also grabbed some of Bernat’s Cashmere, which only has 5% of the fine fiber in it. However, I’m in search of a soft, favorite sweater meets easy-care yarn, so someone will be getting a little something made of this buttah. It sure is soft to the touch, but it’s a relatively new yarn, so no one on Ravelry has been complaining about it pilling or anything yet. (See? Once the inlaws retire, I’ll have my queue stacked and my stash built up for another 20 years of knitting at work and at home. There’s a method to my madness, right?)

But wait! THERE’S MORE! Not much more though, I promise. Just my two sets of cable needles. I thought I’d show you both sets, since I know Anita (check out her darling Etsy store too!) has the “plain” wood set and is still waiting on her Harmony Knitpicks. Despite the fact I still don’t cable, I’m feeling very happy with my purchases. The two sets offer different diameters, and if you can’t tell, the plain wood set is notched about twice as often as the Harmonys. Interestingly enough, if I’d lined them up by size, largest first, it would be Harmony, plain, plain, Harmony, and the two smallest sizes are pretty darned close.

And my pretty #10.5 tips. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go switch those tips out on the secret bag project, and settle in for House.

What’s that Mugsy? Oh yeah. Dinner for me. (Which means second dinner for the dogs, because when the Knight’s away, I share a lot more. I learned to cook at the firehouse, where the average group was about 15. I don’t do meals for one or even two so well.)

An Owl Would Have Been Faster

MANY days after the fact, my HSKS pal finally got her package. Phew! I was beginning to think it was lost. As fate would have it, she and Anne’s pal posted to the swap’s blog, back to back. Can you see the matching item? Yup. We shopped together for a whole week, you know. That cute little owl came home with both of us. Twins, I guess…

Please note the stitch markers by Blume’s Accessories got mentioned by name. Go Mary! You’re on your way, ready or not. It’s always such a relief to hear that my swap pals REALLY like at least some of what I picked out. I can’t take much credit this time; I had ordered another sock yarn, but it wasn’t really available (I seem to bring that out in automated systems), so Sheri of The Loopy Ewe suggested the well-received Shark colorway. Thanks, Sheri!

What’s that Loopy? Oh, I miss you too. But don’t worry. I’ll order again soon, I’m sure. And I’m thinking you’d like to go see the Order of the Phoenix movie with me, and maybe go to Chicago on a business trip, and you’re definitely going to Myrtle Beach to supervise the sock knitting and I suppose you’ll have to attend part of the conference too…

If you don’t know what I’m talking about, you need to go here. Have Loopy, will travel!