My latest new project is...(from Chrisanne)

My left hand has decided to be testy with me after the last week of only working on fingering weight yarn (the inevitable socks of course, and the Oriental jacket I'm working on--actually there are 2 of them in the works, 1 in greens and 1 in pinks, lavendars, and blues), so yesterday I started an intarsia sweater in Pima/Tencel by Cascade. I love this yarn! Anyway, it's from an old book called Great Big Knits, and I'm doing it in pink, black, white and a touch of maroon. The ribbing at the bottom is in black, and it was one of those Gee, I Guess I Am Getting Older--or Blinder experiences.... But--I must say, it looks nice.... And then at 1:30 am this morning, with rampant non-sleepiness, I came to the end of my skein....so, of course, I worked on the Not So Warm Coat from Sally Melville's Knit Stitch, which is in some Noro Silk Garden from The Stash. For someone who really prefers pullovers, I do seem to be knitting a lot of cardis, don't I.....

Also in the pipeline are several pairs of socks for gifts. I think that socks are the perfect addiction--legal, socially acceptable, and very portable--I have a sock-in-progress in my glovebox in the car, another at my bedside table, another on the wetbar in the kitchen, another in my purse of the moment, and another beside my usual seat in the living room. (I bet you thought I was being my usual exaggerated self about that 'addiction' remark!)

Somewhere along the line, I also need to knit Pippen a sweater. Now that he's got a shorter haircut for the shop, he needs a bit of extra warm for the fall/winter. Heaven knows, he hasn't got any extra weight to keep him warm!

We're thinking about having our December class be a "Quick Gifts for the Holidays" kind of thing, so I'm working on ideas for that...projects which are fun to do, quick, and things that your Significant Recipient will actually be excited to get (and which, unlike the Nieman-Marcus suggestions, will not cause instant poverty for you).

We've had a couple of people in the Shoppe lately who have a stash of afghans which they have made, so that they have something for a gift should they need something immediate. I'm quite in awe of this forethought! Of course, with all the projects I have going at any particular moment, you'd think I'd have something for those occasions, but it never seems to work that way....

Briony -- Finishes something! And loses something.

Yes, as amazing as it may sound -- I have finished something! The crochet shopping bag! It's out of Muench's Samoa which is cotton and acrylic. And soft. So nice to work with. It's the one on the right. It'll stretch out with weight.

It's going into my trunk tomorrow morning so the next time I go shopping it can be used. Of course, I will have to talk the bagger (if I go somewhere where they still bag for you) into actually putting more than 3 ounces into it. My other one -- made of sugar n cream (bag on the left) -- carried home a gallon of milk, a gallon of juice, a jar of yeast and a box of mushrooms today. The bagger didn't believe it wouldn't burst on the spot. HAH! Chrisanne thought of the round bottom, which I really like.

And as you can see, my father worked his magic -- by doing exactly what I did earlier and voila! The (&#$&#$ camera works. Argh!

Do you realize there are only 12 weeks until Christmas? That means just 12 measly weeks in which to start (ahem), work on, and FINISH gifts?? I tell ya, I'm beginning to feel the pressure. Does that mean I'll work hard this weekend on gifts? Um. Nope. Oh well.

I was really, really mean to Chrisanne this week. I made her limit the number of projects she has in progress at the shop to . . . 12. Yup. All the way down to 12. She sniffed and stuffed two large duffel like bags and another shopping bag FULL of stuff and put it into her car. No, I have NO idea what all went. I think I saw a few socks. I may stop by her place this weekend and help her get it all OUT of the car.

For those of you with cats -- Does it ever cease to amaze you how looonnnggg their legs can get? I'm thinking in reference to getting into closed closets. Where early-in-my-knitting-life faroese shawls made of silk tweed, costing me several months of saved cash while I was in college, used to hang. Notice the past tense. Somehow, unknown to me, the shawl fell onto the floor. I don't know how the cats knew it was on the floor, inside the closed closet. But they did. Somehow they reached, deep, deep, inside that closed off closet, under the door. I found what was left of my previously lovely shawl earlier this week on the floor. I tell you I just sat on the floor and cried.

Ah well. The shawl may be savalgeable. I don't have the heart to look yet. And the shopping bag is soon to be safe in my trunk.
~Briony