Beautiful June

I don't mean the month. Here in South Australia, June is rather a bleary, bleak month compared to most of the other times of the year. It's been cloudy, drizzly, foggy...well, just about anything but beautiful.

No, I'm speaking of my lovely MIL June. We celebrated her birthday Saturday a week ago, and she was, as usual, a kind and gracious hostess. I presented her with the Sudden Storm jumper, and she was quite pleased with it. It fit her well, even her "oragatang arms" (her words, certainly not mine). Apparently, while June does not knit, her mother did, and used to complain about her long arms. From my perspective, I find that quite lucky, as I tend to knit arms too long as a rule, so in this case, I actually, if accidentally, got it right.


(Pardon the blurry photo. My FIL took the photo, and hasn't quite gotten used to his camera yet. MIL hates to have her picture taken, obviously).

She was pleased with it, but it was my FIL, who was almost in tears (how much wine did he have anyway?) and thanked me profusely, telling me how much it meant to June, and how grateful he was that I'd made her so happy, and well, it's every knitter's dream to have their work so appreciated, but I was left more or less speechless by his reaction, which was entirely unexpected.

I did finish the "Copper Topper" hat in no time flat. In fact, I finished it in about 24 hours all together, but I was home sick at the time, with DH waiting on me hand and foot, so I had plenty of time. The only trouble is, it doesn't cover my ears. It ends about halfway down them, with the earlobe sticking out, and I can't bear for a hat to not cover my ears. I even added a cable repeat, because as I was making it, I could already see there was going to be a length problem, but even that didn't quite fix it. I reckon I'll wind up making myself another one, with perhaps an extra inch to inch and a half of ribbing for the bottom border. That should fix the problem. Meanwhile, someone with a smaller head than mine will likely get this one.


I also picked up Chris' vest, and finished the neckline trim. It was so frustrating working with that fuzzy, messy yarn again, and I don't even like the way it wound up looking after all that. Disgusted, I put it right back down again...and didn't even take a picture of what "progress" I made. I have half a mind to chuck it out (no, not frog it, I don't ever plan to touch that yarn again) and start a new vest for him using REAL yarn.

I'm not exactly on a yarn diet, but I have cut back quite a bit from my regular yarn and accessory purchasing habits. The Sheep and Wool show in Bendigo is just a few short weeks from now, and I must have a bankroll to take there. I did however do a tiny wee bit of shopping this fortnight, and picked up a couple of balls of Grignasco Strong Print. As IF I needed more sock yarn! Still, I liked the colors, and I got it for a good price. I also picked up some Addi's, 4mm this time, because I'm not trusting the 4mm size in my Denise set, which doesn't agree with my gauge at all.



Also, at DH's suggestion, I got some new storage bins for my yarn on sale at Kmart. It's a neat little plastic job that rolls around easily, so I can move it here and there. Right now it's here with me in the study, where it fits neatly between the filing cabinets and the computer (when fitting in yarn, you have to be creative).


On the Ravelry front, Handmadam, a fellow Raveler who is from South Australia but now lives in Canada, sent me a pair of clear plastic shoes she found on sale. They are perfect for showing off handknit socks, and should be a hoot to wear when it warms up a bit. I love them dearly, although DH looks at them as if he's not quite sure I (or my Ravelry friend) are exactly what one might call sane.


But I suppose the big news of the past couple of weeks is that I finally got started on my "Peace in the Hood" jumper. It's about time! I just couldn't wait another day, and got it off the ground on June 13th. I'm almost done with the back now, and it's looking great. I love the way the Peace Fleece Zarya Fog colors look knit up, and the cables form an interesting pattern without being overly complicated, so I can still knit on it "on the go". The only drawback is needing to keep accurate count of my rows, pattern rows, etc. But between my "Peg it" knitting counter and a small notebook, I've kept on top of it very well. It's beautiful knitting, and I love the feel of the Peace Fleece. Fair enough...it is a bit scratchy, but it's nice none the less, and not "delicate" like the Noro was. I'm loving it!



However, my spinning is going NOWHERE. I do plan on getting out the wheel soon, and promise that I will. I do have time, as nothing very pressing is going on. I'll have to start mom's jumper soon, and I would like to get more spinning done to see if any of the stuff I spin up might be suitable for her jumper.

Till next time!