Hats Off to the New Year!

Happy New Year!  

I had a very nice time ringing in the New Year last night by going dancing.  The kind of dance event was what we call around here, a couples dance.  If you are not familiar, that means an evening with a variety of dances, like waltz, two-step, swing, hambo & schottich (lovely Scandinavian dances), and others.  The common element is that you must have a partner for these dances, hence the "couples dance" label.  

There was live music for the 2 hours from 8:30 - 10:30:  a piano & violin (Sandra Wong - she is amazing!!!).  The musicians were excellent!  They also played quite a few Argentine tangos, which is my passionate favorite!  (although it was not really a milonga (Argentine tango) evening)  And, because we have such a vibrant, active & varied dance community here, there were a few Greek folk dances to spice things up too!  One of the great things about this area is that, on any night of the week, you can choose among multiple kinds of dances to attend! (folk dance, couples dances, Scandinavian dance, swing, Latin, Argentine tango, etc.)

On the knitting front, my year, as did last year, has begun with finished hats.  There has been no conscious plan to make new hats on New Year's days, but it has turned out so by chance.  Last year I finished up my Gemma beret on New Year's day.  This year, I have finished up two more hats.

First, is the Purl Beret.  It is made with one skein of Koigu wool, my first time using this yarn.  Very nice yarn, and the colors play tricks according to the lighting.  While I was knitting it, this looked mostly olive color, with some subtle hints of light & dark rose color.  Then, when I wet it to block it, suddenly it looked mostly light & dark rose, with some spots of brown.  Hmmmm.  Nice yarn though!  

Pattern:  Purl Beret

Yarn:  Koigu KPPPM, color P319

Needles:  size 3

Then, I finished up my Rose Red.  I had started this about a month ago, and ran out of yarn.  What to do?  A friend gave me some bamboo yarn that matched the colors really well.  I was bummed that I had to use another color to finish up, but now, I actually like it better.  I think the darker green band really sets off the hat nicely!  And it is the same color as the strand of Kidsilk Haze that I was holding together with the silk yarn.  I love the result!

Pattern:  Rose Red, by Ysolda Teague

Yarn:  Lambspun silk, Rowan Kidsilk Haze, & unknown bamboo

Needles:  size 6

Now that more hats are off the needles, I am looking around for something new as an on-the-side small project to work on along with my Sylvi.  Hmmmmm...........(Do you doubt that I will find something????)

Big Air (knitting) Time

Well, I have not been catching Big Air, as on the slopes.  But, the past week has been a big knitting week.  I have taken time off from work between Christmas & New Year's, and it has been great!

On Christmas Day,  we watched "Get Smart" together, and I started a new pair of Maine Morning Mitts.  I made a pair last winter, and wear them all the time.  I use an under-layer of cheap gloves, and with the wool fingerless mitts on top, they are really warm!  I finished them on the day after Christmas while I watched 3 (yes!) movies with DS #3.  (Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix, Iron Man, and The Mummy - Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, if you are interested!)  It was the perfect day-after-Christmas kind of day - a completely, decadently lazy day!

Over the next couple of days, I worked on Sylvi - completing one sleeve, and almost finished the second, as well.

I have done a couple of other knitterly tasks also, and started another hat - the Purl Beret.  I am holding my breath to see if the one skein of Koigu will really be enough!  Pictures later.  I have been on quite a hat knitting spree lately.  (Meret, Purl Beret, Rose Red, Porom all to be found on ravelry) And more still that I want to make!  There are just so many nice hat patterns out there, and they are fun to knit!

Last night I went to Whitefrog's house, and helped her photograph all of her stash for putting into ravelry.  It is quite a job getting all your projects and stash into the database, but then easy to keep updated once the bulk of the work is done.

OK, back to hat knitting for me!  I may have a couple more pics to show this week!

Big Points (literal & figurative)

OK, the blog is new, and already a second post!  The mail just came, bringing a late gift from son #2:

which contained this:

Signature Arts needles, size 9, stiletto points.

WooHoo!  Nice gift! 

(heavy hinting involved....)

New Baby Blog

I have been thinking about blogging for some time now.  I have enjoyed art journaling for several years, and this is, after all, just another form of journaling.  So, I am taking the plunge.

It is the day after Christmas.  Christmas knits are finished & gifted, for the most part.  WIPS are few, I am free to work on whatever I want!  I made half a pair of Maine Morning Mitts yesterday, so will probably finish those today.  

I am wide open for my next big exciting knit - Sylvi, from the new fall Twist Collective.   Whitefrog (rav name) & I are doing our own, very loose, KAL for this.  

By way of introduction, I present to you my cozy knitting spot:

It has everything essential for comfortable knitting:  comfy seating arrangement, cozy lap throw (knitted, of course), bins of yarn, knitting books & magazines, caffeinated drinks, food, lots of knitting needles, tools, computer (gotta have some rav, audible books, patterns, etc...) and of course, a cat.  Life would just be too simple without a little feline challenge to spice things up.