Nearly Knit

Would you like to see my nearly finished Silk Shrug in all it's unblocked and almost-finished glory? Of course you do:) Here it is. I'm a day or two away from completing the knitting and there is really no finishing aside from weaving in ends (and I've been doing that as I've knit). Happily, autumn has arrived in the Chicago area so I should be able to put this shrug to use right away. It's always nice when you knit something and can use it right away. The Blue Sky Alpaca & Silk is absolutely the loveliest yarn I've knit with so far. The stitch definition, the color, the sheen, the texture - all lovely. I can't quite capture it in this photo. I have to get used to shooting in low autumn light again.

The Koigu socks are progressing. The shrug is taking up the majority of my time, but I've been making sure that every day I have a little Koigu time:) I'm so in love with these socks. I find myself looking at Koigu colors online a lot lately, but nothing beats seeing a wall full of koigu like at Three Bags Full. I have a feeling I'll be heading there again soon. I decided to do my favorite Eye of Partridge heel flap, but with these spotty colors I'm not sure if it really stands out. Oh well, I still adore these socks and can't wait to get them on my feet.

In the meantime, I have received more sock yarn (good thing I knit socks all the time). This time I ordered from a new sock yarn online store called Pick Up Sticks. It's a great Canadian store specializing in handpainted sock and lace yarns. I tried to keep from going completely crazy and ordering one of everything. Instead I picked out two Claudia Hand Painted colors (rumor has it that the base yarn is the same as Koigu - sure looks and feels the same) and a skein of Sweet Georgia's Speed Demon in Velvet Underground (Left). The Sweet Georgia feels amazing. The Claudia Hand Painted colors are Begonia (Middle) and Pink Dot (Right). I am seriously tempted by the Posh Yarns and the Apple Laine yarns. I'm not sure how long I can resist:) Oh, and the shipping from Canada was fast! I ordered late afternoon on Wednesday and it was on my doorstep Monday evening. Nice:)

The other day I received the needles I needed to start on the Elizabeth I scarf, but I'm just not very enthusiastic about the project right now...I may push this one off for a little while. A birthday present can easily become a holiday gift when the recipient doesn't even know what they are getting, right? ;)

***Knitting GROUP is tonight (Wednesday) at the Borders' Cafe in Wilmette (corner of Lake & Skokie). We meet from 6:30 until 8:00 and any yarn enthusiast is welcome!***