Knitting Through the Snow Storm

Though I'm determined to get out, further, that is, than the driveway to shovel out my car, I've not been able to drive--yet--to Massachusetts, which had been my weekend's destination. So, between reading student papers, eating Irish oatmeal, and laughing at the way the snow drowns/covers/entraps Khikho, I've switched between reading Charlotte Bronte's Villette and knitting a pillow that says "Pillow," not that there'd be any mistaking what it is. It started as a double-strand sweater, which I'd abandoned in January as being too thick even for someone in January, and, with winter whimsy, became a "Pillow...Back Of." I used, as I have several other times, the lettering font from unionpurl's Peruvian Chulla, closed the two ends, one with Kitchener stitch, one with three-needle bind-off, and I've got me a birthday present for a wonderful ole friend, whose chuckles I hear already across the snowy divide of Ithaca to Connecticut.

Also did this "Montreal Tuque," out of stashed Blue Sky Alpaca.


And am now going to while away the afternoon doing "Fiddlehead Mittens."

And, if the plows are my friends, I'll go tomorrow to Massachusetts.

Alexander, this one's for YOU

Just want to share (pictures of) this satisfying sweater, made with Cascade Ecological wool, undyed (except for the red bits), rough and tumble. On size 6 needles, at 5 stitches to the inch, I got a heady dense texture. Big as the fabric is, to fit my fine tall son (50 inches circumference), the knitting flew along. I picked and chose motifs as I went and my fancy found them. I did some hidden red in the turned hem (you'll never find it in these pictures), and had to restrain myself during the two weeks of knitting from putting in too much red: I wanted to keep it in valuable abeyance, with a Latvian braid here and a tiny stripe there, ending with the inside of the turned collar. I found the medieval cats on a medieval pouch (ravelry), took a dragon graph out of Meg Swansen's Sweaters From Camp, and generally had a nice time.

"Ah, la belle chose que de savoir quelque chose !" Knowing how to knit sweaters without patterns.

I'll give this to Alexander next weekend.