Ouch!

All this knitting on CD has left my right hand a little...unhappy. I'm taking frequent breaks and combing up some Merino to make up the third ply in the Polwarth blend yarn(gotta stretch that some since I have less than a pound) I had great hopes of finishing this project up before the month was out, but the hand problem may interfere. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.
The good news is that I reviewed my Knit From Your Shelf list and it's shorter than I thought. I forgot about having knit a Moccasin Sock (yes, one-it was not my favorite. I intend to try it again in the future though since the notion of a refootable sock is very appealing) and a Moebius scarf. So, that takes care of Knitter's Almanac and Knitting Around. Leaving only-um, five books. That's one per month. These projects better be small!

Spinning

I've been doing a good bit of spinning lately. I unearthed some ancient fibers and am really enjoying them! The first is some Polwarth that I had blended with a bit of kid mohair and some angora. I keep a smallish amount of fiber near the wheel in a wine carrier that I bought at A C Moore. Let me assure you-this is lovely fiber! The wool is from Nancy Ortmann's flock-I've purchased their Targhee and Cormo as well. Fabulous! The blending was done by Wooly Knob and they did a superb job. I'm already on the third bobbin.
The next batch-you knew I'd have two batches going, right?-is this lovely gray Corriedale from Dan-Vir farm(sorry neither if these shepherds have web pages-email me for contact info) this is from a fleece I purchased back in '05. Since I bought more from them at SAFF since then, I figured it was time to get going on this one. Spinning another three ply with this fiber-just like the one above. That's what I like to knit-so that's what I spin!

And then here's a little update on Celtic Dreams. Almost to the cuff on that sleeve!!!

Sissy

Now isn't she just the cutest?

Sleeves and kitchen stuff

I have knit my CD pullover down to the "skirt" section, and am putting that on hold while I work up the sleeves. I've picked up the sts and I'm ready to go! The top of the sleeve is worked flat for a bit and then joined-looking forward to seeing that come together!
I am also knitting up a mitered dishtowel from the Mason Dixon book that I borrowed from the library. I plan to finish it up today and promptly hang it on my handy little towel hook right next to the kitchen sink.
We got a new puppy for my daughter's birthday. A six wk old American Eskimo. Dh took the camera to work today so I'll have to post a picture later. She is a real cutie!

Favorite skirt!

I've forgotten just where I first heard this skirt pattern praised(one of those "week in dresses" records?) but I do remember the girl saying that "this pattern can do no wrong". Since it was a simple 2 hr skirt with a variation for a bias version, I started looking for one for sale. An internet store had one, so I promptly bought it and wasted no time in sewing two up with some floral rayon prints I had stashed away. For the first time, I can agree with the pattern envelope. It really is a 2 hr skirt!
Here's a photo of my navy floral(this is view B) If you are looking for a good simple skirt-try to find this one! McCalls 2029!


The last denim skirt that I made has a bit of a grease stain from a cooking spill, so I bought this apron fabric the other day to sew up some aprons for C and me. I have some plain pink cotton for contrast-that will likely be C's skirt section. We're working on her mastering my apple pie recipe, then she wants to move on to biscuits :~)

He is risen!

Did the grass sing?
Did the earth rejoice to feel You again?
Over and over like a trumpet underground,
Did the earth seem to pound
"He is risen!"
Over and over in a never ending round,
"He is risen!
Alleluia! Alleluia!

Spring!

The weather is super nice today-spring is my favorite time of year! We've had some good rain and now the sun is out and all my little plants are poking up their heads to greet the world. I moved my peonies to the side of the house, which will make dh happy. Now he won't have to watch out for them while he's mowing. I'm transplanting the pepper seedlings this afternoon into larger containers-they are ready for more space but I want to be sure we don't lose them in that one last frost that often shows up around Easter. Everything else in the sunbox is looking great! And my alpine strawberries are blooming!

I've picked the Celtic Dreams pullover back up and have almost finished a repeat, which is 24 rounds. I want to do one more repeat before picking up those sleeve stitches.
We are taking our spring break next week-I'll be refinishing a bed and chest of drawers for C's room. I'll post pics before I begin. These pieces have been waiting in the garage for quite some time-but now that nice weather is here-I can get that good ventilation that such projects require!

And here's the finished denim skirt. Simplicity 5524. Good pattern! I'm thinking of making one next winter in a black pinwhale corduroy.