336

Hi Flan,
As of yesterday there were 336 days until Christmas. I mention this not to start PTSD flashbacks of this recent holiday, but really to let you know that my knitting psychosis has reached new levels. Yesterday I picked out three (3) new projects all to do for Christmas '07.

Project 1:
Second Alpaca Scarf for The Dad. After receiving the Debbie Bliss Alpaca Silk in navy (the concept that alpaca and silk were spun together and I was not making a joke took awhile to get across). He says he now wants one a foot shorter and not only resisted my request to give it back so I could rip a foot out, but asked for it in dark green. I've potentially decided on this yarn and am going to do a garter w/ a slip st pattern.

Project 2:
A sweater/ hoodie for The Sister. Encouraged by Gracie to knit something for myself, I re-discovered the Ribby Cardi pattern. While looking for yarn colors at elann, I found one color I love (Grape something) and one I thought would look fab on The Sister (Oregano). I found the designer's website and was delighted by a variation on the Cardi for a Pulli (scroll to the bottom for the hoodie variation, but with the longer arms). I was so enamored, I tried to calculate if it were possible to order the yarn and then complete the whole thing by her birthday. Given that the last sweater took me three years, I thought that getting it done in 5 weeks might be a bit of a push, so it's now postponed until Christmas. Horay for elann prices. I think it might be possible to knit her a pulli and have enough in the budget for the cardi for me.

Project 3:
I was in true project planning mode when I arrived home. I organized patterns like never before. In the process, I found the Fibertrends Stars and Stripes that I picked up at last year's Yarnover (April 21, mark your calendar). Inspired by your beautiful photos from yesterday I thought about tackling lace. It boggles the mind that the pattern calls for laceweight and yet tells you to knit on 7s. There are options for either a shawl or a throw and I was thinking shawl given the climate in which I am knitting. What yarn would you recommend for a beginning laceweight project?