that giant sucking sound...

... is me getting sucked into the e-knitting underworld! First ravelry (could I possibly spend more time noodling around that site?), and now the Mystery Stole 3 Knitalong. sigh. I'm a goner. Here's my swatch for MS3:

The color is not true--in reality it's a lovely dark green heather. But I'm happy with my gauge, etc: this is knitpicks laceweight merino, colorway "lost lake" (so romantic!), knitpicks options needles size 4US.

Meanwhile I'm making good progress on my Clapotini, as I now call it. I'm hoping to finish it before the first Mystery Stole clue comes out tomorrow. And I whipped up a sleeve for my new nano (my wonderful first-generation ipod finally gave up the ghost. That baby was a real dinosaur, and subject of wonder wherever it was seen). I wanted it to fit both the nano and the little radio device that lets me play it in the car, so it came out long and slender, and looking like it might be a sleeve for something quite other than a personal listening device.

I found out last night that even when your son's swim meet lasts (including commute time) 6 1/2 hours, you're still not going to get much knitting done, because a) you can't knit in the car because you get carsick and your friend Silvia is too entertaining; b) you can't knit while the sun is up because it's eight billion degrees in Virginia; and c) you can't knit for very long after the sun goes down because, well, duh. But today is another day.

rip and sew

I finally did what I should have done in my LYS about three weeks ago: I accepted the fact that I do not have enough of my Claudia's handpainted to make a full-sized clapotis. Happily, I found a pattern for a scarf-sized one on the clapotis knitalong site, so I ripped and started over. I find that I don't mind, actually. Although I would have liked a full-sized clapotis, starting over comes with that pleasant casting on feeling. I'm going to find a different pattern for a wrap, and be satisfied to have a lovely handpainted merino clapotis scarf.

Meanwhile, I'm teaching myself to sew!

wristlet tutorial from splityarn

I had so much fun making this little bag. You can see from the photo that my seams are far from perfect, and there's a little odd bulk in a few places, nevertheless, as my very first sewing project (that's almost true: many years ago I did some quilting, and in middle school my mom and I tried very hard to master the world's easiest pattern for a wraparound skirt. We gave up. A few weeks later my dad finished it for us) I'm completely delighted with it. I'm going to make another one and fill them both with... I dunno, something... as gifts for the two graduate school buddies I'm meeting up with in July (spa days! yee ha!).

the not knit post

Not that I haven't been knitting. I've been knitting quite a lot, but I don't have pics yet. Let's start off with a nice gratuitous poodle pic:

Josie in the hostas

Since this pic was taken the hostas have bloomed beautifully, proving (against all other evidence) that not every green thing put into my care dies within a month. Although when I think about it, all I did was buy them and decide where they should be planted. Still, that's usually enough to sign a plant's death warrant.

Come to think of it, I do have one FO pic to show:

baby bibs o' love
lily sugar n creme
mason-dixon pattern

These are way fun to knit. If only I were of an age to know more babies! My mom asked if I would like to knit something for her friend's new granddaughter in Hong Kong, and of course I was delighted. I even had the yarn in my stash, thanks to last year's overenthusiastic storing up for ballband dishcloths at the AC Moore sale (I got tired of dishcloths after about 10 of them, which is probably what would happen with the bibs).

As for non-knit FO's, here are a couple of little somethings that got whipped up on a verrrry rainy day in Chincoteague this week:

We actually needed a butter dish. I can't say that we need a gecko, but I think T will like it for his wall when he gets home from camp.

I keep meaning to post about recent reading, but this knitting stuff sure cuts into my reading time. I have, however, read the most recent Elizabeth George, What Came Before He Shot Her. It is unrelentingly depressing, but I did want to keep reading to get to the end. More recently I read, Richard Russo's Risk Pool, which, like all Russo's books, has a terrific turn of phrase and an absolute genius for character, plus a surprisingly poignant plot. I didn't love it as much as I loved Straight Man or Empire Falls, but I did love it. I read two Yarn Harlot books and found them happily diverting. And I've just started (about 50 pages in) Alison Lurie's 1987 book, Foreign Affairs. So far, so good.

I want to reread Alfred Lansing's Endurance. Need a Shackleton refresher.

I'm also enjoying Ravelry! Boy, I wonder if frecklegirl had any idea what she was getting into...