Yeah, still here, procrastaknitting. Sorry for the huge delay in getting the pictures out there, but you understand. Right? Okay, the little red skirt was a hit with little Miss Lizbet, so now the black and red tank is on the needles to match. The Malabrigo, well that showed up in a care package from Mom, yarn I had ordered from Jimmy Beans Wool back in August that didn’t get to Washington before I left. I wound up one ball, and perused my pattern binder-visions of a shawl-y thing for Jadine in order to keep my end of the deal-she made me a gorgeous quilt earlier this year. I started using the Kat Coyle pompom awning pattern from Greetings from the Knit Café – I’ll save final decision making until I’ve finished at least one lace pattern repeat. The socks are progressing; one is a footie, the other an anklet. The brown Fancy Image Yarn is being worked with leftover Sockotta sock yarn from Eli last year-I am cutting my teeth on the syncopated caps pattern from the Spring (or was it Summer?) issue of Interweave knits. Not sure of how far this one will make it before it is retired, because it has already caused some cursing and frogging that was undeserved.
So, there it all is, my recent knitting adventure/attempts in one quickie paragraph. And now here’s the pictures….

Penelope

I need to figure out who this Penelope character is. For the past five days I was traveling around the beaches of Northern Peru and on in to Ecuador with the graduating classes from one of the local private schools. There was a handful of parent chaperones present, and whenever anyone commented on my constant handful of needles and yarn, they always said something about Penelope. From what I translated, apparently Penelope was in love with a man who went away to war, and her parents wanted to marry her off to another. She said she would marry once she finished whatever project it was she was knitting-but the catch is that she would knit all day long and at night unravel what she had started so she never actually finished. I, however, don't unravel. I just start a new project!
As for my current projects, still missing a sleeve on the mohair hoodie, and one of the socks is to the cuffs, the other a little bit behind. What else was I working on? In any case, I also knit up a little skirt during the course of this trip. I wanted to try out the lace pattern for a sweater I was considering making, so I decided to work it as a much smaller project-what has turned into a cotton skirt perfectly sized for a toddler. Yesterday I started on a little top to match, in a different color but with the same lace pattern-pictures are forthcoming, I promise.

Hoodie and the Blowsocks

The hoodie. The hoodie. The hoodie is not much more than that, but it is done-minus sleeves. Still holding a personal debate-if I make it short sleeved, I can wear it right now, while I am down here. If I make it long sleeved, it will have to be stored until January when I return to the states, because a long sleeved alpaca mohair hoodie just doesn’t fly in South American summer weather. As it is, short sleeves will only work at night. Then I was thinking, hmmm, I wonder if there’s a way I can make it short sleeved, but leave the option to add sleeves once I get home-what do you think?
As for those stinking socks, I pulled them out of the drawer of pretend-its-done, and I will turn the heel on the second sock today. I promised myself. Still on the lookout for the mohair leaves scarf, and that Van Dam cadet hat is nearly done-thanks to two hours on a bus with nothing to pay attention to except yet another of Jean Claude’s terrible kung fu faux movies. But, I think I figured out why he is so popular down here-it is because his movies are severely lacking in intelligent conversation, which cuts down on the amount of translation that need to happen-grunts, flesh slapping, and severe stares are the same in every language.

Hannah's Cape, Re-Visited

TO BEGIN: I apologize for my slacker tendencies. BUT in my defense, I am a procrastaknitter-that name was not just to be cutesy. I have been knitting, but not writing. Actually, I whipped out a trendy retro cape this week, the full size model of Hannah’s green cape-just because I was looking through my back log of knit photos, and remembered how easy it was to make hers (two days, from cast on to putting on). I used up three of the balls of red alpaca I brought with me, the same gorgeous stuff I bought on my first trip down here to Peru. Now that the elbow length cape is done, I was thinking about elbow length gloves, or arm-warmers, in order to make fashion function in the Northwest (down here, an elbow length cape is overkill-it’s almost summer).


As for my other projects, no progress on the second cadet hat; I honestly don’t understand why it takes me so long to finish something as simple as a hat. The socks, I turned the same heel twice on one of the socks, and since I have already (hmm) turned two heels, I felt I deserved a break. And in that break, I hauled out the mohair hoodie for another revamp. Now I think it may become a short sleeve split neck hoodie, because THE SLEEVES were killing me-I couldn’t find a cuff I liked, the yarn is fickle, not me. I put the back of the body on a spare circular, and started working on the front, making it up as I go along (and writing it down, so that the back matches{hopefully}) The mohair leaves scarf is indefinitely on hold, because I can’t find it…lost in the abyss of books and clothing that is my room, or in the hands of some unsuspecting stranger who picked it up on a bus. But for good measure, it will stay in my on the needles section, as homage to MY size 6 needles that are with it.
Yesterday afternoon I went to the local yarn store-for lack of a better name. It really is more of a sewing and embroidery store, but they recently started stocking a selection of crochet cotton, and multicolored acrylic. Finding good yarn involves traveling beyond my little village, and I had to smack my own forehead for nearly purchasing acrylic yarn yesterday-I was thinking quick and cheap gifts, honestly. Does this mean I need to repent at the feet of the Yarn Goddess?
ALSO, last but definitely not least, HAPPY BIRTHDAY y Feliz cumpleanos to my top site visitor, and coincidentally, my OLDER sister Jenni! You don’t look a day over 29! Lots of happy knitting to you in this year of change, as you make the conversion from crotch-eter to knitter. LOVE YOU!

p.s. Jenni, what do you think of that brooch pin for the cape? It's the one I was talking about.