Catch Up Post

Dear all, yes, I have been missing in action for a while.  Apologies for the delay in coming back to you.

There have been work related things, family related things and of course it's that time of the year when the Black Dog starts to make itself known more frequently.  So basically I have just battened down the hatches and waited it out until I felt sociable again.

However there has been progress during my absence.

Stitching wise, I have been concentrating on Crypt Club because Mum's birthday is less than a month away.  The chart is on two pages and what you see is mainly the bottom page.  I have a little back stitching left to do and there should be a martini glass on the table.  Mum doesn't drink martini, but a cup of tea might look odd - still thinking about this.  There is less to do on the top page, so fingers crossed I get it done in time.

I am still pottering on with Hitchhiker, which should properly be called Hitchhiker Plus now.  I have now done 49 points and I still have yarn in hand.  Point 50 will take me past the 200 stitches per row mark.  I really must get this finished before the end of the year, particularly as I bought the pattern last New Year's Eve.

This is a semi-unplanned new start - cabled handwarmers for Mum.  When I say semi-unplanned, what I mean is that I meant to do them, just not yet.  However I went to Knit Group yesterday, talked about doing them, then came home and cast on.  It is the same pattern as the cabled handwarmers that I knitted for myself (which are being really useful now), but in superwash merino DK dyed in the "Twilight" colour way by Truly Hooked.  I bought this at the Bakewell Wool Gathering last Saturday specifically for this project - it is black, white and purple, and feels very nice!  The intention is to get them done for her birthday if at all possible.

Progress on my Vanilla Latte socks remains slow, mainly due to the deadlines on other things.  Once Mum's birthday is out of the way, I will have more time for them.

Finally, a stash update for Leonore.  On the left, a skein of Colinette Calligraphy in the Aegean colour way, a bulky yarn, and a birthday present from Deb in my Saturday Knit Group.  Next come Opal sock yarn in the Secret Agent colour way from Wool Zone in Oakham, a present to myself on the way home from a job interview (didn't get the job).  At the top, a Crazy Zauberball in the "Der Lenz ist da!" colour way also from Wool Zone on the same occasion.  Below that is a ball of Juniper Moon Farm Findlay Dappled laceweight in the Macaw colour way which I picked up at the Bakewell Wool Gathering.  And on the right, also bought at Bakewell, is a skein of Natural Born Dyers Cobweb Lace in the Bluebottle colour way - 1200m of 50% alpaca, 30% merino and 20% silk - which will eventually become a shawl of some description.

Too many pretty things and not enough time!! 

Hoping that all is well with you and yours.  May the frog stay well away from your needles, and I will try to post more regularly from now on.