I’m Knitting As Fast As I Can

Last week, I made my way through the smog to the Jitterbug Coffee Hop where we celebrated the anniversary of our Tuesday night Stitch ‘N Bitch group.  Like it has for several years, the celebration included a no-obligation swap.  This year, the theme was cowls.  If you brought a cowl, you went home with a different one.  I was the lucky recipient of this little green number contributed by Laurie.

It’s knit from Malabrigo worsted so it’s fabulously soft.  Although it clashes horribly with my winter coat, I’ve worn it every day since the swap.  Love it.

My cowl contribution landed in the hands of Eileen and, happily, it matched her coat perfectly. Seriously, can an off-white cowl not match a person’s coat?

The pattern for the cowl I made for Eileen is now available as a free download on Ravelry.  As I mention on the Ravelry project page, I had a hard time finding a pattern that was exactly what I had in mind for my cowl.  There are similar patterns available but the cables either crossed too closely or too far apart.  And the cables were either too sparse or too crowded.   As Goldilocks would say, “This one is neither too hot nor too cold. It’s just right.”

And the best part . . . I worked up three sets of instructions for three different weights of yarn.  So shop the stash and cast on!

Desperate times . . . .

Call for desperate measures . . .

Lu guessed that the design European Tour Set from the book, It’s In the Bag, was in my knitting bag and she was correct!  Lu wins a copy of the book.  Thanks to everyone who played along.  If time is on my side this week, I have a little project to share that I made using the weaving technique I blogged about.  But no finished photos yet, unfortunately.

I’d like to send out sincere thanks to everyone who purchased my patterns on November 19th.  I transferred a grand total of $259.64 to the Red Scarf Fund on the morning of the 20th.  Awesome!

Don’t forget that in addition to cash, the Red Scarf Project needs hand-knit scarves.  Norma just put out an “urgent” call and I intend to answer it with at least one more scarf.  Although I rarely knit for charity when store-bought items will serve the same purpose, the Red Scarf Project really is different.  The scarves are not so much for warmth as they are a means to communicate a message of encouragement to the recipients.

I know time is at a premium during the holiday season but please consider knitting up a red scarf and sending it to OFA.  My son is a sophomore in college and I just boxed up a care package that I’ll send to him during finals week.  I know how much he loves receiving these packages and I can visualize the eye rolls when he unpacks the silly items I included with the food.  College is stressful and difficult.  A few hours of your time can really make a difference to a college student with no family support.  All the details are here on the OFA website.