Olympics Wrap-Up

So the Olympics are over . . . and this is my Irtfa'a:


It's a little further advanced than when I took this picture, but not by a whole lot.

What did I learn from this year's Olympics? My limiting factor isn't skill but time. Nothing in this shawl so far has thrown me--not even the provisional cast-on. Of course, probably a lot of that is Anne's crystal-clear instructions, but still. I'm no slouch!

So next year, the trick is going to be finding something I'll have time to complete in two weeks. Lots of hats, maybe?

Speaking of Anne, I had the opportunity to meet her weekend before last at Eleganza Yarns' Indie Artist Celebration. In addition to Anne's trunk show (which is amaaaazing), the shindig included the work of all sorts of local spinners, dyers, and fiber types. And I may or may not have purchased a few things.

First, a few skeins of Mid Valley Fibers handspun. Linda was so nice (and the prices so incredible) that I had to get some. I'm always drawn to this kind of slubby yarn, even though I never know what to knit with it. I'm thinking a scarf, maybe? (100% wool, a sort of DK weight.)


Then there's this beauty, courtesy of Blue Ridge Yarns--100% silk laceweight in "Dragon's Breath."
This picture doesn't do it near justice, nor do the pictures on their website. (Which is probably a good thing for all of your credit cards.) I confess, I had to call the Irishman for a fiber intervention at this table--I had about four skeins in my hands before I got talked down. If I ever win the lottery, I'm totally cleaning them out.

And the best part of the day, of course, was meeting Anne! Not only is she as funny and gracious in real life as she is on her blog, she knew who I was. *squee* I have such a huge designer crush on Anne, and it was so much fun to meet her and see all her knits in person.

So that was two weekends ago, and I'm still recovering. (As is my credit card, *ahem*.) Now time to go get some more done on the Irishman's socks. Oh yes, you remember the big blue things from last time? They're NOT BIG ENOUGH. So I need to finish unpicking the bind-offs and knit a few more inches onto the cuffs. Curses!

Olympics, Day 4

Well, I got off to a blazing start by . . . forgetting the needles I needed to cast on and therefore not casting on until Saturday.

Whoops!

But Irtfa'a is safely on the needles now. The provisional cast-on gave me a bit of trouble, as I'd never done one before, but I think i figured it out . . . Anyway, I finished the opening edging section, and I'm now working on the shoulder shaping. I only have 15 rows of that knit, but it's been getting faster all the time. My hope is that I can really fly once the increases are finished!

Meanwhile, here's something I finished a while ago:


This is a plain scarf for the Red Scarf Project, which, basically, gives care packages to young people with no families. These kids (I say kids, but they're not much younger than I am) are making their way with virtually no support networks. My family has been very supportive of me, especially in the past year, financially, emotionally, spiritually, and in generally making my life easier, and I can't imagine living without them. So this is definitely a very, very worthy project, and I encourage any of you reading to check it out.

I'm part of a 2010 KAL for the Red Scarf Project running through the #1 Knitspot Fan group on Ravelry, so I hope to knit 12 scarves to donate this year. As well as being lots of fun, it's a good way to give back with my knitting.

Knitting Olympics!

*squeeeeeeeee*

I'm participating in the Lace Luge and the Short Track Shawls events with an Irtfa'a, and I am SO EXCITED!

I'm part of Team Mawelucky, and I made this to use as a ravatar during the games:


I am such a nerd. But I have fun doing it!