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Hi, Jan,

Knitting group was last night, and though we dearly missed some of our gang, we had a rollicking good time. Christina and Peggy were there. Check out the needles that Christina convinced her mom she needed to try. Yes, they are that big (but isn’t it true that it’s not how big your needles are, it’s what you do with them?). These babies require lots of energy to wield - Peggy was breaking out in a sweat with the effort, I think. Christina’s sweater which was a ribbing a couple of months ago is now looking very much like a sweater indeed. The colors are fabulous, yes?

Lisa has finished her holiday shrug (on the couch next to her) and is starting on her next project. I thought it was the waist of a sweater that matched a new year’s resolution, but she tells us it is the neckband to a stash-busting poncho.

Kim is really getting close to the finish of a sweater for sweet Rylie. And I’m close to the finish of the EZ sweater for donation, but I am about out of yarn. Kathy frowns at how close but yet how far I am.

Kathy was visual aid queen. Not only did she bring lovely silk mitts, a sweater for which Carolyn is anxiously awaiting (it is lovely, and Carolyn will be lovely in it. Will she get to wear it this year?), and, via Macbook, a lovely shawl that she already gave to a friend.

Oscar was checking to see if I had anything delightful in my knitting bag. Turns out, I did!

I hope your Monday was at least half as good.

Love,

Ellen

Hi, Jan,

I actually finished knitting this vest at the end of last winter, I believe. No motivation to sew on the clasps when the snow was melting, and then when I started to do so this fall, it was late evening and the light was low and let me tell you, the black alpaca yarn absorbs all light in the vicinity so I kept waiting to do it during daylight. Finally finished in 2008!

The pattern is Cheryl Oberle’s Celtic Lattice from her Folk Vests book. That is one excellent book - I have a couple of other items I want to knit from it. The yarn is Noro Silk Garden Lite No. 2023 and Blue Sky Alpaca sportweight color 100. I bought it at Coldwater Collaborative, where Jenny used to work. Carri, the owner and a designer in her own right, convinced me to try the Noro. Man, she was dead on.

I love the looping lattice pattern. One change I made was to chart it so that instead of having the collar band just cut through the pattern, I kept continuous loops. I also used clasps (bought online, sorry, can’t recall where) instead of buttons, because I wasn’t happy with the way my sewn down band matched buttonhole fronts with backs. I used yet another EZ trick and just sewed the clasps on over the buttonholes.

In other great knitting news - I tried the RR on and it fits! I still have to do the neck hem and redo the bottom hem, but it may be finished in 2008, too.

We bought our Korea tickets. We managed to use my miles to go to Tokyo business class, which will be fun for Wilson to experience and better for my back. Coming home we have a layover in Portland so my back won’t have to take a straight 13 hours in the seat. All we had to pay for was the flight from Tokyo to Seoul.

Other than that, not much happening here. Of course after the excitement of actually finishing a project, I will need to rest for the remainder of the weekend.

Love,

Ellen

Hi, Jan,

You have certainly been busy. I haven’t done any baking in the last few days, though I do have some Brussels sprouts in the oven right now - wishing my colon a happy new year, you know. The knitting, however, has been fast and furious as we had a lot of car time and even some basketball time in the last couple of days.

The RR is down to the hems now, except that I may pick up and knit it a bit longer as I have another skein of yarn and I do like a tunic length to my sweaters. I swapped over to another dishcloth as the sweater was too big to bring to the Marshall U v. Lipscomb basketball game. Some people who attended were to intent on the play to watch. Even I watched closely enough that I forgot to switch yarns at one point (do you see the “Lipscomb stripe” I accidentally inserted?). Some of the folks were distracted enough to pose for photos. Being in a photo with Merry makes everyone look better, as does tilting your head with one hand below your chin (just watch Napolean Dynamite if you don’t believe me). (Sorry, Karen, photos of you turned out blurry so your attendance isn’t represented.)

Karen worked on her embossed leaf socks from Interweave at the game and finished them that evening, while Paula was doing puzzles. At that point we all took a break for our traditional poetry reading, this time with champagne to make it even more fun. Here Marty is reading “The Night Before Christmas”. Several Billy Collins poems were selected. Wilson and I were both taken with “Flock”. If you don’t know his stuff, I encourage you to find some.

I finished the dishcloth on the airplane and got one of EZ’s Best Baby Sweaters started, this one in Oh, My!, a super soft nylon yarn from Plymouth. It is rattling right along. I will probably donate it to the Hennepin County Medical Center via the work knitting club, but I was very excited to read in a holiday note that the next baby sweater I knit will be for a dear, dear friend’s baby. Remember Venkat from grad school? He and his lovely wife, Vani, are due in May.

Here is some future knitting - both gifts. One is a lovely mohair/wool/nylon boucle from my buddy, Rachel, and the other is yak down from Karen. Yum.

And here is what we came home to - happily, Caitlin shoveled most of it for us. I’ve included a shot from before we had snowcover so you can see just how much snow there is in the backyard right now. I get an MRI on Thursday to figure out my back, and if it is basically sound, I will be out in this stuff playing this coming weekend!

Love,

Ellen