A Knitterly Day in the kneighborhood...

I went on Mommy-strike at about supper time last night. Locked myself in my room with a sign on the door that I was no longer working in the household until labor-relations improved---ho-hum of a story, really, essentially just finally refusing to accept any further disrespect from a certain 9-year old who, well, never mind....

Anyway, after an hour or so of being mad, I settled in for some quality time including knitting and movies (c'mon, you had to know that's what I'd do. If Dave weren't in Vancouver, I'd have gone to his house, but that's not really an option now is it?). I woke up this morning and went out to meet my girlfriend V. for breakfast---and knitting. We had a lovely chat; turns out she went on something of a Mommy/wifey strike yesterday so we were both feeling a bit foot loose.

We went shopping:
Needle felting...I've been curious about what I might do with wool beyond looping it into clothing-shaped fabric. The shop we struck today had some sweet little rovings so I'm going to see how much fun this might be. Stay tuned. My first project is to be a little coaster. god knows I need some of those. The kids will have so much fun throwing them around the house!

Not much there in the way of sock yarn selection, and heaven forbid I should go more than 72hours without a new bit of yarn to stash. I did find this lovely Trekking (wool/bamboo; lovely feel) and as I've never knit any Trekking...its mine. The socks created from it will be for Rob. The cool Not Just More Socks book actually does have some great new socks in it but more so, it has some great gloves, mittens and scarves that I think I'll work up for the girls this holiday season.

Actual knitting
I've done a good bit of that as well.

The Vogue Scallop/cable/lace sweater is coming along VERY well. Its a joy to knit: the yarn feels so beautiful (Debbie Bliss Cathay, yo!) and the pattern is so lovely that it is really a very satisfying experience. And I have to tell you, this sweater is going to feel fabulous to both the wearer (me) and those lucky enough to touch it while I'm in it.

In the on-deck circle...
the next pair of socks are launched. I'm sorry to all of my neglected WIPs but I've come to terms with it and so should you: I love socks best. I always need to have a pair going. These will be the most beautiful EVER. They are Nancy Bush's Traveler Stockings based on her research of old New England stockings (ok, now that's too esoteric even for me). The pattern is essentially a very ornate cuff of about 3 inches and then a smooth leg (stockinette) with only a delicate cable down each side of the leg to the shaped toe. They're a bit challenging and I like that. I'm doing them in Koigu on US 0 needles---those are some tiny tiny tiny stitches. Most surprising: these socks are not for me. I will give these socks away.

So there you have it. The knitting oasis provided the balance I needed; when I returned home I found that management had settled the dispute with labor and though things are a bit strained, I'm confident all will be back to usual in just about no time.