Singin' in the rain...

YAY! It's friday... and a rainy one at that! most would frown upon the soggy weather - especially heading into the weekend... but not me! no, it only adds to my happiness that i will be able to focus a lot of my attention towards finishing my Waterlilly tunic top over the weekend! Rainy Days = Knitting productivity!

i have to share with you the excitement i experienced last evening as i watched the tunic transform from a large tube on circulars to the bodice with a now-being-shaped neckline and armholes! it was like a religious experience - truly! i went over to the Village Knittery (cousin-owned store to my regular hang - the Stitch Cafe') after work last nite, as I was a bit nervous, having come to the point in the pattern where I had to start taking stitches off (LOTS OF STITCHES) and placing them on holders... then binding off here and there. i was still on circulars when this part of the pattern got underway... and found it rather cumbersome trying to knit back-and-forth on circulars... i kept getting "twisted"... so, i quickly switched to my fav rosewood needles and am now on my way to completing this lovely spring-time tunic. the ribbon yarn creates a "bouyancy" to the piece... and i'm keeping my fingers crossed that the sizing comes out right. yes... YES, i absolutely did do a swatch (the 4 skiens of ribbon yarn were too expensive not to!) and i was 'right-on' with my guage... but to be honest, though many stitches are still on a holder, my (L) sizing is looking more like a (M) right now. so... if it's off, i have two options.... frog the whole thing and start over... or, send it as a gift to my neice for her b'day. option 2 is absolutely the nice, thoughtful thing to do.... and option 1 makes me close my eyes and shake my head from side-to-side. so, hopefully, when i bind off, WHAH-LAH, it will fit fine! O-please-O-pleaes-O-please...

as i reach the end of this project... i've already got my eyes set on the next sweater... a debbie bliss design... it ws on the cover of Interweave Knits several issues ago... a pretty pink thing with a large center cable.... ready or not, lisi... here i come to order my bag of superchunky cashmerino!! O-the sheer thrill of casting on... for me, knitting is very similar to reading. i get so excited when i break the back of a new novel... and just love getting all involved in the story... but as it reaches the end... though i very much want to find out how things are going to turn out, i'm conflicted at the same time, not wanting to turn to the final page... the same goes for my knitting projects.... casting on is an absolute high! and that's probably why i've gotta have my next project lined up... to ensure i can get that cast-on-fix pretty dang quick.

... i'll share some pix of the Waterlilly tunic soon... it is a pretty easy pattern... and i'm very pleased with how it's knitting up so far!

until the next post.... happy thoughts and happy knitting one and all! love.leigh