I did very little reading while reading Deathly Hallows over the weekend. But I did manage to finish the Bamboo Socks.
They fit great. I wore them to work today. Very soft and comfy. I love the shine they have. I would definitely knit this yarn again.
Now I'm working on knitting the hem of the V-neck cardi. I'm about half way through the first of the Opal footies. The temperature has been abnormally cool and I'm getting itchy for some sweater knitting. I'm avoiding the siren song though as I know it will be hot again soon. I'm hoping the bits of hand knitting on the cardi will be enough to satisfy the itch.
Ok, this sock yarn obsession has got to stop. Now look what I got...
LIME AND VIOLET! Wooohoooo!! I managed to score the Darvoset skein from Miss Violet's Better Living Through Chemicals set. Tres gorgeous. And soft. (At this moment, L&V have a new series up on their site. I froze my credit cards in blocks of ice so as not to be tempted.) I'm pretty sure this is going to be the Horcrux socks. If you want the sock weight pattern, you have to join this Yahoo Group, which I did, just to get the pattern. Much as I love plain jane stockinette socks for their simplicity, I'm ready to branch out into patterned socks. To wit...Here's the Katsara tube socks to date.
I'm going to have to come up with a new name because I'm not planning on making these actual tube socks. Unless I have to hard a time reworking the pattern, I intend to put in a heel flap and gusset. Think they'll fit better that way.
Progress on the Bamboo socks. 
These are so soft and light. Will be perfect for summer, if I can just find time to work on them!
This last week I've mostly been working on a machine knit sweater. I didn't take time to take pictures. The process goes so fast, it's hardly worth taking time for pictures. Now I'm doing the seaming up - which always seems to take as long (or longer) than it took to knit the sweater! Pictures next week.
My latest batches of soap.
I'm very pleased with these. On the left is a eucalyptus/orange blend, smells dreamy. On the right is a new batch of Castile. This time I put just a touch of green coloring. I thought the first batch was too pale, and this puts me more in mind of olive oil. The olive oil I'm using right now is very pale so it doesn't really lend any color of it's own to the soap. I'm patiently waiting for my lavender to bloom. Mom had requested some lavender soap with actual lavender buds. I think this sounds like a great idea and hope to give it a try.
As if I don't have enough projects going and in the wings...I did buy yarn for one more project. Be still my heart...
Fleece Artist/Handmaiden SeaSilk in Seashore. For those who haven't heard of this yarn, it's made from silk and seacell which comes from seaweed. It is unbelievably soft. This yarn would make the perfect pet, no need to even knit it up. I could simply carry the skein around and be happy. However, I do intend to knit it up. I was originally prompted to buy the yarn to make the Montego Bay scarf in the Summer 07 Interweave Knits (after the HUGE disappointment of the eBay yarn). But the more I think about it, I'm thinking shawl. Now, I'm not much of a lace fan, and this is laceweight yarn so I may just be screwed. But I'm willing to try. Eventually. For now, good pet.
Since finishing the Yoke Sweater (which happened to coincide with warmer weather) I've not felt like knitting anything big. I've still got the Wool-Ease Four Seasons Cardi that would love to be worked on. The poor thing sits in a box, a back, one front and maybe a third of the second front piece. But I just can't bring myself to work on such heavy knitting. Instead, I'm back on socks.
The Mr. Joe Blanket socks are finally nearing completion. I can't even remember when I started them. To be fair, they were my "take along knitting" and we haven't gone anywhere during tax season. They've graduated up to TV knitting now and making faster progress. I was completely surprised I could remember what I did with the heel since I didn't take notes (shame on me). But the socks are matching very well and should be finished before too long.
Remember the Regia Bamboo that was supposed to be Widdershins but failed horribly? It's looking great now as a plain old basic sock. I so love this yarn. It's super soft, cool to the touch and should make great summer socks. It's 40% wool, 45% bamboo and 5% polyamid. I'm on a major quest right now to collect as much bamboo sock yarn as I can get my hands on. Last year I knit dishcloths all summer, this year may just be the bamboo sock summer!
Not that dishcloths aren't part of the picture. This one is pretty cool. It's Lion Organic Cotton and the dishcloth pattern from the last Creative Knitting magazine. I'm afraid I don't know the exact issue. The pattern is such an easy repeat, a little 2 stitch cable, I memorized it and filed the magazine away somewhere. I realized when I was taking the picture, this is about done. It's one of those things I have laying in my knitting basket that I pick up and knit a repeat on when I want to knit something different. Think I'll try and finish it up this weekend.
This is the first of 2 tank tops I plan to knit this summer. This one is actually a vest pattern (Summer V-neck Cable Shell from Sarah James). I modified it quite a bit though. I hated the weird random purl pattern she used, so I'm going with plain stockinette. I also reworked the cable design on the front. The original has both sides of the cable slanting the same way which looked wonky to me. So I reworked the cables so the slant opposite each other. When it reaches the V-neck, it nicely mimics the V. Unfortunately, it will be ages before I can show this to you knit up. As you can see, I'm only just beginning the back. But, again, I'm loving it. I've been quite lucky lately to have hit on so many projects that turn out to be every bit as wonderful as I think they'll be. 
This is being knit in Aunt Lydia's Denim Quick Crochet thread. Yeah, you read that right, crochet thread. But it's not really. It's a worsted weight, 75% cotton, 25% acrylic yarn. I used it once before to knit a string bag, but never think of it because I never look in the crochet section. I desperately wanted to knit this vest with denim yarn, but to use Rowan Denim would have been over $50! No way was I going to spend $50 for a tank top! Then one of my searches for denim yarn lead me to Aunt Lydia's and I remembered how much I liked using it before. And it's dirt cheap, under $10 for that same tank. Now, it's not going to shrink up like Rowan, so I don't think you could use this as a one for one swap on a Rowan pattern. But if you just want a denim look, this is a great alternative.
And finally, here's what's in the wings. These are the yoga slippers from the spring Knit1 magazine. I'm going to use 2nd Time Cotton, another of my faves. It should make for soft, sturdy slippers. This color is Scottish Moor. I've also got a ball of Istambul on order in the hopes of making two pairs. We'll see how long my ambition holds up!
LIME AND VIOLET! Wooohoooo!! I managed to score the Darvoset skein from Miss Violet's Better Living Through Chemicals set. Tres gorgeous. And soft. (At this moment, L&V have a new series up on their site. I froze my credit cards in blocks of ice so as not to be tempted.) I'm pretty sure this is going to be the Horcrux socks. If you want the sock weight pattern, you have to join this Yahoo Group, which I did, just to get the pattern. Much as I love plain jane stockinette socks for their simplicity, I'm ready to branch out into patterned socks. To wit...Here's the Katsara tube socks to date.
I'm going to have to come up with a new name because I'm not planning on making these actual tube socks. Unless I have to hard a time reworking the pattern, I intend to put in a heel flap and gusset. Think they'll fit better that way.
These are so soft and light. Will be perfect for summer, if I can just find time to work on them!
I'm very pleased with these. On the left is a eucalyptus/orange blend, smells dreamy. On the right is a new batch of Castile. This time I put just a touch of green coloring. I thought the first batch was too pale, and this puts me more in mind of olive oil. The olive oil I'm using right now is very pale so it doesn't really lend any color of it's own to the soap. I'm patiently waiting for my lavender to bloom. Mom had requested some lavender soap with actual lavender buds. I think this sounds like a great idea and hope to give it a try.
Fleece Artist/Handmaiden SeaSilk in Seashore. For those who haven't heard of this yarn, it's made from silk and seacell which comes from seaweed. It is unbelievably soft. This yarn would make the perfect pet, no need to even knit it up. I could simply carry the skein around and be happy. However, I do intend to knit it up. I was originally prompted to buy the yarn to make the Montego Bay scarf in the Summer 07 Interweave Knits (after the HUGE disappointment of the eBay yarn). But the more I think about it, I'm thinking shawl. Now, I'm not much of a lace fan, and this is laceweight yarn so I may just be screwed. But I'm willing to try. Eventually. For now, good pet.
Remember the Regia Bamboo that was supposed to be Widdershins but failed horribly? It's looking great now as a plain old basic sock. I so love this yarn. It's super soft, cool to the touch and should make great summer socks. It's 40% wool, 45% bamboo and 5% polyamid. I'm on a major quest right now to collect as much bamboo sock yarn as I can get my hands on. Last year I knit dishcloths all summer, this year may just be the bamboo sock summer!
Not that dishcloths aren't part of the picture. This one is pretty cool. It's Lion Organic Cotton and the dishcloth pattern from the last Creative Knitting magazine. I'm afraid I don't know the exact issue. The pattern is such an easy repeat, a little 2 stitch cable, I memorized it and filed the magazine away somewhere. I realized when I was taking the picture, this is about done. It's one of those things I have laying in my knitting basket that I pick up and knit a repeat on when I want to knit something different. Think I'll try and finish it up this weekend.
This is the first of 2 tank tops I plan to knit this summer. This one is actually a vest pattern (Summer V-neck Cable Shell from Sarah James). I modified it quite a bit though. I hated the weird random purl pattern she used, so I'm going with plain stockinette. I also reworked the cable design on the front. The original has both sides of the cable slanting the same way which looked wonky to me. So I reworked the cables so the slant opposite each other. When it reaches the V-neck, it nicely mimics the V. Unfortunately, it will be ages before I can show this to you knit up. As you can see, I'm only just beginning the back. But, again, I'm loving it. I've been quite lucky lately to have hit on so many projects that turn out to be every bit as wonderful as I think they'll be. 
This is being knit in Aunt Lydia's Denim Quick Crochet thread. Yeah, you read that right, crochet thread. But it's not really. It's a worsted weight, 75% cotton, 25% acrylic yarn. I used it once before to knit a string bag, but never think of it because I never look in the crochet section. I desperately wanted to knit this vest with denim yarn, but to use Rowan Denim would have been over $50! No way was I going to spend $50 for a tank top! Then one of my searches for denim yarn lead me to Aunt Lydia's and I remembered how much I liked using it before. And it's dirt cheap, under $10 for that same tank. Now, it's not going to shrink up like Rowan, so I don't think you could use this as a one for one swap on a Rowan pattern. But if you just want a denim look, this is a great alternative.
