what's up wih the fucked up color on this blog you say?? oh...well...have you ever tried to add a counter to a blog? very easy the instructions say! until you try and do it. and you have to create your own custom theme layer, and activate certain html...but not other html...and then you have to read instructions about customization and code and then you have to make changes and save changes and if you are really sick and tired and don't look closely at the changes you are saving you won't see that the color of your blog was re-set to default and then you only have 10 minutes before the sick creatures wake up to try and remember what colors you used to have and where did they go? and there are many layers in a blog layout...borders and sidebars and backgrounds....and then you just say to hell with it! and randomly pick some blues and a god awful green and you know what? you just know- know it in your heart, it's going to have to stay that way. because the thought of going back into the profile and plugging in 6 digit codes for web colors for 40 spots makes you want to pop your own eye out with a BBQ tong. so...i apologize for the frightening color scheme here. but, there's just nothing for it.

On to the sweater!! i know....i can be full of excuses...but here's my best one- i have just been too sick! today is my first day with some energy and i unfortunately have to use it all up on my "straight job". so the sweater waits. hopefully tomorrow i will get it back under the needle....

however- as i don't like to come here empty handed. i have a little project that i did on the couch while i was sick this week. and it ties into the sweater project. in the great clothing-swap of my NY trip i also gave aurora my very very very very very favorite beenie. you all have seen it. it's the slouchy one in silver/camel silk with colorful bits. (page 163- Intertwined). but i gave it away!!!! and have been missing it so so much. so i decided to make another one. well...ish. it's a bit different. i mixed up the softest batt ever with baby camel down (don't even want to know how they get that fiber), silk, kid mohair, alpaca and guanaco (sp?). threw is some colorful noil and bits of rainbow wool. then i soft-spun it thick and thin all wrapped in a tweedy linen thread. it turned out so luxuramondo!

My plan for the design was just to have random cables and make it as tall as it ended up after the skein was gone. turned out to be 12" tall!! i basically did 54 stitches around. then knit 4, purl 2 and repeated. then just randomly i would cable knit the knit sections. i tried to make it very irregular...really cabling in some columns and hardly cableing others. turned out sweet! my new favorite beenie. too bad it's spring here already...i'll have to wait till next year to wear it.


10 Gallon Beenie!
54 st. around
k4, p2 repeat
randomly cable the knit sections
at 10" tall begin decrease (i decreased every other knit section first...then decreased purled sections 2nd...then just closed it up.)