Waste not...

As mentioned previously, there is something addictively productive about sewing little peoples' clothing. It seems to whip itself up on its own - I almost feel like Arthur in The Sword in the Stone (Disney, of course) whilst the dishes are rubbity, scrubbety-ing themselves. Slight exaggeration perhaps. Nonetheless, the satisfaction of finishing the almost perfect shirt in so little time and the realisation that the leftover fabric would be perfectly suited for small somethings for twins born late 2009 led me to make a little dress for C. (adapted from the sailboat top pattern) and a a button-down (from this pattern) for O.

The request

"a big soft sweater to wear to brunch, please"

This was his (the loveliest of lovely husbands) request, made sometime in October (maybe earlier, but no witnesses were present). In fact, the mere projected making of this particular sweater was responsible for my accidentally revealing the super secret destination of our anniversary weekend getaway (which is perhaps why it took me so long to make the thing - deep down inside, I resented it) by mentioning a trip to Purl.

I don't think I actually cast on the first stitches until January (perhaps later, again, no witnesses) due to substantial difficulty in finding a satisfactory pattern. It was my first effort using double pointed needles and circular needles, and though the former are a little tricky at first, the latter provide a very practical alternative to "normal" needles. This is especially true if you are a travelling knitter because their size makes you less dependent on the TSA agent's "judgement" as to whether or not your knitting poses a security threat and they allow you to knit, even in a middle seat, without constantly poking your fellow passengers. Safe and considerate.

The finished garment was finally ready to serve its master in may, and he seems most satisfied with it. I must admit that I quite like it too, so much so in fact that I am making myself my own in a slightly smaller size. Judging from how long it took to finish the first one, my big soft sweater to wear to brunch might see the day for some Christmas leftovers.

Bunny

Works in progress

I realise that if I wait for each project to be complete before posting it, it would be awhile. So, here is some to be completed show & tell:

Soon, these (minus the Georges) will be a quilted floormat for little L to master crawling on.

this will one day be a thick cardigan for a lovely person to wrap herself in,

and this will turn into a sweater for little L.

Finally, finished.

Before it was finished, this scarf would stare at me from the knitting basket and make me feel quite guilty. Every couple of days I would pick it up, knit a little, get interrupted, put it down and there it would lie, incomplete: the belated birthday gift in progress. Then last week, George claimed it as his prey and dragged it back to his lair under the couch. The scarf suffered slightly but miraculously avoided great injury. This near-death experience prompted me to retrieve my diminished project and knit away to completion in order to avoid any further feline assault.

Now it lies safely packed away in a parcel, on its way to the UK: the belated birthday gift en route.