Just stuff

Wanting to check in but too lazy to come up with a proper post -- like, with photos 'n' stuff -- I thought I'd just ramble a bit.

How are you? I'm starting to get a little weary of winter. There's just been so much snow this year. Lots of it is just ice now, which means I have to concentrate more while walking down the street than while reading cultural theory. Don't even get me started on the potholes.

I'm still not reading as fast as I should, but I'm on the verge of setting some hard deadlines, since I want to be done with comps by the beginning of June. (Nadia asked, "What is a comps?" Read this.) Even though June seems impossibly far away, I know it is actually fast approaching, so I need to buckle down for reals.

As for crafty endeavors, I have a few things on the go. My Gilmore Vest is ABR (all but ribbing) -- the body is seamed together, and it just needs a bit of 1-by-1 ribbing around the armholes and the deep V-neck. (Progress photos are here on Ravelry.) I've stalled on my Swallowtail Shawl. To finish, I only have to knit the peaked edging, but it seems so small, and I have tons of yarn left, so I started thinking about adding an extra repeat of Lily of the Valley, and then I just put it all down. (I wish I'd remembered Minty's modifications earlier, since I would've added more of the bud lace pattern, but I don't fancy ripping back that much laceweight wool/silk at this point.) So I need to either finish it or calculate the adjustments needed to add another border. Umm... what else? I have two unbloggable crochet projects at the moment, but one will be blogged soon. Both can be seen on Ravelry in the meantime, here and here. Oh yeah, also, I've finished one Wallpaper Mitten (which can be seen in its unblocked glory here on Ravelry). (Hmmm, perhaps the title of this post should have been "Nothing to see here -- go straight to Ravelry.")

I've queued several variations of Mary Jane-style slippers on -- wait for it -- Ravelry, but Ingrid's new slippers definitely have me leaning toward the Purl Bee version now.

Besides adorable slippers, maybe a new desktop pattern will perk up these late February days. Here are some lovely free ones, via a link at Frenchy's Finds. Some other links I've bookmarked lately: Mariko's recipe for red velvet cupcakes; step-by-step instructions for controlled felting in a washing machine (because I'm the only knitter left on earth who has never felted something, and frankly it's because I'm a little scared); Martha Stewart's instructions for a lovely angora scarf made from teeny granny squares; and the ReadyMade video on how to re-upholster a dining room chair. Just in case you're looking for something to do.