Finally!

I started an Anniversary half-pi in January with the EZasPi Yahoo Group, and am finally done. The actual time spent knitting this wasn't very much, though I did sample a lot, playing with the permutations of arrow lace and chevrons.


I really like the Knitpicks Merino laceweight. I used two balls and a size 7 US needle. I washed the hanks of yarn before winding balls. The yarn behaved beautifully, didn't mind being frogged and re-knit, and the finished shawl is soft and feels nice around my shoulders. It has a very gentle drape and minimal body, definitely the opposite of the Icelandic I used for the Hyrna Herborgar.

My daughter chose the color and the stitch patterns, and frankly I'm not fond of lace knit from variegated yarns, but DD says it's perfect and the shawl is for her. Now that it's blocked, the striation is much stronger and there is also almost a shadow effect in the way the colors flow from solid to marl. I blocked it out to a 30-inch radius, not quite as far as I could have, but far enough that it feels delicate and the lace patterns are well-defined. It is surprisingly warm for being light as a feather.

I presented socks to my brother (the brown Regia mini-ringel pair) and aunt (the Knitpicks Vineyard pair) for their birthdays and his only needed a little tweak at the tip of one toe. My aunt has been doing quite a lot of knitting and we spent most of our visit talking about heels and gussets and shank shaping. The socks she was knitting from Ellen's Half Pint Farm yarn felt wonderful.

I cannot tell you how good it feels to make some headway on the list of projects. My eyes were bigger than my needles back in January! DD's Trekking socks will be finished tomorrow. It's too hot to resume working on the FLAK or CIT so I'll probably cast on one of the many scarves I need for holiday presents. I have some chartreuse yarn that will look good in a leaf pattern, though the Koigu mitts just need a little more work...