Revamp!

So, yesterday, my sister came by with a small truck and took all our remaining baby stuff off our hands - wheee! Feels good to have cleared it all out - and for it to be going to a good home. One of the items was Miss A's cotbed - which has resulted in Mr A (and I - but in a less enthusiastic way!) deciding to re-decorate Miss A's bedroom. This has entailed much internet time, trying to find a suitable bed (and one that could be delivered before the end of January), as well as bed-linen, paint colours, mural ideas - you name it, we've looked for it, debated the choices, and generally got a bit frazzled about the whole business. What will we be like when we move house? I shudder to think....

At the same time she picked up all the baby stuff, my sister also dropped off two unwanted bookcases - one is going to Miss A who desperately needs it (her books are currently stored in a shoe box) and I nabbed the other one for my study. Given that a) I will have a bit more time on my hands from now on (trust me, a four-day working week is the BEST invention known to man!), b) I'm intending to resurrect my scrapbooking / card-making in 2011 and c) my study has become increasingly messy and crowded in recent months - it was time for a revamp. It took most of the day, and resulted in several bags of rubbish (I'm such a hoarder!), but was worth it. The room feels tidy and serene once more - ready for lots of creativity! A good start to 2011 I think.

Everything has been reorganised so all my cardstock, papers, embellishments are within easy reach of my desk - I can't wait, particularly as I have ordered (just) a little bit of new stash, including these lovelies from Sarah's Cards:




My Mind's Eye papers in Bloom & Grow and Ooh La La (for Him). These are going to be so much fun to play with!

15 pairs!

Back in January of this year, I set myself the goal of knitting a pair of socks a month for 2010. It's not quite December yet, and I've already blown the target out of the water :-)


I give you the 15th pair in all it's glory:

They are the Sock Knitters Anonymous November Mystery socks (such a long name, the designer is currently running a poll to find a good name for them), made using YarnAddicts Yarns BFL in Dusty Lilac. They are also eligible for this month's KAL in the Solid Socks group, which was knitting on an 'air' theme - these make me thing of those frosty morning, when your breath puffs out in clouds and things crunch underfoot - very appropriate given the freezing temperatures we are currently enduring. I've christened them Frosted Lilacs

I am sooo in love with these - they look really complicated with all the twisted stitches and cables, but they really weren't that bad. Maybe that's because the knitting was split into clues...I don't know. I finished them on Thursday night and they fit like a dream. And that yarn is sooo soft - have never known BFL (Blue Faced Leicester to you - 100% British sheep!) as soft as this. A pity the dyer doesn't seem to sell this particular yarn any more....

And, just because I can, here is the 'Sock Gallery 2010' - big smile!

Of course, socks are not the only thing I've made this year - will be back soon with the totals in all other categories....

Wooosh!

Yep, that's what happened to October - it just went whizzing right past my eyes...no idea what happened to it, but I was shocked on Monday to realise that it was already November.

Progress on the two pairs of October socks has been slow to say the least - but I have turned the heel on all four socks and the 1st sock of the pink Through The Loops socks is almost done. Just to prove it, here's a picture of what they looked like at the end of Clue 2:

Passerine (the green ones) has been a little painful, due to all the twisted stitches - so much so, that I have decided to knit the foot in a simple ribbing stitch to save my wrists.

Despite the lack of 'sock mojo', I did manage a few other things:

A couple of little bits of cuteness for imminent arrivals (they will get hats and little shoes to match)

And some hats - the two pink ones were intended for me, but came out too small, so will be gifted to various little/young people for Christmas.

In the meantime, it's the start of another month, which of course, means new socks (yes, I know the last two aren't finished - but you know what? I don't care!). Both the SolidSocks and SockKnittersAnonymous groups on Ravelry have mystery patterns this month - and I'm such a sucker for those.......

Here's the start of the SolidSocks one:

I have started the SKA Mock, but haven't made enough progress to show you any pictures. Soon, I promise! P.S. It has twisted stitches - will I never learn?

Socktober!!!

October is a very exciting month in the sock-knitting world - because it means the start of Socktober! It started out as an excuse to knit as many socks as possible in the month - either new projects or finishing up languishing projects.

I had started a pair of socks using the Knitting Goddess April sock club colourway (Speckled Egg) back in April of this year. It is the most gorgeous stuff imaginable - merino, cashmere and nylon - you wouldn't believe how soft it is.

Anyway, I finished one sock and had done the cuff and one leg repeat when (for whatever reason) it was consigned to the 'Works in Progress' box and was happily ignored. Given my impending status as a new auntie, I thought they would be perfect for keeping my sister's feet warm during night feeds. So I 'resurrected' them last Friday and got them finished on Tuesday - not bad, even for me! Even better, this is the 13th pair I have finished in 2010 - which means I'm waaaay ahead of my target to finish 12 pairs (wonder how many I can actually do before 31st December?)

Yarn: Knitting Goddess Luxury sock yarn in Speckled Egg

Pattern: Cloverleaf and Double Eyelet Socks by Mary Hough

Started: 1 June 2010

Finished: 5 October 2010

One of the other really cool things about Socktober is the annual mystery sock published by Kirsten Kapur (aka Through The Loops) - I made two pairs of her 2009 pattern last year (yes, it was THAT good!), so I was really looking forward to this year's pattern.

It's also been declared 'Opulent October' in the Knitting Goddesses forum (an excuse for using something 'special'), so I'm using Crazy4Dyeing's Luxe Sock - yep, more cashmere! It's looking good so far - once I'm finished here, I'm off to start the 2nd clue. Don't you love all the little twisted stitches in the cuff?

Lastly (and because I'm just a sucker for starting new projects), I'm joining in with 'green' month in the Solid Socks group.

This is yet another 'luxury' yarn, from KelpieFibers on Etsy - and how gorgeous is the colour (Jade Water Garden)? The pattern is Passerine by Cookie A, which as you would expect, has lots of twisted stitches - think I might need to do a pair of plain, 'vanilla' socks next month!

August / September Socks

It's been a while since I posted about anything knitting-related - but that doesn't mean I haven't been playing with 'string and pointy sticks' :-)

First up, a pair that I started back in June, but which got a little stalled as I got bored with the pattern. Having said that, I'm pleased with how they came out - particulary as the yarn was one of the first skeins of Knitting Goddess goodness that I bought last summer, so I'm pleased to have found a use for it at last!

Yarn: Knitting Goddess BFL Superwash in Copper Desert
Pattern: Dragonfly socks by Jocelyn Sertich
Started: 1 June 2010
Finished: 25 August 2010
Destination: Alex B's Xmas pressie

Next, another yarn that was purchased almost a year ago, and which did not prove very cooperative. I tried knitting a lacy scarf with this, as well as two other sock patterns, and was almost ready to throw it out before giving it one last try.

This was the Solid Socks September/October mystery sock by the amazing Himawari (aka Claudia Eisenkolb). I loved the pattern - with all the leaves, perfect for autumn - but I'm still not sure it's the perfect pairing of pattern and yarn. We live and learn I guess....

Yarn: Madeleine Tosh ToshSock in Oxblood
Pattern: Mystery socks by Claudia Eisenkolb
Started: 5 September 2010
Finished: 29 September 2010
Destination: going to Jessica when she has baby #2 in a few weeks time

Pottering.........

Aaaaah - a whole day off! Lovely.....took Miss A to nursery, came home and made some jewellery bits and bobs for one of my best friends (who is also 40 next week), then took myself and Mr A off to Islington. I had a lovely Thai massage while he had a coffee (and played on his Blackberry) and then we hit the shops for the some birthday shopping - thanks to the very slick shop assistants in Whistles and Hobbs, I walked out with TWO new outfits (one pair of grey wool trousers, a teal-blue drapey cardigan and mint green camisole, followed by one black shift dress and matching jacket plus belt!). Phew! Really needed our lovely Italian lunch after that. A great day on all fronts :-)

Want to see the jewellery? Really? Well, ok then! My friend's favourite colour is red, so I whipped up a charm bracelet and cluster pendant necklace (strung on red suede cord).

Here's the necklace:

and the bracelet:

See the little silver heart charms? Aren't they cute? Really hope she likes them!

Little Bruiser

what happens when you go too fast up the pavement on your scooter? You fall off and whack your cheek on the metal pole beneath the handlebars! Not sure if you can see the bruise, but it's there - and makes her look like she's been a fight with the local thugs........

Forty-licious

(photo courtesy of The Couture Cakery)

Well, that's what Mr. A's card says - think I'll adopt it as my mantra!

Musical beds

Forget about musical chairs or musical statues - we have a much better game in this house: musical beds!

Miss A has three beds to choose from: her own bed, the one in the spare room (also known as Grandma and Grandad's bed, as that is where my parents sleep when they come to visit) and, of course, our bed....

Since we turned her cot into a bed last October, I reckon Miss A has probably slept a total of 10 nights in her bed. She generally prefers to sleep in the spare bed - and much as I know I shouldn't be encouraging it, she does look adorable in it. Lately, however, it's been a different story....whether it's linked to my not collecting her from school or some of the other fairly large changes that have happened recently (she's moved into the 'top' class at nursery and has started following a 'proper' curriculum with reading books and homework - a whole different kettle of fish), she doesn't want to be left alone at night. Bedtimes have turned into a battlefield of negotation and cajoling - exhausting.

Anyway, last night Miss A declares she doesn't want to wear a nappy to bed. "Ok", I think to myself, "we've prepared for this - there are mattress protectors on both her and the spare beds, we have plenty of spare linen and it's Saturday night, so I won't mind having to change the sheets in the morning. " So she gets all installed in the spare bed, and Mr A and I go down to enjoy a few hours of peace and quiet.

Lo and behold, when I go to bed a few hours later, I find her in OUR bed (i.e. the only one that doesn't have a protector) absolutely soaking wet.....so there I am, at quarter to midnight, having to strip / shower / change a sleeping child and changing a super-king size bed.......

Oh, this parenting lark is so much fun sometimes.......

Tugging at the heartstrings....

....exactly how can you be expected to start the day on the right footing when you leave the house to the sound of your daughter crying her heart out because she doesn't want you to go to work?

I won't even get into the subject of 'are you picking me up today, Mummy?' (the answer, nine times out of ten, is no........). Nor will I mention the total hysterical meltdown that occurred when Granny took her to her first French class (no, she won't be going back - have realised that too much can be just too much at that age).

Why didn't anyone tell me how hard this 'working Mummy' lark would be?

Oh, and can anyone tell me how to get rid of the stain produced by a Fruit Pastille ice lolly (it would be on her new dress, wouldn't it?)

How much?

Look! Over there! To your right.............

I hadn't updated my Knit Meter account since February, so I had quite a few projects to add - and I'm now gobsmacked to say the least! How much?

twelve thousand, two hundred and eighty-eight meters

and there's still quite a bit of 2010 to go..............

Wonder if I can get it up to 20,000 - shouldn't be too hard with all the charity squares I've got planned, should it?

Add to that some new, very exciting projects that have just been added to my list: baby things! Yes folks, I'm going to be an auntie in 2011! Squeeeeeeeee!

Silly Saturdays

Up until a few weeks ago, the arrival of the weekend was still a welcome relief from all the hustle and madness of the working week. Yes, Miss A would still wake me up a stupid hour, but I could at least sit back with a large cup of coffee and slowly wake up and 'welcome' the day.

No more......

Take this morning for instance. Miss A woke me up at exactly 6.10am - that's earlier than my alarm normally goes off.....she did climb in to bed with me while I tried to prolong the 'snooze moment', but I soon gave up, as it's impossible to even doze when you have a mouthful of hair and a small person wriggling in your arms. So, downstairs we go, with me hoping she'll be satisfied with a little kiddy tv for just long enough for me to have a very large cup of coffee (and where has the lid to my themo mug gone, I would like to know?).

Needless to say, that illusion was quickly burst - first she wanted food (how unreasonable of her! - and yes, I am only joking), then she wanted to do 'sticking' with the new collection of stickers I brought home for her yesterday. I have only myself to blame - I discovered the coolest website recently which has a huge range of crafty / arty products for kids at really good prices. I bought her three packs of foam stickers (jungle animals, flowers and shapes) plus a pack of A3 sugar paper a month ago, and she's already 'burned' through all the stickers...........don't get me wrong, it's fantastic to watch her make shapes and arrange the animals by type and colour - just not at 7am....even if she does make me laugh with her antics

It's now almost 8am, and I have to get motoring - need to get showered, dressed and out of the door by 9am. We need to stop by the post office before heading for ballet class (I'm hoping she will actually do some of the class today instead of bursting into tears and spending the lesson at my side....). We are then off to see my sister and BIL, followed by a stop at the supermarket. I reckon I'll be ready to collapse by the time we get back home........I think Miss A has a play date this afternoon (weather permitting), so I might just get a bit of 'hooky time' (get your minds out of the gutter - I'm talking crochet!). A few rounds on the market bag, or maybe a few of my sock granny squares:

I'm really loving these - can make two during my lunch break and mixing up the colours is really too much fun. I've got almost 90 large (4") squares made up now - will have to think about starting to sew them up soon, as I don't think I'll be able to face sewing all of the 400 projected squares in one go....

And what is Mr A doing while all this is going on? Well, he did have an impacted wisdom tooth removed yesterday (it required stitches in the end - eeek!), so I reckon he'll spend most of the day in bed........note to self: pick up some baby food for him, as I don't think he'll be wanting solids for at least 24 hours!

A little inspiration......

One of my favourite blogs for sheer inspiration and bold, fun splashes of colour is Attic 24. Lucy, the lady who writes it, has the most amazing eye for colour and a charming way of describing the ups and downs of being busy with little ones. She also takes the most amazing photos - wish I could make mine look half as good.....

She is also an avid crocheter and has come up with a number of simple patterns that make use of bold colours and are quick and easy to whip up into something rather fabulous. One of these is a 'bucket bag' - I've been wanting to make one of these for my Mum for what seems like forever.....in fact, I think I bought the cotton late last summer! Anyway, with an impending trip to the Grandparents approaching fast (two weeks to go - Miss A is sooo excited to be going on a plane, I can't tell you!), I thought it was time to get started. Pretty colours (I actually added a ball of white and a ball of dark pink to these after the photo was taken):

I've almost finished the base of the bag, but can't show you any pictures as a) I just discovered this morning that the camera battery is flat (god, I'm so organised sometimes, it kills me!) and b) I wouldn't be able to take a decent picture, because it's chucking it down.......scuse me? It's August - you shouldn't have to put the heating on in August!

P.S. While I was mooching around the net looking for Lucy's blog this morning, I stumbled on this fab website - it's where I got my lovely new 'shabby' blog background - pretty, pretty!

July's socks

Some of you might remember that, a few months back, I decided to follow the Yarn Harlot and set up my own personal monthly 'project club' - I set up a bag containing various smaller bags with the yarn and pattern already paired together. The theory was that, each time I finished a project, I would pull another one from 'the bag' at random....I will be honest and admit that the contents have been 'tampered with' a little - I've switched some patterns around. This is partly because my focus has switched slightly from socks to shawls - must be thoughts of Christmas being not that far away now.....

One of the projects that got 'substituted' was this pair of socks:

I'm really, really chuffed with these - for several reasons:

a) they only took 2.5 weeks, which when you think that they were mainly knit on the bus to / from work, is really not bad going

b) point a is even more amazing when you consider that they are made from a Cookie A pattern (Angee to be precise) - while I love Cookie's patterns, they are definitely not 'easy' socks and often require a lot of concentration (and some swearing at various points!)

c) I don't think the photos are doing them complete justice, but the colour is just gawgeous - the yarn is Colinette Jitterbug and the colourway is Morello Mash - says it all really! I had popped into my local yarn store (Loop, in Islington) to check out their new premises - and had been completely powerless to resist this gorgeous bit of squishyness - I cast on only two days later, which is unheard of in my world lol!

This is definitely one of my favourite colours - in fact, when I went to put the finished pair into my sock drawer (yes, I now have drawer specifically for handknit socks!) I realised that I had already made two pairs in a similar colour - predictable, me?

P.S. Update on the Knit-a-Square crochet-thon - 25 squares shipped off to South Africa this morning! Wonder if I can do better in August?

A busy life......

.....leaves very little time for blogging! No seriously, I can't apologise enough. Life really is very full these days.

A quick snapshot of the last six weeks or so:

- the new job is going well and looks set to last until at least September

- Miss A is enjoying spending more time with her Granny (who picks her up from nursery these days, as I can't any longer), but is still refusing to sleep in her own bed....

- Mr A and I took ourselves off to Spain for a week in mid-June (without Miss A who was looked after by my parents). Total bliss - long lie-ins, good food & wine, lots of sunbathing and book-reading - just what we needed. No photos I'm afraid as I deliberately didn't take my camera!

- we've all be suffering a little in the recent heatwave. I personally wouldn't mind it, if only I didn't have to sit in a hot, sticky bus for an hour each evening.......bleurgh!

- Miss A has just acquired her first pair of ballet shoes and leotard:

Can't wait to see what happens during her first class next Saturday.

- Mr A and I are in the throes of planning our joint 40th birthday party this weekend. We've discovered FOURTEEN bottles of champagne in the cellar......raspberry belinis anyone?

On the crafting front, the heat has pretty much scuppered most attempts at playing with wool, but I have managed a few things. While on holiday, I finally managed to make some progress on the Solid Socks May Mystery socks - those cables almost did my head in.....but I'm very, very pleased with the result:

I have also once again been completely taken over by the crochet bug - I can't express how much I love this particular craft. It's portable, doesn't require as much concentration as my knitting, and gives super quick results. I whipped up this little beauty in just under a week:

Partly due to the heat, and partly due to a recent urgent call by Knit-A-Square for over 55,000 squares by September, I'm devoting most of my free time to making granny squares:

These are just a few of the 35+ squares that I've managed to whip since the beginning of July. I'm hoping to send several large bags before the autumn. And it's a great way of using up scraps / spare wool! Talking of leftovers, I happened to mentioned this little 'project' to a colleague of mine and she mentioned that she had starting making a crochet blanket a few months ago, but got bored. So yesterday, I took delivery of this:

70 part-completed squares
and 15 very large balls of wool

Should keep me quiet for a while, no?

New job!

I went for two interviews this week - one was a bit of a disaster as I strangely got very nervous. Thankfully, the 2nd one went well - and I heard today that they want me to start on Monday! Whee! Now don't get too excited - it's a temporary role, so far only guaranteed until the end of June. Having said that, it's a proper marketing role and it's with a professional services firm, so I shall be back where I belong in every sense of the word. I'm really looking forward to it - and even better, guess what I get to see out of the office window?

Yep! The Tower of London! And look where I get to spend my lunch break

St. Katherine's Dock - let's just hope there's lots of nice weather in the next few weeks.

One good thing about all the travelling I've done to and from interviews? I've finished a pair of socks - of course, they don't quite match.....

On the left, we have some rather gorgeous Koigu made up using the Charade pattern - I've christened these my Sugar Plum Fairy socks as I think the colours reflect what she would have worn (yes, I'm prone to girly flights of fancy occasionally). On the left, we have the Knitting Goddess's April sock yarn club using a cloverleaf and double eyelet rib. April's sock yarn also coincided with Easter - so the colourway was Speckled Egg - for that particular month, I got the luxury option (80% superwash merino, 10% cashmere, 10% nylon). Amazingly soft and a dream to knit with.....

I'm also solidering on with May 2010 Mystery sock by Cynthia Levy - cables, cables and more cables. This is possibly the most complicated pattern I have attempted so far - and I can only do about four rows at a time before my shoulder/wrist starts hurting. Still, I am enjoying it (in a slightly masochistic way) - and I'm really happy that I have finally found a suitable pattern for this gorgeous merino/tencel that I hand-dyed last summer - about time too! The picture shows the first sock done to the end of Clue 2 - but Clue 3 comes out tomorrow, which means I'm already a week behind...

Another month...

Oh my....I really have no excuse for not blogging for a whole month, apart from the usual madness that a normal, busy(ish) life brings with it.

Let's get some major news out of the way first: I am now unemployed again. Yes, you've got it right....Two weeks ago, I realised that the new job was just not working out in any sense of the word. I was in tears almost every weekend at the idea of going back in, and could feel myself getting very, very depressed. I'm not prepared to go back to that horrible place so, after much discussion with the wonderful Mr. A, I tendered my resignation. On the minus side, I feel a bit guilty for not sticking it out (but not that much to be honest). On the plus side, I now know that I never want to work for central government ever again, and I also have a much better idea of what kind of job I DO want to do. I've been much more focused / targeted in my job search and I already have an interview scheduled for next week, so it's looking good.

This all means that I've had some 'spare' time to make sure that Mr A's 40th birthday was celebrated in style. Here is my card:

And here is one that Miss A helped with:

There has also (surprise, surprise!), been much knitting and crocheting. Mr A has expressed some concern about how 'obsessive' I can get with this - he doesn't understand that, in times of high stress and trauma, it's a bit like curling up on the sofa under a snuggly blanket - you just get much prettier things at the end of it!

Back in early April, I finally succumbed and bought this from Amazon:

I've wanted it for some time, and having recently rediscovered my love of crochet squares, I decided it was time. The day that it came in the mail, I also found out that some very good friends of ours were expecting their first baby in early May. Cue some rather large fireworks going off inside my brain.....Several of the squares in the book are named after flowers, so I decided to make them a 'Summer Flowers' baby blanket in rainbow colours. The squares for this blanket will be 6" square - and I need 63 squares in total.

Miss A and I therefore headed off to the local wool shop, and came home with all these balls of machine-wash DK wool:More than enough I think.....in fact, it was just as well that I did buy so much, because when Miss A discovered that the blanket was not going to be for her, she was most upset. So call me a glutton for punishment, I went and started a SECOND blanket for her. This will be using the same 'rainbow concept' but with different patterns for the squares:

These squares will be 8" square - and I need 100 squares. Ermmm, do you think I have maybe bitten off a bit more than I can chew? So far, I have done all the white, yellow and orange squares (plus a few trial ones that didn't work out but which will go to Knit-A-Square instead). Pictures soon, I promise!

I also have knitting to show you, but Miss A is now demanding some attention, so I will leave those projects for the next post.

All the fun of the fair!

So, in my last post I forgot to mention that the multi-coloured yarn I was using for my (ever so slightly) psychedelic socks was called Funfair.......and here they are finished (and already worn!) in all their glory:

Such a pity the dyer who created this no longer seems to be trading - sigh!

Oh, and before I forget, I got bitten by the 'shawl bug' on Good Friday - and managed to get this knitted, washed and blocked by midday on Easter Monday - phew! Hopefully my friend Jessica (for whom it is destined as a late birthday present) will like it.....

The pattern is 198 Yards of Heaven, using Lang Yarns Jawoll Magic in the Viola colourway

Finished / On the Go

I've been a bit slack about posting recently, so I thought it was time for a quick update!

First, the cabled fingerless gloves have been finished for quite a while and have been keeping my hands nice and cosy in this recent bout of unseasonably cold weather that is gripping the country (it's Easter for goodness sake! Spring should most definitely be here by now....):

As I said before, this yarn (from Juno Fibre Arts) is just divine - if you can get your hands on some, then do so - you won't be disappointed!
As you can see, I also had enough of the original skein left over to make some matching mittens for Miss A - she loves them and is particularly thrilled at being 'twins' with Mummy :-)

I've also finished my Faux Cable socks (these were made using Araucania Ranco Multy in a rather scrummy mix of teal blue, eggplant and dusky rose).

Very simple, very quick (or they would have been if I didn't keep getting distracted by other projects) and very snuggly.
So that means that I am now back on track with my '12 pairs of socks in 2010' project - wheee! But that doesn't mean I've been slacking - oh no! I currently have four (yes, four!) other pairs of socks on the needles.

The first are a pair of 'Plain Jane' vanilla socks, using the amazing rainbow-coloured yarn I bought last summer from Spindlefrog. Not only is it super soft and squishy, but the colours are the most saturated I've ever found - there is just about every colour that I can think of in here and the very short colour runs mean that the stripes are very, very cool:

I'm actually much more advanced now than the picture shows - sock #1 is done and I'm about to turn the gusset on sock #2. I just haven't been home at times when the light has been good recently.....





Pair #2 is a pair of Charades using the most gorgeous pink, purple and brown gorgeousness in Koigu Painter's Palette Premium Merino (or KPPPM in 'knit speak') - I've christened them my Sugar Plum Fairy socks as I think these are the colours she would wear....


















Pair #3 and #4 are a bit of a new departure for me - they are both being made using the 'two-at-a-time' technique. This technique definitely requires me to use my brain in a different way but the results (i.e. no Second Sock Syndrome) should be worth it.

The first pair will be for Miss A, using this gorgeous limited colourway - Perfect Beach - by Joy of The Knitting Goddess. She was very busy during the month of March, dyeing a new colourway every single day, with part of the proceeds going to Macmillan Cancer care - it was a bit of a feeding frenzy each night, which is why I only managed to get my hands on this one. I think they'll look just great on a little person. I've only managed the cuffs so far, so you'll just have to have a picture of the skein before it was wound up..

The final pair were not exactly planned....but then yesterday I received my April sock club yarn from the afore-mentioned Goddess. This month's colour is called Speckled Egg and is the most gorgeous mix of duck-egg blue and chocolate brown with small white specks here and there. I opted to receive the 'mixed' club, which meant this month's selection was a skein of luxury sock yarn (cashmere & merino with a bit of nylon for strength). As soon a I opened it, I knew it had to be started then and there - I've only done the cuff(s) so far but it is just so soft and is knitting up beautifully. Pictures soon - I promise!