Birthday books

My birthday presents from my parents arrived this week. It was a nice surprise since they were on backorder from Amazon and were not supposed to arrive until February. Here they are:



In case you can't tell, they are Scarf Style by Pam Allen and The Knitter's Handy Book of Sweater Patterns by Ann Budd, two books that were very high on my wish list. I am trying really hard to stop myself from casting on for a scarf project, since I should probably wait until my list of works in progress is down to a more manageable size.
In Tartan Jacket news, I have finished both of the fronts.



I am about 65 rows into the first sleeve. I am really enjoying these smaller pieces compared to the back. Working with fewer balls of yarn is nice!

Happy (belated) birthday to me!

Apparently, I can't even be on time about wishing myself a happy birthday. But it was Monday, and it was fun. I had the day off of work for Martin Luther King Day, so my husband got me a gift certificate to spend the afternoon at the spa (massage, manicure, pedicure, and haircut). And of course, there was cake in the evening. Here is an oh-so-attractive photo of me blowing out the candles - I got all 26 out in one breath!



I also have Tartan Jacket progress to report. I finished the right front yesterday.



I am now about 40 rows into the left front. Despite being a challenging pattern, it's actually going by fairly quickly, thanks to the large needles. Of course, it would be going by even more quickly if it was the only project I was working on. However, that is not the case. I haven't taken any pictures of Candy yet, but if you want to see what I've done on my Very Tall Socks, you can check out my latest post at the knitalong.

Tartan Jacket progress (and other miscellanea)

I'm so proud of myself. I actually finished my dad's hat in time for him to get it for his birthday. At least, I'm assuming he'll get it on time. I mailed it on Friday, and his birthday is not until this Wednesday. I'm extra proud of myself for not taking the easy way out and using bulky yarn (which I considered). I stuck with the sport-weight yarn because I knew Dad would probably prefer a lighter-weight cap. It actually only took me just about a week to do it. I guess I'm a faster knitter than I think I am. I did take a picture of it before I mailed it, but I won't post it yet on the off-chance that my parents might read my blog before Wednesday. He knows he's getting the hat, but I don't have to completely ruin the surprise.
Now that the hat is done, I got back to working on the Tartan Jacket, and I finished the back.



I also started working on the right front, and I have made some progress on it. However, I think that I have reached an all-time personal high for most projects going at once. Aside from the jacket, I still have to finish the last golf club cover for my husband (I am rationalizing putting this off by saying that he won't be playing golf until spring anyway), I am still working on Candy (I'm rationalizing that one by saying that I need something relatively mindless and portable to bring with me to work and to Knitting Meetup - I can't really take over the coffeeshop with the million balls of yarn required for the jacket), and I just signed up for the Knit-a-long-sock, for which the starting date was yesterday, so I think I am going to go cast on for a pair of Very Tall Socks. This may not seem like a lot to some of you, but up until about last year, I was very much a one-project-at-a-time type of woman.

Don't worry, I'm here!

No, I didn't fall off the face of the earth. I just somehow never got around to posting while I was in Chicago for the holidays. This couldn't be helped while we were at my inlaws' house, as they don't have a computer, and I guess I was just being lazy when I was at my parents house. Anyway, the holidays were good, and I have another knitting-related present to show off:





Tada! It's my very own Denise Interchangeable Knitting Needle Set. My parents gave it to me on December 23, and I am already using the needles for three separate projects. I also gave myself a belated Christmas present:



It's Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride, to use for Candy. This purchase was the result of a completely unexpected trip to a yarn shop with my mom (long story). I was planning to make Candy somewhere down the road, but I couldn't resist buying the yarn. And it turned out to be a good thing, because I ran out of yarn for the hat I had brought along for my vacation project, so thanks to this yarn and my new Denise needles, I was able to cast on for Candy. I actually am almost done with the waist band already, but I didn't take any pictures of it yet.
What I do have a picture of is my Tartan Jacket. Since my yarn was here in Nebraska, and I did not get back until the 2nd, I missed the official start date, but I cast on Monday afternoon, and I am almost up to the armhole shaping on the back. I had to rip out a few times due to my own incompetence in understanding the intarsia directions, but my sanity was saved by how quickly the knitting goes by on size 13 needles. Anyway, here is the picture:



I'm going to take a break from it tonight and work on the watch cap I am making for my dad for his birthday. His birthday is on the 19th, and somehow on New Year's Day, I found myself telling him that I could make a cap in Chicago Cubs colors for him by then. Nothing like knitting with a deadline!