Life gets in the way

Oh my goodness, it's past Christmas!  It's past New Year's!  My apologies for neglecting the blog.  My Master's program really heated up in November.  I had to work harder and then we had exams starting at the beginning of December.  We also had our first long essay due and I had to try and remember how I used to do analysis.  Working on that essay caused me to question if I wanted to write my thesis on what I was planning or if I want to change it.  It was a mental tornado.  Now I am home and it's past the holidays.  I am grateful for the opportunity to see my family, especially after the death in the family and the birth of another family member.  We also have another animal member in the family.

His name is Jojo.  At the end of August he showed up on our back doorstep skinny as a rail.  We live near a highway, so we think someone dumped him and he found his way to our neighborhood.  He was mostly an outdoor cat until a coyote attacked him; now, he spends most of the day sleeping in the house and goes out at night.  He's a very sweet cat and enjoys being petted.  He even allows the dog to jump all over him when she's playing.  I'm surprised how much I like him since I'm allergic to cats.  So far, I haven't had too major a reaction - just some sneezing and slightly itchy eyes.  He seems to have charmed everyone, though.

Despite all the work, I had time to finish off the Christmas knits. 

Simple gloves for older bro.

Irish Hiking Hat for younger bro

For the new baby: Sunnyside cardigan

For Grandma: Eleanor cowl

The last was a last minute gift.  I was in the middle of writing my essay when I realized I hadn't made a present for my Grandma.  I decided that it was necessary for my her to have a knit gift.  I couldn't get the yarn the pattern called for, so I subbed a fingering weight yarn and added an extra lace repeat while using the needle sizes called for in the pattern.  I probably didn't need that extra repeat and wouldn't use it again.  Also, another knitter suggested that you could put beads on the smaller diamonds in the pattern.  Just an idea.

I also got some knitting for me.  I finished off my mittens just before we got a cold snap in my part of Ireland.  Since I cycle everywhere, these mittens were a welcome addition to my winter wardrobe.

Hedda Knits' La Joie du Printemps

I also finished a cashmere scarf for me using Anne Hanson's Fernfrost pattern.

The yarn I used was Hedgehog Fibres Cashmere Lace in the colorway Sour Cherry.  I was impressed because the red dye did not run at all.  I love Hedgehog's colors and can't wait to spin some of her roving that I have.  The scarf blocked out wide (12 inches or 30cm) but only 50 inches, or 125 cm.  If I made this pattern again, I would make it longer, perhaps using 200-300 yards more than what the pattern called for.

I got to play with more luxury fibers when I reminded Mom that she had some yarn hiding in the closet.  Three years ago, my Mom came with me to my first Stitches, a major fiber retail show that occurs in four regions of the US.  Every year, a company called Windy Valley Muskox vends and they sell qiviut and qiviut blend yarns.  Qiviut is the down fiber of the muskox that is shed naturally every summer.  It is light and very warm . . . and rather expensive.  My Mom likes the good stuff, so she purchased a skein of Qiviut Luxury Blend, a 45/45/10 qiviut/merino/silk blend, and a skein of Pure Qiviut.  I knitted up the Qiviut Luxury Blend in the Little Shells Scarf pattern my Mom got at the same time.  The result was this:

And some detail:

My Mom likes it as it is lightweight but very warm.  Perhaps I'll get around to knitting the other skein before I leave again because I've big plans for the new year.  To be continued. . . .