At least someone can relax

That's actually a picture of TWO cats. They're almost the same color and curled up together. She wasn't terribly happy that I woke her with the flash.

We've been down with a cold, after being out of town for a couple of days. It was a trip I'd been looking forward to, and I was lucky not to get sick till after we got back, but still.

I'm still working on the shawl, which is coming along nicely. It's the North Sea shawl from the Folk Shawls book. I didn't realize it when I picked it, but it's a simple pattern to memorize (one line!), and it's turning out very pretty. I couldn't stand it; I had to show my mom to be sure she liked the color. She does. If you've never done lace before, then this is a perfect one for a beginner. Not only is it an ultra simple pattern, there's also no edging to do, so that's even simpler. It's a rectangle (which I prefer anyway). The only downside is that two panels have to be grafted together at the end. If you don't like doing that, then that might be an issue. I'm a really slow grafter, but I can do it.

Here are a couple grafting links (also called kitchener) that might help. I have very little patience, and if I can do it, anyone can.

Knitty
Bagatell

Both of those sites have great pictures and cover grafting stockinette.

Grafting stockinette and garter

This one doesn't have as many pictures, but once you get the idea, you shouldn't need them. The nice thing here is that it covers grafting garter stitch as well as stockinette.

I'll try to get some good pictures of the shawl not that it's no longer a secret. My daffodils are gone, but my consolation prize is that my lilac bushes are almost bloomed. I promise pictures of those too when they're fully out.