The more days that go by, the more I appreciate my finished Hemlock Ring Throw. The cat loves it too! I got some of those kids playmats that you can put together like giant puzzle pieces for blocking my larger projects and it's fantastic! The cat thought so too. Every time I checked on it, it was all wrinkled and rolled up in a little ball. Apparently, she was quite taken with rolling around in it. It isn't as big as I thought it was going to be, but I'm pretty happy with it. It's good for a lap blanket, or if I'm scrunched up in the chair, it covers me.

It is knit in Cascade Ecological Wool color 8018. The yarn is surprisingly soft. The bind off didn't take nearly as long as I thought it was going to. It only took a few hours, which was pretty good considering it was over 600 stitches.

I have been up to other things too. I found a free project on beadingdaily.com that I really liked, so I walked myself over to the bead store :) and asked them for some help. I needed a pointing in the right direction. I'm thrilled with the way it came out. It's Swarovski crystals, pearls and seed beads, plus a sterling silver chain. The best part was that it wasn't nearly as hard as I thought. So, now in addition to the yarn bug, I'm fighting a bit of a bead bug!

I gave it to my friend for her birthday. It was a REALLY late birthday present, but I think she liked it.

We also got our engagement pictures taken (but have yet to send them into the newspaper with the announcement). Here are my two favorites. They don't look anything like me! 

Now that's I'm back, I'm pretty excited about finishing my next project....a Flower Basket Shawl (it's a Ravelry link) in Misti Alpaca Lace Hand Dyed. I'm not sure it's the best pattern for the yarn, or any lace for that matter. The color repeats are very short, but when I stretch it out it doesn't look horrible. I hope to have it done tomorrow night or Saturday morning. Then I'll move on to another project. Either finishing something that's been languishing or I'll start on of the new projects I'm excited about. I also have baby stuff to knit (again!) because Ed's cousin is expecting and I'm sure the shower will be here before I know it! I'd rather be prepared this time than last minute.