As I'm typing this, my Percy shawl is in the oven covered in four satchels worth of Kool Aid Black Cherry and added food colouring from the local supermarket. Wish Percy good luck. You may also be amused to know that I'm typing this with very pink hands. Clearly my latex gloves are not dye-proof.
On the left you see my step-dad's Christmas present in the making (hi Step-dad, I hope you are not a keen follower of my blog). Yesterday the sun was out and I decided to go to Hamilton, just east of Glasgow, on a whim. Hamilton is home to Stitching Time, one of my favourite local yarn shops. Initially I only went in to buy some 4ply cotton for these hilarious Christmas potholders, but I came out with .. er .. a bit more than just 4ply cotton.
I'm knitting the Multidirectional Scarf by Karen Baumer (nice picture here) out of King Cole Mirage, a surprisingly lovely woolblend. Usually I would have done the scarf in some Noro Kureyon, but I have no illusions about which of the two yarns feels softer against the skin and is easier to care for. I'm actually so pleased by Mirage that my brain has quietly been plotting what else I could make from it. It knits up very well and its colour transitions are beautiful. It's like a budget-friendly Rowan Tapestry, of sorts.
Due to Christmas knitting, I have decided to just focus on finishing David's sweater (half a sleeve done! just need 1½ sleeves!) and my step-dad's scarf. This means that my shiny new shawl project has been hidden away.
I'm knitting the Echo Flowers shawl (rav link) out of some handdyed Fyberspates merino cobweb which I picked up at a trunk show last year. The shawl pattern is fairly straightforward, particularly if you have knitted Laminaria as its blossom section is identical to that of Echo Flowers' main chart, and I do love me some Estonian lace stitches. The edge charts have nupps! The yarn is a disappointment, though. As I'm knitting with it, it is pilling noticeably which I think unacceptable for a fairly pricey lace yarn. I'm also not that keen on how much the colours are pooling and generating stripes. I have been spoiled by knitting with Old Maiden Aunt yarns, I guess.
And tomorrow's young David's birthday. I hope for more sun.