Viola

I'm such a fan of her work. I comment on her blog every now-and-then(ish), but I read every time she writes. Her daughters are pretty models that seem so appreciative of their moms' hard work at knitting things. Their nonchalant poses sell her product very well!

I'm so in love with the three perfectly coordinated tints of this periwinkle colorway. I tried so hard, but I wasn't able to join in on the club to knit this with the others. Now it's available for us all to knit and enjoy! Uh, it's just so pretty!

If you haven't read any of Through The Loops' writing, or if you haven't tried any of her projects, you're in for a happy surprise. You're bound to enjoy it all!

New wool

My new 5' x 8' Chevron Rug is absolutely fabulous. It's charcoal gray, which is an extension of one of my favorite colors out there. But it's got little hints of ecru showing through in the low loop of the high-loop/low-loop pattern.  Which makes it even better.

Looooooooove iiiiiiiiiiit!*

westelm.com delivered quickly (3 days after order was placed) regardless of the fact that they were in the midst of taking inventory in their warehouses, and I was even told about that before I ever even placed my online order. Way to be on the ball about important details for online shoppers, west elm! Your detailed warning about the possible delay of order confirmation via email as well as actual product delivery was really appreciated. I'm one happy customer and I'll be back to order some of these and definitely a set of these as a jewelry catch on my bathroom counter, or some wall decor in the dining room! My Ben Moore Revere Pewter walls could use some more lemon yellow art! (That picture with the two white slip covered armchairs is pretty much spot-on as far as what the color actually looks like, fyi.) Oooo yeah.

Please:
- ignore the crooked lamp shades.
- forgive the old ugly braided country style rug that's folded and piled up next to the red covered sofa table. It's next to the front door and on its way to a new and loving home on Friday.
- and this is a pretty-please: appreciate the fact that I straightened and even dusted off the coffee table and all its contents for this here photograph.
- admit that you've also got swatches draped over your lamp shades. I'm not that crazy, am I?
- ignore that the two sofa tables aren't the same height, so the two lamps aren't the same height. Which I HATE and must fix soon now.
- choose to look past my cheesy decision to prop the recently-finished Pup Beatnik up against one of the sofa pillows. I regret it, but couldn't pass up the posed pup (again, *).
- admire the framed photo of the interior of Notre Dame in Paris I snapped on June 7, 2008 in an impromptu picture-taking contest between me and the Hubs. Obviously, I won!
- encourage me to discard those magazines once I've fingered through them eight times. Because eight is enough.
- look past the computer tower jammed between the legs of the nesting sofa tables. It's literally jammed in there.
- be jealous of my suede wedges.
- pray that I don't kick the Hubs out to sleep here tonight again because he refuses to sleep in silence. The guy must get a kick outta snoring, because it's apparently worth him sleeping under the hot pink Snuggie on the sofa!

This new wool has brought class, warmth, geometry, and sophistication to our living room. Which I'm totally proud of, because I picked it out and purchased it without the Hubs really knowing what was going on other than me telling him that we're totally getting rid of this ole crumb collector ASAP. Sometimes, when you've had enough of something you don't appreciate, you've just. Had. Enough. New wool... I love it.

*Vespa's precious little pup pose was 100% asking kindly to go outside for a bathroom break because she knew I was off the sofa and didn't have a knitting project in my hands so I would most likely be willing to open the door and let her out without forcing her to "gimme kissy!" (Yes, that's one of her tricks.) And I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to snap this shot! Come on and admit that you wish you had a dog this cute. And if you do have a dog this cute, please show her off. And also, please admit that she also requests one (or three) extra water bowls around the house in addition to her regular by-the-food-in-the-kitchen water bowl, including one next to the coffee table in the living room and one on the nightstand for midnight sips.

Send in the model!

Because I'm obsessed with everything about the show Project Runway (did you know that about me?), I asked Vespa to present a little model fitting for me a couple nights ago.

She huffed and puffed and dug a cave into the down comforter I had piled on the sofa next to me. Little Miss Thang likes to bury herself and sleep in little spots that could likely result in us sitting on her if we're not careful about it.

 

Anyway, the fitting went really well! I can tell I'll want to do a little extra finishing work around the arms, and I'll definitely want to tack down the turtleneck fold so that it stays where it should. I'm even considering the addition of a little belt around the middle, just for vanity's sake (because if you knit cables, you know what it means to accidentally skip a row in your chart, and I did, thus the one-row-looks-like-crap effect around her midsection). But other than that the fit was perfect! Whew. This is a lot of work for a little dog sweater, so I'm glad it's working out so well.

Oh. Speaking of working out well, there is one flaw in the sweater, if you'd even call it that. I got the sweater onto Vespa because I attacked while she was sleeping. Poor thing woke up to Mama squeezing her lanky little poodle legs through the armholes. But try getting a cranky little prissy pup out of the thing! These directions don't call for any buttons, snaps, ties, or other means of putting a snug sweater onto a resistant furry little creature who can twist and wiggle her little body in a number of ways to both frustrate you and make you laugh at the same time. It sort of reminds me of Bridget trying to dress up her precious little dog Wednesday (she loved the Adams Family) into a bunny costume on the terrible tv show The Girls Next Door. Vepsa didn't take things as far as Wenny did, but she came pretty close... up until she decided to give me a girly little high-pitched whimper-slash-growl and nip at my fingertips.

She definitely likes the sweater, though.

Vespa's (almost) Beatnik

This is Vespa's chin. Vespa's getting excited. She's about to attack me with kisses because I just told her that it's looking like I'm finally about to power through to the end of her new Beatnik sweater. And that means she's gonna be warm and I'll get back to my own Beatnik before long at all.

Beatnik for Vespa

It's still chilly as can be outside, and however cute it may be with its hot pink lining and rhinestone belt, poor little Vespa just hates the velcro closures on her $9 WalMart fur-lined doggy jacket -- they're itchy on her undercarriage. She is, after all, known by her sissy Shiloh (aka Posh Spice) as Sporty Spice. Which means: no rhinestones required for this chick.

That's it, I couldn't take it. I have officially started what I threatened in my previous little blip: I've cast on the Fabulous Dog Cozy and in lieu of the pattern maker's chosen cable design, I'm adding in the center cable pattern (Chart B) from Beatnik. Which makes my heart flutter just a little bit. My sweet little Vespa dressed just a little like me? Plus a turtleneck top? How cute is that? That's exactly what I said: very.

Easy reading

Finally getting around to opening this tonight. It's a very good sign when I'm in love with the front cover and the back cover.

Vespa isn't quite as thrilled to delve in. She's more interested in staying cozy and warm inside the skirt of my hot pink Snuggie. Can you blame her? I surely can't! Even though we didn't get the ice and snow (and more ice and more snow) that they got in Macon and above that, it's still frickin' freezing here and this little pup doesn't like the cold. Maybe I should set Beatnik aside and knit up a quick Fabulous Dog Cozy for her so I might have my lap back?

Starting the New Year off right

Happy New Year! I feel refreshed and ready for a challenge.

So, I cast on Beatnik from Knitty's Deep Fall issue and I am totally wild about it already. The moss stitch is such a simple contrast to all those pretty cable twists. I can't wait to get this one finished, blocked, and on my body! What a treat I'm making for myself.

The yarn is Cascade 220 in color Aspen Heather. It's a beautiful combination of a very light beige mixed with a very light gray -- so, it's right up my alley!

I'm so pleased with the color and the fabric that this yarn is making. I'll post more pictures and comments as the project grows. For now, here she is:

A big storm is on its way here to Georgia. We're probably only getting a lot of rain down here, because we're south enough and the temperature is a few degrees too mild. But up in middle Georgia and north Georgia, they just might have some big slip-n-slide action going on with inches of ice on the roads and snow on the ground. It's times like these you need a warm wool sweater to cuddle up into and enjoy the winter whiteness outside!

Keep warm everyone. See you again soon.