Under the Fence, catch the sheep, back you go and off you leap!

Can you figure out what all that means?

Here is, finally, the promised update on the vest-project. The back is done! One of the front panels is done! And the second front panel, the one with the button-holes, is underway. Unfortunately, being more of a piecemeal kind of knitter, I'm just about out of yarn. A few more rows on this last panel and then ––zip! There's a bobbin full of singles waiting for a mate, so I'll start spinning it up today, hopefully ply, block, ready to knit by the weekend. I know that, generally, the more virtuous aim is to gather all the necessary materials for a project beforehand, but I have to say that this way, spinning a bit here, dyeing there, making buttons, and so on, offers a pleasant diversity of tasks. I tend to get distracted by new ideas easily, so this bit-by-bit building of something has been working well for me. Luckily, I also have a huge fleece. If I were doing a project like this one with a more limited supply of wool, it may serve me to be slightly more fastidious in my planning.

This back panel isn't blocked, so think away the rumples and unevenness!

Green = onion skins, blue = indigo

Front panel No. 1! 

I've been harping on about spring in, oh, the last two or three posts, I think, so I'll spare you for now. I'll just say that, no, spring has not sprung yet, but we are expecting the temperatures to climb at least a little bit this week. Fingers crossed.

I have a plastic bag of scraps sitting on top of my closet, waiting to be put to use. All of these have been dyed with plants ––even the pink, that's lichen dye! The brown is black walnut, the blue is indigo, yellows are goldenrod or onion skin, and purple is alkanet.

Here are some little treats hanging about on my desk.

Most of these balls of yarn were wound on a handy thing called a nøstepinne. A nøstepinne is  nifty little Norwegian knitting tool that you can use to wind a ball of yarn with a centre-pull. It's basically a stick (the "pinne" part) that winds a nest, or a ball, (the "nøst" part). It takes longer than a ball-winder, but it's fun to use, and you can take it anywhere because it's so small. I'd like to carve one, someday. 

And, for a last hurrah, check this out (click in the video labeled "Alison Friday knitting on Swedish TV"). It's a Swedish talk show with LIVE KNITTING! What could be better. All right ––don't watch the whole thing, it'll bore you half to death, but do note the candles burning off on one side, and the general awesomeness of this. (My secret motive: I am trying to learn Swedish, since I'll be in Sweden this summer, so what could be better than learning endless Swedish knitting terminology, right?)

Have a fantastic week!