The Other Felines and Fingerless Gloves

I got to hang out with a new cat a couple of weekends past, an 18 year old calico named Chicken. She's an incredibly sweet and pretty sharp lady, perfectly happy in her role of beta cat if Dinah would just let her be. She suffered the indignity of getting her claws trimmed and adores being brushed.  I sent a Furminator to the feline ladies as a thank you for use of the couch and I'm told Chicken is a huge fan, though Dinah isn't sure about it yet. I'm guessing AudioGirl will be greatly appreciating the amount of cat fur that she won't have to sweep up or deal with in hairball form.

Dinah got shaved for the summer though, so that may be part of the issue. This is several weeks grow out.

I also ripped out the sock I'd started. The last pair of socks I knit on size 1s, I did over 52 stitches on DPNs.  I can't imagine my gauge will be so different that I'll need 60 stitches on the same size needles on a 9" circular. So I called my sister from a parking lot and asked her to look up the number of stitches I would need to cast on for a favorite fingerless glove pattern--which is 48. I figured I could pretty much make it up from there.  And since this pattern calls for a 50g skein of sock yarn, I'd have enough to make two pairs. 

It's probably a bit of a stretch to do this on 9" needles, but I cast on a 2x2 rib and so far it's going pretty well.

I knitted on them while watching The Emperor's New Clothes at Chicago Shakespeare Theater. A grandmother was sitting next to me, torn between disapproval and curiosity. She seemed to seriously disapprove of the fact I was on my own (family show), that I was wearing shorts, that I'd been seated next to her, and that I was under seventy. She desperately wanted to be curious about my knitting and did ask what I had on the needles. She then got to add the disapproval of fingerless gloves to her list. I got pursed lips and an "oh" but she kept an eye on me the entire time.

Here's where I am after the weekend and a few rows since I've been home:



Not bad all in all, another couple of inches and I'll add in a thumb.

The yarn is shiny and soft. I'm not totally in love with the colors, though it does remind me of new spring grass and a beautiful sky all rolled up into one.  These will, I think, go into the gift box though.