Swatching and Appropriate Furrage

I'm typing this one handed.  Gypsy decided that she's quite comfortable sitting on my left shoulder/side of my chest, which requires my left arm under her too support her in this cozy position.  And since putting her down would be cruel and unusual cat treatment *obviously* I can't do that. 

Oh good...she decided to hop down and shun me for a bit for sitting down at the computer. She was dreadfully baffled yesterday. Every single day that I've been home in the last month save one, I've left for work. Gypsy likes to sit by the door and get petted on the way out. Yesterday she let me sleep til 9:15 (that's REALLY late for her) before she knocked a plant off the bookshelf. I got up, fed her, put the tea kettle on the stove and got dressed.  These are all perfectly normal steps in the morning routine for her.  I came back out to the kitchen to make tea and realized she was sitting on the ledge by the door, waiting for me to put my coat on. I went over and petted her a couple of times but kept on with my morning. She was waiting for me to leave, which I found rather amusing. Once she realized I wasn't going anywhere, she insisted that my lap belonged to her all the time and was right beside or on top of me all day save for her midday 3 hour nap.

I did get some knitting done! 

I'm participating in Susan Pandorf's LOTR year which is kicking off with the Evenstar KAL.  I swatched last night and I think I've pretty much gotten gauge. I've not done lace really but apparently think that tackling a rather complicated lace shawl should be snack food. Hey...I taught myself to knit socks from the Tsock Tsarina Tsock 101 kit in a Saturday, lace knitting over a couple of months should be pie. And I've done feather and fan, Veronik Avery's Lace Ribbon Scarf.  I'm not totally unprepared.   

Though I really wanted some blue and silver from the Unique Sheep (see Silverlode), this was to be a "only if you have it in the stash" project. Heaven knows I never knit with the laceweight I do own and I'd need to buy circular needles, so that's where wool money for this project went. So I pulled out KnitPicks Shadow in colorway Sunset Heather. It'll be a little earlier in the evening for my evening star, right at a red sunset. 

My  blocking wasn't perfect when I took the picture, I re-pinned the bottom right corner.   It's still a little funky but the measurements are fine...and it's a shawl, gauge can be a bit flexible.* 

Other than that I've been ignoring the last 15 rows of sock that needs to be done (yes, really, just the toe and bind off...I'm lame) and working on my Clapotis. It "is" February's project after all. 

Gypsy has shown her good taste in wool by lying on the Malabrigo. She's going to be heartbroken when I tell her that despite getting it appropriately furred, it's not for her. Note to self: make sure to wash projects twice that are going to friends with cat allergies.

I'm almost through my second of five skeins for this one.  I'm going to do the center/length repeats until a) it's ridiculously long or b) I'm through skein 3, whichever comes first. Right now I'm on repeat 6 of a minimum of 13. It's going to be massive, warm, and probably worn only til the end of March, when it will be too warm even in Wisconsin for it. Of course, that's when they kick the AC on at work, so perhaps it'll get more year round use (light summer linen tops go with heavy Malabrigo shawls, right?). 

Gypsy's back...must be time to relinquish my lap and at least one hand for petting.

*Warning, I'm a process knitter.  Yeah, I prefer it fit but I dislike swatching and do it only when I absolutely must.