I'm so sorry for the late update. Stock has been arriving in store fast and furious and I've been up to my neck merchandising (getting it from box to shelf). Other mundane activities have included short bouts of waterproofing my brother's deck, cutting & laminating schools stuff for my sister in law, helping Lisa move (I hope the paint job in your den is OK, I'm not sure about my painting skills, the coverage is frequently lacking), Ramona's wedding and lots of hot weather that makes me a little dozy. But not to worry, I never stopped knitting & designing!

I got a new yarn in from misti, Suril Alpaca & Silk DK, and it is resplendent! i started a pair of soscks for display (1 skein makes a pair on 3mm needles) and i swear to god it knits like butter! i have it on my 12" addis and i was knitting it lying down with my eyes closed. i kept going until 2:15 in the morning until my hand started to hurt. if john wasn't there i would have brought it to bed with me - just for a little reassurance that i'll be able to work on it again the next day ... and maybe a little snuggling.

I made an easy sweater from the estelle wooly bully. it didn't even take 4 skeins! i'll write up the pattern this weekend, i just need some quiet time without distractions to get that stuff done.

While I was helping Lisa move last tuesday i came across some noro kureyon sock she picked up in clagary and was frustrated with. (she wanted to make a clapotis with it, and caveat, it's a terrible yarn for a beginner to work with for a clapotis, i have no idea what they were thinking at that store when they sold it to her. if you want to make a clapotis with sock yarn i recommend something in a merino or a sea silk or a cashmere, something that will not stick to itself when you drop the stitches). Anyway, I had just finished my beret (which looks great but i gave away without a photo but i'll make myself one for a pattern) and i was jonesing for a knit so i asked if i could pick it up and start a sock. now i'm totoally into it! i finished the store kureyon socks liane strted and i don't know, there is a mysterious appeal in that yarn. it isn't all that cashmere mcluxury, but it feels really satisfying knitting with it. the end results are cozy, i washed the store socks in eucalan and they softened up. and you seem to get a lot of sock out of it. maybe the coarseness that makes that yarn stick to itself makes the end product cozier?