Boy. I am going crazy with the posting, but I figured I would provide a pictoral update of my sweater-in-progress. About 18 rows into the yoke. I made my first stitch markers!

I took some pictures of the stripey fingerless mittens to show off. Totally tubular! Rock on!

Spent most of this weekend curled up in front of the television, with a stack of movies, and some knitting. It was good. I made another pair of fingerless mittens, from some magic stripes yarn that i had sitting around. they are funky and cool. there will be pictures soon. i tried both magic loop and knitting on two circs, and found the 2 circs to be better for me. i have a bunch more of this yarn around, so i think i will make some more pairs of these. i had originally planned to make socks with them, but having made one, decided that i didn't like the way it felt on my feet. i only took 1 ball of yarn to make both mittens, so i can make several more pairs. perhaps people will get them as christmas gifts next year. =) in other news, i took the plunge and signed myself up for the knitting olympics. i'm gonna try to finish my sweater and swatch before that starts. we'll see how that goes.

Because this is what I say every time I look at it: Eeee!

 

That is all. EDIT: Realized I'd forgotten to put in his little claws, so I've fixed it.

Ive actually been pretty busy with the knitting and crafting and whatnot, but I haven't been taking any pictures, and now most of the stuff has gone on to new homes. However, I have progress to report on My First Sweater ^tm. I am making Mariah. I have the sleeves, front and back done to the point where you join them together, and am about to embark on the yoke. This means I have to go back to paying attention to the complicated cables on the sleeves. But I am excited at the prospect that I may, sometime in the not too distant future, have a completed sweater to show off. Even if it is crappy, it will still be good, because I made it myself. =) In other knitting news, I have been contemplating the thought of participating in the knitting olympic challenge, in which case I would attempt to make the Patons Divine Lacy Cardigan. This was going to be the next project on my list in any case, since I have all the yarn, and the pattern. Completing these two things would clear out a huge space in my yarn stash drawers (which would enable me to put away some of the other yarn I have bought or been given that does not currently have a home). In other crafting news, after a catching a bit of Lilo and Stitch this past weekend while visiting with hippygoth, ladygwyn and M, it occurred to me that I wanted to make a stitch mini mini (this would be a cross stitch pattern on 18 count fabric, which has a finished size of about 2.5" x 2.5". Accordingly, I have charted it out, and began stitching this week, only my original chart had too many quarter stitches, and I stuck the needle into my thumb trying to jam the needle through the fabric. So it's been re-charted, and I am about half done with the stitching now. He is awfully cute. He looks something like this: 

 My Jesus paint by number is still languishing in limbo-land, as I have been doing so much painting for work lately, that I haven't really felt like working on it.