I finished two small projects this week, but it feels like I got something huge off of my wip list. Somehow I managed to get myself involved with two swaps that had deadlines within days of each other and both had knitting components. Then I somehow managed to forget about both of them until the last second.
You have already seen this square (Lorena Haldeman's March 2009 afghan square), but now it's blocked and ready to go as my first installment of The Knitgirllls Afghan Square Swap. I'll be honest here -- I don't know why I decided to participate in this. I had no desire to knit a blanket. I have knit one, but that was for someone else and was not done in individual squares. At the same time, I think I wanted to participate because it seemed to foster some community, kind of like the Blog Hub Swap made for an entertaining set of months with a package at the end.
The other swap I joined was the Subway Knits podcast Downton Abbey swap. In this instance I think it was a case of "there are only limited spots, I have to join now! NownowNOW!" that got me sucked into it. I have to admit here that I am not a Victorian era girl. I like Downton Abbey and the occasional steam punk novel, but I am not into Jane Austin, the Titanic, or anything else my brain associates with this extended period of crazy rules and morals. But I love Downton Abbey, and since my swapee said she was a Lady Edith fan I have had a lot of fun trying to find something to send to her that is not bland or an adultress.
This bag is Veronik Avery's Leafy Knot Clutch from Knitting 24/7. It is a pretty pattern and knit up nicely in some Debbie Bliss cotton/silk from which I had liberated my mother, but it was one of the most frustrating knits I have ever made. Fortunately I looked at other people's projects and found some very helpful explanations from people who had more time than I did. It's the handles, man. They're overly complicated. But I think the result is lovely despite the eleventy-billion ends.
Of course there's some tea and a lovely skein of Cakewalk Yarns in the color "Duckpond", because I could totally see Edith carrying this bag by a duckpond while wearing a delicate shawl. Now I just have to find something tasty to go along with the tea. What tastes good with peppermint?
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