So close...

I haven't forgotten about you!

The end of the semester is here in Houston. Finals season is well underway, and I've just finished grading my last projects for the class I teach at my alma mater. With all that out of the way, I can focus on a a few tasks.

I have some exciting news, too: My one-year wedding anniversary is on the 30th, and we've decided to go to London! The trip has been on the books for months now, and we're flying out on Saturday. This is my first time in England, and I'm super excited to see everything. One absolute must on the list is Loop Yarn Shop:

 Excuse me while I resurrect myself from being dead of the cute.

London's high temperatures are in the mid-50's, so beyond planning for my own wardrobe, I'm hurriedly attempting to finish Andrew's Brownstone, which is in the final stages of the second sleeve. After I cast off on the sleeve, I'll just have to pick up the stitches and knit the neck. Can I finish in 3 days? Let's find out! I will have Friday off to work my fingers to the bone, so I'm pretty confident that this can be done.

But alas, I'll be ripping out the cuff of the first sleeve, too. It's just too wide, and the stretchy bind off I did on it makes the whole thing look frilly:

One of these days, I'll write a post about the stupid habits I have, among which is a strong desire to USE THE SAME NEEDLE for the WHOLE SWEATER, regardless of the fact that it's generally suggested that you should size down for rib. Instead, I decreased a few stitches on the first row of the rib, and it seems to be fitting in much nicer with the sleeve.

The bind off I'm using is a K2, *reinsert needle, K2TOG, K1* -style bind off, which has great stretch and a substantial feel. It's my favorite bind off, and can be modified to include purl stitches for ribbing. I just don't know that it'll cut it on these sleeves, which have so little room for excess fabric, so I may be doing a few passed-over stitches to knock down the bulk. Maybe every other, so it retains a pattern around?

In other news, I'm kind of excited (and embarrassed of my excitement) because one of my projects is just one heart short of 100! It's this one:

I know it's dumb, but to think that 100 different people found and liked a project that I made is just awesome to me. I'm so grateful to have a community that understands the work and love that goes into making garments, and I try to reciprocate as frequently as possible.

Dang, I had a few patterns to show you, too, but I'll save them for the next entry! You still have time to fang up, too!

- YX