Branching Out

Remember the lowly scarf that tripped me up in December? I belted it out in record time, and had it blocked and wrapped in time for Christmas (whew!) Of course, it was at the expense of finishing another gift. C'est la vie.

This gift made me smile while I knit - so much the better for knitting it twice, I guess. Mom taught me to knit when I was quite young. She knits, increases and decreases with the best of them, and can cable to her heart's content. She shies away from lace and colorwork, though, so I made her something she'd never make for herself.

Here's the end of the beastie before and after blocking:


Here's a truer representation of the color, though it's more of a royal purple than this:


The lovely lady in the photo below is my Mom. I haven't taken the time to explain a blog, let alone a knitting blog, to her yet. I should do that. In the meantime, isn't she gorgeous in her new scarf?



Details for my "what did I do last year" self:

Started:	12 December
Finished:	23 December
Pattern:	Branching Out by Susan Lawrence
Yarn:	Debbie Bliss Cathay (50% cotton, 35% viscose, 15% silk). Color 12012, 2 skeins (100m / 50g per skein). Lovely, soft yarn.
Needles:	Clover bamboo, size 8
Notes:	This was a great beginning lace pattern; I'd knit it again. Dimensions pre-blocking: 47" x 5.25". After blocking: 51" x 6". I might have gotten more out of it with blocking wires - the yarn could take more stretch, but my cotton thread and sewing pins weren't up to it.