The best gift ever

Behold.

(in reality, the colour is more blood-red, but this is the best representation I can get without sacrificing too much detail of the pattern)

This is going to be a scarf. For me. Made by my husband. I am gob freakin' smacked.

Let's review, shall we?

• Aside from a small practice piece, this is only the man's second project. (Okay, technically his second project is a golf club cover, but since that's only just started and his first piece was also a golf club cover, I think I can safely say that the second golf club cover doesn't really count.)
  
  
• This involves cables.
  
  
• He made up the pattern himself. Yes, you read that right. Made. It. Up.
  
  
• This project has apparently caused him enough anguish to totally induct him into the universal circle of knitters. He told me that he had to cast on four times. He has frogged and knit and frogged and knit countless times - including once where he thought he made a horrible error, frogged it all back, re-did it, realised it had been right the first time, and frogged it again. And yet he continues to work on it.

Despite all this, he is still beating himself up over it. The list of problems is apparently endless:

• It wasn't finished in time for Christmas.
• It's only made out of acrylic.
• He screwed up countless times.
• Despite all the frogging, there are still errors.
• The tension isn't even.
• He's horribly slow at knitting.
• He isn't sure it will look nice when it's finished.
• It's not a very intricate pattern.
• Etc. etc. etc....

Dear reader, do me a favour, will ya? This is very possibly the best present I have ever received - it completely blew me away - and I'm sick of hearing him moan about what a piece of crap it is. Leave a comment telling him why he should shut up and be spectacularly proud of himself already? Thanks. :)

Persian Tiles shawl for Grandma

This is moving along fairly well. Unfortunately, I calculated that I need to accomplish about 20 rows a day between now and my grandma's birthday in order to finish...and that doesn't even take into account fringing and blocking. I may be totally screwed. However, as of this moment, I am on track. Yesterday's quota has been met and I'm working on today's.

Self-patterning socks for moi

It's amazing how fast sock #1 is growing considering that I'm putting so much effort into my grandma's shawl:


And I am loving. It. Ordinarily I would think that being entertained by patterned yarn bodes dire things for the sophistication of my intellect, but I know that I am not alone.

Self-patterning socks for DH

I think I've decided that I'm going to use my new navy/blue Fortissima Colori Socka Yarn for socks for DH. Shhhh. Don't tell him.

PS - rachel, thank you so much for your compliments on the Christmas sweaters! And thank you also for enabling my sock needs. At least someone around here is on my side! ;)