Madli Pictures

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So here she is! Hopefully my picture posting will work. I haven't tried it without flickr since we moved and our connection went all funky, so cross your fingers that this works!
Madli is my first real lace project. I made a few little mistakes, but I was not brave enough to rip back and fix them. I think it turned out great despite the little glitches. This is a picture of Madli before blocking.

It's amazing what a little blocking can do. I pinned Madli out and misted her with cold water. Once the shawl was nice and wet it stretched much easier. My points aren't super symmetrical, but I think they look just find. Here is Madli during blocking.
Once I finished blocking I took a few more pictures of the end border (which is my favorite, it looks much harder than it actually is).

And here is a picture of me actually wearing Madli, shortly before I gave her to my mom, who didn't believe I had actually knit anything that could be considered lace.

Specs for the project:
Interweave Knits Summer 2004
Pattern by Nancy Bush
Yarn: Shadow from Knitpicks
Content: 100% Merino Wool
Amount: 2- 440 yard/50 gram hanks
The pattern calls for just over 1000 yards, but I was able to finish the shawl with just two hanks of Shadow in "Sunset."

New Look!

It is wonderful being married to a graphic designer. What do you all think about the new look? I love it! I am going to post a few pictures tomorrow of my recently finished Madli as well as our new sofa and love seat. Check back soon, and let me know what you think of the new look!
And just fyi, I belong in London :)

You Belong in London A little old fashioned, and a little modern. A little traditional, and a little bit punk rock. A unique woman like you needs a city that offers everything. No wonder you and London will get along so well. What City Do You Belong in? Take This Quiz :-)

A new place to sit

Over the weekend Jered and I did some spontaneous furniture shopping. We have been using a futon as a sofa for the past year and a half, and while it has been perfecty functional, we started to get a little annoyed with the feeling of wooden slats beneath our butts. We went to a discount furniture store and found a sofa and a loveseat for right around 10 benjamins. I will post pictures later this week of our lovely new leather furniture. It's a nice neutral green color and it is so amazingly comfortable that I briefly considered quitting school and my job to permanently sit at home.
In knitting news, I finished Madli! It's been my first "real" lace project and I can't wait to post the pictures I took earlier this week. I decided to give Madli to my mom, but not for Christmas or her birthday (which is coming up the first week of November). No, I just couldn't wait another couple of weeks. Once I blocked her out on Sunday and had her all ready to be worn I was itching to give her away. I think my mom really liked it, but didn't think I made it. She asked, "Did you....knit...this?" As though it wasn't normal knitting and maybe I found it at a yard sale and was regifting. Or maybe she was just impressed. I'd like to think she was impressed :) She usually "out-crafts" me in pretty much every arena, but I don't think she can anymore with the whole knitting thing. My mom is a jack of all trades master of some. She does a few things really well and lots of things as hobbies. She knows how to knit, but she doesn't, so I think I'm safe to say that for once in my life I am craftier than my mom in at least one way. How childish of me. But really, I don't care, it feels good ;)
I've also just started a pair of socks for Jered which I hope to have done by next Wednesday (his annual party happens then). I'm also getting ready to knit a few robots for the guy. He came upon this website: http://www.jesshutch.com/robotmain.html and has requested a few of the little guys. They are adorable and would make great pillows for the cats. I have much knitting to do.

I've got class and clients today and lots of studying for my ethics midterm tomorrow. It's strange to have multiple choice and short answer exams, I got so used to essays that its been a bit of a shock for me getting into undergrad mode again. I think that maybe this is their sneaky way of preparing us for the certification exams in the spring. Ugh. I had a psych testing and measurement exam last night that I think went fairly well, and I should be getting back my substance abuse exam tonight. It's been a crazy couple of weeks, and this weekend I am looking forward to not studying for anything.