I had a knitting date with a friend this afternoon. She wanted a little help working through a new pattern and I was happy to volunteer. I'd just finished a pair of socks and needed something simple for my knitting bag. This is the beginning of the Cashmere Cowl from the Purl Bee, except I'm making mine in merino. Birthday yarn to be exact, given to me by the friend I was meeting. I started off looking for a fancier pattern for this yarn (birthday yarn always deserves something fancy) but it was so soft I realized I just wanted something simple to wear right against my neck and this pattern was perfect.

The coffee shop we met at was really busy so we sat outside in the sun to knit. It turned out be be rather windy (and it was only +2) so our knitting was slow and eventually our fingers were too cold to keep going and we called it a day. I managed to cast on and knit a little over one round - enough to make sure I hadn't twisted anything - Phew!

It's not much but I like it so far.


Right now I've got almond macaroons in the oven. They are just starting to smell good. I've only attempted macaroons once before and they tasted great but didn't hold together at all. I'm using this recipe for what I think are usually called macarons. I  might even fill some of them but I think I'll use this filling instead; it sounds tastier and I can only make so much custard using up leftover egg yolks. I don't have any raspberry jam but strawberry is probably almost as good with the almonds. We'll see how many last long enough to be considered for filling.

ps. Super cute puppy asleep on the couch in here  :)

This picture is from a while back - before we went on vacation anyway - I haven't worked on these socks since going to Ottawa. I found the picture in my "blog this" folder today and can't remember why I put it there. Must have been a knitting woes story. I'd tossed my knitting bag onto the couch and then sat on it as far as I can tell: I was was working the heel of my sock so the spare fifth needle had been shoved into a ball and forgotten. I discovered it was broken later on when I tried to pull it out again. It was a really bendy needle anyway and I can still work my sock on four needles so it's not really a big deal. I like to work around a square better than a triangle though - I poke myself more with a triangle - does anyone else find that?

Anyway - for some reason I really like this picture but I can't quite put my finger on why. It might be the green, or the pale needles, or the sunshine and shadows. It might even been that delicate curve in my broken needle. Anyone else have theories on why a person likes a picture? I find it interesting sometimes to notice which pictures I like and which fail to capture my attention. It's a great game to play on Flickr when you're board.

Just a quick update on my second Flabella sock. It seems like it's going very slowly but that's only because the first one went so quickly (due to a greater than usual proportion of knitting time). I'm about two rounds from starting the heel and have only three bobblesleft to make. Despite the way this sock is taking longer than the first one, I think my knitting speed on the pattern has picked up now that I'm only looking at the charts half the time. The leg chart feels like it is going much faster than the first time around anyway and I have a feeling that the foot will be similar.