Yesterday my coworkers and I did Knitter’s Numerology. This is a fun game involving that nifty calendar that I want so badly – the one with 365 different stitches. You find the stitch for your birthday and your knitting friends decide what it says about your personality. Well, my stitch is Lacy Diamonds. And said friends decided this is my stripper name. Actually, Lacy Diamonds is a really cool pattern. But I would not be at all surprised to meet a stripper – nay, several dozen strippers who use this moniker when they’re "working".

Last night I seamed Charlotte’s right shoulder and picked up stitches to begin the collar. As I did so, I realized I have very little yarn left – as in, not enough to finish the collar, let alone seam the sides and sleeves and knit the belt. Odd, I thought – the pattern calls for six balls of Yorkshire Tweed Aran for sizes small through large, and I was making a medium. I even made the sleeves shorter than usual. How is it possible that I’m running out? Do I have one more ball squirreled away somewhere? I looked and looked, but didn’t find one. I’m going to have to order a seventh ball to finish my sweater, which peeves me greatly.

I realized something else when I was steam blocking (twice! Charlotte is one recalcitrant girl!): Charlotte is very large. I’m beginning to suspect the Rowan designers are trying to flatter larger knitters. I’m 5’11" tall, and long of torso and arm. And although I am slender, my bust and hips not insignificant. It’s absurd to think I’d be smaller than a medium. Because Charlotte is designed to look a little bit tailored, I don’t feel right about pretending she’s just another baggy sweater. Charlotte wouldn’t want to let herself go like that. Tonight I’ll get out the pins and check more carefully, but I suspect an unhappy choice is before me: Either I frog dear Charlotte completely and begin again with an XS size, or I give her to somebody larger than I am. Sigh. This design had my name all over it. The picture I took didn’t come out well enough to show the nifty moss stitch on the chest and back, sleeve caps and trim.

I guess I’ll decide her fate tonight.

Mia’s new blog, Minicia, is up and running, and she’s got a great new sweater to show off! Go check it out!

This weekend the wedding stole took a little field trip up to Connecticut. Here are the sculptural cows at the Wassaic train station, modeling:

Work it, girls! I did quite a bit of knitting on the ride up, and then realized I should have grabbed the third ball of yarn on my way out the door. Foolish – I could have done so much more on the trip back home! Instead I worked on Charlotte’s sleeve, which is almost finished. I had to frog about half of it when I stopped to compare it to the first sleeve and realized I’d boneheadedly done the increases every eight rows instead of every ten. Oops. But with any luck, I’ll start seaming this week.

At any rate, it was fun to be able to show my grandmother the progress on the stole. She’ll be ninety-five in September and can no longer make the long trip out to the west coast, so she’s going to miss the wedding, which is sad.