happy birthday america!

is it unpatriotic to not be that excited about the 4th of july? i appreciate the significance of this holiday, really i do, but if i'm being honest, i only like the 4th of july because it means a day off from work and an excuse to be outside having drinks with friends and watching fireworks. but the over-the-top gaudy americana of it kinda grosses me out. and if i have to hear the stupid toby keith song one goddamn time, i swear i'll... why i'll... throw my corn dog at someone!

it's been so long since i last blogged, i've been subconsciously saving up lots of words and thoughts and news. first, check out the updates i've made to the sidebar. i will have a FO page coming soon and i will (semi) regularly be updating my current and upcoming knit links. at the moment, i've got a lot of things in the works. i've temporarily put my feather and fan shawl and somewhat cowl on hold, cos lookie what i got...



i swear it took about all of 12 hours for this stuff to arrive from elann. they are so awesome there. anyway, i got 7 balls of the purple / blue cotton tape and the book. i've already started right in on making carla. i was inspired by the finished carlas I saw here and here and here (there are many more beautiful carlas out there - and so many talented knitters it's mind-blowing!).


i think it's going to be the perfect summer / fall sweater to pull on over a little camisole. the cotton tape feels so heavenly, too. it's the first rowan yarn i've ever worked with and i'm hooked. it is sooooo soft and cool and drapes so nicely. like others who have made the sweater, though, i'm afraid it will be too big - the pattern really stretches out. i decided to make the medium because my gauge measured a little tight in my swatch, but it's still looking big. oh well, others said they threw carla in the wash and it shrunk up a bit. since i only have 7 balls of yarn, i plan to make my sleeves shorter - probably 3/4 or a long short-sleeve. know what i mean? stayed tuned for updates on this - i'm moving along very quickly on it. i started it on sunday and i'm already finished with the back. by the way, should you decide to make this, beware of crappy, incomplete pattern. i looked here for help on making the raglan decreases.

hope everyone has a delightful 4th of july. happy birthday america!
~r

posted by rockbridge @ 8:43 AM