There's nothing like a good FO......

.....except two good FOs.

Yes, gentle reader, Linda's Christmas Top is finished!!!!

It looks great. I know I should be modest, but I can't. It's the first full-size garment I've ever designed from scratch, and it works beautifully. All the bits fit together! It's like magic :) I just need to boast about it tomorrow at the Knitting and Crochet Guild meeting, and then it can go into the post. It's only 8 weeks late!!

Hopefully I can pin Paul down (ooer, missus...) with his digital camera, and then I can reveal it to the world. Well, the select group of readers of my humble blog, anyway :)

The second FO is my feather-and-fan scarf made with my nummy yarn. It too looks gorgeous, more because of the yarn than my skill at knitting it up :) It is amazingly warm and snuggly. Photos follow of that, soon, too.

I've had another kind of FO this week, too. I went for my regular check-up with the adorable Dr Cook, my kind and considerate asthma/COPD doctor, and - he discharged me! Not because I'm cured, unfortunately, but because I am now on an even keel with my chest problems and can stop seeing him, unless and until I get the next attack.

At least he phrased the discharge better than Dr Earnshaw, my ME doctor, did. I knew what he meant, but 'I can't do anything more for you' sounded almost terminal!!

No Valentine cards on Monday (sniff!), but I did get something better - a parcel of lace-weight yarn from Mandy from the local K&C Guild. She sent a ball each of cream, peach, deep pink, blue and pale yellow. They are lovely things, but scary - so fine, it's like knitting with sewing thread! I have started a little feather-and-fan swatch with the pink, on 2.5mm needles, but I have to work on it first thing on a morning, when I can concentrate.....

Even so, it's addictive. Watch this space :)

Getting there

I am on to the home stretch with Linda's top. Both sleeves are now finished, and the whole thing is put together, mostly with crochet. I'm 9 rows into the collar now, and worrying that it's too wide :)

I discovered a lovely lacy-looking edging that attaches pieces together, and makes stocking stitch edges lie flat, too! I work a row of single crochet joining the two pieces, and then follow that with a row of crab stitch. It's much easier to use the ordinary single crochet as the joining stitch, because it's more elastic, and then the holes of the single crochet provide perfect spacing for the crab stitch. If you're new to either of these stitches, then I recommend the Denise Stitches guide here.

I've also started the feather and fan scarf that Mandy suggested for the nummy yarn, and it is looking beautiful! Finally, it's found a form it likes... Pictures follow soon!