Atropos, Atropos, where have you been?

Sorry for the lengthy silence, ladies & gentlemen. Those of you that read my LJ will know that I have been running around like a crazy fool for the last 3 weeks because I have been moving house, and singing in concerts and generally tearing my hair out with everything that needs to get done at home & at work before Christmas. The horror is beginning to abate but sadly my digital camera is currently packed in one of the many boxes strewn around my new flat so there will be no pictures until I find it.

I know. I get the crap knitblogger award for the month. I'm learning to deal with it.

But even though I have been surrounded by chaos there has been knitting, although you'll just have to imagine it until I've opened a few more boxes.

In the main, much progress has been made on Christmas socks. Since I last posted the Vine Lace pair are done, I've finished another pair in double eyelet rib (for my sister in law) and am about to start the second sock on a third pair in some other lace pattern whose name I forget (for my best friend). Go me! I can now turn a short row heel and do kitchener stitch without reference to the pattern. I can also turn out a sock in 2-3 evenings of solid knitting, depending on how complex the lace pattern is. And I finally seem to have conquered the eyelet problem. I'm quite pleased with that, even if I do say so myself.

My last 3 socks have been in Koigu PPPM rather than Apple Laine, and I have to say I *heart* it. I love the zinginess of the colours, the smoothness of it to knit with and the fact that it is really difficult to split even when you are doing kitchener stitch with a pointy needle in Strict Defiance of the Instructions. Luckily I have plenty more where that came from. Perhaps I will get to knit myself something out of it after Christmas *sigh*

I have also finished the baby blanket for my new nephew / niece, which is a darn good job given that he / she is due to put in an appearance on Christmas Day. I really like it now it's done, and I think the simplicity of the pattern makes it very stylish, but let me tell you a moss stitch blanket of whatever size is truly a labour of love. It just seemed to take forever. I'm hopeful that it will get a lot of use though, so that will be OK.

In other news I gave the Harvest socks away at the weekend and they were received with much squeeing and delight. It is very nice to put so much effort into something and have the recipient be so pleased with it. I just hope the rest of my knitted gifts go down so well.

Finally, proof positive that the fact that knitting is hip is finally penetrating these shores. I was doing the toe decreases on one of my socks on the Tube the other day when a 20-something, blonde-haired, rather lovely looking young man with a pierced lip leant over and said "Oh, is that how you knit socks. I've always wondered. I can knit scarves and things but that looks really complicated." We proceeded to have a 5 minute conversation about how simple it was really, yarn, needle sizes etc. to the absolute astonishment of everyone else in the carriage. If I weren't married I might even regard this as evidence that knitting makes a good flirtation technique. Who knew?

Anyway, hopefully in a few days normal service will be resumed, but you might have t bear with me a little longer. Rest assured that even if I'm not blogging I most certainly am knitting :)