Sock it to the socks

Project update:
The good news: I've reduced the number of unfinished projects by two!

The bad news: I didn't actually finish those projects, I've just permanently abandoned them.

First, the red sock. I was working with Handmaiden Casbah, a delightful blend of superwash merino, cashmere and nylon, wonderfully soft and cozy. At 9 sts/in worked in stockinette, the yarn lost a lot of its charm. The sock was too stiff, not terribly stretchy, and the sock was plain boring. I wasn't having fun knitting it, and when I tried it on, it felt like it was cutting off the circulation at my calf. I'm thinking that if I knit a yarn of that thickness to a gauge that tight, I might not be able to have as much negative ease as I'm used to (an inch). So rather than finish the sock, and then never get around to the second one, I decided to frog and wait for Cookie A's sock book that's coming out this spring. I'll knit at a gauge more suitable to the yarn, and take advantage of the near-solid nature of the sock to use a great stitch pattern.

Second, the green mitten. God, I hate that mitten. I hate the color, I hate the mitten pattern that came with it, and I hate the resulting mitten. I can't think of any situation that would compel me to make another one.

So, what have I actually made progress on? Well, I worked on the pink sock yesterday, while at the Minnesota Knitters' Guild annual tea.

Mostly, I've been working on Nina's bedroom. All painting is complete, the shades have been re-hung, the closet is finished, the curtains have been hemmed and hung, and the fabric has been washed, ironed and cut for the slipcover I'm making for the couch that will go in her room. She set up her old bed (it'll be a few weeks before the new one arrives), but she has the new bedside tables and lamps in place.

many hours later...

The couch slip cover is complete. I'm pretty happy with it,.


and Nina is too, which is a relief.