and so is she

I realize I scraped the bottom yesterday. I posted pictures of sleeping people. Sleeping people, people. But when you're blogging every day, you're entitled to a little filler here and there. And really, that Schmin and his antics just tickle me.

Today, I've got serious content.

This here is what they call knitting. I wanted to post it yesterday, but it wasn't dry yet, hence the filler. Once I finally got the pattern settled, I worked on this a good while ( 4 - 6 weeks off and on, roughly). The whole affair got off to a rocky start. I tried to make the yarn into this at first:

Much too busy. No sleekness whatsoever. Plus, the needle size was too small (US 7) to give the proper drape. I switched patterns -- from the Feather & Fan Comfort Shawl to Laura Chau's Simple Yet Effective Shawl -- upped the needles to 10s, and finally hit the sweet spot. The yarn is Elann's Sonata in the Southwest Sunset colorway.

It's for my mother-in-law (my father-in-law's current wife, not the mama of The Bubs), who was diagnosed with breast cancer two years ago. Yes, it's taken me this long to gift her with the comfort of knitting, even though straightaway I asked her favorite colors, told her I'd be sending her something, and bought the yarn. Best laid plans.

Now it is done, in spite of my fussiness over it (because of it?). It's what I wanted it to be. It has all the corals and turquoise blues and peaches she loves, with some red thrown in for passion. It'll be perfect for cool summer evenings. I'm sending it in celebration of her being wonderful and cancer free. And I think she'll like it, which is the best part.

Project Notes
Yarn: Cotton. Mercerized. I enjoy working with this fiber. Many people don't. Somewhat obnoxious number of knots. About 7 balls used.
Pattern: Excellent, because you don't really need it. You just increase, knit, and purl. You decide when to do the last two.
Measurement: Approx 76" w and 44" h
Happiness: Mucho