Fluffbuff

2007 will go down as my year of lace, where I learned to knit lace in the first place and got hooked on shawls big time.

Knitting projects for this past year have included three scarves, six shawls, a pair of wrist warmers, two pairs of socks and a pair of convertible mittens, for a total of thirteen FOs. If I had to pick a favorite project, it would probably be Anne Hanson's Wing o' the Moth, that I knit twice. I just LOVE that pattern. A while back I bought also the pattern for her Bee Fields triangular shawl, but just looking at the 18-page print-out has stopped me from trying. Her patterns are beautifully crafted, include charts and step-by-step written instructions, but there is such a thing as too much information for me; perhaps it's because I grew up in Italy where patterns are less detailed. I've heard just the opposite complaint from American knitters who find European patterns too sketchy and vague. In any case, Anne's designs are gorgeous and I can't say enough good things about her.

The gray cashmere sweater is about 80% done, but I haven't worked on it for a couple of weeks because my arm was starting to suffer from constantly knitting with tiny needles. This week I also started another shawl, this time for my mother. She liked the pictures of Swallowtail, so that's what I am making (here goes the serial knitter again). It's okay to mention it since she has no Internet access and only gets to look at my blog when she visits my brother in London. This time I am going to modify the pattern by adding five repeats to the main area, so the shawl is a more wearable size. I really didn't get much use from my own Swallowtail because it's so tiny.

Despite my best intentions, I still have a couple of embarrassing UFOs languishing in the closet. We shall not mention them again until such a time as they change status, all right Marina?

This has been an exciting year for the knitting community because of Ravelry. If you are still on the waiting list, you should know that there will be an Open House event in January, so keep an eye on the Ravelry blog for updates.

I'd like to close this post by thanking all the knit bloggers out there that have kept me inspired throughout the year, as well as the knitters without a blog who have emailed me asking questions, offering answers, or simply to say "Hi". You all add to my enjoyment of knitting and I have learned a lot in so many ways. Too many of you to mention in one post, but thank you girls! and a few boys, as well.

Happy new year everybody!

And, as we say in Italian, Buona fine e buon principio! (Happy ending and happy beginning!)