next time, I knit the sleeves first

That way I won't have to dread the prospect of knitting them. I always enjoy knitting sweaters, but for some reason by the time I get to the sleeves I'm just tired. Knitting two long sleeves is the equivalent of knitting another sweater back. I'm also definitely wanting to try that Siamese sleeve thing that Anne did for Erin.

Some progress was made on the Fearless Fair Isle. I'm about half-way through the sleeve itself, although there will still be cuff ribbing to do after that.

No knitting on the installment sweatshirt jacket, although over the period of 3 evenings I did eventually spin enough for a 50 yard skein. It's hanging in the tree out back - although it was probably dry 30 minutes after I put it out there. It's supposed reach about 104 degrees today. Can I come stay with you guys in Toronto? On second thought, it's pretty hot there, too, and not everyone has air conditioning (after all, a/c is probably not needed very often). Never mind, I'll just sit and sweat here.

Look! It's a bird! It's a plane! No, it's almost a sock! There's a reason this sock is done in two colors in the book - you can't squeeze an entire sock out of one skein. You've heard of gold toe brand socks? These will be gray toe socks.

As I'm approaching the end of my first Fair Isle project (and as much as I've griped about it, it has been a lot of fun) my brain has been over-heating on new Fair Isle ideas. I charted out a few motifs several months ago, but have been re-thinking them. That's the fun of designing your own stuff - you can play with a bunch of different ideas before you start knitting and then can change things around if they don't work. You've just got to be willing to trash it and start over if the vision in your brain doesn't translate properly into your chosen medium. (Wow, that sounded almost scholarly, didn't it?)

Every time I've created something from my own ideas it has taken much longer to become a finished object, but I've been much more satisfied with the result. It will probably take a while before I've got this new Fair Isle charted out and it will probably change ten times before I start knitting (and may change a few times during knitting, too). Even if I never get around to knitting it, designing is half the fun.