I've been really busy lately, which is good and bad. Good that I've had gigs, bad that my cat decided to protest his perceived neglect by designating my bedroom floor as his personal toilet. Cats are such assholes. Since I was working almost all the hours in the day, he wasn't getting all the attention to which he is accustomed. Now, he wants attention in the worst way, and that's how he gets it. He is lying next to me now as I write this, getting the occasional petting and making the occasional purr.

I had to toss about half a wardrobe in clothing that he pissed on, which has inspired a new knitting initiative. I want to replace the pieces that I threw away with new handknits, so I'll be knitting out of season this summer. It lacks the satisfaction of being able to wear something as soon as it is finished, but there is a limited number of things one can knit and wear in the summer. I've already made the ones that I want (unless someone has 5 skeins of Allhemp 6 they're not going to use).

I started this plan by almost finishing my Metro cardigan. The only thing left to do is sewing down the collar, on which the pattern gives little guidance. After putting so much work into it, I don't want to mess it up with bad finishing. I've already ripped out the rolled hem, which was awkward and unflattering, and re-knit it as a 2 x 2 rib. I wish I had done that in the first plaec.

Today, I started knitting an Acer cardigan in O-Wool Balance, the 50/50 cotton/wool blend that the pattern specifies. I frequently make substitutions, but I had the yarn in my stash for another project, since decided against. After some Ravelry surfing and an inspiring couple of posts by the Yarn Harlot, I decided to use the yarn to make an Acer. The yarn is really lovely, though I am not totally sold on the fiber content. Ideally, it would have the good properties of both components, but it doesn't seem to have a lot of woolly stretch. It's what I would call a soft red (the manufacturer calls it ruby), but will probably look pink in the finished garment.

I haven't made much progress on the knitting front because I've spent most of my free time sewing and quilting. Sewing offers more instant gratification than knitting, though it is definitely less portable. I finally finished hand quilting the super secret nap quilt, after hundreds of hours of stitching away at it. It just needs a binding now and a test wash, then it will be done.

In order to have the most number of works in progress possible, I started a baby quilt for a friend who recently had a son instead of binding the secret quilt. The front of the quilt took a day to cut and piece. The whole thing probably could have been done in a couple days, but for a few complicating factors. First, I did not have a batting or backing for it, having decided to buy such things when I got around to making the front. Second, my car was out of commission, which made obtaining such things difficult. It turned out to be the thermostat and radiator fan, but I was afraid that it would be a much more expensive repair, like the head gasket or a cracked block. My wonderful mechanic got that all sorted out for me, so I went home and succumbed to a head cold and another sewing delay.

While still a little under the weather, I put together my quilt sandwich and started freehand quilting the baby quilt on my trusty Singer. My not so trusty Singer, since the bobbin thread kept looping on the underside, which is a real bitch to pick out at zero stitch length. Just as I really got into quilting my tight stipple pattern (kind of like drawing brains), it decided to quit. I was in a groove, then nothing. I'd thought about taking my machine for a tune-up after Christmas, but true to form, had procrastinated and ridden it hard since then. Well, it wouldn't grab the bobbin thread, deciding to hit the hook instead. I took it to be repaired, where they told me it was a timing issue. It will be in the shop for the next week. My mom is letting me use her Bernina in the mean time. It's a newer machine, so it has a few more bells and whistles that I won't need, and it doesn't have the same feel as my old mechanical friend. The feed dogs are more aggressive than I'm used to, so I will have to stay on my toes while I do a bit of piecing this week. Or I can just knit.