Another year flew by!

Happy New Year to you, my dear readers! As I write this, 2011 is almost over and I am looking forward to 2012. I hope the new year brings you joy, prosperity and good health. I hope that there is more peace in the world and less suffering. 2011 was a tough year for many folks but there were also some streaks of light in the east. People stood up for freedom and against tyranny. I hope their sacrifices don't go unrewarded.

My goals in 2012 are to work from stash and not to buy more yarn. I have lots of yarn and I am making more.

I started spinning again. I had been on a hiatus since Oct for one reason or another. I plied the singles I had spun back in Oct but I haven't finished the yarn yet. Then I started spinning this Targhee top that I bought on clearance from Woodland Woolworks last spring. I needed the bright colors as it is dreary and gray outside. It also gets dark early so the colors are my way of brightening up the dark days of winter.

I also started another shawl. This is in a linen/silk blend from Colourmart. I had bought 3 cones in different colors a while ago. I am making the Dancing Cranes pattern from Elann.com. It is a simple lace pattern from one of the Barbara Walker treasuries called Japanese Feather. I designed and made a pair of socks with it years ago.

This stole is for a niece who is in India. I think the linen/silk will soften with time and also be cool for the hotter climate. The swatch (pictured above) has a nice crisp hand but is not as soft as I would like. I think I'll machine wash the stole to see if it softens up further before I deliver it.