Summer in the city

Summer has fallen upon Philly with a vengeance this week and it makes me glad to be sitting inside right now.  I've labeled these past two weeks as "get it DONE" weeks and have managed to make some progress not just on knitting projects, but I've also managed to get motivated with a few life goals.

Part of my absence is due to the fact that we went to Hawaii (Kauai, to be exact) for almost two weeks. It was truly an amazing experience and I managed to cross off a few things on my life list.

...including jumping out of an airplane (by choice). Skydiving was probably the most exhilarating and terrifying things I will ever do. The whole experience was so completely indescribable and it all happened so fast. I've been wanting to skydive since I was 16 or so, but I'm so glad I waited, as Kauai was the perfect place. The folks at Skydive Kauai were very professional and you can tell they take things very seriously. Don't be fooled by their rinky dink plane :)

I've also resumed getting my fitness on. We spent a lot of time being active in Kauai and it kind of kickstarted me towards getting back into running. Over the past three weeks I have managed to workout 5-6 days each week and I feel great. I haven't really noticed any changes, but I feel better about myself. Staying hydrated is one of the goals I need to work on, but that varies from day to day. I'm also considering signing up for the Philadelphia Half-Marathon in November, but that might be a bit too overambitious.

Maybe.

But enough about that. Let's get to the knitting. I've become overwhelmed lately by the amount of yarn I have/the amount of yarn I've been buying, so I'm on a one woman sweater mission. I would like to not have to buy any sweaters this fall/winter and I have been trying *so* hard to not get sucked in by accessories. How many cowls/shawls/hats does one lady need?!

Last week I finished my Delancey cardigan (by Alexis Winslow) and spent Monday night weaving in all 52 ends. 52(!) ends. Since starting, I have inspired two coworkers to knit this sweater and I can't wait for us to all look fabulous in them together. It really is the perfect sweater. Once this bad boy finishes drying (2 days and counting) I will be sure to post better pictures. I have good feelings about this one...it just may be the first sweater I have knit for myself AND liked.

This sweet little garter yoke baby cardigan has been waiting to be finished for months now. I started when there was still a nip in the air (gosh, when did I start this?) and now it's the longest day of the year. It should be no surprise to anyone that it sat knit and blocked for a month or two, just waiting for those buttons to be sewn on. And how I love these buttons:

Unfortunately, I think the intended baby is now too big :( SO. Somebody needs to have a baby now.

Another sweater that is "on the verge" of being abandoned is my Pomme de Pin cardigan. Can we just take a moment to discuss how awesome Amy Christoffers is? I think I have 4-5 of her patterns queued right now and this is the first I've actually sat down to knit. This sweater definitely had a rocky start and I have fudged too many times to count, but it just might be the squishiest thing I've ever knit. I'm using RYC Cashsoft DK (same as the baby sweater) and I'm loving it. As much as I love the scratchiness of "real" wool, a girl needs a little squish every now and then. I have a few rows of the fronts left and then it's on to the sleeves/border. Here's hoping it's done before fall ;)

And the final sweater on my needles is this RIDICULOUS Featherweight Cardigan. I snagged a bag of deep discount Koigu from Rosie's and cast on as soon as I realized I would have enough. I'll be elongating this one by a few inches, hoping it can reach full length cardigan status. Hannah Fettig is another favorite of mine and this is another first for me. The featherweight has been in my queue since I joined Ravelry, so it was only a matter of time. For being a sock weight cardigan, this sure has gone by fast.

The frantic need to knit MOAR has been heightened because one of my favorite new yarns is being discontinued and I have to fight the urge to stockpile it all away.

Manos del Uruguay Rittenhouse...may she rest in peace. I may or may not have picked out 4 sweaters that I "need" to make using Rittenhouse, but I will save that for next time. No good will come from that.

Happy knitting!

-Ashley