Spring has sprung

My excuse for not posting for a while is that my dear little laptop had an accident a while back, and I had to take it to the PC doctor. Because of a misunderstanding, it took them a whole month to fix it. Well, not quite, but because they ordered and installed the wrong cover for it, it took twice as long as is should have. I got it back now, and I have to say, I really missed it! And mom started complaining already that there aren't any new blog posts, so I better write one immediately. Here comes, mom!

Since the last time I posted, I had to go on another trip, this time for more unfortunate reasons. My 84-year-old Grandpa passed away, and I went to Finland for the funeral. The whole family came together for the event, and even though a funeral's a funeral, it was great to see everybody. We spent a lot of time reminescing about the last, oh, 60-some years. Or however long each one of has had known Grandpa. The things that everybody seemed to remember about him were that he was fair, just, honest and hard working. What an honor to be remembered as such an exemplary individual. I will miss him greatly! The whole time I kept thinking that he had such a great life, and that I wish people could say the same, when my time comes.

It was great to go back home after a two year long hiatus. I'm going again this summer, for happier reasons and with more time. This time I was there for only a few days, and without the kids or my husband. This of course meant a lot of uninterrupted knitting time on travel days. I usually travel through Amsterdam, and this time was no exception. On my way back I had a long lay-over, and I went on a little tour of the Amsterdam area:

What a great way to spend those few hours that otherwise you'd spend sitting around at the airport!

On my trip I finished Salina -it is one of my favorite patterns, and I just love wearing it. The fit is just perfect, the style is nice and simple, but not without a couple of interesting details. I love Rowan Felted Tweed, although it could be just a little softer. I might have to try and give it a vinegar rinse and see, if that would take off the scratchiness.

I knitted the whole thing in the round, sleeves and all. That is my preferred way, because I just love miles and miles of plain stockinette! And piecing the thing together was a breeze! I also knitted the sleeves quite a bit longer, because I don't like short or even 3/4 sleeves on wool sweaters. I'm always cold, and my hands especially, so I like loooong sleeves. I also made just 3 button holes, as I really didn't see the need for the fourth one.

I have this yarn in 3 different colors, so I'll probably be making another Salina at some point. There are also a couple of other patterns in the same book that I might want to make.

Because the airport security people in Europe aren't quite as understanding of knitters as they are here in the US, I also took along a crochet project. I thought, if I have a very much not-sharp, large size crochet hook (5 mm or larger) with me, I just can't see them taking it away! I got this book called Amazing Crochet Lace by Doris Chan, and it's got some really nice shawl patterns in there that are designed after traditional crochet doilies. One of my favorites is the shawl on the cover, which is the one I started.

The yarn is Berroco Seduce, an interesting blend of linen, rayon and silk. A lot shinier than in the picture. You can also see, where I was getting my crochet mojo from: straight from the bottle! ;) I'm usually not a Pepsi drinker, but the European Pepsi Max (diet) tasts much closer to Diet Coke that Coke Light does. It's just one of those things.