Catching Up

So last I checked in, I was living in Austin, TX. I suppose you might say that I was on a 13 month vacation in the middle of the country. It was a great experience and I feel that we all grew during that time. But I have to say, there is nothing in the world like living in Los Angeles, California. I LOVE LA!!!

We’ve been through a lot since having moved back in the middle of October 2011.

The kids started school here in our old neighborhood. Garrett rocketed up to the most popular kid in his school and Faith became super popular with the boys in her new middle school. I started and stopped working in a completely messed up high school that had very nearly cured me of wanting to watch any TV as that workplace provided me with PLENTY of drama to last me a few years.

..

In any case, I’ve taken up knitting and crochet again with a vengeance and I wanted to show you one of the first of THREE, yes, three shawls that I crocheted. Well, three of the exact same shawl, to be clear. I wore the thing out while I was at my parent’s house in SF and my mom took it right off my shoulders and so I started work on a new one which my friend claimed. I then started a third one which I’ve managed to keep now for a few months and now that I’ve worn it so many times, I’m definitely not giving that one away…

I recently got a request for a new one, so I’ve started that one just a few days ago. You can see a picture of the shawl in it’s early stages.

It really is a beautiful shawl and it goes with practically EVERYTHING. I’ve actually been wearing it under a leather jacket as well and it looks fantastic! It’s very feminine. You can see that it has a very pretty design. I love the way it drapes and the frilly edges. The added bonus is that you can wear it during spring and even in the summer here in California when the evening gets a bit chilly. The shawl is surprisingly warm even though it has a very loose design.

This shawl pattern can be found in Crochet So Fine, but I only followed the first 25 rows and everything beyond

that I just made up as I went along. I didn’t follow the pattern from that point forward at all so my shawl came out differently than the one pictured in the book. To boot, I used Patons Lace in Patina, a very different kind of yarn than the one recommended.