Two Finished Objects

...and one sock.

Finished Object One is the Striped Tunic, from an old Vogue Knitting.

I'm not real sure what happened with the sleeves, why it looks so blocky, but as usual the model for the sweater in the magazine is a stick insect, so of course it drapes beautifully on her. Stupid skinny chick. Anyway, I might try to add a dart or pinch in the waist just a bit and wear it with tights or something. 

Yarn is my new favorite -- Patons Classic Wool Worsted, Cognac Heather. 

Finished Item Two is the Mari Lace Cowl. The pattern is from one of the one-skein books, the lace one, I think. It was an exceptionally simple pattern, but I dithered with it, so it's just now been finished. Yarn is some KnitPicks samples I got a few years ago. 

Helpfully modeled by Pretty Kitty in the back yard. 

And, I finished half of a pair of socks. Downy Buffalo Socks, From the same one-skein book. I've got one done, in Deborah Norville sock yarn, Hibiscus. 

I don't know why it came out so bulky on the bottom. 

These FOs were WIPs for a long time! I just needed a break from knitting for a while. I have some other hibernating projects, and I decided to pick up the Raspberry Dream Shawl, a fairly simple lace shawl I started in October 2013:

Perhaps I will finish it by October this year. Now that I've gotten some more experience with lace knitting, it's not so intimidating. I know enough now to understand, if I get lost, what the stitches are supposed to look like. And if I lose a yarn-over, or have a miscounted row, I can figure out what went wrong. So I'll take another bash at it!

I imagine everyone else is as busy with summer gardening and summer fun as I am, which is why the knitting blogosphere is so quiet! Particularly those of you in Norway and Michigan (and here in Maryland), who don't get a lot of summer every year.

I leave you with this totally gratuitous picture of an adorable dog showing how Puppy Eyes are done.