We may end up going with the house-without-a-dining-room (HWADR?). We went back to see it again on Tuesday, and it really is a great house, in a great neighborhood (it's across the street from a lake, which you can just about see from the upstairs--and certainly could in the fall and winter), and Mark's commuting time wouldn't change (mine would be three minutes longer, no big deal). Last night I came home to Mark playing with a furniture planner. A baby grand does make it more complicated to figure out where the furniture will fit (especially because I will actually be using the piano, and moving around in front of it), but it's nice to know our huge furniture would actually fit. (Mark even wondered if we should sell ours and buy smaller stuff from IKEA, so we could have more than four seats!) Anyway, I think my parents are coming up Sunday to take a look--and if all goes well, we might even make an offer. It is kind of nervewracking...

Finally, a picture of my Fountain Pen Shawl!


Mark took a bunch more (which are here). It was really, really hot that day, and we were out on the newly-refinished parking lot.

I've made decent progress on the Wavy Lace Cardigan as well:


At this point I've finished both fronts and am working on the back. Then sleeves, edging, a huge amount of blocking (this is stretchier than I thought it'd be!) and I'll be done. It's pretty fast.

I saw a Knitting Daily video a while back where Eunny Jang was talking about jogless striping. One of the techniques was to divide a project in the round equally onto circular needles, then knitting a different color for each needle; the colors "barber pole" around, and there aren't any abrupt changes. I decided to try this out in a pair of toe-up stockinette socks. I'm using three great leftover yarns in complementary colors: Malabrigo Sock, Trekking XXL and SHEEPAINTS BambooLaine.


These are really cool! I like how they look more variegated than striped. I'm on the second sock now, but I want to finish it before Wednesday so I can take a new sock on our long trip next week.

The house-hunting has been, well, going. I guess I'm getting a little frustrated. We found a cute older brick house (sing the song! do it!) in a good neighborhood that met all our needs, and then we found out the utilities are $300 a month (my parents' house is half that, and they have a hot tub). There was one other house we liked a lot which was newer, but it doesn't have a dining room so we'd need to sacrifice that. We do like to entertain, and feel like we ought to have one, but the house does have a killer brand-new kitchen, and a decent-sized eat-in area; maybe we don't really need it. As I orginally expected, most of the houses in our price range are either cute but too small or not private, or private but older (and apparently not energy efficient). We have only seen ten houses, so it's probably too soon to get too frustrated yet. We are seeing four more tonight, and hopefully there will be another good one to choose from. We really don't want to push our price any higher than we have to...

I finally finished my Fountain Pen Shawl last week, but I still need Mark to take pictures. Then I even finished my mystery project--so it was time to start something new. Because it's July, I thought a wool cardigan would be perfect (/irony). I have a dozen or more on my Ravelry queue at any given time, and I decided it was time for this Wavy Lace Cardigan. There are only four projects on Ravelry, including mine--I presume this is because there's no project photo. Maybe I can be an ambassador for this poor neglected pattern. I decided to add a LOT of shaping in the body (the pattern doesn't have any), so I changed the side ribbing a bit, and added eight stitches to the largest size so I'd have an inch or so of ease. It's kind of a stretchy sweater, so that may have been a really good idea. I am 3/4 of the way to the underarm, and am using Lion Brand Fishermen's Wool in Natural--an underrated yarn, I think. I may even have a picture of this next week.

We're keeping busy over here. I've had a bunch of rehearsals and lessons and meetings to try and stay motivated with my singing through this drought. In house news, the pre-approval is complete, and tomorrow we're meeting with a second agent (one with Zip Realty, incidentally) recommended by a knitting friend. We'll make a decision between the two agents, then actually start shopping! Exciting times. I have been checking out this awesome A-frame for a month or two, and it will be interesting to actually get inside and see whether the kitchen is too small, or the bathrooms are awful (the online pictures aren't clear in these issues)--we don't mind buying a place that's a bit outdated, as long as it doesn't have grody carpets or nasty bathrooms. We shall see...

Radio Note: stations have understandably had Michael Jackson on heavy rotation--but I've also been hearing way more Fleetwood Mac, Boston and The Black Crowes (my third-favorite band from high school) than seems normal. Monday I heard "Livin' on a Prayer" twice in two hours. What is up?!

Here's some knitting:


Remember a few months ago, when I started St. James but had to frog after a gauge disaster? Well, here's what it's supposed to look like... I found this cotton yarn at A.C. Moore--$3.50 after a 50% off coupon. it only took about ten days, and I am quite pleased with the results. I'm wearing it today, and I think I calculated enough negative ease that it's not stretching out the way I expected. Now I totally feel like a Mad Men character--without the secondhand smoke and sexual harrassment and three-martini lunches. (Though I could always use the latter...)

Also, I've finished the second half of the socks I test-knitted (TdF Socks):



The pattern is here--fast, simple without being mindless, and husband-approved. Plus I get a shout-out at the end of the pattern!

My main project right now is a secret one, so no pictures! Also, I am almost finished with my Fountain Pen Shawl (I'm halfway through the border chart). I'll be glad to finally be done--it is huge. Once I finish I'll get back to the afghan. My goal is to finish it for Mark's birthday in October.

Speaking of patterns, here is an tutorial for making an adorable pincushion from a baby food jar. I don't have any baby food jars, but I do have a salsa jar. I was thinking it would be perfect for holding buttons.

Oh, since I'm posting links, check out this interview with Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I think I want to be her when I grow up...