Needle Exchange Package! THANKS!!!!!

Looky, looky what I got today! Tee hee! I got a beautiful forest green skein of Plymouth Yarn baby alpaca brush, ADDI turbos (woohoo), an embellished tape measure (too cute), a needle sleeve, the cutest 'purse' card and stickers (tee hee - those made me smile). WOW! I made out like a bandit! Thanks to my "yarnyetta" heatherly needle exhange pal(I'd link to your blog but it wasn't listed on the exchange page)! OK, so, besides a scarf or a hat, is there anything that I can make with 1 skein of baby alpaca brush (110 yards - 3.5 st/inch on size 9 US) or should I google the color and lot to try to get more?

A FO! (no not the shawl YET)

So, after the setback with the shawl, I had to do something quick, uplifting and fun to get me back on the upside of knitting. I whipped out another one of my baby caps. It's amazing how many people are having babies or grandbabies around me lately.

Here is the newest addition:



Cute right? I think it is anyway. I used Lion's Brand cotton-ease and made up the design as I went along. I think it's different but still cute. I especially like the top. Now all we need if the baby to decide it's time to meet Momma and Daddy!



Ok, Ok, OK. I WILL work on my shawl so that I can complete my first Project Spectrum project on time. I will. Really. Tonight. No kidding. (sigh)

You know what they say about the best laid plans. . . . . .

Well, I was fully intending on having a picture of a complete shapely shawlette to post today. Sigh. This is where the title of this post comes in. . . .

I have been talking at my sit 'n knit group about the importance of life lines. Especially in projects involving many YOs and 'made' stitches. I was using them all along with this project. So, what's the problem you might ask? Well, in my last pattern repeat in the last 'lace' portion of the shawl, I got a unwanted lesson. Here's what I learned.

NEVER.

GET.

COCKY!

EVER!

"I'm almost done." I thought. "I don't need to spend the time to run one last life line through". (you see where this is heading, right?) "I'll be on the garter ridge before the bind off in 3 more rows". Then karma came in to play. BAD karma.

I was all ready to finish this up yesterday. My count was off. WAY off. I tried to unknit a row or two until I could get to a purl row where I could decipher what was a true stitch and not something I was accidentally picking up.

I had to rip back to my LAST life line. AT THE BEGINNING OF THE LAST LACE SECTION. I had to rip back about 5-6 inches worth of knitting before I finally got to a row where the stitches all made sense. SIGH. Sigh again. Sob. Tear falls slowly down the cheek.

Thankfully, there was a new West Wing and Grey's Anatomy last night to make me forget my woes.

I might try to pick it up today. I don't know. But I DID add a life line!