Irish Moss Toque and other stuff

I finished the Irish Moss Toque for my friend Leigh Anne yesterday. I'm not going to block it as it looks pretty good already and I don't have a head form to make sure it blocks in the round. I hope Leigh Anne likes it! I enjoyed knitting it - the chart was pretty good and easy to follow. Every round is three repeats of the chart and it knits up quickly. Two repeats of the 24 row chart and you're ready for the decreases. I wasn't really a fan of the decreases as they stay in pattern but it's so easy to lose track of which stitches remain and which ones disappear. It looks pretty good, though, so I'm pleased overall:


I will get a picture of her wearing it as soon as I can.

In other news, I was finally able to knit up the Evenstar swatch. I will be participating in the Evenstar Mystery Shawl Knit along that begins on the 12th. I love all of Susan Pandorf's designs, and this shawl kicks off a whole series of designs inspired by the Lord of the Rings. The inner geek in me is loving this. I'm going up a needle size, which I was worried about at first but my swatch just barely got gauge so I think the size should just about even out. My yarn is Knit Picks Shadow, colorway "Midnight Heather" I hope this shawl goes better than the mystery sock did. I still have to frog that and design a new sock to make from it. I won't be beginning that project until the following are done:

1. Icarus
2. Horseshoe Scarf
3. Giraffe
4. Manhattan sock #2

The Evenstar Shawl will be knit apace with the clues, if I'm lucky. I have February vacation next week and I'm hoping to knock out at least two projects by the end of the week. Wish me luck!