August and September Knitting

I was busy in August knitting a couple of gifts. The first was a Baby Surprise Jacket for a co-workers baby shower. I used Plymouth Encore Colorspun. I pretty much hated this yarn, it was kind of scratchy or something on my hands. My local yarn store had a very limited selection of washable yarns that weren't cotton, so next time I know there is a baby coming I'm going to be sure not to procrastinate and thus have time to order nicer yarn. I don't know why I always put off making the gift until (in this case) one week before the shower, but there is always next time!

The jacket itself was an awesome pattern, very easy to follow and fairly mindless. I knit most of it sitting at the bar of Vessel in Seattle. We were in Seattle for a conference and it was fortunate to have such an awesome bar right around the corner from the hotel. Also featured on this project were some vintage buttons from my stash.

Another knitting project was a One Skein Wonder shrug for my friend. Earlier in the summer I made this dress

for her and when I visited her she kept shivering the whole time she wore it. So the search for a nice yarn that wouldn't be too hot and would actually match was on. The colors in the dress are peach, pink, purple and green, and it seems like most yarn colorways with pink or peach feature blue instead of green. I finally found a nice ribbon yarn - Filatura Di Crosa "Malva" that was a perfect match.



I think it's pretty cute. I'm still waiting on a picture of the two worn together!

In other knitting news, I'm still working on Sahara. I started this in June, thinking it would be great for summer, but I've been slow to finish it. I've got a few more rows to do on the neckline, then I can start the sleeves. It shouldn't take too much longer if I devote several days to just knitting it.
I also made a scarf from Exquisite Little Knits. I used my own handspun, which wasn't as bulky as the pattern called for, but made a nice lacy fabric. It's still going to be warm, which is the important part! I have enough yarn left to make a matching hat too.
This is what it looks like flat: