Stitching and Stuff

I finished stitching and beading the Holly 'n Hardanger Christmas ornament.
I have an urge to do a couple more stitching projects - just for some variety. I find the ornaments stitch up quickly which is quite satisfying. By next Christmas I should have a whole bunch of them and perhaps I could give some of them as gifts.

This evening I finished the left front of the Cassidy cardigan and have blocked it to make sure it will fit me.
I made it 2 inches longer than the pattern calls for. There is shaping for the waist so it should look nicely fitted. This Cascade 220 Heathers is wonderful to work with. I have heard, however, that it is being discontinued. What a bummer.

The pattern calls for a hood, but I think I'm just going to knit a collar and put the cables on the other side of it so when the collar is folded down, the cables will show nicely.Here's kalamazoo's hoodless Cassidy. I really like how her collar turned out.
I've charted the sleeves, right front and back which will make it easier to knit. I really don't like jumping from Chart B to Chart A to Chart F, etc. I'm more of a visual learner.
I also replaced my netbook with a nifty Acer Aspire One D255. The tipping point was that it had a dual core Intel processor and was on sale at a place where I get a 10% rebate (Staples). It looks like a full-sized laptop except it only has a 10.1" screen and weighs just over a kilogram.
Yesterday I responded to a request on the Yahoo Socknitter's group for a test knitter. I heard back from Jaden who lives in Köln, Germany and she hopes to send me a .pdf of what she has done on the written pattern so far. She recommends sock yarn with wide bands of colour and thought KnitPicks Chroma sock yarn would work well. Evidently the pattern has optional holes (like lace) which would make the pattern suitable for both men and women. I look forward to receiving the pattern.