Shawl!

Well, I finished exams today!

And fittingly enough, I also finished my Woodland Shawl (aka the Sanity Retaining Exam Period Shawl):

I blocked it last night, got back from my Corporations Law exam (about as much fun as it sounds) this afternoon to find it all dry (talk about timing!) and took these photos straight away! I don't think I even took my shoes off first, I was that excited about the shawl! Wow, I don't think I've used that many (sincere) exclamation marks in a sentence before. I must be excited; I'm not an exclamation mark kind of girl normally...

Shiny nice shawl! I'm feeling extra triumphant about it since I dyed the yarn as well (some 4ply Naturally Haven - 100% wool). It was my first try at doing something that was closer to subtely different shades of the same colour, rather then 'here a colour, there a colour, everywhere a different colour' (though that's not without its charms, of course), and it came out okay. Really, I would have preferred a darker green - this shawl is bright, but I'm still happy with it.

The pattern was great too... very easy to memorise. I'd definitely make another one of these.

This was my commuting knit for the last month, and it was great for that (lightweight + comparatively short rows = train friendly). I got asked about it a fair bit as well - not to mention stared at. My favourite commuter incident was the most recent one; last week a little old Somali lady came and sat next to me and started stroking the knitting. She spoke virtually no English (if she actually knew the word 'knitting', she didn't use it), but somehow she got across that she knitted herself and she thought my shawl was pretty! I was smiling all day after that; I love the fact that something like knitting can make people go out of their comfort zones (i.e. approach a total stranger, of a totally different generation, who doesn't even speak the same language) like this. Really lovely...


Anyway, so now that I've finished the shawl, I feel justified in starting 60,000 new knitting projects. And sewing all that stuff I've been meaning to. And the writing! Ahhh, the post FO validation! I can feel it seeping into every pore...


Don't mind me... I think I'm suffering from post-exam flippancy. Bad Anna.