The Best of Times, The Worst of Times

I am finished with my Ribwarmer! This was a really fun project to knit, but when it came time to sew it together, things got a bit rough. First, sewing items together always gets me nervous. I love to knit, but don't like to sew. I think if I sewed projects together more often, like anything else, I'd get more comfortable with it and I'd do just fine.

The first seam I sewed, which I thought was supposed to be sewing two bound-off edges together in the "faux Kitchener" method, didn't look as perfect as I wanted it to, so I redid it--4 times. Then I accepted it as it was and moved on to the next several seams, which were various varieties--rows to rows, rows to stitches, etc., and looked much better. But...the Ribwarmer didn't look right...I couldn't see where my head or arms would go. I did a Flickr search and found a very helpful photo of Emma's Ribwarmer, which SAVED me! Now the project is done--I really like it, although I may wet-block it so that it's just slightly larger. Here are some pics:

I also completed my test-along square this week, and completed 3 out of the 5 FunFur hats I am making for Kate's project for kids with cancer. I'm just awaiting some size 13 DPN's I ordered to make the last two. I feel good that between these two charity projects and the Ribwarmer, I've done some pretty decent stash-busting. The Brown Sheep Worsted I'll have leftover from the Ribwarmer will probably go toward one more charity project, a scarf for a World War II veteran, organized by Lauren at the National World War II Museum.

I've been struggling with my Titania's Revenge socks (hence the name, I suppose) but now that all of these other things are done, I will try to finish Sock #1, at least, for now.

I also got the new novel and soon-to-be Julia Roberts flick The Friday Night Knitting Club out of the library. So far I love it! I think it's based on a Yarn Shop I used to go to when I lived in Manhattan, so it's nostalgic among other nice qualities. I only have it for 7 days, though, how will I fit in all of the reading, knitting and the rest of life in general?