Sunday, May 13, 2012

Searching for the perfect shrug

While browsing online for baby clothes for my niece Lily several weeks ago, I found a cute flowered dress that I had to buy for her one year birthday coming up at the end of the month. The dress is sleeveless, so I decided to knit a matching shrug in blue that would bring out her eyes.



The dress arrived, the yarn arrived, but I could not for the life of me decide on a pattern for the shrug. Searching through my knitting books and the Ravelry database became a nightly obsession --  I don't even want to think about all of the hours I wasted spent on it. At one point I tried to convince myself to just buy a matching shrug (like this one from Zara) so I could move on with my knitting life, but in the end couldn't bring myself to do it.

This weekend I finally decided on this Victorian Lace Baby Shrug. The yarn is Berroco Pure Pima cotton in the color St. Bart (love!). It is such a relief to have finally stopped searching and started knitting!

I'm almost done reading the biography  Jane Austen: A Life Revealed . I'm so glad that I bought the physical book rather than the ebook. The clear, simple writing and the smooth matte finish of the pages make me feel like I'm reading a far more interesting version of my fifth grade history book. This book might be dull to those who have read other biographies of Jane (or don't have kind memories of their elementary school text books), but it is my first and I am enjoying it so much.


These little owl stitch markers arrived in the mail recently from the Hide and Sheep Etsy store. Are they not the cutest?



Just had to get a family shot.

12 comments:

justjenn said...

Oh wow, those owls are darling. I can't wait to see the finished shrug. I've got a one-year-old birthday party coming up in June...

Theresa said...

Lucky Lily to have such a sweet Aunt! Can't wait to see the shrug:) Cute owls, love the family shot! Have a blessed week dear friend, HUGS!

Katiebee said...

ohhhh that's a beautiful yarn! and those little owls....so sweet~

Tracey ~ Clover said...

I can't believe Miss Lily is almost one, the time has really flown!
What adorable stitch markers Stacy and so perfect for you.

Pumpkin said...

Lovely yarn! It will be wonderful as a shrug for an adorable little girl. I love the cute little stitch markers!

Suz said...

I can't believe she will be one year old either! Wow how time does fly
and I love those owls...
and the blue
she will be the best dressed child ever
and I can't believe you saw a rose breasted grosbeak!

PunkiePie (Jen) said...

That blue is just a stunning color! I can't wait to see the completed shrug for Miss Lily.

Lisa-24-7 said...

I love the color of that yarn. And the owls are super cute too!

Maiden Jane said...

What a sweet pattern and that yarn color - love it! I'm going to check out that book - love reading about Austen.

Angela said...

Your stitch markers are awesome! I can't wait to see your shrug! I'm in love with the color of yarn you've chosen!

Sparkle and Co said...

I love this blue! I've knitted this shrug once. I'm dying to see it when it'll be finished

Lap Dog Knits said...

lovely knitting...I have a new granddaughter who turned one this month...have I wasted endless hours looking for perfect patterns...oh yes!! many times

I love your selections - beautiful color blue

the markers - oh so cute, thanks for sharing!!

love your blog - you inspire me:-)