Don’t worry, I haven’t been skiing, it’s just that I’ve completed all of the sloping ribs on the Slope Rib Sweater and am now onto the finishing straight. I’ve paused at the point where I will begin the neck shaping, but I intend to get that done today and perhaps have the whole sweater completed during the long Easter weekend.

I have worked out the neck shaping on paper, doing the calculations to re-write it from two separate cardigan fronts to one single jumper front. I’m not at all convinced that I have it right, so I anticipate a bit of wrangling before I’m happy with it.

I was beginning to lose enthusiasm again earlier this week as the east of England sweltered in temperatures more acceptable in June than March, and my thoughts turned to lighter-weight garments. At that point I picked up my pink yarns to do another swatch.

I’m not at all sure what this pink yarn is going to become. I bought it with Brooklyn Tweed’s Arabella design in mind, but I have two reservations: matching the gauge and wanting, in my heart, to keep that pattern aside until I can afford a really lovely wool for it. At the moment, I’m experimenting with different needle sizes with this yarn to see which fabric pleases me most. Then I will hopefully find a pattern I like which matches the gauge I’m getting. I foresee disaster! Matching gauges and patterns is quite the worst part of knitting if you ask me.

Anyway, my jaunt into summertime colours was shortlived as we have now reverted to temperatures more commonly associated with November and my lap is begging for the reassuring heft of the Slope Rib Sweater. They are even predicting some snow at the beginning of the week, although I shall be surprised if it arrives. Mind you, it wouldn’t be the first time we’ve had snow over the Easter holidays so I’m not entirely discounting the possibility.

I have been gradually solidifying my plans for knitting in the later months of the year and they are going to be a nice change for me. Returning to the present, though, I’m going to cast on a pair of socks once the Slope Rib Sweater is off the needles. Although I should, by rights, be thinking about the jolly springtime colours, I’m finding myself drawn to the muted shades of West Yorkshire Spinners’ Owl from their Country Birds collection. I’m not sure that I have quite enough of this for a pair of socks, so I’m going to do just the cuff in a co-ordinating plain grey.

I didn’t even think to include this combination in my list of sock yarns that I had available to knit up this year, probably because I didn’t think there was enough there.

So, next Friday I’ll have the Slope Rib Sweater ready to wear and a pair of socks on the needles! What could possibly go wrong?!