on the WIPs front:
* progress is being made on the HP scarf - 1/2 a yellow stripe and then one last marroon stripe and it will be finished. theoretically.
* Eli’s hat is more or less finished - just need to finish weaving the ends in. I had issues with the pompom - the first one came out super tiny and rather sparse. I discovered my fringe-making tool does well for pompoms too, though the first one I made came out a bit sparse (but workable) - I just made a second one and put them side by side. I don’t think you can tell.

in non-knitting news, I went to see Celtic Tiger in Milwaukee with my sister. we had fun. Saturday/Sunday a bunch of friends that I used to work with got together for a craft night in Racine - I sewed a satin binding onto a fleece remnant-bin-find to make a blanket for my sister (or one of her kids) and worked on Eli’s hat. I didn’t get to do much LYS-hopping though. I did poke into Ben Franklin in Oconomowoc - they carry some Classic Elite yarns and some other line that you don’t find in the box stores (as well as the typical box store brands). I also saw the latest Harry Potter movie - I caught a matinee on Friday - it wasn’t too crowded, which was nice.

random knitting-related thought… Kashka was playing with the knit mouse tonight - without me having to dip it in catnip. which means I don’t have to attempt surgery to insert catnip into it. :)

I finished Amelia’s hat last night. will post more details and photos tomorrow. (the camera batteries died). so, I cast on for BIL’s hat. I’m making Tychus from knitty in 4 colors - I made it to the second color and decided it was going to be more yarn than I’d want to deal with right now, so we’ll continue tomorrow.

in WIPs news…
there is some progress being made!
* dh’s HP scarf now has 15 stripes. I made it thru about 1/3 of the yellow stripe on the commute today.
* the niece’s tank top finally has the crochet edging added. I picked up the stitches for the ruffle, and realized I’m confused by my copy of the end of the instructions, so I’m waiting for the library to tell me it’s in so I can double check it and finish it.
* the sock class has ended. and so has any progress on the sock. I made it thru the short row heel and haven’t touched it since. I’m not too happy with how the heel looks, so it’s being procrastinated on. ah, well. we’ll finish it soon, and then we’ll have to worry about second-sock-syndrome.

I think that’s the extent of progress.

in HolSP news… yes, I believe my Amazon wishlist is up to date (at least as far as what I’ve bought. there’s probably a few things that could be added… too bad I can’t add knitpicks yarns to it… or any yarns for that matter…). and I’ve been shopping. Three of the LYS are having sales this weekend, so I’m hoping I might find some deals there to add to the SP gifting. otherwise, I think all my SP shopping is done. I just need to get something into the mail now.

oh, and while out SP shopping the other night, I stumbled upon glitter needles at JoAnn’s! I had to buy them (as well as some of the knitting witch ’spooky hollow’ decor - they were 70% off! how could I resist?)

I began Amelia’s hat on Friday, grabbing the leftover white wool-ease from the stash (from the kitty bed) and worked the ribbing on the work commute. after work, headed to JoAnns and picked up the Blush color for the slip stitch section. DH recommended I use a color for the stripe, since the pale pink would blend into the white. so I grabbed some of the leftover purple from Lilin’s hat for that. and I have to admit, he was right. I’m currently about half-way thru the slip stitch section of the pattern. The pattern is from the same book as Lilin’s hat - it’s the Candy Dots hat.

JoAnns had a great sale this weekend. On Friday, I picked up the above mentioned Blush yarn, an Embellish Knit tool with a 50% coupon, and an ArbBin needle roll that was in the clearance bin. (figured it might come in handy). Today, I picked up more Wool-Ease in Navy & a blue, and Paton’s Divine in Orange and Black. and some fabric to sew up into non-knitting things, most likely.

in other hat news, BIL’s hat will be Tychus, using LB Wool-Ease in Navy, Blue Heather, White & Charcoal Gray (the white & gray being found in the stash.) Melanie’s hat will be using the Divine and will somehow match last year’s scarf. Eli’s hat will be made with more stash yarn - that random mateless ball of blue sock yarn that was going to get a solid foot.

in WIP news, not much has been happening (aside from adding hats to the list). I really need to get to work on the HP scarf, so DH can wear it to HP4 when it comes out next month. Also need to finish up Eli’s sweater (it is getting cold) and the tank top.

in other shopping news, my final selection from Crafter’s Choice has finally moved from backordered status to shipped. yay. so I ordered the Yarn Harlot’s book. and I ordered a book to give the girls for xmas - I think it’ll fit in nicely with this year’s gift theme. :D

did I mention I’d started knitting one of them? This one’s for Lilin. The pattern is the tam from Kids’ Knitted Hats (the book I bought earlier this month).

um, details… Purple LB Wool-Ease (used approx. 2 oz) on US8s. modified the pattern a bit to accomadate larger yarn and larger size. fudged the increase section. Started: around Oct 14 Finished: Oct 20th (would have been finished sooner if the sock didn’t take priority. ;)) when laying flat, the hat is approx. 10″ across the widest part.

Picture to be added tomorrow.