What A Busy Day!

I took the day off from work today.  Although the school year is coming to an end teachers are done on Tuesday), I work through the summer.  I thought with the extra day on the holiday weekend (Memorial Day is Monday for those of you not from the US), I should use some of my vacation time!
With my time off, I took the opportunity to work on some items on my to-do list. First, I finished up the very last little bit of my Reading Mitts. After taking X to daycare this morning I came back and sewed up the turning round on the second mitt.  Last night on our way to supper with my mom, I finished up most of it in the car.  It felt good to start and finish a project for myself, and since this was a small project, it was some good instant gratification.

These mitts are knit with KnitPicks Elegance, in the jade colorway.  Inside, this yarn looks like a dark heathery green.  But in the sunlight, the green is very vibrant and gem-like. :)

There is a lace pattern both at the bottom and the top of the mitts.  There is 1 row of open lacework combined w/ a few knit & purl rows to create some texture.

The patterns says to knit the St.st. rows for 5 inches, but I wanted them just a tiny bit longer until they measured 5 1/2 inches. 

And tried as I might, I couldn't figure out a way to take pictures of them while I was wearing them.  So instead, my husband was kind enough to take a few pictures and indulge me when I kept asking him to take more. 

Even better, I got to use the mitts today!  I was a little sad that after I made these I wasn't going to be able to use them for awhile since summer is just around the corner and the warm weather is really setting in full force.  Part of what I did today with my time was to finish cutting I-Spy squares. 

Now - when I do my sewing, I am in our basement.  We have a finished basement with a couch and tv, our computer room is downstairs.  My craft corner, folding table and sewing machine are all tucked away while they wait for me to use them. :)  Downside to all this?  It's freezing in our basement, especially when the air is running. The solution - my Reading Mitts!  And since they're fingerless gloves, they're perfect for working on other things while wearing them - unlike regular gloves or mittens which hinder any semblence of hand-eye coordination I'm capable of useless....

I was very happy to have my new mitts to keep me warm. And now....my mitts are done, my squares are cut and I've even had the chance to start on my next project - a Dotted Chicken!  :) This should be pretty fast.  Next on my sewing list will be a needle case. :)