We have been home from Planet Vogue Knitting Live for a week and I am just now able to wrap my brain around a blog post!  VKL was exciting, stimulating, inspiring, and oh so much fun!  I was bone-weary and brain-bogged by the end.  And since we splashed down into the midst of life at home — including the frenzy of Holiday planning — well, a week later, I am still a bit weary and boggy.

But I am also still pretty hepped-up and inspired from our VKL weekend too!  We took 18 hours of classes in 3 days.  Yeah.  Ambitious, but totally worthwhile — and we still had plenty of time in the market and brought home enough yarn to fuel all the ideas and techniques we developed in class 🙂

We were completely immersed in knitting for 3 days — classes and the market during the day, then all that lovely hang-out time with all those lovely knitters in the lobby bar until way too late each evening!  It was delightful to see everyone wearing their fabulous hand-knits — and, yes, thanks to Sarah, I did get my Stephen West Striped Bolting Shawl and my Golden Finch Q’mitl completed so I could wear them that weekend 🙂

We checked into our hotel and spent our first evening in the lobby bar finishing the pieces.  Sarah sewed up the q’mitl while I knit on the shawl.  Then, Sarah knit on the shawl while I wove in its ends. Back in the room,  I bound it off and laid it out on towels on the floor overnight to dry.

 Here are some photos taken later when I was back home (There was NO time for photo shoots at VKL! In fact, neither did I take my vitamins, put on my slippers, touch the book I brought along, check my email…)

But stunning as this shawl is — and perfectly delightful to wear as it wraps and drapes like a dream! — it was The Golden Finch Q’mitl that drew stares and even gasps from our felllow knitters 🙂

Sarah also received much attention on her knit pieces, of course.  And it was certainly gratifying, I admit!  Also, kind of disconcerting when one is unaccustomed to such notice.  (I hope I was standing up straight…)

And now what lies ahead?  Some exquisite brioche knitting (very hot right now — especially knit in sock-weight and lace-weight yarns), a highly improvised shawl a la Stephen West composed of stash yarns snatched up as we were practically racing out the door to VKL, Andrea Mowry’s Comfort Fade Cardi composed of yarns ruthlessly snatched up from the Apple Fiber Studio booth before the other knitters could get at them (wisely, too, as their shelves were noticeably bare by the end of the weekend), and AT LAST the blue and black shawl I have been craving for the last year or so!

But first, I have some baby knitting to complete — and I resurrected my sparkly lace shawl project for the Holidays, for which I have high hopes 🙂 — though since I am Not Knitting For Christmas This Year (gasp!) I plan to dive into my VKL knitting soon!