Show me the money!

I've got your money shots right here.

Literally.

See that check? That is $16 worth of prize money from the Western Fair for my two second place wins. I know, don't spend it all in one place. I'll cash it and the proceeds are going into my Rhinebeck tin. Yes, I'm starting now to save my money so I can go to Rhinebeck next year. It's also keeping me from buying more yarn that I don't need because I'm committed to making my purchases from the tin. So when I see yarn I want to buy I think, "Is this yarn worth taking money from the Rhinebeck tin?" Generally, the answer is no. :-)

See that sock? Heel turned and working the leg now.

See that needle roll? Custom made by our own Mary Jane. Features include: twill tape for marking needle sizes onto, top flap with velcro closures, and extra long ribbon for tying a bulging roll closed. It was made of two Martha Stewart placemats. This gift was bestowed upon myself and Knitty Kat as a thank you for donating our scrap sock yarn to the vest project. I can say no more other than I expect Mary Jane to do a photo shoot when she's done so I can tell you all about it. It's going to be something else!

Next is a money shot of a different sort:

Yep. It's my chest. The Cabled Bordered Garter Stitch Jacket still lacks sleeves though, so that's all you get to see. Notice the badly curling edges and the loops of boulce peeking through on the one side. A spanking good blocking should put that all in it's place. I can hardly wait.

Now look what the postman brought me today:

Do you know what this is? It's a slippery slope to crazed obsession. I found out about this book through Crossed in Translation and I bought it because I really liked the Am kamin sweater (that's the red one next to the blog title). With a whole blog dedicated to working on the translation I figured it was a safe purchase.

HA! Again I say, HA!!

There's a ton of just beautiful things in this book that I would love to make. Take a look at the shawl page:

It took me a moment to realize that the white one is the Mountain Ash shawl that Grumerina started working on in the spring. I just looked through her archives and I don't believe she ever finished it. But should I ever decided to attempt it, I'll have her experiences to learn from. It looks really tough.

And there's more:
There's even entrelac sweaters, one with just the yoke and the other is the whole sweater in entrelac.

I am not safe. My fingers are itching to start knitting something from this book. Gah! Self control is going to drive me nuts. Plus, you know the translation issues will wreck my head when I finally do clear my queue. I hope you like reading the ravings of a lunatic.