Up and Coming

** BLogger is not letting me put pictures in! I'll try to add them when it starts working again**

Well, this is officially the last weekend of my first year of graduate school! I'm amazed at how quickly this year has gone, especially since it's been an absolute ton of work - moving halfway across the country, making new friends (really, that's the best part), learning the ropes of grad classes, navigating a new school/community of faculty and students/library/job/church/
neighborhood/city, and coming out stronger and happier on the other side. Phew.

I've just about resigned myself to the fact that I'll have these last two papers (with no set deadlines) hanging over my head for my three weeks of break in California, but it just means I'll have a project waiting for me when I get back here at the start of July. I'm going to finish as much research and preliminary drafting as possible in the next two days, but at most I could maybe finish one of them. In any event, they'll definitely be completed by the end of the July, and I'm trying to be okay with my own slower pace, because my brain is trying to go into vacation mode, and if I push to get these absolutely finished right now they are going to be horrible. Enough excuses - I'm slow, and I'll write a bit while I'm on vacation and then again when I'm done playing around at home! :)

I've been knitting, so here are the latest socks! Details when they're all finished...

I finished the arm warmers requested by my friend, so hopefully I can give them to her before I head home.

And now on to the "up and coming" part of the post!
Spinning
is definitely in my near future, using these gorgeous and awe-inspiring supplies from my Secret Pal. I am not planning to dye the fleece (though I might change my mind and dye part of it later), because it has such beautiful lustre and depth of color by its own neutral self!
I cannot tell you how excited I am to get serious about spinning. I always need new hobbies!

Future Sewing
Oh yeah, sewing machine, I'm headed back to you in just a few short days! We are going to have so much fun! Headbands
Tissue holders. These (June 9 entry) really appeal to me for the same reasons outlined in this entry. And I use tissues in Chicago more than I have anywhere else.Quilting for pillows or a lap quilt. I'm inspired by all of these great quilts! I'm looking forward to doing something simple - squares, strips, not sure yet - with strong colors.Cute tops like these!

Future Knits
More Socks - basic basic basic and oh-so-relaxing for plane and car knitting over the break
Ms. Marigold in KnitPicks Elegance, Grass colorway
More one-skein wonders, no yarn selected, but I'd love to pick out some Noro.
Sweet Mary Janes in Patons wool, a lovely purple for the lovely person I'm spoiling in SP8
Arm warmers and i-pod cozies [I had no idea my little brother, the only one in my family with an i-pod shuffle, would be so excited about these super easy projects] in all my sock scraps from this year.

These are fairly modest goals, because I like to fly by the seat of my pants and pick projects on the spur of the moment. This is probably why socks are my favorite projects; they're so easy to start, quick to finish, and infinitely variable within a few consistent parameters.
What projects are you planning for the summer?