Ketki is working in Edinburgh this week – she whizzed by yesterday and picked up Ed’s gardening sweater and some Easter presents for the Little Boys. We are fully and rather grimly resolved on Plan B, Easter in Edinburgh. Our niece, my husband’s sister’s daughter, is in London working on a family problem involving her grandchildren. She’ll get back to Edinburgh late on Saturday, and we’re hoping she won’t mind a last-minute invitation to Easter lunch.

At least nothing much short of my own death can stand between me and my cider.

I finished the second sleeve of the Relax – it looks rather good – and picked up the stitches for the neck. I was somewhat surprised at how few. I am knitting on the number of stitches specified for the smallest size because I thought (mistakenly, I now believe) that I didn’t want all that fabric flapping about. There were points in the pattern where I increased the length, but for the neckband I should presumably stick to the designer’s stitch count.

It’s a very wide boat neck – it mustn’t be too much constrained. There is nothing for it but to knit the band – it’s only six rounds of st st – and see what we’ve got. Then blocking. My current aim is to see how near I can get to the dimensions specified for the smallest size – presumably, in girth, it will fall short. And send it to Lizzie for a 20^th birthday present. The event is nigh.

With any luck at all I should finish this evening and have an unblocked pic for you tomorrow.

I have half a mind to get in some more madelinetosh sock yarn and knit it again for myself, this time aiming at the designer’s dimensions. It is designed for a heavier yarn (=fewer stitches) but I think the lighter sock yarn may actually be an improvement. Lots of knitting, though.

The Berocco book arrived from Loop yesterday. I remain doubtful about Anhinga, although very admiring.

I had one of our regular trips-to-Boots-to-pick-up-a-prescription yesterday, and sank down in a chair in John Lewis’ yarn department afterwards to catch my breath. I looked at Kaffe’s new autobiography; still didn’t buy. But I stumbled on a delicious anecdote where he was in an LYS somewhere, California I think, wearing one of his own creations, and a woman said to him, “That’s a Kaffe Fassett you’re wearing, isn’t it?” without recognising the man. There’s glory for you