All of today’s pictures are courtesy of Myria’s magical mystical camera and Myria’s own not inconsiderable talent.

The Seraphina Shawl is finished and despite my reservations about the yarn, turned out very nicely indeed.  While I probably wouldn’t use this yarn again, I expect I will indeed make this shawl again as it has a lovely, graceful shape that, in addition to being aesthetically pleasing, stays on the shoulders without having to be held there.  Very convenient, that :)

I only used one ball of yarn and the shawl is actually bigger than I had thought it would be.  The ruffled Snowdrop is larger, but this is more than adequate - especially for around the house wear which is probably how it will be used.  Now I have to give some serious thought to what to use for the next version :)  I’m thinking pinks…maybe…

Spring has indeed arrived - or maybe I missed spring and woke up having gone straight into summer…shrug.  Anyway, it seemed like a fun idea to take some pictures outside today, so that’s what we did.  The yard accompanying the apartment building is small, but nicely kept.

This bush is down by the fence to the left of the back stairs.  It’s absolutely magnificent, about 7.5 feet tall and is covered with huge clusters of these pale pink blooms.  I figure it must have loved the long, cool spring because I have never seen it look this full and spectacular before.  There are a few other azaleas on the property too, fuchsia and orange, but they are just youngsters and their few blooms are already fading.

I have no idea whether these were planted or are just growing wild.  They come up all along the back fence and are just lovely - bright and sunny, even on a grey day.

This little girl is sitting on the back porch roof just outside of our kitchen window.  Mourning doves started visiting again when we put the feeder back up.  They aren’t “feeder” birds though; they scavenge the roof for seeds and nuts that have fallen (or been pushed) out of the feeder.  I love these birds with their dignified grey/beige coats and their sad calls.  Good thing too as there are tons of them in the area :)

I got a note today, asking about the pattern I had used for a scarf around Christmas time.  Remember the evergreen scarf - the yarn that kept staining my hands and my birch needles so badly?  I gave up on it and promptly forgot about it.  But the note made me go back and look at it and I realized there was nothing wrong with the pattern.  So I wrote it up this afternoon.  You’ll find it on the sidebar under Knitting Patterns.  It’s called the Tweed and Seed Scarf.

Have a great weekend folks!