Thank you for all the happy birthday messages! It will be a nice extended birthday weekend with another nice meal or two in store and, as DH says, some birthday loot to open. *g* Don't forget to comment on this blog through Sunday at 9 PM Central and you'll be entered into a pool of names for a random selection of two names to win yarny prizes! (Go on, Great Aunt Jane, you should enter, too! Thanks for your encouragement and off-the-blog comments.)
Here's the photo of the fuschia bag in progress I meant to post the other night. 
I've made a bit more progress but it doesn't really look any different today....still a nice yarny blob. I need to start my research and note-making about how to, um, turn the corner and make the bottom of the bag. Saving my knitting from frogging is one thing, designing is another. Another brand new adventure.
Before I start my laundry, baking, and other tasks, I wanted to share this from the new Garnet Hill catalog that arrived in this week's mail. The catalog was full of knitted, crocheted, or other hand-crafted items. Isn't this scarf cool? And how about this afghan? It reminds me of a cathedral window quilt. Not that I've made one....yet. And really, I don't need to start a crochet project either.
Nice knits! I had a special catalog from Anthropologie a month ago or so called "Stitches" -- nothin' but knits and the like.
Posted by: Vicki | Friday, November 09, 2007 at 11:40 AM
I'm not much on motifs, whether knitted or crocheted but those are nice patterns.
Hey, if you're doing laundry can I bring mine so you can do it, too?
Posted by: Kathy W | Friday, November 09, 2007 at 01:20 PM
Why doesn't Great Aunt Jane have her own blog? You know she's far more interesting than most of us knit bloggers.
Good luck figuring out the bag's bottom. I always knit mine bottom up, so I'm no help... as usual.
Happy weekend!
Posted by: Cookie | Friday, November 09, 2007 at 02:02 PM
Those are beautiful... :)
Posted by: Hannah | Friday, November 09, 2007 at 02:24 PM
I always start a bag with a rectangular bottom of garter stitch, pick up sts evenly all around, then go up. That said, I would think you could do some decreases & knit a flap that is attached to just one edge binding off the rest of the stitches. When your rectangle is finished you could stitch up the three remaining side edges to form the bottom. Just a thought.
Posted by: Mary Beth | Friday, November 09, 2007 at 07:19 PM
My knitting is worth $300.
Because I knit my bag from the bottom up, could I suggest putting the stitches on 4 needles (sides longer than ends, perhaps) and knitting back and forth on the sides while picking up the ends? Do you think that would work?
Posted by: Angie | Friday, November 09, 2007 at 07:48 PM
Wow, that afghan is spectacular! Just the sort of thing I'd get all excited to start ... and then lose interest in really quickly.
Posted by: Sarah | Saturday, November 10, 2007 at 10:57 AM
The bag is coming along nicely and I hope you have had a great birthday weekend! Sadly, I don't crochet but that scarf is awesome :)
Posted by: Carrie | Sunday, November 11, 2007 at 04:18 PM
Happy Birthday from Texas! I know a day or two late... Do you have any nice crochet patterns for afghans? I am envious of your knitting skills... something I have never been able to master skillfully.
Posted by: Joanne C | Sunday, November 11, 2007 at 08:15 PM
Nice bag! I've been noticing a lot of handknit looking items in cataglogs and store windows lately. I feel smug and superior knowing I could make them if I wanted to and don't have to buy them.
Posted by: Kim | Monday, November 12, 2007 at 11:45 AM