Color, Chocolate and Jewelry

Mmhh, rolls right off the tongue. My chocolate consumption has gone up quite a bit lately, not because it was Valentine's day, but because I found a new love: Dark chocolate. I never used to like it, but for Christmas a kind coworker gave me a sample box of the most delicious dark chocolate by Vosges Haute Chocolate. The Oaxaca bar has bits of chili and pepper in it which combine so well with the dark chocolate. I'm also curious to try their
Red Fire bar with ancho&chipotle chili peppers and Ceylon cinnamon or the Black Pearl Bar with Japanese ginger, wasabi and black sesame seeds. On top are two bars by another favorite, Dagoba. On a trip to Anthropologie long ago I found Marie Belle's Chocolate Rose Tea. So yummy. This makes me sound like a chocoholic...I'm not really, but these are so tasty! I eat my bars very slowly, so one lasts about two weeks. The Oaxaca is long gone, but I got the two bars of Dagoba for my birthday last weekend which are current wip's. There was also a new yarn purchase. I know you want to give me a hard time when you see the photo because you think it's socks....

nooo, I'm making fingerless mitts, using the Pomatomus pattern from Knitty. I was going crazy not having a portable project (a Big Wool cardi is not portable whatsoever. I've tried) but didn't want to do socks. The silvery aqua Koigu was so pretty and really asked to be knit up in that wonderful pattern. It's gorgeous, and easy to memorize. I'm using US 1's instead of the called for #2's and so far the so.., eh, glove fits perfectly. I'm getting a little creeped out at times when the veins in my hands are popping, because their color match the yarn exactly. Can you see it?

The Big Wool cardi is still not progressing because I keep changing the design. I'm reading Maggie Righetti's Sweater Design in Plain English and she's making me a little insecure with her expertise. I wanted a sweater with purl side out but Maggie says this creates funny bulges. Maggie also says that 2x2 rib is a bad idea for a button band, because it will stretch out infinitely. Now I'm not sure if I believe everything she says, but it's hard not to listen to a woman with so many years of experience. Just from reading blogs alone I've learned a lot of what not to knit. But come on, a 2x2 rib button band? They're everywhere! And unless you have a toddler pulling your cardi all day long, how much can it really stretch out? I'm going to ignore the button band advice.
Here is the necklace I've been making for my co-workers, just a simple gold wire circle on a delicate chain. There was no morning sun and I took this myself, but you get the idea.