finishing some projects

It's probably been about a year since I started this summer sweater ~ Peace by Kim Hargreaves ~ and it's finally in the sewing-up stage.
My favorite references for knitting are the Stitch'n B*itch books. I bought The Knitter's Handbook because the 'stitch by stitch instructions' and pictures are very easy for me to understand. When I recently saw S'n B Nation on the library sale cart for $1, I picked that up also...

As I was binding off the neck in pattern, it was definitely coming out too loose; binding off in knit stitch was still not snug enough. I checked S'n B Nation and found the answer ~ binding off with a crochet hook (contributed by Edina Tien, Vancouver, WA), and it worked like a dream...I hope to finish it up this weekend, if I can figure out how to add the button loops and buttons successfully.

Yesterday, I finished up another tote bag for the shop ~ a Laura Ashley floral with a sage denim bottom...

Wishing you all a happy and warm weekend.