Ta-Da! EFA Back Finis!

Yes it is done. The back of EFA, which weighed a lot at one point, being up to around 150 sts of Aran-weight wool on the needle. Not blocked, but completed nonetheless. Later today I hope to block it, then I can put it together and do the finishing before starting on the sleeves. I left the back neck stitches live on a strand of washable wool, so I don't have to pick them up, just knit them on. Here's a close-up of the trees:

Now a break from EFA until the back is blocked out.

Meanwhile, as a dyed-in-the-wool Lord of the Rings fan, I'm announcing that the Children of Hurin came out today. My DDs have offered it to me as an early birthday present. And in a wild coincidence, I found this sock yarn and pattern. So of course I bought the yarn:

and the pattern. And it turns out that the designer, Laura Andersson, is a scientist turned knitting designer, as well as fellow LOTR fan. Maybe someday I'll leave the lab too, and become a full-time knitter. One can dream.....