Thursday, 30 August 2007
Thursday, 16 August 2007
Heading north
No pictures today I'm afraid, my knitting bag is packed and I'm ready to jump in the car. We're off to Manchester for a long weekend of climbing and catching up. Here's hoping the weather's not too damp so we can actually get out and about.
Sunday, 12 August 2007
This week I have mostly been...
wow, two posts in one day! Well, I have a bit of catching up to do as always but mainly due to the fact I haven't been able to get my pictures onto the computer. I really must get the software uploaded onto the other pc as this one keeps playing up. It's got an intermittent glitch that means it won't always turn on - bit inconvenient when you want to do anything I can tell you. Unfortunately, dad thinks there may be something terminal wrong with the processor. grr.
Anyhow, enough of my griping back to the knitting and it was Stitch and Bitch week again this week. It's so great to be able to get out and meet people who actually share the same interests as me for a change. In all the years I've been knitting (and crafting), I don't think I've ever had people I can actually talk about it with, outside the family that is. Our group is growing in numbers and we're becoming well known at the bar we meet at - they've even started setting up the tables for us. I can't wait for the next one and I've another 10 days to go!
So, roll on the photos. First up, my Chevron jacket - I'd devote a post to it but I managed to take such a crap photo. It really needs daylight to do the colours justice. Anyhow I've finished the first sleeve now so I thought I'd put it together to get an idea of how it's going to look. I'm really pleased although it's definately all going to need blocking before it's stitched up. I cast on the right front straight away but will need to visit the Woolcabin for my next batch of yarn. I think it's becoming a bit of a running joke now, my speculation of the yardage that is, having done the sleeve I have come to the conclusion that the pattern may be correct after all. hehe.
As promised some while back here's a piccie of my home made sock blockers. 
They're a bit "Heath Robinson" as my mum would say but they did the job. The only plastic place mat I could find at the time was Winnie the Pooh and as I didn't think to buy two, I had to shorten the legs to get two out of the one mat. I'd forgotten quite how big my feet (and my sock pal's feet) were. Not sure whether I'll ever use them again but I'll stash them in my knitting boxes just in case or if anyone needs a set of size 7 sock blockers, I'll send them on. I've acquired some more plastic packaging that would make some more. I'm nothing if not resourceful (that could probably read cheap) - as Bob the Builder says "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle".
I have finally started on my sister's painting. Mind you, I had to completely turn out my bedroom, the wardrobe and the spare room in order to actually find my paints. I do have a clean and tidy bedroom now instead of a junk room so some good came of it. I was trying to remember when it was that I actually went up to Manchester to see her last, probably May, so it's only taken me 3 months to get going. As much as I enjoy painting, I really have to be in the right frame of mind to do it.
Anyhow, it's not much to look at at this stage not much more than a sketch but it's a start. Sis if you're reading this, I haven't forgotten!
Being forced to tidy up my room like that was actually quite cathartic and I did find various bit's I'd forgotten about including a couple more balls of sock yarn and some sachets of Kool Aid. I've got some undyed yarn in my stash and I was thinking I might get DS to "help" me to colour some of it. I think it's probably a good thing we have lino in our kitchen as I can envisage this getting messy. Still, he's asked me to knit him another pair of socks - he's also finally decided he liked the pair I knitted him last time. The only down side, he's also decided that his new socks should be pink!
I think this is probably the longest my dpn's have been empty in a while so I must be about due to cast on another pair. My sockapalooza socks have certainly got me looking at them again. Hmm, need more socks.
Finally, here's a picture of the little bootie I knitted the other day. It's actually been knocking around in the bottom of my knitting bag for a couple of weeks. It's made up of several mitred squares and is really cute, well it should be anyway. Actually, it's not got a mate as I didn't like the way the colours have worked out. I used Opal Toucan but because it's so small, the stripes in the yarn are too big and it's ended up with large blocks of colour. I would love to be able to take credit for the design but the pattern was in Knitting magazine, Dec 2005 if I remember rightly.
Wow this has turned into a bit of an epic post, I really should start doing this more often! Haha, one day maybe.
Anyhow, enough of my griping back to the knitting and it was Stitch and Bitch week again this week. It's so great to be able to get out and meet people who actually share the same interests as me for a change. In all the years I've been knitting (and crafting), I don't think I've ever had people I can actually talk about it with, outside the family that is. Our group is growing in numbers and we're becoming well known at the bar we meet at - they've even started setting up the tables for us. I can't wait for the next one and I've another 10 days to go!
So, roll on the photos. First up, my Chevron jacket - I'd devote a post to it but I managed to take such a crap photo. It really needs daylight to do the colours justice. Anyhow I've finished the first sleeve now so I thought I'd put it together to get an idea of how it's going to look. I'm really pleased although it's definately all going to need blocking before it's stitched up. I cast on the right front straight away but will need to visit the Woolcabin for my next batch of yarn. I think it's becoming a bit of a running joke now, my speculation of the yardage that is, having done the sleeve I have come to the conclusion that the pattern may be correct after all. hehe.
As promised some while back here's a piccie of my home made sock blockers. They're a bit "Heath Robinson" as my mum would say but they did the job. The only plastic place mat I could find at the time was Winnie the Pooh and as I didn't think to buy two, I had to shorten the legs to get two out of the one mat. I'd forgotten quite how big my feet (and my sock pal's feet) were. Not sure whether I'll ever use them again but I'll stash them in my knitting boxes just in case or if anyone needs a set of size 7 sock blockers, I'll send them on. I've acquired some more plastic packaging that would make some more. I'm nothing if not resourceful (that could probably read cheap) - as Bob the Builder says "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle".I have finally started on my sister's painting. Mind you, I had to completely turn out my bedroom, the wardrobe and the spare room in order to actually find my paints. I do have a clean and tidy bedroom now instead of a junk room so some good came of it. I was trying to remember when it was that I actually went up to Manchester to see her last, probably May, so it's only taken me 3 months to get going. As much as I enjoy painting, I really have to be in the right frame of mind to do it.
Anyhow, it's not much to look at at this stage not much more than a sketch but it's a start. Sis if you're reading this, I haven't forgotten!Being forced to tidy up my room like that was actually quite cathartic and I did find various bit's I'd forgotten about including a couple more balls of sock yarn and some sachets of Kool Aid. I've got some undyed yarn in my stash and I was thinking I might get DS to "help" me to colour some of it. I think it's probably a good thing we have lino in our kitchen as I can envisage this getting messy. Still, he's asked me to knit him another pair of socks - he's also finally decided he liked the pair I knitted him last time. The only down side, he's also decided that his new socks should be pink!
I think this is probably the longest my dpn's have been empty in a while so I must be about due to cast on another pair. My sockapalooza socks have certainly got me looking at them again. Hmm, need more socks.
Finally, here's a picture of the little bootie I knitted the other day. It's actually been knocking around in the bottom of my knitting bag for a couple of weeks. It's made up of several mitred squares and is really cute, well it should be anyway. Actually, it's not got a mate as I didn't like the way the colours have worked out. I used Opal Toucan but because it's so small, the stripes in the yarn are too big and it's ended up with large blocks of colour. I would love to be able to take credit for the design but the pattern was in Knitting magazine, Dec 2005 if I remember rightly.Wow this has turned into a bit of an epic post, I really should start doing this more often! Haha, one day maybe.
Fab new socks!
Look what arrived in my postbox this week, all the way from California - my sockapalooza socks. Aren't they superb? 
I've got them on as I type as the weather's gone horribly wrong again - they are a perfect fit and very snuggly. 
They're in Lorna's Laces (I've been saying for ages I've wanted to try some!) in violet and they're incredibly fine. I'm guessing they must be done on 2mm needles as the stitches are tiny and so very neat.
The bar of chocolate that was tucked in with them was very welcome too! So, who do I have to thank for these lovely socks? Well, that would be Jessica you can drop by her blog and have a look at what she's up to. I love the idea of the "Yarn in a tea cup" swap.
I've got them on as I type as the weather's gone horribly wrong again - they are a perfect fit and very snuggly. They're in Lorna's Laces (I've been saying for ages I've wanted to try some!) in violet and they're incredibly fine. I'm guessing they must be done on 2mm needles as the stitches are tiny and so very neat.The bar of chocolate that was tucked in with them was very welcome too! So, who do I have to thank for these lovely socks? Well, that would be Jessica you can drop by her blog and have a look at what she's up to. I love the idea of the "Yarn in a tea cup" swap.
Monday, 6 August 2007
Mystery Stole, Clue 3
Clue 3 was finally finished last Thursday - just in time for Clue 5 to be published along with the theme. So, swan lake anyone? Needless to say, I am getting a little behind with this now. Still, when it's all pinned out like this it looks pretty good. I really should try and catch up a little especially when I see how close to completion some people are already.
Saturday, 4 August 2007
She's beautiful
and doesn't she know it! I actually caught Molly in a tolerant mood and managed to take a snap, what you can't see is the moment later when she turned away in distain and refused to look at me again. Cats, you either love them or you hate them. It's certainly all on their terms.
Anyhow, I was out in the garden to take a picture of this.
I know gardening's not everyone's "thing" but this has got me excited so I thought it warranted recording. The first ever flower on my Agapanthus, I've managed to keep it in a pot through two winters and now it's flowering. How cool is that?
Thursday, 2 August 2007
Jitterbug sockapaloozas
Finally, my sockapalooza's are blocked! I'm pretty pleased I have to say even if they do look like they don't exactly match on this photo. Looking at the stripes, you wouldn't believe that they come from the same skein of yarn.Yarn: Colinette Jitterbug in Florentina
Needles: 2.5mm Brittany Birch dpns
Pattern: my own, toe up plain sock with short row heel
So, sock pal I really hope you like them!
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