knitting

I’ve made a decent dent into my wedding shawl knitting. I’ve got to the lace sections now and even though I have three pages of charts (because there are three different lace patterns) to follow if I need them, I seem to be just fine reading my knitting and working out what to knit that way. I’m loving the lace sections. Patterning on every row is just so much fun. Plus it makes the lace look really delicate.

I also really like the teeny tiny star shape that the circular cast on method created. It’s the small details like that make me really happy. I’m probably the only one who’ll notice it, but just knowing it’s there is enough. The same usually applies to mistakes too, though. If I know it’s there, it’ll drive me nuts, even if no one else notices it.

Practice dress #2 is fairly far along. Before I insert the sleeves and the zip, I think I need to figure out if I want to alter the neckline at all. Right now it’s a plain round neck fairly close to my throat and well… I’m not used to having anything that close to my neck. So I’m possibly going to change it to a scoop neck. And maybe add in bias binding to the neckline and the hem. But so far the fit seems good, so I think I’ll be sticking with these particular pattern pieces (I’ve taken the bodice from one dress pattern and the skirt of another) for my wedding dress. I’ve also got grand plans for details for the wedding dress to hide things like possibly slightly wonky seams, because let’s face it, I’m not a professional dressmaker. Now I just need to find the things I’m thinking of adding to it.

We have the venue and the registrar booked! And we’ve got an appointment for the notice of marriage for next week. Things are moving on nicely. And my stress levels have definitely lowered a lot ever since we booked the venue. That was my biggest worry. Now I can concentrate on the fun things! Like my dress and the decorations. And figuring out what music to play in the background while guests are arriving. I recently found a list of photos that would be great to have but might be forgotten since they’re not traditionally on lists. Most of them seemed reasonable, but two of them really weren’t applicable to my wedding: “Groom 5 hours before the wedding” and “Bride 5 hours before the wedding.” Uhm… yeah. That would be at 7am. I don’t think we’ll be wanting a photographer to be showing up that early.

Home again. Christmas is over. We went to O’s parents’ place for four nights. Already done two loads of laundry today. Need to get the cigarette smoke smell out. Also, their shower wasn’t working so washing my hair was no #1 on my to-do list when we got home. Felt a lot better afterwards. :)

I finished these socks (Kai-Mei by Cookie A) on Dec 19th, and I still don’t have a decent photo of them. Also? Noro was being uncooperative and had a knot in the middle of the skein, so my transitions are messed up. And they were almost identical until that knot showed up!

And to finish off this very short post (I’ve got another pair of socks on the go that I want to finish asap), lookie at what O’s parents got me for Christmas! Two hanks of Manos de Uruguay silk blend. :D

Gosh it’s been awhile hasn’t it?

Well, I’ve got a few bits of news to share.

Numero uno: I have a job! I’m in Accounts at a major solicitors firm over here. It’s a temp job through an agency, but they’ve already asked if I can come back in January so it seems to be going very well. Kinda funny that I’m in Accounts though, my math ain’t so great. Seriously. On my first time sheet (I started on a Tuesday), I wrote 7 x 4 = 27. See, not so much with the math.

Secondly (again, with the numbers!): I’m staying here with O for Christmas. At first it was because I couldn’t afford the plane tickets, now it’s because of the aforementioned job. I’m working Christmas Eve morning.

All of the presents that need to be ready by Christmas have been bought/knit and wrapped, except O’s present. I even managed to send out a package with my family’s presents in it (and my sister’s birthday present) last week. One of my sisters already knows that the knit item that she requested is in the works, but it so isn’t going to make it there for Christmas.

Our plans for Christmas are to go over to O’s parents on the 23rd on the condition that I’ll be getting a ride to and from work on the 24th. Then in the evening all of six of us plus three of O’s friends are going over to O’s sister’s in-laws for a party. Christmas Day we’re all supposedly getting up early to open presents. Madness in my opinion. All of us sensible people open our presents on Christmas Eve and sleep in on Christmas Day. Holidays are all about sleeping in.

Speaking of Christmas parties, the dance team’s do was last Wednesday. My thighs are so bruised (this comment got me some odd looks at knitting group this morning). Lemme explain: We played party games. One of them was passing a tupperware container in between our legs from one person to the next. I apparently gripped the box quite hard. Hence the bruises. Another game that we played was passing a packet of crisps (dear me, now I’ve begun using their terminology…) held by our chins. The boys complained that us girls had an unfair advantage because of our natural shelves (ie boobs). Wimps. They won the tupperware game, so no reason to complain at us. The barn dancing that we did was quite fun as well. Swapping partners was a bit confusing. And don’t even get me started on having us girls trying lead the guys during a waltz. I happened to be dancing with A and we both kept saying: “I can’t lead!” and “I don’t know how to follow!”

And to just jump to the next topic instead of coming up with a good segue: My personal knitting’s going well. I just finished seaming up my Lorelei cardigan (yes, I know I’ve been working on it since October). I had a slight problem with setting in the sleeves, but R, one of my knitting friends, helped me sort it out this morning. I tried it on and it fits! The sleeves could be a bit looser, but it’s not something that’ll stop me from wearing it. Now I just need to knit the button bands and sew on the buttons.

I’m also working on Cookie A’s Kai-Mei socks in a pink/purple Noro Kureyon Sock. I’m on the second one and have just started the gusset decreases. They’re very pretty, but the darn yarn had a knot in it and so now it’s messed up the color transitions. No matching socks for me.

I already know what I’m going to cast on after I’m done with my sister’s present, my cardigan and my socks. I’m going to make a shawlette sized Bitterroot using my first Sip’n’Stitch yarn shipment. It’ll be gorgeous.

I guess I’d better get back to my knitting now. Just the thought of that shawlette is a major motivator. :D

Working 9-5 + Christmas knitting to be done = no time to blog.

Will be back once insanity has let up a bit.

I just got my first Sip’n’Stitch package. It’s awesome. Love the yarn (Luxe base: 75/25 sw merino/tussah silk)! The color will most likely grow on me. I’m not usually a fan of browns, but the gold in this is just so pretty. And that’s also a part of the fun of being in a club: getting something that I wouldn’t usually pick for myself.

The coffee is from Joe Van Gogh and it says on the label that it’s “an organic blend from Guatemala with hints of cocoa to warm you up this holiday season.” I can smell it through the bag and it’s just so enticing. But before I can try it out, I need to wash my French press and coffee grinder.

On Saturday I went over to Lucy’s to help her sort out her yarn. I had a blast just fondling the yarn and sorting everything into piles. As a thank you, she gave me a skein of her hand dyed alpaca which I’ve named Lucy.

And just so this isn’t all about yarn, I cooked! I love soupe Vichyssoise. Doesn’t it look yummy?

And a day later, I made potage Crecy. No pic of that though. It was gone too quickly. :P

Not much new on the knitting front.

Mostly working on secret projects, so can’t talk about those. Cast on the Lorelei cardigan from Twist Collective (Fall 2009) this morning. Have done four rows on it, but then the secret projects needed my attention again.

I’ve decided to frog my Fifi 2 scarf (link is to my Rav page). Basically, it’s too long, too narrow, keeps curling inwards and kinda feels like a rope around my neck the few times that I’ve worn it. So to the frog pond it is. I’ll probably reuse the yarn to make another thick scarf, possibly matching mitts or something to go with it since I most likely won’t use all of the yarn for the scarf.

So what’ve I done today?

- A load of laundry washed & dried - The dishes - Cleaned the bathroom - Tidied the bedroom - Sorted summer clothes into a storage bin and took out winter clothes - Cleaned the kitchen - Tidied the living room (did most of that yesterday, but had a few things left over to put away)

And listened to CraftLit while doing all of that. I was done before noon. ^_^

In the afternoon? Knit. Knitknitknit. And fondled my new yarn:

Right now, I’ve got a part of dinner in the oven. Can’t wait to see how it turns out. :D

Mara - Sep 1, 2009

I love Woolhunter yarns, and am working with a couple at the moment. Her colours are exquisite. Yay for getting red tomatoes, finally…!

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So the Sheffield Wool and Textiles Craft Fair was this weekend. I went on both days and this is what I came back with.

That’s a hank of alpaca (90/10 alpaca/nylon), a hank of Gothic Yarns in Lost Innocence, 100g of Shetland in Humbug and a niddy noddy. Never had a niddy noddy before. Can’t wait to use it! Which is probably why I’ve been on such a spinning kick. Finished off the second singles of the September club shipment from WildCraft today. Will ply it tomorrow.

In gardening news, lookie! I have red tomatoes!

I just keep picking off about two of the reddest a day and eating them right then and there. So yummy.

I’m sick. Feel like crap. So instead of a “proper” blog post, you guys get pics.

Here are the socks I just finished today. They’re the Marlene pattern by Cookie A, found in the Fall/Winter 2008 issue of Knit.1.

And here’s the Clapotis I knit for myself. It’s to replace the one I lost. This is what I worked on while I was in Finland for a week.