Tea and Cakes

So, although I’ve knocked out one or two smaller things in the time I’ve been knitting, I’ve never actually made – ok, ok, never actually finished a proper garment.

Last year at the Avoca sales, Sara and Cheryl picked up a cone of turquoise wool for me.

Now, I do know that with coned yarn you should really wash it before using it etc etc etc, but I figured that my first proper garment was going to be a disaster learning experience anyway, and I love the idea of having no ends to sew in, so I decided to knit straight off the cone.

I’m not finished yet, but I think we’re about due an update.

I’m making Stephanie Japel’s Mini-sweater/boobholder. My boobs don’t really need holding, so minisweater’s the more accurate term for a garment for me.
Except, instead of making it as written, I’m knitting down from the bottom and giving it long sleeves to make a full sized cardigan.

I have a couple more rows to get done on the bottom, and then I need to make the sleeves, and it needs a wash and a block, so I’m getting there. I’m not sure what to do with the sleeves. They’ll be stockinette ending with a few garter rows, but I don’t know whether to go straight down, or decrease and then increase again at the end, or just decrease.

Are there things I’d do differently?
Of course, but ask me again when I’m finished!

After my very hectic November I decided to treat myself.
Unfortunately I decided to treat myself with one of this years christmas must have gifts for the kids.
However, an early morning hair appointment meant that I was in town for shop opening time, and hit the right shop at the right time, as an unexpected delivery came in, so I have a new toy:

My brain age tonight is 59. Clearly I have some work to do. This will eat into knitting time.

However, in among the hecticness there has been knitting, mainly for other people, so I present:

Tiny knits for a very tiny baby.
Saartje’s Booties (small size) and One Skein Baby Hat (small size)
Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino
3mm needles

Wristwarmers for E.
Fingerless Mitts, Interweave Knits, Fall 2005
Debbie Bliss Maya
5mm needles

A toque for T.
Made up hat pattern.
Alpaca with a Twist Highlander
5mm needles
I’ve actually knit this twice – first with 100 stitches cast on, which was too big, and then again with 80, which is better. The yarn is soooooo yummy I really didn’t care. It’s lovely. If you see some, buy it. It’s really soft and squishy and warm.

Slightly bigger booties.
Saartje’s booties. (again)
Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino
2.75mm needles

Dublin Scarf for L.
Random stripes in the Dublin colours.
Tivoli Celtic Aran Superwash Wool (they’ve changed the blend somehow, it’s really soft now).
Yarn held double
10mm needles

Phew! I’ve been busy. More to come…

Right then. I’ve been gone for a while. I make no apologies, I just needed to take a break. Or rather, a break was imposed on me by the amount of other stuff I was doing.

So, in the last, oh, six weeks or so, I’ve…

Worked like a mad thing.

Completed an excellent online course in Inclusive Education.

Had a lovely but oh too short time with various sets of visiting family members.

Visited the Dublin Knitting and Stitching show (slightly disappointing but as expected)  and spent time there with friends (lovely and what made the day worthwhile)

Tried to relax a little, but you know things aren’t good when you find yourself studying in the bath because you need to relax but you also need to learn about inclusiveness.

Abseiled 65ft down into a cave.

Knit (I’ll show you some things later).

Right now I’m frantically crafting (I’ll explain why and show you that later too). Soon, soon, there will be baking, and knitting for me, and possibly a quilting attempt instead of just petting the lovely fat quarters. I’m especially looking forward to baking. I have a hankering for things with ginger.

So, back to business as normal.

Until there’s more to see though, pop over to Knitty and check out the marvellous Tudora, then go visit my very clever and talented friend Cheryl’s blog to congratulate her on the design.

Full explanations will follow with time. For the moment I’m trying to block the whole experience from my memory.

I am observing that my wrist looks a little hirsute in that picture. I’d say that it was a bad thing except that it may distract from the evidence that I was present in Copper Faced Jacks last night.

I’m not proud, but at least now I can safely say: “Yes, I have been there. No, no, I’m not going again.”

The mark of shame.
A review will follow in the morning.

Not disappeared, just busy.

Ooops.

Back sometime soon.

Promise. Ish.

Busy busy busy…

A little ‘slip’ in stash enhancement courtesy of Aileen‘s stash sale.

An inability to work a simple garter stitch edging.

2 hours de-tangling cashmere sock yarn

Progress?
There is a large black spider underneath the water bottle. I put the bottle on top of it. All by myself.

Honesty Bookshop, Hay-on-Wye.

Yarn Bra? Hay-on-Wye.

Hikes in the Brecon Beacons. (photo stolen from The Gurrier)

Rhubarb crumble. Delicious.

Portmeirion in the rain.

Cappuccino with good friends.

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Not pictured, and I have no idea why: Drinks and a visit to St Fagans with Chris, the ferry journey to and from Wales, the lovely cottage we stayed in, the delicious beer we drank (proper beer (ie Ale) is hard to find in Ireland), all the delicious food we ate, Cheryl‘s lovely new home in the Dublin mountains, and much, much more.

It’s been a busy week, and I don’t see a let up in the fun just yet.

I’m having a clear out. We’ve got rid of my desk, and right now the floor is covered in stuff. Piles of paper, photos, cards, tickets to gigs, stationery, etc etc etc.

I’m trying to be brutal. Some things will need to stay handy. Some things can be thrown away (the shredder is my friend). Some things can be boxed up and stored. And some things are going to charity.

This is my walkman. I last used it a couple of years ago when I had cassettes to listen to for my Open University course. I will probably never use it again. However, I’m very attached to it.

I bought it in Sheffield I think in 1999, when I’d finished studying and was working like an absolute maniac (averaging 60odd hours a week doing data entry. One week I did 80 hours but that almost killed me, despite half of it being at time and a half rate pay) to save up to go live in New Zealand for a year. Buying something so expensive and top of the range was a real treat. I love this because it’s shiny and purple*, because it’s really compact (ok, not compared to my ipod nano, but compared to my previous cassette playing thing), because it has a really lovely opening mechanism, and because I used it so much. It was an extravagance but one that I got great value from, and it’s been sitting in my desk drawer for ages, not being used, just taking up space.

The thing is – will a charity shop even want it? Is there a market for this sort of thing any more? I just don’t know. If I could think of anyone who’d use it I’d happily send it off to a new home. It works fine, comes with a rechargeable battery, charger, adaptor for a regular battery, earphones with remote control, and even the instructions. Anyone? Anyone?

Sigh. Getting rid of things is hard. I get too attached to stuff.

Back to it though.

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1am, Edited to add: I don’t think I can do it. I don’t think I can give it away. Sigh. Anyone fancy a Sony CD Walkman though? I can part with that very easily.

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*I like purple things. I also have the purple stereo that was a much appreciated 18th birthday present. I still use it and love it.

This was a birthday gift, and I saved it for holiday reading, which turned out to be a good idea – once I got hooked I couldn’t stop and I’m not sure I would have got a lot of anything done if I’d started them in my normal life. This is a collection of 5 kids books, in one edition – the books are definitely kids books, not ‘crossover’ fiction in the way that Philip Pullman’s wonderful ‘His Dark Materials’ books are.

They start off with a touch of the Famous Five about them, but then get much, much deeper, and darker at times too. I really loved the great English legends running through them – King Arthur and Merlin – I would have loved these books as a kid. I do now, but I can imagine how I would have lost myself in them then. They feel like walks on a wet and windy beach followed by mugs of hot tea and toast with butter in front of a roaring fire.

The movie of the second book is coming out soon, but by all accounts the story’s been mashed to pieces, with the main character turning from an eleven year old English boy to a fourteen year old American, among many other things. It’s so unnecessary – his age is important, as it makes the task he has to face that wee bit bigger, and making him American will take away from the Englishness of the books, which I find a real shame. It also suggests that the makers didn’t feel that American audiences would have any interest in an English lead, which I find a bit, well, weird. So, despite the film starring Ian McShane (Lovejoy!) and Christopher Eccleston, I’ll be avoiding it. If you’re going, get your kids to read the book first!

Forgive me, I’m feeling a little introspective, and I’ve been thinking a lot about writing, and friends, and online social networks, and how I relate to them all.

This week I was asked if I’d go along and join in a new activity. As much as I think it would be fun I’m on a self imposed new-hobby ban, until I can figure out how to fit all the knitting and sewing and baking and writing and reading in and still have time left over for a little exercise, sleep, and my beloved hot baths.

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Social networking etiquette has had me thinking a bit too. I have accounts on Facebook and Ravelry, and I realised I have very different criteria for ‘friending’ people on them. My rule for Ravelry is that I’m free and easy with friending. Like someone’s blog? Friend ‘em. Think they made something nice? Friend ‘em. Have something in common with them? Friend ‘em. Simple.

Facebook though, I’m different with that. I reject friendship requests there. I’d say often, but it’s not like I’m deluged with them. I just reject a good proportion of the ones I receive. I think the difference between the two may be that I know I have at least one thing in common with everyone on Ravelry – a shared hobby. It’s not the same with Facebook. Now, I’m taking a bit of a gamble here, that people I’ve rejected or un-friended don’t know about the blog, but I decided that I should have a rule of thumb for accepting friend requests, and it is this: If I bumped into this person in the street, would we have (a) an awkward 5 minute conversation about what we’re up to, each desperately hoping for a phone call to interrupt and take us away, or (b) would we head to the nearest pub/coffee shop for a good chat. If it’s (a), reject, (b), accept. Simple.

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On my commute one day this week I was listening to the wonderful Brenda on Cast On interview Laurie from Crazy Aunt Purl about her new book. Anyway, Laurie was talking a bit about how she’d always kept a diary, and how that’s separate to the blog, well, no, she didn’t say exactly that, but she talked about writing in her diary too, and how some things would stay in private, in her diary, and might not get blogged about.

You know when you have those ‘duh’ moments, when something is so stupidly obvious that you haven’t been able to see it and all of a sudden it hits you in the face? I had one of those.

I used to write loads. An awful lot of it teenaged over-analytical bollocks, but not all. In notebooks, jotting down what I was doing, where I’d been, how I was feeling, stories, happy memories, lists, letters never to be sent etc etc.

Then I started the blog, and a lot of that just came here instead. And then it sort of stopped. And this became entirely about knitting projects, instead of writing, some of which happened to be about knitting. Don’t worry though, this isn’t a big apology post for not blogging. Stuff has been happening that I don’t want to blog. Nothing momentous, nothing exciting, nothing newsworthy, just little things that I’d like to be jotting down but not posting up for everyone to see. Add to that the fact that I got really self conscious about the quality of my Flickr Fictions that I’ve stopped writing them completely.

Despite all that I’ve been itching to write again.

So.

This is me, giving myself permission to write stuff down in notebooks, longhand, and not worry in the slightest about putting it all up here.