It's STILL Snowing!

I got to test my all-wheel drive van - my client got it for me for $312 last spring - in the snow. It uses too much gas, it's sitting on a heavy-duty truck chassis but rides comfortably & goes like stink in this stuff. You should see it go up a steep, snow covered hill from a dead stop!! I've sold it to a client of mine who needs a heavy duty van but haven't found anything smaller yet so I get to drive it for another month or so.
I needed milk, catfood & toilet paper yesterday so I had to go out. I didn't shovel my drive, I swept a path with my broom!! But, I took the bag of salt, the shovel & the wire bottomed broom with me when I went - it was 8.4 inches on the nose in my drive & well above the tops of my rubber shoes, dammit. The cat refused to go out yesterday - smart cat! She preferred to sit in her window seat & growl at the birds that came into the garden to eat the leftovers I tossed out.

After all my scooting about, I came home to finish my new socks in the picture above. I just loved this OPAL yarn when I saw it in the Bargain Basket & saved it for myself. I decided I needed longer winter socks so I whipped it out & knit it up for ME.
About halfway thru this pair, I realized they looked awfully familiar. I couldn't stand it so I checked the sock basket for something in the same sort of pattern or colors that I made up in the past. I thought maybe I'd knit up some OPAL in a slightly different color combo or something. Can you believe it??? The exact same colorway! The one on the right is a little faded from all the washing but it's exactly the same colors as the new one on the left! Well, obviously I like this pattern!

If you look closely at the heels though, you'll see the older sock on the right has a short-row heel which I believe is from Jan's Sock pattern & the left hand sock has the Queen Kahuna heel which I'm using these days!

I've knit so many socks in the last few years that it's really hard to remember what I've worked with & what I've just admired. Wish I could say the same about my SWEATERS. In this weather, I just wish I'd finished one of them by now.

Here we go again!


The cat has finally realized that there is no door into Summer today. She's had it opened several times & driven me batty until I opened the window by her shelf a couple of times too. She DID go out & lick the snow on the stairs outside her window but she really didn't want to go outside into it. She finally decided it was a good day to sleep. I agree with her! I've been a little under the weather for the past few days & don't want to go out either. It just took her longer to decide .

When the Weather Pundits predicted more of the White Death, I went shopping for more fruits, veggies & cat food - we can last it out!!

The Wednesday Nite Nitters met this week with a variety of projects so we decided to take a picture of the whole mess of them to post on the blog!! In the top left is Laura's alpaca afghan, then Kathy's wild green socks, in the lower right - Gail's monet afghan from her 'Tea Exchange', in the lower left - Gail's finished Icelandic Shawl & then my Opal socks on top of Laura's afghan. Karen's wild socks are in the middle! Aren't we a Crafty group???!!!


I have two pairs of socks on the go right now - the weird colored ones for the BT's mom - she wanted some longer socks for winter now that she's getting around so much better since her knee replacement! She & the Worst Half seem to be on the go constantly so they need Boot Socks now. I'm just about finished hers, I'm in the mindless midfoot where I'm debating about whether to put a contrasting toe on or not. I'll have to reinforce hers, no matter what I do but will I, won't I, will I, won't I????

My Opal socks have their heels turned & are also on the home stretch. I made them a little longer to keep out the winter drafts on my legs as well - Maw had a good idea. There's nothing like that first blast of cold air on your bare legs when you exit a nice warm car . . . .

By the way, I pulled out my last dye mistake this morning & wondered what to do with it - I spun the wool from my Brown Sheep mill ends into lovely fat skeins that hung as ART in my livingroom for ages. I splotch dyed them one day & realized - after the dye was dabbed on - that I'd forgotten the vinegar!! Most of the dye came out when I threw the skeins into the vinegar. I splotched some more dye onto the yarn & cooked it in my microwave for 3 minutes. This is the result. It's a soft, springy singles yarn that knits up about a worsted weight in the sample swatch. I may just knit some mittens - found a pattern in an old KNITTERS magazine for sideways garter stitch mittens. They would work very nicely when sitting outside drinking coffee at Starbucks!!

Ooooooo - just looked outside - it's really coming down!! Looks like there'll be FUN FUN FUN on the roads tomorrow morning!! Good thing I'm cozy in my home office until midmorning.

Just bring me the money


Oh, I love the early part of the year when the Taxman calleth. This year he actually got his butt in gear & got not only the tax programs ok'd early but even got the Summary software up & running almost a month early on the website!! I bet some of those government employees actually worked in the month of December!! Imagine that??!!
So, I'm anchored to the computer, spewing forth mountains of paper for the Taxman. Nothing like a few T4s to get your blood running in the morning . . . . .


So, the sun is shining & I'm in the office pounding on the keyboard - but not for long. I & the latest Ugly Opal sock are heading for Starbucks to knit & work on my tan. Remember the socks from the last post??? Well, the heels are turned & I'm on the home stretch, on the way to the toes. Usually I put a contrasting toe on most of my socks but I won't be doing that for these ones. The BT's mom is really hard on the upper toe of her socks - comes from having a shortened tendon in one big toe apparently. This causes the nail to rub against the TOP of her sock & wears a hole in it quite quickly. Since all my solid yarn which matches anything in the is sock is Sisu, I've decided to knit all of it the same AND reinforce the toes with fuzzy nylon. I have a lot of fuzzy nylon in several colors which I bought to reinforce heels & toes. I learned that most people don't need reinforcing since most sock yarns are at least 20% nylon & they wear very well. But, the BT's mom needs it because of her strange toe. Good thing I'm a packrat who doesn't throw things out . . .

And the right hip triangle in the Ginny sweater is progressing nicely. I figure by the time the weather starts to warm up to early flowers, I'll have a new sweater to wear . . . . . .

How the Time passes


I know it's been more than a week since I wrote or posted a picture of my maudlin going's on. I don't need to be reminded! But, I've been busy. And not with crafty things neither!! It appears Revenue Canada - oops, CCRA since they got their new charter - well, it seems they've finally got their act in gear & we can file all the 2007 reports early. Holy Crap!! My tax software was ready for sale 10 days ago!! The tax software people have to wait for Revenue Canada to OK their product before we can buy it. We can't file T4s because Revenue Canada's ON-LINE software isn't usually ready till February! This year all of it's ready to go & has been for almost two weeks!! So, I'm filing what I can early!! Balancing Payroll books, doing Spread Sheets, filling out the forms . . . . . . who has time to knit???

Well, there is this little pair of socks I've been knitting . . . . . I know I swore I'd knit NO MORE SOCKS till one of my sweaters was done BUT I still need a little, portable project to carry around in the car with me. When I'm waiting somewhere or out for a coffee with friends, I just don't want a big project. I want something small that can just be whipped out, a few stitches done & put down again. I NEED a small project. And the BT's mom needs some longer socks for her new walking shoes. Now that her knee's been replaced, she's more active & her short socks leave her legs cold so I said I'd knit her a couple of pairs so she stops pinching the Old Man's socks. This is the next offering - I'm just starting to turn the heel. This is some of the OPAL Uglies that I found on sale before Christmas at my favorite yarn shop, Knitopia. I'm glad the BT's mom loves it. She says it goes with lots of her stuff!!! Okaaaaaaaaaay . . . .

And speaking of the sweaters, I'm working on the right hip triangle for Ginny. It's the sweater with the increases down the centre back, front & sleeves. When finished, it has a very deep dip, front & back so the sides have to have triangles knit in the sides to even it up before the edging, collar & button bands are done. It's just large & bulky so it's not the sort of thing you pack around. Arvik is in waiting since Ginny is closer to finishing but it's next.

Haven't been spinning anything but have been perusing my Knitting magazines, my collection of books & Barbara Walker for a next project. I have several skeins of different shades of purple yarn spun up - some contain silk & some don't. I may take the easy way out & just knit a shawl to curl up in when I watch tv. I'm not sure I have the courage to wear one in public, but there is this simple sweater designed for scrap silk yarn that keeps calling to me. It's just two rectangles & a square with sleeves & I might just have enough yarn to make it. It's knit on large needles in a large stitch so it's very shawl-like in texture. Mmmmmmmm. . . .

No one here but us bags

I've almost finished the silk waste knitting bag I started last week. I decided I needed big round bamboo handles for it. And a flap to close the top. I've cast-off for most of the top except for a 2" flap on either end to fold over the handles to hold them on. I'm really hoping I have enough to knit a flap to close it with a big button or something . . . . . a bone?? a wooden spool??
I knit a rectangle in garter stitch for the bottom. And then I picked up stitches all around the rectangle increasing at least 4 stitches on each corner and a couple here & there on the sides to make the bag fuller.

And I found the other bag of silk waste. It's really nasty, hard, itchy stuff. I probably should wash it first - it's dark but probably with dirt. And, I think there's actually more of this stuff than there was of the brighter silk. I picked a lot of wood waste out of the brighter silk that I knit the bag with too. But, I think it will have to wait for warmer weather AFTER I've finished a couple of my sweaters!!! I'm cold. I need a sweater!

The Agony & the Ecstasy

I've already attempted to blow my New Year's resolutions all to Hell. I have some of my friend Karen's sock project bags. Karen loves to find these & has rules for buying the bags.The rules for these bags are #1 - they have to be see thru & #2 - they have to be under a buck! I got lucky & was able to get the BIG Kahlua bag for my Arvik sweater project but mostly these bags are too small for anything other than a pair of socks. I need another BIG bag to hold my Ginny while I'm working on it. So I came up with a plan - I've wanted a felted bag for sooooooo long but my apartment size washer just won't make felt - but someone pointed me at a Knitty project, UNBIASED. It's knit from waste Silk Sari yarns! Perfect for a knitting bag I thought!!

Now, last year, I bought 15 skeins of yarn on eBay. I planned to unwind it somewhat, pull it & re-spin it into something useable. Bad Idea. It's waaaaay too dirty, scratchy & itchy to do much with. I unwound several skeins & got about 30% more yarn from it's sad & overtwisted skeins. Pulling them to make it thinner proved to be ruinous to the fingers & joints. I threw it into a drawer & forgot about it.
But, I still need a knitting bag that's roomy enough for a large project & tough enough to withstand the poking from needles & scissors. It also has to be able to sit on the floor wherever I go but not look like a beat up gunny sack or torn plastic bag. And I've got 10 skeins of Sari Silk & 5 of rayon - Oh, didn't I tell you that I bid on two lots & ended up with both of them??? I ended up with similar items but one lot is much darker than the other. I'm tempted to use them both in the project just to get rid of them! And I figure even though I've violated the brand-new resolutions of the New Year, it might be forgiven because it enables the other projects. This project looks like mindless knitting, so it shouldn't take more than a couple of evenings in front of the tube . . . . . . .

Ain't it Great?? It's 2008!!

I text messaged "Happy New Year" to everyone I knew with a cell phone this morning. And I actually heard back from several of them!! No, kiddies, I did NOT do it at one minute past midnight. Yeah, I was up listening to John Grisham's,"Steet Lawyer" on the computer while I caught up on tons of unread emails. And I admit I played a little Super Bounce Out too. I had beer in the fridge & vodka in the cupboard so I could've partied. The BT & I decided it was too cold to sit outside & drink in the New Year as we did last year & neither of us wanted to sleep on the other's couch afterwards. So, we yakked on the phone, sent happy text messages at midnight & went to bed in our own beds. Ain't we the exciting couple??? We DID talk about spending NEXT New Year's someplace warm & nice, with a beach & happy natives willing to bring food & drink. Hopefully it'll happen in THIS lifetime . . . .


I spent some of my holiday time knitting on Arvik. I've got about 8 inches of the top done so far. I've even added a row of purl stitches to the stockinette every 5 rows just because. And I added some extra stitches to the fronts not including the 7 sts for the seed button band. I intend to pick up the stitches around the neck & knit a hood but that's only tentative right now. I'll also put a seed stitch band on the bottom instead of ribbing. I'm trying NOT to poke my nose into any other project until this one is done.

And then, I've got the 'Ginny' to finish as well. 'Ginny' is down to the side triangles of the hip shaping & I'm tempted to just pick up all the stitches & knit a decorative border instead. The pattern is designed to dip deeply in the front & back but the sides are picked up & knit in a triangle to match the front & back dip & give a level hem. It's knit in a comfortable discontinued yarn that I've loved for years. I knit several sweaters out of this yarn years ago & wore them to death. I grew out of one of them & the lace panel started to unravel on the second so I pulled them both apart & let the yarn "age" for a few years until I needed a new comfy sweater. Maybe, I should just finish 'Ginny' first since its much closer to being finished & then go back to Arvik.

Oh, there's also sweater #3 in the basket!! I'd almost forgotten about it! I have this ratty old fuchsia acrylic sweater that I knit for myself about 12 years ago. I had a client who insisted on gifting me with money one birthday ONLY if I spent it on something personal for ME. I promised. So I went out & bought this wonderful fuchsia yarn & knit up the Moss Stitch Blazer from Big Knits by Dawn French & Sylvie Soudan. My client & I were both thrilled with it! I'm still wearing it although it's no longer fit to wear in public. The cat fights me for it every time she finds it laying somewhere & it's full of pulls - but I love the color! For several years, I've been buying the Dalesman Fuchsia wool from Birkeland Brothers every time I'm in the neighborhood. I've got about a dozen hanks now so I started knitting the Moss Stitch Blazer in Wool this time. I love the color - it's exactly the same shade as the acrylic yarn I loved so much. I've got the back finished & part of one front done too. I'd also like to wear this sweater some time soon.

The clematis is a reminder of summer when my trellises were covered with red bean flowers, white something-or-other that climbed & these gorgeous clematis flowers. They were the size of bread & butter plates!! And, now that Christmas is over, my RANT button is put away for another year. In my humble opinion, Christmas should become a family holiday again with candles, dinners, good fellowship, tempting smells & kindness for all. Eliminate the ads, Fire the PC police, Ban Boxing Week, Erase the guilt, bring back the fun, legislate SNOW & neighborhood sledding.

Still Twisted
Okay, okay - so Twisted doesn't always refer to the socks I knit! Sometimes it actually refers to ME! Christmas just makes me angry.
It used to be a Family thing. Each family celebrated in some manner. Some went to Church, some went to Meetings, some visited with gifts, some just waited for Santa. But most had the tree, the decorations, the school concerts & every kid knew about it. We sang all the carols without really thinking about the words. We just loved the music. Kids looked forward to Santa regardless of religion. Now you can't SAY Christmas or Merry Christmas - you might insult/injure someone.
The Religious Right talk about the 'Reason for the Season' or the 'Christ in Christmas'. Gimme a break folks, Constantine, a Holy Roman Emperor, stole the Yule Celebrations from the Pagans & renamed them Christmas in order to spread the word in the THIRD century AD!
The Politically Correct Police don't want to offend Anyone so we must change our traditions & not mention Christmas officially at all! This is our country, why are we changing???
Religion must be separate from Education. Okay, okay, but we get a Stat Holiday on the 25th but can't discuss why??? HUH?? Why can't the schools recognize All major religious holidays??? Social Studies 101!!
We can BUY, BUY, BUY for the Mysterious Holiday we aren't allowed to mention. In fact, we're harangued from October to January with the Music & Decorations in every Commercial Operation but we aren't allowed to mention Christmas . . . . it's not Politically Correct!
After all, what would the non-Christian Refugees & Immigrants think??? Lemme tell ya folks - they think we're nuts! They celebrate & decorate & wear Santa hats in their own countries. Then they come to Canada & find they're not allowed to say 'Merry Christmas' or put up trees in public places! They laugh at us.

And it's snowing outside again. Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow 'cause I'm working on Arvik once again. I did finish it once but decided I didn't like the fit of the fronts. Oh, I forgot to add some extra stitches for the fronts plus the band. I was past the armholes at that point & decided to just finish it so I could wear it. Tried it on & hated the fit. I need more boobage room in front!! So I frogged the whole thing - now that I think about it, I could've picked up the stitches on both side of the fronts & added a nice, wide ribbing . . . . oh well, it ended up in the three large, centre-pull balls in the top picture! I was quite amazed at how little yarn this sweater actually used & how light & airy it was when knit up. Can't wait to finish it again & actually wear it. I'm tempted, since I have quite a bit of it spun up, to knit a hoodie with Arvik. I'll have to check the gauge - handspun always knits bulkier than it appears.

And then there's all those squares . . . . I've been knitting sample swatches with some of my dye experiments. I'm getting quite a pile of them tucked in the corner of my bookcase. They're all in a fine singles in every color you can name but come in sort-of three colorways - greens, pinks & yellow/oranges. I'm not sure what to do with them all. Yeah, somebody mentioned an afghan - well, I have two afghans now & one of them just lays on the back of the couch. The cat lays on the other one unless I beat her to it. I DID think of putting them all together into a 'Coat of Many Colors' but the Wednesday Nite Nitters nixed that. They decided I'd look ridiculous. But, they're similar weights & the same size - I suppose they could become a couple of pillows or maybe I'll just have to dye some more fine yarn & make enough to make something useful.
And, I've decided NOT to knit another sock until I have a couple of sweaters finished for ME!

And it's OVER!

Here it is, Christmas morning & I'm pounding on the keyboard! Spent most of yesterday running around dropping off all my cans of socks & washcloths. Only the BT lucked out with a big shopping bag full of personal care goodies - he appreciates them all since he is still unemployed due to injuries from his car accident. And, I even managed to sneak all the Girlie stuff over the balcony & into their Mom's house when the girls were getting ready for bed . . .it was a close one though!! Mom didn't know till I called her later that the biggest bag was for HER!! he he he - I know their Christmas was a good one!!

Just one more can to deliver to my Ex. We're going out for dinner - we haven't decided whether to go to the Chinese smorg yet. I knit the Old Fart a pair of socks - size 13WWWW & a couple of dishcloths. And I'd rather go out for dinner with Him than the BT right now. The BT will be well & truly pickled in a few hours & it's cheaper to let him drink his brother's booze than mine. He's hilarious when he drinks - not mean or cranky at all - just expensive. And I don't want to go to his brother's place for dinner anyway. Yessir, I am absolutely overflowing with Christmas Spirit! Bah Humbug.

We have Scarves

I got talked into shopping at Walmart last night. I guess I deserved it since I whangled the cheque that financed this operation for my stoney-ass broke friend!! We went at midnight. My passenger told me Walmart was now open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. I hate shopping this time of year & try not to darken the doorstep of ANY Mall in the month of December. And I went to Walmart on December 21/22. To say I dreaded it would be an understatement. Well . . . . it turned out okay. The parking lot was almost empty - hoooray. Lots of carts rolling around in the parking lot too - what is it with people??? Why are they so lazy & ignorant?? Anyway, we spent 2 hours in the joint, loaded up a cart with pyjamas, underwear, socks, bath goodies, make-up bags, uncounted girlie gifts, groceries & some nice MOM gifts too. I insisted on MOM gifts. We spent $322 & change. And I even got a bag of cherry Twizzlers & a bottle of Vanilla Brown Sugar body lotion . . . . . This family wasn't going to have any money for Christmas. So I was quite proud of myself.

While waiting for midnight, I turned the Dollar Store novelty yarn into two scarves for two girls. It was too difficult a yarn to knit the hats that I intended to make - it doesn't like small needles at all. So I found some needles the size of my ring finger & knit long, skinny scarves for both of them. They're stretchy, wrap around the neck a couple of times & are soft & flirty! Apparently the Dollar Store staff didn't know what to do with this yarn so I'll have to knit a sample for the store. But the girlie girls will love these - their mom does already. I call the pink one FEATHERS & the blue one FRINGES because that's what they look & feel like. I think I love them both. I'd use either one for a big yummy collar on a simple sweater.

It's a CANNED Christmas!!

It's amazing how you depend on four wheels & a motor to live your life. But, I selected my basement based on the private driveway & it's central location in regard to my jobs. I did not choose it with any consideration for walking, taking the bus or shopping. This point was well & truly made when I had no wheels for three weeks. But, I have my wheels back. I got them back on Monday afternoon & have spent my time running around ever since . . . . . . . .

And I sold my van. Oh, I'll still drive it for a couple of months or so till I get another set of wheels but for all intents & purposes, it's sold. Now to find one that runs as well but consumes a quarter of the fuel . . . .

I'm canning presents in this year - I had been taking advantage of the huge selection of gift bags at the dollar stores for several years but people can PEEK into them! This year, I found CANS. They're big enough for two pairs of socks or a pair of socks & a washcloth. Just the thing!! I used to wrap my gifts in the funny pages from the Sunday paper but I love the cans!! I can't wait to see people's faces AND these can be re-used by the recipient too!!

While at the Dollar Store, I found some great novelty yarns - one is feathery & one is fluffy with sparkles. I've cast-on the feathery yarn onto big needles to make a long, skinny scarf for a teen who loves pink. And with the blue sparkly stuff I intend to knit HANNAH from the current issue of Magknits. It's a hat which buttons around the head under the pony-tail. And although the pattern was written for Chunky Alpaca, I think I can make it work!! Mmmmm - I wonder if one of those cans is big enough for a pair of socks, some earrings AND a scarf or hat???

Another Wet Saturday


I'm still without wheels! My mechanical friend has been working full time, fixing everyone's cars on the side & now has a remodeling job - while my van sits in the driveway. The Woman in his life tore into him for a week until he dropped everything to fix her "office". Sigh. It's really, really hard being self employed without wheels.

In the meantime, I AM getting quite a bit of knitting done! The sock basket is full. I'm going to knit a couple of extra pairs in the calmer colors in case I need a last minute gift or two but I do have a few bottles of wine tucked away - I made it last summer! I'm working my way thru a pile of washcloths at the moment so that each pair of socks gets a washcloth tucked in beside them!! I bought a goodly supply of gift bags in November - good thing because I can't go anywhere right now!! I don't have any winter clothes, I drive everywhere & my umbrellas - all three of them - are in the van.

By the way, I signed up for the Knitting Daily newsletter. I saw the ad for the Daily newsletter & gave it a try - I'm addicted!! Knitting Daily HAS free patterns but it's the advice & the way it shows many bodies wearing one design that I really appreciate. I like Sandi's way of showing HER successes & failures on HER body. And I think I'm in love with the Central Park Hoodie. The latest KD brought not only the upsized version of the original Hoodie but several Queen sized women actually wearing the larger hoodie AND comments from Lisa - who upsized it. Ohhhhhhhhh . . . . too many sweaters & tooo little time.

This A.M. while waiting for the Landlord to come & fix the swamp in my bedroom, I made a batch of Goat's Milk Soap. I added some Black Raspberry Vanilla scent to it too. My whole place, except the bedroom, smells devine! I've gotten lazy in my Old Age, I've been buying soap kits - everything is premeasured. I used to make soap from Olive, Coconut & Almond oils but I can buy kits that combine, Palm, Olive, Coconut, Jojoba, Almond, vitamin E & all kinds of other oils I just can't afford to stock. So, I've gone to kits with combinations of different oils. My favorites are Goat's Milk & the super fatted Moisturizing Soap. Color & fragrance can be added if you desire. I usually don't add anything but use my favorite Bee Hive mould. It yields 3 BIG bars of soap that fit nicely into your hand. You're looking at the backside of the soaps here unfortunately - they weren't set when I took this picture. The soaps on the far left are quite large & fill up a cupped hand completely. The ones on the right are about half as deep. All six were made from a third of the kit.

As The Stomach Turns


Well, it's been a hellova week! Actually, it's been a helluva couple of weeks! You know when it rains, it just pours?? Well, it's really been pouring around here!
The water pump in my van died almost two weeks ago. Couldn't get it towed because I need the flat-deck tow truck - my van is all-wheel drive! By the time I could get a truck - Saturday afternoon - it was snowing & it was madness on the roads so it couldn't get here. By the time we could rebook it - Monday - it was madness on the roads due to flooding. So my van actually went to the mechanic a week after it died. And got in line.
Oh well, that's life. I'll work at home. Two days later, the computer blew up. My nice computer fella took it home on Saturday. I got it back last night - Monday - with TWO new-to-me hard drives(10 times the space I had!!!), more RAM & tons of Audio books & software installed. Sometime in the night, the monitor blew up. Sigh . . . . .


It's been lonely around here. Without wheels & a computer, I have no life! Good thing I have fibre. I've finished three pairs of socks, turned Kathy's heels, knit half a Wallaby, three washcloths & read several books. Here are my pink & chocolate socks! I just love the color & am debating whether to put the hot pink toes on them. I think they look lovely just the way they are!! I've finished the mottled Lana Grossa socks to the mid foot for the BT for Christmas. I've been debating about the toes on these as well. I have lots of the yarn so I may just finish them off as they are instead of finding a contrasting yarn for the toes. This is a very yummy yarn when it's knitted up. I found it a bit on the dense side when I used the 2mm needles to knit the last pair of socks so I went up one size & used my 2.5mm bamboo needles for these ones. I think I like the fabric a little better on the bigger needles.

I started the Wonderful Wallaby - it's a Hoodie from Cottage Creations - knit in worsted weight yarn on size 8US needles. It's sized from 2 to 48 & knit in the round with no seams to sew except on the hood & underarm. MY kind of sweater. One problem I did find was that although I got the gauge in the 4" swatch - 9sts to 2"- my gauge changed when I actually knit in the round. I ended up with 8sts to 2". And it DOES make a big difference in a size 2 sweater!! Rrrriiip it, rriipp it!! From now on, I'll make sure I do a gauge swatch in the round when I'm knitting in the round! I had to drop two needle sizes to get the gauge as it was. One good thing though, I think this sweater can be easily sized up to fit a lot more sizes by just going up a needle size. I was practicing on Bernat's AspenSoft yarn - I had a couple of balls hanging around. AspenSoft is not a bad yarn, it's actually 30% wool but still machine washable & dryable - hey, it's a Hoodie!!! I loved the fabric I got using size 5US needles & 4sts to the inch. And I think I'll even knit one for me. . . . .

Oh, and to add insult to injury, I think the landlord's bathroom pipes are leaking into my bedroom again. The poor man bought a house that's plumbed with the first plastic pipe approved by the city. The pipe is fine but the strap fastener that was used, fails. I woke up to the big wet spot in what remains of my carpet, at the end of my bed. The pipe connection in the wall failed 4 years ago & we hauled half a wet, mouldy carpet out. Here we go again.

And it's still snowing!

I got up this morning at just before 5AM & closed the cat's window! It was still snowing & there wasn't a cat print in the pile outside the open window. She really enjoys her new perch but I notice she lays on the corner FARTHEST from the cold, cold open window. Why AM I bothering?
Everyone is staying home in my neighborhood & I'm just about out of kitty litter. That may force me out to the corner store later today - can't imagine what that's gonna cost! But, I can't expect her to find the garden under several inches of snow. I think we may be up to around 6 out there right now, judging by the amount on the fence - I did hear 15 cm on the news so that should be about right. It's still snowing like mad though so I'm sure we're not getting the rain that was forecast. It's actually very pretty as well as very quiet out there - when it snows, the police & fire departments are much quieter. I'm sure it'll be a great day to shop too. I just need some damn kitty litter!!

I've cast-on the marled bluey-green Lana Grossa for the BT's next socks - these are for his Christmas box. Every year I get an orange box & fill it with personal goodies for him. He takes great joy in finding all the little items tucked away. So, this year, the socks will go in with a couple of washcloths as a start. If I have time, I'll knit two pairs. I used Lana Grossa for the NeverEnding socks for the EX & I really like the fabric it makes. It feels a little thicker than the OPAL so I'm using my 2.5mm bamboo skewers instead of the 2.0mms. I get a little more distance this way too since the BT likes a longer leg on his socks. The color is a little light in the picture - I really MUST learn about light when I take pics - it's actually much bluer, sort of faded blue jeans, in real life!

And, now that the smaller DPs are empty, I'm casting on the next pair of socks for ME. This is a yummy colored Confetti - one of my fav yarns - that my pal Karen gave to me to knit myself some socks. I found some Lanet in just the right color for the toes too! I think this yarn is absolutely delicious & will look great as a short sock as well as a longer, winter sock! And waddaya wanna bet these are on my feet by the next time the Wednesday Nite Nitters meet??

And it's really starting to pile up out there!!

In for the duration . . . .

I broke my van. Well, it actually broke itself last Tuesday. Apparently I was lucky to get home without problems & I didn't know it was broken until I climbed in on Wednesday night to go knitting with the girls. And it wouldn't start. Damn. Thursday & Friday were glorious days but I couldn't get the mechanic. Since it's All-Wheel drive, I need the flat deck tow truck which isn't available till Saturday afternoon & now it's snowing. Looks like it won't get there till Monday or Tuesday. So I'm stuck till next week. Wouldn't be so bad if I was used to walking or waiting for the bus but I haven't owned a winter coat or boots in years because I drive everywhere. Ooooops.

Well, one thing about being stuck at home - I'm getting my Christmas knitting done. I have most of the socks finished for friends & family. This morning, I cast on the Super Socke in the mottled Blue Jeans colorway for the BoyToy. His mom & dad's socks are done. The extra large socks for the Ex are also done - I thought they'd never end!! And I've just finished the second pair of socks in the eye-watering pinks & blue for one of the new 'girls' that I added this year. I do intend to knit a couple more pairs for the Sock Basket as insurance but from here on all the knitting except for the washcloths, will be for ME!!

Arvik is back on the needles although only about 4 inches is actually done. I made sure I added an extra 15 stitches to each front for a seed stitch band & a little extra for 'boobage'. I thought a seed stitch band on the hem, collar & cuff would also be nice instead of the usual ribbing. Other than that, this sweater will just be a plain knit from the top down, raglan cardigan. This incarnation will fit & be worn! I need a warm sweater on several job locations & in my own office in the evenings.

Right now, it's very cold - for Vancouver - with a good wind & fine snow falling rather heavily. It's the sort that doesn't pile up quickly but does pack nicely into ICE. Good thing it's Saturday. Tomorrow morning will be awful but most people will sleep in & stay home. The cat is very upset with me right now. She's sitting up in the office window on her fuzzy seat, looking outside at all the snow coming down. Normally, if the day is sunny, she sits outside on the steps with the window open so she can come & go. It's too cold to leave the window open & she's quite indignant.

Totally Absorbed in Socks



One pair of the 'girly' socks are already to the heel turning! I've always said that wild socks knit up soooo much faster than plain ones & this pair is no exception to the rule. I had to knit this OPAL Neon - just to see what it would look like as a sock. And it makes your eyes water, that's for sure!! I think the 11 year old recipient will be thrilled. The wild pinks & blues will look dazzling against her dark skin!! If I can find the time, I intend to knit a hat for her to match - I saw a couple on Knitty that keep your head warm but leave the back open for braids, tails or long hair. I'm actually thinking of the one with the two holes knit in for pigtails - our little gal loves to wear big fluffy pigtails!!

Was out to Starbucks last nite coffeeing with friends while watching the first snow of the season. Half the town crawled down the main road at 30 while the other half sped by laughing. It's amazing how a couple of snowflakes paralyze the town. Mind you, I AM totally happy that I don't have to be out in the early morning when the whole town will be a skating rink. The problem with the snow that falls here is that it's so wet that you get an inch of snow insulation on top of 3 inches of ice - nasty after a freezing night. I think I'm gonna regret losing my little front wheel drive car.

I just can't believe it!

Whilst rooting around in my office closet for a cable for the computer, I spied another couple of garbage bags hidden away in there. In my house, garbage bags mean trouble. Usually they mean forgotten work. Somebody out there gave me a whole bag of paper that must be UNFOLDED, READ, ORGANIZED & ENTERED onto the computer. Oh Gawd, who's been forgotten now!!?? Opened the top bag & discovered another fleece. A white fleece. A nice white fleece. Mmmm, when did I get this one?? And there's a grey fleece in the other bag - at least I think it's grey - but it's full of VM & needs washing - who knows what color it'll turn out to be. I knew about the mohair in the third bag but am totally blank about the other two. Too much wool & not enough time. Not sure I even want the grey one with VM . . . .

Decided to call my mother this morning & see what the weather's like up there in Vernon, these days. Since my step-father died, she's been making changes in her life. She finally decided to splurge on a new fridge & stove - she says the guy who hauled the old ones away said the stove was so far gone it was likely to set the house on fire!! Just what you want to hear. Mother & Clare liked to shop the auctions & many times they picked up bags of yarn for a buck. Mom said she found two garbage bags full of acrylic yarn out in the garage after Clare died. Apparently Clare liked shopping the auction by himself sometimes, since she'd never bought THAT much yarn!!! The local Hospital Auxiliary got a nice donation this week!! LOL

Well, I'm off to do dog walking duty in the local doggie park. It was a sea of mud on Friday & I figure it isn't much better today . . . . . sigh But, I'll be able to knit in the sunshine at Starbucks afterwards for a hour or so . . .

A Verrry Bad Idea

This little cold spell got me thinking about a winter jacket - haven't replaced the one that got taken by the nasty boys who broke into my car a couple of winters ago. I thought I'd knit an indian sweater quickly since I have all these balls of yarn hanging around. So I dug around & found 6 black, 2 grey, 1 white, 1 pink & 1 marled grey. I'm not including all the browns that I refused to consider. Figured that should be enough to make me a knit-in-one-piece-from-the-bottom-up sweater! Then I started to knit. Bloody hell!! I never considered how heavy this thing would be. And I'd forgotten how much it made me wheeze, sneeze, cough & drip!! The wool is SO DRY that it pours tiny fibres into the air like a cloud while you're trying to knit. I could spray it with a little oil & seal it into a garbage bag for a while, but I decided it wasn't worth my time. Time to find it a new home! I decided to search out that bag of polar fleece I've got tucked away & SEW a light winter jacket!!

I've actually cast-on for the Arvik top-down raglan sweater again. After the nasty Buffalo wool, Arvik is a joy to work with. The wool is soft & slightly greasy in a nice sort of way. No over processing here. I suspect some wool allergies may just be over-processed wool or nasty dyes. I don't seem to have a problem with most of it, most of the time. This time, I'll be using the standard Raglan, top-down shaping with the extra "Legal Loopholes" to increase the fronts & back while leaving a narrower sleeve. Hopefully, I'll be wearing it in a week or so.

Two more pairs of socks are finished!
The Never-Ending socks are Ended!! I couldn't leave well enough alone, mind you & I put yellow toes on them for fun. My ex will be tickled pink to get them - he hasn't had a pair of socks in quite a while. When you wear size 13WWWW, it ain't easy to find people willing to knit socks for you.

The brown & grey 'manly' socks are also finished. The BT's dad will be the happy recipient - he hasn't got any in brown or grey yet & I think he'll like these ones. I didn't put colored toes on these because I had plenty of yarn left over & wanted to use as much of it as possible. I'll bet I still have enough left over to make a couple pairs of baby socks.

And, as if I didn't have enough on the needles - I've cast on the wild hot pink & blue Opal yarn pictured here on the left that I bought in the bargain basket a couple of weeks ago at Knitopia. They'll be for one of the 'girly' feet I added to my Christmas list. I've only just finished the ribbing on the first sock but I can already tell that they're gonna be soooooooo wild!