Sleeves and safety pins

I was knitting on the sleeves of Marcus' "Too big for now, in a few years fine" jacket when I decided to measure them. They were 34cm. This is 1cm past where the shaping begins, but the main point is that the eternal sleeves are almost done. Huzzah!

Sleeves are my least favourite part of knitting a jumper/cardigan/anything upper body related. I was taught that a good knitter knits both sleeves at the same time, to get perfect matching tension. It's pretty easy: you simply cast on both sleeves onto the one needle using two balls of yarn and have at it. The only time you can go wrong is if you stop halfway through a row and can't remember which sleeve you were working on, or which way you are going. Don't laugh, this can happen to anyone.

Instead, I've come up with my own solution to such a problem, the ever so humble safety pin. Just pin the two sleeves together in the center and work away, constantly moving the pin upwards as you knit.

Oh, safety pin, is there any knitting dilemma you cannot assist in?

A bad blue idea

I think I'll write an essay: "Things You Should Never Do While Knitting Lace."

Today's effort? Two cans of Red Bull Blue.

Shaking hands and 1.5mm needles are a bad match.

Good idea, bad idea

I slacked off on my work last week and spent some couch time reading "The Cuckoo's Calling" by JK Rowling Robert Galbraith. Nice old-fashioned murder mystery, I suspect good old JK is an Agatha Christie fan. Unfortunately, I have a very big problem when I read books: I bite my nails. Badly. Very very badly.

On Thursday, when washing my hands made the remaining nubs of my fingernails sting I knew I had to do something. So my brilliant idea was to buy some cheap stick on nails to wear for a few weeks, until the worst of it all was over.

Brilliant. Genius.

 Knitting lace with these talons is close to impossible.

(Apologies for the web cam. I managed to break my phone screen again...)

O'erweening confidence

Once again the knitting smugness has been knocked out of me.

I compared Part A and Part B of the BFF that Chantal and I are knitting together.  The two parts should finish up the same length.

If you need me I'll be knitting my fingers off to make these the same length by tomorrow night.

Instructions are VERY important

I started a little jacket in Jet for Marcus a while ago from this book:

I'm making the all one colour version of the jacket. As usual,  I photocopied the instructions and circled the third size, being size 4. It was only after I couldn't find the photocopy that I pulled the book out and discovered the ultimate stuff up.

The third size isn't a size 4. I assumed the sizes were 2-3-4 etc, but they're not.

*sigh* At least Marcus will be warm in two years time.

PSA for customers

If you hand over your heirloom crochet blanket to be repaired and you haven't washed it for a while,  could you please warn me?

Otherwise I may swear in shock when I wash it.

As for the weekend,  adore my baby. Dorothy turned 2 and was given too many presents, including this outfit. She really is edible.

Hooker with a heart of gold

So, you're contemplating crochet?  Why not! It's the latest craze! Look at all the cool stuff you can "hook"!

Think you need more discipline in your life?  Why not create your very own Master Chief?

Tired of kids playing outside at night? Just leave Slenderman outside and watch 'em run screaming in terror!

Are you pining for the fjords? Well, so is your new Viking friend! Take him on a boat ride with you, but make sure the boat isn't on fire or else you may actually be dead.

What a fabulous stool sample!

Suffering from Game of Thrones withdrawal?  Why not whip up the Stark family? (NB: Buy more red wool.)

Does this mean I'm mature now?

Look!

Wet concrete!  I've managed to not write in it!

(It's self-leveling,  no point really.)

Instead,  I shall sit back and knit whilst I inhale coffee.

So THAT'S the snail doorway!

Our back room carpet was ripped up today, due to massive amounts of mould. But where did the mould come from?

....well, !@#$&. I think I'll go knit for a bit.

Step One: Get it right

Joex, aka Most Awesome Chick EVER, got engaged and as I'm seeing her this weekend for Dot's birthday party I knew I had a smidgen of time to get her present made. Why yes, I could buy her something instead!  I'm sorry,  but have we met before?

I worked my way through the beginning of the project, getting the first 12 rows done. Just as I was packing up to go to bed I noticed it.

The bottom edge is meant to be reverse stocking stitch.  As in we can see the purl side. When I joined it up, I reversed it, and the knit side has curled up. I now need to frog 12 rows of fair isle.

#$@! $*

Vworp! Vworp!

Ooooo, I am so ridiculously proud of myself.

One set of Doctor Who Selbu Mittens completed. I started these in April and they are quite complicated so the time taken wasn't too bad. Until you realise that the knitting really only took about a week. I suffer from Second Sock Syndrome, even with mittens. The yarn is Grignasco Champagne, which is 75% extrafine merino and 25% silk, which means I spoil Felix a lot.

The pattern is from this chart, created by Kelsey Seay, who is a very large clever clogs. The only change I made was to follow the pattern exactly for the front of the thumbs, and changed the underside of the thumbs...

...to hidden TARDIS'. TARDII? Anyway, I love them, and so does the man himself, as you can see.

Hard work, but worth it. Veni, vidi, vici indeed.

Method and order, Watson

I'm off to Chantal's tonight to work on our BFF cowls.

The pattern printed out on two pages, so I had to reorganise it into a single page. Thought I might just add the check offs. Two knitting needles, one stone.

Quite dapper

A few nights on a couch can lead to a lot of things. A numb backside. A season of "Elementary" viewed (not a patch on "Sherlock", but what is?). An entire scarf knitted.

The pattern is the Diagonal Garter Stitch Scarf from Morris & Sons, knitted using Morris' Maya 14ply. That is 150g of baby alpaca in charcoal grey.

Felix loves it.

Bring out your dead!

Marcus had gastro, but now he's better. Marcus gave his gastro to Dot, because sharing is caring. Dot's now on day six of puking, including a moment this morning that was highly reminiscent of "Pitch Perfect". Because sharing is caring, Dot gave her gastro to me.

There is a sign on our front door stating "Plague House: Dot Not Enter!" and while it was originally a joke I'm not so sure anymore.

It appears bad health leads to bad luck. I either have a very large brick or the tapestry was extra small.

Well, smeg.

Nothing rhymes with purple

My darling Chantal decided that she needed a timetable for her WIP's and I thought to myself "That's what I need. I only have a list. Let's come up with an unrealistic schedule!"

First up was to knock off Jade's purple gloves, another project I've been carrying around since we left Scotland in January 2009.

The yarn is Rowan Wool Cotton, because I talked Jade into buying the very best yarn she could get, so I think I still deserve brownie points for that. The pattern is the Garter Stitch Mitts by Ysolda Teague, of whom I'm very jealous (gorgous and talented tends to get me a bit green eyed).

So all I have to do now is find Jade and ship stuff off to her. To the Facebook!

Radiant

Radiant,

From Hell's heart I stab at thee; for hate's sake I spit my last breath at thee.

You were supposed to be my friend!

You were the Chosen One!

Hello. My name is Andrea. You're the jumper that was supposed to fit perfectly. Prepare to be thrown in the drawer.

Future plans

It's raining, it's pouring, right now Marcus is snoring. Hopefully Dot will sleep soon, but as she's currently reading this over my shoulder and trying to steal my mandarin at the same time I highly doubt it.

I've managed zip, nada, zilch on my planned projects. My brick is still in hiding from Marcus (sorry SapphireBlue, I'll have a brick doorstop for you soon!) and I still have a side to sew up in my Radiant jumper. A brief conversation today with Chantal made me realise that there will one day be a knitting life beyond my current WIP's and this cheered me up no end.

So, what plans ahead?

Dot needs some cardigans, and I have a red aran one in mind, followed by a gorgeous blue/white stripe with cherries intarsia, based on "Cherry Pie" from "Little Rowan". The original pattern only goes up to 24 months and the yarn is a 4ply. I have a little girl who's almost 24 months and takes a size 3, plus my yarn is a 6ply bamboo/wool. Lots of adapting to do there. After that I have an adorable bobble cardigan for summer. I love cardies!

Which is why I'll be knitting myself a gorgeous Louisa Harding cardigan called "Sabrina". I have seven balls of red and six balls of wool/cashmere blend, which is enough to make this scrummy piece for myself. I've also got acres of Jo Sharp Silkroad Aran Tweed for "Renaissance" from "A Yorkshire Fable", a book I own solely because I swear I know the male model. Last up, I'm making myself some alpaca bedsocks. I keep making them for my parents, so why not myself? I have two balls of Eki Riva in two shades of purple to use for that project.

I have 16 balls of Zara waiting to be turned into a jumper for Felix. I just don't know what to knit! 8ply cables? It's just not right! No reasonable suggestion requested! I also have a ball of green/orange striped 4ply sock yarn. I may be forced to make socks.

I also may have promised my da a cable jumper for making my very unsuccessful square foot garden for me on Cup Day. I'm silly like that.

Mmmmmm, future knits. So much more satisfying than the ones I'm already doing!

Bad luck runs in threes

1. I re-twisted my knee.

2. Marcus has gastro. Our 5:45am wakeup was less than pleasant.

3. I don't own this book.

I NEED to own this book.

It's just so 80's!

Happy days ahead

I finished off the trim on my Radiant front last night.

It's all set for me to sew it all up and get it done. Two 5mm double point needles are helping me keep it all in order (highly professional I am).

A late night text message has paved the way for a glorious weekend of happiness, punctuated with slight hopes that Marcus won't Exorcist over the floor again.

However, despite that horrifying thought, I have a brick and a tapestry to cover it with. One productive weekend coming up!

I'm not pig-headed, I'm strong-willed

Instead of curling up in the fetal position weeping for the second time this week, I headed off to the lounge room and pulled back the shoulder and trim on my Radiant. I untwisted it, re-sewed the shoulder and I'm in the process of re-crocheting up the trim. I'll get this top done this week, for certain. Strong Protestant work ethic to the rescue! (The first time time this week in fetal position weeping? "Game of Thrones". Holy heckmonkeys, was that a shocker!)

Marcus got up at 3am with a terrible temperature, but seemed okay when I needed him to model his new jumper. Sick, but still posing like a model. Highly professional.

The pattern is the T-Top Sweater by World Vision, one that you knit and donate the finished object. It sits oddly on Marcus, but I think it's adorable, very hippy.

The yarn is "Wintergreen" Jo Sharp Aran Tweed and it's lovely. Of course she got rid of this shade, but "Grass Stain" in Woolahra from Morris & Sons is a pretty good match. Niiiiiiiiice...

Turns out modelling when unwell can be exhausting. Poor little mannikins.