Necessity is the grandmother of invention

I needed to wind a skein, yet I have no skein holder. No problem. Just stick it in the lap, and s-l-o-o-o-w-l-y unwind the skein. It's a painstakingly boring task, and would have been helped along if I could have used Felix. However, we picked up his "Guitar Hero World Tour" pack on Saturday and I wasn't about to disturb his happiness.

I finally twigged that what I needed was another hand. One to turn the ball winder, one to follow the thread and a third to hold the working thread up high enough to be able to flow into the ball winder and speed things up.




















Good thing I had a ponytail. Felix thought it was so funny intuitive he had to stop his game and take a picture.

Oh mighty Tensionia, hear my prayer,,,,

Today was drop off day for knitting entries for the Royal Melbourne Show. I've entered four categories and all I can do is cross my fingers and make offerings to the gods of knitting.

Finished Objects 2009 - #16 and #17

I finished the Mintie Booties this afternoon and they look great.














I love that they're a cute mint colour, I love that they're an adorable pattern, but most of all I love that they're finished.














Now to avoid 2.25mm bamboo double points for a few days so I can heal.

Tonight I made Saartje's again, but using a different pattern. A seamless version.














What bliss! What joy! What speed! I love using the magic cast-on, and then to have no back seam as well...*happy sighs*














When you have only four threads per bootie to sew in, you know you're on a winner. Expect this to be repeated a few times over the coming days.

Finished Objects 2009 - #15 and 3/4 of #16

Last night was my brother-in-law's birthday party and the last chance for my family to see me looking like I'd swallowed a watermelon. My sisters kept telling me how small I was compared to them at the same point in their pregnancies. Very sweet of them, especially when you consider I'm about 4" taller than all of them...

Yet another pair of booties, and hopefully this time I shall spell Saartje's Booties correctly.















An easy pattern, fairly fast, the only downside being too many ends to sew in! Next time I shall knit them in the round and only sew in the straps after all that.

I've knitted them to match my Alpaca Hat, and the sweet little buttons on the side are some of my many nacre buttons reversed.

Today's booties are... unfinished. Dun-dun-duuuuuhhhhhhh! 2.25mm needles that feel like toothpicks repeatedly stabbing me in my right palm cause me to slow down somewhat.














The pattern is Christine's baby booties and the ribbing at the sides apparently helps the booties stay on. Having knitted almost the entire pair, all I can say is they'd better stay on - this much hand agony better have a payoff.














They are very very cute, though. I was knitting them at the party last night and it's rare that I get comments on my knitting, but everyone there - including the kids - wanted to touch them and play with them. I think it's like Gidgetknits said: " Why is it booties are just so adorable? "

---

We spent a large chunk of today unpacking the last of our books (What? We've only been back for eight months) and sorting out some more things.




















Here we have our bookcase, cunningly arranged by the OCD member of the family, aka me. I love the colour effect to little teeny pieces, so much so that I decided to go crazy with the craft bookcase too.














I really need more magazine holders - I have two more boxes to empty, and I only have room for two more mag holders. Oops.

Finished Objects 2009 - #14

Ha! You thought I wouldn't manage it, did you? Nur!

















The pattern is Blue Steps Baby Booties and it was great fun. I started with a Magic Cast On, which really is magic, then moved on to a half-brioche stitch, and they just zoomed along. This in itself was pretty impressive considering they were knitted in the round, with 4 ply (the alpaca again), on 2.25mm needles.














They have an adorable garter stitch section at the front that pulls them all together.















So, on to another pair tomorrow!

Oh, so *that* explains it!

My doctor's suggestion of a week of bedrest to lower my blood pressure wasn't particularly well received. How could he not know just how much I need to do around the house?!? I need to finish setting up the nursery stuff, waaaaayyyyyy too much washing needs to be done (spring's arrived, time to wash and store heavy winter woolens) and there is yet another set of curtains to be made. The flat came with curtains, but they're all ugly and the fabric was $4 a metre.

End result is obvious: knitting. I'm having mild panic attacks about my knitting and I've worked out what to do. Each day I'll knit some booties. A pair, in fact. They take almost no time, and they're very very useful. The fact that I've almost finished a pair has nothing to do with it.

Let's see how long this idea lasts!

NB: If you look up Saartje's Bootees on Google you get the pdf. If you look up the very misspelled "Saatje's Booties" the first two links are to this blog...... oops.

Urgh.

I have oooooooodles of spare time on my hands. I have a loving husband who drives me around so that I can knit when we travel (I have to pay close attention because he's still on L-plates, mind). I have a beautiful stash basket next to the couch, so I can reach in grab my current project while I watch endless hours of BBC Drama dvds on tv. I have pretty much everything except one thing:

Energy. I went back to bed at 8:30am yesterday and got up at 2:00pm. Got up this morning at 7:00am, went back to bed at 10:00am, got out of bed at 6:00pm.

I'm too tired to knit, let alone housework. I have four weeks until my due date and all I can think is "COME EARLY! I NEED TO KNIT, DAMMIT!!!"

Ooooo, new techniques exist?!?

I finally caught up with the rest of the knitting world and tried a Magic Cast on. I generally use Turkish cast on if I'm knitting a toe-up sock (twice now and possibly never again but never say never again) so to attempt a new technique is a big push for me.

As I learn more about knitting through trial and error I am constantly learning that while the tried-and true methods work, sometimes there is a better option. The difference between a cable cast-on and a Twisted German cast-on for a sock, being one example. Or using a tubular cast on instead - there are around 4 different cast-ons called "tubular": pick one.

How to cable without a cable needle? Easy once you learn how. Casting off in rib - using a knitting needle or a sewing needle? You can do either. Intarsia is far easier than you think, as is fair-isle, leading me to wonder how many knitting projects I've put off to avoid trying something new.

There's an anonymous knitter I know who is one of the most brilliant intarsia knitters in Melbourne, if not Australia. Fearless at leaping in to try something new in colourways, jumps at the chance to use different fibres. End result? Art.

She had no idea that mattress stitch existed. All of her beautiful work was sewn up in very bulky backstitch. A five minute lesson and a new world opened up to her. It was brilliant to witness. Mind you, her work now looks perfect and a million times better than my own. Maybe I should have left her alone...

So my plan is to keep trying new ideas and old techniques because if I can't then I might as well fall back into my old ways and stagnate.

Finished Objects 2009 - #12 and #13

Looks like it's hat season again...

First up we have an old project - knitted up in two days in July.


















The pattern is by Debbie Bliss, and it was FAST. Two row stripes that slowly decrease was pretty much guaranteed to be speedy, but I was actually surprised that I finished it so quickly. Felix has a mini-fetish for stripes, especially purple ones, and I'm always happy to indulge his knitting wishes. Still a bit iffy on the idea of a knitted nappy cover with the Watchmen symbol on it, though...


















I think the pompom just makes it.

Second, we have my alpaca chullo.


















It's not a real chullo, but I thought earflaps were a good idea for the Boitjie during a Melbourne spring.


















I just had to knit alpacas into the hat in fair isle, and they look okayish, but not quite as uber-awesome as I had hoped.


















Before you all start feeling sorry for George, just remember: he was hand-fed lolly bananas from the time I was 4 until now. He's been spoiled enough.














I thought that Lolli might wish to assist in the steaming of the hat, but the look of contempt says it all, really.

Finished Objects 2009 - #11

It is impossible to hold this and not giggle.


















My dodecaheeeeeeeeeeedron.

Felix's first question (once he ceased squishing it and giggling) was "So when are you making one for the baby?". I think I need to make one in green and orange for the daddy before the Boitjie gets to play with this one!

I'm now wondering...should I knit a soccer ball? Just because I can?

---

In alpaca-y news, I'm doing okay with my 4ply. I decided against doubling it up because it's a pretty small amount, and what I have left over I want to use for more baby stuff. Possibly Saatje's Booties for a small project, or even half of a second hat.

C'mon!

If you're going to label the alpaca you're selling as "8ply", shouldn't it be? This is neither the thickness of an 8ply nor does it have 8 plies.

End result: cranky knitter searching for another earflap hat pattern but in a 4ply. Smeg...

Phew!

I'm exhausted again, not that it's surprising in my state. My mum took me off to Big W for a large amount of baby item shopping, the most expensive of which was a car seat which I apparently need to have professionally fitted. *grumblestupidlawsmessingupeverythinggrumble*

On the knitting front, despite my best intentions, I still have no idea where it's all going to go. Current thought revolves around ebay, because I have yarn that I'm never going to knit up, no matter what, and I need the space these days.

On the actual knitting front I have been a tad busy. My next few days will be taken up by the following:














1. Finishing off my Transformers cardigan - sewing in ends and steaming intarsia/fair isle into submission.
2. Stuffing and knitting the final point in my dodecaheeeeeeedron (I love saying that word).
3. Start my alpaca chullo.
4. Block my Alphabet Blanket because my mum set aside the entirety of her spare room for me to do so.

Then, there's still more. I have a list that tells me what I need to finish off (my green BSJ, my stripey cardigan) and what I still need to knit for the Boitjie (baby sling, nappy covers).

As I keep pointing out it's a really good thing I'm unemployed and have intention of getting up off the couch, isn't it?

Pic free day, but lots of talking...

Felix is downloading updates so everything is moving at a pace that would be truly envious of a snail. I know this post will take five minutes to go up on it's own without photos at our current speed, so I'm leaving well enough alone.

Instead I'm spending the afternoon knitting away on my couch, interspersed with various housework-y jobs, such as re-arranging my entire craft area to fit all of my books in. My dad has been very slowly dropping round boxes of books we stored when we moved last year - I say slowly, because he knows what I'm like with books: open box, exclaim "Oh, I haven't read this in ages!", open book, start reading, wander into kitchen and make a cup of tea, settle in for the afternoon.

My craft books are kind of scary. I have the needlework books and magazines, which includes a three year "Inspirations" subscription. I have the weaving (my diploma major) books and magazines, some of which are pretty rare. I have the knitting section, which has Interweave Knits, Knit1, Vogue Knitting, Yarn and Creative Knitting (the early ones, which had slightly more original patterns in them) as only some of the magazines. The knitting book section grows depending on the Amazon sale at the time. I bought "Knit 2 Together", "Handknit Holidays" and "The Knitters Almanac" for the same price as "Handknit Holidays" cost in Borders and they arrived in 8 working days. Why would you shop elsewhere?

Anyway... I'm somewhat short of room, as my favourite old stash cupboard has been stolen for the use of the Boitjie and he seems to have an awful lot of stuff already. Clothes, soft toys (mostly my old ones!), knitwear, it all adds up. So I moved all of my knitting stash, two very overstuffed plastic storage boxes, into our lounge and dumped them in the open shelving in the corner. There they stay, along with my embroidery supplies, weaving supplies, miscellaneous craft thingies (don't look at me like that, I know you have them too!) and all of my knitting books.

My problem is that the entire top shelf is knitting baskets, bags and storage containers containing either unfinished objects or loose stash (in one case nothing but baby yarns for the knitting) that I need to store elsewhere, which I can't because our flat is short on storage spots (it has none) and I can't work out what to move to where because I fear The Unborn One is robbing me of common sense along with my eyesight.

End result: tonight I plan to utilise the brain power of my beloved Felix to work out a solution and help me move things while I direct from the couch. Here's hoping it works...

Finished Objects 2009 - #10

It appears that the only way the outside world will know what I'm knitting is if I keep up a post a day routine. Let's see how long I can last... (I give me until tomorrow)

I swear if I was more tired, I'd be asleep. As it is, I have a scant six weeks until Boitjie's arrival, and he's making his present felt via exhausting his mother, copious heartburn and trying to break out via the side using his feet as the means of escape.

Luckily, I plan to forgive him and cloth him in knitting, such as these green booties. I used the last of my Shiloh Silky 8ply that I used on my Kingsford Smith hat.















The pattern is Ruth's Perfect Baby Booties, and it's a pretty easy pattern with nice shaping, and in my case the opportunity to learn grafting garter stitch - pretty much the same as grafting stocking stitch but just repeat the front at the back ie purl, then knit for each stitch.

Are newborn feet this big? I mean really?!? Should I start panicking now???

Possible blog name change

After the last four days I think I might have to change my blog name to "Let Me Sew!".














It started on Sunday, with a new curtain, trimming on a bathmat, a tablecloth and lengthening my niece's sports pants.



















On Monday, it was a small pincushion organiser.


















On Tuesday, it was a Spotlight visit and a quilted basket/block.














Today, it's another quilted block, only larger.

Felix suggested "Let Me Craft!" but after I pointed out that I hated the c-word, he backed down...

All done!

Well, that's July all wrapped up! I've posted every day - bar three days, and I blame mid-year Yuletide rush for that - and it's been rather fun.

I find writing up what I do as I do it helps me to consolidate what I'm working on, and helps me to want to finish it, because when I do I can post about it.

I'm a bit light on the WIP's at the moment. All I have is the Alphabet Blanket, Green Booties, Transformers jacket and a set of socks I just started for my nana today (no, the Garden Shawl doesn't count. It's in hibernation - shhhh! You'll wake it up!). Hopefully I can knock some of these over quickly, which means more posts.

Blanket Update: ........ well b****r me. I'm finished.

Now for sewing in ends and blocking the blanket without the cat sitting on it. Hrm.... Is it wrong to set booby traps for a cat?

Finished Objects 2009 - #9

I finished my baby argyle vest a very long time ago, in April in fact.















The base pattern is Debbie Bliss' Baby Tank Top, but I love argyle patterns so much I added it in. I can picture this tank top with some very cute matching burgundy and white tartan pants, or maybe something just plain. This top comes under the heading of "For Andrea's baby". Anything old-fashioned is for my child. Anything awesome or nerdy belongs to Felix's baby.


















George volunteered to model again. I think he's been a bit cold lately.

Not *really* helping

Lolli insists on being by my side at all times, unless I let her outside to take on the might of next-door's Ginger Ninja. My cat is pretty placid and loves to be near whenever I'm making something.

However...













I get the feeling she doesn't want me to iron the newly sewn tablecloth hems.















Uh-huh. Definitely not.

Finished Objects 2009 - #8

I apologise in advance for the vileness of these pictures. Awful, awful pictures.














This is my baby wraparound, in Rowan Wool Cotton. The very first thing I cast on when I found out I was pregnant. The pattern is from the "Knit Cafe" book, and while I did love it, I have a few problems with it.

The bottom hem is just terrible - loose, unstructured, bleurgh. I'm tempted to put a striped bias fabric hem along it, just to make myself feel a bit better. The slot for the front to slip through is huge, and not just due to my mid-row cast off/on.














I think the winner here is the pattern which is just great (even if it did make the bottom hem all loose!). It's an easy 4 row repeat, which I can probably do in my sleep now. I'll definitely be reusing it at a later date.

But I'll still hem whatever it is with fabric!

Blanket Update: two sides covered in triangles!

Finished Objects 2009 - #6 and #7

My entire weekend disappeared into a vortex of family and cooking, for I finally had my way and had a Christmas in July.



















We had a nicely set table.















We had food. Waaaaaaaaaay to much food.




















We had a tree with presents.

Whose presents? Well, those would be for my parents, who were the guests of honour.



















My mum's present was the Endpaper Mitts she very unsubtly asked for. As in, "Oh that's a nice pattern. What colour are you making mine in?" They fit skintight, as expected and she loves them.












Da got his socks (excuse the photo - a blurry hell vortex opened up as I was taking these shots). To say he loves them is an understatement. He now has golf socks. In St Kilda colours.














With different toes. Which he knew straight away, before he even looked.

Has anyone been telling my da what's on my blog?