Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Look what came in the mail today....



Yay! My order from Pick Up Sticks came in (real quick I must say), and I even got a free canvas bag with it. I just love the Apple Laine (bottom two skeins), and it will be a challenge to decide who will get items with that yarn (although I'm sure my two nieces will both want something out of it).
Hubby, on the other hand, prefers Claudia colors. I must admit that the top skein was well named: Ink. It truly looks like this yarn was dipped in black ink.
You might have noticed the little "I frog" button on the side. I've added it there because I decided to frog the chocolate brown vest, and will start it when I get a larger size circular needle. I just know it's going to be way too hot.

Sunday, January 28, 2007

Bought more yarn....

I had told myself that I wouldn't buy any yarn until I do an inventory of my stash. Well I started doing just that but got stopped by these little voices screaming "Knit Me", "No, knit ME", "You have enough of US to knit a blankie". They were right, Sophie could use a new blankie. The silly pup, likes to arrange her blankie in a little nest, which involves digging, and pulling on her blankie. Of course that results in stitches being pulled, and her blankie looking like this.....
I decided to listen to my "talking yarn" and knit her a new blankie. Of course, that led to me thinking of buying new yarn to fill the gap left by the used yarn. So off I go surfing the net for new yarn ( Are you kidding, going out with all that slippery snow on the roads!). Since I was quite happy with my Apple Laine (see post below), I decided to get some more.
I got "Purple Haze HP Lite" , "Garden Party Apple Pie Yarn" which for some reason the pic is gone, and in Claudia, "Ink".
The moral of this story: Listening to talking yarn can be costly!

Sunday, January 21, 2007

New socks with Apple Laine

Around the Holidays I found a new online yarn shop, and really liked some of the yarn. I bought some Apple Laine in "Pastel Petals HP Lite", and made these socks with it.

The other colour I bought is from Claudia and it's called "Toast" (sorry the pic is no longer available on the site). My husband loves the name and the colours and strongly hinted that he wouldn't be angry with Santa if he got a pair of socks with this yarn next year. The fun thing with making or buying things in advance for my husband is that by the time he opens the gifts, he doesn't even remember trying it on. I think he'd get surprised even if he'd wore it for a week, and I'd wrap it and gave it to him in a few months.

I had also purchased a third colour from the Claudia collection, but it looked different when I received it. Not a problem, I was immediately offered a credit or exchange, and my postage would be refunded too. I was quite satisfied with that service, and will certainly purchase from Pick-Up Sticks again. Although I'm not used to knit with fingering weight, the Apple Laine turned out quite nice, and there are a few other real nice colours I like. But first, I gotta go through my stash, and try to knit from it: I'm running out of storage space.

Wednesday, January 17, 2007

Vest...


I started the vest I like from Speed Knitting (see pic a few posts below), but it just doesn't seem right. I have the needle size indicated, and some "bulky wool" (nothing specified) called Lopi, but yet it knits really tight.
I'm concerned that the vest will be way too warm for the office, but my arms will be freezing. Or worst, I'll be all sweaty and red faced, and my boss will ask "Okay, who pissed you off?" (not that I get upset easily, but more because I'm usually on the pale side), and the overly nurturing co-worker will ask "Are you okay dear, you got a fever?"
Nah.... I'd rather they ask "Did you knit that?"

Monday, January 15, 2007

Dulaan update

Today I finished a few projects that were almost completed. This now brings my Dulaan contribution for 2007 to six items so far: three hats, two scarves, and one long neck warmer (almost a poncho, as it fully covers the shoulders). Lighting not appropriate for a nice picture, as it was still half snow storm, half freezing rain. Besides, I have loose end and they're not stitched. Pics to come as soon as I get the courage to deal with them.

Last year, I contributed eight items and I'd like to surpass that this year. It looks like I'm well on my way. ideally, I'd like to send in double last year or more than double. We'll see...

Sunday, January 14, 2007

Finally a decent amount of snow....





This was around noon downtown Toronto...

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Felted shrimp sushi bag

You gotta have a look at what this lady knitted. A shrimp sushi bag! How cool is that! Unfortunately, her blog doesn't have a comments section, so I can't tell her how much I love this bag. So Blah, Blah, Blahhhg if you read this post: "I love your sushi bag!!!" and I'll add you to my list of favourites so I can see more of your cool projects.

Sunday, January 07, 2007

Books, books, books...

Chapters had a Boxing Week Sale, and I splurged on a few books (most were 34% off the regular price).

I got Speed Knitting by Kris Percival (I love it that Knit Picks lets you see a few of the pages by clicking View inside pages). This book has 24 quick and easy projects, and quite a few I'm interested in. I even bought the yarn to make this vest in chocolate brown, and I'm tempted by the ballet sweater too.

















I also bought Holiday Knits by Sara Lucas and Allison Isaacs. This will come in handy for my Christmas knitting this year. I really hope I will have as much free time as I had this year( I mean last year, 2006) to knit gifts for most of the people (and pets) on my list. They were quite appreciated, and people couldn't believe I took the time to make something special for everyone.

Finally, I bought Knit One, Felt Too by Kathleen Taylor. I have been interested in felting for a while now, but I wanted to "research" it first, so I wouldn't waste any precious knitting time. The book doesn't have as many projects I'm tempted by, but it has lots of clear explanations, tips and techniques.

I'm quite happy that my knitting books collection is expanding.

Thursday, January 04, 2007

Tagged!

When I first saw this meme on Mossy Cottage's blog , I thought "That one I wouldn't mind being tagged for"... and I did...by Bamboo Sticks!
So here goes...

THE RULES: Each player of this game starts with the ‘6 weird things about you.’ People who get tagged need to write a blog of their own 6 weird things as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose 6 people to be tagged and list their names. Don’t forget to leave a comment that says ‘you are tagged’ in their comments and tell them to read your blog.

6. I've travelled to St Louis just to see a chimpanzee. She is hairless, and her name is Cinders. You can read about her here, if you're interested in going there too ;)

5. I had saved up to go to Barcelona to see an albino gorilla named Snow (click here to read about him), but he died before I could even book the trip (hence the trip to St Louis to see Cinders).

4. I have to sleep with a pair of hanknitted socks that match my PJ's, or else I don't sleep well. Even in the summer I can't sleep without matching socks. The stupid thing is that during the day I really don't care much if everything matches or not, but for some reason my PJ's and socks must match.

3. I can't wear any watch other than Indiglo. If I wake up at night, I gotta know what time it is (sometimes it's not worth trying to fall asleep again for less than an hour of sleep, right?)

2. Although I'm not allergic to cinnamon, my body strongly reacts to it because it is an irritant. I get a tingling sensation on my tongue when I eat cinnamon accidently ( I don't like it, so I usually avoid it), then the sensation spreads to my lips, and my nose.

1. I still sleep with the Teddy Bear I had when I went to college (of course it's used to support my weak shoulder ;)

Tagged: Charles, Jason, KB, Roadside, and anybody else who wishes to be tagged.

Tuesday, January 02, 2007

Which of Henry VIII's wives am I more like?




Anna of Cleves got the royal shaft. She came all the way to England tobecome the fourth wife of Henry VIII. Once married to Anna, he refusedto consummate the marriage, and called her the "Flanders Mare".Talk about a burn, considering that by this time, Henry was thefattest man in England and had a rotting syphilis sore on his leg.
Anna was miffed, but she was too sensible to let it ruin her fun. Shewas given an annulment and a fat yearly allowance, and she threwextravagant parties and dined on delicacies for the rest of herlife.

Monday, January 01, 2007

Looking back at 2006

How would I describe my 2006 in one word? Productive!

After a one year merger where I worked, I got a nice package at the end of January 2006. That's when I realized just how much I had missed spending time with my family and friends, but mostly spending time with myself. I had just been too busy for the past four years to spend time anywhere but at work, and decided I would not rush back to find a new job (besides, when would I get the chance to have time off once I found a new job?). Before I was laid off, I had a wishlist of things I wanted to do after I would be laid off (been through mergers before, and knew it was coming soon). Towards the top of my list was knitting, and knitting I did! I made eight items for the Dulaan project, and knitted sixteen Christmas gifts... not to mention four pairs of socks for myself, and three blankets for my dog Sophie (getting a dog was on my wishlist as well). Yup, I did a bit of knitting in 2006...

Wishing you all a Happy New Knitting Year!