Operation Wipeout

Work is a complete bastard and the family even more challenging than usual. I am unable to control those things much but I must be in control of something, so this is the plan.

*cue the Surfaries* .... September is Operation Wipeout. Here's the list so far:

1. Unravelling

• green opal sock (yep, I've called it a day with the mega sock. It turns out that I knit a whopping 2 stitches per inch less when knitting in the round - my gauge sucks like a Hoover) - 11/09
• grey Kiri shawl (this may actually be cut and chuck because it's in Cleckheaton Studio Mohair)
• navy Kiri shawl (also in mohair)
• all reknittable jumpers earmarked for hats for the homeless (there are at least 3 of these)

Aran with bobbles - 9/09
Mid blue cardie - 4 or 5 ply - 515g 11/09
Mint green baby hat - 4ply - 50g 12/09

2. End Processing

• press and wrap red baby jacket (10/09)
• sew button on Rough Day Ruff (01/09)
• finish embroidery on hats
• put handles on loofah (01/09)
• graft toe of baby sock A
• line workshop sample and make up
• cot sheets for Bek
• sew tassels on novelty yarn scarf

3. Knitting

• baby sock B
• finish lacy rib sock A
• knit lacy rib sock B
• finish JEC's jumper
• finish Celebate Vest
• finish boucle short circuit curly whirly
• finish navy matinee jacket
• find and do something about Angelina (this will probably entail much muttering, measuring and probably unravelling)

4. Prep

• organise hats for the homeless stash and equipment
• organise baby stash including patterns and equipment
• sort felted stash into colour

And then there's the Andean Plying Tools, the Niddy Noddies and the Lazy Kates that all need finishing.

Sometimes the outward sign of my inability to be in control is a radical hair cut (I wore a hat for 8 months the last time this happened), body piercing, contemplation of a tattoo or compulsive furniture moving. Another sign is the need to finish all projects currently underway and to over organise the various stashes. I think finishing projects and over organising the stashes is more positive than the other options.

Non-cow food

A note about non-cow, mostly soy products.

Yup, Margie, the soy cream cheese was Tofutti. The one I used for the dip was the plain one. There's also a herb flavoured one which is yummy, but it's hard to find. I've only ever found it in Coles' at Woden. It's not Philly but it's pretty good. I'll have to give the jam and tofu trick a go. I like mine spread on toast with home made pumpkin and sweet corn soup. You must be onto something though because the website has a recipe for a raspberry cheesecake. I don't recommend this company's fake cheese though.

There is a good soy yoghurt - King Land. Comes in a variety pack of peach & mango, strawberry, berries, blueberry.. The tubs are half size but the yoghurt is fine - not gritty which is the problem with most soy yoghurts. Also, it says it's organic and non GM. I'm told there are 250g tubs around, but I've never seen them. Pity because I prefer the berries to the other flavours.

Can recommended, the Sanitarium So-Good Chocolate flavoured soy drink. Not low fat but yummy. So yummy that only one litre a fortnight is allowed in this house. Sanitarium's So-Good Chocolate pretend ice-cream is ok, too. Not the real thing, but not too bad for the ice-cream deprived.

I find I can't have cow or goat's milk products, buy sheep is fine (go figure!). Lemnos make a very nice sheep's fetta. http://www.lemnosfoods.com/lemnospdf/fettapacks.pdf

If Sanitarium, Kingland, Lemnos or Trialia Foods would like to sponsor this blog, that would be fine. Am prepared to take food, or fibre, for comment.

Break in transmission

I'll be off air for a week or so - promise to look in on you all when I get the chance.

Hate the sin not the sinner...

That song has been stuck in my head for the last two days and seems appropriate here. Well that and my secret love for bad boy Robbie. Oh the shame.

Yes I was a victim of child cr****t abuse. My mother cr****ted me a purple cotton bikini with matching poncho. Those of you have met me will understand how very very cruel that was.

We also had in our house, not one, but two cr****ted swan centrepieces. It has been my mission of many years to purchase all known patterns of this particular crime against taste to prevent other impressionable youngsters from suffering as I did. And now I find that Interweave has it as a freebie. Oh the inhumanity.

Pity me and understand.

PS I did macrame as a child. My mother was forced to display spider plants over the bath cradled in wonky cream pot plant holders and a really hideous macrame owl wall hanging. I think we can consider that some payback for the cr****t. Or, horror of horrors, the cr****t was payback for the macrame. A vicious cycle of evil crafts.

Et tu, Jejune and Spidey?

See how liberal I am. I allow your defences of the evil craft through unmoderated.

It's just me and the Yarn Harlot against the tide of crap.

Saying the hook is useful as a knitting tool for picking up stitches etc is fine. Using an electric chair is a great way to crisp up some vegies, but I don't want to put it to the purpose for which it was invented.

Scrapbooking is pretty dire. I did a workshop in it once (long story, it wasn't voluntary) and it was scarily persuasive. Mind you, so was the Knitting with Dog Hair book and certain extremist political movements, but it doesn't make it right.

Cr****t rant (yes, another one)

Right, none of you had better ever try to convince me of the validity of cr****t again. No, I mean it.

Sometimes I feel really mean taking the piss out of cr****t and then someone does this. Go ahead, look. I'll wait.
http://thecrochetdudepatterns.blogspot.com/2006/08/glass-flip-flops.html

Now I really hope he was being at worst whimsical and at best subverting the form, but I think he's quite serious about this.

I am an equal opportunity blogger. I think it's great that guys do needlework. More of them should. If more of them did we might get taken a bit more seriously. Do you really think we wouldn't be allowed to knit or even cr****t on planes in this country if the blokes in suits up at the pointy end of the plane knitted? For goodness' sake, they're called airCRAFT. But back to my point. I don't think it's stupid because he's a guy or even that it's cr****t (I could so knit one of those) but because it's a useless, tasteless waste of time. And just as I was coming round to the whole dishcloth thing, too.

To answer Kylie. The wool on my needles in what some may call gold, others may call mustard and now that I'm nearly halfway up the back I am secretly referring to as baby shit yellow, is a vintage Villawool 5ply crepe. I'm knitting a vest. We are calling it the Celebate Vest because I am not sleeping with the person it is being knitted for. Mon has a rule that she only knits for people who provide sex - she puts out so they should.

Thanks ladies

SnB was a tonic - thanks to you all. Much less grumpy now.

Aussie Junk

Yes, Aussie Junk is habit forming and deserves a frugal look.

It's Revolve by another name and at the Mitchell Resource Management Centre, aka The Tip.

You need to do a fair bit of digging to find gold but you can be lucky. Week before last I got a very large plastic tool box for woodwork, two videos (The Shipping News and Charlotte Grey), several uncut paper patterns including one for a really dinky apron which I'll share another day, some cotton wool on a big roll rather than in cotton buds, a couple of books for the collection at work and two intact 70s orange Tupperware containers for $5 the lot.

Pricing is variable and based on how the guy on the cash register feels at the time.

Weekend in Pictures III

Baby's first bobbin. Don't laugh, I know it's pretty average. The skein's at my parents right now - I'll photograph it over on the weekend.


That's my wheel, Bertie. If you look really closely you'll see some cream Corriedale cross on the wheel bobbin and some more of the brown stuff on the lazy kate to the left on top of the basket.


Quick trip to Aussie Junk at the Mitchell tip before making my way to the National Hockey Centre to watch a pretty poor match between Australian and Korea. Unispired hockey but where else do you get to an international sporting test for $10?

Cute timber box to hold sewing/beading supplies. 50c at Aussie Junk


So this looks like a child's toy, right?

Not now I've replaced the badly cut and drilled pieces of timber and with bobbins. Lazy kate, number 2. 50c at Aussie Junk.

To the left is my first attempt at navajo plying with the corriedale cross. Extremely bad attempt but I'm looking forward to trying it again. The green on the new lazy kate, is "Mermaid" colourway desisgned and dyed in cross breed by the Happy Spider. It's beautiful, Spidey, thank you. :) it will be plyed on itself eventually.

Here it is in it's green, fluffy glory.

Weekend in Pictures II

Sunday Op Shop

I love it when Vinnies opens at 9am Sunday and they have a all clothes $2 sale.

Bought this little lot before spinning on Sunday morning.

All pure wool jumpers, some very good brands, all destined for a very hot wash or two and recreation as felted home wares. Also in the pile is a sheer chiffon navy blouse with ruffles doen the front as well. Very Miss Moneypenny with my pearls and a wicked bra underneath. ;)

Blogger's doing the I hate photos routine again, so more later. Off to woodwork now.

Weekend in Pictures Part I

Hopefully the my whingey evil twin from the last couple of posts has gone away for a while - sorry about that, folks.

Saturday Craft Fair book stall buys.

This one was REALLY cheap and the technique is interesting if not the application in this instance.

Can see it being useful for making floor mats and stuff. I will so too make floor mats, so shut up all of you.

Gillian, I blame you for the Knitter's Stash. Well, that and I read somewhere last week that the author had just died. Seemed like I should buy her book. It's lovely. I almost want to knit dishcloths. Almost.

Sensational Knitted Socks is just that and it has tables for large legs and feet and lots of different patterns with instructions for working 4 needles, 5 needles and 2 circs - so worth the very expensive price tag.

Luckily the Happy Spider and I bought completely different books and we're sharing types. Her jumper book is lovely, too.

Don't have a photo of the lovely sock yarn I bought. It's a cotton and wool blend, with just a hint of stretchy stuff and nylon. Predominantly cream with black and caramel. Knitted it looks like an Affogato.

Phew!

Thanks to you all for posting such lovely comments. I will now assure you all that my father will NEVER EVER EVER get a handmade object from me again.

Our little love-in of last Saturday was over within 12 hours. My mother has pneumonia and was in bed for most of the week before and a goodly bit of this last week, so I've been doing the cooking, shopping etc. for them. No biggie, happy to do it. That night as I'm washing up, Dad let's me know that they are expecting visitors to come and stay with them starting this Saturday just passed. No amount of "MUM HAS PNEUMONIA AND ISN'T UP TO HAVING PEOPLE IN THE HOUSE" dissuaded him. The competition for most selfish man on earth is pretty stiff, but the search is over - I have a winner.

Combine it with my runny, oozy, hacky cold and the launch last week of a major project that we've been working on for 2 years and I'm just a little stressed and ready to use my super sharp dpns on my nearest male relative.

This did not, of course, prevent much knitterly activity.

I finished the "Here and There Scarf" for Mum on Friday night. She loves it. Here she is modelling it for you. Please remember she's been REALLY sick.

The moss stitch Patons Velveteen scarf was finished the week before and she's been wearing it pretty much non-stop.

Mum's very tactile, so she loves how the chenille and the moss stitch play against each other. Because it's knitted double stranded on large needles it kind of looks woven.

Do you like how both scarves match her favourite top?

I had anticipated taking one of the visitors to the Craft Show with Miss Maree and me on Saturday - largely because to get the visitor out of Mum's hair and because I'd promised Miss Maree I'd go to the craft show with her. Visitors didn't arrive until mid afternoon, so Miss Maree and I went on our own. Having been assured by Spidey that it was safe to go because their were only two yarn stalls (and I won't buy from one of them because it's run by a workshop Nazi - I'll tell you the story of last year's arm knitting workshop fiasco one day), so I was confident of just being able to trail around with Miss Maree looking at paper craft, country kitsch and other easily resistable stuff. I was not told there was a craft book seller there! These books just followed me home. Well, I'd show you them, but Blogger's being a bastard again. To be continued.

Today I reached a significant milestone in my relationship with Dad.

As many of you know, Dad and I have an intense and difficult relationship. We love each other to pieces (although we got on better when I lived 300k away rather than 300m) and we argue like you wouldn't believe. We are very simliar, but he's had 25 extra years to become a stubborn, "I'm know best and want it my way - NOW" control freak. And he's male.

Of the many things that truly irritate me about Dad, is his inability to take most of what I do seriously, particularly if it's a "boy" activity.

Knitting is different because that's women's work and it just happens anyway. Women's work is, of course, much less important than men's work and must be really easy if Mum and I can do it. This is amply demonstrated by the many occasions on which he has given away a jumper or cardie knitted for him by my mother. My mother is an aran knitting genius and all of Dad's jumpers and cardies are works of art. He does not understand her less than enthusiastic appreciation of his cavalier disposal of her works of love.

Dad is not mechanically gifted. When I was a child my mother, who has an amazing mechanical intelligence, took evening classes in woodwork. She made me a piano stool, my brother a toy box and herself a hall table with exquisitely turned Queen Anne legs. For Dad she made a timber brief case and a dart board case that he'd always wanted. Not only did the dart board case never get wall mounted, he sold it for $2 at a garage sale and Mum gave up woodwork.

He openly mocked my enrolment in woodwork classes. However, before he knew exactly what it was and that I'd made it, he exclaimed over the beauty of the Adam swift. Since then he has tried to deny this, but I know that he remembers.

Dad recently had to remove an old organ from his Lodge. The new organ didn't fit into the timber organ case. Because he can't dispose of anything that may be of use to someone (I told you we were alike) he saved the timber and offered it to his brother-in-law. Uncle Max has not responded to the offer in anyway and this morning Dad said, without prompting or even me looking sideways at the timber, that if I'm doing this woodworking stuff, perhaps I would like it.

So there you have it. My father has made a significant step in his personal growth and our relationship by acknowledging, in his own special way, that I can do something he can't and by supporting me.

This is a good thing, right?

Before you answer, let me remind you that this now means I have a timber stash.

Weekend's off to a good start

Thursday night SnB was great. Lots of lovely women doing lots of creative things. You ladies completely rock.

Spidey gave me a bag of spinning fibre that she dyed all for my very own. It's called "Mermaid" and it's gorgeous. All different greens with a little bit of purple in there too. Can't wait to get started on it but have to do my homework for spinning class first. Will attempt photography tomorrow.

Met a friend for an early dinner at Manuka tonight. Being librarians we chose to meet at Paperchain, one of Canberra's superior and independent bookshops. The last time I was there the design section, while really good, was noticeably lacking in knitting literature. Not so tonight.

Having fallen in love with Norah Gaughan's "Here and There" cabled scarf (nearly finished, Mum, promise) and finding several of her patterns from a 1991 Vogue Knitting International that happened to fall into my op-shopping bag last week, and having been told it has some larger sized patterns in it, I have been lusting after her newest book, "Knitting Nature". The woman is a cable genius, and if there's one thing I like, it's a good cable. So I didn't even hesitate to buy the only copy in store - AT FULL PRICE!

Didn't hesitate in buying this, either. Also at full price.

Not good enough? Well dinner was lovely - lamb tenderloins in a honeyglaze with a tomato and herb salsa followed by crepes with warm berries and icecream. YUM.

We were joined, serendipitously, by a researcher that Sue knows who is doing his PhD on Australian musical theatre to 2000. As it turns out he needs to use the performing arts collection I've been building at work! He's already been commissioned to write a book and he will be one of our first serious researchers to use and publicise the collection. This is EXTREMELY significant for us and very timely. You really can't imagine how excited and pleased I am.

Got home to find a lovely thank you card from my SIL's SIL for the red baby cardie I made for Baby Penelope way back in Feb. It's lovely to get a thank you.

Enough excitement now, I'm making a pot of tea and will be communing with Norah and Stephanie for a little while.

Even the thought of cleaning all day tomorrow in preparation for a month of visitors back to back is not as daunting tonight as it should be.

Hope you all have a fab weekend.

OMG, OMG, OMG (literally)

I was reading Yarn Harlot the other day and looking at her most recent travelling sock.

"That looks like Spidey's Socksual Healing Cancer Cure sock", I thought. "Nah", my thoughts replied, "couldn't be the same" and tried to dismiss it from my mind.

The thought kept bugging me, though - pesky thought. Reading a more recent post the Harlot mentioned what the yarn was - Opal sock yarn #3207. I still have the band from Socksual Healing so being the obsessive that I am, I checked.

OMG, OMG, OMG it's the same - does this explain the now legendary healing powers of Spidey's socks? Is this the Yarn Harlot's first recorded miracle worked through her acolyte the Happy Spider? Should we notify the Vatican that we have a new Saint in the making? St Steph - patron saint of sock knitters.

On a different topic - happy birthday to any horses reading.

Here and There Cabled Scarf

The "Here and There Cables" pattern is from Scarf Style by Interweave Press.

It's very simple but looks quite complicated. The trick with it is to trust the pattern. It's a seven row pattern, six rows of which are 3x3 rib. the cable row is weird and I did it several times before I learned to trust the designer. It just didn't do to over think it. Because the pattern is over an odd number of rows, it's completely reversible. I'm loving it. I can't really post the pattern - that would infringe the intellectual property rights of the designer, Norah Gaughan.

It's not just the pattern I'm enjoying, though. The wool is wonderful. As a knitter raised on Totem and Bluebell, a smooth crepe yarn feels "proper".

The pattern calls for a bog standard 8ply and 4.5mm needles. You need the slightly larger than normal needle to keep the fabric from stiffening up under the cables.

I was going to post pics of my weekend's bargains, but the camera has dead batteries. Let's just say that I committed knitterly sacrilege by buying two products made by this company. Look, they were $8 each and the FIT ME!

The viking slayed St George

Dad and I spent the afternoon at the footy. This week it was Rugby League. The Raiders beat St George 31-12. It was a well played match and we had good seats. They were pretty much on the half way line and close enough to be able to actually see the players.

I knitted Mum's plush scarf.


It would have been finished by now but last night she decided it was too wide. It was pretty wide, but it was also nearly 5 feet long. *sigh* So I unravelled few rows, then started knitting a new scarf straight from the old one. Still, she likes the colour and the texture, so at least it will be worn and appreciated.

I couldn't resist casting on the "Here and There Cables" scarf for her though. All that novelty yarn had my fingers yearning for wool. I picked up 9 balls of this Sirdar DK crepe for $7 in an op-shop a while ago and mum loved the colour. It's a great yarn to knit with - smooth and springy. The pattern is interesting enough at the moment and grows reasonably quickly. It actually looks much better in 3 dimensions than in a photograph.

Nothing finished, this week, darn it and lots of things started. Oh dear startitis has struck. :)

The week in review

Wow, it's been over a week since the last post. It really doesn't seem that long at all. Possibly because I spend time ready all your blogs and feel my work is done.

The week started out just fine. The eBay auctions have been going really well. Most things are selling and some things are selling very well indeed. It's hard work being an eBay mogul, but that's ok, because no-one pays me to sit and knit or read blogs. The aim is to pay off the car debt as quickly as possible. That's a lot of sewing patterns and old needlework kits.

Op-shopping was great last weekend and included a visit with the Happy Spider at her work. She introduced me to her boss as a woman she knits with. He smiled, nodded and asked if I was knitting anything at the moment. The silence that followed was stunned and broken only by the grinding of Spidey's teeth. I managed a strangled "Why yes, I do have a project or seven on the needles" and Spidy and I repaired to the cafe to roll our eyes and imbibe caffeine.

I may have missed the ball-winder, table loom and knitting machine that The Shopping Sherpa found, but a quick trip to the shop on Monday netted about 400g of divine mauve lace-weight, 180 g of apple green lace-weight and 350g cream 8ply.

Sunday was the first day of spinning classes at Canberra Spinner's and Weavers. I suck at spinning and after two hours of doing nothing but treadling, I still can't get an even rhythm. I am practicing. In an "only in Canberra" moment, where there's no such thing as 6 degrees of separation and 3 degrees is only for very recent arrivals, the only other student in the class is the daughter of a West Highland Terrier breeder who has worked very closely with my breeder. In dog and Canberra terms, that makes us related.

Gratuitous Westi pic: Here's Rosie who was very happy to be allowed on a couch at last.

Sunday arvo and Tuesday night SnB's were great as usual. Lovely to be with my knit sisters, even if I got exactly no knitting done at either event. Sometimes it's all about the bitch.

It was at this point that the week started heading for the toilet.

Mum and Dad, who should be on their annual northerly migration for the winter, are back 6 weeks early. Dad discovered what has turned out to be an agressive malignant melanoma. It's pretty bad but it is small and age is on his side. Apparently it's better to be older in this situation. They drove home Wednesday and he has an appointment for more tests next Friday.

Not to be outdone, Mum developed one of her killer nosebleeds Thursday evening and spent the night in Emergency. It's really scary when you can't stop a gusher like that. She's home now and we're hoping for a uneventful weekend.

The dogs are pleased to see the parents back, but Peggy misses having Rosie here all the time. Of course she resented having to share me when Rosie came. Bloody dogs.

Good things happened in the midst of all this. Thanks to Gillian who sent me a fantastic scarf pattern inside a Horacek card!. The day it arrived, my mother asked me to knit her a scarf and I have excatly the right wool in stash to do it. Of course, she needs a scarf sooner than I can knit 6 feet of cable in 8ply so my current project is a scarf for Mum. I'm moss stitching Patons Velveteen doubled up for a soft, warm and quick scarf. Thank heavens for Sue who donated a large bag of this stuff. Can't photograph it now, but will do so before I give it to Mum.

Jejune's back safe from holidays and that makes me really happy, too. :)

Can't stop progress

Look what I finally got done! It's the back of the cabled tunic for JEC. Yeah, it was due last October, but I've done the back, the sleeves and 1/3 of the front. It's so nearly there. Um, yeah, there is a tide mark where I left the knitting for several months but I reckon it'll block out - right?








And this, Baby Blues Hat.

Recognise the yarn? You might if you read this post.

Ms Spider gave me the scraps of the Socksual Healing yarn. It's divine.

I used some more of it in the yoke of a baby jacket last night, but found the colour I was teaming it with didn't work. More unravelling this morning *sigh*. Into the yarn compost for the time being, I think, to be used to enrich another project at a later date.

Gutted

See this beautiful colourway? It's "Kelp Forest" by the happiest spider of them all, Happy Spider.

It's handpainted 4ply and I thought it would make a lovely baby jacket. It does, it looks great, I just underestimated the amount I would need by about 30 rows. Drat. It's soooo lovely.

Here it is just before I unravelled it this morning. I think it might end up as hats and socks for little people, rather than a jacket.

Spidey and I spun on Sunday. I suck at spinning, but I enjoyed it none the less. If you've read her post you will know we went to the fibre fest at the Old Bus Depot Markets before repairing to Othlon's birthday tea where we enjoyed the company of fibre friends, took much refreshment and knitted.

I was reasonably restrained as far as fibre, and my constitution, allowed but I did buy a few tools to add to the kit.

I got a couple of merino and silk blended tops for spinning,


two sizes of niddy noddy and a nostepinne for myself and some lace bobbins for Carl. I'm going to attempt to replicate the niddy noddies and the nostepinne in woodworking class, and my fellow woodworker, Carl, wanted to play with making lace bobbins.

Tuesday SnB tonight - yay. :)