WIPeout 2009 View from the Lake o' Frog - green dog cosy

PATTERN: Based on a stocking stitch doggy jumper in the Patons It's A Dog's Life dog coat book from about 6 or 7 years ago (the book with the stegosaurus coat on the cover).

YARN: Cleckheaton Country 8ply in a lovely olive green

PROGRESS: Altered to knit in moss stitch, one of my favourite all time stitches, to the leg holes - about 5".

ISSUES:

• started several years ago and abandoned I don't know why
• Peggy is chubbier now than she was when I started this
• I'd have to find the pattern again, do the maths again, start again ....
• Peggy has two jumpers, Rosie had two jumpers and Lochie is a known jumper loser so only deserves one.

ACTION: Unravel it, wash the yarn and put it aside for something else.

Unravelling done, washing done - yarn now drying.

A couple of weeks ago, a member of my staff told me about the gorgeous hand-knitted jumper she had just bought her baby daughter, but how it only just fit her.

Well a fit was just about what I had. She had BOUGHT a hand-knit when both her mother and her boss are knitters! Her Mum is overseas just now, but I'm not. I rifled the boodle for an appropriate yarn. It took 24 hours to match a pattern with a yarn. FYI, most of my 5ply is in dark colours, completely inappropriate for a sugar and spice 8 month old. Finally I excavated this mid-blue reclaimed yarn. I bought it as a cardie for $1 last year and it has knitted up beautifully in this Paton's pattern jumper with a deep lace edge to the body and sleeves and a picot neckline.

I'm pleased with it and N should get a couple of seasons out of it.

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COOK FROM THE CUPBOARD - MONDAY


Brekkie: Coffee. It's Monday, who has time for breakfast on a Monday?


Lunch: Not a moment too soon, really should have had breakfast. My favourite lunch - chopped carrot, beans, broccoli and (over priced) zucchini seved with a teaspoon of margarine and lots of freshly ground black pepper. What? Doesn't everyone have a pepper grinder in their work locker? An orange for afters.
Dinner: Left over mushroom risotto. Orange.

Supper: Tea and a slice of banana cake (ok, two slices of banana cake) fresh from the freezer.

COOK FROM THE CUPBOARD - TUESDAY

Brekkie: Toast with the last of the lemon butter bought at Tarcutta in April. Coffee.

Lunch: Last of the mushroom risotto.

Dinner: Veggie curry made on Saturday in anticipation of a busy week. Served with rice.

Supper: Well, there's still some banana cake left.

Give a dog a bone

Hot off the needles, a jumper for my grand-dog, Lochie who lives with my brother and his family.

For the last couple of weeks we've been enjoying the sight of Lochie parading around in Rosie's Punishment Jumper. Hugely entertaining, but not particularly warm. He's already torn one hole in it which had to be darned.

Rosie's Punishment Jumper

So using the Cleckheaton 12ply wool TSS and I found separately I knitted him the world's second cutest dog jumper, the Biscuits and Bones Dog Coat from Patons, Canada. It's free if you join their mailing list.

Crappy photo but you get the idea. The cables down the side of the centre panel are little bones and biscuits.

Peggy has managed to lose her jumper, so tonight I cast on yet another dog jumper.

The 7 things challenge progresses well - there will be a good tally come Sunday. I'm encountering some problems, though. The battery in my watch died two days ago and the on/off button on the tv remote control doesn't work. Pretty sure I can live without the remote control, but may have to replace the watch battery before the end of the challenge.

COOK FROM THE CUPBOARD

BREKKIE: Coffee.

MORNING TEA: Two hazlenut chocolates - the gift of a regular client.

LUNCH: Toasted soy cheese sandwich and the bounty of celebrations at work - a quarter of a choc chip scone (not brilliant), a savoury pastry thing (excellent), a taste of the banana bread (also excellent). Coffee.

AFTERNOON TEA: Tea and a slice of carrot cake.

DINNER: More freezer roulette. There's a little bag of chicken cacciatore somewhere in there and the rice is cooking as I type.

SUPPER: After today's sugar fix - black tea will be served before bedtime.

I'm almost out of veg and would prefer to wait until Sunday to buy it at the farmers' market. Mum left several tomatoes and there's silver beet in the garden. I might try this tomato and lentil risotto recipe and add the silver beet at the end for tomorrow night.

FO! London Baby Jumper

At last, a finished object. The London Baby Jumper is all sewn up and ready for despatch.

The colour is glorious and the wool is beautifully soft.

Now, what's next? Socks?

The Cleckheaton 8ply from eBay arrived today - yes, packages on a Sunday! It's a gorgeous green with a rust fleck - kinda tweedy. Yum.

A serious stash reorganisation is fast approaching. My mother gave me a sneak preview of her stash yesterday - I may never need to buy 8ply again! Room must be found. What a terrible dilemma - more wool ;)