Idiosyncrasies

Blue has tagged me for the meme, and I have quite a few, so I’ll try and list them 🙂
1) Like Wendy at Knit and Tonic, I can’t stand to have the wardrobe doors open when I go to bed. The same with the chest of drawers. Or any cupboard/drawer etc. Someone at work has a habit of leaving a cupboard open in the staff room when they make their morning cuppa. They leave it open when they leave the staff room. That just kills me.
2) I spend a great deal of time and make a lot of fuss normally too about cleaning up other people’s mess in the house, but I make more myself almost immediately. And don’t clean it later on… E.g. Clearing away computer stuff and wires, but leaving knitting around the lounge on every available surface.
3) I have a habit of buying two of something I really like, so that I can keep one pristine, but use the other one till it falls apart. I do this mostly with Hello Kitty and Miffy stuff, but I have also done it with clothes. If someone buys me a CD that I already have, I’ll keep the doubled up copy in case something (and don’t ask me what!) happens to the older copy…
4) I love looking at the garden, at plants, and appreciating nature and all that, but I really really really can’t be bothered to put the plants IN the garden, pull up weeds, and do anything that makes it look nice to look at or encourages nature. I am almost ashamed of certain areas of the garden. My excuse is that I have too many other things to do. That is only partly true. I currently have a hydranger in a pot that needs planting up (it is happy in the pot, but would be happier in the ground) – I dug a hole last week. The hole wouldn’t drain water straight away. It is still an empty hole, and the hydranger is still potted.
5) I have a tendancy to make plans, but just not bothering to execute them. Either that or getting over excited, and then just suddenly not bothered enough to do anything. I made loads of plans for this summer, but have only really done knitting and read Harry Potter, out of about 5 or 6 things I wanted to do. That isn’t because I couldn’t. It is just me not doing them, even though I want to, and think about doing them before I get home from work. See also above with the hydranger…
Jax – you are allowed to crochet 🙂 I have dabbled a little with it, but never finished anything as yet (no surprises there!). Make sure you post what you buy from Coldspring – I love looking at people’s purchases 😀 Plus, if you meet the gorgeous chocolate coloured dog, give it a pat from me 🙂
Time for breakfast, and some cleaning up/closing of cupboards etc, before getting my knitting out and making more mess again. Ahhhh, the reliability of a Sunday.

The Ribbed Cardi of Evil, and other tales

Here is the tale of some lovely yarn, and a lovely pattern book, and what happened when they met me. Once upon a time, I decided to visit the Fabulous (with the capital F) Coldspring Mill (Jax – it is ALWAYS that cheap – I’d hate to think what would happen if they had a sale 😀 I know I’d just faint at the thought of it! You MUST go – it is your duty if you aren’t far from it… Our journey took about 45 mins there, and you can enjoy the lovely tearoom, scenery, biscuit and wool fat soap while you are there if you can resist visiting the wool section). I had a very nice Debbie Bliss pattern book – Cashmere Collection delivered, and it arrived the very day of my first trip to the Mill, and thinking that I may not get to visit again soon, I made a list of all the things I wanted to make from it, with the aim of getting the yarn at the fab prices. I saw the pattern as displayed below, and thought it would be a good option for work when the air conditioning is too high, as well as the nasty Yorkshire winters which chill you up no end. It just looks so cushy!
Pretty Debbie Bliss rib cardi
See? The model is happy. She is all warm and cosy in her lovely cashmere mix cardi. Mmmmm – she’s all snuggled into it. She’s hugging herself. She’s that happy in it.
I got the yarn for a bargain price. I started knitting. I knit and knit and knit till it was done. Then I seamed. I seamed and I seamed and I seamed. I wanted the seam to look almost invisible as it is in the pic in the book. That model just wouldn’t be happy if she had ugly side seams. Then I spent some time sewing the buttons on. Much quicker than seaming. MUCH quicker. It took 6 hours to seam up, and 20 mins to put buttons on. One button hole was slightly too big, which can’t be helped as it is made using yarn overs. It can be fixed with a little tweaking. No probs.
Then I tried it on. It is the demon cardi. Spawn of all evil, it is not a happiness inducing cardi. Why? The yarn is luscious. Super soft, super cosy, super warm. It is a dream to knit with, and a dream to wear. In fact, here I am, looking like a more rotund version of the happy model, in a slightly dusty mirror.
Happy side view
See how cushy the collar is. Mmmm cosy in the rubbish rainy weather. Cosy yum yum. See – you can’t see the seams, but trust me, they are perfect. Best seaming I’ve done. So what is wrong with this cardi?
The not so happy front view
Ahhhh. This is why there was only one pic, and from the side view at that. How many times have I read that you should not trust patterns where the pic is not fully displaying the garment, or is posed strangely? Why have I not learnt? The lesson here is that this cardi has no shaping. None. I may not be a svelt lady, but I do have a waist. And hips. The cardi is not stretched at all to fit. The ribbing at the base makes the st st section bulge out over the top to make me look several pounds heavier than I am. It doesn’t look too good. And it is bigger than I expected. I knit to gauge, but the ribbing stretches a bit too easily, and I even used 3 balls less than the pattern asked for. 3!!!! How is that, when I knit to gauge and to measurements? Didn’t they pattern test this sack of a cardi? It must be drowning that poor, model, with a gun to her head, with the photographer struggling to make the garment look good shouting ‘SMILE!!! Smile, damn you!’
It looks a bit better with the collar open. And it doesn’t look wrong as such, just bad. Poorly designed, but correctly knitted. Having said all this, I will wear it, but only at home, with the lights out and curtains drawn. And I’ll ask DB to take his contact lenses out, although he may just notice a large grey blur sat next to him instead of his girlfriend…
Anyway, in other words I’ve finished something! I’ve also finished a secret project that I don’t think I should post about yet. I’ve been pattern testing for someone, and I have pics, but it still needs some tweaking. Lovely pattern 😀 You’ll know when it is ready… I also received an email yesterday from Vogue Knitting about my bolero pattern query! How long did that take?!! Blimey…
I’ve also been thinking about what to knit next. Currently on the needles are:
The VK lace trim bolero (next to be finished I hope – only the sleeves and trim to make)
the Lace Leaf Pullover
two shrugs – one based on the one in Scarf Style, and I just cast on for the One Skein Wonder assuming it would be a quick knit
two scarves – the same that I’ve had going for months 😀
4 rows of Ash from Rowan 36 which will probably be frogged as it doesn’t appeal right now.
I need to get rid of some of these first I think 😀 Then I want to make a tank top to practice intarsia, using the fab bunny and crossbones chart by Chibbiwaki on Deviant Art and the Ann Budd pattern book.
Which reminds me… The new Rowan mag arrived… 😀 Yay! It is all gooood. There are also some silly things, but also some lovely ones, which is pretty much the same as normal! The Foggy Panda is still lovely looking, but I’ve worked out the cost of the yarn. It isn’t cheap. Nooooooooo siree. I’ll be holding back on it for some time. But I will be making it I think, one way or another, as a top or otherwise! But I’m definitely still enamoured with it. Time away will make me think about it more clearly. I quite fancy making some gloves and scarves from the mag too, but they all seem a bit too costly too – who can justify 7 balls of Kidsilk Spray for a scarf when they cost 7 quid each?! Plus more yarn to make stripes with on top of that? Only someone who gets yarn free from Rowan and is paid to design for them. And rich people, but how many really rich people knit? Apart from film stars, that is? And apart from the cost, I need to continue with some serious stash reduction, so can’t justify buying anymore yarn at the mo at all.
After all this meandering, it just means that I’ve got lots to finish still before I can make something else, or buy anymore stuff. And the finished object isn’t that lovely, but it will do the job. And leaves enough yarn left for a One Skein Wonder with long sleeves, if I can get gauge with it – mmmmmmmmmmm cashmerino shrug. mmmmmmm.
Anyway, I’ve written enough and it is time for dinner. Then I’ll try and get a bolero sleeve finished by the end of tonight.
PS – Lost is very good indeed. Just started showing it this side of the water. And the guy who plays the doctor? Woof woof! I wouldn’t kick him out of bed for eating biscuits 😀 Yay! Ok, that’s definitely enough now.

Bugger

Many apologies to SP and Leah – I just managed to make your comments spam instead of approved :/ The stupid labelling on the screen was wrong (and not me, nooooo sireeeee. The excitement of patterns didn’t get the better of me at all and didn’t make me all hyper or anything and not read things properly. Noooooo not at all…). Poo. But SP – you may already know that I got the email 😀 and Leah – I still have no magazine 🙁 But rest assured, I’ll be jumping on that pattern, and encouraging you to do the same just as soon as it arrives 😀 heheheheheh!

My secret pal does it again!

Well, I am so loving my secret pal right now 😀 As if it wasn’t enough to send gorgeous yummy scrummy yarn and almost edible candle in my parcel, she has bought me the lovely wonderful and (as she says – you can tell she’s been watching me :D) much lust after One Skein Wonder pattern 😀 Yay! Now I can make shrugs till they fill the house, come out of my ears and I dream about them, and stash bust at the same time!
Thank you secret pal! For my first time at this, you are really making me ready to sign up for more! Pressie buying is v cool indeed, but getting something back is doubly cool 🙂
And she says I’m getting another parcel when it is ready. Yay! Your timing is impecable Pal – you know how to cheer a gal up/get rid of the PMT/get rid of guilt pangs for scoffing choccy because of said PMT…

Am I wrong to like this?

Foggy Panda (Rowan)
This is Foggy Panda from the new Rowan magazine. I haven’t received the magazine yet, but I HEART the pic on this tank top 😀 It is the kind of pic that I’d buy on a t-shirt, and I can tell that this is one of those projects that I will dream of because of how much I want it. BUT, is it really just like one of those tops your mum knits for you when you are 12? The one that she makes you wear and your friends take the mickey out of you? The Ron Weasley sweater effect? Am I blinded by the cuteness of the pic and not being practically minded? Let’s face it, I am not allowed to buy the yarn until I’ve got rid of some stash, but I sooooooo love this pic…
On the other hand, the Debbie Bliss rib detail cardi is progressing nicely, with the back and left front finished, and one sleeve with only about 8 inches left on it. That leaves the right front, other sleeve and the collar to make up, so I’m hoping that, with me getting a day off today and next Monday too, that I might have it finished in a week or so. I reckon I could have both sleeves done during the day, with some good films on the DVD player. And I should really try and keep up with the pattern testing I’m doing at the mo. I’ll post a pic when I’m done with that one too, as long as the pattern works ok and all that – I’m sure the designer will appreciate some promotion… 😉
Just for my brain, and my own use, I’m adding a plan for my knitting projects, seeing as September and studying is looming yet again. In order of need to finish:
1) Rib detail cardi, for when it is cold in work like last week
2) The pattern testing project, which for now will be secret 😀 Everyone else has secret projects, so I don’t see why I can’t too…
3) VK lace edge bolero, because it has been left hanging around for far too long, and I do still like it when I look at it.
4) Lace Leaf pullover, although looking at the stuff I’ve done so far with hindsight, I’ve suddenly got a bit less fond of the yarn 🙁 I’ll see how it goes with the top half but not make it too major a project.
5) Scarves, which by the time I’ve got to this stage, will need making in time for the Yorkshire autumn weather. Poo.
What then? I have loads of cardis to make, loads of yarn to use up, lots of ideas for my own patterns (mostly using the Ann Budd pattern books, but still, it will teach me a little), and lots of inspiration from patterns in books and magazines. Why is there so much to knit, but so little time?