status report

Someone keeps asking me about my lace nightie. So here's a progress picture:


I've completed about 2 and a half repeats of the lace pattern. I've got the pattern memorized but it doesn't make the knitting go any faster. I am very pleased with the look of the lace in the silk. My stitches look horribly uneven but a good wash and block will fix it.

Monkey socks seem to have my attention at the moment.


After much deliberation (and hauling out all my yarn choices), I chose the Sweetgeorgia in Blue Steel. It's been sitting on the coffee table taunting me for the last few months while I've knit with other sock yarn.

I am rethinking this whole "24 socks" project for the TDF KAL. I kinda forgot that I'm going camping for a week plus I have a list of chores to do before I leave. Rats...

Happy Canada Day long weekend! I will be praying for sun so that I don't get soaked listening to free jazz on Sunday. I'll be gobbling chocolate filled croissants, munching on cherries, and KIPing. Plus my gift knitting gets gifted so I get to post about it Monday/soon (depends on whether she opens her gift right away or waits until her actual birthday).

Ridiculously far behind

Help! I've fallen (down on my blogging duties) and I can't get up!

But the kids didn't nap this afternoon, so they're in bed before 9:30 tonight, and I've got a wee bit of blogging time, so I'm taking advantage of it.

In answer to the birthday meme: go to Wikipedia, type in your birthday month and day and list 3 events, 2 birthdays, and 1 holiday.

On my birthday (Feb 21):
1842 - John Greenough is granted the first U.S. patent for the sewing machine. (This would have been better for you, Dotty!)
1925 - The New Yorker publishes its first issue. (And they've finally got a decent website with tons of great articles)
1937 - Initial flight of the first successful flying car, Waldo Waterman's Arrowbile. (This one just tickles my fancy.)
1927 - Erma Bombeck, American humorist (d. 1996) (And she's missed.)
1946 - Alan Rickman, English actor (with drool-worthy accent, best in Truly Madly Deeply)
International Mother Language Day (UNESCO) (This is probably appropriate given that I can only speak my mother tongue -- Hokkien -- in my sleep. When I'm awake I don't remember it at all.)

I also have finished socks to talk about.

The first pair was in Regia Silk, for one of my co-workers. She's a diabetic, so socks which don't have seams are really important for her. She's so appreciative when I make them for her. They're pretty boring, so I've just done a closeup of the cuff. There's a little cable up the sides of the socks which I really liked.


The second pair was the second sock for the Trekking entrelac socks. I couldn't stand the pressure of having only one sock, and cast on for the second sock. I did the feet in size 0 needles and switched to size 1 after the short row heel, so that it would be a bit easier to get it over my ankles.


And I didn't do the cast-off triangles at the cuffs because I like having bumpy cuffs. I think it adds a bit more interest to the sock. What do you think?


And here's a photo of my two boys. We went to our local community parade and fair last weekend. (Yes, it was cold enough that they had to wear heavy jackets, in June! Last year, we sweated through the whole thing and hid in whatever shade we could find.) This was Geoff's first amusement park ride and yes, he grinned like that the entire time. I can't believe his face didn't hurt afterwards. I've also (finally!) blogged Andrew's birthday party over at my family blog.
Also, I got into Ravelry! I'm not keeping up on that, either, but maybe this weekend I'll get caught up. Tony's going golfing on Monday, and he's offered to take the kids on Saturday morning and give me some home alone time. Woo hoo!

rhapsody

My latest sock yarn acquisition - Indigo Moon fingering sock yarn in Rhapsody.


Rhapsody - exactly what I was feeling when I handed over my credit card. You should see some of the other new colours. I am lusting after 2 semi-solids - Sorbet (the perfect pink) and Apricot (a beautiful goldy-yellow).

And I was spoiled by a quilting friend (she knits, too) who just returned from a trip to her home state of Nebraska...


The fabric designer really knows their knitting gear because I swear those are Brittany Birch needles and crochet hooks.

Now that I've finished my Monkey socks, I want to start another pair of Monkeys. This time I'm going to use a solid or almost solid colour. I just can't decide which one. I have some Sweetgeorgia in Blue Steel and Cassis. I could use purple Koigu KPPPM. Maybe Cherry Tree Hill in Moody Blues? Sigh... Too many choices!

finito!

My Monkey socks are done! And I love them. Thank you, Ann for the lovely yarn!

The obligatory sock blocker picture:


Out of 100g of yarn, this is all that's left (not much)...


I joined the Tour de France KAL yesterday. I signed up to wear the green sprinter's jersey because my project is "24 socks". I have accepted a commission to knit 12 pairs of socks. The yarn should arrive sometime this week and I will be "practising" before the start of the race (July 7th). I bought some long circs and will be trying my hand at knitting 4 socks at a time. I also plan on using a new toe cast-on technique that everyone is raving about. My hubby thinks I'm crazy. His comment to me - "you know the race is only 3 weeks long..." Duh! That's why I'm wearing a green jersey.

Remember that hubby was really sick the other week? Turns out that he wasn't the only one. A large number of racers also fell ill shortly after the race. A few of them were tested and the culprit is Campylobacter bacteria. It's found in the intestines of animals and in their feces. I am sure that everyone got sick from swallowing mud. I am going to buy hubby a front fender and maybe a helmet with a full face mask.

While I was outside with the camera, I took a few pictures of plants currently in bloom.

Masterwort (astrantia major)

Rock Rose (cistus landifer)

almost perfect

Well? Whaddya think? It's close to perfection. The bottom is approx. 5" square and it's approx 12" tall.

I was inspired by a clear vinyl tote that I found under the bathroom sink. I didn't like the way the drawstring worked with the vinyl so I thought it would be ok to add fabric to the top. I reused the drawstring casing and bag bottom technique from previous attempts. This new bag has it's pluses & minuses:
+ you can see what's in the bag thus easily identifying your sock project without having to open all your project bags
- you can see what's in the bag so it's harder to keep your knitting a secret
+ the vinyl is stiff enough to hold the bag upright without any need for interfacing (major drawback for the last bag that I made)
- does not collapse for storage or compress for packing
- the vinyl smells funny; will the smell transfer to the yarn?
- not as easy to construct as I had first thought; vinyl sticks to the bed of my sewing machine
+ vinyl is inexpensive compared to quilting cotton
+ vinyl is easy to clean/wipe off

I think I'll head back to the fabric store and buy a slightly thinner gauge vinyl. I'd like to have something that smushes a little better for stuffing into my purse. I'll also pick up some tear-away interfacing to place between the vinyl and the sewing machine to prevent sticking. Plus leather needles would be a good investment since they'll sew through the vinyl more easily than the jeans/canvas needles I was using.

Let me know what y'all think about it.

a day where I go slightly nuts

... at a dollar store. My sister (ever the shopping queen) can spot a bargain no matter where she is. On Saturday, she tells me about this great dollar store that she spotted while exiting another dollar store. She showed me all her loot and has convinced me to go with her on Sunday. She couldn't wait for me and went first thing in the morning while I had some other errands to run (having food in the house is kinda important). I got there eventually and wow! I've never been to one that big before. And the stuff is good. I spent $20. I went back today and spent another $20. It happens to be on the way to my parents' house so I'll be shopping there frequently.

There hasn't been much knitting - a few rows on my lace nightie, a few rows on my Monkey sock... I did a little research for a pair of 100% silk socks that I've been asked to knit. Anybody have any tips? Can I just use my regular sock pattern or do I have to do something special because silk is inelastic?

I've spent the last few days working on my niece's quilt. I finished machine quilting it yesterday. It needs binding, a label, and a wash. Then I'll be finished and I can start on the fishy quilt for Gladys' youngest son.

My other pet project is "the perfect sock project bag". I've made 4 different ones so far - Gladys has 2 and I have the other 2. None of them are exactly what I want so I keep thinking about it. I had a light bulb moment a few days ago and today, I picked up some supplies to make bag #5. If it works out, I'll show you pictures.

catch up

It's just after 6am - no one else is awake except the cats so I have time to catch up on blogging. First up is some new yarn - Indigo Moon sportweight in the Mountain Mist colour that I mentioned in an earlier post. I got 200g because hubby's feet are huge.



And Trish has started dyeing fingering weight sock yarn. Check out the pictures. I can't wait til knit nite next Wed so that I can see it all in person - if there's any left.

My lqs got some new fabric that I just had to buy. I am such a sucker for sparkly stuff.


There has been progress on my Monkey sock. After supper at my parents' house yesterday, I was working on it and my oldest niece asked, "what are you doing, Auntie Dotty?". I replied, "knitting a sock". "A stinky sock?" hahahahahahahahah! My niece cracks me up sometimes.



Not to be left out, I have funny conversations with my youngest niece, too.
(we're all sitting at the table eating supper)
Her: Auntie Dotty?
Me: what?
Her: Auntie Dotty?
Me: yes?
Her: Auntie Dotty?
Me: hmmm?
Me (pointing to my Mom): who's that?
Her: Pau Pau (chinese for maternal grandmother)
Me (pointing to my other niece): who's that?
Her: Chelsea
Me (pointing to my sister): who's that?
Her: Mom!
Me (pointing to myself): who's that?
Her: your shirt!

And this is the lace nightie after 1 lace repeat. I've finished 2 repeats now and I realized that my row gauge is way off. I need to yank out my calculator and do some row math before I get much further.



Oh - my 3 errant cones of sycamore silk showed up Friday afternoon. Yay! I am now caught up on all my silk yarn orders. The vendor has decided that it's not worth shipping the 3 cones of navy back so I am supposed to find a charity to donate it to or knit it up and donate the finished garment.

And to finish up this post, I caught Ricky having a really good snooze on our bed.

"zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz" - Ricky

do over

I haven't posted since Monday? You'd think I'd have some knitting to show by now. I had a plan... But it got waylaid at 11pm yesterday night. I cast on for the Lace Nightie and I'd knit almost 3000 sts when I laid it out to have a look. Then it hit me - I had a lace moebius nightie. Wah!!!!!! I swear it didn't have a twist when I joined in the round. Swear! I showed hubby and he said yep, I was screwed. So he helped me frog and I cast on again, I joined in the round without twisting (a second time), and I've successfully knit one round. Sigh...

The rest of the week has been a blur. Hubby is very, very ill with an intestinal virus. He went willingly to see a doctor Wed morning which is a sure sign that he's very sick. He hasn't eaten solids since Monday and he's not allowed to until Sunday. His menu for today is water, ginger ale, and chicken and/or beef broth. If he's feeling ok, I might try to get some soup into him for supper. He weighed himself yesterday and he's lost 10 pounds. I told ya he was sick.

My nieces and sister are in town visiting and we went out to the aquarium on Wed. They were a little young for it but they had fun watching the bigger fish/mammals and the jellyfish. We were watching the dolphin show when the dolphins created a little splash and the girls got sprinkled which set them crying so we had to leave the show. Sigh... While we were driving out of the park, they spied the water park so we had to stop and let them run around for a bit. My sister and I went a little crazy, too. I had to wring the water out of the bottoms of my capris before I could get into the van.

In other yarn/knitting news, I turned the heel on the second Monkey sock. I had a funny loop of yarn working the last row of the heel turn but I've fiddled with the stitches and I think it'll be ok. I don't know what happened. I didn't have that problem on my first Monkey sock.

My silk yarn order has been straightened out. I'm being sent 3 cones of sycamore and I was supposed to return the 3 cones of navy but the post office wanted almost $29 to mail $48 worth of yarn so the seller has decided to let me donate the yarn to charity. If I can't find a charity willing to take silk then I'll knit with it and donate the finished item to charity.

I picked up some Indigo Moon handpainted sock yarn at knit nite. It's my payment for the sample knitting. I chose the Mountain Mist colour. It's greys and browns. I'll get some pics when there's more daylight (and when there's more lace nightie to show off).

a little yarn p0rn, a lot of fugly

My latest yarn order arrived. But there's a slight hiccup...




There should be 4 cones of sycamore - not 1 cone of sycamore (leftmost) and 3 cones of navy. The sycamore is completely sold out so I don't know what's going to happen. I am awaiting instructions. And I was so happy when the sycamore was re-listed because it sold out the first time before I had a chance to buy any and now this... Sigh - maybe this yarn was never meant to be with me.



So what do you think of the fugly sock? I've seen unloved yarn swaps out there but is there an ugly sock swap that I should know about? Maybe I should just frog it and give the yarn away...


And I have been tagged by Ann for a birthday meme - go to Wikipedia, type in your birthday month and day and list 3 events, 2 birthdays, and 1 holiday. So here goes...


Wikipedia says:
1808 - Simon Fraser reaches Pacific near New Westminster
1983 - The Police release their final album, "Synchronicity", which would eventually spend 17 weeks at #1 on the U.S. album chart (they just got back together and their very first concert was in Vancouver!)
2003 - International Olympic Committee selects Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada to host the 2010 Winter Olympics (I remember this day because the company I used to work for runs Whistler/Blackcomb - one of the major Olympic venues. The whole company partied that afternoon.)
1929 - Imelda Marcos, First Lady of the Philippines (I love shoes, too!)
1970 - Scotty 2 Hotty, American wrestler (just cuz it rhymes with my name)
- Canada Day. Under the Holidays Act, Canada Day is always observed on July 1 unless that date falls on a Sunday, in which case it is observed on July 2

I don't know who else to tag... Gladys? Anybody who reads this blog is welcome to participate.

yaaaaaay!

On Sat, hubby rode in his 3rd Test of Metal mountain bike race. The weather was miserable. And the course was ugly.

After 2 hours on his bike, he's covered in mud but still smiling. That's a face only a wife could love. A mother would take him out back and hose him down.

He finished! And in one piece. I think the mud was holding everything together. His official finish time is 5:48:59 and he placed 702nd out of 770 finishers.

He looks clean-ish at the finish line but that's because the mud dried.

It took a long time to hose off his bike and other bits in the backyard before I let any of it into the house. His jacket is ruined and his bike needs repairs. The rear disc brake is non-functioning which would explain why he kept going over his handlebars. There is also something wrong with his derailleur because he can't change out of the gear he's in. He needs to take the bike in for repairs before he can ride it again.

Hubby's got a few scrapes but nothing serious. His knees are sore - one is strained and the other whacked something. Hopefully, he'll be ok soon. It's obvious that he won't be riding to work this week.

I started a new sock on Sat at the race. It is ugly - so ugly that I don't want to take a picture of it. I remember ordering the yarn but it doesn't look anything like the picture I saw. Ewww! Despite the ugliness, I'm already turning the heel.

Tonite, we went over to my parents' house for Father's Day supper. My nieces (5 and a half and almost 3 years old) are visiting from Calgary so we spent the evening playing with them. They are a hoot! The youngest was trying to put my hair into a pony tail but she's not very co-ordinated. A few times, the scrunchie stayed put long enough to make her happy and she would shriek and do a little victory dance. We didn't stay very late because hubby looked like he needed to go home and be tucked into bed. Poor baby!

shoe-nip

Not a lot of knitting over here today. I hung out with my quilting buddies, had sushi for lunch, and then got myself a camping haircut (you know - something that will make my hair look good straight out of the sleeping bag).

I also did a little shopping for hubby's mountain bike race this weekend. I got a small backpack to haul around my essentials for the day and I bought hubby a little something to wear on race day - SpeeDe Slo Poke socks. Last year, he did a lot of training and he finished 45 mins faster than the previous year. I don't think he's in tip-top form this time plus there's been rain so I don't expect a speedy finish. But as long as he can cross the finish line and not need an ambulance, I'll be happy to wait for him.

I did do enough knitting to solve my biasing problem. I read about knitting from the other end of the skein. So I tried that and it works. There is still a slight bias but nowhere near as bad as the first swatch. Now that the problem is solved, I just need to work up the courage to cast on the 200-something stitches and join in the round without ending up with a moebius.

Since there are no knitting pictures, I will distract you with a series of Ricky pictures. A little explanation first - Ricky loves shoes. A freshly taken-off shoe is catnip for him. He runs to the door when hubby comes home from work and he'll go straight for the shoes. One time, Ricky got his head stuck in a boot and we had to pull it off for him. Another time, he didn't even wait for my friend to take off his shoes. He just tried to cram his snout into the shoe with the foot still in it! So without further delay, I present "shoe-nip"...

love my monkey

It's daylight and here's a flash free monkey picture. The colours are really hard to capture because there's so many of them. I've cast on the second sock this morning.

I washed my silk swatch with a little shampoo this morning (it's recommended that you use something like dish soap to get rid of the machine oil but I was too chicken to do it) and chucked it into the dryer. Before washing, I was getting 7.5 sts/inch but after washing, it's 6 sts/inch which is exactly the gauge I was expecting (I'm very lucky when it comes to getting gauge). The swatch is soft and drapey and beautiful. But can you see the problem?

See how the swatch is kinda leaning towards the right. I'm not sure why it's biasing so I don't know how to fix it. Do any of you have suggestions? Is it because I plied the yarn rather than twisting it? The nightie I want to knit is done in the round with distinct vertical elements in the lace so either I need to figure out how to fix the yarn or use something else for this project. Guess I'll be researching this topic rather than knitting Monkey today.

cutting it close

Lookit what I just finished (too excited to wait until daylight for a proper picture).



And look at what's left:

Can you see why I was worried? I am very glad that I decreased to 60 sts so that I would have enough yarn.

Contest yarn!

I won a contest over at the Stash and Burn podcast! And here's a photo of the squishy yarn that I won. (Thank you, Jenny & Nicole!)


It's Baywood Yarns superwash sport, in the Harvest colour. I love it, and now I just have to figure out what to make with it. It's 250 yards, so I could get a pair of socks out of it. Or maybe a scarf? Socks is an easy answer, of course, and they'd be so nice as a pair of thick winter socks. Hmm ...

And while I'm talking about podcasts, I should talk about the ones I'm listening to. I've just discovered Knitters Uncensored, out of Germany. If you like Lime & Violet, you'll like these guys just as much. They're vulgar and hilarious, and made for a nice break on my morning commute. Not a lot of talking about knitting, but plenty of funny conversation. Plus I learned how to pronounce "Regia" properly.

Other podcasts on my ipod ... Cast On, of course — doesn't everyone listen to her? And I'm addicted to Australian accents, thanks to my wonderful Aussie cousins, so I'm also listening to Sticks and String and the Changelings Knit and Stitch podcast.

There are a few other podcasts that I'm trying out — can you tell that I've got a long commute? I'll report on them in a future post.

And in the meantime, I've got another BSJ off the needles, and another one started! Photos follow.

This one's the second one I've finished.

The first one, on top of the second one. The yarn label says Moda Dea Sassy Stripes, $1.99/ball at Dressew. Each jacket took two balls plus a couple of yards of a third.
And this is the beginning of a third BSJ, in TLC Cara Mia, which is a washable acrylic/angora blend, again from the $1.99/ball sale at Dressew. These things are incredibly addictive to make, by the way. All they need now is buttons, but I don't want to buy those until I figure out which babies are getting them, so that I can get buttons that match their parents' personalities.

and the postperson rang thrice!

And this time, we have 100% silk from Colourmart. Two cones - enough to make both lacy items pictured. The picture doesn't show the true colour of the yarn. It's more of a light lavender colour.

Ta da - my gift knitting is finally finished! Here is a sneak peek:


It's in the washing machine as I type and then it'll go into the dryer where some magic will occur. I had to ditch the i-cord and go with a crochet chain. No matter how hard I pulled, I couldn't get rid of the horizontal ladder when I pulled the yarn across to knit the first stitch. I think you need to use a yarn with stretch to make i-cord work.

Since the gift knitting is done, I've had some time to work on Monkey (migraine finally went away yesterday so things are back to normal). The remaining ball of yarn was looking a bit skimpy so I weighed it after I finished knitting the heel flap. The scale said 26g. Hmmm... I've used half the skein on the leg and heel flap. What do you think the chances are that I'll run out of yarn? This is only my second pair of top-down socks and you can see why I prefer toe-up. I swear I'm cursed.


There was some movie watching this weekend so I started a TV watching sock. This yarn is also from Ann - my Knitter's Treat Exchange spoiler. I love the pink and purple!

Knitty's up!

The new Knitty is up! Woo hoo!

So much for my productivity for the next half hour or so. There are some nice sock patterns, and one funky silk garden top which would not suit my (lack of) figure at all.

Hope you're feeling better, today, Dotty! The kids were screaming down the house until 11 on Saturday night so I think you made the right call to stay home.

more mail

The postperson rang again. And this time, there was yarn! I completely forgot that Ronnie (my absolute favourite person in the whole wide world!) was sending me some yarn samples from Colourmart. These are some leftovers that she had. All of it is cashmere except the pale pink one on the far right - that one's silk/cashmere. Oooooo!

And she included some of Jean Greenhowe's patterns. The Little Gift Dolls has a very cute witch that I want to make.

I am nearing the end of my gift knitting. I have 4 more rows left but each row is now 594 sts! My poor 32" circ is max'd out - shuffling the sts is quite the chore. I still need to knit 50-something inches of i-cord for the tie.

There hasn't been much knitting in the last few days. My Mom's birthday was Thurs and we went out for lunch and a little shopping. She really liked my new cardigan and she wants me to make her one but with long sleeves. I took her measurements and I'll be yarn shopping. I may use Lion's Cotton-Ease again or I may try something else. Wool is a no-no because Mom's got sensitive skin. I think Mission Falls 1824 cotton would be a good choice.

That same cardigan is giving me some grief. I've worn it quite a few times and because it's knit from the top-down, the neck has stretched out a lot. The sweater is starting to fall off my shoulders now. I have consulted with TECHknitter and I have a plan to fix my cardigan as well as modifications to the pattern for Mom's.

The other reason for no knitting is my migraine. Ugh! It started yesterday morning and it's a whopper. I can take one more pill today and then I have to wait until tomorrow to take more. I don't know if I'll make it... We were invited over to Gladys' for supper tonite but we declined because I can't take noise/light/excitement right now.

Ricky is doing much better. Thanks for all your kind thoughts. He coughed up a gi-normous hairball Thurs morning and he started eating normally that evening. In fact, he's back to his usual self - 3am fights with Phoebe, ripping up the carpet on the stairs at 5am (I got up this morning and threw a slipper at him), howling at the top of his lungs at random moments, and letting us know that he's hungry about an hour before feeding time (this involves meowing loudly and sometimes biting our toes). I'll call the vet on Monday to see what we should do with the remainder of his medication.

On Friday afternoon, Ricky did one of his 'normal' things:

... finding the nearest quilt covered lap and crawling underneath. Isn't he special?

Knitting links

Just had to share some fun links...

Nerve.com had an article on Sex Advice from Knitters -- it's a hoot! (Okay, it's from 2006, but it's new to me.)

And you've got to see these Knit Night cupcakes!

There's a photo tutorial available from that page, too, so you can see how she did it. These are just the coolest-looking treats!

the postperson rang

The doorbell rang this morning - not unexpected since I have one outstanding yarn order and hubby's waiting for his Forza 2 Xbox game. But the box that I received said KnitPicks. Gladys ordered a bunch of stuff for me and for herself but I wasn't expecting it to arrive here. So Gladys - I have your needles. Lemme know if you need them anytime soon and I can drop them off (and pick up my sock yarn). I love the sock book. I do not own many issues of IK so this book is a good buy for me. And I couldn't resist the Harlot's newest book. I took it with me to work this afternoon but it was busy busy and I didn't even manage to crack it open.

It's Wed and I'm skipping another knit nite. I got Ricky to eat something at noon and shortly afterwards, there was vomit and litterbox nastiness. I called the vet but couldn't get an appt. before work. So I am home tonite watching him like a hawk.

While I was at work, I did a little shopping. Ooops. I think 6 and a half metres of fabric came home with me. I couldn't resist - the colours are really pretty. I'll try to get some pix when there's daylight.

sock yarn shopping

I've been reading about the TNNA show on a bunch of blogs today. There are a lot of gorgeous yarns out there. I just read about two new-to-me sock yarns - wool/nylon Cherry Tree Hill and hand-dyed Rio de la Plata. Quick - where's my oxygen? I must resist since I will be getting a whack of sock yarn for my birthday.

Not much progress on Monkey - maybe one more repeat. I had a leetle bit of a problem reading the chart.



Sometimes, Phoebe can be a real pest. But she doesn't lie in my lap often (my legs are too short for her to stretch out) so I humour her whenever she's in the mood. It's either that or she parks herself on the sofa cushion right behind my head and breathes cat breath at me.

Some news about Ricky... He is not doing well. I picked up more antibiotics last week after the first batch ran out. And during the last week, his appetite has gone downhill. He doesn't come into the kitchen when it's feeding time. I have to hunt him down and bring him to his bowl. Then he takes one sniff and walks away. I called the vet yesterday and he said to discontinue the medication and to feed Ricky straight tuna. That perked up his appetite for one meal. I went out and bought some really smelly cat food today. I gave him the sardine steaks and salmon for supper but it took several attempts to get him to eat and he only ate half of what I put in front of him. He's still not eating enough but he's eating more than before. I keep telling myself to be patient.

While there hasn't been much progress on Monkey, I got a lot accomplished on my gift knitting. There are 288 sts per row and I knit almost 15 rows in the last 2 days. I've got the pattern memorized which helps speed things along. I can't wait to get this finished and move onto other not-for-myself projects. I have been asked by Trish (I just knit her a bunch of samples) to knit her 10-12 pairs of socks and she'll pay me with her yarn. Hmmm... what colours should I get?

As we were finishing supper tonite, there was a wildlife sighting.



We often see blue herons in our neighbour's yard because he's got a pond in the far corner. But we've never seen one land on his patio cover. It was there for several minutes. I thought about going outside to take better pictures but my movements would've spooked it.

ook ook

Hey Gladys - great entrelac sock! Your yarn choice was absolutely perfect. Too bad that it doesn't fit well. I had a look at the pattern and it's only 7.5" around and I would probably have problems getting it over my heel, too.

And those baby surprise jackets are adorable. I picked up the current Vogue Knitting on Sat and there's a Meg Swansen article on EZ's Baby Surplice jacket. The construction looks the same except the front is a ballet-wrap style.

I broke down and started a new sock yesterday night. Don't be shocked - it's being knit cuff down (only my second cuff down pair - my first pair doesn't count because I was test knitting). It's Monkey and I'm using the Koigu that I received in the Knitter's Treat Exchange. I love it!

I showed hubby my sock and he couldn't see the "monkey". I laughed and told him there isn't actually a monkey in the pattern. I gave him the pattern so he could see why it was called Monkey.

I made a slight boo boo when I started knitting. I accidentally used the wrong needles for the cuff (2.75mm instead of 2.5mm). I figured out my error when I started the lace section. My steel dpns come in sets of 4 and I needed a 5th needle so I had to track down another set. When I sat back down, I realized the needle that I was holding was smaller than the needles already in the sock. This accident is probably good because the cuff is roomy enough for my huge calves.

I finally got my IK! There is some cool stuff in there. I like the Tuxedo Shirt, I love the Notre Dame de Grace pullover (I have some stash yarn that would be perfect), the Oriel Lace Blouse is gorgeous, and the Boot Socks look neat.

Well, I should get back to some gift knitting now that the weather's cooled down. The outdoor thermometer hit 28C yesterday. It's 10 degrees cooler today.

Top 10 geekiest yarn creations

Threadbanger has a list of what they think are the top 10 geekiest yarn creations on the web. The Space Invaders socks from Knitty made it, of course. I like the idea of the scrollbar scarf, but I think it could have been executed a little better.

In other news, our Little Knits order has arrived! (Along with a customs fee of $22, sigh.) Past packages from LK got through without customs; I guess I was due for one to be assessed. And the sale prices were pretty incredible. So now we're rolling in sock yarn, aren't we? I think I might be using the blue Online Winter balls for a baby sweater. We'll see — there are babies popping out all this fall, and I don't know if they're boys or girls yet.

And I promised photos of my current WIPS, so here they are.

The baby surprise blob ...


And this is how it looks as a baby surprise jacket. Yarn is Moda Dea Sassy Stripes, bought at that awesome yarn sale at Dressew.


And yes, I'm now working on a second one, because these things are damned addictive to knit!


And the entrelac sock, from Trekking 108 (based on Eunny's pattern in IK). I love how the long repeats of Trekking take pretty much a "row" of entrelac blocks to work out. But I'm having a lot of trouble with the fit of this sock. It's the first sock I've made that I can't get over my heel easily. I did go down from the 1 of the pattern to a 0 needle, because I lose tension when I knit and purl backwards. The second sock will be in the time out corner until I decide whether I'm ripping this back to before the heel or not. It's a lot of work to re-do if I do — this sock took about a week to make, and it usually takes me a week to do a pair!

Project note: The IK pattern has the entrelac blocks knit in alternating colours, but I much prefer Eunny's original idea, of doing it in Trekking.

And, in lieu of cat photos, how about one of Andrew? He's hopping around the house in one of my fake-crocs. Yes, two of his wee feet fit in one of my shoes.