Way too early

I remember about 2 years ago sleeping til 10 or later at the weekends. *sigh* Been up for 2 hours. I have become quite used to watching this weird world-sport programme on C4 on Sat mornings. This week was white water canoeing and cricket. My fave was the monster trucks. Let's face it - I should have been born American. Proof follows:

1. I adore sugary foods
2. I love WWE and Monster Trucks
3. I like doing all the stupid cheers during baseball games
4. When I was in America last year for 4th July I was more patriotic (to america) than the american cousins I was staying with.
   
5. I think the royal family are 'cool'
6. I am a big fan of the A-team, columbo, murder she wrote and twin peaks.
7. I dislike Canadians (or not wishing to generalise - one canadian)
8. I have a therapist
   
9. I have a birthmark in the shape of the statue of liberty

OK, that last one's not true but it could be. Anyway, back to the knitting... here is the clapotis. I am just over a 3rd done. Going to be huge! That dark line you can see across it is my own spun silk It varies in colour froms greys to greens to reds and oranges - lovely! Of course my spinning is not quite the article so as you can see my contribution was roughly three times chunkier than the hipknits stuff. Had a small (ha!) effect on the tension but I've got five, or even ten, on it so it's under control.

You know how it's wrong to crochet? Well...

I've always had this hankering to give it a go. It means one less implement to poke people with on the tube, when I venture back. So now I've seen this from a link on crazyauntpurl's blog. They (as in 'the general public') say that it's easier to learn when you've got a goal in mind so could this be my goal. Crocheters out there - is this a hard project or a good one to sink one's teeth into?

So at the moment I want to try patchwork, more spinning, needle felting, crochet and machine knitting. And I have no money and a massive stash. So I'd best just keep to knitting for now.

The clapotis in hipknits pink silk continues beautifully. I remembered the little sample packets of silk fibres I spun when I did that spinning course and so I have incorporated that into it and it looks really cute and makes me very proud that I've now knitted with stuff I've spun myself. No pics today but will try and rustle one up tomorrow.

iconlove

I am in love with the icon creator I used to do my portrait, top left. I've just done one of Pooch


Even he agrees it looks like him...moody Pooch! The little icon of me in the left sidebar (buttons section) takes you to the webpage where you can do your own.

Joining a knit along?

Futuristic, milky, and silky, you are willing to go
where no crafter has gone before. You can do
just about anything, with strength agility, and
pretty colors to boot! While you are good at
slipping and sliding out of sticky situations,
remember to stay where and when you are needed.
Don't overdo it on star gazing when there's
earthbound knitting to be done!


What kind of knitting needles are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Hmm, where's the picture? Think I might have mucked up the code there. I am pink plastic needles though! I'm such a sucker for these things.

Thinking about joining this http://greekpulloverknitalong.blogspot.com/ but not quite sure. Could only do it if I've already got something in my stash for it - maybe some of the coldsping stuff? Have never done a knitalong before.

Am half way through another premature baby sock which will make 6 pairs once done. It is so satisying though to have finished objects so quickly. Finding it really hard to blog and carry on normally with all this carnage on the news and so close to me. It really is horrific and I guess it's normal to feel so detached from reality when something so tragic has happened close to you. I might be mad but some people are sick.

Am OK

OK but bloody freaked out. Hope others in London are safe. Our building is staying open all night so email me at littlelixie at hotmail dot com if you are stuck and need somewhere to shelter.

8pm - got home after 4.5 hours. All safe and sound and sitting tight for the forseable. Pooch hugging me lots so all good. Hoping everyone else is likewise - the picture of the torn apart bus is haunting me.

Tiniest socks ever ever ever

So who's had too much time for knitting today? Woah there, can one ever have too much time for knitting? What am I saying...

Pooch is out on the raz so have indulged in x-men 1 and tenny tiny tiny teeny baby socks. I'm a fervant supporter of 'ray of hope' (http://www.rayofhope.co.uk/) and there has been a request for booties for babies with feet an inch long so I whacked out 3 pairs while watching the film. The two-needles sock pattern just makes them so easy. Here it is in case anyone feels like having a go (if you think you're hard enough). (Other teeny tiny patterns on the ray of hope website).

With regia 4-ply or something similar (needs to be machine washable) and 3.5mm cast on 16 st.
4 rows garter stitch (all knit)
change to stocking stitch (one row knit, one row purl) for about an inch.
Knit 7 st, wrap st and turn
Knit back to one before end of row, wrap and turn (this is short row shaping which I can not posisbly explain but you can easily find on google)
Do three wraps on either side then knit across all stitches, knitting wraps and actual stitches together as one stitch. Once you have done this you should be back to 16 st.
(That's the heel turned by the way)
St st for about an inch
On right side row, k1, sl1, psso, k2, k2tog, k2, sl1, psso, k2, k2tog, k1.
Cast off purlwise
Lastly - sew up the side using your preferred joining technique and sew in ends.
Do two.

Right I'm bushed. Sweet dreams y'all (and god bless crazy aunt purl for introducing me to "y'all")

Lights, action, camera

So I switched on the light and went to work sorting through my stash and then took a picture of what I'd done. A pleasing summary of my day I think. Here is what it now looks like:

I post this here not to show off how incredibly neat it is (or is by my standards) but as a start to my - show us your stash - campaign. People always talk about how bad they are but what does this actually mean. Join me, bloggers, and post pics of your stash for all to see. Be brave...

Almost slept through the olympic announcement which would have been...inconsequential seeing how I live in Stratford and can hardly fail to notice the big statue of non-specific black female athlete outside the station. You look up at it and all you you can see is muff - wall to wall or at least filling my personal field of vision. Have managed to get some knitting done on the hipknits sillk clapotis. It is like knitting with butter or something and I have just started the drop stitches (far left) and they drop like raindrops running down a window pane (so fricking poetic I could cry, yeah right).


During my clearout I came across the villain cardigan in colinette tagliatelli that is just asking to be ripped.

I hate this thing. I loath it more than blueadt hated that cardigan. More than crazy aunt purl hated zelda. So the big question is, when's it gonna diiiiiiieeeeeeeeee? Tonight at golders green or will it live a few more days and maybe get frogged when I'm down visiting my Mum this weekend? Hmmmmm....

6pm - been a good girl. Not going out to knitting but have made use of what would have been travel time to frog the hated cardi and put the stuff on ebay. Search for '470g tagliatelli' if you're in the market! Feel so riteous now x

Blog roll thing

So day three of the surprise sit-in. It's more the tiredness now than the depression - I'm also gearing up for going in tomorrow and blitzing all the work that has piled up. Girding my loins is the expression that I've been using to the lovely people who have been emailing me and leaving supportive comments. I promise to change the tune tomorrow as there are only so many sympathetic things to say I can expect people to think of ;p

Seeing how I do not have much else to do (apart from knit, blog, read knit blogs, eat chocolate) I have been sexing up my blog unnecessarily (sexing - ha!) with this blogroll tool. It doesn't look that different but apparently it will auto check who has updated their blog and make their name look different and then I'll just read those ones rather than clicking through them all. Can you believe I am actually proud of this achievement? Geez. I'm going to spend the day slepping (and quite possibly sleeping), knitting, looking for new knitting blogs to read and eating chocolate.

If you go back to sleep 2 hours after waking up does that count as a nap? Or is it 'going back to bed'? I'm not dressed yet so I guess it is 'going back to bed'. But it seems a bit defeatist to go back now. Will see if I can make it til 10!

For those following the flat-next-door-saga I heard lots of noise out there yesterday and stuck my head out. The guy who was sawing the door with a big saw (using the hole previously made right through it to get maximum saw usage) claimed to be our neighbour but I'd never seen him before. He left after I spoke to him, leaving the door just slightly worse off than it was before. Now, sure, I thought about calling the police, but last time the door got battered I dialled 999 and it took them three days to come and say there was nothing they could do about it. When I told Pooch about this he was quite annoyed about me talking to strange men with saws. Hadn't thought of the whole "sawn up body of middle-aged depressee found in stratford" angle.

Yukity yukity yuk

A second (unplanned) day at home today. Got as far as about 50 steps from work when decided that there was no point going in if I was already rehearsing how to cancel the next few day's meetings without crying at anyone. Depression swooped in with a "boo" last night just before I went to bed. Lo and behold if about half an hour later I hadn't got the whole 's' scenario planned out complete with note contents and how to locate implement. Just as well I've got Dr P on Thursday.

Woah there, just got distracted by a path I could not replicate to looking at knitting books on amazon. Weird. Worse places to end up though I guess. Have become fascinated by needle felting. I have even joined another yahoo group about it.

I have put my day indoors to good use and have finished my secret pal's next present. Won't post a pic of it here until she's received it and not sure when that will be as was going to space them out a bit.

So randomly moving on to a different thought, how about embellishing your own knitting needles? Are the steel ones coated with something that would mean they'd go weird if I put them in the oven with some fimo on the end?

OK, obviously too easily distracted to blog anything coherent. Blehhhhhh.

Shopping, shipping and stuffing my face with chocolates

I'm classing picking up my pottery from art4fun as shipping - just so you know. And here it is...


The thing to remember, when being very unimpressed by it, is that I had great fun doing it. And now I've learnt a lot about what not to do. I do quite like the mug for Pooch though. It says 'Pooch loves tea' which is very true and on the bottom I've written 'Alex loves Pooch' which luckily for him is true too. The "knitter" mug is nasty - poo brown and splodgy and I had such high hopes for it and I still really love the shape. So disappointing. And as for the plant pot....hum... People comign to my desk for a meeting will think I have a deranged child somewhere churning these things out for me whereas it's just the result of a deranged me.

While picking the things up I just happened upon four chrity shops and had a little rummage. Sadly no knitting things but I do have three star wars books and a Dr No video for Pooch. Plus I managed to find a few little things.


Aren't the green shoes horrifically fab? And that a cherry red velvet jacket on the left and the polka dots are a little shirt that I think is very sweet - reminds me of one Pooch and I first met (I was dressed as minnie mouse you see).

So what happened to me spending the day machine knitting and making felt beads. Yes, well. Things did not start well. Here I was, all ready to get going:

and this is what I ended up with: I've put my mobile there to get an idea of scale - it is such a pathetic little thing. The next one basically dissolved so I gave up. Easily discouraged, that's me. Next time I'll try doing them inside little bits of tights and putting them in the machine. Pah!

For the tube ride to and from west hampstead I took one of the colourways I got from designs and cast on a sock. I still can't decide whether I actually like it or not. Any thoughts? It is chocolate by town and country.

happy birthday to me!

Yay. Although I am not in any way american I feel a certain bond with y'all (crazy aunt purl's influence there) so happy 4th july to all my american cousins. I was going to post a picture of my party last night but they are all too high res to post here so will have to wait til I rejig them. It was awesome - jelly, ice cream, choc cake, hotdogs, squeezy cheese - we had it all.

Many thanks to andrea and everyone else for e-cards and comments wishing me happy bday. There were many times in the last year when I didn't think I'd make it to see another birthday yet here I am, still standing and knitting more than ever. The day holds either the knitting machine or felt balls or maybe both! And maybe an exhibition? Ooooo, lovely!

Felt beads

http://www.homeofthesampler.com/howtos/lili_feltbeads.html

So I am rather pleased with myself for just managing to edit html to make the above into a proper link and everything. I have some roving left from when I went on that spinning day so now relly want to spend the day making them but....it's party day! Will just leave that link there for later consumption.