Ha ! Gotcha ! You should know better than to think I'd be writing some kind of New Agey type of self-development navel-awareness guff.
But I must definitely be turning into a grown-up, as I have managed to control myself and resist temptation for nearly a whole week ! Last Thursday, a package arrived - it had been delayed from the retailer, which didn't matter as that meant I had less time to actually discipline myself:
It sat there like this until yesterday afternoon, because I had promised myself I would finish the ruby baby cardigan before starting anything else. Yesterday morning I bought the final touch for the cardigan, 5 buttons - only to get home and find that the light had deceived me and they totally don't match the yarn. It would have been really unfair and unrealistic, let alone a waste of time, to expect me to sit twiddling my thumbs until after I've bought more buttons, wouldn't it ? I'm glad we agree. I knew we were friends for a reason.
Ripping open the packaging revealed 6 balls of King Cole Baby Comfort DK, lovely soft quality acrylic with good stitch definition and machine-washable to boot - enough to start the 2 baby blankets I want to make; of course, I started with the one that isn't in my queue, the 'Ruffles & Stripes' baby blanket from the 'Best of Terry Kimbrough Baby Afghans' book; it uses US crochet terms, but that's easy once one has made the mental adjustment, and here is what it looks like so far:
Yeah, I know - classic neutral colors, perhaps not especially baby-like, but totally what the Mama will like.
Titch ?
What about him ?
Oh, right. In Aberdeen right now, which is almost suitable justice for his actions.
See what other beginnings have been made when you pop over to Life & Yarn ...
I thought I'd find the original rather than a cover for you - and just tell you that my kids sing it as 'Tragedy ... when your butt gets stuck in a monster truck it's Tragedy''. You're welcome.
So anyway, let me explain why you're going to have that earworm all today. I'm not sure that I will even need any words:
So you want me to wallow in it and tell you the sad story ?
That's mean, making me re-live the experience so soon - but seeing as how it's you ... this is what happens when Titch sits down on your knitting and then it gets caught on his great big fat banana fingers. This had been 46 rows of the Sirin Bird Shawl, approx. 500 stitches in this row, of which half are OFF the needle. This is what it looks like now:
Yeah, that's what 47 grams of size 8/0 beads looks like when it's no longer threaded painstakingly on a few thousand individual stitches. What's that ? Yes, I agree, I did do a remarkable job cleaning up the blood - not a stain in sight. But there's a bump in the patio paving.
So, this is the post of not talking about things, so I guess it'll be pretty short. We're not talking about how it's my sister's birthday and how much I miss her. We're not talking about why there are no pictures or any progress on the Sirin Bird Shawl. We will instead hint at new life - I shall knit for two friends' babies, both due in September; and while I await a delivery of baby yarn - I know, Titch didn't believe I had nothing suitable in my stash either - I have made a start on a cute cardigan:
I forgot I had this leftover of King Cole ZigZag in my stash, from the last set of baby cardigans I made; I had only used a smidge (to complete the Vintage Lee Target Baby Cardigan), so I'm crossing my fingers there will be enough - the pattern calls for 100g of 4ply/fingering-weight yarn.
Anyway - you'd better make good your escape before I get chatty again.
I know ! I know ! What can I tell you ? Real life just keeps impinging - and you'll be horrified when you hear that I actually have not done any knitting for 4 days now because of it. Yes, I know ! I can't believe it either ! But Mini Diva is on a cricket camp all day and Destructo Boy is my far more amenable child, so today I shall hoover and then - TA- DAH - spend the rest of the day scratching my knitting itch, despite the fact I have a bunch of admin stuff to do ready for Sunday and the official start of the cricket season: Titch and I have volunteered to run the snack bar/breakfast kitchen (in spite of the overlap with the end of the rugby season). Yeah, I know. But it could be interesting - we've removed sweeties and fizzy pop from the menu ... Anyway, I guess it's appropriate to post pictures of Mini Diva's new cricket sweater:
This was a great retro/vintage pattern, Wendy DK 1822: straightforward with no errors, for which I ended up using 11 1/2 balls/1378m/1507yds Drops Cotton Merino, which I thought was a super yarn: soft, springy, great stitch definition and great value when bought in a Drops 'party' at £2.00/$3.00 per ball. Yes, I am happy with this project, and it was very relaxing after the whole Tru Wuv experience. So while I go prepare to do actual knitting, do pop FO Friday into Google and see what comes up ...
... something new on the needles ! But don't get too excited, it looks likely that it'll be on them for a while ...it's #3 in my Big Six Project. Using delicious Fyberspates Scrumptious Lace in the colorway 500 'Natural', I have started a shawl delightfully named 'Sirin Bird':
Can you see the beads glistening ? The pattern calls for 2688. Otherwise known technically as 'squillions'. Of size 8/0 beads, painstakingly applied individually with a 0.6mm crochet hook after the stitch has been worked.
Another new thing I am doing is using Destructo Boy's new tablet (why new ? the clue is in his name - it fell out of its protective case onto the sidewalk and the screen shattered) to store and knit from the pattern, seeing as how we bought him a 10.1'' one when we thought we were buying him a 7'' one. They lied like a dog when they said size doesn't matter, believe me: bigger is bestest.
But as it's week 1 of the Easter Holidays, I must escort Destructo Boy and Pal to rollerskating (I know no fear; or rather, the route to A&E is a well-trodden path) while you sip your coffee and calmly look through what other people are up to over at Life & Yarn ...
