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| Old English Tarot |
... but it pours. Let me share with you the list of things that have broken in the last week:
1. Mini Diva's laptop charger. For some who-knows-what reason, they required us to also drop off her laptop for the technicians to look at.
2. Mini Diva's behavior. She hits new pubertal lows. As a result Destructo Boy wants to move out. I do too, but I don't say so out loud.
3. The fridge section of the fridge-freezer that came with the house. I phone the landlady who tells me it's nothing to do with her. I book a repair man for it.
4. The shower. Water comes out fine, but at Arctic temperatures. Landlady agrees to send a repair man. Repair man replaces it.
5. Washing machine packs up. We fix this ourselves - a blocked filter and drain hose. Next time we get a short-haired dog that doesn't moult.
6. Freezer section of fridge-freezer packs up. Oh well, at least we've already got a call in for the repair man. Repair man comes and writes off fridge-freezer, a manufacturing fault, reckons it is about 4 to 7 years old. I use Titch's credit card to buy a new fridge-freezer for next day delivery. Thank you, Titch and thank you AO.com.
We have not yet decided what to do about the old fridge-freezer that the landlady wanted nothing to do with although it's hers. It's on the inventory. As a Zanussi when it is a Hotpoint. If you have advice about this, please share in the comments section.
After all this plus normal chores, I decide to reward myself for my ace survival skillz by finally getting out the sewing machine Titch bought me last year as an early Xmas present when it was on sale in May. I plug it in, I RTFM, I switch it on, I do some straight stitching. I turn the stitch selector dial - and it comes off in my hand, there's a crack in the part that grips the spindle.
I could have wept. And maybe I hid my face in the airing cupboard and did.
So this is what I did after lunch yesterday:
That is the pattern page for Sweet Dreams from The Best of Terry Kimbrough Baby Afghans, a 5.5mm hook, a new ball of King Cole Comfort Baby DK in pale yellow, a COLD gin and tonic, and a handsome gorgeous Sebastian. Note the weather - there's a reason I live here, the driest sunniest part of the British Isles.
If you have made it this far, you too have ace survival skillz, and I salute you. Pop off to Life & Yarn for people with unbroken things ...
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| Spiral Tarot |
So I'm sitting here with the light on as the thunderstorm and intense downpour has rendered it as dark as a bat's cave, wondering about the unseasonal weather - until this week, low temperatures, last week there were gales ... general weirdness.
Luckily for you and me, I took photos of the Ruffles & Stripes baby blanket ages ago:
It's pretty large, about 43'' by 35'' (110cm x 90cm) and I used most of 6 balls of King Cole Baby Comfort DK, 2 each of White, Pebble and Mink with a 5.0mm hook. The pattern was another delight from 'The Best of Terry Kimbrough Baby Afghans' . I am pretty chuffed with it, and will shortly be starting another pattern from the same book.
While I rest comfortably on my laurels, by popping FO Friday into Google you will find much more loveliness ....
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| Housewives Tarot |
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 ...
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| Tarot of the Cat People |
So here we are again, and of my 3 main WIPs this week, I shall show you two, as the third is languishing somewhere and nothing has been added to it all all except dust.
I need to figure out how to put vintage patterns in my Queue; I found this one in a charity shop for like 20p or something. It's original price is 6d, which is before-my-time money, like groats and farthings; and it specifies the yarn to be used as 'Lee Target Courtelle 3oz'; the needles are size 11 and 12 old UK style.
I could find nothing about the yarn online, but fortunately the conversion charts available told me that a size 11 UK is 3mm (between a US 2 and 3), and size 12 is 2.75mm/US size 2. I am using a skinny 4ply yarn, King Cole Zig Zag in ruby. No, I don't see any zigzags in it either. But it is 50% wool/50% nylon and machine washable.
Of course, all we immediately recognize is that those are dang skinny needles. Therefore they must be for dang skinny yarn. The other thing we know is that skinny string on skinny needles, if used to make a solid (as opposed to a lacy) fabric, takes foreeeeevvvveeeer.
But - this is a baby cardigan for the Nephew (Aug.2013 Edition) and baby cardigans are small and quick, which ought to balance out the midget size needles and yarn. In addition, many vintage patterns like this one have what I think is ingenious construction - fronts and back are knitted all in one piece until you get to the arms; and even then, things remain straightforward. This we love, as we hate seaming.
And using Cygnet DK in pale blue, and white, I am nearing completion on the crocheted baby blanket, Heirloom Lace Baby Afghan by Terry Kimbrough (which is part of my KTQ2013 yaaay me). I still have issues with gauge - stitch gauge is spot on, but row gauges is miles away from what it should be; which has entailed some fudging creativity doing the border to make the maths work. If 2 + 2 might = 5ish sort of maths, anyway.
I whisper it quietly as a traitorous mouse, but there is slight possibility that crochet is faster than knitting; certainly, when you rip it out several times to re-do it, it doesn't seem to entail the same frustrated heartache. But ssshhh, that may be just a noob's perception.
Pop over to Tami's Amis to see the progress being made by others this week ....
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| Shadowscapes Tarot |
.... without a paddle in sight.
I finally got the most recent shawl finished, then washed - and now it is blocking.
Great !
'Monday, the start of a new week, all my chores are done, the sun is kind of out, let's go start something new !' I thought, enthusiastically.
And then I screeched to a halt.
As we have discussed before, I have everything I need for about the next 4 items on my queue, and I am trying to KTQ2013. However, there is a bunch of things not in my queue that have a deadline .....
A minimum of 2 baby sweaters, one just like the pattern below, and another one which I haven't yet selected, which will be in the relevant SIL's preferred color of dark red. Deadline: beginning of August.
And I know you will recall my ambitions to crochet a baby blankey for the same SIL. After requesting expert opinions on difficulty (or really, total lack of same) in the Patterns forum of Ravelry, I chose the Heirloom Lace Baby Blanket from the top book:
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| Item 2 with a deadline |
Then both Mini Diva and Destructo Boy will need school sweaters or cardigans; 3rd deadline: beginning of September. I made myself a weak milky coffee and sat down with all of these:
From this angle, you can't see actually how many patterns are there, but I am pretty sure it is in the hundreds. Of course, I only had to look for kids' patterns; I have chosen 2 or 3 for each child to select from when they get home today.
And I cannot cast on for any of them, as - and I know you will guffaw in rampant disbelief and amazement as did my DH when I told him - I do not have any yarn.
Well, of course I do - and you know that, since I share all my acquisitions with you. But I have none of the right yarn: I have no pale blue or white baby yarn for the 1st baby sweater. I haven't chosen or found a pattern for the 2nd baby sweater, let alone that I don't have any of the dark red yarn required (no, my Austermann Merino Lace is not appropriate). I don't have yarn for the blankey, or the right size hook. Mini Diva will require black DK, and Destructo Boy needs navy blue: I do not have any. Well, I have odds and ends, but not a sweater's worth, for sure.
So I have thoroughly enjoyed wasted my day so far, planning, and browsing through various yarn websites, as today is not market day and also the main LYS is shut on Mondays. When I get back from collecting the kids from school, I think I may just have to ease my creative addiction habit itch by adding to my Summer Garden Granny Square Blankey:
