FO Friday 10/16: Stash Mountain

Legacy of the Divine Tarot

I do actually have a FO for this FO Friday ... but I know you would much rather I shared with you my recent stash acquisition.

Well, no, not all of this year's, even though the year is still quite new - I'm not prepared for Titch to quite find out the extent. I am, however, beginning to have trouble getting the doors on my armario shut ...it's a good thing yarn is squishy.

Firstly, Titch owed me about 3 trips to a LYS, accumulated over birthdays, anniversaries, doghouse events etc last year ... so on my birthday this year we went to Colchester and I went wild in the aisles of Franklins, who stock not only upscale yarns, but a great selection of various brands, the latest yarn 'releases', and my own personal favorite, the Bargains ... not the tidiest or organized of places, one could trip and suffocate in piles and packs of yarn if one did it right.

I do indeed have a Plan in mind for all of it. Those are going to make an afghan and some cushions for our sofa. Don't be scared of the colors, I promise it will look ... fine. The fun fur stuff is for just in case. Just in case of what, I'm not sure ...

And then at Christmas, my BIL the Cornishman gave me vouchers for the Wool Warehouse. I have become so adult I didn't spend them until this week, and then when it arrived, I waited a whole day to open the box.

Why yes, yes, I am able to eat only one chocolate from a box and put the lid back on, how did you guess ?

And that is the ingredients for two more afghans, you will admit, a far more random combination of colors.

And since I am hosting Mini Diva's birthday sleepover tonight ....yes indeed, now she turns 13 not so much of the Mini I guess, I need to go and move the fragile things. But given that they are all sleeping downstairs along with the dog who is over-generous in sharing the pungent repercussions of his dinner of tripe mix  ....

The Suicide Blender of Death

Housewives Tarot

My regular reader will already know, and commiserate with my family, that I hate to cook. I can cook, but I think too many years where it was part of my job has ruined it as a pleasurable experience for me; in fact - whisper it very gently for you know not who listens - I know lots about it, and am rather good at it when I don't walk away forgetting all about what's simmering on the stove.

But in fact, I am here to declare that I am the Nigel Mansell of kitchen blenders - he didn't become the Formula 1 World Champion until his engineering team managed to build a car that could withstand his abuse assertive style of driving, and I have 3 broken blenders in my immediate past because I haven't had one that can take what I give it.

No, it isn't from dicing up raw mangelwurzels or ignoring the warnings in the booklet and crushing ice for my strawberry daiquiris: I use a blender for smoothies, milkshakes and soups. Well, yes, and the strawberries for the daiquiris, of course.

I know, right ? Just I am super unlucky in having 3 consecutive machines that were obviously not fit for purpose.

Just as well then, that Titch was asked what we would like for Xmas, and I said ' a decent blender'.

the actual model; except with fresh fruit

And Lo ! A blender arrived and all was well and there were many smiles of satisfaction and anticipation. Even more so because it looked like a Ferrari of blenders: friends, according to the label, there is nothing this machine cannot do. It has a bazillion different attachments and fittings, it can grind your coffee beans and blend your soup; it can juice green leafy things and it can chop and mush and ... oh, all kinds of exciting things that I would never ordinarily think of.

So I thought I'd try it out with a nice simple home-made Pea & Ham Soup (that is the actual recipe I used). But without Ham because of veggie Mini Diva.

Yes, I do remember the joke about Kermit and the liquidizer, thank you.

Anyway.

The one startling omission from this amazing piece of machinery equipped with super-sharp blades (2 kinds !) that cut, slice and dice and that do that cutting by whizzing round at faster-than-light speeds is .... an On/Off button.

To operate this equipment, you simply plug it in to the wall socket, and off it goes. As did my heart attack. Luckily the lid was on, so at least I was spared having to clean the ceiling and walls of green paste.

I could not believe it.

I spent quite some time searching through the manual, and the machine itself, searching for the location of the 'Power' button. I even asked the kids to check for me - you never quite know how senility might affect one. What I did find were several repeated warnings on many different pages of the manual about the danger posed to one's fingers by sharp blades. Ya think ??

The chance of random digit mutilation is just not a risk I am happy to take, especially with a Destructo Boy in the house, so I am looking up old-fashioned 'proper' blenders while this one sits abandoned in the shed. I know, but I'm afraid party-pooping is a hazard of getting older, and this is too close to the Raggedy Edge for me.

FO Friday 2/15: TLDR

Hanson-Roberts Tarot

I'm feeling a bit like the chap in the card today - droopy and tired. Destructo Boy has kindly shared his bugs and now I have a heavy head cold along with a cough that makes my chest burn. I had caught a cold from Mini Diva towards the end of last term, too, the first in absolute ages. So if I've had one from each of them that should be me done, right ?

But before I retreat to my boudoir to sniffle, hack and use up all the tissues, I'll just tell you about a hot water bottle cosy I made as a Christmas gift for my eldest niece.

She has dodgy heating and feels the cold, and I knew she uses hot water bottles; plus I had some yarn in my stash that her Mum (my sister) had given me that was just the sort of jewel tones that she likes; it had no label, but I'm fairly confident that it was James C.Brett Marble Chunky:

That was it before my kind MIL unravelled and reballed it for me. Now it looks like this:

I used 5.5mm needles, seed stitch for the edges, a cable stitch pattern I found somewhere, and Bob's your Uncle. 

No, I totally didn't even write down how many stitches I cast on, let alone put it into a pattern form that others could use. Did I weigh the yarn before I started so I would know how much I used ?  No, of course not. Whaddya think I am, organized or something ? I don't know, as I get older even the most obvious basics seem to be beyond me, though I can just about manage a witty blogpost title linked to yarn color. Go figure.

Anyway, I wished I had made one for myself, as it's just what I need right now, along with a good dose of Lemsip. Pop over to ChrisKnits for far more enthusiasm and way less whinging ....

The Interim Lull

Whimsical Tarot

Well, have we snoozed for long enough ? Or shall I tuck you back in under a snuggly blankey and we'll roll over and snore some more ? Winter, cold temperatures and having the family all home just exacerbate my hermit tendencies, I'm afraid. And because Titch has been home, I am using him as the excuse for not posting - I can ignore the kids with no problems, but he takes up too much space for that.

We had an organized (read: calm and peaceful) Christmas: the kids got what they'd asked for, we visited both my sister's family and Titch's family, we hosted Belo and Uber Cool Brother for Xmas lunch. We have played charades and Scrabble (which Destructo Boy doesn't like as ''I'm so crap at this even Dad is beating me'').

My Twins seem to have a Christmas during which much cookerly experimentation was successful - I am happy to reassure you that the Eviller Twin was far less Blumenthal this year, but the Good Twin continues to espouse Ottolenghi and the consequent need for bathroom extractor fans - and they liked their gifts (always a bonus). 

Hello Kitty Tarot

 I can't tell you how much of a warm support and embracing retreat they have been for me this year, always there to provide emotional and mental support, on top of everything else. I did call them and try to tell them, but I didn't haz no words to convey my gratitude.

It's OK, don't run away, come back - that's it for the overly gushy warm and fuzzy emotional ick for now, I promise.

Whimsical Tarot

Over the next few days I shall be pondering my goals for next year - some seem to be rising to the top of the queue - for example, conquering the rigid and sweaty anxiety attacks caused being in any car doing more than 20 mph. But then again, how badly to I need to get anywhere that's far enough away to require a car trip ? Online grocery shopping has never been so welcome. 

Hudes Tarot

However, I'm not sure I'm ready yet to drop the reclusive hermit-ness I have been practicing in RL - I am still burned out on people, generally speaking. I have one big main Plan for crafting/knitting next year, which I will, of course, be telling you all about at a later date. Do you feel enticed ? 

I am even feeling like I must pull out all the Stash and sort it out properly - it has got a bit mixed up what with sneaky additions and hiding Xmas presents, but I think that must wait til Titch has gone back to work - he already doesn't believe me when I say I want to make X, or Y, but that I haven't got the right yarn for it and so must buy more. If he saw what was actually there, I would have no chance at all ....

Have you got Plans for next year, knitting and/or personal ?

Friday Finishes 4: Underwater Cables

Fantastic Menagerie Tarot

Well, I've been twiddling my thumbs a bit aimlessly this week - I've completed Mini Diva's Wilde, except for the buttons - I couldn't find any I liked in the right size, so I blew caution (and cash) to the wind and have ordered a custom set.

I couldn't start the next item on my Xmas gift list as I was waiting for the yarn to be delivered.

So I was really looking for something that was quick and simple to occupy myself in the inbetween times. But I didn't have anything that fitted the bill in my Queue - apart from some fingerless mitts, and I just didn't want to make them: I can knit magic loop, but I don't enjoy it, especially the start.

So I took some yarn my sister had decluttered to me, and a new hot water bottle, and 2 days later we have this:

I'm not entirely sure what the yarn is - it arrived as something that had been knitted in the round but at some point had got unintentionally Moebiussed; during her most recent visit, my MIL had ravelled it all back into a ball for me, so it was once again usable. Anyway. I think it is James C.Brett Marble Chunky MC8 - my sister rarely used anything lighter in weight than a chunky.  

I surfed the stitch patterns over at the marvellous resource that is the Knitting Fool until I found one I liked, cast on using 5.5mm needles ....and hey presto - a completed Xmas gift. Now, while you go check out other lovely things at Chris Knits, I need to go get started on my MIL's Xmas gift, a cabled cardigan - which as you can see means I have no more time to fritter away with you here, much as you know I love you.

WIP Wednesday: Plodding On

Halloween Tarot

The beige cardigan to end all beige cardigans is still with us, but I haven't bothered with a photo because, let's face it, acres of beige is boring. Instead, let's focus on the fact that apparently Christmas is 11 Fridays away. 

I think I'm going to need all of that time to complete Mini Diva's gift, the Howling Wolves Beanie - I don't like knitting in the round with skinny yarn on skinny needles. And in addition, it's stranded colorwork, which I hate. I must really love her or something.

On the plus side, the yarn - Lanas Stop Baby Wool (which I used before on the ginormous Romanesque I made) - is just so deliciously soft: if I ever finish this hat, it is going to feel fantabulous.

You can see why 11 Fridays doesn't seem like enough:

If you only feel a tenth of my pain, you will understand the torture I am suffering .....

FO Friday 166: Igor Triumphs Again

Phantomwise Tarot

So when last we spoke, the mortuary slab table was strewn with body parts, but for what kind of creature ? How would it all go together, and would it end up only monstrous, or monstrously cute  ?

Here are the results of Igor's most recent experiment, so that you may judge for yourself:

 

The pattern was Sack of Mice Tea Cozy by Debi Birkin: and yes, I did have to buy a tinchy bit of yarn (Cygnet DK), as I simply had no shades of brown in my stash at all, let alone 50. I think my friend Susie H. may be the only person who will truly appreciate that I have actually used a color which the cruel amongst you might label as 'beige'.

I modified the pattern slightly - I used beads for the eyes instead of embroidering them, as mice have beady eyes, right ? I made whiskers, using stiff glossy embroidery thread; and I crocheted the mouse tail rather than knitted it. I also added a purty ribbon to 'tie up' the sack. It was a fairly straightforward project, but fiddly - it probably involved more sewing than it did knitting - but Titch chose it, and so therefore it Had To Be Done.

I am really pleased with how it has turned out, and have already had people requesting one for their very own - but, as this was the last of my Xmas knitting, I think I shall take a break and resume more simple knitting for the holiday period. But you know, I am open to offers which include either posh yarn or alcohol, and am pretty much a pushover for any offer that combines the two.

Pop over to Tami's Amis and see what else might be complete today  ....

FO Friday 61: Hat Trick

My title just goes to show how side-splittingly witty I am. Just in case you hadn't already realized. 

The first of today's Finished Objects is - FANFARE - that blimmin' Vintage Cabled Sweater that lasted for nearly ever:

I am so glad that I simplified the sleeves and just had one cable running down the centre; if I'd knitted it exactly to the pattern,. ie. cables everywhere right up to the edges,  I would still have been knitting this at the turn of the next century - and it's only for a 7 year old. It's made using the fabulously good value Stylecraft Life DK in the colorway 'Crocus'. It's washed, dried and awaiting Xmas wrapping paper.

A quick and easy yet impressive-looking knit was the Seriously Simple Shawl:

Made from one and a teeny jot balls of Regia Hand-dyed Effect by Kaffe Fassett in the colorway 'Rubin', to which the photo does no justice at all. This too is washed, blocked, dried and folded awaiting Xmas wrapping for my MIL.

And finally, the Hat of the Hat Trick:

Not my photo, so this time I'm not taking the blame for the fact that this too doesn't show the fabulous warm earthy colors of Patons UK Colourwork Aran in the colorway 'Terracotta'. The pattern was the Irish Hiking Hat; all I did different was to lengthen the ribbed section to make a turn-up brim. It was a birthday gift for my BIL, for when he walks this:

OK, there isn't any Irish involved with that. Or hiking, as it happens - apart from anything else, they live in the Fens, which is flatter than Holland. But there is Outdoors, so that counts, right ?

Over at Tami's Amis are lots of purty things to look at ......

Back with a Bang

Well, the festive period meant a longer than usual blogging hiatus, since both my DH and my father were at home - my father after an unplanned stay in Houston, and then via Schiphol and the ferry to Harwich (without any luggage, as it was all lost in transit - so much for the extra security regulations about unaccompanied luggage) rather than flying in to Heathrow, because of the snow.

It was good to meet my father's fiancee and two of her children, although I did pity them for their obvious sufferings in the cold temperatures here. Santa visited our house and left my children thoroughly spoiled, having received every item they had asked for: but, to be fair, their lists were not extensive, and Mini Diva's did include a request for catnip for the cats ...

And I was also very spoiled - you met my main Xmas present already; and as DH realized far too late (as in, Christmas morning) that he had not got gifts to/for me from the children, the ensuing guilt was much to my advantage, since it resulted in a lunch out and this:



3 skeins of Araucania Ranco Multy in shade 351, bought from the lovely Karen over at Twist in Woodbridge (who also has some lovely Fyberspates laceweight that I managed to resist, as well as some fantabulous Manos del Uruguay silk yarn which I will go back for next time DH has put himself in the dog-house ...)

I don't often spend that much money - even when it's DH's guilt-money - on a yarn, but my friend Ania had gifted me a beautiful pattern, also for Christmas: the Starflower Estonian Lace Baby Blanket, by Hazel Roots; it won't be a baby blanket, but it does deserve some special yarn - hence the Araucania. It may be some time til I start it, as it does involve a couple of techniques new to me, and I am an old dog when it comes to these kinds of things ....

Since we are speaking of special people, and special yarn, the two combined for me this year in this unexpected and delightful Xmas gift from my friend Mimi, which arrived most appositely on Xmas Eve, in spite of snow-caused backlogs:



This 440 yards of 4 ply superwash wool was hand-dyed especially for me, and so, in addition, is totally unique. I can't tell you the buzz that is to me - I imagine it's somewhat akin to having a rose named after you. However, I can tell you that I am filled with a gloating satisfaction when I look at it. I am told it would make a nice pair of socks, but as I have mentioned before, that is an addiction I refuse to engage with.

Early Xmas

Well, we passed the homecheck by the Sussex German Shepherd Rescue, and scheduled to drive down to Eastbourne last weekend: which was scuppered by the weather and some family responsibilities.

However, everything was in train to go this Saturday instead; we were all up at some unreasonably early time - and more surprising, we were all even in good moods ! Packed the kids, their lunches, and things to occupy them during the drive, and off we went.




When we got to Eastbourne, we found the address without any trouble, and met the hospitable family that the dog belonged to. A good talk, exchange of information, and the nod from DH meant that we came home with my joint Xmas and birthday present. And without further ado, here he is:



He is 18 months old, chipped, neutered, and has few manners or social graces. He had been named Storm, but we have re-named him Sebastian; once he and I have come to an understanding about how I don't like to be dragged willynilly down the road - or into it, to play with the traffic because of some yappy Jack Russell on the other side - we will get on fine ...

Deadline Approaching

I've been focussed on other things recently, like readings for clients, preparing and selling soaps for the little Xmas craft fair organized in our local library (I did quite nicely, thank you, and all proceeds already spent, of course; I also did well in my bartering/trading ... perhaps I am secretly a Ferengi ?) and DH's Big Four-Oh - he loved his voucher for a track day driving an Aston Martin and an Audi R8: so much so that he said that they'd have to surgically remove the grin from his face. Quite an accolade, from a man who specializes in 'smiling on the inside'. And this gift Win means that I can tell you that my own self-satisfaction has hit record levels: no surprise there, then.

But anyway, because I've been focussed on those things, progress on the SoDMk2 has slowed somewhat; as I've said before, obviously I can only work on it during the week while DH is away at work. I figure that this gives me just next week and about 2 days of the week after to complete it. Here is where it's got to so far:




Back, front, and one sleeve done; other sleeve half-done; collar unstarted. It is looking feasible that this might just get done in time for Xmas.

The other thing that is looking like it might be achieved before Xmas is my new dog. Inclement weather meant we could not drive down to Eastbourne last weekend, but it is all scheduled in for this Saturday; as long as all goes well ie. he doesn't eat the kids on sight, we shall bring him back with us. Superstition means I shan't post a picture of the dog quite yet, but suffice it to say that
he is not one of these:




















or these:




















as my taste in dogs (and men) runs well into L sizing and beyond ....

At First I Was Afraid

... I was petrified. But actually, it turned out to be not so bad as I thought. Last week I happened to be listening to our local independent radio station, Town 102, when they had a phone-in competition for some tickets; all you had to do was name the other half of a comedy duo, and then have your name picked out of a hat.



Naming Large as the other half of Little wasn't a problem for someone my age; and it was my lucky day to be picked out of a hat.
The tickets turned out to be for this:



For the uninitiated, the Chuckle Brothers (Paul and Barry) are a comedy duo whose target audience is children the age of mine; of course, I'd won two tickets, so needed to buy one so that they could both go. Absolutely fizzing with excitement - well, the two of them at least - we trickled down to the Regent Theatre (that many still refer to as The Gaumont) last night to catch the show. At £15 per ticket, still the theatre was almost full.

The very thin story revolved around Jack Frost being Santa's wicked brother, who stole all the presents, which were only retrieved with the help of the Chuckle Brothers. There were magic tricks, there were odd fluorescent puppet things doing random skits, there were parents from the audience getting custard-pied, there was ''it's behind you'' for George the Abominable Snowman, there was lots of '' 'ulloooo'' and ''to me, to you, to me'', there were toilet rolls being flung into the audience along with sweets and crisps, there were songs to shout along to, and - perhaps best of all - there was a pantomime reindeer named Nuts that peed on the audience anytime anyone said 'pea'. Or 'pee'. Or 'p'. You get the idea.


My kids had a ball, saucer-eyed and open-mouthed at the magic tricks, hoarse with shouting at wicked Jack Frost, and trying to drown each other out on the Christmas songs, nearly wetting themselves with laughter when Nuts the reindeer peed on the front rows - so much so that Destructo Boy cried when it ended. I had a ball watching them.