Now featuring ona computer near you

Gracie has been uploaded to http://catsinsinks.com/ .

The internet is a strange and wonderful place!

I've done it

I've signed up for Secret Pal 7, I'm all excited now, it's my first secret pal.

Today I have been following pancake the clown......

Or so the sign on the back of a van that passed me on the A500 said. Didn't follow him far 'cos he turned off soon after. A fleeting relationship!

I'm only on here 'cos I can't sleep, gotta stinky cold (typical, holiday starts on Friday) and I'm feeling sorry for myself. Haven't really got much to say. All quiet on the knitting front since the weekend. The Hot water bottle cover was progressing nicely at that point but I didn't take any knitting away with me. Quiet run this week, managed to avoid road rage and running into anything too (which is nice); and got Christmas presents and kind words from some of my customers.

Thursday will be my last day at work then I'm off for a fortnight, woo hoo!

Clapotis

Now I know that I'm the last person in the known universe to knit one of these and that every other knitter on the planet has made at least two BUT, I'm still very pleased and proud of the finished article so you'll just have to put up with yet another Clapotis blog.


This is a Christmas present for someone (and she'd better bloomin' like it). Next to this you see it in it's early stages (note the home made stitch markers). I must say that whilst stitch markers with pretty beads on are very nice, the ones without are FAR easier to use as you don't have to keep making sure they're on the right side of the knitting. The ones with beads you have to pull through the knitting if you get them on the wrong side.


This is Clapotis being blocked (a practice I have avoided up until now). Must admit to being quite pleased with blocking, it certainly improved the look of the thing, the corners are still showing the teeniest inclination to curl up, but not as much as before.




And this is the finished object (well okay I haven't sewn the ends in yet, but there's only two of them and it will be the work of a moment!).

The yarn I used for this was Jaeger Odessa, which is a Mohair / Acrylic blend with metalic gold highlights DK. I knitted it on 4mm needles. I wasn't at all sure how it would turn out as I wasn't confident that the stitches would unravel properly in a mohair yarn, but it seems to have worked out okay. They did need a little encouragement though.

I'm very pleased with it and am going to knit myself one after Christmas. Hmm, along with all the other things I want to do. Got my eye on Tubey in the latest issue of Knitty, and from reading other peoples blogs I'm not the only one. I got some Debbie Bliss Aran Tweed in various shades of reds and purples out of the bargain bin at Up Country a couple of weeks ago and I thought it might look good in that.


Once again, the picture doesn't do credit to the colours (I think we need an acronym for that!).

Anyroadup, happy Knitmas to all in blogland and a yarn filled new year!

think I may have sorted it

Innit typical? You ask for advice then work it out for yourself. I'm sure lots of you would have helped so thanx anyway.

Short and sweet

Got back from my run and am very tired but am going to post 'cos I haven't for a while. I'm three quarters of the way through a Christmas present Clapotis which is all red and sparkly. I'm praying that it works out okay 'cos I've invested some time in it and I DO NOT WANT TO HAVE TO FROG IT!!! (If it works I'll put a picture up.)
Plan on returning to Addingham on Friday in order to get some more yarn to make a bag to match one of the finger scarves I made (another Christmas pressy). Ro needs some more of the Softy that she got there too so I'll get that as well and possibly some for myself to knit a hotty bottle cover (yup, another pressy).
I've had a traumatic two days, victim of road rage yesterday (which is odd cos I'm usually the one raging!) and then about three hours later I ran into a parked car (ouch) when I stopped on a slope and didn't put the parking brake on properly. The truck wasn't damaged but I dented the wing of the car and smashed the wing mirror.

Oh well, things can only get better (can't they?)!

Bye the way can anyone tell me how to persuade blogger to put the correct time and date on my posts automatically. I always have to change it manually before posting and I've been into the settings and told it I'm on GMT.

GIGANTIC fuzzy feet

Hmm, and this is post felting .

This Rowanspun aran doesn't appear to felt too well, the French Market bag I made of it didn't shrink as much as I had hoped either. Put these through a complete 60 degree cycle with a pair of jeans and you can still see the individual stitches on them and they'd fit a camel (not the intended recipient of them!). I think I may put them in the preassure cooker and give them a good boiling and see what happens.




Kill or cure.













This is a picture of the other thing I bought at the Harrogate show. Couldn't post it before 'cos I bought it as a present for Ro, couldn't wait for Christmas though so I sent it to her straight away. Two bags of beautiful silk tops for her to incorporate into her spinning. She loves them!









This is a picture of the scarf and bag she made a while ago. She bought a skein of Maya cheap from Up Country, then found the fuzzy stuff (dunno what it's called) to tone with it. Lovely.










And finally....................
............ picture of Gracie being bad in my sink. Why is it that given a bowl of perfectly acceptable water, cats will innevitably choose instead to drink out of the toilet, washing up bowl or any other source of stagnant water? Is it the chlorine or flouride or whatever else they pollute our drinking water with?
God my kitchen looks a disgrace, in my defence:-
I did not choose the decoration, I bought the house looking like this and have done nothing about it.
The mark next to the sink is a stain which I have failed to remove despite many applications of bleach.
Haven't realy got an excuse for not having done the washing up except that, well it's a bit boring and there are many more interesting things to do.

Okay off to do some more cardi and boil my fuzzy feet. May be pictures later. Wish me luck.