That Logan Chick

2009 Goals List - 1st Quarter Check-in 02

2009-02-02T17:03:00.006-07:00

My ability to focus is cyclical (hello, bipolar disorder). Sometimes I can work on the same project for weeks, without any tendancy to get distracted. Other times I can't commit to one thing for more than a few hours (or even minutes!) without wanting to start something different.

Rather than suffer, attempting to force myself to focus when my brain simply does not have that capacity, I'm working on embracing the disjointed times. And thus my short attention span of late has effected my choice of projects, as you'll well see. Since my last Check-in I've finished five more things! Granted, they're all small, but still, that's pretty good. They're finished, and that's what counts. And they work toward my project goals for the month.

Tom wanted a pair of thick squooshy slippers to replace his felted ones (they wore through) for around the house. This time I went with a superwash wool so that I could throw them in the washer and dryer with his socks. He's happy, and that's what counts.

This photo was taken after the slippers had been through the washer and dryer, and they came out soft yet plump and squooshy. I carried a thread of woolly nylon on the sole and heel to add to their life span, and have most of a skein of yarn left (these took 4.2 balls) to do patching when they begin to wear out. They are a doubled worsted weight yarn, 100% wool, ONline Linie 157 Tessa.

Also in the list of little things are a pair of crocheted fingerless mitts (my own design), a lacy Ice Queen Cowl (shown blocking, two layers thick), and two Chickadee Cowls (all pattern links are through Ravelry). Yes, that's one more cowl than I'd put on the list, but I got excited by the linen stitch after the first Chickadee Cowl (made in the gorgeous Misti Alpaca Hand Paint Chunky) and tried another one, this time in a wool / acrylic blend (Lang West).

These fingerless gloves were crocheted in Lorna's Laces sport weight superwash wool in the colourway Aslan, and took about two thirds of a single 70g skein. The buttons were in my stash. They're handy for driving (steering wheels can get cold in the winter).

I don't have a photo of me wearing the Ice Queen cowl, and probably won't (not in the mood to model these days). But trust me, it's lovely! The yarn is a fingering weight wool, mohair, cotton, nylon blend with metallic gold bits, so I didn't add any beading (not necessary - the gold bits add all the glitz of beads, without the effort). While it blocked to 18" long, it shrunk back to shorter off the pins. When I make this pattern again (and I will - I want at least one more, beaded) I'll make sure I have more yardage and add extra pattern repeats for length. This one drapes like a cowl neckline, all flowy and pretty, but isn't great for wearing up over the head. But oh, the pretty!

The cowl above is the alpaca one, and is just a little too long (8" as I wanted to use all of that expensive yarn) and itchy to use. Plus it isn't really my colour. I think this will go in a bag to be given away to someone who loves the colours and can handle the itch. Those pesky guard hairs! The skein felt amazingly soft, but I still cannot handle this yarn. Oy - a $22 lesson in my low tolerance for alpaca. Oh well, it could have been a sweater!

The colouring of the blue/brown cowl above is gorgeous, and perfect with a denim jacket. It will become a staple of my wardrobe, I think, for days when I need a little extra warmth with the denim, but don't want to change coats. The scalloped edging was a little extra I added to the bound off edge, and ate up most of the remaining yarn from the skein (less than 5 grams left after adding the scalloped edging). For a one ball project, it has high wearability and practicality, and I really like it. Not bad for $7!

All of these smaller projects kept me interested and busy through the latter part of January, and now in early February I'm working on a pair of slippers for me, from the same yarn in a different colour. Tom's are so warm and nice that I decided I needed a pair too, especially seeing as I've been wearing through all of my hand knitted socks like crazy lately. I think I should wear slippers indoors and save the handknit socks for when I leave the house, and that will extend their lives. So after I finish the first pair of my slippers, I'll put another pair on a future project goals list. And no, my slippers aren't beaded (the yarn is too thick to use with my beads), so they will be the exceptions to the beaded footware plan. Socks = beads. Slippers = nope!

I've been having great difficulty deciding on what sweater or cardigan to make. With such a large stash, I have lots of different options. And with Ravelry in my life, my list of favorite patterns is long. Hopefully I'll make my choice within the next week or two and get started while I still have time to finish in this quarter!

My sewing room is not progressing at all, and I really need to buckle down on that. But with this flightly brain of mine at present, that's a bit tough. I'll ride it out a bit longer, and push back the quilt goals if I have to. Bummer, though.

Next update in mid February! Hopefully I'll have made a start on some larger projects.

2009 Goals List - 1st Quarter Check-in 01

2009-01-12T23:30:00.004-07:00

Not quite half of the first month of the first quarter of the year has already passed by ... and I'm on track. I've finished two pairs of socks, one each for Tom and me. Mine were beaded (yippee!), and Tom's were heavy and very appropriate for wearing in his steel toed boots while working up in Fort McMurray.

Both pairs used the special heel developed by Wendy Johnson of WendyKnits, in her pattern called Southwestern Socks (Ravelry link), which can be downloaded free from The Loopy Ewe. The link to their free pattern downloads is here, courtesy of Sheri at The Loopy Ewe. I'll put my two cents in about the yarn Wendy made her socks in: Fiesta Boomerang is delicious! I made a pair in Boomerang ages ago, and they wear like iron, are super soft, and come in amazing fun colourways. None of which appeal to Tom, thus the use of charcoal (again) for him. Thank goodness he lets me put in some crimson stripes for variety!

More details about my two latest sockish FOs can be found on their respective RavPages: the BecSocks and the TomSocks. Here are some photos, just to alleviate the dull.

Immediately following the completion of Tom's socks, I cast on another pair for him (these ones are intended for use as slippers), as I was not yet quite ready to start a more substantial project. I'm waffling on which cardigan or sweater to make first, don't have a plan for a bag, and haven't gotten my sewing room up and running yet. So more socks it is!

All in all, I'm feeling pretty good about my ability to meet these self-imposed goals. Time will tell, but I'm optimistic. And I have cute beaded socks, so what could possibly go wrong? Right? Right? Hmmm. Crickets are chirping in the background, aren't they?

A New Year, and Some (really freakin' lofty) Goals

2009-01-09T15:37:00.004-07:00

Historically I have wasted far too much time waffling about, swatching this that and the other thing, favoriting hundreds of great projects and patterns in Ravelry, downloading and printing binders and binders worth of terrific patterns and ideas, yet not actually committing to or finishing many projects.

I'm an ideas person, and I often create (and complete) things that seem like great ideas in my head, but never actually get used once they're made. These are things that, while lovely and interesting to make, are still totally impractical in my lifestyle. Think numerous lace shawls that rarely come out to play with utterly non-girly non-lacy me, heavy wool sweaters that make me feel like I'm burning alive, huge art quilt pieces that I don't have the wall space to hang, bags that are adorable but just to small or girly for me to ever use, etc.

This year, I will try to be more structured in my approach to crafting (knitting, crocheting, spinning, quilting and sewing). So I've set out a series of guidelines, methods and goals that will help me to complete 2009 with lots of FOs that are actually useful.

The Qualifiers (questions to ask myself BEFORE I start a new project)

- Will I actually use this? Not CAN I use this, as I can talk myself into just about any project with hypotheticals like "I could wear this shawl to the opera" and other unrealistic situations. Nope. Will I actually use this in my day to day life? This needs to be a "Keep it practical" check. If a garment or item won't fit into my regular lifestyle, it shouldn't be considered. For example, heavy wool pullovers are out, yet (surprisingly) delicate doilies are in (I like to center vases, candle holders, framed photos, etc on a doily - yes, I'm weird that way).

- Is this physically possible to construct? This is an important question to remember when I start thinking about bed quilts (we have a king sized bed, and quilts that large can be extremely difficult to quilt on a home machine) and purses (lining can be a pain in the ass, and hold up completion). There's no point wasting my time and materials starting something I'm physically unable to complete for logistical reasons.

- Do I need special tools / materials / skills to finish this project? This year I'm focusing on working from my stash (beads, yarns, fibres, fabrics, notions, etc), so I want to keep the additional purchases to a minimum. If a cardigan needs 15 buttons and I only have 12, then I need to restructure it to use 12. This may require some fussing about, but working from the stash will be my reward. Fine, fine, if I need a specific size and colour of zipper, I can go out and get that. But no running out to by lining fabric, cashmere, or 19 new colours of beads. Use the freakin' stash first!!!!

- Will this make me look utterly dorky? Okay, a little dorky I'm okay with. Let's face it - I'm in my late thirties, fat and not very well groomed. So a tailored slim fitting tank top is not a good look for me. This year I'll review my garment making choices (whether knitting, crocheting or sewing) a number of times before I commit, to ensure that I wasn't having a brief fit of overly positive thinking that will later bite me on my substantial ass.

The Quantifiers (now that I've set out The Qualifiers, above):

- I will use yarn / fibre / fabric from my stash for a minimum of 75% of my projects (by count, not by weight or volume).

- I will mix it up to avoid boredom. This includes craft, project type, scale, colour, etc.

- I will forgive myself the occasional lapse into swatching, sketching, or researching that goes nowhere. It happens. I can't always be productive, so I should stop beating myself up for spending the occasional day dithering.

- I will make more things for Tom. He will receive a lot of socks this year, and one sweater. And I will continue to work closely with him to ensure that the fit / colour / fabric / style pleases him, even when he greats a completed sock with "this needs an extra quarter inch of length in the foot, and then it will be perfect". If he is the intended recipient, he needs to be happy.

- I will do quality control. On everything. If I'm doubtful about fit / form / function, I'll set the project aside until I can look at it with an unbiased eye, and make proper decisions. Sometimes I need to step away from the needles!

- I will set goals. Lots of goals. Good, realistic, attainable goals. See below!

In order to structure my project output, I'm instituting required minimums for each quarter, plus goals for totals for the year.

The quarterly minimums will help to ensure that I have a variety in project scope and scale in each time period. And they are minimums - I can focus my project output to make more socks in one quarter and more sweaters in another, aiming to complete the annual goals while still maintaining the quarterly minimums overall. The idea is to vary my projects to keep things interesting, while still focusing enough to attain growth and experience in a variety of crafts. Sounds pretty good, eh?

So here are the current quarterly and annual goals (I may add to these later):

Quarterly: 2 pairs of socks (1 for each Tom and me)
Annual: a minimum of 12 pairs (6 for each Tom and me)

Quarterly: 1 sweater (cardigan or pullover)
Annual: 3-5 sweaters for me, 1 for Tom

Quarterly: 2 doilies (1 each knitted & crocheted)
Annual: set of 5 small knitted doilies for framing (art cluster), plus 2 crocheted doilies by each Mary Werst and Patricia Kristoffersen

Quarterly: 1 quilt (lap or bed)
Annual: 4 lap quilts, 2 bed quilts

Quarterly: 4 small knitted or crocheted winter accessory items
Annual: enough hats, cowls, scarves, mittens, etc to keep Tom and I both warm next winter

Quarterly: 1 bag, purse, tote or wallet
Annual: a variety of useful project bags, purses, etc (minimum 4 - they are a great way to showcase knitterly or crochet skills to the world, and darned useful!)

Quarterly: 1 handspun project (from fibre to yarn, then make a knitted or crocheted item)
Annual: 4 small scale and 1 large scale projects from handspun (I'd love a handspun shawl - not very practical, but a great showcase for handspun and a more realistic goal than a handspun sweater)

Quarterly: blog at least twice a month with progress updates
Annual: showcase every single completed project on the blog (in addition to putting all knitted and crocheted items on Ravelry) with an annual minimum of 26 blog postings (24 will be the twice monthly updates, plus this initial outline, plus a final year end wrap-up)

So, to get things kicked off, here are my specific goals for the first quarter of 2009:
- 1 Cardigan (for me)
- 2 pairs of TomSocks
- 2 pairs of BecSocks
- 2 cowls
- 2 lacy scarves
- 2 hats
- 1 pair of fingerless mitts
- 1 knitted doily
- 1 crocheted doily
- 1 bag
- 1 bed quilt
- 1 lap quilt
- 1 other quilted project (bag, pillow cover, or wall hanging)
- 1 project from handspun (can be one of the projects set out above, but I do want at least one thing finished from my own handspun yarn per quarter).

In an aside, I'm planning to add beads to all of my socks this year, focus on thicker socks for both Tom and myself, focus my cardigans/pullovers on easy care warm weather fibers (with one major exception - a cabled wool cardigan), and focus my quilting efforts on the quilting more than the piecing.

And finally, I will be open to change as it is needed, but will not actively seek change just because I'm feeling obstinate.

A Crochet Tutorial: Joining a new Colour

2008-09-03T22:44:00.008-06:00

I've been having a blast learning to crochet, but have found some gaps in the information available to newbies like me. My (three!) How-To guides all show how to change colours in the middle of a row while working double crochet back and forth, but not how to change colours in a new round of a granny square or other motif shape.

After some playing around and experimenting, I found a way that works for me without leaving a bulky knot hanging over an open space in the previous row.

After you've finished off the yarn from the last round, you're ready to begin the new round with the new colour. In this case, I'm about to be working [ 5 dc, ch 3, 5 dc ] into the chain space in the corner.

Pass the hook through the space from the front. Fold the end of the new yarn over the hook, leaving six inches for sewing / weaving in the end of the yarn (Photo 1). Pull the loop through the chain space (Photo 2).

Wrap both the working yarn and the end over the hook (Photo 3), and pull them both through the loop, together (Photo 4). The stitch you just made anchors the end of the yarn in place, but you still need to weave the cut end in later (once you have enough completed stitches in that colour through which to weave and hide the end). I made the next chain stitch with just the working yarn (Photo 5), and you can see the slightly thicker stitch made with the doubled yarn.

From then on, just crochet as normal. In the case of this square, I worked enough chain stitches to be equivalent to a double crochet, then worked the remaining stitches that were needed in the space.

I Will Survive - Aliensong

2008-08-15T20:53:00.001-06:00

A Secret Project

2008-06-28T18:13:00.005-06:00

Secret projects. Many bloggers have them.

Usually they're gifts that the blogger wants to keep secret from the intended recipient, who may read the blog, thus ruining the surprise. I've had a number of those.

Some times secret projects are secret because the blogger isn't sure of success, and wants to keep the mocking to a minimum (I've had those, too).

And then more rarely, bloggers will have secret projects because they hope to submit the item for publishing in a magazine, book, or web-site, and part of the conditions of submission require secrecy. That's what I'm playing with right now. If this project works out like I hope, I plan to try submitting it to a magazine for publication. Yep, I'm dreaming big. Huge, in fact.

However, just because I'm working on a secret project doesn't mean I don't have blog fodder (although it is pretty slim right now). I'm going to post a few photos of parts of the secret project, just teaser shots really. Because
(a) I'm happy with how it is turning out so far,
(b) I hate posting on the blog without photos, and
(c) I'm working hard on posting at least once a week right now. Ignoring the blog for long periods of time just seems wasteful!

So here are some shots of the secret project, with no details at all. Annoying, eh?

A New Bag & Things to Think About

2008-06-22T00:53:00.004-06:00

First, the new bag ... made from one skein of taupe and two of stone (had plenty left over of both colours) of Lion Brand Cotton Ease. The pattern is a really popular one on Ravelry, accessible via my project page (Ravelry link). It's closed with a magnetic snap, and I sewed a shell disc over top to hide the metal ugliness. There's a pocket inside to corral pens, crochet hooks, etc. Yep, I lined it with freakin' expensive quilt fabric - but better used and in a bag than sitting in storage in the crawlspace, eh?

Just for fun I made one larger square in a fancy lace block pattern, and stuck it on the bottom of the bag in place of four regular squares. I'd rather have people behind me on the street / in the grocery store looking at the bottom of my bag than the bottom of me.

Emo always helps with the photo styling. He considers himself extremely photogenic. He's right. Cute little bugger, isn't he? And now I know that the bag easily transports 8lbs of squirmy cat, with the only damage being the addition of a layer of fine cat fluff.

Now on to something more serious than crocheted cat carriers / tote bags ...

Lately I've been stricken with a pretty serious case of take yarn out from stash, fondle, swatch, rip out swatch in frustration, put yarn beside chair for later consideration, go back down to stash and begin again. The pile next to my chair is threatening to smother me! But I'm really struggling to commit to a particular project (except the bag - it only took three days so doesn't really count).

So I need to start asking myself some serious questions before I start swatching yet another completely new project. Quick project or a serious time investment? Practical or frivolous? Product or process? Just for me, or potential for pattern sales?

My tendency is to choose projects that are quick to provide satisfaction, such as my recent trend toward cotton trivets and the latest bag. And a lot of my recent swatching has been for shawls / stoles / scarves, some of which would be pretty darned quick. But the swatch itself is the ultimate in quick projects. Sadly I'm not getting a lot of useful results from this time, though, so I need to start committing to investing a decent amount of time on a more serious project.

Again, most of what I've been doing lately is frivolous stuff. The cardigan was the major exception to this, and the fact that I've worn it nearly every day since I finished it indicates to me that maybe more cardigans are in order. Because really, I don't wear shawls / stoles / scarves in the home, yet I spend the majority of my time here! So more than one cardigan sounds like a damned good idea.

Then there's the consideration of product versus process. Yes, I enjoy the finished products. But sometimes I don't feel like labouring over the same stitch pattern in the same yarn for the weeks required to make a cardigan for a fatty like me. If I was a size two, wearables would be a lot faster to produce. But I'm not. And seeing as I tend to be more of a process person than a product person, I abandon a great many projects part way through, having bored of that particular process (combination of stitch pattern and yarn) and wanting to move on. We won't talk about the stacks of milk crates with UFOs in them. Nope. Not at all.

So I need to become more of a product knitter / crocheter / spinner / quilter. But shifting that mind set is neither easy nor quick. It will take time and dedication. But I think that if I allow myself occasional pointless swatching and intersperse the lineup with instant gratification projects, I may be able to make the change.

Finally, I love the fact that I have a self-published pattern that is somewhat successful. There are shawls out there in the world made following my pattern. That's pretty freakin' cool! But in order to write and publish another pattern, I need to choose projects that are (a) of interest to others, (b) made of yarns that can be easily found or at least easily substituted, and (c) sized appropriately. Thus the not publishing another pattern yet. It's a shitload of work! And knowing in advance that I might publish the pattern limits my ability to ad-lib. Okay, it kills it. And those projects that I've started with publishing in mind have so far crashed headlong into the wall of damn-I'm-tired-of-this-and-it's-way-too-much-freakin'-work-so-I-quit.

So after all of this thinking and copious note taking, stash analysis / review, sketching, swatching, and general whinging and moaning, I've decided to start on three new projects.

1. Another lacy cardigan. It's the most practical choice for me (something I'll actually wear / use!!!), but the most work if I decide to publish (sizing from fat me to all the smaller sizes that are standard in most patterns). I have some yarn options, so swatching will ensue. This could go one of two ways. Either I'll end up creating something original and struggle through the pattern work, or I'll get sick of the writing and calculations and just make another cardi identical to the last, in all but colour.

2. A casual scarf in a luxurious lace weight yarn. This will be a fun break from slugging through the cardigan. But the goal is definitely to have this be publishable, so the project will require dedication to the writing and editing part. Ugh. But fun scarf? Yay!

3. A two piece bag set. I'm envisioning a large tote suitable for hauling library books around or carrying a large knitting / crochet project, plus a smaller purse for wallet, Kleenex, keys, cell phone, etc. Ideally they would be from the same yarn and kind of match, while still each being a stand alone piece. I've sketched up a bunch of ideas, and have a good handle on the look I'm going for, but am running into the issue of lining. Good bags / purses are nicely lined. But I don't want to have to write up a sewing pattern for each bag as well as a knitting or crochet pattern! Yet "line if desired" seems like such a cop out. I'll have to do some market research on this.

So after all of this head scratching, scribbling, swatching and general mess making, I still can't commit. Maybe I'm just not ready yet. So I think I'll go do the dishes and maybe some laundry. Those things, at least, I have a plan of approach for, and know how to properly see them through. Product, not process. Clothes to wear, and clean dishes.

Muppets - Mahna Mahna

2008-06-21T16:29:00.001-06:00

The Perfect Summer Cardigan

2008-06-14T16:06:00.004-06:00

Sometimes I can envision the perfect article of clothing in my mind. I know exactly what I want, down to the tiniest detail. Finding said article of clothing in stores, though, is very rare. I'm often disappointed when I go looking. So this time, I did the only thing I could do that would assure my happiness - made it myself.

This started with two things: a lovely crocheted lace stitch pattern (as seen in the Short and Sweet bolero in the Debbie Stoller book Stitch 'n Bitch Crochet: The Happy Hooker) and an idea of the perfect summer cardigan. I wanted something that was lacey and girly and pretty, had long sleeves and was long enough to land just below the waist band on my jeans, was made from a fibre that wasn't warm like wool, was the perfect summer neutral (wearable with as many as possible of my pretty coloured tank tops), and buttoned up. Yep, asking a helluva lot!

So, tackling the issues one by one:

1. Lacy, girly and pretty - I really wanted to use the stitch pattern from Short and Sweet. Well, after looking at all of the finished versions on Ravelry, I decided to just try adapting the pattern to what I wanted, rather than just using the lace pattern. Why mess with a great starting point? The information was there, I just had to use it.

2. Adapt a pattern for a short sleeved bolero into a long sleeved full length cardigan - doable. It took some swatching, some sketching and a bit of math, but I managed.

3. Summer fibre is a bit tough. I love natural fibres, and wanted something lighter weight than the worsted weight mercerized cotton used in the sample sweater. And it had to come from the stash. After some digging, I found I had 1500 yards of a dk weight (listed as worsted, but after knitting a swatch when I first got it I found I only got DK gauge from it, could not get worsted gauge to save my life) 100% bamboo with a chained construction. It's a bit shiney, but not annoyingly so (no "bling" nastiness), and feels cool and slinky against the skin. Cool is good for summer wear.

4. The perfect summer neutral - hmm. I had the same yarn and yardage in both black and taupe. After pulling apart my collection of tank tops, I decided to go with the taupe. It looks great with teal, blue, pink, coral, burgundy, beige, white, black, and some greens. Not so good with red and a few other colours, but still that gave a lot of wearing options. Taupe it is.

5. Buttons and button bands. I dug through my small collection of buttons, and found that (this is why I stash stuff!) I had buttons that looked great with the yarn, in an appropriate size, and more than enough (I've got enough left to use for another cardigan). And the button bands were easy - do 2ch instead of 2sc, with 6sc between each button hole.

So, with all of my options covered, I got to work. In about three weeks of not terribly dedicated work, I had a pretty finished cardigan. I blocked severely (having first practiced with a swatch of the pattern lace stitch) and was able to get my desired dimensions without any issues, and used slightly less than 1400 yards!

I'm very very happy with the finished product, and have received some nice compliments. Of course, those were from when I wore it into the local yarn store, but still, it was nice to get them. And I like the shape and look of this cardi so much that I will make another soon - possibly right away. In the black bamboo, most likely. Then maybe in russet wool/silk/cotton blend, for fall wear.

And if I'm not completely sick of it by that point, in a wool blend for winter wear, in red or teal. Or one in red and one in teal. And why not olive green, too? Because when you find the perfect article of clothing, you get it in every possible colour that you like, and love it, love it, love it. And I love this cardigan.

Ravelry Ate my Homework!

2008-06-06T16:31:00.003-06:00

Okay, it didn't really. But sometimes it feels that way.

I've been loving Ravelry, the online community for knitters and crocheters (with a side in spinning). It has been described as a "social networking site" for crafters, and yes, it is that. It's also so much more. I've learned soooo much from my time on Ravelry, like:

How to spin! I'm the proud owner of two dozen drop spindles (a Ravelry link - only works if you're a member - I'm not being elitist, it's just how it works) and one SpinOlution Mach 1 spinning wheel. By starting with spindle spinning I got a good basic understanding of yarn construction, twist, grist, etc. Now I feel armed with enough information to move on to spinning with a wheel (which I've had for two weeks today - whee!).

Fibre is just as much fun to stash as yarn. I've already got a few boxes worth. Nothing like the yarn stash, though. And once spun, it just adds to the yarn stash. Not like that's a problem.

And I'm crocheting! I've made some small things, and am working on a few not-so-small things too. The not-so-small things include a lacy bamboo cardigan for summer wear, an afghan of fancy squares, and a lacy shawl. Too much on the go? Yep, as always.
Doilies are cool! After months of looking at and admiring doilies, I dove in. Now, I've made doilies, both knitted and crocheted. They're kind of useless, but I really enjoy making them.

My favorite part of Ravelry, though, has been the friends I've made. Real friends! Real life women I would never have met except for Ravelry.

We get together once a week and knit, crochet or spin together (whatever pleases each person at the time). We've shared skills (I may have convinced a few others to try spinning, and I've gotten hooked on crochet), worked on a group project, and generally enjoyed getting to know a group of people who would not ever have run into each other but for Ravelry.

So, yeah, I love it. But it isn't everything in life, so moving on now ...

The furcritters are doing well. Fae is her usual enthusiastic doggie self, and it turns out she's pretty well behaved in the company of other dogs. She had a big adventure earlier this week when we went to yrnjunky's house (RavFriend meet-up!). She got to play with yrnjunky's two Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, and tinkpink's Molly (a blend of everything that is sweet and cuddly and little). And did well. She only peed on the living room floor a little bit! Good dog.

Emo is his usual loving self, Peanut is pissy as usual (but has a few less teeth than last time we spoke, having had another necessary dental surgery). Bean has made huge strides - she's out and about a lot more, having finally realized that the dog only chases her if she runs first. She's now holding her ground, and will even walk past the dog if she needs to. Slowly, and with extreme caution, and a neck that swivels amazingly to keep Fae in sight. But she's out, and that's good.

After a year of living at home and driving to the office every day, Tom is back up north (Fort McMurray again) working a fly in project. He's Project Manager, and is enjoying the new responsibilities. He really needed this - working in the office was okay, but he really missed fieldwork. I think he's happier this way.

I've been busy too - spending far too much time on Ravelry, coming to terms with being an atheist (I've finally said goodbye to agnosticism), and playing with fibre. Some photos, so as not to bore you ...

Crocheted Trivets:

A Crocheted Doily (Tencel):

A hat from my own spindle spun yarn (Romney, dyed by an Etsy vendor):

Hanging Garden socks, in KnitPicks Risatta (cotton wool blend sock yarn), with beads, my own design:
There have been a lot more finished items than just these four photos show, but I'll hold back some for later blog-fodder. Know that life is good. All is well, warm, and filled with creativity and good friends. And fur. Lots and lots of fur.

Pay It Forward

2007-12-10T08:51:00.000-07:00

I joined a Pay It Forward swap - started by Nurhanne (love her lace - love!). I'm a degree removed from her (Hi Kat!), and can only hope that I get someone (well, three someones) to sign up from me. Here are the guidelines:

“I will send a handmade gift to the first 3 people who leave a comment on my blog requesting to join this PIF exchange. I don’t know what that gift will be yet and you may not receive it tomorrow or next week, but you will receive it within 365 days, that is my promise! The only thing you have to do in return is pay it forward by making the same promise on your blog.”

What a great idea! I also want to specify - I don't think that the gifts need to be knitted. It's about handmade gifts, so soaps, sewing, quilting, jewellery, hand spun and dyed yarn, etc. are all possibilities. And, as the people who sign up need to have a blog (or cannot continue the Pay it Forward chain with their own commenters), it's easy to go back through the archives and get a sense of what each person likes. Yep, I like this.

Waa Haa Haa!

2007-12-09T12:55:00.000-07:00

What a difference a different model makes ...

I was so incredibly disappointed in the finished Beatrice shawl - it just didn't hang right on me. But then, my MIL tried it on - perfect! Exactly what I had wanted! The neck shaping hugged her like it was made for her, and tucked under her collar practically without any helping hands.

The central back panel draped beautifully, the shoulders sat exactly where they were supposed to sit, and the front bands lined up perfectly and exactly.

And then, just when I thought it couldn't get any better, I buttoned in the (surprise!) optional removable button-in front panel, and it was like the clouds parted and the sun shone down ... okay, I'm pushing it a bit, but really, it was friggin' brilliant!

Apparently, Beatrice fits a 36-40" bust perfectly. Sadly, I'm not in that range. I guess she just wasn't meant to be mine. I have to sew 6 more buttons in place (the gaps between the buttons are a bit large with only the 4 buttons on each side of the panel), then she will be ready for her photo shoot - yep, I'll be publishing this one after all. Granted, she looks awful on me, but that's a problem with my body size/shape, not with the shawl. She looks great on Sandra, and will likely look just as good on Janet (who will probably be the cover model - heads up girl!).

While I was still steaming about how badly Beatrice fit me, I worked on some small projects - a (really, really, really boring) 2x2 ribbed hat for Tom (which he loves - the more boring the knit, the more he loves / wants the knitted item), and my first two-colour stranded knitted mitten, for me. It's actually the first time I've made a mitten.

I based the design on the work of Anna Zilborg, author of Magnificent Mittens (out of print - but I just picked up a copy from my LYS, at the original cover price - don't choke on your coffee when you see the asking price on Amazon - oy!). The orchid design is part hers, part mine (from a cuff pattern in her book). The pinstripes are an exercise in yarn dominance (Google it - definately worth the reading if you're ever going to do stranded knitting).

The mitten was started with Judy's Magic Cast-On, at the fingertips, then worked down the hand. I started the thumb the same way, worked to the join, joined it to the hand, then continued working in the round (using magic loop on a 32" circular needle).

This is also the first time I've tried corrugated ribbing - and loved it! I don't know if I did it right, though - I was having too much fun faking it to bother looking it up. I worked the ribbing one round in the main colour (dark olive green) as [k1, slip 1 p-wise], then the next round in the contrast colour (a heathered ochre) as [slip 1 p-wise with yarn in back, bring yarn forward, purl 1, bring yarn back]. I cast off with a purl round, as I have a weakness for the way that looks (it's like punctuation after the ribbing).

Anyway, I immediately started the 2nd mitten, and am doing it exactly the same (I was thinking of reversing the colours, but changed my mind).

It doesn't take much to totally improve my outlook on the knits. Much better now, thanks. :-)

Oh, I've also been learning to spin on a spindle - so far I've made "novelty yarn". I hope to graduate to half-way decent someday. There's a definate learning curve, and I've only just started the climb...

Design, she is a Fickle Mistress

2007-11-30T06:08:00.001-07:00

Beatrice is finished. All ends are woven in. Blocking is history. But I don't like her. She's, um, kind of ugly. Ungainly. I'm just not happy with the finished product.

Why? Well, the shawl doesn't hang like I had expected. I did the Faroese-esque shoulder shaping popularized by Myrna Stahman, but can't get the finished product to hang like Myrna's shawls do. The sizing is right, and the execution was bang on, but she still doesn't hang properly. The problem is with the shoulder area - back to the blocking drawing board, I guess.

I think I'll put her in time out for a few days, then re-block. Hopefully that will solve some of the problem. Unfortunately, I know it won't solve all of it. There is too big a gap between the finished product I had in my mind and the actual completed shawl.

I don't think I'll be offering this one as a pattern for sale. It doesn't seem right to be asking money for a pattern that results in a shawl that even the designer feels failed her.

But that leads me to wondering - what do other designers do when the end product doesn't meet with their expectations? Some designers seem to sell the pattern anyway (there are some really disappointing designs out there). They pump out designs so regularly it's amazing. I have to wonder if that is motivated by financial need, or by a demanding public following? Other designers produce fewer patterns, but those that they do publish are consistently interesting and of high quality. I guess I want to be (eventually) associated with the second group, not the first.

While it might seem wonderful that a designer publishes a pattern a month, sometimes that is just too intense a pace. I now feel I've spent the entire month of November wasting my time on a failure, and that it's time to take a break - from designing, from trying to force my passion to be a source of income, and most of all, from guilt. I've got a huge list of things that I promised various family members would get done - but all that list of items is doing is weighing me down with guilt.

Well, guilt is what killed my passion for quilting. I don't want guilt to kill my passion for knitting, too. I need to step back and cut cleanly the guilty hold that certain things have over me. To that end, I will be packing up and sending out the components of the projects that glare at me from the corners of my studio. My MIL will be getting the bits of her imaginary vest back. She won't be getting hand-knit socks, either. Dad & Marion won't be getting the place mats I promised them two years ago. Mom won't be getting her requested bag (but I did re-block the red cashmere scarf I made her - she can pick it up next time she visits).

I think I'll be throwing out the projects that are stalled at the WIP stage. If I'm not sure how to finish it, or I'm no longer feeling it, out it goes. It's time to use the garbage can, if only to lighten the psychic load. I'm so tired, so weighed down by all of the crap I carry around in my guilty conscience - I need it to be over. DONE. WITH. Enough already.

There may be another break in the blogging, too...

It never happens like I plan

2007-11-26T08:27:00.000-07:00

Just when I'd decided to put Beatrice away for a while and focus on sock design, I had a breakthrough. All of the design problems I'd been unable to figure out just vanished - I woke up one morning (really, really early - like 2:30am early) with the solution fully formed in my mind. I guess it was just Beatrice's time.

So, here she is, modelled by a napping Emo. The bottom border is charted, the final instructions are written, and now all I need to do is (re)execute them. I actually finished the shawl this morning, but found a mistake that was going to glare at me loudly and forever, so unpicked the cast-off and pulled back 14 really long rows. Ugh. However, I'll be happy with the end result, and that's all that matters, right?

Another shot, taken after I finished the second skein of yarn. The full shawl took four skeins. I blocked after two skeins to make sure I was happy with the design - and I was, thus the whole keeping-going-ness.

This is the view of my legs, in their standard state while knitting. Fae is keeping watch so that Emo can nap without interruption.

And, finally, because it was so darn cute... Fae sacked out on Emo, on the couch in my studio. Aww. And yes, I need to vacuum.

A Sock-ish Question

2007-11-19T17:43:00.000-07:00

Hmm, long time no post. Sorry!

Beatrice (my second shawl design) is coming along - I'm nearing the bottom border, but have put her in time-out as there are a few details that aren't really pleasing me right now. Yep, she may end up frogged.

However, I've also been playing some sock-y games. I'm loving Cat Bordhi's new sock book, especially the way it gives you architectures for shaping, but lets you go off on whatever design tangent you want. I'm tempted to put my designing mind just to socks right now - but I don't want to have to write out full sock patterns. Is it wrong to just want to focus on the stitch pattern / body patterning of the socks, and ignore heel and toe shaping? Probably not saleable, but maybe some free patterns...

In my brain right now are two (maybe three) men's dress socks, and four womens' socks. I just want to knit single socks! Maybe I want to design like Cookie A. when I grow up...

Hmm. Things to think about.

Away We Go

2007-10-24T14:26:00.000-06:00

I'm off this weekend - I'm going on a quilt retreat with Mom. We're off to the Palisades Centre near Jasper, Alberta (in the mountains, in Jasper National Park), where we will be working on different quilts.

Mom is making Dancing Leaves by Animas Quilts, and I'm making a variation of Drunkard's Wave by Judy Niemeyer. Why a variation? Because I just can't follow a pattern exactly as written. My need to "tweak" and to do an individual interpretation is strong - so strong, in fact, that even though I purchased the kit (pricey, too) I'll be ignoring some of the kitted fabrics and substituting from my stash, not making up the blocks as the pattern sets out, adding extra borders, and generally changing things until my quilt looks nothing like the original. At all! But, that's me.

I had to phone ahead and check that I can access my Etsy account and email program from the Palisades Centre so I can keep up with Internet orders of the Agatha pattern while I'm away - shouldn't be a problem. Shawl pins ordered on Friday won't go out until Monday, though (we leave Friday morning).

And then on Monday - I have a surprise for Tom! He has been in Cambodia for 10 days (I'm picking him up at the airport at 1:45am tonight/tomorrow morning), and when he gets back I'm promptly taking off for the quilting retreat and leaving him alone with the critters. So, I wanted to do something special with him to make up for not being here long when he gets back, and I found just the thing!

Henry Rollins is coming to Edmonton. Tom remembers Henry from his days with Black Flag, a punk band (Tom has always liked punk music - yup, he's a bit funky), and we both enjoyed him very much as the co-host of Full Metal Challenge on the Discovery Chanel. Right now he's on tour doing a spoken word thing - apparently it is a rant type of performance - Henry has very strong political leanings, is a comedian, and reminds me a bit of Lewis Black (often featured on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart). Tom doesn't know Henry Rollins is coming here (I just found out today, and was able to get tickets in the nosebleed section, at the last minute), so this is a surprise. I wonder if I can keep the surprise? Probably not. Huh.

Anyway, I hope to resume regular blogging next week - I have a new shawl designed that I want to get started on. In the mean time, I hope to finish Agatha's socks.

Agatha

2007-10-16T13:59:00.000-06:00

Agatha is finished, blocked, written up, PDF-d, and the pattern is for sale in my Etsy shop! Woot!

I finished knitting Agatha over a week ago, but blocked her during a humid spell, and she took four days to dry (it probably didn't help that I'm now blocking in the basement, and the weather is considerably cooler now). Then (Murphy rears his ugly head) my digital camera had some temporary hiccups, so a photo shoot was out of the question. However, all is well again now, so I was (finally) able to insert photos into the pattern and turn it into a PDF file.

Agatha's Stats:

3 skeins of ShiBui Knits Merino Kid (not brushed, DK weight) in the colour Mulberry, 218 yards each (used ALL of it!)
24" deep from top edge to bottom point
50" wide from edge to edge, as shown in photo below
Two weeks of often interrupted knitting time
And yes, I designed and charted her, and wrote up the pattern
Lace stitch pattern in body of shawl based on pattern 76 in Estonian lace book Pitsilised Koekirjad, by Leili Reimann

This was a fun knit, and the stitch pattern was easy to memorize and read. I'm pretty proud of the transition into the border - I had some false starts on it, but am happy with the final solution.

Yes, I'm blowing my own horn a bit, but it's exciting to be publishing my first pattern! Darn it! Squee! I can only hope that if anyone actually buys the pattern they find it logical and easy to follow. No test knitters were harmed during the making of this pattern (tee hee - okay fine, I don't have any test knitters - the only knitters I know personally are way to busy for me to even ask). Anyway, I hope to get over myself sometime later today, but will enjoy the giddiness for a few hours more, if that's okay. ;-)

Oh, and there may be (cough) coordinating socks (cough) in the future. I've finished one, and am working on the second. The socks aren't the same colour or yarn, but they do use the same lace pattern.

I'm knitting them out of Crystal Palace Maizy in Hibiscus, and LOVE IT! This stuff (82% corn fiber) is incredibly soft - even softer than Merino! With only one sock done, it has already become my favorite sock yarn - and that's saying a lot considering some of the gorgeous luxury yarns I've worked with.

While there are some lovely solids, I'm not that thrilled with the print colours that are available. However, I can't find anything in my stash that comes even close to being as soft. And, the 18% elastic nylon keeps them springy and bouncy, and helps the lace keep its shape. Yummy. I'll keep you posted as to how they wash. Oh, and they've already been claimed - they fit my Mom perfectly.

Sock Monkey

2007-10-16T00:19:00.000-06:00

I've been listening to Jonathan Coulton's "Code Monkey" for days now. It is SO in my head! Press the blue listen icon next to "Play the song" at the top of the page and you can get it in your head, too.

Anyway, I got to thinking (not always a good thing) that maybe there was a knitting song (or two, or three) in there somewhere...

Sock Monkey

(the Knitty.com Version)

Lyrics by ThatLoganChick

Sung to the tune "Code Monkey" by Jonathan Coulton

Sock Monkey get up get coffee
Sock Monkey sit in chair
Sock Monkey surrounded by knitting
Yep, projects everywhere
First pick up and work on new Pomotamus
Such a funky sock
Cookie A designs better than rest of us
Hedera she rock
Sock Monkey think maybe Cookie have SSS, never finish second sock
But she write up pattern real nice
Red Herring stranded knit with spice

Sock Monkey like knitting
Sock Monkey like Rosewood Double Points
Sock Monkey like circulars
Addi Turbos and bamboo too
(but only with good joins)

Sock Monkey made Tangled Garden
But can’t get them on
Sock Monkey have real high instep
Wide feet very long
Knit lace 'cause lace is very stretchy and
Can fit over foot
And also thinks lace looks very pretty on
Even ginormous foot
Sock Monkey make Beaudelaire, Broadripple, Fuzzy Feet, and Falling Leaves
Sock Monkey think Knitty real cool
Sock Monkey thank Amy, no fool

Sock Monkey like knitting
Sock Monkey like Rosewood Double Points
Sock Monkey like circulars
Addi Turbos and bamboo too
(but only with good joins)
But only with good joins – uh huh

Sock Monkey knit Crusoe anklets
And they fit really well
Sock Monkey make Thuja for man
He think they very swell
But man he likes his socks in solids ‘cause
He thinks stripes too wild
So Sock Monkey stops knitting new socks for him
She likes socks with style
Sock Monkey think someday she knit every sock, scour Internet each day
Sock Monkey have Wait List so long
Sock Monkey can’t die ‘til it’s gone

Sock Monkey like knitting
Sock Monkey like Rosewood Double Points
Sock Monkey like circulars
Addi Turbos and bamboo too
(but only with good joins)

Of course, JoCo's Code Monkey is available in a Karaoke version so that you can sing Sock Monkey, too. For free (whole song! trial version), or for a buck if you want to download and keep it. Go on, sing it out. I dare you. Hee.

Code Monkey Dance

2007-10-11T13:13:00.001-06:00

Me Like Code Monkey

2007-10-11T13:01:00.000-06:00

I was listening to back issues of the Knitters Uncensored podcast yesterday, and they closed one of their podcasts with a Jonathan Coulton song (Ikea). It rocked.

So, I looked up JC's website, and ended up buying his whole music collection. The man is talented! You have to enjoy a musician who writes with wit and intelligence, and is also a great performer. I love that he writes with equal passion about science, computers, and drinking. Warning, though - don't listen to "First of May" at work! (Heavy use of the f-word).

I also watched a number of the YouTube videos of his songs, and my favorite is Emily's Code Monkey Dance, which I've put up above for your enjoyment too. Love it!

Back to knitting content: Agatha is finished and blocking (she's been drying for two days already, but the basement studio is quite cool, so I anticipate another day - heavy yarn, and I didn't press out enough water before blocking - lesson learned). I completed writing and editing the pattern, so just need a photo session and I can post it in my Etsy shop. Woo hoo!

Open for (some) Business

2007-10-07T18:54:00.000-06:00

After months of wanting to do it, I finally opened an Etsy store!

Right now I'll only be posting a few things, as I'm having difficulty getting useful information out of Canada Post. (Aargh!) Their website insists that I need a postal code to determine a price for sending items in Canada, even when all I want is an estimate for shipping a parcel of know size and weight. Sigh.

Then, I also need to figure out shipping to the US. And to Australia and New Zealand (just in case). How about worldwide? Oy.

Anyway, I'll be selling my (freakin' awesome) shawl pins, some sets of stitch markers, and some knitting patterns (in PDF form).

I'm about 75% of the way through the knitting of my Agatha shawl (yup, changed the name from Pavilion Shawl to Agatha - I'm going to name the patterns alphabetically so I can easily remember them / know when they were designed). However, I already have a pattern format designed, and have written Agatha up.

I think I'll be doing a free sock pattern, too, using the same lace as the shawl. It may be a "free gift with purchase" kind of thing - but it's based on the Riverbed sock architecture from Cat Bordhi's newest book "New Pathways for Sock Knitters, Book One", so won't have complete stitch-by-stitch instructions. Rather, it will be a companion pattern, meant for use with the book. If I later decide to sell the sock pattern, I'll have to write it up too, but will need to get Ms. Bordhi's permission to refer to and use her architecture and techniques.

Anyway, I'm hoping to get the Canada Post thing sorted out soon, and put more of the pins and some stitch markers into my shop. I've got some favorites that I may have to keep, but right now have over 30!!! pins ready to go. And they're all lovely, if I might say so...

The Pavilion Shawl

2007-10-02T07:39:00.000-06:00

Well, that might be it's name... it has had a number of different names already, and I'm only 55/300 grams in.

I've been designing virtual shawls for quite a while now. By "virtual shawl", I mean one that gets charted in Excel, printed out, notes made, etc, but no actual knitting gets done. On a few I've got so far as casting on and knitting a few inches, but then ripping out as something doesn't please me.

My friend Janet took at look at them last Friday, and then proceeded to give me a stern talking to. She thinks that some of those designs are good - even good enough to share. So, I started knitting my most recent design yesterday. I tried three different yarns and four needle sizes, but finally came up with a combination I was happy with. I'm now just under 20% in, based on using all 300 grams of yarn.

I'm using ShiBui Knits Merino Kid, which is a DK weight merino and kid mohair blend. It's not brushed, so the mohair gives it sheen instead of fuzziness, although it has a small amount of halo. The colour is Mulberry, and is rich, rich, rich.

I found the stitch pattern in my book of Estonian lace patterns (Pitsilised Koekirjad). The density of the pattern and the curving of the columns of stitches screamed out to me that they should be knitted in a shiny, thick yarn. When I swatched, I wasn't pleased until I went with a very dense texture - the density really showed off the pattern the best.

So, after much mucking about, I've begun. The shawl has some minor start-up rows, a set-up chart, two charts that are alternately repeated for the body of the shawl, and then a final chart for the bottom border. In just one night of knitting I've gotten into the third repeat of the first of the two repeating charts. Yippee!

Also, I've got most of the pattern written out and formatted already. I just have to make a few changes, then leave it for a while to hibernate so that I can edit with a fresh brain later.

I'll keep you posted.

Oh, and I made a sweater for Nephew Nolan, with two removable / exchangeable fronts - will post on that once it's blocked.

A Story in Pictures

2007-09-30T02:22:00.000-06:00

When I went to put Fae in her kennel tonight before taking myself off to bed too, we found it already occupied. Emo had invaded. Fae was not exactly thrilled, but went in anyway.

It took some convincing, but I was able to get her to lay down. She complained a bit...

but once Emo settled down again, she seemed resigned to sharing the kennel.

So, she laid down her head and settled in. It looked like the two of them would be sharing a bed for the night.

But, as is the way with many things in this world, such was not to be. Whether it was the unexpected body warmth, the fur, or the dog breath, Emo decided that his choice of beds for the night was no longer satisfactory, and that his only option was to get up and leave.

Oh well. Fae likes her kennel better when it's feline-free anyway.

Shawl Catch-Up (picture heavy)

2007-09-26T17:33:00.000-06:00

When I was putting links in my "Finished Objects (Knitted)" section, I realized I'd never posted photographs of certain shawls and socks. Most of these were knitted during a period of non-blogging, but some I simply never photographed, and they were gifted away (oops!). So, in the interest of correcting this oversight, I'm posting here about the ones that were finished but never blogged that have stayed in my possession. I will do another post shortly with some gifted shawls.

The Diamond Fantasy Shawl, by Sivia Harding:
I worked this in Fleece Artist hand-dyed 2/8 Blue Faced Leicester. The yarn was a Christmas gift from my Mom (who knows my colour sense very, very well), and this shawl used a little more than half the skein (I'm estimating around 650 meters). I will likely use the rest for mittens and a hat, as I adore the colourway, and think a matching shawl/hat/mittens set would be really cute.
Diamond Fantasy was an enjoyable knit - but I had to pay attention the entire time, as it was easy to get one row off on the pattern (yup, there was some frogging). I changed the top of the shawl from the pattern - I did a four-stitch faggoted band rather than the suggested finish. That made it really easy to block, too.

Hyrna Herborgar, from Three-cornered and Long Shawls (scroll down), Schoolhouse Press:
I'm not quite sure when I made this, but I remember loving the yarn, and hating the [k1, p1] into the back side of the double yarn overs. Ugh. The shawl is so lovely, though, that even remembering how much I disliked working the top portion, I think this will be a front runner on my "Patterns I'd do Again" list. Sigh.
This was worked in a heavy fingering weight 100% cashmere on-the-cone from Colourmart. It bloomed beautifully after washing, and gave the full, dense stitch pattern I was hoping for. This is a smaller shawl, and is perfect for when I just want a little extra warmth around the shoulders. Also, the softness can't be beat!

And, because I promised you, a photo of the latest shawl (Engeln Shawl A, the 2nd) dancing in the fading evening sunlight:

And, my photographer's assistant, Fae:

All together now: "Awww"

Engeln Shawl A (the 2nd) is Blocking

2007-09-20T02:58:00.000-06:00

It took twelve days to knit this time (I slacked off a bit). This version is much larger (as I had hoped) - the yardstick in the photo is about six inches from the bottom edge (the length down the back is about 42").

This shawl was made with Lisa Souza's "Kid", which is 90% Kid Mohair with 10% Nylon, in the colourway Mahogany. The original skein was 1000 yards in eight ounces, and I have two ounces left over (roughly 250 yards). That is plenty to make a lovely scarf, or a wimple.

Hopefully tomorrow will bring sunshine so that I can do a decent photo shoot - the depth of colour in the mohair is incredible - golds, olives, russets and ebony, all wrapped in the rich background of mahogany brown. Delicious!

Yep ...

2007-09-08T02:55:00.000-06:00

I'm making one for me now. I went with the Lisa Souza Mahogany.

More about Engeln Shawl A

2007-09-06T18:08:00.000-06:00

I wasn't really happy with the photos of the shawl, so took more before Grandma left. This set shows the colour of the yarn a lot truer, as well as catching the mohair haze. The first photo is a close-up to show the matching jewelery (a necklace with rhodonite flat faceted oval stones and tourmaline chips, and rhodonite and gold shawl pin). I also made rhodonite and gold earrings, and a shawl pin with rhodonite and picture jasper, but these were done late, so didn't make it into the photo shoot.

I love the finished shawl so much (and have gotten so many great responses about it) that I've decided to do another (this time for ME!). Right now I leaning toward either a Lisa Souza mohair in mahogany, or one of the heavier weight mohairs from Blue Moon Fiber Arts or Fleece Artist. I'll have to go through my stash and choose. My shawl will need to be a bit bigger, as I'm four inches or so taller than Grandma, and I really liked the way her shawl sat just below her, umm, bottom. So, off to did in the basement in the temporary plastic totes that my stash is in.

Speaking of the basement, it is coming along nicely. The second coat of mud went on the drywall this morning, and the third coat will go on tomorrow, with (hopefully) painting this weekend. We're now discussing putting cork flooring down there, which I would love!

Enough for today, I should go clean up the kitchen and wash the guest room bedding. Ta.

Interlude

2007-09-03T12:12:00.000-06:00

I joined, I saw, Midian interpreted, I shawled.

I joined The Lacey Shawl Yahoo Group because I was interested in knitting the shawl designed by Triinu Andreassen that had been posted on the Lace Shawl KAL blog. After the group's purpose (convincing her to publish the design) was completed, members opened the group up to discussion of various shawl patterns available.

A Swiss member named Midian posted a photograph of Spitzenstricken 58, an Erich Engeln pattern pamphlet, showing two shawls. The shawls were meant to be knitted on 2mm needles and worn like scarves/collars over traditional German costumes. I asked Midian for help with interpreting the pattern, and she got right back to me! She had a friend translate it from German to French for her, then she translated from French to English for me. So, I started right away...

In only eight days, 60 grams of Colinette Parisienne laceweight mohair (colourway Castagna) was turned into Spitzenstricken 58, model A, by Erich Engeln. I knitted the shawl on 5mm needles, and it took a little less than 550 meters!

Blocking it took a heck of a lot of pins, but it did block beautifully. The washing settled the halo a bit, which was good, as it had gotten really hairy with all of the handling during knitting.

We have Tom's Grandparents here right now for a visit, and I asked Grandma to model the shawl so I could take a few photos. She looked so natural in it that I had to give it to her! Plus, she wears a lot of pale pink, and the shawl is brown and pink, with small amounts of olive/gold and black (sounds hideous, but looks gorgeous).

Next we will be making a coordinating shawl pin, and maybe a pair of earrings to match. What fun! And the best part is that while we're doing that, Tom and his parents (also visiting) are in the basement completing the repairs to get my studio up and running after the spring water leak. Boy oh boy am I looking forward to getting my yarn and fabric stashes out of storage, and back on shelves.

Socks, Sewing, & not much more

2007-08-23T07:40:00.000-06:00

Hello again. There isn't a lot going on here these days - I'm still working on the Mystery Stole, have a pair of TomSocks on the needles, and am making way too many shawl pins.

Things that I've made over the past few weeks include a matching purse and wallet (no photos yet), four shawl pins (again with the no photos), and a pair of LoganSocks.

The socks are DK weight Colinette Cadenza, in the colour Castagna, worked on 2.75mm needles. This is my own pattern, toe up, with padding under the ball of the foot, under the heel, and at the back of the heel as well. I tried a different finish, and love it - purl a round, knit a round, three rounds of moss stitch, a knit round, a purl round, and cast off in the lace manner.

I will try to get a shot of the shawl pins over the next day or so, and post them soon.

I'm boring myself, so am going off to feed the critters. Sigh.

Happy 8th to Us!

2007-07-25T00:41:00.000-06:00

We had our 8th wedding anniversary on Tuesday, but celebrated Monday as well (grin).

On Monday we spent a pleasant day together at home, as (hold your breath) Tom had taken a few days off work! I made brunch for us, then we putzed around the house, periodically reading aloud recipes from the Nigella Lawson cookbook he bought me (I love her - so much less serious than most TV cooks).

By dinner time we were both of a mind to try some of her Asian influenced dishes, so Tom went off on a grocery expedition while I tidied up a bit around the house.

He came home with some of what he wanted, and woggled together something similar to one of her recipes. It was a fine meal, and made finer by the company (awwww). After that, an episode of Firefly on DVD, some MS3 knitting, then bed.

On Tuesday we slept in again (this time with the dog and two cats on the bed, the buggers), then went OUT! If you know me, you know that I'm not one for going out - I prefer the consistency, predictability, and comforts of home. But, in the interest of satisfying Tom's request for a fun day out, we hit Churchill Square for the Taste of Edmonton festival and stuffed ourselves silly.

It was cooler than it has been in weeks, but still more than warm for me (yup, I was the only adult in the huge reflecting/wading pool). Floppy hat and all.

We had parked just through the gate to Edmonton's Chinatown area, and I snapped some pics of decorative details of the gate. I'm thinking applique potential, or at least influence for a quilting pattern. Hmmm.

After all the sun and stuffing, we stopped at River City Yarns (Best. Husband. In. World.) for some acquisition and discussion. Cynthia was terrific, and the store, while small, was full of fun things generally only found on-line. As such a connoisseur of on-line shopping and blog following myself, I was recognizing and oohing and ahhing immediately - and she knew a serious knitter when she heard some of my comments. She immediately cleared off a comfortable chair for Tom, but he had other ideas!

By the time I was done, he had chosen a skein of sock wool Trekking XXL in the charcoal and grey fleck (colour 62) and a skein of Hand Maiden 4 Ply 100% Cashmere (in the mineral colourway) for the pattern on the label - the Devin's Toque. It is a Thomas design, so I think it is appropriate. But jeez, a cashmere toque for a guy who up until now has resisted all my attempts to clothe him in knitted things, except for socks and fingerless gloves?

My choices were a Lantern Moon circular needle holder in a lovely gingery orange silk and a crimson Lantern Moon sock project bag. Oh, and a teeny little three sided silk covered squeezy thing, perfect for holding stitch markers (modeled by Emo, who is hiding his face as he appears to be having a bad face life, not just bad face days).

I also bought the Virginia Van Santen Globe Bowl pattern - they had one made up in the store, and it just looked so neat!

Next we went to one of those enormous Cineplex Odeon theatres and saw an afternoon showing of Hairspray 2007 - which was fun, fun, fun. I so want the sound track!

Of course, the best part about the anniversary was the time with my beloved, and the fact that even after eight years and many pounds, we're still having fun together. Tom, I love you. Happy anniversary, and here's hoping for many, many more.
Us and our parents, July 24th, 1999. It feels like yesterday.

Why I Don't Get Much Knitting Done

2007-07-16T10:13:00.001-06:00

I try to get knitting done, really. I settle in the knitting chair, with everything I need on the TV tray table on my right, and a glass of water on the end table on my left. I turn on the two daylight bulbs above and to my left, which are arranged so that one shines on my knitting while the other shines on my lap (where the pattern for MS3 generally rests).

Then, just as I'm ready to begin, this happens.

Not sure what you're seeing? How about another view?

I'm joined by Fae (blonde dog) and Emo (grey boy-cat). The fuzzy buggers. Yep, it is hot, I am sweaty, and the two critters on my lap don't help a bit. Not. At. All.

But, with that much cuteness at hand, how can I be annoyed? So, instead of getting knitting done, I'm spending a lot of time giving out the critter loving. Sigh.

Man Socks

2007-07-14T06:44:00.000-06:00

Why is it that even the size large sock blockers aren't large enough to block man socks? Tom doesn't even have huge feet! Even so, socks that fit him snugly (about 15% negative ease) still swim around my size L blockers. Must search web for size XL.

Anyway, grumbling aside, here are the latest man socks, LLSS in Cedar. They don't look nearly this, umm, striped, in real life - just a camera thingy. Note the padding under the forward part of the heel, where his sock-wearing history has shown the first signs of serious wear damage. Also, the back part of the heel and ankle are free from patterning, to prevent him from having irritation at the top of his shoes. I live to serve.

Tom thinks they are a bit more stripey than he's comfortable with, but likes the texture and will certainly wear them. However, for future reference, could I please make him socks that are just one colour? Okie dokie Dude. No more Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock Nearly Solids for you.

Maybe Trekking Pro Natura sock yarn - nice fingering weight yarn, great hand (25% bamboo content), and solid. In plain, manly colours. I'll start with Chocolate, the only one I have. Then maybe my Shelridge Farms sock yarn in charcoal.

Ugh. I see a lot of cables and texture in my future, just to keep me from going insane with the boring Man Sock knitting.

Mystery Stole 3 KAL Update - Clue 2

2007-07-12T23:18:00.000-06:00

I love Mystery Stole-ing Along! Not only am I part of what is probably the largest knit-along in web history, but it is also a really interesting project. I download the clues as soon as they come out (yes, I have stayed up all night just to get the clue in the early morning hours, Melanie (the designer/brilliant KAL hostess) having posted at a reasonable time on the East Coast), then get right on with the knitting.

I'm using hand painted Merino Lace Weight from RubySapphire Yarns, in the colour "Cody", which I purchased a year ago with no particular plans in mind. The true colour is richer and has less of the stripe and contrast than that shown in the photo - when it's finished I'll have to take daylight photos.
Instead of using only one colour of beads, I'm using translucent red with a bronze coating for the border, and a cut opaque brown lustre within the patterned portion of the stole.

I having so much fun with the beading that I admit to having gone back and revisited all of the still-virtual (I design in Excel) shawls and stoles I've designed, and adding beads to the patterns. Oy.

So far, I've finished knitting each of the two clues within a few days of them coming out, then spent the rest of the week impatient and not really able to focus on other projects. To alleviate this problem, I've joined another KAL - Goddess Knits' Mystery Shawl Along (version 3). I'm doing this one with heavy yarn and big needles as a break from lace weight, and also because I want a large, enveloping shawl for chilly mornings.

The beer is in the shot for scale, although it was popped and drained shortly after the photo session (it was over 30C in here, and I was thirsty). This is part way through the second clue. The Mystery Shawl 3 KAL is actually finished, so I downloaded all of the clues at the same time.

I'm knitting with 8.0mm (US size 11) needles, using a custom yarn purchased from an E-Bay vendor (SPINCITYARNS), in the gold'n copper colourway. It consists of three different yarns skeined together: a cotton flake yarn, a textured rayon, and a mohair blend. Yummy!

Also on the needles is the second of a pair of socks for Tom. I'm using Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sport 100% wool in Cedar, and putting a simple knit/purl texture pattern on the upper foot and leg. I'll post photo when they're done.

In the other in-process que: finishing placemats for Dad and Marion, and finishing commissioned wallhanging pattern and sample for local quilt store.

I'm busy. Maybe I should leave the beer out from now on.

On Gifting the Unknown (or, while I'll never be a Secret Pal)

2007-07-11T08:50:00.000-06:00

While I was on blog-hiatus, my brother-in-law and his wife had their first child. During the pregnancy, I really wanted to make some gifts for the baby, but found myself unable to do anything more than buy patterns and supplies. After many false starts and lots of frustration, I finally figured out what was wrong: I hadn't met the child yet! I simply could not make a present for someone I didn't know.

So, instead, I made gifts for the people I did know - the parents.

For her, I knitted up my adaptation of two items from Louisa Harding's great book Natural Knits for Babies and Moms: Beautiful Designs Using Organic Yarns. I made the wrap from organic cotton chenille (to provide privacy while breastfeeding in public), and a no-hearts version of the organic cotton nursing sweater. No expense was spared (sorry Tom) - I got the yarns specified in the book. Both projects turned out really well, but of course I don't have photos (duh!).

In addition, I wanted to make a special quilt for the baby. Again, I ran into the same problem - we hadn't met yet. What I did in the end (and I think it was the right decision, based on how well the gifts were received) was make a lap sized quilt for each Mom and Dad, so they could snuggle with the baby with a quilt of their own.

Rhea's quilt is a split nine-patch, with a variety of colours setting out a central design. I chose the border fabric (the check) first, then collected the 12 other fabrics plus the border stripe afterward. This is the first quilt I've ever finished with a lot of different fabrics (14 is really high for me).

I quilted it with two patterns: my points and curls stipple in the center and the wide border, and a fine pebbled texture in both narrow striped borders.

Chris's quilt was made using only two fabrics (excluding backing flannel - the back of both quilts are the same moss green flannel, which goes very well with the colours in their living room). I chose mossy green/gold for him, as it was child-gender-neautral, and as he likes earthy tones. His is a two-block quilt, and was very straightforward to make.

I quilted a gentle curving line cluster filling stitch in the center, leaves in the wide border, and rope in the 1" narrow borders.

The baby was born healthy, happy, and male. He made his arrival at 1:52am on June 3rd, 2007, and weighed in at 7 pounds 1 ounce. Tom and I were there at the birth - not in the room but just outside, so we heard his first cries. He has his Dad's lungs (he's a talker!).

We fell in love immediately, and see him as often as possible. I hope to be a large part of his life, and enjoy just knowing he exists. Personally, I think he is the most beautiful child alive, but I may be a tad biased. Just a bit.

If I get permission from his parents, I will reference him by name, and maybe post his photo, but until then he will simply be referred to as Nephew. Auntie loves him!

Back at it

2007-07-03T03:14:00.000-06:00

It's apparently time for me to start blogging again. Life has changed a lot since I left off - we moved from Grande Cache to Stony Plain, added a dog (Fae) and a cat (Emo) to the family, and were blessed with a nephew (on June 3rd, 2007). The spouse formerly known as DH is now revealed as Tom, and it was his promotion to Project Manager that required our move (he works in the Edmonton office of his company, now).

I miss my friends from Grande Cache, especially Edie, who was not only the best neighbour in the world, but also a loving and supportive friend. Wednesday afternoons seem lonely to me now - they used to be spent in the company of The Quitters (our "used to quilt, but now we're knitting" group). However, I see my parents more often, and spend a lot of Fridays doing quilt-y things with Mom.

We have a great new house in a pretty neighbourhood, and the Town of Stony Plain is a nice place to live. The view isn't nearly as good, but we could only be so lucky so long. Now instead of looking out on mountains, we have a nice back yard with a great wooden privacy fence, and I can watch the dog gallop about while admiring the enormous peonies (that required no work whatsoever on my part).

Over the next little while I will blog some of the things I've done for the past year or so, but will leave off for now, with a few photos of the new critters. Gotta love them.

She looks so innocent when she's sleeping . . .

Yes, Emo was having a bad face day in this shot. Poor little bugger.

The Stunt Appendage

2006-03-10T17:31:00.000-07:00

I'd like to introduce you to The Stunt Appendage. Its jobs are pretty clear: preventing Second Sock Syndrome by modeling the current Single Sock; stand-in for try ons when my feet are comfortably encased in sock/quilt/cat or combination thereof; and displaying lace patterns well enough that I can decide whether or not they work, without requiring awe inspiring contortions on my part. Big sentence, eh?

The spouse was a bit dismayed when I told him my Stunt Appendage had arrived via E-Bay, but was okay once they met.

In other news, the new meds are making me wonky, and I'm down to one sleeve and countless button bars, cuffs, collars, etc on the lace cardigan. Plus, I've started another lace shawl.

Nuts, that's me.

Oh, and I really (really really really) need to vacuum.

Huckleberry Trout

2006-02-25T14:23:00.000-07:00

First things first: Happy Birthday to my Darling (Hot) Husband!

In the usual low key style of Casa de Logan, we're celebrating with food, laziness, and maybe some sex in the kitchen. Too much information? Sorry, just pretend I didn't say that.

And, as his birthday falls on a Saturday, DH is getting the birthday treatment for extra time this year. In fact, this morning over breakfast (a bowl of Cornflakes for me, seven pancakes with maple syrup, two sunny-side-up eggs, two slices of whole wheat toast, and home-made blackberry jam for him) he laid out the menu for the weekend. Yes, he had advised me the night before what he wanted for breakfast this morning (and got exactly what he asked for, thank you very much).

So, I went out for groceries and Scotch (picked up something scary called "The Peat Monster", a traditional vatted Scotch whiskey). I expect to spend pretty much the entire weekend in the kitchen (thus moving the "other" activities in there, with me - a time saver, and practical too, as the whipped cream is right there in the fridge...).

Oy. If nothing else stops my Dad from ready my blog, that paragraph ought to have done it. Sorry! ;-)

Okay, aside from eating and getting laid, this weekend is about sun (really, painfully bright) and snow (it's -20C here). DH shoveled the driveway and walk this morning, because he actually enjoys shoveling. I don't know, I think it has something to do with finally owning a home, instead of living in an apartment or a condominium.

I came back from grocery shopping mildly snowblind, and with a massive headache from the brightness - then proceeded to finish another pair of socks that positively screamed out to be photographed against the snow. Please excuse the poor colour resolution - again, I was blinded by the freaking sun bouncing off the freaking snow.

For some obscure reason I named them Huckleberry Trout. I don't know why. Maybe all the kitchen sex and snow blindness went to my head? Anyway, they are Huckleberry Trout.

Now, please excuse me, as I'm going to go and take an Advil so I can continue with the cooking and the putting out. Because I want to enjoy this weekend, too.

More of the New-ness

2006-02-23T19:44:00.000-07:00

Remember my new Super-Birkis? Since I've had them for outdoor wear, I've noticed a lessening in the stiffness and discomfort of my lower back and my knees. Coincidence? I think not.

So, I searched around until I found the ultimate source for Birkis: an E-Bay seller in Germany, where Birkenstocks are made. I looked, I hummed, I hawed, and I ordered. And, of course, I chose the lime green. Then, just over a week later, my new Fun-Birkis arrived.

So, without further ado, I give you a peak at my new INDOOR Birkis. Note the really cool grip pattern on the bottom of the shoe (great for "aerating" the carpet), the great shaping for my high arches and insteps, the decent width for my ginormous feetsies, with room for hand knit socks. Since I've been wearing these indoors, my lower back issue has virtually vanished.

Plus, they are clogs, so slip on and off really easily, and are extremely lightweight. When I recline in my comfy chair (my naturally occurring position) I kick off the Birkis and admire my hand knit socks. When I'm upright and moving about (hey, it happens now and then - and usually involves the kitchen) I'm properly shod and supported, and minimize wear on the socks. Great all around.

For the sharp-of-eye, yes, those are new socks. Details in the usual place.

Two Stupid Things

2006-02-21T06:40:00.000-07:00

In the past two weeks, I have done two stupid things. One of them has been public - I designed and am knitting, from scratch, a lace cardigan. In Rowanspun 4-Ply, which is an extremely light fingering weight, felted style wool. On 3mm needles.

For those of you that aren't regularly knitters, just know that this is a stupid, stupid thing to do. More than 89,000 stitches, NOT including collar, button bands, cuffs, and bottom border. Stupid, stupid, stupid. But, I love how it is looking so far, so will keep going. Plus, if I blog it, I kind of have to finish it, right?

Blah, blah - now onto the second of the Two Stupid Things. You know that hand-made king-sized wool-batted quilt I made for our bed? Yeah, the really big one. You know, the one I made in large pieces, quilted on my home machine, then attached together? With miles and miles and miles of hand binding? That one.

I washed it. In the washing machine. Even though it has a wool batt, shipped all the way here from Australia. A king-sized wool batt. Yup.

Okay, take a minute to recover. Breathe.

Then, I put it in the dryer. Yup. I was having a fit of "what the hell, I can always make another". I know, not logical from a primarily-knitting-now-former-quilter. But, again, what the hell.

Oh, you want to know what happened?

It's clean, has a lot less cat fur on it, and smells all fresh and Bounce-y. What, you thought I'd killed it? Geez, so did I. But, I guess the Goddess of all things lovingly Quilted was smiling down on my pure audacity. And, Bean has been using it as a sneak-attack-launch-tent for the last two days, while I had it hanging over the inside stairwell railing to allow for extra drying time (removed from dryer while still slightly damp - I'm stupid, but not idiotic).

Sometimes stupid works itself out. Hunh.

The Under-Rated Art of the Block

2006-02-18T07:14:00.000-07:00

AKA "Dressing - Really, Really Important"

It's the Knitting Olympics. We're halfway through our knitting time. I've fallen behind, and was beginning to panic. So, I did what any self-flagellating lace knitter will do for reassurance - I blocked.

The photo shows the two fronts of my lace cardigan: one blocked, one unblocked. I was hating this piece, and feeling all "woe is me" until I dressed/blocked one of the fronts. Boy, do I feel better now. All my math? All my measurements and calculations? Paid off, baby!

When I was designing the thing, I swatched my potential lace patterns, then washed and blocked each swatch to the same gauge (6 stitches and 8 rows per inch). This just made the planning easier. Now that the chosen designs have been knit together, I see that the Arrowhead Lace blocks a bit more openly than the Rose Leaf Insertion, but that's okay - I can still block it to my exact desired end dimensions. And it's purty!

Lace knitting is continuing, although this may be an end-of-February-beginning-of-March project. I calculated I'll be knitting just over 89,000 stitches, so I'm not terribly concerned about deadlines. Plus, I'm making a pair of comfy socks as well. Happy place socks, for when the lace is kicking my arse.

But now that I've blocked that one front, I'm all about the lace again.

Almost Ready...

2006-02-09T11:42:00.000-07:00

The training yesterday went really well. Many different lace stitch patterns were swatched, washed, and blocked, and the final decision was made as to which patterns would be featured in my cardigan. The winners are the Rose Leaf Insertion (from a Barbara Abbey book), and Arrowhead Lace (from a Barbara G. Walker book).

I swatched plain stocking stitch, too, to see how it looks stretched out to the stitch and row count I want from the lace - not so hot. However, the stocking stitch regions are relatively small, and not in obvious locations (under the arms to incorporate shaping increases, and under the collar to take it from a square neckline to a round neck).

I haven't nailed down the collar design yet, nor the button bands, cuff and bottom edging, but will work on that today.

The winning buttons (a number auditioned, but the winner stood out immediately) were chosen, and required some mathematics to fit only six buttons along a 22" button bar. Skeins of yarn were wound into cakes, and I really feel on track, timewise.

The only thing I see causing calamity at this point is Ojo. She's here for the day again (I'm a reliable dog-sitter), and is in a chewing/exploring/destruction mode. Already she has shredded one glove (too small for anyone in this house, so not a loss), three sheets of paper (including one of my calculations - Doh!), and one skein of Socks that Rock in Pebble Beach. That last one has me REALLY steamed, so the dog is in the garage right now on a time out. Oh, and she did some damage to me as well, with a nifty scratch/bruise combo.

However, she is making sure I get plenty of fresh air and exercise, as I've already taken her for three walks today (small dog, small bladder, don't want to clean up a mess).

Olympic Training

2006-02-08T02:00:00.000-07:00

I'm a little behind.

A few weeks ago, when I first signed up for the Knitting Olympics, I picked a project for which I already had appropriate yarn, ordered the pattern, swatched in both stocking stitch and the pattern, test washed and blocked my swatches, and figured I was ready to go. So, I stopped training.

Today, I stroked and cuddled the swatches, then gave the pattern a thorough read through. WTF? The sexy, curvy, feminine shaped cardigan I had fallen in love with online is actually knitted completely without any shaping! The curvy lines shown on the photo were artificially arranged for the photo session! Apparently there is some sort of tie or clip on the back pulling the waist in and giving the illusion of tailoring.

Well, sh!t, I could have designed the thing (all one lace pattern, extremely simple, and only two pattern rows to remember). The whole reason I bought it was because it looked shaped! I was suckered by a sneaky photo stylist!

There is no way I'm wasting my Olympic Knitting time on a shapeless, simple, and extremely repetitive knit. Nope. This is supposed to be a challenge of Olympic proportions! I want to stretch my knitting muscles, and try something new.

With only two and a half days left to the starting pistol, I need to find something else, right now! So, every knitting book, magazine and pamphlet in the house is strewn around my work space. Piles of crumpled paper entertain the cats. Needles in assorted sized threaten to skewer me whenever I turn around.

I've swatched about nine different lace patterns, and a few cables as well. Over a dozen yarns have been pulled out, test knitted, then tossed across the room with despair. But, I've finally chosen my yarn, swatched a few stitch patterns, and selected needle size and type.

So now, I need to narrow down the item to be knitted, and design details thereof. I definitely want lace, but would like to see a number of different but coordinating lace patterns put together. But what lacey thing to knit? It's a neck and neck race between a cardigan and a rectangular stole, with occasional thoughts of a Faroese style shawl. But I need to decide, and decide now!

After re-reading the Design section of Sharon Miller's Heirloom knitting, and spending hours pouring through every stitch pattern book I own, I ended up with a page listing nearly two dozen stitch patterns I really want to try. Then I sorted them by row repeat count, stitch repeat count, and garter versus stocking stitch lace. Oy. I whittled the list down to about a dozen, then charted them all in Excel to make the actual knitting process more intuitive.

Then, I pulled out the sweater that fits me the best both length and ease-wise, and measured it laying flat. From that, I drew a scale model of a cardigan, with dimensions. I already knew what size of rectangular stole I would knit if I went that way, so decided my decision would be made based on the number of square inches of knitting (brilliant, eh?).

As the scan shows, um, ah, my cardigan design is EXACTLY THE SAME number of square inches of knitting as a 24" by 72" stole. How friggin' freaky is that?

So, I'm putting together a pros and cons list for each item, and hoping that will narrow down the decision. Until I've decided, though, I think I'll swatch a few more of the lace patterns I like, to ensure they are reasonably knittable (ie - already dropped Germaine Stitch from the roster due to cables, thus the need for a cable needle, which I only have one of right now, and regularly loose).

The training continues. My goal is to have the decision (cardigan versus stole) made by the end of the day tomorrow. Crossing my fingers.

Later Edited to Add:
For those as mathematically inclined as me, I ran the numbers: 6 stitches per inch times 8 rows per inch = 48 stitches per square inch. At 1728 square inches (both the stole and the cardigan - again, very very very freaky), that means 82,944 stitches. I just did a little mouth vomit when that number came up on the calculator. Oy.

Another Weekend, Another Post

2006-02-04T13:49:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday!

The sun is shining, the Bean is napping, and all is well in the world. Well, kind of. Bean has apparently buried herself in the loveseat. See the mini-quilt on the back of the chair in the corner? That's her usual sleeping spot (the quilt can be removed if we have company, so making for super-quick cat hair cleanup). Today, however, she has chosen a different place. Hmmm - are we noisy? Smelly? Or does she just enjoy napping inside furniture?

On the nap count, here you can see that DH is busy doing his Saturday duty - relaxing after a long and stressful week at work. Oh, and holding up the Peanut while she naps. Just below his arm is the TV remote, but he has it set on The History Channel, as usual.

There is, however, a little deception going on here - it's only DH who is napping, while Peanut is giving me the evil eye, attempting to control me and my silly need to take photos. I'm pretty sure the message is something along the lines of "F*ck off, dammit! I only get him weekends and evenings, so don't you blow this for me!"

On the work front, I hate working. It's not so much the work (although that is rather frustrating in itself) as it is the whole spending time around people thing. Have I mentioned that I'm not good around people? Most people don't know it (I can cover really well for maybe four hours, tops) but I have pretty serious social anxiety. Even medicated (better living through chemistry) I start to melt down when forced to endure group activities (like working in a trailer with a bunch of other dedicated professionals).

It's kind of silly, because I used to only melt down when in the presence of large crowds or extreme idiots. Sadly, the melt down-ish-ness has spread to even small groups of decent folk. Sigh. So, after three days of work, I've chickened out. Whether or not I go back will depend on the visit to my doctor, Monday.

While I was hiding at home this past week, I socked some more. Behold a new and truly fabulous (if I may say so myself) pair of Butterscotch Curl socks! Details, as usual, in the gallery-o-socks. Note the use of a lace pattern on the back of the leg - now that I'm a clog wearing chick, I'm suddenly putting my focus behind me. Hmmm. That last phrase works on a lot of levels for me. ;-)

A New Job

2006-01-28T09:22:00.000-07:00

Yup, I got a job. Who'da thunk it? I started work Thursday, and am expecting this project to continue for four to six months (although I hope it doesn't go that long).

I signed up to work part time, which with this company means around 40 hours a week (full time is 60+). So, I'm now up at 5:00am every weekday morning, insert caffeine drip, make a healthy lunch, lace up the steel toed boots, and away I go, up the mountain. It's a little bit wild.

Anyway, I now have significantly less knitting time, less blogging time, less blog-surfing time, and no nap time at all! What I will do for the almighty $. But, must pay for the stash enhancement...

Edited later to add: Um, good point DebR! The job is ... kind of fluffy / waffle-y ... a production operations streamlining consultant thing. Yeah, that's meaningful. And so very comprehensible.

I was confused, too, until I realized that my job at this particular site will be to look for holes or bottlenecks in the operation - basically find opportunities to improve production capacity and/or streamline the operations process, cutting costs in the process.

Hmm, still don't know what I'm doing? Uh, it has to do with a surface mining operation. I wear steel toed boots, a hard hat, safety glasses and a reflective vest. I come home really dirty, but get to spend the day on top of a mountain. And yes, full time is a minimum of 60 hours a week (most employees work 12 hour days, 10 days on, 4 days off, for 120 hours every two weeks). Woo hoo!

Who has new shoes?

2006-01-24T13:24:00.000-07:00

Why, that would be me! And, they go with my new socks!

Those of you that have met me know that I have "a good, solid understanding" (what my Mom used to tell me when I complained about the size of my feet). They are large. They are rather flat at the ends (no pointy-toed shoes for me). They are REALLY wide. And, the instep of my left foot is so high that there are very few shoes I can wear.

Yesterday, in between being gifted with a brief moment of wisdom from our Endocrinologist and having 14 vials of blood pulled for testing, I went shoe shopping. Normally that activity results in emotions from disappointment to frustration, but yesterday was different.

Instead of going to "trendy" shoe shops, I went straight to the place where nurses and postal workers go. Yes, their shoes were more expensive than the "fashion" shoes I'm used to. Yes, they came in unfamiliar-to-me sizes. And yes, they had a couple of types that fit me!

I came away with Birkenstocks. Green plastic Super Birkis, to be exact. And they FIT REALLY WELL! My large square feet are in heaven, and that extra-high instep is just fine with its new confinement.

To celebrate, I finished my first pair of Red Hot Sizzling Socks. Details on the socks in ThatLoganChick's Socks (gallery). All you need to know is that my feet are some friggin' happy right now, and that any mud that gets on these shoes can be hosed off without doing any damage. Because I live in a town where it regularly snows then blows, creating mud all winter long. And 'cause I'm a dirty grrl. ;-)

Ear to Ear with the Grinning Today

2006-01-20T16:58:00.000-07:00

Verklempt! By the email!

I had a few really nice (and interesting!) emails today from some blogosphere friends, and they have me feeling all warm and fuzzy. And, to boot, I got (my very first!!!) meme tag.

Now normally I am the end of the chain email. However, there is something about a meme that is so much more meaningful - it's a way to share tidbits about oneself without making readers wade through the usual babble (in my case - babbler extrordinaire). See? Massive and nasty sentences are the norm here at That Logan Chick Land.

Okay, I'll quit blathering and get meme-ing (it's the "Four Things" meme):

Four jobs you have had in your life:
1. Server Monkey at McDonalds (age 15)
2. Legal Secretary
3. Project researcher/writer for two University Professors
4. Project Engineer for a construction/mining contractor (favorite paid job of all time)

Four movies you could watch over and over:
1. Serenity (Joss Whedon's Firefly movie)
2. The Tall Guy (funniest sex sceen EVER)
3. Hellraiser (any of them)
4. House of 1000 Corpses (Rob Zombie movie)

Four places you have lived:
1. Lower Hutt, New Zealand (born there)
2. Near Elk Island Park, Alberta, Canada
3. Edmonton, Alberta
4. Fort McMurray, Alberta

Four TV shows you love to watch:
1. Daily Planet
2. Buffy the Vampire Slayer
3. Frontiers of Construction
4. Law and Order

Four places you have been on vacation:
1. Tucson, Arizona
2. Vancouver Island, BC
3. Jasper, Alberta
4. Banff, Alberta
I'm not so much for the travelling (it's not that I hate flying, it's that I hate taking off and landing). Also, I'm uncomfortable sleeping in strange beds, and using unfamiliar bathrooms. Oh, and also I get really BITCHY if I don't have my usual everyday surroundings around me EVERY DAY. And I miss my cats.

Four websites you visit (almost) daily:
1. Fibermania
2. Red Shoe Ramblings
3. Yarn Harlot
4. Zeneedle

Four of your favorite foods:
1. Dark chocolate
2. Cheese
3. Peanut butter
4. Pears

Four places you would rather be right now:
1. Willmore Wilderness Park, Alberta
2. The "beach" near Jasper, Alberta
3. In a (good) yarn store
4. Exactly where I am (home), but it's miraculously cleaner
Please note that numbers 1 and 2 are good weather dependent. Right now it's blowing snow outside, so 3 or 4 would do just fine.

Red Hot Sizzling Socks (Yum!)

2006-01-20T09:09:00.000-07:00

Man-oh-man, I'm a joiner this year. I found this KAL (knit-along for those not used to knit-speak) on Margene's site, and considering that I had just completed the first of my Flirting with Pink socks, it seemed appropriate for me to join.

Plus, there's that skein of Mountain Colors Bearfoot in Rosehip heating up my sock yarn stash. And, if Felicia of Sweet Georgia gets another dye run in soon, I'm hoping there will be some "Slayer" superwash coming my way. Mmmm, red socks. Yup, they certainly will "spice up the sock drawer".

But what the heck is with my freakishly weird shaped foot? Yes, I have a very high arch, and yes, I have a tall instep, and yes, I have thick ankles, but they look WAY worse in the photo than in real life. Still, gotta love the hot sock. I wanted shorty socks in this yarn, and the picot edging worked out really cute. Loving the red sock (must cast on second sock immediately).

What is with me and pink lately?

2006-01-19T13:24:00.000-07:00

I must be going through some sort of weird not-quite-mid-life crisis or something - I've gone from hating the pink (and a regular scoffer of those who like pink) to loving the pink. Really. I'm all about the pink these days.

After the orange socks were finished a few days ago, I immediately went to the stash-just-for-sock-yarn, sniffing around for which pair to begin next. Oh, and in case you're wondering, it is now official: I have four stashes. I have a stash for sock yarn, one for lace weight, one for other natural fibres, and one for whimsies (aka the embellishment stash). Wait, those are just my knitting stashes. I also have a large quilting stash. With sub-categories, too. Oy.

Okay, where was I ... oh yes, choosing the next pair of socks. I wanted to use something hand painted, and thought maybe green or brown would be nice. Short-row-toe-swatched a green, but didn't feel the love. Short-row-toe-swatched a brown, but again with the lacking of love. Pulled out a vibrant red, previously relegated to the back of the stack due to the pronounced presence of pink. Swatched (toe again) and I. AM. IN. LOVE.

How could anyone not love this pinky red goodness? And, with the aubergine? I'm currently fighting insane (yes, I can recognize insanity when I feel it) urges to lick this sock. Ugh, but oh so tempting. It's the pink - it has me all feverish in the noggin.

Or, maybe it's the yarn, which has 25% mohair in there with the merino superwash goodness (Schaefer Anne sock wool). The mohair gives it a firm, slightly slippery hand, and it feels shiney while knitting. I know, that sounds ridiculous - how can it "feel" shiney? But it does, trust me.

So far I have been able to avoid the urge to lick this sock, but I have caved in and rubbed it on my face. If I ever get another skein of Schaefer Anne, I think it will become a scarf. Yummmm!

Sliding Head First into Insanity

2006-01-16T15:45:00.000-07:00

I've joined the Yarn Harlot's 2006 Knitting Olympics. The challenge is to cast on only after the Olympic Flame has been lit, and finish your project (including sewing together, weaving in ends, and blocking, as required) before the Flame is extinguished. While watching the Winter Olympics - only 16 days!

Her suggestion is to challenge yourself, in the spirit of Olympic competition, and knit something bigger, more complex, and more impressive than you would normally be able to finish in that time - she states it way better than me in her blog write-up, but you get the point.

I've joined (see title above, which is a nod to one of the winter sports). I will be knitting one of two lace cardigans: The Filigree Lace Jacket, or the Angelina Vintage Jacket, from White Lies Designs. I can't commit to one yet, as I just ordered the patterns, and once they come, will be raiding my stash for appropriate yarn/yardage. We are allowed swatching in advance (considered "training"), so I expect a post or two about trying out potential yarns.

This will be a heck of a challenge - I usually have issues with completing projects, so to finish a full sized garment in just over two weeks will be, well, hard work. It will require dedication. Stick-to-it-ive-ness. Focus. Things that Olympic athletes have, and that I don't. Oy.

I love the Warning Label Generator

2006-01-12T19:03:00.000-07:00

Fun with website activities ... Warning Label Generator. Tee hee!

I'm toying with the idea of generating one for the bathroom door ... no, not that! Just a (gentle) reminder that in this house, the lid is always left DOWN after the flush. Why? Because there is nothing so nasty as fishing out a wet cat used to jumping up onto the normally closed toilet lid without looking.

More Reasons I Love my Husband

2006-01-12T16:58:00.000-07:00

Have I mentioned lately how much I love my husband? Yes? Well, buck up and prepare for more. Sorry.

On Monday afternoon he left for Edmonton for a work related conference. Tuesday he called me "just to say Hi" at lunch, after the last meeting, and at bedtime. Wednesday was pretty much the same. Today, (Thursday), he just called to say he's making a run for it - wants to be home tonight, because he misses me. Aaaaah.

Although, it's just as likely that he misses his comfy chair, his furry feline lap rug, and the wife bringing him ice cream after dinner. Oh, and our really comfy bed (we have a great mattress, wonderful sheets, and a toasty warm but never too hot wool batted quilt on the bed, yes, I made it).

It doesn't matter why he's rushing home now. The only thing I'm worried about (aside from getting some more cleaning done before he gets home) is that the moose, elk, and deer stay off the road and away from his vehicle. Because I don't want him hurt. Oh, and maybe a little because he's driving my car. Which I've been without since lunch time Monday. And which I miss. But not as much as I miss my husband!

ThatLoganChick's Socks

2006-01-11T18:15:00.000-07:00

The Sock Count:
I ended 2005 with 1 pair. Now I have (cough) 9 pairs.
DH ended 2005 with 7 pairs. He still has 7 pairs.

Huckleberry Trout:
- Finished: 25th of Feb, 2006 (3 days)
- Construction: Toe up, short row toe & heels, 56 stitches, increased to 64 for instep, then to 66 for 11 stitch pattern repeat on leg. Garter stitch cuff.
- Yarn: Little Lola from Schaefer, 100% superwash merino, sport weight (280 yards in 4 ounces, and I used almost all of it)
- Needles: 3.0mm Addi Turbo circ
- Stitch Pattern Detail: I used an 11 stitch chevron rib on the leg to break up the more obvious purple striping (mission successful - love the chevron pattern, and will use it again). The repeat was k2tog, k2, (k1,yo,k1)into next stitch, k2, ssk, p2, then knit the 9 pattern stitches on the alternate rounds, keeping up the p2 rib.
- Washing: not yet
- Comments: The Schaefer Little Lola is a great quick knit for socks - there is more in my stash, which I'm happy about, as it sells really fast, and is rather difficult to find. The chevrons on the leg took up a lot of yarn, and don't have much give, so from now on I will only use them with fingering weight yarns that have oodles of yardage. These shorter socks are comfortable and soft, but don't look good with my green Birkis. Oh well, they're Huckleberry Trout, so I love them anyway.

Safe Place Socks:
- Finished: 22nd of Feb, 2006 (10 days of intermittent knitting)
- Construction: Toe up, improved short row toe & heels (actually followed directions!), 60 stitches, up to 66 for instep, then to 72 for my calves, plain stocking stitch, 3x1 ribbed cuff
- Yarn: Soft Touch Heather in "Loganberry" from Shelridge Farms (a Canadian farm/yarn producer), 85% wool with 15% nylon, two 50g (175m) skeins. The yarn is a deep, dark aubergine, with heathered yellow, blue, and red (the primaries). I simply couldn't capture the beauty of this yarn on camera, but spend a lot of time staring at my socks in glee.
- Needles: 2.5mm Addi Turbo circ
- Stitch Pattern Detail: none
- Washing: not yet
- Comments: I knitted until I was almost out of yarn (to see how far the skeins would go), and got really long socks. As I generally prefer my socks shorter (about 8" is good), I wear these in a slouch manner. They are my Safe Place Socks because they enabled me to retreat to a comfort zone when life and pressure around me got too hot to handle. I really like this Canadian yarn, and will be making more with this brand.

Sprouts:
- Finished: 5th of Feb, 2006 (2 days, maybe 18 hours for the pair, which is really, really fast for me)
- Construction: Toe up, short row heels & toes, 51 stitches, lace front & back panels, 1x1 ribbing at top
- Yarn: Speed Demon in the Willow colourway, from Felicia (Sweet Georgia) at The Sweet Shop. This is a sport weight yarn, 100% superwash merino. Used all but 1/4 ounce of 4 ounce skein (the small ball in the photo is all that was left)
- Needles: 3.25mm Aero circular for magic loop (one at a time)
- Stitch Pattern Detail: lace pattern on back and front of leg, made up, 17 stitches wide
- Washing: maintained fabric integrity perfectly after machine washing & drying, and are very soft and squishy
- Comments: This yarn really is a speed demon. I pumped out the first sock on Friday, after finishing off the Butterscotch Curls that morning, then the second sock on Saturday. The yarn is extremely soft, so I am leary of how it will machine wash. I love the colour, and with the lace, these socks make me think Spring!

Butterscotch Curls:
- Finished: 3rd of Feb, 2006 (6 days to knit)
- Construction: Toe up, short row toes & heels, 67 stitches, lace back panel, 1x1 ribbing at top
- Yarn: 3.25 ounces of "Sock!" from Lisa Souza, hand dyed in the Pumpkin colourway. Sock! is 75% superwash wool and 25% nylon. The skein was 4 ounces (488 yards).
- Needles: 2.5mm Addi Turbo for magic loop (both socks, one at a time).
- Stitch Pattern Detail: lace pattern on back of leg, over 23 stitches, from Barbara G. Walker's A Treasury of Knitting Patterns, pg 210, "Twin Leaf Lace". Love it!
- Washing: no blooming (already washed during the dyeing process). Machine washed and dried very well, with minimal halo and no pilling.
- Comments: I really like the lace pattern on the back of the leg, and will use this again. When I next knit with Sock! I will use a smaller needle (maybe 2.25mm) as I forgot there wouldn't be any bloom, and would like to see slightly denser fabric. The colour makes me want to bake something.

Flirting with Pink:
- Finished: 24th of Jan, 2006 (7 days to knit)
- Construction: Toe up, short row toes @ 72 stitches, increased to 80 stitches for instep, short row heel, 2x2 ribbing to shape ankle, picot edge cuff
- Yarn: 2.25 ounces of Schaefer "Anne" in one-off red mix. Anne is 60% merino superwash, 25% mohair, and 15% nylon, and is sold in 4 ounce skeins (560 yards). I used just over half of the skein for these ankle socks.
- Needles: 2.0mm Addi Turbo for magic loop (both socks, one at a time)
- Stitch Pattern Detail: none
- Washing: bloomed slightly after machine washing (gentle, cold) & drying with no fuzzing or pilling, making these the socks with the best record so far for holding up after machine washing & drying
- Comments: These socks feel terrific - smooth, soft, and warm. The yarn has less "spring" than pure wool, but does knit up very nicely. My gauge was 10.5 stitches per inch, and I had to increase by 8 stitches to comfortably fit my high instep. These are my first entries in the Red Hot Sizzling Socks KAL (see sidebar for link). I call them "Flirting with Pink" because I chose the yarn for the rich reds, was a bit surprised by how much the pink stood out when it was knitted, and became quickly enamoured by the yummy pink highlights. I hope to move beyond flirting, and actually knit with pink soon.

Feet a l'Orange:
- Finished: 16th of Jan, 2006 (6 days to knit)
- Construction: Short Row Toes & Heels, Toe up construction over 64 stitches, 72 stitches for calf, 2x2 ribbed cuff
- Yarn: slightly less than one 100g ball of Lana Grossa Meilenweit Mega Boots Stretch, in colour #708
- Needles: 2.5mm Addi Turbo for magic loop
- Stitch Pattern Detail: mostly plain stocking stitch, but with 2x2 rib up the back of the leg for shaping
- Washing: the wool bloomed nicely after being machine washed (cold, gentle) and dried (low heat)
- Comments: These are so soft! The yarn was very nice to work with, although a bit splity (three plies plus the stretchy center). The colour change was fun to watch, and what I found really entertaining is that if you look at my feet only, they look identical. Then, the colour shift changed on the leg. Apparently Mega Boots Stretch does not have a consistent colour repeat at all. Fun!

Carbon Steel Socks:
- Finished: 10th of Jan, 2006 (4 days to knit)
- Construction: Precursor Toes & Afterthought Heels, Toe up construction over 64 stitches, 68 stitches for calf, picot edge cuff
- Yarn: less than one skein of Socks that Rock in "Carbon" for the body, and less than half a 50g ball of Regia Stretch (steel blue) for toes & heels
- Needles: 2.5mm dpns for toes & heels, 2.5mm Addi Turbo for magic loop (body of both socks, one at a time)
- Stitch Pattern Detail: 2x2 garter stitch rib
- Washing: held up okay during machine washing and drying, but getting quite fuzzy (a halo has appeared after a few washes)
- Comments: had hoped for more pooling or flashing, but am happy with striping on legs. This was my first use of the "magic loop" construction, and went really fast. I will use the single circular needle knitting method again.

Winter Brights:
- Finished: 4th of Jan, 2006 (5 days to knit)
- Construction: Precursor Toes & Afterthought Heels, Toe up construction over 56 stitches, up to 62 for calf, 1x1 ribbed cuff
- Yarn: Sandnes SMART Superwash 100% wool DK weight(2 skeins varigated, half a skein of solid green for toes & heels)
- Needles: 2.75mm dpns (Aero Teflon coated)
- Stitch Pattern Detail: 3x1 garter stitch rib
- Washing: softened beautifully after machine washing & drying, but developing a slight halo with repeated washes
- Comments: an enjoyable, fast knit, but 2 balls of yarn would not have been enough to work a standard pair of socks. Loved the pooling!

Socks in 2005:
- DH socks (blue pair, charcoal with green, grey with red, charcoal with red, fuzzy feet)
Note: DH isn't so thrilled about posing his socked feet for photo shoots. Sorry.

Denim Camo:
- Finished: Dec 22nd, 2005(3 weeks to knit)
- Construction: Short Row Toes & Afterthought Heels, Toe up construction over 72 stitches, 3x3 ribbed cuff
- Yarn: 2 50g balls of Regia Stretch (colour 84), with plenty left over.
- Needles: 2.5mm dpns (Aero Teflon coated)
- Stitch Pattern Detail: 5x1 rib
- Washing: softened and bloomed nicely after machine washing & drying
- Comments: This was my first time working with sock weight yarn, and I learned that they relax a little after the first wash. I have since switched to using a 64 stitch foot. Love the colouration - they go really well with jeans, and have a "camoflauge" look to them. Will knit future socks a little longer in the leg.

I made a Button!

2006-01-11T14:04:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm still figuring all of this blog stuff out - but I think I made a button. If all goes well, I should be able to add buttons to my links list soon, and move a teeny step forward in this whole "using the internet" thing. Wooo Hooo!

Now I hope to bit by bit add linking buttons to my favorite blogs in the sidebar, and put my button there so people can link to me. Wild, just wild.

Precursor Toes

2006-01-07T13:33:00.000-07:00

After much humming and hawing, I have decided to post about my new "unvention" (as Elizabeth Zimmerman says). Finding photographs of the Afterthought Heel online made a dramatic difference in how I approached sock knitting. I adopted that method immediately, and have used it in every sock since.

Not only do I love the way the Afterthought Heel fits, I also (and especially) love the versatility it brings to my sock knitting. Using an Afterthought Heel allows me to knit either top down or bottom up, to add as much patterning as I want, or to just do plain stocking stitch, without having to worry about any shaping.

Having made this dramatic change to my sock knitting approach then got me thinking: what if I took a similar approach to toes? So, the Precursor Toe was born. Now, I knit both toe areas before I start the body of my socks. I can pop them in my knitting bag, along with a circular needle for magic loop knitting, and go. When I'm ready, the fiddly bit (toe shaping) is already finished, and all I have to do is pick up the stitches and knit the sock body.

Yippee! Freedom from sock knitting stress! I knit the toes at home, one after the other, when I can pay attention to my knitting. The body is then knitted on the go (great for traveling), and I can knit until I have finished my yarn. Putting in the heels is the last step, and can again be done when I can apply my full attention to it. No more Second Sock Syndrome. No more trying to count toe or heel shaping from the first sock, and match it to the second, while distractions make attentiveness impossible. Easy Peesy, as my brother would say.

The Precursor Toe will now be my sock knitting method of choice. I love it!

Get yur Quiltin' While it's Hot!

2006-01-04T13:41:00.000-07:00

Yup, we've got signs of quilting at Chez Logan. Piecing? Check. Sandwiching? Check. Pointed stippling? That too. Creation of not-actually-on-the-bias-bias-tape? Yup, plus application of fancy-schmancy computer generated stitching! Binding? Well, kind of... Of the eight placemats made, two are completely bound, and six are without covered edges. Oh my. They will be finished very, very soon. I swear.

This is a close up of one of the completed placemats, showing the pointed stippling I tend to use for heavily quilted pieces, plus highlighting the funky-ass fabric. This set of 8 placemats is for my Dad and his wife, both of whom are very into wine. They belong to the Epicurian (sp?) Society, and visit wineries whenever they travel. Right now they are really into Californian, New Zealand and Australian wines.

Once the placemats and matching runner (next Christmas, as agreed) are done, they can feature them next time they host a wine tasting.

While all of this was taking place, Bean held down the fort. Ummm, to be more accurate, she leaned against the design wall and prevented me from accessing the lower drawer of quilting thread. However, the massive cuteness of her napping positioning required that I leave her be, although she was subjected to photo taking.

On the don't-think-I've-forgotten-knitting front, we also have a completed pair of really bright socks. For me. Because if I tried to give them to DH, he'd have a coronary. Colour? Not for him, nope!

I will admit purchasing the yarn (Smart Superwash, dk weight, made in Norway) while in Jasper, and starting on them right away. Three socks were actually knitted, but only two remain. The first sock was painfully tight (only had 2.5mm dpns with me), so when I got home I frogged it and reknitted on 2.75mm dpns. And yes, I really, really like the pooling. I'm all about the pooling.

These socks (knitted toe up) took damn-near-all of one 50g skein of multi-colour per sock, but did give me socks in the length I like. See the teeny tiny skeins of multi-coloured yarn next to that sock? All I had left (one per sock). There was enough left over from the single skein of green that I used for toes and heels that I could have screwed up a bit, but not much. Maybe a heel and a half left. The green will make great stripes in yet another pair of charcoal grey spousal socks, though. Yippee for stripes!

Home Sweet Home

2005-12-31T14:18:00.000-07:00

Ahhhhh. Contented sigh.

I'm home! The holiday travels are over, and it's time to sit, catch my breath, and get back to my regular routines. The holiday was lovely, but I'm ready for some downtime now.

We did the Central Alberta Loop (my name, not official) of Grande Cache, Jasper, Banff, Calgary, Edmonton, and home. The weather was mild (mostly just below zero degrees Celsius), and the roads were in excellent condition. Some skiing was done (at Sunshine, where Alec Baldwin was spotted enjoying the fresh powder on the slopes), but not by me. I sat with my Dad (yes, his broken leg kept him off the ski-hill) and drank way too much coffee.

My brother and his girlfriend shivered a lot - apparently coming to winter in Canada after summer in Australia is a bit of a shock. Who knew?

Here are Ivan and Emily acknowledging the proximity of dangerous wildlife. Of course, they're too skinny to be taken serious as bear bait - although a bear might choke on one of them trying to swallow.

Here they are playing along the Smokey River. Yes, that's ice. Yes, it was cold(ish). Yup, they're monkeying around skipping stones. This is all a novelty to them, as they don't usually find half frozen river beds in Melbourne, Australia. In a high rise. Near the beach. Poor little them.

This is Emily on the "beach" in Jasper National Park. The river widens out here, and is so slow and sandy that it appears more like an ocean vista than a river in the Rocky Mountains. Note the snow on the mountain peaks (it was December, after all).

And, here we have Ivan and Emily lounging around at the base of a small frozen waterfall. Later in the trip we drove by The Weeping Wall, which is such a large frozen waterfall that it had nearly a dozen ice climbers on it. Sadly, my camera batteries had died by that point, or you would be squinting at a photo of a huge wall of ice with teeny tiny way-up-high must-be-insane climbers dotted here and there on the ice. Oy.

So, I'm glad to be home, and will soon be back to knitting socks, binding quilted placemats, and cooking for DH. Oh, and keeping Peanut warm while she naps in my lap. Ahhh, life is sweet.

Ride 'er Cow-Bean

2005-12-14T18:25:00.000-07:00

Here at Casa de Logan we share our lives with two creatures of feline persuasion. Regular readers will remember them from various previous incidents of blogging the cat, but for new readers (and those unfortunate enough to have just stumbled upon my regular posting of madness) I will go through the introductions all over again.

Please stay with me, as the mental image at the end is worth it. My stomach muscles still hurt from seeing it all played out in front of me.

Bean (the brown tabby) is light for her size, and a ball of fun, fun, fun. She's long, tall, and weighs 12 pounds. Her favorite activities include chasing shadows, playing with anyone who will play with her, and laying on her back in the sun. She is generally located by listening for galloping noises, interspersed with high jumps, flips, and barrel rolls. The only time she slows down is when patiently waiting to be fed (sits calmly while I open the can, the strolls casually toward the food bowls once they are put down).

Peanut (the black and white lump) is dense for her size, and a ball of naps, naps, naps. She's short along both the x- and y- axis, and weighs 12 pounds. Her favorite activities include napping on any soft surface, napping on anyone who will let her, and whining until we come and find her current nap location and cover her with a blanket. She is generally located by looking for a suspiciously breathing blanket or pillow, interspersed with whimpers when she needs the blanket rearranged. The only time she speeds up is when winding around my legs at feeding time, until I put down the bowls, when she goes running full tilt at them, determined to get the choice bowl, first.

Eventually it was bound to happen. The very nature of their natures had to collide. And, I think you know what I'm getting at here.

Yup. This morning Bean was standing patiently, looking at the spot where I put the food bowls, when Peanut, anxious to get there first, went running in at full speed, not looking where she was going...

She ran in underneath Bean, from between Bean's back legs, and just kept going. Poor Bean was suddenly traveling at full speed, on the back of the Peanut - until Peanut slammed on the claws right in front of the food bowl, and Bean went sliding off half forwards and half sideways, left legs flailing in the air as she went. Peanut, unperturbed, was at her bowl speed feeding, even as Bean was shaking her head and trying to get her bearings back.

I haven't laughed so hard in ages. The poor Bean had to go have a lie down in another room, and missed breakfast entirely. Oy.

On the Practice of Patience

2005-12-12T15:59:00.000-07:00

The Plan:
"This year, I shall knit scarves for those I love. Except for the placemats I will be making for Dad and Marion - I love them too, but they asked for placemats."

The Followthrough:
"Honey, they're all finished! Yes, including washing and blocking. I'm getting them ready to send, now."

The Problem:
"Did I remember to take photos of all the hand knitted gifts before I wrapped them? Why no, of course not. Unwrap, take photos and re-wrap? I'd rather not. What, you insist? Threatening me with middle-of-nap-drooling photos of me, posted on my blog, if I don't take photos of the scarves? Okay, fine, I'll re-wrap them later." Photo taking did ensue, but I made DH take the photos seeing as how he was the one insisting on it.

The Completion:
"Honey, I just mailed off all of the gifts for your family. On Monday, December 12th. Doesn't this make 2005 the first (and possibly only) year I've ever finished and sent the hand made gifts on time?"

The Temper Tantrum:
"But the photos, they are sooo great! Really DH, you take photos so much better than me. The stitch definition, the colours, the shading - so much better than I would have taken. What do you mean, I can't post them on my blog until after Christmas? Are you freakin' kidding? I've been knitting since the beginning of Sep-fucking-tember, dammit! Screw you! Patience? Fuck that! It's my blog, and I'll post when I want to!"

The Disclaimer:
If you are expecting a gift from us, and want the finished product (even though you know you are getting a scarf) to be a surprise, then stop reading this post here. Do NOT scroll down. Come back after Christmas. Because I refuse to practice patience after knitting for months. And months. Since September. So there!

Note: Not all scarves are shown. Some views are odd. I don't care. I am, however, really thrilled to be able to finally post some "finished" photos. Yay!

Counting Down the Gifts

2005-12-07T13:28:00.000-07:00

Time to take stock of hand made Christmas presents completed, and those yet to be finished (or started - argh!).

DH's Family:
Dad - finished (needs cat hair removal)
Mom - finished (including blocking & conditioning)
Chris - finished
Rhea - finished (including blocking)
Grandma - finished (including blocking)
Grandpa - finished
Dave - finished
All that is left is wrapping, packaging, and mailing. Yippee!

My Family:
Dad & Marion - not started (uh oh!)
Mom - 1/4 done (glass half full view)
Horst - finished
Dan - finished
Alex - finished
Faith - finished
Blake - finished
Ivan - not started
Emily - not started

DH & I:
Fuzzy Feet for DH - finished
Fuzzy Feet for me - not started
Socks for DH - 1 done, 1 started
Socks for me - not started

Okay, so overall, I'm doing pretty good on the hand made gifts. Ivan & Emily won't be started until I have spoken with them Dec. 16th (which is when they arrive in Canada). I don't want to make them gifts they don't want or need, so will be asking what in particular they would like.

Dad & Marion's gift (a set of 8 quilted placemats) requires some measurements before I get cutting, as I don't want to make them too big to have the full set of 8 on the table (need table top size).

Mom's scarf is giving me headaches, as it is a complex pattern (must pay attention) in an inky purple, so is not good TV knitting. However, the yarn is lovely to work with (Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool), so I enjoy my few minutes a day with it.

The gifts for DH will be finished by Christmas, plus I will buy him something small (probably a DVD, video game, or book). The "gifts for me" are really just things I would like, so can wait until after Christmas. Plus, DH bought me some sock wool in colours just for me, even though he doesn't know it yet. I will put it in a basket with a ribbon, and leave it under the Christmas tree - he loves surprise wife gifts like that (takes the pressure off him).

So, I believe I am in pretty good shape for Christmas. No, I probably won't get the two wall hangings and new bed quilt done as hoped, but I think I must have been on crack the day I included those in my pre-Christmas list, anyway. Okay, I wasn't actually on crack, but I was weak to the influence of yummy fabric stash. I love my stash. Mmmmm, stash.

Also, in case you're wondering, yes, I plan to do a lot of knitting for the feet in this home (mine and DH's). Even though the floor downstairs is heated, our feet generally aren't on that floor - we tend to live reclined. So, our dangling feet get chilly. Yes, we both have 5ft x 7ft quilts for our recliners, but the cats tend to take up extra footage in the lap zone (must cover cats to prevent kitty chills), thus leaving the feet uncovered. Brrrr, cold. Whimper, whine, complain. Dork. Mostly, I'm just having fun trying out new toe styles (next up - the short row toe a la Wendy Johnson) and heel turning techniques (currently in love with the afterthought heel). Knitting a sock with no heel, then cutting out and inserting a heel is way fun, dudes!

Damn Near Palpable!

2005-12-06T06:41:00.000-07:00

Yup. The excitement is damn near palpable! There's a whole lotta Christmas stuff going on at Loganvilla, including (but not limited to) vacuuming, dishwashing, bathroom cleaning, linen changing, dusting, fabric room tidying, and office organizing.

What? That doesn't sound Christmas-y? Would it make a difference if I told you I'm wearing green underoos and a red bra? 'Tis the season, and all of that.

Okay, housework aside (wait - housework is never aside - in this household it is always right there in front of me, needing to be done), I am doing quasi-Christmas-y things. These things include blocking scads and scads of gift scarves, and booking accommodations for a three night trip through the mountains.

The trip will be taken by my brother Ivan and his girlfriend Emily (both arriving later this month, from Australia), myself (the driver/logistics manager), and Dad (because after breaking his leg windsurfing this summer, he needs a little mountain adventure in the depths of winter).

We will be leaving Loganvilla on the 27th, skiing at Marmot Basin (near Jasper) that day, spending the night in Jasper, traveling to Banff on the 28th, visiting the family's historic homestead on the 29th, spending that night in Calgary, trouping off to Drumheller to see the Hoodoos and the Dinosaur Museum, then zipping back up to Edmonton that night. It's like the Alberta version of the trek around BC that I was driver for this past summer. But in the winter. With parkas, mitts, toques, and scarves.

Highlights will surely include red runny noses, frosted eyebrows, chapped lips, wet pants (no, not like that - damp around the bottom from getting all snowy then thawing in the car), and hopefully avoidance of the old "put 'er in the ditch, I did". Although, maybe a car meets ditch full of snow experience will be fun for Emily, who has never experienced anything colder than an English winter before. I bet she'll love central heating. And that two of our hotels have pools and hot tubs.

Blah, blah, blah, ... I actually am really excited about this Christmas. I am looking forward to the family gathering, which will be made even more fun by Mom's husband Horst, who plans to take over the kitchen and cook on both the 24th and 25th! He will handle all meat and bread, while I get to handle veggies and cleanup. He's a great cook, and a lot of fun in the kitchen. Until it comes time to wash up...

As an aside, photos will be taken of the scarves so that after Christmas I can do the big reveal and post pictures.

Wee Tad Hungover

2005-12-03T11:13:00.000-07:00

Yup. I'm a wee tad hungover. Just a tetch. Which is ridiculous, as I only had three drinks last night - but apparently years of being out of practice does a three drink hangover make.

The head, it pounds. The stomach, it roils. The eyes, they sting. The breath, is steenky.

I thought that maybe some fresh air would help, but it is -21C here, and a really bright sun has been joined by two large and bright sun dogs, all of which are reflecting on newly fallen snow (essentially, making the obnoxious whiteness even more nasty).

So, for your enjoyment/giggles, I'm posting a photo of the outfit I finally chose for the party. Following advice from the comments (thanks Deborah!) I chose a pair of casual pants (black, though), a black tank, and a shiny shirt for over top. The orchids were given out to all of the ladies (a classy touch). The food was good, the room was smokeless (yippee!!), and the company was most excellent. Note the drunken laughter in the "after" shot (found camera after we were dropped off at home by the designated driver program).

You may also notice ... evidence of a quilt in process on the design wall. This is a Lone Star in hand dyes from Caryl Breyer Fallert, plus a great background, and wee bits of a Paula Nadelstern feature fabric. What a name dropper! DH has requested that this be turned into a wall hanging for the TV room, especially once he realized I had some of the hand dyes left over. He's suggested matching pillows for on the couch, or using the leftovers in another lap quilt. The man knows exactly how to get me back into the studio. ;-)

I was downloading the camera when I found these photos, taken a few weeks ago. This is Ojo Sama, a 10 week old Sheba Inu (sp?) belonging to a friend of ours. I was tasked with puppy sitting one day, and Monkey Butt (Ojo Sama seemed too formal, Monkey Butt was much better) enjoyed the view from the guest room window. And chewing on my hand. And jumping in the snow. And peeing on the carpet, after having too much fun outdoors to pee there. Puppies. Good thing they're so cute. Okay, one more of Monkey Butt, because she is just so darned cute.

On Pants, Skirts, and other things that Hang

2005-12-02T15:45:00.000-07:00

'Tis the season for Christmas parties. Yup. And DH is expected to go to all of them. With his lovely wife (not me, no one would ever call me lovely to my face and get away with it).

Due to the shiftwork nature of working at the mine, there are three parties. I have consented to attend two of them, which, considering my tendency to remain in the home unless we're completely out of cat food and bread, is a pretty darn big thing.

In my typical way of avoiding thinking about things I consider unpleasant (tee hee), I am only just now (2 hours 10 minutes from "Cocktails at 6:00") looking at my closet and deciding what to wear. Oy.

Here's the kicker. Some weight has come off over the last year (good), but new clothes have not been added to the wardrobe. So, knowing that my dressy clothes all hang sadly off my hips, and run the danger of dropping off completely if I don't stick out my stomach, I have been carb loading and eating everything I can get in my mouth all week. You know, add a little cushioning. In a probably futile attempt to get the Christmas party wardrobe to look like it is actually mine, not borrowed from a bigger sister.

The camera is still misplaced, so no photos. Will advise on the weekend as to whether the mad "oh shit, my pants are too loose" eating binge helped, or whether the bottom half of my party ensemble fell off at an inopportune time. Wait, is there an opportune time for your pants to fall down? Hmmm.

Things to NOT Do Again

2005-11-30T18:15:00.000-07:00

1. Absently scratch my nose while slicing cheese with a sharp knife (resulted in a weird looking scratch and darn near took out an eye).

2. Put a (loose) sock on the head of a grumpy cat. I know, it sounds like fun. However, said grumpy cat may have been grumpy because of a soon-to-be-ejected hairball. The hoped for hilarity did NOT ensue.

3. Run upstairs to grab the phone in the kitchen, while wearing brand-new-just-off-the-needles wool socks. In mathematical terms:
[wool socks + vinyl flooring]^corner at high speed = buises + a groin pull.

4. Go out in public with a compromised immune system. I have spent the last month catching every cold, cough, flu, and other bug going around. There have been maybe three days in November wherein I felt healthy.

5. Use crappy health from cold/cough/flu whatever as an excuse to sink into the depths of melancholy. November has been a less than fun month.

6. Eat nothing but instant snack food and carbohydrates. Bad. Really, really, bad. Makes it hard to get out of a funk. However, I'm pretty much ready for that whole scene to end, now.

7. Stop blogging, because I'm just depressing myself. Idiot. Blogging is how I express myself - it helps pull me through the grumpies.

Now, things I WILL do: eat healthy meals thrice daily, hydrate properly, walk outside regularly, spend less time online futzing aimlessly and more time cuddling the cats, and generally look at life from a better place.

Also, if I don't, Christmas is coming, and will completely f*ck me if I'm not careful. Woo hoo.

The State of the Carpet Today

2005-11-05T12:45:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a major housework day. You know the type - I vacuumed, use the crevice tool on the edges (very rare here as I'm not a fan of work in any form, and the crevice tool isn't just housework, it's a tool, too), and then I steam cleaned the upstairs.

Our house is 1400 square feet on the top level, and around 1100 downstairs. Steaming the upstairs carpet was a pretty major job.

Afterwards, I celebrated by vacuuming the stairs between the levels. My reward was having the vacuum tumble down three steps while I was attempting to switch heads to the crevice tool (damn that crevice tool) and land on my right hand. Ouch is not what I said at the time, but will do for explanation.

This morning, DH & I were enjoying a sleep in on a sunny Saturday, when we heard that dreaded sound . . . a Massive Hurk-Fest was taking place. We shuddered, pulled the covers over our heads, and avoided as long as possible. However, eventually we had to face it. After Hurk-Fest removal and spot treatment, I realized, sadly, that further steaming would be required. Damn.

So, instead of having a care-free weekend with a spotless carpet and dust-free crevices, we will be walking carefully to avoid damp spots where I had to use the steamer again.

There goes our plan of rolling around on the floor, buck naked in a sun-beam. And I was sooo ready for naked roll-fest, I had even shaved my legs! Above the knee! Sigh.

Last night on television...

2005-11-01T13:39:00.000-07:00

Did anyone else watch "The Closer" with Kyra Sedgewick? It is not really a show I an enamoured with, but hey, I was sitting in the dark and hoping that the Halloween Trick-or-Treaters would magically vanish, so I didn't screw around with channel surfing. Yes, I ran out of candy. At 6:45pm. Doh!

Anyway, on The Closer, the mother of the autistic teenaged boy (ex-wife of the murdered judge) was wearing this lace-y thing that I am IN LOVE WITH!!!!! It was not quite a stole, not quite a cardigan. It had a normal back and sleeves (set in, all lace) and then these ginormous lace panels on the front that could be thrown over the shoulder to engulf the wearer in lace, lace, lace. If not in the mood for lace around the shoulders, they could be left to hang, something like a swing coat front.

Yummy! Delicious! Me want! Me must make! And, I just picked up the Barbara Walker Treasury of Stitch Patterns (which has all of my favorite lace patterns, as well as many I hadn't yet seen, all in one place). I could make something featuring a number of different lace panels. Wee hee!

But, focus must be kept, deadlines must be met - because Christmas is (still) coming. My Christmas knitting is coming along well, and I made a child's scarf last night (while hiding from other children). The list, for those that are mocking me:

Finished: Mom's husband, older brother, grandfather, uncle, mother-in-law, brother's girlfriend, her daughter, her son, other brother's girlfriend.

In process: Mom, brother-in-law, his wife.

Not yet started: Father-in-law, grandmother, younger brother.

Not bad. Not bad at all.

Sunshine on a Cold Day

2005-10-27T13:51:00.000-06:00

I've been a bad blogger. Sorry.

Last week was pretty much about mourning the most recent loss, and the first half of this week was about daily outpatient treatment, in Edmonton (a 4.5 hour drive from here, each way). So it is official: the Bubble de Logan is no longer.

In the good news column, however, is that we have been ordered to keep the next three months as "strictly recreational" and in January, we go in for a massive amount of testing (my specialist calls it the $1000 testing) to try and find out why the Bubble de Logan and its predecessors all bit the dust in 6 - 12 weeks. Maybe some good will come out of this yet!

On the quilting front, I am right now feeling quite the itch to get back to my studio. I've tidied up the work area, but have yet to tackle the cutting table or the design wall. Plus, I'm slowly working my way through the piles of stuff I have accumulated that prevent me from standing back and perusing my fabric stash. It is coming together, though slowly.

We are having family (mine) here this Christmas, so I want to get the fabric/yarn room in enough order to put a guest bed in there if necessary - or at least to hide in there if the family gets rambunctious. What, my family, rambunctious? Oh, yeah, baby. We've been known to have fart contests at the table during Christmas dinner - that's what you get when you're the only girl.

My brothers, whom I love and adore, are big, brash, and not the least bit refined. You can dress them up nicely, but they're more likely to burp out the words to the national anthem than sing it. DH loves having them around, as all the standard rules of conduct go right out the window. They're not rude all of the time, just, you know, whenever we're dressed up and trying to be polite.

Anyway, I'm hoping to have a new quilt ready for the guest bedroom, a matching wall hanging, and a new wall hanging for the master bedroom as well, all done by Christmas. As well as the zillion or so gifts I'm knitting. And the new large square shawl (which will be a throw/wrap for the guest room). Oy. Better get started!

Poked with a Sharp Stick

2005-10-23T08:42:00.000-06:00

Off to the city again to get "examined" by a specialist in burst bubbles. Fun.

GrumbleFutz

2005-10-17T15:36:00.000-06:00

Some days are just grumblefutz days. Today the sun is shining, the wind is gentle, the temperature mild, and yet I'm grumblefutzing my arse off. The malady is melancholy. Poetic, huh?

It seems that the Bubble has burst. Am still waiting for the results of the latest series of blood tests, but know in my heart that it's over. I'll try and pull my head out of my arse later this week, but for now I'm going to stay in grumblefutz land. Knitting, with tea and a cat. And wool socks (stole some from the husband). And my hap shawl. And a homemade quilt or two.

Maybe, once medical confirmation of the end of the Bubble has come in, I will drown myself in apricot brandy. Seems like a sensible thing to do.

Logan needs...

2005-10-16T19:01:00.000-06:00

Tee hee. Found a new thing going around in the blogosphere, and had to try it. Google "[your name] needs", and then enjoy the hilarity that ensues. I tried to limit my list to the top five, but way too much hilarity ensued, so here (in no particular order), are some of the things that Logan needs...

... to hear Bobby say it out loud, that it's okay like this, raw and deep, with nothing between them except the slick, wet heat of the moment.

... secure fencing, and a big yard.

... a ride that means business.

... a specialty harness to keep [her] in the seat while we are on the road.

... to take action.

... defending, since [s]he's such a brat, but defending [her] would be betraying the correct way of living. Dirty communist.

... another Wal Mart like Logan needs another Chinese Buffet.

... to be f#cked with a sharp stick.

... to be less timid about bossing around teammates.

... to take a good hard look in the mirror.

... needs to go.

And on that final note, Logan is outta here. Until tomorrow, anyway. Toodles.

It's just one of those days...

2005-10-14T21:26:00.000-06:00

DebR is addicted to blog quizzes. Usually, I am amused or touched by her results, but don't bother doing the quiz myself. Today, ignoring this quiz was impossible. Yup, I succumbed to the quiz called "Which Absurd Cat are You?" - and my results were, well, umm, uhh, ... absurd but appropriate?

You scored as Pissed at the World Cat. And here we have the next serial killer. Try having some cotton candy, it'll make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, Psycho.

Pissed at the World Cat

83%

Deranged Cat

75%

Drunk Cat

67%

Couch Potato Cat

58%

Love Machine Cat

50%

Ninja Cat

50%

Nerd Cat

17%

Which Absurd Cat are you?
created with QuizFarm.com

Christmas, it be a-comin'

2005-10-12T07:57:00.000-06:00

Christmas is coming. Last year, I had a plan - custom made reversible quilted placemat / runner combinations for everyone. I started working on the gifts late summer, and was done, quilted, and ready to wrap by November. It worked out really well, and the gifts were well received.

This year I have another plan. Hand knitted scarves for everyone (except Dad & his wife, who put in a special request for this Christmas).

I collected the yarn while on my gad-about with Mom, Adrian and Carla in early September, and by the time I got back from that trip, had already finished two (of the 15 I need to make). Yarn weight, fiber content, and colour was selected specifically for each person.

Scarves for men are pretty predictable - most of the men in my family tend to like plain, boring knitting, so are getting scarf stitch (aka mistake rib). To get that over with (and avoid dread of an abundance of plain boring Aran weight scarves), I worked on those first. Of the 5 of those, 4 are finished, and the last one is for a 5-year old, so will be little(whew). Of the three additional men I need gifts for, two will get Fancy-Man* scarves, and the last, well, I have no friggin' idea what to do for him. He may not get a scarf at all. We'll see. * I define Fancy-Man scarves as still knitted in scarf stitch/mistake rib, but with swanky shiny (silk content) fingering weight yarn, rather than heavy Aran weight yarn.

The women, however, are a different story. I really don't want to give them all variations on the same thing (even though that's what I'm doing for the men - double standards abound in LoganLand). And, I have a lace knittin' thang going on right now. So, each woman is getting a custom selected yarn AND a custom selected lace patterned scarf. The first (and only completed woman's scarf so far) was Branching Out, from Knitty.com. The rest I am designing as I go, based on lace patterns I've found in a number of different places. And, like the one man I'm not sure of, there is one woman in the bunch who I just can't pin down. Should she get a shoulder shawl instead? Or lace gloves? I just don't know. Will have to wait and see.

Anyway, now that I've rambled and rambled and rambled, you've probably figured out that knitting scarves is currently boring the cr@p out of me. As such, this morning I started knitting a work sock for DH. He loves his home-made work socks, and I hope to have two pairs ready for him for Christmas. Which means Second Sock Syndrome, times two. Oy. Also, he likes his socks plain. Really plain. Like solid charcoal, with an allowable two stripes, but they have to be in the same place, the same width, and the same colour (dark red). Or, medium gray, with the requisite two red stripes. If I want to get really wild, I might be able to convince him to accept oatmeal as a main colour, but (of course) with the same requisite two red stripes. Although, oatmeal as a main colour may be so scare-ily different that the stripes will need to be charcoal to make them more acceptable. That's my man. Stable, dependable, and don't mess with my socks, dammit!

Gotta say, I'm really looking forward to the one quilted gift on the list (for Dad & Marion). Especially seeing as how with the bubble on board, I can't drink myself into believing that this repetitive knitting is fun, fun, fun.

All for hand made gifts. Which I love to give. And are worth it. But oy, the knitting. Next year, something quilted again.

All is quiet on the homefront

2005-10-11T13:03:00.000-06:00

Not much going on here that is blog-worthy. DH is working, I'm knitting and quilting and avoiding the housework, critters are licking themselves in a sunbeam, and world is alright.

Bubble is still with us, and now has a fun trick of making me regret not just eating, but drinking too. Even water makes me nauseous. Oy. If this one is going to end (like all the preceding bubbles so far), I hope it finishes soon - although the weight loss is kind of a nifty side effect. We're not getting our hopes up, as they've been dashed way too many times. However, it's kind of interesting how something so microscopic can completely take over and f*ck with my body. And I though I was in control. Hah!

Okay, back to the couch for me. And if I get adventurous, maybe some time on the balcony in the sun.

Finished Object Alert

2005-10-07T14:03:00.000-06:00

After 20 days of garter stitch madness, my Hap (Everyday Shawl) is done! After a Eucalaan Lavender bath, I blocked it to the width of a queen sized bed (60"), and used the stripes on the liner of an old comforter as a pinning guide. The critters were not happy about being shut out of the guest room overnight!

Once it was dry, I unpinned it and took it outside for a photo shoot. The strong gusts of wind made for interesting acrobatics, but the Hap seemed to enjoy being aired outside. Maybe later today it will make its uptown debut when I go grocery shopping.

Specifics: Shetland Shawl by Sidna Farley, page 26 of The Best of Knitter's Shawls and Scarves. Used 7 1/2 balls of the Rockies Brown shade of Shetland 4-Ply, by Harris Tweed Textiles, from Elann.com (approximately 1600m / 1750yds). Knitted on US size 10 needles (~6mm). Cast on 2 stitches, then knitted section by section, with no internal cast offs or sewing required. Garter stitch grafted edging (13 stitches) to finish. I did make some minor modifications to the pattern (changes in the lace only).

After fighting the wind, I brought it inside for a still life shot, with serving dishes, on our 60" diameter oak table. The kitchen table gets a lot of natural light, so the colour is pretty darn true.

Also finished is a scarf I'm calling Persnickety. This is standard fern lace, knitted in opposite directions from the middle to make it symmetrical. Tassels were added for a touch of frivolity. I charted the pattern and added my notes, so if you are interested, email me and I will send it out (pdf file).

Some Things that are Growing

2005-10-06T12:46:00.000-06:00

Some things that are growing in my household right now...

- my everyday wear Hap shawl (7/8ths of the edging finished, so damn near fully grown);

- the finished knitted Christmas presents pile (I always start early, as I tend to slump in November then panic in December);

- the stack of dishes specifically designated for use during a large (for us) gathering (there will be a minimum of 8 here at Christmas, so we had to buy extra plates, larger serving dishes, and still need to get more cutlery);

- the blue/green fungus on the old loaf of bread in the pantry (since located and disposed of);

- the microscopic bundle of cells I am carrying in my uterus (ultrasound confirmed correct placement of said bundle of cells, although what was actually viewed on the ultrasound was a bubble/yolk sac). My hormone levels have continued to rise, and as correct placement has been confirmed, yay bundle of cells!

Some things that are not growing around here include...

- the leaves (all have faded from green, and most are now down due to strong autumn winds);

- my arse (I've lost three more pounds, probably due to stress and sleeping through meals);

- whatever it was that two teenage girls buried out behind my yard. Very, very weird. I saw two teeny-boppers leaving the area with a shovel, sniffling a bit, before we went to Edmonton for tests. Today I noticed there is a freshly turned pile of earth with a little plastic cross and some toys out there, right behind our yard. Creepy. I'm not sure on the etiquette of this, but if I had any idea who the girls were, I'd be asking them to relocate the final resting place of Fluffy or Guinea Pig or whatever they buried, so that I don't have to look out on the grave while eating my morning oatmeal - especially seeing as the local dogs have been sniffing around there quite a bit, and if we get a digger, I expect to find remains strewn about my back yard. Ugh.

Tomorrow, photos of some sort. I promise.

Human Pin-Cushion

2005-10-03T23:31:00.000-06:00

I have a new title: Human Pin-Cushion. My old title (Queen of the World) was disputed at length by husband and cats, and really was more befitting the Peanut than me. Thus, I was dethroned.

Why HP-C? Because if I was to drop dead in the street half an hour from now, the medical examiner would assume I am a heroin addict (although would likely be confused by my obvious excess of nourishment). My arms are all bruised, bloody, and have teeny tiny little holes in them. Both arms. Numerous holes.

Why the little holes? Because in order to find out exactly when I begin the upcoming (we know it's coming - at least we're all pretty sure) miscarriage, my blood hormone levels are being taken every 2nd weekday. I get poked on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. That way, the doctor can figure out when the miscarriage starts, and hopefully attach possible causes. Which may then be tested with other, future miscarriages. Such fun.

It's a good thing I no longer consider the state of pregnancy (for me) as anything other than a minor illness, kind of like having a head cold or the flu. Otherwise this would be rather depressing.

But, on the up side, nobody expects anything of me any more - they're all waiting for the inevitable, and want to analyze my every move, so have basically stepped up and are allowing me to spend most of the day, every day, sitting on my arse and knitting. Or surfing the web. Or napping (I do lots of napping).

Except for being stuck with needles all the time, it's kind of like a holiday. No litter box to clean, no heavy lifting, no exposure to harsh chemicals like bathroom cleansers, etc. I can sit around drinking milk, popping vitamins, and watching new bruises form on my arms. The multiple layers of bruising on my left arm, currently in various stages of fading, kind of look a little like Kermit the Frog, but more colourful.

Oh, and for anyone getting all depressed my this post, please don't. This is the first time in years I actually feel that something positive is being done in the quest to find out why I keep spontaneously rejecting fetal tissue. And, under Murphy's Law, because we finally have proper medical care and are being observed closer than we ever have been before, this will most likely be a pregnancy that sticks. Because that would be kind of ironic. Kharmic justice. Almost funny. And probably loud. For the next 18 years or so. Yup. Uh-huh.

Now, if you'll be kind enough to excuse me, I have to pack a knitting project. We leave at 5:00am tomorrow to drive 5 hours to the clinic for an ultrasound. So, of course, I have to drink 4 8-ounce glasses of water, while on the road, and then hold it. While bouncing in DH's work truck, on crappy roads. Then drive back home the next morning, so I can be here for the Wednesday blood test. The fun never stops.

First Snow of the Season

2005-10-01T14:48:00.000-06:00

Time for some photos, as I'm boring myself with my blog.

This is what things looked like out back a week and a half ago, when it was all sunshine and golden aspens around here. We had a couple of very windy days right after this photo was taken, and they stripped away most of the leaves.

Then, last weekend when my in-laws were here, we were treated to an early morning deer raid. There were actually six of them (including two young ones), but they spread out too far for photo taking. Please excuse the fuzziness of the shot - the light was extremely low (did I already say early morning?) and I was shooting from the relative security of our shaded front porch to the house across the street. When I ventured out onto the driveway to try for a better shot, they all took off. Apparently, the deer in this area are smart - they know to hang out in town during hunting season, as there is no shooting allowed in the populated areas (duh).

I got up from my afternoon nap today (no snickering - lazy chick with a stowaway here) to this - DH working on the front garden, in the snow. Not just any snow either - the first snow of the season, and showing up in the form of uber-flakes. Of course, it is a few degrees above freezing, so all the snow is really doing is watering the lawn and providing a cool effect on camera. But I'll take that. Yay for snow! Fun snow!

Knitting and quilting content to continue shortly. I just finished (but still need to block) a new scarf that I designed, and will be putting the pattern up here for anyone interested.

Legal in Canada Already!!

2005-09-30T15:51:00.000-06:00

Found this on Norma's blog, and even though same-sex marriage is legal in Canada (yay Canada!), I had to post it - very funny, in a thought-provoking way. Kind of shoots the anti gay marriage arguments in the foot.

So, without further ado, I give you Reasons Why Gay Marriage Should Not Be Allowed in America ...

1) Being gay is not natural. Real Americans always reject unnatural things like eyeglasses, polyester, liposuction and air conditioning.

2) Gay marriage will encourage people to be gay, in the same way that hanging around tall people will make you tall.

3) Legalizing gay marriage will open the door to all kinds of crazy behavior. People may even wish to marry their pets because a dog has legal standing and can sign a marriage contract.

4) Straight marriage has been around a long time and hasn't changed at all; women are still property, blacks still can't marry whites, and divorce is still illegal.

5) Straight marriage will be less meaningful if gay marriage were allowed; the sanctity of Britney Spears' 55-hour just-for-fun marriage would be destroyed.

6) Straight marriages are valid because they produce children. Gay couples, infertile couples, and old people shouldn't be allowed to marry because our orphanages aren't full yet, and the world needs more children.

7) Obviously gay parents will raise gay children, since straight parents only raise straight children.

8) Gay marriage is not supported by religion. In a theocracy like ours, the values of one religion are imposed on the entire country. That's why we have only one religion in America.

9) Children can never succeed without a male and a female role model at home. That's why we as a society expressly forbid single parents to raise children.

10) Gay marriage will change the foundation of society; we could never adapt to new social norms. Just like we haven't adapted to cars, the service-sector economy, or longer life spans...

-------------

Re-post this if you believe in legalizing gay marriage, or are happy to have same sex marriage legal already where you live.

And yes, I am of the opinion that same-sex marriage is a GOOD THING. 'Cause they're people, ya know?

P-e-o-p-l-e, not P-e-r-v-e-r-t-s. Take that, so called "religious right"! Phooey on you!

Bump in the Road

2005-09-30T06:38:00.000-06:00

Hah! Gotcha! Not that kind of bump, not this time. Nope.

Yesterday (very early Thursday morning) I had just hit "Publish Post" when there was a knock on the door. Keep in mind that it was very early. Wearing robe and hair-standing-out-like-a-clown early. And dark. Really, really dark.

As DH was still in the process of dressing (he was all clean and shiny, but hadn't yet put on pants), he ducked into the bedroom while I looked all confused (who comes to the door at that hour? really?) and answered the door.

An older, somewhat panic-y blond woman blurts out that there is a "body in the middle of the street", and that I should call 9-1-1. Then, she bolts. Takes off. Runs. Gone into the blackness of the really early morning. In my pre-caffeinated state, I step out into the front yard, and can see a rather large bump in the middle of the road, a few houses down.

Well, a zillion scary things are going through my mind (she's got accomplices, and as soon as I step out to check on this body on the road, they're going to rob/rape/beat/murder me). Thankfully, DH is much more pragmatic. He gets dressed, pulls on a coat and his reflective safety vest, and goes booting down the street. As I stand barefoot on the sidewalk (in my fluffy white robe) I hear him yell "she's alive but really cold - call the cops!"

Yup, dialed 9-1-1, and got to tell the dispatcher that there was a woman laying in the middle of our street. She tells me there is a patrol car in our area already, and she will send him our way - within two seconds, he's turning the corner onto our street (at the other end). I wave to him, then point down the street to where DH (smart, that DH) has put his coat / reflective vest combo over the woman. As the RCMP vehicle approaches, there is a big glowing X on her, and DH standing between the car and the woman, waving his arms. He's good that way.

Realizing I'm cold and practically naked, I hustle my fluffy arse back inside, and wait. DH appears in less than two minutes. He apparently got her to respond, but when he first approached her, she appeared to be asleep! He had assisted the RCMP officer with getting the woman (who he described as really young, blond, and not at all coherent) into the vehicle, was thanked, then headed home.

We talked about it for a few minutes, then the man was off to work. Just like that. All over in less than six minutes.

Last night when he came home we talked again, and decided that the incident had taught us a few things, and helped us to realize others:

1. When it's dark and you're the only house on the street with lights on, you're going to get the (hopefully very rare) knock on the door.

2. DH acts and thinks really quickly before his morning coffee, whereas I don't (not new to me, but the first time he recognized that fact).

3. A "body in the road" has the capacity to be a teenager down after a night of drinking - but that doesn't matter. A person passed out in the road still needs attention.

4. Calling the RCMP was the correct, and only, feasible solution. Whether they took her to the drunk tank to dry out, or to the hospital to deal with hypothermia (it was a frosty morning), it doesn't matter. The proper authorities made the decision, and we were able to continue going about our daily routine once the problem was out of our hands.

5. Ours is a very small town. Having a patrol car in our area literally means just that. He was one corner away, and was dispatched to investigate and driving by me before I had a chance to check that my robe was closed (it was).

6. When DH told his co-workers about the incident, they managed to turn it into a joke. He's the only one married, and got teased all day with "How come the married one gets the hot young unconscious blond on his doorstep? Doesn't seem fair!" Apparently, men can turn anything into a joke.

7. The likelihood of either of us passing out in the middle of the street is far, far lower than it was when we were drinking our way through University. That makes us both happy, as where we live, it is below freezing for damn near half the year.

Yup, it was an interesting Thursday morning. And just in case, I bolted down my morning coffee as soon as it brewed. Because you never know when you're doing to be dealing with a crisis. Like a disappearing harbinger of doom. Or a hypothermic teenager asleep in the street.

Signs there might be trouble ahead...

2005-09-29T06:20:00.000-06:00

Hello. My name is Logan, and I am a knitaholic. I'm addicted to changing yarn weight. When my fingers tire of working with lace weight, I like to work my way up to Aran weight. When I've had enough of 5mm needles, I work my way back down.

Notice the use of the phrase "work my way" - intentional. Right now, I have the following projects on the needles:

1. Lace weight - a scarf (Christmas gift)
2. Shetland weight - a hap shawl (for me)
3. Fingering weight - a scarf (Christmas gift)
4. Sport weight - a stole (yup, for me)
5. DK weight - a scarf (testing a pattern I wrote)
6. Aran weight - a scarf (Christmas gift)

Notice any trends? Yup, this will be the Christmas of hand knitted scarves.

Also, please note that I can change from lace weight to Aran weight in ONLY SIX STEPS. I kill me.

Oh, and Deborah? You must be clairvoyant - within a week of your email, your guess was bang on. Yup, pregnant again. Am having blood tests every second day to follow my hormone levels, and an ultrasound on Tuesday (October 4th). We will wait and see how long it takes this pregnancy to end. Bets anyone?

We're really looking forward to this next miscarriage, as it will OFFICIALLY move us from "difficulty conceiving" to "spontaneous recurrent miscarriage", which is really what we should be getting treatment for. So, things are looking up, as we will finally be getting the right kind of help on the pro-creation front. Yippee!

Could I be stress knitting?

What my Dad did this Weekend

2005-09-18T17:05:00.000-06:00

First, consider this - what do you hope to be doing when you are 60, on a sunny but windy autumn weekend (in Alberta, Canada)?

You might have thought reading a great novel, enjoying a walk with the spouse and the dog, spinning the slots at a casino, or taking in some live theatre or a symphony event. All of these seem to me to be reasonable things for a 60 year old to do on a brisk Saturday in September.

Hell, I did two of them (reading, and enjoying a walk with spouse, sans dog) myself - great ways to spend time as the days grow shorter and the temperature drops.

My father, however, had different ideas. Yesterday, while I was reading and/or walking in the fall woods, he was . . . fracturing his tibia while avoiding a collision between a man in a catamaran and himself, windsurfing. Yup, Dad spent the first part of Saturday windsurfing on a chilly Alberta lake, and the second part in emergency, having his fractured leg prepped for surgery.

I just got word that he came through the surgery well, but is now the proud owner of a plate and some pins. He will be joining my younger brother in the list of family members who always set off the metal detectors at airports. Dad may be released as early as Tuesday, so long as he takes to the crutches and pain killers well.

I wonder how long until he is back on the windsurfer? Because he just started taking windsurfing lessons at age 57 - until then, water sports for Dad had consisted of margaritas on the beach, and cursing a misplaced umbrella during a heavy rain. Now he owns a sail and a harness.

Also, he has always wanted to learn to hangglide. Maybe when he's 70...

Love & Loathing in my Basement

2005-09-15T14:02:00.000-06:00

Warning: Those of you with a weak stomach for serious stash collecting should turn away now. Anyone who purchases "just enough for the project I'm starting now", run for the hills. This post is about STASH. Serious friggin' STASH.

Yesterday, I went and picked up the mail for the first half of the week. No, we don't get house-to-house delivery here - we have to schlep up to the local Canada Post Office, which is (oh, so conveniently) only open between 9:00am and 5:00pm, Monday through Friday, with a four hour window on Saturday (10-2). Seriously.

In the mail, along with the usual assortment of flyers and junk, was the latest Hancocks of Paducah catalogue. While I'm not really a fan of their online shop (poorly organized IMHO, and slow service), I do love their catalogue. So, when I got home and had put away the last of the groceries, I brewed myself a cup of Dilmah tea (thanks Carla!) and sat down on the couch to peruse.

Yummmmm. Page after page of glorious colour. Amazing textures. Incredible groupings. Ahhhh (insert Homer Simpson sound and drool effect here).

Then, as I flipped through again, marking my favorite fabrics with a pen, I began to notice a trend. So I put down the catalogue (step away from the catalogue), did something else for a while (laundry and dishes - always there in a pinch), and gave it all some time to sink in.

Okay, clean clothes and dishes done, back to the catalogue. Yup, there it is again. Time to face the music. I marched myself downstairs, and opened the door to the incredible mess I call my Stash. Stepping over the piles and bags of yarn, working my way around the really-good-bargain picture frames and roll of Fast2Fuse, I began to search my fabric stash storage shelves.

Sneaking suspicion confirmed. During the summer of knitting rather than quilting, my quilting fabric stash, while not changing, has matured into --- a collection of my favorite fabrics. The stuff I marked as delightful in the HoP catalogue? More than 90% of it is already in my possession, and just waiting to come out and play.

I love my stash. My stash terrifies me. It needs organizing. And more shelves. Okay, fine, just the yarn part needs organizing and shelves. See how organized the fabric stash is? I love my stash.

Napping + Nature = Good

2005-09-12T18:43:00.000-06:00

This is where I have spent most of today (with brief stumbles about to blog, do laundry, and knit on the balcony). Note the presence of a Peanut, the home-made quilt, and the messy multitude of pillows - all essential for a day of serious nappitude.

This is what has been happening outside while I've been napping. Nature has made the leaves all bright and obnoxious, but in a lovely, lovely way. The clouds boiling about behind the mountain are staying over there (good clouds, well behaved clouds). Immediately above casa de Logan is sunshine, which is doing all it can to make the golden leaves even brighter. Nature turns on the high beams.

Home Again and Resting

2005-09-12T16:27:00.000-06:00

I posted my last blog August 30th, and today is September 12th. Where have I been in the days in between? Well...

Since I left Blogdom on August 30th, I have driven 3,300 kilometres, slept in eight different beds (two were crashing with family, the rest were motels), eaten in countless restaurants (fine, I just didn't count), and seen the colour of the poplar leaves turn from rich lush green to translucent gold. It was a long, but lovely, trip.

Day One (August 30th): Drove from home (Grande Cache, AB) to Bob and Sandra's (the in-laws) in Langley, BC (11.5 hours drive time - not including stop and rest my numb butt time).

Day Two: Drove from Bob and Sandra's to the Vancouver Airport where I picked up Mom, Aunt Carla, and Carla's husband Adrian. Drove them to their hotel in Richmond. Drove back to Bob and Sandra's.

Day Three: Picked up Mom, Carla and Adrian in Richmond. Took the ferry from Tsawassen to Sidney, on Vancouver Island. Found motel just outside of Victoria. Drove around, found the Butterfly Gardens (which we all enjoyed).

Day Four: Drove from Victoria to Nanaimo, stopping on the side of the highway once to stare up at giant maple trees, and then taking a side detour to avoid a snarl in traffic. Put feet in a picturesque lake. Found motel in Nanaimo, and stuffed ourselves silly with really good seafood (really fresh seafood, too).

Day Five: Drove from Nanaimo to Campbell River, with brief side trip to a mining museum in Cumberland, and a stop to take photos of the ocean end of a logging operation, culminating in a raid on a wild blackberry patch that left us all with purple stained fingers and mouths.

Day Six: Dropped off Mom, Carla and Adrian for their trip to see Grizzly Bears doing what grizzly bears do (no, not sh!tting in the woods - catching and consuming salmon during the salmon spawning run). They saw 10 grizzlies! I napped. Staying in Campbell River again.

Day Seven: Drove to Powell River, then caught three different ferries for a scenic (but slow) trip back to Horseshoe Bay in Vancouver. Got a lot of knitting done while waiting for ferries, and while riding on ferries. Took the TransCanada Highway through Vancouver (only way to go), and found a crappy motel in Abbotsford for the night.

Day Eight: Drove from Abbotsford to Chilliwack, where we gassed up and had a real Canadian breakfast (bagels at Tim Hortons). Drove to a rest stop near Hope, where Adrian took over behind the wheel. He did really well considering he is used to driving on the other side of the road (from New Zealand). He spelled me until Kamloops, where we stopped for lunch. I then drove until Valemount (a long day of mostly driving, as opposed to Day Seven's long day of mostly waiting for ferries).

Day Nine: Drove from Valemount to Home!!! In between, we stopped at Rearguard Falls (definitely worth the quick walk), Mount Robson (best on a sunny day), a few roadside turnoffs in Jasper National Park, and had lunch and did some shopping in Jasper. Total distance: 2,400km

Day Ten: Got up really early to drive to Edmonton with my husband (who had been working, so was alone at home the entire length of my road trip) and my Mom. Dropped Mom off at her vehicle, and went to the doctor. Spent the night with DH's brother and new sister-in-law.

Day Eleven: Drove home (4.5 hours, and the addition of an extra 900 or so km to the total). DH went off to work for the afternoon. Did some housecleaning, grocery shopping, laundry, etc. Really, really, really tired, but still have Carla and Adrian here, so the company was good. Mom and her husband (Horst) arrived around 4:30pm. Things got lively.

Day Twelve: Hung around the house, all reading or watching TV. Six adults in the house, but things were pretty quiet and relaxed (we were all bagged). It was cloudy and raining most of the day. Weather cleared up early evening, so I took Horst, Carla, Adrian and DH up to the Sulphur Gates, then out looking for animals. Yes, I left my Mom home alone - but she was manning the phones (and a good thing she did - my older brother Dan got hold of her and they planned activities for the next day). On the way back, we had critter encounters with four mule deer, one bull elk, and numerous female and young elk. Adrian and Carla were thrilled (they had begun to think we'd been lying whenever we talked about the local wildlife).

Day Thirteen: Mom, Horst, Carla and Adrian packed up and left, heading for a reunion with Dan. DH and I went into blah mode. I started, but did not finish, a humungous pile of laundry. And, I thought about cleaning house, but chose not to.

And, that brings me to today - Monday, September 12th. DH is at work. I'm tired. I napped on and off all day, basking in the silence. I love company, and enjoyed the time with family, but man oh man, I'm out of practice. I did get some knitting time out on the balcony this afternoon, enjoying the gorgeous fall colours and snow on the peaks across the valley. Now, I'm off to bed. Again. Or, maybe a bubble bath. In blessed silence.

Summer is for Road Trips

2005-08-30T06:25:00.000-06:00

I'm off again...

This time I'm driving from home to Vancouver by myself, where I will be picking up my Mom (smart woman - she's flying there), my Aunt Carla, and Carla's husband Adrian. We will then be crossing to the Island, where we will spend 4 nights enjoying coastal activities and moisture. Once we're good and mildew coated, I'm driving us all back here, to my place, dropping off Carla and Adrian, then driving Mom back to Edmonton.

My role in all of this is chauffeur. There will be two days with a minimum of 10 hours of driving, one day with 5 hours, and assorted days in between lots of car time between driving and ferry-ing. However, I get a free holiday out of it - Mom is paying for my hotel room (of course I'm bunking with her).

I've packed version 3.0 of the leaf lace shawl (frogged one of the two I had going - just not happy with the way it was knitting up), the PBJ scarf (one ball left to finish), and my Denise Interchangeable Knitting Needles (just in case).

This should be a fun, but tiring (all that driving) trip. I'll miss DH and the critters, and blogdom. And the Summer of Lace Yahoo Group.

See you all September 10th (thereabouts)!

A PBJ Scarf

2005-08-24T14:52:00.000-06:00

Every weekday morning, I get up at 5:30am with my husband. While he's in the shower, the cats get their morning feed, and I fumble around the kitchen half asleep, putting on the coffee and finding fixings for a lunch to go.

At his office (a trailer adjacent to an open pit coal mine, on the side of a mountain), he has access to a microwave, but not to a fridge. So, lunches must be room temperature safe, or on hot summer days, hot summer day safe.

DH's solution to lunch my making dismay? PB&J. Yup, that's right - peanut butter and jam sandwiches. His mother keeps us in homemade jams and jellies (his favorite and most requested right now is the '04 blackberry), so all I need to do is keep us in peanut butter (crunchy) and bread (whole grain).

Yet whenever I prepare another PBJ sandwich, I cringe. PBJ was what the poor, neglected kids got at school. PBJ is like the crappiest of crappy lunches. I feel like I'm sending him off to work with a big giant "screw you, I couldn't be bothered" kind of bag lunch.

However, PBJ is his absolute favorite, so every time I send him yet another PBJ sandwich, he is all happy and thankful when he gets home. Some mornings, he actually asks for PBJ, and it goes something like this:
DH: How about PBJ?
Me: Don't you want something nice, though?
DH: PBJ is nice.
Me: But I have some nice pastrami...
DH: But I want PBJ.
Me: But all the other kids, I mean guys, they'll think I don't love you enough to make you a nice lunch!
DH: All the other guys think you make the best PBJ in the world. In fact, you'd better make extra, so I can share.
Me: grumble futz

So I've been staring at this yummy skein of 100% Merino Superwash goodness now for over a month. I wanted to make something spectacular with it. Something brilliant. Something awe-inspiring. You know the drill.

Instead, it kept whispering to me quietly "PBJ. I'm peanut butter and jam. Really, I am." I ignored it, and swatched for brilliance. Trinity stitch and a lace panel for fingerless gloves. Cables and double moss stitch for fancy socks. Traveling stitches on a reverse garter background for a hat. Nothing worked. Nothing satisfied. They all left me with a hollow feeling that maybe, just maybe, the yarn was right.

It was right. It is a simple, easy, predictable scarf. It combines garter stitch predictability (equate to whole grain bread) with the world's simplest lace patterned 4 stitch repeat (k1, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, yo, purl back). Even the back side looks great.

This stunning hand painted 100% Merino is now the peanut butter and jam sandwich of scarves. But boy oh boy, does this most simple of scarves feature the colours well. PBJ. Noting satisfies like it.

Expounding 001 - News Media

2005-08-17T16:11:00.000-06:00

Note: The following post is OPINION, and thus should not be confused with FACT. The Writer reserves the right to rant at will, and will.

Oh, for the days of old. You know the ones I'm talking about - when the media was about reporting FACTS, and OPINIONS were reserved for the "Editorials" section. Now, if you ask the average young person on the street (I'm bluffing - I haven't, and I won't - I tend not to want anything to do with the average young person on the street), they will likely be hard pressed to tell the difference between fact and opinion.

Opinion, and its evil cousin, emotion, have bit by bit crept in and obliterated the media as it was. Media now seems (to me - this being an OPINION, of course) so full of emotional response and fluffy "And just how did that make you feel?" crap that reporting the facts has gone the way of the Dodo bird (or, if the Dodo doesn't do it for you, insert name of extinct species of your choice, here). Yes, I'm quite adept at the twisted sentence. Fun.

The newspapers are the ones that offend me most. So many people place way too much value in what is written, taking anything published in a newspaper as undeniable truth. Sadly, much of what makes it into newspapers today is unfounded pseudo-fact, poorly written, improperly researched, and decorated with the liberal application of emotional misdirection and sneakily placed opinions. Sigh.

Radio media I pretty much discount entirely. Trying to report the news, including squeezing in the facts with the much more popular and therefore required for ratings opinions, in a three minute spot on the hour, including sports and weather, is darn near impossible. When the radio news comes on, I put in a cd.

Television news is the worst of all. It is virtually impossible to have a simple, non-biased, fact-based reporting of world events these days. Why do I say that? Well, as the majority of television news reports are filled with graphic video footage of carnage and pain, the pictures generate an emotional response even if you turn the sound off. That said, it becomes impossible to have an impartial reporting of facts, when in the background is heart-renching footage expected to generate emotional outrage.

So I've ranted enough. Time for a two minute quick fix. My solution? Preface every single article in the newspaper with one of two words: either FACT or OPINION. As soon as any opinion slips into an article, whether it be a response to the ever so stupid question "And how did that make you feel?", or the writer expressing outrage or indignity, the label has to be OPINION. In addition, a requirement for fact checking must be designed and required. At first, very few articles would be labeled FACT, but I believe that would change, as both readers and writers became aware that the drivel soaked OPINION articles might make fun reading, but aren't actually very informative at all.

It almost goes without saying (but only almost, because I am saying it here) that every single television news report would have the word OPINION floating over the anchorperson's right shoulder, while video footage played over their left shoulder. To shift television news reporting into an unbiased reporting of the facts would require the dropping of photographic footage. Because photographic footage rips at the heartstrings. And generates emotional response. Which is OPINION. Duh.

But that's just my OPINION. Feel free to leave yours.

Warning: Rants Ahead (Background)

2005-08-17T15:39:00.000-06:00

I just had a very long and interesting telephone discussion with my father, who is a holder of very strong, and often unpopular, opinions. He's also smart, well read, and logical. Best of all, he thrives on heated debate about the state of the world today, or at least our little corner of it. I admire the man, and he inspires me, even if we don't always agree.

Anyway, the point is this: our discussion brought up many topics that both of us have strong opinions about, and I want to spend some time writing about them. I will limit my posting to my opinions, as I don't have the right (or the desire) to post for him, too (he could start his own blog though ... hint, hint). And, I will only post on one topic at a time, as expounding is hard work.

So, for the next little while, my blog posts will include a segment of fibre arts content, plus a mini-editorial. Feel free to be offended, and to offer opinions in response via the comments. Now, off I go to vacuum, clean the litter box, and prepare my post about the state of the media today (start small, shall I???).

Flogging Molly

2005-08-16T16:38:00.000-06:00

Ah, Flogging Molly. Introduced to them by DH, I'm absolutely enamoured of this band (yes, Flogging Molly is the name of an Irish folk-punk band, not just a naughty thing teenage boys do behind closed doors).

So far, we've picked up only two of their cds, but they don't get much of a break. If you go to their website to check them out, use the play button on the lower right, and skip to song 3 (although song 1 and 2 are great, too). That's a crank it loud and play it over and over one for me.
The cds themselves are properly produced, so don't have the scratchy poor sound quality of the website (although maybe that's our crappy computer speakers).

We listened to Flogging Molly while driving through the Rocky Mountains (both Jasper Park and Mount Robson Park), and now they are tied in my mind with incredible scenery and sunny days, driving with my favorite husband. Some of the lyrics are great, including my favorite lines, from Devil's Dance Floor on the cd Swagger "Her breath began to speak, as she stood right in front of me. The colour of her eyes, were the colour of insanity. Crushed beneath her wave, like a ship, I could not reach the shore." I don't know what colour insanity is, but it sure sounds poetic!

My favorite song title is "The Worst Day Since Yesterday" - pessimistic, but fun. Gotta love it.

Nope, no quilting or knitting content today. Strictly music for me. And tea. Lots and lots of really strong tea.

4 Days 14 Hours, 2 Provinces, and 1 Sock

2005-08-14T22:43:00.000-06:00

So we're back from our mini-vacation. It was short, but sweet. Sweaty, actually, but fun too. We left Tuesday morning and did the 10 hour drive from Alberta through BC. Many kilometres of highway were driven, under sunny skies and with air conditioning blasting. The company was good - DH and a sock, what more could a Logan Chick possibly want? Sorry about the smeary windshield - we were the great Canadian bug killers across two Provinces.

The first night we spent with DH's folks and Toby the sock-friendly retriever, in the land of many bunnies. Why the land of many bunnies? Because their neighbours brought home two "male" bunnies for the kids, but they soon had many. And the many promptly escaped. Now, the fields around the houses are hopping with bunnies. Literally. And while we were there, we saw the first stages of the generation of at least two more litters. No photos of procreating bunnies, sorry. And now I know where the expression "quick like a bunny" comes from. Anyone want one though? Or two? Dozen?

The next three days and two nights were spent with DH's grandparents in sunny Tswassen, where the welcome was as warm as the weather. Between Grandma, Grandpa, and Uncle Dave, we were well taken care of, and had a great time. They have a beautiful garden with a central patio area great for sitting, knitting, and enjoying the antics of many birds. The sock enjoyed the bird bath, too.

Outings included a visit to a place where injured birds of prey are sheltered (saw some incredible owls, eagles, osprey, and falcons - all way closer than I ever expected to see), some shopping (the Hospice shop that Grandma volunteers at, one quilt shop, and one yarn shop), a number of nice restaurants, a tour of the Steveston area (including historic homes and a boat building yard), and Granville Island. My least favorite part? That's a toss-up between the cr@ppy service and attitudes of the staff at the bead shop on Granville Island, and the traffic in Vancouver. Oy.

The final night was spent back with DH's folks, where surprise early birthday cake (ice cream cake from the local DQ) was served, and the young folks were soundly beaten in a rousing game of Krokano (spelling unknown - if anyone knows the correct spelling of the game, please leave a comment).

The drive home was not nearly as much fun, as we got away late (almost mid-day), and the sun was really hot (thank goodness for the air conditioning!). We found two great restaurants en route, but then drove into a pretty heavy downpour that followed us from BC into Alberta, and all through the provincial parks (both Mount Robsin and Jasper). Our final few hours of driving were in the dusk to dark, and in heavy fog on a winding country highway with very narrow shoulders - some stress ensued. It was sure good to see the lights of home (at around 11:00).

The critters were thrilled to see us, especially as the person that had promised to take care of them hadn't bothered to clean their litter box!!! Yup, I was pissed. But, as DH said, she was a last minute cat feeding solution, and was not expecting to get paid, so we can't really be all that upset. Still, I am, and she sure as heck won't be getting a thank you gift - the poor cats had very little water, and nowhere to relieve themselves - we're lucky we got back when we did!

All in all, the holiday was great (though short), and it is always good to spend time with family. I missed blog-dom, though, so will be catching up for a while. Why didn't I write earlier today? Stress headache hangover from the bad weather driving. Sorry.

I leave you with the sock admiring a rose from Grandma's garden. Oh, and yes, I finished the sock. As it was a second sock, it now awaits a wool wash with its mate, and the first official wearing by DH. He was happy - a holiday and a pair of socks. Woo hoo!

A Short Intermission

2005-08-08T18:19:00.000-06:00

No, I haven't gotten all depressed and un-blog-like again - I'm on vacation. Kind of. DH and I are driving (12 hours each way) to the coast to spend some time with his grandparents. Hopefully, much knitting will be done while he drives. I imagine much shopping will be done while we're there, too.

Back next week. Toodles!

AND NOW, FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT...
This is just some blogAdmin, please ignore.

The FrankenStack and Mrs. Mel

2005-08-08T13:21:00.000-06:00

Last month, when this monstrosity was created/born, I sent this commentary, with the attached photo, to Mrs. Mel. I figured she would get a giggle out of it, and maybe understand. To my shock, she liked it! Oy vey, she even encouraged me to someday share it. I guess that day has come...

It began life as a poncho (yes, I know – not the greatest way to start life), then somehow morphed into The FrankenStack. Why The FrankenStack? Because laid out on the floor, it has a somewhat chimney-ish-ness about it. Oh, and because if I put it on like a poncho, I can become a walking, talking, chimney. Until I trip over the furniture and fall down, because I didn’t make eyeholes in it.

Yes, I can drop it down to sit neatly about the shoulders – but then the alarming tightness of it traps my arms at my side, and I’m stuck in the Stack until my spouse stops laughing long enough to free me.

Yup, I can push it up, and wear is as a cowl-type-thingy, with the benefit of both being able to see and move my arms, but where’s the fun in that? In fact, when I do that (wear is as a cowl-type-thingy) it actually looks, dare I say it, not too bad.

Sadly, DH absolutely refused to be involved in any photo taking, as he is scared the pictures might pop up in public some day. Which they would, if I had them. What’s life about if not to poke fun at ourselves?

On a whim, I decided to try it as a skirt. Why? Hey, I knit the hideous thing, so of course I’m going to try and get some mileage out of it. It can be worn (not sure why, but yes, it can) pulled up under the armpits as a really stinking ugly wooly sundress. But hey, then my knees show. Can’t have that.

It works as a high waisted (just below the boobs) skirt, too. But woof!

And, finally, just when I thought it couldn’t sink any lower, I put it on as a Plain Jane Regular Skirt. Holy crap! It doesn’t look half bad! The weirdest part? DH really-actually-for-real-not-just-kidding-me likes it that way! He went so far as to say that I could wear it in public, and he would actually be seen with me!

Of course, as he was still doing the “nope, I’m not touching the camera, it might break the lens if you put it back into poncho mode” thing, I had to take the photo myself, in the mirror, so excuse the really bad focus, angle, and flash explosion. Oh yeah, did I mention he has bad taste?

Here it is – The FrankenStack. Knitted almost entirely while reading blogs and surfing the web (thus the use of 10 balls of yarn and the forgetting to increase for silly things like, say, shoulders). Yup, that’s a crocheted chenille edging. Can the coolness of this creation be topped? Oh, wait, not cool at all.

The yarn is 60% wool, and has 15% mohair in there too, just for itchy scratchy factor. Worn with a slip to protect the bits from tickles. Strangest part of all? I spent about 7 hours wearing it, including sitting, lounging around, and curling up on the couch with DH, and it kept it’s shape! No saggy bum. No pooching at the belly. No massive gravitational lengthening. Oy. Damn near wearable.

Fun with yarn. When will it stop?

Yup, I did it.

2005-08-07T12:29:00.000-06:00

I started a new Leaf Lace shawl - knit from the bottom point up. This one is charted to knit with the leaves in "hanging" orientation, which I prefer. And, because I can't leave well enough alone, I made the leaf lace area a border, and adapted the center for a more simple triangle of lace (columns of lace - very structured, very me).

So, I'm in the perfect position to evaluate circular needles (Addi Turbo vs. Aero), as I have a leaf lace shawl in the same yarn on each kind of needle, same size and everything. My favorite? The Aeros. My evaluation included the joins (with the Addis I had to help the yarn over - not so with the Aeros), the points (the Aeros are pointier and grabbier), the cord (Addis have the more flexible cord - the only negative for the Aeros), and the needles themselves (I find the shiny Addis too bright and way too reflective while I work - Aeros are more subtle, much easier on the eyes). The other bonus is cost and availability - I can get Aeros easily here in Canada, for substantially cheaper than the Addis. I guess from now on I'm an Aero girl.

Well, with two leaf lace shawls on the needles, I'll see which gets finished first. I may yet frog the Fiber Trends shawl in favour of my own design, but I've gotten so far on it, I may end up with two shawls, instead. With 8 skeins of the Alpaca Cloud in Autumn, it shouldn't really be a problem.

The Leaf Lace Lament

2005-08-05T19:17:00.000-06:00

I love knitting lace. I love lace weight yarn. I love well written patterns for lace, with good charts. I love my 4mm Addi Turbo circular knitting needles. All good things.

The Leaf Lace Shawl by Fiber Trends is one of those great patterns - well written, with a good series of charts. It also has the bonus (thank you Fiber Trends!) of being written so that you can make your Leaf Lace Shawl in two sizes, and with four different weights of yarn - definitely the most flexible shawl pattern I've seen yet.

The KnitPicks.com Alpaca Cloud lace weight, in the colour Autumn, is a truly lovely yarn. Granted, I'm knitting with two strands held together, but that's because I swatched with both one and two threads, and liked the look of the blocked double thread swatch better. I prefer moose lace, which makes sense, as I'm kind of a moose-ish person. Any way, I'm whipping along on this shawl - 12 pattern repeats in 3 days. Cruising! It's a fast, easy, pleasurable knit. Except for one teeny little thing...

The leaves are upside down. See the garter stitch edge at the top of the photo? That's the top edge of the shawl. So, when the completed shawl is worn, the stem end of each leaf is at the bottom, and the tip of each leaf is at the top. Should that bug me? Probably not. Does it bug me? You better believe it! So, after three incredibly pleasurable days of knitting, I now can't even start a new row. I cringe when I look at it. I'm that freakin' bugged.

How to deal? I've come way too far to quit now (halfway through 2nd skein of yarn, so about 600 yards knitted). But, I'm futzing around charting the pattern to knit it in a way with the leaves as if they were hanging, not growing straight up from the freakin' ground. As in start knitting at the bottom point of the shawl, and knit up, increasing as I go.

I've also experimented with turning the pattern into a narrow scarf (knit twice already, once in sport weight Alpaca and once in Shetland weight wool,then frogged because I want the yarn for something else - apparently I'm completely insane) or a wide rectangular stole.

Home-made charts abound. (I'm playing with Excel.) Scribbled and crumpled notes litter the area formerly known as the living room, and now known as my knitting design studio. Small piles of frogged yarn wait patiently for the de-crimping bath.

Essentially, I have COMPLETELY LOST MY FREAKIN' MIND!

Leaf lace lament, my arse. Leaf lace lunacy, my friends.

Any advice? Go ahead, get creative. I can take it.

Sob.

Mmmmm, Cashmere

2005-08-04T16:14:00.000-06:00

So my mother (aka The Evil Enabler Who Isn't Actually Evil, Really Just An Enabler) bought me two skeins of lace weight 100% cashmere for my birthday. 100% Freakin' Cashmere!!!! Hand Painted!! In Canada!!!!

See how nicely it goes with my really out of character for me (I'm a solids girl, no prints, thanks) girly blouse? Mmmmm. And, the other colours in the cashmere let me bring in blue, green, or gold. You know, for those "my eyes are bleeding with the horror of the colours" days. Mmmmm, wicked colour combinations and cashmere.

What to knit? Well, not lace (I don't like the combination of lace and hand painted yarns - neither shows well when knitted together - so sue me (please don't)). Cool, brackets within brackets. My inner blogologue has comments on its own comments. Something textural, but light. Garter stitch stole? B-o-r-i-n-g. Must swatch. Excessively. But not yet, no. Must first stroke and caress the cashmere-y goodness.

And, for my next post, expect to read my rant about the Leaf Lace shawl. It's upside freakin' down people! How has nobody else noticed this??? Oy.

Not just another Mrs. Mel Stalker

2005-08-04T15:54:00.000-06:00

Nope, not me. I'm a Mrs. Mel copier! Okay, fine, I wasn't going to join the Bohemian Knit ring, but then I went to the creator's site. She does what I do! So, what the hell, I may as well.

And also - because I've done nothing but knit the past month - no quilting at all. Not that I'm quitting quilting (tee hee - quitting quilting) - nope. I love quilting. However, quilting is apparently my fall/winter/spring project, while knitting is a summer thing. Why? Because I can easily haul a knitting project out onto the balcony. I can pack a sock knitting project in my purse. I can throw a lace knitting project in the car for long trips. Etc. Quilting? Not so portable, my friends. And what's summer if not all about the traveling? I hate leaving my house, but all I've freakin' well done this summer is travel.

So, this blog will now include mucho about knitting, as well as quilting. Thus, expect more blabbiness from me - I've been avoiding the blog lately because all I have to show is knit, knit, knit. Oy.

Pictures to come. Soon. Probably in a couple of hours. Sheesh.

Oh, and one obscure reference. I like to use the term "freakin'" in my writing. Spellcheck wants to change it to "foreskin". Gotta admit I'm thinking about it.

Mel Kicked some serious Arse!

2005-08-01T15:03:00.000-06:00

Well, our team didn't end up placing in the top 10, but they still did really well, because (a) they finished the race without disqualification, and (b) they finished in just over 12 hours! That's 125km in about twelve and a quarter hours - through water and mud, over three different mountains. Crazy!

Simon, who ran leg 4, look quite a bit longer than they all expected, but still did finish his leg (5 hours 45 minutes for 38km over Mount Hamel). Mel took off at 9:01pm, and came in at approximately 11:02 - two hours for 22km! Her leg included a river crossing at Hell's Gates, by raft. We were planning to be where the trail entered town to cheer her on, but she beat us there! We followed her in the car to close to the finish line, beeping the horn and cheering her on, but then she smoked us, getting to the finish line way before us. That girl can run!

After she filled up with cheeseburgers and juice and had a shower, she felt great, but tired. The next morning we sat around on the balcony in the sun, and she certainly looked like she was ready to run again. She's toying with the idea of running solo next year, now that she knows she has a place to recover, and extra people to help her at each assistance station. We'll see what she decides next summer. I think she's up for it though - she has a stronger will than anyone I've ever met.

Mel's team name is "Fourth Time Lucky". You can track their progress by searching it on the Death Race website.

Mel and her husband left after a morning on the balcony, planning to drive until they were bored and then camp for the night. They took the mountain route home, rather than going through Edmonton to Calgary. They should be home tonight, and back to work tomorrow. DH will be back at work tomorrow too, after enjoying a damn near unprecedented four days off in a row!

Brown Rice and Aching Muscles

2005-07-30T16:16:00.000-06:00

My friend from University, Mel, is running leg 5 of the Death Race. That means she will likely start running between 7 and 8 this evening, which is kind of odd for her (she is usually a morning runner). So, I'm cooking chicken breasts and brown rice with broccoli for her, now, at 4:20, so that she has time to eat a healthy meal and get digested to the point that she is comfortable running. It's weird. I'm not used to cooking at this hour (DH and I usually eat at 8-ish), and she's not used to running in the evening, so neither of us are terribly comfortable right now.

The earlier runners (Joe ran leg 1 and leg 3, and Chris ran leg 2) made really good time - when our leg 4 runner started (Simon) our team was in the top 10! Yippee! The guys all ran hard, and are walking on spaghetti legs, all aching muscles. But, no matter how sore they are, they have to be out there to support the other runners at the exchange points, so Mel has been in and out all day. I plan to be waiting near the finish of her leg tonight to cheer her on - there will be enough people providing support at the finish, so I'll wait where the trail first comes near the town, about 10 minutes from the finish line (and, conveniently, just down the road from home).

Notice how easily I slipped into calling them "my team" even though the only work I'm doing to support is feeding one runner and her spouse, and the housecleaning I did to get the place ready for company. Yup, MY team. Go team!

Good luck tonight Mel - I hope Simon makes good time so you don't have to run too far in the dark (even with your lighted hat, I imagine it sucks to run in the dark).

I'll keep the blog posted.

Fridays are for Cleaning

2005-07-29T12:51:00.000-06:00

DH was told not to come into work today. No, he's not in trouble - he has been working very hard, and is kind of being rewarded, in a round of bout way. We were supposed to be in Edmonton yesterday and today for a medical (how to have a baby in three easy steps) appointment, but had to re-schedule the appointment. As he had already booked Thursday and Friday off, his boss said he may as well take Friday and have some fun. Yeah,fun. That's it.

So, today he has: put up a curtain rod, done the dishes, pointed out areas that need dusting, suggest I reorganize the bookshelf, and generally made a pain in the ass of himself. I figure he has maybe two more "maybe, honey, you should ...." before I beat him about the head and neck with the Swiffer Duster. But other than the annoyance factor, it's good to have him here. Yup.

Okay, actually it is nice to have him home. I just wish it wasn't raining, so he could go outside and boss around the lawn mower instead of me. He's downright ornery with the weeds, too.

Anyway, Fridays are for cleaning, so I'm getting all nasty and sweaty cleaning shit up for the weekend. Later, Friday night will be for drinking. I picked up some really good vodka and some cranberry juice, so this Friday will be for cosmopolitans. And yes, Saturdays are for hangovers.

Big Weekend Coming Up

2005-07-28T06:14:00.000-06:00

Aah, August long weekend. Or, as it's known in the town where I live - The Canadian Death Race. Yup, that's right. "Death" Race.

Now I know you're probably picturing a bunch of retirees doing the lemming thing off a mountain (sicko!!!), but no, that's not it. The Canadian Death Race, known casually to those in the know as The Death Race (boy, we shortened that one down a lot, didn't we), is actually a long distance run (125km). Over mountains. Three of them. Over a period of 24 hours. With so much elevation change that during the course of the race, you can suffer from heat stroke and frostbite, in the same day.

Generally, less than 50% of the starters complete the race. Some are airlifted out straight to hospital. Others give up at one of the many Aid Stations, and are hauled down the mountain on quads. Some limp over the finish line late, thus are disqualified. Oy.

To make it a little easier, they let relay teams of five run the race in "legs". As in "I'm running Leg 2 - Leg 1 is for pussies."
And yes, I know of at least one person who died running The Death Race. He is (yup, is) a friend of ours from University, works at the same company, and dropped about a hundred feet from the finish line of his relay leg a few years ago. Thankfully we have a crack staff here at our tiny little hospital in the mountains, and they were able to revive him - but his heart did fail twice in the process. He's fine now, and ran again the next year. This year he has an ankle injury that is preventing him from running his leg of the race on the work team, so another friend from University is coming up from Calgary (staying with us) to run two legs.

So, grocery shopping will be done today (Thursday), because by Friday, this town will be completely packed with uber healthy stringbeans of muscle in running shorts and toques.

Nothing for a Week, then This?

2005-07-26T15:02:00.000-06:00

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I've been neglecting my blog, I'll admit it. I've still been reading other blogs, and loving them, but have been too funkified (and not the good way) to post anything myself. So, today, pulling myself out of it, I'm on post number two. Oy.

I need to give the back story to the trauma quilt. Note that there are no capitals in the name. This is intentional. I don't wish to capitalize on my trauma. Tee hee. Yucks. I know, I know. Oy again.

Anyhoo, the trauma quilt began its existence around Christmas last year, when I was asked to make a quilt for Chris & Rhea's wedding. My Mother-in-Law suggested that it should be pink, as Rhea is one of those girls that look incredible in pink, and she likes the colour, to boot. I, personally (okay at that time - I've since changed my opinion) hated pink. With anger and vengeance. This was going to be a really hard quilt to work on.

But, I persevered. I went out an bought 8 freakin' zillion half yards of pink, from the palest of pales, to the most obnoxious of brights. Some of them, when they arrived (gotta love internet fabric shopping) were more peach than pink. Peach I can get into, as peach leads to orange, and orange rocks. So, I ordered another 8 freakin' zillion half yards of fabric, in peach to hot orange tones.

And, I fell in love with a Jennifer Sampou print, so bought 3 yards of it, in two colourways (you'll have to imagine the paler version - couldn't find a photo). These prints introduced other colours to the mix - soft heathery browns and beiges, mushrooms and taupes, and some celedon and olive to mix things up a bit. By now, my fabric purchase budget had been blown to smithereens (sp?), and I was rapidly falling in love with the whole pink extravaganza.

After much internal discussion, I cut everything (yikes!) into 2.5" x 4.5" rectangles, and 4.5" squares. Up on the design wall it went. Yup, I was in love. It was freakin' phenomenal. I began sewing it all together, in love with every stitch, and then...

Two things happened. First, Chris & Rhea came up for Christmas, and expressed vague but polite dismay at the thought of a pink and peach quilt. I don't blame them - I was dismayed at that thought too. They chose to go with wood tones, instead, which was a much better choice for them (photo to the left of finished wedding quilt).

Second, I had a miscarriage. This wasn't just another quick-and-it's-over miscarriage, nope. It was a three-weeks-of-pain-and-heavy-bleeding, totally uncomfortable, really upsetting miscarriage. Worse yet, this was the first time we had told any family we were pregnant, so all of them went through the loss with us. It sucked.

Anyway, the pretty pink and peach quilt morphed with my emotions. I cut chunks of it away, and replaced them with frustration and pain blocks. These blocks were made simply to express my emotions at the time. They are full of angry lines, sharp edges, discordant prints and colours. They scream frustration. And, they were forcibly inserted wherever I felt like. The trauma quilt was born. Now, it sits in a closet all by itself, and is brought out only when I really need to vent pain. Like now.

Hopefully, in the end, something interesting will come from it. But, when finished, it will still be pink and peach. And really large. It is already over 100" long, and more than wide enough for a queen sized bed - yet I know it will continue to grow. I'm building it in panels of anger, so it will remain quilt-able.

Anyway, now you know about the trauma quilt. It's a good way to express myself. And it's still kind of pretty, in a discordant, non-symmetrical way. And it doesn't fit on my design wall any more (which is eight feet high!!!).