Out with the old and in with the new!

The Tree of Life socks are coming along well.



I don't particularly like the heel gussets,

if I were to do these socks again I would do "normal" gussets since I don't have feet shaped like high heels. But otherwise I love these socks and I love the pattern! 1 sock down, 1 to go!!!

We got some new furniture so things were a bit hectic with getting rid of old furniture and bringin in new stuff and generally shifting things around. Luckily a friend's son is moving out on his own so we were able to easily get rid of some furniture that way. Having three households worth of furniture (our old stuff, our new stuff and Tiny's brother's stuff) would have been a bit excessive! So now we have almost all new furniture and almost all "good" stuff! I was so happy to find furniture in a colour I (we) liked and a fabric I don't hate. Do you have any idea how difficult it is to find furniture that is not microfibre, leather, or faux leather that cost less than 5 grand? I hate leather, it's cold, uncomfortable, and sticks to your skin. I don't like the way microfibre looks and I think it always looks kind of dirty and dusty. Finding this couch and loveseat set was a huge big deal!

I love the new furniture and the cats are under the impression that we bought it just for them.


I don't think they understand that they aren't actually humans...

Distractions

So...I started knitting non-craft show, non-Tiny Sweater stuff...
I am knitting a pair of worsted weight socks in a very bright green and black variegated yarn for a co-worker of Tiny's...he has size 11W feet...meh...but then I got distracted by the February Lady Sweater and I knit that for a while in a beautiful rich red-red. I almost finshed the raglan increases by the second day..but on Christmas Eve I picked up another skein of Starry (this totals 3) to go with the Black Pearl Starry I already have slated for the Tree of Life Socks. This sat in the basket for a full day before I had to cast them on...Christmas day evening I cast them on and started knitting away. I am trying out a 9" Hiya Hiya circular for this project. I love DPN's and I generally don't ahve any problems with tension with stranded knitting except at the bridges between DPN's. The circular was HORRIBLE for the first 3 rows...and all of a sudden SHAZZAM! It started working so quickly and easily. I love it! Except for having to use a stitch marker-that's really annoying. My tension is better, my knitting is faster. And the yarn is truly wonderful. After knitting Tiny's sweater in a scratchy icelandic yarn and all the other not buttery soft yarns I have been using-this yarn is almost innappropriate feeling on my hands, it's soft and squishy and yummy.

I LOVE THESE SOCKS!

Finished...ish

So I cast of Tiny's Sweater today. I was about to weave in the ends and block it when I thought I should get him to try it on...especially since it's a sweater I designed and not from a pattern. Now before you think the worst, don't worry-it fit him fine and looked really good...except for the neck. The neck is HORRIBLE. It...doesn't work...I can't describe it...I don't want to think about it...
I drop kicked it across the room. I'm not even saying that for blog amusement-I actually drop kicked the sweater...
So now I have to pick out the cast-off and rip back the neck and find a new neck strategy. I am going to sift through a bunch of patterns until I find one that seems right...later...not now...sometime in the future...only God knows when...

Obviously I don't have time for blogging...

This is what I have been doing...

It's obvious I don't have time for blogging...I have a goal to finish it tomorrow...

I don't know what came over me...

Something happened. I couldn't handle it anymore. I wasn't feeling festive. Christmas was 5 days away, and I lost my everloving mind. I went on a baking rampage...
I baked 3 types of shortbread-1 plain, 1 with jam, and 1 with chocolate. I made diabetic friendly butter tarts. I made diabetic unfriendly butter tarts. I made mincemeat tarts-the mincemeat was made from scratch. I spent 4 and a half hours making delicious smelling goodies. I baked so much I hurt my back. I ended up with something like 10 dozen goodies. (I'm eating a butter tart right now). I downloaded a whole whack of Christmas songs and listened to them all day. I wrapped christmas presents. I didn't knit all day. I was generally insanely festive.
Now I have a billion cookies and tarts and nothing to do with them but EAT them! I am not going t0o any Christmas parties or family events. I made a vow not to do the general cookie give away this year because people were taking that for granted.
So now I get to spend the few days before Christmas stuffing my face and knitting...actually...now that I type it out...it doesn't sound that bad...

Call Me Ishmael

Tiny's sweater has become my great white whale...
I have been kntiting it since September, and designing it since...time immemorial. I seem to have some kind of subconscious block in connection with it. There are always other projects I need to work on. Last week I decided to sit down and slog away at it until it is finished.
Slogging is an excellent word...I finished knitting it to the point where I can justify starting work on the sleeves. I almost faltered at this point, but yea verily, fate swung her fickle locks and threw me a curve ball...I made myself a secret deal that when I finished one sleeve I could cast on a sweater for myself, and maybe start knitting some thick wooly socks for my husband's coworker...I was just about ready to sneak off and start knitting something else, when upon review of the patterns I realized that everything used the same size needles! Curses!!! Foiled again!! I can be a pretty fickle knitter but even I can't justify pulling needles from a project that I promised myself I would finish sometime this century to start other projects.
So here I am knitting away at Tiny's Sweater-which isn't so Tiny-I am going to have to find some truly triumphant music for the completion of this garment. Maybe even throw a party. I'll invite a whole bunch of people over, cook lots of food to warm up the kitchen, turn the thermostat on as high as it will go, and then make him wear the sweater all damn night...yeah...that will make me feel better...

Matchy Matchy

This was the big weekend of the Craft Fair. I did really well and had a goo dtime. Unfortunately I forgot to take a photo until the end of the 1st day, so I don't have a photo of the table before selling a whole bunch of stuff!

I also picked up a few items at the craft Fair, and I had to work some serious willpower not to spend all the money I had made! Mackenzie helped out quite a bit and earned herself enough money to buy her Dad a Christmas present. She was super excited about having earned the moeny herself!
I bought a few pottery items. In the past few years I have developed a love of pottery. I wasn't keen on it for much of my life because I grew up in a place where it was pretty much shoved down my throat-that's not a reflection of my younger homelife but of our geographic location...
But in Kamloops I have discovered a potter who I admire greatly both as an artist and as a person. She is my favourite local artist, and that's saying something considering how many artists I get exposed to as the President of the Kamloops Arts Council. She is a truly talented potter and an incredible painter. I can't afford her paintings, so I buy her pottery-which she seriously underprices! It would cost me more to buy a nice serving bowl at Winners/Homesense than to buy a handthrown serving bowl from her. I have been getting her pieces through various means for just over a year now-commision, silent auction, purchase, trade and gift. I now have quite a nice set of matchy matchy local pottery and I am in love with it!!

I also have purchased a couple pieces by other potters that are not matchy but coordinate. I will continue to get more because I love it, it's functional, and durable!! (and within my price range!)

As previously promised I am throwing in a picture of the rabbit:

see that crooked ear? It's like that all the time and is way too cute. We've been having some adjustment difficulties and some minor health problems, but things seem to be settling in. She is such a nice bunny, very friendly and affectionate. She likes to pick up her brush and throw it at me- a good way to let me know it's brushing time! She got renamed completely by accident. I call her Bunny-wei, they yelled "bunny-wei!" in the Stargate movie a lot and it just kinda stuck.

Tiny decorated the Christmas tree this year. This was a big deal since he always leaves the tree decorating up to me. But last year, right after Christmas, he received some Maple Leaf ornaments as a gift and at some point her decided we had to have a Maple Leaf themed tree. It turned out really well! And next year I get a Coca Cola tree!!

Mackenzie has been kitting and getting quite good. The improvement in herfirst project from beginning to end is very cool to see. She is getting quick and confident and is now a faster knttier than some adult non-novie knitters I have met! She is on Ravelry. It`s nice to spread the disease....

so...