Knitting for sanity

Back to school this week and it's as hectic as ever. I've really hit the ground running. Actually, with the snow and ice at the beginning of the week I hit the ground sliding and skidding, but you know what I mean.

I won't go on about school too much. All I'll say is that I am up to my neck in preparations for a big health drive I've organised for next week. There are a lot of things to sort out and I'll give more details if it goes well and is a success. I will tell you one funny story from today, though. I've organised for a lot of pedometers to be in school next week. We have a powerpoint slide with details about this and before explaining what would be happening the kids could read the slide. One lad shouted out (deadly seriously): "What paedo meters?"

Anyway, knitting is proving to be such a saving grace at the moment. It's good to think about other important things like dropped stitches and how long to make the foot of a sock.

The Café au lait socks are now finished and looking gorgeous. They'll be with my friend shortly and then she'll travel with them all the way down under. Such jet-setting socks I make:

I'm now working on another pair of socks. These are made from bits of leftover stash. The green and white are from the recent Irish socks and the burgundy is from the café au lait socks. Ezzie has decided they are for him. He loves stashbusting socks and likes these socks because they are different. I decided that for January's new sock (remember the resolution?) I would design my own sock.

I have to confess that I didn't plan on making Christmas elf like socks, but that's what I've ended up with. Ezzie loves them, which is good for him and even though they look insane, knitting them is keeping me sane, which is good for me.

2009

I didn't stay up to see in the New Year. Instead I went to bed at a reasonable hour and hoped that the fireworks wouldn't wake me. They didn't and I had a great night's sleep. I've not been feeling well over recent days so rest was most welcome. Today I've made the fatal mistake of having an afternoon nap, so now I cannot get to sleep. When I can't sleep, I usually blog so that's why I'm here now.

I'm hoping that 2009 is a better year than the one we've just said goodbye to. I'm hoping that I achieve all the things I want to at work, make progress with Chinese and enjoy a couple of nice holidays. They're not impossible desires, so let's hope they happen.

I've made only one resolution, and that is to knit a different sock each month. I reckon I've knitted over sixty socks during the last couple of years and about half a dozen of them have been a patterned sock. I've done some Monkeys, Jaywalkers and recently a Zigzag sock. That's not too impressive, especially when you consider the many different sock patterns out there. I've got two sock books myself, so there's little excuse really. Afterall, they do say variety is the spice of life.

With this in mind I have started a different sock. I've only done the leg part in the pattern, but I think it still looks nice. I've taken the lace pattern from Paula McKeever's Cafe au lait mitts and transferred it to these socks. The pattern is a free Ravelry download and it's nice to make use of all that stuff on the net.

These socks were originally intended for a colleague's wife, but my friend Di was around today and she fell in love with them, so they immediately changed allegiances and will soon be her property and on their way to Australia when she returns there shortly. Why she wants wool socks when it's abotu 40 degrees out there, I'll never know, but she became quickly smitten so I asked no questions. The yarns are some I bought earlier this week at the Wool Baa. The cuff, heel and toe are in Regia 4 ply. It's a burgundy colour. I'm afraid the ball band has already disappeared. The main part of the sock is Regia Stretch Color in colour way Toronto 121. Caroline was at The 'Baa and helped me choose the colours. I think they work really well together.

Tomorrow I will finally send my presents off to Germany. With the horrendous month that was December, I missed the last post date for Europe so postponed sending things until now. I will also be sending my Grandma her first pair of socks from me.

I've long since wanted to knit her some socks, but she has always declined the gift. I think she thinks other people come first on the knitting list. However, recently she asked to borrow some of my knitted socks for bed because her feet have been rather cold. She saw one of these the other day and was pleased so I know they are going to get some wear. The yarn is some Knitbird bought me last year. I forget the type of yarn and dyelot. I'm pretty sure it is Natural Dye Studio and it was lovely to knit with.

When these socks are finished, I'll be knitting yet more socks. A few people in my family are overdue some socks, though I think I need to find some time to knit myself some as well. I've not had any new socks for a while so maybe in 2009 there will be some selfish sock knitting.

Post Christmas, Pre New Year

This time of year is always a bit strange. Christmas seems to be over in no time and then you are waiting for the New Year and then it's back to work. I never seem to achieve much during the Christmas holidays and yet the time vanishes so quickly.

We had a nice couple of days with my family over Christmas. It was great to see our nieces and nephews and we enjoyed good food. Shona and Sienna came back here on Boxing Day and I took them back yesterday. They had a good time and so did we, but it's always nice to take them back home and have that return to normality.

I knitted only a few Christmas presents this year. Last year's epic was never going to be repeated. My Mum loved her Kaffe Fassett socks, though my sisters did wonder where theirs were. The yarn is: Schachenmayr nomotta Regia Design Line Kaffe Fassett, colour way 4354 Landscape : Amazon.

My Dad also received a pair of socks. These are being modelled by Ezzie and were finished on Christmas Day. Luckily, I didn't see my Dad until the evening so there was time to wrap them and he was none the wiser. These socks were made from the second ball of sock yarn I ever bought. They have been in the stash since January 2007 but when my Dad said he wanted 'a boring colour' I was really pleased that this yarn would get used. Most of my socks are in bright and loud colours, so it is good to remember that they are not for everyone. The yarn is Zitron Trekking Pro Natura. The colour way? Who knows. Boring Blue.

I did make a friend some personalised Irish socks for Christmas. These were made from Schoeller + Stahl Fortissima Socka in colour ways 1001 Natural and 1006 Grass. The orange was supposed to be in the same yarn in colour way 1008 Mango but I couldn't get hold of any so it was substituted for Opal Uni in Orange 6. I think they look great.

It's nice to write about completed projects, especially with socks because they usually get given away and only briefly seen when someone crosses their legs. I actually feel I have achieved something recently.

Needing a break

It's been a while since I posted. Life has been really hard during December and blogging just didn't feel like a priority.

Since my last post about my Auntie Ona, Ezzie's Grandad died. He had been ill for a long time, but it was still a massive blow and deeply upsetting. I went to my Auntie's funeral and then five days later was at Walter's funeral. It's been really hard and so we're not a bundle of laughs at the moment.

As for Christmas, well it does heighten the grief you are feeling. You feel they should be here, spending time with you, but unfortunately they are not. We're going to my Auntie's this year and are looking forward to seeing family and give them their presents.

I wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Auntie Ona

On Saturday morning I received the sad news that my Auntie Ona had died. When I tell people this, it just doesn't feel true. I feel everything has changed forever and I'm really struggling at the moment.

Auntie Ona was actually my Great Aunt. I know to some people that may seem like a distant relative, but I always felt really close to her and she has been a major part of my life. Auntie Ona was also my godmother so I've always felt a connection to her.

I know that at 80 she has had a good innings, as they say. She has two children and has had a happy marriage, having recently celebrated her golden anniversary. However, despite reflecting on her great life, I still feel she has gone too soon and I feel incredibly empty.

I only have fantastic memories of her. She was a generous and selfless woman who made you feel great about yourself. She really loved me and knew how to show that love.

When we were younger she and my Uncle John lived in a bungalow with a large garden and fields. When we got to the final traffic lights before the bungalow my cousins and I would spontaneously sing a song where the only lyrics were "Auntie Ona's". It was sheer excitement to get there; you couldn't get there fast enough. I remember once waking up in the car as we pulled onto the drive and being so happy to have woken up there; I'd not missed anything, I'd not missed any time there.

Boxing Day was always spent at my Auntie Ona's and we had great family parties there. I really don't like bananas so she would make the fruit salad without them because she knew how much I loved fruit salad. I remember the first time I ever ate melon was at her house. It tasted so sweet but I think I loved it because it was at her house and everything was great there.

We used to play in the spare bedrooms and there were all her children's toys which were from the fifties and sixties, yet they seemed so much more exciting and enchanting than our own toys.
We played board games, were allowed to use the remote control on the television (ours didn't have a remote) and generally enjoyed each other's company.

My grandma has a photograph of me in Auntie Ona's garden wearing an oversized knitted jumper which she gave to me. It was miles too big and in the photo I'm upset because people have been asking me to take it off for the photo, but I insisted on wearing it. I'm about four years old, but I think I must have loved my Auntie Ona dearly even then.

I cannot believe I'm going to her funeral next week. It just doesn't seem possible. She has been a giant in my life and I cannot believe she's not with me anymore. Last year I knitted her some socks, which she loved, and earlier this week I found the remainder of the wool just to remind myself of how much I loved making her those socks.

She had a great voice and a great laugh and I can't believe I'm not going to hear them again. She meant the world to me. I really miss her.

What? Finished projects?

Two finished projects are here to show off today. Recently I've felt that I never complete knitting so I'm proud to reveal two finished gifts.

The first is the Wendy Happy 4 ply yarn with bamboo. Last time these socks appeared, the second one was a work in progress. Here they are now being worn by myself.

The non-identicalness does bother me sometimes, but I don't think it will bother the recipient. At least they are not remotely identical, though they did start out life as identical on the leg part.

The next garment will be a Christmas present for my mum. It's a hat made from the yarn I carded at Caroline's with alpaca, merino and nylon. I had hoped the hat would be for me as these are very much my colours. Unfortunately I've messed up on the tension and my mum has a larger head than me. I know she will love it and will be good for when she's walking the greyhound.

The next project isn't finished, but has certainly come a lot closer to being so. This is the second sleeve of the Rowan twisted jumper, Portia. This is the last bit of knitting and then it's the dreaded sewing up. I keep reminding myself that I made great progress after completing a cardigan in the summer. I want to wear it this winter so I am going to have to get a move on. I think it should be completed within a fortnight. That is achievable. If you see me knitting anything other than this, please take the needles from my hands.

The Brioche throw will have to take a back seat for a while. I am going to a knit a couple of Christmas gifts after the jumper is finished, but only for appreciative recipients. I think Brioche will be a nice new year project.

Back to blog

The last time I blogged I had loads of things planned. The bathroom was about to get started, I was going to finish some projects and get some spinning done. The world was my oyster; I had that precious commodity called time at my disposal and I was going to take on the world.

I made all these plans but a couple of days of diarrhoea, sickness and lethargy meant my school holidays were largely unfulfilled. The bathroom did get started, but stopped soon after and I learnt to appreciate what running water, a bath and a toilet mean in your life. I didn't get much done for school and have spent the last two weeks trying to make up for that.

I feel that I am lacking inspiration on so many levels at the moment and the overriding feeling I have is tiredness. I've been going back home most weekends to see how my Grandma is doing, but for the past two weekends I've had to decline going. She is doing much better and does get plenty of visitors. If I go there, I end up having to be all things to all people and I need a rest too at the moment.

Ezzie is also feeling really tired. His Grandad got out of hospital on Thursday after being there for eight weeks. Yesterday I was up there and I had to phone Ezzie because I thought we might be having another trip to the hospital. In the end we watched tv there during the evening and Ezzie stayed over. This morning Ezzie says Grandad's not good and is going to stay tonight as well. I think he might have to spend a couple of nights a week there. The fact is his Grandad needs constant care. A couple of carers come in each day to do his dinners and to help him get washed, but he is so frail and his breathing is terrible. It's a real worry. Realistically, however, Ezzie cannot be a full time carer. He does what he can and I help as well, but we cannot do everything. I know that sounds awful, but it's true. We both have demanding jobs and we cannot put them on hold.

The bathroom was finally finished on Friday. It has been three long weeks of upheaval. Poor Granby has had his routine disturbed as well and each night I've come home I've been subjected to a big telling off from him. He is an incredibly vocal cat and during the last three weeks this has increased further. I truly love the bathroom. It's a bit radical and modern but it is gorgeous and I'm really pleased with the look. Apologies for this rather poor picture. I'm not an estate agent, but I think you get an impression of it. It's so much better than it was. I'm too embarrassed to put a before picture on here.

I recently got rid of a load of wool. I had some stuff I was never going to knit with, so felt it had to go. I love getting rid of things, it's always a relief and I can be quite ruthless when I get into the 'getting rid mood'. The problem has been that I've bought some other things to fill the yarn gaps with.

I've bought some Wendy Happy 4 ply yarn. It's bamboo and nylon and gorgeously soft. I'm making some socks for my friend Gisela in Germany. The only trouble is that the stripe pattern has not been the same on the second sock so the socks are not identical.

I think I am okay with this. Normally this would vex me incredibly but I think I'm too tired to care at the moment. The pattern is from Vogue Knitting The Ultimate Sock Book. Ezzie bought me this book last year and it's the first pattern I've attempted. It's the Zig Zag Sock and I'm enjoying knitting a sock with a pattern other than Monkey or Jaywalkers.

Lorainne recently had one of her gatherings so inevitably I bought some yarn there. It's by Mountain Colors and is called Mountain Goat because there is a lot of mohair in the yarn. The colour way is Sunburst. This is gorgeous yarn, I only hope it doesn't spiral.

I have done a little spinning and dyeing recently of my own. I started spinning this yarn in the summer at Caroline's. It's merino, alpaca and nylon and eventually it will be a hat and fingerless gloves set. I've still a lot of it to spin, but it is nice knowing that it has a destiny. The photo is not colour accurate and hides a lot of the purple, green and turquoise which is actually in this yarn, but I think it shows I am getting a lot better at spinning.

I have started the Brioche Throw for about the tenth time. This time I have added new yarns as Jill allowed me to swap some yarn I had bought from her previously. It's got lots of different yarns in it, including ones not included in the Toast and Marmalade book, but I think that the yarns and colours work well and I am enjoying knitting this.

The yarns are:

Colinette Iona in Summer Berries

Colinette Mohair in Gaugin

Colinette Giotto in Marble

Colinette Mohair in Marble

Colinette Tagliatelli in Gaugin

Colinette Mohair in Bitter Chocolate

Colinette Iona in Gaugin

Colinette Giotto inVelvet Bilberry

I'm not usually so good at putting different colours together, but I think this works wonderfully and at Lorainne's last week lots of knitters commented on how lovely it looks. I'm really pleased with it.

I had never knitted with Colinette Iona before. It is a gorgeous yarn, really soft and springy. In the future I want to knit a garment with it. Caroline did a mini spinning class with me and taught me how to spin bigger yarn. I'm sure I could do it, but I like the colours in the Colinette colours, so I think I will stick with their product.

I did dye some silk to include in the throw. I bought the silk from Wingham's a few weeks ago. I love the colour, but it's not right for the throw so I'm not sure what this will end up as being. I've never dyed silk before but I am pleased that I didn't kill the shine in the silk. That can happen apparently.

At last week's mini spinning class I also had a go at spinning some silk. I had previously struggled, but with Caroline beside me I did manage to succeed.

The final knitting news I have is my progress with the Rowan twisted jumper, Portia. I've now completed the first sleeve and have only another sleeve to go. I'm dawdling with this knitting because it is just monotonous stocking stitch. Mara has kindly lent me her Knit Picks needles to knit this and I am so grateful because without these lovely needles this garment wouldn't be happening at all. The trouble is when I do finish it, there's horrible sewing up to be done and that is something I just hate. Any help and supervisors for that job are gratefully received.

Anyway, enough blogging now. I think I've made up for my absence. Hopefully I will manage to appear again soon, but I'm not promising anything.