August progress

I reviewed what I finished in August, it isn't impressive, 4 pairs of socks and a pair of boottees, and that was actually only 6 socks as I was making mates for orphans! I have several half socks and as you can see some part made boottees, but I've been rather distracted. For anyone who needs to know this pattern is from Knitting December 2005.


As you can see, Hecate is fully flexible today - she was very good, she kept her collar on all last night, when I took it off this morning she washed her wound but didn't bite at it much at all so I've left it off and wathed her carefully. She's almost as athletic today as before her operation, she 's also very loving and a bit clingy, hardly surprising I suspect.





I'm happy with how she seems, but very glad I'd booked tiem off to spend with her, especially as I heard today that I didn't get an inteview for the job I applied for and had to deal with someone hacking my eBay account, it's been a busy old day again!

Poor cross kitten

I did get some more bits of boottees made today, but there's no great progress. I was anxious about the kitten and rather distracted by that. She's safely home, but won't leave her stitches alone so has to wear her head colar - which she loathes. As a result she is having absolutely nothing to do with me! She isn't noticeable slower, but I suspect that when the pain killer wears off she may be a little less eager to bounce around the flat! I certainly won't be able to leave her unsupervised for the next few days as she's spending most of her time trying to pull her collar off. Hannah - you are so right - she really hates the collar but the second it is off she bites at her stitches. I'm not sure which issue of knitting the boottee pattern was in - I'll look it up and post it tomorrow.

Boottees done and emptiness

I finished these off this morning, then I went out, the flat is just too empty without a kitten bouncing off the walls. I took her food bowls away from her at 8pm last night, her face was a picture of 'not impressed' but when she got up this morning and breakfast didn't materialise - if looks could kill I'd be dead and buried!
She didn't much enjoy the taxi ride to the vet, but she behaved perfectly while we waited for her appointment with the vet, even though there was a dog the size of a small shetland pony in the waiting room. Once in with the vet she attempted to escape and explore, the vet had to detach her from the back of my jacket, but for a wonder she didn't make any attempt to bite!
She'll be coming back with a 'lampshade' around her ehad to stop her biting her stitches, I've removed her hanging net pockets for teh time being as she won't be able to get into them and I want to discourage her from trying until she starts to heal.
I promise I'l take pictures of her, but I plan on spending most of the next few days curled up reading and knitting as that tends to encourage her to stay quiet as well. I'm off to collect her now and then bribe her with special treats to eat!

Boottee progress

I'm still enamoured of this pattern, because I knit ankle socks it means I can get a pair of socks for me and a pair of boottees out of 2 skeins of Koigu, this impresses me no end!

I've got a couple of books about modular knitting, but I've never seen any patterns that really attracted me before these, now I've achieved these easily - and enjoyed making them so much I'm going to go back to them.

Kitten and I have been at cross purposes today, I've been trying to do a late spring or early autumn cleaning of the kitchen and living room, she's been hell bent on chasing my feet and cleaning equipment. I do wonder if she knows somehow that tomorrow she goes to the vet for spaying! Depending on how she is I may not blog tomorrow as I've promised myself to spendtime sat with her as that may encourage her to stay quiet rather than trying to leap around the flat!

Not a sock in sight!

I've finished the back of the cable and rib tunic, I'd forgotten how quickly this pattern grows, I suppose all the time I spend knitting in 4 ply makes double knitting a treat!

The front is about two thirds done, it would have been finished but I've been alternating housework with playing with mitred squares. I've also done yet another load of washing, unblocked my vacuum cleaner and spent some time snuggling with the kitten - she has her appointment with the vet on Wednesday and I feel the need to give her lots of love before then - anticipating that she may be a trifle cross with me after her operation!

This is the boottee pattern from an old issue of knitting, I'm using up left overs of Koigu for this, although I'm not sure if I have enough of this colourway.

I'm going to make both feet then see what I have left for the cuffs, these are a realy fun knit, I'd tried making mitred squares before but never made anything with them, this is definitely an interesting way of making boottees even if it does make for a lot of ends if you don't weave them in as you knit!

Progress!

I'm reknitting the cable and rib tunic and going really well, I've done the front and back together so far and even managed to centre the cables - unlike when I made this the first time! Looking back I think I need 8 pattern repeats and I've done 5 so I'm feeling pretty smug! I've also done 3 piles of washing, a pile of washing up and finished moving stuff out of my living room and into my bedroom so I can get council work men in! Poor Hecate has been so confused everytiem she thinks I've sat down for a while I'm off again moving things.

I've even finsihed the gusset on this sock, just to keep it jogging along and to give myself a rest from knitting with cotton.
A quick thank you to my Secret Pal for my ecard and post card - I love the sheep!
Oh, and I found how Hecate got a floury head - she'd pulled an empty bread mix bag out of the rubbish and got her head inside!

Loot and 'not a sock'

Yes, I know this is the current sock, I decided to keep it jogging along while I cast on another cable tunic, I've decided to make 1 year things for the expected babies, everyone I knwo seems to have huge babies nowadays, and I'd rather make things for when the child is a little older anyway.

So, here we have the first rows of the cable tunic, I need to find my 4mm needles to carry on, I'm always running short of needles due to casting on too many garments, it does feel strange knitting with double knitting after so long mostly knitting socks in 4ply!

These arrived today, all nice additions to my collection - and cheap too!


This is what I term 'Japanese Arklow' it matches a vase that I have, the dark blue colour is gorgoeus, I don't see this style often but I keep hoping!


Art studio pottery, this storage jar matches a large vase and ashtray but wil have to be kept safely from kitten as she will ahve taht wooden lid in no time flat!

Finally, a parcel from Get Knitted, I forgot to take a picture of the new Knitting Magazine - Knit Today, I've only glanced at it so far so I'm not sure if I'll get more, I'll take a good look this evening. I'm keen to try the Cascade Sassy Stripes and the Wildfoote sock yarn that is here.




Here we have Lorna's Laces in Cedar and Mineshaft, I love knitting socks from Lorna's Laces but I'm afraid I only buy it when it's reduced!

Mountaineering time again

Kitten climbing onto the lounge door this time, she eventually decided she was stuck and needed my shoulder to jump onto.

Here she is about to start yowling to tell the world she was stuck

Here she is nested with some yarn, she does love boxes and skips of yarn, even acrylic will do at a pinch.















Her favourite toy for today - a piece of a biscuit packet that she's been carrying around all evening.














A very lime green sock, I don't plan on doing much sock knitting for the next 9 days as I'm taking next week off work, this should give me the chance to do the housework (much neglected) and some baby clothes, I'm thinking of reknitting the cable tunic jumper that I made for my Olympic challenge but in smaller sizes, I managed the size I did in 2 weeks so I might manage 2 smaller ones if I get my skates on.

Happiness

With perfect timing I found this in the newsagents near my office, I bought it for yself as a reward for finishing my job application, my boss has to add his comments to my form and he's been very positive, the forms have all gone off and now I just have to wait! I'm keeping an open mind about my chances - I've done the best I can and now I'm switching off and concentrating on doing things like packing my last Secret Pal parcel, cleaning the kitchen and cuddling the kitten.






I've finished the cornflower blue socks - no more blue fingers for me! I'm planning a bulk trip to the Post Office next Tuesday and will get them in the post then.
I'm back to my limeade sock now, I still haven't done the maths to see how many rows I need to add to the Regia sock foot so have stopped that for now, when my brain next works I'll calculate it and carry on.

Cat burgling

This little madam for some reason has flour on her face - I have absolutely no idea how, but then I came home from work yesterday to find an entire box of pins scattered on the lounge carpet and then she proceeded to steal a 50 pence piece from the table and leave with it - surprisingly it didn't end up in my shoe, so I'm not sure where it is! She ignored the 10p pieces and the 2p pieces, this baby has expensive tastes.

The blue sock is part way along the foot, my job application is all but finished, it's with my manager for final checking, tomorrow I make any last minute changes and then we email it, I've hated filling in the forms, I'm very bad at blowing my own trumpet, and there was nowhere to tell them about my sock knitting! My neighbour is away so my packages are all at the Post Office until the weekend, it's been thundering and lightning here today, I'm planning a quiet night and very early to bed! (Kitten is playing at the foot of the stairs, she seems happily occupied though goodness knows what with!)

My kingdom for a bus!

Owing to the fact that some young hooligan stole a rufuse lorry and overturned it near where I live this morning I waited an hour for a bus, my boss couldn't get to work at all and local travel was disrupted for several hours.
It's never a good start to the week waiting in the rain, I have got a reasonable amount of sock done though, I'm hoping to finish this pair off this week, then I can try and figure out how to post them with the new rules on posting invented by Royal Mail to torture us. I wanted to post my final secret Pal package this week, but I'm delaying it a few days in the hopes that the Post Office won't be so crowded. The kitten is merrily hunting an empty plastic drinks bottle up and down the stairs and leaving me in comparative peace, so I'm going to snak off and try and get an early night soon.
Melissa, thanks for your comments, I love the colour too, just wish that my hands didn't end up that shade too. I'm glad you like the stitchmarkers, I keep hoping they will start to sell, but I love some of them and will find it hard to part with them!

Fingers of blue

I finished a cornflower sock, teh yarn is still turning my fingers blue, but it washes off fine, I suspect that another rinse will remove the extra dye and the future recipient of the socks knows her feet may turn blue!

I even cast on teh second sock (after winding off the next skein) my regular readers will know this is almost unprecedented behaviour on my part. I need to get this pair and thw Regia done so that I can knit baby clothes for people so i'm determined to get it done this week if possible.

The Regia sock is groing a little more slowly (teh yarn is thinner and the needles the same. I still don't like the orange but the rest is OK and I'm as usual getting a childish enjoyment from watching the pattern appear.





Our latest stitchmarkers, I haven't listed them all yet but will be doing over the next few days. So far I've resisted the temptation to keep any for myself but it can only be a matter of time, my partner in crime who actually makes these up has excellent taste.

Sleepy post

Kitten isn't sleepy - kitten is hyperactive and galloping around the flat mostly off the ground - she loves being high up and I've learnt to leave pathways for her to rce through. I've just spent Friday evening and most of today sleeping, looking out of the window it appears to have rained a lot while I was asleep!


I have managed to nearly finish one blue sock, and I've wound myself the skein for the other sock in preparation for casting on the second sock. I'm going to be noble and just cast on mates for orphans this week!

Regia Marrakesch growing nicely now, and I do have until October for this pair - I'd like to get on with it though as I have baby gifts to knit for then too, luckily I have a week off very soon, kitten will be having her operation and I want to supervise her for a day or two afterwards - so I may get some good knitting time then. I had taken some pictures of new stitchmarker sets, but they came out all wrong so I'll have to try again later.

A sucessful audition

The Marrakech yarn has met with the approval of the owner of the feet it was planned for so I've got a move on with it. I confess I'm not partial to the orangey bit but I quite like the rest of it and I always like knitting socks in self patterning yarn when I get to watch the patterns come out.





Here we have the picture of innocence, you'd never guess that she'd hidden a prawn in my shoe last night would you?
Nor that she had been into yet another box and stolen more yarn, another skein turned up in the bathroom today.










She is a very clean cat as you can see, spends hours washing herself.









And never seems to mind being photographed.
I must thank my Secret Pal for sending me an ecard from near where she lives, the buildings look lovely! I've been very good, I've made no attempt to figure out who is spoiling me, I'm looking forward to finding out who has been such a kind and thoughtful spoiler though. I must pack a parcel for my spoilee, I've finished the latest draft of my job application and I'm feeling rather better and more positive about it tonight so hopefully I'll get on with other things now!

Here kittty, fetch kitty!

The blue sock grows - if only slowly, I'm hoping to get it done this week but I'm still fighting with my job application. I'm getting terribly stressed about it but Hecate raised my spirits yesterday by finding soem totally new behaviour to make me giggle. My neighbour is going away for a week and was leaving her keys with me, her daughter posted them through the door last night, (I have an upstairs flat) Hecate ran down stairs, picked them up and ran back, she dropped them at my feet with a look that clearly said 'Look how clever I am, let's play!' I took the keys away from her so they didn't get lost and she sulked - she then climbed onto the dryers that hang over the doors and knocked every piece of clothing off them!

I haven't decided if I like this, Regia Marrakech I think, it's auditioning as a gift for a friend, self patterning yarn always seems to need knitting with to show what pattern it will produce , I'll see what he thinks and then decided. If this fails the audition I think I might try Cherry Tree Hil, I think the yarn I have in mind is Wild Cherry or something similar.
Now I must return to the application form, or possibly just cuddle a kitten which is much more fun!

The smell of the kitten

Hecate looking out of the window, the day started wet but has been nice and sunny this evening, she still smells of air freshener, but not quite as badly as last night.


She was determined not to let you see the pink tongue while she washed herself, I can assure you that it is pink and quite cute!

The cornflower sock has progressed well, my fingers are fairly blue but I'm onto the gusset. I may not get much done tomorrow as I'm planning a day of working on a job application, shopping for groceries and a mountain of housework, don't be surprised if there's no update here until Wednesday as I also need to get packing a final parcel for my secret pal!