Month: January 2015

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In which there is woollies, decorating and long division

I am still putting off showing you stuff that I made for Christmas. It wouldn’t take very long but the thought of actually working out where the few photos are that I remembered to take and trying to think of something to write about them has sent me scurrying off to do the gloss paint which is what I was putting off the week before (the queen of procrastination, remember?). This week I have mostly been dangling over the bannisters with a paint brush (don’t tell my mother, she’ll have forty fits) like some sort of trapeze act with added mess. (It’s ok, Mum, I’ve done all the high bits now.)

Before the guilt about not writing anything and the decorating set in I finished this jumper and have mostly been wearing it ever since (except for the parts when I was painting). I have been very pleased to have it this week as it is lovely and warm. I should have taken a picture of it before I wore it though  – it is going bobbly already.

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I nearly stuck to the pattern (also, chronic tweaker) – I added in a bit of shaping at the waist and a few short rows above and below the yoke to raise the back slightly and lower the front; it should be one of those that doesn’t have a front or back but I don’t like having a tickly neck. The yoke is a bit interesting, it’s got a few purl stitches thrown in here and there so it is a tad lumpy. I haven’t decided whether I like it yet or whether it just looks inside out but it is very warm so I think I’ll live with it.IMG_2762

I also seem to have produced a few body parts for another wee critter, this is as far as it’s got. It reminds me of the Griffle from Puddle Lane at the moment.

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I have run out of decorating for the time being and the only reason I am writing this is that I am really supposed to be working out how to do long division. I have somehow survived thirty one  years and a month or so on this planet and a maths degree without ever knowing how to do long division properly and I should really work out how to do it before I try to explain it to someone else…

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A bad case of startitis

Startitis is a recognised condition in knitters (and other people like that) who start loads of projects all at once. I had some vouchers for Christmas and I am really itching to make a nice brown cardi with some wool that has been out of stock since the middle of December so instead this week I have started a crocheted goblin, started a different jumper that isn’t a brown cardi, finished a goblin and I still have two pairs of socks on the needles from about October.

Here is the goblin. The pattern says his name is George and normally I like thinking of my own names for things but he does look like a George to me. He is going to play merry havoc with my obsessively alphabetical books when I am not looking. I really like his belly button and his curly ears. What a strange thing to say…

The jumper is a top down one (top down jumpers are great because you can try them on as you go.) called Kjerstin (which is a free pattern). 

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And here are the socks looking thoroughly unfinished:

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I’m supposed to be sanding the skirting boards, can you tell?

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In which we have the flu

Christmas this year was a bit interesting. I made it as far as tea time on Christmas day before the flu got the better of me and the Man in the Shed was not far behind. Some kind grandparents took the Smalls and we more or less slept until the 28th. The one advantage I can see to not having very much energy is lots of knitting time because you can’t do much else. The wool for this vest was a Christmas present and I thought it would last me until at least February…

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This is the main bit of the body finished. It is knit in the round and has some steeks – where you knit some extra stitches in so you can cut through them later to make armholes and stuff like that.IMG_2704

I crocheted over the edges of the steeks to reinforce it before cutting – the grey lines are the crochet.IMG_2711

This is the vest after the steeks have been cut.IMG_2728

And this is it after doing the edgings and generally tidying up ends and things. The pattern if you are interested is Ivy League Vest by Eunny Jang and the yarn is Cascade Heritage in some nice colours. It’s quite pretty but next year I am getting a flu jab.