I Love Mondays ... at least until the end of 2007

Due to bad recordkeeping on my part and an earlier miscommunication from our payroll person, I discovered a couple of weeks ago, to my surprise, that I still had nine vacation days left! Since vacation days cannot be carried over to the next year, I decided to take off every Monday until the end of the year.

Yesterday was my second such Monday off and I am thoroughly enjoying the long weekends ... although I don't want to think about how difficult it will be to go back to regular weeks in January.

I'm afraid there isn't much else going on but, as usual, there are socks:

Cloverleaf Eyelet from More Sensational Knitted Socks in Dream In Color Smooshy. Color is "Petal Showers".



Bordello Socks (pattern on ball band) in Fleece Artist Sea Wool. Not sure what the colorway is ... there was no name anywhere on any of the tags.

This is pretty much the same pattern as Jaywalker socks except that there is garter stitch instead of ribbing at the top of the leg. It is just as unstretchy as the Jaywalker, but as the recipient has very slender feet and legs, I am sure it will fit properly (she says hopefully).



For those of you who think I only ever knit socks ... I started a scarf!

Yarn is one of my all time favourites: Jo Sharp Silkroad DK Tweed. Colour "Berry". Inspired by the Irish Walking Scarf pattern, but I have added some smaller cables on either side of the centre one. The small cables are crossed every fourth row and the larger one every eighth. I am about half way through.

Déjà vu

These socks - my first completed Christmas present for this year - were a lovely knit. This was my first time with Dream In Color Smooshy yarn and I am so very happy that I have four more skeins of it waiting in the sock-to-be drawer. The name Smooshy says it all and the lovely non-pooling colour (Beach Fog) is a joy to behold.

I've used this stitch pattern before (Cross-Hatch from More Sensational Knitted Socks) and it is definitely a favourite.

I was finishing up the second sock while watching the movie Groundhog Day on TV yesterday morning. I love this movie. I own the DVD, but I always watch it whenever it comes on the tube. I was knitting along merily and was sure I could time the end of the sock with the end of the movie - this appealed to me for some reason.

I was pretty pleased with myself when I finished the grafting of the toe along with the rolling of the movie credits. I basked in the glory of the finished sock for a few minutes before hoisting myself off the couch to go unite the just completed sock with its mate. I am holding both socks up by the cuffs, smoothing them together to admire my handiwork when, instead of perfectly twinned socks, I am horrified to see that the second sock is longer than the first! It seems I had done 10 repeats of the pattern on the instep instead of the 9 done on the first sock.

So I spent the next hour and a bit undoing and refinishing sock number 2 ... my own little Groundhog Hour!



This pair, also finished last week, is done with Wooly Wonka BFL Superwash in the Wasatch colour way. I like this colour so much that I ordered more of the yarn to make myself a scarf.

Stitch pattern is "Stems", again from More Sensational Knitted Socks. A very nice stitch which would be much better suited to a plain coloured yarn, but it nevertheless gives the sock a great texture.

What's Red and Blue ... ?

These red socks were completed a couple of weeks ago, but since they hadn't yet arrived at destination, I didn't want to spoil the surprise. Now that Grace has received them, it is safe to post a photo.

Pattern stitch is from More Sensational Knitted Socks. Which pattern stitch is it? Your guess is as good as mine. The book is at home and I'm posting this from the office - so I can't check it. Yarn is Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in the Red Rover colorway.



The blue socks were knit for my son's birthday - the first pair I've knit for him. He loves them and they fit perfectly. Pattern stitch is Garter Rib from Sensational Knitted Socks.



I've been pretty good on the "stash improvement" project since I cleaned out and organized my closet last month. However, I just knew this restraint was too good to last. Here are this week's additions to the tightly knit (!) stash family:

Some Kauni, in the "EJ" colorway. I'm blaming Bets for this purchase ... why should I take full responsibility? She placed a big order with Astrid's Dutch Obsessions and blogged about it. Who am I to pass up the opportunity of a never-used before online buying source and the fun of receiving a package from the Netherlands? By the way, the yarn is lovely, but I think the best part of receiving this parcel was the little extra addition of a piece of Dutch spice cake ... was that ever yummy!

I'm not sure what the Kauni will become yet, but more than likely a shawl or stole.



Four skeins of Dream In Color Smooshy - all destined to become Christmas presents for family members.



I've been spending a lot of time at Ravelry. That place is brilliant, but sucks all the knitting time out of what is left of my day once I am done with work!

Happy 24th Sweetie!

My baby is 24 years old today. How did that happen?

He won't let me post current photos, so I thought I'd be self-indulgent and share a few pictures showing some of what he did (and still does) best:

Eating



Sleeping



and charming everyone with his smile



He has grown into a lovely man - caring, generous and with a great sense of humour. Every mother should be so blessed.

Love ya babe!

Plan B

I knit just a few rows on the stole last weekend and came to the sad realization that it was just not going to get done in time for birthday giving. I'm not throwing in the towel, but I'm just not in the right mood for it at the moment. It will either be a Christmas gift ... or a Groundhog Day gift (this woman celebrates everything!).

Accordingly, Plan B was called upon: Orange socks. Once again from More Sensational Knitted Socks. Stitch pattern is Hourglass Eyelets. Yarn is from Jayne's shop - wonderfully soft and squishy superwash merino.




While I was knitting these, I kept being reminded of the early years of the Montreal Expos baseball and one of my favourite players, Rusty Staub - known in Montreal as Le Grand Orange. I'm not that much of a baseball fan now, but those were the good old days (I can't believe I'm using that phrase) of the very small Jarry Park where you were practically sitting on the field with the team.

That was 1969. Sheesh, I'm feeling old.

In other news: I finally got my Ravelry invitation!!
Code name: EterKnitty.

Back in the Saddle Again

I'm back at work after 10 days off and, not surprisingly, I really don't want to be here. On the positive side though, for the first time in many years I have not come back to a disaster area. I work as a secretary in a large law firm. When we take vacation, we are replaced with a "floater" (or, as I like to call them, guest secretaries). I have not had great luck with floaters in the past. There is one from many years ago who was so disastrous that even my boss remembers him (yea, it was a guy) and I've threatened to take an extra long vacation and bring him back on occasions when said boss is driving me crazy.

My vacation time was uneventful as I didn't venture far from home. It was just nice and relaxing.

I did get some knitting done.

In the déja vu department, here are, finally, completed socks. If they look familiar it is because I have knit this same yarn at least twice before.

These blue socks were first knit as toe-up back in May. I failed to be satisfied with my casting off and ripped them back. I tried them again as Monkey socks in July (I knit only one sock then) and wasn't happy with that either and I ripped it back again. I was tired of seeing the yarn sitting on my shelf, taunting me, so it became just plain socks. Fortunately, Jayne's lovely yarn doesn't need any fancy stitches to enhance its beauty.



This pink yarn (again, from Jayne's) also started life as Monkey socks - one sock knit on 2.5mm needles was too big and the second sock knit on 2.25mm needles was too tight. This stitch pattern (the name of which escapes me at the moment) from More Sensational Knitted Socks, knit on 2.5mm, turned out perfectly. (Why am I hearing echoes of Goldilocks and the Three Bears?)



I finished the baby blanket. Every time I knit this I tell myself I will never knit another one - I hate knitting the border (it seems endless) and sewing it on - but when it is done I am always so happy with the result that I keep coming back to this pattern when I need a baby gift.



I also knit up a hat and socks to go along with it. I will also knit a sweater.



I am still trying to get the orange stole done. It didn't look good to have it completed in time for the giftee's birthday, but I have a bit of a reprieve as she is away on vacation for the next two weeks, giving me an extra week. I have to admit that this project just isn't calling my name - so, just in case, I started some socks for her ... always nice to have a Plan B!

The Best Laid Plans ...

I took a couple of days off from work last week. I had planned on finishing the main part of the birthday stole with a view to have the border done by the end of the month (in time for the giftee's birthday party).

It now looks like my new target date will be giftee's actual birthday in mid-September as I never even picked up the stole all weekend long.

I have been in cleaning and organizing mode. Since such mood doesn't strike me very often, I have learned to just go with it when it does.

My stash had been ... em ... stashed ... in different areas of my very small apartment - some still in a stack of Elann white boxes, some in my clothes closet (to the point where there was no longer room for any clothes) and more in bags stuffed here and there. I'd had enough of having to dig through various locations to find what I wanted, so I decided that the stash had to be centralized. I have a linen closet which held not linens, but a variety of craft and sewing supplies and my sewing machine. I haven't done crafts in over five years and the only sewing I ever do anymore is hemming pants - which I have been doing by hand because hauling the machine out of the closet and setting it up is too much of a pain.

So, it was clean-up time. All the crafting supplies were unceremoniously discarded (it was more than time ... all of my glues and paints had totally dried up) and the sewing paraphernalia was culled to an acceptable minimum.

My sewing machine has been set up on my desk since it is no longer used as a computer desk (the desktop PC having been replaced by a laptop a few months ago). The machine has been joined by my knitting books - all in easy reach.



I had to clean the machine's insides first, but it is now in working order and I've already hemmed two pairs of pants.

All my yarn has now been relocated to the linen closet:



See the bottom part ... more yarn in two space bags. I didn't have the nerve to inflate them to see what was in there!

Most people have a sock drawer.

I now have a sock-to-be drawer:

There was some knitting done during the weekend. I've had a special request for two baby blankets - both babies due in December. I figured I might as well get started.

It is knitting up pretty fast. Hopefully I won't get sidetracked by yet another project calling my name.