well its been a long time between drinks.............
knitted a scarf or two but haven't really had much time to sit and knit- when in a big city!

just thought i would fill you in on a long term project or two, that should keep me busy for a few months.

this is what i am going to start:



meet Biscuit- he is a knitted stuffed dog! yeh, i am really just a big kid. So far i am at half an ear (just started!)

My other project is going to be a vogue holiday project:


I have the wool, beads and buttons from an indulgent trip to paris so wish me luck.....

Way to long

Yes I know

its been way to long a time between blogs. But this is what happens when you travel.!

In knitting news I had a great day out with the London knitty gang the other day. See below of us at loop for proof. We all bought way to much yarn that we shouldn't of and had a great time. Big Cheers to Caroline for organising it.




At the moment I am knitting a short row scarf, but my amazing Susan bates crystallite needles (5mm) broke so I am temporarily abandoning it till I buy some more needles. I am very upset cause these are my favorite needles. :( :(

So when I get a flat, and get settled I will be able to restart blogging at a respectable rate.

Till then.....

Europe: Poland- Krakow and Warsaw

Well OK! I know I know, its been ages and at least 4 different countries since I last wrote. But with only 4 days in each place, my objective has been to see as much as possible in the shortest time. At the moment I am in Venice, in the midst of a thunderstorm- it is literally putting a dampener on the place, but still huge queues at the st. marks piazza so am on the internet instead. So where do I start. After I left Alex and family in Budapest (thanks guys for having me, i love u all) I made my way to Krakow in Poland. Whilst primarily known for being the closest city to Auschwitz it does have other interesting sites. It is a tiny city, and full of old world charm and a really really yummy pizza shop. Even better pizza then what I have had so far in Venice.On my first full day I went to the Salt Mines, about half an hour out of Krakow by bus. Started chatting to a Brazilian couple and a brother/sister couple from Portugal on the bus and ended up touring the salt mines with them and having dinner with them afterwards. The salt mines are interesting as everything from the floors to the chandeliers to the statues are all made from salt. Everything. All salt (with the odd bit of wood thrown in for supportive measures.) Despite queuing for an hour it was really interesting and well worth the wait. Even though climbing down 400 stairs to get to the first level killed my thighs. Picture 5 of the salt mines shows the old staircase that the miners had to climb down! I'm glad we didn't have to use those! The most amazing room was the old church room, photos salt mine 9-15. It is also used as a concert hall, the acoustics would be amazing.The next day was a complete turnaround as I went to Auschwitz and Birkenau. I did the tour, but we didn't go into all the halls, but you could go back and do them on your own. There is really not much to say that the photos don't cover. It is hard to put words to the devastation and the conditions that were inflicted onto the prisoners of these camps. Birkenau was especially moving as most of what is left is just the chimneys of the barracks, miles of them, just standing desolate. It is a huge camp, with the destruction of it all making it even more moving. It is actually more moving than Auschwitz as the sheer size of it is just incomprehendable.After a few drinks that night first at a club called Prozac (love the name) then one called frantic (hmmm) I called it a day and prepared myself to do the entire city of Krakow in one day.This was do-able (is that a word?). Being so small it was not hard to do. I started off at the old town square, a pretty place surrounded by churches and halls. Then off to the wawel castle. The cathedral was amazing, with each side alter more impressive than the last. The dragon’s den, where legend has the dragon lived until slayed by someone famous who founded Krakow, was a huge underground hollow (Uncle Ron- u would love this (fyi- he is a geologist)). After that, it was off to Kazimierz (the jewish quarter) where Schindler’s List was filmed. An interesting place, there was an amazing photography exhibition of now desolated and abandoned synagogues and cemeteries, taken from today’s perspective. The oldest synagogue in Europe was also interesting. I didn’t make it over to Schindler’s factory, after Auschwitz the day before I needed some uplifting sites to see. Interestingly though, as you walk through the streets of Kazimierz you can see signs of previous synagogues and places of importance, now everyday homes and shops.And that basically was Krakow. Up next was Warsaw. After checking in, finding London was bombed again, and a man was shot dead 5 times, the group sitting round the TV- mainly aussies surprisingly, decided it was enough to drive anyone to drink- and so the pub crawl began. It was an organized tour, though by the time happy hour was over at the hostel everyone was very happy. To my amusement, I was the only female on the tour, a fact which played out plenty of times throughout the night. No more shall be said, except I did meet someone but that is all I am saying. (Though I will mention I forgot my camera hence the lack of pictures.) The next day I walked around Warsaw with the help of the tour, run by Nathan- the same guide from the night before- so at least I wasn’t the only one feeling tired and seedy. We went everywhere (well it felt like it!) The main moving areas were the monument to the Warsaw uprising, the ghetto memorial and Pawiak Prison. The exhibits from here churned my stomach in such a way that even Auschwitz couldn’t. Not from horror, but the overwhelmingly size and breadth that the atrocities covered. That night I had the 11th wonder of the world. The world’s biggest burrito. It was huge- about 30cm long, 10cm wide and 5cm high. I could only eat half. You had to be there- sorry. Went to go to a jazz club after, but they had a salsa night on- man can some of those people dance. Note: I am very bad at doing the salsa, despite trying. The next day, a girl called Amy from Denver and I went to the Museum commemorating the Warsaw Uprising. This is a new museum only being opened this year. It was very interesting and we spent a good 3 hours in there. Bet you didn’t know 1 lone Australian fought for the insurgents in the uprising. (nor did I!)An easy, lazy night ensured and then the next day was off to Berlin. And that was Poland, in a nutshell.Berlin I shall tell u about the next time, as I have been on the net for ages and it is costing me a fortune. (And it’s dinner time.) Though I will say I could easily live there, I loved Berlin (despite getting food poisoning).The photos for Krakow are here: http://au.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/katefreedman/album?.dir=/7311&.src=ph&.tok=phBf7ZDBTHcBSZh1And Warsaw here: http://au.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/katefreedman/album?.dir=/1af5&.src=ph&.tok=phjd7ZDBZkFfMyAj

Oh yeh and before you all ask- no knitting content, I know its shocking but i'm travelling so for me its a good excuse.

Till next time.

Europe: Vienna and Budapest

Well quick knitting content first. I found some sort of yarn shops here in Budapest, but they were more fabric shops which sold yarn- so I didn't bother noting the addresses.
Amazingly I was able to get my wooden clover sock needles through the xray machine at Perth airport- so I was then able to get them onto the Emerates plane. I knitted a little of my sock but slept most of the way. I also made a soft wollen scarf whilst here in Budapest, whilst attempting to teach my friend to knit. I shall post pictures later.

In the meantime here is a copy of the email I sent to all just a moment ago:

Hi everyone.
Well it is my last day here in Budapest so I thought I would update you on my trip so far. It has been fascinating yet exasperating at the same time.First the annoying stuff. It can be summed up in 2 words: Yucky Weather! A huge storm front has passed over eastern Europe this past week resulting in torrential downpours, hailstones the size of footballs (in Croatia), entire villages flooding (Austria, Hungary and Slovakia) and even deaths by lightning (Slovakia and Austria). My first encounter with the weather was when I stepped off the plane in Vienna. It was raining, windy and freezing cold. Not good when all you have packed for is 35 degree heat summer weather. After finding the hotel and donning 3 layers, Alex and I did a little exploring around St. Stephan's square. The hotel was right on the square, about 50m from the metro station, and 100m from St. Stephan's cathedral. It was a perfect location. The weather for the other 2 days in Vienna was not as bad as the first day, but still overcast and chilly. The sites whilst incredible, was a little disappointing for my first view of Europe, a fact that in retrospect I put down to the depressing weather.Photos from Vienna can be found here: http://au.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/katefreedman/album?.dir=/d429&.src=ph&.tok=ph4lPUDBNGBFJmUY
When we got to Budapest I was welcomed with open arms by Alex's family. Her mum is an amazing cook and I think I have put on a few kilos this last 10 days. However, I am sure I will walk it off the next few weeks. The site seeing was interrupted by the afore mentioned thunderstorms, and yesterday the road by the Danube in downtown Budapest was closed as the river had flooded over the road. Budapest, however is beautiful. Very green, hilly and pretty. I think my opinion has been influenced by the fact that I am staying out of the city and am not surrounded by it 24 hours a day. We went to some amazing buildings in Budapest, one of which was the Great Synagogue. It has only been reopen to tourists since 2002 as it was being restored. It is amazing, and has a beautiful memorial to those who died in WW2. The other beautiful building in Budapest that has been restored is also a church- well cathedral - St. Stephan's standing on top of the Hills on the Buda side of the Danube. With an amazing view (even given the weather) the area of the church and palace is definatly a 'to do'. The church was covered in frescos inside- all restored to their original glory. By the way- the Danube is not blue!!!
On a different note we also went to the Terror House. This museum was the home of the nazi SS and the communist KGB during the years of their associated occupation. The basment has been reconstructed to showing how the cells were during the buildings use for holding and executing polital prisoners. It was an interesting yet disturbing building and whilst open to tourists seemed mainly orientated to the new generation of Hungarian's so they did not forget what happened under soviet occupation.
Happily though, the weather has improved the last few days to actually resemble summer- complete with the digging out of the sarong! I am attempting to wring every minute out of this weather, as the forcast for Krakow and Warsaw over the next week is Thunderstorms (again!!!).
Photos for Budapest can be found here: http://au.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/katefreedman/album?.dir=/2a4d&.src=ph&.tok=phdlPUDBTsy0_Xmv
Hope everyone is well and it is not too wet in Perth. Don't forget to email me and keep me up to date on what is happening.
Love to all
Kate

I'm Off

Ok so Its been a while since I posted. The reason- I am about to embark on my grand tour of Europe. I leave on Monday and my schedule (subject to fits of indecision and change) is:
5 July- Vienna
8 July- Budapest (with a few days on the island of Kirk in Croatia)
18 July- Krakow
22 July- Warsaw
25 July- Berlin
29 July- Prague
2 Aug- Venice
6 Aug- Rome
10 Aug- Florence
13 Aug- Paris
16 Aug - Land in LONDON

So I have been busy getting ready to go, hence not much knitting at all. I did finish my shrug (and have worn it) but as I have no digital camera till Monday - no pics of it. (sorry).

Anyway will post from far away places............................

Socks!

Whoo hoo!

I finished my first ever pair of socks!!!!!!
OK so they are a little big- and my grafting on sock one is terrible but I have gotton the hang of double pointed needles!



I am really proud of myself- SP I love the yarn. I wonder if i can get an ankle pair out of the left-over yarn!

Blanket and Socks

Yes I know, i haven't posted for a while. The FC shrug is being knit to alias- up to season 3 and so far it is looking like a blanket at the moment - being 40 inches long and 20 inches wide. However no pics (its boring!)

I have also been getting ready to jet set off to europe. Not sure of my whole itinery yet but have the first few weeks ready. The first stop is Vienna, Austria for a few days then off to Budapest, Hungary to stay with friends. After that it is either Florence for a month (taking an italian course) or a Contiki trip- then off to London.

Anyone know of any yarn shops in Vienna or Budapest??

I do have pics to share. Below is the first half of the socks from my lesson last week. I am slowly getting the hang of double pointed needles- using 5 - it's alot easier with 4 in the work than 3.


The other pic is my half of the secret pal pinku swap. This is what i received from Rose- she made them herself- very clever!!!!


Anyway- must keep working on the shrug- I want to be able to wear it at least once before I leave!!!

Secret Pal Goodies and Branching Out

Branching Out is complete, finished and gifted to my grandmother- who loved it (and the hours of pain that went into it). Here it is before being wrapped modeled by Skeeta- who is rather a reluctant model! More pics here.



When I got home this afternoon I had a fantastic surprise waiting for me. A parcel from my secret pal- who is the most fantastic person. This package she said is 'all about the socks' and included 4 balls of Knitpicks sock yarn, some great stitch markers- handmade (all the better), Cat Bordhi's book on knitting socks on circular needles and the summer IK magazine- which still isn't out here in Australia yet. I am soo lucky- thankyou so much my SP! Your kindness and generosity is loved and appreciated.




and a close up of the stitch markers on my new love- Susan Bates crystallites.

P.S.

forgot to add- the sock toe is history. Kaput, dead. Am leaving the sock till next week's sock knitting class.

New Project and Puppy Pics

This is the yarn for my new project. It is soooooo soft. I have been cuddling it all day. The pattern is from FC Easy Knitting (thanks go to Poor Miss Finch for the inspiration).

I am using my new needle love 'susan bates crystallite' needles. Small, colourful and nice on the yarn. However like everything here in Australia- expensive (AUS$12 Each!!!) Oh well.

I have finished the Branching Out scarf but as it is currently awaiting blocking there is no pictures for now. But to tide you over......

PUPPY PHOTOS!!!!


In her usual position- note in front of heater


In her usual nitetime position- and i'm supposed to get into bed how...


bedroom eyes


I love my dog! Can you tell?

I'm in Love

I'm in Love
I soooo want this book- I hope it comes out here soon.........




Stash Additions.

To make knitter's drool: Show them the following self-explanatory picture: 2 skeins of noro silk garden, and one HUGE (700m) skein of fibreworks hand-dyed 4ply.

This was picked up at the craft fair over the weekend, along with various beads and a knitted wire/bead bracelet kit and some washi paper DIY boxes. Lots of fun to do and see.

Also I started a sock. Having tried many unsuccessful times to try sock knitting from the ankle down on 4 needles, I went out and bought another packet of needles, started on a 2-needle toe from the knitty article on toes and tried with 5 needles. It is so much easier with 5 needles. I am still getting the hang of it, but at least I won't look like a complete idiot at sock class in 2 weeks time!

See- a toe!

ps: Ali- yes postage is a bitch, but at least now I will know how to knit socks and be able to use the LL for a good pair, rather than a learning pair. (though it would of made the others jealous!). See here for what I pay!

Incommunicado

I am going to apologise up front for the lack of posts at the moment. As I mentioned my grandfather is in hospital. He has 'turned the corner' (his words) but is being kept in the hospital for another two weeks, as he is not eating or walking properly and is still on a drip. So this means that the next two weeks are going to be as follows- work, hospital, home, eat, sleep- repeat. So not much knitting will/has been done. I will however being going to a craft fair later this week so will have some goodies to rave about whilst I am meant to be working.

Hospital and Goodies

I haven't posted all week for the same reason I haven't knitted. My grandfather went into hospital with an post-stroke infection. Since he's been in he's got better in someways and worse in others. The stroke was worse than we thought, but that's now ok. So all I have been doing this week is working, going to the hospital and going home to eat and sleep. So not much knitting to report.

But here is a photo of the lace scarf as promised.




Go Here for a close-up.

However today and Tuesday I returned home from the hospital to find the following:




The one on the right is a close up of some possum and merino yarn I received in a swap with Kozmic from the Knittyboard. It is an amazing forest green.

And on the left..... Today saw the arrival of the package from Ali. (Yeh it arrived!!!!) Ali was getting worried. The wool is a second ball of the original RAK yarn so I can make a second two-needle sock so my single can have a partner. And she included some cute colourful emeryboards in a matchbook-like form- purfect for the purse! The green lid is some yummy smelling lip gloss, Kiwi and Strawberry flavour. Talk about spoilt.

They have given me some smiles and relief in an otherwise bad and stressful week. Thanks guys!!

Lacy Blocking Drama

Well the lacy airy scarf has been demanding all knitting time this week. Therefore lil devil and branching out have been on hold.

The scarf is now blocking even though it seemed to resist all efforts. My gauge must have been off (ok so I didn't swatch but its a scarf!) as my FO was resisting all efforts to stretch to 15cm wide. It seems to have sort of worked (the ends are 15, the middle about 10/12) but we shall see what it looks like when removed from the makeshift blocking board. (The ironing board with a beach towel on top!) It is also a lot longer than the given 92cm- maybe because I kept tugging at it- It now measures about 125cm. Still it feels nice and looks good.

Sorry no pictures- the camera is residing at my sisters and will not be back for at least 2 weeks so no pic of this FO.

Now back to work me!!

Gifts and Dolls

Look what arrived in the post today!



It came with a great card (no photo sorry!) from my SP with a quote I must share:

Friendship is not a big thing... It is a million little things.

A truer word was never spoken.

I also went to my LYS today and bought some of this (Rowan Kidsilk Haze in Pearl) in order to make this:


the airy scarf from Last Minute Knitted Gifts.

Also whilst browsing around the internet reading blogs, posts and gazing at yarn I could never afford (Lorna's Laces sock yarn just arrived at my LYS- AUS$19.95 for a small skein (the helen's lace is $85!!!))
I found a few interesting things. For filing under the: Would love to get a copy if the postage wasn't 3 times the cost of the item comes many a knitting notion (ie yarn gauges at US$2.50) and this:

The Magic Loop book. US 7.95 (patternworks) Shipping US 19.00
hmmmmm

Also in the 2-cute category the Marvin doll from Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Yes someone with too much time on their hands has created the knitted marvin from the scene in the movie.
And Yes I am thinking of knitting one!

Shrug is Complete!

The Shrug is Done....

Finished.........Seemed.............(couldn't be bothered to block! hehe)and.................................................................




..........................It's too small.

Just.

The arms are a fraction too tight to be comfortable- I had to fight to get it on and off hence the coathanger shot.So it will be gifted to either my sister or cousin - whoever can wear it.

I still like it though, am contemplating a second one in a larger size for me, so who knows.

For now it is the branching out scarf



This is being made in the knitpicks wool my SP4 gave me and will either be a) kept or b) given to my granmother depending on how long it takes to finish- I have 6 repeats done, only 30 to go.....thats 305 rows!!! So should only take me about a year. I am joining the Branching-Out-Knit-Along so hopefully that will keep me motivated.

I also have to do some more knitting on the lil devil pants or the kid will have grown out of them before they are finished! I also have half seemed the 2-needle sock.

So thats my progress report for today. More to come next week......

What on Earth.........

What is this?????


This is a sock.
Honestly.... really and truely.
It is a two-needle sock. Pattern by Bev with only a slight modification.

Close up of the pretty colours.


Its made of the pretty yarn given to me by Ali (see here)
now all I have to do is seem this baby up and I have one sock.

I have written to Ali to ask for another ball of yarn to make the second sock- or else I will have one cold foot!



see I told you its a sock!

Shrug done it!

The shrug is done.

No pictures as it is currently curled up into a little ball awaiting blocking- which hopefully will get done friday, seaming- sunday and then wearing!!

It has been quite a non-knitting week this week as work has had me occupied.... sorry can't say much about work here so not much of a post this time. Will make up for it next week with pictures of the shrug.

Goodies Galore

Look what arrived in my mailbox today!!!
Its a bunch of goodness from my Knitty SP!



Thankyou soo much SP! In this envelope was an issue of Rebecca magazine- my very first, and 4, yes count them 4 balls of beautiful blue 100% peruvian wool from knit picks.

And yes- you are right I have never tried their wool but have often looked at the site and gone- i wish they posted overseas.

So I now have clue one about my SP- she is from America. hmmm that doesn't cancel too many people out.

Also today I can show you a picture of what arrived on my doorstep the other day. My phildar yarn froom Breiweb. This colour is called marine. Here is what I thought it was going to look like. Not too big a difference though I was expecting it to be 'blue-er". Still, I am happy with it.



PS: Remind me to start taking photos during the day.
PPS: SP- I do not have the book scarf style- i shall go look at it on amazon now!

My First KAL

I'm in a knit-a-long!!!!

Since I am making a shrug- I decided to join the shrug knit-a-long. See the sidebar for the link.

In other news my phildar yarn arrived yesterday. It was a bit of a suprise as the colour didn't resemble the on screen image much- will edit this post later this evening when I am not at work and include pictures. But I still like it and it will make a good cardigan- even though I have 3 WIP's to finish before I can even start this. Hopefully, I will now stop procrastinating and get a knit-on!! (groan at bad pun!)

With the return of the camera from holidays in India
here is a picture of the RAK goodies from Ali that arrived the other day. (see the April 23rd post)




Happy ANZAC day everyone!!

Aussie Aussie Aussie! Oi Oi Oi!

Found this whilst browsing the net! Some of it is actually true. My comments in blue.

You Know You're From Australia When...

Your next door neighbours can be from Tunisia, Israel, Indonesia, Japan, Zimbabwe, Iraq, Brazil, Spain, Malaysia... The community is so concerned over the fact that muslim women can't use public swimming pools because there are men present that they have female-only periods. The Greeks and Mexicans next door ask you over to have a barbeque. You don't actually use the words 'sheila' or 'shrimp'. True You sleep with Aeroguard on. Yep You're wearing a cap emblazoned with 'Get A Dog Up Ya.' You feel obliged to spread salty black stuff that looks like congealed motor oil on bread and actually grow to like it. Yum Vegimite! You actively dislike Americans, but watch their TV, eat their food and worship their idols. You think Tall Poppy Syndrome is a national condition. Democracy means the freedom to draw caricatures of John Howard. And why not... Your idea of a lethal weapon is a slug gun. The closest you ever got to going overseas was your packet of 5 Days In Rio grundies. Not true for me A posh meal = an all-you-can-eat buffet. Nor this The term "musical instrument" also extends to wobbly bits of ply-wood, hand saws, gum leafs and combs. Your most offensive curse also doubles as an exclamation of awe or amazement, like, "fark orf!" umm... well.... yes All of your internationally famous people don't live here. You think footballers dressing up in drag on TV is funny (but your son being gay isn't). You relish test cricket - the longest, slowest game in sport (and that's not even counting the replays). After all, what else gives you an excuse to sit on your arse for five days, watch TV and sink piss with your mates? You don't drink Fosters, but you let the world think you do. The only thing better than beating the Pohms at ANY sport is giving them shit for it. You love, adore and admire a particular team/sportstar/actor on a winning streak - until they lose. Then they're just crap and 'past it.' You can compress several words into one - ie 'g'day', 'd'reckn?' This allows for more space for profanities. You favour either Holden or Ford - or a souped-up WRX with new kit and a bootful of subwoofer. I have a honda Driving down the main street/beach road playing bad techno is your idea of a perfect Saturday night / Sunday arvo. To some unfortunately yes. You make kooky films, sometimes about wayward road trips (across the outback preferably). Quite a few are crap. You know all the words to Khe Sahn but not the national anthem. Your nickname ends in 'a' or 'o'. You have a customised stubby holder. Your soap stars become pop singers and move to the UK. You've ever used the words - grouse, tops, ripper, choice, sick, rad, exo, ace, wicked, ballistic - to mean good. And then you place 'bloody' in front of it when you really mean it. Your cooking apron has plastic breasts on it. The "Aussie Aussie Aussie! Oi oi oi!" chant has been a religious experience in the past. The blokes at the local gym think your weight training is an opportunity to ask you out on a date. The big national sporting events are men-only. Your politicians believe than sticking the prefix 'un' in front of your nationality is an effective way of making you sit down and shut up. Our mantras are 'fair go for all', 'mateship' and 'little Aussie battler' - but we still publicly condemn those with different viewpoints to us. The barbeque is a male-dominated arena. And the women do the salads. 'Fair go for all' excludes indigenous people. An eight-hour trip to go camping for the weekend isn't out of the question or excessive. You take pride in living in a tolerant multicultural society but firmly believe that all Poms and Kiwis are fair game. You insist on asking every celebrity who steps of an aircraft what they think of Australia. If the response is not overwhelmingly positive, they should be subjected to immediate public ridicule. The private lives of footy and cricket players become more important than local and national news stories. Slick pick-up lines like 'Wanna shag?' and 'Carn, show us yer tits' can constitute male-to-female conversation. You say 'no worries' quite often, whether you realise it or not. You realise you have no Bill of Rights. The first thing guaranteed to get eaten at parties is fairy bread. So that's the special ingredients that make up an Aussie - whatever your taste. You actually get these jokes and pass them on to other friends from Australia.

Get Your Own "You Know You're From" Meme Here

I've Been RAK'd

Yeh!!!
I've been RAK'd. My first time ever. I sent off some earrings to April and in return she sent me a ball of great tahki wool called shannon and some joy lipgloss. Photos will come when my sister returns from holiday with her camera (that I continually pinch to take pictures of knitting.)

Progress Reports: Zara Shrug- have reknit the frogged rows and am one sleeve down. The Lil devil pants have been put on hold to knit the shrug- I know she will be too big by the time I finish them but heh..... we can live in hope.

Knitting is an expensive hobby.....

Today I frogged 50 rows of knitting. That got me soo depressed I cast it aside and decided to go look around my local yarn shop.

BIG MISTAKE

As I have no money it just got me even more depressed. Here in Perth we have a distinct lack of choice when it comes to yarn that our american friends take for granted. No cascade, no lamb's pride, no lorna's lace or Koigu or anything fancy, no phildar, no ggh and no lion's brand. In fact- 99.9% of the patterns in any magazine (vogue or interweave) call for yarns not available here.

So what can I get- here's an example of the overseas yarns available at my LYS (remember prices in AUS$) per skein.

• Blue Sky Alpaca Bulky $26.95 ($34.95 hand-dyed)
• Fiesta Yarns La Luz $60.00
• Noro Cash Iroha $32.75
• Noro Silk Garden $17.25
• Rowan Calmer $21.50
• Rowan Big Wool $30.50
• Rowan Cotton Braid $16.50
• Mango Moon Recycled Sari Silk $45.00

And for comparison- the locally made Jo Sharp Classic- $5.95, Silkroad- $8.95

As I said, Knitting a jumper here can be very expensive.

I Wish...

Just for my secret pal I have put together 3 wishlists.
One is an amazon one, one a bust.com one and the other is from Fred Flare. They are by no means 'must haves'- more this is the type of thing I like. I'm off to look for a knitting one now.

PS: the magazine is called readymade

Hiatus

I know it's been a while since I posted, but I really have nothing to show for all the knitting I have been doing.

My lil devil pants from s&bNation are coming along- they are very time consuming as are knit on 3.5mm needles. But to date I have 1 leg and a tail (with 1 point- forgot to make the 2nd point!)

My sophie bag is also felting at the moment, Along with a feltable rose from the rose bag in the vogue winter edition. Hopefully I will be able to get a pic before it goes on its way. It's off to my one of my best friends.

Its also been great to receive feedback from everyone I sent postcards to as a RAOK on Knitty. I sent off 24 postcards and 2 packages and have received some really nice thankyou's. I feel all warm and fuzzy.

Well must depart and get to work. There are shoes to be sold and knitting to be done.

The Kindness of Strangers

I love the knitting cyber-community.
Even though I am still relatively new, it hasn't stopped total strangers offering comments, advice and compliments.

Then we get to the knittyboard community. This is a place where all good traits seem multiplied. Everyone is fantastic, and total strangers hold up old fashioned values of helpfulness and kindness without blinking an eye.

The winner of the 'most fantastic person ever' award, however, must go to margot, or saintjay as she is known on the knittyboard. Having done a swap with her for her secret pal (hehe- in other words how to confuse people (a tip which I then stole and used with my SP)) she was already on top of my list of fantastic people.

Then today, after a stressful day at work I receive this:

Knowing my SP let me down (nice for abandoned me and didn't send any packages)
she sent me this package of incredible goodness just because she is an amazingly kind person. I can't stress how much receiving this package has meant to me. It has blown me away, the knowledge that out on the other side of the world, someone was thinking of me out of the generosity of her spirit.

Margot- thankyou- you made a crappy day fantastic, and have single-handedly restored my faith in the generosity of the human race.

Now to the goodies- some great yarn, a moose cookie cutter (I feel biscuits a-coming)(it's soooo cute), some local candy, and some beautiful postcards of where she lives.

Again thanks Margot - and now I have finished taking the photo, I can eat the candy!!!

Just to make you all Jealous

Just to make everyone jealous...........
here's where i am spending the easter break


Sorry :)

Still too hot!

Just to really annoy all the northern hemisphere people, yesterday here in Perth was a record March temperature- 41.9 degrees Celcius. (Bloody Hot!!!)

and you wonder why I haven't knit anything...........................

Not Much Knitting Going On

This last week and a half have seen a hiatus on knitting. Why you ask- well work for one, and the heat- with temps hovering around the mid-30's (celcius) its been way to hot to do anything except lie in front of the aircon/fan and go to work (which has really really good aircon).

In other news my sophie bag for Tia has been cast on and bottomed, its looking small already- hopefully the cascade 220 won't shrink too much. My looooooooong winded WIP (skully from S&B) which has been sitting in the pile since last august has now got half a front to go with the back.

And look what arrived: my phildar magazines from knit'n'tyme and vogue knitting from saintjay! Yeh.




This has been the real reason for my lack of knitting. I am attempting to translate from the winter issue (top magazine) as it didn't come with english translations. Big Problem: I don't speak French. So if any one out there can help me by checking my translation efforts it would be most appreciated.

Problem 2: Discontinued Yarn. Also want to do this pattern. Problem: whilst not being able to read french, the yarn is also no-where to be found. I have tried the 3 stores I know of that sell phildar yarn- knit'n'tyme , briweb and some other one in europe I cannot remember the name. So shops that still sell brumes in chaume are urgently in need of. HELP.

PS: nothing on ebay either- I checked- 3 times.


pps:Michelle- i learn't to knit at a very young age from my grandmother, but re-learnt last year at a workshop at ivy and maude (now Calico and Ivy) in cottesloe. They have moved to mosman park now but are just on glyde street.

Finished Object Bonzana

Finally finished seeming Sage- 2 weeks later but better than never!!
Also finished a chicknits chikcami. This was made in Jo Sharp Soho- a fantastic cotton yarn. Loved knitting with it!






Also getting made is a baby pasha the penguin. Seen here with percy he is a present for a friend- who is a linux geek, but wether or not he or his girlfriend's one-year old will end up with it remains to be seen.



2 more UFO's to go- and i'm going to start the next project - a pair of devil pants from stitch and bitch nation- for the above mentioned little girl.

It's Still There

It is next week- and yes the top is still sitting waiting to be seemed. It has been pressed however so is one step closer. It was pressed and not blocked as the instructions called for pressing with an iron. Rowan being ultra expensive here in Australia I thought I would follow the instructions as written- no deviation or creative thinking!!!!!

The cami is coming along nicely and sort of slowly- a big week of work and hot days do not fast knitting make!!

Oops

Wow- A week and a half sure goes fast when you don't notice it. In that time I have finished the other half of sage- see FO's for the first half (they are the same) and it is now sitting on my desk waiting patiently *since Saturday 12th* to be pressed and seamed.

It will probably be there still next week!

I have however been knitting. I have finally relented and bought the patterns to Chicknits chickami and ribby cardigan. The cami is on the needles using some beautiful jo sharp soho in a midnight blue colour I picked up a while ago (will post pic's later). This cotton is a dream to knit with and the whole cami is going along very nicely.

I did however need to change needle size to get gauge, and therefore cast on with 4mm needles and then changed to 5mm for body rather than the 3.25/4mm combo given with the pattern. Still, the stitches look nice so I am not too worried.

In non-knitting news, my sister loved her bag. Phew.
Also we had the hottest day on record for February on Tuesday- a massive 42.6 degrees Celsius. No wonder I got nothing done that day.

1 UFO Down, 3 to Go

I finally put the finishing touches on Anna's bag today. (Anna being my sister). She was meant to recieve this as a birthday present in December, but being so close to Christmas it went into the maybe later pile.
The pattern is a tweak on sugercube's (see links) bag, with the picture from stitch and bitch nation. To make the handles I plaited 3 strands of the yarn together and then loosly plaited them together. These I tied together and attached to a dog clip so they can be detached if wanted.



There is a dodgy close up shot of the detachable handles on the Finished Objects page- my photography skills are not that great!- sorry.

So Anna finally gets her bag- and I can cross that one off my list. 2 satisfied people all round.

I have a button

Whoo hoo
Thanks to the amazing Ashiko I now have a button. Feel free to pinch but remember to host it on your own server.

I finally finished my sister's bag- will post pic's when she lets me borrow her camera- and now just have to attach the detachable straps and press.

I also am halfway through the main section of the 2nd piece of Sage- it will be done and worn before the end of summer. I believe that if I say that enough it may just happen.

Did I mention I now have a button?

I'm Back, Overworked, Underpaid and Wow- check this out

Wow- what a difference a week makes.

After an amazing shopping and eating trip to Singapore and KL (Kuala Lumpa) I arrived home to find that the Secret Pals had been handed out. Yeh. Although being a first timer i have no idea what to send my SP. Any suggestions greatly appreciated. I have no photos from my trip as yet as they were taken with an increasingly old fashioned film camera!!! and arn't that exciting anyway. I did buy a great handbag by a group called projectbloodbrothers- wierd name great stuff!

Also in catching up with my blog reading i noticed that yarnharlots fundraiser for doctors without borders is up to a whopping $50 000. And thats not even in Australian dollars (canadian actually). If you want to check it out click on the knitters without borders link on the side! And yes i donated. actually it was before her 'run' started so i haven't put my name up there but i thought it was a great thing as doctors without borders is my prefered charity also.

Knitting wise- i have a list of things to do.
1) Sort out incomplete projects
2) Sort out what i want to start next that i have the wool for!
3) Figure out a future projects list
4) look for new vogue and rebecca 28, home and 29 as cannot get rebecca here in perth and the new vogue doesn't come out here for at least 2 months after the american release. Ohhh and interweave as well.
5) Get Summer Tweed-along happening. This is not only my first knit-along but i am hosting it- i have no idea how or what to do so again, any offers of help (or taking it off my hands!!) is greatly appreciated.

Time to feed the dog!

Where I have been and going...

Over new year i have been an absentee non-knitter.
Not knitting and not in Perth. I have been just off the coast in a boat sitting doing nothing except reading and swimming. This is an old picture but a good one- this is where i have been.




I am off again on Friday to Singapore and KL on a shopping adventure so will not be online till then. Hopefully i will not experience withdrawal symptoms from my machine !!!