M.I.A. or A.W.O.L?

I know I've been missing for a while. I've been so busy!
Alice has her communion on Saturday so I've been up to my eyes organising everything. Poor lamb, she's really nervous. She has her Preliminary piano exam on Friday, and her communion on Saturday. She's reading a Prayer of the Faithful at it.
Fingers crossed all goes well for her.

In knitty news, her A Good Stripe Dress won't be ready for Saturday. I had half hoped it would be so she could change into it for later in the day, but it's not to be. Ah well.

In even better news, I persuaded hubby to order me a set of Addi Click Interchangeables for my birthday! Woot! I got them for a great price from my LYS, only €89.99. That's the best price I've seen.
I also got a copy of Vogue Knitting Spring/Summer yesterday. I must find time to read it now!

Oh! And, hubby is off to Stockholm, Sweden next week on business. I've been scoping Ravelry for yarn shops over there so he can compensate for him getting to see Stockholm while I work and look after Alice. Yum!
Happy knitting, and I hope that normal service will resume after the weekend.

I'm sew good!

I couldn't resist the pun in the title.
But, it's not in vain. Look!

My Kimono peg basket. I'm so proud of myself! I didn't think I could do it, but yes I could! Isn't it fabulous? I know the sewing or shaping isn't the best, but for a first project I think it rocks.

And the best thing? I have more than enough fabric left for another one, if not maybe two with some creative cutting. So, Tara, you never know what the postal elf might deliver! ;)
I can't wait for washday now so I can put this baby to use!

You may remember I said I had got a bedsheet to practice on before trying it with my lovely fabric. Well, I decided waste not, want not, so I thought it might make a cute doctor or dentist or nurse outfit for one of Alice's teddies. I snipped open the sleeves and bottom, put it on one of her teddies and she promptly decided it was a priests outfit. So, I give you Father Ted! I laughed myself silly at that one. For anyone who doesn't know it, Father Ted is possibly one of the funniest comedy shows to come from Ireland in years, hilarious antics of a rural parish. Just a pure scream. Anyway, here he is!

Just too cute.

In knitting news, as this is meant to be a knitting blog, the Good Stripe Dress progresses. Man this is a slow knit! I'm on the last full round before the end, so there are 500 stitches in a round now. Phew! Still, it's looking faboo. Can't wait to finish it so I can try it on her!

Doesn't the cream stripe look great with the pinks?

I'll want some instant gratification when this finishes, so I'm thinking some charity preemie knitting and yay! some baby knitting for my best friend who's knocked up with number three! Say the girl chant with me for her please. Two boys and counting. Itsagirl, itsagirl, itsagirl. I think I shall knit only pink things by way of sending karma vibes.

I'm still waiting on my Cookie A book. *sigh* when will it ever get here??

So it was back to work and school today after two lovely weeks off. Boo. The weather was just glorious here last weekend and today (rub it in God, why don't you!), so I didn't see my cherub from morning until chowtime and liquid refreshment. It was great! Hence the sewing progress achieved. I'm so proud of my little sewing machine, still going strong at a century old. If only I could say the same for me!

Start saying good weather prayers for me now will you? The communion is Saturday week and if it rains, I'm screwed!

Easter is almost here

Thank goodness, Easter is almost here. Looking at the Easter eggs on top of the kitchen presses is driving me nuts! I'm not the biggest chocolate fan in the world, but they've been taunting me for a few weeks. Tomorrow it shall be mine. Oh yes.

Progress continues on the Good Stripe Dress:

It's going well so far. Except for the provisional cast on. I think I'm lacking something in the brain department that enables me to "get" this technique. Did you ever have that problem with something, no matter how hard you try it just won't sink in? Yeah, happens to me quite a bit. I've watched loads of videos, followed picture tutorials etc and no go. So, I was thinking of maybe knitting a little epaulette for the shoulders to hide the shocking join. We'll see. Other than that, it's fantastically mundane holiday knitting. Can watch movies, put the work down to constantly answer the doorbell when Alice wants to come in "just for a minute to get such and such to play with" (grrr).
I jest. It's been great being off this week.

While on the hunt for the 3mm circs, which I got btw (yay, although both were in different lys on the opposite sides of the city) I succumbed. I know, I know, but this stuff is really cheap and I really want to make a Noro Striped Scarf. So, how do you like these two colours togther?

It's King Cole Mirage DK. I love the colour changes, and I thought the grays would be a nice contrast to the deeper blues & greens of the other ball.

We went to Disney On Ice last night. Great fun. I just love it. The costumes are great, and there's fun for everyone. It was Finding Nemo this year.

So, Happy Easter one and all. Eat too much chocolate, or, if you don't want your egg, I'll gladly take donations....

Surprise, baby!

From this:

To this!

I think this pattern is amazing. When you're knitting it it's all over the place, but two simple folds at the end and it's a super cute baby jacket and the only seaming is at the shoulders! EZ was a total genius. Aren't the buttons cure too?

This is part two of my charity knitting, part one was three really cute petal baby bibs from One Skein, that I forgot to take a picture of! I'll have to make some more so I can get a shot of them. They were really quick, about a night each.

I've almost turned the heel on my long languishing Jaywalkers. I got 5 1/2 hours knitting on and off done on Saturday as I had to bring my Mother to hospital. Her ring finger had swollen up and I had to get her wedding, engagement and eternity rings cut off. A horrible experience. I felt so sorry for her, she was really upset and ikn a lot of pain. I've told her I can get them repaired in the jewellers, but now the rings have gone missing. I think she may have thrown them in the bin not realising what they were, and forgotten. I went through the small bin this morning (ugh) but no sign, so it looks like I may have to tackle the wheelie bin. Plus my Dad is very sick with a tummy bug since Thursday. I got him to miss playing the organ for mass yesterday as this week is probably his busiest week of the year in the Chruch, with Easter. I really hope he gets well soon, it's taken a lot out of him.

In slightly better news, it's the school holidays!!! woot! I'm off for two whole weeks of fun. Although the weather had better improve, it's lashed rain here all day.
Kids bored + rain <> happy Mammy. (sorry, nerdy programmer peeking through there)

I tried out the sewing maching at the weekend too. I bought a bed sheet to practice on before destroying the lovely fabric, but something appears wrong with the machine. It doesn't sew thread every time it goes through the fabric. It seems to skip a few holes, then sew one or two then skip another bunch. Unsure why this is, or how to find a solution.

I've decided to cast on for the Good Stripe Dress too. Swatching at the moment, hopefully all goes well!

Enjoy the rest of your week! I must resist the urge to visit a yarn store now I have the time to go during the day...

Flutter by, flutter cardigan

Ugh. It's finished, and I don't like it. Not at all.

I'm not going to show you a picture of it on me. Not flattering. I knew this was going to happen when I started it; I don't know why I proceeded anyway. Maybe a vain hope it would defy odds and look good.
I don't know what to do with it now, I want to rip it all out and make something else, but I don't want to waste all that work either. I think I'll put it in timeout until I'm less emotional about it. I hate it when things don't look good on me, it makes me sad.

So, I need a project that will cheer me up and make me feel better. Any suggestions? I still can't start Alice's Good Stripe Dress as the needles haven't yet come into my lys. *sigh* I hate waiting.

I was thinking maybe a colourwork afghan from Cover Up with Nicky Epstein (Ravlink) but I'm not sure. Or maybe this one? After all, it's named after me lol.

I think I've hit a bit of a knitting doldrum. Maybe I'll spend the afternoon looking through my books and mags and hope that inspiration strikes!

Speaking of books, I preordered Cookie A's sock book, Sock Innovation. I can't wait to get my hands on that! Just don't tell hubby. ssh.

Check this baby out

Look at this, isn't it just gorgeous?

I know I said my Mam had a Singer machine, but it's a huge one in a cupboard with a foot treadle and she uses it to place the tv on in the bedroom. So, I found this one in the cloakroom!

It's a Jones Family CS machine, if that means anything to anyone. I found the manual for it online and with the help of youtube I got it working! So much fun.

Look at the detail on the base plate and the hand crank.

It weighs a TON. It comes in a lovely wooden box too. There's a date stamp on the box that says 1909, so happy 100th birthday! It's in perfect working order too. Not many things you can say that about after 100 years!

It has loads of different feet in a box that I have no idea what they're for or how to use them, but sure I'll experiment and see how it goes.

All I need to do now is figure out how to sew in a straight line!

What have I done?

Oh dear. I think I may have unleashed a new beast in me - sewing.

I've never sewed anything with a machine in my life. My mother has a fantastic old Singer machine that I've always admired, and I've always thought it would be cool to know how to use it. I could make my own clothes!

Anyway, it was always someting I just thought about, never anything more, until I saw a magazine with these patterns in it:

Aren't they fab? I love the kimono peg basket. As it so happens, my peg basket fell apart the other week, so I consider this fortuitous. Fate, even.

Anyway, I fell in lust with the patterns and today I trotted off to Murphy Sheehy on my lunch break to get some fabric.

I got this gingham for the childs apron. €4.50 a metre. Not knowing fabric prices, I think that sounds good!

This is the fabric I got for the Kimono Peg Bag:

I love the colours here. I think the turquoise really picks out the colours in the fabric, don't you?

The patterned fabric was a bit more expensive, €15 a metre, but it's heavy, and I love it. I bought double the required amount, so I have plenty to mess up on for my first attempt. And, if I don't mess up (ha, unlikely) then I'll have enough to make one as a gift!

I then went to Rubenesque for the trimmings. This is essentially a ribbon shop, but it has gorgeous buttons as well. I got the green and blue ribbons and the black knot type clasp (I don't know it's proper name) there.

I also got these buttons for my flutter sleeve cardigan:

They don't look like much in the photos, but they are gorgeous. The darker side is raised off the button, like it was carved. I turned one over so you can see it's a paler pink underneath. I'm not sure the dark front side of the button matches properly tbh, I'm thinking of maybe using the wrong side. These buttons were mad expensive, I think they were €8 each for the large ones and €5 each for the small ones. I don't know what came over me! That much for a button!

Someone commented on my last post that it looked like my voodoo needle gauge was floating in space. Above you can see that it is, in fact, my fireplace hearth. I must admit to singing a little David Bowie when I was looking back at the needle gauge picture!

So, it seems I am about to embark on a new aspect to crafting. I don't see it becoming a huge hobby, but it is one I would like to think I could do. And, it will help when I finally get around to some steeking! If anyone has any tips on the basics, y'know like how to thread a needle on a sewing machine, to how to turn it on etc, I'd be grateful! I can't ask my Mam, God love her she wouldn't remember anymore.

Ooh, I forgot! I got my hands on Depeche Mode tickets! Yay! They're playing here on Dec 10th. Can't wait!

Another thing I've just remembered.

Did I tell you all that I'm off to UK Ravelry Day? It's on in Coventry on June 5th. I. Can't. Wait. Meg Swansen will be speaking! Meg! And I'm doing two workshops with Jared Flood, a seamless EPS yoke sweater and a design your own aran! Squee! Plus, I got the flights for €25 return, so bargain! I informed hubby that this is to be my birthday present. I don't think he dared say anything. After all, I'm flying over & back in the one day (I'll be exhausted!) and he's buggering off to Stockholm for 4 days in May with work. That reminds me, I must check out Ravelry to see what yarn stores there are in Stockholm, the least he can do is bring me back some Swedish yarn, right?

Lastly (I promise), I've been nominated for an award!

"These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers. Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award.”

Here are my nominees:

2knitornot2knit

Aran Brew

Craft Chick

Gimmesanity

Knitting Neels

The Misadventures of Gaiety Girl

Under Me Oxter

Worsted Knitt