Beware the Ides of... April!!!

On the day before the Ides proper, the postman was guid to me yet again...

Hours of amusement! Oh, and for those who are enslaved by that wicked taskmistress, Lace - you would do very, very well to order the book to the right, Heirloom Knitting by Sharon Miller. There are already, I'm reluctant to tell you, some drool marks on it just from me perusing it on the tram on the way home. It looks an excellent instructions/ideas manual for every level (including my level, Idiot).

I got both books from the Needle Arts Book Shop, a mail order service located right here in the fair T.O. Close by though it is, I was still amazed by the service offered by Marsha. I mailed a money order on Wednesday (I'm not allowed to have a credit card, perhaps for obvious reasons!). She Emailed me Friday afternoon saying that she had received my order, and the books were with me by Monday morning! (And this via evil Canada Post. She is very clearly some kind of magician.)

In addition to the books, she enclosed all sorts of little extras:

Book plates! Such a nice touch. I haven't had book plates since I was a kid, and demanded some which read "Kristina's Library. Take this and DIE" or something along these lines.

(I won't tell you how many years ago that was. Suffice it to say that it was around the same time I conned my long-suffering mother into buying me a "Keep on Truckin' " bumper sticker at the Kingston Fair (on the sole basis that it was holographic)... then, much to her horror, affixed it to my closet door. I tried to take it off a few years later with no success.)

And stitch markers... goody. Now I don't have to clean underneath the chesterfield cushions for another...oh, month or so at least! Thanks, Marsha!!

Anyway, what with all this lace inspiration, it was inevitable I hit a yarn shop, really. This time, it was - the only yarn shop in Toronto that sells... (drumroll please)...

Blue Moon Designs Yarn!

I really, really wish I'd never discovered this line of products. I mean, check out the name of the yarn!!

Not to mention the colourway - Motley Hue! It is a mohair/mulberry silk (whatever that might be - but sounds mighty guid to me!)/nylon blend and soft soft soft. 910 metres of lusciousness.

Oh, and then of course I felt guilty for cheating on the Handmaiden, so had to pick up some raspberry Sea Silk:

Sigh.

But as if these riches weren't enough, some stuff I'd ordered on interlibrary loan came in en masse:

Swoon. Colours galore. Kaffe rawks! Also, a lovely book by Candace Bathouth:

And before you ask, no, I'm not taking up needlepoint again any time in the near future. I just like all the pretty pictures as well.

However, I do actually know how to read... and I found some reading materials while at the library well suited to my Mensa-like brain:

Given my hatred of most things television these days, also couldn't resist picking up this one:

And I scored two DVDs of one of my all-time favourite TV shows!

"I am not a number, I am a free man." Gotta love Patrick McGoohan, although his judgement has arguably been impaired in past - Sean Connery has him to thank for the James Bond role, because he turned it down first. Seriously.

(Speaking of Bond James Bond:

That's me on the left. Really. I cut my hair just before putting up this blog.)

Phew. Where was I? Oh yeah.

And finally, I lucked out in the Treasures from Trash department when arriving at my building last evening.

A much needed addition to help organize the spare room. You can probably tell from the rest of the photo that it needs it. I thwarted Mario the superintendent

in this acquisition, by the way. He appeared quite miffed, really. Hey, whose fault is it that the person who's out of the building all day scores the treasures while the person who's purportedly working in and around the building every day loses out, I ask you?!

(Mario did, however, endear himself to me by engaging in a round of "Bash the capital L-landlord" for about 10 minutes. I think he thought I'd hand over the bookcase. Wrong... he should know better, really, as I'm both a tenant and a lawyer. However, I did give him a couple of smokes, so don't feel too sorry for him).

And... the sun even shone all day!! All in all, a better Monday than I've had in a long time.

Here's wishing you all an equally fabulous Tuesday!

Storm Water Scarf - my travel project

I'm into stormy patterns now, apparently - perhaps not surprising given the current weather here. However, this scarf brings me some joy! And Aphrodite likes it as well... despite the grey weather!

The lovely Storm Water scarf! It seems to have taken forever and the early process was ribbit-ridden, but success is now mine!

And check out this amazing Handmaiden Sea Silk...









Specs:

Pattern: Ciobair Fibre Designs (came with the yarn for $2.00 extra)

Yarn: Handmaiden Sea Silk (silk/seaweed fibre), one skein (the scarf used 95 of 100 grams).

Needles: 3.75 mm addis.


Size: 69" long by 10.5" wide

Start date: 21 February 2008, after two prior aborted attempts back in November 2007 and earlier in February.

Finish Date: 12 March 2008.

Notes:

- I knitted this pattern exclusively in public (mostly on my daily commute, but sometimes in staff meetings.

- I had a hard time getting the pattern (through my fault alone, I think). I actually had started it back in November 1007 at a public legal educational conference, but screwed it up and frogged many times and threw it aside in disgust. Then had to frog again earlier in February when I restarted it. However, once I got the pattern it was simple enough to do in transit. So, if you try it, stick it out - it's worth it!!!

- loved, as ever, working with the Sea Silk. Kudos to Handmaiden.

I brought it to the office today for the post-blocking photo. You may recall that pre-blocking the scarf looked like this:

(One of the coworkers thought it was a windsock!)

Well, now it looks like this...

What a difference, eh? It's officially taller than me! The blocking did its usual magic...

So, what's on the agenda for today? Look what I got in the mail yesterday!

Four fabulous patterns by Sivia Harding. However, must finish the SOTSii first... today Clue 9 (the last clue!) will be released. I'm about halfway through Clue 8 at present.

It's a big day for me in a lot of ways...



Why am I dressed as a lawyer today? Well, I may have some good news within the week (and no, I'm not expecting - that would be very bad news - and no, I'm not getting married). All I can say is - please think about me between 10:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. EST...

And, off to Romni at lunch for the PayDay ritual!

Thank goddess it's Friday!

Cheers,

Kristina

Shameless self-indulgence...

...or, How Kristina Went to the LYS for Buttons Only and Ended Up Buying More Handmaiden and Fleece Artist.

I imagine that just about any knitter who reads this will relate to tales of an everburgeoning stash. My stash drawers and tote box, in particular, runneth over with fancy silks, silk blends and wool by those beckoning sirens, Handmaiden and Fleece Artist.

With this in mind, I set off for the LYS at the lunch break - only, mind you, to look for buttons for JJs vest in the making:

When I got to the LYS, however, I realised that I had forgotten they now close on Mondays!

I remained remarkably calm. After all, there was a huge sewing emporium just down the street. So, I popped in there and got the buttons. I felt quite virtuous that I hadn't just gone back to the office and tried the LYS again on Tuesday instead.

Virtuous, that is, until 2:30 p.m. or so when visions of this started dancing in my head...

A skein of Fleece Artist Italian Silk that looks remarkably, er. chartreuse. The identical skein, in fact, to one that I had been laughing at the last time I was at the LYS close to my house, Knitomatic I think my words to Leane, who works at the store, were "There is no one in the world who this bile colour would look decent on."

No one, apparently, except Evil Kristina, to whom the yellowy-green colour was a light beckoning me towards some oasis.

By the time I left work it was pouring with rain which was starting to turn into sleet. I made a steadfast decision not to stop in at Knitomatic (a ten minute walk from my place) and instead to take the bus all the way home.

Until, that is, the Knitomatic bus stop (as I have come to think of it - I can't even tell you the name of the cross-street!) approached.

The inevitable internal dialogue then began:

Evil Kristina: Hey!!! You forgot to pull the bell cord. Our stop's coming up.

Good Kristina: I told you we're not stopping here tonight. The weather is crap, and besides, that colour is horrid.

Evil Kristina: Well then, let's just go have a look at it again. It will make you feel good to walk out of there without having bought anything.

Good thinking. At any rate, although no one usually gets off at this stop, about five people stood up and made tracks to the door. This was a sign.

So, when I arrived at Knitomatic looking like a drowned chipmunk (oh, did I mention I forgot my umbrella today?), I headed straight for the little baskets where the Fleece Artist and Handmaiden yarns live. And guess what I saw?

A shiny buttercream confection of half silk, half wool - by Handmaiden.

Good Kristina: Put that back. You don't need it.

Evil Kristina: Of course I don't need it - I want it! It's only $31 - a steal!

Good Kristina: But just think of that whole stash of Handmaiden and Fleece Artist that we came across yesterday in the spare room!

Evil Kristina: Did you see any in this colour there?

Good Kristina: Er... no, come to think of it.

Evil Kristina: Well, don't we need a nice neutral colour for a change to balance off all those jewel tones?

(Good point!)

Good Kristina: NO!!! Besides, since you bought all that laceweight yarn, you haven't even wanted to knit any more lace! So, what is the point of buying more?

Evil Kristina: I already told you, that's going to be the New Year's resolution - lace knitting. Forget that "quitting smoking" bit. You just set yourself up for failure when you try to quit smoking at New Year's!

Good Kristina: But we don't even believe in New Year's resolutions!!!

Evil Kristina: My point exactly!!

(Huh?)

Good Kristina: That doesn't even make sense, you moron. Besides, we decided at the beginning of the summer that we wouldn't be buying any more wool, and stick to cotton and other stuff.

Evil Kristina: Oh? So why'd you buy this in August then?

Good Kristina: (grasping at straws) Well, it was cheap. And I still want to knit lace.

Evil Kristina: But the buttercream colour looks so Victorian! It's perfect for lace.

(Score: 1/0 for Evil Kristina. But, never content to rest on her laurels...)

Evil Kristina: So, what about this one then?

Good Kristina: (exasperated) What about it?!? The buttercream one is meant to be instead of this one. Let's just pay for it and go.

Evil Kristina: But it's so funky!!

Good Kristina: It is not "funky", it's hideous. Why do you think it's still sitting there? Because no one wants to buy it!

Evil Kristina: But it's Italian Silk by Handmaiden!!

Good Kristina: We already have two skeins of that, don't you remember?!?

Evil Kristina: So? When did that ever stop you before? Remember that week when you searched high and low throughout the city to find Sea Silk in the Ocean colourway after hearing about it on Ravelry...

...and then, the same week - the same week, mind you! - you saw this purple Sea Silk...

...and just had to have it!!

Good Kristina: (sulking) It was my birthday that week.

Evil Kristina: Ah yes, your birthday. Didn't you buy the Alchemy that week as well, because you just had to make that Oriel blouse which now you don't even like any more?

Good Kristina: Um, er...

Evil Kristina: And how convenient that it falls right after that stupid Payday holiday you've started celebrating to justify your spending to yourself!

Good Kristina: We're not getting the chartreuse colour. Period.

(long pause)

Evil Kristina: Look, you know you're just going to come back later in the week for it - and you'll be pissed off if it's not there!

(longer pause)

Good Kristina: I don't know...

Evil Kristina: Look at it this way. You're knitting that vest for JJ, right? Despite the fact that you have all this other stuff you want to make for yourself? So, don't you deserve a little treat?

Good Kristina: (faltering) But... if I get new silk I won't want to finish his vest...

Evil Kristina: Hey, you've got lots of willpower. You'll finish it. He needs it for the trip, right?

Good Kristina: ...well, all right then.

Final score: 2/0 for Evil Kristina.

And the moral of the story, you ask? Never go to the LYS for buttons again. There are sewing shops that sell buttons without all of the other tempations that the LYS holds...

Temptations such as this:


And this...


...and more of this...

(The first photo that I took of this yarn, by the way, will show you just how excited I was by my new purchases - jumping up and down!)

Not to mention this:

Good Kristina: Well, surely that doesn't really count as I bought it on sale 1/2 price!

Evil Kristina: Yeah, but were these two on sale? Huh? Huh?

Good Kristina: Um, er...

You would think that I would learn, wouldn't you!

Sigh. In closing, last year on this day Harper (the PM)'s motion to declare Québécois "a nation within a unified Canada" was endorsed. I still haven't figured out what that means, but hey.

Cheers,

Kristina

PS. Actually, the final score was 2/1 for Evil Kristina. She spotted a bright yellow skein of Super 10 on her way out but Good Kristina managed to talk her out of it in light of this:

(Hmm. No yellow. Maybe I'll have to walk home from the subway station this evening. It doesn't really take that much longer than the bus...

Yeah, right.)

sheer and utter lusciousness...

...because I detest the term "yarn pron" (although really and truly that's what this is if I take a good hard look in the mirror!)

1. Lace Silk

I, Kristina "I will never, never, ever, and I mean NEVER knit lace" B, have just acquired ... get this ... a skein of Handmaiden Lace Silk and TWO sets of Addi Lace needles.


The yarn looks to be in the Origin colourway although I can't always tell.

2. Silken and... Beads!


My beads arrived today from Earthfaire much quicker than I thought they would - thanks, Ellen for the great service. Aren't they lovely! I'm hoping to use knitting with beads as my September challenge for the Do Something New KAL... that is, if the blogmistress Tina will let me deviate from my original September challenge (learning to knit cables without a cable needle)! I'm so fickle. Either way, I plan to make the River Rock scarf by Sivia Harding in the No Sheep For You book.

Here is another container of beads I bought from Earthfaire and I like them ever better in person than I did on the website.


I'm thinking they will look very nice on the fringe for my Montego Bay scarf (says She Who Used to Detest Fringe). Fickle AND inconsistent. Hmm.


3. Sea Silk

This has been in the stash for some time now (if one can count a couple of months as "some time" in the parallel yarn universe). It is in the Ocean colourway (I think). I had originally intended to knit the Goddess top from Stitch Diva with it. However, I've gone off that idea and will probably make something lacy with it instead. I'm really far gone on the lace path, I think.

4. vintage Coats Crochet Cotton


I came across this when trying to impose some order on the stash. It was rescued from my yiayia's (grandmother's) house some time back - I originally intended to use it in needlework but am not doing any at present. It is extremely fine gauge and I don't know whether I can use it for lace or not, but will have to find something to do with it just because I love the colour.

And then there's all that Super 10... sigh. Far too many projects and too little time, methinks. Maybe my 6/49 numbers came up on Saturday... ?

lace galore!

Not one, but two new lace scarves!!!

1. Victorian Lace Today - p.80 Scarf with Striped Border






Specs:

Pattern: Victorian Lace Today, p. 80
Dimensions: 6" W by 62" L
Yarn: Handmaiden Sea Silk - about 3/4 of one skein
Needles: 4.5 mm Addi Turbo
Start Date: Wednesday 5 September
Finish Date: Saturday 8 September
Intended recipient: my mother

Notes: I really enjoyed working on this pattern. I did however make a mistake when putting on the second border, and by the time I noticed it had woven in the ends... but it still looks nice to me! I would never have thought I'd get into lace knitting - but it is very satisfying.

I went with the pattern as written except that it is a bit less wide and quite a bit shorter (to modify the width, I went with the instructions in the pattern to reduce by 12 sts).

2. Three in One Aztec Sash





Specs:

Pattern: Lacy Little Knits
Yarn: J&P Coats Mercer-Crochet Blue Label, approx 200 yards (vintage crochet cotton)
Dimensions: 3 1/2" W by 40" long, approx.
Start Date: Saturday 8 September
Finish Date: Sunday 9 September
Intended Recipient: my mother

Notes:

Now I can do elongated stitches!!! I had only one 100 yd skein of each colour used here, hence the two colours in the pattern. The yarn was rescued from my grandmother's house some time back - I initially intended to use it for needlepoint.

This pattern was quick and quite easy to knit, although I got a tad bored with it by the end.

The book shows it being used as a headband, although I can't really model it like that as my hair is not long enough. I'm hoping my mother will use it that way, but I think it will also make a cute scarf.

I think I am becoming addicted to lace. I have 5 balls of the Coats crochet cotton in red as well, so who knows what might come next... ?