Hair mask

Did you hear about the time I had banana head? I heard that mashed banana was a good hair mask, so I tried it. Short on details, I left it in my hair too long and was picking hunks of banana, and banana seeds out of my hair for some time. Kim cut my hair during the banana days, and the quote is: Well. (pause) That's a first.


So tonight I invented a concoction of my own, involving mayo, an egg yolk, honey and some apple cider vinegar.



Pray for me.

The Aeolian is cruising towards the finish line. I'm on the last chart. I really love it.

Oh duh

It just struck me that I could put more than one bead on a crochet hook at a time, and therefore speed up the process of inserting them.

I've been knitting the Aeolian, and so far, so good. It requires approximately 2250 beads; the discovery was significant.

The Columbia from AK



Some BFL/Silk that I'm spinning. 4 oz down, 4 to go.

Some news about knitting?

I got this, and I started knitting it out of Tiziano Red.

When it's finished I think I'll call it the Sandra Tiziano shawl.

There are 3 stitches that are garter but should be stockinette. I'm not mad enough to rip back an entire repeat and fix the stitches. I think a Tiziano is allowed to be a little tiny bit glitchy. So far it doesn't have any heels.

The Year of Estonian/Orenburg lace is turning into...

The year of the sock. The year of fundraising. The year of cycling. The year of knitting socks to fundraise for cycling.

In happy news, there is SOME progress on the lace front. I was able to find a copy of Galina's book from Shuttleworks, and so around the time of the Olympics I spent many, many hours working on the Eastern Star shawl. I think i have 5" or so completed (scoff if you may, that's one crapload of knitting we're talking about there); and tragically I dropped a stitch that ran allllll the way back to where the lace joins the shawl. On that note, the whole project went into the time out basket, and it resides there still.

OK, so I bought an Orenburg shawl from Galina. I admit it. It's fabulous and I love it, and I just saved myself a year of knitting. (It's everything I dreamed it would be and more)

My Estonian shawl (the Miralda) is almost complete, but I ran out of handspun just inches before the cast off. Not a huge problem (thank God), Correna had 4oz. of Bison that she bought from the same vendor as I had, so I have been spinning that to finish the shawl with. I thought I'd DO THE RIGHT THING (cuz I love her) and spin the whole 4oz and return her down in the form of yarn. So.. I need some extra time with that.


(an old picture.. it's almost done now)

As far as lace goes, I did knit Amy's new bolero pattern 'Watershed', and it's quite lovely. I chose the wrong yarn for the project, and the garment doesn't drape the way it ought to. My fault entirely.



Ohhhhh, and socks. I've been contract knitting them left, right and centre. Also, Martha donated a whole basket full that she'd knitted, so a bunch of the money I raised for the Ride to Conquer Cancer happened on account of socks. Currently I'm knitting a pair of yellow ones that I can wear during the ride. At least I hope so, they're DK weight, and maybe a little thick for the job. We'll see. I also have a pair of Casbah socks in blue on the needles, and finished a pair of Silk Garden 211 socks for Donna's birthday.

They're everywhere, they're everywhere.

What else? Hmmmmm... I knitted a Wool Leaves for a shop display. It's kinda cool, and will make a nice lap blanket when I bring it home.



Oh! Over a weekend retreat I knitted a version of Kourtney's "Mistaken" shawl. I absolutely adore it! You can knit it for yourself by downloading her free Ravelry pattern. (I actually knit the green one shown, but the picture is Kourtney's)



Lots of other stuff happening at the moment. My mom is having surgery on June 1 for breast cancer, so I'm going to fly to Victoria for 2 days. Nini turns 3 on June 4th. I have the MS Ride on June 12/13, the Ride for Dad on June 19th and the Ride to Conquer Cancer on June 26/27. It isn't even June yet, and somehow it seems like the summer is half over. To my utter shock, I barely have any more time to train for the rides. Damned blizzards.

The puppy turned one! He's so amazing, and cute, and funny, and sweet, and talented, and did I say funny?



Speaking of SHOCK, it would appear that I'm not going to have anything suitable completed to put into Stampede. I love a rosette, I have to say.

This has not been the year of taking good photographs, so I'll post this as is, and hope that I can fill it in with images at a later time instead of just.not.blogging.cuz.i.have.no.pictures.

Flowers and chocolates and more

The big weekend started off well... Apache, with steller aim, dropped his dog toy into my coffee; therefore teaching me that it's a dumb idea to put the cup down on the floor beside my feet.



Mug received a dozen red roses, and a heart shaped box of chocolates.. her first. Seems like a milestone.



BFML and I went to the Friends Church with his marvelous sister and her amazing husband. Afterwards we went to Lina's and ate everything in the store that wasn't nailed down. Awesome.

Otherwise, I've been watching the Olympics from morning until night for 3 days, during which I've completed the 10th border repeat of my first Orenburg lace project (The Eastern Star Gossamer Shawl). There have been some ups and downs... let me tell you, a dropped stitch is darned near the end of the world. The first one cost me 15 rows of knitting before I could get a clear pickup. It came this.close to being frogged. Knitting in 2/64 weight cashmere is akin to knitting with 2 human hairs, and let me tell you, it is challenging on nerves, patience and the eyeballs.



And, polar opposite... I've been working on Wool Leaves, by Jared Flood. It's knitted with 2 strands of Cascade Eco, and couldn't be further away from the Eastern Star project. Quick, fluffy, warm, and easy... it'll be a great store sample. I'm knitting it somewhat longer than the pattern calls for, so instead of a bulky baby blanket, it'll be a wrap of some sort.



And now I'm tired.

Stuff

I'm wondering why there is a woman asleep on Jann Arden's kitchen island. I know it's true, because I saw the picture on twitter. Apparently she' a diva, so maybe diva's get to do that sort of thing. Also, did you know that Jann dresses her dog in outfits? Very cute dog, I must say.

I have a giant magnet on my hip. Opera is hoping that it helps my sciatica. I am hoping the same damned thing, exactly. I made an empty threat regarding bodily functions and said magnet, and she told me that i WOULD be purchasing it.

I watched 'Whip It' tonight, by accident. Real roller derby is way better, but more dangerous. Just ask Mug. Also, check out the bruise on Jaime's elbow. Biggest.bruise.ever.

I had a spicy chicken sandwich at Wendy's earlier, and somehow they forgot the spicy.

Today I completed the minimum fundraising for the 2010 Ride to Conquer Cancer. I'm really, really, really excited.

I've been a bit worried about my friend Linda, because I haven't heard from her in a long while.

I have two hand carved knitting needles in my possession that are so cool you'll want to pee your pants. A complete stranger came in and asked me to create a silent auction for them, and to donate the money to charity. I was gob smacked. Pictures and info to follow.

I wanted to tell somebody something, but I can't remember the something, so I'm going to forget the entire scenario.

I've been knitting a new Jared Flood pattern, Wool Leaves, for the last day or so, and I must say... doubled Cascade Eco is the way to go with every project on the planet. It's giant lace. Do purchase this pattern if you'd like to create a real quick lace blanket; baby sized.

BFML's movie is on... The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. I haven't seen it (or BFML) on TV before, so I'll leave the rest of the stuff for another day.

Just one more

Ukraine has talent, 2009 winner. A spectacular piece of art and theater; the story of a romance and family and war (at least that is what I see).



I am thrilled to announce that the Tinkmeister frogged my Miralda back a dozen rows or so to discover that I had knitted an extra stitch into the back of a dreaded nupp, thereby throwing half of the shawl off wack. I haven't picked it up again, but I will soon. I've got so many Orenburg shawls in my head that I'm a bit frozen.

This morning I finished knitting a knee warmer.. loads of ribbing, but I thought it would be great. Turns out I hate the damned thing, and I'm sure it'll hit the frog pond. Don't know if it was the yarn, the pattern, the leg it was supposed to fit, or the knitter; but it was a fail.

I've got two pairs of socks happening.. Both have one finished, both are roundy rounds. One pair is nearly finished; the problem being that I keep losing the project bag (that would be the one containing Signature Needle Arts DPNs).. and it is, in fact, lost again. The other is a pair that I'm knitting for myself from yarn that Mandie dyed. Love.them. I've been knitting them on the train, to and from work.



Just a quick note to say that if you're looking for a copy of Gossamer Webs, Shuttleworks still has some at a very reasonable price. When I realized that I absolutely had to have one but it was out of print, I sent Cal a quick email... victory! I knitted the little test shawl and learned so many new things within that tiny little project; it was amazing.



I've been spinning like crazy.. finished the Qiviut (but sadly there are some plying issues with it, and I'm quite sure I'm going to have to do some repair work before I knit with it). I bought some silk from Hedgehog Fibers, and I was really disappointed with the dyeing, so that's sitting in a bag waiting for a re-think (the exterior was spectacular.. utterly spectacular; but the inside wasn't dyed at all)... Also got some SW BFL from Pigeonroof Studios. I've never used SW BFL before, so I was looking forward to giving it a whirl. The fiber had loads of kemp in it, so it was slightly disappointing. The good news is that the vendor had temporarily switched distributors and didn't realize the fiber was of lesser quality, and she offered to refund my money. I like the customer service! Right now I'm spinning Sweet Georgia BFL (sorry Jacinda, my girl, I promise I'll mail you yours soon), and it's a nice as ever.

I was in a brief but fierce race to knit the Knitting Pure and Simple Summer Open Cardigan before Aunty Tink or Munchie finished theirs. Again with the victory. I still haven't wet finished it, but I will.

Loads of stuff on the needles, including a fuschia version of the Camelot coat, some Noro Retro fingerless gloves, and the Wollemeise Glows gloves (I have 4" Knitpicks dpns now, so the fingers are a little less excruciating).

I've been feeling really awful since the I had the hinie in the fall; finally went to the doctor and he's put me on some fierce antibiotics for the respiratory system, and Tamiflu as well. I'm so sick and tired of being sick and tired...

Seriously, I am

Riding, that is.

I was so so so so happy the other night when I came home because the mountain bike doesn't have a fender, and I was mud from here to there. I felt all.. well, hard core.

The feeling was completely null and void as I took the train to work the next day because I heard there was a skim of ice on the roads. I am telling myself that a measley 40 minutes of walking (all tolled) is better than driving.

In other news... I seem to have lost my signature arts dpns, which were last seen in a bag with 1.5 Hand Maiden, hand dyed, hand knitted socks. For charity, no less. I know they were in my bike pack, and after that, I have no idea. They'll show up, I'm quite sure.

The Miralda is in time out because I don't have the nerve to frog her yet. I might ask Aunty Tink to do that, because she's good that way. The last time I asked her to help me with lace she resorted to drink, and the shawl actually whupped her. The first one ever, if I remember correctly.

I don't know how I have the nerve (because I have about 10 things on needles that I can name off the top of my head), but I cast on a cute little sweater tonight that I plan to be wearing by next Wednesday. Me and Aunty Tink think we're going to get ours done before Munchie, purely due to the size of our girls compared to her girls. I didn't get much done tonight, but I believe I will be wearing that sweater on Wednesday...

It's good to be goal oriented.

I'm back.

This morning when I woke up the news lady said that it was plus 5 degrees outside. Now that, my friend, is biking weather. I got a used mountain bike off of craigslist, and it has big knobby tires and, well.. it weighs about 6 thousand pounds (OK, maybe not exactly that much). I figured it could keep it on the road on ice, snow and slush.

Mostly, I was correct.

The bike path was really excellent for a while, and I thought to myself that I could have easily ridden my road bike. In time though, the path was covered in packed snow, and I was busy congratulating myself on my excellent choice of vehicles.

That was before the slush.

Excuse me, but CRAP that's a tough slog... At some points I was trying to make it through up to 4" of slush and ice and frozen tracks. Next time I'm taking myself back to HOME ROAD and, traffic or not, it has to be better than what I rode through today. We'll see.

The good part? I saw geese, I smelled the river (most of it is still open) and trees and one person's breakfast joint. I breathed fresh air, and although I'm not in as good condition as I was 2 months ago (we'll call that PRE-HINIE), I got that 6 gazillion lb. bike up hill and dale, and I arrived at work without falling.

Win.

In other win-ish news, I spent a few nights over the weekend working on the Miralda triangular shawl. I'm mid-way through the diamond charts (which means I have knit 6 quadrillion nupps). The yarn is Bison, handspun on Donna's Rose and is absolutely perfect for the project. Gosh it's soft.. and beautiful. This is the year of Estonian/Orenburg lace, afterall, and it's about time I got serious about it.

Last week I finshed spinning the Qivuit and I have about a thousand yards (I estimate). My plan is to knit an Orenburg shawl (ie: no nupps), and I have what I think is the perfect pattern. We'll see...

I've been juggling Fleece Artist merino socks with fingerless gloves for Jim... there's all kinds of knitting going on these days.

My 1st anniversary with TKR was Jan 5th; gosh time flies.

Life is productive.

Did you ever read Ayn Rand?

I did, and apparently now reading her is super cool, because she's back in. ahem.

If you haven't, you ought to..

I need to ask you why (why Lord, why?) haven't I ever tried Estonian lace before? I'm crazy in love with the project so far; tho I'm currently in a spot that could create severe catastrophic boneheaded aunty tink-sized fixoramas. Or not. The handspun Bison is just exactly right. Unless someone offers me the moon for it (to put towards my ride), I might just keep this one.



At the same time I'm knitting some socks for a TKR customer in support of my 2010 ride to conquer cancer. I'm 1/2 way done the second sock, which hasn't been such a big problem, since the recipient has size two feet. This totally and absolutely is restitution for the size 9 somethings that I had to knit for sock wars. Universe? We're even now. I acknowledge that.

Today I was going to ride my bike, but I couldn't locate my helmet (in the truck after the huge windstorm rescue). Friday for sure.

Also, today I met a new little person, named the lovely Miss E. If my ovaries weren't petrified, I think they'd be twinging.. gosh, she is beautiful in every way. Congratulations to her family (including me, a self appointed great-auntie).

I saw Judi Blue Eyes at the store, and I just can't put my joy into words; I missed her very much.. Also, Nancy L came in and had a visit. She didn't know that I am at the Knitting Room these days, so it was a nice re-connection.

Knitting? The Miralda, the second Camelot, many socks, and two secret Christmas type things. Soon? Another tea cosy for the KAL... and ok, a 'pretty thing' cowl or two.

Spinning? I'm going to card punis and actually try to spin Qivuit on Donna's wheel. I think that after spinning all that Bison, that I might have a handle on it. We'll see.

Now? So going to bed. Sleep well, all.

I'm knitting Estonian lace...

with my own handspun bison. I think I might be short, but Opera is going to share her stash so that I get the shawl finished.

There was a point in my life when I thought that Estonia was the end of everything good (don't ask.. it's a long, boring story), and here I am, with a warm, beautiful shawl in my lap and I'm all.. yayyyy Estonia.

Camera battery is dead, but what I've accomplished deserves a good photo. Perhaps the shop will share some good light tomorrow and I'll have something to post.

It's warmed up, and I think I'll be able to ride tomorrow.

And.. here's my Mugwump. Posted because she's so beautiful.

Not even for money

That's all I have to say... tho I can see the logic in it if you needed a fingering weight lace, or planned on making yourself some silk socks (says the woman with a cone of white Zephyr).

Video is in Russian, but the words aren't necessary as far as I can tell.

2010, year of the nupp, year of Estonian, year of Orenburg

Year of crazy?

Of late I've been spinning Bison and Qiviut like a crazy woman, getting ready for 2010. I have almost all of the Bison in singles at the moment, and I plan on plying it with silk (which is not yet purchased.. I don't think I'll spin it).



I've spun miles of cobweb singles from the Qiviut, but I've barely touched it, overall. I have about 80 grams left to do.. the plan is to do 10 grams every day or so, but that hardly explains why it took me a year to do the first 30 grams.



After trials on my new Holly Tabachek Tibetan, on the Golding from Marilynn, and on the Cascade Tiger, I've decided to go with the Golding. It's a bit heavier than I'd like for the fiber, but the results are less fuzzy than with the Tabachek, and faster than the Tiger. My plan is to have all of those two fibers done and ready by the end of this year. As well, I washed about 50% of a Shetland fleece, ran it through the Pat Green Triple Picker, and then carded it on the Strauch Finest. The triple picker made a massive difference in the carding, and it ended up to be a joy to do. I might ply the Shetland singles with a Cashmerino cobweb single that I brought in from Colourmart (Haven't shopped there yet? Why the heck not?)

So it goes. At least that's the plan.

I'm not discussing the Cormo. Talk about your fly in the ointment.

The year of Estonian/Orenburg Lace

I thought I'd talk about it, even though putting the intention out into the universe makes me wonder if I've bitten off more than I can chew.

You may know that I've been collecting some Qivuit and that I've been spinning it on a tiny drop spindle (on and off for more than a year). I also have about 5 ounces of Bison that I've been spinning on Donna's Rose. So, here is the plan.

In 2010 I'm going to use the Bison to knit something from Nancy Bush's Knitted Lace of Estonia; most likely Miralda's Triangular Shawl. If that goes well, then I'm going to use all of the Qivuit to make a more difficult, and larger piece. I haven't decided on a pattern yet, but I've been doing some research on Galena Khmeleva's work. (fyi.. If you Google 'Galena Khmeleva Estonian Lace', the 5th entry is a blog post by Aunty Tink. I kid you not)

I am wondering what the difference is between Orenburg and Estonian lace, if anything. Chime in Aunty Tink.

So there you have it. No finished objects for me in 2010, that is for certain. If you were hoping for socks, it's looking poor.

Take that, Home Road

I beat it.

Kinda... I blew a shift and that stopped me dead in my tracks. But instead of walking the rest of the way up, I got back on the bike, and I rode to the top.

YYYYYaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyy. Home Road? You don't get all caps any more.

Me and the BF have really been enjoying the Tour de France, and I was sad to see it end last night. During the tour, I knitted a lot on the Glow gloves; the first one is close to needing fingers. I also spun a couple hundred grams of BFL and Merino/Silk.. and I cast on for the Girasole. I'm about 1/2 way through Chart C, and it's looking good.

Did I mention that I whupped Home Road? Big.Silly.Grin.

tell me...

Do you have any idea why I have more energy in the afternoon than I do in the morning? I cannot figure it out. I eat my breakfast, I am hydrated, but I cannot get up that hill at 9am. However, at 2:00.. tired and hot-hot-hot, it seemed like it was within reach.

How does this work?

The only thing I could think of was that it might be my BP meds.. so I switched to taking them at night. No difference.


Frustrating. So here's an awwwwwww for us all.



My Glow gloves are coming along nicely; I am just starting the second chart. Also, I've been spinning quite a bit, and finished 100 grams of Fleece Artist Wool/Silk. It's a very manly colourway, so I'm thinking it might be socks for the BF.

Tonight I flick carded and spun a little bit of Shetland that we got while we were at Olds. One lock went so far that I'm currently in fear regarding spinning a whole fleece. I want to knit some Orenburg this year, and I'd love to do it with my own handspun. We'll see.

BFML comes home tomorrow. I'm glad.

If you looked at your queue

I mean really, really looked at it; and ignoring the patterns that you've already purchased, and the yarn that you already have on-hand.. what would you actually knit?

My hair stands on end when I see a few patterns, and so I'm going to call those 'the ones'.. and honestly, I ought to delete the rest of the queue. But I won't.

So here's my must-knit list, as of today.


Tulip Cardi (that just has to be Dream in Colour, don't you think?)


Glows (maybe Claire will take pity on me, and get that colour of WM)


Kingscot (I have the pattern, and the problem is that I can't decide on the perfect yarn. And what can I say? I love a bobble. Me and Denny. We're for the bobble)


Cosima (because I'm just.that.tall.and.thin. or not)


Dianna (Nice name, huh? I want to spin/dye for this shawl.. I think I'm going to make two; a DK and a laceweight)

So there you have it. The list.

Now can someone tell me why I have 4 complete pages of other stuff on my queue? Clearly they are never going to see the light of day.

Going to a shearing tomorrow

I'm really looking forward to it... and have new gumboots to celebrate spring. I'll need them.

Today I found this version of Amazing Grace. Seems to me that if you're going to sing about grace, you ought to really get amazing; and this fits the bill.



And yes... the BFML picture is a bit creepy, which was his intention. I have knitting to show, that is for sure.. just waiting for a bit of sunshine and a bit of green. It's time to put the light box away until fall.

Near Solstice? I'm waffling. It's imperfect, and I'm not sure I can stand it. It might hit the frog pond. I've started a new shawl with a cashmere/silk blend that I dyed and spun. It's looking good, and will keep me busy until I decide what's happening with the NS.

Zzzzzzz, dental hygiene, and the letter E.

On Mar 21st I left Calgary... flew to San Diego. I'd been up since about 3:30 or 4:00AM, so when at 7:30pm I couldn't keep my eyes open, I wasn't too surprised.

The next night, in Mexico, I crashed at about 8ish. Each night was a similar story; tho I wasn't working too hard physically I was totally exhausted. I slept through the night over and over again. It was so great.

Was it because I was sleeping alone (and dog free) in a single bunk? Because I wasn't compulsively thinking about work? Because I was getting more exercise?

I just don't know. I expect it's a combination of everything.. all I know is that it was very, very wonderful, and I have to figure out a way to make it work at home.

Regarding dental hygiene... I had my teeth cleaned and polished, and had a checkup while I was in Mexico; all for the princely sum of $25.00 US. Can you believe that one? I.am.so.happy.

Prior to leaving for Mexico, I had been finishing off the upside down Haiku on the Near Solstice shawl... beautiful! Save for one misplaced yarn-over on a letter E. Just enough to blur the letter, and make the entire word illegible. These last two nights I've been sitting on the couch struggling with it. I have no desire to frog 20'ish rows of approximately 600 stitches each and start the haiku afresh. Nor can I leave it as is... So I initially tried to tink the E, and re-knit. Fail.

I'm telling you, it took some serious deep breathing before I had the nerve to start tinking that mess.... I had no idea if the correction was possible, or if I was causing myself a massive trip to the frog pond. Anyway....

Next I tinked approximately 1/2 of the word 'secret' and re-knit that. More-fail.

Tension was a problem, so I thought that a set of smaller metal DPN's would help, and I tinked for a 3rd time... this time, the entire word. I spent all of tonight re-knitting a section of 51 stitches, and for the most part, the problem seems cured. At the last possible moment, I neglected to turn the work, so I have to tink 4 stinking rows AGAIN. I'm not complaining, but damn.. it was a huge amount of time and energy to resolve a single yarn over.

Tomorrow is another day..

It's a very good friday the 13th

My Mug got herself the best report card I've ever seen, and through it, I benefit by getting my second free breakfast at the school. She's on the honour roll again! I can barely contain myself, I'm so proud.



I thought I lost her today... she walked home from school alone, and as we had discussed, she dropped in to Make One to visit with Sandra. I asked her to call me when she got home.. well, at 5pm BFML called to ask if I'd heard from her? After I'd told everyone left at the store that I had an emergency, and would be closing (I feel compelled to say that the store closes at 5 on Fridays..), I thought that she might have stayed a long time with Sandra, rather than dropping by for a quick hello. Phew... she was there. It's moments like that one that make you realize how much you love someone.

I've taken a few nights off of my not-so-secret project due to pure exhaustion (insomnia 6, annie 1). It's not the kind of thing you can knit with a fuzzy brain and crossed eyes. I'm almost through the second row of an upside-down haiku. Once the first row was completed, I had something to 'read', as I knit.. so it's going pretty well. When you're facing 600 stitches, the idea of frogging is not what I'd call enticing.

Today I was thinking about things that remind me of my childhood.. I was remembering the green leather seats and shiny stainless steel bars on the bus (we rode it a lot, as our mother didn't drive). I was thinking about cheddar cheese popcorn and floral gums from the Olde English Sweet Shoppe. I was thinking about garter stitch.



I've been knitting since I was 4, and when I close my eyes, I can see row upon row of perfect garter stitch in the squares I used to knit. I think I got all of my mother's ends to work with, so everything was striped (Until I learned how to knit baby clothes, and suddenly I owned entire balls of yarn. Seems to me that I might have been quite useful to my mother as cousins appeared; nieces and nephews arrived).

As I knit on my new project.. which is acres of garter stitch.. I am feeling that I am in a very familiar, very comforting place. I hope it continues.