Post-Christmas

I'm back from a couple of days in Powell River, BC. We were visiting my dh's parents and brothers. DH stayed up there for a couple more days while ds and I came home. Dd didn't even go - she had a cold and wasn't feeling all that well, but admitted that seeing her aging grandparents is hard on her. Her grandmother doesn't remember much of anything these days and constantly has to be reminded who people are. She does remember her own children but can't remember if they're married or have children. Dd said that the emotional pain on top of being sick would be too much for her. So we let her stay on her own for two days at home. The first time. She's 17 so I wasn't too concerned. She's not the type to invite lots of friends over and trash the house. She did make more of a mess than the post-Christmas mess we had when we left. Darn! I wish she had gotten the cleanup bug, LOL.



Dh's two brothers and one nephew live with his parents. One brother is their caregiver. The other brother is unemployed and content to stay that way. The nephew is there temporarily, I think. They have turned the basement rec room into a bit of a 'den of iniquity'. Friday and Saturday nights (the nights I was there), they had 2 - 3 tables of poker players come in. It felt just like a casino. I played a few games over the time I was there. It just didn't feel like visiting family. Even my dh, who loves getting into long conversations with his family mentioned it. Hopefully these next couple of days are better for him.



While in Powell River I looked for yarn stores. Dh was quite supportive. He even helped me look for stores in the smaller towns along the 4-5 hour drive up and asked if I wanted to make small detours to look more. I didn't take him up on it on the way but went out on my own once we got there. Dh's brother said there was a yarn store in the mall. It was two days away from closing and was mostly cleaned out. But, what was there was 80% off! I bought some acrylic yarn to add to my stash - not exciting but cheap. I found some Linie 64 Nobile, regularly priced at 13.99 a ball, in the same (I hope) colourway as my dd's grad dress. It's a deep almost brown burgundy colour. It has shiny flecks in it. I want to make her a shrug to wear with her dress. In all I got about $170 worth of yarn for $30. Oh Yeah!



Right now I'm knitting some wrist warmers. I wanted to do a cable and found a lovely pattern:




It's called Rose's Wrist Warmers and was, apparently, copied from an episode of Dr. Who. This is a photo I found online. I'm about halfway finished one of them and I'm using purple Alpaca Merino from Sweaterkits. It's lovely and soft but does have some clear coloured flyaways. I'm knitting them with my new Denise Interchangeable Knitting Needle set that I got for Christmas. Maybe I'll see if the store where I bought the yarn (Shan's Needlework in New Westminster) has enough left for a beret. That would be a nice set.


Have a happy new year!

Christmas

I see I have not blogged since Dec 2. No, that's not true. I did blog one day, then clicked the wrong button and that entry went to post heaven. I missed it very much for a few minutes but did not replace it. It was too soon.

All the Christmas hats done; the bags are felted. They are all in one big box, each filled with plastic bags of three different kinds of fudge and a couple of lottery tickets -big gift-giving items in my family.

The preparations for Christmas went well. Lots of money was spent on electronics. Tomorrow I shall see if I got my Denise Knitting Needle set.

We went to the Christmas Eve service at church tonight at 6:00. Both of our kids, teenagers of 16 and 17, were working at McDonald's. They're growing up and things will only continue to change. Jobs, marriages, moves to different locations will all affect how Christmas works each year. With our oldest graduating this year, this may be the last Christmas we're all together. But, really, I don't think so, at least not yet.

Merry Christmas.

Knitters at Christmas Parties

Last night I went to my husband's company's Christmas Party. It had snowed overnight so the Lower Mainland could go into its usual snow-tizzy -an inch of snow and a little ice on the road and many people get stuck on the road. Last year it took me three hours to get home from work a couple of days.

This party was at Swan E Set golf and country club way out in Pitt Meadows (funny name, eh?). We thought it was smooth sailing until we found the road we were supposed to turn on and P put his foot on the brake and we slid on black ice right past it and another car that had gone into a ditch. The ride home was a little treacherous too but we made it fine.

But - at the party: P has been working for this company for only about 6 weeks so even he didn't know many of the people there. I, of course didn't know anybody. When I looked across the room I saw somebody knitting! I got right up and went over to talk to her. She was knitting a scarf. She was quite a beginner, someone who was looking forward to knitting lace. I showed her the long tail cast on and how lace is made - yarn overs and knit two togethers to keep the number of stitches on the needles constant. I wrote down some web sites for her: Knittinghelp.com, Ravelry. She asked a lot of questions. I think I scared her when I said knitting could become all-consuming. She said she already had one of those hobbies: water-colour painting.

Well, you know, you plant the seeds and see what grows.

As for my own knitting, I haven't been for a few days. I've finished about 5-6 hats and have been thinking about felting those bags. I guess I'm a bit stalled but that's okay, I've gots lots of time before everything has to be finished.

What's Happening?

Well, same old, same old.

I'm knitting hats (still). Not liking them so much. It's the dpn's (double pointed needles). I much prefer circular needs. But I couldn't find 6.5mm circs in a very short length at Walmart and I don't want to buy the really expensive ones. I'm thinking about ordering - oops, asking for - Denise Kits needles for Christmas - every size, every length - oh yeah!

Three Bags Full has them and I'm going to see if they have a set to try out.

I'm doing 2x2 rib. Knit 2, Purl 2. Not so thrilling but the hats go quickly. DD wants some wrist warmers - those should be fun. Maybe I can do them before Christmas - they could go in her stocking.

Hats Off to Slytherin

The hats are coming along fine now after a practice one where I realized the error of my ways and then changed patterns.

Now I am making 'Hot Head' from Stitch & Bitch, A Knitter's Handbook. Only 64 stitches cast on and knitting with a single strand. The ribbing makes the stitches bunch up so the hats looks ridiculously small but they stretch out nicely to fit any head.

I've finished two and had my family try them on to test them out for size. I got hinted at for hats of their own (and a bag for dd). She said:

"Are you going to make me a bag?"

"No," I said - I had already made her a bag so I wasn't going to.

I said: "I've made all the bags I'm going to make." Just to further cloud the issue, you see.

She put on a pouty face and wrote down knitted hat and bag on the Christmas list she was compiling. Then she wrote something that may change my plans: 'Slytherin'.

In case you don't read them, it's from the Harry Potter books, one of the school houses' colours (the bad one). That means she wants gray and green. She learned to knit garter stitch a while back and made herself a scarf with gray and green yarn.

It's a good thing I liked making those bags and I'm not tired of them yet.

Giant Heads

Hats. Or, in this case, hat. It could fit a giant's head.

It's too big! It's also really bulky. I knew I wasn't using the called-for needles but I usually knit quite tightly so I thought it would be okay going up a size or two - it's what I usually end up doing.

It's a different yarn than the pattern calls for but I know someone has made this hat with this yarn because I looked it up on Ravelry. The pattern says to use a double strand. I did that, but maybe I don't need to. Sigh. I'll take a trip to the frog pond and rip it, rip it, rip it.

Just a Quick Note

Went to Heidi's place last night with friend Margaret for our regular Knit Night. I've started the hats but wonder if they're going to be too bulky or too big - because of course I'm not using the called-for needles. I'll finish the first one and get some people to try it on so I can see if I need to make adjustments.

I feel the start of a cold. Suddenly last night my nose started dripping. Now I have a whopper headache and a sore throat. I took some medicine so I'll see how it goes.

Ravelry Get-Together

Today 7 knitters from the Terminal City Yarn Wranglers Ravelry group got together at Grinds coffee shop in Vancouver on Main Street and King Edward. This is the second meeting that we've had. Today there were myself, Louisa, Lola, Tammy, Lauren, Beth and another whose name I didn't get - sorry, that hearing thing again. I don't know if the others have blogs.

We chatted and munched and sipped and knit and made a field trip to Three Bags Full (which was very busy). We've pretty well decided to keep the get togethers going, probably every two weeks. We may bring some spinning along next time - drop spindles and spinning wheels. OOOoooOOOh.

I started my last felted bag while I was there - pretty soon it's on to the hats! I chose the chunky ribbed hat by shirleyknits.

Technical blogging note - why can't I get my paragraph breaks to work? I've been trying to put a blank line between them (see last post) and it won't work for the most part.

Hats and Bags, Bags and Hats!

I didn't make it to the Coquitlam Spinners' and Weavers' open house. I got busy with editing my newsletter and didn't have time. Heidi couldn't come either. But, the newsletter's well under way, now.

I'm doing well on my felted bags for Christmas presents. I think I have just one more to knit. Then on with the felting. They're going so well that I began thinking what I could do for the male members of my extended family. There are five women other than myself who usually get together for our Christmas celebration. There are also five men other than my husband. Could I knit something for them as well? Hmmm.

It can't want something that will take a long time and I don't know definite sizes. It'll have to be a hat or a scarf, I guess. Something quick. I think hats. I had a quick look through Ravelry and found two options:

Bulky Ribbed Hat by Shirleyknits

or

Hot Head by Alex Zorn from Stitch 'N Bitch, A Knitter's Handbook

I'll go to the library to get the S&B book - if it's knit flat and then sewn together I don't want it. I want something knit in the round. Then I'll choose the first one. I guess it will be acrylic this time as well. Can't trust those menfolk to do the hand-wash, lay flat to dry thing.

Do you know, I'd better not leave my husband, son and daughter out of this. I'd already planned a felted bag for my daughter. She has her eye on the 'furry' one, I think. She'll get that. I'll make my husband and son a hat each as well. I think I can keep it a secret. I'll be knitting so much they won't know whose is whose. Chortle, Chortle.

So Much Yarn In So Little Time

I'm feeling a little guilty. I have so many yarn-related activities planned that I maaaaay be neglecting my family just a little bit. I know, it's that work thing; that's the culprit. Last week when I was off it was fine. I could cram a few yarny things into the day when school was happening and still be there at night. But now....

Tonight there's a Coquitlam spinners' and weavers' guild open house - I get to have my second attempt at spinning, and my friend Heidi wants to come with me! Sunday there's a meetup of Ravelry people at a Vancouver coffee shop. That's after Tuesday night's knit night. I was away from home Monday night at a business meeting for work, but if not for that I would have been at Ikea for knit night. Well, I guess I was here last night, but I had to miss my son's band concert because I had to work on the newsletter I edit (I had neglected it for knitting, too). Can I cram quality time into Friday and Saturday? Maybe... if there's no knitting activity I can be strong. I know I can.

So what am I knitting these days? I have been completely consumed - aside from work and newsletter and perhaps a couple of TV shows (Dancing with the Stars and America's Next Top Model -not my fault!!! My daughter watches and I've become addicted!), I have been knitting bags to felt to Christmas presents. They go pretty quickly. I'm doing about 6 and I've got 3 or 4 knitted up. All I have to do with them now is weave in the ends, sew the hole up on the bottom and felt them. I'm quite liking felting.

Back to the Grind

Whew! I tried to post and couldn't! I thought my blogging adventure had ended after my first post.

Alright, hysteria aside, here's what I wanted to say:

I've had a week off from work - for no purpose other than to have some time off. It became a very fibre-filled week. Getting together with a Ravelry group, visiting Louisa's (Damselfly) home and fibre studio, a couple of field trips to lys's (local yarn stores), deciding to knit up felted bags for Christmas gifts, and a trip out to the Langley Weavers' and Spinners' sale. I think I'm a little bit addicted, say what?

Yesterday I visited my Mom and sister and knit on their Christmas gifts right in front of them - I'm so sneaky. When they asked me what I was making I just said 'knitted bags' and didn't elaborate further. If they had a clue they didn't say anything.

So today it's off to work again. I work in a dental x-ray clinic. Tonight there's an owner's meeting and they want me to go to discuss a new purchase - a dental CT machine (ooh, exciting - more digital toys).

Alas, I have to visit my lys again today (she said sarcastically). I have some yarn on hold and said I would pick it up today. I think I can fit it in between work and the meeting.

And So We Start

Blogging - it's been on my mind for a while.

I've been reading blogs (mainly knitting blogs) and have been thoroughly entertained. And yes, I guess I have to admit I've become addicted to some. I fancy myself a bit of a writer (one who doesn't write, though, so it may be self-defeating). Could I? Would I? Should I? Well, let's see where this takes me.

Knitting - I began knitting when I was young. I was self taught from a book, which means I didn't learn everything I needed. There was no one to help me along and I wasn't hooked. Speaking of being hooked I tried crochet as well and was less than enthralled. I did a little knitting through my teens and early twenties and then didn't have anything to do with it for years. And years. And years. (I know I'm dating myself but there you go).

A while back I realized I hadn't done anything 'crafty' for a year and a half. A while longer passed and it was two years. My fingers were definitely feeling an itch to do something. I read a small newspaper article about a lys (local yarn store) and that was enough. I visited, I bought, I knat-great word, Rabbitch (see if you can guess whose blogs I read).

I found a community of knitters that hadn't been there for me before. The internet makes it possible. Ravelry - oooh! If you're on Ravelry look me up - MarinaB. Facebook - I only use it to play scrabble with a friend. I found people who knit among those I know already and from the internet. I'm trying to meet them and share the knitting 'thang'.

So let me try to put a picture in here. I'll show you of what I'm (sort of) making for Christmas gifts:

The bag and its bottom.

I think that worked. Okay, I wrote 'sort of' because I'm leaving the eyelash fringe off the bags. This is the Uptown Tote, a felted bag. I'm making it smaller so that I can make it from only two skeins of Cascade 220. I think they will still be big enough to please to populace.

So that's my first post to my first blog. I do have lots more to say but I don't want to overload my first entry, do I? You'll just have to wait - you see I'm imagining there are people reading this.